Diary of John Quincy Adams, volume 2
1787-03-24
We had last evening a Class meeting; a petition drawn up by Little, as additional to that already presented, was read to the Class, and approved by them: the Committee, were ordered to carry it down to the President. I was employ'd the greatest part of this day in projecting my Eclipse for exhibition. The elements are as follows.
| Elements. | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| for a solar Eclipse. May 15th. 1836. | D. | H. | M. | S. | |
| 1. | True time of New Moon at Cambridge, in May 1836. | 15: | 9: | 29: | 13 |
| ° | ' | " | |||
| 2. | Semidiameter of the Earth's Disc | 0: | 55: | 0 | |
| 3. | Sun's Distance from the nearest solstice | 35: | 17: | 42 | |
| 4. | Sun's Declination, North | 18: | 58: | 0 | |
| 5. | Moon's latitude, north ascending | 0: | 26: | 26 | |
| 6. | Moon's horary motion from the Sun | 0: | 28: | 14 | |
| 7. | Angle of the Moon's visible path with the ecliptic | 5: | 35: | 0 | |
| 8. | Sun's Semidiameter | 0: | 15: | 55 | |
| 9. | Moon's Semidiameter | 0: | 15: | 0 | |
| 10. | Semidiameter of the Penumbra | 0: | 30: | 55. |
Charles watch'd at Mr. Dana's this night.
Peter Eaton1 of Haverhill was 22 the 15th. of this month. I have 185not the pleasure of an intimate acquaintance with him; but all those who have, speak well of him. As a speaker he is distinguished, and as a scholar respectable; his public exercices have been in general equal if not superior to any in the Class since I belonged to it: but he is very modest and diffident, so that he has not brought himself so much into notice, as several others in the Class, who without his abilities have a much greater share of confidence.
Eaton was ordained at West Boxford in Oct. 1789 and remained there as minister throughout his life (Sidney Perley, “The Dwellings of Boxford,” Essex Inst., Hist. Colls., 29:85–86 [April–June 1892]).