Richmond daily Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1842-1861, 1843-09-23
VOLUME 30. NUMBER ~.

EARTH and square surface of - i6 GEO miles WHICH
peoped at the rate OF pa individuals the square mile
wall give 1055,493i9l 379 inhabitants And can ,hc
be minds so contracted believe that so colossal do
main, so majestic world, is but vast uninhabited or nm
nhabi'abe desert What grandeur. magnifcence nsies
w must be mat OF the creation which il DEVELOPED I'M 81
gantic world What would our Mississippis, Danubes
amaZons be, along side of the Amazons Missspps and
Dlnubes OF Jupiter Without doubt but mpercent;hs
threads oil water Our Andes, Chimborazos Cotopaxis
and himmalays, would there pass but petty hills. wbc,
we consider moreover that Venus and Mercury show, mo
mountains thirty times higher according Cassn Shroe
ter, and Huygens, than highest mountains Where ia
the surveyor here below who will conceive of the par
Gulyan famPas' OF Western Prares. of planet whose
surface contains at least So 400 $40 626 square mics
Who u the Magellan, Bougoinvile, Cook Drake or Adj
nson, VINO could describe extent and epb of ia
oceans, The number OF its islands, the length of il
me aTgeness oil Its bays, the Of its continents
the violence oil its winds, the height of its waves the terri
bic msgncence OF It's storms the formidable and poIon
sed roll OF MS numbers the sublime eruptons Of its Vesuv
uses and Einas Who is the boans could tell us the
height and circumference of the boababs and of IN, o,
oil planet where nature under the empire so en-
oTlous mass ct matter develope prodigio. nm
activity Is there naturalist who will tell us the coIossI
magnitude OF the whales which float and swim its Allan
cs OF the elephants, mastodons, megatherums and mega
iOsauruns which wander over feed upon or crawl along
lis mountains, IN Its Valleys upon its paires the eagles
anu condots winch san IN ITS immense atmospheric the os
iches anu casoars which gaop upon Lybian sands
1t Is permitted to but essay sketch of some of the o..
lestla phenomena which the gent being NAV ;sc
IN the starry heavens of Jupiter. There least obervoo
more than analogy, would furnish us bases more sod 90
support our data but this rapid coup d'ail will sptIco
hope to draw the attention the reader to so
suoectand the sight alone of this planet now 40 hrlapt
VIII not IAN 10 suggest 10 him ideas far poetic than
those which might essay TO mpart to him of Al
YET carrying ms telescope and attention towards the paner
saturn the observer will oil the wonders of Juper =,
most eaced IN of those which will now dsnI,v
themselves to his eyes, be depicted in his
VIII present himself to him IN form having no ana
Ioy with any thing that yet known in the starry domain
Of creation, VIZ: epsis. The favorable position
to clearly distinguish this phenomenon is when the pon.t
Is IN opposition with the EARTH in his winter and summer
lace nj Me 4
teT'a, he occupies thirty years to accompsb his
course around the AT those periods observe this
eiiptc form distinctly, marked by concenuic rnps
which surround the planet perpendicuary at his eouaor
ana which appears 10 elliptic only on account of tho oh
guly OF ms axis to the eciptc, and the inclination of
which 81 degrees AT the present instance these rings
present themselves under the form very elongated ine
yet suilcenly open however be readily distinguished
through the telescope IL conceals from US the none,s
southern pole, but allows view of its northern over the
superior part 1t is from the EARTH however thai the
phosophc observer examine this wonder of creation
the most brilliant work. in the language of an enthusiasts
NC lover OF nature (which the hands of God in feat Of
power and OF harmony has prepared in the void of the bea
els lot the haoatlon OF intelligent beings thousand
I,hes more favored, n thousand times more happy
uah we are, who 10 the glory of the Divine Greater
W the Universe without the shadow of doubt people its
fairy and ndescrbable surface In fine who can desc
or concoi'e IN their magic whole and in their numbess
Details the grand varied sublime scenes which creation de-
veopes upon this Incompatible planet In respect TO x
tent and greatness OF geographic proportions Saturn cannot
!eu 10 jupiter, IN appearance at least since their eqnato
nal dlaeers differ from each other but 10 the amonnt of
Two dameters OF the earth. But let the reader after adm
hs er forms IN the Telescope lay his instruments aside
tor few moments, and transport himself in imugna1io
TO the surface OF Saturn itself During the hours of the
nght inc observer would developing before him the bril-
hant and majestic accessory which astronomers call The
ring OF Saturn about $4,000 miles from the globe of the
planet This ring, which is less than double world
al least OOO times larger than the EARTH would appear TO
MN diSuncuy divided into double concenc ring tina, is
he would perceive world enchased in another but
each moving independently of the other and both ,irnD
around each other distance from one another of only
/ When bly hv tho
double ring would appear him large luminous band
composed OF many hundreds of assembled moons Joined To-
geier and occupying about 10 degrees of the heavens in
BREADTH and extending maesiicay round from one hori
zon over the planet the other. He would see them re-
ons around with the Prodgous velocity of about IOI
hours or IN nearly the time that the planet takes in
turning upon Its axis which gives consequently DAYS
ana nights each TO Its inhabitants OF about 81 of our hours
Besides these brilliant rings he would sec circulating around
e planet seven resplendant moons which together are AZ
least as large cs earth. Al time he would see one
OF TWO oil tem sloplng upon the vault of tina
heaven IN the while two others little more
towards the zenith would present in quadrature
gooous form Now again. while these are setting 10 the
west he would behold directly in oppos
uo from the sum- rising IN all their spendor nj the east
aud presenting the Saturnians the beautiful sib, f -
double, and often, triple full moon.
sometimes again gittenng the superior or inferior
borders OF the rings, appearing disappearing eeinsn
then reapPearng still more radiant would see them an ar
the same time on the scinang vault the heavens some
iul, others gibbous, pouring all unedy upon the planet
their rays OF light which, with the brilliant shining of the
double rng sufficient create day at east sou,I 4,
that which the winter enghens us with during tho ,;,n -
thicN snow And as at the distance Of $4,000 miles only
AL the pnrtcunriues OF the exterior physical of
Tie rings might be discovered by telescopes egua 10 those
which we possess the observer Saturn would see nasn
III succession before him in the space of 10 hours the riv
mountains Valleys praes, oceans, clouds, cities vii
lagos even the Snmas and the intelligent and fortunate
beings which people these countries and apnear In
MN 10 be moving over the sky with their heads hanging
downward as seen from his telescope. Leaving for mo
ment the rings and planet for the consolidated heavens which
environ him, how much more brilliant must appenr II, him
the magnificent starry panorama which decontes the firm,
ment OF Saturn. For he 800 millions of leagues near
or the stars aud galaxy than are, follows that their
scineation and brightness there much more CON
siderable than with The nicr5f planets only must there
Lose; with the exception sometimes however of Jupiter
Mars Is there with six times less brancc than whus;
e eat.n almost lost IN the suns rays appear only
20 osclaie some times above, sometimes below him, as
Mercury does Venus must there be known bnt nv
her transit the disk the sun beyond whose lit
she Is never seem the existence Of Mercury in fine must
be unknown 10 Saturn but in return Uranus surrounded
by his SIX moons and perhaps by triple concenc ring a
liesche supposed, must appear him az lcnst a. brilliant
ne Jupiter or Mars actually In respect TO volume
the planet Saturn only compared with Jupiter would be in
eHor Is true in about One-hrd Of his size as he ure
senis US diameter Of about times only that Of the
eaTihi G. about 1881 miles, making circumference Of
about 22J'o miles. and So times that Of the
eaih'or about ''oyoo65526 So Of surface and pcop
"k every So M at the rutc 21I persons would give the
enormous population OF SIS gIl 6S $40 inhabitants ut
we add, as should, the Interior and lateral square
surface OF the double ring 20 that Of the planet IL once
seen mat saturn far from being inferior Jupiter in vo
ume or population since the rings alone contain AZ
least thousand times the habitabc surface Of orr globe
And what according the latest assertions of the oh
sctaioy az Rome the ring were really divided into con-
centric rings instead OF but People now each of these
seven rings according to the population OF the pllnet peo
pie the seven saictcs vury them according 10 the infinite
capHccs OF nature, according the genius wisdom DOW
or OF the Creator, the situation. manners races kinds
species families countries, the intcigonces animals plants
On tho .fff 3D. IL