Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1883-11-24
Star Beliefs.

heavens the eyes of those who are blind
to less ''sensational'' phonomena. Me-
teors have, therefore, always played a
larger part in popular than in what may
not unfairly be called scientific astrol-
ogy. As to the fixed stars and planets,
these have from the earliest times been
invested with what may be termed hui
man attributes, whether as being worlds
in themselves OF as having a direct in
fiuence upon thefortunes and conditions
a plurality,of worlds was entertained by
the a%ncients, and eagerly discussed by
philosophers. Thales held that every
star is a world, and had its W CON
plement of sun, planets. atmosphere and
inhabitants. Pythagoras was imbued
with the same idea, although he was so
far in advance of his age as to doubt
whether the conditions of life could be
similar to our own; and it was this no.
ton of his that caused Alexander to
weep because, although he was master
of his own world, there were yet others
out of reach to be conquered.
The Chaldeans and Arabians, as we
know very well, made an exact and
minute study Of the stars, and no ex-
traordinary movement ever in domestic
life could be made without a previous
consultation with the %astrolabe; hence
the visit to Bethlehem of the three
Wise Men, attracted by the appearance
of a star of unusual magnitude and
brilliancy. Registers of astronomical
observations were kept by them as long
ago as 1000 years before Christ, and
the Arabian influence upon our astro-
nomical nomenclature is as marked as
in our chemistry and in our system Of
Enumeration. So by the Hindoos, the
American Indians, the savages of Bor-
neo and the South Sea Islands, the Chi
nese and Japanese, besides the Greeks,
Romans and Scandinavians, separate
systems of what we call steller ,mythol-
ogy We're created. and some of the most
beautiful pagan stories are derived from
these sources. The milky way, espe-
cially, was a fruitful field for conjecture
and invention. Pythagoras said that it
was the suns path-an idea which Pope
're%produces in his expression "the solar
walk"-but Democritus was the first to
point out its real nature. The Japanese
call it the River of Heaven, and have q
fanciful belief that its two L ightest stars
are two lovers, who were condemned to
be separated, but were permitted to ex-
change positions once a year-remind-
ing us somewhat of the Greek fable of
Ceres and Proserpine. The Chinese call
it the Garden Of Heaven, or the Flowery
Bath, from which to the tradition of our
south-country rustics that it is the Man
in the Moons tobacco smoke is ome
--1,~A IS .zo c~~, Al@ ,,,L1s-,1 h.
| the ridiculous. 2
Sirius, the brightest star in the north
ern heavens, being the nearest fixed star
to the earth, is associated in our COM
mon belief with the dog-days, and the
old English, saying was that when he
rises the sea boils, wine turns sour, dogs
go mad, all other animals become lam
guild, and the human race is subject to
Mysteries, fever, and frenzy. The asso.
citation Of Sirius with dogs is of remote
antiquity. The ancient Egyptians
thought that as soon as Sirius appeared
the Nile began to overflow its banks;
hence it was called Sihor, meaning the
Nile, and it was typiied in the hero
glyphics by a dog. The Romans called
it Canicula, had their .'dies ca%niculares"
as we have our dog-days, and annually
sacrificed a brown dog to appease the
wrath of the genius of the star. Spencer
speaks of ''the scorching flame of fierce
Orion's hounds" the mention of Orion
bringing US to the Pleiades-watch-
stars alike of the mariner and the shep-
herd. The Greek legend tells that the
Pleiades were the companions of Diana,
and that, surprised by the hunter Orion,
| fhnv ,rouaI IN tho GOODS co., ,,o1sof ~,o,,,
metamorphosed into doves, and took
their places among the stars; hence their
influence on men was gentle, as we read
in the Book of Job: "Canst thou bind
the sweet influences of the Pleiades, or
loose the bands of Orionp" Maia, the
brightest of them, originated our month
Of May; and Merope, who stopped to
love a mortal, is called the Lost Plead,
on account Of her invisibility.
The connection between astrology
and physic was always intimate, even
down to our own Middle Ages. Chaucer
writes of the Doctor of Physic in the
Canterbury Tales:
I'm all this world there was none like him
To speak of physic and of surgery,
For he was grounded in astronomy.
He kept his patient wonderly well
III hours Dy his magic natural"
Haly, Serapion, Avicen, and Damas-
Genus, alluded to afterward, were IA
NOUS Arabian physicians as well as as
trologers:
! The most popular phase Of modern
astrological belief is that every man has
his good or evil star. The star above
the horizon at a mans birth, if in the
ascendant. is held to be his good star,
and vice versa; and there are
never wanted in our village, even in
this nineteenth century, wise women
or philosophers who car give informa-
ton on the subject. Castor and Pollux
are beneficent stars, especially for mar
liners, and always have been. Mars is
an evil star, and in the Compost of
Ptolemus'' we read that 'under Mars is
borne thieves and robbers, that kepe hye
ways, and do hurt to true men, and
night walkers, and QUARREL pykers,
bosters, Knockers and scoffers.
He is 70 and angry, with blackheer and
lytell eyne; he shall be a great walker
and a maker of swords and KNIVES, and
a sheder of mans Blood" Saturn
brought about strife; Lucifer pride;