46 
REPOR’r—184/. 
thi8 embarrassing uncertainty and the necessitj^ of very troublesome calculate; 
order to compare those two denominations together, will be avoided, brestabhi^ 
the cubic foot as the only standard both of solidity and of capacity. 
In all buildings and otherworks of Architecture,Engineering, &c.,wliida4fea!nn 
measured by the foot, the necessity of computing arti6cm’ and Itboutws’ »td.«i 
well as materials, duodecimally, and in gt^ssold by weight, the troobkafc r- 
duction of tons into cwts., quarters and pounds, and «« wrsd; andmiUanai 
the reduction of pounds sterliug into shillings, pence and fartUagB,aiMlwira. 
will also be avoided, which will be an immense savisgof time, trouble wins*! 
error. 
Sir Charles Pasley further observes, that after a very carcfol invetiptiosofif 
histor}* of our national weights and measures from the time of Alfred to tit i»oat 
day, he has ascertained that with the exception of our lineal measure, inatrf* 
present standards are venerable from their antiquih?, as might natarallybtJifjBii 
by those who have not had the means of such investigation, they hanogOB that- 
***^j^ct to mucli greater changes than any which he now 
ail those changes having originated from accident, error, had workroiashipwawft 
with the exception of the eslablishmeat of the imperial gallon in 1324. irhiAsn^ 
o say, but no less true, was tlie firstainlonlym^iiicationof ourexi8tjDg6tt^<lfA 
aaopteu systcraatically, as an improvement and with a view to the psblicteil* 
he course of 800 yeora. Such as they were, however, even the legal 
iircgardcd m every part of tlie kingdom, where such an immense number ofin^ 
gruous and discordant local measures and weights prevailed, differing is 
cxtmorilmary mamicr from thosu standards and from each other, not oalj ia*"! 
countv. but m every market, as rendered them a perfect chaos, and quite u >» 
w'oiriybe generally, as those of the ancient Egyptians or BaWow* 
Jivport of Ancmnmetncal OhserKotions at Oxford during two 
% the llev. I»rofes8or Walker. M.A., F.R.S. 
?/ presented two volnmca from the East India Coni(anj,<» 
India, by and Trigonometrical SunW« 
presented to the Association, through the Section, 
JamKi. • i** Galvanism and on Electro*n»agnetisnii . , 
'hAT ‘i ^tfonomie Italienne,’ par >1. Struvs; ' Positions of tit ^ 
ilid Struve; and* Chronometrk Voyages bcnm»^ 
'• - nh. of determining the geographical 
Srrf,r^ ‘’5' F. C. W. Strive and 0. W. . . 
airuve begged to say a few words. Hi» !.»H rprMvwl the cntuaMJ* “ 
Central 
Prof Srr,,.; 1 F. C. W. Struve and 0. W. SW»f . 
Emneror Nirh,Ai " ords. He had received the enmasoh 
three of these volumes. He dwelt on the nflf^ 
m^st irn^rfc7“’Jn"^ surveys going on in that empire, and 
from which m ^ agreed oa the importance of having a 
pride to adont » { and friends had urged him. as a rwttwaf 
hut he renliei pomt for Russia, independently of any oi^ 
.tano^sTt b tore for national pride. Umfer th«*^ 
either to Paris ««• the geographical pceition of Poulkovo,^ . 
prevToui i aod. for many reasom. he fixed nn GiteamtfcJ 
K MdC I8]4,haddetennined the difference of 1^ 
determioid ?nl"ai'32«-523, witi. a probable error o(ow\y(f^'^ 
•team boats them nnd Greenwich by iraasportiog chroiioaic<”^i 
Tw^tv ch^S^'^^ to. most corduSy ga« 
for the' influence of selected. In these observations it was ®*^‘*‘*5tn*i* 
trie observatbM w^eSd P* temporature ; and to attempt to do s» 
exact. This was J ® requu-ed a process of integration tfoublesoia 
Qicdicd by a simple contrivance. The compeeMtioD 
