The Sun.
London, England, 1824-07-02 00:00:00

readily complied with his friend's request, and these two were
the only persons in the world who observed this transit the first
time it had ever been viewed by human eyes."' In 1761, the
observations were numerous, no less than. ten being on record
in England alone.
Mr. Hirst made an observation, probably the only one at-
tempted in the East, June 6, 1761, at the Government House
at Madras, where he was assisted by the Governor, afterwards
Lord Piget. The result, he communicated in a letter to Lord
Macclesfield, President of the Royal Society.t He afterwards
complained" of the mutilated manner in Which his account was
inserted, in particular of the omitting his observations of the
equal altitudes, and tneridianal transits for regulating his time-
keeper, and his reasons for concluding that Venus had no
satellite, as had been suspected by M. Cassini, and the late Mr,
Short" 4:
" In Slarch, 1762, Mr. Hirst was appointed chaplatt to the
factory at Calcutta, by the favour of Mr. Vansittart, Governor
of Bengal, and resided there in general esteem." In Novem-
ber that year. he communicated to Dr. Birch, Secretary of the
Royal Society, " an account of an earthquake at Chattignon,
in the region of Islantabad„kpril 2, 1762 ; il a sular eclipse,
observed at 011yzotty, on the banks of the Ganges ; and a lunar
one at Calcutta. In December, 1764,
he embarked for Eng-
land, with his Ir:end Governor Vansittart, to whom he gives
unqualified _commendation for " honour and sagacity, con.
vinced " that llfenetnepte tekel tipharsin. will nes-a. De pronounc-
ed against him, not even in fur° conscientix."
Of Mr. liirsesoccupations, after his return to England, there
is no account till June 3, 1761 ; he then undertook again to
make an observation on the transit of Venus. His friend Gover-
nor Vansittart was now his assistant, as Governor PigOt had
been at Madras. The result was communicated to the Royal
Society by Dr. Maskelyne, the astronomer royaL T To the
Hint clmrtributed "an account of several
phenomena observed during the ingress of Venus into the sager
ascribing;discrina letter to the astronomer royal."' A few days
after he communicated to his friend, Mr. Duncombe, his de-
sign of returning to India, as chaplain to the commissioners,
his acceptance of the appointment to his connexions
with 3lr. Vansittart. " I thought (he adds) to have spent the
remainder of my days in Old England, under my own vine,
and under my own fig-tree, but cliis aliter vistent est, and I must
submit. Adieu, therefore, all thoughts of domestic life ! Adieu
the domus et placens n.ror !"
Sept. 30, Mr. Hirst bade a final adieu to England. -1-t The
last of his five letters, and probably the lastletter he ever wrote,
is dated " Dec. 19, 1769," and addressed to his friend, Mr.
Fazakerly, from " the Dutch town at the Caps of Good
Hope," from whence he expected to sail in two days. On
the voyage he had " felt his ruling passion" for the advance-
ment of astronomical science, as appears by the following
passage:—
The comet which we saw in England approaching to the sun,
we saw returning from it. I took two observations of its situa-
tion in the heavens with respect to the neighbouring fixed stars,
and wrote on the occasion a sheet full, which I intended to have
sent to my friend ilaskelyneat Greenwich; but this, as well as
many others papers, I have left or mislaid at sea; and it often
happens, as the Earl of Dorset says, that
Our paper, pens and ink, and we,
Are tumbled up and down at sea. .44
The circumstances which produced and attended the catas-
trophe of the Aurora, will probably, never be ascertainpd till
" the sea shall give up the dead that are in it." The historian
of British India says of the supervisors; " the vessel which
carried them never reached her port ; nor was any intelligence
of her or her passengers ever received." It is, however, relat-
ed, though without a reference to tiny authority, 1111 that " qn
be-
fore the East India Directors, who affirmed that lie was one of
thvee persons of
fs
NZllniabde r.b'eel7n7savedbil;oenkt nt
'haedße'rjeL aolerialuwreura
that she had been east away on a reef of rocks oil' Macao ; that
he was two years upon an island after lie had escaped ; and was,
at length, utiraculouslys,preserved by 'a country ship happening
to touch at that island.
BIOGRAPIIICUS.

* " %f r. Crabtree intended to observe the transit in the same
manner with florrox, but the sky was so ,covered with clouds
that he, gave himself up entirely to despair. But, a little before
the time of sunset, the sun breaking out for the first time from
the clouds, he eagerly betook himself to his observation, and
happily saw the most agreeable of all sights, Venus just enter-
ed upon the sun.
" Let not any severe Cato (adds Mr. Tiorrox) be seriously
angry wilt these vanities of ours; for what youth, such as we
are, would not timtily admire upon earth Venereva Soli,
pulthritudinem conjundant." See An. Keg. (17111.)
Iv. M.

t Sec Phil. Trans. LII, 256, No. 40.
4.- Referring in a later communication to these omissions, he
sags, " Had. not this been the case, every one might have judg.
.ed of the care and pains I took in that distant part of the world,
as, well in making several of my instruments myself, as in using
them when made."
11 Translated from the Persian by Mr. Colston. Sec Phil..
Trans. r.nl. 2M, 256. No. 39, 40.
§ The eclipses were observed by Mr. Hirst, also an earth-
quake. at Calcutta, July 13, 17Q. See ibid. 258, 202.
41, See Phil. Trans. Ly I it. 361.
•• Dated " Inner Temple, June 2, 1769." See ibis.
LIX. 228.

1-1- On this occasion a Latin ode, entitled Ad Amicum
gaturam, was addressed to Mr. first by Dr. Kirkpatrick, who
distinguished himselfat the battle of Plassey.—Drincontlic, ill.
158. Appendix C.
tr. Air. Hirst adds, " We continue to be very harmonious,
told consequently very happy, on board the Aurora. I know
this will give great pleasure to all Mr. Van's real friends, and
be the occasion of great chagrin and disappointment to all who
expect the commission would be overact by the disunion of the
commissioners." '
1111 Sec Lives of Scottish Poets, v. 76,

SWINDLING AVIV! A FORGED SHIP'!" (1:11.111'l
GATE OF REGISTRY.

[Extract of a Letter from Deal, dated June 23,6 1824.]

" On ►he 7th Mg, a person having the man-
ners and appearance of a Ship-master, called (in company with
another person) at the bank of Messrs. May, Mercer, and Co.,
of this place, stating his brig the Robert, bound for Malta, was
then at Ramsgate, and producing a letter, signed William
Thompson and Co., dated London, the 31st May, 1824, an-
nexed to a printed prospectus of the Thames Bank Chain Cable
Company, and addressed Captain Henry Smallwood, brig
Robert, Post-office, Deal ; this letter permitted him to draw
for 1201. at sight, adding, that the Bankers at Deal would ad.
vance the mono; for that sum he then drew at sight on
Thompson and Co., Thames Bank Chaill Cable Manufac.
tory, Cannon.street, St. George's in the East, London, re.
quiring only 501., which the Bankers incautiously advanced,
on the bill,, letter, and certificate of registry being left with
them, the pretended Captain promising to return in a few days.
lie has, however, never made his appearance since; the address
of the bill is nothing snore than a barber's shop, where the par.
ties are not known, and the eertVeate of registry has teen
altered by means of some clu',.eical process, and no such vessel as
the Robert either was or had been at flamagate. We trust that
other Bunkers on the coast will be on the alert should this clever
Captain attempt a like experiment."
Though the above extract is dated so far back, it did not
reach this office till yesterday afternoon.

TILE llol.l' ALLIAi\CE versus COLMAN UNI.
vriurtiEs.—Two hundred and fifty htudents have lately been
expelled the University of Halle, in Prussia (being more than
one-hail of the whole nutnber), andi some have in YAM applied to
be received at Gottingen (kingdom of Hanover), and at Leipsic
(kingdom of Saxony.) Two gentlemen of the Duelly. of 01.
denburg, who left the University about 12 months ago, ate ac.
cused of having belonged to Secret Societies : they were put
under arrest in their houses, their papers sealed, and were ex.
omitted by a member of 'the Council of Government, Bent ex-
pressly to their place of residence. They had afterwards to give
bail to a considerable amount, and are incapable of holding any
employment until they are perfectly cleared. One of the above
anuivaeni ht
gentlemen held a situation, from which he was instantly sue.
the
entualete
rHalleje n isa,the U
sent yiatr tt
notice, on account of their known patriotism and attachment to
the Prussian Alouttreby. from which iwluitohill nap2a4rte h,oatftirser,