Next, we have, at the foot of the first page, the hours at which the
planets rise, south, and set; and at the foot of the second page we have
the dates of conjunctions, oppositions, and of other phenomena, the
diameters of Venus, Jupiter, Mars, and Mercury, and finally a few words
respecting the visibility of these four planets.

After the thirty-six pages assigned to the months follow four (pp.
42-46) in which much important astronomical information is contained;
but the points which most concern our observer are (i.) a small table
showing the appearance of Saturn's rings, and (ii.) a table giving the
hours at which Jupiter's satellites are occulted or eclipsed, re-appear,
&c.

We will now take the planets in the order of their distance from the
sun: we shall see that the information given by the almanac is very
important to the observer.

Mercury is so close to the sun as to be rarely seen with the naked eye,
since he never sets much more than two hours and a few minutes after the
sun, or rises by more than that interval before the sun. It must not be
supposed that at each successive epoch of most favourable appearance
Mercury sets so long after the sun or rises so long before him. It would
occupy too much of our space to enter into the circumstances which
affect the length of these intervals. The question, in fact, is not a
very simple one. All the necessary information is given in the almanac.
We merely notice that the planet is most favourably seen as an evening
star in spring, and as a morning star in autumn.[11]

The observer with an equatorial has of course no difficulty in finding