[meteorite-list] Weston Fall Newspaper

From: Sterling K. Webb <kelly_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 10:02:31 2004
Message-ID: <3C997968.C5E86768_at_bhil.com>

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Hi,
<p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The "f" for "s" comes from the fact that at the beginnings
of printing in English (Caxton in 1458), the subsidiary or inferior "s"
was written as a tall stretched vertical form like a thin integral sign
(with no crossbar at all) and our present-day full circumflex "S" was used
only for the capitol or "superior" "s".. The printed form of this letter
became less cursive and by the Eighteenth Century has turned into a shape
like an "f" whose crossbar was truncated on one side. Reforms in orthography
ended the use of this "f"-like form of the "s" starting during the 1820's
and it disappeared from the font repertoire thereafter. So now all we can
do to replicate it is to use a conventional "f" which does look strange
to those who have never seen the 350 years of old-style esses. Occasionally
an obsessive typesetter will re-create the old style by using "f" and then
going in and hand-cutting one side of the crossbar off every "f" with an
xacto knife...
<p>Sterling K. Webb
<br>---------------------------------------------------------
<br>Mark Bostick wrote:
<blockquote TYPE=CITE><style></style>
<font size=-1>Here is a transcript
a newspaper I recently aquired, note many of the s's are typed as f's.
I have not altered or changed the spelling. Newspaper has two names as
I noted (I'm not confused...:-).</font>
<p><font size=-1>Maffachufetts Spy, or Worcefter Gazette, Wednesday, January
6, 1808, page 2</font>
<p><font size=-1>Bridgeport, Dec. 24.</font>
<p><font size=-1>Terresrial comet.</font>
<p><font size=-1>On the mourning of the 14th ??? at about 6 o'clock, a
terrestrial comet exploded over the town of Weston, about 9 miles from
this place. The atmofphere was foggy. From a great number of fpectators
in different positions, different accounts of its size, the length of its
train of fire its courl and altitude have been reported.</font>
<p><font size=-1>Its courfe was probley about one point well of forth -
or forth by well-preceeding from the north. its altitude from one to five
miles-the length of the train three feet. The fize of its folid body about
three feet in diameter. The caufe of its explosion was probley the dampnefs
and denifty of our atmofphere. The ftones fell in all directions, and have
been found as much as five miles apart,and of the astonithing fize of thirty-five
pounds, and fome pieces which fell on rocks, are fuppofed to have weighed
150 pounds.</font>
<p><font size=-1>At New Milford, more then twenty miles from the point
of explosion, the fhaking of the boufes was more fevere then nearer the
place of its discharge. The ftone appears to have diffolved and concreted
again, and is fuppofed to be flrongly impregnated with iron. We underftand
the attention of the learned faculty of Yale College is excited to this
remarkable phenomenon, and it will, and it will afford fomsthing new and
interefting if purfued extenfively, which we purfume it will be. Mr. Edward
King of London, has publifhed remarks on the fall ftones from our atmofphere,
both in ancient and modern times. Kr. King's enquiry was excited by the
remarkable difplofions which took place in Tulcany,on the 16th of June,
1794, which comet appeared with an atmofphere of its own and continued
its dislagesof ftones for some time.</font>
<br>&nbsp;
<br>&nbsp;
<p><font face="Arial"><font size=-1>Mark Bostick "The Big Collector"</font></font></blockquote>

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Received on Thu 21 Mar 2002 01:10:48 AM PST


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