412 Biographical Accou7it of [Junb^ 



old sooner than Unen, and it is very seldom that an astronomer 

 consents to use those which his predecessor employed. 



Dr. Maskelyne died on the 9th of February, 1811, at the age 

 of rather more than 7^ years. 



The works which he has left, besides his four volumes in folio 

 of observations, the memoii-g of which we have spoken, and the 

 first 45 volumes of the Nautical Almanac, calculated under his 

 direction, and revised by him, are, his British Mariner's Guide; 

 the Tables necessary for the usage of the Nautical Almanac; 

 Dissertations on Nautical Astronomy and the use of the Octant ; 

 and finally, his posthumous works, of the contents of which we 

 are ignorant, but which astronomers will be very anxious to 

 procure. 



Tims we have described the philosopher : but the man, the 

 father, the friend, was not less valuable. Every astronomer^ 

 every philosopher, found in him a brother. This is the testimony 

 which M. Chabert gave of him on his return from London, in 

 which he had taken refuge during a season of storms, and where 

 he received the most friendly reception from the Astronomer 

 Koyal, accompanied with attentions the most delicate and the 

 most generous. Of a character friendly and amiable, he gained 

 the affections of all those who had the good fortune to knov/ 

 him, and his death was honoured with their regret. Destined at 

 first to the ecclesiastical profession, he preserved always the 

 virtues and the sentiments of that profession. He died as he 

 had always lived, a Christian, firm in his faith, and in the hope 

 that he would be admitted into the presence of a Creator whose 

 works he had so long contemplated and admired. 



, He left behind him an only daughter, Margaret Maskelyne, 

 to whom we are indebted for materials for this account, of which 

 we could have wished to have been able to make a better use. 

 We hope at least that she will not see without some satisfaction 

 the sentiments of esteem and gratitude with which her respect- 

 able father had inspired his brethren in France, and we venture 

 to say in all nations. 



Note by the Editor. — The preceding account has been 

 given in the words of Delambre ; because it does equal honour 

 to the candour of the French philosopher and to the eminence 

 of Maskelyne. But as the list which it contains of Dr. Maske- 

 lyne's papers, published at different times, is far from complete, 

 v/e think that the reader will see with pleasure an exact list of 

 them. We therefore subjoin it here : — 



1. A Proposal for discovering the Annual Parallax of Sirius, Phil. Trans. 

 1760, vol. li. p. 889. 

 % A Theorem on the Aberration of the Rays of Light refracted through a 



