﻿1874.] 
  

  

  President's 
  Address. 
  

  

  55 
  

  

  Government 
  for 
  the 
  making, 
  registering, 
  and 
  publishing 
  of 
  especially 
  

   oceanic 
  meteorological 
  phenomena 
  throughout 
  the 
  globe. 
  

  

  The 
  primary 
  purpose 
  for 
  which 
  this 
  and 
  all 
  similar 
  offices 
  were 
  esta- 
  

   blished, 
  was 
  the 
  acceleration 
  of 
  ocean 
  passages 
  for 
  vessels 
  by 
  an 
  accurate 
  

   investigation 
  of 
  the 
  prevalent 
  winds 
  and 
  currents. 
  In 
  other 
  words, 
  their 
  

   great 
  object 
  is 
  to 
  aid 
  the 
  seaman 
  in 
  what 
  Captain 
  Basil 
  Hall 
  called 
  " 
  one 
  

   of 
  the 
  chief 
  points 
  of 
  his 
  duty" 
  — 
  namely, 
  " 
  to 
  know 
  when 
  to 
  find 
  a 
  fair 
  

   wind, 
  and 
  where 
  to 
  fall 
  in 
  with 
  a 
  favourable 
  current." 
  The 
  first 
  impulse 
  

   to 
  the 
  formation 
  of 
  an 
  Office 
  for 
  this 
  purpose 
  was 
  given 
  by 
  the 
  late 
  

   General 
  Sir 
  J. 
  Burgoyne, 
  who 
  in 
  1852 
  started 
  the 
  idea 
  of 
  land 
  obser- 
  

   vations 
  to 
  be 
  carried 
  out 
  by 
  the 
  Corps 
  of 
  Royal 
  Engineers. 
  

  

  Shortly 
  afterwards 
  our 
  Government 
  corresponded 
  with 
  the 
  United- 
  

   States 
  Government 
  on 
  the 
  subject 
  of 
  cooperating 
  in 
  a 
  scheme 
  for 
  land 
  

   observations, 
  which 
  was 
  followed 
  by 
  a 
  suggestion 
  on 
  the 
  part 
  of 
  America 
  

   that 
  the 
  operations 
  should 
  be 
  extended 
  to 
  the 
  sea. 
  

  

  The 
  correspondence 
  was 
  referred 
  to 
  the 
  Royal 
  Society, 
  which 
  warmly 
  

   approved 
  the 
  scheme 
  of 
  sea 
  observations, 
  but 
  saw 
  many 
  difficulties 
  in 
  

   carrying 
  out 
  that 
  for 
  the 
  land. 
  The 
  Brussels 
  Conference 
  followed 
  in 
  

   1853, 
  when 
  representatives 
  of 
  most 
  of 
  the 
  maritime 
  nations 
  assembled 
  and 
  

   adopted 
  a 
  uniform 
  plan 
  of 
  action. 
  Soon 
  after 
  this, 
  Lord 
  Card 
  well, 
  then 
  

   President 
  of 
  the 
  Board 
  of 
  Trade, 
  established 
  the 
  Meteorological 
  Depart- 
  

   ment 
  of 
  that 
  office, 
  a,nd 
  placed 
  the 
  late 
  Admiral 
  EitzRoy 
  at 
  the 
  head 
  of 
  it 
  — 
  

   the 
  Royal 
  Society, 
  at 
  the 
  request 
  of 
  the 
  Government, 
  supplying 
  copi- 
  

   ous 
  and 
  complete 
  instructions 
  for 
  his 
  guidance, 
  which 
  were 
  drawn 
  up 
  

   mainly 
  by 
  Sir 
  Edward 
  Sabine. 
  Admiral 
  EitzRoy's 
  zeal 
  and 
  his 
  great 
  

   labours 
  are 
  known 
  to 
  all 
  ; 
  he 
  worked 
  out 
  the 
  system 
  of 
  verifying 
  and 
  

   lending 
  instruments, 
  planning 
  surveys, 
  registering 
  observations, 
  pub- 
  

   lishing 
  results 
  ; 
  and, 
  lastly, 
  himself 
  originated 
  the 
  plan 
  of 
  predicting 
  the 
  

   weather, 
  and 
  establishing 
  storm-signals 
  at 
  the 
  sea-ports 
  along 
  the 
  coast. 
  

  

  On 
  Admiral 
  EitzRoy's 
  death 
  in 
  1865 
  the 
  Royal 
  Society 
  was 
  again 
  

   consulted 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  position 
  and 
  prospects 
  of 
  the 
  Office. 
  Its 
  Report, 
  

   which 
  did 
  not 
  differ 
  materially 
  from 
  that 
  of 
  1855, 
  was 
  in 
  1866 
  referred 
  to 
  

   a 
  Committee, 
  composed 
  of 
  a 
  representative 
  of 
  the 
  Board 
  of 
  Trade, 
  of 
  the 
  

   Admiralty, 
  and 
  of 
  the 
  Royal 
  Society. 
  This 
  Committee 
  supported 
  the 
  

   previously 
  expressed 
  views 
  of 
  the 
  Society, 
  and 
  suggested 
  the 
  placing 
  of 
  

   the 
  Office 
  under 
  efficient 
  scientific 
  superintendence 
  ; 
  upon 
  which 
  the 
  

   Society, 
  in 
  the 
  same 
  year, 
  was 
  requested 
  by 
  the 
  Government 
  to 
  undertake 
  

   the 
  superintendence 
  of 
  what 
  had 
  been 
  the 
  Meteorological 
  Department 
  

   of 
  the 
  Board 
  of 
  Trade. 
  To 
  this 
  request 
  the 
  Council 
  of 
  the 
  Society 
  so 
  far 
  

   acceded 
  as 
  to 
  nominate 
  a 
  Committee 
  of 
  eight 
  Eellows 
  (subsequently 
  

   increased 
  to 
  ten) 
  to 
  undertake 
  the 
  entire 
  and 
  almost 
  absolute 
  control 
  of 
  

   the 
  Office 
  ; 
  and 
  a 
  Parliamentary 
  grant 
  of 
  .£10,000 
  per 
  annum 
  was 
  pro- 
  

   vided 
  to 
  maintain 
  it. 
  

  

  This 
  is 
  in 
  brief 
  the 
  history 
  of 
  the 
  connexion 
  between 
  the 
  Ro} 
  r 
  al 
  Society 
  

   and 
  the 
  Meteorological 
  Office 
  on 
  the 
  one 
  hand, 
  and 
  between 
  the 
  Office 
  and 
  

  

  