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Show THE COMET. ' Halley's comet, about which the astronomers bave been giving us detailed information for several . , ' months, is now visible to the naked eye, about 4 o'clock in the morning: in the eastern sky.. It may ' , be said in the beginning that the best opinion among the astronomers is that the appearance of the comet at this time is periodic, and that no dire catas- Itrophe is likely to befall. The orbit of the wander-. wander-. , ing star is pretty well defined, and as it makes its journey around our sun it will be studied in detail because its history is a long one, and because the j methods of observation are now more perfect than , ' when it was first noted. According to the astronomers, the earth will t .... pass through the comet's tail May 18. This report, , accompanied by the statement that the tail shows traces of cyanogen, pi-obably the most deadly gas we know of, has tended to frighten the public in an unnecessary manner. Assurances are given that the cyanogen contained in the comet's tail is of so limited quantities that no one will be able to notice any change in the conditions of life in this planet when we pass through it. Indeed, the ej'anogen is po attenuated that some authorities cast doubt upon . . , t its presence by saying "if" there is cyanogen in its tail, it is so diffused as to be entirely harmless. To show the airy character of the comet's tail, one :. ' authority asserts that ten million miles of it could be easily compressed into a pill box. So far as known, comets do no harm. Little is known of them or the functions they perform in their wanderings. They are interesting from a pcientific standpoint, and study of them has developed de-veloped many theories as to their origin. |
