\ 
1800. ] 
Wimenez, occupied by the Scolopies, and 
which had originally been very ill divided. 
We may hope, therefore, for fome obfer- 
vations from Tuicany. 
The revolution of Naples has made that 
capital, the pofition of which was not ac- 
curately known, an object of attention. 
M. Caffella fent me feveral obfervations 
of eclipfes, which I have calculated; and 
_ I have found the diftance of Naples from 
the meridian of Paris, by the mean of 7 
relults, to be 47 minutes 49 feconds. ; 
The labours of M. Piazzi, of Palermo, 
muft have been interrupted this year by 
calamity and migfortunes ; for J have re- 
ceived no letter from the beautiful obfer- 
vatory and the able aftronomer of Pa- 
lermo. 
A Roman citizen has come to reinforce 
aftronomy in France. Ciccolini requefted 
leave to lodge in the College of France, 
in order to obferve and make calculations 
along with'us. He has difplayed in this 
fituation as much zeal as ability; and 
we are indebted to him for the calculation 
of eclipfes of the fun obferved in this cen- 
tury, of which there had before been no 
refults. He has affifted us alfo to calca- 
late a part of ourummentfe collection of ftars. 
Memoirs of George lWafhington. 
355° 
T announced laft year that Caffini feem- 
ed difpofed to tread in the fteps of his an 
ceftors. His father, who quitted the ob- 
fervatory at the fatal period of 1793, has 
announced his intention of refiding at Pa- 
ris ; and the Inftitute has elected him a 
fecond time to a place in the department 
of aftronomy, vacant by the death of Le- 
monnier. 
Sorlin has joined us, and is. calculating 
the longitudes, latitudes, and angles of 
po&tion for fix hundred ftars, which form 
the fundamental catalogue of the principal 
ftars, which C. Le Frangais is publifhing 
in the Conusifjance des Tems, and which he 
has for feveral years been bringing to per- 
fection. C. Sorlin has calculated allo a 
new table of the {pheroidal degrees ac- 
cording to the dimenfions we have adopted. 
Mongin has calculated the proceflions 
of the 1500 ftars in the Connoiffance des 
Tems for the year 7, 1m hundredths and f{e- 
conds ; and he is calculating for 1800 and 
1900, the proceflions of the 600 ftars of 
the fundamental catalogue. 
Bernier, of Montauban, has fent us cal- 
culations of obfervations of Mercury and 
Venus, made by Duc-la- Chapelle. 
(To be concluded in our next.) 
1 


ANECDOTES OF EMINENT PERSONS. 
a 
‘BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH Of, GEORGE 
WASHINGTON, LATE PRESIDENT of 
the UNITED STATES Of AMERICA. 
[Continued from p. 170. } 
7) URING the turbulent period of 
the French revolution, Wafhington 
was re-eleéted to the office of the Prefi- 
dency of the United States, which he held 
from April 1789, till September 1796. 
Probably no mayiltrate of any common- 
wealth, ancient or modern, ever occupied 
a place fo painful and perilous. Certainly 
mo man was ever called upon fo often to 
facrifice his virtuous feelings: (he had no 
other facrifices to make) to his public 
duty. Two circumftances of this fort de- 
ferve to be particularly noticed. \In the 
{pring of 1794, he fent an embaffador to 
‘Paris with credentials, addreffed to’ his 
6 Dear friends the citizens compofing the 
Committee of Public Safety of the French 
Republic,” whom lie prays God **to take 
under his holy protection.*’ Fortunately 
the American embaflador was {pared the 
“humiliation of prefenting his credentials 
totheic bloody tyrants. Their power was 
-faned name’ of republic. 
fubverted, and a few of them had fuffered 
the punifhment of their crimes, which no 
punifliment could expiate, before his arrival 
at Paris. ‘The dignity of the nature of 
man was not fo degraded, as that the em- 
baffador of the moft refpectable republic 
in the world fhould be prefented to rufhans 
and aflafans, who had the incredible ef- 
frontery to call their tyranny by the pro- 
But hiftorians 
who relate heroic facrifices of feeling to 
duty, when they tell us, that Brutus 
thought himfelf obliged to condemn his 
fon to death, will not forget to add, that 
Wafthington was compelled to calf Rober- 
fpierre ‘‘ his friend!’ In the contempla- 
tion of fuch fcenes good men for a moment 
forget their deliberate opinions, and are 
led to curfe civil government ittelf with alf 
the fevere duties which it impoles, and all 
the cruel facrifices which it demands. 
Another ftruggle of feeling and duty 
Wathington had to encounter, when he 
was compelled. to fupprefs the infurreétion 
in the weftern counties of Pennfylvania by 
force of arms, But here he had a confo- 
LL % lation 
