XIV
THE WORLD'S DEBT TO ASTRONOMY
Astronomy is more intimately connected than any other science with
the history of mankind. While chemistry, physics, and we might say
all sciences which pertain to things on the earth, are
comparatively modern, we find that contemplative men engaged in
the study of the celestial motions even before the commencement of
authentic history. The earliest navigators of whom we know must
have been aware that the earth was round. This fact was certainly
understood by the ancient Greeks and Egyptians, as well as it is
at the present day. True, they did not know that the earth
revolved on its axis, but thought that the heavens and all that in
them is performed a daily revolution around our globe, which was,
therefore, the centre of the universe. It was the cynosure, or
constellation of the Little Bear, by which the sailors used to
guide their ships before the discovery of the mariner's compass.
Thus we see both a practical and contemplative side to astronomy
through all history. The world owes two debts to that science: one
for its practical uses, and the other for the ideas it has
afforded us of the immensity of creation.
The practical uses of astronomy are of two kinds: One relates to
geography; the other to times, seasons, and chronology.
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