BOOK OF NATURE LAID OPEN. 191 



moon being wisely made to incline to that of the earth 

 at a small angle ; by which, although they some- 

 times take place, it is so unfrequent, as not to exceed, 

 at the average, four in the year ; and of these, two 

 only may be expected visible at any particular place. 



Tlie Harvest-Moon. 



In the path which she describes in the heavens, the 

 moon is made to rise every day later than she did 

 on the preceding; but the exact period between the 

 time of her rising differs so considerably in different 

 seasons of the year, that although in the spring she 

 is an hour and twenty minutes later in rising one day 

 than she was on the preceding, the difference in au- 

 tumn is so inconsiderable, as scarcely to be perceived 

 for several days together. No sooner does the sun 

 set towards the middle of September, than the moon 

 immediately rises in her glory for several days, by 

 which the day is considerably lengthened out in that 

 most important of all seasons; and Nature, as it 

 were, points to the husbandman to make the best of 

 his time in cutting down and securing his crops be- 

 fore the equinoctial gales and storms of winter set in. 

 This wonderful phenomenon, although too little at- 

 tended to by us, has been distinguished, in different 

 ages of the world, by different appellations, accord- 

 ing to the favourite occupations and pursuits in which 

 mankind happened to be engaged at the time; be- 

 ing first called the Hunter's, then the Shepherd's, 

 and now the Harvest-Moon. 



