The Iuka vidette. (Iuka, Miss.) 1894-1912, 1894-08-23
MOTION OF HEAVENLY BODIES.
Nothing In Nature at Rest-Every Atom
and Every sun Moving ON.


Nothing In Nature at Rest-Every Atom
and Every sun Moving On.
1t has been said Of nature that 1t de-
tests vacuum, but 1t is equally true to
say that IL has horror for rest. There
is no word which is only so relatively
true as the word rest, and none that is
more absolutely true than the word
motion. There is not an object on this
earth, or, in fact, in the whole uni
verse. of which it may be said with
certainty that it is at rest. The only
point of which we may imagine that it
is at absolute rest is the center of gray
ity of the whole created universe, a
point the exact position of which will
in all probability never be ascertained
When in astronomy we speak of mo-
ton we must carefully discriminate
between apparent and actual mo-
ton, as in the case of the sun
and stars in their daily crossing the
vault of the heavens from east to west,
which results in reality from the actual
motion of the earth about its axis from
west to east.
The real motion of the celestial
bodies is subject the investigation of
which called into play the highest
| analy tical and observational powers of
man, and forms one of the greatest
epochs in the history of the astronom-
| zeal science. That in our solar system
to the sun was assigned the CEN
trail position is by no means a
fact of remote antiquity. for even
Copernicus, to whom is attributed
the establishment of the new
system, could not entirely shake him
| self free from the shaclxles of ancient
| theory that the earth occupies the
most prominent place in the solar sys-
tenn: nor did a full conception and con
viction of the true state of that system
| take possession of man until Kepler
and Newton, by their great laws, based
upon the irrefutable principles of
mathematics, once and for all explod-
ed the old theory and placed the new
one beyond the possibility of dispute
| and doubt.
With the establishment of the Copper
| mean system astronomy received new
and vigorous impulse Magnifying in
struments were improved, calculations
put upon a more vigorous basis. the
pure mathematical science itself being
| infused with new power by the Car
tesian method of geometry and the
grand discovery of the calculus by
Leibnitz and Newton, observations
were extended into the very intinitude
of space, phenomena which before,
had either not been noticed, or If no.
ticed at all, had baflied all attempts at
explanation were explained in man
ner which left no room for doubt. And
SO it was announced one day to the
marveling world that the sun, the CEN
trial body of the solar system, around
which. are whirled in never-ceasing
harmonious action the planets with
their satellites, the comets. meteors
and aerolites, were not fixed, but, like
his vassals, had tenfold motion on
his axis and around some point so dis
tant its exact position has not yet been
ascertained. The axial motion of the
sun was established by the sun spots,
but as to its motion through space we
only know that its direction is toward
the constellation Hercules.
There is something grand in the idea
of satellites revolving about planets,
planets around the sun, all of these at
the same time rotating about their
axes, and the sun itself sailing into
endless space, but this is not all. There
cannot be any doubt that all these
glorious suns we see glittering in the
armament are also moving in their APP
pointed paths. The proper motion of
number of them has been detected,
and by the principles of induction and
analogy we are not alone justified in,
but almost forced to, the belief that
motion is common property of them
all. There is class of stars which,
when viewed through powerful tele-
scopes, reveal the reparlable fact of
their consisting in reality of two or
three, nay, even more stars. There is
star in the constellation Lyra which,
when seen through telescope of mod
crate power, appears as a double star,
but viewed through powerful one re-
veals the startling fact that each again
is double star, all physically con-
nected; that is, four stars revolving
about each other.
At present we know 5000 such sys-
TENS. In Orion there is star, known
as Theta Orionis, which, when viewed
through powerful telescope, appears
as a septuple star, thus presenting the
magnificent panorama of seven suns re-
volving about each other. 1t is to he
supposed that each of these suns is en-
circled by planets, and these again by
moons, exhibiting to the imagination
spectacle sublime beyond description
Though the human eye, with the aid
of the most powerful instruments which
future generations may more and more
improve, will never behold the planets
that are whirling around those glorious
double and multiple orbs, since they
only shine with the light reflected from
the latter, it is not difficult to imagine
the grandeur of these solar systems,
exceeding in glory our own a hundred
fold and the human mind cannot but
be impressed with the divine harmony
prevailing the astral creation. -Balti-