Year: 1874

Interesting spcculntiOns.


One of the most interesting Of the
series of lectures now being delivered
by Prof. Proctor in New York, was that
on the moon. He said that in his lee
ture on the "Sun" he mentioned that
there were men in past times who wor-
SHIPPED the sun. So, also, in past times
there were men who worshiped the
moon. 1t was noticed that she passed
rapidly over the heavens, and this con-
tinual motion suggested to the nations
of old the idea that she had power, and
that she was, so to speak, kind of
goddess. Therefore men worshiped her
on the principle of the Chaldeans, who
watched the radiant planets.


Her mass was only ne-eightieth
part of the mass of the earth. Calico,
studying the moon with a telescope
three inches in diameter, recognized
the fact that she was covered with
mountains. He noticed that there were
many mountains of circular kind,
and compared them to the eyes on a
peacock's tail. He also noticed that
there was no sign of any water there.


The study of the moon progressed !;
irregularities of the surface that ap-
peared smooth were noticed and astron-
omers went on with the hope that they
might find signs that the moon might
be q suitable place for living beings.
But that was found to be impossible.


When Sir William Rerschers great
telescope was used signs of life were
recognized. Sir John Herschel took
one of his fathers great telescopes to
the Cape of Good Hope, and 1t was
hen that the wonderful "moon hoax !"
was perpetrated by compatriot of our
own, Richard A. Locke. It was strange
how people, even among the educated,
were "taken in" by that. The story
was, however, we'll devised, notwith,
standing the ridicule which had been
cast upon it by Edgar Poe. We could
not wonder that no signs of habitation
had been discovered in the moon, be-
cause there appeared to be want Of
conditions which we found necessary for
life.


There appeared to be an excess of
heat at one time and an excess of cold at
another, and, so far as we could Judge,
an absence of any atmosphere what
ever. The moon, as she traversed in the
heavens, obliterated star instan-
taneously from view, whereas we know
perfectly well that if our own earth
could be watched from the moon con-
siderable time must elapse before n
disappearance like that could take
place. As the moon had no air, we
could show by the same process that it
had no water. 1t was almost impossi-
BILE for us, with our ileas of terrestrial
scenery, to picture any lunar scene, and
he therefore confined himsel to deSi-
cription of rlng-shaped mountains winch
we know to xist. If there were inhab-
itants of the moon, they would never
be able to ascertain all the features that
surrounded the sun. All the more pal
pable features would be lost to sight in
the glow of sunlight surrounding the
dark body of the earth.


Although we might institute COM
parison between the features on the
moons surface and those on the surface
of the earth, there was no doubt that
many important differences existed 1t
might be that at one portion OF OR his
tory the earth's surface was covered with
moro cratcrs than now. Many OF the
original features of tho earth's crust
have disappeared from view, but never
theless he thought it would not be
maintained by geologists that the earths
surface resembled that Of the moon.


In observing the moon we had almost
reached the limits that telescope appli-
ances admit of. Our great hope was
to have a telescope placed on high part
of the earth where the atmosphere was
rarified. SO far as observations went
we had as yet no evidence of a pro,
cess of change taking place in..the moon.
Regarding her as an inhabited body, she
was unlike the earth. In the first place
she had no seasons, the change being
like that from the oath of September
to the 3d of October. For nearly fiji.
teen days of our time there was day
light in the moon, and then for nearly
fifteen days there was night. During
that time the sun was pouring down his
rays without any atmosphere to shade
the lunarians. The heat of midday
there reached that of boiling water
Then there was rapid radiation of the
heat, and co d came on with more inten
sity than any we are acquainted with
and therefore the inhabitants of th'
moon were exposed to alterations o
heat and cold in which no creatures 0
the earth could live.


In the picture representing the mnl
| titudinous craters of the moon we fine
problem of immense difficulty
There was every sign that these crater
had been produced by some surface
phenomenon, such rs sbubbling or actor
from without. The theory that th
moons atmosphere and oceans had al
become irozGn-one, by the way whicl
he formerly supported--wus exploded
The moon was not white, it was NOR
nearly black, and he remembered Prof
Tyndall telling him that if she was a
black as velvet she would still appea
white. Some parts of the moon wer
much BRIGHTER than others, and it wa
said that some parts of what was know
of it by tho name Copernicus were a
white as some of the white substance
known to us. The general light of tn
moon was about equal to that of weatf
cred sandstone.


The theory that the surface had col
tracted and that the oceans had bee


brought into the interior of the plane
left the absence Of atmosphere unat
counted for. He must confess thai
startling as the theory 10, he had bee


impressed with the idea that the hes
explanation of tie multitudinous cri


ters Of the surface of the moon We


that they were produced by downia


of large meteoric masses in some fo


mer stage of our solar system-som


stage when that process of growt


which was now going on slowly was g


ing on rapidly.


A strange feature was that the moo
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