The scientific world has suffered a heavy loss in the death of Professor Henry Draper, of New York. He was the son of Dr. John W. Draper, one of the most eminent scientific men this country has produced. Professor Draper inherited the tastes and talents of his illustrious father, and, while yet a youth, began his scientific and physiological investigations. He received his early educational training in the public schools of New York, after which he spent two years in the Academic Department of the University of the City of New York. During all this time his studies were under the careful supervision of his father, who was a professor in the University. After completing his sophomore year he entered upon the study of medicine, and received his degree in 1858. After his graduation he spent a year in Europe in study and travel, and on his return to this country he received an appointment on the medical staff of Bellevue Hospital. He continued in this position for two years, when he was elected to the chair of physiology in the City University. When he entered upon his duties as professor he discontinued the practice of medicine, which he never afterward resumed, and gave himself wholly to teaching and to original investigation in natural science, but was especially devoted to the study of chemistry and astronomy. He was not, however, dependent upon the facilities afforded by the University to enable him to pursue his investigations in his favorite sciences, but, being possessed of ample means, he had a finely equipped laboratory fitted up in his own apartments, and also erected an observatory for his own use.
In order to facilitate his astronomical observations, Professor Draper constructed an equatorial telescope, with an aperture of twenty-eight inches, for his private observatory at Hastings, on the Hudson. This telescope was the work of his own hands, and when completed was the largest one of the kind in the United States. His astronomical investigations were principally of a photographical character. He was peculiarly adapted to this kind of work, since he had studied photography with his father, who was a pioneer in the photographic art, having taken the first photographic likeness of the human face ever obtained. By means of his large telescope, Professor Draper was able to take the largest and finest photographs of the heavenly bodies ever obtained, and by this means greatly advanced the interests of science. To him was due also the discovery of the gelatino-bromide dry process of photography, which has proven so useful to the art of photography, especially in its application to astronomy. In 1874, after much labor and many costly experiments, he succeeded in obtaining photographs of the fixed lines of stellar spectra, which no one before had ever been able to accomplish. By obtaining photographs of the spectrum of the sun he was able to demonstrate the existence of oxygen in that luminary, a fact never before known to astronomers. His numerous and successful efforts in this line of work rendered him so conspicuous that he was conceded to be without a peer in the department of sidereal photography. As a result of his grand achievements the commissioners appointed by Congress to make arrangements for the observation of the transit of Venus, in 1874, selected him as the superintendent of the photographic department. He performed his duties with such efficiency that Congress ordered a gold medal to be presented to him, bearing the inscription: “He adds lustre to ancestral glory.”
In addition to being an expert in astronomical photography Professor Draper was a fine analytical chemist, and in addition to his work as professor of physiology, for several years he taught analytical chemistry in the University. During the last few years of his life he was very much interested in the subject of electricity, and gave much time and study to the problem of overcoming the difficulties of adapting the electric light to practical use, and contributed much valuable information on this point.
Although so enthusiastically devoted to the interests of science, Professor Draper was not a recluse, but was of afine social turn. He was a fluent talker, an entertaining companion and a genial host. When the first symptoms of his fatal illness came upon him he was engaged in entertaining at dinner, in his hospitable home on Madison avenue, New York, the members of the National Academy of Science. He died in the prime of his years and in the fulness of his mental strength. The country can ill-afford to lose men of such mental ability and so enthusiastically devoted to scientific research.
Rising in interest and importance above every other phase of the “woman question,” is that of her education, her higher education, and from this the question of co-education. The first cause which has associated the idea of co-education with the higher education of women, has been the fact that higher educational facilities are, with very few exceptions, limited to the colleges and universities established for the education of men. If woman is to receive higher education it is apparent at the start that the institutions called woman’s colleges and seminaries are inadequate to the work. Hence, whatever other considerations may enter into the co-education problem, this much is clear: if women now, or at any time in the near future, are to have these facilities they must come by some system of co-education, as only institutions now existing for men can furnish them. This suggests the economic and time element of the question. Colleges and universities of ability to do the work of higher education are not born in a day. The best representatives of such institutions in this country and in England are the growth of centuries, and their cabinets, laboratories, museums, libraries, and endowments the results of weary, slow accumulations.
Not to speak now of the other and more positive reasons in its favor, reasons growing out of the association of the sexes in recitation and lecture-room, and the wholesome influences on each thus secured, let us see what are the objections urged by its opponents. We hear a good deal about the tendency to make coarse the naturally fine fibre of woman, about constitutional differences of intellect, and difference of sphere and pursuits in life. Now, in all soberness, if there is anything in this idea that association of the sexes tends to rob woman of the charms of fineness and gentleness peculiar to her, how is it that she has managed to keep them from the days of Adam and Eve until now? And as to differences of intellect, they are neither so constitutional nor “unconstitutional” as to disqualify her for an even race with her brother. If the testimony of professors and college authorities, where the opportunity has been given her, can be relied upon, whenever the race is uneven it has been in her favor. The objection about sphere and pursuits in life misconceives the true purpose of education. The true conception is not addressed to pursuits, but is of a solid foundation on which the special education of pursuit or profession is erected.
Recognizing the force and truth of these and other considerations, and acting up to their convictions, the great and time-honored universities of the English speaking world, Oxford and Cambridge, have led the way, and thrown wide open their doors to young women seeking their privileges. At these honored institutions young women live in their own “halls,” as at some of our American colleges, under care of women of highest social standing, enter the same lecture-room and listen to the same lecture with the young men. The following from a leading educational journal, reveals the growing favor of co-education at Cambridge: “Since the modest beginning thirteen years ago of Girton College,—the woman’s college at Cambridge,—it has twice been found necessary to make considerable extensions. The students have proved themselves eager to profit by the advantages afforded to them, as was shown by their distinctions obtained at Cambridge this year. It is now once more intended to develop the work of the college by making further and more elaborate extensions. For some time past a number of applicants have been refused admission owing to the want of space, and plans have at last been adopted which will make room for more students.”
It is not a little strange the illiberal spirit manifested by some of the leading institutions of this country, instance the narrow and partial conditions of the “Harvard Annex” and the opposition by the trustees and part of the faculty of Columbia College. In the latter case there is just now a tidal wave of public sentiment in New York City sweeping against the opposition, which, it is to be hoped, will overcome all resistance. The leaven is working. It is a reform, and reforms go forward in this nineteenth century. Geologists tell us that six thousand years ago the age of man was ushered in. Let the future geologists record this as the age of man and woman, too.
Among noteworthy recent events is the death of Thurlow Weed, the veteran journalist and politician. Mr. Weed had nearly reached his eighty-fifth birthday with faculties well preserved, and for more than half a century he was a very prominent figure in our national political life. The son of a poor cartman who never prospered, he had his own way to make in the world, and from a striker in a blacksmith shop, a cabin-boy upon river boats, and a chore-boy of a printing office, he worked his way up to be the trusted adviser of senators and presidents, and the man by whom officials, high and low, were made and unmade. He was twice a member of the State Assembly of New York,—in 1824 and 1829,—but never held any other office. He refused official position for himself, but no man has been more influential in securing it for others. Mr. Weed’s work as a journalist was for the most part in connection with the AlbanyEvening Journal, though before assuming control of this paper he had edited a number of others, by one of which, theAnti-Masonic Enquirer, he had gained wide celebrity. During the thirty-two years of his management of theJournalhe made it with his trenchant pen one of the mightiest of the auxiliaries of the Whig and Republican parties, and he was himself a political leader second in influence to none. Retiring from this paper in 1862, he afterward edited for a time the New YorkCommercial Advertiser, but failing health soon obliged him to drop finally the editorial pen. He continued, however, to write for the press until a short time before his death, and the occasional articles he sent to different journals always commanded an eager reading. In 1866 letters which he wrote to the AlbanyEvening Journalfrom Europe and the West Indies, when different visits were made to these countries, were collected and published in a handsome volume, without his consent.
There is much in the life-work of Mr. Weed for which he should be gratefully remembered. Though he was a strong and earnest partisan, he was a true patriot. He was a consistent friend of human liberty and human equality. In the early part of our civil war, in company with Bishop McIlvaine and Archbishop Hughes, he went to Europe charged with the important mission of promoting friendliness to the Union cause on the other side of the water, and the mission was discharged with great skill and faithfulness. Perhaps to Mr. Weed for his work in connection with this embassy the nation owes a greater debt than we know. To the close of his life he was the earnest advocate of what we believe to be a vicious principle in politics. He was not of those who demand reform in the civil service. A change in the mode by which the offices are filled in our land found no favor in his eyes. The old way was good enough for him. He believedwith Andrew Jackson, that “to the victors belong the spoils.” We can not greatly admire thatroleof party manager which he played with such consummate ability. There are higher ends certainly to which a man may give his powers than the success of party and the elevation of men to political stations. But this is to be said of Mr. Weed, he was an upright and honorable man, and in playing the game of politics he was actuated by better aims than those of many. He left for his family quite a large estate, but it was acquired through legitimate transactions of business. He had a circle of friends of whom any one might be proud, and they were by no means confined to the members of his own political party. Probably by far the most valuable collection of autograph letters in the land was in his possession. His home-life was admirable. He had a benevolent spirit, and his charitable gifts were many. And it is pleasant to have it to record of him that he lived and died a believer in evangelical religion. His interest in the Moody and Sankey meetings in New York City a few years ago is well remembered. We sum up his character: a man of strong will, of indomitable perseverance and energy, of remarkable power to control men and attach men to himself, and pure and good in private life.
The C. L. S. C. class of 1886, which has been enrolled since the Assembly last August, numbers more than 8,000 members. The books are still kept open to record the names of all others that will unite with this particular class.
The Trustees of the Chautauqua Assembly hold their annual meeting at the Gibson House, in Cincinnati, Ohio, the present month.
The Rev. Victor Connell, a graduate of the Ohio Wesleyan University, is pastor at Chautauqua. The Trustees of Chautauqua have just erected an elegant parsonage, with many modern conveniences, for the pastor and his family.
The Rev. A. H. Gillet, Messenger of the C. L. S. C., has been appointed Assistant Secretary of the Sunday-school Union of the M. E. Church. He is a thorough Sunday-school man, a fine speaker, and a good presiding officer at a Sunday-school assembly. Mr. Gillet will make his home in Cincinnati.
The Chinese Minister’s wife does not like to be thought a person of tender years, and claims to be twenty-five. She is petite, weighing ninety-four pounds, and her feet are not unduly small. She dresses on the street as American ladies do, having lately been seen in a wine-colored brocaded velvet polonaise over plain velvet, with a hat whose brim droops over the brow, and on whose sides hang long drooping plumes.
The Census Office has issued a special bulletin recently containing the statistics of illiteracy in the United States as returned at the tenth census. The number of persons ten years old and upward in the several States and Territories is 36,761,607. Of this number 4,923,451, or 13.4 per cent., are returned as unable to read, and 6,239,958, or 17 per cent., as unable to write. White persons in the United States ten years old and upward, 32,160,400; unable to write, 3,019,080, or 9.4 per cent. Colored persons of ten years old and upward, 4,601,207; unable to write, 3,220,878.
Melville paid the following tribute to Capt. De Long in November, during the investigation of the Jeannette expedition, at Washington, D. C.: “Q.—Did you believe, when you went for the log books and records left by De Long, that the people of the first cutter were dead or alive? A.—I was morally certain that at that time they were all dead. Common sense and my own judgment taught me that. Before I started, both Ninderman and Noros told me it would be useless to look for the first cutter’s party before spring, as beyond a possibility of doubt they were long since all dead. At one of the reported difficulties between Mr. Collins and Capt. De Long I believe Mr. Danenhower was present. Mr. Collins was treated just as any other officer, and with the same cordiality. At one time Mr. Collins took a notion not to respond to the usual good morning salutations of the Captain. When the Captain entered the wash room mornings it was his custom to say, ‘Good morning, gentlemen,’ and we all responded with ‘Good morning, Captain.’ Mr. Collins, however, used to turn his back when he saw the Captain coming in, and look away or walk away without responding. Mr. Newcomb and Mr. Collins used to talk and walk together more than they did with any of the other officers, and were on more intimate terms with each other than with the others. No distinction whatever was made in the mess on account of their being civilian officers, but all were treated the same and upon an equal footing. I did not know that it would be deemed proper for me to pass judgment upon my commanding officer, but, to my mind, he was as good a man as could be assigned to any duty at any time or in any place. He always seemed equal to any emergency, and all that he did was done with his whole soul. Had I supposed that I would be permitted to speak of my commanding officer or his conduct, I should not have allowed five minutes to pass without bearing my testimony to his worth and unfaltering devotion to duty. But words of mine are of little value beside the monument which his record has erected to his heroism and unwavering fidelity to the service and to the well-being of those intrusted to his charge.”
In compliance with numerous requests there will be a series of articles on civil law in the C. L. S. C. course of study for 1883-1884.
“Heaven knows what would become of our sociality if we never visited people we speak ill of; we should live, like Egyptian hermits, in crowded solitude.”—George Eliot: Janet’s Repentance.
An illustrated daily paperfor children, to be printed on the grounds at Chautauqua, will be one of the features of the Assembly in 1883. This will be an improvement on that excellent little daily printed on the papyrograph in former years. The new paper will contain personals of little people and news from the Chautauqua world in which they live.
A statue of John Brown is to be erected by the State of Kansas in Washington.
Joseph Cook has returned to Boston, Mass., from his trip round the world. “He refused to hold a public debate with a noted free-thinker in Australia for the following tersely expressed reasons: ‘First.—Freethought, spiritualism and infidelity in general in America, England and India, and, as far as I know, in Australia, are notoriously connected with schemes for the propagation of immorality. Several of the prominent agitators in support of infidelity and free-thought have been sent to jail for distributing infamous publications through the mails. No decent man can consent to appear on the same platform with the representatives of enterprises that have a debasing effect on the public mind.Secondly.—I am not open to challenges of which the evident object is to advertise infidelity.Thirdly.—Not an unoccupied nor an unengaged hour is left open to me in Australia.Fourthly.—When infidels of any kind issue abook that goes through ten editions in ten years, at a dollar a copy, I will reply to it. I have a right to offer this challenge, for several of the volumes of the ‘Boston Monday Lectures’ have gone through ten editions in five years.Fifthly.—Infidels can put their written inquiries, if they choose, into the box at my free question-box lectures.’”
It will be welcome news to the American people that the revenues of the postal department are estimated to exceed the expenditures for the coming year by over four million dollars. This is a new and forcible argument for cheaper postage. The President in his message recommends two cents for letter postage, and since it would be unwise in the government to make money out of the people through the postal service, let us all favor a reduction in rates of postage, and then thank President Garfield’s administration for making it possible by beginning in earnest the good work of overthrowing the Star Route conspirators.
We regret that Governor St. John, of Kansas, was not re-elected at the recent election. He could, however, better afford to be defeated with his record on the temperance question, for that was the cause of it, than to be Governor with a doubtful record on this reform. The temperance people of these United States who are in sympathy with Governor St. John, are more in number than the whole population of Kansas, and the approbation of the temperance army is a rich reward in the face of a defeat at the hands of the rum-power.
The Rev. Dr. Vincent preached two sermons on the first Sabbath in December before the faculty and students of Cornell University, at Ithaca, N. Y. The city press, in speaking of the sermons, ranks the Doctor among the first preachers of the country.
“The Golden Floral” is a collection of beautiful poems, “Rock of Ages,” “Why should the Spirit of Mortal be Proud,” “He giveth his Beloved Sleep,” and several others, each in a separate volume elegantly illustrated. These poems are dear to thousands of worshippers, and they are made doubly attractive in their new binding. Each book has a different cover, with appropriate flowers, on a gold ground and is put up in a neat box or handsome envelope, price $1.75 each.
Somebody sent Mrs. General James A. Beaver of Pennsylvania, a copy ofThe Chautauquanfor November with the lecture by Bishop Simpson on “God’s Hand in History” marked, and wrote a note requesting her to read it, after her husband was defeated for Governor of Pennsylvania. She read it and was benefited. We are inclined to believe that the doctrine of that lecture would be helpful to the class of men whowere electedgovernors at the late elections, providing they could be persuaded to adopt the Bishop’s theory. Success in political life is more dangerous to the individual than defeat. More of God’s hand, and less of man’s, in shaping the events of the history we are making, would be better for the State and nation.
The New YorkTribunesays: “Thurlow Weed’s life almost spans the history of this country under its present Constitution. He was born before Washington died, and when Webster, Clay, and Calhoun were making their reputations he had edited several country newspapers and fought in the battles of his country. He was older than Seward, or Lincoln, or Greeley, and when Clay, Webster, and Calhoun were dead he had not entered upon the most important part of his career. He was alive when Napoleon’s star appeared in the darkness of the French Revolution, and was already a young man when the battle of Waterloo was fought. He lived and worked with three generations of public men. Most of the men who are now beginning to attract attention might have been his grandsons. Benjamin Franklin died seven years before Mr. Weed was born. The lives of these two journalists take the world back into the reign of Louis XIV, and beyond the birth of Frederick the Great. Another such would very nearly reach the time of Shakspere.”
Longfellow’s study remains just as he left it. Not a book nor a piece of furniture has been moved. The gates to the grounds of his old home are always open to the visitor, but within the house the bereaved family are secure from intrusion, and their life goes on as it did before his death, save for the great void that never can be filled. The poet’s grave at Mount Auburn is only marked by the flower-wreaths daily placed upon it by loving hands.
It is estimated that eleven hundred people lost their lives when the shower of ashes fell on the city of Pompeii. Two-fifths of the area covered by the ancient city have been explored, and the bones of four hundred and fifty victims have been exhumed. The skeletons of only three dogs have been found, and all the cats seem to have escaped.
President Arthur, it seems, by his last message to Congress, has been giving special attention to the revenues of the government. He says there is a surplus accumulating by every tax, and gives his opinion that this is neither wise nor economical. The surplus in the treasury for the year ending June, 1882, was $145,000,000. This is a good point at which Congress may begin to reduce the taxes on some commodities.
The Society of “American Artists” (it is a big name) has adopted a resolution urging Congress to remove all the duties on foreign works of art and admit them all, superior and inferior, free. This is not only unwise, but it is un-American. Suppose such wild and inconsiderate action should be taken by Congress, it would bring pictures and statues, made by cheap labor, from Europe by the ship load, and work injustice to American sculptors and painters. We need home protection for the artists quite as much as for any class of people among us.
The Rev. Dr. J. H. Vincent writes as follows of “Webster—an Ode:” Dr. William Cleaver Wilkinson has long been an enthusiastic admirer of the Sage of Marshfield. He has written two or three elaborate essays upon Webster’s character, genius and work. This ode is a bold and brilliant attempt to celebrate the praise of the Massachusetts giant. Taking several salient incidents from Webster’s life, he follows a “challenge” and “counter-challenge,” with several short poems on the youth, education and legal ability of the great lawyer. The ninth poem is a charming pastoral, setting forth Webster as a farmer; the tenth celebrates the orations on Plymouth Rock and Bunker Hill. In the remaining poems the author exalts the statesman and the defender of the constitution; closing with a tribute to his stability, a plea to his state for a favorable verdict upon the fame of her faithful son, closing the fifteenth passage, which is a simple couplet, delicately attributing to this song a serviceable ministration in behalf of the fame of its subject. Forty quarto pages of the poem are followed by eighty-two pages of elaborate, instructive, and exceedingly valuable notes on the private morals, public virtue, genius, statesmanship, oratory, personal traits, and religious faith and character of Mr. Webster. There are passages of remarkable power in this noble poem. All admirers of its hero (and where are they not to be found), will delight in the reading.
[We solicit questions of interest to the readers ofThe Chautauquanto be answered in this department. Our space does not always allow us to answer as rapidly as questions reach us. Any relevant question will receive an answer in its turn.]
[We solicit questions of interest to the readers ofThe Chautauquanto be answered in this department. Our space does not always allow us to answer as rapidly as questions reach us. Any relevant question will receive an answer in its turn.]
Q. Why do fogs often rise, if, as Professor Reynolds positively and repeatedly asserts, cloud particles are alldescending?Is not a fog composed of cloud particles, and if so, how can it rise if “cloud particlesdo not floatbut areall descending through the air?”
A. It is a mistake to say that fogs rise. A fog is a body of aqueous vapor in the atmosphere and is formed in several ways. When the air is cooler than the earth the moisture in it is partially condensed and thus rendered visible. In this way is formed a large class of fogs and also of clouds, the only difference between the two being in their height. When the condensation takes place near the surface of the earth fog is the result. Another class of fogs is formed by the moist air radiating its heat downward to a comparatively cold body of water, earth or air. The moist air coming into contact with the cold body becomes greatly reduced in temperature and after depositing a heavy dew, lies still in the valleys over the whole surface of the ground. To this body of cold air the atmosphere above radiates heat and when the temperature is reduced to the dew-point the aqueous vapor begins to condense as fog.
Q. Will you be kind enough to tell me in the Editor’s Table, whether the second volume of Timayenis’ “History of Greece” is included in any part of the course?
A. The list of books required for the C. L. S. C. course will be found on page 172 ofThe Chautauquanfor Dec.
Q. In the November magazine you recommend Tony’s Classical Atlas. Will you please tell us where to procure it?
A. A misprint in the November number made the word Long’s read Tony’s. It should have been Long’s Classical Atlas. It is published by Sheldon & Co., New York. This answers at least twenty similar inquiries. We are sorry that the misprint occurred.
Q. What is the meaning of the terms “Platonic love,” and “Platonic friendship”?
A. Spiritual love between persons of opposite sexes. The friendship of man and woman without mixture of what is usually called love. This affection was strongly advocated by Plato, and hence its distinctive name.
Q. What is the proper pronunciation of the name of the author of the “History of Greece,” Timayenis?
A. Tim-a-en´-is.
Q. WillThe Chautauquanplease tell me how to pronounce Chautauqua?
A. Shaw-taw´-quaw.
Q. Which is the correct title to use in addressing a business letter to a young unmarried lady, Dear Miss, or Dear Madam?
A. Madam is a title used in reference to an elderly or married woman; Miss is applied to an unmarried lady. Therefore we would say Dear Miss in preference to Dear Madam, or we would simply address the lady by name, as Miss A. C. Smith, without further preliminaries.
Q. Of what nationality is Prof. Timayenis?
A. He is a Greek.
Q. What is the pronunciation of the words Byzantium, geyser?
A. Bĭ-zan´shĭ-um. Gī´-ser.
Q. Is there a C. L. S. C. circle in Brooklyn?
A. There are several local circles in Brooklyn. F. E. Hurst, 66 St. John’s Place, is secretary of one; F. S. Holmes, 455 Macon Street, is president of another.
Q. Will you please give a list of the Memorial Days for this year?
A. A list of the Memorial Days will be found on page 175 ofThe Chautauquanfor December.
Q. What is the nature of Madame Tussaud’s famous gallery in London, of which we see mention in writings of travelers?
A. This exhibition consists of a very interesting collection of wax figures, representing ancient and modern famous characters. It also includes a number of memorials of Napoleon I, his traveling carriage, captured by the Prussians at Zenappe, and bought by Madame Tussaud for 2500l, and many other interesting relics. Another feature of the exhibition is the Chamber of Horrors, containing casts and portraits of executed criminals, the guillotine which decapitated Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, and other articles of the same ghastly nature.
Q. When did the national observance of Thanksgiving Day begin in this country?
A. The occasional observance of a day of thanksgiving commenced in New England in 1621, and the official appointment of such a day was confined mainly to the New England States until it became a national institution during the Revolution. After the general thanksgiving for peace, in 1784, there was no national appointment until 1789, when President Washington, by request of Congress, recommended a day of thanksgiving for the adoption of the Constitution. During the civil war President Lincoln issued proclamations for thanksgiving in 1862, 1863 and 1864, and since that time such a proclamation has been issued annually by the president as well as by the governors of the states.
Q. Does the C. L. S. C. contemplate helping persons who do not attend the Chautauqua Assembly? If so, what are the terms and conditions of membership?
A. Yes. For information in regard to membership consultChautauquanfor December, page 172, or address Miss K. F. Kimball, Plainfield, N. J.
Q. Who is the most reliable French author of the “Life of Napoleon Bonaparte”?
A. There are a great many Histories of Napoleon and many that are reliable. We would recommend “Histoire Napolĕon” by Elias Regnault, in four volumes, also “Histoire du Consulat et de l’Empire,” by Louis Adolphe Thiers, in twenty volumes.
Q. What is the correct pronunciation of Dana, Teutonic?
A. Dā´-nă. Too-ton´-ic.
Q. What Dictionary of the Bible would you recommend at a cost between $2.50 to $6.00 and by whom published? What do you think of Dr. Schaff’s?
A. We would recommend any work by Dr. Schaff, who is among the first in Biblical scholarship. We would also recommend Smith’s Bible Dictionary costing about $3.50, to be had of any book dealer.
Q. Where can the Chautauqua songs be obtained?
A. Write Rev. J. H. Vincent, D. D.
Q. At what time and by whom was the Apostles’ Creed composed, and when was it introduced into public worship?
A. It is said by many writers of the Roman Catholic Church that this creed was composed by the Apostles themselves, who agreed upon it as a rule of faith, and as a mark of distinction by which they would know friends from foes. According to an ancient tradition each Apostle contributed one sentence, and a writer by the name of Augustine pretends to tell us which article was contributed by each Apostle. It is now generally admitted that the creed in its present form is not of later date than the fourth century, but it is almost impossible to ascertain its authorship. It was first introduced into public worship in the Greek Church at Antioch, and afterward into the Roman Church in the eleventh century, and passed into the service of the Church of England at the Reformation. It is used in the baptismal confession in the Greek, Roman, English, Reformed, Lutheran, Methodist Episcopal, and Protestant Episcopal Churches, and no other than Apostles’ Creed is used in baptism by any church.
A friend in Pennsylvania writes: “Please give us a description of the transit of Venus, inThe Chautauquanfor January.”
We answer with the following:
At a meeting of the New York Academy of Sciences, at No. 12 West Thirty-first street, on the evening of December 13, Professor J. K. Rees, of Columbia College, gave the result of his observations of the transit of Venus, made at the college observatory. A large audience was present and listened attentively to the lecturer’s presentation of facts.
“I will only detain the Academy a few moments,” said the Professor, “in presenting the main points in the observations made at Columbia College on December 6. Most of the figures I will leave out. The station occupied was the roof of the unfinished observatory of the college. The telescope was placed in the southwest corner of the roof. This roof is extraordinarily strong and solid, the beams being of iron, twelve inches in depth. Solid brick arches spring from beam to beam. The height of the roof from the street is about one hundred and ten feet. The walls supporting the roof are four feet thick. An unobstructed view was had of the whole transit. The position of the instrument was only a few feet from the old observatory, so that we may take the longitude and latitude of our instrument from the American ephemeris—
Latitude, +40° 45′ 23″.1.
Longitude:—From Washington, -0h. 12m. 18.40s.
Longitude:—From Greenwich, +4h. 55m. 53.69s.
“The timepieces used were a mean time chronometer, No. 1,853, made by Parkinson & Frodsham, of London, England, and a sidereal chronometer, No. 1,564, made by Negus & Co., of New York City. The instrument used in the observations was an equatorially mounted refractor by Alvan Clark & Sons. Aperture 5.09 inches; focal length of object glass, 74.3 inches. The magnifying powers used were 48 on the first contact, 165 on the second and third contacts, and 95 on the fourth contact. The telescope was moved by clockwork, supplied with a Bond spring governor. In making chronometer comparisons the sidereal chronometer was left at the college and the mean time chronometer was carried to the instruments on which signals were to be received. The sidereal chronometer has the hours graduated to XII.”
Professor Rees had prepared, but omitted to give, an elaborate system of chronometer comparisons with the Western Union time signals and the Washington time signals. The object of the comparisons was to obtain the exact error of the chronometers used at the time of the observations. The Western Union time signals sound the local mean time at the City Hall of New York city. The longitude of the City Hall from Washington is 12m. 10.47s. Mr. Hamblet, in charge of the Western Union time system, gives the errors of the Western Union time signals as 1.11s. fast on December 5, noon; 1.35s. fast December 6, noon. The professor also omitted a table of observations and the times taken down at the instant by each of four recorders.
“Correcting the observed contact times,” he continued, “the following table was obtained:
ADOPTED CONTACT TIMES.Mean time of Columbia College.Mean time in Washington.H.M.S.H.M.S.I- - - -*9850.085631.6II- - - -92845.991627.5III- - - -25213.523955.1IV- - - -†31152.125933.7
*Notch plainly on. Estimated a minute late.
*Notch plainly on. Estimated a minute late.
†Poor contact. Cloudy.
†Poor contact. Cloudy.
“The observation of the first contact was interfered with by the clouds. Between the first contact and the second contact the light shining through Venus’s atmosphere was a fine sight. I should say that it first appeared to my eye when the planet was a little more than half way on the sun, and disappeared about a minute before the planet reached second contact.
“I might, perhaps, introduce here,” said the professor, drawing a circle upon the blackboard, “the meaning of the terms first contact, second contact, and so on. Taking this circle to represent the sun, Venus is a disc which is about one-twenty-first part the diameter of the sun, and by first contact we simply mean the instant when the disc Venus, approaching the disc of the sun, touches it at one point externally. The second contact occurs at the time when the disc of Venus just touches the sun internally. The third contact Is the instant when the disc of Venus just touches the disc of the sun internally on one side, and the fourth contact is the instant when it touches on the other side.
“The line of light,” the Professor went on, after his explanation, “marking out the portion of Venus’ disk not on the sun, changed its appearance considerably while my attention was fixed upon it. I first saw a faint curved line of light off of the sun, and apparently marking out the part of Venus’ disk not on the sun, this curved line being entirely disconnected from the sun. A little later this arc of light was lengthened to a semicircular thread and touched the edge of the sun, marking out the complete outline of the part of Venus’ disk not on the sun. The semicircular gold thread seemed to be an exact continuation of the dark rim of the planet. Finally this line broadened at the point where it touched the sun’s rim, or edge, and the summit of the arc disappeared. The wings of light thus formed were, at their base, not in the exact continuation of the dark outline of the planet. I watched for the repetition of these appearances between third and fourth contacts, but failed to see anything. The sky between the first and second contacts was much clearer of haze than between the third and fourth.
“At second contact I saw no indication of the black drop. The tangency of Venus’ and the sun’s discs was well seen. During the passage of Venus over the sun’s face I observed her disc with magnifying powers of 48, 95, 165 and 345, but saw no indications of an atmosphere. The disc of Venus did not appear to be uniform in blackness, but to be spotted with grayish or whitish matter, reminding one of patches of snow. This was seen under the different magnifying powers used.
“When Venus neared the third contact a very peculiar phenomenon was noticed. The preceding edge of Venus was seen to be darker than the central portion. Later the edge of the planet became of a bluish black color, and this extended around to the following edge. The phenomena connected with this were very distinct. When the planet was near third contact these appearances were not seen longer. Just before third contact a faint black drop was observed for a short time. It disappeared very quickly, and third contact was finely seen.
“The fourth contact was interfered with by the haze and clouds, and was probably called too early.”
The Professor added that he desired to express his acknowledgments for aid in the matter of timing and in keeping the clockwork of the telescope in order to the fourth year civil engineers of the School of Mines. Without their assistance it would have been impossible to collect the time data which rendered the observations of value. At the conclusion of his address he was warmly applauded.
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