Although the gap between the observational data from northern and southern hemisphere started recently to narrow, the long neglected southern hemisphere is still far behind the northern. I have especially in mind binary and variable stars. The systematic research in this field in the south is not satisfactory and many interesting objects still await to be properly observed and many to be discovered. We are now grateful to our predecessors who 70 years ago started the photographic patorl of northern sky so that we are now able to trace back the behaviour of many interesting objects such as X-ray sources; we may follow back the changes of light curves and derive important conclusions from the changes of periods.