The Lake County star. [volume] (Chase, Mich.) 1873-current, 1875-08-26
A Daily Wonder.

flE iME Evl4 HMitsH HEF. u Il
:, A Daily, Wonder. f"
That such a huge body as our globe
should completely turn around on its
axis every. .twenty-four hours, causing
our heads to point in the direction of
our feet-turning all the wells and rivers
and seas and oceans bottom side up, and
placing the foundations of all the build
Aings where their roofs ought to be-that
all this should take place every few
hours was once deemed, so absurd that
those teaching it were regarded as beside
themselves and rs guilty of subverting
the divine oracles Of God. Calico, the
astronomer, was most cruelty persecuted
by the Pope of Rome for doing this, and
was compelled, upon the pain Of death,
to deny his own teachings. But all this
is now clearly proven. And yet many
are wholly unacquainted with the proofs.
i notice but briefly the more comm on
proofs of the-appafent revolutions of the
sun, moon, and stars around the, earth,
simply remarking that it is preposterous
! to suppose that these millions of immense
bodies, at such immense and various dis
tarces, should all have their periods of
revolution 30 exactly timed as to stimuli
taneously reyolve. around our compare
lively Insignificant globe.
If we ascend to the top Of a lofty
place, as that of Bunker Hill, and drop
from its summit pebble, it will not fall
\ to point exactly beneath our hand, but
a. little to the east Of it. How. is this
explained? Only by the. revolution of
the earth on it's axis. The top OF the
monument being farther from the center
of the earth than the base, it describes a
larger circle than The base, but 1t de-
scribes it in the same time; therefore the
top Of the monument moves faster than
the base, and consequently has greater
tendency to throw a body forward than
has the base. Now, as we find the peb-
bic always falling east Of the point from
which it fell, we can account for it only
by supposing that the earth turns on its
axis from the west to the east. -
Again, if we take clock from high
latitude to the equator, we shall find
that it is too slow; but If returned to
the high latitude, it will again keep
good time,, This can be explained only
by attributing it to the same cause Of
increased rapidity of motion. The clock
at the equator is farther from the earth's
axis than when nearer the. pole, and
therefore describes a much larger circle
than it did in its northern home. But
it describes it i'm the same time, and hence
must travel faster than before. Now,
this more rapid motion will tend to
throw 1t from the surface with more
force; and hence the attractive power
Of the earth is somewhat overcome, and
the weight of the pendulum is decreased,
and thus moves slower--a clock from
London losing one hundred and thirty
five vibrations in twenty-four hours. So
we find all bodies weigh less at the
equator than in the higher ATTITUDES,
always losing one pound for every two
hundred and ninety pounds-and this
because, at the equator, they describe
circle of twenty-five thousand miles cir
cumference i'm twenty-four hours, while
in higher ATTITUDES the circles vary ac-
cording to their distance from the equa-
tor, and at the poles describe none at all,
being perfectly stationary. Did our
globe revolve on its axis in eighty-four
minutes, bodies at the equator would
have no weight, and if it revolyed. in
less time, then they would be hurled out
into space, just as water is thrown from
the tire of a carriage-wheel when revOlv-
ing rapidly. - 20. .t
How happens it that we have such an
exact adjustment of these opposing forces
that bodies are retained upon the carth's
surface, and safety guaranteed to us all.
Is this the result of chance9 And so
that most remarkable fact that the at
tractive power of the earth is so exactly
adapted to an animals strength. Thus
the earths attraction of the elephant is
far greater than its attraction of a rabbit,
and its strength is proportionately in
creased. We commonly say the strength
Of the animal is greater because his
weight is greater. But weight is wholly
the result of the earth's attraction. Now,
II happens that this attractive power of
the earth. is invariably in proportion to
an animals s. strength. suppose a rabbit,
or even man, to be attracted with the
same force as an elephant. Then the
rabbit and man wouldfbe chained down
in utter helplessness to the surface of
the earth, wholly unable to move even a
finger or limb. But we find univer.
sal law operating, namely, that all bodies
are attracted in proportion to their guam
titles Of matter; and hence we find the
rabbit and the man not attracted as is
the elephant, but only in proportion to
their muscular strength, and SO are able
to carry their bodies without inconve-
nience- over the earth's surface, while
the ponderous elephant also does the