SCIENCE AT THE BEGINNING OF THE CENTURY 



ingly, unless prevented by clouds or the brightness of 

 the moon. His sister sits always at his side, recording 

 his observations. They are in the open air, perched 

 high at the mouth of the reflector, and sometimes it is 

 so cold that the ink freezes in the bottle in Caroline 

 Herschel's hand ; but the two enthusiasts hardly notice 

 a thing so commonplace as terrestrial weather. They 

 are living in distant worlds. 



The results ? What could they be ? Such enthusiasm 

 would move mountains. But, after all, the moving of 

 mountains seems a Liliputian task compared with what 

 Herschel really does with those wonderful telescopes. 

 He moves worlds, stars, a universe even, if you please, 

 a galaxy of universes ; at least he proves that they 

 move, which seems scarcely less wonderful ; and he 

 expands the cosmos, as man conceives it, to thousands 

 of times the dimensions it had before. As a mere be- 

 ginning, he doubles the diameter of the solar system 

 by observing the great outlying planet which we now 

 call Uranus, but which he christens Georgium Sidus, 

 in honor of his sovereign, and which his French con- 

 temporaries, not relishing that name, prefer to call 

 Herschel. 



This discovery is but a trifle compared with what Her- 

 schel does later on, but it gives him world-wide reputa- 

 tion none the less. Comets and moons aside, this is the 

 first addition to the solar system that has been made 

 within historic times, and it creates a veritable furor of 

 popular interest and enthusiasm. Incidentally King 

 George is flattered at having a world named after him, 

 and he smiles on the astronomer, and comes with his 

 court to have a look at his namesake. The inspection 

 is highly satisfactory ; and presently the royal favor 



7 



