Proceedings of the British Association. 369 



press. The total number of stars reduced and catalogued, is 

 about 10,000; — the sum of £105 remaining of the original grant 

 unappropriated ; which the committee recommend to be applied, 

 (with such additional grant as may be needed,) to the printing 

 and publication of the catalogue, without which it is evident that 

 little or no benefit can result to astronomical science from the 

 work so accomplished. With the catalogue, and forming an in- 

 troduction to it, an account of the process pursued in the reduc- 

 tions, the constants used, and all other matter needful for a com- 

 plete understanding of the work, ought also to be printed ; and 

 should it be the pleasure of the Association to order the publica- 

 tion, will be furnished by Mr. Henderson. The estimated cost 

 of the publication so recommended, may be roughly stated at 

 about £250, for printing, paper, &c. of 500 copies of the cata- 

 logue and introduction. — J. F. W. Herschel." 



The President observed, that the discussion and publication of 

 these observations upon the stars of the southern hemisphere, 

 originally made by M. de Lacaille, now possessed an increased 

 interest in consequence of the recent observations of Sir John 

 Herschel, prosecuted at precisely the same locality, thus furnish- 

 ing two series of observations upon the same stars at epochs sep- 

 arated by a very considerable interval of time. 



Mr. W. Snow Harris reported on the Meteorological Observa- 

 tions made at Plymouth last year. He stated that at the close of 

 1842, he should be able to revise (and bring to the next meeting 

 of the Association) the results of the series of meteorological ob- 

 servations continued hourly, night and day, without material in- 

 terruption, during ten years. He now submitted only a general 

 discussion of five years' observation of the barometer during the 

 years 1837 to 1841, both inclusive, and some observations and 

 experiments on the wind, made with Prof Whewell's anemome- 

 ter. The observations were made at a height of 75 feet above 

 the level of the sea, and were reduced to 32° Fahr. He exhib- 

 ited a chart, showing the lines resulting from the means in each 

 of these years, and also the mean of the whole five years, and 

 noticed the surprising coincidence in the general character of all 

 these lines, and the very few and small deviations they present- 

 ed — a remarkable result, considering the frequent atmospheric 

 disturbances to which these latitudes are liable. The mean pres- 

 sure of the six years corresponded with that already obtained. 



Vol. xLiii, No. 2.— July-Sept. 1842. 47 



