The Catholic times. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1951-current, 1955-11-11
just Among Ourselves
Passing Comment considsred or Ineonsidsr.is

The ancient Romans had saying about the
moon luna mcptttur, 'the moon tells lie"
more fortnight translation would be, "the moon
is liar" And this unkind sur upon our heavenly
neighbor who walks the night in her silver
shoon" is not the indictment of disappointed
lover who has found unfulfilled the moon-inspir.
ed promise of sentimental evening. No; it is
practical little rule of thumb for telling new
moons from old, for distinguishing the waxing
from the waning moon.
For the Latin word creScere means To in.
crease, while decreScere means to decrease. Now,
when the moon is in the general shape OF the
letter dor crescere) it is actually decreasing,
and when 1t looks more like the letter (for
decreScere or decrease) it is really on the in
crease And thus the moon is said to tell lie.
A person interested in astronomy and skilled
in the timetable of heavenly bodies will have
nothing to do with such homey sayings as "the
moon lies" The scientific lads even without
the aid of a slide-rule or an IBM machine will
be able to say whether the is waxing or
waning by mere glance at its position in the
sky, considering the season and data gathered
from wristwatch. But for the unscientific, -
the overwhelming majority in any age of the
worlds history, the old Roman saying is an
acceptable and useful guide Clever too.
The moon has a place in many saving in
our own language also. The newest edition of
the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations lists 1913
items with moon" and % more with related
words such as nloonbedm and moonlight: no
mention of m,oonshine, which is not literary
Currently, in line with the modern religion
OF travel as an end in itself. the moon is con-
sidered as place TO visit. II has always been
said that the utmost in futiIity is crying for
the moon" But the day may come when such
crying will not be in vain Someone will stop
crying for the moon and 60 get it. The earths
satellite will then be a satellite of the Soviet
Union, likely.
The moon has strong pull on the earth and
on the imagination. II moves the mighty tides
Of the ocean and would move the mountains
too if they we're movable, And its physical pull
the earth, and all that Is in the earth or on
it, is probably even an influence on certain kinds
OF human conduct.
One of the most ancient convictions or super
stitions, of mankind is the belief that the moon,
when at the full, tends to make people little
iittery, little iight-mnded, a little prankish,
even little crazy. And the Latin name for the
r,oon is luna from which comes the name luna.
TIC, meaning one who is moonstruck and hence
irresponsible. Says G.KC., The moon is the
mother of lunatics, and has given them all her
name"
The moon as the nSpirer OF romantic emo
ton and of poetry is rather to be called an
occasion than a cause. Ii Is part of suitable
setting The philosophers define occasion RS
the reality in presence of which something
readily happens" But cause is a positively
contributing element in the producing or main
tanning of an effect. The moon does not cause
tender thoughts and imaginings; IL does not
cause versifieation But IL facilitates the action
of cause in these circumstances. Besides, its
name is such dead-easy word to fit rhyme,
or love song.
In every language, IL seems, the moon Is
perSonified AS feminine We sometimes call the
sun "he" but we always call the moon she"
but fancy paints the full lace Of the moon as
masculine face and we talk always of "the man
in the moon" 1--WE shall discount entirely the
dletante notion that there is Gibson girl"
to be seen in the rounded moon).
We regard our fancful man in the moon as
genial and jovial fellow, but not as a mental
giant why" we say in disparsgement of
persons information, he knows no more about
il than the man in the moon" The man in the
moon, we taeity assume doesn't know much
about anything. He knows only how to look
down on us with kind of fatnous benevoence.
YET James WnlcOmD hlley IndS Inc man
in the moon "a very remarkable marvellous man"
Riley also destroys the old notion of joviality
and benevolence, for his man in the moon has
crick in his back. and mole on his nose' he
is afflicted with weak eyes. has boil on his
ear. and corn on his chin.
Whatever the state and condition of the man
in the moon. he is likely far better situated than
will be when jets super and superer) the
men on the moon lnterplanetary travel, when
and If it comes will undoubtedly have some
dire days of pioneering The skyborne May
toiper Of the days ahead will likely find some
thing infinitely less promising than the stern
and rock-honnd coast upon which the passengers
of the older Mupflotuev landed. ct will be re.
called, in passing, that, according to c. Morley.
these passengers, upon landing. first fell upon
their knees, and then upon the aborigines.)
The moon has been tc::ss sasnss for long
while now II is amazing how poets and singers
keep urging il to continue fidelity of effort.
Just as Byron kindly invited the ocean to keep
rolling; just rs the tiny tots lisp jingle to
encourage the twinkling stars so the song.wrii-
ers exhort the moon to keep on shining. And
he Ia nttw aA., .tstt