Page:Gods Glory in the Heavens.djvu/125

Rh as the darkness wore off; they had beheld the crowning spectacle; they would not weaken the impression by looking at the partial obscuration, and, soon, the whole crowd melted away—leaving the astronomers to continue their observations alone.

We have seen how the eclipse told upon a French crowd, noted for its impressible and demonstrative character. But there were also numerous illustrations of its power over individuals. Take one as a specimen:—A young boy, on the same occasion, was herding a few sheep in a lonely heath, under a cloudless sky; he felt a strange darkness coming over the face of nature, and at the moment of totality, he fled towards home, sobbing piteously. Before he reached the door, the sun burst forth, and in the transport of his joy, he clapped his hands, exclaiming, "Beautiful sun! beautiful sun!"

We have viewed the total eclipse merely as a spectacle of surpassing grandeur; but it is one, too, of the greatest scientific interest, as throwing unexpected light on the physical constitution of the sun—

If night can give us a surprise by revealing countless worlds, the eclipse can also surprise by revealing a new glory of the sun. When the totality is complete,