The Washington herald., 1907-09-01
By DEXTER MARSHALL.


see what is being done here. Sir Robert
himself is an astronomer Of no mean
ability and great reputation. being di-
rector of Cambridge Observatory, so that
praise from him Is like praise from Sir
Hubert
Sir Robert didn't say that there are
more astronomers Of recognized achieve
ment and reputation here than in any
other country-probahly because he didn't
think of it-but there are. He enumerated
several Of them. giving credit to each for
his own special work, but he omitted the
name Of Simon Newcomb. the Nestor of
American star-gazers, whose work has
been Of the greatest possible practical
value to the world for many decades.
NestOr of American Astronomers.
Newcomb is seventy-two, and has been
on the retired list for ten years. He is
OF the old-fashioned American sort. He
was born in poverty. he had hard lines
when a boy, and he owes bis success In
his chosen science to his own efforts. Al
though a native of Nova Scotia, he is of
Yankee stock, Tor his ancestors We're
early English immigrants TO New Eng
land who went farther north in 1851
His grandfather was stone mason, his
father a school-teacher, whose earnings
were Of the scantiest. as were the earn
ings OF all the men of Wallace, the ham
let where he kept his school
No one had any money there. The
women and girls, as well as the men
and boys, had TO work ''ferociousIy," as
Hamlin Garland would say. as soon as
they We're old enough to make a living
The men and boys sawed lumber and cut
flrewood mostly-for the region was
hardly cleared as yet-while the women
and girls spun and wOve and made the
clothing of the men, as we'll as their own.
The community is better of now than it
was then, but all the people there still
earn their living with their hands and
see little money. When Prof. Newcomb
and Mrs. Newcomb paid the place
visit few years ago they overheard one
native remark to another:
They do say that Newcomb spends
his time in the States a-studying the
stars-and gets paid for itt'
Newcomb's grandfather must have been
man Of some education, since his few
books included an ancient copy OF Eu-
clid's treatise on geometry, from which /
the grandson gathered some of his first |
mathematical knowledge. He came TO the |
United States TO seek his fortune when |
eighteen, drifting 10 Maryland, where he 1
began as a school teacher not far from
Washington. One day he visited the
library OF the Smithsonian Institution /
where he found some books on mathe-
MATES that interested him nightly He |
managed TO borrow them through Prof /
Joseph Henry, who, seeing that the young /
''Blue-NOse' schOol-teacheT had a Won 4
derful aptitude for mathematics, intro
duced him to Prof. Winlock, superintend- /
ent OF the Nautical Almanac. He engaged /
Newcomb as an assistant, and that is /
how his really noteworthy astronomical /
career was begun.
The Nautical Almanac
The Nautical Almanac has been termed |
the guide book to the Seven Seas. and /
properly, since the information and Ia
bles it contains are of immense aid to /
navigators in making their calculations.
In 1857, when. at twenty-five, young
Newcomb began his service upon the al !
manac. the merchant marine Of the |
United States was at its best. and the |
greatest pains were taken to make the
almanac the best published. Although !
our deep sea merchant marine is now of 4
little consequence, our Nautical Almanac I
Is standard to-day, because of Newcomb's /
work.
In 1870, when sent 10 Gibraltar to OBJ /
serve total eclipse Of tie sun. he found 4
that errors had been made in certain cal /
culations, so that the motions of the /
moon were not accurately known. There |
fore he went to Paris, arriving there at /
the close OF the siege and the beginning |
of the Commune He got permission 10 /
study the astronomical records, worked at
them with Mrs. Newcomb for six weeks. |
Undisturbed by the almost constant firing /
going on in the streets found the errors /
Of computation and corrected them. From /
Paris he went TO other astronomical CEN
tiers. doing similar work in each The en-
tire astronomical world threw laurels at |
his feet because Of what he achieved that
year.
It was Newcomb who installed the
great Lick telescope; it was Newcomb
who advised the Car so wisely regarding
the Russian governments observatory
that the Russian monarch FASTENED to re.
ward him with signal tokens of his i'm
perial favor. The Emperor Of Japan has
shown similar evidences Of appreciation
and these are samples only of the hon
ors he has received from abroad In 1861
he was made professor Of mathematics
at the United States Naval Academy. and
for years he had charge of the Naval
Observatory, first az Annapolis and then /
at Washington. In that time he made |
personal observations Of such accuracy
and value that, whereas when he began
IL was possible to compute exactly as 10
eclipses and other celestial phenomena
for a few years only, it is now possible
10 figure ahead for d century or more
as accurately as for a year. He is the
only American since Franklin to be
made an Associate of the Institute Of
France
He always has been the hardest work
er imaginable. Years ago he used to get
rest when hard driven in cat maps. at the
beginning of which he would ask his wife
70 wake him in fifteen minutes. and at
the end OF which he would be entirely
refreshed. Yet he has a keen sense of
humor Once nervous friend. after
telling him a long story of personal
troubles. wound up with the question:
IF you We're In my shoes what would
you do?"
Ia black them, said Newcomb. look
Ing sharply at the other mans feet.
Neweomb tcok a course In the Msssa-
chUSetts Polytechnic Institute soon after
Joining the Almanac stan. which Dgas
first located ar Boston, and for sorna
years he was professor Of mathematics ~
Johns Hopkins. He never has seemed
10 have the least desire TO make money
lie is a prime institution At Washing
ton. d. c.. where ne lives.