Daily State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1865-01-19
SENTINEL
THURSDAY MORNING. JANUARY 10


Tbe Ioarnal Of Commsrce says the source snc
fecfsnthment Of the suns beat las been 8 SOD
fsct Of curious speculation among astforomefs
Cor many years. Some have held that The SUI
is gradually throwing of the hest which 49,
given 10 Is shen tie Creator launched o lnio
space. others that II = not = heated bldy. tut
test IL rays sre perfectly cold. 40 ACT bf some
nakno~n chemical lss UPON sbe kab anccof|
heat on this earth. through the medium 81 our
atmosphere. fSif Wm. Hefschel maintained this
opinion } others again that electricity best eH
plains the soiaf phenomena. Aorton suggested
that the sslsf tres. Which you'd olher"ise, 10
the course at sTes, become exhausted by the
prodigisas radiation Of heat. might be fed TO
some extent by comets tumbling into the suns
d.sk. This idsA OF Newton's-st best a shrewd
and startling conjcctufc-haa been worked up
and improved npou by the later physiests. and
is nov ssdoasiy brought Forward - the only
rational way TO account for the origin aud un
failing supply Of the suns beat. According To
this theory. the heavens are full OF comets. a.
tsfoids, metsofs. aud other cosmlcal matter, Tor
ever elfellng about the central luminsfy In 81.
min,sh,ng orbits. and finally pitching head fore
most into IL ineandescent bath.
The fodiacsl light, which has btea for cen
tnftes one OF the chief mysteries Of the skies,
PLAYS an Important part IN this theory, for u is
claimed 70 be composed Of closely packed as,e
folds or other cosmical substances gradually
nearing The sun. Being crowded together and
rejecting The solar light. they are visible after
asfs In the form Of = thin pyramid or CONVEX
lens. rising high towards tho zenith, The zodi
aeal light - supposed 10 encirolo The sun. hut.
having tie greater diameter IN the plane Of the
solsr squatoF. II presents 20 the eye Of the earth
~ spectator only its edge
Tho ablest champion OF this theory "a DE- Nav
sf. ct Germany. whose treatise on Celestial
pynsmies has recently been published, in con.
fsafi.a .tIh a nuuatsF aI allae .aaaNa IA fka
~yTeblsms of tho universe. under the general title
Of "Correlatlon and Conservation of Forces "
Df. Meyer assumes al The start. that the sun IL
. molten mass. raised TO . heat which would va
porise platinum OF any other OF the most Unjust.
bie kn Jwn substances Ihi. IL his hrst hypothe
SIS Ills nett IA that. ia the wise economy OF
nature. there must be some provision for making
good tho enofmo losses sustained by the fAdla
ton OF the s0n's heat.
Thirdly, he assumes Tor there IL really no ey-
identr upon the subject worthy the nams) tte
existence Of ether. or an exceedingly rafiied re.
sistit ( medium pcrvading the heavenly spaces,
who, obslfucts the movements OF all objects re
volving about tho san until at last they fall INTO
e-their centfipetal overcoming their centrifugal
force. On this hypothesis. thu earth aud all The
planets Of our system. encountering the resist
ance OF tho universal medium. will eventually
drop into the sun. Having a greater density and
magnitude than the widely disseminated floating
cosmlcal matter. tho planets approach their doom
more slowly. but not less surely. The time will
come-pefhaps millions OF centuries hence
when this earth will be chueked like a lump OF
coat into the roaring solar furnace. These pre-
liminares to Dr. Mayors grand argument are all
sssumptions-clever pieces OF guess work-un'
proved by a particle Of positive testimony
Having promised all this. Dr.. Mayer finds liz
tia difficulty IN showing not only how the heat
OF the sun ia maintained bat how Il was origina
ted. Heat being developed. in accordance with n
law, by the violent contact Of bodies, as well AS
by chemical processes. he claims that the sun
being perpetually bombarded by asteroids. aud
what not, falling into IL ~ a velocity of not less
than Gu miles a second. must have been raised
TO, aud u now kept at. an iacalculable high de
gree OF heat. The supply OF oosmical matter be
considers To be wonderfully abundant. lie
quotes Helpers celebrated statement that ''there
are more comets in the heavens than fab In the
ocean. comparatively few OF them being visible.
by reason OF their peculiar organization. 10 the
Inhabitants of this earth. lie refers TO the fact
that. on a bright night. twenty minutes scarcely
eslpse without a shooting star being perceptible
10 an observer ia any situation. lie alludes,
also. to the famous FIRE shower OF 1888. when at
least 2i0. 900 meteors were estimated by a spec
tator at Boston, Mass, 10 have impinged upon
tho earth's atmosphere within a period of nine
hours. According to the calculus OF probabilI.
ties thu number of these wandering bodies ap-
proaches the infinite. so that no fears need be
entertained that The supply will give oui-for
some time yet.
Such il a barren outline OF a most eloquent
and ingenious argument. Ii Is far from %satisfac
tory. A portion OF it-yix: the probable efec.
that would be produced by the falling Of comets
or meteors or any forms of matter into the sun
lis plausible enough. Grant that there is a
continuous fusilade of such objects, striking the
sun In countless numbers, at a velocity OF no,
less than sixty miles a second. and you must
concede that an q amount Of heat would
be developed. The question. after all. is. do the
comets. &c. fall into the SUM- DR.. Mayer has
no evidence on this point, which is the gist OF
she whole matter. The hypothesis of the ether,
as We have said, is purely grstuitous. Encke,
trying 10 account for certain perturbatlOns in the
movements OF the comet which bears his name,
biz upon che idea Of ar ether as the best ~explana-
ton. Herschel and other illuslrious philoso.
piers. dissented from Encke's view. aud sttribu-
ted the change in his comets motion 10 The grad
ual loss of its tail. To accept the hypothesis oil
an ether (t il said BY those who dissent from ~
is TO regard this majestic universe as no better
than an organized chaos. bearing within It's own
bosom the seeds OF its destruction; for sooner OF
later the whole planetary system must find il;
grave in the sun il the theory OF a resisting me
dunn in the celestial spaces be true.
Many objections are brought against the
llCbIN lUtb klt SUI ~ = lOitN tbAo1f u w
have room. to state but one. II il l. liquid fire
as DR.. Mayer assumes what explanation can bt
given Of those shifting black spots. which are
continually to be seen, and which appear 10 ter
testial eyes ike glimpseS of ssolid orb caught
through the riffs OF a photosphereG That the
body Of the sun is solid; that the luminous and
heating properties Of the sun may be confined "a
its envelopes. or photosphere. created aud re
plenished in conformity To some law not vet sur
missed: that We experienced the effects of light
and heat onfy by virtue OF our peculiar atmos
phere; that the sun itself may be a temperate
and pleasant place TO dwell in. and the rome oil
myriads of sentient beings. responsible. like
man, to the Divine Author Of all:-these conjec
lures. il is maintained. are quite as plausible a
Dc Maver's, aud seem to be more consistent
with the infinite wisdom and benefcenoe Of III,
Creator.
Notwithstanding the objections which environ
this theory, IL meets With much favor among the
advanced school Of scientific inquiries. Tire
hypothesis of q universal ether is regarded as
highly probable. But other philosophers. start
Jog out from the ssme hypothesis. reach eonclu
sious widely at variance with DR. Mayors. Mr.
Vaughan. OF Cincinnati, in 8 paper read before
the British Association. takes the ground and
ibly maintains it. that the ether itself supports
the combustion of the sun.