NATURE STUDY. 
7$ 
would be equal this one, but in all other positions the angle 
would be less. When the planet is at M it is at its great¬ 
est elongation and if the sun be on the horizon the planet 
would be somewhat less than 27 degrees above the horizon 
owing to the angle made by the latter with the ecliptic. As 
the planet cannot be seen until twilight comes on, as re¬ 
marked above, search must be made for it usually at an al¬ 
titude not greater than 20 degrees, generally considerably 
less than that. 
Mercury reaches its maximum Eastern elongation on the 
eleventh, so that, if the observer keeps a careful watch from 
the 8th to the 15th soon after sunset between the west and 
southwest, not very far from Venus, he will doubtless get 
a glimpse of the smallest planet in the solar system and the 
only one that twinkles like one of the fixed stars. 
If the observer is fortunate enough to possess or have 
access to, a telescope, or even a powerful field glass, he can 
see the four largest moons of Jupiter on every clear even¬ 
ing of this month except the 6th, 8th, 15th and 31st. On 
the first two of these evenings three satellites are visible 
and 011 the last two, only two can be seen. On the third 
evening all four are seen on the same side of the planet 
and in the order of their distances from their parent planet. 
At present, Venus shows a gibbous phase like the moon 
between first quarter and full. On December 4 it reaches 
its maximum elongation, about 47 degrees, and will in¬ 
crease in brilliancy, as its elongation decreases, from that 
date until it reaches its maximum 011 or about January 9. 
From December 4 to the middle of February, when it reach¬ 
es inferior conjunction, it wall show the waning crescent 
phase like the moon between last quarter and new moon. 
It takes the largest telescopes, with high magnifying eye 
pieces to see the canals of Mars, and Mercury is a very un¬ 
satisfactory object in the telescope on account of its small 
size and low altitude. The rings of Saturn are a most in- 
