20 UNIVERSAL EVOLUTION 



putting together of parts by building up from the cir- 

 cumference. 



So much for the schools of science and philosophy. 

 The above is more of an introduction to this volume than 

 a part of this chapter on inorganic evolution, which will 

 be treated in a very general way in the next paragraph. 



INORGUSTIC EVOLUTION. Inorganic Evolution is that 

 of the universe, of the globes of space, including our 

 solar system. But organic evolution is necessarily con- 

 fined to the earth, because we know organisms exist here, 

 but do not have a sensory knowledge of them elsewhere. 

 Inorganic evolution is proceeding now upon the earth, 

 side by side, with organic evolution. But it is apparent 

 that the former infinitely preceded the latter in its dura- 

 tion, and that the latter could not have occurred until 

 the former had progressed to the condition, when some 

 of its elements assumed the chlorophyllian function : that 

 is the process of decomposing carbonic acid and w r ater, 

 under the action of sunlight. The evolution of the earth 

 had proceeded for ages, before this occurred. This was the 

 period of the divergency of the organic method of evolu- 

 tion, from the inorganic. It is to be presumed that this 

 divergence has occurred on other stellar bodies also, and 

 that, in reality, it is not a divergence at all, but only ap- 

 pears so to man. 



It will be seen that Spencer's definition describes, in 

 technical language, the transformation of a nebula into 

 the solid bodies of the solar system, as well as the inte- 

 gration of a condensed form of matter ; probably by 

 chemical combination, into forms of life. The integra- 

 tion of matter, composing the nebula, into globes, and 

 the concomitant dissipation of motion, in form of heat 

 and energy, the same as is now going on in the sun 

 is a theory generally accepted by physicists. The scope 



