The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1868-11-05

usensasionalism in Science" continues to
form series Of interesting papers IN the
Belgravia Magazine. The latest one Is upon
daylight, and it advances the following curl
GUS theories:
The established doctrine is that heat and
light are propelled from the solar orb out
e9uaIly into all parts of the surrounding space,
, and fall upon the earth aud the other planets
inst az land no more than) they do upon any
waste part Of the sky. And these rays q nea, 4,
and light, We are told, decrease rapioiy Tho
number and in power, diminishing VIII tt tne
square ofthe distance Tom 1neii '0N'
sun, But is it SO? s,do
Ascend in balloon, aud what 40 we nnu:
NJ beei and lipht increase in intensity as We rise
in the air nearest to the sun? By no means.
Six miles up all heat is gone. Inc tnernonl- a,.
stsr ;s at zero. and hoar-frost gathers on every
cord core Of the rigging of the air ship. How can
tbis he If heat comes down to US in diminish
inc force from the sun? IF that were true, neat
ouoht to increase rapidly as we ascend nearer
to the sun, the source OF 1t. Even lSnt
though exceedingly pure-the air being ttere
free from aqueous elements less intense IN
those airy attitudes. Look up from the car OF
the balloon into the abyss OF the SKY above,
and what do we see? A bright dazz!e comes s'
from the spot in the heavens where the sun Is. Is;
but he is shorn Of his rays. Allaround the shy
overhead is of o deep azure, !lke the coz! "
Prussian blue, well-known sign OF H?hl IN IN
nerfectly deyeloped; just as we see IN the
Aome oFa candle or gas-jet, at the part oil I'M
nerfect combustion; or, to take peter exam
ppIe inst as the blue flash of the electric ma
chine is increased. There is little hight IN the
air at those attitudes; the moment the prism
by the gyrations Of the car is inclined away
from the direct rays CT the sun, .core Is no
spectrum at all. Manfestly: .nen, neither
heat nor light come to us from the sun IN the
manner supposed, namely, travelling down to
us through the empty waste OF space, anu o.
creasipe with the square OF the distance. foI
il this were the fact, Doth light and neat @ouiu
increase rapidly with the lessening distance as
we ascend-whereas light diminishes and heat
wholly disappears! s.,.,,-..
not onIy upsetthe common theory, but suggest
the true ore. Heat and light are generated,
spring into existence, within the sphere OF our
own planet. No heat or Eight IN the wastes OF
space Hear, there can be none, seeing that
the thermometer falls to zero only SIX mics
above the earth's surface. And hght' 100
evidently fades away into a thn blue luml-
mostly in those upper regions where the ter,
1estrial gases, the exhalations OF the sond
earth. become attenuated-where probably
they gradually merge into pure hydrogen, ana
into that most subtle subhmatlon OF matter
winch we call ether, which Is present even III d
vacuum of an air pump.
own planet impregnated $50 to speak, by the
solar orb. Our heat and light are generated
within the domain Of earth itself. a comslca'
force, which we call gravitat!on or attracnon-
and which is more or less inherent IN all mater
comes from the sun; and that iorce OF innu-
ence becomes light and heat when it enters
and acts upon the atmosphere-tho gaseous
and ETHEREAL envelope which surrounds the
planets.