The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1909-09-24

the swell head" It's size depends on
the comparison with other orbs, and
the standpoint from which it is
viewed.
The planet Mars, which is now the
mistress Of the midnight heavens, is
only one eighth the size Of our Mother
Earth. It is said TO be extremely
close to US now. and will not appear
so bright again for fifteen years,
It now Outshines its brilliant sister,
Saturn, which is nearly eight thou
sand times larger. and surrounded by
diamond rings and numerous satel-
lites,
While Venus is going down in the
west after sunset, the planet Mars
meTges from the horizon in the east
for an all-night glow. A little behind
time, and a few rods to the northeast,
Saturn presents an ordinary appear
ance, as a star of the second magni-
tude-
It is well that we are unconscious
or the wonderful cOmmOtiOn in which
we exist, with the revolving earth
carrying us eastward at higher speed
than any emergency railroad train has
ever had; and the whole globe rush
ing fifty times faster than a cannon
ball in its orbit around the sun. to
make its annual schedule Of seven
hundred and sixty million miles while
following Old Sol. which is forging
through space with a velocity Of near
~ five miles per second, attended by
all the planets of the solar system.
If President Taft had taken a thir-
teen thousand mile tape line and
fastened it secure to the Bunker Hill
monument, letting it spin out behind
his train while making survey Of
the u tied States and handing 1t to
Lieut.. Peary on his return to Wash
ingtOn, with instructions to drag 1t to
the south pole while DR.. Cook would
take the other end from the mCnU-
ment and sail with it for the north
pole, they would just have room to
stTaighten it out nicely. and fasten
around the great axletTee!
Then if the President would grasp
the center Of the line at the equator,
with both hand, and haul to the east
ward with infinite mechanical power
and in the name of Uncle Sam en-
deavOT to reverse the earth's rOta-
ton by planting his heels deeply into
the earth's crust, he might break
blood vessel or an ocean cable-but
no Instrument could detect the slight
est change in our daily revolutions.
In comparison with all near asso-
ciates-Venus, Mercury, Mars, the
moon and asteTOids-the earth out
ranks in actual bulk. But the nexT
planet out from the sun-old Jupiter.
with its accompanying mOOns-is
nearly 400 times larger than our
planet. 1t is now keeping such clio
company with the sun that it is in
visible like the ever smOthered Mer-
curry
There are rarely more than two or
three planets of the solar system
visible to the naked eye, while all
other fixed stars which dot the canopy
Of heaven, are supposed TO be lumin-
Gus suns with invisible systems play
ing around them.
Beside 1000 of these fixed stars
which can be counted with the naked
eye, the telescopes reveal more with
every Increase of magnifying power.
The milky way Is estimated to COM
prise eight million suns, many of
which are so far away that the light
has been a thousand years reaching
us, at the rate Of 100000 miles per
second,
When we reflect that this may be
only the first step toward the pre-
pared Heavenly abode Of popular an
ticipation, we are confronted with
the mysteries OF spiritual flight.
All that we can discover only in
creases the proportion OF boundless
fields unexplOred. Each deeper pene-
tratiOn of Gods universe expands our
conception of His infinite creation.
THOS. M'NIILLAN.