ah 
734 

19/28”, 5, its declination 4° 38’ 0” north; 
hence its geocentric longitude 20% 12/0”, 5, 
latitude 48’ 49”, error of the tables—g” 
and + 18”, nearly the fame as laft year. 
The inclination of the orbit muft therefore 
(as has often been remarked) be increafed 
about from 10 to 12 feconds. ‘Thus the 
tables for this planet, by our friend De 
Lambre, ftill continue to be fatisfactorily 
confirmed *. 
CesaAris, in Milan, has fent me corre- 
fponding lunar obfervations to thofe made 
in Egypt, by Quesot; occultation of o 
the 21f of Auguft, 1798, ingrefs at 7h 33' 
23”, 53 and egrefs at 8n 28’ 57” true time. 
_ [have placed in the heavens a new con- 
ftellation between the fhip and the beaker; 
viz. acat. Defherbiers has already an- 
nounced this new conftellation in a very 
elegant poem Oz Cats, and }am very fond 
of thefe animals. It isa large empty {pace 
on the maps where I have placed this con- 
itellation, and where there are a great num- 
‘ber of ftars: fome of them are of the 4th. 
and sth magnitude. The new conftella- 
tion is engraving for the maps. 
‘I have received the Milan Ephemerides 
for 1799.—Cefaris makes the diameter of 
Saturn in his medium elongation 21”,— 
Herfchel calls it\ 19’; Rochon 16”; you 
(ive. -M. von Zach) 133 Bugge 51”. 
It in nowife aftonifhes me that Fifcher, 
of Drefden, who travelled through Spain, 
as an attentive and intelligent obferver, 
finds fo many errors in the Spanith maps.— 
Buache had with him here the fon of Lo- 
pez, who informed him that his father takes 
the maps which are publifhedin France and 
elfewhere, and out of them fabricates his 
own, as wellas may be, without any criti- 
cifm or difcrimination: and that he cites 
other maps, merely for the purpofe of 
acquiring credit to his own. We have no- 
thing accurate of Spain except the fea-coafts. 
My. aftronomical lectures in the college 
are diligently attended: among my audi- 
tors is Caffini V.; and Ciccolini, a ftudent 
ef sreat promife. Cauflin, profeffor of 
Avabic in the college, who has tranflated 
the afgronomical manulcripts of bz Funis, 

* Note by M. von Zach. From nine obfer- 
wations of Uranus, at the obfervatory at See- 
berg, from the 23d of February to the 13th 
of March, 4799, we found the medium error 
of De Lambre’s tables of this planet in geo- 
centric longitude—8’’, 72, and in geocentric 
datitude—x1", 53 too great; the inclination of 
the orbit diminifhed 10%. The oppofition of 
this planet to the fun happened on the toth 
of March about 8 54’'7”, 76 medium time 
at Seeberg, in 20° 18°1", 36 of geocentric 
and helioncentric longitude, reckoning from 
the middle équinoMial, and 48’ 39”, 4 of geo- 
.€entric, and 46’ 2”, x of heliocentric latitude, 
Literary and Philofophical Intelligence, 
[ O&tober, 
likewife attends my preleStions.—This 
muft produce the happieft effects ; for fel- 
dom indeed is it the cafe that orientalifts 
underftand any thing of aftronomy ; but 
how can they, without an acquaintance ~ 
with that {cience, tranflate manufcripts on 
aftronomical fubje€ts? * Cauffin is more- 
over an excellent Greek and Latin fcholar. 
—You,(M. Vou Zach, to whom it had been 
communicated by the chevalier Euler, di- 
rector of the Imperial Academy of Sciences, 
at Peterfburg,) fent me three years ago the 
dimenfions of the large bell at Mofcow, 
diameter 22 feet, 42 inches; height 22 
feet, 4% inches. Miller fays it weighs 
400,000 pounds. ‘The bell of Rouen, the 
moft celebrated in France, weighed only 
35,000 pounds; its diameter 8 feet, 6 
inches. I have long been occupied with 
calculations of this kind. , 

* Note by M. von Zach. it isa long time 
fince Lalande exprefled a with, that orienta= 
lifts would apply to the ftudy of mathematics 
and a{tronomy; becaufe, at Oxford, in the 
Efcurial, in Malta, are preferved fo many im- 
portant Arabic manufcripts, of which no ufe 
has yet been made. The Bodleian Library 
in Oxford alone poffeffes forty aftronomical 
manufcripts written by Arabians, from whicla 
an abundant harveft of ufeful knowledge may 
be expected. What precious literary and 
fcientific riches, perhaps, lie buried in Spain ! 
The Arabs. conquered this kingdom in the 
eighth century: they carried thither their 
aftronomy ; and there were many celebrated 
men of learning among them, who at that 
time exalted high the reputation of Spain. 
What treafures then may we not hope to 
find in that country ! 
I had, therefore, a long time ago propofed 
to his ferene highnefs the duke of Gotha, 
who does fo much for the feiences, and efpe- 
cially for aftronomy, to patronife fome young 
man of promifing talents who fhould fiudy en- 
tirely with this view. His highnefs ap- 
proved of the propofal: a young man was 
inquired after; but none has yet been found 
who in a fufficient degree joined a genius 
for acquiring languages to a capacity for ma- 
thematics and aftronomy. The duke is fill 
inclined to encourage fuch a young ftudent, 
who fhould prove to poffefs the necefiary 
qualifications. 
Even with Ulugh Beigh’s works we are yet 
but very imperfectly acquainted: Hyde tranf- 
lated only a {mall portion of them ; viz. the 
Tables. The greateft, and perhaps the moft 
important part {till lies negleéted on the fhelf 
at Oxford. Thirty years have elapfed fince 
Lalande exprefled his with for a complete 
tranflation of it. See his A4fronomy, tom. i. 
art. 367, p. 127. The impertance of Ara-— 
bian literature, not only for aftronomy, but 
likewife for geography, has been demon- 
ftrated by Laplace, Lalande, Bouvard, Burck= 
hardt and Von Einfiedel, in vol. iii. of the 
Alicemeine Geographijche Epbemeriden. * 
MONTHLY * 
