JhIh X. XirolJrf.— WlnrlnJI. 345 
mitted into the higher circles of society. Shortly after he wrote 
for the -Modera Enc3-clopedia" several articles on pro/>'(A/7<7/V.s-, 
and one npon fissnnmces. It is stated that his knowledge of the 
English gave him a great advantage, in being able to consnlt 
writers in that language on the theor}' of assurances in applying 
it to ever}' species of risks.' 
In 1810 and 1820 he made observations upon the lunar spot 
Manilus, and united them with those of Bouvard in 1806. with a 
discussion of the whole, published in 1822 and 1823 in Connain- 
.^(iiicex des Tcinpn. On the 21st of January, 1821, he discovered, 
between six and seven in the evening, a comet in the constella- 
tion Pegasus, seen on the same daj' and the same hour bj' Pons, 
of ^larseilles. He subsequently computed its parabolic elements. 
In a later discover}^ of another comet (April 22, 18:50) he was 
preceded by ^I. Gambart, of Marseilles, who saw it on the 21st of 
the same month. ^Ve are also indebted to Nicollet for observa- 
tions and computations of other comets, among which may be 
mentioned that of 1 H2:;. whose elements he computed. lie had 
alread}' labored some time in the Observatory at Paris, when in 
1822. he entered the -'Bureau des Longitudes' as an adjunct. 
His position for the future Avas thus must houoralily established. 
The publications of the Observatory will slu^w the part he took 
in the oljservations. He participated in that great work, the de- 
termination of the tigiuH' of till' earth. l)y comparing a measured 
teiTestrial arc with the celestial arc corresponding to it. These 
labors were published in --Connaissances des Temps" for 1820. 
A memoir of his on a new computation of the latitudes of cer- 
tain places, to serve as a supplement to that great work, the 
•'•Base du Systeme metrique. was pnl)lished in 1828. 
Nicollet was honored by the decoration of the Legion of Honor, 
previous to 182"). and IkhI also the a|)p()intment of professor to 
the Royal College of Loins i^e (liaml. Having also been ap- 
pointed une of the Inspectors (jf the Xaval Schools, conjointl}' 
with MM. Keynaud and (rerand he pul)lished a course in mathe- 
matics in three volumes, for th(; use of candidates for [)romotion. 
the second volume, containing geometry :ind trigonometry. Iteing 
edited solely 1)V himself. 
In 18:-J1 he determinecl the conqjarative magnetic intensity of 
Brest, witli reference to that of Paris and Brussels, and the re- 
sults were inserted in tlie first volume (»f tiie Bulletins. Several 
