Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1873-12-28
A CRACKED SATELLITE.
The Moon i'm Process Of DisruptiOn-A
Cheerful Outlook for Us.

Cheerful Outlook for Us.
From the Utica Herald. -
The story of cracked and disinte-
grating moon, which is made public
through the well-known observatory at
MaFseilles, has point about it which,
# fully assured as to their authenticity,
viii arouse good deal of discussion
among astronomers. The story is of
Luigi Caeciatore, young man with an
idea and a fortune of about $6 900, a
student at the observatory Of Marseilles.
This young man was so devoted to his
idea that he heaped his little fortune
upon it, and, with telescope and. other
instrument; set sail alone for the soli-
tudes of Southern seas. Be
fore embarking he handed to
his old instruc tor roll of manuscript,
upon which was inscribed the idea
which the youth pursued, and his rea-
sons for entertaining it at the expense
of his time and fortune. He believed,
speaking unscientifcally, that the moon
was altogether more cracked thanmod.
ern astronomers imagined, and he went
to the South seas alone, that, being
there In that region whore passed the
deepest shadow, he might see the sun
light peeping through thecracked moon
at the time of the next eclipse. He
went away to the South, even to Pit
cairn' island, erected his rude observa-
tory, gained an old sailor to assist him,
and they two, with eyes front and in
struments pointed, awaited the shadow.
1t came. Straight through the rugged
rocks the ragged sunlight shone
as one sees a gleam through
d crack in the door. A cry of Joy
came from beneath the telescope. The
sailor, turned photographer, caught
| three negatives of the penetrating sun
beam. The youth with his idea possess
ed now proof, to him sufficient, that his
belief was not vision but scientific
reality, and he writes to hisold instruc-
tor in France, with all the enthusiasm
of boy who has stormed snow fort,
and with all the exclamation points of
the successful lover That young man
saw enough during his lonely vigil on
Pitcairn's Island to make him declare
THAT our lovely satellite is not only a
shell, ,and not only a shell full of cracks,
but shell that is crushed inupon some
portions of its periphery, and a shell
that is now crumbling to ruin with a
constant, d savage, frightful veloc-
ity."
The old professor at Marseilles,
commenting upon the youths observa-
tions and records which accompanied
his letter, says he has pushed his dis
cOvery very near to the point of demon
stration," and then the old gentleman
takes hand in running things with a
cracking moon, as follows:
IF the crumbling be connected with
and dependent upon any such intense
internal volcanic action as Luigi seems
to suspect, the final disruption would
be so violent as to project some por-
tions of the moon sheer out of their
orbit and down upon us with conse-
quences of the most serious character.
Such an impact, if it were of sufficient
force, might in turn dislodge the earth
from its orbit, send it grazing on spi-
raj into the SIN, or flung on a hyper
bole out into freezing space. Or the
same resistless force might, III falling,
crush in the surface of our own planet,
break through its crust and deluge us
with lava and steam, or suffOcate us
with escaping gases from our own sub
terranean laboratory"
Is not that beautiful paragraph?
The reader may think that the moon is
not the only cracked thing in existence,
but restrain the thought, for the above
occurs Just over the signature of won
De Pontecoulant, Of the Observatory
Of Marseilles.
The thought that the moon may be
thinking of sending a heavy shell hither
to avenge the many insults which men
have heaped upon her, is the only one
which presses after the eagec Marsel-
laise have done their worst. While we
do not believe the moon or anypart of it
is coming hither until the great creative
spring, now regulating planetary mo-
tions, and ruling their gradual APP
proaches, shall have wrought its perfect
work, still we protest against giving the
moon any further ground for even con-
sequential damages. We doubt notshe
is proud of her beauty and jealous of
the alteration which it commands. 1t
is neither safe, nor polite, nor wise, to
call her a cracked and suicidal terma-
CANT.