The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1885-08-13
ABOUT AlMANACS.
The Largest Almanac in the World From
Which All the Lesser Ones are Pre-
pared.

which All the Lesser Ones are Pre-
pared.
Every family in the United States uses
an almanac, but few people are cog
INFANT of the immense amount of work
required in their preparation. The
phases of the moon, the positions which
the sun and stars will hold at given
times for every day throughout the
year, the calculation of eclipses, and
the hundred and one other facts told
| by astronomy and mathematics appear
as regularly as the years 90 round. The
simplest almanacs used for druggists
advertisements are full of such informa-
ton, and when one goes further and
picks up one OF the big volumes called
nautical almanacs, published for the
use of astronomers and navigatOrs, the
array of figures is really appalling, and
their long lines of digits. thrown into
order which would delight Gradgrind,
make the brains of the general reader
swim as he endeavors to- understand
them These big nautical aImanacs are
the fathers of all the others. The
calculations of the smaller aimanacs are
taken from them, and they feed, as it
were- the whole family of little almanacs
the world over. The greatest nations
of the work. now have their own nautical
| almanacS, and these are made by their
respective governments. The nautical
almanac of France has been published
| longer than any other, its
editions having been issued for several
hundred years. The British almanac
comes next, dating back to a little be-
fore the Revolution, and the German
and Spanish were begun since then.
The American Nautical Almanac was
first issued in 1855, and it is now said
to be the best almanac published any
where in the world. 1t contains more
valuable information and calculation
than any of the other government
almanacs, and it holds the highest
place among astronomers and naviga-
tors. The almanac is made at Wash
ington, and special department of the
navy under Prof. Newcomb is devoted
to its getting up. 1t is book of solid
figures, over an inch thick, about eight
inches wide and twelve inches long; 1t
contains more than five hundred pages,
and each page is black with multitude
of carefully arranged figures, each of
which represent hours of calculation
and sheets of scientific and algcbraic
study.
The work is published three or more
years in advance of its date. The
almanac for 1888 is now out, and that
for 1889 is being prepared. Twelve
scientists, each noted as an astronomer
and a mathematician. located in diff
ferent parts of the country, are almost
constantly working upon it. They
make their calculations and send them
to Washington, and they are here
proved before going into the almanac.
The title of the book is The American
Ephemeris and Nautical Almanac" and
talking of it to one of the makers of it
he would be highly d;sgusted. One of
them told me yesterday what it con-
tanned, but his words of scientific terms
fell upon my ear like the jargon of
Choctaw. and he might as well have
expressed himself in Greek. Some of
the more scientific of your readers.
however, may understand him. will
repeat has answer to my request to
know what this book of five hundred
pages of solid figures contained. He
said its calculations are divided into
three parts. Part is adapted to, the
meridian of Greenwich. 1t contains
the positions of the sun, moon and pri-
mary planets for every mean moon
throughout the year. 1t contains the
distances of the moon from the. sun and
certain fixed planets. This is used by
navigatorS at sea for determining the
longitude, ETC., etc. Part 2:iSs adapted
to the meridian of Washington, and is
intended for the use of astronomers, as
well as navigatOrS. 1t contains, data for
finding the apparent positions of the
principal fixed stars for every tenth.
upper transit at Washington; also. the
suns apparent right ascension. and
declination, hourly motion, and equa-
ton of time for every mean and appar-
ent noon at Washington. and likewise
the same circumstances for the moon.
1t also. contains the mean time, of
transit, right ascension, andl declina-
ton, horizontal parallax and semi-di-
ameter of each primary planet al the
time of transit at Washington. Part
IS is devoted to ''phenOmena," and
here. as am not a scientific dictionary
on legs. | will not attempt to repeat
what the astronomer said it contained.
1t was much worse than, the above, and
when looked again at the millions of
figures as he repeated the scientific Jar
gUn [ became more and dmoreimpreSsed
with the immense work of getting up,a
nautical almanac and an American
Epheineris.
These nautical almanacS; howeEer:Go
not deal with the weather. That is lift
entirely to the weather bureau. whiohis
distinct from them. Almanacs We're
made for years before any government
took them up. The old Romans had
sort of almanac. but the first printed
almanac was that of George von, Bur-
beck, who issued his predictions AT vi
enaa in 1860. In the sixteenth and sew
enteeth centuries almanacs were. used
as political documents, and thew were
fun of astrolOgy, astronomy and super
stition in addition to. their politics. The
hrst Ameriaan almanac WAS; that of
William Bradford. vsho published one in
1857. Ben Franklin,s Poor Richards
Almanac" was firss published ia 1882.
and the American. Almanac. which con-
tinued its publication up to. 1861. was
first published in 1923. There are now
about on s.hundred almanacs published
in the United Seates, ofwhich. perhaps,
the bestis Spofford's American Alma
nae. published by the Librarian of Coa-
gress. Cor. CLeCela1d Leader.
-Ifmakes one feel folish enough to
1o-o a bor-,a epavD ~ hin. -. @ho