Well, is it?

We can't ourselves answer this question and this is why: We are writing this screed on November 4th, many weeks ahead of publication, and at a time when A. T. M. is only in galley proof form. This is one of the delightful uncertainties of the editorial game-you are always forced to project yourself two months ahead and make wise guesses. And then, only after your guesses have gone into type and plates have been cast from that type and the magazine has been "run off" and is being sent in 32 directions of the compass, you may learn that your guess was bad. A month ago we made a bad guess-that A. T. M. was ready. Something happened. Something always happens. And something may happen again, but on November 4th we go on record as believing that A. T. M. will be ready when you read this. If not it can't be long and you may hang a curse on us for every solitary day's delay thereafter.

We have labored on this edition, with its addition of about 200 pages, ever since last spring. One feature, with nine chapters, is a part entitled "Contributions by Advanced Amateurs." This means that the hobby has gone a long way since 1926 when we amateur workers were all glad to get hold of anything at all that would help us to make telescopes. The pupils are now the teachers. Ellison's statement that "the amateur has shown the way to the professional, and forced the pace for him, ever since Herschel's time," is beginning to apply in the present development.

Silvering has proved to be such a bug bear to the beginner that we have made an effort to round up all the pertinent details on the process we could, and the result is a general symposium and digest on silvering which will run to about 20 pages in the book "Amateur Telescope Making." Most of the previously published instructions for silvering mirrors have left much to the worker's judgment, a commodity which only the born genius may be said to possess previous to gaining actual experience. We have also told how to make a lap-almost in disgusting detail, since so many have written about their trials and tribulations in connection with that cantankerous job. Other material prepared makes it look at present writing as if A. T. M. would run to nearer 500 pages than 400, with many illustrations added.

A club of amateur astronomers and telescope makers is being organized in northern New Jersey by R. B. Butler, 963 Kenyon Avenue, Plainfield, N. J., and others. Other amateur astronomical activities are shown in the photograph at the bottom of the page, taken on the occasion of a joint meeting of the Amateur Telescope Makers of Los Angeles and the Citrus Belt Astronomers, held at Pomona, California. Mr. M. Nagata of Brawley, California, discoverer of "Nagata's Comet" a year or so ago, appears in this group (front, third from left); also Dr. H. Page Bailey of Riverside (extreme left) who seems to be a general all around genius and inspirer of telescope activities in that part of the world. A neat, compact split-ring equatorial telescope of the Porter type (A. T. M., Figure 26, page 27), made by him for astronomer Nagata, appears near the middle of the picture. Amateur telescope making in California appears to have gone co-ed; look the picture over! Incidentally there are 10 telescopes in it. Can you find them all? (No prize awards-it isn't a come on.)

Whew! How the telescope pictures are coming in! Scads of 'em. We don't know how many telescopes have been made to date-probably over two thousand, especially since many individuals have made from two to a dozen-and no two have been alike. This is perhaps the most gratifying thing about the whole development. Some months ago we mentioned the question of standardization. Both in numerous letters and by spoken words we have been urged not to promote that idea. However, there need be no occasion to worry. We don't like standardization-it spoils all the fun-and we shan't come within a light- year's distance of flirting with the idea.

Recently we made a call at the Corning, New York, main factory of the Corning Glass Works, where Pyrex is made, and saw some interesting things. Among others were some Pyrex disks for telescope mirrors. For the past few years Corning has been besieged by innumerable amateurs to make up some real Pyrex disks, instead of the makeshift kind hitherto available, and now they have done it.

"The total cost of my mounting was under two dollars," according to Myron A. Elliott, 1120 West Prairie Street, Taylorville, Illinois, who is rather resourceful in the adaptation of this-and-thats to his needs. He used a Ford front wheel and axle as the basis for his mounting, made the tube of stove pipe, used a linen tester lens for an eyepiece, and gets a magnification of 160 diameters, though the distortion is bad at the edge. He made a finder from an old flashlight tube, a 10-cent reading glass and a small one-inch focus lens, and is satisfied with his telescope until he can build a larger one.

To render his telescope portable, Frank Cornil, 2305 West 17 Street, Little Rock Arkansas, mounted it on wheels. He uses two spirit levels, a peep sight and four elevating screws, to make possible quick setting in the meridian. It has slow motions and is a rather complex, interesting piece of design.

A Springfield type of mounting of rather elaborate nature carries a 6-inch mirror at the observatory of William E. Mueller of Sutter, California. Slow motions and brakes are provided for both axes. The second prism can be removed and the eyepiece inserted in its place. Except for the tube and a pipe cross, the mounting is all made of Ford pans. "One of the planetary transmission drums makes a neat cell-it seems to have been specifically made for a 6-inch mirror," Mr. Mueller writes. "I put this cell in a brake drum. The tube is of 1/2 by 3/8-inch channel iron. The telescope has a 9-foot concrete base and when not in use has a portable pick-up-and-carry-out-of-the-way canvas housing."

The Society for Amateur Scientists (SAS) is a nonprofit research and educational organization dedicated to helping people enrich their lives by following their passion to take part in scientific adventures of all kinds.