96 
THE GUIDE TO NATURE 
their sun god, on December 25. This 
was called the feast of the unconquered 
sun, referring, of course, to the change 
in the motion of the sun. Those who 
celebrated January 6 as Christmas ac- 
cused the Romans, who adopted De- 
cember 25, of sun-worship and of de- 
liberately and arbitrarily selecting this 
date. This seems very probable, as 
analogies between the birth of Christ 
and the creation of the sun are found in 
the language of the sun. Christ was 
called the “true sun” and “our new 
sun.” for instance. 
If sun-worshippers have not fixed the 
date of Christmas itself they have at 
least had much to do with the charac- 
ter of the celebration. Yule was a name 
applied to the months of December and 
January, before and after the winter 
solstice. The name and the Yule log 
associated with it have become at- 
tached to Christmas. The mistletoe of 
the Druids and the candles, also relics 
of heathen festivals for the sun, have 
become attached to Christmas. Be- 
cause of its pagan associations the 
Puritan Parliament of 1644 forbade the 
celebration of Christmas, a view still 
shared by some sects. 
:ji :fc ;*c 
Eclipse of Algol. 
None of the naked eye planets are 
visible in the early evening. Algol, the 
eclipsing variable star, at A, Figure 1. 
will be eclipsed December 8, 11:49 P. 
M., December 11 at 8:39 P. M., De- 
cember 14 at 5:27 P. M.. and December 
30 at 10 :20 P. M. 
The Barritt-Serviss Star and Planet 
Finder. 
Here at ArcAdiA we are convinced 
by the frequent use of the Barritt- 
Serviss Star and Planet Finder, that 
it is by far the best thing of the kind 
that has ever been put on the market 
although we are familiar with a num- 
ber of other makes that have been sent 
to 11s. The Barritt-Serviss map is sim- 
ple, attractive in appearance, and prac- 
tical. For descriptive circular address 
Mr. Leon Barritt, Publisher, Arbuckle 
Building. 367 Fulton Street, Brooklyn, 
Nmv York. 
M-. Barritt also publishes “The 
M^n-hlv Evening Sky Map,” which is 
i" ri-N -~n c e a competitor but a welcome 
r n " "tor with our own monthly de- 
p" f d^votAp to stars and planets. 
Great Merit in Relativity! 
One nice thing about the theory of 
relativity Dr. Einstein explained to the 
New York reporters. Asked what he 
would advise the layman to do about 
the theory, he replied, “Nothing at all ; 
tell him not to worry; it won’t hurt 
him.” This is not only reassuring, but 
it is one of the most transparent state- 
ments so far made concerning the 
theory. 
To our mind, in times like these, any- 
thing that we should do nothing about, 
that we should not worry over, and that 
won’t hurt us, is entitled to the highest 
place in human estimation. There are 
so many of the other kind of things that 
the theory of relativity shines out like 
a beacon light in an unusually dark 
night. If Dr. Einstein could now find 
something else we do not have to do 
anything about, then there would be 
two of them, and relativity might not 
be so lonesome. — Springfield Union. 
One of the strangest, most poetic 
phases of the relation between the great 
blue mountains and the great blue sea 
is that waves, as they approach the 
shores of continents bordered by moun- 
tain ranges, rise higher and higher ; and 
the higher the mountains, the higher 
rise the waves. These waves are not 
driven by wind or tide but seem drawn 
forward by some strange power. This 
power, however, is no stranger than 
the one that makes us fall and bump 
our noses when we stub our toes — the 
power of gravitation, according to 
which all masses attract each other. It 
is the mass in the mountains that 
exerts a pull on the waves; and the 
greater the mountains the greater the 
pull, of course. In the Indian Ocean, 
for example, around the head of the 
Arabian Sea, the waves rise far above 
sea level, largely because there is be- 
yond them, on the land, one of the 
greatest mountain masses in the 
world. — Hallam Hawksworth in “The 
Strange Adventures of a Pebble.” 
But if I may not so attain to this side 
of nature for the clog of chilly blood 
about my heart, may the country and 
the streams that water the valleys con- 
tent me, and lost to fame let me love 
stream and woodland. — The Georgies 
of Virgil. 
