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Les diagrammas suivants illustrent la m^thode. rata elure, 6 3 I2X 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 ^.i-C / METEOROLOGY AND ITS PROFESSOliS; A REVIEW, B Y T H E Editor of the Canada Medical and Surgical Journal; A COUNTER-STATEMENT OF FACTS, BY T H E AITTHOEITIES" OF McGILL UNIVERSITY A REPLY THERETO, BY THOS. D. KING. Jttmitreal : J. STARKE & CO., PRINTERS, ST. FRANCOIS XAVIER STREET 1873. i^^b^AbM^v^^^^*^^' ^(Pl^'^^^'lM^^a^^aa^M^^ ^•L. 1-^ '- -e. ^ - I 55 la METEOROLOGY AND ITS PKOFESSOKS A REVIEW, n Y T 11 E Editou of the Canada Medical and Suhgical Jouunal; A COUNTER-STATEMENT OF FACTS, 1) Y T II n "AUTHORITIES" OF McGILL UNIVERSITY; WITH A REPLY THERETO, BY T H S. D. KIN G. 4ttonticai : J. STAUKh & CO., i'KINTERS, ST. FRANCOIS XAVIEII STREET. 187< / PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION OF METEOROLOGY AND ITS PROFESSORS. The first edition, published in October, 1872, was respectfully dedicated by the author to all whom it may concern. Unfortu- nately it seemed to affect the interest of nobody but the Editor of the Canada Medical and Surgical youmal, who wrote a review of it, which caused a perturbation among the Dons of the University. The subject evidently was not a matter of moment to the Editors of the principal daily journals in Montreal, Quebec, and Ottawa, although great interests were at stake; perhaps they considered the author a fit subject for a commission " de lunatico inguir^do" from his doubting anything done by the Faculty of Arts, who^t^ peradventure, they likened to a certain Eastern Monarch, who was wiser than his fellows — too common opinions. The second edition, with a few verbal alterations, is now necessarily published, in consequence of the Counter-Statement of Facts, by the " Authorities" of McGill University. The author will now be more definite in his dedication ; and he hopes to be pardoned if he, without permission, dedicates the present edition, together with his reply to the "Authorities," to the thinking public. The choice is a select one, and it is, perhaps, a judicious one, because every reader will consider himself flattered. He would have dedicated it to the "Authorities," they being the persons most implicated in the matter, but he was afraid of being charged with obsequiousness. 37^)3 •', .,,ti .; ■ .Ids n^,_^,. . ,, , , ' '•-''•■ • *"'»- «'■» \.,':j !■' '« >,; -<•» !-, METEOROLOGY AND ITS PROFESSOBS. If a Professor of Meteorology is fitted to rank with those Professors who attempt to discover the secret operations of nature, whether in the heavens or in the interior of the earth, or in the finely woven tissues of organic structure, and who are anxious to discover ne\A' phenomena, or to draw the light of knowledge from the unexplored depths of nature, then the study of Meteorology is as necessary as the study of Chemistry, Botany, Physiology, Astronomy, and Geology. It is difficult to understand why the study of the air> weather and seasons, with the varied and interesting appear- ance which they present, has not received greater attention from educated persons, more particularly from those who are interested not only in agriculture and shipping, but in the sanitary condition of the people. The fact of the existence of periodical variations in the te .nperature of the years and seasons in our own climate, of the terrific thunder-storms and hurricanes which frequently visit us in the summer, should incite us to a more constant and more diligent study of the phenomena, since we may thus become qualified to avail our- selves of a considerable degree of knov.'ledge of those changes. One of the reasons for the little notice given to Meteor- ology in Montreal — no more interest generally being taken in it than of the weather column of a shilling almanac — may arise from the fact that the Professor of Meteorology has not given to the students of McGill College popular lectures on a science as necessary as Natural History, Geology, and Astron- omy, teaching them "the balancings of the clouds" mentioned in Holy Writ as a part pf the wondrous works of HIM, who is perfect in knowledge. It ought to be' the duty of a Professor of a University, which has conferred upon him honours and degrees, who unriertakes the work of public instruction, to present to tiic students of his CoUe^^'c, in simjde iirrangement, and to enable them to comprehend with ease — things, tiie natural history of which has cost Science a world of pains to analyze and recomposc. Of the causes which have intluced the author of this communication to write, and also forced him to print this protest, little need be said. The task is a thankless one; it may make enemies — truth has always done so. The discern- ing of truth without difference of opinion is unattainable, and perhaps, the disputes of the learned are necessary for the warts of Science and its continual advancement, therefore he offers no apology. It is far from necessary to liis present object to state all his reasons for the course he has taken, but it is absolutely expedient for him to assert that he is actuated by no envious nor ignoble feeling, but solely by a desire to see Science pursued with that true dignity which is its due, and that it may get more attention — particularly that branch of it called Meteorology — from the Faculty than it has hitherto received. Some medical friends, believing that atmospheric changes have considerable influence on health, and that there is an immediate connection between the peculiar state of the air and the kind of disorders which may thereby be excited; and further, thinking that Montreal might possibly be afflicted with some fatal epidemic, asked the writer to take, if possible, during the past summer, hourly observations of the tempera- ture, humidity and barometric pressure of the atmosphere. He willingly undertook the task for three reasons : first, in the interests of Meteorology; secondly, because he did not believe, in common with others familiar with the subject, the exaggerated published statements about the temperature in Montreal, plus 96 and 100, and minus 38 and 43; thirdly, because he had for many years entertained doubts not only as to the general accuracy of the observations published by the Director of the so-called "Montreal Observatory," and Profes- « 8or of Meteorolo'j^y at McGill Colle<:^e, l»ut he liaJ reasons to believe tiiat all Uie published obHervatioiis were not taken at the Observatory in the MeGil) Colle<,'e ({rounds, and he knew that many of the instruments used were not in aecordance, either in design or quality, with those employed at the Greenwich and Kew Observatories, and recognized by tho Royal Society and British Association for the Advancement (»t Science. In taking, for four months, almost hourly observations, between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. — sometimes between 1 and 3 p.m. half-hourly notes, as a check on the maximum temperatuie of the day — he was kindly assisted by a professional gentl(;man who was assiduously exact and pains-taking. Monthly summaries of the cbservations have already appeared in the Canada Medical and Surgical Journal with- out dispute; others were circulated amongst those in:erested in them. Daily summaries, that couKl lie easily understood by the non-scientific public, were published in two journals, but are now discontinued, in the one, on account of its decease; in the other, solely in consequence of some importu- nity which led the editor and proprietor to substitute others for them; whether interest or inclination formed the primary and ruling motive in the ciiange the writer will not stop to enquire, he being impelled neither by ambition nor necessity to furnish them free for the public benefit. If the public derived useful information from them, and was satisfied with their accuracy, he is fully compensated, although they demanded unremitted devotion of time, which may readily be believed when upwards of sixty observations were taken every day, and these had not only to be registered and red""'^d, and cor- rections applied to them, to fit them for any scien 'fie purpose, but they had to be prepared for daily publication. The obligations of the task, from the nature and object of the observations, demanded more than usual care, and the use of standard instruments (positively so) ; thermometers and hygrometers duly protected against their own radiation to the sky, and against the light reflected by neighbouring objects, 4 such II.S limestone buildings, adjacent walls, and duly sheltered frum rain and hail. Extra ctre was taken in the choice of instruments, and in the mode and time of observing. A standard thermometer, divided on its own stem, .supplied by the Kew Observatory, was employed; the observed tempera- tures by it were checked by a very delicate and sensitive insulated centigrade thermometer, with an enamelled glass scale, subdivided to fifths of a degree, by Schulze, of Berlin — the raai3 of which was used as a wet bulb thermometei-, in order to get the relative humidity to hundredths. T\t^o pair of maxima and minima thermometers, by Pastorelli, were used — cne of the maxima on Professor Phillips' plan; the other on a plan invented and patented by Negretti — both the minimas on Rutherford's plan. Great' care had been taken in these to eliminate or destroy all sources of error. The object in using two pair was a mutual check. One pair was tested by Professor Kingsco?!, Director of the Magnetic Observatory, Toronto, and sole Director of the Meteorological Department so wisely instituted by the Hon. Peter Mitchell, Minister of Marine and Fisheries; the greatest error of the maximum thermometer being 0.2, and of the minimum thermometer, at low temperatures, 0.1, (the errors in both instrments being merely nominal.) The barometer used was a brass scaled one throughout its entire length, corrected for capacity — its maximum error between 29.00 and 30.50 being 0.02, and its minimum error 0.01, as determined by comparison with the Greenwich stan \- ard; it v/as placed in a room not liabbto sudden variations of tempc^ature, and as near the Director's barometer as the out-door thermometers respectively used oy them; so near that the writer is puzzled to account for the difference between some of their recorded barometrical readings, unless the atmospheric pressure at the same minute, at two places, within so small an area, is liable, ordinarily, to depress or raise the mercurial column 0.05 or 0.10 more at one place than the other. 5i glass m s being m In the case of the relative humidity of the air he has noted differences of 15 and even 20 hundredths; whilo in the 2 p.m. and maximum observations as much as from 5 to 6 degrees Fahrenheit. I'or instance, to w^how that these thermometric dis- crepancies, or diflerences, or disagreements, or errors, or what- ever name may be adopted for the nonce, are not due altogether to instrumental errors, when the days were either very cloudy, or overcast or hazy, or foggy, the recorded and published tem- peratures of the Director and the WTiter were alike — or at least within a small fraction — sometimes absolutely the same; but let the sun shine, and that very brightly, from 2 to 4 p m., then the Director's maxima temperatures were in excess of the writer's by 2, 3, 4, 5, and even 6 degrees; therefore, in all charity, lie is forced to the conclusion tliat the instruments in use at the "Montreal Observatory" are improperly placed, or that the recorded observations are misrepresented. The pub- lished records of the Director are in such direct opposition to possibilities that the writer is compelled to characterize them as either anomalous or incorrect; and he trusts that the Dn-ector of the "Montreal Observatory" and Professor of Meteorology to McGill College, will not view these criticisms upon his thermometric observations as a personal question, and consider it as offensiv^e to doubt them as it is to doubt his word — nothing could be more injurious to science than that such an opinion should be tolerated, even admitting that the character of an observer, as of a woman, if doubted is destroyed. " The most unreserved criticism is necessary for truth; and those suspicions respecting his own accuracy, which every observer or philosophical experimenter will entertain, concerning his own observations or researclies, ought never to be considered as a reproach when they are kept in viev/ in examining the observations and experiments of others. The minute circumstances and apparently trivial causes which lend their influence toward error, even in persons of the most candid judgment, are among the most curioue phenomena of the human mind." jl I i I # The importance of affording every aid to enable others to try the merits of observations has been so well expressed, that the writer will conclude this portion of his strictures on the Proiessor of Meteorology with an extract from Mayer's preface to his Observations: — " Officii enim cujusque observatoris esse reor, de habitu instrumenti sui, de cura ac precautione, qua usus est, ad illud recte tractandum, deque mediis in errores ejus inquirendi rationem reddere publico, ut aliis quoque copia sit judicandi, quanta fides habenda conclusionibus ex nostris observationibus deductis aut deducendis. Hoc cum minus fecissent precedentis saeculi astronomi, praxin nimis secure, nimisque theoretice tractantes, factum inde potis- simum est, ut illonim observationes, tot vigiliis tantoque labore comparatae tam cito obsclverint." In criticising the observations taken at the "Montreal Observatory," and the conduct of those Governors or Pro- fessors of McGill College who selected its site, urged and promoted its building, if their sole object was the advance- ment of Astronomical ard Meteorological science, they can have no apprehension from the severest scrutiny. The public character of the Governors and Professors of McGill College is legitimate subject for discussion, and their fitness or unfit- ness may be fairly canvassed. If their sensitiveness makes them shrink from the ordeal, they have no right to accept the honours and endowments of office, for they know that this is the condition of all who are either paid from the public purse, or through the charity or liberality of private individuals. The public and those interested in the well-being of McGill University, have a right to discuss the merits of its Professors, and their manner of executing those duties which they are paid to perform. The true direction and force of the wind at the Observ- atory it is impossible to obtain in consequence of its bad site. I I others to jsed, that Bs on the s preface 5 reor, de ione, qua tnediis in publice, nta fides itionibus fecissent s secure, de potis- b vigiliis verint." y^ontreal or Pro- ged and idvance- hsy can e public . College or unfit- s makes cept the it this is LC purse, Lviduals. McGill 9fessors, bhey are Observ- >ad site. even supposing that the self-recording Anemometer used was of the best construction and on the most approved plan, which it is far from being, as its only commendation is its rudeness; there- fore the comparison of a series of observations made at syn- chronous periods at the "Montreal Obsevatory," immediately under one of the steepest ledges of Mount Royal, and those made at the Observatories of Toronto, Quebec, and Washing- ton, have not been, nor ever will be, such as are required to pave the way to tlie period when Meteorology will acquire the certainty of deduction which it now lacks, and when conjec- tures relative to future phenomena will become probabilities. If it is desirable, upon the part of the Director of the "Montreal Observ^atory," and those who raised the money for its erection, and upon the part of the Government, which gives an annual grant to the Director, to attain a chorough know- ledge of laws as yet unknown that govern the motions of the atmosphere, and what may be called the strange caprices of the weather, and to further the great Meteorological service so happily and wisely inaugurated by the Honourable Minister of Marine and Fisheries, of which the Magnetic Observatory at Toronto is the Dominion centre; and also to aid the still greater International Meteorological Service of which the Smithsonian Institution at Washington is the centre, the "Montreal Observatory" must be placed immediately upon another basis, in order to make the organization of the Mete- orological Service such as to admit of the pre-announcement of storms, and the adoption of a uniform system of observation. Instruments of a better quality, much as they are needed, will not avail. The Observatory ought to be removed; in fact, if it were demolished it would be a boon to science, (that is, if true science is a record of facts,) unless the building was used, which it now is not, for lectures on the subjects of Meteor- ology and Astronomy, and as a place where pupils may be taught how to observe, or the art of observing; instructed in the use of instruments of precision, such as the Transit, (the Alt-Azimuth instrument, the Sextant, the Repeating tind In i; I Reflecting Circles, the Theodolite, the Mountain Barometer,)* &c., in order that the students in the school of Civil Engineer- ing, and in the contemplated school of Mining, in connection with the Geological Survey, may be satisfied about the limits within which they can measure the same object under the same circumstances; as it is only from a knowledge of this, that they can have confidence in their measures of the same object under different circumstances and after that, of different objects under different circumstances. Without some such training, and without a considerable training, any astronomi- cal or geodetical observations they may hereafter be called on to make would be of little value. Such training is necessary in order that they may be able to check the " hoaxing, forging , trimming, and cooking frauds" of some observers; and it is further necessary for them to know their owai errors in read- ing and adjusting before they pronounce upon those of the instruments. Some of the instruments now in the Observ- atory will afford the students excellent practice, enabling them to judge of their own skill, and to ascertain the precision with they can ])isect an object with the wires of a telescope, and write down the readings of the verniers of a Quadrant, and determine its index error. Such training as the writer has hinted at is absolutely necessary, even though the use of large astronomical instru- ments does not claim any profound requirements, and the use of ordinary Meteorological instruments does not demand more skill or attention than a schoolboy's working out a question in decimals or vulgar fractions. What chiefly is wanted is inflexible candour in recording precisely the facts which nature has presented. A man to take charge of a Meteorological Observatory ought to be an indefatigable, hard-working, obe- dient drudge, (although a drudge of a superior order to a farm labourer), who M'ill be contented to pass half his day in using his hands and his eyes in the mechanical act of observing, and the remainder in the dull process of calculation. The instruments mentioned in brackets ( — ) are not in the Obssnrator/. irometer,)* ^ Engineer- connection } the limits under the Ige of this, f the same 3f different some such astronomi- e called on 3 necessary ^U, forging, ; and it is rs in read- ose of the tie Observ- bling them cision Math iscope, and drant, and absolutely cal instru- ,nd the use mand more a question wanted is lich nature ieorological rking, obe- r to a farm ly in using observing, 1. Obssnratory. The Principal and Vice-Chancellor, in his pleas for the extension of University education in Canada, begs heartily, and has hitherto been a very successful beggar, always ready with plausible reasons for additions to McGill College ; whe- ther he always begs judiciously is open to grave question. Was it judicious to expend several thousand dollars on an observatory in which the observations made are of little prac- tical value, when a building better adapted for meteorological observations might have been erected for a tenth of the cost of the present one ? — a building more remote from the influ- ence of the retaining wall of the water-works reservoir, from the trees, whose branches nearly touch the revolving cups of the anemometer, and from the neighbouring houses, which cut off the distant meridional mark. The Principal and Vice-Chancellor has recently set up a plea for a good astronomical telsscope, larger and more expen- sive astronomical instruments, and, in addition, a properly fiited-up observatory, and the means of sustaining an observer — a proper observer; but were the instruments obtained they would be of no use, judging from the service to which the transit instrument has been applied, and of which the public will be better able to judge when the Director of the "Mont- real Observatory" has published to the world how he obtained its latitude and longitude, 45° 31""'"- N., and 4*^°"" 54"""- IT^^- W., and how the fine astronomical clock, by Dent, lent by the Har- bour Commissioners,* was rated by transits of a Pavonis, and a Lyiw, and that so accurately, that the time-baU on the wharf, near the Custom House, was dropped, under the supervision of the Director, within one minute, two minutes, and some- times three minutes of the mean time,-f" — perhaps to some not a matter of moment. Sic transit gloria ohscrvationis. Without wishing to be cynical, the writer puts these questions: — Was the discrepancy in the ball-dropping to be attributed to that * Taken away by them from the " Montreal Observatory," and the Mean Time obtained from the Citadel Observatory, Quebec, t Giving an error of only forty-five miles of longitude. 2 10 ll* f ilfi Ins h occasional discordance from the mean which attends even the most careful observations ? Did the time occupied in causing the extremities of the fingers to obey the volition, as well as the time employed in compressing the flesh before the fingers acted on the stop which released the trigger, that caused the ball to drop, influence tlie accuracy of the dropping ? Were the differences from mean time to be attributed to irregularity of refraction in the atmosphere surrounding McGill College? or to the imperfections in the transit instrument ? or to the astronomical clock, by Dent? oi to the desire for extreme accuracy on the part of the Director? Such discrepancies demand the most serious attention and early consideration of those who furnish costly apparatus, laboratories, astronomical instruments, and observatories to colleges, for enabling the student to get the practical study of outward nature, and of the lavvs by which the CREATOR governs the universe. If an error of three minutes can creep into the rating of a clock by the wrong use of a transit instrument, and in the time for dropping the ball for rating ship-masters' chronome- ters, it may readily be understood, by the dullest apprehension, hjw a thermometer may be made to read five or six degrees too high in the summer, or five or six degrees too low in the winter; and how it is that the Director of the "Montreal ObseiTatory" indulges in extremes of temperature, and has succeeded in registering, recording, and publishing the maxima and minima temperatures reached on the island of Montreal during the past ten years. If the Director of the "Montreal Observatory" has made some mistakes, and taken observations with insufficie'it instru- ments, and those placed in utter defiance of all in&truclions sent from Greenwich and Kew, "Washington and Toronto, his only course to w^in the confidence of his fellow-labourers in the cause of Meteorology, and to render his future observations of any use, is to acknowledge the error of his ways in the most full and explicit manner, not concealing and masking n ends even the ed in causing on, as well as ire the fingers at caused the ping ? Were irregularity &ill College? t? or to the for extreme ittention and y apparatus, ervatories to ical study of CREATOK the rating of , and in the i' chronome- oprehension, six degrees ) low in the ! "Montreal re, and has the maxima 3f Montreal " has made iie'it instru- infctructions roronto, his abourers in bservations 'ays in the id masking oversights or errors. Enough has been written to show that special regard to every circumstance by which the accuracy of the Meteorological observations might be affected, has not been taken, and that even ordinary attention was not l)estowed on them by the Director. Had he chosen a proper site for the ObserNatory, and fitted it up with the most approved instruments, he might possibly have derived honours from his labours, and given light to admiring Science on this continent. - ^ a • *. The writer is glad to know that a Meteorological Society will shortly be formed in Montreal, the members of which will be furnished with the necessary instruments, and guided by proper instructions for their use, as regards systematic conformity of observation. The Society, he trusts, will be able to carry on a well-conducted system of co-operative Meteor- ologicai observations, and to furnish all the data requisite for a complete study of both agricultural and sanitary Meteorology, and that at no other expense than the tabulation and publica- tion of the observations made by its own members. He is still more glad to know that a complete set of standard instruments will shortly be furnished to the Montreal General Hospital, and oljservations taken with them— so that the Surgeons of that institution may not in future depend upon the 'capricious observations meted out in the daily prints. That good will result from the Meteorological Society of Montreal, he believes, because it will be the means of bringing personally together those who are interested, if not absolutely engaged, in the same field of Science. It will also be the melns of an immediate, therefore obvious change of ideas, whether they present themselves as facts, opinions, or doubts. Lastly, he fervently hopes the Society will prove to be the foundation of friendly connexion, which will throw light on Meteorological Science— add cheerfulness to life— and give patience and amenity to manners. Montreal, October, 1B72, r-^ ' lilU REVIEW. From the Canada Medical arid Surgical yournal^ . January, i8y^. Meteorology and its Professors. Respectfully dedicated to all whom i*^ ma^ concern, by their obedient servant, Thos. D. King. We have received a pamphlet with the above heading. It is an exceedingly well written and pungent article, being chiefly strictures on the "Montreal Observatory" and its Di- rector. We have not been any published refutation to the charges contained in this pamphlet ; charges of a very damag- ing character, touching the accuracy of the published obser- vations of the Director of the "Montreal Observatory." We trust that the charges are not unanswerable. Certainly, if the allegations are true, and we have no means of deciding the points at issue, then, indeed, are the published observations of the Director worthless as a scientific record of the Meteorology of Montreal. The writer says, "It is difficult to understand why the study of the air, weather, and seasons, with the varied and interesting appearances which they present, has not received greater attentioi from educated persons, more par- ticularly from those who are interested in agriculture and shipping." We might also add, from those interested in con- necting the occurrence of disease, either endemic or epidemic, with climatic changes. He goes on to way that one reason for the little notice given to Meteorology in Montreal may arise from the fact that the Professor of Meteorology in McGill University has not given to the studenvs of that institution "popular lectures on a science as necessary as natural history; J i '! geology, and astronomy; teaching them the 'balancings of the clouds,' mentioned in Holy Writ as a part of the wondrous works of Him who is perfect in knowledge." We are unable to say whether or not a course of instruction in the science of Meteorology forms a part of the "Arts Course" of McGill University ; if it does not, then we think it is needless hav- ing attached to the University a Professor of Meteorohjgy, but if it does, and that regular lectures are given to the students of the University, it would be as well for the statement above quoted to be contradicted under authority. The author calls in (question the accuracy of the observa- tions made at the "Montreal Observatory," more especially of the maxima and minima thermometric records. It has been to many a matter of surprise the amount of heat and cold registered at the "Montreal Observatory," generally several degi-ees over or under those of other observers. This has always been put down to instrumental error, but whether on the part of the instruments used at the " Alontreal Observatory" or those used by the amateurs was not determined. The author of this pamphlet, however, was not satisfied with the accuracy of these published statements and he determined to test them. He says that he took, for four months, hourly observations, between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. These observations were made with standard instruments, supplied from the Kew Observ- atory. Several sets of thermometers and hygrometers were so placed as to be protected from all sources of radiation, and yet discrepancies were continually occurring between his read- ings and the published records of the "Montreal Observatory." He says: — "For instance, to show that these thermometric discrepancies, or differences, or disagreements, or errors, or whatever name may be adopted for the nonce, are not due altogether to instrumental errors, when the days were either very cloudy, or overcast, or hazy, or foggy, the recorded and published temperatures of the Director and the writer were alike — or, at least, within a small fraction — sometimes abso- lutely the same; but let the sun shine, and that very brightly, 1« cings of the \vondrou8 are unable B science of of McGill edless hav- )rology, but he students ment above he observa- ! especially It lias been -t and cold illy several This has whether on Dservatory" The author le accuracy 3 test them. )servations, were made ew Observ- leters were iation, and in his read- iservatory." jrmometric errors, or ■e not due rere either 3orded and s^riter were mes abso- f brightly. from 2 to 4 p.m., then the Director's maxima temperatures were in excess of the writer's by 2, 3, 4, 5, and even degrees; therefore, in all charity, he is forced to tlie conclusion that the instruments in use at the "Montreal Observatory" are improperly placed, or that the recorded observations are mis- represented. The published reconls of the Director are in such direct opposition to possil)ilities that the writer is com- pelled to characterise them as either anomalous or incorrect." The situation of the Observatory is next commented on, and we must admit that, in our opinion, it is badly placed. As to being able to procure the force or direction of the wind, the thing is impossible from tlie present site. We have our- selves seen what sailors term a "half gale" blowing in rear of the mountain, and on driving along Sherbrooke street the cups of the anemometer at the "Montreal Ol)servatory" have been at a stand-still. But not only is the character and accuracy of the observations and the fitness of the locality of tlie Obsen^- atory called in question, but the very instruments are declared to be of improper quality, as the writer obsenes: — "If it is desirable to attain a thorough knowledge of laws, as yet unknown, that govern the motions of the atmosphere, and what may be termed the strange caprices of the weather, and to further the great Meteorological Service," &c., &c., "the 'Montreal Observatory' must be placed immediately upon another basis, in order to make the organization of the Meteor- ological Service such as to admit of the pre-announcement of storms, and the adoption of an uniform system of observation." If the Observatory is wrongly placed, and no man can say it is unexceptionable in that particular, then, in the name of common sense, let the site be changed. Personally we have always regarded it as a mistake to erect the building where it is now placed. One other question we will notice — one of gi'eat moment to the maritime interests of Montreal. We allude to the dropping of the time-ball at the wharf, near the Custom House, at the hour of noon, solar mean time. The writer says: ( I ' ' ' I i[r 16 speakiiif? of the accuracy of the porfomiance of tliis service, * * * * "the time-ball at the wharf, near the Custom House, was dropperl, under the supervision of the Director, within one minute, two minutes, and sometimes three minutes of the mean time — perhaps to some not a matter of moment.' In respect to this statement we believe it to be true, as recently, while in conversation with some of the officers of one of Messrs. Allans' steamships, we were told that if a ship- master rated his chronometer by the dropping of the time-ball in Montreal harbour, he v/ould be put out of his reckoning from fifty to one hundred miles, and that this fact was known to every mariner who entered the port. This is a most serious matter, and one which might be followed by disaster, loss of life and property. It only illustrates more forcibly than words can express, the necessity for individuals to confine themselves to occupations with which they are familiar, and not attempt too much, by which they may mislead others, and bring upon themselves disgrace and ridicule; and furthermore, if the Gov- ernment of the country considers these observations are worth recording, or wishes to carry out an International system of observation, then let it be done in no spirit of parsimony. Scientific observations rec![uire scientific observers, and if the country demands observations wliich are admitted to be use- ful — nay, even indispensable — then they must be paid for ; but we think it is much to be deplored that apparent deserved obloquy should be thrown on this particular branch of the service of our country, and that chiefly because the country will not pay for having the service efficiently done. ] %-.-r'"p-^''"-'^" ' "" this service, tlio Custom he Director, iree minutes of moment.'' be true, as fficers of one t if a ship- he time-bull koning from IS known to most serious ir, loss of life than words } themselves not attempt bring upon , if the Gov- ts are worth il system of parsimony. , and if tlie 1 to be use- )e paid for; Jut deserved inch of the the country "METEOROLOGY AND ITS PROFESSOR." STATEMENT OF FACTS WITH REFERENCE TO THE CHARGES AGAINST THE PROFESSOR OF METEOROLOGY IN MCGILL UNIVERSITY. BY THE i\ UTHORITIES OF THE UNIVERSITY. I. Instruction in Meteorot,ogy. — Dr. Small wood, the Professor of Meteorology, vcho receives no salary from the University, gives instruction gratuitously, in the use of Meteorological instruments, to such senior students as desire this. Of course the class is voluntary, and only a limited number avail themselves of it. In the present session six students have been receiving such instruction. II. Observations of Temperature, &c. — Dr. Small- wood's observations are made with instruments tested by > standard thermometers, and both in the Observatory and in M a separate thermombter-house. They are made with all the I precautions dictated by the Professor's long experience in this climate, and if they differ from those of amateurs, the prob- ability is that the latter are wrong. The difference referred to as occurring when the sun shines, is probably to be accounted for by the less favourable position of the instru- ments of the objector. III. Position of the Observatory. — The building was placed, after much consideration, on the best site afforded by the CoUege grounds, and is in as good a position as it is 3 r^^^^ I .; ; i fl ! I 13 possible to secure on the flank of the mountain. No doubt an anemometer on the top of the mountain, or on the other side of the mountain, might give other local variations of winds, but the University cannot afford a series of stations of this kind. In any case, the observation of a person who has been in a gust of wind in the rear of the mountain, and who, after driving round, finds it calm in Sherbrooke street, is of no value whatever as a test for the position of the Observatory. IV. Instruments for Observing the Force, Direc- tion, &c., OF the Wind. — The imputation that these are defective is especially unjust, as Dr. Smallwood has the credit of devising and constructing one of the most efficient instru- ments for this purpose — an instrument which Professor Henry, of Washington, described and figured ia the Eeports of the Smithsonian Institution, and even had a copy of it made, and sent on for use in liis Observatory. Y. Time-ball at the Harbour. — This was attended to by Dr. Smallwood punctually, until last summer, when it was intimated to him by the Harbour Commissioners that they had enga^jjed another person for the purpopo. In the past summer, therefore, if the time-ball has been incorrect. Dr. Smallwood is not responsible, af he was quite willing to have continued his services in the matter. Dr. Smallwood still gives the time to Ottawa. The gossip of ship-masters as to the time-ball, even if it relates to the period during which it was in Dr. Smallwood's charge, is of no value, as the chro- nometers of ships are often incorrect, a fact well known to Dr. Smallwood, who has been in the habit of correcting them gratuitously for such ship-masters as applied to him. The above statements relate to the charges specially selected for reiteration in the review of the pamphlet attack- ing the Meteorological Professorship of the University, and they are sufficient to show the groundlessness of the whole. It :s, however, due to Dr. Smallwood to state that his observaiiions relatie to other Meteorological, Magnetic, and o l 19 h. No doubt on the other variations of of stations of rson who has lin, and wlio, treet, is of no Observatory. )RCE, DlREC- at these are las the credit icient instru- ch Professor I the Eeports a copy of it 3 attended to when it was rs that they In the past ticorrect, Dr. lling to have allwood still nasters as to 'ing which it as the chro- 1] known to -ecting them ini. BS specially Met attack- University, less of the state that Jgnetic, and Astronomical phenomena than those referred to in the pam- phlet ; that he has for about forty years, with little public encourageniGnt, kept up a continuous series of Meteorological observations of inestimable scientific value; and that he has at all times displayed the utmost readiness to give the benefit of his labours to the public; through the press, to sanitary reformers, to scientific travellers and visitors, and to scientific associations abroad. In this way he has earned a lasting title to the gratitude of this country, which both the Erg'ish Universities of this Province have acknowledged, by confer- ring on him their highest degrees ; while the McGill Univer- sity, in appointing him Professor of Meteorology, and placing him in charge of its Observatory, was not only acknowledging great public services, but securing the highest experience and ability which the country affords in this department for the benefit of its students. It is only to be regretted that the limited means of the University permit no more to be done; and it is to be hoped that the public, or some of the more wealthy friends of science and education wiU take advantage of the undeserved attack made upon our veteran Meteorolo;jist, by contributing the means to place at the disposal of the University, for his bene- fit, more ample apparatus, and an endowment to secure the services of an assistant to aid him in his declining years, and to continue and extend the work he has so well begun. The DepPvrtment of Applied Science in the University is now training young men well fitted for entering on this work, could the means be obtained to secure their services; and with such aid, and a large telescope, the utility of the Observatory might, no doubt, be greatly increased. I.,- -•T T^^^ ^MMillll llli- i !tl : i ' 1 H ■ii \u\m\ tMsliJli 11 THE REPLY TO TIE "AUTHOEITIEa" *' Tewpus omnia revdat, " The author of "Meteorology and its Professors" desires to thank the Editor of the Canada Medical and Surgical Journal for Im review, because the review has forced the "Authorities" of McGill University to dispute the author's statements, which they would not in all probability have done, notwithstanding the indisputableness of his facts:— perhaps, they considered him an amateur — a mere amateur. The author may be asked why he dares to sit in judg- ment on all the array of talent, learning, and genius that line the approach to the sanctuary, in the McGill Temple of Knowledge, erected "on the flank of Mount Royal,"— the Far7iassm of the Province of Quebec. He may be told by the "Authorities" that he has no right to question the correctness of observations made by a Professor of McGill University, even if they are generally believed, and, in some instances, can be proved to be erroneous. He may be deemed imper- tinent for questioning the site of the Montreal Observatory which was so long and wisely pondered, and he may be told that it is no affair of his whether ship-masters have had their chronometers falsely rated, and the local mean time given to them with so great a deviation from truth that they may be m liUiiiil, Jiiiliil put out of tlieir reckoning fitly or a hundred miles, and probably, as the result, lose their lives and all on board their ships. He may be asked why he is solicitous about the Observations of the Professor of Meteorology and "Astron- omer" to the "Montreal Observatory," and why he regrets that the "Authorities" should be so utterly indifferent to their reputation as not to have inquired into the truth of the facts the author alleged? — His reply is, because he, in common with many other ainatcurs, is not destitute of concern for the safety of the lives of his fellow-creatures, nor indifferent to the interests of true science. The sophisms and extenuations of the "Statement of Facts" by the "Authorities" are too specious, too transparent, too fuU o. unworthy evasions and digressions for those who ought to inspire youth with a truthful scientific spirit, and a love for truth. Again, if the grammar of the sentences, as well as the nature of the repudiation of the charges made against the Professor of Meteorology of McGill University are to be taken as an evidence of the training of the "Authorities" in Logic and Moral Philosophy, and as an equivalent of their rhetorical and scientific attainments, the subject might be summarily dismissed ; it is not worth argumentation. A knowledge of granmiar may not be necessary, and style may be a matter of secondary importance for the elucida- tion of Science, but truth and candour are absolutely required for Science, if the meaning of the word is, "the knowledge of that which really is" — true knowledge — the knowledge of the truth. The author will, without further preface, put the various clauses of the "Statement of Facts" side by side with the parallel passages of his strictures on the "Montreal Observa- tory," its promoters, and its Director; — which passages are designated, as " uTidcserved attacJcs upon the veteran Meteorol- ogist" — "accusations altogether imfounded ;" and he will leave the unprejudiced and competent reader to judge whether every charge he has made is not consistent with truth, borne out ) d miles, and all on board icitous about and "Astron- hy he regrets indifferent to the truth of 3cause he, in Lite of concern lor indifferent Statement of transparent, for those who Sc spirit, and sentences, as barges made rniversity are 'Authorities" ilent of their set might be bion. cessary, and ' the elucida- bely required cnowledge of nowledge of ; the various ie with the 3al Observa- oassages are tn Meteorol- e will leave lether every % », borne out by the testimony adduced, and partially corroborated by the impotent and pitiful defence of the "Authorities." By the unbiassed consideration of men of science at large, and the impartial tribunal of the thinking public, he is wiUiiig to be judged. Statement of Facts, No. 1. I. Instntcthn in Meteorology. — Dr. Sraallwood, the Professor of Meteorol- ogy, who receives no salary from the Universitj., gives instruction gratui- tously, in the use of Meteorological instruments, to such senior students as desire this. Of course the class is voluntary, and only a limited number avail themselves of it. In the present session six students have been receiving siuh instruction. One of the reasons for the little notice given to Meteorologj' in Montreal — no more interest generally being taken in it than of the weather column of a shil- ling almanac — may arise from the fact that the Professor of Meteorology has not given to the students of McGill College popular lectures on a science as necessary as natural history, geology and astronomy, teaching them " the balancings of the clouds " mentioned in Holy Writ as a part of the wondrous works of HIM who is perfect in know- ledge. It ought to be the duty of a Professorofa University, which has con- ferred upon him honours and degrees, who undertakes the work of public instruction, to present to the students of his College in simple arrangement, and to enable them to comprehend with ease — things, the natural history of which has cost Science a world of pains to analyze and recoiapose. The Professor of Meteorology, though he receives no direct salary, indirectly receives a pecuniary benefit from the Univer- sity through the opportunity of using the "Montreal Observa- tory," in consequence of which, he receives from the Dominion Government five hundred dollars per aimum, and he is further paid a similar annual amount, or nearly so, by the United States Government, through the "Of&ce of the Chief Signal Officer," Wasliington, not "for his benefit" but for certain duties which he is required to perfonn connected with the International Meteorological Service, — duties which ought to be performed with the utmost exactitude. 4 Why does he not receive a salary out of the funds annu- ally collected for the maintenance of the University? — It is from lack of funds; it is from sheer poverty! — and yet in the face of this T)overty and the many urgent calls for books and other absolute necessities in the "Faculty of Arts," the "Authorities" can spend about three thousand dollars on the "Montreal Observatory," an Observatory which is a dishonmtr to the foremost University in the Province of Quebec — a University considered by some of its Professors to be the fore- most on this continent. ^'^ If any one, qualified to judge, doubts this emphatic statement, let him ask permission to visit the Observatory, and if he is successful in his application, and gains an entrance, he will find therein a number of important instruments of the rudest construction, and coarsely made — a common Dutch or Americjm clock being a good specimen of handicraft compared with them — and he will find that the internal organization of the Observatory is of the most imper- fect character. The cry of the "Authorities" is, "more ample apparatus." The author, in assigning reasons for the almost utter neglect of Meteorological Observations in Montreal, merely stated that the Professor of Meteorology had not given lo the students of McGill College popular lectures on a ' science as necessary as Natural History, &c. The "Authorities" say that the Professor gives gratuitous instruction to a number of senior students who avail themselves of ii. They do not state the number of senior students who have attended the voluntary class of the Professor prior to the issue of the pamphlet "Meteorology and its Professors;" neither do they give any account of the teachings of the Professor for the past fifteen years. The following questions may not be impertinent: — Why is Meteorology not included in the course of study for the degTee of B.A,, or in the Physical Class? ' Why is the Meteorological Class of necessity voluntary? Linds annu- ity?— It is and yet in 8 for books Arts," the ars on tlie I dishonour Quebec — a le the fore- Ige, doubts to visit the lation, and important y made — a jecimen of d that the lost imper- v-ore amjile most utter al, merely iven to tlie science as )" say that !r of senior state the voluntary pamphlet give any 1st fifteen t:— of study luntary? If there are no students and no lectures, of what use is the Chair of Meteorology? — IVliat indeed? ! The "Authorities" state that during the present session six students have been receiving such instruction. Prodigious ! — The sentence, although a little obscure, implies that the students are merely instructed in the use of Meteorological instruments, such as are required for prognosticating the weather, &c., — namely. Barometers, Cyanometers, Hygrometers Seismometers, Thermometers, Anemometers, Electrometers. Surely, a Professor of Meteoxolo«,'y caimot be wanted for such a service, as a Scientific Instrument Maker would be equal to the re(i[uirenient. Will a treatise on Astronomical, Mathe- matical, and Geodetical Instruments make the students Astron- omers, Hydrographers, and Civil Engineers? Will the use of Meteorological Instruments similar to those which "are both m the Ohservatory and in a separate thermometer-house" give to the students a knowledge of Meteorological plienomena, such as the Law of Storms; the Origin of Cyclones; the Causes of Winds; the Different Elec- tricities of the Air; the Electricity of Showers; the Cycles of Temperature; the nature of the Aurora Borealis, Shooting Stars and Fiery Meteors? The Professor of Geology, Botany and cognate Sciences, may as well give to the students instruc- tion in the use of geological hammers, chisels, inclinometers, magnetic compasses, "Coddington lenses," and other field instruments, and imagine that such instruction will make them intimately acquainted with the Newer Pliocene and Post Pliocene Deposits of the vicinity of Montreal; the Organic Remains of the Lower and Middle Silurian Rocks; the PaUieo- zoic Fossils; the Minerals of the Laurentian Limestones; the Canadian Gold-bearing Quartz Veins; and the Fauna and Flora of British North America. If Meteorology, Mineralogy, and Geology are Sciences worthy the consideration of an intellectual, commercial, and maritime people — and if Science, in its broad sense, implies the employment of means adequate to the attainment of a H' desired end, then the mere knowledfr'^ of the. use of instruments will not make the students acquainted witli the arranrfements of the strata composing our globe, nor avail to discover the constitution and unfold the history of our planet, and inform them of the materials of which this earth is composed, and the causes which have led to their formation and present arrangement. Again, the knowledge of the use of instruments will not make the students familiar with the ocean of air in which we live and move, with its continents and islands of clouds, its tides and currents of constant and variable winds; the effects of climates and seasons, and the manner and pro- portions of the action of the Solar rays upon the Earth. The Meteorologist, the Mineralogist, the Geologist has to deal with fads, which facts, as Charles Kingsley says, "will make him master of them, and of himself, only in proportion as he obeys them." The saying is in accord with Lord Bacon's famous apothegm — "Nature is only conquered by obeying her;" therefore the earnest student in Meteorology should not be allowed to rest content with the knowledge of the tise of instruments, he must study the firmament — the great arch or expanse over our heads, in which are placed the atmosphere and the clouds. He must study Nature, and he must be shown that no progress can be made therein but by collecting facts, and comparing experiments and observations. He must banish vague conjectures and hypotheses from that branch of natural philosophy which he has selected for his especial study, and bring it into entire subjection to experiment and truth. He ought to emulate such men as Franklin, Dalton, Forster, Daniel, and Howard, and such men as Gay-Lussac, Regnault, and De Saussure, in developing those great Meteor- ological trutlis which have astounded the world, and whose light has dispelled the last traces of the obscurity with which the opinions of Aristotle, Theophrastus, Aratus, Pliny, and other old Grecian and Koman Philosophers have encumbered the Science of Meteorology. By the collection of facts, and from the knowledge of the electricity of the clouds- — a Meteorological phenomenon — \instr7(Ments ■anrremeiits liscover the and inform |iposed, and iid present j^nslruments n of air in islands of ible winds; T and pro- irth. ^f^i«t lias to says, "will proportion 3rd Bacon's >y obeying should not f the iise of •eat arch or atmosphere e must be ' coUectinff He must branch of s especial iment and n, Dalton, ly-Lussac, i-t Meteor- ^^ whose ith which liny, and cumbered vledge of menon — Franklin may be said to have snatched the ligiitning from the skies, and made it tlie most docile of servants. Oersted, lai(;r on, by a remarkable experiment, formed the indissolu1)]e union betv/een magnetism and electricity, which fact was seized by Arago, Davy, Wheatstone, and Morse, who enlarged upon the principle, out of which eventually came the Magnetic Tele- graph. — Therefore the study of Meteorology may be termed the grammar, as it were, of that very physical science, which, through the genius of Volta, has unfolded one of the deepest mysteries of Nature. Yet Meteorology, one of the most poetical of the sciences, as well as the most practical, is not considered worthy a place in the "Arts Course" of McGill University. True, there is attached to the University a Protessor of Meteorology, who, according to the statement of the "Authorities," gives gratu- itous instruction in the use of Meteorological instruments to such senior students as desire this, and avail thcjmselves of it, and can now boast of having, for trie first time during the fifteen years he has occupied the Chair of Meteorology, six students receiving sucJi instruction. Other questions may be put to the "Authorities," perti- nently for science, or impertinently, perhaps, if they are called upon to be " examined by interrogatories." Gentlemen, you "Authorities," if you believe that one grand harmonious chain of meteorological observations through- out the whole of the American continent, is not only a measure of deep philosophical interest, but fraught with direct benefits to the agricultural and maritime population of the Dominion, for solving tlie problem of Amarican storms, what have you done for the proper training of a class of observers ? What have you done to add to the ev(3r-accumulating testimony in favour not only of the speculative interest, but also practical benefits of Meteorology? Is not Meteorology, in its scientific aspects, and replete as it is with problems of the highest interest to the educated mind, a subject fitted for mental training and intellectual 8 eiijctyincnt, and thoretore worthy to hold a phice in tlio .scheiiu; of education in tlie Faculty of Arts? Facts, No. 2. II. Observations of Temperature^ (Sfe. — Dr. Srrallwocxl's observations are made with instniments tested by standard thermometers, and both in the observatory and in a separate ther- mometer-house. They are made with all the precautions dictated by the Pro- fessor's long experience in this climate, and if they differ from those of ama- teurs, the probability is that the latter are wrong. The difference referred to as occurring when the sun shines, is probably to be accounted for by the less favourable position of the instru- ments of the objector. Statemp:nt of In the case of the relative humidity of the air he has noted differences of 1 5 and even 20 hundredths ; while in the 2 p. m. and maximum observations as much as from 5 to 6 degrees Fah- renheit. For instance, to show that these thermometric discrepancies, or differ- ences, or disagreements, or errors, or whatever name may be adopted for the nonce, are not due altogether to instru- mental errors, when the days were either very cloudy, or overcast, or hazy, or foggy, the recorded and published tem- peratures of the Director and the writ> r were alike — or, at least, within a small f'nction — sometimes absolutely the same ; but, let the sun shine, and that very brightly, from 2 to 4 p. m., " then the Director's maxima tempera- tures were in excess of the writer's by 2, 3» 4. 5 and even 6 degrees ; there- fore, in all charity, he is forced to the conclvsion that the instruments in use at the "Montreal Observatory" are improperly placed, or that the record- ed observations are misrepresented. — The published records of the Director are in such direct opposition to possi- bilities that the writer is compelled to characterize them as either anomalous or incorrect. Clause II. is an extraordinary piece of composition, in which the question at issue is thoroughly evaded. The Editor of the Canada Medical and Surgical Journal, in quoting from and commenting on the pamphlet, "Meteor- ology and its Professors," says that its author had several set of standard thermometers and hygrometers so placed as ^0 be protected from all sources of radiation, and yet discrepancies I iiiill i I ! y Itluj SclieilK! Temperature, observations tnts testcil by and both in [separate ther- ire made with led I)y the Pro- In this climate, hose of ama- hat the latter ice referred to sun shines, is ed for by the of the instru- osition, in 1 Journal, "Meteor- leveral set d as *^o be Jrepancies were coiitiimally occiirrini? between his reiuliiijfs and tlio pub- lislicd recordn of the "M(»iilii!id OhsiiiTatory." The Editor adds, that it has hcen to many a matter of surprise tlu! amount of lu^at and eold nii^iatenid at the; "Mont- real (Jhstii-vatory," generally several degrees over or under those of other observers. This has always been ])Utilown to instru- mental error, but whether on the part of the instruments used at the "Montreal Observatory" or of those used by the amateurs was not determined." The "Authorities" state that the Director's ohservaiious arc made witli all the precautions dictated hy the FrofcsHor's lour/ cxfperienrc in this climate ! Long experience of what ? They further say that if they differ from fhvse of amateurs, the 'jprubahilitji is that the latter are mrouff! Wrong in what? Wrong in using standard instruments, not conuncm or indif- ferent instruments, with index corrections, sometimes plus, sometimes minus; wrong in taking the utmost care in record- ing the observed temperatures; wrong in lionestly adhering to the directions given for placing thermometers by the Directors of the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, and the Magnetic Observatory, Toronto? Amateurs are sneered at. Are they in contempt because their names are not enrolled in a University, and l)ecause they have no Academical titles, such as D. D., LL.D., and D.C.L. — titles too often, in this country, bestowed or conferred on per- sons utterly unworthy of them; that is, if the titles are to be the test of sound learning, ripe scholarship, and brilliant literary or scientific attainments? What do the "Authorities" think of such amateurs as Flamsteed, the malster, afterwards Astronomer Eoyal; James Ferguson, the wlieehvi-ight; Elihu Burritt, the blacksmith; Hugh Miller, the stone-mason; Michael Faraday, the book- binder; Benjamin Frankhn, the printer; Warren de La Eue, the paper-maker ? The "Authorities" say the difference referred to as occur- ring when the sun shines is probably to he accounted for by B 10 th' less famnrahlc. posifioit of the inslrniurntu of the ohjecto)'. This iir<,Mim(!nt would ho uvnilahle if the objector's ohserved and recorded nuirimd toiiijicriiturcs were in cxrcas of those observed iind recorded by the Dinu'tor — not otherwise. But as th(! objector's maxima and 2 ]).ni. observiitions were, if the sun shone, always loiirr than those made by the Director, the natural impression would be that tlu; olijector's thennonieters were placed in a ])osition shelterc' from the direct and indi- rect rays of the sun ; at such a distance from Avails iis not to have been influenced by reflected heat; protected from the effe.^/ts of radiation, and the thermometer bulbs exposed to an imimpeded circulation of air on all sides. The author affirms that the thennonieters in use by the Director, both at his private house aud at the "Montreal Observatory," have not hitherto been properly placed — hence, beyond doubt, the thermometric discrepancies, which not only called forth the pamphlet, but the surprise of all scientilic amateurs that the air at McGill College Orounds should fre- quently be six degrees hotter than the air in more confined parts of the city of Montreal. Poor amateurs! Surely "Wisdom crietli in the streets, and no man regardeth her!" For years the thermometers at the "Montreal Observa- tory" were placed within a foot of its gravelled roof, and it is only within the last six mcjnths that they have been removed to the separate therpiometer-housc — and then, in consequence of an official request: No man knc^ws lietter than the Director, no matter what the nature of his "long experience in this climate" may be, that the positions of tb ^ thermometers used by him at the "Montreal 01»servatory ' have not hitherto been in accordance with the instructions issued for the placing of thermometers, by scientific Meteorologists in every part of the world. It would have been more honourable, more generous, and more in the true interests of science, if the "Authorities'' had strictly inquired into the truth of the allegations made by the author of the pamphlet, instead of imputing to him the 11 utterances of slander, and the making' of an undeserved and unfounded attack upon the veteran Meueoroloj^'ist, more espe- cially when the author di.stinetly stated that he was actuated hy neither envious nor if^nuthle leelinn;s in eallin;,' attention to tlie thermonietric discitipancies and the error of three mimitea in droppine considered wrong. The synchronous thermometric observations of the Physi- cian and tho author have been for many years in accord. Their thermometers they will now have to tlirow away, or give them to the children of the Normal School for playtnings, and discontinue tlieir observaticms in despair of ever approaching the staiuiard of extreme temperatures set up by the Director of the " Montreal Observatory." Statement of Facts, Nos, 3 and 4. The true direction and force of the wind it is impossible to obtain, in con- sequence of the bad site of the Observ- atoiy, even supposing that the self- recording instruments used were of the best construction and on the most ap- proved plan, which they are far from being, as the'r only commendation is their rudeness ; therefore the com- parison of a series of observations made at synchronous periods, at the III. Position of Uie Observatory. — The building was placed, after much consideration, on the best site afforded by the College grounds, and is in as good a position as it is possible to secure on the flank of the mountain. No doubt an anemometer on the top of the mountain, or on the other side of the mountain, might give other local variations of winds, but the University cannot afford a series of stations of " Montreal ObseiTatory, " immediately under one of the steepest ledges of Mount Royal, and those made at the Observatories of Toronto, (Quebec and Washington, have not been, nor ever will be such as are required tu pave the way to the period when Meteorology will acquire the certainty of deduction which it now lacks, and when conjec- tures relative to future plienomena will become probabilities. ^' * * * * Instruments of a bette. quality, much as they are needed, will not avail ; the Observatory ought to be removed, in fact, if it were demolished it would be a boon to Science (that is, if tnie Science is a record of facts), unless the building was used, which it now is not, for lectures on the subjects of Meteor- ology and Astronomy, and as a place where pupils may be taught how to observe, or the art of observing. this kind. In any case the observa- tions of a person who has been in a gust of wind m the rear of the moun- tain, and who, after driving round, finds it calm in Sherbrooke street, is of no value whate\er as a test for the position of the olwervatory. IV. Instruments for Obsat'in^j; the Force, Direction, &'c., of the Wind. - The imputation that these are detec- tive is especially unjust, as Dr. Small- wood has the credit of devising and constructing one of the most efficient iustruments for this purpose— an in- strument which Professor Henry, of Washington, described and figured in the Rej;ort of the Smithsonian Institu- tion, and even had a copy of it made and sent on for use in his observatory. Tl 'ho '^wneh consideration" referred to in Clause III. is not of the slightest value, no matter who were the considerers. Would it not be a curious bit of information to know who were the scientific advisers of the "Authorities" tliat recommended the present site of tlie "Montreal Observatory?" Did the "Authorities" secure for their counsellors the highest experience and ahility which the ivuntry affords in the depart- ments of Astronomy and Meteorology? Who were the distinguished oracles — wlio, from their position as practical Astronomers, or for their eminence in the knowledge of the laws of Physics, or for their experience in Obse' vatories, considered the best place for an Observatory would be on the side o^ a hill? If the site of the Observatory was selected by the "Authorities" alone, and they carefully and delil)erately con- sidered it to be the best afforded by the College Grounds, then it may be stated that their scientific qualifications, however respectable, are not quite of tl at high order which ought to 13 ^ be expected from and required for the governing bodies of a University, in the eiglith decade of the nineteenth century, if their intellect were in a state of vigour. Two hundred years ago, Flanisteed, "Astronomical Obser- vator" to King Charles II., set the Greenwich Observatory on a hill. The object of the building was a directly practical one — "the finding out the so much desired longitude of places for the perfecting of the art of navigation." If tlie object of the "Montreal Observatory" U a directly practical one, as the object of every Observatory ought to be, then it is difficult to conceive the reason why it was built on its present site, for a worse one could scarcely have been selected. These (questions may be put — Why was the 01)servatory built ? — and for whose benef! ? There can hardly be any extenuation for the selection of so very bad a site, unless the "Authorities" are pre- pared to say that it was absolutely necessary for the advancement of the sciences of Astronomy and Meteoroloyy that the Observ- atory should be contiguous to the University buildings. Or again, that it was Ituilt out of compliment to, or for the immediate benefit of the "veteran meteorologist," who by the universality of his genius and acquirements, has left no branch within the wide range of Astronomical, Meteorological, and Magnetical science unexplored; whilst that intense desire of acquiring and spreading knowledge, which so peculiarly characterizes his mind, insures to all students and strangers tlie assistance of his counsel in their scientific pursuits, and the advantage of being made known to all those w^ho are interested or occupied in similar inirGctor, if anywhere, may be in the museum of tlie Smithsonian Insti- tution us a curiosity in Mechanical inventions — it most certainly is not in daily use as a recording? instrument. Tlie Director of the Smithsonian Institution, like every wise philosopher and physicist, knows too well how much more valuable all scientific observations are, when not only the very best instruments are used, but insi-uments of the same design and construction are employed in the determina- tion of any desired phenomena — such as the expansion of gases and liquids ; maximum tensions of vapour; the specif c heat and gravity of solids and liquids ; the temperature, pressure and liygrometric ( » btion of the air ; the velocity, force, and direction of the w^ , ,'.ud the evaporation of ice, water, &c. • ■ * But, perhaps, it is not necessary to lay too j^reat stress vpon the diftering qualities of the Director's wooden anemom- eter and that devised by Dr. Robinson, of Armagh, because in the present site of ihe " Montreal Observatory " it can be a matter of little moment what kind of instrument is used — good, bad, or indifferent — for ol)tainiiig the force and direction of the wind, as its indications can be of no practical value in the Telegraphic Meteorology of the day. Statement of Facts, No. 5. Tlie Principal and Vice-Chancellor has recently set up a plea for a yood astionomical telescope, larger and more expensive astronomical instruments, and, in addition, a properly fitted-up observatory and the means of sustain- ing an observer — a jiroper observer ; but were the instniments obtained, they would be of no use, judging from the service to which the transit instru- ment has been applied, and of which the public will be better able to judge whLMi the Director of the "Montreal V. Time-ball at the Harbour. — This ,'as attended to by Dr. Smallwood punctually until last summer, when it was intimated to him by the Harbour Commissioners that they had engaged another person for the purpose. In the past summer, therefore, if the time-ball has been incorrect, Dr. Smallwood is not responsible, as he was quite willing to have continued his services in the matter. Dr. Smallwood still gives the time to Ottawa. The gossip of ship- masters, as to the time-ball, even if it 17 relates t*^ the period luring which it was in Dr. Smallwood's charge, is of no value, as the chronometers of ships are often incorrect, a fact well known to Dr. Smallwood, who has been in the habit of correcting thein gratuitously for such ship-masters as applied to him. Observatory" has published to the world how the fine astronomical clock, by Dent, lent by the Harbour Commis- sioners, "was rated by transits of a Pavonis, and a Lyrae, and that so ac- curately that the time-ball on the wharf, near the Custom House, was dropped, under the supervision of the Director, within one minute, two minutes, and sometimes three minutes of the mean time, — perhaps to some not a matter of moment. Clause V. is dissemblingly written. The evasions in it are very painful. Have not the " Authorities " thereby laid themselves open to a charge of DECEPTION ? The author does not tnow, neithc ; is he desirous of knowing, the persons who constitute the "Authorities," or rather the persons who constituted themselves the "Authorities;" but, for the sake of morality, if not for the dearest interests of the University, he hopes that the "Authorities" were not composed of the Board of Governors — who are honourable men, and the Faculty of Arts — who are supposed to be learned and scientific men, with the Cliancellor — an ex-Judge and an equity lawyer, as President, sitting in deliberative council to consider the state- ments in the pamphlet " Meteorology and its Professors," and to inquire whether the statements calling in question the accuracy of the observations made by the Director of the "Montreal Observatory" were true or false. The statements of the author were simple and direct. The counter-statements of facts, by the "Authorities" are cunning and indirect, whether from necessity or choice, the reader must determine. Why were the "Authorities" not impartial? Why did they not weigh the statements of the author with dispassionate calmness and dignity ? Surely his statements desej v^ed and required most careful consideration — they were made in the interests of truth and in the interests of science — there was no shuffling about them, no equivocation. Wliat right have the "Authorities" to impeach the purity and independence G 18 of the author's motives ? Tlieir duty was to have inquired whether his statements were false or true. This they evi- dently have not done, or they could not have written such an inventive sentence as the first in clause V. It is an excel- lent device, but the author will bring the device to the bar of public opinion. The "Authorities" say, the Time-ball at the Harbour was attended to by Dr. Smallwood, the Director of the "Montreal Observatory," punctually until last summer. It was certainly attended to very nicely. The "Authorities" dared not say the Time-ball ivas dropped accurately, correctly, precisely at Noon (mean solar time) every day, thus serving as a signal or monitor whereby the Captains of ships about to leave the harbour of Montreal could rate their chronometers. Had the "Authorities" condescended to inquire into the matter, they would have known the reasons why another person was engaged to drop the time-ball. Why ? — Because some ship masters, intelligent seamen, good navigators, prac- tical nautical astronomers, anxious for the lives and property entrusted to them, maintained a little honourable rivalry with the Director, and by taking "equal or corresponding altitudes" of the sun, discovered that the time so given, did not agree within several minutes with the time obtained by the Director's transit observations. Hence arose what is flippantly called "gossip of ship-masters." It was something more than gossip — more than mere " tittle-tattle" — it was downright serious con- versation. Therefore the author can fully believe that the Editor of the Canada Medical and Surgical Journal considered his conversation with tlie captain and officers of one of Messrs. Allan's Steamships was not of a gossiping and jesting nature, when they most distinctly and unequivocally said : " that if a ship master rated his chronometer by the dropping of the time ball in Montreal harbour, he would be put out of his reckoning from fifty to one hundred miles, and that this fact was known to every mariner that entered the port." Well enough may the Editor add : — " This is a most serious matter, and one which might be followed by disaster, 19 loss of life, and property. It only illustrates more forcibly than words can express the necessity for individuals to confine themselves to occupations with which *liey are familiar, and not attempt too nmch, hy which they muy seriously mislead others and bring themselves into disgrace and ridicule" He might have added punishment — because giving wrong information whereby the lives of the people are jeopardised, is a serious delinquency, and ought to be made a criminal offence. The following extract from a letter written by the Secretary of the Harbour Commissioners to Dr. Smallwood, dated May 22nd, 1872, will most effectually dispose of the gossip — it may make the " Authorities" more careful in future not to designate plain statements of fact, written in the cause of science, written in the cause of humanity, as undeserved attacks, wilful misrepi^esentatimis and unfounded remarks against the veteran meteorologist. The extract from the Secretary's letter will doubtless be as bitter as " coloquintida," yet, the author trusts it will act as a medicine — an anodyne — to the chagrin and disappointment of the "Authorities," in finding their state- ment of facts to be nothin^f more than wilful garhlin^s of truth. . 1 EXTRACT OF LETTER. Secretary of Hai'hour Commissioners to tlie Director of tJie " Montreal Observatory." " During the past winter, I noticed on several occasions, " from the ringing of the bell in my office, what appeared to " me to be a serious error; but as we were not then dropping " the ball I did not deem it of sufficient importance to men- " tion the subject to you. This spring, however, when the " harbour began to fill with shipping, and it became necessary " to drop the ball and give correct time, or abandon it alto- " gether, I took steps to ascertain what really was the true " time, and the result was an error on your part of MORE "THAN THREE MINUTES. You must admit that this 20 " is a very dangermcs error; for if masters of vessels were dis- " posed to regulate their clirououieters by the time we were " giving, thev would soon have come to grief." "Cortie to gHef" — truly so, Mr. Secretary; the masters of vessels would not consider that tlie Director had "earned a lasting title to the gratitude of his countrymen" for his very dangerous error. In the month of June following, the Astronomical Clock, by Dent, was demanded by the Secretary of the Harbour Com- missioners, and taken away from the "Montreal Observatory." The time since given, during the past summer, by the " other person engaged for the purpose," has been invariably CORRECT, so that there is no need for making the Director responsible for inaccuracies since June, 1872; and there are sufficient reasons why the Harbour Commissioners did not any longer require the Director's services, even though he was quite willing to continue them. They, perhaps, did not consider his services of "inestimable lalue." Their acknow- ledgment of his ^^ great public services" ended, practically, by their saying "We require them no more." The "Authorities" allude to the incorrectness of ship chro- nometers. What can their correctness or incorrectness have to do with the question at issue ? Have the "Authorities" ingeniously introduced the subject to exhibit the generosity of the Director ? Or have they adroitly introduced it to make those ignorant of such things think that the deviser and maker of a rude wooden anemometer is such a truly excellent mechanician, such an expert workman, that he can apply isochronal corrections to chronometers, and compensate their balances after they have passed out of the hands of such eminent makers as Frodsham, Poole, Barraud, and Dent. The Director may have had chronometers to rate, as they often want rating, sometimes from being either carelessly or accidently "let to run down"; or from possible effects of mag- netic influences, to which they have become Ijalile while on 21 board an iron ship, or from some violent jarring in the loading or unloading of the vessel. If the chronometers so rated were not more accurately rated than the time-ball was dropped, the lives of Her Majes- ty's subjects may have been imperilled during a long passage. The "Authorities" have, however, the consolation that the Director sends the time to Ottawa for the firing of the noon- day-gun in that city. It may be sent punctually! — but, as the author has been informed, there have been many com- plaints made about the unsatisfactory state of the transmission of the time to Ottawa — sometimes five minutes too shw; at other times, five minutes too fast. Whether the errors were due to the Director or to the Telegraph Company, it was difficult to determine. The Director, in reply to ^Titten complaints, said it was the fault of the gunner — Very likely — very likely! There is one fact, and it is this, that the Managing Direc- tor of the St. Lawrence and Ottawa Eailway has freciuently observed considerable discrepancies in the time given — a point to which his attention was practically directed in con- nection with the running of the trains on his Line, as they were moved on Montreal time to suit the trains of the Grand Trunk Line ; therefore, a standard of accuracy was desirable, but it was rarely obtained. It is, however, due to the Director to say that since the issuing of the pamphlet "Meteorology and its Professors," the time has been rather more accurately given at the Capital ; but the author regrets to say that the discrepancies in the maxima temperatures still remain con- stant — plus 3 to 6 degrees — when the sun shines. In connection with the time, he would suggest that a ball- dropping apparatus be erected at some spot hear to the Par- liament Buildings, and by the use of the telegraph wires the time-ball, when erected, may be made to drop synchronously with the time-baU at the citadel observatory at Quebec. In this respect Stadacona and Ottawa would at least be in harmony. 22 The author has feehly touched upon the various items in the live memorable repudiating clauses of the "Author- ities," and he now leaves the matter entirely with his scientific readers. THEY MUST BE THE JURY to deter- mine whether his statements were groundless, and whether the "Authorities" are justi^ed in saying that he has made an " undeserved attack upon our veteran Meteorologist." It is, however, due to the " Authorities," upon the part of the author, to state that he does not think the Director of the "Montreal Observatory" could have read to them the whole of the letter written by the Secretary of the Harbour Commissioners to "Dr. Small wood," on the 22nd of May, 1872. If he had honestly read the letter to them, then there is no extenuation for such an unblushing paragraph as the following: — "It is only to be regretted that the limited means of the University permit no more to l)e done ; and it is to be hoped that the public, or some of the more wealthy friends of science and education, will take advantage of the undeserved attack made upon our veteran Meteorologist, by contributing the means to place at the disposal of the University, for his benefit, more ample apparatus', and an endowment to secure the ser- vices of an assistant to aid him in his declining years, and to continue and extend the work he has so well begim." The author regrets, sincerely regrets, the disingenuous- ness and the cupidity in the above paragraph, and he fervently hopes that the University, as a body, will "permit no more to be done" under the name of the "Authorities." The idea of making an undeserved attack upon the scientific character of a Professor of the University a medium for begging is a novelty in mendicancy. He trusts that the wealthy friends of science and literature, who may be inclined t^ be liberal and out of their abundance to give to the University "more ample apparatus," and a "large telescope" for the "Montreal 23 Observatory," will take care to secure the . ervices of a faitli- ful, efficient, and practical observer, not so niucli/(>/- his hcnejit as for the benefit of science and the benefit of the students of Astronomy and Meteorology. He further trusts that those to whom the charitable appeal is made to sujjply apparatus for the keeping up of "a continuous series of Meteorological Observations of inestimable scientific value," will pause and consider whether the Observatory in its present site is worth endowing ; and further, that they will, before wasting their money, get from the Board of Governors an outline of the progress and development of the Observatory to the present time ; also particular details respecting the Director's Astro- nomical, Magnetical and Meteorological Observations during the past ten years. He asks the Department of Applied •Science to consider seriously the unfortunate site of the Obser- vatory, and to ponder the nnfiivourable changes which have taken place in its neighl)ourhood, by the laying out of new streets, and the erection of buildings which interrupt the horizon in every direction, making it impossible to get a distant meridional mark for the obtaining a true astronomical meridian, without which a large transit circle would be of little scientific value. The author, who is not singular in his opinion, would consider it sheer folly to equip the "Montreal Observatory" with expensive Astronomical instruments, so long as it remains on its present bad site. For the honour and reputation of the City of Montreal, for tlie sake of ail who are desirous to promote the advance- ment of Astronomy, Meteorology, and the art of Navigation, and are anxious for the safety of the navigator and mariner, let no more instruments of any kind be contributed to the present Observatory — no good use can be made of them. Let scientific philanthropists wait until the citizens get possession of Mount Eoyal, upon the liighest point of which let there be an Observatory supplied with the necessary Astronomical and Meteorological instruments; and let a com- petent Observer be appointed, who can give to them his ( 24 undivided attention. Let there be an anemometer and a ball- droppin- apparatus, s.) that by means of an electro-recording machine, the true direction and force of the wind and the mean sohir time can be ^iven to the Post Office, the Mer- chants' Exchange, tlie Custom House, and any other Public Institution re(iuiring such a boon. If this is done, there wiU be no more Statements of Facts by THE AUTHORITIES OF THE UNIVERSITY, officially communicated to Editors of Journals, who honestly and impartially review pamphlets, which they believe to be worthy of consideration, and to be written not for malice, but for the sake of truth and science. APPENDIX. > k (l) Page 4. — A Gold Medal, bearing the effigies of Shaksperc, was founded by the citizens of Montreal, in the year 1864, in commemoration of the Tercentenary of the birth of our Dramatist, and for the encouragement of the study of Knglish Literature in the McOill University — from the time of Shakspere to Addison, embracing nearly half of the sixteenth and the whole of the seventeenth centuries. The value of the medal is fifty dollars. It ought to have been annually competed for by the students in the Faculty of Arts : but it has not, probably because the College Library is so slenderly furnished with books connected with the Elizabethan Era — the very manhood, the flesh and blood, as it were, of our literature ; the age of books, that neither flattered nor dissembled. To the books of that time, and to the Holy Spirit, directing the "Authorities" in the reading of them, the .luthor commends their worships ; and he trusts they will pardon his paraphrasing the learned author of Novum Organum, Moral Essays, &c. The infrequent competition for the " Shakspere Medal" maj', possibly or probably, arise from the little interest taken in the subject by the Professors of the Faculty of Arts — to wit : A Professor of Latin and Greek Classics having occasion to give, during the past year, a series of leciures on the Philology of the English Language, to some ladies seekmg "higher education," borrowed from the author, Mary Cowden Clarke's Concordance to Shakspen as there was not a copy of it in the McGill College Library, and he did not know where to procure that testimony of a woman's profound admiration and love for the Poet's genius, which is the brightest ornament of the British nation. If the condition of the Library is an index of the taste and character of the Professors in the Faculty of Arts, they may be judged by the marked absence of good editions of the Poets, Dramatists, and Essayists of the Elizabethan Era, and also of the publications of the Camden, Parker, Percy, and Shakspere Societies. In promoting the knowledge of the "Fine Arts," by the means of books, engravings, chromo-lithography, photographs of the monuments of art, whether in sculpture, painting, architecture, literally nothing has been done. With the exception of a donation by Henry Chapman, Esq., of a beautiful series of fictile imitations of ancient ivory carvings, there is an absolute dearth of everything connected with Art, which may be called the bloom which lends beauty to those solid fruits of learning, which the students are supposed to gather at and carry away from McGill. Assuredly, the works published by the Arundel Society are within the reach of the "Authorities." The utter neglect of the Fine Arts at the University may account, in a great measure, for the apathy of the public in all matters relating to them. — 11 Had the "Authorities" familiarized the students with the purer and severer styles of earlier Art, as published by the Arundel Society, they would have helped to withdraw the public taste from works which are meretricious and puerile. Without some education of the eye to beauty of form and colour, how shall the sculptor or painter speak to the minds or hearts of the "thou!i?r.J young men who have graduated from McGill within the past few years," whose eyes have never been raised above the level of the earth. Again, how are they to obtain the power or faculty of appreciating works of art, or to study the principles by which the artist works, and according to which the critic should judge. Lastly, a knowledge of drawing, or rather the ability of drawing, is necessary for the delineation of external nature, under the various aspects that she presents in the different regions of the earth, and, also, for the representation of the Fauna and Flora of a country. (2) P(^ 15.— Extract of a letter received from Professor Henry, by the ruthor : «^iv V «« . J Smithsonian Institute, Washington, February aist, 1873. Dear Sir, The A: -momtiers used in the United States are of the Robinson paUern, made by James Green, of New Ycrk, and are nearly the same as those by Casella, of London. (Signed) JOSEPH HENRY. ( \ ^