40 



there none to the Universe of God ! Lo ! also, there is 

 io beginning!" 



TIIK SOLAR SYSTEM. 



LAST LECTURE BY PROF. R. A. PROCTOR. 



BIKTH AND GROWTH OF TIIK SOLAK SYSTKM TUB 

 NF.HULAR HYPOTHKSES OF IIKRSC11KL AND I.A- 



PLACK HKRSCIIEL'S FIRE-MIST A TIIKOIIY AC- 

 COUNTING FOR CERTAIN STRIKING FEATURES OF 

 THE SOLAR SYSTEM AND ITS CHIEF PKc ULIA'i- 

 ITIES HINTS TOWARD A THEORY OF THE ST1.I.- 



LAK SYSTKM TRIBUTE TO riiOF. PHOCTO:I uv 



ins Armr.Nvi:. 



It is comparatively rarely, in a largo city, that an 

 audience takes such special pains t<> espn-ns its 

 grateful acknowledgments to a K"turer, and es- 

 pecially one who is not a countryman, as did Prof. 

 Proctor's listeners on the evening rt Oct. 23 at Asso- 

 ciation Hull, on 1lio occasion of the last Lcture of 

 Lis series on the discoveries of astronomy During 

 the delivery of the course of lectures just concluded, 

 the good-will displayed by American audiences 

 towards the distinguished Englishman, which 

 has been shown, as Prof. Proctor himself 

 remarked feelingly, by silence, by attentive cou- 

 sideiation, and by appreciative applause, has been 

 very marked ; and after the cordially- worded reso- 

 lutions of acknowledgment had been passed, the 

 scientist responded in a few heartfelt words which 

 proved his thorough recoeuition of those facts. 

 The subject treated by Prof. Proctor was " The 

 Birth and Growth of tho Solar System, with an Ex- 

 posit ion of the Nebular Hypotheses of Herschel and 

 Laplace." 



TflE LECTURE. 

 LADIES AND GENTLEMEN : I was rather hor- 



nlle.i \vlim I (Mine into the room to llnd circulating a 

 certain p;i;>rr rc^inling mvs.-ir. (Tins was a biographi- 

 es! flketck with a portrait.] I really have not the least 

 objection to this, but should like the audionco to know 

 that I had nothing to do with Its circulation. [Ap- 

 plnosp.1 



There are few subjects more difficult-, more full of pox-- 

 plcxnies, than the thought of the origin of tho solar sys- 

 trui. Tin- power- i;.:it have been ciron to m:in not tho 

 iri'liviiluul, but tho race have been great. Tho mys- 

 terica that lie around him are greater yot, and it sen us 

 almost hopeless that man should iieable to recognize any- 

 thing as to tin- laws according to which our system 

 arose And yot Hint is a very Hi .subject ou which man 

 mav exercise his t hou^hiM. It seems to mo It is well for 

 man to follow out the paths that scorn to load him back- 

 ward toward the origin of our system, lie need not ba 

 afraid, whatever his religion, feelm r may be, to follow 

 OTlt those paths, 80 long as th'-y le.ul him to facts. It 

 mny be that as he follows tliei.i he will llnd views that 

 ho never entertained beloro; it may bo that he will flnd 



Extras Pamphlet Series. 



much perplexity : but Inasmuch as the work is a stuiy 

 of science that is to say, a knowledge of the works and 

 ways of God it cannot but lead to higher ideas ot the 

 wisdom and omniscience of the Almighty. 



I oiler this preface to my treatment of the subject of 

 tho evolution of the solar system, because, strangely 

 enough, many look with doubt aud almost with aver- 

 sion on inquiries of that sort. They seem to bo afraid 

 that too much will be discovered. They are men full of 

 religious feeling, but they doubt, and I think that the 

 conscientious stu lent of science may justly say to them, 

 " O ye of little faith! Why are ye so fearful!" But I 

 think both tho student of science and the theologian 

 should have charity, one towards the other. It 

 does seem to me a misfortune when wo find 

 ou the one hand the believer in religion 

 taunting the student of science who takes this special 

 work forhis own, speaking of him as an iufi lei and as if 

 his purpose was evil. Ou the other hand, I cannot 

 adequately express the indignation I feel when I hear 

 the student of scieuce sometimes it happens; thank 

 GodJ It is not often expressing doubts ai to tho real 

 truthfulness, and impugning the religious belief of those 

 who differ with him. On each side there should be charity. 

 There is a treat deal of truth and of the love of truth in 

 human uature. Both sides a re seeking for the truth, and 

 it seems to me tho greatest possible misfori-iue when 

 they fall out with each other. 



TIIK EVIDENCE OF GROWTH IN THE FLAN'ETARY SYSTEM. 



Now if we look around at the condition of the plan- 

 etary system, we find much to lead us to the beliet that 

 it grew to its present state ; that there was a process of 

 its development. Take the primary planets. In tho 

 first place, we see that all tho planets circle in the samo 

 direction around tho sun. Tuere are eight primary 

 planets, and 134 asteroids, and all these boJies travel ;u 

 ths same direction around tho sun. Then every one of 

 the bodies whoso rotation has beeu deter- 

 mined, turns in the same direction. More- 

 over, the four satellites of Jupiter, tho one 

 ef our earth, and (ho eight of S.iturn, travel still in tho 

 same direction ; and wo flnd only one exception, in tho 

 case of the satellites of Uranus, which may be said to 

 travel in the opposite direction, if, tho course of travel 

 being- nearly upright as compared with the planetary 

 orbit, they can be said to have any direction. As fat 

 as they have any directioL, however, it is worthy of 

 note that it is a contrary direction to that vhich the 

 planets travel around the sun. 



Well, I flnd so many of thesis similarities, concerning 

 TR>ilok wo are bound, I think, by tho laws of probability, 

 to believe that they arose from some process of evo- 

 lution. Of course wo may believe, if we choose, that 

 the Almighty ordains everything in that way ; that 

 every planet was created in the first place moving io 

 that direction ; that thus it was every tiling about us wan 

 formed. The student of ecology, too, may learn of the 

 existence of living creatures on tho earth hundreds of 

 years past; but we may bolieve, if we choose, that all 

 those fossils are signs planted there by the Almighty ; 

 that they nro not the remains of living crea- 

 tures, but mere appearances It seems to me that 



