The Sun.
London, England, 1847-04-03 00:00:00

" VRAICKING" IN JERSEY.

The season for gathering the sea-weed which abounds
on the countless rocks around our coast, commenced on
Monday last. This important and peculiar harvest pro-
mises to be very abundant, and the weather being pro-
pitious, numbers of our farmers, with their wives and
families, may be seen daily wending their way to the
sea shore, attired in the only costume that fickle fashion
has not yet succeeded in altering.
To our English readers the name of the weed and the
harvest itself will seem somewhat singular, as well as
the importance which they may perceive by the few
lines above, is attached to the operation. This is even
greater than they can conceive who are ignorant of
the actual facts. So precious is the " vraick " regarded
as manure, that it is placed under the special protection
of the Full Court who, on the advise of the twelve con-
stables (these in turn being guided by their parochial
assemblies or vestries), fixes on a certain day for the
" abandon" or liberty to commence cutting. Proclama-

tion to this effect is Made by the regular officer, who ad-
vances for this purpose to the body of the Court to a rail-
ing. which separates it from the vestibule. When the ap-
pointed day approaches, preparations are made in every
farmhouse in the island, the more profitably to devote ex
elusive attention to the previous harvest. Cakes of a parti-
cular sort are made and baked some days before to serve as
food during the time the occupation lasts, which is
during a few days preceding and following the spring-
tide. The season partakes in some measure of the
nature of a holiday—parties are formed to join the
vraichers and the whole rural population is on the
gui vive. The Jersey-woman, in our opinion, is then,
and perhaps only then, thoroughly identical as the type
of what she was before the rapid introduction of new
manners and customs. The homely garb takes the
place of modern finery, which is for the moment
thrown aside and forgotten. Antedelavian bonnets, of
unaccountable shapes, covered over with cases of
coarse woollen stuff made to depend in the shape of a
large cape, cover the head of the fresh and rosy
damsels, (and they are fresh and rosy,) who wend
' their way to the rocks durinc, the vraicking. The rest
of the habiliment consist Of a short, coarse, warm,
woollen shirt, over which is worn a small garment,
technically called a bed-gown (Heaven only knows why—
it might with not less appropriateness be called by any
other name), generally composed of a dark purple glazed
stuff. As to the male portion of the reapers, they are as
perfeetly unrecognisable as fur, worsted, and a species of
coarse flannel can make them; young men looking old,
and aged men wearing " blouzes' which make them ap-
pear like youths, until the face betrays by its timeworn
marks the traces of old age.
Antiquated carts with rails at the sides, drawn by
one or two horses, convey the " vraickers" to their
destination, and return with such loads of manure as
would strike any English horse with amazement ;
dragged from amidst the rocki, through brooks, shingle,
sand and soft mud, enough, one would think, to ruin
any animal, and so it would any but a Jersey horse.
Sometimes the over piled load may be seen crowned
with a rosy face, buried in the afore-mentioned woollen
extinguisher, the said face appertaining to one of
Cwsarea's fair daughters, who sits there enthroned on
some incomprehensible machine meant to be applied to
some undiscovered use, and appearing to be a species
of compromise between a fowl-house and a market bas-
ket. The fair one, with her feet imbedded in the
dripping weed, sits there completely at ease, surrounded
by pitchforks and rakes, and, to all appearances, with
as much comfort as is enjoyed by her, perhaps, more
refined, but not more happy sisters in the town.
So great is the anxiety to obtain the vraick that the
reapers (we forgot to say that it was cut with a reaping
hook) often place themselves in most dangerous posi-
tions, and serious accidents with loss of life frequently
happen. Notwithstanding this, the farmer returns to
his cherished pursuits with an unfliching determina-
tion, and on his return to the homestead, the blazing
faggots on his capacious hearth and smoking boiler,
with the happy faces that surround him, soon induce
forgetfulness of past toil and danger, whilst the prospect
of well•manured lands and abundant harvests give
cheering encouragement for the future.—Daily Corres-
pondent (Jersey).

things, nor in great. n
MARRIED LIFE.—Dive
little
enot
singonl
e one i
ea nhoitsh
beforeer in
west consequences.
disturbed a whole marrFieodldlifnee.t
uthion; Do not
sit idle. " Laziness is the devil's •
o
A the s 1 nalr imi causes
together eht ha es, rGI
fatne and
run much from home. One's own health. iss
loikfemtohree
worth than gold. Many a marriage begin
And wh ?'"
be as
i , keep God in your thoughts. I,:,,tlheaesmreaaorfnrteieerda
nmpoaatihrrreirag. neglect
like the snow wreath.
oughts.'
well-pleasing.,..t,sanmaeeraaronlynueir 1
w:tdyTtauhtc,cen fal I s away
all your love on to-day, fo r
has its to-morrow likewise, r remember that marriage
rili.3t.s day after
winter."'to-mor-
Consider, my diughtersY, s:hYai fuel
row " Spare, as one eLbtaattsv,isbahetfontrhoeet.
for the
expressos. The married woman is the Itlusebwerd wife
mestic faith ; in her hand he must be able aciede do-
house and family ; be able to entrust her the knly"oe his heart, as well as the key of his house. e-
Ilifs
honour and his home are under her keeping ; his well-
being is in her hand. Think of this ! And you, sons,
be faithful husbands, and good fathers of families. Act
so that your wives shall esteem and love you.—Frederica
Bremer.

Dispatches from the Governors of New South Wales,
Van Diemen's Land, and South Australia, were received
yeatorday at the Colonial-othice.

THE NEW PLANET.

The Syndicate appointed to visit the Observatory beg
to submit to the Senate the following Statement of Ob-
servations made by Professor Challis on the New Planet,
in continuation of those described in his former report,
and also of the results deduced from them by Mr. Adams
respecting the elements of the planet's orbit.
H. PHILPOTT, Vice-Chancellor.
JOHN GRAHAM. GEORGE PEACOCK.
B. CHAPMAN. JAMES CA RTMELL.
W. WHEWELL. CHAS. W. GOODWIN.
JOSHUA KING. G. G. STOKES.
SECOND REPORT OF PROCEEDINGS IN THE
OBSERVATORY RELATING TO THE NEW
PLANET (NEPTUNE).
In conformity with a wish expressed by the Vice-
Chancellor and the Observatory Syndicate, at their ordi-
nary terminal meeting, held on March 15, I propose in
this report to carry on, for the information of members
of the Senate, the account of proceedings in the Ob-
servatory relative to the new planet, a first report of
which was made on Dec. 12 of last year. The theoretical
grounds on which a search for the planet was instituted,
the manner in which the search was conducted, and the
degree of success that attended it, were stated in the
former report, which brought the history of proceedings
down to the date at which the planet was discovered. I
have now to give an account of the subsequent observa-
tions both of its position in the heavens and of its
physical appearance, and to state the results respecting
the orbit, which have been deduced from the observations
by calculation.
A regular series of observations of the planet was
commenced on October 3, 1846, and continued at all
available opportunities, partly with the meridian instru-
ments, and partly with the Northumberland Equatoreal,
to December 4, soon after which the planet became too
faint to observe on the meridian on account of daylight.
The observations were subsequently carried on with the
Equatoreal to January 15. The series was much inter-
rupted by cloudy weather, particularly in the months of
December and January. On the whole I have obtained
28 positions of the planet with the meridian instruments,
and 25 positions with the Northumberland Equatoreal
by means of 92 differential observations of Right Ascen-
sion, and as many of North Polar Distance. The Equa-
toreal measures were all referred to the same star, No.
7,648 of the British Association Catalogue, the exact
place of which was determined by sixteen observa-
tions with the Transit, and eight observations with
the Mural Circle. I have reast n to think that the
positions obtained with the Equatoreal are entitled to
very nearly the same weight as those obtained on the
meridian. All the above observations I have com-
pletely reduced, and have placed the results at the dis-
posal of Mr. Adams for deducing elements of the planet's
orbit.
On January 12, I had for the first time a distinct im-
pression that the planet was surrounded by a ring.
The appearance noticed was such as would be pre-
sented by a ring like that of Saturn, situated with
its plane very oblique to the direction of vision. I
felt convinced that the observed elongation could
not be attributed to atmospheric refraction, or
to any irregular action on the pencils of light,
because when the object was seen most steadily I dis-
tinctly perceived a symmetrical form. My assistant, Mr.
Morgan, being requested to pay particular attention to
the appearance of the planet, gave the same direction of
the axis of elongation as that in which it appeared to
me. I saw the ring again on the evening of Jan. 14.
In my note-book I remark, ' The ring is very apparent
with a power of 215, in a field considerably illumined
by lamp-light. Its brightness seems equal to that of the
planet itself.' On that evening, Mr. Morgan, at my re-
quest, made a drawing of the form, which on comparison
coincided very closely with the drawing made inde-
pendently by myself. The ratio of the diameter of the
ring to that of the planet, as measured from the draw-
ings, is about that of 3to 2. The angle made by the
axis of the ring with a parallel declination, in the south
preceding or north following quarter, I estimated at 60°.
By a measurement taken with a position circle on Jan.
15, under very unfavourable circumstances, this angle
was found to be 65°. lam unable to account entirely
for my not having noticed the ring at an earlier period
of the observations. It may, however, be said that an
appearance like this, which it is difficult to recognise
except in a good state of the atmosphere, might for a
long time escape detection, if not expressly and re-
peatedly looked for. To force itself on the attention, it
would require to be seen under extremely favourable
circumstances. Previous to the observations in Janu-
ary, the planet had been hid for more than three weeks
by clouds. The evenings of Jan. 12 and 14 were par-
ticularly good, and the planet was at first looked at in
strong twilight. Under very similar circumstances I
have twice seen, with the Northumberland telescope, the
second division of Saturn's ring.
I communicated to Mr. Lassell, of Liverpool, who was
the first to suspect the existence of a ring, my observa-
tions upon it, accompanied with a drawing; and I have
received from him in return a drawing of the appearance
presented in his twenty feet reflector, closely resembling
mine, both as to the form and the position of the ring.
Mr. Lassell writes, " I cannot refuse to consider that
your observation puts beyond reasonable doubt the
reality of mine." In this conclusion I concur, and ac-
cordingly in communications to the Royal Astronomical
Society, and to Schumacher's Astronornisches Nachrich-
ten, containing my reduced observations, I have ven-
tured to express my conviction of the existence of a

ring.
By micrometer measures taken with the Northumber-
land telescope, I find the apparent diameter of the
body of the planet to be very nearly 3 seconds.
The above account includes all the observations on the
planet I could obtain before its disappearance in the solar
rays. By the kindness of Mr. Adams lam able to add
some particulars respecting its orbit, which he has de-
rived by calculation from the reduced places with which
I furnished him. As was stated in the former report,
Mr. Adams calculated first approximations to the ele-
ments, by employing the places I obtained on August 4
and August 12, in the course of searching for the pla-
net, with observations since the discovery extending to
.October 13. For the sake of comparison with the se-
cond approximation, I now give the first results.
Heliocentric Longitude 326.39 Aug. 4, 1546.
Longitude of the Descending Node 309.41

Inclination of the Orbit — 1.43
Distance of the Planet from the Sun 30.05

In calculating the following second approximations
Mr. Adams used the mean of the two places of August
as a single place, and of the others he selected nine
which seemed to bc:,the best determined, and which were
separated by convenient intervals. All the results are
calculated for the epoch of 1846, Aug. 8,0. mean time at
ereenwich.

Heliocentric Longitude of the Planet re-
ferred to the mean Equinox of 1847,0 326.41.12,3
Heliocentric motion in Longitude in 100
days
Heliocentric Latitude South
Change of Heliocentric Latitude in 100 days 1. 4,44
Longitude of the Descending Node 3lO. 3.44,0
inclination of the Orbit 1.46.49,1
Distance of the Planet from the Sun
Half the Latus Rectum of the Orbit
The first position on which the above results depend,
that of Aug. 4, was obtained 16 days before the planet
was in opposition, and the last position, that of Jan.
15, 32 days before it was in conjunction. The great
variation of the planet's elongation from the sun in this
interval, is favourable to the correctness of the above
determinations, which, although they cannot pre-
tend to extreme accuracy on account of the short
period over which the observations extend, are yet
entitled to considerable weight. Mr. Adams has, in
fact, calculated the probable errors of the above re-
sults by supposing each observation of Right Ascen-
sion or of Nurth Polar Distance to be liable to an error
of three seconds, and he finds that there is little probabi-
lity of their receiving any great amount of correction by
taking account of future observations. It may be re-
marked that the first and second approximations do not
differ by any large quantities. Hence it may be inferred
that the places of August are deserving of confidence,
and that, on account of the extension given to the pe-
riod of observation by including those places, this se-
cond approximation to the elements is more accurate
than it would have been if it depended solely on obser-
vations made since the discovery of the planet.
The calculations gave 59 min. 8 sec. for the planet's
Heliocentric motion from August 4 to January 15.
This is so small an arc that it is not possible to deduce
with any degree of certainty those elements, the deter-
mination of which depends on change of the heliocentric
distance. Mr. Adams has, however, discussed the ob-
servations with this object in view, and has obtained
certain limiting results, which, as possessing considerable
interest, I here subjoin.
The eccentricity of the orbit cannot exceed 0.18.
Tho most probable value is 0.06, which differs but little
from the eccentricities of the orbits of Jupiter, Saturn,
and Uranus.

The most probable longitude of perihelion is 49 dog.
58 min., and the probable true anomaly 276 deg. 43
min. according to which the planet is near the extremity
of the latus rectum, and is descending towards perihelion.
These results are extremely uncertain.
The mean distance is 30, 35, with a probable error of
0,25 ; and the corresponding sidereal period is 167
years, with a probable error of about two years. It is
remarkable that the periodic time is very nearly double
that of Uranus ; so that these two bodies will offer an
instance of mutual perturbations of large amount, differ-
ing in character from those of the other planets, but
analogous to the mutual perturbations of the first and
second and second and third satellites of Jupiter.
According to Bode's law of the planetary distances,
the mean distance of the new planet should be nearly
38. The actual mean distance differs so much from
this, that we are compelled to conclude that this sin-
gular law, which holds with reference to the other
planets, fails in this instance.
Since the apparent diameter of the new planet is to
that of Uranus nearly in the ratio of 2 to 4, according to
the foregoing determination of the distance its bulk is to
that of Uranus in the ratio of 8 to 5.
The above is the sum of the results derivable from the
first series of observatiohs. For further and more
exact information we must wait till the planet emerges
from the solar rays. Before concluding this report, I
am desirous of saying a few words respecting the name
M. Struve the copy of a communca•
I recently had the satisfaction of re-
ceiving from i
of
tiou read
of Sciences of St. Petersburg
the Imperial Academy
reasons that
of
the
pillanbevt. him at the general annual meeting
astronomers
induced himself and the other Poulkova
as
on Dec. 20, in which he states the reas
to adhere to the name of Neptune, which name w
anaminetaoirnL theevenrria name e
first proposed by the French Board of Longitude,
shortly after the discovery of the planet, these reasons
are thus briefly expressed in a note addressed to me per-
sonally:—" The Poulkova astronomers have resolucd to
ta
woefurdehpetune,in against
the
ee
acceptedopinion
atnhaaltogthye,
and against historical truth, as it cannot be
denied that M. Adams has
been the first the-
oretical discoverer
of that body, though not
so happy as to effect A direct result of