LESSON XXVII. 



ON HAWS AND PARHELIA. 



As when two suns appear in th' azure sky, 

 Mounted in Phcebus' chariot fierie brighte: 

 Both darting forth faire beams to each man's eye, 

 And both adorn'd with lamps of flaming light; 

 All that behold such strange prodigious sight, 

 Not knowing nature's work, nor what to weeue, 

 Are wrapt with wonder, and with rar affrighte. 



SPENSER. 



1 HERE remain yet two appearances caused by 

 the reflection and refraction of light, to be de- 

 scribed and accounted for: the first, known by the 

 name of an Halo or Crown, is very frequently 

 seen without creating any degree of surprize ; the 

 other, called a Parhelion, Parheliam, or mock sun, 

 is but very seldom observed ; and as it is a curious 

 phenomenon, it is not at all extraordinary that it 

 is, among the common people, considered as por- 

 tentous. To a description of each of these I shall 

 now proceed. 



And first ofHalos, or Coron<#,which are coloured 

 circles, or rather ovals, appearing round the face 

 of the sun and moon, as well as some of the larger 

 stars, particularly the planet Jupiter. Halos round 

 the sun or moon, generally appear oval and excen- 



tric 



