It may be easily conceived how the pagans might be brought stedfastly to believe that comets, eclipses, and thunderstorms, were the forerunners of calamities, when man's strong inclination for the marvellous is considered, and his insatiable curiosity for prying into future events, or what is to come to pass.

Nothing is more easy than to account for these productions, which have no relation to any events, no more than comets, that may happen to follow them.

The meteors known to the ancients were called [Greek: Lampdes Pithoi] Bolides, Faces, Globi, etc. from particular differences in their shape and appearance, and sometimes under the general term of comets.

After Hector and he had gone as far in Dr Dick's astronomy as they could understand, they found they were getting themselves into what seemed quite a jungle of planets, and suns, and comets, and constellations.

He who is quite bald is esteemed a beauty amongst them, for they abominate long hair; whereas, in the comets, it is looked upon as a perfection at least; so we heard from some strangers who were speaking of them; they have, notwithstanding, small beards a little above the knee; no nails to their feet, and only one great toe.

Alm. of the Small Planets and the Comets of (1837, App.) short period.

Soc. Comets, from Observations.

Church service Cincinnati Observatory Clarendon, Lord Clark, Latimer Clarkson, Thomas, and Mrs Clarkson Cleasby, pupil Clegg Clinton, pupil Clocks Cockburn, Sir G. Coinage (see Decimal Coinage) Colby, Col. Colchester Colenso, Bishop College Hall Collorado, Count Colonial Observatories (see Observatories) Comets Commissions Compass corrections Cookson, Dr Cooper, pupil Cooper's telescope (see Telescopes)

Joan of Arc, Héloïse, Agnès Sorel, the beautiful Ferronnière, and Clémence Isaure stood out to her like comets in the dark immensity of heaven, where also were seen, lost in shadow, and all unconnected, St. Louis with his oak, the dying Bayard, some cruelties of Louis XI., a little of St. Bartholomew's, the plume of the Béarnais, and always the remembrance of the plates painted in honor of Louis XIV.

"No; or the heavens are mad, with their swirling orbs and blazing comets, that rush sighing through space before some terrible power that will give them no respite, except with the condition that when they rest they die.

We are therefore pleased to see in the present "Companion" a popular paper on Comets; a series of attractive Observations of a Naturalist; papers on the Management of Children, Clothing, Economy in the Use of Bread and Flour, and a concise account of Public Improvements during the year.

Mars is fetia ura, the red star; the Pleiades are Matarii, the little eyes; and the Southern Cross, Tauha, Fetia ave are the comets, the "stars with a tail," and the meteors pao, opurei, patau, and pitau.

To see this fleet upon the ocean move, Angels drew wide the curtains of the skies; And heaven, as if there wanted lights above, For tapers made two glaring comets rise.

The utmost malice of their stars is past, And two dire comets, which have scourged the town, In their own plague and fire have breathed the last, Or dimly in their sinking sockets frown.

What though his birth were base, yet comets rise From earthly vapours, ere they shine in skies.

Most of the calculations that have been made respecting the effect of the proximity of a comet to our earth have proceeded on erroneous principles,over-rating the quantity of matter in comets, and losing sight of their great velocity when in this part of the system.

If, however, the astronomical appearances which are said to accompany the birth of the mighty ones of the sons of earth are gauged with any degree of fairness, there should have been at least six large comets and any number of meteors distinctly visible.

[Footnote 2: In his 'Principia', published 1687, Newton says this to show that the nuclei of Comets must consist of solid matter.

The terrors of truth and dart of death To faith alike are vain; Though comets, gone a thousand years, Return again, Patient

It may be regarded as counting in Aristotle's favour that he did consider the earth to be a sphere and not a flat disc, but he seems to have thought that the mathematical spheres of Eudoxus had a real solid existence, and that not only meteors, shooting stars and aurora, but also comets and the milky way belong to the atmosphere.

Comets, such as from time to time appeared, bright enough for naked eye observation, were still regarded as atmospheric phenomena, and their principal interest, as well as that of eclipses and planetary conjunctions, was in relation to astrology.

He thus definitely overthrew the common belief in the atmospheric origin of comets, which he had himself hitherto shared.

With increasing accuracy he observed several other comets, notably one in 1585, when he had a full equipment of instruments and a large staff of assistants.

This was followed in 1607 by a treatise on comets, suggested by the comet appearing that year, known as Halley's comet after its next return.

He regarded comets as "planets" moving in straight lines, never having examined sufficient observations of any comet to convince himself that their paths are curved.