men well adapted for our
service, on such terms as he could procure them, though the Secretary of
State's permission had not yet reached me.

Next to a supply of boatmen, our attention was directed towards the
procuring of a house conveniently situated for trying the instruments,
and examining the rates of the chronometers. Mr. Geddes kindly offered
one of his, which, though in an unfinished state, was readily accepted,
being well situated for our purpose, as it was placed on an eminence,
had a southern aspect, and was at a sufficient distance from the town to
secure us from frequent interruption. Another advantage was its
proximity to the Manse, the residence of the Rev. Mr. Clouston, the
worthy and highly respected minister of Stromness; whose kind
hospitality and the polite attention of his family, the party
experienced almost daily during their stay.

For three days the weather was unsettled, and few observations could be
made, except for the dip of the needle, which was ascertained to be 74 deg.
37' 48", on which occasion a difference of eight degrees and a half was
perceived between the observations, when the face of the instrument was
changed from the east to the west, the amount being the greatest when it
was placed with the face to the west. But, on the 8th, a westerly wind
caused a cloudless sky, which enabled us to place the transit instrument
in the meridian, and to ascertain the variation of the compass, to be
27 deg. 50' west. The sky becoming cloudy in the afternoon, prevented our
obtaining the corresponding observations to those gained in the morning;
and the next day an impervious fog obscured the sky until noon. On the
evening of this day, we had the gratification of welcoming our absent
companion, Mr. Back. His return to our society was hailed with sincere
pleasure by every one, and removed a weight of anxiety from my mind. It
appears that he had come down to the beach at Caistor, just as the ships
were passing by, and had applied to some boatmen to convey him on board,
which might have been soon accomplished, but they, discovering the
emergency of his case, demanded an exorbitant reward which he was not at
the instant prepared to satisfy; and, in consequence, they positively
refused to assist him. Though he had travelled nine successive days,
almost without rest, he could not be prevailed upon to withdraw from the
agreeable scene of a ball-room, in which he joined us, until a late
hour.

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