Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1857-05-30

Comet known to the scientific world.
Leverrier by his analytic reasoning, had given
confidence to the announcement Of Science, and
standing as it were with one foot on the sum-, and
the other on Uranus, had pointed out the spot
where a planet, until then entirely unknown,shouid
exist. There it was accordingly found, but as
tonishing as this announcement seemed, the calcu-
lation was far from accurate, for his sounding line
would not have come within 500 millions OF miles
of touching the actual position of the planet.
IIallev's Comet had been tracked by Astrono'
mers through the heavens, but the computation
with regard to the time it passed Its perihellon
erred about two days and that with q body going
at the rate Of 100000 miles an hour.
There were three grand divisions among the &C.
lestial CRIBS, stars, planets and comets, or hairy
stars, as they we're called by the ancients. And
the orbits in which they moved were the circle,
elipse, p~arabola, and hyperbpla. lie then gave a
history of the great comet Of 1850, with its stream
of light, or tail sixty millions of miles in length
On the llth Of November, 1850, this comet had
passed within less than the seni.diameter OF the
earth Of our orbit. In 1852, two years later, an
other comet sc frightened the. world that the Pope
added to the mass for deliverance from Mahomet,
he false prophet, and the devil "also, trom the
malicious comet"
In 1910 the telescope was invented, and calcu-
lations improved in accuracy from i've or SIX Gays
to forty minutes. In 1915 tho lecturer had COM
ppted the time Of the appearance of mercury on
the disc of the sun, and he looked for it with great
interest through the telescope just then mounted
Mt the Cincinnati Observatory. His calculations
proved inaccurate just sixteen seconds. so much
time had been gained in accuracy since Leverriers
time, vet this sixteen seconds converted into space
would reach to such q number OF thousands OF
miles that his hearers might think it lid not
an. cunt to much after all. (Laughter.) lie thon
considered the causes of this Improvement IN the
accuracy of astronomical calculations.
1t was in improved instruments, in the knowl-
edge of gravitation and of purtubing forces. 1t
the earth was attracted simply by the sun and the
moon, made of some substance that could not
affect it, the calculation of its orbit and the whole
science of astronomy would be too easy. But the
disturbing influence of other bodies made it neces-
sary to weigh all these flying orbs, ana rendered
the calculations complicated beyond conception.
The moon, when on the same side of the earth
with tie sun, assisted that body to draw the earth
in that direction, and when on the opposite side
counteracted, to some extent, the suns attrac-
ton.
From all the facts known to him, he was led to
conclude that it was not in the power Of Astronomy
at this time, to give tie exact position OF these
wandering bodies called comets.
What then had Astronomy done to guaran
tee the stability of our system?
The known facts in regard to the earth's orbit
guaranteed that it would be permanent and per
~petual. The wondrous limits were so set that see'
time and harvest, summer and winter should neve
fail. The grand problem had been worked out.
The orbit Of the earth varied slighuy-n nv
hundred thousand years it would be an exac
circle, and then would return again to its presen
form.
The planes of orbits. too, must hold q certain
relation to each other-one could never stand per
pendicular to another-for though all these orbit
we're rocking to and fro, there was Il limit beyon,
which they could not go, and when that wa
reached, they would rock back again, and so OF
through all the ceaseless ages of eternity.
But had astronomical science given any guaran
tee that the world should not be destroyed by
comet lie answered without hesitation that astron
mers had as yet found no such guarantees, and die
not think they ever would. Then saysone, 'afte
Ill, we may be. destroyed by a comet?" lie coul'
not tell but thought if we loved to meet such
catastrophe that we should pass the age of Methu
selah about ten millions of years. daughter.
No comet had ever struck the earth nor any plane
of our em- ever touched the rings c
!. Saturn. AS they were much larger than tn
! earth. our chances of escape were pretty goo
(Laughter.)
d Comets, what are they? But he had exhaus
ed the hour and just reached his subject. 1t wouI
occupy too much time to consider this t
t night,