* * * * *
My father was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 1815, and soon after joined the Antiquarian and Wernerian Natural History Societies, taking an active part at their meetings and communicating papers to their proceedings. He was a Fellow of the Geological and Astronomical Societies of London, a Member of the Smeatonian Society, and of the Institution of Civil Engineers.
He was also one of the original promoters of the Astronomical Institution, out of which has grown the present establishment of the Royal Observatory of Edinburgh, and the following account of the early origin of the Institution was drawn up some years before Mr. Stevenson’s death at the request of Professor Piazzi Smyth, the Astronomer-Royal of Scotland:—
“There was a young man named Kerr—an optician—in Edinburgh, who, on commencing business, brought about the formation of a Club, somewhat like a Book Club, for procuring philosophical instruments for the use of its members. These were more particularly optical instruments and theodolites, etc., for surveyors, which were also to have been lent out for hire. I think the subscription was a guinea. The meetings were, perhaps, monthly; they were held in the office of Mr. James Ogilvy, Accountant, Parliament Square.
“I attended two, or perhaps three, meetings in the year. The Club was formed before I was invited to become a member. At the first meeting I found present Mr. James Bonar, treasurer of the Royal Society; Mr. Christison, mathematician; Mr. Brown, bookseller, opposite the college; Mr. Ogilvy, and Mr. Kerr.
“After attending one or two meetings of this very modest Society for the advancement of science, Mr. Bonar and I had some conversation upon its prospects, and the difficulties attending such a scheme of procuring philosophical instruments, and systematising the lending out, and keeping in efficient order theodolites, levels, telescopes, etc.; and we concurred in opinion that the scheme could not succeed. We deemed it advisable rather to endeavour to get Short’s observatory on the Calton Hill occupied as a ‘Popular Observatory.’ We spoke to some of the magistrates on this subject, who, on the part of the town, were quite favourable to the idea. We also applied to Mr. Thomas Allan, then an active member of the Royal Society, and he joined us in a communication to Sir George Mackenzie of Coul, who warmly entered into our views; and ultimately we had an interview with Professor Playfair, who, in his mild and placid manner, agreed to consider the subject, but felt some difficulty on account of his colleague, the Professor of Practical Astronomy. After a time Professor Playfair undertook to draw up a statement for the public, which he did in his usual elegant and concise style. Thus, step by step, we succeeded in obtaining subscribers, and under the countenance and support of Playfair, many were found who patronised the proposal of establishing an observatory on the Calton Hill.
“Our idea was that we might look forward to a Popular Observatory which would not interfere with the existing Professorship of Astronomy, but have an establishment to which, with our families, we might resort in an evening with the advantage of oral and ocular demonstrations in the science of Astronomy, treated after a popular form.
“The present characteristic and beautiful building was then erected, and with the aid of Government, it was furnished with some of the chief instruments; but much to my regret the establishment has been exclusively limited to the purposes of a scientific observatory, without any provision of a popular description for which it was originally intended.
“Unfortunately there was nothing to keep our constitution alive in the minds of the public—nothing to allure additional subscribers to our funds, so as to extend the building, and fit it with a theatre and apparatus for popular purposes—no Lecture was established, and, in short, the original object fell dead in the hands of the Directors. I thus personally lost my object in this establishment, and in all my uphill journeys and manifold meetings, I had chiefly in view the pleasure of interviews with my excellent friend the late Thomas Henderson, the Professor of Astronomy in the University.”
* * * * *