The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1883-03-24
Rov. John Jasper Endorsed.
HIS VIEWS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE ZETETlC
SCHOOL OF PHILOSOPHY.
Inaiffmnro Sun

SCHOOL OF PHILOSOPHY.
Baltimore Sun.l
The Rev. John Jasper, Of Richmond, Is
not without good company in his opinion
that the world is fat, and that "the sun do
move" This is the doctrine held by the
Zetetic school Of philosophy, which some
wears AGO made quite stir in England.
The name is formed from a Greek
word meaning 10 seek or inquire
An active propagandist II Zetetic doe
trine is Professor William Carpenter, II
Chew street, who has been in this country
about five years. He is man OF medium
height. auburn hair and beard, with bright,
restless ewes and animated manner. He has
literary tastes, and when the reporter called
he was turning of clever little acrostic
poem.
"Jasper is right about the NATTER tie
Professor said, "aIthOugh he has not coG.-
piete understanding OF if. There are
plenty Of men who agree with him, but
there are lew who are willing 10 acknow-
ledge the belief. II is unpopularand keel $
a man back in the world, but care nothing
for that"
The founder OF the Zetotic school. the
Professor explained, was an English che
mist named ROwbotham, whose views
were formed as far back as 1898. In 1861
be lectured at Greenwich, Professor Car
pcnter'S native town. The Professor, then
a iourneympn printer, laughed at the idea
of a man going about lecturIng that the
earth WAS fat, but went to hear him. ~
listened TO that lecture for an hour and a
half" said the Professor. land since then
/ have never doubted that the earth i ilat. -
In 1866 he issued q work on the subject.
lie put his thoughts directly in the type.
and il took him three years. working in his
leisure hours, to compose the work. Since
then he has gotten outanumber OF pamph-
lets. and with pen and voice has Stoutly
maintained the Zetetic doctrine.
The doctrine is that the earth is fiat
disk, with the North Pole at IFS centre.
The seas encompass the land and impene-
trable ice surrounds the seas. "and what
is beyOnd," says the Professor, "God only
knows" The sun and other heavenly
bodies are lights IN the armament, circling
over the earth around the pole star as u
rc,,t,r Tue keynote OF ILLS philosophy
is that water Will seek its level. III the
earth were n globe, water would have 10
be curved, but since water is demonstra-
blv always level, the earth cannot be
round" RowbOtham'S views were origi-
nallv suggested by observations on the old
Bedford canal. For twenty miles in Cam
bridge county. England, il runs in straight
line. R0wbOtham spent some nine months
along the canal in daily observations, and
i'm whatever way he looked along the sur
face OF it, water he always found it level.
When Professor Carpenters book was
published 1t made Jealous convert OF Mr..
John Hampden, who, the Professor says,
is descendant OF the ilampden OF Crom-
Wells time. He bought Carpenters copy
right and challenged the scientific wcr q
10 prove the conyeXity OF any surface OF
water. Professor Alfred X. Wallace aC-
cepted the challenge and Il wager of Goo
side was made. The test was made III
March, 1870. Professor Wallace's method
was the placing OF three signal disks along
the canal for six miles, all at the same eleya-
ton. His proposition was that ii there was
no curvature OF the eaTth's surface 4
tclescope placed at the same eleyatiOu
vould bring All the disks in line, but that,
in fact. the central disk would show above
tie terminal diSfs. Mr.. Carpenter was
Handlers referee. DIR. NJ. w. Il. Coulcher
was Wallace, referee. They disagreed as
10 the result Of tie test, each claiming VIC
tory for his side. j. II. Walsh, editor oi
the London Field, who was the umpire,
decided that Wallace had won, and paid
over the money TO him. Ilampden de-
nounccd Wallace as 4 sWindler, and was
| eventually sent 10 Jail for twelve months
for libel. He sued for his money, and got
verdict on the ground that the wager wa
illegal. The affair bantrupted liampden
but did not shake his conviction.
Professor Carpenter eagerly meets every
objection advanced. The circumnayigatioI
Of The earth is simply describing circle OF
| the disk about the North Pole as the cen
tral point. lie says that it is the only astro
nomical theory that accords with Hol!
! Writ, which is what commends 1t to th'
Rev. John Jasper. Professor Carpentcl
saws that the belief is privately held by grca
numbers Of persons who are deferred iron
avowing it by its unpopularity. lie showed
a letter received last week from FoJres'
/ Monroe, in which the conversion OF non
commissioned officer to the Zetetic doctrine
was reported.