Year: 1874

From st. Nicholas.
jeremiah HOrrOx-The First Ohser.


walton of the Transit of Venus.


The first transit of Venus ever seen
by human eye was predicted by a
boy, and was observed by that boy
just as he reached the age of manhood.
His name was Jeremiah Horrox. We
have a somewhat wonderful story to
tell you about this boy.


He lived in an obscure village near
Liverpool. England. He was a lover
of books of science, and before he
reached the age of eighteen he had
mastered the astronomical knowledge
of the day. He studied the problems
of Kepler, and he made the discovery
that the tables of Kepler indicated
the near approach of the transit of
Venus across the suns center. This
was about the year 1886.


Often on midsummer nights the boy
Horrox might have been seen in the
fields watching the planet Venus.
The desire sprung up within him to
see the transit of the beautiful planet
across the disc of the sun, for it was a
sight that no eye had ever seen, and
one that would tend to solve some of
the greatest problems ever presented
to the mind of an astronomer. So the
boy began to examine the astronomi-
cal tables Of Kepler, and by their aid
endeavored to demonstrate at what
time the next transit would occur. He
found an error in the tables, and then
he being the first of all astronomers
to make the precise calculation, dis
covered the exact date when the next
transit would take place.


He told his secret to ali intimate
friend, a boy, who, like himself, loved
science. The young astronomer then
awaited the event which he had pre-
dicted sor number Of years, never
! seeing the loved planet in the shaded
evening sky without dreaming of the
day when the transit should fulfill the
| beautiful vision he carried in his mind
The memorable year came at last
1889. The predicted day of the tran.
sit came, too, at the end of the year
It was Sunday. It found Horrox, the
boy astronomer, now just passed TWEEN
ty years of age, intently watching g
sheet OF paper in private room, or
which lay the suns reflected image
Over this reflection of the suns dis,
on the paper he expected moment BY
moment to see the planet pass like ;
moving spot or shadow.


Suddenly the church bells rang. III.
was very religious youth, and wa
accustomed to heed the church bell
as call from heaven. The papel
still was spotless; no shadow brok,
the outer edge of the suns luminou
circle.


Still the church bells rang. Shoult
! he 60? A cloud might hide the sui
before his return, and the expected
disclosure be lost for century


But Horrox said to himself: 6.
must not neglect the worship of tn
Creator, to see the wonderful thing
the Creator has made"


So he left the reflected image of tn
sun on the paper and went to tn
sanctuary.


When he returned from the servic
he hurried to the room. The sun wa
still shining, and there, like shade,
on the bright circle on the paper, wa
the image of the planet Venus! |
crept slowly along the bright center
like the finger of the invisible. The
the boy astronomer knew that tn
great problems of astronomy were cor
rect, and the thought filled his pur
heart with religious joy.


HOrrOx died at the age Of twenty
two. Nearly one hundred and thirt
years afterward Venus was seen cross
ing the sun. The whole astronomica
world was then interested in the even,
and expeditions of observation wer
fitted out by the principal Europea
governments. 1t was observed i
this country by David Rittenhoust
who tainted when he saw the gres
vision.


Dresden appears to be taking tn
lead in successful cremation in GEL
many. A short time ago the paper
reported that the body of Lady Dix
had been burned there, and now W
learn that the remains of another Il
dy, the wife of a German physician
were reduced to ashes in the yer
same furnace. The solemnities Gus
tomary on such occasions were closel
observed. The hal: round the ful
mace was decorated with flowers, b,
so determined seems to be the pref,
dice against this mode of disposing {
the dead that no clergyman could |
found in the city IT, speak burial &C
dress over the body, and this want ha
therefore to be supplied by the pr
prietor and constructor of the appar;
tus, who is said to have made an al
propriate and highly impressi,
speech. The process of cremation W;
screened from the eyes Of the lady
friends by an iron door, but opport,
nifty was afforded to a limited numb,
of scientific men to witness the tran
formations as they took place. Thes
gentlemen describe the spectacle
free from anything offensive to IL
senses or the Imagination. There W;
no smoke or unsightly change in Il
appearance of the body. After Il
coffin was consumed the corpse a,
peared, first in its natural state. an
rapidly passed into the successi,
stages of red and translucent viii
heat, and from the latter .conditic
crumbled into ashes. In sevent
eight minutes all organic matter W
gone, and all that remained was
small heap of ashes, which were gait
cred into an urn. This is decided
the most successful experiment y
recorded, and, if the perfection in Il
methods of cremation which tn
promises can be attained, the ne
process of disposing of the dead M
finall.' become popular in spite of Il
strenuous opposition that is made