h&rts- 
TO THE EDITORS OF THE NAT. INTELLIGENCER. 
Newport, Ky. Oct. 23, 1323. 
Gentlemen: To my former three num¬ 
bers of a Series of Queries relative to 
the Form of the Earth and other Flatl¬ 
ets, heretofore published, and not yet 
answered, I now add a fourth number. 
Why is the appearance of Jupiter’s 
belts so often varied— and why does that 
planet exhibit any belts whatever ? Un¬ 
less the successive shadows exhibited to 
our view are produced by a succession of 
spheres, (principally exterior ones,) and 
the outermost the narrowest, progressive¬ 
ly; each of which, except the exterior j 
one, affording four (apparent) belts, viz : j 
two bright and two dark ones ; the two j 
first being produced by means of an ex¬ 
hibition of both verges to view, beyond 
the verges of the less expanded neigh 
boring sphere above, and the two latter 
by means of comparative shadows or a 
swallowing of the rays between the 
spheres. 
If the positions above stated be gener¬ 
ally well founded, then the apparent va-, 
garies attendant on the form and propor¬ 
tions, and the frequently varying appear¬ 
ance of Jupiter’s belts, may be ascribable, | 
in part, to the freaks of refraction, (such 
as we find occur in the seas of our polar i 
regions, as referred to in a number I \ 
lately sent for publication to the Editor 
of the National Gazette,) and, in part, to 
a frequent succession of sunshine and 
clouds, ctmbined with the brisk rotation 
of the planet. Probably a relative ba¬ 
lancing of the Spheres to and fro, and up 
and down, or perpendicularly and lateral¬ 
ly, or the more rapid rotation of one 
sphere than another* may occasionally 
vary the appearance of the belts as may 
alternate regions of water, dry land or 
I snow. J * 
