OBSERVATORY. 
375 
Kerfchel, whofe aftronomical attainments do great honour 
to her hex, difcovered fix comets; and the other is his 
{even-feet refledtor, by which he difcovered the Georgian 
planet at Bath, in 1781. This telefcope has, in confe- 
qi.ence of the difcovery, been made a conftellation in the 
heavens, with the univerfai approbation of aftronorners. 
It is placed between Gemini, the Lynx, and Auriga, and 
contains 81 liars. In Bode’s atlas it is engraved with its 
apparatus, and marked Telefcopium HerJ'chelii. 
The Oxford Obfervatory is a moll magnificent ftruflure, 
and the inftruments perfectly correfpond with the build¬ 
ing, It was begun in 1772, from very ample funds be¬ 
queathed by Dr.Radcliffe, and the land on which it Hands 
■was the gift of the duke of Marlborough. The tranlitin- 
ftrument, which is ten feet long, Ihows very fmall liars in 
the day-time: it is faid to have coll 150 guineas, the zenith- 
fedlor 200 guineas, and the two mural quadrants 600 gui¬ 
neas. There are alfo very excellent telefcopes and clocks 
here; theformer by Dr. Herfchel and Doilond, and the lat¬ 
ter by Shelton. It was built under the direction of Dr. 
Hornfby, profefl'or of aftronomy in the univerfity, who 
obferved here for many years ; and he has been fucceeded 
by Dr.Robertfon, the prefent profelfor of aftronomy. The 
obfervations are all regiftered, and confift chiefly of the 
right afcenlions and zenith diftances of the fun, moon, 
planets, and fixed ftars. 
At Cambridge there have been fmall obfervatories at 
Chrift-clnirch, Trinity, St. John’s, &c. and a plan is faid 
to be now on foot for eredling one upon a great fcale, 
and worthy the fcientific fame of that learned univerfity. 
At the Royal Marine Academy, Portlmouth, there is 
an obfervatory under the direction of Mr. Profefl'or In¬ 
man, which is of peculiar utility, both in teaching the pu¬ 
pils practical aftronomy, and in finding the rate of time¬ 
keepers for feamen. It was built, and many years ably 
managed, by the late mailer, Mr. Bailey, who had 
been previoufly aftiftant-aftronomer at the Royal Ob¬ 
fervatory, and likewife with Capt. Cook in his latter 
voyages. 
At Chrift’s Hofpital, Mr. Wales (who had alfo ferved 
tinder Dr. Malkelyne and Capt. Cook) eredled a fmall ob¬ 
fervatory at his own expenfe, when he became mailer of 
the royal mathematical fchool there ; and the governors, 
at the recommendation of Mr. Evans, the late mailer, or¬ 
dered the obfervatory to be repaired, and furnilhed with 
new inftruments. 
The Royal Society have at Somerfet Houfe a fmall ob¬ 
fervatory, which is generally fuperintended by the fecre- 
tary for the time being. 
At Highbury Houle, an obfervatory was built in the 
year 1787, by Alexander Aubert, efq. which, for perfec¬ 
tion of plan and fplendour of apparatus, perhaps has 
* never been equalled by any private individual.. This 
gentleman, whofe fcientific and liberal purfuits deferve 
honourable mention, died in the year 1806 ; and his grand 
collection of inftruments was difpofed of by auftion, and 
of courle difperfed. Similar notice may be taken of other 
obfervatories contemporary with that of Highbury, par¬ 
ticularly thofe of count Bruhl at Harefield, fir George 
Shuckburgh at Shuckburgh, and William Larkins, efq. 
at Blackheath, all of which were on a great fcale, and 
have been difcontinued after the demife of the owners. 
Thus, in private obfervatories, though the aftronorners 
may bequeath their apparatus to their heirs, they can¬ 
not transfer either their tafte or their fcience. It is only 
in public eftablilhments that permanence can be expedited. 
Among the private obfervatories of the prefent day, the 
following alphabetical lift may be alfo mentioned: 
Blackheath - Stephen Groombridge, efq. 
Blenheim - Duke of Marlborough. 
Cambridge - Rev. Mr. Catton. 
Chiflehurlt - Rev. Francis Wollafton. 
Derby - William Strutt, efq. 
Eaft Sheen - Rev. William Pearfon. 
Finlbury Square 
Godwood 
Golport 
Hackney Wick 
Hayes 
Highbury Terrace 
Hoddefdon 
Illington 
- Dr. Kelly. 
- The Duke'of Richmond. 
- Dr. William Burney. 
Colonel Beaufoy. 
William Walker, efq. 
- Capt. Huddart- 
- William Hodgfon, efq. 
Gavin Lowe, efq. 
Paragon, Southwark - James Strode Butt, efq. 
Park-lane - - Sir Harry Englefieid, bart. 
Rofe Hill, Suffex - John Fuller, efq. 
Richmond Gardens - The King. 
Sherburn - - Earl of Macclesfield. 
St. Ibbs, Hitchen - Mr; Profefl'or Lax. 
Trollon, near Bury - Capel Lofft, efq. 
WooLwich - - Rev. Lewis Evans’/ 
Scotch Obfervatories. —In the different univerfities of 
Scotland profeftbrfliips of aftronomy have been eftabliflied ; 
but it has been here, as in iVioft other univerfities, the 
theory of the fcience has been more attended to than the 
praftice. At Edinburgh and Aberdeen there have been, 
however, obfervatories ; and at Glafgow, there is alfo a 
fmall one belonging to the college; but of late a magni¬ 
ficent one has beeir ereCted by a fociety of gentlemen, 
which is likely to be very ufeful, as well as honourable to 
that commercial city. 
Irijh Obfervatories. —In Ireland, two obfervatories have 
been eftabliflied on a great fcale ; the one at Dublin, and 
the other at Armagh. 
The obfervatory belonging to Trinity-college, Dublin, 
commonly called the Dublin Obfervatory, w-as begun in 
the year 1783. It was founded by Dr. Francis Andrew's, 
provoft of that college, who bequeathed a large income 
for this purpofe. The apparatus firft ordered are, a tran- 
fit-inftrument of fix feet focal length, with a four-feet 
axis, bearing four inches and a quarter aperture, with 
three different magnifying powers up to 600. An entire 
circle of ten feet diameter on a horizontal axis, for mea- 
furing meridian altitudes. An equatorial inftrument, 
w'ith circles of five feet in diameter : and an achromatic 
telefcope, mounted on a polar axis, and carried by an 
heliollatic movement. Clocks were alfo ordered from 
Mr. Arnold, without any limitation of price. The fitua- 
tion chofen for the obfervatory is on elevated ground, 
about four Englilh miles north-weft of Dublin. The 
foundation is a {olid rock of limeftone, of feveral miles 
extent; and the foil is very favourable, being a calcareous 
fubftance called limeftone gravel, which is remarkable 
for abforbing the rain, and thus contributing to a dry at- 
mofphere. 
The plan of the building unites at once both elegance 
and convenience : it fronts the eaft, and the lower ran^e 
of windows and doors are twenty-three in number. In 
the centre there is a magnificent dome of three ftories 
high, with a movable roof for the equatorial inftrument, 
which is placed upon a pillar of fixteen feet fquare, of the 
moll fubllantial mafonry, and furrounded by a circular 
wall of a foot diftance, that lupports the movable dome, 
and alfo the floors, which in no part touch the pillar 1 
thus, no motion of the floor or wall can he communicated 
to the inftrument. But the mod important ereftioa be- 
longingto this eftablilhment, is behind the main building, 
and at right angles to it, in order to obtain an uninter¬ 
rupted view both north and fouth. This is the meridian 
or tranfit-room, which contains both the tranfit inftrument 
and the circle. It is thirty-feven feet long, twenty-three 
broad, and twenty-one high. Fine pillars of Portland 
Hone are erefted for both inftruments on the moll firm 
balls, and the floor is fo framed as to let all the pillars rife 
totally detached from it: and fuch was Dr. Uflier’s at¬ 
tention to extreme accuracy, that he firft afcertained the 
pillars to be perfefilly homogeneous, left any variety in 
their fubftance might admit of a difference in their ex- 
panfion or contraction, by heal, cold, or other changes in 
the 
