HISTORY OF MAURITIUS. 
395 
large stars which were not known to the astronomers of Europe but by their nebu¬ 
lous shapes. 
" M. de la Caille had directed his first attentions only to the stars of the first, 
second, third, and fourth magnitude: having, however, a favourable opportunity, 
he determined to include within his calculation those of the fifth, sixth, and seventh 
magnitude. 
“ On the 17th of February, a very thick and unwholesome fog arose at the Cape, 
and M. de la Caille was affected with all the disagreeable consequences of it. He 
however recovered in the same month of the year 1752, in which he died in the 
year 1762. 
" As soon as he had completed his catalogue of the southern stars, he compared 
it with the planisphere which had been laid down by M. Halley in 1677 '> an( * he 
found that he surpassed by 9450 stars that of the English astronomer. 
“ After having examined the planisphere of Halley, as well as those of Ptolemy, 
and the Portuguese pilots, M. de la Caille found place for fourteen new constella¬ 
tions, better furnished, and more exact than those of the ancients, which required 
a general reformation. 
“ On the 8th of March, 1753, he embarked on board the French ship the Puissieux, 
bound for China, and which was to touch at the Isles of France and Bourbon. 
During the passage from the Cape to the Isle of France, he made an experiment 
which has proved very useful to sailors, of a simple method of finding the longitude 
at sea. He has inserted it in his Ephemeris, as well as in another of his works, and 
it may be considered as one of the most important services which he has rendered 
to mankind. He arrived at the Isle of France the 18th of April, forty days after 
his departure from the Cape. 
<4 An account of his operations in the Isle of France are to be found .in the 
Memoirs of the Academy of the year 1754, and in his Historical Journal. He 
embarked the 15th of January, 1754, for the Isle of Bourbon, and arrived there 
the following day. After he had fulfilled the object of his mission, he embarked 
the 27th of February following on board the Achilles, and returned to France. 
“ On the 15th of April the ship came to an anchor before the Isle of Ascension. 
M. de la Caille remained there only five days, but he availed himself of the oppor¬ 
tunity to determine the position of the place; a very important point for ships on 
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