Sea-Earth Globe, The (Zetetes) PDF
Sea-Earth Globe, The (Zetetes) PDF
Sea-Earth Globe, The (Zetetes) PDF
SEA-EARTH GLOB
AND ITS
♦
1 Monstrous Hypothetical Motions;
OR
F ig . 10.
SEA-EARTH GLOB
AND IT S
T h is is P a r t II. o f “ I s t h e E a r t h a W h i r l i n g G l o b e ?”
F i g . 10.
P r i c e i / - , p o s t p a id i / i | , fro m
A L B E R T SM ITH {“ Zetetes” ), N o r v i c , G a r r i c k R o a d ,
A b i n g t o n P a r k , N o r t h a m p t o n , E n g la n d .
L*
W e m ust, however, caution the reader against the incon
sistency of thinking th at he can reject the Cosmogony of
Moses and yet believe in Jesus the Christ ; for our Lord
PREFACE. Him self has said, “ If yfe believe not his writings, how shall
ye believe M y words ?” (John v. 47).
M ay the great A uthor of the wonderful Creation of which
we are a part, graciously grant his P rovidential favour on
P art II. our humble efforts to m ake known to H is servants, in different
parts of the world, the perfect reUabilify of H is H oly W ord ;
T h e first part of this book has long been out of stock, as
and to the One and “ only wise God ” be the glory, through
have also other larger books b y various Zetetic writers on
his divine Son Jesus our Messiah, whose early return we are
the im portant subject of Cosm ology. This fact shows that earnestly expecting.
there is a good demand for such works amongst independent
“ Z E T E T E S .”
thinkers, who are untram m elled b y “ scientific ” dogm atism ,
or sectarian bigotry. Northam pton, England.
This book has been found to be very useful, especially to The Vernal Equinox, 1918.
Bible students ; and as there is a call for a second edition,
through the kindness of ari earnest Zetetic friend (Mr. Peter
Jeffrey, U .S.A .), we are endeavouring to meet the demand,
though at a considerable increased cost, the price of labour,
and of paper, havirtg gone up so m uch owing to the terrible
war.
In this war, the original writer, believing th at we as a
nation have justice and tru th on our side, is “ doing his bit ”
as an officer in the R .F .C ., and he is therefore not now at
liberty to attend to the claims of Zetetic teaching. B ut
w ith his knowledge and consent I take the opportunity.
P rovidentially afforded, of bringing out a second edition,
and of adding further im portant pages and illustrative
diagrams. These are m ostly original ; but a Zetetic friend
(F. H . C., now at the front) has lent for the occasion, five or
six of his blocks from a good book he form erly wrote, which
is also now nearly out of stock. His numbers are given below
the diagrams.
W e tru st th at this new edition, though brought out under
m any difficulties, w ill also prove useful to Christian Zetetics,
or searchers after T r u t h ; and th at others, finding the
Mosaic account of Creation agrees w ith the actual F acts of
N ature, m ay be led on further to a diligent stu d y of the
“ H oly Scriptures, which are able to m ake us wise unto
salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus ” (II. Tim.
iii. 15).
PART II.,
CONTENTS.
P E R S P E C T IV E , T R U E AND FALSE.
Some of the Law s of P erspective are given in the first
P a r t II. p art of this book, so th at we need not here enlarge upon
PAGE them ; but as th ey are ve ry im portant, we briefly recapitulate
them.
Perspective, True and False (Figs. lo , i i ) 5
(1). A ll parallel hnes, like those of a railw ay, seem to
Ships Climbing, both w ays (Fig. 12) ' approach, and finally to m eet in the distance.
(2). Straight lines above the eye of the spectator appear to
Still m ounting upwards (Fig. 13)
descend to the eye-line.
Curvature, or D ip (Fig. 14) 9 (3). The horizontal, or eye-line, is a straight line on a level
w ith the eye, at w hatever elevation the spectator
The Three Poles Trick (Figs. 15a, 15b) .. 10 m ay be.
Circum navigation (Fig. 16) .. 12 (4). Lines, or objects, below the eye-line, rem aining at the
same level, seem to rise as th ey recede, until th ey
The E a rth ’s supposed E lliptical O rbit (Fig. 17) 13 vanish in the eye-line.
(5). Sim ilarly, lines or objects above the height of the
A Great Gash in the Ellipse (Fig. 18) 16
spectator, and m aintaining a constant altitude,
C ycloidal Curves, and Subtle Sinuosities (Fig. 19) 17 appear to descend until th ey are lost in the eye-line.
(6). O bjects, or lines, do not all vanish at the same point
The Su n ’s Size (Fig. 20) .. 19 in the horizontal line, but the nearer th ey are to
The Sun’s Distance, and Focussed Im age (Fig. 21 21 th at line the sooner th ey vanish in it, because of the
smaller angle th ey m ake w ith it.
The Sun’s Perspective Descent (Fig. 22) 23 (7). The distant horizon being alw ays on a level w ith the
eye, w hatever be the altitude of the observer, it
General Law s of Celestial Motion 24 seems to rise, or to fall, w ith the observer ; but he
Sunset and R efraction (Fig. 23) .. 26 never has occasion to depress his vision to look
downwards tow ards it, nor upwards !
H orizontal Eclipses (Fig. 24) 28
Now fet us apply these rules, which are the Law s of true
Tw o so-called Poles, and Sundial (Fig. 25) & 33 Perspective, to the disappearance of ships at sea, as illus
trated in zetetic diagrams, and violated in those of the
The Cosmos 3.5 globularist. First take Fig. 10 on the title page of P art II.
Im portant Testim onies 36 The intelligent reader w ill soon see th at th is'zetetic diagram
harmonises with, and illustrates, the first six rules above
given. The hull of the vessel, being nearer the eye-line,
vanishes according to rule 6, before the flags and upper sails.
which are farther from it, because the lower angle is the
whether intentional, or unintentional, we need not here
lesser. Besides, the hull rides on a dark background of
discuss.
water, while the upper m asts and sails are often against a
bright sk y ! B u t the ship never goes over, and then down on
Suppose the observer at A were to turn round and to look
the further side of a bulge, or a hill of water ; for in clear
downwards in the opposite direction tow ards G, w hat would
weather a good telescope, which magnifies the distant angle he see ? An awful chasm at w hich the stoutest heart would
of vision, brings again the ship's hull in sight. H ad the ship q u a il! T h e thing, and the ideas it represents, are a disgrace
gone over and beyond the supposed dip, or curvature, no
to modern education ! Is it any wonder, therefore, th at a
telescope could fetch it back again ; and when on the crest
fam ous w riter like G oethe should say, “ I curse this modern
of the supposed hill of water the hull itself should become
th eory of Cosm ogony, and hope th at perchance there m ay
visible against the background of a clear sky ! B u t in har
appear some strong scientist of genius who w ill take up the
m ony w ith rule 4, ships never so disappear, because there is
courage to upset this universally disseminated delirium of
no real rise or protruberance in a calm sea, which, as we have lunatics.” — See The Scientific American, April 27th, 1878.
abu nd an tly shewn is everyw here level or horizontal.
F i g . 14.
F i g . 13.
the place of observation, as shewn b y the line E H, and the would be found running along the level tops of each pole.
dip of an object at J w ould be represented b y the line H J. Refer to figures 14 and 15. ‘ T h e line of sight from A to C
N ow raise the observer to the height of the telescope at F ; is not parallel to a line tangential at A ; but it ought to be
his line of sight is still a horizontal line ia the direction of G, if there be no trick of collim ation in th e telescope.
and parallel to E H, therefore the dip from G to J is mani B u t suppose pole B seems higher than C. Shift the glass
festly greater than th at from H to J. A nd this is true “ along ” B , and add a fourth pole a t D , equally high and
whether we reckon the dip tow ards the centre of the globe distant. Now pole C “ will alw ays ” appear higher than
in the direction of G L , or at right-angles from the Hne of pole B ; so th a t C is both lower and higher than B ! W hich
sight G M. , is absurd, as E cu lid says. Q .E .D .
W hen th e noted w ager w as tried on th e B edford Canal,
the lens should have been turned h alf-w ay round to test
THE THREE PO LE S TRICK .
w hether there w as any “ trick ” in the telescope ; bu t
F ig . 16a . J. H am pden was not sufficiently sharp. Sir A. R. W allace
w as doubtless honest, b u t th e glass m ay h ave tricked him 1
Through a friend I sent him a challenge to shew in print
H O W the bet w as won, prom ising to reply courteously ;
but to me he never replied. H ence of th at incident we m ay
w rite R .I.P . B u t I retain copies of the official photographs
taken at the time, in case any other globite cares to pick up
m y glove.
M y friend “ P arallax ” (Dr. Rowbottam ) had tried m any
experim ents on th a t canal between 1838 and 1862 ; and
after th e bet affair he again went and carefully tested the
water for six miles, w ith various powerful telescopes. H e
found the surface perfectly level, as b e fo r e ; and his
experim ents have several tim es been pubhshed, but never
refuted. Y e t the canal is still there !
W e have been auth oritatively assured th at the curvature F or proof “ H ow th ey cook science,” see th e London
of w ater can be proved b y three poles, and a notable incident Daily Chronicle, Jan. 14th, 1893.
is referred to on th e Bedford Canal, Cambridgeshire.
" If three poles of exactly the same height be placed in a line, the F ig . 15b .
middle one alw ays ap pears higher than the other two outer o n es.
. . . . If a telescope be sighted along the first to the third pole, the
top of the middlfe pole w ill appear above the line joining the tops of
the two outer ones.” (Italics mine.) E le m . P h y s ., b y R . A . Gregory,
F .R .A .S .
T h e above paragraph is vague and specious. W h at is
meant b y sighting the telescope “ along ” the first pole to
the third ? Is it. here the trick conies in ? The third pole,
being farthest off, will appear perspectively sm aller ; and
the first w ill not be seen at all if the glass be laid “ along ”
the top of it. The telescope should be placed at some The above figure 15 illustrates the supposed curvature
distance a w a y from the firs pole, when the line of sight when, as is often the case in clear weather, a great extent
12
^3
of sea surface is visible looking in opposite directions, say
In the above figure the m agnetic north " pole ” is repre
25 miles each w ay. This should give a dip of 420 feet on
sented at N ; and if a ship, sailing round the outer circum
each side. If the sea were globular, the curvature of its
ference, keeps the point of the compass alw ays tow ards N,
surface ought to be plainly visible, especially from a balloon,
and steers at right-angles to it the course described will be
for a sweep of 50 miles, looking both w ays ; but no such
a circle.
curvature has ever been seen, even for longer stretches,
but only one vast and uniform level, rising persp ectively to A sm all flat island could be circm unavigated in the same
the eye-line. See figure 15b, and com pare it w ith any good w ay, w ith a powerful m agnet in the m iddle of the island ;
sea-scape. Fig. 15a shews what ought to be seen from a the ship thus describing a circle. B u t if a vessel took a
balloon (E) if the sea were globular. straight line course from A, it would sail in the south
w esterly direction tow ards S.W .
On a globe it w ould be impossible for the horizontal needle
C IR C U M N A V IG A T IO N . alw ays to point to the north m agnetic “ pole ” from different
parts of a spherical sea, as anyone m ay prove b y laying a
F i g . Hi. needle at various poirits as a tangent to a large ball. B u t
on a flat surface the needle alw ays points to the centre
while the ship describes a circle— which double fact n o t‘only
-t 'c; again explodes the globular theory, but establishes the truth
o f a plane earth and sea !
W e have years ago m any tim es pointed out this fact in
our literature, and as a result one professor has had the
honesty to m ake the following confession ;—
\ “ The earth has been circumnavigated a great many times. . . .
\ We can (we could ?) journey round the globe, sometimes travelling on
\
land, and sometimes on the sea.....................This would appear to be
(m n )
S. a certain proof th at the earth’s surface is curved. Nevertheless it has
been pointed out that circumnavigation would be possible if the earth
i had A F L A T S U R F A C E with the north magnetic pole at its centre.
\ ■
% A compass needle then, would always point to the centre of the surface,
and so a ship m ight sail due east and west, as indicated b y the compass,
T H E E A R T H ’S supposed E L L IP T I C A L O R B IT.
"
The form of an ellipse is taken from the circumference of
M any people foolishly im agine that ships can sail in'|a a conic section cut obliquely, b y a plane passing through
straight line due E . or W , ; but if a line be drawn,all round both sides of the cone, and not parallel to the circular base.
a sphere, it would m ake a circle, a chalk m ark round a football If cut parallel to the base it makes, of course, a circle, which
for instance. A circle is not a straight line, as I once had decreases in size as it approaches the top point of the cone.
reason to remind an educated gentlem an in a public debate.
The ellipse is som ething like a circle which has been more
He was known, too, as “ the Leicester astronomer !”
or less flattened on opposite sides ; but it is not like the
14 15
circle in having only one centre, for it has two points or foci Sir R obert B all, in his Story of the Heavens— and a big
in the longer diam eter, from which it can be constructed. sto ry it is too !— says of this problem th at K epler “ to his
E ach of these points is at an equal distance from the centre im m ortal glory succeeded in solving and proving it to
of the figure. W e are not told how the circle got flattened L dem onstration ” ! The select “ R o yal Astronom ical Society ”
is evid en tly a M utual A dm iration Society, if nothing else !
F i g . 17.
F urther on Sir R obert says th at “ K ep ler’s discovery
(invention ?) of the true shape of the plan etary orbits stands
out as one of the m ost conspicuous events in the history of
astronom y ” So say all of us !
Great astronom ers are not alw ays good logicians, so Sir
Robert further eulogises K epler in these words :—
“ Kepler found th a t the movement (movements ?) of the planets
co u ld he e x p la in e d b y S U P P O S IN G th at the path in which each one
moved (moves ?) was (is ?) an ellipse. This (supposition) in itself was
a discovery of the most commanding importance.” (Italics mine, and
parenthesis.)— Story o f the H ea v en s, p. 110.
The above confession refutes itself ; but we m ay point
■out th at the idea, belauded b y Mr. B all, is based on four
suppositions or hypotheses :— (i) T h a t the sea-earth is
globular ; (2) th at this sea,-earth ball is a planet, or wandering
star, amongst “ other ” heavenly bodies ; (3) th at the sun
is stationary in “ one of the foci and (4) th at the orbit of
the earth annually round the sun m akes a closed ellipse !
The ellipse since K ep ler’s tim e has long been supposed Assum ption after assum ption ; and the fourth one spoiled
to represent the earth’s annual orbit round the sun ; and and quietly discarded b y later astronomers, as D .V . we shall
though the latest “ new astronom y ” has broken open show later on ! B u t let us here refer to the above diagram
K epler’s closed ellipse, yet astronomers keep up the fiction (Fig. 17).
of “ elliptical o fb its,” rather than openly confess the great T h e thick line A D B E represents an ellipse all closed in ;
change which has taken place in their view s of plan etary and S the place of the sun in one of the foci of the longer
motion. T he great German astronom er K epler was born in diam eter. The heavier dots on the ellipse m ay shew the
the year 1571 A.D., and he invented and form ulated his earth ’s hypothetical positions for the different m onths of
Law s of M otion between 1609 a .d . and 1618 a .d . H e taught the year. N ow astronomers adm it th at the moon travels
th at the earth ’s orbit was an ellipse, w ith the sun in “ one round the earth once a m onth, while the globe is going round
of the foci, and a Httle over tw elve •millions of miles from the the sun. W h at then should be the p ath of the moon ?
earth. The other focus was left em pty, and it has been N either a circle nor an eUipse ; but a series of cycloidal
“ to let ” ever since ! Modern astronomers have lengthened curves, a sinuosity like the track of the serpent ! B u t m y
the sun’s distance b y nearly a hundred millions of miles, lim ited space demands brevity.
which has necessarily increased the earth’s supposed orbit
L ook at the curve and stu d y it, and you w ill find out some
more than three hundred millions of m iles ! B u t this u gly
curious phenom ena which the moon ought to m anifest if
fact is not acknowledged nor perm itted to detract from the
their theories were true ; but which she, in spite of her
great name of K epler, lest it m ight also reflect upon the
supposed fickleness, refuses to m anifest. Trace out the path
“ science ” of astronom y ; for in this “ exact science ” the
of the moon through the various signs of the zodaic, in
alteration of millions of m iles is " a mere d e t a il!”
i6 17
whole system , sun planets and all, is not m oving on Ijodily
relation to the sun’s fixed position. The moon would through space ?”
sometimes be ve ry slow— sometimes ve ry swift, v e ry — some
tim es statio n ary— and sometimes a ctu ally appearing retro So that after all K ep ler’s invention did not settle this
grade ! “ noble problem ,” which was left for another to grapple
with ; and this one has, for the tim e being, “ settled i t ,”
Y e t the d aily speed of the moon never varies more than th at the sun is rushing us all through space, at a terrible rate,
tw o or three degrees, and the m oon’s motion is alw ays tow ards a distant star, millions and millions and millions of
“ direct ” through the tw elve signs— justifyin g the inspired miles aw ay, to Lambda H ercules! A romance w orth y of
statem ent of the Psalm ist th at the moon is “ the faithful that classical giant whose “ tw elve labours,” though great,
witness in the sky ” (Psa. Ixxxix, 37). w'ere nothing com pared to the labours “ now ” imposed on
the sun-god through the tw elve signs of the zodiac. F or in
A GREAT G A SH IN THE ELLIPSE. the words of our great story teller, we are assured that
“ The sun and his system are N O W hastening towards a point of
F i g . 18. the heavens near the star D elta Lyres. The velocity with which the
motion is performed corresponds to the magnitude of the system.
Quicker than the swiftest rifle bullet th at was ever fired the SU N ,
bearing with it the Earth and all the other planets, is N O W speeding
onwards. . ., . E very half-hour we are about 10,000 miles nearer
the constella tion of Lyrcp. (Italics, etc., mine.)— Story o f the H ea v en s,
p. 429.
C Y C LO ID A L CURVES. ,
A nd w hat about the altered orbit of the globe ? Instead
of an ellipse it is “ now ” a cycloidal curve (as represented
b y the th ick line in figure 18), and a curve shewing that the
globe must have reversed motion at each end of the cycle,
as it travels from left to right.
L et the m onthly positions of the globe be represented
A fter belauding K epler for his elliptical orbits and giving
in Fig. 18 b y the heavier dots, and it w ill be seen th at, in
him “ im m ortal g lo ry,” Sir R obert B all shews, in his romance
relation to the sun’s corresponding positions, th at orb would
called the Story of the Heavens, th at another astronomer, and
sometimes appear to be “ stationary ” in the zodiac, and at
a greater than Kepler, soon after cam e along and ruthlessly
other tim es even ‘ ‘ retrograde !” This of itself is sufficient
ripped open the K eplerian skin bottle, thus spilling th e
u tterly to discredit the new and latest theory of globular
gravitation wine which was supposed to be stored therein !
motion ; for the sun’s " apparent m otion ” through the
Sic transit gloria mundi !
tw elve signs of the zodiac is uniform ly “ d irect,” as any good
Our friend Robert, quite unabashed, tells us in his heavenly ephemeris of the N au tical Alm anac w ill show.
“ story ” th at Sir W ilham Herschell was the first to solve
A s to the path of the moon, it is more tortuous than ever,
“ the noble problem ” as to whether the sun was really at
as indicated b y the dotted cycloids in the above diagram .
rest in the m iddle of the solar system , or “ whether the
i8
19
B u t it would require further, and larger, diagram s to expose In this case the moon would never really travel round the
in detail this monstrous motion and m ovem ents ; and our earth at all, neither in a circle, nor in a spiral, nor an ellipse ;
space is lim ited. Suffice it here to say th at diagram i8 but its m ovem ents would m anifest a series of serpent-like
represents the moon getting in advance of the globe, once sinuosities, as found above in Fig. 19, Thus again we find
every m onth ; which would com pel it to m ove at such an th at the lunar orbit, under this extravagan t theory, would
awful rate, that the m agnitude and duration of lunar eclipses be most unnatural and erratic. Its form m ay intim ate its
would be enorm ously altered and lessened. Y e t such
origin !
eclipses were correctly calculated long before the tim e of
Herschell and Co. Y e t the m oon’s actual m ovem ents, as given in a practical
alm anac like the N au tical Alm anac, are fairly regular and
SUBTLE SIN U O S IT IE S , uniform, again proving the discrepancy which exists between
p ractical astronom y as used b y navigators, and theoretical
F i g . 19.
astronom y as tau gh ^ to landsmen in the schools and colleges.
W ith natural and practical astronom y we not only have
no quarrel, but we have had great pleasure in its stu d y for
more than fifty years ; but w ith the ever-changing unnatural
and infidel speculations of the schools true Bible Christians
will wage undying warfare.
S U N ’S SIZE.
F i g . 20.
In books on astron
om y we are gravely
told th at the sun is
more than a million
tim es larger than the
sea-earth globe. The
In F ig. i8 we have shewn that the m oon’s m onthly writers who m ake
motions would be exceedingly erratic if the moon had to these extravagan t as
revolve all round a rapidly m oving earth, for sometimes it sertions do not con
would have to get right in front of the globe, otherwise it descend to give us any
could not travel all round th at body. good practical evi
dence in proof thereof.
Y e t the m oon’s d aily m otion of about tw elve or thirteen Their auth oritative as
degrees is alw ays “ direct ” through the zodiacal signs ; and sertions are supposed
it never varies more than tw o or three degrees. B u t if the to be sufficient, in
sun, b y some astounding “ pulling ” powers, and w ithout spite of good authori
any physical fastenings or connections, can drag after it, in ties against them , and
its vast and unknown journey into boundless space, all the the oppositions of
planets, the globe and the moon ; then these bodies, and “ science ” against
especially the latter, should alw ays be found in the rear. “ science.”
20 21
This was com plained of long ago b y intelligent men like vertical rays of the sun. He discovered the fact above
John W esley, who in his Journal expressed his disbelief in mentioned, and published it in a book he wrote. H e was a
the theory of Copernicus and Newton. He wrote :— globularist at the tim e ; but as I lost touch w ith him soon
“ The more I consider them the more I doubt of all systems of after reading his book, I cannot say how his discovery
astronomy. I doubt whether we can with certainty know either the affected his subsequent belief. It ought to have brought
distance or the magnitude of any star in the firmament. Else why him into the ranks of the pianists ; and I posted him some of
do astronomers so immensely differ with regard to the distance of the
sun from the earth, some affirming it to be only three and others ninety
our literature.
millions of miles.” — J o u r n a l, vol. IX ., p. 392. His book was entitled The M utual Relations of the Sun and
W hen doctors disagree, who shall decide ? Our God-given the Earth. I do not now possess a copy, so I cannot quote
senses, and a few practical observations. W e have shewn directly from it, and our space is very lim ited ; but Dr. R.,
th at the moon is a faithful witness in the heavens, and we b y diagram s and arguments, dem onstrated th at the diam eter
m ay find the sun’s testim ony the sam e*-tw o good witnesses of the sun is only 32 miles across. Thus the sun is a small
when critically examined, both testifying against the ex tra va body as com pared w ith the size of the earth ; yet as com pared
gances of modern theories. Now look at Fig. 20. w ith the planets it is a giant, and, as the Psalm ist says, “ a
giant rejoicing to run his race !” (Psa. xix. 5).
L et an observer stand b y night directly under a lam p
post ; the light above him w ill cast no side shadow. If he The Nautical Almanac bears out the tru th of the sun’s
m oves northwards his shadow will fall towards the n o r th ; com paratively small size : it gives the sun’s semi-diameter as
and if h.e goes south his shadow will fall southwards. If the • 16' m inutes of a degree. One degree of latitude is equal to
light were extended b y a number of gas jets above his head, 60 miles ; and as there are 60 “ m inutes ” to a degree, twice
say for ten feet, then on the observer m oving th at distance 16 m inutes m ust be equal to 32 miles, the su n’s diam eter b y
underneath he would still see no shadow. T h a t is, the no less an auth ority than th at of the n avigato r’s chief
vertical rays of the light would cast no shadow for a distance alm anac !
equal to its own extent. Now apply this reasoning to the W e are aware of the usual astronom ical quibble to get
shadows of vertical objects cast b y the sun’s rays. over this difficulty, another assumption, the sun’s immense
In northern latitudes the shadows fall tow ards the north ; distance ; but w hatever the distance m ay be the sun’s rays
and in southern towards the south. The declination of the traverse it, and the column of vertical rays is only 32 miles
sun varies from the tropic of Cancer, 23I degrees N., to an across. The sun therefore witnesses to the tru th of the
equal declination south of the equator, the tropic of Capricorn. N autical Alm anac— another “ faithful witness in the
Betw een these extrem es the sun is alw ays, at noon, directly heavens !” B u t lum inous bodies often appear larger than
overhead in places w ith latitudes equal to his declination, th ey really are, as is sometimes illustrated b y the old moon
the variation in which is the cause of the varyin g seasons. being “ in the arms of the new.”
In these places on land, or at sea, the sun casts no side shadow
at noon ; and it has been found th at this phenomenon
TH E S U N ’S D I S T A N C E AND F O C U SSE D IM A GE.
extends for 32 miles. So that the column of the su n’s vertical
rays is 32 miles across in every direction— a distance equal In studying this part of the subject, we m ust distinguish
to the length of the solar diam eter ! And whether we take between the focussed Im age of the sun, as sometimes seen
the surface of fhe sea as curved or horizontal, there would refracted through the clouds, and th at orb’s position as seen
m ake little difference to the diam eter, as m ay be seen on at noon in a clear sky when there can be but little refraction
referring to Fig. 20. Fig. 21 is a copy of a drawing I took years ago in L at. 52°
D uring the Boer war Dr. Robertson, a m edical gentlem an, 38' N. and Long. 1° 9' W ., when the sun’s rays were divided
sailed w ith our troops from England to South A frica, and at an angle of about 90°. On one side th ey fell on a church,
in 14 degrees N . latitude the vessel at noon came under the and on the other on a tree four miles aw ay from the church.
i
23
22
B ut as E uclid proves, when two angles of a triangle are
The focussed Im age, therefore, would be only about two equal, the sides subtending, or opposite them , are also equal ;
m iles high, a distance equal to C B , the base of a right-angled hence the base B C is equal to the perpendicular C S. In
triangle. other words, the height of the sun above the flat earth is
H ad anyone ascended in a balloon, the focus of the light equal to the distance of Bordeaux from the equator in A frica,
would have receded upwards, as a rainbow recedes when an probably less, but certain ly not more than, about 2,700
observer tries to approach it, the height of the bow depending m iles 1 Q .E .D .
upon the observer’s position and th at of the sun. In judging
the sun’s true distance we need a clear sk y when the sun is
on the meridian at noon. THE S U N ’S PERSPECTIV E DESCENT.
F ig . 21. F i g . 22 .
XD. I IB ,m
-------
•^4 '-
/ \
4 M
/ y “- W : : -
Hence those rays of the sun which strike the atm osphere
v e ry obhquely, as from F to g, instead of proceeding in a
straight line to the earth’s surface below h, take the line of
least resistance and proceed tow ards the spectator at A .
N ow an observer alw ays sees an object in the direction of
the rays entering the eye ; therefore the observer at A will
see the sun’s im age in the direction of the line A h /, setting
on the distant horizon !
As the previous chapter was longer, m y lim its require this The sun is never seen below the horizon, but at the vernal
to be shorter ; so I m ust put the m axim um of m eaning in equinox a t 6 p.m. if the earth was a globe the centre of the
the minimum of words. sun would be 90° below the horizon ; while its upper and
lower limbs would stretch above and below thousands of
In the previous chapter, it was shewn Tiow, b y perspective miles if the sun were the size the astronomers assert !
alone, the sun appears to descend almost to the horizon, T h e sun’s rays can be entirely cut off from a spectator at
although remaining that d ay at its average altitude of the sea-level, as at A , while its reflected light can still be
between tw o and three thousand miles. In diagram 22 we seen b y observers in higher altitudes, from a high balloon
m ade no allowance for refraction, which would have still or from the top of a m ountain. There is an angle of total
further reduced each of the angles, and especially the lower reflection where the light, being reflected upw ards off the
ones. Diagram 23 supphes the omission, and illustrates denser atmosphere, does not penetrate to the surface of the
how the sun descends to and disappears on the distant earth, as along the lines ¥ k n. A flat stone thrown obliquely
horizon. on to the sm ooth surface of a lake, m ay strike the water
unseen b y a fish far below, and leap upwards again and again
Light is a ve ry subtle force, and one of the m ost easily before sinking b y its own w eight.' A n d as the sun’s lower
refracted from the rectilinear ; bu t like all other forces, it lim b is the first to arrive at the angle of to ta l reflection it
takes the line of least resistance, whether in a curve or in a is n aturally first cut off.
line practically straight.
The apostle P au l tells us th at “ the wisdom of the world-
is foolishness w ith God and it w ill appear foolish to us if
Its undulations falling from above on to the atm osphere
we are enlightened b y the wisdom w hich comes down from
are refracted, or reflected, more and more according to the
above. “ If any m an lack wisdom ” on Creation or other
angle at which th ey strike, and the density of the m edia
Tru th , let him not be too proud to ask the Creator for it,
through which th ey pass. W e need not here enter into the
as this writer has done, and he w ill find the fulfilm ent of the
unsettled question of the density of the lum iniferous ether,
promise given in Jam es I. 5.
29
28
I believe th at all lunar eclipses, occurring about sunset,
H O R IZ O N T A L E CL IPSE S. w ould be seen to be “ horizontal eclipses ” b y observers, if
F i g . 24.
th ey were only in suitable positions.
The above diagram is a copy of one b y a fellow-worker in Astronom ers confess th at there are m any dark bodies in
the cause of truth, who is now “ at the front ” in his cap acity the heavens, some of which could doubtless cause an eclipse ;
of electrical engineer. He says :— though we do not here assert th at th ey do. Read Jude 13.
“ According to the globular theory, a lunar eclipse occurs when
A s there is a focus of light, so there is a definite focal point of
the sun, earth, and moon are in a direct line ; but it is on record that darkness opposite ; and when the moon, which has a “ lesser
since about the fifteenth century over fifty eclipses have occurred while light ” of her own, gets inside this dark focus, her rays, and
both sun and moon have been visible above the horizon. The accom her influence, is seriously interfered w ith — a fact well known
panying illustration shews how utterly impossible it is to harmonise
this fact with the globularist theory.” — T h e T errestrial P la n e , by F. H.
to astrologers. Her light is not entirely cut off, as we have
Cook, E .E . seen the whole of the m oon’s face a dark copper colour, at
“ A rem arkable instance of this kind was observed at the moment of the to ta lity of the eclipse, the moon having a
Paris on the 19th Ju ly, 1750, when the moon appeared peculiar light of her own, ve ry different from the sun-light.
visib ly eclipsed w'hile the sun was distinctly to be seen above (Deut. x xxiii. 14, and I. Cor. x v. 41).
the horizon.” — Astronomy, p. 105, b y Prof. G. G. Carey.
Eclipses were predicted hundreds of years before the
T w o other instances are given in M cCulloch’s Geography,
Copernican theory was invented, to say nothing of the later
dates September 20th, 17 17 and A pril 20th, 1837. *'^nd the
“ New A stron om y.” Thales, about Goodyears before Christ ;
London Alm anac for 1864 gives four other dates.
and the great astrologer P tolem y predicted eclipses hundreds
Som etim es an ill-informed globite denies the possibility of years in advance ; and zetetics, who possess past tables
of such eclipses, thus ta c itly acknowledging th at th ey are of eclipses, can predict others, for th ey occur in cycles, or
inconsistent w ith the globular theory ; then when he is periods, of 18 y l o j d, and have nothing to do w ith the
convicted b y accredited astronom ical testim ony he suddenly globular theory. In fact th ey could not be calculated on the
turns round and as ignorantly shouts “ R efraction !” latest globite speculations, as the following illustration will
L et any intelligent astronomer attem pt to shew H O W shew those who are willing to see.
refraction can reflect upwards " two great lights ” w ith full *
clear discs, when according to his theory the centres of both L et a ta x i drive round a large square ; as it spins along,
ligh ts should be 90° below the horizon, to say nothing of let a horseman ride his Pegasus round and round the tax i ;
their lower limbs 1 Y e t here we have the tw o orbs occasion and suppose a swallow squealing and circling round the
ally com ing and smihrig down upon us for our folly !
30 31
Pegasus ; when and where would these three bodies, repre Zetetics own m uch to a London m edical gentleman, who lis t
senting sun, earth , and moon, fall into hne w ith the principal century, under the nom de plume of " P a ra lla x ,” revived the-
avenue of the square ? W ho would calculate “ this problem ” ; zetetic cause b y his able writings and powerful lectures.
especially if th ey did not know either the size of the square B u t it is seldom given to pioneers to dig out all the truths they
or the velocities of the m oving bodies ? N o eclipse could unearth. Hence, early zetetics only acknowledged one pole,
last out half its present duration. Y e t eclipses, w ith their no evidence of a south pole having then been a ctu ally dis
m agnitudes and durations, are still calm ly tabulated ; and covered b y A n tarctic explorers. It was left for “ Zetetes "
ill-inform ed globites im agine that this is “ another proof ” of principally to carry on the war, and to be the first zetetic
th e tru th of modern astronom ical theories ! to acknowledge the proved existence of two so-called
“ poles.” This he did m any years ago in various articles-
published in a book entitled Zetetic Astronomy, now sold out
TW O POLES. of stock ; and also in lectures in different parts of the country,
and in public debates. He was the first editor of The
F i g . 2.5. Earth— not a— Globe Revieiv.
B u t the sun, moon, and planets have discs or faces of various It then goes round w ith the southern currents, daily,
sizes, some ve ry small ; and th ey wander from the north contracting its circle in a fine spiral until it arrives at 23I" S.
circuit to the south, and vice versa, according to their seasons when, having lost its further southern tendency or swirl,
and times. Thus the sun d aily revolves around the north electrical and m agnetic forces, doubtless under intelhgent
centre for six months, then it crosses into the south circuit supervision, drive it again northwards. Sim ilar explanations
for six months. Thus its hght, as the Psalm ist long since apply to the moon, and to the planets, but w ith different
told us, reaches from one end of heaven to the other. (Psa. periods, owing to their different altitudes, as already explained
x ix . 6). in a former article.
The question has been asked, If the sun crosses from the
northern circuit to the southern, how is it so little difference
is observable in its positions ? The above diagram (Fig. 25) THE SUNDIAL.
will help the student to understand this more intricate part
of the subject ; but we m ust remember th at there is a great F i g . 25, I n s e t .
difference between the m otions of the solar orb, and the
m otions of light which proceed in every direction aw ay from If you have not got an ordinary sundial, fix in your
it. T h e motions of the celestial bodies we have already garden an upright pole or rod w ith a ball on the top of it ;
explained in connection w ith F ig. 22 ; and we have also say in England, or in any country with good north latitude,
shewn th a t the equator is a broad belt of vertical rays, and and at the tim e of the vernal equinox. Then from 6 a.m. to
not a mere “ im aginary line.” 6 p.m . peg out the positions of the shadows of th at ball
every quarter of an hour, and draw a line along the pegs ;
W e will refer to F ig. 25. A t the vernal equinox the sun is you w ill find it m akes a great curve, about half of an elUpse
at E in the morning at 6 a.m. Its hght travelUng round w ith w ith the longer diam eter, as in the inset n 0 r t. If your
the etherial currents, is seen at the same moment b y an rod was at the north pole, the shadow would m ake a semi
observer at A. Now an observer alw ays sees an object in circle.
the direction of th e rays entering the eye ; and the curve
of about 6,000 miles from E to A is so great, that for the A t sunrise the light circHng round casts the shadow of
last few miles the rays seem to come to A in a straight hne the pole at 0 tow ards r ; and as the sun works round to the
in the direction from H. Hence he sees the sun’s im age south of your dial the shadow of the pole will go northwards
35
34
I G E N E R A L VIEW (ELEVATION) OF T H E COSMX)S.
tow ards t. Sim ilarly when the sun works round to the w e st,
F i g . -26.
the shadow gradually curves round to n in the east. W hen
living in London m an y years ago, I frequently tried th is N ecessarily im perfect, but shewing the relative positions
experim ent in m y back garden, as also a sim ilar one on the of its three great divisions ; “ H eaven above, earth (land)
flat housetop w ith a shorter rod or stylus. beneath, and w ater under the earth.” — Second Com m and
m ent, E x . XX. 4).
N ow if the m oving daylight has been caused b y the rotation F i g . 26.
of the earth, the shadows of th at ball in the garden, or of
the knob of the shorter upright stick on the housetop, w ould
have fallen in a straight line. T est the tru th of this b y an
experim ent w ith an orange, or a l^trger ball, in a dark room
illum inated b y one lam p. Place an upright stylu s near the
centre of a flat and stationary table, and carefully carry the
light half-w ay round. Y o u w ill get the sundial curve.
O btainable fro m
“ Z e t e t e s,” Norvic, Garrick Road, Northampton, England.