172 
HAROLD’S DISCUSSIONS. 
in Europe thought of such a thing. They described 
them as being the size of eggs, dates, or plums. 
The sun has ever been considered as the symbol 
of truth and purity. The ancients worshiped the sun, 
and even during 
the Middle Ages 
it was not safe 
for a man to sug¬ 
gest that the sun’s 
face was covered 
with spots. Gior¬ 
dano Bruno suf¬ 
fered martyrdom 
for insisting upon 
it that he had 
seen such spots, 
and for believing 
that the earth 
was not the only 
world. Formally 
years the official astronomers dared not make pub¬ 
lic what they saw in the sun. Thus it happened 
that the study of these phenomena was not scientific¬ 
ally undertaken until Sir William Ilerschel turned 
his improved telescope upon them. He made ac¬ 
curate observations and careful records of them. 
Since Ilerschel began, many others have given at¬ 
tention to the spots. However, much remains to be 
learned. 
Fig. 86.—Sun-spots, August 17, 1894. 
(Goodsell Observatory.) 
