The Sun.
London, England, 1858-09-29 00:00:00

THE COMET.

AT GREENWICH MEAN NOON.

sets
Right Ascension. Declination. Comet
London. in
li. m. s. Q , h. m.
Sept. 28 l2 46 30 .....2 39 9N. 958 p.m.
Sept. 29 l2 56 19 S
.... 31 321 66 „ 943 „
Set. 30 l3 638
.... 30 6 943 „
Oct. 1 l3 17 26 .... 8534 „ 9
36
Oct. 2 l3 28 43 .... 27 10 9 „ 928 „
Oct. 3 l3 40 22 .... 25 13 4 „ 920 „
Oct. 4 l3 52 24 .... 22 59 8 „ 911
Oct. 5 l4 441 .... 20 30 0 „9 2
Oct. 6 l4 17 11 .... 17 44 3 „ 853 „
Oct. 7 l4 29 45
.... 14 44 0 „ 841 „
Oct. 8 l4 42 19
.... 11 31 0 „ 835 „
Oct. 9 l4 51 47 .... 88 0 „ 825
Oct. 10 l5 7 5
.... 438 2 „ 815 „
„
Oct. 11 l5 19 7 .... 15 4 „ 8 6
Oct. 12 l5 30 49 .... 2266 S. 756 „
Oct. 13 l5 42 7 .... 554 2 „ 740 „
Oct. 14 l5 53 0 .... 914 5 „ 735 „
Oct. 15 l6 326 .... 12 25 1 „ 725
Oct. 16 l6 13 23 .... 15 24 4 „ 714 „
„
Oct. 17 l6 22 52 .... 18 12 1 „ 73 „
Oct. 18 l6 31 50 .... 20 47 2 „ 615 „
Oct. 19 l6 40 22 .... 23 10 0„ „
6 4 „
1
Oct. 20 l6 48 26 .... 25 20 9 630
Oct. 21 l6 56 4 .... 27 20 8 „ 619 „
Oct. 29
The comet will arrive at its least distance from the
earth about midnight on the 10th Oct., when we
shall be separated from it by rather over 51,000,000
miles. Its maximum brilliancy will be attained
the day previous, when the intensity of light will
be twice as strong as at ,the present time. It is,
therefore, obvious that during the absence of moon-
light in the evening hours for the next ten days or
upwards the comet will form a splendid object in
the western heavens.

THE CHINESE TREATY.

The great feature of the treaty is the admission of
Europeans into Central China. The high road along
which our communication with this part must be
conducted is the great Yang-tse-kiang or Yellow
River. Our readers are familiar enough with the
map of China to remember two huge rivers rising
in the mountains of-Thibet, and flowing with a
tortuous course across the whole breadth of China.
The southern of these is the Yellow River, and is
called by the Chinese " The Girdle of China."
The northern is the Hoang-ho, and bears
the more ominous title of " The Grief of China."
Its turbid rapid stream almost defies the
clumsy attempts at navigation made by the
Chinese, and the vast quantity of mud which
it bears down in its waters causes a continual
deposition on the sides and bed of the stream by
which its channel is gradually raised, and the sur-
face now flows several feet above the average level
of the surrounding country. When, therefore, its
mud banks, or the artifieial works by which these
have been strengthened, give way before the pres-
sure of the flooded stream, a scene of devastation
and ruin is presented which perhaps can find no
parallel in the whole world. The whole province
of Honan is occasionally laid under water, and the
loosened floods, seeking the lowest channel to the
sea, reduce vast tracts of fertile and populous terri-
tory to absolute desolation. Of late years the re-
bellion has drawn so heavily on the exchequer that
the usual funds for these works have not been sup-
plied, and a vast amount of suffering and waste has
been the consequence. Very different is the beneficial
course of the Girdle of China. The first province oftho
empire which it enters on the west is called Vernon,
and is the richest of all the provinces of China in
the extent and variety of its mineral wealth.
Through this and in its course to the sea, this vast
river passes by no less than 100 cities of the first,
second, and third order, and upwards of 200 vil-
lages and towns. A population of 100,000,000
people dwells upon its banks. The great city of
Ilankow, perhaps the most important commercial
city in Asia, is situated on this stream stream, and
may be reached by steamers of mcderate size.
This town, with its vast wealth, fell early into
the hands of the rebels, and has since been re-
peatedly taken and retaken by both the con-
tending r arties. Its importance is therefore for
the present diminished, but so excellent is its
situation on the banks of this noble river, and in
the very centre of the Chinese empire, that the re
can be little doubt it will soon regain its late im-
portance, and become a valuable emporium for Eu-
ropean trade. For a time, at all events, the value
of the treaty will be impaired by the disturbed
state in which the country watered by the Yellow
River is at present kept by the almost chronic re-
bellion smouldering on its shores. With keen sa-
gacity the rebel leaders resolved to seize upon this
great artery of the empire, and in a comparatively
short time after the active outbreak of the rebellion
all its principal towns, including Nankin, the for-
mer capital of China, fell into their hands. Here
their success began and ended. The strong
army of 40,000 men sent from Nankin against the
Imperial city of Pekin was driven back after long
fighting, a handful of fugitives, to the rebel quar-
ters, nor have they advanced further since. But,
on the other hand, neither have they greatly re-
treated, and the fairest and richest provinces of
China have for years been the scene of those atro-
cious massacres and harassing devastations which a
state of smouldering warfare among Asiatics is sure
to engender. Should this wretched state of society
be changed, and peace once more happily restored,
we know sufficient of the eagerness of the people to
engage in commercial enterprises, of the keen eye
they have to their own interests, and their readi-
ness both to sell their own goods and secure the
well manufactured fabrics of foreign countries, to
feel convinced that with ordinary prudence on the
part of our consuls the opening now made to com-
mercial enterprise may soon produce the most solid
and beneficial results.—Leeds Mercury.

RAILWAY DIFFERENCES. —We (Manchester
Guardian) have received the following statement on this
subject :—The Great Northern and Manchester, Sheffield,
and Linc:dnshire Companies proposed, on the conclusion of
the Railway Congress, to the London and North-Western
Company, that all questions, between them, of cv:ny de-
scription, and whether the subject of litigation or not, should
be referred to arbitration, with a view to the establishment
of a permanent peace. The proposition was not accepted,
though it was stated it would be considered, and the next
day the London and North-Western Company repeated the
proposition (which had previously been declined by the
Great Northern and Sheffield Companies) of an arbitration
of rates and fares only, and named Mr. Cawkwell (who is
now appointed their geFeral manager), Mr. Newcombe, and
Mr. Allport. This proposition was again declined by ti e
allied companies. Sobsequently, the Sheffield Compare
again again proposed that all questions of difference with the Lon-
don and North-Wc,ttern Company, of every description,
and whether under litigation or not, should be settled by
arbitration, two directors first meeting to dispose of as
much as could be agreed ; the proposition to stand over for
acceptance or rejection until the 23d inst. This proposition
not having been accepted by the London and North-West-
ern Company, the Sheffield Compeny's board met on Fri-
day last at Sheffield, and passed a resolution, approv'ng
what had taken place, and expressing deep regrat at the
non-acceptance of a proposition which was in strict accord-
ance with the resolutions passed at the Railway Congress,
held at the Euston Hotel_on the 9th. inst.

Mr. Hind, the astronomer, states that the follow-
ing places of the comet of Donat i have been obligingly
furnished by Mr. Farley (who is well known to be
one of the most expert calculators of the present
day), and are founded upon an orbit which, to in-
sure accuracy, he has computed in duplicate with
me from observations extending to the 21st Sept.,
and including a series taken with the equatoreal of
the Liverpool Observatory, for Which I am indebted
to the kindness of Mr. Hartnup, the able director
of that establishment. It may be fairly assumed
that the ephemeris will nearly represent the course
of the cornet until it finally sinks below the horizon
in Europe, and I transmit it in the hope that day-
light observations may be secured by those who
are provided with good Tquatoreally-mounted tele-
scopes : •

On the evening of the sth Oct. the nucleus will
make a near approach to Arcturus, the principal
star in the constellation of Booths, which, according
to the above calculations, will be near the border of
the tail during the early part of the evening, and
as it descends towards the horizon may possibly be
enveloped in that appendage. If the sky be clear,
this close approach of the cornet to so conspicuous
a star will doubtless prove a very interesting phe-
nomenon. At 6 p.m. their distance will be littlo
more than one-third of a degree.
It is not probable that the comet will be visible
in this country after the end of the third week in
October, unless a few daylight observations be sub-
sequently procured. We must then leave it to the
care of astronomers in the southern hemisphere,
and more particularly to that of Mr. Maclear, at
the Royal Observatory at the Cape of Good Hope,
who never allows an opportunity to pass, wherein
his position enables him to render any service to
the science. When the Cape observations are com-
bined with those taken in Europe up to the middle
of October we may perhaps be able to assign a
period of revolution to this fine comet, though at
present it must necessarily be open to conjecture.
The general telescopic appearance of the comet
has not materially altered, but some of its features
have come out more distinctly, as was to have been
expected. In a somewhat hazy sky last evening
the apparent length of the tail was about 12 deg.,
corresponding to a real length of 16,000,000 miles.
As usual in great comets, the tail is very visibly
curved in the opposite direction to that of the mo-
tion of the nucleus.
After it is lost to view in Europe the comet will
traverse the southern extremity of the constella-
tion Sagittarius, and thence pass through Telesco-
pium into Indus, where it will be found about
Christmas, not far from the star ain Pavo. It will
remain in the, same constellation during January
and part of February, slowly approaching the prin-
cipal star in Toucan, and, indeed, will continue in
that part of the heavens until it has nearly com-
pleted its next revolution round the sun, and again
presents itself to the gaze of another Donati a few
hundred years hence.