The Albany register. [volume] (Albany, Or.) 1868-18??, 1871-06-10

erence ,eter, /
third c .Ssses. Are
not the ~.eiL with feryent |
heat Are not tie heavens to be fold /
ed together like scroll 2 Are not the
rocks to melt, the stars TO fall and the
moon to be turned into blood Is not
FIRE the next grand cy clio consummation
of all things here below But come
fully prepared to answer such objections.
Your argument betfays narrow mind,
its depth. 'Tis the common thought of
mediocrity. You have read books too
much, and studied nature too little. Let
me give you lesson to>day in the work
shop of Omnipotence. Take stroll with
me into the limitless confines of space,
| and let US observe together some of the
scenes transpiring at this very instant
arour d US. A moment ago you spoke of
the the moon what is she but an extin-
guished world You spoke of the sun
4 what is he but globe of fame But
here is the Cosmos of Humboldt. Read
this paragraph
AS he said this he placed before me
the Cosmos of Humboldt, and I read as
follows
tsNor do the heavens themselves teach
Interchangeable permanency in the works
of creation. Change is observable there
quite as rapid and complete as in the con-
6ues of our solar system. In the year
tl7T2. one of the small stars in the con-
steilation Casiopea blazed up suddenly
into an orb of the first magnitude, grad
ually decreased in brilliancy, and finally
disappeared from the skies. Nor has it
ever been visible since that period for a
single moment, either to the eye or to the
telescope. 1t burned up aud was lost in
space"
| Humboldt" he added. s'has not told
us who set that world on FIRE -
"But," resumed he, II have still cleare,
proofs. Saying this, he thrust ihto my
hands the last London Quarterly, aud OF
opening the book at an article headed
,.-rhe Language of Light" read, with
| feeling akin to awe, the following pass
, age:
Further, some stars exhibit change:
of complexion in themselves. Sirius, a
i before stated, was once ruddy, or rathe
: a fery>faced orb, but has now forgottel
to blush, looks down upon US with a pure
/ l.brilliart smile, in which there is no trac
j either Of anger or of shame On I'll
t countenances of others, still more varie
i traits have rippled, within much briefe
4 period of time. May uot these be due t
: some physiological revolutions, gener;
or convulsive, which arc in progress
/. the particular orb. aud which by effec
e ing the constitution of its atmosphere
q compel .he absorption or promote th
transmission OF particular rays? ? The sur
e position appears by no means iniprobabi,
e especially if we call to mind the hSdroge
: volcanoes which have heen discovered O
!, the photosphere of the sun. e fIndee
there are few small stars which afford
/. spectrum of bright lines instead Of dar
If ones, and this we know denotes gaseo,
or vaporized state of things, from whic
/. may be inferred that such .orbs are in
e. different condition from most of the
,e relations.
..On the 18th of May, 1866, a gre
1t conilagration, infinitely larger than th
/ of London or Moscow, was announce
} To use the expression of a distinguishs
r, astronomer, world was found to be {
j. fire! 4 star which till then had shol
it weakly and unobtrusively in the coro,
h Jorealis, suddenly blazed up into
r. luminary of the second magnitude.
O. the course ofthree days from its discove
e in this new character, by Birmingham
,e at Tuan, it had declined to the third
re one fourth order of briiiiancy In twel
b. days, dating from its first appearance
n the Irish heavens, it had sunk. to 4
n eighth rank, and it went on waning NJ
n. the 26th OF June, when it ceased to
:? discernible except through the Smediu
he of the telescope This was remarf at
ut though certainly not an unprecedcnt
nd proceeding on the part of a star; but 0
hit singular circumstance in its behavior "
I'M that, after the lapse ofnearly two mont
ne il began TO blaze up again, though Z
be with equal ardor. and after maintain
lie. its glow for a few weeks, and passi
sse through sundry phases of color, it grs
ce. ually paled its fires, aud returned to
,ry former insignifcance. How many ye;
s had elapsed since this awful confiag
ese ton actually took place it would be p
Ter sumptuous TO guess; but it must be
in. membered that news from the heavel
u.s. though carried by the feetest of messs
he gers, light, reaches US long after t
ars event has transpired, and that the sal
,ut celestial. carrier is still dropping 4
EN- tidings at each station it reaches in spa,
ali until it sinks exhausted by the length
as its fight.
all As the star had suddenly famed /
in was it not natural supposition that
had become enwrapped in burning hyd
of gen, which in consequence of some gr,
aat conyulsion had been liberated in pro,
M gIous quantities. and then combini
lat with other elements had set this hapI
b., world on FIRE In such fierce coni
lie grafton the combustlbie gas would SC
le, be consumed, and the glow would the
rc fore begin to decline, subject, as in t
Hs case, 70 q second eruption, whacn oc
M stoned .ne TeneWeu.outDurse oI y 2h1
re. the Goth of August.