106 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XXXIV. No. 865 



She, as well as the Samoan chiefs and the 

 natives, showed us every possible courtesy 

 and hospitability and evinced great interest 

 in the success of our work. The party was 

 entertained by the "village fathers" at a 

 native feast and Vaitupu gave a siwa in our 

 honor. 



Thursday, the day before the eclipse; un- 

 fortunately, was cloudy and showery and our 

 preparations were greatly retarded in conse- 

 quence. As my chief object was to ascertain 

 whether there might be any possible magnetic 

 effect during the eclipse, I had to pay prime 

 attention to the magnetic observations and to 

 the training of an assistant. Quartermaster 

 TJrle, of the Annapolis, for taking readings of 

 the magnetic declination every minute for 

 about five hours on the day of the eclipse. 



I was fortunate in being able to turn the 

 charge of the photographic work over to 

 Lieut. McDowell, U. S. N., in command of 

 the Annapolis; he was assisted by Messrs. 

 Eeed and Steffany, also by Dr. Connor and 

 Chaplain Pierce — all of the Annapolis. I 

 made the necessary calculations for the orien- 

 tation of the camera and laid out the neces- 

 sary lines for guidance in the placing of the 

 camera. Owing to the inclement weather the 

 day before, it was not possible to get the 

 camera finally mounted and in proper posi- 

 tion until shortly before totality. The day of 

 eclipse was fortunately clear throughout. 

 There was no opportunity for trying out the 

 finding telescope and slow motion screws in 

 declination and right ascension. 



Just before totality, Lieut. McDowell found 

 that he could not use the finder and so rigged 

 up a hastily constructed sighting device for 

 keeping the sun's image centered on the 

 plates and eliminating the diurnal motion. 

 Two exposures of 15 seconds and two of 1 m. 

 10 s. were obtained. When the plates were 

 developed, it was found that the improvised 

 sighting device had not been wholly success- 

 ful and so the photographs exhibit effects due 

 to diurnal motion. Apart, however, from 

 these defects, the photographs show clearly 

 not only the inner corona but also most in- 

 teresting details and coronal extensions reach- 



ing out over one half of the sun's diameter. 

 The present corona thus fulfilled the expecta- 

 tions of great development during a sun-spot 

 minimum. 



The mean duration of totality, as observed 

 at shore by Lieut. McDowell and Dr. Connor, 

 and aboard the Annapolis by Lieut. Baker, 

 U. S. N., was 2m. Is. The great coronal ex- 

 tensions which were chiefly in the sun's south- 

 western and northeastern edges were not seen 

 visually, for some reason, by any member of 

 the shore party nor by the party aboard the 

 Annapolis anchored a few miles distant, in 

 Faleasau Bay. They were, however, seen by 

 two observers to my knowledge, in the Tongas, 

 viz., Capt. Holford on board the Tofua and 

 by Mrs. Clement Wragge, who with her hus- 

 band, the well-known meteorologist, was lo- 

 cated near Hapaii, Id. 



It is greatly to be regretted that the better 

 equipped and specially trained astronomical 

 parties at Vavau, Tonga, were not blessed 

 with the singular good fortune which befell 

 us at Tau Island. For our prime work — mag- 

 netic — it would not have mattered had the 

 weather been bad. 



According to special arrangement magnetic 

 observations simultaneous with ours at Tau 

 were made at the five coast and geodetic sur- 

 vey magnetic observatories, also at Mel- 

 bourne, Christchureh and Apia, where quick- 

 run magnetograms were obtained for five 

 hours. Until the records have been received 

 from stations over the entire globe, it will not 

 be possible to determine definitely whether or 

 not the present eclipse was accompanied by 

 any minute and temporary change in the 

 earth's magnetism. 



L. A. Bauer 



The Carnegie, 

 Colombo, Ceylon, 

 June 21, 1911 



SAMUEL CALVIN 



Some weeks ago there appeared in Science 

 a brief notice of the death, on April 17, of 

 Professor Samuel Calvin, head of the depart- 

 ment of geology in the University of Iowa, 

 and state geologist of Iowa. 



