DR HECTOR’S LECTURE.

Dunstan Times, Issue 1076, 8 December 1882, Page 2

DR HECTOR’S LECTURE.

On Friday, December Ist, Dr Hector gave a lecture in the Town Hull, Oly.le, in atdofthe Dunstan District Hospital. Mr J. Macgiunis, Chairman of the County Council, took the chair, anl introduced the lecturer in a fewcomp'imentary rcmaks. Dr Hector said it had given him great pleasure to he able t > c m dy with ih i request of the Hospital C nnmi' tee, ami t > give a lecture on behalf ..f the Hospital funds. At the saint time he must crave the indulgence of the au li nee as he was without the xppiances and a iparalus necessary to exiilain the subj -da h- was about to speak on ; hut he wou <i do Ins best to make the mattei clear by means of a f‘w diagrams which, how* ver, were dr iwn from memory and hastily constructed. The lecturer then exnlaiae I the im,ioi tanca of the study cf the Sun, the enorm* ns quantities, onuses, and distances, chat had to he deals wi hj, an • what wis meant hy the Sun’s energy, upon which our relation* with everything surrounding us mainly depend. Oar knowledge of the law* governing the universe dep-n led to a great extent on the knowledge of the distance of the Sun and other planetary Lodi- s. and the utm s importanceofinr.rodu iogthee'ement ot accuracy into our calcutati ms, was t >» reason of the many ex pe>lit ions now Id ig organised to ohseive the approaching Transit of Wnua. Tan-its of V. mis onfortunately were of rare occurrence. Tue next would not occur for another 12 • years. It was owing to the transit in the last century that Captain Cook, who was in charge of one of the expeditions, was led to discover New Zealand The various methods by which the Sun’s distance could be calculate'! W‘ re then entered into, an 1 the phenomentof the Transit explained, and the lecturer then remarked than so well were the paths of the planets known, that the very moment that Venus would cross the Sim's diso could be couti ieutly foretold. The positions of the starsweie algo mapped out in the Nau ical Almanacs years lie'.ueban ! . Tbeiewas, however, another c ass of liodies which assisted us in our knowledge of the ao inn of the Sun’s energy on matter moving through spice, viz., comets. The path of the present comet was then exp'ained by means of diagrams. It passed so cl"S>dy to the »nn tbit it m ist, have actually enter- d into its atmosphere, and its rapidity was beyond cone pti m someth! "i ok* 5110,000 mi es an ho r. Contrary io be usual order ol things, the cornel's mass seemed to con raci as it approached the Sun, and to ex and again as i s distance in-n-eased, and i s tail, whatever its nature might be, went lin-t. The name of the Sun’s pho oapbert w g then cmsi-lerel, a so t.,e la:eat the ry of the Sim’s heat and en rgy, and the lec ure conelu ted win the comtorting assurance that should the c >met letorn next, year a, predicted, and fab into the Sun. the result after all would not bo very < isastiou-, seeing that af er revolvin'? 1 one or mo e times it w ul I p o ably bo gradually cn ulfed in the vortex of the Sun’s atmosphere, which would lie a very . difif-rent matter irmn rs .striking th- Sun at full tilt ; and aga-n, as far as is known, 1 i the mass and density of the comet, is but | suia I. ; j A vote of thanks to Or He. tor and the Ch i'inan, prop ised by the Itev Hy.\ S Clinton, and carried by aoclamatior, 1 I brought the proceedings to a c nae. The audience, which numb -red ab .ut 1 0 I many of whim came from Cromwell, 0 hir, ant Alexandra, appeared tliorou-h'y 'o cn--1 joy and apprtcia'e the able and fisoi: atin; ! way in winch the lecturer treated tin Various subjects touch-, I o on.