The Lexington dispatch. [volume] (Lexington, South Carolina) 1870-1917, 1903-08-19
The Lexington Dispatch.
Wednesday, August 19, 1903.
Bill Arp's Letter.

It seems to me that I had better
answer some of those interesting
questions through the far reaching
medium of the press. Here are three
inquiries from among your readers
who wish to know something definite
about these so called dog days. OF
course, know only from what I get
from books, but a vast multitude
have not the books nor access to
them. Whether the advent and in
fuence of dog days be a superstition
or fact, all that is known should be
disseminated.
Pliny and Herodotus both wrote
about dog days 40Osyear before
Christ. Ancient astronomers and
modern ones agree in ascribing to
Sirius q very malignant Influence
when it arises in conjunction with
the sun, for it is the brightest star in
the heavens, and it's great heat added
to the heat Of the sun increases and
intensifes the temperature as long
as this conjunction continues. But
this rising with the sun is not a fixed
day. 1t varies from the 3rd of July
to the 18th of August, and hence the
almanac makers make ali average day
and set down July 20th as the first
dog day. Some date it July oath,
but these dates may miss it two or
three weeks. II isgenerally believed
that these dog days continue for
forty days, bat in fact there is an in
definite period, for the conjunction
of Sirius with the sun sometimes
lasts for fifty four days.
The sum of the whole matter is
that about this time of the year we
may look for very hot weather and
showers almost every day, and to
call il fodder pulling weather would
be as good a name IS any. Whether
Sirius has anything to do with it or
not we can only surmise, but Sirius
is the dog star and gave the name.
Sirius is the brightest star in the
heavens, andsis in the mouth Of the
big dog-a constellation that the an
cient astronomers named CAMS msj jor.
The ancient Egyptians mapped off
tie starry heavens with imaginary
animals and men, such as dogs, bears,
dragons. bulls, Hercules, Orion, etc,
and the names they gave to groups
of stars have never been changed.
There is a big dog and little dog,
big bear and little bear, a big dip
per and little dipper.a
Right in the tip Of the tail of the
little bear is a very notable star call
ed the Pole star or North star, that
navigators used to sail by and they
called it Oynoskurous, which in Greek
means Q dog tail. From this name
we have the word cynosure, and so
We say of a beautiful woman in an
assembly that she was the oynosure
of all eyes is equivalent to saying
that she was the dog tail of the con-
Germ. Just how the sailors got to
calling this star the dog tail is not
known for it is really in ursa minor.
the little bears tail. The ancients
gave many names to the stars to fit
things in nature that they resembled.
The word comet comes from cometus,
which means mares tail. The
word lunatic comes from luna, the
moon, for the ancients believed that
the mind was effected by the changes
in the moon.
Those old Egyptians were very
Imaginative and superstitious, but
they were very learned. How they
got so far ahead of the Hebrews,
Gods favorise people, We do not
know. Their astronomy, mathema-
tica and architecture have never been
improved. The Scriptures tell US
that Moses was learned in sll the
wisdom of the Egyptians. Job asks:
'Canst thou bind the sweet influence
of the pleiades or loose the bands
IF 0rion9" kmoa calls them the