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ECLIPSE IN TH E MOON.
I t is said the diameter of the moon is about 2,160 miles,
and th at of the earth about 8,000.
I t is also stated thatthe moon’s motion round the earth works out 3.t about thirtyseven miles per minute, while in its journey round the sun
the earth travels along at about 1,080 miles per minute. Nowsupposing the shadow cast by the earth on the moon is equal
to half its (the earth’s) diameter—4,000 mQes is an outside
estimate, as the shadow would tend to converge. And if
these figures, given by astronomers of the earth’s and moon’s
motion are correct, readers wiU see it is impossible for anechpse to last in the moon' for more than seven minutes,
although echpses have been known to last for over four hours,
so that this shows the echpse.- cannot possibly be caused by
the shadow of the earth’s rotation.
I t is known that there are dark bodies in the heavens,and eclipses may be caused by the periodical motion of oneof these. In any case, eclipses are no proof of the earth’s
rotundity.
It is argued that the shadow cast on the moon is generally
circular. A circular shadow is not necessarily cast by amoving globe. It can be demonstrated in a room with one
light. Take a ball or orange and place a flat ruler, so thatits shadow is cast upon the ball, arid it will be seen that its
shadow is curved or circular, it could not be otherwise.
Again, where there is a gaslight with an ordinary mantel
over the kitchen table and with an ordinary plate or plates
underneath, although flat it throws a circular shade on thetable-cloth.
Just a word as to the shape of the earth which 1 consider
flat but possibly round like an ordinary plate,.—as the sevenseas run into each other this is surely agreeable to a fixed, fiatearth.
The earth can be circumnavigated, but it is no proof
whatever that it is a globe or rotating.
D60
HOW WE GET OUR
SEASONS.
Astronomers tell us that we get our seasons by a dailyrotating earth to a fixed sun, but I maintain that this isabsolutely impossible.

Ko. 30.

E on the sketch is England, L, Labrador, North America.
On a 12-in. globe I possess, I find Labrador is on the same
circle as England, and assuming th at the earth rotates daily
to a fixed sun, both countries should receive exactly the sameheat as each other daily, but do they ? No !
It should be precisely the same as a joint of meat turning
before the fire ; that is, where it turns to the fire in the same
circle, such as the position of E and L in the illustration. The
joint of meat would of course receive the same heat at eachrevolution to the fire, and certainly L could not freeze forweeks at a stretch, while E was quite warm for the same period.
Readers, you can readily see th at my theory is the correctone, and that we get winter and summer by the sun travellingover our fixed earth, and certainly not by the earth rotating
to a fixed sun.
Astronomers inform us that the sun is at a greater distancefrom us in summer than it is in winter, as may be seen in61orbit illustration in school book. Can anyone imagine amore unreasonable proposition ? There might have been somereason in the theory, if the earth had made one revolution
in twelve months, for then if the sun had been a fixture andit took the earth six months to rotate half the way, and thishalf of the earth turning before the sun would have given
some reason for concluding th a t the other half of the earth,th at had not come into position, or faced the sun for six
months, would be having its winter m onths; and the otherhalf that had kept turning before the sun for six months
would be having its summer months.
If, however, our earth makes one revolution each day,then Labrador, which is in North America, and in the same
circle as England, or same latitude north, which readers willsee by cunsulting the rotating globe, that represent the earth
as used at school, should have the same climate and each dayof same length. This should be the same for each placeof the same latitude. We are, however, aware that theweather is very severe at Labrador, when it is midsummer
in England, and also th at the day is of short duration, andthese facts alone should convince readers, without a shadowof doubt, that I am Correct in saying that it is utterly
impossible, for all of us in this world, to get our seasons as
we now get them, except by the sun passing nearer to us insummer over our fixed earth and then farther away during
the winter months.
This is undoubtedly the cause of winter and summer andour seasons. I might mention that a great part of Russia
in addition to Labrador, referred to, comes in the same circle
as England.
If readers wiU only carefully examine a 12in. globe(tliis size will enable you to see the various places in the world
printed on it) and if they will rotate the globe, in front of alamp to represent the sun shown in illustration, it will befound that it would have been impossible to get these places

62
in position when rotating the globe, to work correctly withthe astronomers’ theory’, and to me the whole rotation theorj'
is undoubtedly a false one and will be found upon examinationto be ridiculous.
I might mention th at it cannot be said that the water
is the cause of the climate being much more severe in Russia
than th at of England, for it will be seen, that the region I
refer to in Russia is on the same circle on the globe as Englandand is hundreds of miles distant from any sea or canal. It
is entirely all land, and ought to be warmer.
I therefore maintain th at as the climate and seasons at
Labrador in North America, Warsaw and Moscow in Russia,
Kamchalka in Siberia, and numerous other -places in Russia,
are quite different to the climate in England each day, although
it should be precisely the same, please refer to globe, this fact
alone must be a positive proof th a t the earth does not rotate
daily before the sun as illustration.
Readers must remember too, th a t from December 21st
the sun begins to travel nearer to us each day till June 21st.
The heat from the sim accumulates and gradually warms
the atmosphere until the end of March, when then we begin
to feel it quite dry. Then as you are aware, each day fromMarch, the sun gets nearer and nearer, until at mid-day on
June 21st the sun has arrived overhead, and seeing th at theair in March was dry and the heat still accumulating tiU June,with the sun getting nearer and more overhead, this causes
the earth and atmosphere to be very warm and hence summer
is upon us to grow our crops.
Now as readers are aware, it is then midwinter in NewZealand. Why is it midwinter in New Zealand when mid­summer in England ? Why ? Because the sun has kept
away from th at country ; it has taken a direction over England.
Why is it midwinter with us six months hence ? Why ?
I t is because the sun from Jime 21st begins to travel nearer

63and nearer to New Zealand every day and night for six months
till it finally arrives at a position overhead, and then it is ofcourse summer at that place. Often the weather is very
warm in England at the end of August and September, andoften as warm as it is in summer, although the sun has been
travelling farther away from us then for several weeks. Thereason for this is, that the heat had accummidatcd so fast,th at we found the weather very warm, even after the sun
had left the position of being overhead as is the case in June.
Take the 21st of September till the 21st of December and note
how gradually day after day, we begin to find winter weather
coming upon us, as day by day the sun gradually moves
further from us through the heavens. There can be nothing
more simple for one to understand how we get our seasons
with a fixed earth and a travelling smi.
The astronomers inform us that in June my garden andalso your garden slope different to what they do in December,and this is the cause of summer.
As my garden is a part of the earth, and my house is built
upon a part of the garden, which was levelled when built,
by the aid of a spirit level, and I find it is of the same levelto-day as it was twenty years ago, when built, and the samelevel now while I am writing, wliich is in the month of June,
as it was last December, surely there can be nothing moreridiculous than to imagine and say that each garden andbuilding throughout the world slopes towards the sun in Juneof each year wliile it does not in December. W hat would
really happen with the very high buildings, high chimney
stacks, church towers, etc., if the earth where they are built
upon, altered its level every six months, would tliey beperpendicularly upright.
May I ask is it worth while assuring pupils at school that
this kind of thing takes place in June and that this is thecause of our summer ?

64
In seriously thinking over the question one cannot but
come to the conclusion, that the Creator caused the sun totravel over our fixed earth, in the various directions, to give
warmth to grow our crops in each country. If the Creator
had caused the sun to take one direction only all the year
round some countries would get no heat to grow their crops
and if the Creator had made the sun a fixture and caused theearth to rotate daily, surely it is easy to see, that we should
not get the seasons as we now get them, it would be quite
impossible, utterly impossible.