112 IN STARRY REALMS. 



dimensions, will have obtained a fair notion of the glories 

 of the heavens. Nor is it often possible to compass all 

 these objects during a single visit to the observatory. 

 The moon, as if jealous of the other celestial bodies, 

 drenches the skies with such a flood of light that the 

 glories of the lesser bodies become well-nigh invisible. In 

 fact, just as the sun at midday prevents us from seeing 

 any of the stars, so the beams of the moon pale the smaller 

 stars to invisibility, and largely detract from the lustre of 

 the brighter ones. Some description of these objects will 

 occupy us in the following chapter. 



