1875.] President's Address. 83 



Captain Waterhouse, Professor Pedler, Dr. Vogel, and Messrs. Meldola 

 and Reynolds ; in the second were Dr. Janssen, Dr. Schuster, and Messrs. 

 Lott and Beasley, each amply provided with assistants. 



The Committee decided that at both stations the observations should 

 be mainly photographic ; and the instruments furnished had for their 

 object the registration of the violet spectrum of the corona and chro- 

 mosphere as a whole, and that of the spectrum of an isolated portion of 

 the image. 



Ordinary photographs of the corona and of the polariscopic effects of 

 its light were also provided for. 



In spite of the most hopeful anticipations, the weather at Camorta 

 proved bad on the morning of the Eclipse, and, as has been observed on 

 former occasions, the reduction of the temperature, due to the withdrawal 

 of the sun's heat, produced a mass of cumulus cloud which prevented 

 a most thoroughly equipped party from making any observations whatever 

 during totality. 



The success of the Siam party has been also far less than was antici- 

 pated. An unfortunate break-down in the Suez Canal, and some misun- 

 derstanding, in consequence of which the promised Government steamer 

 was not forthcoming, caused delays which left so little time for the final 

 adjustment of the instruments when the observers at last reached their 

 station, that some records are altogether wanting ; and the attempt to 

 photograph the spectrum of an isolated portion of the chromosphere 

 proved a failure. 



The most important results obtained are (1) a series of photographs of 

 the corona, taken with a prism of small angle in front of the object-glass, 

 which show several rings and part of the form of the outer corona, and 

 (2) a series of views of the corona, chiefly taken at different times of ex- 

 posure. The discussion of the observations has not yet been taken in 

 hand; but it is not too early to state that several results of great 

 interest and value have been secured. 



The King of Siam himself made a sketch of the corona and forwarded 

 it to the Society. In common with others which accompany the Reports, 

 it does not differ very greatly from the figure photographed on the plate. 



I cannot conclude this short reference to one branch of our activity 

 during the past session without congratulating English Science upon the 

 fact that the Eclipse was not suffered to pass unobserved, and with- 

 out expressing our obligations to all those whose names will be mentioned 

 at length in the Report, who both here and abroad at each stage of the 

 arrangements afforded us valuable assistance, not forgetting the ob- 

 servers themselves, who in the service of science volunteered for a duty 

 not without risk, and from the performance of which, indeed, some have 

 suffered in health. 



The * 'Challenger' 'Expedition. — The third year of the' Challenger's' voyage 



g2 



