150 FKOM NEBULA TO NEBULA 



The same phenomena would have occurred, in like 

 sequence, had we imagined the body M approaching E 

 through a great distance. M might then have been pos- 

 tulated as gravitational from the start, the same as E, 

 the element of distance taking the- place of our artificial 

 regulation of the gravitational intensity. It seems quite 

 clear to me, at least, that as M came nearer and nearer, 

 thereby augmenting its gravitational influence upon E, 

 the solid part of the ]atter should react precisely as it 

 did before, and shallow the sea between them. Tides 

 thus produced would conform in principle to the law of 

 lowest center, and would satisfy Darwin's plaint, when 

 he says, "It would seem then as if the tidal action of 

 the moon was actually to repel the water instead of at- 

 tracting it, and we are driven to ask whether this result 

 can possibly be consistent with the theory of universal 

 gravitation. ' ' 



Let us consider a second illustration: Imagine the 

 universe blotted out save for a single cloud of aqueous 

 vapor of, say, the same mass as the moon; then, under 

 the principle of gravitation, the cloud would eventually 

 condense into a watery sphere. Suppose, again, that 

 instead of consisting of water vapor alone, it comprised 

 equal parts of mercury and water ; then there would re- 

 sult a planet containing an inner core of mercury, and, 

 around it, a concentric sphere of the lighter material 

 constituting a universal sea of uniform depth. 



We will now conceive an exactly similar planet to 

 spring suddenly into existence at a distance of ten mil- 

 lion miles away and both planets to gravitate toward 

 each other by virtue of their mutual attraction until they 

 collide. Query: What would be the nature of their 

 tidal deformations in transitu, assuming that they pos- 

 sessed no axial rotation ? 



To this question, modern astronomy vacillatingly 

 returns two contradictory answers, consistent only in the 

 respect that both are equally inimical to the principle of 

 equilibrium; which, indeed, is precisely what they are 

 meant to be. One of these answers is Newton's own, 

 namely, that inasmuch as the power that causes the tides 



