[ Thomas William Webb, astronomer. ] Long Autograph Letter Signed ('T. W. Webb.') to Rev. Dr Thomas Dick, on William West's Clifton Observatory, the rings of saturn, and other scientific matters.

For more information on Webb see his entry in the Oxford DNB. 3pp., 4to. On bifolium. In good condition, with light signs of age. Around ninety lines of closely and neatly written text. Addressed (with postmark and red wax seal of smith at forge) on reverse of second leaf to 'Thomas Dick, Esq. L.L.D., | Broughty Ferry | near Dundee, | Scotland.' A highly interesting and informative letter. Topics include: a work by Dick, 'which was safely delivered to me, together with my own MSS at Messrs Ward's'; his 'incipient cataracts', and Dick's assistance in finding works on the subject; 'Sir D Brewster's address'; 'Capt. Kater's drawings of the supposed subdivisions of Saturn's Ring'; a 'large telescope [...] somewhere on the Surrey side of London' ('Mr Bridges, I have no doubt, had I been so fortunate as to find him at home, could have given me some information about it.'); his 'grinding and polishing [of] specula'; Dick's 'promised volume upon telescopes'. Among the references are 'Mr Bridges', 'De Cuppis at Rome', 'the elder Herschel'. Regarding William West's Clifton Observatory he writes: 'Nor had I time, though I passed through Bristol, to see an Observatory near that City, erected by an ingenious young man of the name of West, who some years ago applied himself ardently to telescope-making - having, I believe, no previous instruction, and succeeded in completing a 20ft Newtonian reflector; how far good as to figure - I cannot say - the observatory is a kind of shew-room to the idlers of Bristol and Clifton, but I presume the instruments are not often examined by persons who know how really to test them.' He follows this with information regarding his own observations: 'The night being fine, I have within the last 5 minutes, overcome a fit of indolence and gone out to see if I could find the Comet, previously to despatching this letter, but I found that parts of the heavens had sunk so low amongst the trees, which on several sides encompass this house, and render it very inconvenient for astronomical purposes, that it was to no purpose to get out the Achromatic.' Elsewhere he writes: 'Most heartily do I concur with your remarks upon the absurd figures attached to the other constellations and I am gratified to find that the attention of astronomers is being directed to this nuisance. A literary friend of mine (if I recollect aright) pointed out to me, many years ago, the oddity of attaching long tails to the figures of Bears, and mentioned it as a strange circumstance that in either the Indian or the Egyptian Zodiac - I believe the former - where the Bears are introduced, they have indeed long tails, but they are represented as somehow artificially attached, and not belonging to the animal.' He hopes that Dick's 'Observatory has answered your expectations, the present blessed change of weather, though somewhat severe, will afford you opportunities of trying it.' He quotes statistics from an 'Ephemeris of the 2nd Telescopic Comet' by 'Messrs Lawson'. He has not had time to peruse Dick's 'arguments for a plurality of worlds', but has 'no doubt that the strictures upon Fontenelle, in your letter, are perfectly just'. He finds the book 'a very flippant affair, and far from likely to do good'.