The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Story of Eclipses, by George Chambers

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Title: The Story of Eclipses

Author: George Chambers

Release Date: January 10, 2008 [EBook #24222]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

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THE STORY OF ECLIPSES

_SIMPLY TOLD FOR GENERAL READERS._

WITH ESPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE TOTAL ECLIPSE
OF THE SUN OF MAY 28, 1900.

BY

GEORGE F. CHAMBERS, F.R.A.S.

_Of the Inner Temple, Barrister-at-Law._

AUTHOR OF

"THE STORY OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM"; "THE STORY OF THE STARS";
"A HANDBOOK OF DESCRIPTIVE ASTRONOMY," ETC.

LONDON: GEORGE NEWNES, LTD.
SOUTHAMPTON STREET, STRAND
1899.

_The rights of translation and of reproduction are reserved._

[Illustration: FIG. 1.--THE TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE SUN, Sept. 7, 1858
(_Liais_).]

PREFACE.

The present Volume is intended as a sequel to my two former volumes in
the Newnes Series of "Useful Stories," entitled respectively the "Story
of the Solar System," and the "Story of the Stars." It has been written
not only as a necessary complement, so to speak, to those works, but
because public attention is already being directed to the forthcoming
total eclipse of the Sun on May 28, 1900. This eclipse, though only
visible as a partial one in England, will be total no further off than
Portugal and Spain. Considering also that the line of totality will pass
across a large tract of country forming part of the United States, it
may be inferred that there will be an enormous number of
English-speaking spectators of the phenomenon. It is for these in
general that this little book has been written. For the guidance of
those who may be expected to visit Portugal or Spain, a temporary
Appendi