The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1876-05-27

nor others in what manner to proceed herein
And new, Sir, although my sympathy ant
affection for my brethren hath caused my en-
largement thus far, ardently hope that you
candor and generosity will plead with you il
my behalf when l make known to you that i
was not originally my design, but that having
taken up my pen in order to direct to you as
present, copy of an almanac, which hav,
calculated fer the succeeding year, was un
expectedly and unavoidably led thereto.
This calculation, sir, is the production o
my arduous study in this my advanced stag
of life; for having long had unbounded desires
to become acquainted with the secrets of ma
ture, have had to gratifying my curiosity
herein through my own assiduous application
to astronomical study, in which | need not re
count to you the many difficulties and disad
vantages which have had to encounter. And
although l had almost declined to make my
calculations for the ensuing year, in conse
quence of that time which had allotted there
for being taken up at the Federal Territory
by the request of Mr.. Andrew Ellicott yet fnd-
ing myself under several engagements to prin
ters of this State, to whom had communicated
my design, on my return to my place of resi-
dence, industriously applied myself therets
which / hope l have accomplished with cer-
rectness and accuracy, a copy of which have
taken the liberty To direct to you, and which
hambly request you will fayorably receive, and
aithough you msy Have the opportunity of pc.
rusing it after its publication, yet | chose to
send it to you in manuscript previous thereto
that thereby yeu might not only have an ear
lier inspection, but that you might also view il
ia my own hand writing
And now, sir, l shall conclude and subscribe
myself with the most profound respect, your
most obedient, humble servant,
B. BANxEKER.
When he published his first almanac, Ban
peker was SO years old, and had high respect
paid to him by all the scientific men of the
country, as one whose color did not prevent his
belonging to the Same class, so far as intellect
went, with themselves.
After the adoption of the Constitution in
1879, Commissioners were appointed to run
the lines of the District of Columbia, the ten
miles square now occupied by the seat of gov
ernment, and then called the Federal Terrific
rY. The Commissioners invited Banneker to
be present at the runnings and treated him
with much consideration. On his return he
used to say of them that they were a very civil
set of gentlemen, who had overlooked his com :
plexon on account of his attainments, and had
so far honoredshim as to invite him to be seat
ed at their table, Gan honor" he added, (which
l had thought fit to decline, and requested that
a side table might be provided for me-"
Banneker continued to calculate and pub
lish his almanacs until 1902 and the folio al
reauy referred 10 anu now Delore the society
contains the calculations clearly copied, and
the figures used by him in his work.
memorandum in his hand writing, dated
December 18th, 1890, states e - inform
ed me that -- stole my horse and great
coat, and that the said - intended to MUIR
der me when opportunity presented. --
gave me caution to let no one come into my
house after dark" The names of the parties
were originally written in full; but they were
afterwards carefully Cancelled, as though Ban
neker had reflected that it was wrong to leave
an unauthenticated assertion on record against
an individual which might prejudice him, if
incorrect, by the mere fact that it had been
made.
Very soon after the possession of the books
already mentioned had drawn Banneker's at.
tention to astronomy, he determined to COM
pile an almanac, that being the most familiar
use that occurred to him of the information he
had acquired. Of the labor OF the work, few
of those can form an estimate who would at
this day commence such a task, with all the
assistance afforded by accurate tables and well
digested rules. Banneker had no such aid and
it is narrated as well known fact that he
commenced and advanced far in the prepara-
tien of the logarthms necessary for his pur-
pose, when he was furnished with set of ta-
bles by Mr.. George Ellicott. About this time
he began the record of his calculations, which
is still in existence, and is left with the Ssce
ty for examination. A memorandum contain
ed in it thus corrects an error in Ferguson s
Astronomy: at appears to me that the wsest
of men may at times be in error for instance,
DIR. Ferguson informs US that when the Ndn IS
within 10 of either node at the time of full, that
the moon will be eclipsed but find, accord
ing to his method of projecting lunar eclipse,
there will be none by the above elements, and
yet the Sun is within llo, 49,, IL" of the Moons
ascending node. But the Moon being in her
apogee prevents the appearance of this eclipse.
Another memorandum makes the following
corrections errors that ought to be corrected
in my Astronomical! tables are these: End vol.
Leadbeater's, p. 204, when Saturn anomaly is
is, 800, the equation 80, 3S, Az, ought to have
been 80, 2S', AZ. In Mars equation p. 1856, the
logarithm of his distance from the Sun ought
to have been in the second place from the
index, instead of Z. That is the time that this
anomaly is IS, 240, until it is As, Oo.'
Both Ferguson and Leadbeater would proba-
bly, have looked incredulous, had they been in
formed that their labored works had been re-
viewed and corrected by a free negro in the
then almost unheard of Valley of the Patapsco.
The first almanac which Benneker prepared,
fit for publication, was for the year 1892. By
this time his requirements had become gener-
ally known, and benjamin Banneker's Penn
sylvania, Delaware, Virginia and Maryland
almanac and ephemeris for the year Of our
Lord, 1892, being bissextile or leap year, and
the sixteenth year of American Independence,
which commenced July 4th, 1776, containing
the motions of the Sun and Moon, the true
places and aspects of the planets, the rising
and setting of the Sun, and the rising, settin g
and southing, place and age of the Moon, &c.
The lunations, cenjuactions, eclipses, judg-
ments of the weather, festivals, and remarka-
BILE days" Thus much is Bannekers; then
follow Goddard and Angel; also several use
ful tables and valuable recipes, "varieus seec.
tions from the common place book of the Ken
lucky Philosopher, and American Sage; with
interesting and entertaining essays in prose
and verse--the whole comprising a greater,
more pleasing, and useful variety than any
book of the kind and price in North America >
Besides his aptitude for mechanics, and his
ability as mathematician, Benneker was an
acute observer, whose active mind was con
stantly receiving impulses from what was tax
ing place around him. Many instances of this
are to be found in the records of his calcula'
tions, which he seems to have used occasional
lv as common place book. For instance, un
der date of the 9th August, 1897, he writes -
STANDING at my door heard the discharge Of
gun, and in four or five seconds of time, after
the discharge, the small shot came rattline
about me, one or two of which struck the house
which plainly demonstrates that the velocity
1t must have been philosophic mind, which
observing the fact as here stated, drew from II
the correct conclusion, and then recorded it in
appropriate terms as a simple and beautiful IL
lustraton of the law of Nature, with which, il
all probability, he first became acquainted
through its means.
Again on the 23d December, 1890, he writes
"About three o'clock A. NJ. l heard the sounC
and felt the shock like unto heavy thunder.
went out but could not observe any cloud abov'
| the horizon. therefor conclude it must be
| great earthquake in some part of the GLOBE
| similar conclusion from the same facts wa
| drawn by a greater man than Benneker, nea
| eighteen hundred years before, and recorded t.
| be commented on in after eyes.
Nor was Banneker's observations confined t.
matters of philosophical character. There !
| evidence in the memoranda of his record bool
that natural history was equally interesting t.
| him. The following, independent OF its con
nectiou with the subject of our memoir, pos
| sesses general interest as an authentic state
ment by an eyewitness of curious fact il
| entomology. In April, 1900, he writes: 9Th
FIRST great locust year that can remember wa
1749. | was then about seventeen years OF age
when thousands of them came and were creep
| ing up the trees and bushes. | then imagine
they came to eat and destroy the fruit OF tn
earth and would occasion famine in the lane
1 therefore began to kill and destroy them, bu
soon saw that my labor was in vain, and there
fore gave over my pretentions. Again, in tn
year 1866, which is seventeen years after thei
first appearance, they made a second, and ap
peared to me to be full as numerous as tn
first. then, being about thirty-four years o
| age, had more sense than to endeavor to dc
stroy, them, knowing they were not so PERM
cious to the fruit of the earth as | imagine
they would be. Again, in the year 1888, whic
was seventeen years since their second appear
| anca To me- they made their third and To e.