| RefNo | HSF/2/1/93 |
| Previous numbers | 32.8.77 and 32.8.77A |
| Level | Item |
| Title | Letter from J [John] Herschel, Camp, Cape Comorin Base, to 'Dear Pater' [Sir John Frederick William Herschel] |
| Creator | Herschel; John (1837-1921); British army officer and astronomer |
| Date | 10 February 1869 |
| Description | He has lost count of mails, but has been reminded by Mary [Mary Cornwallis Herschel] about his neglect. Base line measurement is arduous and the temperatures are at ninety degrees and over. He received the Royal Astronomical Society monthly notice and his father's pamphlet on scales. Mary sent his father's enclosure on the Argus nebula; if John's sketches do not agree, the nebula itself must be the cause, or that and the telescope itself. The sketches are representative of what he saw and no more. The event has proved John wrong and he will profit by the experience, and he will do as his father wishes next time. There is no harm done and the Melbourne Telescope will settle the matter. He wonders what value any evidence of his would have been, without bona fides, if it had been based on his father's foundation. He is sorry he gave no means of identifying the high power sketched portion of the low power sketch, but he thought it evident. He believes the drawings are faithful but cannot now rely on his memory for detail and he has no copies. His first letter to his father was a mistake, it was simply to show that the job was in hand, and he would be sorry if his crude sketches were reproduced. The present baseline will mark an era in the history of Colby's compensation apparatus, the principle of which is condemned, and John explains why. He intends to send this letter to Mary to add anything and to explain their whereabouts. |
| Extent | 6p. |
| Format | Manuscript |
| PhysicalDescription | Ink on paper |
| AccessStatus | Open |
Fellows associated with this archive
| Code | PersonName | Dates |
| NA7955 | Herschel; John (1837 - 1921); Colonel; military engineer, surveyor and astronomer | 1837 - 1921 |