Conservative *
change before I saw it. At all events ]
suddenly stood rooted in my trades , am ;
staring aloft beheld the blessed sun
simply flicker and go out. Nor do I
suppose that I stirred again until it was
over.
From what I had heard of other
eclipses , I had anticipated the chioi
sensation from watching the oncoming
shadow. It is said to bo most strange
and awful to see it travel toward you
across the landscape , world-wide , noise
less , rushing at the speed of the planetary
bodies in spnco. Owing to my being
taken by surprise , I got nothing of this
sight , if it was presented. In conversa
tion afterward with others , I found no
one else who had soon it either , even in
organized parties who wore on the watch
for it. One man I found who did see
the shadow depart eastward at the end
of the eclipse , but I did not regret miss
ing that , for I was watching at that
moment a far more glorious spectacle.
What I did see was this : a round
object of a dead color , like a stone ,
hanging iu a blue-black sky ; a slight
gauzy wisp extending for some distance
above it , and a less distance below ; and
one bright yellow star not very far re
moved. This is all that was distinctly
noticeable to a layman.
To go into details ; the clouds of the
morning had vanished completely ; the
sky was absolutely clear , so that the
high contracting parties were as plain
to one's sight as the dinner plate on
one's table ; the wisp of gauze was the
outer corona ; the yellow star was the
planet Mercury.
I am sorry to say that I stood in a
kind of amazed condition through the
minute and some seconds that the
eclipse lasted , staring rather helplessly
at the strange apparition above me ,
conscious that the opportunity of a life
time was passing rapidly by , and strT-
iug to remember what I ought to be
seeing. I now have the fullest sympa
thy for the early astronomers , who tried
single-handed to observe , reason , record ,
draw and remember all at once these
things that were of so great importance
to them. But I think I commiserate
oven more the astronomical specialists
of today , who after years of preparation
spend the few precious seconds attend
ing wholly to some stop-watch , camera
or telescope , and do not see the eclipse
at all.
I did look around for stars , but found
none save Mercury aforesaid. I did
observe the outer corona with some
care ; but , whet I cannot account for
now , I forgot to scrutinize the moon's
edge for the inner corona. I thought I
remembered afterward that the rim of
the disk had had a slightly pebbly or
granulated appearance , something like
the skin of an orange ; but there was
nothing like the saw-tooth spurts of
brilliant light that I had expected visible
to the naked eye , of that I am certain ;
it surely would have caught my at
tention else.
As to the outer coronn , if you will
look at the moon through a window-
screen , you will get an idea of its texture
you will see a cross , like that which
appeared to the Emperor Constantine ,
convincing him that it was his manifest
duty to join the Early Church. Such
an unsubstantial spectre stood out on
each side of the moon ; 0110 would have
supposed it no more than a slight haze
in the earth's atmosphere. It was more
vertical than horizontal , but the upper
end lay somewhat to the right ; the
lower end equally to the loft , for they
wore in a straight lino. They were
nearly , if not quite , the full width of the
sun ; their edges straight , their ends
irregular , like a .strip of ribbon with
notched ends. The upper one extended
some two diameters and a half from the
moon , the lower perhaps one and a half.
I do not think the darkness was very
deuso. I was not paying much attention
to what was around me , though I re
member hearing the word "luna" a
number of times , showing that I was
among Italians , and that they under
stood the occurrence. But I know that
a baby came crying to his mother , and
that I thereupon looked around and
could distinguish objects plainly enough.
I am also of opinion that there was no
noticeable fall in temperature , and I
satisfied myself that no dew formed , by
feeling in the first patch of grass I came
to afterward. Chickens may have gone
to roost , but it could hardly have been
worth their while , as it was all over in
about a minute.
The end came very suddenly. I was
staring wildly , as I have mentioned ,
trying to gather impressions for the rest
of my days in those few seconds , when
there came a trickle of white molten
metal over the tilted edge of the moon ,
like slag creeping out at the vent of a
blast-furnace ; then there was the tiniest
hoop of a crescent of sunlight , and as it
broadened Mercury vanished , vanished
the corona , and the world began to
resume its accustomed habit. So , as
there was no more to do there at that
time , I simply departed , remembering
once more such matters as breakfast-
hours and railroad time-cards , and post
poning consideration of the things I had
seen until they should have settled
somewhat in my mind.
My ideas as to total eclipses of the sun
will hereafter include two very distinct
and powerful impressions. The first is
the horrid , sickening , thick , yellow
murk that invaded everything as totality
approached , clogging one's feet and
clamping one's breath as it accumulated.
Of this I had enough , and I fear that I
may have inhaled the stuff for many
bad dreams from it.
The other is quite different. It is of
ihat priceless moment when the cataract
of glory broke over the brow of the dead
moon , and thouu , the father of all , the
giver of life , restored the favor of his
countenance to lift dependent children.
AcT. RlCITAlinSON.
tlie 'fifteenth
> , . , < , , .
century Maolna-
velli wrote a treatise \ iponfho duties of
' - " ruler. His ideas
a -prince" or were
generally repudiated by his contempor
aries. President McKiuley , however ,
shares with his majesty , the Sultan of
Turkey , the distinction of being the
only modern rulers who act upon the
principles laid down by the noted Ital
ian. The inspiration for our imperial
policy must have come from a perusal of
the work of Machiavelli , who thus pro
scribed the ethics of a ruler :
"A prudent ruler cannot , nor ought he
to , keep faith when such fidelity shall
turn against him , and the reasons which
moved him to make his promises are
spent. * * * We musfc recognize
this , that a ruler , and especially a new
ruler ( one serving his first term ) , cfvnnot
observe all those things which men deem
good ; being often obliged , for the wel
fare of the state , to act contrary to hu
manity , contrary to religion. And , be
sides , he must have a mind ready to
shift as the wiuds and eddies of fortune
bid ; not to depart from good , if he can
help himself , but to know how to do
evil if he must. * * * Therefore , a
ruler must take great care that no word
shall slip from his month that shall not
be full of piety , trust , humanity and
simple faith ; and he must appear , to
eye and ear , all compact of these. Let
a ruler , then , make the state prosper
and his methods shall always be judged
honorable and be praised by all ; because
the vulgar are always caught by appear
ance and by the event ; and in this
world there are none but the vulgar. A
certain ruler of today it is well not to
name names proclaims nothing but
peace and faith ; had he observed either
he would have toppled the state and his
own reputation. "
In 1899 President McKinley said , at a
national gathering of Methodists , "the
flag shall not mean
Shift us the Wind * .
one thing in the
United States and another in Porto
Rico. " Being "a prudent ruler , " , iu 1900 ,
he does not feel any obligation to keep
faith , "the reasons which moved him to
make his promises have been spent. " He
has also adhered faithfully to the
Machiavellian ideal iu piety of express
ion. % He has not failed to avail himself
of every opportunity to attend noted
religions gatherings and speak words in
dicating wonderful depth of religious
feeling. Even his messages to congress
tiave been clothed in language appealing
strongly to the moral sense. It will be
remembered how he pointed out that our
policy with Porto Rico should be dicta
ted by "plain duty" and that "good
faith" demanded free trade with the
Porto Ricans. His determined efforts a
few months later in behalf of a tariff bill
prove him to be a man with a "mind
ready to shift as the winds and eddies of
fortune bid. "
. iYCvMiyBiS ; g ffl § i SHBBK ( 'i
