ations. It is quite
possible, even probable, that the mean result is improved by it. I
have known such instances. The first, which attracted much attention,
was Capt. Kater's attempt to establish a scale of longitude in England
by reciprocal observations of azimuth between Beachy Head and
Dunnose. The result was evidently erroneous. But Colonel Colby, on
examination of the original papers, found that some observations had
been omitted, as suspicious; and that when these were included the
mean agreed well with the scale of observation inferred from other
methods."--In a letter to the Rev. R.C.M. Rouse, acknowledging the
receipt of a geometrical book, there occurs the following paragraph:
"I do not value Euclid's Elements as a super-excellent book of
instruction--though some important points are better presented in it
than in any other book of geometrical instruction that I have
seen. But I value it as a book of strong and distinct reasoning, and
of orderly succession of reasonings. I do not think that there is any
book in the world which presents so distinctly the 'because......
therefore.......' And this is invaluable for the mental
education of youth."--In May he was in correspondence with Professor
Balfour Stewart regarding a projected movement in Terrestrial
Magnetism to be submitted to the British Association. Airy cordially
approved of this movement, and supported it to the best of his
ability, stating that in his opinion what was mainly wanted was the
collation of existing records.--In January and February he was much
pressed by Prof. Pritchard of Oxford to give his opinion as to the
incorrectness of statements made by Dr Kinns in his Lectures on the
Scientific Accuracy of the Bible. Airy refused absolutely to take part
in the controversy, but he could not escape from the correspondence
which the matter involved: and this led up to other points connected
with the early history of the Israelites, a subject in which he took
much interest.

1885

From May 4th to June 3rd he was at Playford.--From July 2nd to 22nd he
was in the Lake District. The journey was by Windermere to Kentmere,
where he made enquiries concerning the Airy family, as it had been
concluded with much probability from investigations made by his
nephew, the Rev. Basil R. Airy, that the family was settled there at a
very early date. Some persons of the name of Airy were still living
there. He then went on by Conis