Gilbert M. Tucker, inThe North American Reviewfor January, speaks of “American English” in this way: “It will hardly be denied in any quarter that the speech of the United States is quite unlike that of Great Britain, in the important particular that here we have no dialects. Trifling variations in pronunciation, and in the use of a few particular words, certainly exist. The Yankee ‘expects’ or ‘calculates,’ while the Virginian ‘reckons;’ the illiterate Northerner ‘claims,’ and the Southerner of similar class, by a very curious reversal of the blunder, ‘allows,’ what better educated people merely assert. The pails and pans of the world at large become ‘buckets’ when taken to Kentucky. It is ‘evening’ in Richmond, while afternoon still lingers a hundred miles due north at Washington. Vessels go into ‘docks’ on their arrival at Philadelphia, but into ‘slips’ at Mobile; they are tied up at ‘wharves’ at Boston, but to ‘piers’ at Chicago. Distances are measured by ‘squares’ in Baltimore, by ‘blocks’ in Providence. The ‘shilling’ of New York is the ‘levy’ of Pennsylvania, the ‘bit’ of San Francisco, the ‘ninepence’ of Old New England, and the ‘escalan’ of New Orleans. But put all these variations together, with such others as more careful examination might reveal, and how far short they fall of representing anything like the real dialectic differences of speech that obtain, and always have obtained, not only between the three kingdoms, but even between contiguous sections of England itself!”
Gilbert M. Tucker, inThe North American Reviewfor January, speaks of “American English” in this way: “It will hardly be denied in any quarter that the speech of the United States is quite unlike that of Great Britain, in the important particular that here we have no dialects. Trifling variations in pronunciation, and in the use of a few particular words, certainly exist. The Yankee ‘expects’ or ‘calculates,’ while the Virginian ‘reckons;’ the illiterate Northerner ‘claims,’ and the Southerner of similar class, by a very curious reversal of the blunder, ‘allows,’ what better educated people merely assert. The pails and pans of the world at large become ‘buckets’ when taken to Kentucky. It is ‘evening’ in Richmond, while afternoon still lingers a hundred miles due north at Washington. Vessels go into ‘docks’ on their arrival at Philadelphia, but into ‘slips’ at Mobile; they are tied up at ‘wharves’ at Boston, but to ‘piers’ at Chicago. Distances are measured by ‘squares’ in Baltimore, by ‘blocks’ in Providence. The ‘shilling’ of New York is the ‘levy’ of Pennsylvania, the ‘bit’ of San Francisco, the ‘ninepence’ of Old New England, and the ‘escalan’ of New Orleans. But put all these variations together, with such others as more careful examination might reveal, and how far short they fall of representing anything like the real dialectic differences of speech that obtain, and always have obtained, not only between the three kingdoms, but even between contiguous sections of England itself!”
[We request the president or secretary of every local circle to send us reports of their work, of lectures, concerts, entertainments, etc. Editor ofThe Chautauquan, Meadville, Pa.]
[We request the president or secretary of every local circle to send us reports of their work, of lectures, concerts, entertainments, etc. Editor ofThe Chautauquan, Meadville, Pa.]
“Days come and go much more pleasantly when our time is fully occupied.”—Gessner.
“The pleasantest society is that where the members feel a warm respect for each other.”—Goethe.
“It is a beautiful thought, that however far one shore may be from another, the wave that ripples over my foot will in a short time be on the opposite strand.”—Humboldt.
Maine (Auburn).—We have here in Auburn, a thriving town on the banks of the Androscoggin, a band of twenty-five enthusiastic Chautauquans. We organized November 3, 1882. We meet once in two weeks, at the houses of members, and recite fifty questions upon previous reading, as published inThe Chautauquan. The questions for further study have been taken up, and will receive attention at our next meeting. The game of “Grecian History” has been tried once, with so much pleasure and profit that we shall probably have it again. Bryant’s and Milton’s Day have been pleasantly observed, and we also voted to observe the birthday of our own beloved Longfellow, who is peculiarly dear to New Englanders. Our circle is composed of people professional and unprofessional, denominational and literary, but all are working together with much unanimity of feeling and interest.
Massachusetts (Westfield).—Our circle is composed of three members, all graduates of class of 1882, but taking the White Crystal Seal course. Our meetings are very informal, reading either required or supplemental articles. This is a small village and we do not have lectures or concerts.
Massachusetts (Conway).—A local circle was organized in this town September 26, 1882, with twenty-five members. A few others who do not join the circle have taken up the readings. The Baptist and Congregationalist ministers are among our members. We have a board of counselors to act with the president in making meetings interesting. We are up with the required readings, and enjoy our meetings exceedingly. We meet Friday evenings at the homes of members of the Circle. We used Pansy’s book, “The Hall in the Grove,” to work up our interest, and some of us went to South Framingham last August, to get some new ideas; hence our success in a small hill town of Massachusetts.
Rhode Island (Providence).—A local Circle was formed in Providence in October last, and is called the Hope Circle. Starting with a membership of nineteen, we have since increased the number to thirty-three. Every four weeks we appoint a committee to conduct the exercises for the next month. We have had several lectures on geology, and propose having from time to time lectures on subjects that will interest the circle.
Connecticut (Hockanum).—A feature of the four years’ reading course of the Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle, is the observance of certain memorial days. These are made the happy occasions of literary and social festivity among the fraternity and their friends. December 9th occurred John Milton’s day. It was observed by the C. L. S. C. of Hockanum, numbering about thirty members in both circles, Monday evening the 11th, in the vestry of the Congregational church. In response to an invitation from the Hockanum local circle to the local circle of the M. E. Church in Hockanum, it became the pleasant occasion of union memorial exercises. After a few well-chosen words of greeting to the sister circle by C. B. Treat, the Rev. W. P. Stoddard, president of the M. E. circle, read Job 28th and was followed by the Rev. Mr. Macy in prayer. Mr. Treat then gave a scholarly address on the “Times of Milton;” Miss Adela Risley an interesting sketch of the “Life of Milton,” and Miss Ellen M. Brewer an excellent paper on the “Works of the Poet.” A gem was an essay on “Comus” by Mr. Stoddard. The argument and a choice and well-rendered selection from each of the books of Paradise Lost were given by the different members of the Hockanum circle. The closing exercises consisted of extracts of pleasing continuity from “Samson Agonistes,” Milton’s last poetical work, given with much point by Messrs. Stoddard, Forbes, Brewer and Arnusius, Mrs. C. Hollister, and Misses Alexander and Hollister of the M. E. circle. The program closed with singing a part of the inspiring class song, entitled “A Song of To-day:”
“Sing pæans over the past!We bury the dead years tenderly,To find them again in eternity,All safe in its circle vast.Sing pæans over the past!Arise and conquer the land!Not one shall fail in the march of life;Not one shall fall in the hour of strifeWho trusts in the Lord’s right hand,Arise and conquer the land!”
“Sing pæans over the past!We bury the dead years tenderly,To find them again in eternity,All safe in its circle vast.Sing pæans over the past!Arise and conquer the land!Not one shall fail in the march of life;Not one shall fall in the hour of strifeWho trusts in the Lord’s right hand,Arise and conquer the land!”
“Sing pæans over the past!We bury the dead years tenderly,To find them again in eternity,All safe in its circle vast.Sing pæans over the past!Arise and conquer the land!Not one shall fail in the march of life;Not one shall fall in the hour of strifeWho trusts in the Lord’s right hand,Arise and conquer the land!”
“Sing pæans over the past!
We bury the dead years tenderly,
To find them again in eternity,
All safe in its circle vast.
Sing pæans over the past!
Arise and conquer the land!
Not one shall fail in the march of life;
Not one shall fall in the hour of strife
Who trusts in the Lord’s right hand,
Arise and conquer the land!”
Immediately after a bountiful collation was served in a style most creditable to the committee in charge, and seldom has there been more genuine sociality. During the sociable, Mr. and Mrs. J. P. Cornish furnished sweet music. The room was aglow with light and color, and draping and ornamentation were suggestive of sentiment, study and religion. Upon entering, the eye was instantly arrested by a superb representation of the Chautauquan’salma mater, “The Hall in the Grove,” mounted on an evergreen wreathed easel. It was executed in charcoal, especially for the occasion, by the Rev. H. Macy, a senior at Hosmer Hall, and acting pastor of the Congregational Church. Upon being called upon he made some felicitous remarks on the “Hall in the Grove,” which elicited applause. The circle and guests, numbering about sixty, felt that the event had been truly a success.
Connecticut (Portland).—This is the first year of the local circle in Portland, Connecticut, and it numbers at the present time seven members, of three different denominations. Our circle was organized on the fifth day of December, 1882. Our officers are president, vice-president, and secretary. We have met thus far every Saturday evening. We endeavor to bring in something on all the subjects taken up in the required work, making a specialty of the questions and answers printed inThe Chautauquan. The president either asks the questions, or appoints some one of the members as leaderpro tem. All are requested to criticise freely. After the program is concluded, all are at liberty to ask any questions they wish in connection with the subjects taken up in the evening’s work. Before adjournment, a short time is given to general conversation, on the most interesting topics in the evening’s lesson. As yet we have had no essays, but these are to come in the future. Last year there was only one member (myself) of the C. L. S. C. in the town of Portland. This year Portland boasts of a local circle consisting of seven members, and already the influence of those seven is being felt throughout the town, and we fondly hope and expect that before 1883 dawns our circle will have increasedto almost double its present size. The students of the Portland C. L. S. C. anticipate many pleasant hours of work and social intercourse in the weeks and years to come.
New York (Prattsburg).—Our local circle is one of great interest. Our members number nine. We meet weekly, at the homes of different members. The meetings open with prayer, followed by roll-call, minutes of the last meeting, and then the lesson. The lessons are conducted by one appointed at a previous meeting, so each one takes a part in conducting some lesson. In geology we had many beautiful specimens of coral, trilobites, and brachiopods, which were very interesting, and helped so much to explain the lesson. We observe memorial days. For Milton’s Day we had, in answer to roll-call, favorite selections from Milton, an essay by our vice-president on his life, and one on his life and work by our president. We vary the work, and try to make it interesting to all. What would we do withoutThe Chautauquanand our Chautauqua circle!
New York (Troy).—Here is the program for one evening in a local circle in Troy, the Rev. H. C. Farrar, president. It is printed on a postal card: “(1) Greek Civilization—Lewis K. Moore; (2) Greek Home Life—Miss Hattie E. Dean; (3) Greek Art—Mrs. H. C. Farrar; (4) Round-Table, Questions, Words, Sentences, etc.; (5) John Milton—aconversazione. Our circle organizes promptly at 7:30 o’clock. Make unessential things give way to our monthly gatherings. Our program is largely Greek. So is our month’s reading. Greece has mightily influenced all nations and ages. Let us make a specialty of Greek this and next month. Master thoroughly the questions and answers on pages 164-66 in the DecemberChautauquan. Mr. Mulford will ask most of them. Bring written questions, words, anything and everything for our Round-Table that will prove of interest.”
New York (Panama).—A local circle was formed in Panama, New York, in October, 1878, through the efforts of a few residents of our village who were present at Chautauqua and became members of the organization at its inception in August of the same year. Weekly meetings of the circle were regularly kept up during the four years succeeding, and in August last twelve members were gratified to receive at the hand of Dr. Vincent, the beautiful Chautauqua diplomas. In October of this year another circle was formed, consisting of most of the members of the old circle, who could not bear to abandon so profitable and pleasurable a course of reading, and several new members, and we are now holding weekly meetings, as in the years past. The officers constitute the executive board, who arrange the program for each meeting, selecting leaders. Our work is done thoroughly, and we have the satisfaction of feeling the inspiration that comes from work accomplished. The memorial days are occasionally observed by special meetings of the circle, at which time a special program, prepared for the occasion, is carried out. We extend to every sister circle the hand of fellowship and of hearty greeting, with the wish that, as the years go by, we may all learn more of the word and the works of God.
Pennsylvania (Sugar Grove).—This is the fifth year of the local circle in Sugar Grove, Warren County, Pa., and it numbers fifteen members, ten of whom are graduates of the Class of ’82. For the first four years our meetings were held weekly, but the past year a normal class, under the auspices of the C. L. S. C. has been organized, which meets once in two weeks, our circle meeting each alternate week. The manner of reviewing the lessons varies. The conductor usually asks questions, which are discussed by any member. This is followed by essays, question drawer, report of critic,conversazione, Chautauqua games, or any exercise conducive to our mutual improvement. During the study of geology our meetings have been made interesting by the use of Packard’s Geological Charts, and by examining cabinets of rocks and shells, and also collecting various specimens, thereby forming a nucleus for greater research. The observance of a memorial day falls on the regular circle evening nearest memorial date.
Pennsylvania (Shamokin).—This is the first year of our local circle in Shamokin. We have held four regular meetings since the 1st of November and now have eight members. We have but two officers, a president and secretary, and meet every Tuesday evening at the homes of the different members. Thus far the president has conducted the meetings, asking questions on the lesson, when the topics are freely discussed by all. By not starting at the required time we find ourselves behind in our studies, almost two months; but by taking our regular weekly lessons, and as much of the back reading as we can conveniently, we expect to catch up by the first of March.
Pennsylvania (Carlisle).—Our methods have been very informal, and my report must of necessity be of a similar nature. We are not a circle—only a triangle. Since October of last year “we three” have quietly read and studied the prescribed course, meeting usually once a week and comparing progress. Frequently one of our number asked the questions as published inThe Chautauquan, and in answering them we enlarged upon the subjects suggested thereby. At other times we discussed the matter read. We observed each memorial day and enjoyed them, as indeed we have enjoyed our year’s work. We have worked together without being “officered,” for it would badly thin the ranks to take even one from the “privates.” We feel the need of an energetic, enthusiastic leader, who could help us in our work, and enlist others; but failing to find one, we enter upon our second year’s work even more deeply interested than we were a year ago, determined to finish the course, unless prevented by insurmountable obstacles.
New Jersey (Freehold).—We organized a circle of twelve young ladies here last year, and we are still pursuing the course laid out for the C. L. S. C. We are all living at home, and are what some call “ladies of leisure.” The course is taken more as a line of profitable reading than of hard study. We meet at each other’s houses every Tuesday afternoon, and one of our number acts as teacher, or rather questioner. She asks the questions laid down inThe Chautauquan, and after they have been answered, we read the article in the required readings for the week, taking turns around, a paragraph each, and after each paragraph has been read the others informally criticise the pronunciation of the reader, (good naturedly, of course), and so, with the aid of Webster, we arrive at the correct pronunciation of words in common use. Any knotty questions which come up are laid over until the next meeting; in the meantime we find out the answers if we can. By the way, a large Shakspere club of ladies and gentlemen has grown from a movement made by one of our number, and taken up by us as a class, and already one question on art has been given us to answer from outside. You see we are beginning to make ourselves felt in the community. We find the course doing us good, and advise others to take it up as we have, as a pleasant way to refresh their memories on what they have already learned in school, if they do not care to devote their time to study.
District of Columbia (Washington).—Ours is one of several Chautauqua circles in Washington, D. C. We have named it the “Parker” C. L. S. C., in honor of Rev. Dr. J. W. Parker. We organized September 15, 1882, with a membership of ten; we now number twenty-five and are still increasing. We meet at the houses of the members, twice a month; open with prayer. The readings are reviewed by questions fromThe Chautauquan. Our reading in geology was supplemented by explanations, with the use of the Packard plates. Great interest is manifested by the members, who feel that they are being benefited. The meetings close with general questions and talks upon scientific subjects.
West Virginia (Wheeling).—Our circle has now entered its third year and numbers twenty-seven members. The meetings are held every week in one of the small rooms in the United Presbyterian Church and are well attended. The method hitherto pursued has been to assign lessons out ofThe Chautauquan, and then proceed very much as at school. Subjects pertinent to the lessons are fully and freely discussed as they are suggested, consequently during the past two years the circle has ranged over a vast territory. At each meeting during the present year a paper—usually on some historical personage connected with the lesson—has been read, and this has proved very interesting. The general drift of sentiment has been rather against public entertainments, though several successful ones have been given. Visitors are always welcome. The Wheeling circle has been unusually fortunate in enjoying the leadership of a gentleman who is at once a business man, an enthusiastic scholar and a teacher, with a genius for the art. Under his able tuition, interest in the various studies has never faltered. Comparatively few of the members have visited Chautauqua; those who have done so have returned very enthusiastic in C. L. S. C. work.
Kentucky (Louisville).—Being more and more interested in the French Circle, I would like very much to have in your magazine a few lines about it, viz: all the information about the French Circle by correspondence can be obtained by addressing Prof. A. Lalande, 1014 Second street, Louisville, Ky. Back numbers of circular will be sent to anyone desiring to join that circle.
Tennessee (Memphis).—A local circle was organized October 23, in Chelsea, the northern suburb of Memphis. It consists of a few members of the classes of ’82, ’83, and ’84, who once belonged to the Memphis local circle, and a larger number of members who have only last fall joined the C. L. S. C. The Memphis circle had become too large to be well handled for effective work, so we left, and organized a circle in our own immediate neighborhood of twenty-five members. We are to meet twice a month, and expect to do good work, as we are enthusiastic Chautauquans.
Texas (Palestine).—We have a local circle in our town, twenty strong, that will compare in average intelligence of its members with any other club in the United States. The Chautauqua Idea is growing grandly in Texas. Our State will be fairly represented in all future commencements of the C. L. S. C. Clubs are forming in all points of the Lone Star.
Indiana (Fort Wayne).—The C. L. S. C. met in October in the lecture-room of the Berry Street Church, to organize for work during the ensuing year. The attendance was unexpectedly large, and the meeting was spirited. It was decided to divide up into small circles for work, yet continue the general organization, and to that end officers were elected. It is expected that members of the circle will connect themselves with some one of the smaller circles that may be organized, and continue the readings. The smaller circles were organized at once, and work for the year is going on.
Illinois (Pana).—Our local circle was organized in October, 1879. The class now numbers fourteen ladies, meeting at each other’s homes weekly. Three are post-graduates, and two or three others of the Class of ’82, who intend sending in their papers soon. We are not, as a class, this year taking the full course, but usingThe Chautauquan. We find the work very pleasant and instructive, and enjoy it too much to give it up. We have had no entertainments except social teas among ourselves.
Michigan (Flint).—A local circle has been organized here for reading and study. There are only eight members, but several others in the city who have commenced the work, and will probably continue it, meet with us occasionally and seem to enjoy doing so. Being scattered over the city, it is impossible for them to attend the meetings regularly. For this reason they prefer not to join the circle. There are, I think, twenty, or nearly that number, reading the Chautauqua course in our city. Our meetings are held once in two weeks at the homes of different members of the circle. The president conducts the review at each meeting and plans the work for the next meeting with the concurrence of the other officers. Our reading and study is done mainly at home, the time of the meeting being taken up with a thorough review of the subjects studied, varied by biographical sketches of the historical characters, and expression of opinion upon the subjects in hand. The interest in the work increases with each meeting; we enjoy it so much more and remember it better than we possibly could reading and studying alone.
Michigan (Little Prairie Ronde).—The character of the material of which a local circle is formed, and with which it has to do, in a measure determines the manner of conducting its meetings. In glancing over the reports of various circles I see none whose meetings are conducted quite the same as ours. Living in the country, and our members having from two to four miles to drive, we strive to use all the time in earnest work, directly connected with the subjects being studied; hence our roll call responses are biographical sketches of men whose names are found in the history; the history of cities, etc., and on a memorial day selected extracts from the writings of the author whose birth we commemorate. Besides essays, readings and conversations on subjects in the course, we have introduced “current items,” not only because outsiders not fully informed intimated that we study ancient history too exclusively, but, also, as it is an excellent means of interesting our local members and casual visitors who are not pursuing the prescribed course of reading. The items comprise recent newspaper intelligences, and never fail to elicit much enthusiasm and profit.
Missouri (Osborn).—Our circle, called the “Amphictyonic Local Circle, of Osborn,” consists of eight members, including four officers, president, vice-president, secretary, and treasurer. We meet on every Tuesday afternoon, at the home of one of the members, our hours being from 7 p. m. to 9:45 p. m. We have a constitution and by-laws, and adhere strictly to the rules of order laid down in Roberts’ Manual. The program is as follows: Afterthe minutes of the previous meeting are read and discussed, Greek history is taken up and reviewed in detail. The required reading inThe Chautauquanfollows, after which our president gives us an interesting lecture on some important subject. Twenty minutes are devoted to the reading of short essays, and whatever time remains we spend in discussing the chief topics of interest inThe Chautauquan.
Missouri (Kansas City).—Our circle organized the 21st of October, with the circle of last year, consisting of five or six members, as a nucleus. We have now a membership of over forty-five, which will soon be largely increased. Ten new members joined at the last meeting. A good deal of interest and enthusiasm is manifested. Our officers are a board of three directors, a corresponding secretary, and treasurer. The board of directors have a general oversight of all the interests of the circle. They arrange for all lectures, special meetings, memorial day exercises, and appoint a committee of three to arrange a program of exercises for the regular meetings of the month, which are presided over by the chairman of this monthly committee. The circle meets every Tuesday evening at the residence of one of the members centrally located, who has very kindly thrown open his house for the use of the circle. We open our meeting at 7:30 p. m., promptly, with singing and prayer, followed by roll call and reading of the minutes. The members are then ready for the general exercises of the evening, consisting of answers to the questions for the week inThe Chautauquan, of answers to written questions given out at the previous meeting, of essays and talks on themes relating to our readings, of exercises on the geological charts, music, critic’s report, social conversation, and adjournment.
Minnesota (Crookston).—We can not claim the dignity of a local circle yet. Our class consists of two members, the wife of the editor of the CrookstonChronicleand the writer, who is one of the teachers of the graded school in Crookston. We are delighted with the course, studied faithfully and well last year, and have commenced this year with renewed pleasure and zeal. We met for reading, recitation and conversation weekly last year and will pursue the same course this year unless our class should become a circle. We have the promise of several members.
Iowa (Muscatine).—The editor of a local paper characterizes an entertainment of the local circles in this way: “Seldom has an occasion been appropriated to a more pleasant or profitable purpose than that which attracted a large number of our more cultivated people to the cheery apartments of Mr. A. K. Raff one evening of last month. It was the two hundred and seventy-fourth anniversary of the birth of John Milton, and the two Chautauqua clubs in the city had united to memorialize the event in some appropriate way. A splendid program of exercises, consisting of dissertation and essay, interspersed with the finest of music, both vocal and instrumental, had been arranged for the occasion, furnishing to those who were fortunate enough to be present a fund of interest, and a feast of intellectual enjoyment as rare as it was acceptable. We can imagine no entertainment more pleasant or elevating in its character than these Chautauqua reunions.”
Iowa (Oskaloosa).—The circle of Oskaloosa consists of fifteen ladies—ten regular members and five local ones. We meet every Wednesday afternoon and a leader is appointed by the president for each week. We have thorough schoolroom recitations and discussions of the lesson as assigned inThe Chautauquan, and the questions for further study.
Kansas (Stockton).—The most satisfactory method we have found of conducting our circle is this: Let each member prepare two plain questions, not puzzles, on the reading of the week. Let these questions be handed to the president, who asks them, the author of the questions answering if no one else can, and no one but the chairman needs to know who hands in any question. This review helps to fix many points in memory. Besides, we had nearly every time one or more essays from persons having time and inclination to prepare them.
Kansas (Wichita).—For more than six months we have had a literary and philosophical society, with objects somewhat similar to those of the C. L. S. C., with a working membership of twenty or more. At our last meeting the merits of the C. L. S. C. were discussed at length, and we concluded to change our organization into the C. L. S. C., and the preliminary steps were taken in accordance therewith. Will you please send us by return mail two dozen blank applications for membership, and whatever other documents and instructions are necessary for organization and work.
Nebraska (Seward).—We meet every Monday evening; the regular order as laid down inThe Chautauquanis carried through; we keep up in the different branches from month to month, and enjoy the work.
California (Sacramento).—Our method of conducting the work, after disposing of the general order of business, is as follows: The committee of instruction, numbering three, and appointed once in three months, prepare one week in advance questions on each lesson. These questions are drawn promiscuously by each member—questions being, sent to absentees. Answers to these questions, with the questions attached thereto, are given in writing at the following meeting, to some one appointed by the president to read, after which they are placed in the hands of two members, who are also appointed by the president, from which they are to compile papers, adding all such other information appertaining to the subject that can be obtained. This involves close research, and we hear from at least five members in an evening, who are followed in the same manner by five others at the succeeding meeting. From the papers, questions, and answers, arise profitable discussions, if time permits. A committee on entertainment, appointed annually, supervise all lectures, concerts, social entertainments, etc., which—if practicable—are arranged for once in three months. We number twenty-four active members. Eight other names are upon our roll, of whom three are irregular. We launch out this (the third) year with much enthusiasm and general interest, hoping to far exceed in profit to ourselves and in influence in favor of our grand Chautauqua work either of the preceding years.
Canada (Pictou, Ontario).—About twenty members of the C. L. S. C. met at the residence of G. C. Curry, Esq., recently, to compare notes and talk over matters connected with their daily readings. Considerable enthusiasm was manifested by the several members respecting the subjects on the program for the present year, which began on the 1st of October last. Some, however, have only just joined, and it is not too late yet for new ones to join and take up the work for the current year. At the next meeting of the circle notes will be read on the month’s reading and difficulties met with brought forward for explanation.
[Not Required.]
ONE HUNDRED QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON “RECREATIONS IN ASTRONOMY,” CHAPTERS I TO VII, BOTH INCLUSIVE—CREATIVE PROCESSES, CREATIVE PROGRESS, ASTRONOMICAL INSTRUMENTS, CELESTIAL MEASUREMENTS; THE SUN; THE PLANETS, AS SEEN FROM SPACE; SHOOTING-STARS, METEORS, AND COMETS.
By ALBERT M. MARTIN,General SecretaryC. L. S. C.
1. Q. What are the two laws of the attraction of gravitation? A. (1) Gravity is proportioned to the quantity of matter, and (2) the force of gravity varies as the square of the distance from the center of the attracting body.
2. Q. What is the original form of matter? A. Gas.
3. Q. What is inertia? A. If a body is at rest, inertia is that quality by which it will forever remain so, unless acted upon by some force from without; and if a body is in motion, it will continue on at the same speed, in a straight line, forever, unless it is quickened, retarded, or turned from its path by some other force.
4. Q. What is the result of the action of attraction and inertia upon two revolving bodies? A. They circle about each other as long as these forces endure.
5. Q. What would be the solution of the problem of a simple revolution of one world about another in a circular orbit? A. It would always be at the same distance from its center, and going with the same velocity.
6. Q. In the case of the moon, how many causes are there that interfere with such a simple orbit? A. Over sixty.
7. Q. What is heat? A. A mode of motion.
8. Q. Through what do all the light and heat of the sun that appear upon our earth come? A. Through space that is two hundred degrees below zero, and through utter darkness.
9. Q. At what velocity does light travel? A. One hundred and eighty-five thousand miles per second.
10. Q. What is the highest velocity we can give a rifle ball? A. Two thousand feet a second.
11. Q. How long does it take light to travel from the sun to the earth? A. About eight minutes.
12. Q. What is light? A. The result of undulations in ether.
13. Q. What are the different effects we call color? A. They are simply various velocities of vibration.
14. Q. How does sunlight melt ice? A. In the middle, bottom, and top at once.
15. Q. What is the effect of dark heat on ice? A. It only melts the surface.
16. Q. What can you say of the passage of the heat of the sun and the heat of a furnace or stove through glass? A. Nearly all the heat of the sun goes through glass without hindrance; only a small portion of the heat of a furnace or stove goes through the same substance.
17. Q. If our air were as pervious to the heat of the earth as it is to the heat of the sun, how cold would the temperature of the earth become every night? A. Two hundred degrees below zero.
18. Q. What is said of worlds so distant as to receive from the sun only a thousandth part of the heat we enjoy? A. They may have atmospheres that retain it all.
19. Q. What is probable as to the temperature of Mars? A. It is probable that Mars, that receives but one-quarter as much heat as the earth, has a temperature as high as ours.
20. Q. What two radically different kinds of telescopes are made? A. The refracting telescope, and the reflecting telescope.
21. Q. Why is the refracting telescope so called? A. Because it is dependent on the refraction of light through glass lenses.
22. Q. Why is the reflecting telescope so called? A. Because it acts by reflecting the light from a concave mirror.
23. Q. What is the loss of light in the use of each kind of telescope? A. In passing through glass lenses it is about two-tenths. By reflection it is often one-half.
24. Q. In view of this peculiarity, among others, what is held as to the comparative quality of the two kinds of telescopes? A. That a twenty-six inch refractor is fully equal to any six-foot reflector.
25. Q. What is the weight of the Lord Rosse reflecting telescope? A. It has a metallic mirror weighing six tons, and a tube forty feet long, which, with its appurtenances, weighs seven tons more.
26. Q. What is a spectrum? A. A collection of the colors which are dispersed by a prism from any given light.
27. Q. If the light is sunlight what is the spectrum called? A. A solar spectrum.
28. Q. What is a spectroscope? A. An instrument to see these spectra.
29. Q. What are some of the amazing discoveries made by the spectroscope within a few years? A. In chemistry it reveals substances never known before. It tells the chemical constitution of the sun, the movements taking place, the nature of comets, and nebulæ.
30. Q. By the spectroscope what do we know of the atmospheres of some of the other planets? A. We know that the atmospheres of Venus and Mars are like our own, and that those of Jupiter and Saturn are very unlike.
31. Q. From what are all our standards of time taken? A. From the stars.
32. Q. From what are the positions of the stars reckoned? A. As so many degrees, minutes and seconds from each other, from the zenith, or from a given meridian, or from the equator.
33. Q. How far apart are the stars called the Pointers in the Great Bear? A. Five degrees.
34. Q. To mistake the breadth of a hair, seen at a distance of one hundred and twenty-five feet, would cause how much of an error in the measurement of the distance of the sun from the earth? A. Three millions of miles.
35. Q. By means of a microscope how many lines ruled on a glass plate are we able to count within an inch? A. One hundred and twelve thousand.
36. Q. What angle does the smallest object that can be seen by a keen eye make? A. An angle of forty seconds.
37. Q. By putting six microscopes on the scale of the telescope on a mural circle, what degree of exactness are we able to reach? A. An exactness of one-tenth of a second, or one-thirty-six hundredth of an inch.
38. Q. In astronomical work how small measurements of time are made? A. To the minute fractional parts of a second.
39. Q. What is the personal equation of an observer? A. The time that it takes him to observe a thing and record it, which is substracted from all his observations in order to get at the true time.
40. Q. What is the parallax of a body? A. The angle that would be made by two lines coming from that body to the two ends of any conventional base, as the semi-diameter of the earth.
41. Q. What is the parallax of the moon, and also of the sun, with the semi-equatorial diameter of the earth for a base? A. That of the moon 57 seconds, and that of the nun 8.85 seconds.
42. Q. Taking the diameter of the earth’s orbit, 184 millions of miles, as a base, what can you say of the parallax of the stars? A. They have no apparent parallax on so short a base.
43. Q. What does Prof. Airy say of the orbit of the earth as seen from the nearest star? A. It would be the same as a circle six-tenths of an inch in diameter, seen at the distance of a mile.
44. Q. In what way has the approximate distance of a few of the stars been determined? A. By comparisons of the near and far stars one with another.
45. Q. Which is the nearest star? A. The brightest star in Centaur, never visible in our northern latitudes, which has a parallax of about one second.
46. Q. Which is the next nearest star? A. No. 61 in the Swan, or 61 Cygni, having a parallax of thirty-four one-hundredths of a second.
47. Q. On how many stars have approximate measurements been made? A. About eighteen in all.
48. Q. How long does it take light, traveling at the rate of 185,000 miles a second, to come from the nearest star, Alpha Centauri, to the earth? A. Three and one-fourth years.
49. Q. How long does it take light to come from the Pole Star to the earth? A. Forty-five years.
50. Q. In naming these enormous distances what astronomical unit is used? A. The distance of the earth from the sun, ninety-two and a half millions of miles.
51. Q. In measuring the distance from Alpha Centauri, the nearest star, how many times would this unit be used? A. Two hundred and twenty-six thousand times.
52. Q. What is said of the stars being near or far according to their brightness? A. They are not near or far according to their brightness. 61 Cygni is a telescopic star, while Sirius, the brightest star in the heavens, is twice as far away from us.
53. Q. What is the zodiacal light? A. It is a dim, soft light, somewhat like the milky-way, seen on clear moonless nights in March or April, in the western sky soon after sunset, often reaching, well defined, to the Pleiades.
54. Q. What are the indications as to the cause of this light? A. That it is caused by a ring of small masses of meteoric matter surrounding the sun, revolving with it and reflecting its light, and extending beyond the earth’s orbit.
55. Q. As we approach nearer the sun what is the first material substance with which we meet? A. The corona.
56. Q. Describe the corona. A. It rises from one to three hundred thousand miles from the surface, and the appearance consists of reflected light sent to us from dust particles or meteoroids about the sun.
57. Q. What is the region of discontinuous flame below the corona called? A. The cromosphere.
58. Q. What are some of the materials composing the cromosphere? A. Hydrogen is the principal material of its upper part; iron, magnesium, and other metals, some of them as yet unknown on earth, in the denser parts below.
59. Q. When only are the corona and cromosphere visible? A. Only during total eclipses, or by the aid of the spectroscope.
60. Q. What is all that we ordinarily see with the eye or telescope of the sun? A. The shining surface called the photosphere on which the cromosphere rests.
61. Q. What is the diameter of the photosphere, or the visible and measurable part of the sun? A. Eight hundred and sixty thousand miles.
62. Q. How many globes like the earth would it require to measure the sun’s diameter? A. One hundred and eight.
63. Q. What is the volume of the sun as compared with that of the earth? A. It is 1,245,000 times greater.
64. Q. What is the density of the sun as compared with that of the earth? A. It is only one-fourth as great.
65. Q. What is the mass of the sun as compared with that of all the planets, asteroids, and satellites of the solar system put together? A. It is seven hundred times as great.
66. Q. What are some of the opinions as to the surface of the sun? A. That it is hot beyond all estimate is indubitable. Whether it is solid or gaseous we are not sure.
67. Q. What on the surface of the sun have been objects of earnest and almost hourly study on the part of eminent astronomers for years? A. The spots.
68. Q. To what must the speed of the orbital revolution of the planets be proportioned? A. To the distance from the sun.
69. Q. What is the orbital speed of Mercury, and what that of Neptune? A. That of Mercury is about twenty-nine and a half miles in a second, and that of Neptune about three and one-third miles a second, or nearly nine times as slow.
70. Q. How do the periods of the axial revolution, which determine the length of the day, vary with the four planets nearest the sun? A. They vary only half an hour from that of the earth.
71. Q. In what time do Jupiter and Saturn revolve? A. In ten and ten and a quarter hours respectively.
72. Q. What is the density of Jupiter and Saturn as compared with the earth? A. That of Jupiter is about one-fourth and that of Saturn is about one-eighth that of the earth.
73. Q. How much less is the polar diameter of Jupiter than the equatorial? A. Five thousand miles.
74. Q. If we represent the sun by a globe two feet in diameter, how could we represent the comparative size of the five planets nearest the sun? A. Vulcan and Mercury by mustard seeds, Venus and Earth by peas, and Mars by one half the size.
75. Q. How could the comparative size of the other planets be represented? A. Asteroids, by the motes in a sunbeam; Jupiter, by a small-sized orange; Saturn, by a smaller one; Uranus, by a cherry; and Neptune, by one a little larger.
76. Q. Applying the principle that attraction is in proportion to the mass, what would a man weighing one hundred and fifty pounds on the earth weigh on Jupiter, and what on Mars? A. On Jupiter he would weigh three hundred and ninety-six pounds, and on Mars only fifty-eight pounds.
77. Q. How are the seasons of the planets caused? A. By the inclination of its axis to the plane of its orbit.
78. Q. What is said of the day and night of Jupiter? A. The sun is always nearly over the equator of Jupiter, and every place has nearly its five hours day and five hours night.
79. Q. How do the seasons of Earth, Mars and Saturn compare? A. They are much alike, except in length.
80. Q. How long are Saturn’s seasons? A. Each is seven and a half years long. The alternate darkness and light at the poles is fifteen years long.
81. Q. In what form are the orbits of the planets? A. Not in the form of exact circles, but a little flattened into an ellipse, with the sun always in one of the foci.
82. Q. What is that point called where a planet is nearest the sun, and what where it is farthest from it? A. The point nearest the sun is called the perihelion, and the farthest point the aphelion.
83. Q. What is the plane of the ecliptic? A. It is the plane of the earth’s orbit extended to the stars.
84. Q. What is said of the densities, sizes, and relations of the collections of matter smaller than the planets, scattered through space in the solar system? A. They are of various densities, from a cloudlet of rarest gas to solid rock; of various sizes, from a grain’s weight to little worlds; of various relations to each other, from independent individuality to related streams millions of miles long.
85. Q. By what names are they known when they become visible? A. Shooting-stars, meteors, and comets.
86. Q. How far above the surface of the earth do shooting-stars appear and disappear? A. They appear about seventy-three miles above the earth, and disappear about twenty miles nearer the surface.
87. Q. What is their velocity? A. Their average velocity is thirty-five miles a second, and it sometimes rises to one hundred miles a second.
88. Q. What does Prof. Peirce state as the result of his investigation in regard to meteors? A. That the heat which the earth receives directly from meteors is the same in amount which it receives from the sun by radiation, and that the sun receives five-sixths of its heat from the meteors that fall upon it.
89. Q. When the bodies are large enough to bear the heat, and the unconsumed center comes to the earth, what are they called? A. Aerolites or air-stones.
90. Q. What is said of the distribution of these bodies through space? A. They are not evenly distributed through space. In some places they are gathered into systems which circle round the sun in orbits as certain as those of the planets.
91. Q. How many such systems of meteoric bodies has it been demonstrated that the earth encounters in a single year? A. More than one hundred.
92. Q. What are comets? A. They are clouds of gas or meteoric matter, or both, darting into the solar system from every side, at every plane of the ecliptic, becoming luminous with reflected light, passing the sun, and returning again to outer darkness.
93. Q. What appendage do comets usually have? A. A tail, which follows the comet to perihelion, and precedes it afterwards.
94. Q. What is the character of the orbits of some comets? A. Very enormously elongated. One end may lie inside the earth’s orbit, and the other end be as far beyond Neptune as that is from the sun.
95. Q. How many comets have been visible to the naked eye since the Christian era? A. Five hundred.
96. Q. How many have been seen by telescopes since their invention? A. Two hundred.
97. Q. How is the number of comets belonging to our solar system estimated by some authorities? A. By millions.
98. Q. What is the comet last seen in 1852, previously separated into two parts, called? A. Biela’s lost comet.
99. Q. How near did the great comet of 1843 pass to the sun? A. It passed nearer than any other known body. It almost grazed the sun.
100. Q. What was one of the most magnificent comets of modern times? A. Donati’s comet of 1858.