Daily gazette and comet. (Baton Rouge, La.) 1856-186?, 1860-05-08
Life on The Moon.

| was no heat IN mO0DshiDe. They
have denied the moon an atmosphere,
and consequently water and organic
life They have made us believe
that Q residence IN the moon would
be exceedingly undesirable. The old
faith in the Goddess Of the Night was
quite overturned in scientific circles,
and the destinations Of moonlight
were departing day by day.
But this Is all changed. Knox
and Mellopi have shown, by very OK.
act observations, that there IL heat in
the moons rays. Zantedeschi has
discovered that this beat produces .
sensible effect upon The mimoss. An
English philosopher has found that
the earth Is colder during the first
quarter of the moon than IL IL in the
second.
Upon the growth Of plants the
moon exercises remarkable influence
The chemical action of light IL neces.
sary to their principal work, the alb
sorption Of GORDON from the carbopic
acid gas Of the atmosphere. This
work all plants carry on during the
day, and In the night they sleep
except when the moon shines. She
makes them aud sets them at work.
So the farmers who plant only Just
before the full moon are right, and
the scoffers who call them supersti.
tious are themselves the foolish ones.
For, II sewa before or near new moon,
the young plants get above ground
just st the full, when the tender
things need sleep. But IL sowu Just
before the full. they come up about
new moon, pass their babyhood under
the soothing influences of dark nights,
and wheu the full moon comes are
study mchipg, able to work night
and day.
The moop.worsbippers are right,
also, In regard to the influence Of the
moon upon the weather. Herscbel,
Arsgo aud Whewell recognized that
the moon has some light power in
dispensing the clouds. The sailors
go further, and say that the moon
eats mp the clouds. At The last meet
ing Of the British Association IL was
shown that che weather, through
long series of years, depended little
"a very iittle--upon the phases Of
the moon; and now Quetelet, the Di-
rector Of the Brussels Observatory,
has shown that between the first and
last quarters OF the moon more, and
not less rain falls than during the re.
mainder Of the time. However, fine
weather and greater rainfall may 20
together.
Finally, Webb, after careful com. |
parison Of the present appearance Of |
the moon with The very precise maps |
made by Nader some twenty years !
ago, has shown that there have been
considerable changes. Some of the
small crssers, in particular, have
a notable different form from what
they had when Nader observed them. |
These changes show the existence Of
water and an atmosphere. Farther
Seocbi, Director Of the Roman Obser.
vatory, after much observation, has
come to the conclusion that the peaks
Of the highest mountains on the moon
are covered with snow. And 10 make
us still more at home on the moon,
De In Rive, the owner OF the obser.
vatory at Crawford, near London,
gives It as his opinion, that what
we're at first marked down as seas, and
afterwards supposed to be barren
plains, are In fact extensive forests.
In support Of this comes up great
,stronomic authority, schwabe, the
iiscoverer Of the periodic times Of the
'un's spots.
Besides these great smooth plains,
which were called seas, there are q
number Of burrows or wrinkles, near.
va hundred, the nature Of which
vas entirely unknown. Their length
Iaries from three to thirty-five miles,
md their greatest breadth il about
I've thousand feet; most Of them are
considerably narrower. Their sides
ire PARALLEL and smooth; some run in
traight lines, and somo are gently
urved. Ordinarily they are separate
'ut sometimes they cross each other
ften they cross craters, but occasion.
lily they seem to be cut of by them.
hey are found all over the moon,
xcept the highest mountain chain.