Litchfield enquirer., 1841-01-07
THE MARINERS COMPASS.

mo invented tnS I1arlneES COtsspaSa:
 This is a question not often put, but less frequently answered.
 A shepherd of Italy, by the name of Mag nes, was tue first to discover the properties of the loods,one, mineral which gives polari. ty tO iron-from the circumstance of his walking over n quarry, and small particles of this stone Ndhering to the iron and nails in his sandals.
 In the year 1924, John de Gioia, a handi- craftsman of Naples. first discovered that a piece of iron, rubbed with lOadstone, and then suspended on its centre of gravity, had the property of pointing to the north star, and he was the first to apply needles on centres for the purpose of navigation.
 John tried his needles at different places in Italy, and moorcd vessel in the Meditcr- ranean, to ascertain whether this magnetic power was the same on water us upon land. The name magnet was given to the LO6dstOne, and to the needle.
 first made into four qua arters, then into l6 and B points, and ultimately into 36O.
 This graduation was progressive, and marked out upon moyeable disk. It was not until the middle of the last century, that the needle and card were combined and hung on a common centre.
 In the time of Columbus, nearly POO years after the discovery of the magnetic needle by John dc Gioja, the card was placed under the needle.
 It is worthy of remark, that this highly useful instrument, discovered, not invented through any scientific or theoretical deduc- tions, should still continue to puzzle and baf- fle the philosopher in his attempts to discov- CT the cause of its vibration in the different parts of the Earth.
 To the Italians we are indebted for the compass and early enterprise in navigation, and to Philadelphian for the discovery of the quadrant.-U. s. Gazette.
 Interesting Incident--Thc Milledgeville Standard of the 24th ult. relates the follow ing. In the examination before the Legisla- ture. of the claim of James Hunter, to Legis- lative clcmency or pardon, for the crime of murder, committed on B. Lovejoy, Mir. Jones, Senator from the county of Paulding, made the following statement, which we have not seen contradicted :-" After the conviction of Hunter, he was visited in his prison by his wife. During one of her visits, she clad her. self in his apparel, and he dressed himself up in hers, and in that disguise made his es- cape. After some hours the affair was dis covered, and the jailor detained the wife in prison, as being accessary to the escape of her husband. hunter came forth voluntari- ly, and gave himself up to the proper au- thority, to suffer upon the gallows, in order to relieve an atfectionatc and confiding wife from the walls of prison. Such conduct is truly ennObling even in felon, and the mention of it created deep emotion in the legislative halls. Hunter was pardoned by the Legislature, and has been restored to the bosom of his family. And we sincerely hope that his subsequent conduct will prove him not unworthy of the enjoyment of those civ il privileges to which he has been again re- stored.
 SCHOOL ILLUSTRATIONS IN ASTRONOMY.
 A writer in the Journal of Commerce, ex. posing some of the evils connected with com mon schools in the State of New York, re- lates the following: .u.s.
 "I heard one of your committees interfer- ing with a vengeance and turning out school master for committing sunday enor- mites in the way of illustrating his lessons. It appears that he had enlisted the feelings of his pupils in Natural Philosophy, and tried to get some apparatus, but was told to do the regular teaching and "leave out the nonsense" But nothing daunted. he got they would bring him mouse or two the next day. he would show them the effects of nitrogen gas upon them. The next day came, in great wrath, the Committee to re- prove him because forsooth their boys, in their eagerncss to learn, had been up all night trying to catch mice for their master, and disturbing their houses! He promised to do better, but when he came to astronomy, he committed n more atrOcious crime-for being deficient of an orrery--he took the biggest boy in school, and placing him in the middle for the sun, told him how to turn round and round slowly upon his axis, as the sun did; then he placed a little fellow for Mercury next to him; then a girl for Venus; then representation of the earth then a fiery little fellow for Mars. and SO on till he explained to each one how fast he was to go. and how many times to turn on his heels as he wont round in his orbit. H......i
 Then giving the signal the sun commen- ces revolving, and away went the whole team of planets around him. each boy keeping his proper distance from the centre, trotting with the proper velocity in his orbit, and whirling around in due proportion as he performed his revolution. It must have been Q rare sight, and lesson which the boys long re- tained for do you think, my dear sir, that John, who represented Mercury. would ever forget that he was nearest the sun, and that he had easy time walking round the station- ary lubber in the centre, while Will, who represented Hcrschcll, must have been out ofbrcath in scampering round his orbit.
 But if the boys did not forget the lesson, neither did the master; they danced. but he paid the piper; for. mortified, the Commit tee dismissed him at once-he had been teaching, for aught they knew, the dance of the Turkish DervisheS. ......... .tl
 Seriously, my dear sir. if ever you should come across this prescribed illustrator, let