Fort Mill times. [volume] (Fort Mill, S.C.) 1892-current, 1922-01-05

Where the Sun HAY Yield Impor.
tAut Soorots. f

come upon IN the holiday season
ard have named accordingly, may
play. an important part in reveal.
ing to mankind facts about the
sun heretofore unknown, accord
ing to press reports from London.
The royal observatory of Green
wich is planning to send to the
tiny island early in the year an
expedition equipped with good
sized telescope to observe next
S.eptember's total eclipse of the
sun. A Dutch astronomical party
may also install its instruments
there.
The island is the subject of the
following bulletin from the Ma
tonal Geographic society:
Christmas island has been de-
scribed by travellers as at once
one OF the lOneliest and loveliest
spots in the world. And it's DOS
session of tree-climbing crabs and
a superscented tree gives it a
right to be classed as one of the
queerest.
Java, its nearest neighbor to
the north, is $50 miles away, the
little Cocos islands lie more than
GOO miles to the west, Australia is
LOCO miles to the southeastward,
while to the south the waters OF
the Indian ocean are unbroken BY
even the smallest islands until the
lands around the South pole are
reached at distance of nearly
4 1000 miles. The island, II miles
lcng by 9 broad, is in reality the
slopes and top of huge noun.
tain peak. Soundings show that
IT the waters of the ocean were
drained away rough pyramid
$4,000 feet high would stand
alone III plain, the present is
land forming the last LOCO feet
of its slopes.
1.-The island is believed to be
unique in that it is propahly the
only tropical island capable OF
sustaining considerable popula.
tion which had never been peo-
pied until after it's discovery by
europeans. Except where sheer
rcck walls occur it is heavily
wooded from the waters edge to
the summit. Coconuts and sago
palms as well as many other trop.
lcal trees grow in profusion. Be-
meath them is a tangle of tropical
underground, but in this Jungle
are no wild beasts and only a few
harmless reptiles.
But one pestiferous creature
is omnipresent-a wicked looking
red crab. Some of these Great
ures attain size of 9 inches
across the back. They do not
confine themselves to the shore
sands. but range all over the is
land,and always in groups. They
even climb the trees and feast on
the succulent nipa palms.
For one of it's features Christ
mas island may be said to be in.
famous rather than famous. 1t is
tree, believed not to exist else
where, which is described by one
disgusted visitor as emitting the
most disgusting odor in the
world. With trunk as sturdy
as an oak and leaves as graceful
as those of an aspen, it gives to
the eye no indication of it's true
character. But its scent perme-
ates the air for hundreds Of feet
in every direction and if one
is unfortunate enough to touch
It's bark or leaves. nothing short
Of repeated scrubbings with car
bolic soap will make him again
fit for human society,
Christmas island has been
chosen as the chief observation
point for the 1922 eclipsessof the
sun because it is not onlstin the
belt OF totality, ;has4the sun will
be obscured therSs4Ga time when
it is high in tkeahHayens. The
pencil of shadd fff ffeonnection
with which scientists sfs basing
high hopes will be touched to the
earth in Abyssinia, will be drawn
over narrow Italian Somaliland.
and from there on will trace its
way almost entirely over landless
portions of the Indian ocean sew.
eral hundred miles south of the
Asiatic mainland. 1t will cross
Australia mainly in the unsettled
northern regions and will be lift
ed i'm the neighborhOod of Nor.