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Art. xxxvi.-scientific intelligence. 
I, NATURAL PHILOSOPHY. 
ASTRONOMY. 
1. History of the Rediscovery of Encke's Comet. — The merit 
of the rediscovery of this comet, which we mentioned in our last 
number, and which has excited great interest, is due to our 
countryman, Mr J ames Dunlop, an ingenious maker of telescopes, 
from Ayrshire, who went out to New South Wales, with his Ex- 
cellency Sir Thomas Brisbane, as a scientific assistant. Mr Dun- 
lop was examining the heavens with a sweeper, when he encoun- 
tered this singular body. We state this fact on the authority of 
Sir Thomas Brisbane *, who has recently transmitted to the 
Royal Society of Edinburgh, a series of valuable astronomical 
observations made at Paramatta. It is impossible to speak too 
highly of the zeal and talents of this eminent astronomer, whose 
appointment to the government of New South Wales has given 
such universal satisfaction. 
2. Longitude and Latitude of Paramatta. — The longitude of 
the observatory of Paramatta, in New South Wales, is 10 h 4' 14".5 
east of Greenwich, as determined by various methods of observa- 
tion. The latitude of the observatory is 33° 48' 42". 
3. New Elements of Encke's Comet. — The following correct 
elements of this comet have been given by M. Encke.:-*- 
Passage of the Perihelion, 1822, May 24?, .01768, Mean time at Seeberg. 
Long, of the Perihelion, 
Inclination of the Orbit, 
Excentricity, 
Its Sine, . . . 
Log. of one-half the greater Axis, 
157° IP 28" .8) From Mean 
331 19 31 .9 J Equinox, 
0.8445479 
57° 37' 24" .7 
0.3472191. 
M. Encke is engaged in very laborious calculations, with the 
view of ascertaining if the resistance of the ether could have any 
® Great credit is due to Sir Thomas, in doing this justice to our modest coun- 
tryman. Baron de Zach, who considers the rediscovery of this comet as one of the 
greatest efforts of modern astronomy, ascribes all the glory of it to the u vigilant 
and penetrating eye of M. Rumker,” and to “ Germanic diligence.” M. Rumker 
has great merit in every thing he does, and particularly in what he has done on 
this subject ; but the merit of discovering the comet is solely Mr Dunlop’s. 
