The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-11-29

have recorded sun spots, thus visible to the naked eye, as long as 321 years before the Christian era. The Peruvians are said to have had a knowledge of them when their country was conquered by the Spanards. Historians of the time of Charlemange report a spot seen on the sun for eight consecutive days in S07; the astronomer Kepler noticed such d spot in 1909 and from 1610 to 1912 several astrono- mers began independently to observe and study them. These astronomers were Fabricius Scheiner Calico and Hariot, and their work marks the actual begin ming of this branch of the astronomical investigation. In 1851 Schwabe, an anna teur astronomer of Dessau. Germany. published the result of over 1000 observa- tions covering a period 0. years and re- vealing that there is fairly regular in- crease and decrease in the number of these solar visitors, the interval from one maximum to the next being about II years and this result was soon after corroborat- ed by an examination of all preceding sun spot records. These maxima however vary greatly in the nur Der of sun spots that represent the climax of different sun spot periods and the period itself is by no means fixed and certain, although 1t has often been considered by the advocates of a direct relation between the sun spots and various terrestrial phenomena.
 It is only by the exercise of considerable ingenuity that the bulk of these relations have been maintained, even in theory The foundations of such theories lies obvi- ousy enough In the question as to whether the presence of spots on the sun detract from the heat and light ordinarily emanating from the body and so immed- lately influences the weather and crops of our own planet. Such an influence could only be shown by series of deadly par allels, in a very literal sense between the presence of spots on the sun md the oc- entrances of bad harvests, pancs ship wrecks. suicides. and other disastrous what not on our own planet, something over 9O000 900 miles distance. And in the first place, without going into the scien- tific details there are three distinct opin- ions regarding the sun spots and the heat and light of the sum- first, that the spots show great activity in the sun and there fore increased heat-eminating power; second that they decrease the amount of heat available for radiation and so de- minish the heat rays third. that the ef- fects of the spots are enumerated by other causes arising at the same time, and therefore. so far as any change in the amount of heat received by the earth is concerned, they produce no effect what ever.
 No Parallel.
 Granting. however, that they do effect the heat of the earth there has been evolved no completely convincing palarrel between the sun s.ots and our own weather and crops. As in the case of Sir William Harschels famous compar- isnn between the sun spots and the price
 of wheat during certain period there
 have been many curious concidences. which, however, are evidently more coin cidental than real in view of the fact that the great number O, other causes affect nig like conditions make it impossible to place any definite responsibility on the sun. and the observers themselves have turned up conflicting evidence. As one astronomer has recently said. it would
 be quite possible given sufficient study. to establish an apparent connection be- tween the planets and the rise and fall of any given railroad stock the relative numbers of democratic and republican congressman from year to year, or almost anything else with which the heavenly bodies have as little to do Sun spots and bad harVests, sun spots and shipwrecks. sun spots and commercial crises. sun spots and wars. or even sun spots and race suicide may therefore be relegated to the subjects that are at present of pr- mary interest only to the ingenious.
 Although weather connections have not been established in one direction there is much stronger reason for belief in tangible connection between the sun spots and the conditions of our own little plan ct The presence of the sun spots is ap- parently closely associated with the mag netic condition of the earth. and although many electrical storms are purely local many of the great magnetic storms Of the past half century have been found to coincide with sun spot periods-a condi- tion, however. that still awaits any con vincing scientific explanation. Stripped, therefore of the picturesque extremes to which the subject has been often carried,