On the Milky Way in the southern hemisphere, is the famous Southern Cross.
This Cross contains four bright stars set close together, one of the first magnitude, two of the second magnitude, and one of the third magnitude. Although its figure is not quite so large nor as perfect as that of the Northern Cross, its stars are brighter and it holds a prominent position near the southern pole. In the first maps of the southern hemisphere, South America is designated as "Terra sancti crucis," the land of the holy cross. When Vega is our Pole Star, the Northern Cross will hold a prominent position near the northern pole.
Near the Southern Cross, as is the case near the Northern Cross, lies a remarkable dark blot which stands out sharply against the silvery path of the Milky Way. This dark body is 130 times larger than the area of the full moon and is much more impressive than the one seen in the north. It is said that superstitious sailors used to shudder and cross themselves because it lay so close to the Cross, but in those days, dark nebulæ were thought to be holes in the heavens and the combination was suggestive of what happened to sailors who were good, or who failed to be good.
Not far from the Southern Cross is a telescopic treasure which has long been enjoyed by astronomers. This treasure is a cluster of colored stars so delicately beautiful that the loveliest of rubies, emeralds and sapphires seem to have been filled with fire and turned to stars. There are over a hundred of these sparkling jewels in a space of only one forty-eighth of a square degree. What a delight it would be to suddenly uncover such a wonderful casket in our treasure hunt among the stars! But imagine the pleasure in watching the sky from the surface of a planet swinging in a field of such stars. Quite a thrill was experienced at the thought of a daytime tinted by a colored sun, or even two colored suns, but now imagine a night-time adorned with large and glowing pink, green, orange, red and yellow stars!
"their skies flowered with stars,
Violet, rose, or pearl-hued or soft blue,
Golden or green, the light now blended, now
Alternate."
—Bailey.
Just below the Southern Cross lie two stars which outrival the twin stars of Castor and Pollux.
