ASCENSION DAY 409 



longitude, so is the position .of heavenly bodies 

 defined by the terms right ascension and dec- 

 lination. It must be remembered, however, 

 that the position of heavenly bodies is stated 

 with reference to the ci-lcatial equator. On 

 earth Greenwich is the starting point of meas- 

 urement of longitude. In the heavens it is the 

 t of Aries," or the vernal equinox. Thus 

 the right ascension of a star is ascertained by 

 dniwing an imaginary line from the celestial 

 pole through that star to the celestial equator. 

 The measurement of the arc of the equator 

 from the point on the equator where the line 

 crosses to the first of Aries, or vernal equinox, 

 is the right ascension of the star. The declina- 

 tion is the distance north or south of the 

 celestial equator measured on the arc of the 

 imaginary line from the star to the equator. 



ASCENSION DAY, a holy day of the Epis- 

 copal and Roman Catholic churches, set apart 

 to commemorate the ascension of Christ, and 

 ranking with Christmas, Easter and Pentecost. 

 It falls on the fortieth day after Easter, or ten 

 days before Whitsunday, when the day of 

 Pentecost is observed, and always occurs on 

 Thursday. It is often called Holy Thursday. 



ASCETICISM, asset' esizm, the practice of 

 self-denial and bodily suffering for the purpose 

 of gaining spiritual strength. The term com- 

 monly refers to the acts of some of the early 

 Christians, whose fastings and self-inflicted 

 tortures were often prolonged and severe. But 

 asceticism has been preached and practiced 

 from times far earlier. The word itself was 

 first applied to the training undergone by 

 Greek athletes preparing for a contest. Fast- 

 ing was frequent among Old Testament peo- 

 ples, and self-denial must have some connec- 

 tion with sacrificing to deities, a custom of all 

 primitive races. The monks of the Middle 

 Ages were ascetics, and to a certain extent, the 

 Puritans. They first gave up all the attractions 

 of the world money, power and family liiV. 

 The Puritans denied themselves luxurn - m 

 dress or amusement and made life a business 

 of seriousness, but did not withdraw from the 

 world and its normal activities. 



ASGARD, as' gahrd, to the ancient Scandi- 

 navians, was the home of the gods, as Olympus 

 was to the Greeks. Here each god had his 

 <e, and here was the radiant hall in \vlurh 

 tli- ir councils were held, presided over by Odin 

 (which see). But the Scandinavians believed 

 tint sooner or later evil would triumph over 

 ureat gods, and that all the bright dwell- 

 ings of Asgard would be destroyed. 



ASH, OR ASHES 



ASH, a tree of the olive family that sheds 

 its leaves in winter. There are over fifty dif- 

 ferent kinds, found chiefly in Europe and 

 North America. The flowers are small and 

 appear before the leaves; the fruit is a winged 



THE ASH TREE 



The form of the tree, also shape of leaves and 

 appearance of fruit. 



seed vessel with one seed. The leaves are 

 light green ; they appear late and fall early. 



The ash is a beautiful shade tree, and is a 

 favorite in parks. The white ash is one of the 

 most useful of trees. Its wood is hard and 

 tough, and is valuable in the construction of 

 carriage wheels and for turning; it is also 

 excellent fuel. The black ash is found in low, 

 wet land and can be recognized by its almost 

 black bark. Its wood is easily split into thin 

 pieces and is extensively used in the manu- 

 facture of hoops, staves and baskets. The 

 blue ash is so called because its bark turns 

 water blue. Several trees popularly called ash 

 do not belong to the ash botanically. See 

 MOUNTAIN ASH ; PRICKLY ASH. 



ASH , or ASHES , the substance that remains 

 after any material has been burned. The term 

 is usually applied to the mineral obtained on 

 burning wood, coal, plants and thr like. Tin- 

 following substances are obtained from burn- 

 ing: lime, soda, potash, sulphur, phosphorus, 

 zinc, copper, iron and sand. It is a well-known 

 fact that plants absorb these minerals from th< 

 soil, and continuous cultivation of the soil 

 H it poor in mineral substance. It be- 

 comes necessary, tl> <>r these substances 

 to be returned to the soil in the form of fertil- 

 isers, if its productivity is to be maintni 



From the ashes of sea-weed great quantities 

 of iodine are secured, while wood ashes has 

 been a source of potash from the earliest times. 

 See ALKALI ; FERTILIZER. 



