Copy letter from [Michael] Foster, Secretary of the Royal Society; to Leonard Courtney, Esq. MP Updates Leonard Courtney of the situation concerning Armagh Observatory. That the Council have advised the Government to make arrangements for Armagh Observatory whilst preserving its character as an institute for special and independent inquiry. States that the services of the observatory under the late Dr. [Thomas Romney] Robinson have been exceptional. Explains that smaller observatories can often dedicate time and resources to special inquiry, which often result in bigger discoveries than the routine observations found in larger observatories. However they are also reliant on the income of the directors to maintain themselves. 30 November 1883