Cassiopeia

“ She head foremost like a tumbler sits.
The Arabs called Cassiopeia "the Lady in the Chair," but curiously enough the early Arabs had in this place a very different figure in no way connected with the figure known to us. They called this star group "the large hand stained with henna" or "the tinted hand," the bright stars marking the finger tips. They also made out of the constellations Cepheus and Cassiopeia, two dogs, and some times referred to Cassiopeia as "the kneeling camel." ”

“ There’s a whole Royal Family right before your eyes now: Queen Cassiopeia on her throne and King Cepheus beside her and their pretty daughter, Andromeda.—That is one of Cepheus’ stars—and there’s another.” The Princess drew lines with her finger from the stars of the big “W” to the ones they wanted to find. And the Others picked them out, passing from star to star like crossing a brook, jumping from stone to stone. ”

“ Below Perseus, and not very high above the horizon, sparkles the brilliant Capella, but that is for the next chapter. We turn to Cassiopeia. Her “W,” or “Laconian Key,” is a familiar asterism to all who know anything at all of the starry heavens. The five stars forming this figure are also represented as marking the Chair in which the unfortunate though beautiful queen sits. ”

“ A name of Juno.
Cassandra (Cassan′dra) , a daughter of Priam and Hecuba, who was granted by Apollo the power of seeing into futurity, but having offended that god he prevented people from believing her predictions.
Cassiopeia (Cassiope′ia) . The Ethiopian queen who set her beauty in comparison with that of the Nereides, who thereupon chained her to a rock and left her to be devoured by a sea-monster, but she was delivered by Perseus. See Andromeda.
Castalia (Casta′lia) . One of the fountains in Mount Parnassus, sacred to the Muses. ”

“ Cassiopeia > (A W-shaped constellation, hence resembling a chair or throne. Cassiopeia was a proud queen who consented to the sacrifice of her virgin daughter, Andromeda, to a sea-monster. Andromeda, however, was rescued by Perseus, who subsequently married her and was declared the saviour of the royal house; Cassiopeia and her throne were placed among the stars (see Met. 4.663-803, Myth. 8.6) . The legend has certain parallels with the story of Una and the Redcross Knight)
3 And all in deadly sleep did drowned lie,
deadly > death-like
4 One knocked at the door, and in would fare ”

“ Orion scowled fearfully. ‘There’s just one Star Person who would do such a thing—’ he began.
Cassiopeia interrupted him:—
“‘Now that’s all nonsense! Just because you hate the Scorpion, is no sign he would steal. You’d better come along with me, and we’ll have a meeting to see what to do.’
“As Cassiopeia and Orion were coming back together, they met Cepheus, returning from his errand. ”

“ This dark gap sends short branches north and south, the most important of which are situated near ζ Cephei and β Cassiopeiæ. Another branch runs from γ beyond ε of the constellation last mentioned. The main stream of the Galaxy after leaving Perseus, enters Cassiopeia, and sending short branches into Andromeda, it completes its immense circle in Cassiopeia's chair, where this description was begun. ”

“ Finally Cepheus said: ‘You might as well go home, Orion. These girls don’t want a party to-night.’
“‘Oh, yes, we do!’ they cried. ‘Only Taygeta—’ Then they were off again.
140“‘Come, come!’ said Cassiopeia. ‘Just pretend you have a little sense!’
“‘Draco has!’ cried Andromeda. ”

“ It isn’t the Rule of the Sky.’
“‘Do you know any Rule that says we can’t?’ asked Cassiopeia.
“‘No,’ answered Orion; and that disposed of him.
“‘How could you take care of him?’ asked Perseus. ‘He’d keep getting lost; and he mightn’t like it.’
“‘It’s a pity if I can’t take care of one small child, and make him happy!’ said Cassiopeia. ‘I’ll learn.’
“‘Wouldn’t he just love to watch Sol’s bees!’ said Andromeda. ‘It would be a good thing to have some one to watch them; there’s always such a fuss when they swarm.’
123“‘Yeth, indeed!’ said Draco. ”

“ She made all the trouble,’ said Andromeda.
“‘Don’t you be so silly,’ said Cassiopeia. ‘This is a serious matter.’
“‘I thouldn’t like her to bring up my child,’ said Draco. ‘The ’th too exthitable.’
122“‘We can decide about yours when you have one!’ said Cassiopeia. ‘Now, who is going after that baby? Because I think they’d better be starting.’
“‘What over the sun are you talking about?’ asked Orion. ‘Going where?’
“‘We are going to adopt that Bee Baby. If some one doesn’t start at once, I shall go myself!’
“‘Adopt the Bee Baby!’ cried every one in chorus. ”

“ These changes are sometimes very curious, as, for example, in a coloured chart, printed at Paris in 1650, we have the Charioteer drawn in the costume of Adam, with his knees on the Milky Way, and turning his back to the public; the she-goat appears to be climbing over his neck, and two little she-goats seem to be running towards their mother. Cassiopeia is more like King Solomon than a woman. ”

“ And it wasn’t until Cepheus said suddenly: ‘Why, where’s Major?’ that they saw that he was gone, and that was what they missed.
“‘Now, what do you thuppoth pothethed him?’ said Draco.
“‘I’ve no idea,’ said Cassiopeia. ‘But we must find him and bring him back. We can’t let the silly old thing go wandering about, nobody knows where. Perseus!’ she called. ‘You and Andromeda come and help.’
“They were so interested in some scheme of their own they weren’t noticing what was going on. But as soon as they did, they were just as much concerned as anybody, ‘Major gone!’ they said. ”

“ The several constellations are artistically represented in appropriate figures which include, in addition to those of Ptolemy, a considerable number in the southern hemisphere, for which, as the author states, he made use of the observations of the navigator Theodorus. That star in the constellation Cassiopeia, which so greatly interested Tycho Brahe, has a special but brief legend distinguishing it, reading “Stella mirabilis quae insolito prae aliis fulgore ao 1572 p. an. et trientem apparuit.” ”

“ On the 16th we set out early for an excursion to Cassiopeia and Suli, across the fine open field behind Janina, past the village of Kapshisda, over a low chain of hills south-west of Janina. Then, after a climb of over an hour, we entered a pass, and presently saw Dramishush in front, on the side of a high mountain.
Cassiopeia is on a gentle height in the middle of a valley. The situation is beautiful, and the theatre the largest and best preserved I have seen in Greece. ”

“ Among stars not double, and no way differing from the rest in any other obvious particular, a star in the constellation Cassiopeia, (Mu Cassiopeiæ) has the greatest proper motion of any yet ascertained, amounting to nearly four seconds annually.
You have doubtless heard much respecting the "immeasurable distances" of the fixed stars, and will desire to learn what is known to astronomers respecting this interesting subject. ”

“ She and Cepheus were obliged to chain Andromeda to a rock on the seacoast to be devoured by a horrible sea monster; and that would have been the end of her and her beauty if Perseus hadn’t come to the rescue.”
Then they stopped talking about that, because it was time to put on Cassiopeia’s stars.
77“He’s confused,” said the Princess. “You see, before he was a Star Person he was a performing bear, and in one of his tricks—the best one—he stood on his head so much it affected his brain. Now he is a Star Person, and he’s quite harmless, but he thinks perhaps he’s a Dipper. ”

“ The Dog-star and Aldebaran, pointing to the restless Pleiades, were half-way up the Southern sky, and between them hung Orion, which gorgeous constellation never burnt more vividly than now, as it soared forth above the rim of the landscape. Castor and Pollux with their quiet shine were almost on the meridian: the barren and gloomy Square of Pegasus was creeping round to the north-west; far away through the plantation Vega sparkled like a lamp suspended amid the leafless trees, and Cassiopeia's chair stood daintily poised on the uppermost boughs.
"One o'clock," said Gabriel. ”

“ The familiar stars of Cassiopeia are visible on every clear night, for they never set. The stars of the Whale, at least of the part to which the wonderful variable star belongs, are below the horizon during rather more than half the twenty-four hours ”

“ The Princess nodded. “‘I don’t think it looks very well for me to be running errands,’ said Cepheus.
“‘Looks or no looks, you go along,’ said Cassiopeia. ‘I’m going on one myself.’
“When Orion waked up that night he was pleased to see the clouds, because there was something he wanted to do. Every one knows he was a famous hunter; and there was no animal so fierce or so wild that he could not face it and conquer it. ”

“ An unknown star came suddenly into view in the constellation of Cassiopeia, so brilliant that it was visible even in full daylight, and the astrologers calculated that it was the star of the Magi which had returned, and that it announced the second coming of Jesus Christ.
The seventeenth and eighteenth centuries were filled with new predictions of great variety.
Even our own century has not been without such. A religious work, published in 1826, by the Count Sallmard Montfort, demonstrated perfectly that the world had no more than ten years to exist. ”

“ But this is the way they stand to be looked at,—a tableau, with Perseus coming to the rescue, and Cassiopeia looking on, thinking what a lucky escape they had, and that her child is truly much lovelier than any Nymph whatever. But she isn’t talking about it any more.”
“Perhaps she would have thought so, just the same, if Andromeda had looked piggy,” observed Phyllisy.
“Very true, Madam Owl,” agreed the Princess. “But whether or no, she certainly has four undeniably beautiful stars to wear—if anybody will find them for her.” ”

“ Above Procyon, and on the same side of the Milky Way, shine Castor and Pollux, the Heavenly Twins, seemingly with an eye on the battle of the Giant and the red-eyed Bull; above the Bull's horns glows Capella, always an attractive star but not as radiant when near the meridian as when rising in the east. This is also true of Cassiopeia's Chair, now in the zenith, and of the Segment of Perseus, the Chain of Andromeda and the Square of Pegasus, which lie just below her. ”

“ From Cassiopeia's chair, three bright stars of which appear at the upper edge of the Plate, the Galaxy, forming two streams, descends south, passing partly through Lacerta on the left, and Cepheus on the right; at this last point it approaches nearest to the Polar Star, which is itself outside of the field of view. Then it enters Cygnus, where it becomes very complicated and bright, and where several large cloudy masses are seen terminating its left branch, which passes to the right, near the bright star Deneb, the leader of this constellation. ”

“ The next new star (that is, stellar conflagration) on [Pg 163] record is still more interesting, as there appears some reason for believing that before long we may see another outburst of the same star. In the years 945, 1264, and 1572, brilliant stars appeared in the region of the heavens between Cepheus and Cassiopeia. ”

“ If between nine and ten o’clock the reader will turn to the north-east, he will find a constellation pretty high up in the heavens, and consisting of five or six principal stars, none of them, however, of the first magnitude, opening towards the pole star in the form of a widely spread-out W. This constellation will be an object of more than usual interest during the present year. It is Cassiopeia, or The Lady in her Chair, the scene of a very startling and strange phenomenon in 1572, which, it has been asserted with some confidence, is not at all unlikely to be repeated in 1872. ”

“ Nor do the Heavens themselves teach unchangeable permanency in the works of creation. Change is observable there quite as rapid and complete as in the confines of our solar system. In the year 1752, one of the small stars in the constellation Cassiopeia blazed up suddenly into an orb of the first magnitude, gradually decreased in brilliancy, and finally disappeared from the skies. ”

“ It will be found very interesting to sweep with the glass slowly from side to side over Andromeda, gradually approaching toward Cassiopeia or Perseus. The increase in the richness of the stratum of faint stars that apparently forms the background of the sky will be clearly discernible as you approach the Milky-Way, which passes directly through Cassiopeia and Perseus. ”

“ Now he dropped again. ‘He’th almotht to Orion’th garden, and going Thouth ath fatht ath ever he can!’
“‘Run, Perseus. You’re young,’ said Cassiopeia; and off he started, with Andromeda after him. She and Perseus 83very easily ran faster than the other Star People who followed: Cepheus and Cassiopeia, with Draco, half flopping his wings and half running on his short crooked legs, like a dachshund’s, and after them Hercules and Little Bear. Hercules picked him up and put him on his shoulder, and came after the others—all racing down toward the Southern Sky, to find Major and bring him back home. ”

“ To the southeast of Cassiopeia’s Chair lies the constellation Perseus, distinguished by its well-known festoon, or curve, of stars. South of this lies the constellation Taurus or the Bull, which contains the well-known groups or clusters, the Pleiades and [124] the Hyades. The Pleiades form perhaps the most remarkable group of stars in the heavens, and are easily found, when above the horizon. To ordinary eyesight the cluster consists of six stars. Some persons gifted with exceptionally keen eyesight have, however, seen eleven or twelve. ”