186 Mr. Wotraston’s Method of deferibing the relative 
it, even at firft, is but little: It has coft me more time indeed 
than T ought commonly to allot to mere amufement ; becaufe 
I had my apparatus to contrive, and feveral different and fruit- 
lets fchemes to try, before I could fatisfy myfelf. But a quar~ 
ter, or at the moft half, an hour is generally fufficient for the 
marking of one pretty full card in this way: and when once 
the cards are marked, and a general map of the conftellation is 
formed, a little time given to it in a fine evening, to examine 
whether the ftars on fuch or fuch a card remain in their formér 
polition, is little trouble indeed. Perfeverance is moft likely to 
be wanting, and therefore muft be determined upon; becaufe, 
after finding things time after time juft as they were, one’s 
hopes of difcovering any thing new will flacken. But the dif- 
ferent ftate of the air, or of one’s own eye, will ‘frequently 
occafion a freth ftar to become vifible, or a {mall one which 
had been noted down to feem to have difappeared; and fuch a. 
mere accident will ferve to re-kindle the defire of purfuing it. 
Befides, if we obferve no change after a tolerable interval of 
affiduous fearch, we may at any time turn to another conftel- 
lation: yet ought we never to abandon the former entirely, 
after having once publickly undertaken it, without giving no- 
tice of our fo doing. 
In the cards or maps, it may be obferved, I have not marked 
the refpective fizes of the ftars. Nor have I diftinguifhed them 
in any way, excepting a few of them with BayeEr’s Greek 
letters. It was becaufe I have not hitherto fatisfied myfelf how 
to do it. Some method mutt be ufed by every one, to defcribe 
to himfelf what he means; but, in laying any thing before the 
public, a deference ought to be paid to what has been done by 
others. The calling any ftar by a new name would breed con- 
fufion: and as I was defirous this fhould appear before this 
Society 
