Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-03-21

Discovery Of a new planet beyond
Neptune Is called triumph of mathe-
mates. That the credit goes to an in
farm boy is viewed by the Nation as a
matter of pride and proof of the democ-
racy of science. AS it is rarely that a
new major planet is found, the astro-
nomical development is subject of
much serious comment, spiced here and
there with a touch of humor.
I'VE had esteemed our solar system
fairly complete" says the Atlanta Jour-
nal, land had organized our little neigh
borhood amenities to encompass only a
paltry eight planets. But newcomer
Is welcome. What may be done to make
the world Of transneptunian space feel
at home will be done, though we may
about this celestial stowaway.
We have now Mercury, Venus, the
Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus
and Neptune as the eight major planets,
surrounded by minor planets and nu-
merous satellites. There, emblazoning
the heavens, are the gods of war, speed,
ocean, good cheer and, indeed, the god
in the skies. Plainly this Is under and
disrespectful. Pallas and Artemis de-
serve place. Let the new planet by
all means be feminine, If only because
it is, as yet. so mysterious.
"Had italy been credited with the
discovery" suggests the st. Paul Pioneer
Press, "the problem would have been
simplified, for with the celestial me-
MORALS to Mars and Venus could have
been placed another to take MusSolini
out of the class of those who have been
created little lower than the angels"
That paper, however, noting that this
Is an American discovery, remarks that
there may be plenty of luminaries who
could 'flttingly stand sponsor to a planet
that Is endowed with less light than is
Neptune; there are also plenty of earth
ly wonders clamoring for their names"
"Th3 chief interest of this incident to
the man on the street will lie in the
fact that the area of the solar system
has been approximately doubled" AYERS
the Manchester Union, commenting
further as to the effect of the discovery:
1.-The influence upon our human con-
ceptions is bound to be incalculable. No
idea In all human history had so great
an effect upon the life of man as the
new world view that was born when
Calico detected that the sun and not
the earth is the center of the planetary
system TO which we belong. Man, who
previously regarded himself as the chief
object of creation, became the citizen of
one OF the smallest planets in the solar
system, with the probability that this
system, whose expanse is yet unknown.
and whose vast magnitude is further re-
vealed by this most recent discovery, is
only one of a multitude of similar sys-
TENS. This world view led to a reap
praisal Of almost all human estimates"
X
Nobody will venture now" in the
opinion of the New York Sun, Ito make
a guess as to the size of the solar Sy {.
tenn. The hunt for other planets VIII De
pressed with vigor. Yet distance is
relative matter, and remote as the new
planet Is it is still a neighbor OF tne
earth. Light will span the distance from
that planet to this world in about SIX
hours, while taking more than IouI
years to come to us from the neare0e
star"
Recalling that the discovery OF Sne
planet Neptune was q spectacular tli-