JOURNAL 



OF THE 



ASIATIC SOCIETY 



No. III. 1858. 



TJte Or eat Indian Arc of Meridian, and the Figure of the Earth. — ■ 

 By the Venerable Archdeacon Peatt, M. A. 



To the Editor of the Asiatic Journal. 



Sir, — It is not many days since I had the opportunity of seeing 

 for the first time the Notices of the Eoyal Astronomical Society for 

 January 9, 1857, which contain a paper with the following title, 

 " An Examination of the Figure of the Indian Meridian as deduced by 

 Archdeacon Pratt from the two Northern Indian Arcs; ivith a 

 "Proposition for testing that form by Astronomical Observations. By 

 Lieut. J. F. Tennant, Bengal Engineers, P. R. A. S. and First 

 Assistant in the Gr. T. Survey of India:" and also a continuation 

 of that paper read before the Astronomical Society in June of last 

 year by the same author. The calculation here referred to by Mr. 

 Tennant was made by me while at the Cape of Good Hope in 1854, 

 and is published in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal 

 Society for the following year. As the calculations and results of 

 that paper have in some respects not been understood by Mr. 

 Tennant, and as the subject is one which appertains to this country, 

 and interests some of your readers, I hope you may not find it 

 inconvenient to insert this letter in your Journal. 



Preliminary Bemarlcs on the Figure of the Earth. 



2. — It will be necessary to preface what I have to say with a few 

 remarks regarding the Figure of the Earth. After it was known 

 No. XCIV.— New Series, Vol. XXVII. 2 d 



