On the breakdown of his health Halley nominated as his successor, James Bradley; indeed, it is stated that he offered to resign in his favour. He had known him then for over twenty years, and that keen and generous appreciation of merit in others which was characteristic of Halley had led him very early to recognize Bradley's singular ability. * * * * * JAMES BRADLEY was born in 1692 or 1693, of an old North of England family. His birthplace was Sherbourne, in Gloucestershire, and he was educated at North Leach Grammar School and at Baliol College, Oxford. During the years of his undergraduateship he resided much with his uncle, the Rev. James Pound, Rector of Wanstead, Essex, an ardent amateur astronomer, a frequent visitor at the Observatory in Flamsteed's time, and one of the most accurate observers in the country. From him, no doubt, he derived his love of the science, and possibly some of his skill in observation. Bradley's earliest observations seem to have been devoted to the phenomena of Jupiter's satellites and to the measures of double stars. The accuracy with which he followed up the first drew the attention of Halley, and so began a friendship which lasted through life. His observations of double stars, particularly of Castor, only just failed to show him the orbital movement of the pair, because his attention was drawn to other subjects before it had become sufficiently obvious. In 1719 Bradley and his uncle made an attempt to determine the distance of the sun through observations of Mars when in opposition, observations which were so accurate that they sufficed to show that the distance of the sun could not be greater than 125 millions of miles, nor less than about 94 millions. The lower limit which they thus found has proved to be almost exactly correct, our best modern determinations giving it as 93 millions. The instrument with which the observations were made was a novel one, being 'moved by a machine that made it to keep pace with the stars;' in other words, it was the first, or nearly the first, example of what we should now call a clock-driven equatorial. That same year he was offered the Vicarage of Bridstow, near Ross, in Monmouthshire, where, having by that time taken priest's orders, he was duly installed, July, 1720. To this was added the sinecure Rectory of Llandewi-Velgry; but he held both livings only a very short time. In 1721 the death of Dr. John Keill rendered vacant the Savilian Professorship of Astronomy at Oxford, for which Bradley became a candidate, and was duly elected, and resigned his livings in consequence.