1887.] -"^"^ [Garrett. 



mates of himself, was confident that his conclusions pointed in the right 

 direction. Yet he did not claim matliematical demonstration for his 

 theories, and while his papers abounded in formulae, they were only partly 

 mathematical even in form. There was an element of imagination, of 

 speculation and of intuition. The harmonies are not always perfect, links 

 are missing ; very probably some of them will prove to be accidental, 

 while others, with their profound inductions, will remain firmly planted 

 upon the rock of truth. Indeed, they have claims, not only to coincidence 

 with the conclusions of other philosophers, derived from different data, and 

 reached through other channels, but even to verification as tiredictions. 

 Dr. Chase regarded the series of twelve papers contributed to the London, 

 Ediuboro' and Dublin Philosophical Magazine as containing, to quote his 

 own words, some of his "most important discoveries in confirmation of 

 the nebular hypothesis, including nine verifications of intra -mercurial 

 planets and of harmonies of solar and planetary rotation that he had pre- 

 dicted some years prior to the discovery." These " verifications of intra- 

 mercurial planets " should rather be designated " Confirmations from other 

 sources of liis opinion predicting them." These special articles comprised 

 the 1. Cosmical Activity of Light ; 2. Equilibrating Forces of the Solar 

 System ; 3. Planetary Interaction ; 4. Our Binary Star and its Attendants ; 

 5. Correlations of Central Force ; 6. ^therial Nodes ; 7. Momentum and 

 Vis viva ; 8. Undulation ; 9. Criteria ; 10. Radiation ; IL Watson's Intra- 

 mercurial Planet ; and, 13. Predictions. The titles of these papers suffi- 

 ciently indicate their cliaracter and his claims of original discovery, which 

 are further elucidated by such others, appearing elsewhere, as "The 

 Gamut of Light," "The Music of the Spheres," "The Beginning of 

 Development," "Planeto-taxis," and "Photo-dynamic Notes." Regarding 

 light as the primal manifestation of force, and the Almighty fiat, "Let 

 there be light " as the order for movement in the cosmic element, out of 

 which all the complex development of the universe has grown, he felt 

 after and sought to discover the fundamental laws whose universal applica- 

 tion might pervasively explain all material forms and forces. Thus his 

 investigations were not limited to the relations of the great forces of light, 

 gravity, electricity, etc., but his speculations on the harmonies extended to 

 the laws which govern chemical affinity and to ordinary material things. 

 This much may be said as to these investigations : that 



1. Whatever may be the ultimate conclusions of Science as to the precise 

 nature and extent of the evolution, there has been an evolution from the 

 simpler and more comprehensive conditions of matter, into the more com- 

 plex and multiform. 



2. It is reasonable to suppose that this entire evolution has been in accord- 

 ance with some general law. 



3. The discovery of that law is probably within the reach of the human 

 mind. 



It was after this law that Prof Chase was searching ; the character of his 



