1910—Inness’ Comet, otherwise known as “1910 A”. An unexpected Comet of short duration during January. On the appearance of this Comet Madame de Thebes, a French astrologer, predicted floods and general disaster for France. The disappearance of the Comet in France was followed by unprecedented rains and floods which covered one-fourth of France with water and inundated Paris, completely submerging all the bridges over the Seine. Floods also in Italy and Germany. This Comet was likewise observed in China late in January, where it caused universal consternation. 1910—Pidoux’s Comet. Another unexpected Comet was first observed by Pidoux, in Geneva, during a few nights late in February. It is recorded astronomically as “1910 B”. Its fleeting observations by astronomers were followed by Socialist franchise riots in Germany and by the labour riots of Philadelphia, with widespread bloodshed between the rioters and the constabulary. 1910—Halley’s Comet of this year was first “picked up” by Dr. Wolf, in Germany. Already various astrologers have foretold disaster from its coming. It remains to be seen whether their predictions will come true. [Illustration: THE GREAT COMET OF 1882, ON OCTOBER 9, AT 4 A. M.] HALLEY’S BALEFUL COMET Among all the stars known in astronomy, the periodically returning Comet now known as Halley’s Comet has the most baleful record. In this Comet’s wake, after every one of its recorded appearances, there have always followed terrible disasters. Not only war and battles, or other deeds of bloodshed, such as massacres and murders, but each of the dread disasters that are held to go with Comets have followed along one after the other in this Comet’s train. Of the eight baneful after-effects of Comets mentioned in the old German ditty that has been sung in the Fatherland ever since the great Comet which ushered in the dreadful Thirty Years’ War, “Wind, Famine, Plague and Death to Kings War, Earthquakes, Floods and Dire Things.” Halley’s Comet is known to have preceded each and every form of these evils in turn. Directly after each return of Halley’s Comet there has always followed somewhere within the influence of its rays one or other of those “dire things,”—a flood, an earthquake, a hurricane, famine, plague, war, bloodshed, or the sudden death of a ruler. Thanks to the careful work of such painstaking astronomers and historians as Lubienitius, Pingré, Dionys de Séjour, J. Russell Hind, Laugier, and Messrs. Cowell and Crommelin, the records of great events connected with Halley’s Comet have been traced back nearly 2,000 years, to the days before Christ.