Evening star., 1927-03-08
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL.

| which might be named, the clock still
| stands as one of the most interesting.
1t is so familiar in the modern
! home that it's marvel is little re-
| garded. but any one who will take
| the trouble to open the back door of
his mantel clock, and watch the
| wheels go round" will be amply re-
| warded.
II the faculty of appreciation is
still his, the householder can get a
real kick" out of what before was
| only something to be taken as a
| matter Of course.
Mystery Is not dead--it Is we who
are apathetic. We are fed up" on
wonders. so that the marvels which
| we have are no longer intriguing.
The works" of clock constitute
one of the prettiest pieces of mech
anism i'm the world, despite their es-
sential life since the thirteenth cen
tury. Galileo, that great man, had
finger-and very large one. too
| i'm their construction. 1t was he who
| figured out the facts of the pendulum.
A Dutchman by the name of
Huyghens. an astronomer, Is by some
given the credit for the modern clock.
Perhaps 1t was more a growth than
an invention. The oldest form of
modern clock, in which weights are
used to give the motive power to
the hands and strike, is still used,
| notably in the grandfather" clocks.
Spring power, however. is gen
orally used today for most OF the
clocks in our homes. 1t Is interest
ing to recall that the Egyptians first
divided the day into "a hours OF equal
length. The Greeks used day
and might" of IL hours each.
Our mode of computing time
| with it's "a hours, each of SO minutes,
and each minute divided into SO sec
onds. is, with one exception, the only
use we make today of the ancient
sexagesimal notation.
Remember this when next you look
at your clock.
The regular movement of the
| "escapement" in a clock Is tound
most confusing by nervous persons
The swing of the pendulum, too
drives them crazy 1t is well
| therefore, that all this is hid from
view.
The striking mechanism is repiete
| with interest. The various clicks be-
fore it strikes, and the final raising
of the small hammer, and its descent
upon the chime bar, are fascinating
Perhaps the clock comes as near to
perpetual motion as man shall ever
| get. This dream of the centuries
seems even possible, after watching
the works in a clock perform for
some time.
| If only some way might be devised
| for winding it up by itself! Aside
from this one-and most necessary
operation, the thing seems almost to
run Of its own free will.
The imaginative spectator of this
ceaseless Tick, took, hickory, dock
comes almost to swear that the clock
has life of it's own, and could very
well go ahead ticking forever, if ii
pleased.
| Perhaps he Is too imaginative. Yet
it needs no particular stretch of this
faculty to derive much honest enjoy
ment from an ordinary clock. Even
| a kitchen clock will do.
| The ability for getting pleasure out
of the homely things of everyday life
| is one which ought to be- cultivated
Like the ability to sing, or play the
piano, 1t is susceptible of growth.
The old home clock is just as good
an article to begin practice on as any
| other. There is romance in clocks
and the wise will find it. and add an.
other source of enjoyment to life