Sessional_Paper_1887-1888 — Page 165

HONGKONG.

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR OF THE OBSERVATORY FOR 1887.

Presented to the Legislative Council, by Command of

His Excellency the Governor.

165-

No.

9

88.

HONGKONG OBSERVATORY, 28th January, 1888.

SIR-For the information of His Excellency the Governor I have the honour to forward my Annual Report for 1887.

2. The distribution of the work among the different officials connected with the Observatory has been the same as explained in last year's report. The amount of information collected here concerning typhoons during the past year has been much greater than during previous years, and this work has pressed heavily on the clerks, who are, however, at the same time learning to do their work more quickly.

3. The Eastern Extension and the Great Northern Telegraph Companies, who so courteously transmit the extensive system of meteorological messages free of charge through their cables, rendered the greatest assistance during the stormy weather in September last by giving me information about the changes in the weather setting in at those stations, which were nearest the centres of the typhoons. The China Coast Meteorological Register, in which the daily information about the weather is published, being printed in several local newspapers the Government has not hitherto found it necessary to print a daily weather-report, so that the expenses, which are elsewhere by far the heaviest item in the cost of meteorological offices, are at the present time altogether saved in this Colony,

4. The salaries of several members of the staff being considered small in proportion to the practical importance of their duties, His Excellency has been pleased to allow me to submit applications for increases of salary when the estimates for next year are under consideration.

5. One year's trace made by the self-recording tide-gauge is now ready and no funds for hourly readings being available, I have had the honour to suggest that the monthly magnetic observations might be discontinued for some years, in order to allow the tabulation of tides to be proceeded with in the meantime, this subject, although not hitherto included in the work of the Observatory, being of very great importance.

6.

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7. Lunar distances are now less often than formerly observed on board ship to determine the longitude. There is no doubt that the too accurate and in consequence too complicated methods of reduction generally followed have been partly the cause of this. Occultations of stars claim still more complicated calculations to determine the longitude and are scarcely more accurate, being moreover phenomena of comparatively rare occurrence. The eclipses of Jupiter's Satellites promise to furnish a means of obtaining the longitude on board ship with more ease and accuracy than can be obtained from Lunars. It has therefore been my wish to pay attention to those observations as of importance to the shipping, and I expect to be able to do so in the course of the year.

8. As stated in the "Instructions for making Meteorological Observations, &c.," meteorological instruments forwarded by observers, who regularly send their registers to the Observatory, are verified here free of cost. During the past two years the following number of instruments has been verified

and certificates issued:-

Barometers: 8; Thermometers: 12; Anemometer: 1.

The index-errors of barometers read off on board ship in typhoons are generally determined by aid of readings made near to or in this port, which are compared with the hourly readings in the Observatory.

9. The number of transits observed during the past year was 313, and the inclination of the axis was determined 132 times. All the chronometers were cleaned and oiled and their rates satisfactorily ad- justed in the course of the year by a local firm of jewellers. The sidereal standard clock was stopped on the 7th October, 1887, and its rate corrected. The mean daily rates during ten-day periods are exhibited in the following table, where means gaining, and + losing rate :-

L

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