10 FROM NEBULA TO NEBULA 



observed facts to warrant and support that belief, they 

 would assuredly have jubilantly proclaimed it to the 

 world. But what does Darwin really testify? He says 

 (The Tides, p. 161) : 



The equilibrium theory is nearly as much wrong as possible 

 in respect to the time of high water. In fact in many places it is 

 nearly low water at the time the equilibrium theory predicts high 

 water. It would seem then as if the tidal action of the moon was 

 actually to repel the water instead of attracting it, and we are 

 driven to ask whether this result can possibly be consistent with 

 the theory of universal gravitation. 



Note this, also, from Doctor Young (Gen 9 1 Astr., p. 

 307): 



In fact the statical theory [of tides] becomes utterly unsatis- 

 factory in regard to what actually takes place, and it is necessary 

 to depend almost entirely on the results of observation, using the 

 theory merely as a guide in the discussion of the observations. 



INDIVIDUAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PLANETS 



Given a sound system of cosmology, scientists ought 

 to be able to read the characters of the various planets 

 from theoretical considerations, without depending 

 supinely, as they do, on the evidence of the telescope. 

 The fact of the matter, however, is that they know not how 

 to establish by deduction a single planetary peculiarity 

 that the telescope has revealed. They lack completely a 

 sound method of interpretation. To them the question of 

 Venus' axial rotation, for example, is a problem for the 

 telescope or spectroscope, not for the mind to reason out. 

 Surely, the province of science is to interpret Nature, not 

 just to stare her out of countenance by main force ! 



STELLAR PROBLEMS 



Very much the same sort of criticism may be made 

 respecting the present scientific methods of dealing with 

 the problems presented by the stars. Nothing could ex- 

 cel the care, skill and industry with which astronomers 

 have performed the drudgeries of observational investi- 



