The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1899-08-09
ERIAL DISPLAY.
Astronomers Have SEIZED uled
Fall of Meteors Tonight.
If They Should Fail to Appear
It Is Not Your Fault.
THEORIE S.
Kansas Ideas About Shooting
Stars In General.
Street Fair In the Milky Way
Is Suggested.

Speaking of fireworks, if the astrono-
mers have not put up a game on the
public there will be a display tonight
which will beat even what the Topeka
41ambeau club intended to show the
people of Rossville on the Fourth. The
display seems to have been worked up
quietly and little stir has been made
about it. at least around here
The place for holding the display viii
be the same as usual-in the air There
will be reserved seats and popular
prices Of admission will prevail-thaJ IS,
1t will be free. That is the only really
popular price OF admission on earth.
All that will be necessary to see it Will
be to sit out on your front porches-
back porches will answer the same pur-
pose If you prefer them-and look up.
No programme has been given out by
those in charge of the display, and it is
antimated by the astronomers, VINO are
the only ones who have been gwen
tip in the matter, that some surprises
may be in store for those who are VIII
ling to watch close enough The display
will consist entirely of meteors- There
will be meteOrs singly, in pairs and in
showers. There will be red meteorS,
yellow meteOrs, green meteors, white
meteors, pink meteors, and others with
cOlors that people will quarrel about
This display is scheduled to occur ev-
cry year during the second week in
August, but some years it is better than
others. once N aW0lIe. Wu6u lnG pat
rons of the show have been very liberal
In their contributions, all kinds of sights
are to be SEEN The show Will De re-
Teated tomorrow night, with variations,
whether It is eneored or not. There VIII
also be a display on Friday night, pro
vided the supply of meteOrs does not
run too low before that time.
These meteOric displays have been
observed every year during the second
week of August for the past so years
1t is probable that they were occurring
just the same before that, only people
made no record of the fact.
There are several different theories to
account for the extraordinary display,
some of which are given here for the
first time. One theory is that the old
Greek and Roman gods and goddesses,
together with their numerous progeny,
are holding their annual Fourth of July
celebration on Mount olympus me
advocates Of this theory claim that
Jupiter is in charge of the celebration
and runs the whole show. The ire
works are made by Vulcan who makes
a business of handling sulphur. The
11ambeau club is composed of Mars,
and he is responsible for the direction
the meteOTs are sent 1t IS doubtful,
however, if you can collect any dam
ages of of him if one should happen
10 hit you The smart young man who
shoots off cannon meteOrs and fright
ems the horses is Mercury Neptune will
be on hand with his fire department,
ready to turn on the hose in case the
earth should catch fire. Apollo viii be
the whole band from the fiat cornet
down to the bass drum, and Bacchus
will get drunk as usual
A theory of a much later late IS that
the meteorS hold their annual bicycle
meet during the second week in Aug
asst, and that the earth, in travelling
around the sun in its orbit, gets around
TO the meteor track just in time to see
the races. The supporters of this the
DRY point out in confederation Of it the
fact that all the meteOrs in sight are
scorchers. Nobody ever seems to know
fTr-h Hraf1 hay a
aOns seem to be impending at all times.
All these are pointed out as arguments
an support of this theory.
The latest theory, one which has Just
been discovered by a Kansas man, is
that the stars are holding their annual
street fair up in the Milky Way. We,
of cOurse,see only the under side of the
Milky Way, and can only surmise what
IS going on on top. The meteors are the
fireworks that are shot out by the stars
an charge of the fair The booths, says
the Kansas man who invented this the
DRY, are ranged along the Milky Way,
and all sorts of things are on exhibit
fion UP there. 1t is doubtful. however.
If the street fair will come up to those
that will be given by Kansas towns
next month. There will be the usual
menagerie up there, though, which may
be lacking in the Kansas fairs. There
will be the Great Bear, and the ScOr-
piOn, and Aries the Ram, and Gemini
the Twins, although these last are very
common in Kansas also. Everybody
will drink out of the Great Dipper. The
Morning Stars will sing together once
more, and they will have a great time
according to the theory of this Kansas
man You can take your choice of these
theories.
If you should happen to see a partic-
uIarly bright meteor light down in the
next block tonight. do not start out
without your hat to get it. When you
reach the spot where it struck you will |
probably find it is like the Irishman's
feat isn't there. The people there
will tell you that it struck just outside |
of town If you follow it up you will |
learn that it struck in the next town
ship, and then down in the next county, |
and if you have a few thousand dollars |
to spend in the investigation you will
probably find that it didn't strike the
earth at all. Two years ago an enorm-
Gus meteor was seen headed towards
Kansas and the next week every coun-
try paper in the state claimed that it
struck that county, only it hadn't been
found up to the hour of going to press
1t hasn't been found yet.
The astronomers say that the display
will be better after midnight than be-
fore, and that it will be at its best Just
before dawn. Why this is so no one
has explained, unless it is that there
are fewer people awake just before
dawn to contradict the stories that will |
be told about the size of the meteors.