Second Class
Civilians of 20 years' standing ranking with Colonels. Commissioners of Divisions. Directors of Public Instruction under Governments. Private Secretary to Viceroy. Military Secretary to Viceroy. Archdeacons of Madras and Bombay. Surveyor-General of India. Superintendent, Great Trigonometrical Survey. Sanitary Commissioner with Government of India. Superintendent of the Geological Survey in India. Inspector-General of Forests in India. Inspector-General of Police. }Under Local Governments. Standing Counsel to Government of India. Remembrancers of Legal Affairs, and Legal Advisers to the Government in the North-West Provinces and the Punjaub. Commissioners of Revenue Survey and Settlement. Chief Engineers, 2nd and 3rd Class, and Superintendents of Irrigation.
THIRD CLASS
Civilians of 12 years' standing ranking with Lieutenant-Colonels. Political Agents. Under-Secretaries to Government of India. Inspector-General of Education, Central Provinces, and Directors-General of Education, Oude, British Burmah, Berer and Mysore. Officers, 1st Grade, Education Department. Officers, 1st Grade, Financial Department. Private Secretaries to Governors. Military Secretaries to Governors. First Iudges of Presidency Courts of Small Causes. Chief Magistrates of Presidency Towns. Administrator-General, Calcutta.
Bombay.
Inspectors-General of jails.
Sanitary Commissioners.
Conservators of Forests.
Superintending Engineers,
Office and Telegraphs and
Postmasters-General. Senior Chaplains. Officers, 1st Grade, Geological Survey. Officers, 2nd Grade, Education Department. Officers, 2nd Grade, Financial Department. Superintendents, 1st Grade, Telegraph Department.
Administrators-General, Madras and
Under Local Governments.
1st Class. Deputy Directors of Post
Directors of Traffic and Construction.
FOURTH CLASS
Civilians of 8 years' standing ranking with Majors. Assistant Political A ents. Officers, 2nd Grade, Geological Survey. Officers, 3rd Grade, Education Department. Officers, gard Grade, Financial Department. Superintendents, 2nd Grade, elegraph Department. Government Solicitors. FIFTH CLASS
Civilians of 4 years' standing ranking with Captains. junior Chaplains. Officers, 4th Grade, Education Department. SIXTH CLASS
Civilians of less than 4 years' standing to rank with Subalterns. Note I.-Commissioners of Divisions within their own Divisions, and Residents and Political Agents within the limits of their respective charges, to take precedence immediately before Civilians of the 1st Class.
Note 2.—Collectors and Magistrates of Districts, and Deputy Commissioners of Districts, and the Chief Officer of each Presidency Municipality, to take precedence within their respective charges before the 3rd Class and Lieutenant-Colonels in the Army. Sheriffs to rank within their charges immediately after Lieutenant-Colonels in the Army.
All Officers not mentioned in the above table, whose rank is regulated by comparison with rank in the Army, to have the same rank with reference to Civil Servants as is enjoyed by Military Officers of equal grades.
All other persons who may not be mentioned in this table to take rank according to general usage, which is to be explained and determined by the Governor-General in Council in case any question shall arise.
Nothing in the foregoing rules to disturb the existing practice relating to precedence at Native Courts, or on occasions of intercourse with Natives, and the Governor-General in Council to be empowered to make rules for such occasions in case any dispute shall arise.
All ladies to take place according to the rank herein assigned to their respective husbands, with the exception of wives of Peers, and of ladies having precedence in England, independently of their husbands, and who are not in rank below the daughters of Barons; such ladies to take place according to their several ranks, with reference to such precedence in England, immediately after the wives of Members of Council at the Presidencies in India. Given at Our Court at Windsor, this sixth day of May, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy-one, and in the thirty-fourth year of our Reign. By Her Majesty's Command.
(Signed) ARGYLL.
PRECENTOR (Late Lat. praecentor, from praecinere, to sing before, lead in singing), the title of the principal director of the
singing or musical portions of the Service in a cathedral or
cathedral church. In the English Church in cathedrals of -the
“ Old Foundation ” the preceptor is a member of the cathedral
chapter and officially ranks next to the dean. His musical
duties are usually performed by the “ succentor," one of the
vicars choral. In cathedrals of the “ New Foundation ” the
“ preceptor ” is not a member of the chapter, but is one of the
minor canons.
PRECEPT (Lat. praeceptum, a rule, from praecipere, literally to take beforehand, to give rules, instructions or orders), a command
or rule, especially one with regard to conduct or action, a
moral rule or injunction, a maxim. Apart from this general
use, the word was used, in law, of many orders in writing issuing
from a court or other legal authority; it is now chiefly used of an
order demanding the payment of money under a rate by poor
law or other local authorities (see Rate). The Latin form
praecipe, i.e. enjoin, command, is used of the note of instructions
delivered by a plaintiff or his solicitor to be filed by the officer
of the court, giving the names of the plaintiff and defendant,
the nature of the writ, &c. For the obsolete writ of praecipe
quod reddat see Writ.
PRECEPTOR, a teacher or instructor, the classical meaning of the Latin praeceptor, from praecipere, literally to take in advance, hence to give rules or “ precepts,” advise, teach. As an educational term in English the word is familiar through the
College of Preceptors, a chartered Society chiefly composed of private teachers; it was incorporated in 1849 and was one of the
first professional bodies to institute regular courses of pedagogic
lectures and to award after examination the titles of licentiate
and associate to teachers. It also holds examinations for pupils.
In post-classical Latin praeceptor meant a commander, praecipere,
to order, enjoin, and the term was adopted by the Knights
Templars for the heads of the provincial communities of knights
established on their estates. These communities and the estates
themselves were known as “ preceptories,” and answered to the
“ commanderies ” of the Hospitallers.
PRECESSION OF THE EQUINOXES, in astronomy, the term
assigned to the progressive motion of the equinox, because it takes place in a direction from east towards west, opposite to that in which planets move, and in which longitudes are measured. The equinox being defined as the point of intersection of the equator and ecliptic, its motion arises from the fact that both of these great circles are in continuous though slow motion. The motion of the ecliptic is due to the action of the planets on the earth, which produces a slow progressive change
in the position of the plane of the earth's orbit, and therefore of
the ecliptic. This motion takes place round a diameter of
the celestial sphere as an axis or nodal line, which intersects the
sphere in two points, which are at present in longitudes about
173° and 353°. The direction of the motion around this axis
is such that from the limits 353° through 0° to 173°, which
includes the vernal equinox, the motion is towards the south,
while, in the remainder of the circle, it is towards the north.
At the present time the rate of the motion is 46.7" per century.
In consequence of the smallness of the angle, 7°, which the axis
of motion makes with the line of the equinoxes, its effect on the
precession is quite small, now amounting to only 0.14” per
annum. Owing to its cause this small part of the precession is
called “ planetary.”
The motion of the equator is due to the combined action of the sun and moon on the equatorial protuberance of the earth (see Astronomy). Owing to its cause this largest part of the precession is called “ luni-solar.” Its fundamental law is that the mean celestial pole at each instant (see Nutation) moves at right angles to the circle joining it to the pole of the ecliptic as that instant. Hence if the pole of the ecliptic were fixed, the celestial pole would revolve around it in a circle at a constant distance equal to the obliquity of the ecliptic. Owing, however, to the slow change in the position of the pole of the ecliptic, the motion is only approximately in a circle, and the obliquity
