310 TRANS. OF THE ACAD. OF SCIENCE. 



there ; with some of them our globe is in direct communica- 

 tion by the messengers of light, heat, and magnetism ; on 

 others, signs of an atmoshere, clouds, snow, volcanic moun- 

 tains, etc., have been discovered. If our knowledge of their 

 physical condition is still very imperfect, we know nothing 

 at all of their organic life. But if we may draw some con- 

 clusions from the inexhaustible creative power on our globe, 

 where earth, water and air are filled with countless myriads 

 of organic life, past, present and future, we must suppose 

 too, that organic life and rational beings exist no less on other 

 celestial bodies. Neither must we expect, that life devel- 

 oped there should be entirely of the same form and character 

 as found with us. Nature abhors such sameness. She 

 creates no two things quite alike. She pursues with simple 

 materials a general plan of creation in endless modifications 

 and varieties, and is inexhaustible in resources to adapt dif- 

 ferent means to different ends. Whoever supposes, that 

 nature has exhausted her creative power on our globe, which 

 after all is a mere atom in the galaxy of the heavens, to 

 leave all the rest of the universe a vast desert, has formed 

 but a poor conception of the immensity of that Power and 

 its eternal wisdom and foresight; neither has he understood 

 the true meaning of the sublime and simple words — "In my 

 Father's house there are many mansions." 



Thus far and not farther does scientific reasoning lead us 

 on a subject of the highest interest to mankind, the substance 

 of which we may sum up in the words : Both matter and 

 force are eternal, and the highest force in man is his immor- 

 tal soul. 



