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Ianuary. 18. 1664/5 RH. shewd the expt. of Burning coles stifled in a glasse though agitated. The air
and the vse of Bellows fo__eg ascribed to mr Boyle. RH affirmd against Ld Brounker & Sr. R moray that as Rarifyd air would sooner
be satiated soe condensd would last Longer. he chalengd any objection or expt against this hypothesis.
Ian: 23. RH. Od. to bring in his obseruations of the Ecclipse Ian: 21. & to giue an account of Streets appendix to Astronomia carolina
coles in the bellows tryd wth successe and a lamp in compressd air burnt 15'. in common air only 3. ord. to fill a vessell wth smoke
Dr. Ent Sd. to inclose an animall & coles. Dr. wallis his Letter of this comet & of Horrox his Scheme & hypothesis.
Feb: 1 1664/5. Lamp in condensd air tryd againe. Feb: 8. Charcole in a Close Rr. tryd . a bird & coles . an iron Let down vpon
coles burnt them not till fresh air was admitted. RH orderd to view petrifyd snow in a microscope
Feb: 15 RH tryd Expt. of cole dust & niter in a close Rr. wch. burnt wthout fresh air. RH affirmd that filing of iron mixt wth iron
would kindle it. RH tryd expt. of Gunpowder burning wthout air. seald weather glasse to be tryd in the compressing Engine
Od. that RH expt. of air forcd into small holes be tryd. Feb: 22. Seald Therm: included in condensing Engine sufferd noe
olteration the expt. of small pipes & air tryd. RH. said to haue deliuerd him ^ /the picture of/ a plant cald nissy. Old. producd an
account of Campanys glasses for Reading at a Distance & R H Ord. to find a fit place to try ours. -
RH. produced his small quadrant ^ /of 17 inches/ to make obseruations celestiall & terrestriall more exact. it had a Roller on the Limb had euery minute
actually Diuided in 6 parts. the sights perspectiues. and the perpendicular by an index made very accurate as if 60 foot
march. 1 Sulphur vpon Red hot niter burnt in the Exhausted Rr. Zulichems Letter of Feb: 27. 65. of Printed Dutch instructions
for the vse of his watches at sea. 2 of sympathy of watches suspended together 3 of his agreemt wth Dr. wren about the place
of the comet. 4 of Desons Chariot & of his own. RH to extract out of his Lecture of the comet wt he thought fit to print
wth necessary schemes. Reeues glasses tryd campanys way. -
march. 8. Zulichems Letter desires an account of maj. Holms his tryall of his watches & rectifys his former mistake
about the sympathy of two watches by the motion of 2 chairs. occasion was here taken by some of the company (RH)
to sample the exactness of the motion of these watches at sea being that soe slight and almost imperceptible
motion, was able to cause an alteration in their going. vpon mentioning majr. Holmes his Relation it was affirmd
by seuerall of the company that there was an error in that Relation as to the Island named therein and that it was not
the Island of Fuego wch. they had made to water at but another 30 Leagues distant from it. mr Pepys
to enquire further of major Holmes. RH. Sd. That for the conuenience of Turning the springs of the
french chariot might be Doubled and soe made shorter wherby the rider would have ease &
the chariot turne in any street. march. 15. Expt. of & oyster shell for generating air
tryd. Dr. wren explicated by this the motion of the muscles by explosion mr. Pepys gaue an account of
what information he had Receiud from the master of the Iersey ship (who had been in major holmes his company in the Guinny
voyage) concerning the pendulum watches. vizt. that the said master affirmd that the vulgar Recconning proued
as neer as that of the watches; which (he added) had varyed from one another vnequally sometimes backward
sometimes forward to 46735 minutes as also that they has been corrected by the vsuall account
And as to the Island he had waterd at (he affirmd) that the said master had declared that they had not
waterd at Fuego but at another 30 miles distant from the same east westward. Sr. R moray repor
ted herevpon the substance of major. Holmes his Relation Rectifying some mistake in the number of the Leagues
formerly mentiond to haue been 4 or 500 in the steering the course from the west to the NE. and affirming that it
was but about 200 Leagues but the course from the coast of Guinny westwards had been 800 Leagues. He added that
though they had not waterd at Fuego, yet they had made that Island at the time the maj. had predicted and were
gone from thence to another more conuenient for watering. He mentiond also that mjr. holmes had Repeated
his promise to him of giuing the whole history in writing. that in the Interim he had Related 2 expts more made in the
same voyage 1st. hauing sayled 50 or 60 Leagues from the coast of Africa westward and being
come back again to the same place he found the watches agree wth the sun Iust as they
did when he parted thence. 2d that hauing quitted the equinoctiall Line to seeke the coast of Africa
7 or 8 Degrees and the wind becoming scanty and continuing soe for seuerall Days whereby they were
driuen asterne some 80 Leagues eatwards wch. the pilots of the other ships perceiued not, he disco
uerd it by the watches which did shew that these watches were capable to Discouer the currents
in the ocean as well as the Longitudes a thing that was neuer yet done & thought impossible
to be done. RH affirmd ^ /in/ his opinion noe certainty could be had from these watches for the
Longitude first because they neuer hung perpendicular and consequently the cheeks were
fals. 2ly. all kinds of motion vpwards & downwards (though you should grant that
the watches did hang in an exact perpendicular posture) would alter the vibrations
of them 3 any Laterall motion would produce yet a greater laterall motion alteratio
The President mentiond that these difficultys had been considerd & the matter put to expt. wch was to cleer all
in the mean time it was orderd that the watches being brought ashore some expt. should be made wth them
by contriuing vp & down motions & Laterall ones to see wt alterations they would cause in them. RH
Declared that he did intend to put his secret concerning the Longitude into the hands of the President
to Dispose of as he should think fit. RH orderd to draw vp a series of Expts. for Improuing Artilery

Ref: CELL/RS/HF_043  © Centre for Editing Lives and Letters