HARKNESS
HARKNESS
Grammar (1869); Practical Introduction to Latin
Prose Composition (1869); Csesar's Commentaries
on the (uiUic War (1870); Cicero's Select Orations
(1873); Sallust's Catiline (1878); Preparatory
Course in lAitin Prose Authors (^ISIS); Progressive
Exercises in PcaJinff and U'rUinf/ Latin (1883);
First Year in Latin (1883); Easy Method for Be-
ginners in Latin (1890); Complete Latin Grammar
(1898); Sliort Latin ( t ramma r (ISdS); and contri-
butions to the Tninsactions of the American
phil()lu<;iral association and to BibUotheca Sacra.
HARKNESS, Albert Granger, educator, was
horn in I'rovid.'iu-e. KI.. Nov. 19. 1857; son of
Alltt'rt an. I JIaria A. iSniitli) Ilarkness. He was
graduated at Brown in 1879; was a teaclier of
classics in Peddie institute, Hightstown, N.J.,
1880-81: studied in the universities of Germany,
1881-83: was professor of Latin and German in
Mailison university, Hamilton, N.Y., 1883-89;
associate professor of Latin at Brown university,
1889-93; and was tlien appointed to the cl;air of
Roman literature and liistorv at Brown. He
■was given leave of ai>sence and spent the yeai's
lS!).J-!».j in Europe for study and travel.
HARKNESS, William, astronomer, was born in Ecclefechan, Scotland, Dec. 17, 1837; son of the Rev. James and Jane (Weild) Harkness; and grandson of "William and Cecilia (Riddell) Harkness and of David and Margaret (Gass) "Weild. His father was a physician, a graduate of the University of Edinburgh, a Presbyterian clergyman in Scot- land, 1832-39, and pa.stor of churches in New York city. Fish- kill Landing and Rochester, N.Y.. 1839- 59, and in Jersey City, N.J., 1862-78.' The son studied at Lafay- ette college. 1854-55, and was graduated from the University of Roclie.ster in 1858. He was graduated in medicine in 1862 and was appointed aide at the U.S. naval observatory, "Washington, D.C.. in August, 1862. He served as a volim teer surgeon in the second battle of Bull Run, and in the repulse of Early in his attack on the national capital in July, 1864. lie again served with the army. He was professor of mathe- matics in the U.S. navy with the relative rank of lieutenant-commander from August. 1863. and continued at the naval observatory In 1865-66, he made a cruise on the U.S. monitor Monndvurk to .study the action of Iter compasses. an<l to observe terrestrial magnetism, visitni- duriii/
the cruise the principal ports of South America,
and his results were published by the Smitliso-
nian institution in 1873. He observed the total
eclipse of the sun, Aug. 7, 1869, at Des Moines,
Iowa, and there discovered the 1474 line of the
solar corona. He also observed the total solar
W~ ^hx^A</v.jt^ ■
eclipse of December, 1870, in Sicily, and that of
August, 1878, in Cre.ston, "Wyoming. In 1874 he
visited Hobart Town, Tasmania, to observe the
transit of Venus, and afterward completed the
tour of the world, returning to the United States
in 1875. He was promoted to the relative rank
of commander in 1872 and captain, April, 1817,
1878. He was appointed a member of the U.S.
transit of "Venus commission in 1871, and finally
became its executive officer, fitting out all the
expeditions of 1882 to various parts of the world.
He designed most of the instruments used by the
transit of Venus expeditions, including the com-
parator for measuring the astronomical photo-
graphs obtained, a dui)licate of which was
subsequently made for the Lick observatory.
After the transit of December, 1874, the problem
of devising an accurate method of measuring the
photographs obtained by the various United
States parties was assigned to him, and he solved
it in a perfectly satisfactory manner, although
the difficulties involved were so great that the
most eminent astronomers of England and Ger-
many failed to obtain anj- useful results from the
photographs taken by their parties. All the
observations of the transit of December, 1882,
made under the direction of the United States
commission, were entrusted to Professor Hark-
ness for reduction, and with the aid of a small
corps of assistants lie comjileted that work in a
little more than six years. From 1891 until
December, 1894, lie was occupied in the new
Naval observatory, designing and mounting its
instruments and apparatu.s, and in establishing
a suitable .system of routine observing. On
Oct. 21, 1892, lie was apjiointed chief astronom-
ical assistant to the superintendent of the Naval
oliservator}', and on Sept. 21. 1894. he was
- i|ipoiiited astronomical director of the U.S.
\':iv;il oli-crv;irorv. In addition to the astro-
