Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1900-06-01

eouS element surrounding the sun.
however, has not been determined, and
if any astronomer has solved this
problem, he has not committed him
self.
The United States naval observatory
achieved splendid success at both
Barnesville and Griffin, Ga.
At Darncsville.
Following is part of the state
ment given out by Prof Updegratf.
who directed the work at the govern
ment station at GAINESVILLE:
1.-THE weather was favorable and the con-
| ditions under which observations were
made were good. Our programme was
carried out without Interruption without
| accident or delay. We secured 20 photo
| graphs on the five cameras mounted on the
polar axis, and four photographs with the
| large Photographic Photograph. The trans
parency of the sky was good and the stead
| mess of the air was excellent. We feel, as
| far we tell at this time, that the OBJ
| servations We're entirely successful"
The force of the word "totalty," as
applied to the temporary extinction
of the suns rays, was fully appreciat-
ed. The eclipse came with startling
| precision, and while the period of
totality lasted nature appeared to
stand still in awe if not in fear of the
manifestation.
The Shadow Bands.
The first perception of something
beyond the ordinary came to Barnes
Vile and vicinity in the shape of
gray, pearly light that streamed
down when the suns sphere was half
obscured. diminishing gradually as
the crescent of the visible narrowed
| ing of the total eclipse were clearly
pereeptible against white surface in
the enclosing gloom for fully three
minutes before the rays were entirely
obscured. The shadow bands, strange
| ly, running from the northwest, we're
watched with peculiar interest and
first We're seen Il series of small wavy
shadows falling against the white sur
face, quickly growing larger and
more dense, and coming in rapid sue
| cession, until, as the moment of to-
tally arrived, dense wave of gloom
enyeloping everything in nature shot
by to the southeast,
Birds Cease Their Songs.
1t was noted by many that the birds
| in the trees, chipping merrily only u
moment before, ceased their singing.
| The intense stiffness was broken at
ONCE by a breeze that seemed to spring
up from Hpwhere, and which none of
the local weather prophets could eX-
plain. The time of darkness in which
| everything was obscnred to such de-
gree that a man would fail to distin-
J guish his friend across the street.
seemed long To the ordinary observer.
but to the man of science unreason
ably short.
The first notice that the phase of |
totally was over, came with start
ling ray of light that produced
change as sudden as diu the black |
wave sweeping from the southwest at
the moment whea the phase began.
From all points in this seption comes
the news of q perfect day for the
eclipse, with nothing to obscure the 1
phenomenon
At Washington, Ga.
Washington, Ga. May 29.-The sue
cess attending the eclipse observa-
tions here ,yas highly gratifying
Prof. Alfred L. Burton, in charge of
the expedition from the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology, gave out the
following statement at nine o'clock:
''Fhe weather here was perfect. The aIti-
tude IS degrees 10 4ainutes. longitude hours
30 minutes. Sc 2-10 seconds g. J.. Hosmer,
observer. The first contact was at hours |
2 minutes. Is $40 seconds. local mean time; |
second contact s hours Q minutes 81 5-10 sec |
onds. The time of totaiity was minute |
and % $40 seconds. A G. Robbins. observ- |
er; the magnetometer showed no disturb |
ances in magnetic declination. Seven
sketches We're made of the corona and six
photographs taken by Harrison w. Smith
The staeesss of the observations here
was wired To I.ondsn. England, in one
minnie. The telegraph eompany fur
nished direct wire from this sItte
town to the cable office ia New York
city and the cable flashed the last
word under the sea in one second after
it reached the New York Office
Prof w Fl. Pickering. at the head
of Yaie's expedition. furnished the
following siialten.snt;
The weather was peFlestS ana the OBJ
servatiGns We're entirely satisfactory. We
secured 3G plates with intra -mercurial APP
paratus and ~ with 1a other cameras, aided
| by 10 assistants. The plates will be de-
| veloped in Cambridge observatory. Yis-
| ually With iveinch telescope the corona
| rcsembled that OF the SO eclipse. Two large.
| solar protuberances were noted. Our
| polar haments. six INCHES In diameter
! tFaaed the corona about one degree. The
] shadow ef tbe moon on the sky and shadow
bands were &eti Geen. Venus and Mer
curry were conspicnqnS. The inner corona
was visible in the telescope several sec
| onds after totality was over There vas
no dark band around the moons limb dur
| ing the partial phase. and no detail on
| the moon during totaiity."
| Naval Observatory Work.
/! Pinchurst. N c., May 29.-The OBJ
serynfiQps here were gratifying sue
cess Prof ( y Skinner, in charge
of the naval observatory party. fur
nishad the following stafelhent':
THE sun rose clear and the sky was unob-
scured by clouds The delicate apparatus
was in perfect adjustment. The first con-
tact occurred at the predicted time,7:3G
| The beginning of totality was the signal
| Tor the work of the morning. which was ac-
complished in the short time of 81 seconds
1 'iyc spectrum photographs were obtained
] with ,i,a fiat grating and the concave graf
| ing b3' ri. Afirs and his alsillful assistants,
| %e'srs 1!uH G.$ert, Reese. DR.. Chase,
of Yale. atininca fih:f t.ge srectrum pho
| tographs With the objective AiisA0 spectre
SCOPE Fine photographs OF the ourer
corona were obtained with the six cam
| sras on the polar axis by Mcssrs. Gore, Ball,
| Eichelberger King, Caperton and Kent.
tiaad drawings of the corona were made by
Profs. Mood, Frisby and Vowel. Prof.
lMood ana I3l DORSEY used polariscopes.
A1r. Parsons took some Salpapie polariscopic
photographs. MIR. Cotton took aye fine pho
tographs with the 40-foot lens. Every.