The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1894-09-15


Well, he /! so-t6at story was my first
And for its wca kness have oft been cursed,
Faith. am glad to he relieved oft.
And since you are about it, Little Wit.
| beg yuu come: dip further in my store
And steal some verse wrote In days OF yore.
Then will call you Angel, sir, in truth,
Who'ye freed my name from mistakes of youth
THE MOTION OF THE HEAVENLY
BODIES.
|, has been said OF nature that il
detests a vacuum, but it is equally
true to say that it has a horror fol
resi-. There is no word which is
only so relatively true as the word
rest, and none that is more abso-
lutely true than the word motion.
There is not an object on this earth
or, in fact, in the whole universe. 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 gravity
of the whole created universe, a
point the exact position of which
will in all probability never be ascer
tanned. The real motion OF the
celestial bodies is a subject the investi
cation of which called into play the
highest analytical and observational
powers OF man, and forms one OF
the greatest epochs in the history of
the astronomical scince. That in
our solar system to the sun was
assigned the central position is by
no means tact OF remote antiquity,
for even Copernicus to whom is
attributed the establishment of the
new system, could not entirely shake
himself free from the shackles OF the
ancient theory that the earth occupies
the most prominent place in the
solar system; nor did a full conception
and conviction of the true state of
that system take possession OF man
unit! Kepler and Newton by their
great laws, based upon the irretut-
able principles of mathematics, once
and for all exploded the old theory
and placed the new one beyond the
possibility of dispute and doubt.
With the establishment OF the
Copernican system astronomy re-
ceived new and vigorous impulse.
Magnifying instruments were i'm
proved, calculations put upon
more vigorous basis, the pure
mathematical science itself being
infused with new power by the
Cartesian method OF geometry and
the grand discovery of the calculus
by Leibnitz and Newton, observ-
ations were extended into the very
inhnitude OF space, phenomena
which before had either not been
noticed, Or, if noticed, at all, had
baf1ied all attempts at explanation,
were explained in manner which
left no room for doubt. And so it
was announced one day to the
marveling world that the sun, the
central BODY OF the solar system,
around which are whirled in never
ceasing harmonious motion the
planets with their satellites the
comets, meteCrs and aerolltes, were
not fixed, but, like his vassals, had
a tenfold motion on his axis and
around some point SO distant that
its exact position has as yet not 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 direct
ion 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 axis, and the sun itself
sailing into endless space, but this is
not all. There cannot be any
doubt that all those glorious suns we
see glittering in the armament are
also moving in their appointed paths.
The proper motion OF a 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 a common property of
tL6llt dIi. uGI { ID Il CldSS tl StdlS
which, when viewed through power
tul telescopes, reveal the remarkable
fact OF their consisting in reality OF
two or three, nay, even more stars.
All present we know six thousand
such systems. In Orion there is a
star, known as Theta Orionis, which
when viewed through a powerful
telescope, appears as a septuple star
thus presenting the magnificent
panorama Of seven suns revolving
about each other. 1t is to be sup
posed that each of these suns is
encircled by planets, and these
again by moons, exhibiting to the
imagination a spectacle sublime
beyond description. Though the
human eye will never behold the