ir, ee ee oe a ee 
Astronomy and Meteorology. 367 
known, & priori, respecting the actual figure, there is an obvious advan-" 
@ to be derived from these accidental cireumstances of its position, by 
which the influence of perspective foreshortening is, in a great measure, 
eliminated.’ 
‘In order to recognize and explain any errors or ambiguities in the ob- 
servations themselves, a provisional chart was constructed, showin the 
o 
path of the comet and the position of the tail among the neighboring 
‘Lastly, the normal outlines of the tails are given in a series of charts 
which represent the final results deduced from the whole series of observ- 
ations between September 16th and October 17th, referred to the com- 
mon epoch for each date of 74 mean solar time at the Observatory of 
one- 
was selected with that view. 
7 After having given an idea of the comprehensiveness of the first seven 
sections of Professor Bond’s work onthe comet of 1858, the speaker 
tangent cylinder, the position of which, in regard to the path of the comet,’ 
? 
_ teferred to those parts which treat of the telescopic observations of the 
nucleus and enveiopes—which are characterized by the same care, skill, 
and resource, though the difficulties of dealing with the discrepancies 
must have been enormously greater. : 
‘Professor Bond gives in his work a plate representing the drawings or 
engravings of the nucleus and envelopes in the form they reached him, 
A cursory inspection of this collection will suffice to show how great 18 
the diversity of portraiture of the same object, even when made at about 
the same period of absolute time.’ : 
‘The form of the head of the comet received considerable attention 4 
the result was such as to show that its outline did not accord with a par- 
abola, but that its contour was nearly that of a catenary curve. Moreover, 
vantage was taken by Professor Bond, of the apparition of Comet III, 
1860, and more recently, of the great Comet of 1861, to test some of 
the hypotheses discussed in reference to the Comet of 1858, notably the 
Phenomena of the successive throwing off of a series of envelopes from 
receded from it. A recent careful revision of these phenomena has, 
e 
~ Being to the report of Professor Bond for 1864, completely confirmed 
te results previously announced 
ton, who defrayed the expenses of the letter-press of the volume, 
and of the twenty-four gentlemen of Boston, Waterton, Cambridge, and 
Salem, who subscribed the funds necessary to cover the cost of the un- 
Talled engravings with which it is Hlustrated. It is most creditable to 
these gentlemen that they so fully appreciated the importance of doing 
ample justice to the labors of the Director of the Observatory of Har- 
Vard College, and enabled him to day before the public such a written 
