In nine cases out of ten the moon will be the first object to which the beginner turns his telescope, and he will find in our satellite a never-failing source of interest, and a sphere in which, by patient observation and the practice of steadily recording what is seen, he may not only amuse and instruct himself, but actually do work that may become genuinely useful in the furtherance of the science. The possession of powerful instrumental means is not an absolute essential here, for the comparative nearness of the object brings it well within the reach of moderate glasses. The writer well remembers the keen feeling of delight with which he first discovered that a very humble and commonplace telescope--nothing more, in fact, than a small ordinary spy-glass with an object-glass of about 1 inch in aperture--was able to reveal many of the more prominent features of lunar scenery; and the possessor of any telescope, no matter whether its powers be great or small, may be assured that there is enough work awaiting him on the moon to occupy the spare time of many years with one of the most enthralling of studies. The view that is given by even the smallest instrument is one of infinite variety and beauty; and its interest is accentuated by the fact that the moon is a sphere where practically every detail is new and strange. If the moon be crescent, or near one or other of her quarters at the time of observation, the eye will at once be caught by a multitude of circular, or nearly circular depressions, more clearly marked the nearer they are to the line of division between the illuminated and unilluminated portions of the disc. (This line is known as the Terminator, the circular outline, fully illuminated, being called the Limb). The margins of some of these depressions will be seen actually to project like rings of light into the darkness, while their interiors are filled with black shadow (Plates XI., XIII., XV., and XVI.). At one or two points long bright ridges will be seen, extending for many miles across the surface, and marking the line of one or other of the prominent ranges of lunar mountains (Plates XI., XIII., XVI., XVII.); while the whole disc is mottled over with patches of varied colour, ranging from dark grey up to a brilliant yellow which, in some instances, nearly approaches to white.