Arizona republican., 1901-10-10
THE STARS IN OCTOBER.

usually brilliant programme. The spectacle of rour bright planets within one reach of the eye. while not an epochal event. is quite out of the ordin- ary and as pleasing as it is unusual October is the month, perhaps of lil the year most favorable for amateu; study and the conditions this year fa:. those who desire to make a beginning in sky lore can never be excelled.
 By far the best plan it to go out soon after sunset, before the sky has become thickly set with stars. Then watch them as they develop one by one the planets first. then the first magnitude stars. and the lesser stars following in order as the shadows deepen. It gives a most surprising evidence of the unreliability of the un- trained eye. when two bright stars of seeming equal brightenss. when seen against the background of a dark blue sky. are seen most unequal under the test of twilight.
 Look first to the west and gaze upon the tender star of love-" Venus. whose brilliant rays break forth before the gold and purple of the setting sun has faded from the sight. Then look to the south and see another star of ex- Ceeding brilliancys second only to Venus of all that are in the sky. This is Jupiter. vastly more distant than Venus, but reflecting from his mighty disc of eighty thousand miles diameter so much of the suns rays as to make him one of the most conspic- uous objects of our sky.
 In the minutes that have elapsed since we came out a number of the brighter stars have emerged from their hiding and are seen scattered over the --eaf dome nf he ct pears near Jupiter. little to the left. This is Saturn. the next greatest of the planets, and the most distant of thos. observed by the unafded eye. A teie- scope is. of course, needed to see his rings, and those who have opportunity to look through such an instrument should make haste to do so as the co,i- ditions will grow less favorable for several years to come. To the naked eye saturn appears as a standard first magnitude star. with a light, pale but clear and strong.
 Turning again to Venus we find a not particularly bright star in her near vicinity-a star bright enough, how ever, to be immediately identified. This is Mars. whose increasing distance from the earth and the fact that his face is partly averted from the sun combine to lessen his erstwhile bright ness. In a few weeks he will he hid den in the rays of the sun. and we shall see little of him until 1903. Mars and Venus will be in conjunction on the morning of the 10th. and may be looked upon the evening before and after. Mars will appear about two moonbreadths north of the brighter planet On the evening of the 18th the crescent moon will hover above the two. planets-a rarely beautiful sight and one which only cloudy weather should be an excuse for missing.
 In this neighborhood. on the evenings from the 11th to the 14th. we may look for the elusive planet Mercury. He will be seen quite near the planets just described. littel toward the horizon. There will be no other star in the neighborhood to confuse, and So mis- take is impossible. The view of Mer- cury Is exceptionally favorable this month. for he is seen at the unusual distance of twenty-five degrees from the sun. This happens because we see him at his greatest angie only a few days from the time of his apheiion. Though seldom seen. because usually in the day-lit sky, Mercury shines very bright star. This, because being very near the sun the planet receives an enormous amount or light.
 HIS gorgeous pidIleldTy programme does not in the least mean that We should forget our friends. the ever faithful fixed stars. In the region about midway between the two planet aTy groups we see a single first mag nitude star whose ruddy color is at once apparent. This is Antares. in the constellation Scorpio. The winding figure of the Scorpion is easily traced if the night is dark and clear.
 Almost due south at this hour is an other first magnitude star of a pale white color suggesting Saturn. This is Fomalhaut in the Southern Fish. It is the most southern first magnitude star ever seen from this latitude.
 Turn to the north and behold once mere the Great Bear. or Big Dippe-. the most marked through all ages and in every land of the figures in the sky. The Romans called it Septemtriones. a somewhat illogical combination of "triones." a yoke of oxen, with seven. the number of the stars. In England. in early times. the figure was called the "CeOrles Vain and after the old classification of "eorle' and "ceorle" was forgotten the name went on as "Charles's Wain." Shakespeare makes a carrier in Henry VI say that it is four o'clock in the morning. be- cause 'Charles's Vain is over the new chimney This use of "Charles'' by Shakespeare disposes of the claim that the later Stuarts had anything to do with the name. But while some of the English saw a wagon. others were equally positive that they beheld q plough. and a native of Scotland in forms the writer that in the land of the heather Peters Plough is the style under which the much named constei- lation Is known. In the United States north, south, east, west-it is the Big Dipper save only with the superior schOOlboy who adheres to Ptolemy and talks about the Great Bear.
 Extenjing the handle of the Big Dip per to about thre. times its length points out the bright star Arcturus. tn,