avor, and yet lost ground as soon as astronomy, its working tool, began to
improve.

1850. A letter in the handwriting of an educated man, dated from a street
in which it must be taken that educated persons live, is addressed to the
Secretary of the {45} Astronomical Society about a matter on which the
writer says "his professional pursuit will enable him to give a
satisfactory reply." In a question before a court of law it is sworn on one
side that the moon was shining at a certain hour of a certain night on a
certain spot in London; on the other side it is affirmed that she was
clouded. The Secretary is requested to decide. This is curious, as the
question is not astrological. Persons still send to Greenwich, now and
then, to have their fortunes told. In one case, not very many years ago, a
young gentleman begged to know who his wife was to be, and what fee he was
to remit.

Sometimes the astronomer turns conjurer for fun, and his prophesies are
fulfilled. It is related of Flamsteed[87] that an old woman came to know
the whereabouts of a bundle of linen which had strayed. Flamsteed drew a
circle, put a square into it, and gravely pointed out a ditch, near her
cottage, in which he said it would be found. He meant to have given the
woman a little good advice when she came back: but she came back in great
delight, with the bundle in her hand, found in the very place. The late
Baron Zach[88] received a letter from Pons,[89] a successful finder of
comets, complaining that for a certain period he had found no comets,
though he had searched diligently. Zach, a man of much sly humor, told him
that no spots had been seen on the sun for about the same time--which was
true,--and assured him that when the spots came back, the comets would come
with them. Some time after he got a letter {46} from Pons, who informed him
with great satisfaction that he was quite right, that very large spots had
appeared on the sun, and that he had found a fine comet shortly after. I do
not vouch for the first story, but I have the second in Zach's handwriting.
It would mend the joke exceedingly if some day a real relation should be
established between comets and solar spots: of late years good reason has
been shown for advancing a connection between these spots and the earth's
magnetism.[90] If the two things had been put to Zach, he would probably
have chosen the comets. Here is a hint for a paradox: the solar spots are
the dead comets, which h