A CELESTIAL GIANT.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 9099, 27 May 1908, Page 3

A CELESTIAL GIANT.

A visit to the planet Jupiter, by all accounts, is calculated to eliminate the swaggering pride of the most magnificent specimen of earthly manhood, even granting him the proportions of a Samson, remarks a London paper. Professsor W. H. Maccabia would have ua believe (and cites numerous reasons for the faith that is in him) that the jovial Jovianeven selecting an average type of Jupiter folk—cannot be less than 50 feet in height. Indeed, some of the better favoured individuals should attain a stature of 55 feet. Professor Maccabio argues in this wise: Jupiter spins at such a tremendous speed as to cause at the equator a furious wind, which blows perpetually at a rate, estimated by astronomers, of 250 miles an houh Jupiter turns about in les3 than ten hour?, as against our twenty-four hours. If ho turned much faster he would fly to bit). As it is, a man of ncr.nal earthly size, if transported to the equator of Jupiter would actually feel much lighter than he does here <»n earth because the swift rotation of the planet would lift him from his fief. The fact is, he wo ild feel so light that the 230 mile an hou: toriiiil) that blows incessantly would pick him up and carry him round ai.d round ths planet like a speck of dust, llence it is that the presence of men an J women of weight alone can le tolerated, and a height of 50 feet is computed as" 1 the lowest, consistei t with safety, and the retention of on.'d foothold. Everything on Jupiter is fashioned on generous lines a:.d one of his able-bodied citizens could pick up and carry away the Godley statue with ease. All of this refers to the equatorial Jovian. Those persons residing in the less fashionable polar districts perhaps are a little lass commanding in appearance. But all are impressively large. In any case the community is sufficiently remote from our tiny dot of territory to negative the possiblity of our interests clashing, and that at lea3t is something to be thankful for, from our point of view.