62 



Mr. R. H. Scott. 



KEW OBSERVATORY UNDER THE ROYAL SOCIETY. 



The letter from the Secretary of the British Association, com- 

 municating the Resolution of the Council of that body, which has 

 been given above, was taken into consideration by the Council of the 

 Royal Society on the 19th of January, 1871. At the Meeting of 

 the Council on the 16th of March of the same year, a letter was read 

 from Mr. J. P. Gassiot, E.R.S., offering to the Royal Society an 

 immediate gift of securities, the proceeds of which were to be devoted 

 to the maintenance of a Central Magnetical and Physical Observatory 

 at Kew. The negotiations for the acceptance of this munificent offer 

 were carried to a successful issue during the ensuing months, and on 

 the 15th of June the following memorandum was entered on the 

 Council Minutes of the Royal Society : — 



Memorandum of the general heads of the proposed Deed of Trust of 

 the Fund offered by Mr. Gassiot for maintaining the Kew Observatory 

 and carrying on the magnetic, meteorological, and physical observa- 

 tions there : — 



" Securities representing 10,000Z. are proposed to be given to the 

 Royal Society by J. P. Grassiot, Esq., F.R.S., upon trust, for the 

 purpose of assisting in carrying on and continuing magnetical and 

 meteorological observations with self-recording instruments, and any 

 other physical investigations as may from time to time be found practi- 

 cable and desirable, in the Kew Observatory, in the Old Deer Park, 

 at Richmond, Surrey, belonging to Her Majesty's Government; or, 

 in the event of that Government at any time declining to continue 

 placing that building at the disposition of the Royal Society, then 

 in any other suitable building as the Council of the Royal Society 

 may determine. 



" The Observatory and the income of the Trust Fund are to be 

 under the entire control and management of a Committee to be from 

 time to time appointed by the Council, for the time being, of the 

 Royal Society. 



"The services of such Committee (like those of the present Meteor- 

 ological Committee nominated at the request of Her Majesty's 

 Government) are to be gratuitous. 



" The income is to be paid to the Committee (to be by them applied 

 generally towards continuing and maintaining the Observatory and 

 providing the expenses of conducting the observations and investiga- 

 tions), also for any repairs to the Observatory building and premises, 

 or for repair or improvement of the present instruments, or for 

 providing new instruments, as the Committee may from time to time 



