The Penn's Grove record., 1883-12-08

Inc fe~fuaTAtOto UfiiiltuJ bu1FiHes anu
sunsets which have occurred this aud
last week can only be guessed at for the
| present. as to their causation. IL is re
markable as a uniform or only slightly
waving motion Of a rose light, equally
distinguishable over q large area Of the
country. 1t seemed SO near that in many
places It was believed to be the reflection
Of a great and not distant fire, but it had
net cloud forms. Last Wednesday morn
ing, it had a similar aurora in the east.
The recent consultations among the
higher class of scientists have taught
them more doubts and attachments as to
astronomical phenomena. They are in
and the indications which they afford of
the actinic material under the combus-
ton of the original materials. Where
they were certain they are now in doubt,
and it is to their great credit as scien
lists that they have M hide bound theory
but are willing to accept new devclope
hfChtc 90 w ttAC VI thfCti
opinions. If 'the undevout astronomer
is ma l." the quiet astronomers. ofwhom
there ara now so many, are devoted to
truth. The accuracy required in their
instruments, which is constantly improy
ing, is an educational compulsion and a
statement Of what happened at such .
sidereal time has fifty other nen ready
the next night to verify the obsei walton
or rejecs it All these sudden phenome
IA fall under the observation of t lescop
lists, and if they are not divInely accurate
they are the most supremely honest men
in the world. To honesty they add All
educated competence.
In all argument where You have
found that ne feature is wanting, you
may get rid of it by tie logical process
of negation. There we've no cloud for
mat ions, an2 but little Of that wave
action which is developed by electrici-
~ passing over n sheet of mica. 1t was
not atmospheric. 1t was independent
If the thermometer and barometer. 1t
occurred at sunrise and sunset, and
was therefore due to the reflection of
the suns rays at an low angle ON some
unusual element in the far distant hea-
vens, some form of matter which does
not belong 10 our lower atmo phere.
We would as soon think of an aurora
borealis as a cloud. All this probably
shows that VI may put aside the usual
conditions anu suppose something new.
Perhaps there may he n gateway tow
ards knowledge. On Wednesday night
Professor Brooks, of the Red House
Observatory, while searching for COM
cts hear the sun, discovered q wonder
full shower of ~teiescopic meteors, some
of which were moving southwark and
others northwsrd. Professor Brooks
believes that this display has some con
nection with the remarkable red light
seen neal the sun ut sunrise and sunse,
for several days, and that the earth is
passing through mass IL metssrie
dust or il enyeloped in the tail or gi-
santic comet. These ~telescopic mete-
ors, visible only to the astron 'mer, had
their supplement visible to the naked
eye In the city OF New York after mid
night.
The New York papers tell Of q mete-
Ior een about 100 south Of tho zenith
in the midnight hours. II was visible
as early as 1880 p. M, but it attained
its greatest ~brilliancy ut about 1915 or
1920 q. m, when it lighted a large
part OF the heavens with a rosy light
which wavered and trembled like the
aurora borcslis. The visitor Lad .
tail apparently % or 50 10 length, and
its direction of movement seemed to be
about northeast. Its head was round,
Of about half the apparent diameter Ut
the moon Its edges were not clearly
defined. being surrounded with neha-
l@. The tail is described a. a brilliant
white, three feet long, surrounded by
q brilliant red illumination.