﻿258 
  

  

  On 
  the 
  Transit 
  of 
  Venus 
  across 
  the 
  Sun. 
  [Feb. 
  11, 
  

  

  but 
  I 
  watched 
  for 
  any 
  such 
  event 
  in 
  vain. 
  Venus 
  glided 
  resolutely 
  on- 
  

   wards, 
  and 
  the 
  streak 
  of 
  light 
  she 
  was 
  leaving 
  behind 
  grew 
  wider 
  and 
  still 
  

   wider, 
  until 
  at 
  last, 
  when 
  a 
  belt 
  of 
  light 
  representing 
  10 
  or 
  15 
  minutes 
  lay 
  

   between 
  her 
  and 
  the 
  sun's 
  limb, 
  I 
  exclaimed 
  (and 
  I 
  believe 
  much 
  to 
  the 
  

   disappointment 
  of 
  all 
  concerned), 
  " 
  there 
  is 
  no 
  pear-drop 
  and 
  no 
  ligament." 
  

   We 
  watched 
  Yenus 
  for 
  some 
  half 
  an 
  hour 
  after 
  this, 
  and 
  then 
  turned 
  to 
  

   the 
  spectroscope. 
  

  

  The 
  Spectroscope. 
  — 
  The 
  substitution 
  of 
  spectroscope 
  for 
  eyepiece 
  cannot 
  

   be 
  effected 
  in 
  this 
  instrument 
  without 
  a 
  considerable 
  amount 
  of 
  adjust- 
  

   ment. 
  When 
  this 
  had 
  been 
  performed, 
  and 
  we 
  had 
  taken 
  a 
  hasty 
  break- 
  

   fast, 
  I 
  first 
  placed 
  the 
  slit 
  across 
  the 
  centre 
  of 
  Yenus's 
  disk, 
  and 
  found 
  that 
  

   it 
  gave 
  a 
  black 
  band 
  all 
  along 
  the 
  length 
  of 
  the 
  bright 
  solar 
  spectrum, 
  

   i. 
  e. 
  Venus's 
  face 
  turned 
  to 
  us 
  reflected 
  no 
  light. 
  I 
  next 
  placed 
  the 
  slit 
  

   tangential 
  to 
  Yenus's 
  disk. 
  This 
  gave 
  a 
  faint 
  glimmer 
  of 
  narrow 
  light 
  in 
  

   place 
  of 
  the 
  black 
  band, 
  i. 
  e, 
  this 
  glimmer 
  was 
  slightly 
  brighter 
  than 
  the 
  

   solar 
  spectrum 
  on 
  which 
  it 
  appeared. 
  I 
  looked 
  intently 
  for 
  Yenus's 
  air- 
  

   lines 
  ; 
  but, 
  so 
  far 
  as 
  the 
  feeble 
  dispersion 
  of 
  the 
  prism 
  would 
  show, 
  the 
  

   lines 
  seen 
  across 
  the 
  glimmer 
  from 
  Yenus's 
  edge 
  were 
  identical 
  in 
  all 
  

   respects 
  with 
  the 
  solar 
  lines. 
  I 
  repeated 
  these 
  experiments 
  as 
  long 
  as 
  

   time 
  permitted, 
  and 
  then, 
  with 
  artificer 
  Manrakan's 
  help, 
  reverted 
  

   to 
  the 
  adjustments 
  for 
  mounting 
  the 
  eye-end 
  and 
  eyepiece 
  employed 
  at 
  

   ingress. 
  As 
  already 
  stated, 
  it 
  was 
  now 
  necessary 
  to 
  substitute 
  a 
  dark- 
  

   red 
  glass 
  in 
  place 
  of 
  one 
  of 
  those 
  used 
  at 
  ingress. 
  

  

  Egress. 
  — 
  The 
  field 
  now 
  was 
  red, 
  and, 
  if 
  any 
  thing, 
  slightly 
  too 
  dark 
  to 
  

   show 
  faint 
  light 
  ; 
  the 
  definition 
  was 
  intensely 
  sharp. 
  Again 
  I 
  watched 
  

   with 
  the 
  utmost 
  care 
  as 
  Yenus 
  approached 
  her 
  second 
  internal 
  contact 
  ; 
  

   but 
  neither 
  pear-drop 
  nor 
  ligament, 
  nor 
  any 
  other 
  connexion 
  or 
  shadow, 
  

   appeared 
  between 
  her 
  limb 
  and 
  that 
  of 
  the 
  sun, 
  until 
  at 
  last 
  the 
  two 
  fairly 
  

   touched*. 
  Of 
  course 
  I 
  again 
  looked 
  for 
  the 
  light- 
  ring 
  around 
  Yenus's 
  

   sky-limb 
  ; 
  aud 
  I 
  certainly 
  saw 
  it, 
  though 
  faintly, 
  5 
  m 
  after 
  the 
  above 
  con- 
  

   tact. 
  Some 
  time 
  later, 
  when 
  I 
  once 
  more 
  searched 
  for 
  the 
  light-ring, 
  it 
  

   was 
  invisible, 
  nor 
  did 
  I 
  again 
  see 
  it, 
  nor 
  yet 
  the 
  disk 
  of 
  Yenus, 
  against 
  

   the 
  sky. 
  

  

  Before 
  concluding 
  this 
  note, 
  I 
  take 
  the 
  liberty 
  of 
  adding 
  a 
  few 
  words, 
  

   of 
  no 
  little 
  importance, 
  from 
  the 
  only 
  letter 
  on 
  the 
  transit 
  which 
  has 
  as 
  

   yet 
  reached 
  me. 
  It 
  is 
  from 
  Colonel 
  Walker, 
  who 
  was 
  at 
  Dehra 
  Doon, 
  in 
  

   the 
  valley 
  below, 
  some 
  10 
  miles 
  south 
  of 
  my 
  position, 
  and 
  at 
  a 
  height 
  of 
  

   about 
  2200 
  feet. 
  He 
  observed 
  the 
  phenomena 
  of 
  the 
  transit 
  with 
  a 
  

   very 
  tolerable 
  telescope, 
  by 
  Solomons 
  (I 
  believe), 
  of, 
  I 
  fancy, 
  some 
  

   3-inch 
  object-glass, 
  and 
  perhaps 
  3| 
  feet 
  focal 
  length. 
  The 
  Colonel 
  

   writes, 
  " 
  We 
  saw 
  the 
  pear-drop 
  and 
  the 
  ligament 
  very 
  distinctly." 
  

  

  I 
  conclude 
  from 
  what 
  has 
  preceded 
  that 
  : 
  — 
  

  

  * 
  My 
  notes 
  state 
  successively 
  that 
  when 
  the 
  two 
  limbs 
  were 
  apart 
  ^, 
  \, 
  T 
  V, 
  and 
  

   of 
  Yenus's 
  diameter, 
  there 
  was 
  no 
  ligament 
  or 
  other 
  connexion 
  between 
  them. 
  

  

  