Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1881-04-08
A Portrait of HerSchel.

Now Tor tue Old astronomer DlmSeI.
His simplicity, his kindness, his anec,
dotes. his readiness to expiain-and
make perfectly conspicuous. too-his
own sublime conceptions of the universe
are indescribably charming. He is
seveniy->ix, but freah and stout; and
there he sat, nearest the door at his
friends house, alternately smiling at a
joke or cOntentedly sitting without
share or notice in the conversation.
Any train of conversation he follows
implicitly; anything you ask, he labors
with Il sort OF boyish earnestness to ex-
plain.
l was anxious to get from him as
many particulars as csuld about his
interview with Bonaparte. The latter,
it was reported, had astonished him by
his astronomical knowledge.
"No," he said; "the First Consul
did surprise me by his quickness and
versatility on all subj but in science
he seemed to know little more than any
well-educated gentleman. and OF astron.
omy much less, for instance, than our
own King. His general air." he said
twas something like affecting to know
more than ne did know" He was high,
and tried to be great with Herschel, l
suppose, without success; and ~ re-
Marked" said the astronomer, his hy-
pocrisy in concluding the conversation
on astronomy by observing how all
these glorious views gave proofs OF an
Almighty Wisdom" l asked him if
he thought the system of Laplace to be
quite certain. with regard to the total
security of the planetary system from
the effects OF gravitation losing its pres
ent balance? He said no; he thought
by no means that the universe was So
cured from the chance Of sudden losses
Of parts.
He was convinced that there had ex-
listed a planet between Mars and Jupi-
ter, in our own system, OF which the
little asteroids, or planetkins lately
discovered are Individually fragments;
and Remember" said he, that
though they have discovered only four
Of those parts, there will be thousands
perhaps 10000 moro yet discov-
cred" This planet he believed to have
been lost by xplosion.
With great Kindness and patience he
rn;err"l NE, in the course of my at
tempt, - talk with him, to a theorem
in Newions Principles of Natural
Philosophy" IL which the time that the
light takes to travel from the sun is
proved with simplicity which requires
but few steps in reasoning. In talk,
ing of some inconceivably distant
bodies, he introduced the mention OF
this plain theorem, to remind me that
the progress of light could be meas
ured in the one case as we'll as the
other. Then, speaking of himself he said
with modesty of manner which quite
overcame me-, when taken together with
the greatness of the assertion: " have
looked farther into space than ever hui
man being did before me. l have o6-
served stars, of which the light, it can
be proved, must take two millions OF
years to reach this earth"
really and unfeignedly felt at this
moment as il 1 had been conversing
with supernatural intelligence. Nay,
more," said he, "if those distant bodies
hal ceased to exist two millions Of years
ago, We should still see them, US the
light would travel after the body was
gone" These were Herschels words,
and if you had heard him speak them,
more than the truth.
After leaving Herschel felt elevated
and overcome; and have in writing to
you made only this memorandum OF
some of the most interesting moments
of my life.--, Letter byatAe poet. Camp
bell.