Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-05-29
WEATHERs BUREAU PARTY
FINE VIEW OF ECLIPSE IN BELT OF
ToTALITY.
Some Atmospheric Conditions Pecu.
liar to the Event-A Wonderful
Spectacle - inner Corona.

the eclipse yesterday at Newberry, s. u,
has this to say of the results of the OBJ
servations:
''Newberry, S. c., the city chosen by the
weather bureau party for the observation
of the total eclipse of May %, is place
Of from 5000 to 5000 inhabitants, situated
on rolling ground, though with no high
hills. 1t Is county seat and has one OF the
largest cotton mills in the state, which Is
supplied with cotton grown in the imme-
date region. No special features are to be
noted about the place beyond the typical
characteristics of a southern town, al
though some of us had never before seen
such mules as they have there, nor realized
the carrying quality of their resonant bray;
nelther seen such sunbonnetS nor so many
nappy, lazy darkfes. Two lines of railroad
pass through the place and the officials at
both ends did all in their power to arrange
connections and give quick time.
me advance guard, in the person Of
Pror: r. II. Bigelow, arrived Wednesday.
the 18th. and reconnoitered for site for
the house for the Photographic lens and the
posts for Prof. Abbe's polariscope and to
complete all details. Friday afternoon
Prof. Cleveland Able, Mr. and Mrs. Rober-
dean Buchanan of the Nautical Almanac
office, Mr. James Page of the photographic
office. Mrs. F. H. Bigelow, the Misses
Wilkes and Miss Julia Lindsly Joined Prof.
Blgelow. while on the same train came also
Prof. Terriss of Brooklyn, with three
others in his party
me townspeople were extremely kind,
oolns all in their power to forward the
necessary work. well as Offering social
courtesles to their scientific guests. Sat
urday evening the opera house filled
with an audience which listened attentive
given by Prof. Able, followed by an eclipse
TAX. with lantern slides. by Prof Bigelow.
During Wednesday, Thursday and Friday
an east wind prevailed, with almost con-
slant cloudiness, but Saturday afternoon
the wind changed. bringing warmer air
ana speckless sky, raising hopes, which
We're further confirmed by the special tele-
gram sent by Prof. Moore. chief of the
weather bureau, announcing every prob
ability of fine weather
Inc interest among the townspeople was
manifested constantly, while large parties
arrived during Saturday and Sunday, so
that the parlors and corridors of the hotel
had TO be used for cots, while some were
turned away
During Sunday night a Fourth of July
spirit was in the air and it hardly needed
the stentorian voice of the waiter at 3
O'Clock Monday morning to bounce every
one from bed to window to see the sky. A
more perfect scene than greeted the eye it
would be difficult to find. The conditions
were ideal; cloudless sky; air, in which
the smoke from early fires went straight
to zenith, and a full bright sunlight, while
congratulations for the weather bureau
poured In from all sides. as if In reality 1t
held the control Of wind and cloud, as
Aeolus of old.
After a hurried breakfast. eaten in an
atmosphere tainted with the kerosene
smoke. raised from preparing smoked glass,
the various parties went to their rendez-
vous. some driving to a distant spot, where
a long sweep of valley would give the
Shadow the greatest advantage Many
funny groups were to be noted: Negroes
smoking bits of broken glass in the street
over burning paper bag; whole families,
big children. little children and the twins,
Struggling along to points of vantage. al
though the colored people generally in
dulged In prayer meetings during the
eclipse or hid in cellars. while one within
our knowledge prepared a blanket with
which to cover his head; he afterward had
a long story about the surprise of one of
the horses when it, grew light again.
First Contact.
1.-THE first contact came at III. BAN. 35s.,
and the shadow steadily grew, the edge at
first appearing very irregular, then by 7:45
growing smoother, while the horns of the
crescent were plainly visible and the sun
itself looked like a bubble about to burst.
The sharp horns gradually grew less as
the shadow advanced. and at $40 a weird,
soft light covered the landscape. A COW
near by lowed uneasily and the turkeys
gathered under the trees. calling to their
chicks The strong breeze which had
sprung up about o'clock and which we
Were told was not usual occurrence grad
ually Tell with the leSSenlnR HSnt, until at
the moment of totaity it had completely
died away and breathless hush rested over
all nature. while the beautiful coronal rays
became visible to all the eager eyes gazing
upward.
Mercury showed up brightly to the right
and seemed to enhance the general effect.
while on the horizon soft, pink clouds APP
peared as in an actual sunset even though
the sun We're in midheaven.
1.-The wonderful spectacle was of all too
short duration, and bright sunbeam burst
ing over the opposite edge of the black disk
brought US back to everyday life again.
after the little GREATNESS pause for beati-
fic vision. Then 1T was that we missed the
Shadow for which we were supposed to be
especially watching, and in the general
movement which at once began, when the
cows again wandered about the turkey
chicks came from under motherly wings
and the horses resumed the whisking of
flies, inquiry of neighbor of neighbor showed
that no one had seen the Shadow nor had
the scientists obtained any record on their
carefully prepared sheets. The telegram to
last evenings Star gave in brief the scien-
tfic results of the eclipse, and they will be
developed later.
The Inner Corona.
prof Bigelow observed especially that
the inner corona was unusually bright, like
a dazzling ring of light in an annular
eclipse, so that the eye could hardly rest
upon II. The polar rays were well devel-
oped, but the equatorial extensions spread
out east and west to several dameterS of
the sun, showing soft. delicate vision of
rare and impressive beauty. The wonderful
purity and the steadiness of the atmos-
phere at Newberry brought out all these
features with reI .arkabe clearness, but in
marked contrast the expected impressive
onward sweeping shadow was missing and
the shadow bands We're reduced to minute
rippIes. which were scarcely visible at the
beginning and only seen with difficulty at
the end of totally.
The Views Obtained.
1.-The Newberry party had some novel ap-
paratus for photographing the corona, and
obtained some two-and-a -half-inch pictures
of 1t with feur-feet telescope
prof. AbbespaiAsspecial attention to the
long streamefs. Of the outer corona. These
extended to the right hand and upward
from the sun in g broadening sheaf and
also to the left ha4d and below, tapering to
a point. Thisxfowef point was distant from
the suns center about three diameters, but
the upper sheaf ended at about two and a
half solar dianetefs. The whole constituted
a cone of striae over five degrees long. The
axis Of the cone lay nearly in the ecliptic.
Reports from other places will be read
with the greatest interest perhaps, but no
where were ther6 more perfect weather
conditions nor more kindly courtesy ex-
tended by the citizens than were enjoyed
nv ba mann u,aotbor l1,roo,,