The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1880-02-05

THE TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE sun.
The Eclipse ~ Seen from Table Mount.
ain. MISUNDERSTANDING Eaecss.
The eclipse commenced at Table
Mountain, as nearly as we could esti-
mate without q well-set chronometar.
at two hours and fifty minutes; the total
eclipse occurred at three. hours and
fifty-seven minutes; its end about Eve
hours and four minutes, or few min
utes after sunset to this valley. for A
small segment of the lower limb of the
moon covered the upper limb of the sun.
as the latter disappeared below The
Coast Range mountains; that ia. inst
before their conjunction ceased.
The movement of the great shadow
of the moon over the surface of the
country in the line of totality ouite
equaled our expectations in its grandeur.
The soft, greenish light of q partial
eclipse had for full fifteen minutes over
spread the entire landscape. ~The
bright simmer on the CLASSY surface of
the Joaquin to westward had gradually
disappeared, when suddenly to the
southwest, upon the eastern slopes of
the coast range, a broad spot of inky
blackness appeared. Truly, 1.-The
shades of night were falling fast"
Within half a minute or less the dark
shadow was upon us. We could dis
Germ only the nearer objects upon the
mountains. The sun was in total
eclipse. For the half minute or little
more of totality we keep our
gaze skyward, after a glance at
the obscured landscape. There
in startling distinctness was the
dark face Of the moon, perfect in
its circular form and surrounded with
perfectly regular corona or halo, with
out glimmer, its soft, golden light en-
tirely uniform in all its parts. So calm
wss the air that with the naked eye we
could not discover anything like the
phenomenon of Baily's Beads. The
SUMS edge seemed to disappear and re-
appear as line, according to Profess
sor Davidson's description. should the
atmosphere be remarkably steady"
Much to our regret, light clouds west
of the sun prevented our seeing Mer-
curry and Venus, but to eastward about
thirty degrees we distinctly saw Jupi-
ter, about fifteen degrees east Saturn,
and about twenty degrees farther east
Mars, looking red and fiery. These
were the only three stars visible to
us in the brief time of total obscura-
ton. Too soon, indeed, the
lower limb of the sun burst
forth, and we distinctly saw the great
shadow moving in its dense blackness
from us northeastward over the pine
covered and snow-clad mountains. To
the right and left of its whole course we
could recognize the faint glimmer of
twilight becoming gradually brighter
toward the north and south.
We remained on the mountain until
we saw the sun go down with a narrow
segment of the moon still showing on
its upper edge, and the truly memora-
BILE solar eclipse of 1880 had passed
into astronomical history. The usual
effects on the lower animals were OBJ
served. As the darkness increased rap
idly we could hear the lowing of cattle
on the mountain sides around us.
Horses seemed startled and looked
around, as if in amazement.
Judge and Mrs. Hart observed that
their chickens had all disappeared and
gone to the hen-house except an old
Shanghai rooster that is not so spry as
in his younger days. The final dark
ness came on SO rapidly that the old
fellow didn't get housed with the 9TH
ers. So, in his uncertainty, and not
knowing whether it was soon to be
night or day with him, he suddenly
mounted the nearest fence, and there
stayed until the question was decided
for him by the returning light. Pretty
good philosophy that for the old
Shanghai. Uncertain what the next
turn would be, he took the fence, like
many an old political rooster has done
in times of like uncertainty in graver
affairs-in times of political eclipses.
In closing, it may be well to mention
that Borden was in the line of total
eclipse, the central line being slightly to
the south of Sycamore, and not far
south of the railroad crossing of the San
joaquin.
One person l have seen was just be-
yond the southern line; another just
beyond the northern line of totally.
They both describe the appearance of
the very small segment of the sun they
saw, at the time of greatest darkness
to them, as a brilliant star, clinging to
the very edge of the moon.-San Fran
cisco Post.