The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1881-08-11
THE COMET .OF 1851


-e ANN
,e1 THE COMET ,OF ,1ss1.2
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Thus far astronomers are in doubt as
to whether the comet now visible in the
northern heavens is the same as-that
which was discovered few days ago by
DIR. B. A. Gould at the National rObserv-
atory In Buenos Ayres, fSrif d tbeso, its
movements must have been more re-
markable than those of ahynther inhab-
itants of the skies of which there is fec-
ord. 1t is not even known whethef the
comet is newor an old one Z whether
it is approaching to or Feceding from
the sun, what is It's composition or what
is its orbit. In short, I'VE SIS yet know
little more about it than that It exists,
which is enough, however, to fill the
superstitious, who take the unknown as
the most solid basis of the dangerous
and portentous, with q sudden shudder-
which has been drawing nearer. Of
course, ever since the. creation s dawn,
and which may now be at hand-as also
it may not be. And it is possible also
that poor old Mother Earth, who has
been white hot, battered by storms jef
metal, parehed by the sun, frozen over
with ice and pelted by meteors from
time immenorial, may at last receive
her coup de grace from q comet. But
though this is possible it is highly inn
probable, and until it is ut least ascec.
tanned whether the new fery visitor is
approaching the earth or not, good peo-
pie may be permitted TO possess eheir
souls in patience, excepting, naturally
those several astronomers who have
telegraphed in haste to Rochester claim
ing the prize of 5000 offered for the dis
covery which they all claim to have been
the first to make3d ip ,4Elis 10 ,ale.
Professor Henry Draper, who is well
known to. the world of science for his
skill in spectroscopic analysis of the
chemical composition of celestial bodies,
has mildly taken up the oudgels in be-
half of Professor Richard A. Proctofss
reputation, and denies in the name of
his friend and of scientific men in gem
eral that the distinguished Enghshman
ever uttered the prophecy which is eur
rently fathered upon him to the effect
that in the present year q, comet was to
come and destroy the earth. iiOf course
Mr.. Proctor never could have done this,
since he himself has9briefiy summed up
all that is known of comets in such 8
way that anything can be predicted con-
cerning their action. Astronomers, he
says, can tell what path q comet is trav-
cling upon, and say whence it has come
and whittier il will go; they can in
many cases predict the periodic returns
of comet, and analyze the substance
of these strange wanderers and they
have recently discovered q singular
bond of relationship dbstweenS comets
and those other strange visftahts from
the celestial depths-tne shooting stars.
But astronomy has hitherto proved ISlin-
able to determine the origin of comets,
the part they perform In the economy of
the universe, their real structure, the
causes of the marvellous, g changesf 4 of
shape which they undergo as they ap-
proach the sun, rush round him and
then retreat. 1t is believed that this
statement by Professor Proctor is not
strictly accurate, spectroscopic analysis
having shown something in relation to
the component elements of some comets
from which something has been inferred
in regard to their structure, and it being
known that the quantity of matter
which they contain is not very great,
One wen-known astronomer fNhas said
that the highest cloud that floats in the
earth's atmosphere on a. fine day In sum-
mer is q dense body when compared
.
that comets and dmetorites, by falling into
the sun, keep up the heat Of the central
luminary of our system, but at present
the weight of opinion seems to be
against this theory, no comets having
ever been krown to fall into the sun.
1t should be remembered, also, that
those people who dread destruction to
the earth from comets commonly are
put into the fear by the notion that these
wanderers to the sun from beyond the
confines of the orbit of Neptune may
strike the earth and so by the force of
the impact knock our ancient mother
out of time, so to say, and into space, or
might set her on fire, whereas there Is
some reason to beIievethat comets have
before now grazed the earth without do
ing her any injury and without having
any appreciable effect upon her what
ever. In fact, She has probably hurt
them more than they have hurt her.
Whatever real dangerSto the earth is
involved in an approach of q comet to
the sun Is to be Sought however, in all
probability in the hypothesis that so
great an increase In the suns heat
would follow the fall of q comet into the
sun that life on the earth would be burnt
out, in. which case if we were ever to
have an inhabitable globe again new
supply of living germs would have to
come from outer space, borne on the
wings of Sir William Thomson's me-
teorites.
1t is, likely that the terror of comets
which is always felt by ignorant people
is purely traditional, and comes down
from the time when these bodies were
looked upon as being unlike the stars
and planets, in that their motions, ap-
pearances and disappearances we're
thought to be purely arbitrary and un-
governed by physical laws, or if not
strictly arbitrary, then to be governed
by the power of the gods who sent them
as portents nearly always of calamity and
seldom of good to the human race,A IA
remarable exception TO this rule thstk 4
comet is portent Of evil is that OF the
star of Bethlehem At all events, Prof.
Proctor, who has somewhat elaborately
treated of this subject, SAYS that ''the
star in the East mentioned in the New
Testament was, in his opinion, comet.
"It is" he says, 'snot easy to under
stand what else it could have been."
ssThe way in WHICH itappeared
to go before the Swises men When (di-
rected by Herod, be it noticed) they
went to Bethlehem, almost due south of
Jerusalem, would correspond to me-
u ErNV-k a