198 



KNOWLEDGE. 



[October 1, 1891. 



Even the clothes were anointed with aromatic oils (Jur. 

 III. and Martial VIII. 3, 10). 



The luxury and magnificence of the Romans were 

 manifested in the construction of their imblic baths more 

 than in am- other building ; tliey were embellished with 

 chefs-iraurre of sculpture and painting, and the floors 

 were paved with slabs of marble and inlaid with mosaics. 

 It is estimated that 870 baths were open every day to the 

 public, and rich people possessed private, baths of their 

 own, which were even more sumptuous and extravagant in 

 their method of conduction. 



The Romans were not acquainted with the use of regular 

 soap, but they employed an alkah, with which the greasy 

 dirt was dissolved out of their clothes. This alkali, called 

 7iitrum, is referred to by Pliny XXXI. 10 ; but the cheapest 

 solvent was urine, which was mostly used ; the clothes 

 were put in this, mixed with water, and then stamped 

 upon with the feet ; this process was performed by old 

 people, whilst boys lifted the clothes out of the tubs. The 

 white garments, after being washed, were subjected to the 

 vapour of sulijhur — being stretched on a frame, and the 

 sulphur burned beneath. 



Poor people in Rome cleansed their bodies with meal of 

 lupins, called hnnmtum, which, with common meal, is still 

 used in some places for that purpose. 



Soap, as we understand the old English word sojn- (from 

 the Greek sajion and the LatLa !«ijmi), was first introduced 

 by the Gauls, who found out a way of making it from 

 goats' tallow and the ashes of beech-wood. This was, no 

 doubt, rather caustic, but it was uncontamiuated with 

 colouring matters and the deleterious perfumes put into 

 common soaps of the present day. The soap was made 

 into balls called " Pilie Mattiaca," named after the town 

 where it was manufactured — " Mattiaciun " (modernized 

 Marpurg). The French appellation of soap, " savon," 

 seems to be due to a seaport town called Savona, near 

 Genoa, where at a later period, most of the soap for the 

 European market was manufactm'ed. 



The Romans, not content with swamping themselves 

 with perfumes at their baths, their toilettes, and their 

 banquets, loved to be surrounded in a perpetual atmosphere 

 of scent, and used, as we use a handkerchief, to dry the 

 perspiration from the forehead, a fine linen cloth called a 

 sitdariuin, saturated mth perfume. 



THE FACE OF THE SKY FOR OCTOBER. 



By Herbert Sadler, F.R.A.S. 



SUN-SPOTS and faculte are still increasing in number. 

 The following are some conveniently observable 

 minima of Algol-type variables (</. "Face of the 

 Sky" for September). Algol.— October 13th, 

 yh. -IHm. P.M. ; October ICth, Gh. 37m. p.m. 

 I' Ophiuchi. — October 2nd, 8h. 23m. p.m. ; October 7th, 

 9h. 19m. p.m. ; October 17th, lOh. 50m. p.m. 



Mercury is a morning star during the first half of the 

 month, and is very well situated for observation. He 

 rises on the 1st at 4h. 19m. a.m., Ih. 43m. before the Sun, 

 with a northern declination of 4° 47', and an apparent 

 diameter of Cy'. On the 4th he rises at 4h. 2Sm. a.m., 

 Ih. 39m. before the Sun, with a northern declination of 

 3- 15', and an apparent diameter of 5J". About ^Jjj of his 

 disc is then illuminated, and the jjlanet is at its greatest 

 brightness. On the 9th he rises at 4h. 54m. a.m., lb. 21m. 

 before the Sun, with a northern declination of 0" 2', and 

 an apparent diameter of 5^", about Jy^ of the disc being 

 illuminated. On the 14th he rises at 6h. 24m. a.m., or 

 Ih. Om. before the Sun, with a southern declination of 



8° 35', and an apparent diameter of 5", about -^^ of the 

 disc being illuminated. After that he rapidly approaches 

 the Sun, coming into superior conjunction at 3h. a.m. on 

 the 28th. He is in conjunction with Saturn at 7h. a.m. 

 on the 3rd, being about 12' south, the two planets, at 

 5h. A.M., presenting the appearance of a double star to the 

 naked eye. Mercury, however, being markedly brighter 

 than Saturn. This will be a very interesting spectacle, as 

 Mars will be situated about 5° W.N.W. of the two planets, 

 while Mercury and Saturn are about 3 N.W. of /3 Virginis. 

 Mercury is at that time distant from the Earth about 

 99f millions of miles. Mars 237^ millions of miles, and 

 Saturn 963 j millions of miles. While visible. Mercury 

 pursues a direct path in Virgo, without approaching any 

 very conspicuous star. Venus is invisible, and the same, 

 for the purposes of the observer, may be said of Mars, as 

 his apparent diameter, at the end of the month, does not 

 exceed 4J''. 



•Jupiter is still the conspicuous ornament of the evening 

 sky. He sets on the 1st at 3h. 28m. a.m., with a southern 

 dechnation of 9° 14', and an apparent equatorial diameter 

 of 48". On the last day of the month he sets at 

 Ih. 19m. A.M., with a southern dechnation of 9^ 48', and 

 an apparent equatorial diameter of 44i". The following 

 phenomena of the satellites occm' before midnight, while 

 •Jupiter is more than 8° above and the Sun 8^ below the 

 horizon. On the 1st a transit egress of the first satellite 

 at 7h. 31m., and of its shadow at 8h. 10m. ; an occultation 

 disappearance of the second satellite at 9h. Im. On the 

 3rd a transit egress of the second satellite at 6h. 49m., and 

 of its shadow at 8h. Um. On the 5th an occultation dis- 

 appearance of the third satelhte at 7h. 3m. On the Gth a 

 transit ingress of the fourth satellite at lib. 44m. On the 

 7th an occultation disappearance of the first satelhte at 

 9h. 50m. On the 8th a transit ingress of the first satellite 

 at 6h. 59m., and of its shadow at 7h. 47m. ; a transit 

 egress of the satelliie at 9h. 17m., and of its shadow at 

 lOh. 5m. ; an occultation disappearance of the second 

 satellite at llh. 19m. An eclipse reappearance of the first 

 satellite at 7h. 22m. 12s. on the 9th. On the 10th a tran- 

 sit ingress of the second satellite at Gh. 17m., and of its 

 shadow at 7h. 57m. ; a transit egress of the same satellite 

 at 9h. 9m., and of its shadow at lOh. 49m. On the 12th 

 an occultation disappearance of the third satellite at 

 lOh. 30m. On the 14th an occultation disappearance of 

 the first satellite at llh. 38m. On the 15th an eclipse 

 reappeaiance of the fourth satellite at 5h. 58m. 52s. ; a 

 transit ingress of the first satelhte at 8h. 4Gm., and of its 

 shadow at 9h. 42m. ; a transit egress of the same satellite 

 at llh. 4m., and of its shadow at midnight. On the IGth 

 an occultation disappearance of the first satellite at 

 Gh. om. P.M. ; a transit egress of the shadow of the third 

 satellite at 7h. 31m. p.m. ; an eclipse reappearance of the 

 first satellite at 9h. 17m. 43s. On the 17th a transit 

 egress of the shadow of the first satellite at Gh. 29m. ; a 

 transit ingress of the second satellite at 8h. 39m., and of 

 its shadow at lOh. 35m. ; a transit egress of the second 

 satellite at llh. 32m. On the 19th an eclipse re- 

 appearance of the second satellite at 7h. 37m. 49s. 

 On the 22nd a transit ingress of the first satellite at 

 lOh. 34m., and of its shadow at llh. 38m. On the 23rd 

 a transit egress of the fourth satellite at 7h. 7m. ; of a 

 transit egress of the third satelhte at 7h. 16m. ; an occul- 

 tation disappearance of the first satelhte at 7h. 53m. ; a 

 transit ingi'ess of the shadow of the third satellite at 

 8h. 10m.; an eclipse reappearance of the fourth satellite at 

 llh. 31m. On the 24th a transit ingress of the shadow of 

 the first satellite at 6h. Gm., a transit egress of the satellite 

 itself at 7h. 26m., and a transit ingress of the second 



