Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1857-04-18
OF COM ETC

From the Boston Telegraph.
OF COMETS.
large number Of respectable people have
been thrown into state of terror by the fear
that comet announced TO show itself this year
will destroy the world, saints TO fare no better
than sinners so far as this life is considered 1t
turns out, however, that the comet is not TO ap-
pear in 1857, or that il will be as harmless
body as any of its predecessors. Although NJ.
Babnei says that those who are killed by COM
els die merely of ''terror, stupidity, and igno
rance, II is certain that these erraic bodies
have always been source of terror to man
kind, from princes to peasants, until very re-
Gently, such terror being now confined to the
bosoms OF the Ignorant and ihoughless In
former times the comet, from the rarity Of its
coming, and from the grandeur Of its appear
ance, we may suppose, was held to he special
ly connected with the fortunes of kings. When
one appeared, particularly if it was of great
size, kings felt their consciences disturbed, and
had serious thoughts of repeniing of their sins
As the poet has it, the comet perpexed mon
archs with fear of change. 1t used 10 be said
that Charles the Fifth abdicated his halfdozen
thrones because of that comet which is now
sometimes known by his name and title, bat
the story is as foolish as the fear that comets
yet excite among the masses in Europe, and
which are not altogether unknown in America.
This fear must, nevertheless, be treated with
seriousness. and. in the hope of removing it
from some minds, we avail ourselves of the la
bors OF one of the first men of science of our
century, who sought, not unsuccessfully, to con-
vince his coun,rymen that they were not in dan
ger OF being annihiated by comet. In 1892,
when Belas comet was expected to appears
after an interval OF less than seven years, great
alarm existed in France, many of the journal,
going so far as to announce that the comet
would strike the earth, and shver it 10 atoms.
The Board of Longitude resolved that some
thing should be published oIn the .sgbiecL scals
terror that prevailed, and which terror was not
confined to the ignorant. The result was
work by Francois Arago, one of the very high
est authorities that ever spoke concerning as
tronomy. This work was translated into Eng
lish by Colonel Charles Gold. 1t was much
read in 1923 and had very sensible effect
on mems minds, and some of its facts, being
general in their character, can be usefully quo
ted at this time.
Monsieur Arago admitted the possibility of
comet coming in contact with the earth, but
he lhen proceeded to show that the chances of
such collision were so small that there could
be no reasonable ground for alarm. "1'he
calculations of probabilities shows that" he
says, "of psi ,000, 900 of chances. there is only
one uniavorabe, there exists but one which
can produce a collision between the Two bodies"
Again, I'VE have found, as to the nucleus
properly so called, one chance of collision, one
woeful chance to ESQ 800 ,999 favorable chances
AS for the nebuloslty, in It's most habltua di-
mensions, The upfavorable chances will be from
10 TO 20 in the same number of PSI 900 900
Admitting, then, for moment, that the comets
which may strike the earth with their nucleuses
would annlhate the whole human race, then
the danger of death 10 each individual, result
ing from the appearance Of an unknoicn comet
would be exactly equal to The risk he would
run ifin an urn there was only one single white
ball, of total number of 2Sl 900 200 balls
and that his condemnation to death would he
the inevitable consequence of the white ball
being produced at the first drawing. Every
man who is willing 10 make use of his reason,
however he may be attached 10 life, will laugh
a, so small danger. Well, then, the day on
which comet is announced, before ohserva-
tons have been made on it, before it has been
possible to determine lis path, then is there for
each inhabitant of our globe, the chance of the
white ball from the Lrn of which ] have Just
spoken" With such chances in their favor,
even when the estimate relates TO an unknown
comet, men ought not to be much alarmed about
the possible consequences of any comets APP
pearance. AS TO the effect of collision, NJ,
Babinet declares that "everyting indicates that
meeting a comet would do no injury whatever
10 the earth, and could not even be felt" Mrs.
Somerville states that the comet of l770 passed
within eighty thousand miles of the earth with
out affecting our tides, and swept through the
midst of Jupiier's satellites, without deranging
the motions of those little moons. The same
high authority, after admitting that there may
be upwards of eleven million comets that come
within the known extent of our system adds,
''In such a multitude of wandering bodies, il is
lust possible that one of them may come in col
lision with the earth but even if il should, the
mischief would be local, and the equilibrium
soon restored. 1t is, however, more probable
that the earth would only be DETECTED little
from its course, by the near approach of the
comet, without being touched"
The opinion, apparently well founded, is,
however, beginning TO prevail among astrono-
mers, that comets are no more nor less than ar
rant celestial humbugs. M. Babinet says they
are "vsible nothing" Sir John Herschel
speaks of comets entire tail weighing but a
few ounces, which would be fine apPendage
to something capable of destroying this solid
earth of ours, that is hollow only in moral
sense. Mr. Faye goes to the extreme OF saying
that comets are not so solid as the speeches OF
politicians, that is, he declares they are not
even gases, and remarks thereon "lt may De
seen by this how little the mechanical effects of