394: ' Miscellanies. 



Europe, suggesting some of the uses to which he fancied it might 

 be applied. The quantity sent to England secured to him at once, 

 as the discoverer, the gold medal of the Society of Arts, his sole 

 revgard, until the President of the India Board, on no other ground 

 whatever than this discovery, liberally bestowed his patronage on 

 Dr. M's son. 



The Comet of 1556, being popular Replies to every day Ques- 

 tions. By J. Russell Hind. (Parker & Son.) — We remembered 

 reviewing Mr. Hind's first work on this subject, as long ago as 

 when he had only discovered two planets, or in 1848. He then 

 believed in the identity of the comets of 1264 and 1556, and 

 believed that a third appearance might be expected speedily. 

 Nine years have elapsed, which, considering the eff'ect of pertur- 

 bation, is no improbable margin for a conjecture to require. It is 

 to be remembered that we have not those accurate accounts of 

 the appearance of 1264, hardly even of 1556, which would enable 

 the astronomer to use the theory of gravitation, as was done with 

 Halley's comet both in the last century and the present. In the 

 tneanwhile, much attention has been paid by astronomers to the 

 subject in the last nine years, and this oozing out to the wide 

 world, the wide world made up its mind that it was to be burnt 

 alive, and fixed a day. The day turned out rather cool for the 

 season, and the world consented to live on. Mr. Hind discusses 

 all the questions in a popular manner, gives his account of the 

 preceding appearances, and of some new historical information 

 of the methods of calculating, &c. It seems that the most recent 

 materials and calculations make it probable that the comet will 

 re-appear between 185*7 and 1861. Then follow discussions about 

 the possibilities and the effects of a collision of a comet with the 

 earth ! Why is the word used ? Has the astronomer any reason 

 to conclude that the thickest part of a comet bears as much com- 

 parison to our earth in solidity as a puff of smoke from a cigar 

 bears to a granite rock ? Are not all the presumptions, and those 

 no weak ones, the other way? May not plenty of comets have 

 already found their level in the higher strata of our atmosphere, 

 and may they not be there still ? To be afraid of a comet while 

 we are living on an earth the interior of which we can only judge 

 of by what we see at the crater of the volcano, is about as absurd 

 as for the passengers to look at the possible collision of a donkey 

 with the train, while they have a furnace which vomits hot cinders 

 at their head. So far as we know, that is : for those who want 



