The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-12-15
EAT ASTRONOMER
TALK WITH PROF. LANGLEY ABOUT
HIS WONDERFUL Discoveries.
The SUNS Enormous Heat Force-How
iatsd-Transft Through the AIR.

Copyrighted. 1886. by Frank @. Carpenter)
WASHINGTON. Dec. I3.-For years the
Investigations of Mr.. s. r. Langley. the Sec
rotary of the Smithsonian Institution, have
been watched with absorbing interest by
the scientists of the world. What Edison,
Tesla and Bell are 10 general invention he
is TO scientific invention. He has created
new methods in the study OF the heavenly
bodies. He has. TO the largest extent meas
ured the heat OF the sun. inventing for the
purpose the blometer, by means OF
which the temperature Of a sun
beam can be tested TO the mil
lionth of a degree. He has given
us our best idea OF the wonderful spots on
the suns surface. and has best shown how
this great body may practically affect the
earth and eventually be better used to its
advantage. Ii was Mr.. Langley who origi-
mated the systematic time service by which
the clocks OF our cities are now regulated
from the observatories OF the country and
by which the railroads still run their trains
without danger OF accidents through vary
ing time. 1t Is he who has made some OF
the greatest advances in the study OF the
problems of the air. and of the physical
principles upon which aerial navigation II
Ii is ever realized must rest.
The most of these experiments and OBJ
servations were made by Mr.. Langley while
he was the head of the observatory at
Pittsbury, though he was then constantly
supplementing them by others which
he carried on at high attitudes
all over the world. In the plains
OF Spain, on the edge OF the
crater OF Mount Aetna. I'm Sicily, upon
Pixies PEAK. in Colorado. and on the snowy
SUBMITS of the Sierra Nevadas. I'm Califor-
MIA, he has been, not as a tourist for an
hour, but spending long days and nights
studying the heavens, catching the changes
on the suns surface. and trying to learn
their practical applications for the uses OF
mankind. He is In a minor degree carry
ing on observation and experiment to-day.
though his time and energies are neces-
sarlly almosc wholly devoted TO the adj
ministration OF the great institution OF
which he is the head.
CHAT WITH SECRETARY LANGLEY.
This man is now sixty-one years young.
His life has been packed with the hardest
of work, but his eye is bright. his step il
firm. and he has to-day as much vitality
as any of the younger officers OF the in
stitution. He is. i believe, the busiest man
in Washington. for he carries on his scien-
tific experiments only in the intervals OF
his administrative work. and 1t required a
special appointment made some time in adj
vance for me TO secure a chat with him.
1 found him a charming talker. full OF
good nature and overlooking with apt quo
tations and fun. There is nothing pedantic
about him. He dropped for the time all
technical language. and In everyday
monde az NV orra triad % nrnxaw A..
me some idea OF his wonderful work. I
asked him a number of questions about
himself. He did not like TO answer these.
He wanted TO put himself in the back
ground. but / feel that the people viii be In
terested in his personality. and IN the story
Of how an ambitious boy "hitched his
wagon to the stars and got there. Upon
my asking him when he was first attracted
to the study OF the heaven, he replied:
81 annot remember when i was not in
terested in astronomy. i remember read
Ing books upon the subject as early as at
nine, and when 1 was quite a boy / learned
how to make little telescopes. and studied
the stars through them. Later ] made some
larger ones, n though they were, OF
course. nothing like those we use here, I
think myself they were very good for q
boy. One OF the most wonderful things TO
me was the sun, and as to now IL heated
the earth. / used TO hold my hands up to
it and wonder how the rays made them
warm, and where and how the heat came
from. i asked many questions, but ! could
get no satisfactory replies. and some OF
these childish questions have occupied many
years Of my later life in the answering. I
remember. for instance, one of the won
ders 10 me was a common hotbed. / could
not see how the glass kept It warm while
all around was cold, and when i asked, I
was told that Of course the glass kept In
the heat: but though my elders saw no diff
fculty about IL. 1 could not see why. IL
the heat went in through the glass. IL
could not come out again. 1 o know
that the size of rays changed after en-
terlng the glass. and that they could not
come out because they grew larger. being
In much the same condition az that OF the
lean mouse who crept through a hole in a
barrel Of grain. and filled himself so full
that he could not get out again. Since
then i have spent many years in studying
the way that that great hotbed. the earth
itself on which we live, is. by a like prin-
ciple, made warmer by the atmosphere that
covers it as the glass did the hotbed."
WAS your father an astronomer, Mr..
Langley?' / asked.
NO." was the reply. MY father Was =
merchant. and j have 40 records OF as
tronomers in my family. My father was
not rich enough 10 give me an income sum-
cient to support myself and my hobby.
Astronomy, you know, is not a very profit
able science. and as 1 had TO make a living
for myself, / chose the profession OF archi-
lecture and civil engineering. but / never
heartily liked it. After some years 1 went
to Europe. and on my return from the trip.
having a little money, 1 decided that I
would take up astronomy and devote ny
life to IL. I went TO the Harvard UNIVERSE
ty at Cambridge and found a position for
work and study there. That ] had been oc-
cupying myself with astronomy pretty as
sidiously already was. L think. shown by
the fact that although / lacked the exper-
fence that only observatory work could sup
ply, / still knew enough TO q
salaried position from the outset. / re-
NAMED at Harvard for some time.
and then was called TO the Naval Academy
at Annapolis to take charge OF the obser-
vatory there. My next position was as the
director Of the Allegheny Observatory near
Pittsburg. where ] spent a great part OF
my professional life before 1 came to WASH
ingtcn."
1T was at f:1sburg. then. that most OF
your experiments were carried on. was Il
not7"
..yoe.s re,lfad NJ Ionolav ssThere ~aa