ZEbe 1M0bt*SftE in fftjt 71 



" The second feature that attracts one's attention is 

 the fact that nearly everything appears upside down. 

 I say nearly everything advisedly, for constellations 

 such as Sagittarius, Scorpio and the Whale, which 

 pass across the zenith, can be looked at as naturally 

 one way up as the other, or in some situations more 

 naturally, in the position in which they are seen from 

 home. Still, on the whole, this is a very striking 

 feature. The Bear on his head with his legs kicking 

 up in the air is often, not recognised by strangers to 

 these latitudes, and I have often heard it denied that 

 he is visible at all by old residents, who have only to 

 open their eyes to see him for hours during half the 

 nights of the year. Somewhat in the same way, but 

 in a less degree, is one struck by the course of the 

 planets. Instead of seeking them near the horizon, we 

 may see them pass right across the zenith, and the 

 difficulties of observation are oftener that they are too 

 high to be conveniently looked at, than too low for 

 clear vision. Saturn, Jupiter and Mars are here well 

 seen long after they are too near the sun to be readily 

 observable at Greenwich. Venus at her elongations is 

 often so high that a new-comer can hardly believe it is 

 herself, and Mercury, instead of being an exceptional 

 sight, is frequently a striking object for days together. 

 I remember being badly let down by Mercury during 

 my first year in the Southern Hemisphere. I looked 

 out one evening and saw a star in the Lion, much 

 brighter than Kegulus. It appeared considerably 

 higher above the horizon than Mercury could possibly 

 be after sunset, and a great deal brighter also than I 

 imagined he could be. I had often looked for him in 

 England and failed to see him. The next evening, of 



