The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1881-02-02
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER.
trnoa orn SPECIAL connasrospHsr1
WASHINGTON, Jan. 2s, 1881.

4
Tie lengthy article going thu
rounds OF the press announcing tht
startling prediction that there wa:
great danger of the world coming u
an end some time this year, has lee
an ente prising journalist to inter
view & Washington astronomer:
on the general "bust up" expected
The prophecy was little more def
mite than the one of Mother Shipton
for it detailed the manner in which
the calth's obstruction was to be ac
compiishcd. This was in brief, tina
there is at present in the universe ;
body, appearing small perhaps il
size by reason of its distance from
the san, but almost inconceiyably
dense by reason of the amount o.
matter which is crowded into it
which is proceeding directly towards
the sun. Some time during this
year, the prediction alleges, thi;
great mass will fall into our lumi
mary and the immense heat sudden
lly generated thereby will destroy
all the higher forms of life on the
earth. 1t was very soberly stated
that the peoplcat the Poles, although
their temperature would be greatly
Increased, might possibly survive
the terrible heat and thus repeoplC
the earth. The event thus detailed
was called "cataclysm." I"
The Naval Observatory was the
first point visited. Professor Hall
though able to discover Mars's sat
elites, has not yet found the comet
which is to play such an important
part in the destruction of the world
1T is the first time | have been
made aware Of the impending dan.
ger" he said, as he glanced over the
article which the correspondent
showed him."
"But can there be any foundation
for such a prediction.
Only in this: that / have seen
somewhere a statement that the
comet of 1912 was to return about
this time. But we know nothing
certain. Indeed, it is impossible tc
know anything positive about COM
cts. We can only observe such q
very small portion of their immense
orbits that we cannot estimate their
return with exact precision, but the
likelihood of its falling into the sun
or striking the earth even, if it did
return, is infinitesimal.
"Do you think that the earth viii
ever be struck by comet ?"
"There is just about one chance
in a million that such 4 thing viii
come to pass"
and if it did,"
! ''In my opinion no one need feal
| the consequence in the least. But
these matters have always had q
strong hold on the public. | re-
member as far back as 1913, that q
great comet was seen in the heavens
By a coincidence the Millerites about
1.-THE same time predicted the end OF
the world. You may not believe it
but the appearance of that comet
made a great many converts to that
faith.
Then YOU are not concerned
about this prediction p
Not much. | don't care even to
speculate about il. for there are
many matters of far more value TO
which my time can be better de
voted"
Professor Eastman was found in
his room busily at work He laugh
ed when he read the article which
the correspondent showed him.
II don't know anything about it, .
he said, us he laid it on his desk,
which was covered with calcula-
tions. "You see there are periodic
waves of speculation among ameteur
astronomers, and l suppose this is
the latest. Some times they labor
to show that the spots on the sun
exert a great influence on mundane
affairs, and something's to show the
connections of meteorlc showers and
icomets. These gentlemen speculate
ingeniously. People always read
that sort OF matter without once en-
deavoring to ascertain the real facts
in the case. For instance, there is
an apparently well authenticated
tradition that Tycho Brahne, an
early astronomer, predicted that
this year would be one of great sick
ness and general other terrible things
because four plannets, Venus, Ju-
piter, Saturn and Neptune, would be
in conjunction"
''Is that not so?"
The Professor laughed more heart
ilv than ever. ''Of course not" he
said. "The plannets do not come
into conjunction this year at all. In
addition to this, Neptune was not
discovered until Tycho Brahe had
been dead about 800 years, and be
could not, therefore, have predicted
its conjunction with anything. Yet
/ suppose that three out of every five
people have been influenced by this
prediction, and some have gone to
sleep at night thinking of the awful
events which were going to hap
pen"
DO you think that the predicted
temperance of the comet of 1872 is
sufficient ground for the statement
that the world will come to an end
this year ?"
Il do not think" answered Ppro-
fessor Eastman, that this predic-
ton arose from that source. 1t is
true that some of the French astron-
omers who have been studying
Enck's comet, which was supposed
to have period of 5000 years, have
announced that it might appear
some time within this century. But
my idea is that this article, if it did
not originate altogether in some inn
sginative brain, was based on a
statement regarding Swift's comet" !"
What was that?" inquired the
correspondent.
THAT it was moving directly to-
wards the earth. Three comets
have been discovered recently, one
of which is Swift's. 1t was announc-
ed from the first that two of the