The Pascagoula democrat-star. (Pascagoula, Miss.) 1878-1920, 1894-11-02
Ghe1emorrat-S Star
STORY OF 1 DEAD WORLD.
Prof. Lewis Interesting Summary Of the
Physical Features Of the Moon.

the moon With a powerful telescope,
and seeher extensive plains and noun
tain chains, her extensive shore lines
and dry ocean beds, her thousands OF
volcanic craters and their central
cones, it is difficult to realize that we
are gazing into another world brought
by the powers Of the telescope, that
marvellous instrument, to a distance
OF a few hundred miles, as it were
almost within our grasp. Strange as
it may seem, we are more familiar
with her mountains than those Of our
own world. On this side Of the moon,
though 100000 miles away, there is not
a mountain whose height has not been
measured, nor q crater whose diane
ter and depth is unknown.
The brcvity Of this paper forbids
detachment Of the process rcs0rted to
to accomplish so improbable a feat,
though at some future time l may
revert to the subject Of celestial
measurements. Save a few chains Of
mountains, the scenery Of the moon Is
totally unlike that Of the earth. The
naked eye sees the moon decked with
dark patches which, by the exercise of
fancy, becomes THE Man in the
Moon" But, it is needless to say
there IS no man there, nor life OF
any sort. The dark, naked eye por-
tions were before the invention Of the
telescope, looked upon as mares or
seas, and the names then given them
are still retained, as, for Instance,
Mare Nubium, Mare CrIsium, Mare
Tranquillitatis, etc,
But the telescope has shown beyond
doubt that they were once ocean beds,
with their shore lines still plainly
visible, which, when the moon was
young, were dashed by her tidal waves,
though now, on this side at least, not
a single drop of water may be found.
Because there is no waste in nature
aud because from lack Of contact with
other bodies, its water could not be
conveyed away, the question arises,
whittier has 1t gone? The moon In
its cooling from circumference to CEN
ter has absorbed it all, and a like fate
awaits the Garth itself in the coming
ages.
Her atmosphere, too, has been ah-
sorbed, though she doubtless once was
thus envelopcd. When our planet,
too, shall have cooled to It's center, a
process slowly going on, it will have
absorbed all its water and air, and
will thirst for more. Though alike in
this, and in both being solid globes,
the earth and moon have little OF
nothing else In common. To her noun
tains we have given the names OF the
mountain systems in our word, as the
Alps, the Apprentices, the Caucasus,
etc, and their scenery consists largely
Of elevated rings, surrounding deep
cavities or craters, Of which the tele-
scope reveals the existence of over
100000, all sizes, from those a few rods
to the largest:( Shickard) 149 miles in
diameter, and in depth, from those of
a few yards to the deepest (Newton)
over -four miles down.
On all the earth there is not a true
representative of a lunar crater, the
nearest approach being that Of the
Mauna L0a volcano Of the Sandwich
islands. The largest Of them have,
like the seas and mountains, been
given names and bear the c0gnomens
Of distinguished men Of science. The
moon, indeed, seems to be a vast cenle-
terry of dead philosophers. We find
there Archimides, Aristotle, Coperni-
Gus, Gassendi, Hcrschel, Kepler, New
ton, Plato, Ptolemy, Tycho, etc. To
describe ever the great ones would
transgress the space accorded me.
Tycho, best seen when the moon Is
full, is visible with an opera glass.
1t is forty-nine miles in diameter and
and a quarter miles deep.
From its center rises a conical
mountain as high as Mount Lowe.
These rings, so prominent a featureof
lunar scenery, are often surrounded by
cathedral spires or "turrets," some
times many thousand feet high, which
cast, long, black, tapering shadows on
the flat bottoms OF the 'craters." In
addition to the turrets, many small
craters, or "craterlets," with yawning
chasms between, are seen on the tops
CT the rings. Clavius is an enormous
ring, inclosing 1850 miles, In which
are several craters, from n Of which
rises a conical mountain, 24,000 feet In
perpendicular height.
The largest Of them all, Shickard, so
large, in fact, as almost to deserve to
be called an immense plain, is I49
miles IN diameter, and surrounded by
a circular wall, In places 10000 feet
high, which incloses an area OF almost
10000 square miles, to fill which 300
Lake Fries would be needed. So i'm
mense is it, that were a person to
stand In It's center, his horizon would
be above the ring and he could not be
aware Of his imprisonment in a well
10000 feet deep, but would seem to
himself to be standing on a level plain.
On the fiat bottom ofthis ring twenty
three craterlets have been counted.
Aristarchus is the most brilliant
object on the moon, and may be seen
on the dark side before sunlight has
reached IT.. 1t was this that Sir Will