, oscillating back and forth from Vega to Canopus.
So the birds began to fly.
It was because of unseasonable coldness in Sweden. Unseasonable coldness is a phenomenon of this earth's volcanic eruptions. It is attributed to the shutting off of sunlight by volcanic dusts. The temperature was lower, in Sweden, than ever before recorded, in the middle of August (Nature, 32-427).(19) Upon August 31st, the new star reached maximum brilliance, and upon this date the temperature was the lowest that it had ever been known to be, in the last of August, in Scotland (Nature, 32-495).(20)
All very well -- except the unusual coldness may be explained in various ways, having nothing to do with volcanoes --
See Nature, 32-466, 625 -- that nine days after the first observation upon the new star in Andromeda, an afterglow was seen in Sweden.(21) There is no findable record of a volcanic eruption, upon this earth, to which this phenomenon could be attributed. Sept. 3rd, 5th, 6th -- afterglows appeared in England. These effects continued to be seen in Sweden, until the middle of September.(22)
I don't know whether these data are enough to jolt over our whole existence into a new epoch, or not. From [341/342] what I know of the velocity of thought, I should say not.
If a volcanic discharge did drift from Andromeda to Sweden, it came from a northern constellation to a northern part of this earth, as if to a part of this earth that is nearest to a northern constellation. But, if Andromeda were trillions of miles away, no part of this earth could be appreciably nearer than any other part, to the constellation. If repeating afterglows, in Sweden, were phenomena of repeating arrivals of dust, from outer space, they so repeated in the sky of one part of this earth, because this earth is stationary.
I note that I have overlooked the new star in Cygnus, late in the year 1876. Perhaps it is because this new star was discovered by a professional astronomer that I neglected it. However, I shall have material for some malicious comments. Upon the night of Nov. 24th, 1876, Dr. Schmidt, of the Athens Observatory, saw, in the constellation Cygnus, a new star. It was about third magnitude, and increased to about second. Over all the Observatories of this earth, this new star was shining magnificently, but it was not until Dec. 9th that any other astronomer saw it. It was seen, in England, upon the 9th, because, upon the 9th, news reached England of Dr. Schmidt's discovery. I note the matter of possible overclouding of the sky in all other parts of this earth, at this time. I note that, between the dates of Nov. 24th and Dec. 9th, there were eight favorable nights, in England.
It so happens that I have record of what one English astronomer was doing, in this period. Upon the night of Nov. 25, he was looking up at the sky.
Meteoric observations are conventionalities.
New stars are unconventionalities.
See Nature, Dec. 21, 1876 -- this night, this astronomer observed meteors.(23) [342/343]
There was a volcanic eruption in the Philippines, upon the 26th of November. About two weeks later, a red rain fell in Italy.(24)
There is considerable in this book that is in line with the teachings of the most primitive theology. We have noted how agreeable I am sometimes to the most southern Methodists. It is that scientific orthodoxy of to-day has brutally, or mechanically, or unintelligently, reacted sheerly against all beliefs of the preceding, or theological, orthodoxy, and has reacted too far. All reactions react too far. Then a reaction against this reaction must of course favor, or restore, some of the beliefs of the earlier orthodoxy.
Often before disasters upon this earth there have been appearances that were interpretable as warnings.
But if a godness places kindly lights in the sky, also is it spreading upon the minds of this earth a darkness of scientists. This is about the beneficence of issuing warnings, and also seeing to it that the warnings shall not be heeded. This may not be idiocy. It may be "divine plan" that surplus populations shall be murdered. In 