Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1886-08-29
THE RICHMOND DISPATCH SUNDAY. AUGUST 80 1886.

being 80 go south. The most interest
Ing conjunction Of the month occurs on
the Goth, at 1lh. 25m. A. NJ, the
moon being at that time only "a SOUTH
Of Venus. On the morning OF
that day Venus will rise st Q
quarter alter 4 o'clock. an hour
ana Yssr'sr vslvIs the sun. Ins
waning crescent and The fairest Of the
stars will be fair TO see as they a2-
preach each other on the celestial course.
On the 9th at 3h. P. NJ, just before
new moon, our satellite pays her re.
spects to Mercury, being II G. north.
On the 9th also she is at her nearest
point to Uranus at sh. p. NJ, just after
new moon. being g s north. On the
2Sth the moon completes the cifcuit OF
he planets by her conjunction With
Jupiter at 81. 39m. A. NJ, being q O.
north.
THE HARVEST MOON.
When our satellite, on the 18Th, pre-
sents her full round face to the earth,
tie most beautiful moon of all the year
is inaugurated, for during several sue
cetsive nights she appears above the
eastern horizon soon after the sun has
disappeared below the western. During
the four evenings succeeding the fall OF
the September moon, there is an aver
age difference in the time Of her rising
Of only thirty.two minutes. For this
reason the evenings following the foil
Of the moon in September have furnished
themes for poetic inspiration since men
began to observe the heavens. The
husbandmen Of old, who lived near to
nature, saw in the arrangement Provi-
Dental interposition to proloDg the day,
and thus lend them assistance in gath
eIing in the harvest, and honored the
occasion by giving the name of the
Harvest Moon to this special moon.
Their simple faith was more reyerential
than scientific, but none the less to be
admired. Science, however, explains
the reason for this apparent departure
from the moons usual course, and
throws to the winds the simple theory
that the moon deyiates from her I'M
swerying course to aid the husbandman
Of the north temperate zone.
TIE AUTUMNAL EQUINOX.
On the god, at 10 o'clock in the eve
ming, the autumnal equinox occurs.
The sun then enters the sign Libra, the
elliptic and the equator cross each
other, and the astronomical autumn
commences. The sun shines from pole
to pole, night and day are of equal
length all over the globe, and. in our
belt Of terrestrial territory, the lu-
minary which is our life and
light looks down with smiling
face upon a scene fair to behold.
The fruition of vegetable develop
ment crowns the picture. The earth
has yielded her choicest treasures from
her fruitful bosom. Rich hsryests load
the broad fields, trees bend under the
weight of ripening fruit, flowers o.
brilliant hue brighten the landscape,
The elimination Of the suns influence
is every where apparent. But even al
this interesting point Of the earth''
Journey around the sun there is
lores hadowing Of change. On the
very day when the autumnal edui
nox occurs the sun goes into southern
defamation, he is little longer belOW
The horizon than he is above it, the
night is a little longer than the day
The sun is on the road to tho winter
solstice, we are slowly travelling to th'
kingdom where ice and snow hold SOW
ereign sway. We are, however, gently
led on the sorrowful path, through TIT
sunny days of September and Octobe
that are beautiful as a dream and tillet
with an atmosphere whose perfume'
breath is like the tabled elixir Of life