296 POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



noted a few dark lines in this continuous spectrum, indicating refracted 

 sunlight, while others had failed to find any traces of such lines. 

 By means of two spectrographs designed especially for the problem, 

 and of a camera for photographing polarized light, observations were 

 secured which satisfactorily explain the nature of this light. These 

 observations showed no dark lines and very little polarization in the 

 inner corona, whereas the dark lines and polarization were strongly 

 marked in the outer corona. This seems to indicate that the light of 

 the corona, out to a distance of nearly three hundred thousand miles 

 from the sun's surface, is due to small particles of solid matter in a 

 state of incandescence. This incandescent matter must also reflect 

 light from the photosphere, but the reflected light is too weak, as com- 

 pared with the inherent light, to show any of the dark lines seen in 

 the spectrum of the sun's surface, or to give much evidence of polar- 

 ization. The light from the outer corona, being chiefly reflected, 

 gave the same spectrum as the sun's photosphere, and it was found 

 to be very strongly polarized. 



These results strengthen the belief that very finely divided solid 

 or liquid matter exists in the region surrounding the sun (together 

 with a very small proportion of gaseous matter) ; that close to the sun 

 this matter is highly heated and shines principally by its own light; 

 that further away it becomes cooler, and reflects more light than it 

 emits. 



On account of the clouds, the eclipse lost its great spectacular in- 

 terest. Nothing of the corona was to be seen with the naked eye 

 except a faint ring without any structure whatever. The photographs 

 are, however, as sharp, and show as much detail in all except the 

 extreme outer corona, as if the sky had been entirely clear. 



With the passing of the shadow and its terrors for these super- 

 stitious orientals, confidence in the ' Zoneclips ' people was fully re- 

 stored, and it was difficult to get away from the island without a 

 retinue of volunteer servants. 



The U. S. S. ' General Alava ' was at Padang during the eclipse 

 preparations, and a number of entertainments were given in honor 

 of her officers and the astronomers. I attended two of these func- 

 tions, a reception given by the governor, and a farewell ball given by 

 the American consul. The governor's reception was on a Sunday 

 morning at his mansion, and dancing was indulged in for an hour 

 or more. The ball was an evening function and elaborate entertain- 

 ment was provided. Nice things were said in several languages, and 

 healths were freely drunk. One of the toasts by a prominent Dutch 

 official was to the ' shirt-sleeve astronomers.' These people who had 

 so much cheap native labor, and who never needed to be in a hurry, 



