198 BOOK OF [THE DAMNED 



as to have the delusion that we know just exactly what it is that 

 we are complaining about. We speak seemingly definitely enough 

 of "the System," but we're building upon observations by members 

 of that very system. Or what we are doing gathering up the 

 loose heresies of the orthodox. Of course "the System" fringes 

 and ravels away, having no real outline. A Swift will antagonize 

 "the System," and a Lockyer will call him back; but, then, a 

 Lockyer will vary with a "meteoric hypothesis," and a Swift will, 

 in turn, represent "the System." This state is to us typical of 

 all intermediatist phenomena; or that not conceivably is anything 

 really anything, if its parts are likely to be their own opposites at 

 any time. We speak of astronomers as if there were real astron- 

 omers but who have lost their identity in a System as if it were 

 a real System but behind that System is plainly a rapport, or loss 

 of identity in the Spirit of an Era. 



Bodies that have looked like dark bodies, and lights that may 

 have been sunlight reflected from interplanetary objects, masses, 

 constructions 



Lights that have been seen upon or near? the moon: 



In Philosophical Transactions, 82-27, is Herschel's report upon 

 many luminous points, which he saw upon or near? the moon, 

 during an eclipse. Why they should be luminous, whereas the moon 

 itself was dark, would get us into a lot of trouble except that later 

 we shall, or we sha'n't, accept that many times have luminous ob- 

 jects been seen close to this earth at night 



But numerousness is a new factor, or new disturbance, to our 

 explorations 



A new aspect of inter-planetary inhabitancy or occupancy 



Worlds in hordes or beings winged beings perhaps wouldn't 

 astonish me if we should end up by discovering angels or beings 

 in machines argosies of celestial voyagers 



In 1783 and 1787, Herschel reported more lights on or near the 

 moon, which he supposed were volcanic. 



The word of a Herschel has had no more weight, in divergences 

 from the orthodox, than has had the word of a Lescarbault. These 

 observations are of the disregarded. 



Bright spots seen on the moon, Nov., 1821 (Proc. London Roy. 

 Soc., 2-167). 



For four other instances, see Loomis ("Treatise on Astronomy," 

 p. 174). 



A moving light is reported in Phil. Trans., 84-429. To the writer, 



