THE HAMILTON ASSOCIATION. 89 
lars. If we take the microscope, on the other hand, and peer 
into the kingdom of the minute, the focal vision will be reduced 
so that we can see and appreciate the manners and customs of 
the microbe, and approach the very essence of material struc- 
ture. Man, therefore, can now, at will, with these optical aids, 
rise until his head literally towered among the stars and shrink 
again down to the mathematical point and associate with life in 
a water drop. This thought was presented as a crumb of com- 
fort to those who worried about the insignificance of man rather 
than an apology for the Artificer of the universe. 
In closing, it was stated that it was to be understood that 
whilst there could be no doubt of the existence of an ether of 
some sort, theories in regard to its structure were put forth pro- 
visionally in order that an intelligent view of the subtle work- 
ings of nature might be had, and that the facts as they became 
known might be arranged in something like rational order. 
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