Nor  will  it  be  forgotten  that  on  another  occasion  the  famous
voyage  of  Captain  Cook  to  Otaheite  in  1769  was  undertaken
with  the  object  of  determining  a  suitable  site  for  observa-
tions. The  Transit  of  Venus  in  1874  was  visible  from  India
and  from  many  other  places;  but  it  was  not  visible  from
Great  Britain.  The  sun  was  at  the  other  side  of  the  world
during  the  critical  moment  when  the  planet  passed  in  front
of  it.  Nowadays — perhaps  because  the  next  transits  can  only
be  observed  by  our  great-grandchildren — we  do  not  take  much
interest  in  the  subject.  Indeed,  I  ought  to  say  that  the  Transit
of  Venus,  so  far  as  it  throws  light  on  the  distance  of  the  earth
from  the  sun,  is  no  longer  of  much  importance,  as  other
methods  of  solving  the  same  problem  are  now  available;  and
though  not  of  such  great  historical  interest,  they  are  believed
to  be  more  accurate.     In  1874,  however,  the  transit  attracted

191


Reminiscences  of  Sir  Robert  Ball

the  attention  of  all  who  took  an  interest  in  scientific  matters.
