The Importance of Perspective In Understanding the Flat Earth Model, part 9
From the booklet: The Sea-Earth Globe and its Monstrous Hypothetical Motions: or Modern Theoretical Astronomy
Note: Punctuation and grammar is as in the original.
The motion of the planets, as described in this series of article from an old flat earth booklet, how the moon, for example, would have to behave IF it was traveling round the earth WHILE the earth itself is travelling round the sun. This is accompanied by illustrations demonstrating the impossibility of such motions.
In books on astronomy we are gravely told that the sun is more than a million times larger than the sear-earth globe. The writers who make these extravagant assertions do not condescend to give us any good practical evidence in proof thereof. There authoritative assertions are supposed to be sufficient, in spite of good authorities against them, and the oppositions of “science” against “science.”
This was complained of long ago by intelligent men like John Wesley, who in his Journal expressed his disbelief in the theory of Copernicus and Newton. He wrote: –
“The more I consider them the more I doubt of all systems of astronomy. I doubt whether we can with certainty know either the distance or the magnitude of any star in the firmament. Else why do astronomers so immensely differ with regard to the distance of the sun from the earth, some affirming it to be only three and others ninety millions of miles.” – Journal, vol. IX., p. 392.
When doctors disagree, who shall decide? Our God-given senses, and a few practical observations. We have shewn that the moon is a faithful witness in the heavens, and we may find the sun’s testimony the same – two good witnesses when critically examined, both testifying against the extravagances of modern theories. Now look at Fig. 20.
Let an observer stand by night directly under a lamp-post; the light above him will cast no side shadow. If he moves northwards his shadow will fall towards the north; and if he goes south his shadow will fall southwards. If the light were extended by a number of gas jets above his head, say for ten feet, then on the observer moving that distance underneath he would still see no shadow. That is, the vertical rays of the light would cast no shadow for a distance equal to its own extent. Now apply this reasoning to the shadows of vertical objects cast by the sun’s rays.
In northern latitudes the shadows fall towards the north; and in souther towards the south. The declination of the sun varies from the tropic of Cancer, 23 ½ degrees N., to an equal declination south of the equator, the tropic of Capricorn. Between these extremes the sun is always, at noon, directly overhead in places with latitudes equal to his declinations, the variation in which is the cause of the varying seasons. In these places on land, or at sea, the sun casts no side shadow at non; and it has been found that this phenomenon extends for 32 miles. So that the column of the sun’s vertical rays is 32 miles across in every direction – a distance equal to the length of the solar diameter! And whether we take the surface of the sea as curved or horizontal, there would make little difference to the diameter, as many be seen on referring to Fig. 20.
During the Boer War Dr. Robertson, a medical gentleman, sailed with our troops from England to South Africa, and in 14 degrees N. latitude the vessel at noon came under the vertical rays of the sun. he discovered the fact above mentioned, and published it in a book he wrote. He was a globularist at the time; but as I lost touch with him soon after reading his book, I cannot say how his discovery affected his subsequent belief. It ought to have brought him into the ranks of planists (flat earthers, ed.); and I posed him some of our literature.
His book entitled The Mutual Relations of the Sun and the Earth. I do not now posses a copy, so I cannot quote directly from it, ad or space is very limited; but Dr. R., by diagrams and arguments, demonstrated that the diameter of the sun is only 32 miles across. Thus the sun is a small body as compared with the size of the earth; yet as compared with the planets it is a giant, and, as the Psalmist says, “a giant rejoicing to run his race!” (Psa. xix. 5).
The Nautical Almanac bears out the truth of the sun’s comparatively small size: it gives the sun’s semi-diameter as 16′ minutes of a degree. One degree of latitude is equal to 60 miless; and as there are 60 “minutes” to a degree, twice 16 minutes must be equal to 32 miles, the sun’s diameter by no less an authority than that of the navigator’s chief almanac!
We are aware of the usual astronomical quibble to get over this difficulty, another assumption, the sun’s immense distance; but whatever the distance may be the sun’s rays traverse it, and the column of vertical rays is only 32 miles across. The sun therefore witness to the truth of the Nautical Almanac – another “faithful witness to the heavens!” But luminous bodies often appear larger than they really are, as is sometimes illustrated by the old moon being “in the arms of the new.”