Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1909-11-27
AGREAT CENTRAL SUN
MadIer's Theory Is That It Is the
Star Alcyone.
THE CENTER OF GRAVITY.

According to tho Astronomer, the
Principal Star Of the Pleiades 10 the
Body Around Which All Created
Matter Within Our Ken Revolves.
It has been the dream of all the ro-
mantle astronomers since the time Of
Copernicus to prove the existence Of d
central sun, says Lawrence Hodges,
writing In the New York Tribune. By
this is meant heavenly body as much
larger than the sun as the sun itself
Is larger than the earth, round which
the sun, with all its planets. must re-
volve. 1t has been proved that the
sun and all its satellites are rushing
forward through space with enormous
velocity, but whether the motion was
in straight line or a circular path
was not proved for some time.
But even IL 1t was proved a curved
path and that there probably existed
central sun that transcribed the
earths lord In size. why couldn't we
see 1t? The only answers are that 1t
would have to be nonluminous or else
30 far away that the light hadn't reach
ed us yet. But II all the stars. includ-
ing our sun. were children of this big
sun. just as the earth is the child of
the sun and the moon of the earth.
they would have had to have been
flung or from the big sun with a
greater velocity than that OF light In
order for the big sun not to be visible
and still be luminous; also the big sun
would have to be luminous II any OF
its children were, for that is the In
variable law of the heavens. So the
problem simmsred down to finding q
star or group of stars that would take
the place of the central sun.
The motion of the solar system hav-
ing been settled as to fact, quantity
and direction. astronomers set about
to find the center of gravity of the
whole astral system, for there, IL any
where, the central sun was to be
found. An astronomer named Mad
Ter thought he had found the star to
satisfy the necessary conditions In the
constellation known as Taurus. or the
Bull. closer search proved the spe-
cial star under examination to be lack
ing In some of the conditions, SO this
one was left and the search begun
anew. This same astronomer persist
ed In his search with a wonderful
faith in his theory and at last found
a star fulfilling In the most wonderful
and complete manner the necessary
conditions. Every one is familiar with
the beautiful little cluster known as
the Pleiades, or seven stars. The teles-
cope. however. shows fourteen stars
clustered about the beautiful and bril-
ION ofa 10. hn
teal center Of this group.
The proper motions of all these have
been determined with great exactness.
They are all In the sa me direction and
are all nearly equal to each other, and.
what is still more important. the mean
of their proper motions differs from
that Of the central star, Alcyone, by
only one-thousandth Of a second Of
arc in right ascension and by only
two-thousandths of second in decli-
nation. Here. then. is found mag
nificent group of suns either actually
allied together and sweeping together
through space or else composing q
cluster so situated as to be affected
by the same apparent motion produced
by the suns progression through the
celestial regions.
But an extension of the limits of re-
search round Alcyone exhibits also the
wonderful truth that out OF 40 stars
being within IS degrees of this center
there are sixty moving south-that Is,
in the same direction-in full accord
ance with the hypothesis that Alcyone
Is the center. forty-nine showing prac- |
ticaily no motion, while only one sin
gle individual that moves at all con-
trary to the computed motion. Thus |
was Madler's profound speculation
justified. Furthermore, assuming AL |
cyone as the grand center of the mil |
lions of stars composing our astral sys- |
tenn and the direction of the suns mo- |
ton to be AS before mentioned. Mad
Ter investigated the consequent move |
ments Of all the stars In every quarter
Of the heavens.
Just where the swiftest motions
should be found In accordance with
this assumption there they actually ex-
list, this either demonstrating the truth
OF the theory or else showing a well
nigh impossible series of condolences.
the CONCLUSION given out by
is that Alycone. the principal
star of the Pleiades, now occupies the
center Of gravity and Is at present the
great central sun about which the uni
verse Of stars and all created matter
within our ken is revolving. each en-
tity in its own special path.