Mr. Benjamin Mecom having received half a dozen circulatory letters from you relating to Mercury’s transit over the sun the 6 of last May, he put them into my hands. One would have sufficed for our island, as we are not overburthen’d with men, who have a taste that way. Hereunder I send you the result of my observation thereof.
Sunday, May 6, at 6h 7’ 51'’, I observed the western limb of Mercury to touch the western limb of the sun; and, at 6h 10’ 37'’, he touch’d the same with his eastern limb, and totally disappear’d. Lat. of the place 17° 0’ N. Lon. by estimation 61° 45’ W. from London.
This was taken by a Graham’s watch, and corrected by two altitudes taken by a most exquisite quadrant; viz.
At 6h 58’ 7'’, I observed the distance of the sun’s upper limb from the zenith = 72° 21’ 30'’. And at 9h 31’ 5'’, I observed the same = 36° 17’ 0'’.
By the common process (which you may have, if necessary) I found the watch was 0° 4’ 4'’ 28''’ too fast; therefore,