﻿382 
  

  

  Mr. 
  J. 
  B. 
  N. 
  Hennessey 
  on 
  the 
  [Apr. 
  29, 
  

  

  he 
  circumstance 
  that 
  but 
  few 
  observers 
  of 
  the 
  transit 
  are 
  likely 
  to 
  have 
  

   been 
  placed 
  at 
  considerable 
  heights 
  above 
  the 
  sea. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  James 
  was 
  attended 
  by 
  his 
  son 
  Henry, 
  a 
  young 
  gentleman 
  with 
  

   plenty 
  of 
  intelligence 
  and 
  a 
  commendable 
  spirit 
  of 
  inquiry. 
  The 
  instru- 
  

   ment 
  used 
  was 
  a 
  telescope 
  by 
  Smith 
  and 
  Beck, 
  the 
  property 
  of 
  Mr. 
  James 
  ; 
  

   object-glass 
  3|- 
  inches 
  and 
  its 
  focal 
  length 
  4 
  feet 
  ; 
  at 
  ingress, 
  eyepiece 
  60- 
  

   power, 
  and 
  field 
  a 
  neutral 
  tint 
  ; 
  at 
  egress, 
  eyepiece 
  100-power, 
  and 
  field 
  

   red. 
  For 
  timepiece 
  he 
  used 
  his 
  pocket-watch, 
  which 
  has 
  a 
  seconds-hand. 
  

   The 
  watch 
  " 
  gained 
  considerably, 
  perhaps 
  a 
  minute 
  in 
  12 
  hours." 
  

  

  Under 
  date 
  9th 
  December, 
  1874, 
  Mr. 
  James 
  states 
  : 
  — 
  

  

  " 
  When 
  she 
  (i. 
  e. 
  Venus) 
  was 
  about 
  halfway 
  on 
  (at 
  ingress) 
  the 
  sun 
  we 
  

   both 
  noticed 
  a 
  fringe 
  of 
  white 
  light 
  illuminating 
  that 
  rim 
  of 
  the 
  planet 
  

   w 
  T 
  hich 
  was 
  yet 
  on 
  the 
  dark 
  sky. 
  When 
  she 
  went 
  off 
  we 
  noticed 
  the 
  same 
  

   fringe 
  of 
  light, 
  but 
  for 
  a 
  much 
  shorter 
  time, 
  and 
  when 
  only 
  about 
  one 
  

   eighth 
  of 
  her 
  had 
  passed 
  the 
  sun's 
  disk." 
  

  

  His 
  watch 
  times 
  of 
  contact 
  were 
  as 
  follows 
  : 
  — 
  

  

  h 
  m 
  s 
  

  

  1st 
  internal 
  contact 
  7 
  41 
  20 
  

  

  2nd 
  „ 
  „ 
  11 
  30 
  15 
  

  

  2nd 
  external 
  „ 
  11 
  57 
  25 
  

  

  After 
  receipt 
  of 
  the 
  preceding, 
  I 
  wrote 
  to 
  Mr. 
  James, 
  as 
  already 
  men- 
  

   tioned. 
  I 
  stated 
  briefly 
  that 
  my 
  view 
  resembled 
  his 
  ; 
  that 
  I 
  had 
  seen 
  a 
  ring 
  

   of 
  light, 
  but 
  no 
  " 
  pear-drop 
  " 
  or 
  other 
  ligament, 
  at 
  internal 
  contacts. 
  I 
  

   gave 
  him 
  rough 
  sketches 
  of 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  ligaments 
  described 
  in 
  1769, 
  and 
  

   inquired 
  if 
  he 
  had 
  seen 
  any 
  thing 
  like 
  them. 
  I 
  also 
  asked 
  him 
  to 
  describe 
  

   the 
  fringe 
  of 
  light 
  he 
  had 
  observed 
  more 
  particularly. 
  

  

  In 
  reply, 
  Mr. 
  James 
  states, 
  under 
  date 
  14th 
  December 
  : 
  — 
  

   " 
  When 
  about 
  half 
  her 
  orb 
  had 
  entered 
  (alluding 
  to 
  ingress) 
  my 
  atten- 
  

   tion 
  was 
  attracted 
  to 
  the 
  other 
  half 
  yet 
  on 
  the 
  dark 
  sky 
  : 
  to 
  me 
  it 
  was 
  

   dark 
  ; 
  hence 
  I 
  infer 
  that 
  ray 
  field 
  was 
  not 
  so 
  light 
  as 
  it 
  ought 
  to 
  have 
  been. 
  

   Its 
  outline, 
  up 
  to 
  this 
  time 
  quite 
  invisible 
  to 
  me, 
  became 
  now 
  illumined 
  

   with 
  a 
  fringe 
  of 
  white 
  light. 
  I 
  then 
  also 
  noticed 
  a 
  much 
  fainter, 
  thinner, 
  

   edging 
  of 
  light 
  on 
  the 
  outline 
  of 
  the 
  limb 
  on 
  the 
  sun's 
  disk, 
  which 
  soon 
  

   ceased 
  to 
  be 
  visible. 
  The 
  fringe 
  external 
  was 
  rather 
  less 
  in 
  width 
  than 
  

   of 
  the 
  planet's 
  diameter. 
  * 
  * 
  * 
  * 
  The 
  light 
  somewhat 
  resem- 
  

   bled 
  that 
  which 
  we 
  see 
  so 
  plainly 
  in 
  India 
  lighting 
  up 
  the 
  dark 
  side 
  of 
  

   the 
  moon 
  three 
  or 
  four 
  days 
  old 
  ; 
  but 
  it 
  was 
  brighter, 
  not 
  diffusive 
  as 
  that 
  

   is, 
  its 
  inner 
  edge 
  being 
  clearly 
  marked. 
  It 
  remained 
  visible 
  as 
  long 
  as 
  

   there 
  was 
  any 
  appreciable 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  planet 
  beyond 
  the 
  sun's 
  circum- 
  

   ference. 
  

  

  " 
  As 
  the 
  time 
  for 
  the 
  internal 
  contact 
  approached, 
  that 
  half 
  of 
  the 
  

   planet 
  which 
  was 
  still 
  entering 
  appeared 
  to 
  lose 
  its 
  semicircular 
  shape 
  

   and 
  to 
  become 
  oval. 
  I 
  compared 
  it 
  to 
  the 
  thinner 
  half 
  of 
  an 
  egg 
  ; 
  but, 
  

   since, 
  I 
  have 
  examined 
  several 
  eggs, 
  and 
  find 
  that 
  my 
  comparison 
  would 
  

   represent 
  a 
  distortion 
  greater 
  than 
  I 
  had 
  intended. 
  Just 
  before 
  the 
  con- 
  

  

  