Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1882-01-12

| as far as the sun) they have proved that
its real motion onward is about mill
ion miles q day, or nearly as great as
that of the earth in its orbit; yet such IS
its remoteness that it will require 3OV
wears for it to move one degree In the
skyi
MANY other interesting and demon
stratiye facts might be given to sho"
the distances of the stars. But we pass
to another consideration of the subject
of a very striking character, which we
have never seen presented in any booK
or by any astronomer, namely, that full
evidence exists that however remote
the stars are from us, they are evident
" as far from each other, with perhaps
the exception of some nebul9. Inc
groups and consultations which we see
are doubtless made up OF luminous
bodies many billions of miles from each
other. This is ascertained by counting
the stars and calculating their distances,
as determined approximately by their
varying degrees OF light.
"But," exclaims some one, "how IS
it possible that masses OF stars whlcn
appear almost blended in each others
light, can be so distant from each
other?'' This objection is just what we
desire to answer. and to fully explain the
reason Could we see the stars III their
real magnitude they would appear very
much smaller than they now do, because
all very brilliant objects seen from a
distance have glare of light raging out
from them, greatly increasing their APP
parent size. Even a Kerosene or gas
light half mile off in the dark appears
much larger than its real size. A Drum
mond light many miles away is greatly
increased in apparent size by this glare
which surrounds it. A portion of the
sun viewed through a gimlet hole from
dark room will exhibit these rays.
The planets have much less of this in
creased size than the fixed stars, be-
cause their brilliance is more than
thousand times inferior. When VENTS
is seen after sunset or before SUNRISE
this increased apparent size IS ten tunes
the diameter of its disc. But the IN
creased apparent size OF the fixed stars
if equally bright as the sun, Is ten thou
sand times their real diameter. lhese
stars, as we see them, appear as much
larger than their real magnitude as
common t,co-story d,oelling IS larger than
a pms head. Immense as the star Sirl-
us really is, no telescope ever made has
been able to discover its disc. 1t would
require a telescope twenty feet in diam
eter to throw on the eye enough light
to show its globular form. These
facts are easily proved by calculation,
by their real distances and probable
size. and comparing the subtended an
gle with the apparent size as seen IN the
Sky. Hence the blended glare of the
stars in the sky gives Us no conception
whatever of the Immense spaces which
lie between them. These spaces are so
great there can be no danger of collision
in their sweeping journeys through the
depths of space.
We have so far mentioned the dis
tances of some of the nearest of the
fixed stars. These are mostly the
brightest; showing that remoteness in
creases, and is indicated by diminished
size. Still, beyond any that the unas-
sisted eye can see, are the millions re-
vealed by the telescope. Yet, after all
that we can determine by the most
powerful instruments, throughout the
milky way and other nebulR, we have
seen only a limited or finite space. We
have obtained no conception of infinity.
We have no faculties of the mind to
comprehend the infinite, and it would
be well if every one knew and under
stood this, and refrained from judging
what he is utterly incapable of know
ing. The fable of the critic fly on the
marble palace, who complained of the
minute asperities Of the surface, but
could see nothing of the beauty, gran
deur and symmetry of the structure, will
apply to some
Who dare arragn the whole stupendous plan,
If but some little part incongruous seem.
1t is well to examine all these facts SO
far as science will enable us, as well as
the perfection of the innumerable mi-
mute forms of creation revealed by the
use of the microscope, and to remem-
Der who created them all, "who was in
the world, and the world was made by
Him." (John l: 1O); '.for by Him were
all things created that are in Heaven
and that are in earth, visible and invisi-
ble." (Col. l: 16.)
The revelations of the spectroscope,
and the determined laws of gravitation,
show that this great retinue of suns and
worlds all came from one creative pow
er, and are all under the complete con-
troll of one government, and cannot be
the result of chance and accidental coin
cidences. Country Gentleman.