Unwilling however that the public should lose the benefit of the discovery, or the chance of further
still longer exculpation of the disasters on the 23rd, not a word of either will be found on the minutes; this suppression having it seems been resorted to as the preferable course, by the two principals implicated in this disgraceful affair: with whom Professor Long would have shared the reproach had the particulars been then known. Dr. Maskelyne, who, in his writings (as far as the Author knows) took care to preserve a religious silence on this subject; as he has also done on the original quarrel at Barbadoes, which he forgot it furnished a suitable comment on, was never required to repair the serious injury to these machines out of his own pocket, under the inspection of the Inventor, as he should and would have been, had not the spirit of party superseded that of equity, in this
resented by the Commissioners of Longitude, by whom they had been claimed, and in whose trust they were, but from a circumstance stated by the continuators of Dr. Rees, the misconduct in their removal was aggravated in no ordinary degree by the bungling expedient resorted to to conceal it; which also prevented the public from benefiting by these specimens of progressive advances to the great object sought.—'On an application by our Draughtsman to the Astronomer Royal to inspect the interior parts of one of the machines, by the maker in question [Harrison] placed at the Observatory, he was informed that permission to undo any of the covers, or other parts of the mechanism, could not be granted.' This was in direct contravention of what is expressly stated, and repeated on the minutes, when they reserved a claim to them, which was "for the use of the public"—and if this catches the notice of Mr. Croker, under whose special cognizance the proceedings of the Commission of Longitude were latterly, we hope he will take measures to rectify this shameful repulse of scientific enquirers.
