The sun., 1893-02-12

O. ilyered Dy froi oDINEH DonWE ht tne OniNef
atty College. Liverpool The title Ponsers o
OF tho volume. for the author confines himsel
. to describing In popular language the Rrca
!, achievements in astronomy and the men bl
whom .hey have been made. beginning Will
topernicus and Tycffo Brshe. Mr.. Lodfs pro-
ceeds to Kepier and Calico. next to Dsscartef
= and Newton. and so on to Roemer and Brad
ley. Lagrange and Laplace. Herschel and Bes
scl Other lectures deal with the discovery o.
. the asteroids and that Of Neptune. with COM
sts and metsors. and tnahy wiz, the tides and
planetary evolution.
~ o. 4.
Nicolas Copernik. better known by the Latin
tied form Of his name. Copernicus. 10 believed
to have boon q German. although he was born
ct Thorn in Polish Prussia and graduated at
iCsacow University. He was instructed In
astronomy at Cracow. and learned mathe-
mstics at Bologna. Thence he went to Rome.
whore he was made professor OF mathematics.
and soon nfterward l1e went into ordera On
his return home he took charge OF the princi.
pal church In his native plane. and afterward
. moved to Frauenburr. near the mouth Of the
ristula. whore he spent the rest OF his life. It
10 noteworthy that to Polish Prussia We owe
the earliest OF modern astronomers as we'll as
the greatest Of modern philosophers. Kant.
= coperncus was quiet. scholarly monk
: whose life was passed. In study and medita-
tiVn. His first work In astronomy was the
compilation OF tables OF the planetary motions,
. which were far more correct than any which
had hitherto appeared. and which remained
: petvlosAbls long afterwarL Tho PtoIemaic
, system OF the heavens which had remained the
orthodox conception throughout the Chris
tian era he endeavored to improve and sim
: pity By the hypothesis that the sun was: the
nk.~~ - col. 49, me- Ia TIA nvt -
earth. The first consequences Of this change
he wrought out for many years. producing in
tho end the famous work "On the Revolutions
OF the Celestial Orbs" which embodiss all his
painataking calculations. and applies his new
theory to each OF the bodies In the solar sys-
TEN. Not until tho very end OF his life was the
book put into type. but a printed CODY was
brought to his bedside so that he might feel It
before he died.
. The revolutionary consequences OF his hy-
pothesfs we're not appreciated at tho time
partly because his teaching was buried In a
ponderous and learned treatise. partly be-
cause the teacher was an ecolesiastic. mainly
because he was patient and judicious man.
content to state his views In quiet conversa-
tlon and let them gently spread for thirty
years before he published them. When ne
did publish them he dedicated his book to the
Pope. and induced Cardinal to bear the ex-
pense OF printing. Thus the Roman Church
WAS made to stand sponsor to 4 system OF as
Economical doctrine against which In the next
century It was destined to burl its snathsmas
and to infict on its conspicuous Adher-
snts torture. Imprisonment. and death.
The achievement Of Copernicus may
bs summed up in . sentencA He
demonstrated the truth OF theory
said to have been taught BY the PythaRoreans
and Aristarchus. but which had against It the |
great weight Of Aristotle's authority and
which was new to tho odern world. He put |
the sun In its true place as the centre Of the |
solar system: he greatly simplifed the theory
Of planetary motions by this stop: he exhibited |
the procession Of the oquino1es discovered by |
Htpparchus) as due to . conical motion OF the |
sarth's axis: and BY means Of . simpler |
theory and moro exact planetary tables. he re-
duoed to some sort Of order the confused chaos
Of the Ptolsmaio system. Copernicus himself |
felt tho hypothesis Of tho motion Of tho earth |
to be dinoulty. Mr.. Lodge points out that its |
acceptance 10 BY no means such an easy and |
childish matter as We are apt now to regard It.
and the hostility to 1t is not at all surprising.
Tho majority Of the men of the present
day have grown accustomed to hear
the motion OF tho earth spoken Of:
their acceptance OF It means nothing:
the attitude OF the paradoxer who denies 1t
oNahc0o hoE0 iuIoiuR0uCe. 1n9 autnOF aC-
knowledges for himself that 1t was q long
time before no could realize the revolution Of
tho earth. Think. he says. OF the solid earth.
with trees and houses. cities and countries.
and seas-think OF tho vast tracts
OF land In Asia. Africa. and Am erica-and then
picture the whole mass spinning like Q top
and rushing along its annual course around
tho sun at the rate OF nineteen miles q second.
Then. again. to imagine possible antipodes
must have beon tremendous obstruction in
the way OF conceiving the earth as sphere.
Mr.. Lodge has found that intelligent children
Invariably feel the greatest difficulty In realiz-
Ing the existence of inhabitants on the op-
poslte side OF tho earth. or course. stupid
children. like stupid persons In general. will
believe an ything they are told: but tho kind
NJ difficulties folt by Intelligent and thought
|ul children are most instructive. since 1t is
certain that the early philosophers must have
encountered and overcome these very same
difficulties by their unaided genius.
Nor are the difficulties involved In the concep- |
ion OF the earth as sphere revolving round
he sun only physical: they are still more felt
rom the speculative and theological points Of
'iew. Even now the reconciliation of theology
With astronomy can hardly be considered COM
'lste. Theologans. indeed. do not deny the fact
II the extreme subordination OF the earth In the
cheme OF tho universe. but many OF them ig-
lore 1t. So soon as the Roman Church awoke
o a perception OF the tremendous and revolu-
ionory import OF the doctrines Of Copernc cus.
was bound either to resist them or else to be |
also to its traditions. For the whole tenor of
mems thought would be changed IL they ac-
epted 1t. II the earth were not tho central
md all important body in the universe. II the
un and planets aud stars were not attendant
ND subsidiary lights. but were other worlds |
arger. and perhaps superior to ours, where
vas mans place in the cosmos. and whore
vere the doctrines which the Church had
maintained to be irrefutable? 1t vas not to |
= expected that such u revolution would bo
ocepted In q day. or In a century; and ths
Ian naturally adopted by the Church was to
reat 1t as horcsy and try to crush it out
lnAsmuch. moreover. as scientific progress
1as vastly slower In tile sixteenth century
han It is now. not only all priests. but even
asny astronomers. one hundred years after
still imagined the earth to be at
sst Among the men OF science who still ad.
cred to the Ptolemaic system. although he
Fas horn thraa van "a ffar h. anti - fo.,.. |