ll
tn 'PITT ? rYAfAlTA nATTYV IfRTVWTTTCD A V. Tf OV Ifl 11 1SO < t.
By A. Conan Doyle.
lt < VI hv ttiA Atlthnrt
Thera are many folk who knew Alplionse
Licour In his old age. From about tlio
time of the revolution of MS until ho died
In Iho Bocond year ot the Crimean war , lie
Wawi always to be found In the same corner
of the Cafe do Provence , at the end of tlio
IluS St. Honore , coming down about 9 In
the evening nnd going when ho could find
no one to talk with. It took some self-
restraint to listen to Iho old diplomatist , for
Ills- stories were beyond all belief , and yet
ho was ( julck at detecting the shadow of a
smile or the Bllghtcst little raising of the
eyebrows. Then his huge , rounded back
wquld straighten Itself , his bulldog chin
would project , and hli rs' would burr like
a kettledrum. When ho got as far as
"Ah , monsieur r-r-r-rltf or "Vous no mo
cr-r-r-royez pas done ! " It was quite time to
remember that you had a ticket for tno
opera *
There was liU tory of Talleyrand and
the Ovo oyster shells , and there was ins
utterly absurd account of Napoleons second
end visit to AJacclo. Then there was that
most circumstantial romance which ne
never ventured upon until his second bottle
had been uncorked ) of the emperor s escape
from St. Helena how he lived for a whole
year In Philadelphia , while Count Herbert
do Bertrand , who wa his living linage , per
sonated him at Longwood. Hut of all his
stories there was none which was more
notorious than thai of tlio koran and the
foreign offlco messenger. And yet when
Monsieur Otto's memoirs were written It was
found that there really was some foundation
for old Lacour's Incredible statement.
"You must know , monsieur , " he would
aay , "that I loft Egypt after KIcber's as-
nasjlnatlon. I would gladly liavo stayed on.
for I was engaged In a translation of tno
koran , and between ouiselves I had thoughts
of embracing Mohammedanism , for I was
deeply struck by the wisdom of their views
about mafrlnge. They had made an ln-
crWiblo mistake , however , upon the aubject
of wlno , and this was what the mufti who
attempted to convert mo could never gat
over. Then when old Klebsr died and
Menou came to the top. I felt that It was
tlmo for me to go. It Is not
for mo to speak of my own capacltleu ,
monsieur , but you will readily un
derstand that the man does not
care to bo ridden by the mule. I carried my
koran and my papers to London , where
Monsieur Otto had been sent by the first
consul to arrange a treaty ot peace , for both
na'tlons were very weary of the war , which
Jiad already lasted ten years , Here I was
moat useful to Monsieur Otto on account of
my knowledge of the English tonguo. and
nlko. If I may say so , on account of my
natural capacity. They were happy days
during which I lived In the square of Ulooms-
bury. The cHmnto of monsieur's country Is ,
It must bo confessed , detestable. Hut then ,
what would you have ? Flowers grow best In
the rain. Ono has but to point to monsieur's
fellow countrywomen to prove It.
"Well , Monsieur Otto , our ambassador was
hopt terribly busy over that treaty , and all
of his staff were working to death. Wo
had not Pitt to deal with , which was pcr-
liaps a well for us. Ho was a terrible man
that Pitt , and wherever half a dozen enemies.
of France were plotting together , there was
bis sharp-pointed nose right In the middle
of them. The nation , however , had been
thoughtful enough to put him out of office ,
and we had to do with Monsieur Addlngton.
Dut Milord Hiuvkesbury was the foreign
minister , and It was with him that we were
obliged to do our bargaining.
, "You can understand that It was no child's
pfsy. After ten years of war each nation
tidd got hold of a great deal which had be
longed to the other , or to the other's allies
What was to be given back ? And wha' '
ws to be- kept ? Is this Island worth Ilia
" peninsula ? If wo do this ai Venice will you di
that at Sierra Lcono ? If we give up Egyp
to the sultan , ' will you restore the Cape o
good Hops , which you have taken from out
t allies , the , Dutch ? So wo wrangled anc
Wrestled ; -fond I have seen Monsieur Ott <
como back' ' to the embassay so exhausted
'tfint his secretary and I had to help him
from his carriage to his sofa , nut at las'
tilings adjusted themselves , and the nigh ,
came round when the treaty was to bo flnallj
signed.
"Now , you must know that the one grea
card whlcty wo held , and which we played
played , played at every point of the gamr
was that we hail Egypt. The English wer
very nervous about our being there. I
gave us a foot on each end of the Medlterra
iipan. you gee. And they were not sure Uia
that wonderful little Napoleon at ours mlgh
not make It the base of an advance agalns
India. So whenever Lord Hawkcsbury pro
posed to retain anything , wo had only to re
ply. "In that case , ot course , we canno'
' consent to evacuate Egypt , and In this wa ;
we quickly brought him to reason. It wa
by the help of Egypt that we gained term
which were remarkably favorable
and especially that we caused th
English to consent to give up the Cape
of Good Hope ; we did not wish your people
ple , monsieur , to have any foothold In Sout1
"YOU FOLLOW ME. "
Africa , for history has taught us that the
Urltlsh foothold ot one-halt century Is the
Qrltlah empire ot the next. It Is not '
ybur army or your navy against which wo
have to guard , but It Is your terrible younger
son and your man tn search ot a career.
'When we French have a possession across
tbo seas , we like to sit In I'arls and to
felicitate ourselves upon It. You take your
wives and your children , and you run away
to ace what kind ot a place this may bo ,
nnd after .that wa might as well try to take :
that old square of Uloomsbury away from
you.
you."Well , It was upon the 1st of October that
the treaty waa anally to bo vlgnpd. In the
morning I was congratulating Monsieur
Dtto upon the happy conclusion of his labors.
Ha vras a little pale shrimp ot a man. very
quick and nervous , and he was so delighted
now at his own success that ho could not
st itlll , bul ran about the room chattering
and laughing , while I sat on a cushion In
the corner * .as. I had learned to do In the
east. Suddenly , tn came a messenger with
a letter which had been forwarded from
Paris. Monsieur Otto cast hli eyes upon
IK and then , without a word , his Itneea gnvo
way , and he toll senseless upon the floor.
I'Tain to ! ilin. as did the courier , and be f
tween us we carried him to a sofa. He !
might have been dead from his appearance ,
but I could feel hla heart thrilling beneath
lay palm.
"What Is this , then ? " I asked.
" 'I do not know , ' answered the mrrtcrtger.
"Ifonilcur Talleyrand told mo to hurry ia
never mat ) hurried before and to | iut thU
letter Into the hands of Monsieur Otto. I
was In Paris at midday yesterday. '
"I know that I am to blame , but I could
not helping glancing at the letter , picking It
out of the senseless hand of Monsieur Otto.
Mr Oodl the thunderbolt that It wast I did
not faint , but I s i dovui botlde my chief and
bunt Into tears. It was but n few words ,
but they told ua that Egypt bad been evacu
ated by our troops * month before. All our I
treaty was undon * then , and the one ll-1
sideration which hail Induced our enemies to
give us good terms had vanished. In twelve
hours It would not have mattered. Dut now
the treaty was not-yet signed. We should
have to glvo up the capo. Wo should have
to let England have Malta" . Now that Egypt
was gone , we had nothing to offer In ex
change.
"Hut wo were not so easily beaten , we
Frenchmen. You Engllih misjudge us when
you think that because we show emotions
which you conceal , that we are therefore
of n weak and womanly nature.
You cannot read your histories
and bcllovo that. Monsieur Otto
recovered his senses pre ently , and we took
counsel what we should Oo.
" 'It Is useless to go on , Alplionse , ' said
he. 'This Englishman will laugh at me
when I ask him to sign. '
" 'Courage ! ' I cried , and then a sudden
thought coming Into my head , 'How do we
know that the English wilt have news of
this ? Perhaps they may sign the treaty
before they know of It. '
" 'Alphpnse. ' he cried , 'you have saved
me ! Why should they know about It ? Our
was a poor lltllo creature , this foreign office
messenger , not much bigger than Monsieur
Otto , and I monsieur can seen my hands
now , nnd Imagine what they were like when
I was 27 year * of ago.
"Well , now that I had him In my coach ,
the question was what I should do with him.
I did not wish to burl him If I could help tt.
" 'This Is R pressing business , ' sold he.
I have . dispatch which I must deliver In
stantly. '
"Our coach had rattled down Hurley
street , but now. In accordance with my In
struction , It turned and began to go up
again ,
" 'llullol' ho cried. 'What's this ? '
' "What then ? ' I asked.
" 'We are driving back. Where Is Lord
Hawkesbury ? '
" 'Wo shall see him presently. '
" 'Let me out ! ' he shouted. 'There's some
trickery In this. Coachman , stop the coach !
Let nip out , I say ! '
"I dashed him back Into his seat as ho
tried to turn the handle of the door ; He
roared for help. I clapped my palm across
his mouth. He made his teeth meet through
the side of It. I seized hla own cravat and
bound It aver hln lips. He still mumbled
and gurgled , but tlm nolso was covered by
the rattle of our wheels. We were passing
the minister's house and there was no
candle tn the window.
"The messenger sat quiet for a little , and
I could see the glint of his eyes ns he stared
at mo through the gloom , He was partly
stunned , I think , by the force with which
I had hurled him Into his scat. And also ho
was pondering perhaps what he should do
MY GOD , THE THUNDERBOLT ! "
news lias como from Toulon to Paris , and
thence straight to London. Theirs will-come
by sea through the Straits of Gibraltar. At
this moment U Is unlikely that any one In
Paris knows of it , save only Talleyrand and
the first consul. If wo keep our secret , we
inky still get our treaty signed. '
"Ah , monsieur , you can Imagine the horrl-
blo uncertainty In which wo spent the day.
Never , never shall I forget those slow hours
during which we sat together , starting at
every distant shout , lest It should be the first
sign of the rejoicing which thU news would
cause In London , Monsieur 'Otto ' passed
from youth to ago tn a day. As for me , I
nnd It easier to go oul and meet danger
than to wait for It. I set forth , therefore ,
towards evening. I wandered here , and wan
dered there. I was In the fencing rooms of
Monsieur Angclo , and In the salon-do-boxe
Of Monsieur Jackson , and In the club of
Ilrooks , and In the lobby of the Chamber of
Deputies , but nowhere did I hear any news.
Still , It was possible that Milord Hawkes
bury had received it himself just as wo bad.
Ho lived In Harley street , and there It was
that the treaty was to be finally signed that
, night at 8. I entreated Monsieur Otto to
drink two glasses of .Burgundy before ho
want , for I feared lest his haggard fnce and
trembling hands should reuse suspicion tn
the English minister.
"Well , wo went around together In one of
the embassy's carriage , about 7:30. : Monsieur
Otto went tn alone , but presently , on excuse of
getting his portfolio , he came out again , with
hla cheeks flushed with joy , to tell me that
all was well.
" 'He knows nothing , ' ho whispered. 'Ah ,
If the next half hour were over ! '
" 'Give mo a sign. when It is settled,1
said I.
" ( For what reason ? ' "
" 'Hecause until then.no messenger shall
Interrupt you. I glvo you my promise , I ,
Alphonso Lacour/
"Ho clasped my hand In both of his. 'I
shall make nn excuse to move one of the can
dles on to the table in the window , ' said
he , and he hurried Into the house , whilst I
was left waltlng.beslde the carriage.
"Well , If we could but secure ourselves
from Interruption for a single half-hour the
day would bo our own. I had hardly begun
to form my plans when I saw the lights of
a carriage coming swiftly from the direction
of Oxford street. Ah , If It should be the
messenger ! What could I do ? I was pre
pared to kill him yes , even to kill him ,
rather than at this last moment allow our
work to be undone. Thousands die to make
a glorious war. Why should not one die
to make n glorious peace ? What though
they hurried me to the scaffold ? I should
have sacrificed myself for my country. I
had a llttlo curved Turkish knlfo strapped
to my waist. My hand was on the hilt of
when the carriage , which had alarmed
mo 'so , rattled safely past me.
"Dut another might come. I must bo
prepared. Above all , I must not compromise
the embassy. I ordered our carriage to
move on , and I engaged what you call n
hackney coach. Then I spoke to the driver
and gave him a guinea. He understood
that It was a special service.
" 'You shall have another guinea If you
do what you are told,1 said I.
" 'All right , master , ' said he , turning- his
slow eyes upon mo without a trace of excite
ment or curiosity.
" 'If I enter your coach with another gen
tleman , you will drlvo up and down Harley
street and take no orders from any one hut
me. When I get out. you will carry the otfTSr
gentleman to Waller's club In Ilruton street. '
" 'AlLright. master. ' said he again.
"So I stood outside Milord Hawkesbury's
houio , and you caii think how often my eyes
went up to that window in hope ot seeing
the 'candlb twinkle' in It. Flvo minutes
passed , and another five. Oh , how slowly
they crept along. It was a true- October
night , raw and cold , with a whlto fog crawl-
Ing over the wet , shining cobblestones , and
blurring thb dim oil lamps. I could not see
titty paces In either direction , but my ears
were straining , straining to catch the rattle
of hoofs or the rumble of wheels. It It not n
cheering place , monsieur , that street ol
Harley. even upon a sunny day. The
houses are solid and very respectable over
yonder , but there Is nothing of the feminine
about them. It Is a city to be Inhabited by
males. Dut on that raw night , amid the
damp and the fog , with the anxiety gnawing
at my heart , It seemed the saddest , wearlesi
spot In the whole wide world. I paced np and
down , slapping my hands to keep them warm
and still straining my cars. And then suil-
dcnly out ot the dull hum of the traffic down
In Oxford street I heard a sound detach Itielf
and grow louder and louder , and clearer one
clearer with every liiBtnnt , until two yellow
lights came Hashing through the the log
and a light cabriolet whirled up to the dooi
ot the foreign minister. H had not stoppei
before a young fellow sprang out of It am
hurried to tlio steps , while the driver turnec
his horse and rattle I oft into the fog once
more ,
"Ah , It Is In the moment of action that lam
best , monsieur. You , who only see mo
when I am drinking ; my wlno In the Cafe de
Provence , cannot conceive the heights to
which I rise. At that moment , when ;
know that the fruits of a ten years' war were
at stake , I was magnificent. U was tbo las
Kronen campaign , and I the general anc
at my In one.
" 'Sir , ' said I , touching him upon the arm
'are you the messenger for Lord Hawkes
bury ? '
" 'Ye , ' said he.
" 'I have been waiting for you half Jn
hour , ' ald I. ' 'You are to follow me a
unre He Is with the French ambassador. '
"I rpoko with such assurance that ho never
hesitated for an Instajit. When he entente
the hackney coach , and I followed htm In
my heart gave such a thrill ot joy that
could hardly keep from shouting aloud. Ho
next. Presently ho got his mouth partly free
from the cravat. "
" 'You can have my watch and my purse
It you will let mo go , ' said he.
" 'Sir , ' said I , 'I am as honorable a man
as .you are yourself. '
" 'Who are you , then ? '
" 'My name Is of no Importance. '
" 'What do you want with me ? '
" 'It Is a bet. '
" 'A bet ? What do you menn ? Do you
understnnd that I am on the government
service , and that you will see the Insldo of
a. Jail tor this ? '
" 'That Is the bet. That Is the sport , '
- -
said I.
" 'You may find It poor sport before you
finish , ' ho cried. 'What Is this Insane bet
of yours , then ? '
" 'I have bet , ' I answered , 'that I will re
cite a chapter of the koran to the first gcn-
tleman whom I should meet In the street. '
"I do not know what made mo think of U ,
save that my translation was always run
ning In my head. He clutched at the door
handle , and again I had to hurl him back
Into his eat.
" 'How long will It take ? ' he gnspcd.
" 'It depends on the chapter,1 I answered.
" 'A short one , then , and let me go. '
" 'But Is It fair ? ' argued I. 'When I say
a chapter I do not mean the shortest chap
ter , but rather one which should be of av
erage length. '
" 'Help ! help ! help ! ' ho squealed , and I
was compelled again to adjust his cravat.
" 'A little patience , ' said I , 'and It will
soon ' be over. I should like to recite the
z. chapter which would bo of most interest to
yourself. . You will confess that I am trying
to ( make things as pleasant as I can for
rou ? '
"He slipped his mouth free again.
" 'Quick , then , quick ! ' he groaned.
" 'The chapter of the cumcl ? ' I suggested.
" 'Yes , yes. '
" 'Or that of the fleet stallion ? '
" 'Yes , yes. Only proceed ! ' '
"We had passed the window and there
\aa no candle. I settled down to recite the
chapter of the stallion to him. .
"Perhaps you do not know your koran
very well , monsieur ? Well , I knew it by
icart then , as I know It by heart now.
The style Is a llttlo exasperating for nny
one who Is In a hurry. But then what
would you hnvo ? The people in the east
nro never tn n. hurry , nnd It was written
'or them. I repeated It with all the
dignity and solemnity which a sacred book
demands , and the young Enllshman he
wriggled nnd groaned.
"When the horses , standing * on. three
Feet and placing the tip of their fourth
loot upon the ground , were mustered In
front of htm In the evening , he said 'I
Imvo loved the lave ot earthly good above
the remembrance of things on high , and
Imve spent the tlmo In viewing these horses.
Bring the horses back to me * And when
they were brought back he began to cut off
their legs and
"It was at this moment thnt the young
Englishman sprang nt mo. My God ! how
little can I remember of the next few min
utes ! He was a boxer , this shred of n man.
He had been trained to strike. I tried to
catch him by the hands. Pac , pac , he came
upon my nose and upon my eye. I put down
my head and thrust at him with it. Pac , he
came from below. But ah , I was too much
for htm. I hurled myself upon him , and he
had no place where he could escape from my
weight. He fell flat upon the cushions , and
I seated myuelf upon him with such convic
tion that the wind flow from him as from a
burst bellows.
"Then I searched to see what there was
with which I could tie him. I drew the
strings from my shoes , and with ono I ee
cured his wrists , and with another his
ankles. Then I tied the cravat round his
mouth again , so that he could only lie and
glare at me. When I had done all this and
had stopped the bleeding ot my own nose , I
looked out of the coach , and ah , monsieur ,
the very first thing which caught my eyes
was that candle , that dear little candle ,
glimmering In the window of the minister
Alone , with these two hands , I had retrieved
the capitulation of an army and the loss o :
a province. Yes. monsieur , what A"er-
cromble and 5.000 men had done upon thi
beach at Abouklr was undone by me , "slngli
handed. In a hackney coach In Hnrloy street ,
"Well , I had no time to lose , for at any
moment Monsieur Otto might be down ,
shouted to my driver , gave him hla second
guinea , and allowed him to proceed to Wat
ter's. For myself , I sprang Into our cm
bassy carriage , and a moment later the dooi
of the minister opened. He had himsol
escorted Monsieur Otto down stairs , and now
so deep was he In talk that ho walked ou
bareheaded as far as the carriage. As h <
stood there by the open door there came
the rattle of wheels , and a man rushed down
the pavement.
" 'A dispatch ot great Importance for Ml
lord Hawkesbury ! ' he oreld.
"I could see that It was not my messenger ,
but a second one. Milord Hawkesbury caugh
the paper from lib hand and read It by th
light of the carriage lamp. His face , mon
sleur , was as whlto as this plate before In
had finished.
" 'Monsieur Otto , ' he cried , 'we hav
signed th's treaty upon a false understand
Ing. Egypt Is In our hands. '
" 'What ! ' cried Monsieur Otto. 'Impoisl
bit ! '
" 'It Is certain. It fell to Abcrcrombl
last mouth. '
" 'In that coic,1 said Monsieur Otto , 'I
Is very fortunate that the treaty is signed.1
" 'Very fortunate for you , sir , ' cried MI
lord Hawkeibury , and ho turned back to tb
house.
"Next day , mons'eur , what they call th
Bow itreet runneri were after me , but they
could not run across salt water , and Alphons
Lacour was receiving the congratulation
of Monsieur Talleyrand and the first coniu !
before hit pursuers had got as far as Deyer. "
THE NEHpOAT TELESCOPE
ni
A. Mammoth Tcn Foot Reflector Focuses tbo
AtUmtfoti of Aatronouiera ,
H GIANT OF PLANET GAZIRS
friituroA of tlm New Instrument \Vlilcli Sir
llowurd Orulil ) I'ropoKon Id Construct
Accuracy Secured by Acnpcn-
n III Witter.
( Copyright. 1SJ4 , by McClure. )
LONDON , Nov. 1. The next great telescope -
scope whjch- focuses the attention of con-
cmporary astronomers and excites the won
der of the public in general will be a giant
among Its kind. It Is now being widely dis
cussed here as the great ten-foot 'reflector ' ,
and will have a diameter ot ten feet , a
length of eighty feet and weigh somewhere
between fifty and 100 tons , most probably the
alter. Among all the big tubes now pointed
at the heavens It will consequently stand
very much In the position ot the flr.it 100-
011 gun as compared with the smaller bores
which preceded It , and Its most Interesting
scientific aspect will be the departure which
I represents from existing methods of con
struction , as well as the Influence It will
have upon the plans for the great telescopes
of the future and the new knowledge of the
universe which will como to us through
thorn.
thorn.When
When the family of Sir William Hcrschcl
lield tea parties and memorial services In
tlio big four-foot tube , then disused , which
had been the source of all his wonderful
discoveries , they doubtless thought that the
limit of size In telescopes bail therein been
reached , but "from the dUcusslon now In
progress It appears that our telescopes may
ultimately reach the size of railway tunnels
and bring a closeness of observation to bear
upon Man ; for Instance , which the supposed
Inhabitants ot that Interesting planet may
very possibly regard as Impertinent. With
Sir Howard Qrubb's great tube to point at
them , and Mr. Pxeece's Idea of ultimately
telephoning them without wires , the chances
of our holding fraternal converse with UIB
Martians seems to be taking at least a
tangible form.
nEFHACTOUS AND REFLECTORS.
The Idea of a ten-foot reflecting telescope
was first broached by the French , who have
announced ' It as one of the
marvels of the coming exposition of 1900.
This announcement attracted wide attention ,
because the French have been devoting much
labor of late to the perfection of the reflector ,
and from the standpoint of photography ,
which is the all Important sphere ot coming
astronomical work , the reflector has a future
before It which Its Incomplete development
has hitherto tended to greatly limit. The
difference | between a refracting nnd a reflect
ing telescope Is wide , and for many years
refractors have enjoyed the unquestioned pref
erence of observers , and have consequently
been the source of most of the advances
mode In astronomical knowledge. A re
fractor _ , like he lilck or the Yerkes , for
example , has a larrfe object glass at the outer
end of the tubo'wmch refracts or bends all
the rays of light from a heavenly body which
fall upon It , so as to concentrate or focus
them at the other end of the tube where the
magnifying lens or eye piece Is fixed and
gazed through by the observer. The reflector ,
on the contrary , has no glass at the outer
end. but a mirror of the most perfect con
struction [ at the bottom , this mirror being
ifc such a concave parabolic shape that It
reflects all the-llght back to the tube , and
directly or Indirectly focuses It at the eye
piece | as before , the observer gazing at the
reflected Image through the side of the tube ,
lloth the refractor and reflector have their
special disadvantages , the dlfllculty In the
former being what Is called the chromatic
0al
aberration , which means the dlffl-
culty If not impossibility of bringing
all the different rays of light to a common
focus , and the great problem In refractor
construction la by improvement ot the glass
used , to do away with this aberration.
TO BE SUSPENDED IN WATEH.
There Is another dlfllculty. however , which ,
with recent Improvements In the reflector ,
has created a new and great opportunity for
celestial photography. The great six-foot re
flector ot Lord liosae was built npnrly llfty
yearo ago , but Its itsetulnens was always
limited by the lack ot tn equatorial mount
ing. It was hung on chains between two
walls and consequently covered only a field
ot 10 degrees on each side of the meridian.
In 1SOS Sir Howard Qrubb mounted equator-
tally the four-foot reflector at Melbourne
and within five years Dr. Common has
mounted n five-foot Instrument ot this kind.
THE PllOJKOTED TEN-FOOT REFLECTOR.
During a late visit to London Sir Howard
consented to bo Interviewed and \\.n seen at
the Grand hotel. He Is a young looking man ,
ot mlddlo age , with the quick thought and
genial manners of an Irish gentleman , nnd ho
Is very much Interested In the coming giant.
He Is of medium height and slender build ,
but his great mental activity and rapid speech
took his Interviewer over more telescopic
ground In sixty minutes than he had ever
expected to traverse In a lifetime. Sir How
ard being asked ns lo the present status of
the ten-foot reflector , said : "I have been
aked for and have prepared estimates nnd n
model of that Instrument. There are three
different projects under discussion , but with
these I am not concerned. I shall merely
make and mount the Instrument , If desired.
It will have a double steel tube eighty feet
In length. The thickness of the steel will bo
three-eighths of an Inch , and the two steel
shells will be separated by n space of three
Inches. The object of this Is to equalize the
temperature and avoid the mixture nnd consequent
quent movement of the air at the mouth of
the tube. This movement would arise from
the difference of temperature between the
air Insldo and that outside , and would cause
a consequent movement In the rays of light.
To escape this I use a pump to suck out the
air from the cavity between the shells , which
Is closed at the top and open at the bottom
Insldo the tube. I thus obtain n steady , slow
current of air passing down the tube and
avoid the Injurious Irregular mixture.
"The Instrument complete will weigh per
haps as much as 100 tons , though no weight
will fall on the bearings. It would probably
be a mechanical Impossibility to drive an In
strument of this weight by clockwork , If It
were mounted In the ordinary way , with
the absolute steadiness , smoothness and ac
curacy necessary for observing nnd , above nil ,
for photographic purposes. The only way of
getting rid of the weight Is the Ingenious
method of flotation , first suggested by Dr.
Common , a principle which I have snmculiat
developed In the present Instance. The steel
tuba carrying the reflector ut the bottom will
float In a reservoir 100 feet In diameter , and
flfty or sixty feet deep. The tube will be
water-tight , ot course.
"To appreciate the practicability of this
method you have only to take a hollow tube ,
water-tight at one end , which expands In the
form of a sphere about the middle of Its
upper half. Hy carefully constructing It you
can float It at almost any angle ot Inclination ,
and It will remain In perfect equilibrium
down to a certain very small angle. The
weight of the tube , ot course , equals the
weight of the water which It displaces. The
greatest angle over which It will remain
In perfect equilibrium depends upon the
form of the tube , but with the proportion
sketched the tube will be depressable In per
fect equilibrium to within twenty-five degrees
of the horizon. If It Is desired to depress it
lower than this I shall provide an arrange
ment of chains and counterpoises to that
end. "
ELECTRIC TO SHIFT THE TELESCOPE.
"How much power will bo required for Its
movement ? "
"The power will be very small. A one-
horse power gas engine will be used to
charco storage cells In the day time , the
current from which will bo ample to drive
the requisite electric motors at night. The
force will be Independent ot the weight of
the tclesco .e , nnd depend only on the fric
tion necessary to be overcome In moving II
through the water. The water currents will
not affect the steadiness , as they will sub
side In n few moments. With a pair ol
trunnions attached to the tube at the water
Una and these carried on a polar axis , we
have an cquatorlally mounted telescope with
out any weight whatever on the bearings of
the declination axis. More than this , the
tube may bo lightened by an amount nearly
equal to the weight of the polar axis , anc
there will then bo practically no weight upon
the bearings of that axis. There will be this
disadvantage , that It will not be convenient
to use the Instrument within 15 degrees
of the pole. I could plan It to work closer to
the pole than this , but I prefer to have the
Instrument do perfectly nine-tenths of nT
the work that will be required ot It rather
\ , 1,1
GREAT TWENTY-SEVEN INCH REFRACTOR , ROYAL OBSERVATORY AT VIENNA.
thelatter. . This Is the demand of astronomical
photography for Instruments of larger and
larger optical power and size. Great tele
scopes used for photography require an exact
ness of adjustment and clock work motion , to
counteract the motion of the earth and keep
them fixed In exactly the same relative
position to the object being photographed ,
which Is almost Impossible to obtain with
t&o greSt tubcS fc/3 augmented "weight now
dtslredrThe ( H-eht reflectors of the future ,
however , will , lwve.no weight at all , me
chanically spealllnnf .because they will be
floated In water. "This strange and novel
principle , duo to the Invention of Dr.
Common , Is Impossible In the case of re
fractors , because the observer would neces
sarily bo at the bottom of the water , but
with reflectors It shows every promise of
availability and enduring success. Consequently
quently all the great reflectors of the future
will probably be tank telescopes , and this
departure Is perhaps the greatest novelty In
telescopic mountifijfthat has yet appeared.
SIR IltlVARD GHUI1D.
Sir Howard'&HBl ! ! aa ft telescope maker
occupies the hBHilsf rank. Ills whole life
haa been devotfcd\Ao < the study of telescopes
and their in6untlnK arid his works at Dublin
have built among others the great Vienna
telescope , the great Melbourne reflector and
many others of less note. Including a new
twenty-eight Inch refractor for Greenwich
observatory , which he has Just completed ,
and n twenty-six Inch photographic instru
ment for the same observatory which he has
In hand. He Is also engaged In refitting
the Udlnburg obtervatory , and ns a maker
and an authority on telescopes Is the first In
Europe. He was the Inventor of many of
the devices used In mounting the Lick and
Yerkes ' and his adoption and Indorsement
of the' flotation principle are consequently
full evidence ot Its practicability. His
analysis of the advantages of and objections
to this method , in a recent lecture at the
Royal Institution , show pretty clearly , more
over that the ten-foot monster , estimates
and designs for wjilcu tie has been requeued
to make from three different sources , will In
the course of Urns be leading the way In
than strain It Into doing 5 degrees more
of work that would only be of use on rare
occasions. "
"What kind of a reflector will It be ? "
THE KIND OF REFLECTOR.
"I have designed It on the Newtonian plan.
In all reflectors the light passes down the
tube to a concave mirror , which reflects It
and would bring It to a focus In the
tuba at a distance depending upon the shape
of the mirror. Before coming to a focus ,
however , the light Is received on a t > mall
mirror and again reflected to an eye piece
located In a convenient position for observa
tion. In the Gregorian form this small mir
ror Is concave , and the light Is reflected
from It down the tube through a hole In the
center ot the large mirror. The eye piece Is
placed In this hole , and the observer looks
up tlio tube In a manner precisely similar
to that necessary with an ordinary reflector
In the Cassegraln form the small reflector Is
convex , but Is placed Inside the focus and
the light is also shown through the center
of the large mirror and the direction of ob
servation Is exactly the samp. It Is obvious
that neither of these forms would do for heat
floating telescope. The other form Is that
known as the Newtonian , In which the light
from the large mirror Is received on a small
flat mirror placed In the upper end of the
tube and Inclined at an angle ofIS degrees.
The Image of the object looked at Is thus
formed at the ilde of the tube , through usa
hole In which It Is observed. This form has
the lower end of the tube completely closed ,
and Is specially suitable for the method id.of
flotation which I propose. "
"Dut U not the flat mirror In the tube a
drawback ? "
"Oh , no. II cuts oft a little light , but
does not Interfere with the definition Tn
any way. It would have a diameter of one
foot at the outside , and In a tube of ten
feet the light thus cut ofT , from a given
heavenly body , would be ot no practical
Importance. "
"What will be the size of the large mir
ror ? "
A TEN-FOOT MIHROU.
"About ten feet In diameter. If , ai I
xpcct. I can procure the material for
no of that slip , It wilt bo of silver on
hemleal solution deposited upon the facr ,
> ol the back , of the glass. It Is extremely
hln , being estimated at ono two hundred
housaiidths of an Inch In thickness , but It
nakes the best reflecting mirror for this
itirposc. It Is deposited on glnns ot the
ilghcst polish. It n silver on glass mlr-
or la not available , there should bo no
grout dlillculty In making ono of speculum
nctnl. I may My that the nunintlng of
his reflecting mirror has been n source of
nuch dlRlcully tn the making of Instruments
of this kind , and but for recent Improve
ments I should have hesitated to recommend
ts construction for photographic purposes.
Within the last month , however , Dr. John-
stone Stoncy has devised n moat Ingenious
arrangement for supporting telescopic mirrors
upon an air support , nraduntlng the pressure
according to the angle of Inclination of the
elescopo by nn automatic contrivance.
This apparatus In Us present form Is a
valuable step In advance , and Is doubtless
susccptlblo of Improvement. In my opinion ,
t lias already solved one ot the most troublo-
Bomo problems In the endeavor to obtain n
really good reflecting telescope , nnd I shall
itllizo It or n modification of it tu the ton-
foot Instrument. "
" \Vhat will be the cost of such a mirror ? "
"About 10.000. "
"How largo Is the spherical part of the
„
tube ? "
PHOVISIONS FOU THE ODSEKVnn.
"Twice the tube's diameter , or twenty
feet. Us position In the tube will be such ,
as you sec In the model , that the project-
tig end of the tube above water will b >
six feet In length , and the holes for the
eye-pieces , as In tlio model , wll bo nt the
op and live feet above the sphere. As to
convenience In gelling at the cyo cud ,
.hero need bo no dltliculty whatever In this
'orm. As the eye-pleco Is only about flfvli
teen feet from the center of motion , the
novement of the observer Is never more
than three feet per hour. Dy means of a.
il.itform , such as that shown In the figure ,
tinning on rails , nnd quite Independent of
the instrument , the eye end Is readily ac
cessible at nil times. To overcome the
rotation of the tube us the Instrument moves
In right ascension , I would pierce the tube
for eye-pieces every thirty degress round Its
circumference , nnd mount the flat mirror
nnd cell In a collar BO as to cnablo It to bo
readily rotated through Intervals of 30 deJt
grces. Dy these means the Image of the
celestial object lo be observed could bo
sent through either or any of the porforaof
tlons of Iho tube , and the observer always
observe In the direction most convenient to
himself. "
"How will It bo set ? "
"The observer will simply sot a pair of
pointers at the eye end to the particular
readings ho wishes , nnd then press a but
ton. ' The Instrument will then set Itself
exactly In the position ho requires , the-
motors ' continuing to revolve the telescope
on It's axis till that position Is attained.
Then they stop. "
"How long will It tnko to complete It ? "
"I should expect to finish It within four
years from the date of commencing. "
"What Is your estimation of Its total cost ? "
"About 30,000. "
"What great advantages do you look for
from the use of the ten-foot reflector ? "
WHAT IS HOPED FOR.
"Generally speaking , nil those advantages
which come from Increased optical power.
During the last ten or fifteen-years we have
advanced some fifteen Inches In the size of
our refractors , that of the Yerkes being now
forty inches. In the next ten or
fifteen years we may advance proportionately
tionately , nnd probably eventually attain a re-
factor of s'xty ' Inches , All those who use
large telescopes know only too well that the
larger the nperluro the fewer arc the oppor
tunities on which It can be used with ad-
yantago , and the question has often been dis
cussed as to whether the useful limit of
aperture has not already been reached except
where the- Instrument can be mounted In
such favored localities as Arequlpa , for In
stance. The conditions of life at these iso
lated stations are not of the happiest , however -
over , and though observers. In the cause of
science , may put up with the dlfllcultlcs tem
porarily , they will not do so permanently , and
the conditions so far Interfere with the steadi
ness of the work that relays of workers have
already been found necessary In some cases ,
which plan h open to objections , It appears ,
however , that the new photographic system
Is Independent to a great extent of at
mospheric disturbance. Consequently wu can
use and use with efficiency large Instruments
conveniently within the confines of clvlllza
lion , a great gain in Itself.
"Moreover , we shall be able to use with
advantage , and In these accessible positions ,
Instruments of a far greater power than
have hitherto been built , and Instruments
whose value was very doubtful ao long as the
old system of cyo observations was the only
one available. Photography , In other words ,
has created a demand for larger and larger
telescopes. Whenever we double the diame
ter of the opDiture we get four times the
light. In photography this Is of maximum
Importance , because by doubling the diameter
we can obtain a result , say In one hour , which
previously required four. A twelve-hour ex
posure , other things being equal , should
glvo us ns good a photograph ns forty-elghl
hours exposure with an Instrument of hair
the size. Now. we can certainly obtain these
large Instruments In the form of reflectors
while It ts doubtful If we shall be able to In
the form of refractors.
VARIAHLE POWER OF TELESCOPES.
"Tho power of a telescope varies as Itr
aptrttire. It must be clearly understood
that this ! different from Its magnifying
power. Most of the work now done with
large refractors Is done with magnifying
powers , which are equally unable with Instruments -
struments of less size. Jupiter or Saturn
viewed with a magnifying power of 300 nnd
a twenty-eight inch aperture are very differ
ent objects from Jupiter and Saturn viewed
with the same magnifying power and an
eight or ten-Inch aperture. The definition
the detail , the delicacy and the perfection of
the Image arc far greater from the large
aperture than from the small , and these
valuable and desirable qualities will Increase
other thing sbelng equal , as the slzo of the
aperture of the light-grasping power In
creases. The difference between the twenty-
eight Inch and ten-Inch Images , with the
same magnifying power of 300 would bo the
same ns that between a drawing with a
finely pointed lead pencil nnd that made
with a crayon or a stump : between n atcef
engraving nnd a mez o-tlnt , so to speak
The point nt Issue Is simple. The tlmo has
gone by when any great or startling dis
covery Is to ba looked for through the tule-
scope. The chief work of the future , the
study of the nebulae , the watching of the
heavenly bodies , the record of their appear
ance year by ytnr. nnd. In fact , all tbo grcal
problems which astronomy has before It for
solution , will largely be undertaken by great
photographic telescopes.
"Great reflecting mirrors wo cm easily get ,
Lord Rosso's reflector of seventy-two Inches
Is now over flfty years old. If It were
equatorlally mounted U would now do
splendid work. If wo can mount these
monster reflectors ns perfectly as the pronen
largest refractors , and personally I du not
doubt that wo shall be able to do this , we
have a certainty of the largo telescopes whlcl
we need. That we can get Instruments o
these desired sizes In refractors Is not a
certainty at present , and It will be
long before this prospect becomes a
certalnty.j Consequently , I look to a wide
field of usefulness for a ten-foot reflector
such as I have designed , and believe tha
steady Improvements will both Increase tin
blzo and broaden the sphere of the long
neglected reflector , which may nfter al
prove to be the telescope of the future , "
HENRY J. W. DAM.
Rev. Dwlght L. Moody , the evangelist
will. It Is said , make a fix months' tour o
Japan , preaching In all the principal cities
NATURAL
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HOI.O nf HIIKIWAN A M'CONNEU * til
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77
DR. HUMPHREYS' NEW SPECIFIC
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