Rensselaer Union and Jasper Republican, Volume 8, Number 28, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 30 March 1876 — A Phenomenon. [ARTICLE]

A Phenomenon.

The San Francisco Morning Call of March 5 has a long account of a remarkable humanphenomenon discovered in that city. The account is exceedingly “fishy,” but exhibits an ingenuity which entitles it to consideration; and, indeed, it describes a phenomenon that can be imagined as not at all impossible. We give a summary of the statement for what it is worth. For some time,according to the Call, there have been rumors of a strange abnormal development of vision on the part of a lad named Johnny Palmer, who resides with his parents in South Ban Francisco. The boy is about nine years of age, and has been regarded by his parents hitherto as afrno* totally blind. On the evening of the 12th of December last the boy was in bed, and for some reason the curtains of an adjoining window had been removed. Hie parents were sealed in another room, when suddenly they heard the child utter a cry, and, hastening in, beheld him sitting up. in bed gazing intently at the moon, which was shining full in his face. He imagined it to be about 200 yards distant, and could distinguish objects on it with perfect distinctness. These facts becoming known to the California College of Sciences, a committee composed of Drs. Bryant Gadburyand Go ldson sought the youth for the purpose of testing his powers. They found that nothing had been overstated, and that this extraordinary vision was possessed by the lad. He described what he saw, and his description before the committee agreed substantially with that made on previous occasions to private parties. He completely overturned the theory of the “ inhabitability” of the moon by declaring that he saw moving objects upon its surface, and minutely described them. The committee conclude from what the boy states that there are living beings on that luminary. But that they greatly differ in form from any living thing on this planet. When full grown the “ Lunarian” is shaped somewhat like a chariot wheel, with four spokes converging at the center or axle. They move by rolling round and round, and travel as swiftly as an eagle. The children appear to be shaped like a pumpkin or orange, finally losing their rotundity and assuming the form of the wheel alluded to. The surface of the moon is all hill and hollow; no fire is visible, nor are there any volcanoes, and no other species of living thing seems to exist upon it. The committee turned the boy’s attention to the planet Venus, but he could discover nothing in that direction. The learned sarans at once surmised that the cause of his failure here was the fact that the focus of the eyes was fixed at 240,000 miles, while the least distance of Venus from the earth is 24,293.000 miles. It was therefore impossible for him to aiscover anything on the surface of the latter with distinctness.

The reporter of the Call, after hearing the facts stated, hunted up the boy and arranged a meeting at the residence of J. P. Marrow, of San Francisco, who has a large telescope finely mounted.. The boy took a glance through this at Mars, and burst out into * a scream of delight, describing mountains, seas, rivers, cities, its inhabitants, and so many other wonderful sights that the reporter is obliged to postpone a further and detailed account until the next Issue of the Call. The secret of this extraordinary power is described at great length. We make the following extract* “ There are two common imperfections of the human organ of sight; one called myopia, or “ near-sightedness;” the other preebyopia, or “ far-sightedness.” In the case under examination no glass or combination of glasses could be invented sufficiently concave to remedy the malformation. By a mathematical problem of easy solution it was computed that the nearest distance from the unaided eye of the patient at which a distinct image could be framed upon the retina was 340,000 miles —a fraction short of the mean distance of the moon from the earth, and hence it became perfectly clear that the boy could see with minute distinctness whatever was transpiring on the surface of the moon.” —Chicago Inter-Ocean.

The London correspondent of a Liver* pool paper understands that the reason why the Queen did not read her own speech at the opening of Parliament was that she is now unable to read without glasses, and it was thought that the sight of the sovereign in spectacles would look a little unmqjestic. .