2 4 6 MY LIFE 



(7) The reason they have long days and nights is that the people 

 always catch the sun or the moon; another reason is that they are 

 nearest the snn. 



(8) The cause of the long days and nights of the Polar regions is 

 that the days and nights are just the opposite to what it is stated in the 

 question, namely short days and long nights, it heing one continuous 

 winter from one years end to the other, summer being only for a few 

 weeks at a time, and then the days are comparatively short compared 

 with ours. 



(9) The long days and nights are caused by the quantity of snow 

 that falls at the poles. 



(10) The cause of the long days in the Polar regions is this: when 

 the sun is observed there (which it seldom is) the rays are reflected 

 as it were, and it forms day. The cause of the long nights in the Polar 

 regions is this : the sun only makes his appearance for a very short 

 time, during this time it is day, but after the sun disappears it is night, 

 which by that means is very long. It is to be understood that it is a 

 certain part of the year during which the days are long, and the other 

 part during which the nights are long. 



It seems to me a very sad thing- that under a vast Govern- 

 ment organization at a very great cost, it should be possible 

 for such results as these to be produced. Many of these 

 candidates have evidently good capacity, but are sent up 

 to be examined on subjects of which they are disgracefully 

 ignorant, either from want of any teaching whatever, or 

 through their teachers being themselves disgracefully ignorant 

 — and there are clear indications that the latter is very often 

 the case. 



Six years later (1888), we find equal ignorance on another 

 subject of great interest, and as to which knowledge was 

 easy to obtain even without special training. The question 

 was, " How is the depth of the ocean determined ? 



>> 



(1) The depth of the ocean is determined by the water carrying the 

 sediment to the mouth of the ocean and depositing it again. 



(2) The depth of the ocean is determined by discharging a wire or 

 rope from a cannon, the wire being long with a point fixed, which when 

 it touches something hard an electric current passes immediately to the 

 ship; they thus go on till they find the lowest sounding. 



(3) The depth of the ocean is determined by means of the barometer 

 an instrument invented for measuring the heights of sea-levels, etc. 



