It should be said that the division of the stars used in this book into the "Stars of Spring," "Stars of Summer," "Stars of Autumn," and "Stars of Winter," is purely arbitrary, and intended only to indicate the seasons when certain constellations are best situated for observation or most conspicuous. The greater part of the matter composing this volume appeared originally in a series of articles contributed by the author to "The Popular Science Monthly" in 1887-'88. The reception that those articles met with encouraged him to revise and enlarge them for publication in the more permanent form of a book. G. P. S. BROOKLYN, N. Y., _September, 1888._ CONTENTS. PAGE INTRODUCTION 1 Popular interest in the phenomena of the heavens. The opera-glass as an instrument of observation for beginners in star-study. Testing an opera-glass. CHAPTER I. THE STARS OF SPRING 7 _Description of the Constellations_--Auriga, the Charioteer; Berenice's Hair; Cancer, the Crab [the Manger]; Canis Minor, the Lesser Dog; Corvus, the Crow; Crateris, the Cup; Gemini, the Twins; Hydra, the Water-Serpent; Leo, the Lion; Ursa Major, the Greater Bear [the Great Dipper]; Ursa Minor, the Lesser Bear [the Pole-Star]. A circular index-map, maps on a larger scale, of the constellations described, and pictures of remarkable objects. CHAPTER II. THE STARS OF SUMMER 30 _Description of the Constellations_--Aquila, the Eagle; Booetes, the Herdsman, or Bear-Diver; Canes Venatici, the Hunting-Dogs; Cygnus, the Swan [the Northern Cross]; Delphinus, the Dolphin; Draco, the Dragon; Hercules [the Great Sun-Swarm, 13 M]; Libra, the Balance; Lyra, the Harp; the Northern Crown; Ophiuchus et Serpens, the Serpent-bearer and the Serpent; Sagitta, the Arrow; Sagittarius, the Archer; Scorpio, the Scorpion; Sobieski's Shield; Taurus Poniatowskii, Poniatowsky's Bull; Virgo, the Virgin [the Field of the Nebulae]; Vulpecula, the Little Fox. A circular index-map, maps, on a larger scale, of the constellations described, and pictures of remarkable objects. CHAPTER III. THE STARS OF AUTUMN 60 _Description of the Constellations_--Andromeda [the Great Nebula]; Aquarius, the Water-Bearer; Aries, the Ram; Capricornus, the Goat; Cassiopeia; Cepheus; Cetus, the Whale [Mira, the wonderful variable star]; Pegasus, the Winged Horse.