Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1871-10-26

Hair over the Indian Oceam----
Conjunction of the SUN and Moon
IA COunter-Irrftant for the Tidal
Wave. z
Theme Orleans Picayaas furnishes
the following startling, but on the whole
rather reassuring, Information concerning
certain planetary meteoric conditions
which it expects will occur within the
next twenty 7faur, hour - as
Encke predicted the reappearanceoft the
Pons comet in 1861, bit he said it would
not be visible in Europe. 1t was not
visible, as suggested; but on the other
side of our planet, in New South Wales,
Sir Thomas Brisbane, the Principal Gov
ernor had a private observatory and a
personal telescope through which he-saw
the Pens comet as per date of Encke's
calculations'rhe German savan, with a
perseverance thoroughly Teutonic, Ia
bored with the parabolic meteor until he
extorted the secret of its periods, and ar
rived atthe fact that once every three and
one-third years (three years and twenty
nine one hundreths) the Pons comet came
back from its trip outside the orbit of
Jupiter to visit the sun, the earth, and the
moon When the long tailed phenome-
ma is, nearest TO the sun, it is only one
third the respectful distance which the
earth is compelled to keep from that use
full luminary. And when it goes farthest
away upon its triennial trip its apphelion
is four times the earth's surface. Some of
our one hundred and forty comets go
farther, but it takes them longer, and for
a few ofthem we shall be Obliged to wait
patiently for some hundreds of years. If
the astronomer can find out the exact DO
sition and time of comet at three distinct
consecutive periods or points, he gets its
ellipse or parabola, and then he can tell
about how many thousand years it will re-
quire to get back, for they all ''revisit the
glimpse" of our Phebus from time to
time.
Respecting the heavenly messenger in
discovey that each successive trip of the
comet was two hours and thirty minutes
shorter than its predecessor, which hap
pens thus the comet goes through some
dense medium; this decreases centrifugal
force this gives more attraction to the
sun when the comet comes around the
half mile stretch nearest the sun; this
shortens the comets track and so it comes
under the string two and half hours ear
lier every heat This is because its ma
jor axis is shortened The consequences
of all these discoveries was that astrono-
mers have ceased to honor the hairy and
nebulous visitor with the name of Pons
but now they call it Encke's comet
Subsequently, Encke wrote number of
valuable works on astronomical subjects.
He observed and noted many perturba-
tions in the orbits of comets caused by
planetary attraction. Cne of these is now
announced which is a little startling
The Encke comet for 1871 will barely
miss the earth, their paths so crossing
each other that they must collide, except
that such collision is theoretically i'm
possible In the night of October 6, at
II :45, the Eneke comet must Craze the
earth somewhere between the Indian
Ocean, and the Hymmalaya mountains
1t must strike the land with violent
conclusion or else it must exercise an at
traction on the earth. But little after
eleven o'clock of October (actually at
the same time that the conjunction of the
sun and moon viii raise the great tidal
wave about 500 miles east of Florida) the
earth on the other side will feel the
Encke comet strikes the earth, even with
no greater force than enough to knock
down few little mountains in Northern
India, while it drags its vapory appendage
across the mapof China it will readjust
the relations of land and water on our
side of the world, preventing the appre-
hended tidal wave and deluge. We must
confess that our natural curiosity would
be gratifed with the novel and peculiar
spectacle of tidal wave, but when as
tronomy thus interposes to render it i'm
possible we must submit to the dispense
ton. What with the spectroscope and
the aid of the magnetic telegraph in
making and recording observations, the
diligent, vigilant, and tireless readers OF
the stars have become well posted in ce-
lestical mechanics They know about
what is going to happen. This counter
acting effect of comet on one side of the
earth at the same time that the joint and
concurrent's sun and moon are heaping
up the oceans waters on our side, ough
to increase our reverence for Astronomical
science, and renew our confidence in the
arrangement of things in general. But i
there should prove to be any errors in the
elaborate calculation of elements, orbits
perturbations, ard resistance, so that tn,
comet should be few hours too late, WI
exoneratd the astronomers from all blame
in advance, being fully aware that they
had no. intention or desire to play upor
the hopes or fears of a confding public
While they know what is going on in in
terplanetary spaces, tLey are not presumed
to have entire control over the long-tailet
projectiles of the sky which frightened
the superstitious in olden times as har
bingers of evil, and which frightened tn
moderns with fears of collision.
Bows Using Money.