“Hung be the heavens with black, yield day to night! Comets, importing change of time and states, Brandish your crystal tresses in the sky;”
and in relation to the habit of connecting historical events with their apparition, he further says:—
“When beggars die, there are no comets seen; The heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes.”
But, happily, the notions prevalent in former times have been superseded by the more enlightened views naturally resulting from the acquirement and diffusion of knowledge; so that comets, though still surrounded by a good deal of mystery, are now regarded with considerable interest, and welcomed, not only as objects devoid of malevolent character, but as furnishing many useful materials for study. Mere superstition has been put aside as an impediment to real progress, and a more intelligent age has recognized the necessity of dealing only with _facts_ and explaining them according to the laws of nature; for it is on facts, and their just interpretation, that all true searchers after knowledge must rely. Comets are properly regarded as bodies which, though far from being thoroughly understood in all the details of their physical structure and behaviour, have yet a wonderful history, and one which, could it be clearly elucidated, would unfold some new and marvellous facts. Under these circumstances we need evince no surprise that these visitors are invariably hailed with enthusiasm, not only by scientific men, who make them the special subjects of close observation, but by everyone who regards celestial “sights and signs” with occasional attention.
_Appearance._—From whatever point of view a large comet is considered, it deserves all the interest manifested in it and all the labour expended in its investigation. Whilst its grand appearance in the firmament arrests the notice of all classes alike, and is the subject of much curious speculation amongst the uninformed, it merits, apart from other considerations, the most assiduous observation on account of the singular features it displays and the striking variations they undergo. Indeed, the visible deportment of a comet during its rapid career near perihelion is so extraordinary as to form a problem, the solution of which continues to defy the most ingenious theories. The remarkable changes in progress, the quickness and apparent irregularity of their development, are the immediate result of a combination of forces, the operations of which can neither be defined nor foreseen. Jets of flame and wreaths of vapour start from the brilliant nucleus; while, streaming away from the latter, in a direction opposite to the Sun, is the fan-shaped tail, often traceable over a large span of the heavens and commingling its extreme fainter limits with the star-dust in the background.