The first day of the last - century, Jan'y 1st 1801, brought
to the world an important extension of its previous knowledge
of the Solar system - On that day the first of the Asteroids
was discovered. The first of those Asteroids, which in our
solar System complete the void between Mars and Jupiter,
already perceived by Kepler.
On that day,
Joseph Piazzi, the Director of the University at Palermo,
who had already for almost a decade been regularly observing
the fixed stars noticed a small star of the 8th magnitude
which however, much to his surprise, he was unable to find
again the next night in the same location; instead of it,
however, he saw, at some distance from the other location,
another star not previously observed -- this same experience
was repeated again on Jan'y 3rd. So he (Piazzi) was forced
to conclude that the newly discovered star was a wandering
star -- a Comet or Planet. The astronomer continued his
search for the newly found Heavenly body, but adverse conditions
in the way of unfavorable weather and serious sickness arose
very soon to interfere with it. These discoveries of Piazzi
were not learned of by the other Observatories until some
time later and in the meantime the mysterious star had moved
so far toward the Sun, that further observations could not
be made until fall -- but even then the efforts of the different
observatories /page 2/ to sight the new Heavenly body with
the telescopes were without results. Calculations of the
orbits of these new planets, from such inadequate data as
the brief period allowed to Piazzi for his observations
permitted was of course immediately undertaken by the different
observatories, but the methods of Orbit calculation at that
time were not such as to lead to accurate results -- and
it appeared as if these recently discovered celestial bodies
were to be again lost to the scientific world -- In this
dilemma, unexpected help arose for the astronomers -- Help
from a city which had no observatory, very likely not even
a telescope worthy of the name within its walls -- Braunshweig.
Living there was a young scholar, then little known who
without the external aids & instruments of astronomers,
was yet possessed of an inner vision so far reaching &
a mathematical genius so marvellously piercing that he was
able from calculations at his desk to so accurately locate
the missing orbit of the lost minor planet, that now the
work of retracing & rediscovery, by the men equipped
with the telescope could not fail of success. This young
scholar was Carl Friedrich Gauss, who from the few incomplete
notations of Piazzi, was able, so accurately to calculate
the orbit of the new Asteroid that now at the same time
two astronomers, Zach in Gotha & Olbers in Bremer again
found the lost planet. Further observations -- of Ceres
by Olbers one of her rediscoverers, led him (in the next
year, 1802) to discover a second planet. /page 3/... missing
/page 4/
letters to Gauss, wrote "From a few lines in your last letter,
I can almost believe that you are feeling the beneficent
attraction of some beautiful star whose compelling force
(to put it in few words) could soon influence you to change
your confirmed bachelor life for that of a matrimonial state."
The scholarly man of Bremen, in practical life a physician,
pursued Astronomy (which was indebted to him for such great
advances only as a pleasure & recreation. Lichtenberg
said of him "If only every one in their work accomplished
what Olbers does in his recreation" = He had read aright.
The beautiful star referred to in his letter to Gauss, was
a young lady of Braunschweig, and exactly one year from
the Olbers letter, their married life had its commencement.
In August 1806 Gauss became for the first time a father
- Father of a son, to whom he gave the name "Joseph" -----
after Joseph Piazzi, the discoverer of "Ceres" = the history
of the discovery of Ceres presaged a brilliant & shining
uprising of the Life Star of Gauss - To be sure the youthful
investigator, even before his calculation of the orbit of
Ceres, had presented to Science, another & in importance
incomparably greater gift -- An enduring unsurpassable work
on mathematics & The enduring and classical "Disquisitiones
Arithmeticae", published only a short time previously
-- this work, however, being purely mathematical, concerned
only the most abstract principles of Science -- The Theory
of Numbers -- and remained /page 5/ even to the most important
scholars of the time, with but few exceptions unintelligible
& obscure -- In contrast to this, the rediscovery
of Ceres had been a concrete spectacular accomplishment,
which with one stroke had made the Braunschweig investigator
(Gauss) universally renowned. It was the discovery
of Piazzi's which gave him the opportunity of revealing
in most impressive form, his remar[k]able mathematical superiority
to all of his co[n]temporaries. This particular work
had also the effect of improving his own personal affairs
very materially & made possible the establishment of
his own home. thus the first child of the young father
remains pointedly, by his given name, "Joseph",
closely associated with the history of the discovery of
Ceres --
When Gauss in the year 1806 gave his first born the name
of the discoverer of Ceres he certainly had no thought,
indeed he could not have had any perception, of the fact,
that in doing so, he was forming the first link of a little
chain to which would be added in the following years different
& far reaching links through which this bit of astronomical
history was in a way woven into the family of the great
discoverer.
In the year 1807 there was again discovered
another minor planet, the fourth, the discoverer of this
being agin Olbers. Since he had already once as we
know exercised /page 6/ his privelege as a discover [sic],
of christening it he now turned over to Gauss -- the
original computor of the orbits of these new heavenly bodies.
Olbers writing him "you have assumed for yourself such
a fatherly interest in all of these rediscovered children
& have done so much more for their development, than
the discoverers themselves, it is only just and right that
you should have the responsibility of a godfather relation.
Gauss accepted the proffered position of Godfather and exceedingly
happy in his home life he named Olbers' "little daughter"
Vesta the goddess of the family hearth, the tutelar [sic]
Goddess of clean morals & spotless virtue. Olbers
continued in the letter .... to ask "should I ever
be in the position of needing a godfather whether
in the Heavens of here on earth, I foresee that I must turn
to you again dearest friend. Happy man, whose dear
name for thousands of years to come, the two goddesses of
Wisdom (Pallas) and Virtue (Vesta) will glorify in the Sublime
& enduring monument of the sky
The opportunity for inviting Olbers to a christening
was soon to come to Gauss, not however in the Heavens, but
upon the Earth. On the 29 February 1808, he became
for the second time a father -- of a daughter who in later
years, became the wife of the renowned orientalist, Ewald
-- this child was named Wilhelmine after William Olbers
-- The third time so had Gauss already informed Olbers it
must be Harding the discoverer of the third little planet
and the fourth /page 7/ time yon [sic] again -- "I
will see if I can not overtake the planets and keep up with
them -- In connection with these hitherto cheerful words
of the happy man happy man [sic] who could not foresee how
soon thereafter his happy home was to be overwhelmed by
the death of his dear wife. It may be remarked here
that it was the good fate of Gauss to realize his Asteroid
programme -- to overtake the smaller planets, yes and to
pass them.
Of the six children born to Gauss, of his two marriages
(his 2d wife was Minna Waldeck) four of them bore the given
names of the discoverers of the first four minor planets.
When he for the second time, at the birth of a son, who
was named Wilhem (after Olbers) proffered Olbers the duty
of Godfather, he wrote him, "You must allow me my very
dear Olbers to beg of you again to be Godfather -- since
the new planets which have meant so much to me in my surroundings
must all receive their rights.
The early astronomers (who in connection with astronomy,
very generally did homage to & served the "mad
little daughter" as Kepler once termed Astrology) taught
that every human being was born under some planet &
that their development & fate were controlled by the
particular constellation under which they were born --
Had Gauss a remnant of Astrological superstition when he
named his children after the discoverer of those planets
and did he believe he could bring the blessing of Heaven
upon their lives? ----------- By no means and besides a
hard fate had not realized for him his fatherly expectations
-- The last named son, but more particularly another, who
it is true was not named after a planet discoverer, at times
for several years, caused the father many worries &
cares
After the first four minor planets there were
no others discovered for the nex 10 years -- not until the
year 1845 did another smallplanet make its appearance --
its discoverer was an amateur astronomer -- Postmaster "Hencke"
of Driesen -- the small telescope, with which he made this
discovery, through an opening in the roof was later acquired
by Director Archenbold and is now in the Astronomical Museum
of the Trepton observatory Berlin. Again a little
later in the year 1847, a sixth planet was discovered by
the same "Hencke"
Since he had himself once exercised his christening privelege
this was again accorded to Gauss -- who gave it the name
of Hebe --
In the last ten years of Gauss' life there were discovered
not less than 29 minor planets -- not to mention the discovery
so particularly important to astronomy of the Glorious Neptune.
The Great Investigator was now an old man and had been for
years a widower for the second time -- He thought no more
now of keeping pace with the Asteroids.
Even the paternal obligations as exercised by him /page
9/ in his orbit calculation of the first four planets he
had surrendered to younger professional scientists; all
more or less students of his in his classical work in the
calculation of orbits of the Planets -- Theoria Motus
Corporum Coelestrium", who had directly or indirectly
fitted themselves for it --
The orbit computations of the first four planets which after
the discovery of the Hencke planet had been adopted by the
University of Paris particularly emphasized the fact that
the ("Methods de Monsieur Gauss ehnens [sic] zugrunde
liege" & they were based on the Gauss methods --
By the end of the century the number of the known minor
planets had increased to nearly 500 & very early in
the year 1924 the first 1000 -- was completed -- soon afterwards
this number was exceeded --
