Evening star., 1919-12-17

ENU Uf WUKLD lii
'BOSH'
Despite that today was the date
prophesied by Prof. Albert Porta Of
the University of Michigan for the
perienced by the EARTH" which, some
folk construed to mean the end of the
world, Washingtonians ate their
breakfast and set to their daily tasks
apparently without giving thought to
the representation.
That there was little trepidation on
the part of Neutrality-suspicious. may be
traced to the bulletins of assurance,
issued from time to time during the
last couple of weeks by government
astronomical authorities. In agree
ment with leading lights in the scien-
tfic world. Washington astronomers
characterized the "frightful cata-
c1ysm'' as "bosh."
Telephones Kept Busy.
Officials of the weather bureau were
busy today answering telephone and
telegraph messages from persons who
wondered if the high winds of early
today, accompanied by snow fiurries.
We're due to the position of the planets
and forerunner of the prophesied
disturbances
"The planets have nothing to do with
the weather" said Maj. Bowie, of the
weather bureau. '1f there were no
other planets we would still have
weather. The cold weather today is
due to cold area sweeping down from
the great lakes"
Maj Bowie predicted that tonight the
thermometer would sink rapidly. II
do not hesitate to say that it will drop
as low as ten degrees before tomorrow
morning" he said. THE winds are fresh
northwest winds, and the weather will
be fair and cold"
Dispose OF Theory
Here is hrw officials of the Naval
Observatory disposed of the lend of the
world theory:
The planets Mercury, Venus, Mars.
Jupiter Saturn and Neptune are COM
prlsed within a group. the extreme
members OF which subtend an angle of
26.4 degrees at the suns center. Uranus
is on the other side of the sun. direct
iy opposite the group.
similar grouping occurred on Aug
ust IL, 1881, when the same group of
planets was comprised within a heIio-
centric angle of 23.O degrees. 1,he
meteorological records Of the Naval OBJ
servatory show that in Washington the
weather was unusually fair and season.
apie throughout the month of August of
that year" N' vi
mere is no reason to believe. sci
ehtists cialm. that this chance group
ing of the planets sho1iId have ~
lnnuence IN producing sun spots or
any unusual conditions on the sur
Iace OF the earth. Astronomers have
long since decided that sun spots are
natural disturbances in the suns at
mosphere, and the most careful OBJ
servers have failed to detect any
planetary influence in these forna-
tionS. '
Earth Far Ont of the Line.
The earth is said to be SO far out
OF the line of the group that, as view
ed by an observer, the planets extend
over more than 100 degrees of the
ecliptic. which of itself embraces such
a distance in space that it refutes the
Michigan scientists idea that the at
traction of the planets for the sun,
coming from a single direction, will
raise tides in the molten suin. or pro-
duce electrical disturbances which in
time might affect the earth.
Had the directions of the planets
not been uniform, scientists aver, our
system would have been destroyed
long ago, and the people of the earth
would not have been able to discuss
today celestial disturbances.
POrta Said to Be Amateur.
ANN ARBOR. Mich. December IL
Prof. Albert Porta. who is generally
credited with having predicted the
end of the earth today. made no such
fat statement, according to informa-
ton received in university circles
here. Porta, who is said to be an
amateur astronomer, at present living
just outside of Los Angeles. predicted
early in July, according to this in
formation, that beginning about the
middle of December and continuing
until the middle of January there
= ould be a series of terrific storms,
earthquakes and volcanic 'eruptions.
The opinion is expressed in university
circles that these forecasts have been
until the end of the world prediction
was attributed to Porta.
President Harry B. Hutchins of the
University of Michigan stated that
Porta is not now and never has been
a member of the faculty at Michigan.
I'VE have not been able to discover"
said DR.. Hutchins. that he was ever
a student here"
1t is understood here that Porta
number of years ago was a professor
in the University of Turin, Italy.
Prof. Porta Feared "sun Spot"
SAN FRANCISCO. December IL
Prof. Albert A. Porta, San Francisco
meteorologist, from whose deductions
on planet configuration the prophecy
of the world coming to an end today
was said to have sprung, reported to-
day the DEMONSTRATIONS of the
worlds demise We're greatly exag-
gerated. The rotation of the sun pre-
venting pull of the planetary
phalanx on any one place of the suns
surface for any considerable length
of time would prevent the formation
of any sun spot, Prof. Porta said. 1t
was this sun spot that he feared
Heavy electro gnetic energies
produced by the tension of the plan
cts on the sun would produce a huge
sun spot which would in turn cause
the cataclysm, but which event is
prevented by the suns rotation"
Prof. Porta said.
In previous statements Prof. Porta
had admitted the possibility of dis
turbances in and on the earth as
result of the pull exerted by the lined
up planets"
5n0 TRAFFIC. VI0I hT0RS