The Sun.
London, England, 1860-08-09 00:00:00

PrHE SUM LMMON, TrirRSDAY EVENING, AUGUST 9, 1860.

ing of the clause, and he delivered it to Sir
J. Shelley to take into the house. Immediately
afterwards Sir J. Shelley came out of the house
and told witness that Mr. Ayrton insisted upon
having this latter proviso inserted. Witness deci-
dedly objected, upon which Sir J. Shelley said,
" Well, we must insert it, and you must fight them
in the Lords."

Cross-examined by Mr. Denison—He told Mr.
Wyatt what had occurred presently afterwards,
and he did not dissent. He said, " Very well."
Mr. Wyatt was then called by Mr. Denison, and
stated that the point now under discussion was °Re
of those for which he was instructed to contend
before this committee:

Mr, Denison said it was a defect in the bill, but
there it was. He should, therefore, withdraw any
further objection to it.
The remaining clauses and the preamble were
then agreed to, with some verbal amendments, and
their lordships agreed to pass the bill.

and which was enhanced by the ear catching the
sound of the village bells, which it appears had been
tolled during the eclipse. I saw two stars to the
east of the sun, which I believe to have been Jupiter
and Venus, and observed that the corona did not
extend generally more than about 8-10ths of the
diameter of the moon beyond her limb, but that
there were outlying rays of greater extent. A
thought of my other duties recalled me, after a few
seconds' gaze, from this enchanting scene, and I did
not attempt any exact observations of the corona.
To return to photography, when the disc of the
sun had diminished to a small crescent I gave the
signal to discontinue the ordinary pictures, and to
take away the stop of the object-glass in order to
have the full aperture ready for the totality ; and
the instantaneous apparatus was also disconnected.
The signal to prepare plates for the totality was
also made, and three plates, by a preconcerted
arrangement, were coated and then sensitized in an
extremely sensitive neutral bath, which I had pre-
pared expressly for the purpose. As I could col-
lect no reliable data as to the intensity of the light
of the luminous prominences and corona previous
to the expedition, I was working under great dis-
advantages, and I confess from all that I could
learn previously I had very faint hopes of depict-
ing the corona at all, and I was led to think, from
the colour of the prominences, that if I did get a
picture of the corona, my only hope was to get the
prominences as dark markings on the suppesed
more brilliant corona. Although my own observa-
tions during the totality gave me greater hopes of
success, it was with a thrill of pleasure that, in
answer to my questions,• I learnt from Mr. Rey-
nolds that the picture was coming out under the
influence of the developing fluid.
This first plate had been exposed by previous
arrangement just one minute, and only time enough
remained for a second plate to be placed in the
telescope.
Just at this period the wind rose and shook the
observatory and telescope violently. Had it been
possible for me to have known beforehand howi,in-
tense the light of the prominences really was, there
would have been no difficulty in obtaining the pho-
tographs in much less time, and I do not doubt that
four might have been procured with an exposure of
from 20 to 30 seconds each.
Previous to leaving London trials had been made
to obtain photographs of the moon with the Kew
instrument, merely, however, for the purpose of
judging of the time that might be necessary for the
pictures of the corona, supposing it to be as bright
as the moon, but not the slightest impression could
be obtained by an exposure of one minute, whereas
the pictures we have obtained of the luminous pro-
tuberances are all over exposed, and the corona
has clearly shown itself, so that the latter must be
brighter than the light of the full moon.
The plates being only 6 inches square, while the
sun's image is 4 inches in diameter, it will be seen
that only a small extent of the corona could be de-
picted. I mention this in order that there may be
no misconception on this point ; had I desired to
make photographs of the whole of the corona, I
should have adopted a totally different arrangement.
My hand drawings were made by the aid of a
series of lines ruled on glass, and placed in the focus
of the eye-piece. This could be rotated through an
arc of 90 deg., and I had two diagrams with similar
lines set out on my drawing paper. With these aids
I was able rapidly to make some measurements of
position and extent of the prominences, and to com-
plete two drawings. On comparing my sketches
with the photographs, I was pleased to find that each
completely confirmed the accuracy of the other.
My drawings were made in reference to the ver-
tex, but it will be better to describe the markings
as they were shown in the photographs in relation
to a circle of declination. If the reader will suppose
a circle to be divided into four quadrants by draw-
ing two diameters across its centre at right angles,
and that one of these diameters is made to coincide
with a line drawn through the centre of the sun
and the pole,calling the quadrants north-east, south-
east, south-west, and north-west respectively, then
the edge of the moon, both in the north-east and
south-east quadrants, was at the commencement of
totality nearly covered with the luminous promi-
nences which extended over an are of 130 deg. be-
yond her dark limb. These prominences were ex-
tremely brilliant, and far more so than the corona;
they were not uniform in tint; and with few excep-
tions they did not present any colour approaching
to red or rose ; t wo had, however, a decided but faint
rose tint. The surface of the luminous prominences
next to the moon was, when first seen, very irregu-
lar, and far more so than was attributable to moun-
tains as seen in profile on the moon's edge. This
irregular outline may, however, be explained by
supposing the prominences to have been first
seen floating like clouds in a transparent atmos-
phere at some little distance from the sun's
surface, and consequently from the moon's edge
—a supposition which is supported by the fact that
one such prominence cr luminous cloud was seen
distinctly detached, and at some distance from the
dark moon.
At the commencement of the eclipse only one
small mountain-like peak was to be seen in the
north-west quadrant, and a curved one in the south-
west quadrant. As the moon glided over the sun's
disc, the inner outline of the prominences in the
eastern hemisphere became less and less indented,
and at last they were bounded by the nearly even
outline of the moon's limb. As the eastern promi-
nences became gradually covered, the mountain-
like peak, seen at first as a mere point in the north-
west quadrant, gradually grew in dimensions, then
presented several points, and at last resembled
somewhat a colossal ship in full sail ; and extending
from th's through an arc of GO deg., there came
into view in the north-west quadrant a long streak
of luminous prominences, varying in breadth and
with a few points projecting outwards. This streak
became very jagged in its inner outline as the moon
glided off from it, just previous to the sun's reap-
pearance—these luminous prominences presenting
the same phenomena as those on the eastern edge ;
that is, appearing like clouds floating in a transpa-
parent atmosphere, a little distance from the sun.
It will render the detailed description I now pro-
pose to give of the several luminous protuberances,
as measured in the photographs, more clear if the
reader will provide himself with a circle divided
into 360 deg., and number the degrees in the reverse
order of the figures on a watch—namely, from right
to left.
Placing 360, which represents the north point
(not the vertex) uppermost, the east point, or 90
deg., will be at the left ; 180 deg., or the south
point, at the bottom ; and 270 deg., the west point,
at the right hand. Eastward from the north point
there was conspicuously visible a brilliant promi-
nence, the summit of which, as the moon glided
along, was seen to curve in two opposite directions
from a radial line, the curved portions being far
less brilliant than the stem, which touched the
moon's limb throup, lout the totality. The centre
of the stem was 28 deg. from the north point, and
it was about 1 minute of arc broad (28,000 miles
nearly). It extended fully 11 minute, or 42,000
miles, beyond the moon's limb. This protuberance
was so brilliant that I perceived it several minutes
before the totality, and it must, without doubt, have
been seen by all observers provided with good tele-
scopes. It may therefore conveniently be niacl
starting point to which all protuberances of which
I shall speak may be referred by those astronomers
who observed the prominences in regard to the ver-
tex, by taking into account the angular distances
of the several prominences from this one.
At 57 deg. was situated the northern extremity
of a remarkable detached curved cloud, which, when
first seen, as as about half a minute (14,000 miles)
beyond the position occupied by the moon's dark
limb. It presented a double curvature on its
northern side, both curvatures being convex to-
wards the north. It inclined in a curved direction
at about an angle of 60 deg. from a radius towards
the east, and was a minute and a half (42,000 miles)
long. As the moon glided onwards in her course
she approached it gradually, and at last touched
the extreme point of this floating cloud, which
glowed with all the brilliancy of one of our own
terrestrial clouds at sunset. It presented a decided
rose tint.

At 72 deg. from the north a protuberance, in
shape reminding one of a boomerang, imprinted
itself on the sensitive plate, although it was not
visible to me in the telescope. The stem was 2 min.
long (56,000 miles), the point was bent towards the
north, inclining downwards over towards the ex-
tremity of the detached cloud. Midway down the
stem was a branch curving upwards, so that, on
close scrutiny, the boomerang protuberance was not
unlike the capital letter G in ordinary writing. It
is a very curious circumstance that this protuber-
ance imprinted itself distinctly, although it did not
attract the eye directed especially to that locality.
This may be accounted for on the supposition that
it emitted a feeble purple light.
Between the last-named protuberances the (float-
ing cloud and the boomerang) there was a low and
long luminous streak, not more than a quarter of a
minute broad, and extending in length about 8 deg.
along the moon's limb.
From the stem of the boomerang, extending from
72 to 135 deg., there was a long streak of luminous
cloud, commencing with the thinnest possible streak
near the boomerang, and then becoming broader,
but in no part exceeding a quarter of a minute in
breadth, until it reached the position 8f 111 deg.,
when a skittle.like thickening took place, half a
minute broad in the broadest part. Projecting from
the commencement of the skittle were some faint
projections, which imprinted themselves on the
sensitive plate, but I did not see them in the tele-
scope. From 129 to 135 deg. there was a consider-
able enlargement of the streak, which widened out,.
to fully one minute in breadth (28,000 miles). This

was bounded by curved lines, and was extremely
brilliant. Just in the neighbourhood of this thick-
ening—namely, between 115 deg. and 140 deg.—
the corona was very bright, and one of the long
streamers was to be seen carving towards the
north.
At 154 deg. a protuberance curving northwards,
and not unlike a bishop's mitre, existed, which ea-
tended from the moon's limb a distance of 1.5 min.
(42,000 miles) ; it was very much fainter towards
the point than near the stem. A very faint streak
of light connected the mitre-like protuberance with
the long streak.
The long streak and nearly all the mitre-shaped
protuberance were covered by the moon before the
totality ended, but the floating cloud and the first-
named northern protuberance were visible during
the whole time.

At the commencement of the totality only two
protuberances were visible in the western half of
the moon's disc—namely, following the order of the
preceding description, one, the centre of which was
situated at 194 deg., consisted of a thin streak less
than a quarter of a minute broad, and extended
over an arc of 53- deg. on the moon's limb at 197
deg., a point curving towards the south projected
about 3- min. This projection was completely co-
vered as the moon advanced. The other projection
was the mountain-like peak, the centre of which
was situated at 348 deg. This peak, at first not
more than min. high, grew to considerable dimen-
sions as the moon glided away from it, and as-
sumed, as was before said, the appearance of a ship
in full sail, the summit, or mainmast, extending
more than 1-1 min., and the case or hull of the vessel
measuring 10 deg. on the moon's limb.
As the moon glided on there came into view a
long streak extending from 280 deg. to 340 deg.,
where it just touched the hull of the ship. This
streak was in some parts a mere line, and bounded
by curved lines both on the under and upper side.
It thickened to about 4 min. between 300 deg. and
310 deg., at both of which places two short horn-
like projections were to be seen.
At 263 deg. and 278 deg. there came into view
two small projections, one extending min., and the
second 1, min., from the moon's disc.