1808.] Proceedings of the Astatic Society. 215 



The 1st contact was made very near the apex, and the last contact 

 at a point 165 degrees from the apex counting round by the right. 

 The computed places were 1st contact, 1° to right of apex, and last 

 contact 173° from apex round by the right. We have not yet ac- 

 counted for the discrepancies either of time or position. 

 Record of the Eclipse of the 18th August 1868, as seen from a hill in 



the vicinity of " Bezwarra" on the " Kistna^ river, at latitude, 



16° 21' 10" North, and longitude 80° 43' 20" East.— By Major 



J. Macdonald. 



The place of observation was well chosen. It commanded a view of 

 the valley of the Kistna, which stream was then in flood, and covered 

 the ground south-east of my station with water ; this bright surface of 

 several square miles was admirably suited to show the gloom of the 

 shadow : to the. west and north west the range of the " Condapillay" 

 hills varying in height from 1000 to 1500 feet higher than my station, 

 and distant about 12 to 15 miles, furnished a contrast in colour and 

 outline, exactly required for the purpose of noting the difference of 

 light on the landscape. North and east, the whole champaign was a 

 field of springing rice, broken by small hills and dotted with groves. 

 Thus I had a landscape adapted for every purpose I required. 



That I might make a fair comparison with the degree of light 

 during the period of totality with that of an ordinary twilight when 

 the sun is under the horizon, I took up my post nearly an hour 

 before sunrise, and carefully noted the prominent objects of the land- 

 scape, as they first appeared in the dawning light. These were numer- 

 ous and varied, from distances of miles and thousands of yards to 

 human features placed at distances of 30 to 10 yards from my station. 



To sketch the appearance of the corona, I prepared a diagram show- 

 ing the deep shadow of the moon ; and for facility of comparison, I 

 drew circles round the disc increasing from j^ of the radius to ^ T . 

 Nine of these circles gave a space round the moon which I judged would 

 be sufficient to show all the brightness of the corona. 



Thus prepared, I took my station. I noted the temperature of a 

 thermometer attached to the tripod of my telescope to be 96° in the 

 sun, immediately before the commencement of the eclipse ; and at 8-18 

 a. m .. the moon's shadow crossed the light of the sun, and the eclipse 



