Note 20 — Chapter II
William Johnston translation
The latitude is not always accurately determined, even by the moderns. Thus John Hamilton Moore, in his Practical Navigator, places Puduceri, or Pondichery, in 11° 56′ N. lat.; but M. De la Tour places it in 12° N. lat. and 68° of E. lon. De l’Isle and D’Anville also differ from each other in their maps. This difference arises partly from the expertness requisite in determining the latitude by means of a quadrant, partly from the greater or less acuteness of the observer’s eye, and partly from the perfection or imperfection of the astronomical instruments employed. A.