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BURKE’S WEEKLY
FOR BOYS AND GIRLS.
MACON, Ga., SEPT. 28, 1867.
Contents of No. 13.
Marooner’s Island, by Rev. F. R. Goulding—Chap
ter X., —original P age '*7
Clara Bell—poetry
The Ten Commandments— poetry 99
The Sleeping Beauty—dramatized by Mrs. E. P. M.
original 99
Wanting Friends 99
Editorial : Fishing, (with beautiful illustration);
Our Stories ; Eclipse of the Moon; Geographi
cal Puzzle; To Correspondents; Your subscrip
tion is out; Yellow Fever 199
A Ride, and What Came of It—with five illustra
tions, —original..... 191
Little Things—poetry; How to Rise Early 101
Song of the Mountain Leaf, by Mrs. E. P. M.—ori
ginal 192
Jack Dobell; or, A Boy’s Adventures in Texas,
Chapter Vl,—original, 102
A Dog Story . 102
“ I Wishand I Will,” by Fanny Fielding—original 103
Our Chimney Corner 104
Fishing.
The beautiful illustration oh our first page
scarcely requires even a word of explanation.
It represents a fishing party —disciples of good
old Isaak Walton. Os all out-door sports, fishing
is the most delightful. “If weary, there is the
pleasant bank to sit down upon ; the clear river
to look over ; the fresh breeze ever blowing about
one’s face ; the arrowy flight of the water-loving
swallow to watch; in short, all the luxuries to be
found together that throw such a charm around
open-air amusements.”
♦*«.
Our Stories.
AROONER’S ISLAND,” which has
A'■ now reached the tenth chapter, increases
T in interest. The author has a happy
faculty of combining instruction with
amusement. Altogether, the new story
bids fair to be as popular as its prede-
T cessor, The Young Marooners.
“ Jack Dobell ” is. becoming more and more
exciting as the story progresses. The .present
chapter contains an account of the surrender of
Col. Fannin’s forces. The next chapter will give
an account of the massacre of this unfortunate
band of brave men, and the almost miraculous
escape of our hero and his two friends ; and then
will commence in earnest, the story of our “Boy’s
Adventures in Texas,” in his efforts to escape
from the bloodthirsty pursuers who were hot upon
his track. 1 his part of the story will equal in in
terest the most thrilling romance, and yet we are
assured that every word of it is true.
We have other novelties in store, including a
story of the late war in Virginia; a pretty little
tale from the pen of Mrs. Ford, whose “Little
Woman in Green ” was so popular; several sto
nes, poems and dramas from our esteemed cor
spondent, E. P. M., of Habersham county ;
and others, wfiich we shall publish as fast as we
can make room for them.
Since writing the above, we have received a
pietty story “The Young Jewess”—from our
talented friend, Mrs. Jane T. H. Cross, of
louston, Texas, whose contributions to the Child
dren s Guide were so popular. We are kindly
permitted to. enroll her name in the list of our
regular contributors.
BURKE’S WEEKLY.
The Eclipse of the Moon.
/T, E suppose most of our little readers saw
jpaLlll the ec^Pse ie moon 011 of
Xjprjy.iJ this month. In Macon, the night was
beautifully clear, and, although the
moon did not rise until the eclipse was
more than half over, it was a sight well
worth seeing. As some of our little
friends may not understand clearly what an eclipse
of the sun or moon is, we propose to give them
a simple explanation of this phenomenon.
The moon, you know, owes all her beauty to
reflected light. You may wonder how this can be,
as she shines in the night, when the sun is not vis
ible ; but you must recollect *hat the sun shines
somewhere all the time, throughout our night as
well as our day. Have you not noticed in the
morning that the sun’s rays maybe seen on tall
objects—the windows of a house situated on a hill,
or the top of a church steeple, for instance —sev-
eral minutes before you can see the sun itself?
These objects arc reached by the rays of the sun
sometime before he rises above the horizon, and
they shine with receded light. Just so it is with
the moon. She receives the rays of the sun when
our side of the earth is in darkness, and reflects
them back upon us in the soft, silvery moonlight
which renders our nights so beautiful. Now,
whenever the position of the earth, sun and moon
is such as to throw the shadoic of the earth over
the face of the moon, we have an eclipse of the
moon. Sometimes the earth’s shadow is thrown
completely over the moon, and then we have a
total eclipse; at other times the shadow only
covers a part of the moon, and we have but a
partial eclipse.
The sun is eclipsed when the moon comes be
tween it and the earth. The moon is an opaque or
dark body, although she looks so bright and beau
tiful to us when she reflects the light of the sun,
and when she conies between us and the sun, her
dark side is turned towards us, and she appears
like a black shadow on his face, slowly hut grad
ually passing across it, and for the time shutting
out his beams from our sight. When the moon
covers the entire face of the sun, as it does at
very rare intervals, we have that wonderful phe
nomenon known as a total eclipse of the sun.
The last total solar eclipse which was visible in
this country, occurred many years ago, and the
day became so dark that many stars could be seen
in the heavens, and in many places the chickens
went to roost, thinking that night had come.
Some ignorant people were very much frightened,
and thought that the world was coining to an end.
When the moon is at her average distance from
the earth, which astronomers suppose to he about,
‘240,000 miles, she is just about large enough to
cover the sun’s disk, or visible surface; and a
central eclipse of the sun, with the moon at this
distance, would last but an instant. If she is
nearer than her average distance, she will cover
the sun for a longer time ; but if she is further off
than usual, she will not be large enough to cover
the entire face, but will leave visible a ring
of the sun encircling the moon. This is called an
annular eclipse. An annular eclipse of the sun,
visible in many places in the South, occurred on
the 19th of October, 1805.
A total eclipse of the sun is one of the most im
pressive and sublime .phenomena of Nature, and
is contemplated with fear and astonishment by
savage nations. Some of the tribhs of Indians
imagined when they saw an eclipse, that a monster
was trying to swallow the sun or moon, and made
all sorts of noises to frighten him away. Two an
cient nations, the Lydians and Medes, who were
engaged in a bloody war, about six hundred years
before Christ, were so terrified at a total eclipse
of the sun, which occured just on the eve of a
battle, that they threw down their arms and made
peace.
An eclipse of the sun can take place only at
new moon, when the sun and moon meet in the
same part of the heavens, for then only can the
moon come between us and the sun; and an
eclipse of the moon can occur only when the sun
and moon are in opposite parts of the heavens,
for at no other time can the moon fall into the
shadow of the earth.
We could tell you a great deal more about
eclipses, but you must get some good work on as
tronomy, and read for yourselves.
Geographical Puzzle.
No. 8. of the Weekly , we offered a prize
of a year’s subscription to our paper for
) the best original Geographical Puzzle.
Quite a number have been sent in—some of
them very good, and all creditable to their
authors. We have examined them all with
great care, and have decided that the one
sent us by Miss Hattie A. D., of Blakely, Ga., is
the best, and that she is therefore erflitled to the
prize. We sincerely regret that all of our little
friends could not have been equally successful, but
as only one prize was offered, but one can be
awarded. We shall make room for some of the
other puzzles, from time to time*
To Correspondents.
Theodosia R-—ls you will refer to page 77, No.
9 of the Weekly , you will see that we corrected
the errors you refer to.
Hattie A. D. —Your problem is received and
filed for early insertion. Send what you like.
“ Our Chimney Corner ” is much crowded now,
but we shall try to make room tor all the good
things sent. Glad to hear that you are working
for an Album —will try to send you a nice one.
F. C. Isabella P. —You send no solution with
your enigma. Answers must always accompany
everything sent for the “ Chimney Corner.
C. T. L.—Your “ Geographical Enigma” is too
long—the logogriph we accept, with thanks.
Shall bo glad to hear from you often.
—. —_—_— +»« —
Your Subscription is Out.
All three months’ subscriptions, which com
menced with the first, number, expire with tins is
sue. Those who have not renewed, and intend to
do so, are earnestly requested to send us a remit
tance at once, as it, will save trouble, and ensure
all the numbers of the paper.
• 4>««-
Yellow Fever.
We learn, from a private letter, that, our friend
and the children’s friend, Mrs. Jane I- E
Cross, lias recently had a severe attack from this
dreaded disease. She has so far recovered, hou
ever, as to lie able to resume her pen, and our lit
tic readers will, we are sure, join with us 111
thanks to the good Lord for having spared so off
uable a life.
■
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during the year, at t he regular club rates.
Back Numbers.
We can still supply back numbers from the be
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