Mr. RUTHERFURD, Delegate of the United States, then renewed his
original resolution, as follows:

"_Resolved_, That the Conference proposes to the Governments
represented the adoption as a standard meridian that of
Greenwich, passing through the centre of the transit
instrument at the Observatory of Greenwich."

Mr. JANSSEN, Delegate of France, stated that he wished to reiterate
the objections that he had already offered to the first resolution,
and spoke as follows:

GENTLEMEN: Mr. Lefaivre, my honorable colleague, and I are of the
opinion that the mission of this Congress is chiefly to examine
questions of principle.

I consider that we shall do a very important thing if we proclaim the
principle of the adoption of a meridian which shall be the same for
all nations.

The advantages of such a meridian have been felt by the geographers
and navigators of all ages. France might claim the honor of having
sought to accomplish this reform as early as the seventeenth century.
It is not to be expected, therefore, that France, at this late day,
will seek to place any obstacles in the way of the adoption of an
improvement which would by this time have been adopted if the use of
the meridian which she proposed, and which she had caused to be
generally accepted, had been continued.