Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1878-03-22

} Chicago is not city which would or
dinarly be suspected of hiding any light i;
might have under bushel and yet it seems
to have entertained distinguished astron
omer unawares. For Twelve years or more
Mr.. 5. W. Burnham has resided here, fol
lowing the business of a stenographcr-a
a very competent one be is-repoIting lega
case. for livelihood. Hardly any Chi
cagoan knows him except as law reporter
and when year ago tho question arcst
about giving him the use of the great telc-
scope here, the President of the Astronomi-
cal Society inquired, "Who is Mr. Burt
ham ~ 1t appeared that he had known him
for ten years ~ a reporter for the courts. but
rad never suspected that he knew anything
about astronomy. The English astronomers
had found him out four or f9e years before
this aud had elected him Fellow OF the
Royal Astronomical Society. The German
astronomers also had elected him membe:
of the great German Astronomical Society
at Berlin. Otto Strive, director of the
Pulkowa Observatory in Russia, had known
him and correspondent with him for years,
and 50 had Baron Dembpwski, of Milan,
Italy; Flammarion, in Paris Dawes, a
kecn-eyed observer, and score of other as
tronomers in England.
When dispute in astronomy, involving
acutenness Of vision, has arisen in Europe,
which could only be determined by a series
of the closest and most accurate observations,
Mr.. Proctor has repeatedly called in Mr..
Burnham as umpire. and his modest state
ment has settled the question. Mr.. Burnham
is a regular contributor to Monthly Notices
and Memoirs of the Royal Astronomical Sc
ciety, of London AstronomiSohe NacLrichfenl ,
of Germany, and other European journals,
| His speciality is the discovery aud measure
ment of double stars, with the correction,
codifcaton, and arrangement in the order OF
| right ascension, of the work that has been
done by previous observers-the Herschels,
Strives and others-in this department of
siderial astronomy. His General Catalogue
| of Double Stars" which will make a quarto
volume of 500 pages, is now in press at the
Naval Observatory at Washington He has
| discovered more double stars-closer and
more interesting ones-than any other per
son living, and he is not forty years OF age
| The December number Of Monthly Notices
contains the Ninth Catalogue of New Dou-
bic Stars" All the discoveries and observa-
tons, which have given him so much repu-
tation 10 Europe and 80 little here in his own
city, have been done By small six-inch tele-
scope (that is, a telescope with an object
| glass six inches in diameter), made by the
Clarks, of Cambridge, which is mounted in
a sort of cheese-box in his back yard al
though the great Dearborn equatorial of
eighteen -and-a-halt inches aperture is with
in two blocks of his residence, and was I'M
used during this whole period.
About two years ago, NJ. Angot, one OF the
French astronomers who were sent to the
islands of the P,cific Ocean to observe the
transit of Venus, returned through the
| United States, under instructions from his
Government to visit, and to report on the
appliances and work of American obserya-
tories. Among other places he visited Chi
cago, and his report has recently been pub
lisbed in Paris. ii. Angot was greatly in
terested in Burnham's little observatory. and
said he had never seen one where such I'M
portant results had been accomplished by
such simple and inexpensive appliances. He
found no siderial clock, no transit instru-
ment, nothing, in short, but six-inch tele-
scope, mo united equatorially on Il stout tim
Der sunk in the ground. The telescope was
even without the usual clock work TO keep
its motion corresponding with the rotation
of the earth. lie describes Mr.. Burnham's
ingenious substitute for this clock-a long
vertical tut filled with sand, with an orifce
at the bottom through which the sand may
escape, after the manner of an old-iashioncd
hour glass. A lead plunger following the
descent of the sand in tho tube gives the
proper motion to the telescope, and holds it
| Hrpl q tor ho br oil h
work. lie describes, also, Mr.. Burnham's
ingenious mode of construction and reading
off his circles, BY which much saving of time
is secured. The discoveries and work done
with this little telescope have tested the sight
of the best observers in Europe, and the re-
sources o. much larger instruments. Otto
Struye, in a letter addressed to Mr.. Burnham
more than year ago, said he had devoted
forty years OF his life to the Jealous otserva-
tion and study of double stars, but when,
he said, 81 think of what you have done in
so short time, am almost ashamed of my
own labors." NJ. Flammaron, Of Paris, last
Summer sent to him a mass of printed proofs
and letter, stating that he had completed,
after many years. labor, and had put in type,
his Catalogue Of Double Stars which had
| Shown Orbital or Other Motion - but, he
continued, 'beiore publish it, beg to sub
mit the proofs to YOU for correction and re-
vision, " HON the scientific world now places
at the head of this department of siderlal as
tronomy." The proofs were corrected, and
large number of new measures and new
systems in motion were added, which brought
forth enthusiastic acknowledgment and com
pliments from the French astronomer.
| About that time some Of the Directors of
the Chicago Astronomical Society seem to
have heard that there was residing, within
two blocks of their telescope, a person who
knew something about astronomy ; and the
keys of the observatory and use of the instru-
ment were rendered to him. Since July last
he has abandoned his own cheese box, and
has done constant work with the great
equatorial, which is one of the largest and
best in the world Though the weather has
been very unfavorable for observation during
the four months, Mr.. Burnham has, since
July discovered l60 new double stars, and
has made more than 500 measures of difficult
double and triple stars. Many old doubles
have also been found to be triple and even
quadruple stars. The companion Of Sirius,
which is showing rapid motion, and was
discovered about ten years ago by Alvan
Clark, Jr., with the Chicago telescope when
in the makers shop at Cambridge, has of
late attracted much attention in Europe. Mr..
Burnham has made many measures Of it the
past year. and has discovered similar, com
panion TO the large star Aldobaran, in the
constellation Of the Bull, which may prove
quite as interesting. lie las also found that
the double Of RigcI lin the foot OF Orion) is
itself double. His discoveries and observa-
tionS during the pest six months will fill
forty or fifty quarto pages in tie Memoirs
OF the Royal Astronomical Society At London.
A slip of the above. comes to US from
Mrs. Kate n. Doggett, of Chicago, accom-
panied by the following interesting letter.
Ei F. PATTI
CnIcAGo, March, 1873.
To the Editor Of the Free Press and Times
1t is not quite true that Mr.. Burnham was
as wholly unknown in Chicago as the cor
respondent of the Tribune thinks. 1t is true
that the utterly wretched and dishonest
management Of nearly everything connected
with the University of Chicago has made its
adjuhct-the great telescope-wel nigh
useless but it was jealousy not Ignorance
which kept Mr.. Burnham's seeing eye ont
of Dearborn Observatory, as it kept his
name out of one, at least, of our great
dailies.
| did not know till now that this astrono
mer of world wide fame was child of nv
own MOTHER dear old Vermont, - thc
rough land OF rock and hill and tree, which
never held titled lord or cabincd
slave, and this fact, il you do not already,
you, too, will DO glad to know. Mr.. Barn
ham is a native of Thetford, and was edu-
Gated at its academy.
1t is a little odd that Thetfurd and its
academy have sent US another scientist who
has earned European reputation, one Of
| L Ill l.