COSMIC PHILOSOPHY 



actually implied by the hooped shape of its an- 

 cestral ring, is at any rate quite in accordance 

 with it. 



I cite this example, not merely on its own 

 account, but also by reason of the further dis- 

 closures to which it leads us. Whatever may 

 be thought of the special interpretation just 

 cited, there is no doubt that Mr. Spencer's con- 

 ception of hoop-shaped and quoit-shaped rings 

 points to a notable series of harmonies among 

 the phenomena of the solar system. Observe, 

 first, that according to the theory, the outer 

 planets ought in general to be much larger than 

 the inner planets ; and for a very simple reason. 

 The ancestral rings which coincided with the 

 immense orbits of Uranus and Neptune must 

 of course have been larger than the ancestral 

 rings which coincided with the smaller orbits 

 of Mars and the earth. A ring, for example, 

 which is seventeen thousand millions of miles 

 in circumference may be expected to contain 

 more matter than a ring which is less than six 

 hundred millions of miles in circumference ; 

 and hence we may understand why Neptune 

 contains at least sixteen times as much matter 

 as the earth. 



But this, though significant, is not a complete 



explanation ; for as the case now stands it would 



seem as if there ought to be a regular gradation 



in the sizes of the planets. Not only ought 



264 



