LESSON 66 THE CARDINAL POINTS

THE CARDINAL POINTS

car-din-al mag-net-ic sail-ors

com-pass re-plied u-su-al-ly

1. "See what father gave me this morning, May," said Harry.

What is it? said May. "Is it a watch?"

2. "No," replied Harry, "but father says it is something nearly as useful. It is a compass, and by means of it I can tell which way I am going, just as by means of a watch I can tell the time.

3. "It looks something like a watch, for it has a glass lid and a metal case, but instead of the watch face, there is a card, which seems to float inside the case. It does not turn with the case, but always keeps the same position.

4. "On the card, N. stands for North, S. for South, E. for East, and W. for West. These four points are the most plainly marked on the card, and are called Cardinal Points—that is, chief points.

5. "On the card are other groups of letters. Look! midway between the S. and the E. is S.E., which stands for South-East, and in the same way N.W. stands for North-West, and so on."

6. "But why does the card float like that, and always keep in the same position?" said May.

7. "Because," answered Harry, "underneath the card, lying straight between the letters N. and S. is fixed a bar magnet 〔1〕 , working on a pivot 〔2〕 ; and a magnet, if free to move, always lies in the direction North and South.

8. "Father told me that the compass is of great use to sailors, for by its means they are able to find their way across the sea, although there are neither roads nor signposts to guide them.

9. "Maps are usually drawn so that the top of the map is the North, the bottom the South, the right-hand side the East, and the left-hand side the West.

10. "The cardinal points can be found without a compass, for the sun rises in the East; at mid-day it is in the North; and it sets in the West. The South, of course, is opposite to the North.

11. "The compass was known to the Chinese at least two thousand years ago, but they did not make much use of it. Sailors first used it in Europe during the 12th century; and, because Columbus 〔3〕 trusted his compass, he dared to sail for months out of sight of land during that famous voyage which ended in the discovery of America.

12. "Let us see in what direction the school lies. Look! we have first to go down the road towards S., and then turn and go as far towards E., so that the school lies South-East from our home."

注释

〔1〕 bar magnet: A piece of iron which has the power of drawing other pieces of iron to itself.

〔2〕 pivot: A point on which something turns.

〔3〕 Columbus: The famous Italian sailor who discovered America in 1492 A.D.