for the year 1880. xiii 



referred to all the principal facts in connection with the 

 past year's domestic history of the Society, and I propose 

 now to crave your patience for a few minutes while, in 

 accordance with my usual custom on these occasions, I briefly 

 review the year's work of our national art and science 

 institutions. 



While our Observatory, over which I have the honour to 

 preside, has been fully occupied with its usual continuous 

 work, but few matters of more than ordinary interest have 

 occurred to claim its special attention since my last address. 

 The comet of February broke the monotony of the routine 

 work, but the hazy horizon so prevalent during the evenings 

 of that month completely hindered satisfactory observation 

 in the early part of its apparition, when it set soon after the 

 sun ; and afterwards, when measurements could be made, it 

 increased its distance from us so rapidly that only a very 

 incomplete series of measures could be secured. As there is 

 rather more interest than usual attaching to this comet, I 

 shall refer to it again presently. 



In anticipation of the next Transit of Venus in 1882, the 

 Astronomer Royal, Sir George Airy, has brought promin- 

 ently under the notice of the scientific world in the old 

 country the great desirability of determining telegraphically 

 the longitude of Melbourne, or some one of the Australian 

 cities connected with it by telegraph. I am now in com- 

 munication with the president of the Royal Society in 

 London on the subject. I am also in correspondence with 

 the hydrographic office at Washington on the same matter, for 

 the Americans propose to connect Japan, China, and probably 

 Australia, with America by a chain of telegraphic determi- 

 nations of longitude. It is, therefore, quite probable that 

 before very long the longitude of our Observatory from Green- 

 which will be determined by the most accurate method we 

 know of — namely, by the interchange of telegraphic signals. 

 Arrangement are now in progress for a systematic discussion 

 of disturbances of terrestrial magnetism as recorded by the 



