RAM 



bourne Popham, is fituated partly in the parilli of Ramf- 

 bury, and partly in that of Cliilton-Foliot. Tlie houfe is 

 a large ancient ftrufture, built by one of the Darells, the 

 former poficflors of this domain, about the time when 

 feudal warfare ccafed, and defence was no longer an object 

 in a country manfion. Notwithltanding many late altera- 

 tions, the interior ftill preferves many of its original features. 

 The great hall is very fpacious, floored with ftones, and 

 lighted by large and very lofty windows. In it ftands a 

 large oaken table, at which the vaffals of the domain were 

 wont to feail at the expence of their lord. The remainder of 

 the furniture is in a fuitable ilyle, particularly an arm-chair, 

 which is faid to have been ufcd by fir John Popham, chief 

 juftice of the court of king's bench in the reigns of queen 

 Elizabeth and king James I., who purchafed tlie houfe and 

 manor from the laft of the Darells. There is alfo a curious 

 inftrument for the punifhment and confinement of fervants ; 

 bv faftening their thumbs between two boards. The walls 

 of the hall arc decorated by numerous guns, carbines, piftols, 

 doublets, &c. : and here are alfo two very fine candelabras, 

 defigned and executed by Mr. George Bullock of London, 

 in an admirable ftyle, as adapted to the age and charadter 

 of the manfion. One of the bed-rooms is faid to have been 

 the fcene uf a fingular and myfterious murder, the incidents 

 attending which are recorded in a note to Scott's poem of 

 Rokeby. In the gallery, which is about i lo feet in length, 

 are portraits of judge Popham and Nell Gwyn ; alfo a 

 curious piece of needle-work, rcprefenting a large Roman 

 tefiellated pavement, which was difcovered in the adjoining 

 park in 1728, by Mr. George (fteward to Edward Popham, 

 efq.), who made a coloured drawing of it, and communi- 

 cated the fame to the Society of Antiquaries. This pave- 

 ment confided of two divifions, which appear to have 

 formed the floor of a temple. The interior divifion was 

 ornamented with the figure of Apollo playing on a harp ; and 

 in four furrounding compartments were four female figures 

 riding on different animals, and defigned to reprefent the 

 HorK, or Scafons. Exterior to the circle inclofing them 

 were three other compartments, each difplaying a face of 

 the fun. From thefe circumftances the temple is fuppofed 

 to have been dedicated to Apollo ; but fome emblems on 

 its exterior divifion referring to Ceres and Neptune, it may, 

 perhaps, be more properly efteemed a fort of pantheon. 

 Another Imaller Roman pavement, and a curious cup or 

 patera of brais, were likewife difcovered by Mr. George 

 on Rudge-farm, adjoining the northern boundary of Little- 

 cot park. The cup was adorned with foliage, and was 

 infcribed with the names of five Roman Rations. It was 

 conjctlured by Gale to have been a libation cup ufed at 

 an annual feaft inftituted by the inhabitants of thefe towns. 



Pickedfield, in.this vicinity, is a government depot for the 

 interior, citabhfhcd in 1803. It inelud,es about forty acres 

 of ground, on which are erefted three magazines for powder, 

 barracks for a detachment of the military, and various 

 neceffary houfes and offices. Beauties of England and 

 Wales, vol. XV. by John Britton, F.S.A. 



RAMSDAL. See Remsdal. 



RAMSDEN, Jesse, in Biography, an eminent Enghfh 

 mathematical and aftronomical inftrument-maker, the fon of 

 an inn-keeper at Salterhebble, near Halifax, in Yorkftiire, 

 where he was born in the year 1735. At nine years of age he 

 was admitted into the Hahfax frce-fchool, where he acquired, 

 during three years, the elements of claffical learning ; after 

 which he was removed to the care of an uncle at Craven, 

 by whom he was lent to a clergyman of the name of Hall, 

 wiio had acquired much reputation by teaching at his fchool 

 the mathematical fcicnce^. Under this gentleman's initruc- 



II A M 



tions, young Ramfdcn became a proficient in geometry and 

 algebra, and was advancing rapidly in thele and other col- 

 lateral branches of lliidy when his father fent for him home, 

 to apprentice him out with a clothier at Halifax. At the 

 age of twenty he went to London, where he became clerk 

 in a wholefale cloth warehoufe. Tins fituation he retained 

 about two years and a half, when his inclination for the 

 fciences revived fo ftrongly, that he refolvtd to qualify him- 

 felf for iome bufinels which fliould prove fuitable to the 

 bent of his mind. With this view he bound himfelf ap- 

 prentice for four years to Mr. Burton in the Strand, who 

 was efteemed one of the beil workmen of his time in 

 making thermometers and barometers, and in engraving and 

 dividing mathematical inftruments. After the expiration of 

 his apprenticeftiip, he worked as journeyman with a perfou 

 of the name of Cole, with whom he afterwards aflbciated 

 himfelf as partner. This conneAion did not laft long, 

 when Mr. Ramfden opened a workfhop on his own ac- 

 count, in which he foon recommended himfelf to the em- 

 ployment of the principal mathematical iiiRrument-makers 

 in London. In the courfe of his bufinefs his repeated exa- 

 mination of the inltrument! which were fent him to be en- 

 graved or divided, led him to difcover their defeifts, and hi» 

 genius fuggefted to him the means of removing them, or of 

 conftrufting better inftruments. In order to put his plan 

 into execution, he made himfelf mafter of the prac- 

 tical operations of the trade, and formed the defign of 

 examining every aftronomical inftrument in ufe, witli the 

 view of correfting thofe which, being founded on good 

 principles, were faulty only in the conftruftion, and of 

 profcribmg thofe which were defeftive in both thele 

 refpefts. About this time, by his marriage with Mifs Dol- 

 lond, he became poftell'ed of a part of Mr. DoUond's patent 

 for achromatic telefcopes. In the year 1766, Mr, Ramfden 

 opened a fhop in the Haymarket, where he continued till 

 1774, when he removed to Piccadilly, where he remained 

 till the time of his death. Before his fettlement in the 

 Haymarket, he had improved the fextant, and he had in- 

 vented his celebrated dividing machine. (See the art. En- 

 gine.) Having fpent ten years in bringing this machine 

 to perfeftion, he obtained from the Board of Longitude 

 a premium of icoo/. Mr. Ramfden conftrufted an inftru- 

 ment for dividing ftraight lines, which has been defcribed 

 in a former volume of the New Cytlopasdia, and while he 

 was employed on his dividing-machine he made great im- 

 provements in feveral other inftruments. The Theodolite 

 (fee the article), before his time, confifted merely of a 

 telefcope, turning on a circle, divided at every three minutes, 

 by means of a Vernier, which fee ; but in the hands of 

 Mr. Ramfden it became a new and perfeft inftrument, 

 ferving for meafuring heights and diftances, as well as taking 

 angles. The largeft and moft perfcft theodolite ever con- 

 ftructed was made by him for general Roy, for the purpofe 

 of meafuring the feries of triangles in England. Though 

 this inftrument is only of eighteen inches radius, its accuracy 

 is fo great as not to admit of an error of a fingle fecond. 

 With tlris inftrument general Roy mcafured the angle be- 

 tween the polar ftar and the fides of his triangles, in order 

 to have the exaft difft;rence between the obfervations of 

 Paris and Greenwich, which he found to be 9' 20". Mr. 

 Ramfden was a great improver of the barometer for 

 meafuring the height of mountains, which he could ob- 

 tain to a degree of accuracy that was very furpnfing, 

 and he caufed to be engraved a table to accompany his 

 barometers, which, without the trouble of calculation, 

 gives the heights of places, according to the heights of 

 tlie mercur)', and even at different tem.peratures, He alfo 



pointed 



