They fixed themselves therefore at Playford
in the farm-house of the Luck's Farm, then in the occupation of my
uncle Arthur Biddell. On Oct. 21st I have a letter from my sister
saying that they were comfortably settled there.
"In this month of October (principally, I believe) I made some capital
Experiments on Quartz, which were treated mathematically in a Paper
communicated in the next year to the Cambridge Philosophical
Society. In some of these my wife assisted me, and also drew
pictures.--On Nov. 15th the Grace for paying me _L198. 13s. 8d._ to
make my income up to _L500_ passed the Senate.--I made three journeys
to London to attend committees, one a committee on the Nautical
Almanac, and one a Royal Society Committee about two southern
observatories.--On Dec. 31st I have a letter from Maclear (medical
practitioner and astronomer at Biggleswade) about occultations.--In
this December I had a quartz object-glass by Cauchaix mounted by
Dollond, and presented it to the Observatory.--In this December
occurred the alarm from agrarian fires. There was a very large fire at
Coton, about a mile from the Observatory. This created the most
extraordinary panic that I ever saw. I do not think it is possible,
without having witnessed it, to conceive the state of men's minds.
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