Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1907-08-28
THE FIERY COMET
 GROWS BRIGHTER Many Pine Bluffians Are In, terested in the Strange Thing With a Tail Which Is is Visible Mornings. HAS A LONG TAIL Will Never Burn Up the Earth. Says Local Astromomer-Onc Coming in 1910 Will Rub Against Is But No Fear Entertained.
HAS A LONG TAIL

l Many Pine Bluffians are interested in the comet which can be plainly seen each morning at about 4 o'clock 1 in the Eastern heavens. No few peo- pie in this city have gone to the trou- l ble to leave their beds and view the fiery object as it chases itself, appa- rently through the open. The tail of 1 the comet, and it's head, are plain to the naked eye. It has the appearance | of being two or three feet long, but l it is hard to tell how many thousands 1 of feet it measures in reality. It will be visible all this month, but you must get up early in the mornings to see I it.
 Those who have the early rising habit can see the small comet if they look for it about five degrees north
 west of Betelgueze. Betelgueze is l that reddish-looking star In Orion. The comet has been visible for several mornings, and is gradually growing I brighter.
 Comets are always source of wor- ry to terrestial dwellers, but they need not be afraid of this one. One of the best-versed astronomers in Pine Bluff was asked about this comet and it's habits. He said No, this is not the one whom overzealous biggots sought to inf1ame the ignorant minds of coming disaster to earth's popu- l lace last spring It was first ob- served in the early part of July
 Danger of collision with these mys- terious, cratic bodies is not to be de- from such impact is not probable un- 1 less, indeed, it's nuclei be a soHd of which at the present time we know nothing about Yet we believe that the earth has at various times passed through a portion of the tail of a comet causing a fine pyrotechnic dis play. Several comets seem to have solid nuclei. Large bodies have fal- len on the earth. When a boy it was my privilege to witness such; a large glowing mass descended directly over an explosion, forming a ring of smoke not unlike that which sometimes is formed by bursting of a shell thrown from the mouth of cannon; yet sui ticient was left to imbed itself in the public highway These are known as bolides and are intimately associated
 with comets.
 "The comet of 1911 had a nuclei measuring 42S miles, yet the atmos- pheric envelope enclosing it measured
 1,118,000 miles. That is twice the size of our sun. If the earth should come
 within 500,O00 miles of such a wan derer or rather should get in the way
 of one that is ruled by law that
 knows no turning, we should be in it's
 head. There is no law in nature to precent a comet some day encounter
 ing our planet in it's course. What
 would happen? Much depends upon
 it's mass, density and constitution.
 some deleterious gas, such as car
 bonic acid gas, which is quite prOba- ble, would blend with our atmosphere and those who survived the shock would be poisoned, an universal as- phyxia, an unexpected explosion, a sudden electriZation, a transformation of motion into heat, a shock pal tially or wholly fatal. Oh, no, they are not altogether little innocent creatures,
 nor for foul intent fakirs, fanatics, fools who see the dire fall of man in their appearance. The return of the great comet of Hally's-sO named n
 his honor-is predicted to occur on the
 24th of May, 1910. It is very apt 70
 house of diamonds it may be; and
 should it strike, only a continen. or
 so will have changed hands wit.. the
 empire of the sea and greedy man will but watch his opportunity to make the most of it. The orbit of th;4 comet extends far beyond the orbit of Neptune
 "Is there Neptunian planet?"
 Tt seems so; but of comets have no fear. If the earth does not die un- til put out of business by a come., # will for many hundreds of millions of years pursue it's round, even as it has in the past, unheeding the raving fanatic, whose presidential infuenc' induces no cessation in the laws ct motion, which is primarily the law oi life on all worlds that form the bound ? less universe"