SESSION OF OCTOBER 1, 1884.

The Delegates to the International Meridian Conference, who assembled in Washington upon invitation addressed by the Government of the United States to all nations holding diplomatic relations with it, "for the purpose of fixing upon a meridian proper to be employed as a common zero of longitude and standard of time-reckoning throughout the globe," held their first conference to-day, October 1, 1884, in the Diplomatic Hall of the Department of State.

The following delegates were present:

On behalf of Austria-Hungary—

Baron Ignatz von SchÆffer,

Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary.

On behalf of Brazil—

Dr. Luiz Cruls,

Director of the Imperial Observatory of Rio Janeiro.

On behalf of Colombia—

Commodore S. R. Franklin, U. S. Navy,

Superintendent U. S. Naval Observatory.

On behalf of Costa Rica—

Mr. Juan Francisco Echeverria,

Civil Engineer.

On behalf of France—

Mr. A. Lefaivre,

Minister Plenipotentiary and Consul-General.

Mr. Janssen, of the Institute,

Director of the Physical Observatory of Paris.

On behalf of Germany—

Baron H. Von Alvensleben,

Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary.

On behalf of Great Britain—

Captain Sir F. J. O. Evans,

Royal Navy.

Prof. J. C. Adams,

Director of the Cambridge Observatory.

Lieut.-General Strachey,

Member of the Council of India.

Mr. Sandford Fleming,

Representing the Dominion of Canada.

On behalf of Guatemala—

M. Miles Rock,

President of the Boundary Commission.

On behalf of Hawaii—

Hon. W. D. Alexander,

Surveyor-General.

Hon. Luther Aholo,

Privy Counsellor.

On behalf of Italy—

Count Albert de Foresta,

First Secretary of Legation.

On behalf of Japan—

Professor Kikuchi,

Dean of the Scientific Dep't of the University of Tokio.

On behalf of Mexico—

Mr. Leandro Fernandez,

Civil Engineer.

Mr. Angel Anguiano,

Director of the National Observatory of Mexico.

On behalf of Paraguay—

Captain John Stewart,

Consul-General.

On behalf of Russia—

Mr. C. de Struve,

Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary.

Major-General Stebnitzki,

Imperial Russian Staff.

Mr. J. de Kologrivoff,

Conseiller d'État actuel.

On behalf of San Domingo—

Mr. M. de J. Galvan,

Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary.

On behalf of Salvador—

Mr. Antonio Batres,

Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary.

On behalf of Spain,

Mr. Juan Valera,

Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary.

Mr. Emilio Ruiz del Arbol,

Naval AttachÉ to the Spanish Legation.

Mr. Juan Pastorin,

Officer of the Navy.

On behalf of Sweden—

Count Carl Lewenhaupt,

Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary.

On behalf of Switzerland—

Colonel Emile Frey,

Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary.

On behalf of the United States—

Rear-Admiral C. R. P. Rodgers,

U. S. Navy.

Mr. Lewis M. Rutherfurd.

Mr. W. F. Allen,

Secretary Railway Time Conventions.

Commander W. T. Sampson,

U. S. Navy.

Professor Cleveland Abbe,

U. S. Signal Office.

On behalf of Venezuela—

SeÑor Dr. A. M. Soteldo,

ChargÉ d'Affaires.

The following delegates were not present:

On behalf of Chili—

Mr. Francisco Vidal Gormas,

Director of the Hydrographic Office.

Mr. Alvaro Bianchi Tupper,

Assistant Director.

On behalf of Denmark—

Mr. Carl Steen Andersen de Bille,

Minister Resident and Consul-General.

On behalf of Germany—

Mr. Hinckeldeyn,

AttachÉ of the German Legation.

On behalf of Liberia—

Mr. William Coppinger,

Consul-General.

On behalf of the Netherlands—

Mr. G. de Weckherlin,

Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary.

On behalf of Turkey—

Rustem Effendi,

Secretary of Legation.

The delegates were formally presented to the Secretary of State of the United States, the Honorable Frederick T. Frelinghuysen, in his office at 12 o'clock. Upon assembling in the Diplomatic Hall, he called the Conference to order, and spoke as follows:

Gentlemen: It gives me pleasure, in the name of the President of the United States, to welcome you to this Congress, where most of the nations of the earth are represented. You have met to discuss and consider the important question of a prime meridian for all nations. It will rest with you to give a definite result to the preparatory labors of other scientific associations and special congresses, and thus make those labors available.

Wishing you all success in your important deliberations, and not doubting that you will reach a conclusion satisfactory to the civilized world, I, before leaving you, take the liberty to nominate, for the purpose of a temporary organization, Count Lewenhaupt.

It will afford this Department pleasure to do all in its power to promote the convenience of the Congress and to facilitate its proceedings.

By the unanimous voice of the Conference the Delegate of Sweden, Count Lewenhaupt, took the chair, and said that, for the purpose of proceeding to a permanent organization, it was necessary to elect a President, and that he had the honor to propose for that office the chairman of the delegation of the United States of America, Admiral C. R. P. Rodgers.

The Conference agreed unanimously to the proposition thus made, whereupon Admiral Rodgers took the chair as President of the Conference, and made the following address:

Gentlemen: I beg you to receive my thanks for the high honor you have conferred upon me in calling me, as the chairman of the delegation from the United States, to preside at this Congress. To it have come from widely-separated portions of the globe, delegates renowned in diplomacy and science, seeking to create a new accord among the nations by agreeing upon a meridian proper to be employed as a common zero of longitude and standard of time reckoning throughout the world. Happy shall we be, if, throwing aside national preferences and inclinations, we seek only the common good of mankind, and gain for science and for commerce a prime meridian acceptable to all countries, and secured with the least possible inconvenience.

Having this object at heart, the Government of the United States has invited all nations with which it has diplomatic relations to send delegates to a Congress to assemble at Washington to-day, to discuss the question I have indicated. The invitation has been graciously received, and we are here this morning to enter upon the agreeable duty assigned to us by our respective governments.

Broad as is the area of the United States, covering a hundred degrees of longitude, extending from 66° 52' west from Greenwich to 166° 13' at our extreme limit in Alaska, not including the Aleutian Islands; traversed, as it is, by railway and telegraph lines, and dotted with observatories; long as is its sea coast, of more than twelve thousand miles; vast as must be its foreign and domestic commerce, its delegation to this Congress has no desire to urge that a prime meridian shall be found within its confines.

In my own profession, that of a seaman, the embarrassment arising from the many prime meridians now in use is very conspicuous, and in the valuable interchange of longitudes by passing ships at sea, often difficult and hurried, sometimes only possible by figures written on a black-board, much confusion arises, and at times grave danger. In the use of charts, too, this trouble is also annoying, and to us who live upon the sea a common prime meridian will be a great advantage.

Within the last two years we have been given reason to hope that this great desideratum may be obtained, and within a year a learned Conference, in which many nations were represented, expressed opinions upon it with singular unanimity, and in a very broad and catholic spirit.

I need not trespass further upon your attention, except to lay before you the subject we are invited to discuss: the choice of "a meridian to be employed as a common zero of longitude and standard of time reckoning throughout the world;" and I shall beg you to complete our organization by the election of a Vice-President, and the proper Secretaries necessary to the verification of our proceedings.

Mr. Lefaivre, Delegate from France, stated that on behalf of his colleague he would suggest that all motions and addresses made in English should be translated into French.

The President inquired whether the proposition made by the Delegate for France met with the approval of the Conference, when it was unanimously agreed to.

The President thereupon said that he was ready to lay before the Conference the subject of the election of Vice-President.

Count Lewenhaupt, the Delegate of Sweden, stated that elections in such large bodies were always difficult, and inquired whether it was necessary to have a Vice-President. He further said that for his part he had every reason to hope and to expect that the services of a Vice-President would not be required.

It was thereupon agreed that a Vice-President should be dispensed with.

The President then stated that the next business was the election of Secretaries; but suggested, in view of the proceedings already had, and of the necessity of some consultation in regard to the matter, that the election might be postponed till to-morrow.

Mr. Valera, Delegate of Spain, stated that he saw no reason why the nomination of Secretaries could not be made just as well at present as at any future time.

Mr. Lefaivre, Delegate of France, inquired what would be the functions of the Secretaries.

The President in reply said that an acting Secretary had been appointed by the Secretary of State, who was at the same time a stenographer, and that the principal labor of keeping the records of the Conference would devolve upon him; that nevertheless regular Secretaries of the Conference had to be appointed, for the purpose of examining and verifying the protocols from day to day, which would be the more important in the event of the records of the Conference being made in two or three different languages, and that these Secretaries ought no doubt to be members of the Conference, in order to give the requisite authenticity to the acts thereof, and, in view of the character of the proceedings, should be specialists and informed as to the subjects under discussion.

Mr. Soteldo, Delegate of Venezuela, said that he thought the Conference should adjourn until to-morrow, as they had done already enough to-day in settling its organization; that by adjourning over it would give an opportunity to the delegates to consult as to the functions of the Secretaries, and who would be most likely to be qualified for those functions; that there were gentlemen from different countries who were not familiar with the English language, and by to-morrow the Conference could determine as to the languages in which the proceedings should be had, although, as it seemed to him, that the proceedings should be recorded in French and English. He then moved that the Conference adjourn until to-morrow.

Mr. Lefaivre, Delegate of France, stated that he agreed with what had been said by the President, that the Conference should have Secretaries who were specialists, and that the proceedings should be recorded in two languages. By adjourning till to-morrow he thought that the delegates would have an opportunity to reflect upon the subject, and to come back prepared to vote upon it.

The President then stated that if any delegates wished to make propositions in regard to the proceedings to-morrow it would be in the power of the Conference to proceed to the consideration of those subjects after the election of the Secretaries, and he suggested to the Delegate of Venezuela (Mr. Soteldo) that the motion to adjourn be withdrawn for the present.

The Delegate of Venezuela thereupon withdrew his motion.

Mr. Frey, Delegate of Switzerland, said that, in his opinion, the order of proceedings to-morrow should be first a general discussion.

Mr. Valera, Delegate of Spain, stated that he thought the proceedings should be recorded in two languages at least, and that Secretaries conversant with these languages and specially acquainted with the subject matter pending before the Conference should be selected; that, in order to have the record of the proceedings accurate, officers qualified in this way were requisite, and that it would be preferable to elect these officers after consultation among the members of the Conference, which could be had between now and the meeting to-morrow.

Count Lewenhaupt, Delegate of Sweden, said that he saw no difficulty in deciding now that the order of proceedings to-morrow would be first the election of the Secretaries and then a general discussion, and he moved that this proposition be adopted.

The Conference then unanimously agreed to the proposition.

Professor Abbe, Delegate of the United States, inquired whether it would not facilitate the action of the Conference to-morrow if the President appointed a committee now who could nominate the Secretaries.

The President replied by asking whether it would not be better to select this committee at a subsequent meeting, rather than at the first meeting, which was held to-day.

Commander Sampson, Delegate of the United States, then gave notice that at the session to-morrow he would bring before the Conference the question whether the meetings shall be open to the public or not, and that he would, at the proper time, also make a motion for the purpose of determining the sense of the Conference as to the propriety of inviting distinguished scientists, some of whom are now in Washington, and who may desire to be present at the meetings of this Conference, to take part in the discussion of the questions pending.

Mr. Lefaivre, Delegate of France, stated that in regard to the first proposition—that is, as to making the proceedings public, he would object, inasmuch as he thought that by opening the doors of this Conference to the public nothing could be gained, while the proceedings might be embarrassed or delayed by such a course.

Professor Adams, Delegate of England, stated that he did not favor the first proposition to make the proceedings of this Conference public, but he did agree with the second proposition, and thought it was a very important and valuable one.

The President remarked that the propositions made by the Delegate of the United States of America were merely in the nature of a notice, and that they were not before the Conference at the present time, and, consequently, were not the subject of discussion; still he thought that much good could be elicited from this interchange of opinions in a preliminary way.

Captain Stewart, Delegate of Paraguay, said that he thought that it would be a very good thing, in view of the proposition to make the meetings public, to invite all the world to the Capitol for the discussion of these subjects.

Professor Abbe, Delegate of the United States, stated that it would be perfectly practicable to have the discussions of the Conference printed in full from day to day for our own official use, and that the public might thereby be made familiar with the proceedings if it were necessary.

The President announced that arrangements had been made by the State Department whereby the proceedings of each day would be printed and furnished in time for the examination of the members of the Conference before the next meeting, and that they would be printed in two languages, French and English; but that these records or protocols could not be regularly verified until the Conference shall have appointed duly authorized Secretaries.

Baron von SchÆffer, Delegate of Austro-Hungary, asked that a list of the delegates be presented to each of the members of the Conference.

The President replied that he would instruct the acting Secretary (Mr. Peddrick) to have the list prepared.

Upon the motion of Mr. de Struve, Delegate of Russia, the Conference then adjourned until to-morrow, (Thursday,) the second instant, at one o'clock p. m.

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