PREFACE. THE title of the work, from which the present is abridged, enlarges further, "WITH A HISTORY OF THE TRANSACTIONS WHICH FINALLY LED TO THE ROYAL INTERFERENCE IN THE CASE RECITED."-But the Author imagining that the generality of those who might favour him with their attention would be disposed to pass by the previous history, to arrive at that part of these MEMOIRS where the principal character is brought forward, which is not till chapter thirteenth, a demy-octavo pamphlet of about three dozen pages, reprinted in the Appendix, with such comments as seemed called for, was adopted as a substitute, at present, for the details of several antecedent years; the occurrences of which, from the common abuse of arbitrary power in corporations aggregate, which the Commission of Longitude much resembled, had been long verging to that state in which George 3rd, from a humane spirit and the love of science, interfered, to rescue from unqualified oppression the aged Claimant of the second moiety of a the reward of £20,000 for discovering the Longitude at sea. The trial which gave occasion for the strictures, in that pamphlet, was wholly uncalled for by the public, and worse than useless at the time it was ordered; for the machine had given the fullest satisfaction to the seamen, for whose use it was intended; and had the Inventor been allowed the use of it, and to resort to his genius in simplifying the construction, and reducing the price (£400*) at which only it could then be afforded, the Commissioners would not have frustrated the purpose of their institution, as is found to have been the case, by their constantly rejecting the opinion of the only man that fully understood the subject, and to whom the highest gratification that could have been named, after achieving the discovery, would have been to see the Timekeepers brought into general use. The strictures on Dr. Maskelyne's report (as we entitle him for conveniency, though not then D.D.) can leave but one opinion, in a very material view; for whatsoever might be the scientific abilities of that gentleman, or the goodness of the instruments he used, no enquirer unconnected with the party *The Timekeepers could not be made for less on the model of the successful one; Mr. Kendal's contract was for £450 ; this cost may be conceived to have mostly arisen from the extensive use of jewellery, whereby to reduce the friction as much as possible, and, as the Inventor said, "to give them a durability for ages." He was not original in this method, but he found the utility of it, apart from the expense. which he appeared at the head of, would have supposed him a fit person to superintend the examination of a new-made Timekeeper, by John Harrison. He had been unable to reply to those few pages, even with the assistance of his mathematical colleagues, and although goaded to it by some pointed remarks in a periodical of extensive circulation.*— In one passage of his antagonist's sixpenny defence, he was disarmed irrecoverably by being dared to say, whether his own discoveries of the Longitude were not all made after, and not before the crew saw land? In another page, he is declared to be "The subject of this debate is undoubtedly of great importance to mankind, in general, as well as to our own country in particular, and therefore our Author's remarks on what Mr. Maskelyne has observed, in relation to Mr. H's. watch, must undoubtedly merit the public attention. "Indeed it appears to us, that our Remarker has made so notable a defence of himself, and of his ingenious and indefatigable labours, that we cannot but think it will be very incumbent on the Astronomer Royal to clear his own reputation from Mr. Harrison's charges, not only of gross ignorance of mechanics, but of having (in his procedure relative to the celebrated machine in question) been influenced by selfish views. Mr. M. he asserts, is, in a pecuniary way, interested in another method of ascertaining the Longitude, viz. that of the Lunar tables, which has been long in agitation: a scheme on which Mr. H. bestows some observations, in order to show how very far it falls short of the method of obtaining this important end by means of a Timekeeper." Monthly Review for 1.767. + What can be thought of his assurance, when long subsequently he pretended, to the younger Mudge, that "there was deeply interested in the Lunar scheme for finding the Longitude: this it was equally impossible he should dispute; for his sanguine temperament and inordinate anticipation had led to a curious scene in the West Indies, which becomes of impressive consequence towards developing the causes which led to the interference of George 3rd.* no occasion he should answer Mr. Harrison"—-thus masking under the quintessence of affectation the gall and wormwood this challenge constrained him to swallow. This brings to recollection an anecdote connected with the acrimonious sparring between Pope and Cibber.-Mr. Richardson, the painter, and his Son, paying a visit one day to the Genius of Twickenham, found him reading a pamphlet. Unwilling to be any interruption, they sat down, requesting him to continue the perusal to continue his task, they might have said; their attention being soon drawn to remark how his countenance was writhen with anguish as he proceeded; notwithstanding which, he would have smothered these appearances, on looking off the page, by saying with an air of careless indifference "This is one of Mr. Cibber's pamphlets,† it is my amusement to read them." After they had taken leave, the young man observed to his father, that he never could feel any desire to partake of Mr. Pope's amusement. * Prefaced thus, in the transactions of the junior Harrison on the second voyage.-'On William Harrison's landing at 'Barbadoes, he was told that Mr. Maskelyne was a candidate 'for the premium for discovering the Longitude: and therefore 'they [his informants] thought it very odd that he should be 'sent to make the observations to judge another man's scheme by Mr. Maskelyne having declared, in a very public man'ner, that he had found the Longitude himself; and he had : + It was probably that in which Cibber comments on the line And has not Sawney too his Lord and W- |