, 1879-04-26
SPARKS OF SCIENCE.

The distance Ia fcesnnhhlv nce,1rntc Nnth,nv
ro,,, ,,a r,orn orrn,,oom. ~ ,ho 49,. .ss .s.san
." so"'' w ."o' e.Ao"su"e' :" '''o Ms' p'ase'
astronomers have succeeded ID getting results
only In about twenty cascs, u,,d With all but the
ncnrest half-lozcn tho uncertainty rauQcs from
10 to full 20 pcr rent OF The whole distance.
r. ,ho ,,,s ~ .,,o ,,,.ro.t Ia rnon'' H..
Az VI. s"ee ~ 'no aestest ''s1 Hi'o"n' Ien'
faar', the d'stanco of Which ts ABOUT "oo.ooo
times cur distance from tho snn tic uncertainty
Is prrt1aps not much mora tEnu Der cent, II 80
nrc,,. IT., In ,,,o o,.a ~ t1o r,l.'.,,r vhtch IL
wv ~ NV saas =. ~. ,s.s
twenty lines as fentote accoFu'hS 10 tnc latest
,,uta,r, or m NJ. o,hrr ham, NJ rrcot a. fnrty
~ If" " III w. In ,nt r,,n,, n,,tt ca+,,ot MI
y. "tts ioo' "o uo NV k"o"' n''.' ean,'o. nou
measurement shall have been greatly improved.
THIS uncertainty, however. ID not due to apy
coa r.o,nss NJ ,vnut ~ nrcr.ion of o.trnnomtcnt
...,,. ,.t,ss It'd s.s"a,...
menta 10 nofc delicate or rclImca methods s, OF
OBSERVATION hhVe ever uccn hpP!leu tnnn |nuso
~ means o. whtch 5ie sIe,ia, Instances navo
H uscn investigator; 1mu oa!nsu'tS ~ uoto,o' M
imuglpab'y small' and ING measurements. ~ rem
tnc mature ol tle vase, eai,llot w n'nue u. .na
same l'nio a anaes s.'at stha elssus.auees, w.
onY a. mIerSa,a ot s.yera1 u'op'os a''o o'iooF
NOW wtat are W consioeranons when WV
c1abic ~ 70 ueesuc. as 70 any patt'cuiar , star,
.whctl!er 1t = proDaoly nea! or tehotoi 1ney
nse nslt,cpn,lY t"o' ano neatnef u l''ca 1s noso
"a tl'e irst n!aee. T. siaee tne neaser star is 20
assuming lint tho brieltrr stars, a. q e'a.,, re
oearer than the fainter, 80 that star Is brill
tant VS. pro1l1nlty 1s 70 certain extent proo-
ahlc; put only prooaolc, ior moments 1nsocc-
tlo1 of results thus fnT obtained shows TINT sev-
efal stars, 80 iatnt as 70 ue 'nyis.1'e 10 INC
md eet on o oe more saaoc In
d!cst1on OF pfoxiGlltf Is lohna ~ tle maEnttlde
Of what Is Technically salleu tue proper mo-
tlo'i os star. Me nna, ny comparing onscr.
ost stars % drit 10 er Tery ooserya5o r. t eztens
~ lne course OF century 9r IVY: tnls IL oe.
Ing dio IN part 70 the motloh o. thc sun ITSELF
~ space ana paft!y 70 thnt Of the star NOW 1t
is oDVious, tllaf, other things being equal, u
stnr were brought nearer, IT'S apparent motion
| in tllc sky would be grcatcr. And lencc, V'cs
.rrsa, We may INFER TINT those stars which siio"
q rapid movement aIe' a. e!ds:. nearer than
those which seem to be senslby stationary. At
| the snn1c tine, when We come to comparisons
bctWeen Individual stara 1t ID Impossible TO say
| that OF TWO which appear "a move a. unequal
| rates the taster Is the ncnrer; Tor the nearer
may 10 moving, so ta speak, "head on" or Mt
really less velocity than tllu roInoter Que,
LII selcetlnS staTs los tne tpvcsn0atlon OF iheir
parailax We must, then, necessarily caouss those
iag no signs Of proximity to our system, md we
mai ,,riff Tjr1n oro onlv ieyy stars WIFI
| fulfil all tic conditions, but, those which do
have not yet alt been investigated, md there Is
hero. open aii !,lportnEt lle!t tyr the labors OF
a wo ,s". NJ sn thot T wn my, n,oos,ox,,,
}rcs s,rI, stnrs ns 1,aI oihrr ronv"nirnt ycfcr.
et,ce stars nrar tI,cEl. The star Ct..anri iorms
u si!lEle exception to ths general principle. Its
| pntal'AA u Itl.e.tentns ~ secuuu, tloTe taaa
ahte o v"a mel ac,uniiv ifscoynrc a.
uctldcrsou il, 1897, not y measuring its posI.
,lou with refereaso to nelghhoriug stars, but by
direct observations of It's right asvcnsion urd
dcuiuatIou which sefcr its position to tho axis
Of the earth. When Pond tried to obtain tho
| parnl1a1 Of a LYrte, some years previously, by
silnitar observations at Greenwich, he ra:no
upon the singular result Of n minute negative
para!lax; Tint Is. the star appeared to have
alteht au1.ual dtaplacemeut precisely opposite
10 what Il ought to have. Tl1s would locate tic
star as has been said, "somcwhcro on tho
other side Of nowhere" or at more than in
which Pond himself perfectly understood, Ii
| lt.at the true pnrllnx is 50 small that it was
coyerea up uI,d oycrwlle!mcd By the errors In
oi hc astronomical rclractlon, and other ca,,sus
| due TO the changing temperature OF tile seasons,
-f'rgf. Young IL Ms Boston Journal Of Chem
istry.
GOOD WORD TOR THE FIG,
| nr pn,Inrd In n r.nort ,yhtc,, te .omo +trp.
noo rro,.u,nl N y, 1,rg,,sl, flovcrn,r.nt nm W.,
W. p.e's1ssu ~ wa ooa'u
| OH tlh "EIlur!um Nulsalces Arlsng.ln Con
ncctIon With tho kccpIug Of Animals" bear the
| folIowint, tcstIn,onv In fnvor of tf,a rip.
Mlyhon t1,n rr ,voi,n,ya IN r,,ro ho ,,oro,v ,o,.
"nen ms ~ "a.u"s W ~ a'so Ill., "' n'etoS .o..
With sono other paehydormatous creatures the
object Ut which Is csltancoua cleansing. The
mud stands TO lin In the relation Of soap to
| human bG!nG, but Instead OF washing 1t OIL with