1887.] C. Piazzi Smyth on the Edinhurgh Eguatorial. 11 
4. The Edinburgh Equatorial in 1887 ; a Paper with two 
Appendices. By C. Piazzi Smyth, Astronomer-Royal for 
Scotland. 
The Equatorial of the Eoyal Observatory, Edinhurgh, is still in 
October 1887, unfinished, blocked against use, and entirely unusable. 
This lamentable outcome of so many years, is simply the con- 
sequence of the necessary funds for finishing and working the 
instrument having been withheld by Government, after they had 
been promised by the Board of Visitors, printed again and again in 
much detail, and thought to have been obtained. 
The beginning, or first supplying, of the instrument had been 
carried out by H.M. Office of Works in London, on the strength of 
a special grant by Parliament ; and the Astronomer knows simply 
nothing about the money part of that proceeding. 
He has merely to do with what results it accomplished in its day; 
— and seeing that these are now freely confessed by the authorities 
actually concerned to be imperfect, and left standing, as well as 
locked and blocked, in that condition — to set forth from his point 
of view how, — assuming the working funds, as well as liberty to act, 
were to be granted to him, according to the original suggestion of the 
Board of Visitors, — he would set about the finishing of the instru- 
ment suitably with both its long ago accomplished beginning, the 
very peculiar artificial and natural restrictions of the situation, 
and the high nature of the stellar and spectroscopic observations 
required, and intended, to be made. 
Taking the instrument therefore as it is now, or even with such 
minor improvements as a Government Commission (without the 
Astronomer upon it) recommended in 1879, and even obtained a 
grant for their execution by the Office of Works (though they have 
not been executed yet) — there is no doubt that if any experienced 
practical astronomer were to endeavour at this time to use the 
instrument, he would speedily arrive, amongst various other defects, 
at the following four accusations in chief, viz. : — 
1st. The instrument, though not in the slightest degree too large 
for its intended work, and far smaller than many telescopes else- 
where, is yet too bulky for its Dome; and that has the largest 
