Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-02-05
VALUE or ASTRONOMY
Pronounced the Most Useful Of
Sciences.
MAKES STRAIGHT THINKING
The Skill Of the Navigator is Based
Upon It.
FAMOUS BOOKS OF THE WORLD
Catalogue Of Bishops fades on View
at the Congressional Library
Art Treasures of Windsor.
MAKES STRAIGHT THINKING
FAMOUS BOOKS OF THE WORLD
By WILLIAM E. CURTIS.

By WILLIAM e. CURTIS
Written for The Star and the Chicago Record
Heral6.
DR.. woodward president OF the Carnegie
Institution, declares that astronomy Is the
most important. the most practical ana tine
most useful OF all the sciences
.1salileo. Newton and La Place did more
to advance the human race than perhaps
all other men put together" said Prof.
Woodward the other day. Their services
to mankind have been the most practical
and the most important of all. chieny De-
cause they have set men to thinking
straight Generally our thinking is crook
ed Astronomy has put order into the SOAR
system; 1t has very largely eliminated su-
perstition from the influences which con-
troll the world. If 1t were not for astron-
omy we would still be consulting midwives.
Astronomy has practically banished super
stition and fear in the human race. All
trade and commerce depends upon lnIo !,
nation furnished us by the development or
astronomy. Navigation is absolutely de-
pendent upon 1t.
'.rhere were plenty OF ships before astrorl-
omy was discovered" suggested.
But they did not cross the Atlantic IN
Ave days." replied Prof. Woodward. THE
development Of machinery came with and
has been dependent upon the advancement
Of astronomical science. 1t was the as
tronomer Huygens who invented the clock,
and. without clocks, navigation In the pres
ent sense would be impossible. Astronomy
has furnished the foundation for nearly all
the physical sciences Electricity and mag
netism owe their development to the knowi-
edge and machinery provided for them by
astronomical investigation. 1t may be
truthfully said that all modern science Is
based upon astronomy. The same methods
of observation, measurement and calcula-
lnCOI.
porated into all other sciences. and just In
proportion as these other sciences have
been able to initiate and follow astronomy
have they been useful to the human race.
What is the object of science?" / asked.
1.-The goal of all science is the capacity
for prediction. To anticipate the future
Is the most important object of all human
energy and intelligence, and nothing can be
done In that direction without science. So
far as science approaches that goal 1t ap-
proaches perfection, and astronomy Is es-
sentially a science of prediction. 1t can
predict an eclipse a thousand years In ad-
vance; It can calculate the exact moment
of the turn of the tide twice each day for
century 1t can locate the position Of the
moon at any hour of any night for genera
ton upon generation yet unborn. It was
not long ago that the entire world was
frightened at the appearance of a comet.
Astronomy has shown that the universe Is
full of comets and that they are as harm
less as they are beautiful There need not
account of their appearance.
Important Service to Mankind.
.4The most important service of astron-
omy to mankind" continued Prof Wood
ward, has been to convince people of the
continuity OF the phenomena of nature. Ii
we did not believe In the permanence of the
phenomena Of nature we would be just as
badly off and just as helpless as the bar
barians of Central Africa in dealing with
epidemics. storms and other great physical
calamities. Let me cite noteworthy case,
A few years ago there was great drouth
in Missouri. The people had their own way
of dealing with 1t. Instead of digging wells
or driving their cattle to places where
water was plenty they appointed day of
prayer. This is done all over the woAld
however. The Missourians have no monop-
oily of that method of averting calamities
The Moqui Indians have done the same for
ages. But it isn't the scientific way.
Science keeps records, anticipates drouths
and provides for them, and the public is be-
coming more and more dependent upon 1t
for guidance and relief. When serious cpl
denies like cholera or yellow fever break
out we do not depend on supernatural in
fuences any longer. We look for approx
mate causes and remove them. Astronomy
has taught US how to do that. The striking
phenomena of the heavens have been vis-
fble to everybody since the shepherds noted
them on the plains of SShinar and they
once taught the fact of the continuity of
nature. we are beginning to apply the same
laws to everyday phenomena more init
mately related to us. We are beginning to
apply them to ourselves.
Astronomy has taught US that we are a
part of and not apart from the rest of the
universe; that the humblest creature is In
volyed in all the movements of the spheres
and plays an important role in the program
of the universe Anthropology, the investi-
cation of mankind, is a problem of tram
scendant interest because the very instru-
ments of investigation are also the very
objects of research. The highest study of
mankind is man.. We learned only recent
ly how to do 1t and we obtained our meth
DDS from the astronomers