Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1856-09-03

Observing that my countenance wore ihole
and more an expression OF awe, as my giance
was riveted on the swinging weight ana Jerking
finger, while he made these astounding revela-
tions, my host suddenly interrupted his nara
tive by an exclamation: "By the way, said ne,
''you would perhaps like to SEQ some OF our
stars See some of our stars at noonaay u
Who ever heard of stars by daylight before Fl
Hitherto had always associated their twlnklng
forms with darkness and dreams. AS these
thoughts passed through my mind was sensible
that nv hosts kindly meant interruption had
unfortunately rather increased my stupefacuon
and bewilderment than otherwise. However, l
did the best | could to keep my counsel, and
answered, with an awkward attempt at non
chalance: 20 yes, by all means. Every. body
is fond of stars | am particularly so, and shall
be proud to have the opportunity OF making
some new acquaintance in the line"
As spoke my host laid his hand upon cord,
and at touch wide rent opened out IN the
roof of the dim chamber, revealing strip OF
bright blue sky, and letting flood of clear day
light radiance pour into the sombre space IN
which our conversation had hitherto been car
ried on. He then held few minutes private
consultation with his slave, referred to some re-
gisters lying near, and turned up the tube with
ton, which he seemed to fix by means of mar
row wheel that was attached to the extremity
of one of the arms. Whilst he was etfecting
these preliminary arrangements, and stood
watching intently to see whether could detect
any sort of prestidigtiation in his proceedings,
one of the chair couches considerably came up
to the end of the tube | saw nothing move 1t.
am certain the genius of the lamp against the
wall the star-accountant with the slender finger
and swinging weight, never stirred from his
perch. It is my firm conviction that the couch
wheeled itself up when its service was required.
I was now directed to recline myself upon it
Aware that any sort of resistance on my part
must be altogether out of the question, did as
| was bidden; and as soon as was fairly and
firmly placed on the couch felt its back doub-
ling up more and more, until my right eye was
| brought into all but close contact with the end
of the magic tube.
"There," said my friend, "tell me what you
can see now"
Ground blue sky" was my answer.
"But is there nothing else in sight2"
| "Oh yes; there are some threads of a spiders
web stretched across it. | can see now that
there are five stretched up and down, apparent
| " ut equal distances, and there is another run
ming traversely across them but they are e1-
ceedingly fine. 1t must have been one OF the
little gossamer weavers which" :,
| s'Never mind the weavers, but attend to me, ="
was the reply of my conductor, his voice now
almost stern from the Importance OF the moment.
1TIe middle one of those fine upright threads
hides the meridian line of the sky; however the
tnhe IS place,s that thread never leaves it. 1t
rms mn and down in front of it,as the tube plays
mn and down on lis arms. Whenever star is
behind that thread It is really on the sky's mer-
dian, or halfway line; that is, it has then ac-
complished half its journey between rising ana
setting. Now, listen to the chant OF my slave
OneEtwo-th -three-four; in ten more chants
you will have star come into siSn0 just "oo'kI
the transverse thread"
every well-nine-ten There is the star
Why, it is twinkling in the bluish-gray daylight
almost as clearly as if it were its own proper
dusky field of light!
snow notice; the star is travelling towards
the left. 1t will go behind all the live uprgh5s
threads. Count the chants of the slave, ana
tell me at which chant it is behind each OF the
five several wires"
Travelling! why, it is going by railway,
1t is past the first-no, it is the second thread.
eventeen-eighteen-I can't count. 1t is over
the third-and fourth-and fifth. And now 1T
is gone out of sight altogether to the left )" ana
as it did SO fairly leaped from my seat In the
excitement of the chase, half believing that
was still about to pursue it.
Nv friend however, stopped me, laughing
Can't count 2" he said "Why, who taught you
arithmetic2 There was plenty of time II you
had been cool about it. The star takes eight
seconds at least to get from one thread TO the
other. When / am on the watch myself can
tell not only the chant at which the star IS hia-
den behind each thread, but even the fractional
part of it to a tenth. l notice how far the star
is on one side of the thread when my slave
chants, and then how far it is on the otter side
when he chants again; and then divide the IN
tervening distance into ten parts and CONSIDER
how many of the parts belong to each side. "A
friend of mine who resides not hundred miles
from Greenwich employs another slave in the
place of the chanting one, who makes every
second little pricks upon paper ranged in line;
and by the help of his slave he is able to deter
mine when the star passes behind the threads
within hundredth part of q second, instead OF
within the tenth part of chant"
This little episode led to a long and very lucid
explanation from my kind companion, out OF
which / cleaned many notable truths. In the
first place, certainly ha3 seen the star rush
through the little measured space upon which
my gaze was fixed ct most furious pace III
went trembling through the haze of daylight, as
if froEl eagerness of speed, and 1t literally seemed
as if my glance could not catch it, But l no
ticed during this rapid passage one very remark
able condition: the star had a singular method
in its hurry. Tremulous as its progress unques-
tionablv was there nevertheless was no halting
or hesitation in its gait. 1t was one constant on
ward sweep that impressed the eye with sense
of grand immutability, even in that teeting mo-
ment Now the truth was made apparent to me
that, after ALL there was no movement In the
star was the subject of an illusion; but now
magnificent the ilusion That magic tube and
were firmly fixed upon the terrestrial surface,
but we were moving with it as it whlrled round
the central pivot of the great revolving globe, to
which it acted as she'll That tube and were
looking out into the infinite universe, ana catch
ing glilnpses of the forms that dwet IN the lar
immensity as we drifted or swept over the posi-
tions they occupied.
1t was really my own earths grand sweeping
movement that l witnessed when | saw the
twinking star shoot across my field of vision
But, rapid as was its passage, l was distinctly
sensible that there was an appreciable fraction
of an instant when its form was entirely hidden
behind each of the delicate threads, which were
themselves many times finer than hairs. This
fraction was the shortest conceivable interval [;
still it was not beyond the detective power OF
the eye-glance There it assuredly was. The
star did hide itself behind that intnitesimal fl
bril-; but that star, my companion told me, he
had good grounds for saying had breadth OF its
own of at least round million of miles, A mil
lion of miles hidden behind spiders thread !
What is the cnmel and the eye of the needle to
thisq Here, indeed, is romance sufficient to O.
yerwhelm the most lively fancy-stars seen in
bright daylight The idea of stability, the firm
foundations of the world, that only tremble for
a moment beneath the throes ofthe earthquake,
cast adrift from their mooringS and sweeping