The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1890-04-24
PUBLISHED
THE STAR OF BETHLEHEM
# was Miraculous Phenomenon anu
Has Appeared Only Once.

The star of Bethlehem craze has
broken out again, and the papers are
printing more or less extensive ana
sensational articles upon the SUBJECT,
and predicting the reappearance OF the
star in August next.
The notion is based upon the we'll
known fact that in 1872 brilliant
Temporary star" was observed by the
great Danish astronomer. Treho Brahe,
in the constellation of Cassiopeia, and
the further fact that old annals con-
tain statements, more or less vague, OF
similar appearances in the years 94o
and 1864, and in the same part OF the
heavens.
From these facts certain persons
with remarkable logical agility have
deduced the very questionable infer
ence that all three phenomena were
appearances of single object, which
is supposed to be variable star of the
same type as Omicron Ceti, or Mira !;
but with a period of over three hum
dred years, instead Of eleven months.
Furthermore, reckoning back three
periods Of three hundred and fifteen
years each would bring US to the
Christian era ; and this satisfies our
enthusiastic Investigators that the
star in the east,n which heralded the
nativity at Bethlehem, was Identical
with the star Of Tycho.
The star of 1862 appears to have
been by far the most remarkable ana
finest of all the twelve temporary stars
50 far observed. It was a magnifl-
cent object for several months; so
brilliant that it could be seen at mic-
day,-rivaling, and perhaps outshin-
ing, Venus even at her brightest.
Tycho observed it with great care,
and fixed its position with all the ac-
curacy attaiuable in those pre-tele-
scopic days but this degree ofaccuracy
is insufficient to enable US to say with
with certainty whether the star is, or
is not, identical with some one Of the
numerous telescope stars now visible
in the immediate neighborhood OF the
place he. determined. This place is
very nearly on the prolohgation OF the
line drawn from Gamma Cassiopeia
through Kappa, and about one and a
half degrees from the latter star,-juss
on the northern edge Of the Milky
Way.
Two reasons make it very improba-
bic that Tycho's star can be true
periodic variable. In the first place the
period is too long. No known
variable has a period exceeding two
years. In Mr.. Chambers catalogue
Of two hundred and twenty-five
variable stars (the most recent and
trustworthy of such catalogues), the
periods of one hundred and eighty are
given as determined with more or lsss
certainty. Only four of the one hun
dred and eighty exceed five hundred
days. AS to the remaining forty-fve,
it may be noted that twelve are tenn
porary stars which have been observed
only once, while fourteen are irregu-
larly variable; that is, not periodic.
This leaves nineteen in respect to
which observations are not yet sufti-
cent to decide their exact character.
The second reason for doubling the
periodity OF Tycho's star is the rapidity
with which it blazed up. In the case
of all known periodic variables of the
Mira type, the increase of light is
gradual-more rapid than the fall,
it is true, but still not sudden. The
star usually requires some weeks to at
tain its maximum. In the case OF
Tycho's star it is probable (the evil
dence is not quite conciusive), and in
the case of most Of the other tempo
raries" it is certain, that the bright
ness reached its limit within a few
days, or even in few hours-the star
flushed out, so to speak.
As regards the question whether
.Tycho's star could have been the "star
of Bethlehem" it would appear suffi-
cient TO point out that in the latitude
of Palestine it would have been seen as
a "Star in the NORTH" never ''star in
the east" It is true that nineteen
hundred years ago the distance of Ty-
cho's star from the celestial pole would
have been ION account of procession
about ten degrees greater than now
but this would still leave it 'circum-
polar" so that, as seen from Jerusa-
lem, it could never have appeared to
overhang the manger at Bethlehem.
To sum up, we may say, then, tlat
while we cannot absolutely assert that
Tycho's star cannot possibly be identi-
cal with the stars of 945 and 1864, such
identity is extremely improbable, and
there is not much reason to expect
that the star will ever reappear. That
this body is the same as the "star in
the east" of the Gospels is more than
simply improbable, and has never been
maintained by any authority worth
noticing.
1t is extremely difficult to reconcile
the scriptural account with anything
but 4 purely miraculous phenomenon.
The only non-supernatural hypothesis
deserving a moments consideration
are, that the star was a brilliant comet,
which somehow escaped record in all
other contemporary annals; or else
the hypothesis Of kepler, that the phe-
nomeuon was not a simple star at all,
but an G&tron, or celestial confgura-
ton of high astrological. significance,
according to the then prevalent belief,
such, in fact, as the remarkable