Maria Mitchell: Life, Letters, and Journals - Maria Mitchell
"2. The discoverer, if a resident of any part of Europe except Great
Britain, is to make known his discovery to Mr. Schumacher at Altona. If
a resident in Great Britain, or any other quarter of the globe except
the continent of Europe, he is to make his discovery known directly to
Mr. Francis Baily, London. [Since Mr. Baily's decease, G.B. Airy, Esq.,
Astronomer Royal, has been substituted in this and in the 7th and 8th
articles of the regulations.]
"3. This communication must be made by the _first post_ after the
discovery. If there is no regular mail at the place of discovery, the
first opportunity of any other kind must be made use of, without waiting
for other observations. Exact compliance with this condition is
indispensable. If this condition is not complied with, and only one
person discovers the comet, no medal will be given for the discovery.
Otherwise, the medal will be assigned to the discoverer who earliest
complies with the condition.
"4. The communication must not only state as exactly as possible the
time of the discovery, in order to settle the question between rival
claims, but also as near as may be the place of the comet, and the
direction in which it is moving, as far as these points can be
determined from the observations of one night.
"5. If the observations of one night are not sufficient to settle these
points, the enunciation of the discovery must still be made, in
compliance with the third article. As soon as a second observation is
made, it must be communicated in like manner with the first, and with it
the longitude of the place where the discovery is made, unless it take
place at some known observatory. The expectation of obtaining a second
observation will never be received as a satisfactory reason for
postponing the communication of the first.
"6. The medal will be assigned twelve months after the discovery of the
comet, and no claim will be admitted after that period.
"7. Messrs. Baily and Schumacher are to decide if a discovery has been
made. If they differ, Mr. Gauss, of Goettingen, is to decide.
"8. Messrs. Baily and Schumacher have agreed to communicate mutually to
each other every announcement of a discovery.
"Altona, April, 1840."
On the 1st of October, 1847, at half-past ten o'clock, P.M., a
telescopic comet was discovered by Miss Maria Mitchell, of Nantucket,
nearly vertical above Polaris about five degrees. The further progress
and history of the discovery will sufficiently appear from the following
correspondence. On the 3d of October the same comet was seen at
half-past seven, P.M., at Rome, by Father de Vico, and information of
the fact was immediately communicated by him to Professor Schumacher at
Altona. On the 7th of October, at twenty minutes past nine, P.M., it was
observed by Mr. W.R. Dawes, at Camden Lodge, Cranbrook, Kent, in
England, and on the 11th it was seen by Madame Ruemker, the wife of the
director of the observatory at Hamburg. Mr. Schumacher, in announcing
this last discovery, observes: [Footnote: "Astronomische Nachrichten,"
No. 616.] "Madame Ruemker has for several years been on the lookout for
comets, and her persevering industry seemed at last about to be
rewarded, when a letter was received from Father de Vico, addressed to
the editor of this journal, from which it appeared that the same comet
had been observed by him on the 3d instant at Rome."
Not deeming it probable that his daughter had anticipated the observers
of this country and Europe in the discovery of this comet, no steps were
taken by Mr. Mitchell with a view to obtaining the king of Denmark's
medal. Prompt information, however, of the discovery was transmitted by
Mr. Mitchell to his friend, William C. Bond, Esq., director of the
observatory at Cambridge. The observations of the Messrs. Bond upon the
comet commenced on the 7th of October; and on the 30th were transmitted
by me to Mr. Schumacher, for publication in the "Astronomische
Nachrichten." It was stated in the memorandum of the Messrs. Bond that
the comet was seen by Miss Mitchell on the 1st instant. This notice
appeared in the "Nachrichten" of Dec. 9, 1847, and the priority of Miss
Mitchell's discovery was immediately admitted throughout Europe.
My attention had been drawn to the subject of the king of Denmark's
comet medal by some allusion to it in my correspondence with Professor
Schumacher, in reference to the discovery of telescopic comets by Mr.
George P. Bond, of the observatory at Cambridge. Having learned some
weeks after Miss Mitchell's discovery that no communication had been
made on her behalf to the trustees of the medal, and aware that the
regulations in this respect were enforced with strictness, I was
apprehensive that it might be too late to supply the omission. Still,
however, as the spirit of the regulations had been complied with by Mr.
Mitchell's letter to Mr. Bond of the 3d of October, it seemed worth
while at least to make the attempt to procure the medal for his
daughter. Although the attempt might be unsuccessful, it would at any
rate cause the priority of her discovery to be more authentically
established than it might otherwise have been.
I accordingly wrote to Mr. Mitchell for information on the subject, and
applied for, and obtained from Mr. Bond, Mr. Mitchell's original letter
to him of the 3d of October, with the Nantucket postmark. These papers
were transmitted to Professor Schumacher, with a letter dated 15th and
24th January.
On the 8th of February I wrote a letter to my much esteemed friend,
Captain W.H. Smyth, R.N., formerly president of the Astronomical Society
at London, requesting him to interest himself with Professor Schumacher
to obtain the medal for Miss Mitchell. Captain Smyth entered with great
readiness into the matter, and addressed a note on the subject to Mr.
Airy, the Astronomer Royal, at Greenwich. Mr. Airy kindly wrote to
Professor Schumacher without loss of time; but it was their united
opinion that a compliance with the condition relative to immediate
notice of a discovery was indispensable, and that it was consequently
out of their power to award the medal to Miss Mitchell. Mr. Schumacher
suggested, as the only means by which this difficulty could be overcome,
an application to the Danish government, through the American legation
at Copenhagen.
Conceiving that the correspondence could be carried on more promptly
through the Danish legation at Washington, I addressed a letter on the
20th of April to Mr. Steene-Bille, Charge d'Affaires of the king of
Denmark in this country, and sent with it copies of the documents which
had been forwarded to Professor Schumacher. Mr. Steene-Bille, however,
was of opinion that the application, if made at all, should be made
through the American legation at Copenhagen; but he expressed at the
same time a confident opinion that, owing to the condition and political
relations of Denmark, the application would necessarily prove
unavailing.
It was at this time that the difficulties in Schleswig-Holstein were at
their height, and it seemed hopeless at such a moment, and in face of
the opinion of the official representative of the Danish government in
this country, to engage its attention to an affair of this kind. No
further attempt was accordingly made by me, for some weeks, to pursue
the matter. In fact, a report reached the United States that the medal
had actually been awarded to Father de Vico. Although this was believed
by me to be an unfounded rumor, the regulations allowing one year for
the presentation of claims, there was reason to apprehend that it
proceeded from some quarter well informed as to what would probably take
place at the expiration of the twelvemonth.
On the 5th of August, Father de Vico, who had left Rome in the spring in
consequence of the troubles there, made a visit to Cambridge, in company
with the Right Rev. Bishop Fitzpatrick, of Boston, and on this occasion
informed me that he had received an intimation from Professor Schumacher
that the comet-medal would be awarded to Miss Mitchell. I was disposed
to think that Father de Vico labored under some misapprehension as to
the purport of Professor Schumacher's communications, as afterwards
appeared to be the case. I felt encouraged, however, by his statement
not only to renew my correspondence on the subject with Professor
Schumacher, but I determined, on the 8th of August, to address a letter
to R.P. Fleniken, Esq., Charge d'Affaires of the United States at
Copenhagen. This letter was accompanied with copies of the original
papers.
Mr. Fleniken entered with great zeal and interest into the subject. He
lost no time in bringing it before the Danish government by means of a
letter to the Count de Knuth, the Minister at that time for Foreign
Affairs, and of another to the king of Denmark himself. His Majesty,
with the most obliging promptness, ordered a reference of the case to
Professor Schumacher, with directions to report thereon without delay.
Mr. Schumacher had been for a long time in possession of the documents
establishing Miss Mitchell's priority, which was, indeed, admitted
throughout scientific Europe. Professor Schumacher immediately made his
report in favor of granting the medal to Miss Mitchell, and this report
was accepted by the king. The result was forthwith communicated by the
Count de Knuth to Mr. Fleniken, with the gratifying intelligence that
the king had ordered the medal to be awarded to Miss Mitchell, and that
it would be delivered to him for transmission as soon as it could be
struck off. This has since been done.
It must be regarded as a striking proof of an enlightened interest for
the promotion of science, not less than of a kind regard for the rights
and feelings of the individual most concerned in this decision, that the
king of Denmark should have bestowed his attention upon this subject, at
a period of so much difficulty and alarm for Europe in general and his
own kingdom in particular. It would not have been possible to act more
promptly in a season of the profoundest tranquillity. His Majesty has on
this occasion shown that he is animated by the same generous zeal for
the encouragement of astronomical research which led his predecessor to
found the medal; while he has performed an act of gracious courtesy
toward a stranger in a distant land which must ever be warmly
appreciated by her friends and countrymen.
Nor ought the obliging agency of the Count de Knuth, the Minister of
Foreign Affairs, to be passed without notice. The slightest indifference
on his part, even the usual delays of office, would have prevented the
application from reaching the king before the expiration of the
twelvemonth within which all claims must, by the regulations, be
presented. No one can reflect upon the pressure of business which must
have existed in the foreign office at Copenhagen during the past year,
without feeling that the Count de Knuth must largely share his
sovereign's zeal for science, as well as his love of justice. Nothing
else will account for the attention bestowed at such a political crisis
on an affair of this kind. The same attention appears to have been given
to the subject by his successor, Count Moltka.
It was quite fortunate for the success of the application that the
office of charge d'affaires of the United States at Copenhagen happened
to be filled by a gentleman disposed to give it his prompt and
persevering support. A matter of this kind, of course, lay without the
province of his official duties. But no subject officially committed to
him by the instructions of his government could have been more zealously
pursued. On the very day on which my communication of the 8th of August
reached him, Mr. Fleniken addressed his letters to the minister of
foreign affairs and to the king, and he continued to give his attention
to the subject till the object was happily effected, and the medal
placed in his hands.
The event itself, however insignificant in the great world of politics
and business, is one of pleasing interest to the friends of American
science, and it has been thought proper that the following record of it
should be preserved in a permanent form. I have regretted the frequent
recurrence of my own name in the correspondence, and have suppressed
several letters of my own which could be spared, without rendering less
intelligible the communications of the other parties, to whom the
interest and merit of the transaction belong.
EDWARD EVERETT.
CAMBRIDGE, 1st February, 1849.
CORRESPONDENCE
HON. WILLIAM MITCHELL TO WILLIAM C. BOND, ESQ., CAMBRIDGE.
"Nantucket, 10 mo. 3d, 1847.
"MY DEAR FRIEND: I write now merely to say that Maria discovered a
telescopic comet at half-past ten on the evening of the first instant,
at that hour nearly vertical above Polaris five degrees. Last evening it
had advanced westwardly; this evening still further, and nearing the
pole. It does not bear illumination, but Maria has obtained its right
ascension and declination, and will not suffer me to announce it. Pray
tell me whether it is one of George's; if not, whether it has been seen
by anybody. Maria supposes it may be an old story. If quite convenient,
just drop a line to her; it will oblige me much. I expect to leave home
in a day or two, and shall be in Boston next week, and I would like to
have her hear from you before I can meet you. I hope it will not give
thee much trouble amidst thy close engagements.
"Our regards are to all of you, most truly,
"WILLIAM MITCHELL."
* * * * *
HON. EDWARD EVERETT TO HON. WILLIAM MITCHELL.
"Cambridge, 10th January, 1848.
"DEAR SIR: I take the liberty to inquire of you whether any steps have
been taken by you, on behalf of your daughter, by way of claiming the
medal of the king of Denmark for the first discovery of a telescopic
comet. The regulations require that information of the discovery should
be transmitted by the next mail to Mr. Airy, the Astronomer Royal, if
the discovery is made elsewhere than on the continent of Europe. If made
in the United States, I understand from Mr. Schumacher that information
may be sent to the Danish minister at Washington, who will forward it to
Mr. Airy,--but it must be sent by next mail.
"In consequence of non-compliance with these regulations, Mr. George
Bond has on one occasion lost the medal. I trust this may not be the
case with Miss Mitchell.
"I am, dear sir, with much respect, faithfully yours,
"EDWARD EVERETT."
* * * * *
EXTRACT FROM A LETTER OF THE HON. WILLIAM MITCHELL TO HON. EDWARD
EVERETT.
"Nantucket, 1st mo. 15th, 1848.
"ESTEEMED FRIEND: Thy kind letter of the 10th instant reached me duly.
No steps were taken by my daughter in claim of the medal of the Danish
king. On the night of the discovery, I was fully satisfied that it was a
comet from its location, though its real motion at this time was so
nearly opposite to that of the earth (the two bodies approaching each
other) that its apparent motion was scarcely appreciable. I urged very
strongly that it should be published immediately, but she resisted it as
strongly, though she could but acknowledge her conviction that it was a
comet. She remarked to me, 'If it is a new comet, our friends, the
Bonds, have seen it. It may be an old one, so far as relates to the
discovery, and one which we have not followed.' She consented, however,
that I should write to William C. Bond, which I did by the first mail
that left the island after the discovery. This letter did not reach my
friend till the 6th or 7th, having been somewhat delayed here and also
in the post-office at Cambridge.
"Referring to my journal I find these words: 'Maria will not consent to
have me announce it as an original discovery.'
"The stipulations of His Majesty have, therefore, not been complied
with, and the peculiar circumstances of the case, her sex, and isolated
position, may not be sufficient to justify a suspension of the rules.
Nevertheless, it would gratify me that the generous monarch should know
that there is a love of science even in this to him remote corner of the
earth. "I am thine, my dear friend, most truly,
"WILLIAM MITCHELL."
* * * * *
HON. EDWARD EVERETT TO PROFESSOR SCHUMACHER, AT ALTONA.
"Cambridge, 15th January, 1848.
"DEAR SIR: Your letter of the 27th October, accompanying the
'Planeten-Circulaer,' reached me but a few days since. If you would be so
good as to forward to the care of John Miller, Esq., 26 Henrietta
street, Covent Garden, London, any letter you may do me the favor to
write to me, it would reach me promptly.
"The regulations relative to the king of Denmark's medal have not
hitherto been understood in this country. I shall take care to give
publicity to them. Not only has Mr. Bond lost the medal to which you
think he would have been entitled, [Footnote: Mr. Schumacher had
remarked to me, in his letter of the 27th of October, that Mr. George P.
Bond would have received the medal for the comet first seen by him as a
nebulous object on the 18th of February, 1846, if his observation made
at that time had been communicated, according to the regulations, to the
trustees of the medal.] but I fear the same has happened to Miss
Mitchell, of Nantucket, who discovered the comet of last October on the
first day of that month. I think it was not seen in Europe till the
third.
"I remain, dear sir, with great respect, faithfully yours,
"EDWARD EVERETT."
* * * * *
HON. EDWARD EVERETT TO HON. WILLIAM MITCHELL.
"Cambridge, 18th January, 1848.
"DEAR SIR: I have your esteemed favor of the 15th, which reached me this
day. I am fearful that the rigor deemed necessary in enforcing the
regulations relative to the king of Denmark's prize may prevent your
daughter from receiving it. I learn from Mr. Schumacher's letter, that,
besides Mr. George Bond, Dr. Bremeker lost the medal because he allowed
a single post-day to pass before he announced his discovery. There
could, in his case, be no difficulty in establishing the fact of his
priority, nor any doubt of the good faith with which it was asserted.
But inasmuch as Miss Mitchell's discovery was actually made known to Mr.
Bond by the next mail which left your island, it is possible--barely
possible--that this may be considered as a substantial compliance with
the regulation. At any rate, it is worth trying; and if we can do no
more we can establish the lady's claim to all the credit of the prior
discovery. I shall therefore apply to Mr. Bond for the letter which you
wrote, and if it contains nothing improper to be seen by others we will
forward it to the Danish minister at Washington with a certified extract
from your journal. I will have a certified copy of all these papers
prepared and sent to Mr. Schumacher; and if any departure from the
letter of the regulations is admissible, this would seem to be a case
for it. I trust Miss Mitchell's retiring disposition will not lead her
to oppose the taking of these steps.
"I am, dear sir, with great respect, faithfully yours,
[Signed] "EDWARD EVERETT."
* * * * *
POSTSCRIPT TO MR. EVERETT'S LETTER TO PROFESSOR SCHUMACHER OF THE 15TH
JANUARY, 1848.
"P.S.--The foregoing was written to go by the steamer of the 15th, but
was a few hours too late. I have since received some information in
reference to the comet of October which leads me to hope that you may
feel it in your power to award the medal to Miss Maria Mitchell. Miss
Mitchell saw the comet at half-past ten o'clock on the evening of
October 1st. Her father, a skilful astronomer, made an entry in his
journal to that effect. On the third day of October he wrote a letter to
Mr. Bond, the director of our observatory, announcing the discovery.
This letter was despatched the following day, being the first post-day
after the discovery of the comet. This letter I transmit to you,
together with letters from Mr. Mitchell and Mr. Bond to myself.
Nantucket, as you are probably aware, is a small, secluded island, lying
off the extreme point of the coast of Massachusetts. Mr. Mitchell is a
member of the executive council of Massachusetts and a most respectable
person.
"As the claimant is a young lady of great diffidence, the place a
retired island, remote from all the high-roads of communication; as the
conditions have not been well understood in this country; and especially
as there was a substantial compliance with them--I hope His Majesty may
think Miss Maria Mitchell entitled to the medal.
"Cambridge, 24th January, 1848.
* * * * *
EXTRACT FROM A LETTER FROM MR. EVERETT TO CAPTAIN W.H. SMYTH, R.N., LATE
PRESIDENT OF THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY, LONDON, DATED CAMBRIDGE,
8TH FEBRUARY, 1848.
"I have lately been making interest with Mr. Schumacher to cause the
king of Denmark's medal to be given to Miss Mitchell for the discovery
of the comet to which her name has been given, if I mistake not, in the
journal of your society as well as in the 'Nachrichten.' She
unquestionably discovered it at half-past ten on the evening of the 1st
of October; it was not, I think, seen in Europe till the 3d. Her father,
on the 3d, wrote a letter to Mr. Bond, the director of our observatory,
informing him of this discovery; and this letter was sent by the first
mail that left the little out-of-the-way island (Nantucket) after the
discovery. The _spirit_ of the regulations was therefore complied with.
But as the _letter_ requires that the notice should be given either to
the Danish minister resident in the country or to Mr. Airy, if the
discovery is made elsewhere than on the continent of Europe, it is
possible that some demur may be made. The precise terms of the
regulations have not been sufficiently made known in this country. As
the claim in this case is really a just one, the claimant a lady,
industrious, vigilant, a good astronomer and mathematician, I cannot but
hope she will succeed; and if you have the influence with Schumacher
which you ought to have, I would take it kindly if you would use it in
her favor."
* * * * *
CAPTAIN SMYTH TO MR. EVERETT.
"3 Cheyne Walk, Chelsea, 10th March, 1848.
"MY DEAR SIR: On the receipt of your last letter, I forthwith wrote to
the astronomer royal, urging the claims of Miss Mitchell, of Nantucket,
and he immediately replied, saying that he would lose no time in
consulting his official colleague, Mr. Schumacher, on the subject. I
have just received the accompanying letter from Greenwich, by which you
will perceive how the matter stands at present; I say at present,
because, however the claim may be considered as to the technical form of
application, there is no doubt whatever of her fully meriting the award.
"I am, my dear sir, very faithfully yours,
[Signed] "W.H. SMYTH."
* * * * *
G.B. AIRY, ESQ., TO CAPTAIN SMYTH.
"Royal Observatory, Greenwich, 10th March, 1848.
"MY DEAR SIR: I have received Mr. Schumacher's answer in regard to Miss
Mitchell's supposed claims for the king of Denmark's medal. We agree,
without the smallest hesitation, that we cannot award the medal. We have
in all cases acted strictly in conformity with the published rules; and
I am convinced, and I believe that Mr. Schumacher is convinced, that it
is absolutely necessary that we do not depart from them.
"Mr. Schumacher suggests, as the only way in which Miss Mitchell's claim
in equity could be urged, that application might be made on her part,
through the American legation, to the king of Denmark; and the king can,
if he pleases, make exception to the usual rules.
"I am, my dear sir, yours most truly,
[Signed] "G.B. AIRY."
* * * * *
HON. EDWARD EVERETT TO R.P. FLENIKEN.
"Cambridge, Mass., 8th August, 1848.
"DEAR SIR: Without the honor of your personal acquaintance, I take the
liberty of addressing you on a subject which I am confident will
interest you as a friend of American science. You are doubtless aware
that by the liberality of one of the kings of Denmark, the father, I
believe, of his late Majesty, a foundation was made for a gold medal to
be given to the first discoverer of a telescopic comet. Mr. Schumacher,
of Altona, and Mr. Baily, of London (and since his decease Mr. Airy,
Astronomer Royal at Greenwich), were made the trustees of this
foundation. Among the regulations established for awarding the medal was
this: that the discoverer should, by the first mail which leaves the
place of his residence after the discovery, give notice thereof to Mr.
Schumacher if the discovery is made on the continent of Europe, and to
Mr. Airy if made in any other part of the world; provided that, if the
discovery be made in America, the notice may be given to the Danish
minister at Washington. It has been deemed necessary to adhere with
great strictness to this regulation, in order to prevent fraudulent
claims.