The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-12-04
e. Walter Maunder. F. r.. A. S.. Writes of the
Strange Bond That Governs the
Movements of the Universe.
Written for the Sunday Standard.

Written for the Sunday Standard.
London. Nov. 22--The phenomena Of
meteoric showers have not only caused
the jewellers on this planet to urn their
eyes ~heavenward. but nave revived in
terest in the mystery of the bond of the
universe. What is the secret OF the
movements Of the moon and planets?
What mysterious power keeps the
heavenly bodies in place while revolv-
ing. in some instance. at a speed far
greater than an express train? The
greatest Of scientists. in trying to an
swer the question. are compelled to
echo the magicians of Egypt: This Is
the finger of God"
1t is one of the most fortunate and
remarkable condolences in the whole
history Of science that at the very
time that Greenwich observatory was
being called into existence the greatest
Of all astronomers was working out his
demonstration of the law that every
particle Of matter attracted every other
particle with a force which varied d.
rectly with the mass and inversely with
the uar of the distance.
Several other of the great minds Of
hat time, in particular DR.. Hooke, the
ITebndm DTOIcSSOT Vi dStTOI1OT1y, ndu
seen that Is was possible that such law
seen that II was possible that some
such law might supply the secret of
plantery motion. but II is one thing
to max a suggestion and a very diff
ferent matter indeed to demonstrate IL,
and the latter was in Newton's power
alone He did much more than demon
strate 1.-THE brought out a whole series
of most important n far-reaching
consequences. He showed that the ebb
and flow of the tides was due to the at
traction of both sun and moon. espe-
cially the latter. upon the waters of
our oceans. He pointed out certain ir-
r~egularities which must take place in
the motion of our moon due to the in
fuence of the sun upon 1t. He proved,
too, what was the cause of that swing
ing Of the axis of the earth which gives
rise to procession. He deduced the
relative weights of the earth, the sun
and of Jupiter and Saturn, the planets
with satellites. He showed also that
comets which had seemed hitherto to
men as perfectly lawless wanderers.
obeyed i'm their orbits the self-same law
which governed the moon and planets.
The whole vast system of celestial
movements, which had so long seemed
10 men irregular n uncontrolled. now
fell. every one Of them. into its place,
as but the necessary manifestations Of
one grand simple order.
NewtOn'S discovery OF SrdN1tdtlOn
gave a new and additional Importance
to the regular observation of the moon
and planets. They were needed now,
not only to assist in the practical work
Of navigation, but for the development
of questions of more pure science.
HALEY. the second astronomer royal,
and Maskelyne, the fifth, devoted them
selves chiefly to this department of
work. to the partial neglect of the OBJ
~servation of the places of stars. Airy.
the seventh. whilst making catalogue
work a part of the regular routine OF
the observatory, developed the obser-
walton of the membe of the solar
system. and especially of the moon, in
a most marked degree. and collected
and completely reduced the vast mass
of material which the industry of his
predecessors had gathered. 1t is pre-
eminently of the work of Airy that the
memorable words quoted before of
Professor Newcomb. your great Ameri-
can mathematician and astronomer,
are applicable: That If this branch of
ron were entirely lost. Ii could
be reconstructed from the Greenwich
observations alone"
A most important step taken by Airy
was the construction of an altaZimuth.
Its purpose is to determine. not the de-
clination and right ascension of some
celestial body. as is the case with the
transit circle. but its altitude. !. e. its
height above the horizon. and its All
muth, 4. e. the angle measured on the
horizontal plane from the north point.
The altazimuth. then. like the transit
circle, consists of a telescope revolving
on a horizontal axis. but. unlike the
transit circle, both he telescope and
the piers which carry it's pivots can be
rotated so as to point not merely due
north and south, but in any direction
whatsoever.
The observations with the altazimLth
are rather more complicated than those
with the transit circle. Looking in the
telescope. the observer sees a double
set of spider threads or wires" and
when a star or other heavenly body en-
tiers the field, 1t will generally be OBJ