of f/ie first and second magnitude, as at the entrance of night; but 

 when it was at its greatest degree of brilliancy, only those of the 

 first magnitude could he discovered.''^* 



Prof. Williams observed an eclipse of the sun on the 27th of 

 October, 1780. His observation was made at Long-Island, in 

 Penobscot Bay. The eclipse was so nearly total, that at the 

 greatest obscuration "he found almost the whole of the lucid part 

 (of the sun) broken or separated into drops, a small part only, in 

 the middle, remaining connected yet he does not seem to have 

 noticed any light surrounding the dark body of the moon.t 



The phenomena observed in this country during the total 

 eclipse of 1806, appear to have been very similar to those already 



1715. The brightness of the moon's edge, as observed at Albany 

 by Simeon De Witt, Esq. Surveyor-General of the state of New. 

 York, seems to have been fully equal to that before spoken of as 

 occurring during the eclipse of 1706.^ 



Of the phenomena mentioned in the preceding observations, 

 and the quotations which follow, the faint ring of light which seems 

 uniformly to have surrounded the Moon during a total eclipse of 

 the Sun, may possibly depend upon the same cause which produ- 

 ces the peculiar tinge which in that case borders the edge of the 

 moon immediately before the end of total darkness, and which also, 

 (or something similar,) in most of the annular eclipses already re- 

 ferred to would seem to have preceded the formation of the ring. 

 Its intensity is, however, evidently less than that of the last mention- 

 ed phenomenon, as appears from the fact that, where the eclipse 

 was nearly central, it has not, in any known case, been seen for mora 

 than a very few seconds before or after the total darkness; and, 

 where the total darkness was of short duration, or even where the 

 eclipse was not quite total, it is not known to have been seen, ex- 

 cept during such time as the uneclipsed portion of the Sun was 

 very minute. The blood-red tinge, also, which precedes the end 



'hilosophical Transactions, (abridged,) 

 . p. 105, et seq. of the original work. 



t See the account of his observations, as well as those of J. J. De Ferrer, 

 in the American PhUosophical Transactions, vol. vj. A drawing wh^h wa» 

 presented by Mr. De Witt to the Institute, and which represents the appew- 

 ance of the moon as seen by him on the occasion here spoken of, nowadoma 

 the room of the second department. 



