MDMD "odd isn't it?"

[Terrance]

"You'd think there'd be a Team form somewhere." 

"Perhaps there is." MD.34

Agents of History? Or Antiheroes of paranoid history? 


The record shows that well over 100 observations of the 1761 transit
were
    made, many by observers other than French or British, but the large
majority of
    them simply observed from their home stations in Europe. And even
the French
    and British planned only very few expeditions to remote places,
essential though
    they would be for obtaining a useful result. Money unquestionably
played a role
    here; it was an age before mass production, and a single good,
portable telescope
    suited to a transit observation cost some 1,400, which probably
exceeded the
    annual salary of the Astronomer Royal by a considerable factor. And
more than
    one telescope per expedition was needed in case of accidents. Little
wonder that
    the Royal Society of London, which was responsible for the British
expeditions,
    tried borrowing or renting equipment whenever possible. 

Only in the summer of 1760 did the Royal Society get
    down to the details of who would go where, and this in an age when
it was
    hoped that a relatively simple voyage down the Atlantic to the
island of St.
    Helena and back would be completed within a year. Here, however,
they were
    helped in their planning by the French. In charming contrast to our
own times,
    we find that while their governments and associated armies and
navies
    ferociously fought one another, the Royal Society and Academie
Royale des
    Sciences saw no reason not to continue their cordial relations, even
if exchanges
    of documents required more circuitous routes than usual. So both
institutions
    were aware of each other's plans. 

To complement these, it was desirable to have a station in the southern
Atlantic.
    Initially the British decided on just one expedition, which would go
to St. Helena.
    The expedition would be led by Nevil Maskelyne, later to become
Astronomer
    Royal, accompanied by Charles Mason, an experienced observer and
assistant to
    the current A. R. (The British always sent at least two observers on
each
    expedition in case one should die or be otherwise incapacitated.
Indeed, in the
    light of naval warfare, experts advised that the two should "go in
different Ships
    ... to [avoid] the Risque of both being Embarked on the Same
Bottom." Sound
    advice, but economically unfeasible.) 

Later, however, it was decided to extend the longitude range of the
sites by
    having the British send a second expedition to Bencoolen (today's
Bengkulu), a
    small port on the southwest coast of Sumatra. 

    This would be a long voyage, and it being already September of 1760,
there was
    no time to waste. So Charles Mason was abruptly switched to being
principal
    observer for Bencoolen, and an assistant for him was hurriedly found
in the
    person of land surveyor and amateur astronomer Jeremiah Dixon. The
Royal
    Navy was petitioned to provide a ship, which would be faster than
scheduled
    sailings of the East India Company' s ships and which would offer
better
    protection against French attack. This was granted, and by early
December 1760
    Mason and Dixon were aboard HMS Seahorse and "waited only for the
wind." 

Mayhem on the Seahorse 

In fact, Mason wrote to the Royal
    Society firmly advising that "We will not proceed thither, let the
Consequence be
    what it will." 

    The Society's reply minced no words. It warned that "their refusal
to proceed
    upon this Voyage, after having so publickly and notoriously ingaged
in it . . .
    [would] be a reproach to the Nation in general, to the Royal Society
in particular,
    and more Especially and fatally to themselves.... [It] cannot fail
to bring an
    indelible Scandal upon their Character, and probably end in their
utter Ruin." In
    case this wasn't clear, the Society went on to say it would "with
the most
    inflexible Resentment" take Mason and Dixon to court and prosecute
them "with
    the utmost Severity of the Law." 

    A curt reply to this on February 3, 1761, announced that "their
dutiful servants"
    would sail that same evening.