THE ATMOSPHERIC HAZE OF 1883 AND 1884. 449 



very justly remarks is " a new thing." *' One of its special beauties" he adds 

 is " that it shows that nature is never twice alike." It will probably occur to 

 every reader that he has heard that remark before the Weather-Map was brought 

 to its present perfection ; that is not a new revelation by several thousand years, 

 and in fact has been a truism in all ages. 



Doubtless the Weather-Map as now drawn gives a very instructive, graphic 

 representation of the conditions of the atmosphere and the progress of storms, 

 but it is no disparagement of its excellences to say that it has not produced the 

 remarkable sunsets and sunrises and hazy skies of the past year, nor has it at all 

 explained their sudden appearance and continuance, nor their non-occurrence in 

 previous years. He remarks that " here the year 1883 was conspicuous for a 

 prevalence of high-barometer." How then did the color-effect not appear until 

 the last two or three months of that year, the highest monthly averages of barom- 

 eter of the year having occurred in January and February, seven or eight months 

 before? And why continue ever since ? 



In fact, however, the Signal Service record at Davenport shows the average 

 height of barometer for eleven years next preceding January i, 1883, to have 

 been 29.368 inches, while for the year during which the color displays have pre- 

 vailed, viz.: from November i, 1883, to November i, 1884, it has been 29.362 

 inches; six one-thousandths of an inch below the average of those eleven years. 

 That seems to dispose of the theory of "High" as a producing cause. 



Doubtless the extremes of maxima and minima of barometric pressure and 

 atmospheric humidity have been as great during the past ages when there were 

 ;no instruments to measure, nor "Weather-Maps" to illustrate them, as recently, 

 and, as like causes produce like effects, had these conditions been adequate to 

 produce the phenomena, the latter could not have been unfrequent. 



The wonderful phenomena in question indicate a sudden and permanent, 

 or at least a lasting change in the condition of our atmosphere, for the origin of 

 which we should perhaps look beyond terrestrial operations, either to peculiar 

 cosmic circumstances or to the progress of some secular changes in our system. 

 When we remember that there are thousands of comets and unnumbered nebulae, 

 both of which vary from masses of immense extent and brilliancy to such as are 

 scarcely observable with the most powerful instruments, we must believe that 

 there are still almost infinite numbers of masses of nebulous matter, such as that 

 of which comets are composed, not of sufficient size and not as yet sufficiently 

 condensed to become visible. Judging from the comets themselves we must 

 conclude that these small and highly rarified nebulas are moving through space 

 in all directions. Under these conditions it would be scarcely strange if one of 

 tht.'>e stray masses should sometimes come so near one of the planets as to be 

 arrtsted in its flight, and compelled by the mighty power of gravitation to accom- 

 paiy its captor. Indeed, it would be remarkable if this should not sometimes 

 occur. 



Should the earth in its course pass near oi)e of these highly atteinuated bodies 



