﻿124 
  Transaction's.— 
  Miseellaneoiia, 
  

  

  l^artly 
  belnnd 
  his 
  dusky 
  parent's 
  body, 
  and 
  in 
  tliis 
  way 
  si;ffers 
  partial 
  

   eclipse. 
  

  

  But 
  the 
  autobiographies 
  of 
  these 
  bodies 
  must 
  not 
  detain 
  us 
  ; 
  we 
  must 
  

   discuss 
  the 
  existence 
  of 
  such 
  gigantic 
  feebly-luminous 
  or 
  non-luminous 
  

   bodies 
  as 
  our 
  hypothesis 
  demands. 
  The 
  existence 
  of 
  variable 
  stars 
  seems 
  

   sufficient 
  to 
  prove 
  there 
  are 
  such 
  bodies, 
  and, 
  as 
  I 
  have 
  shown, 
  all 
  the 
  

   hypotheses 
  offered 
  in 
  explanation 
  of 
  temporary 
  stars 
  assume 
  their 
  existence. 
  

   The 
  high 
  temperature 
  and 
  small 
  relative 
  light 
  of 
  celestial 
  radiation 
  points 
  

   to 
  the 
  same 
  conclusion, 
  or 
  to 
  non-luminous 
  gas. 
  It 
  might 
  be 
  asked, 
  if 
  there 
  

   are 
  dark 
  bodies, 
  why 
  not 
  stellar 
  eclipse. 
  I 
  do 
  not 
  know 
  if 
  such 
  have 
  been 
  

   observed 
  ; 
  it 
  would 
  be 
  wonderful 
  if 
  any 
  had 
  been, 
  for 
  they 
  must 
  be 
  very 
  

   rare, 
  probably 
  as 
  rare 
  as 
  temporary 
  stars 
  ; 
  for, 
  although 
  we 
  have 
  all 
  the 
  

   depths 
  of 
  space 
  in 
  which 
  ecli^Dses 
  are 
  possible, 
  on 
  the 
  other 
  hand 
  with 
  

   temporary 
  stars 
  we 
  have 
  attraction 
  bringing 
  very 
  distant 
  bodies 
  together. 
  

   Further, 
  the 
  points 
  of 
  light 
  of 
  the 
  fixed 
  stars 
  form 
  but 
  a 
  small 
  area 
  in 
  space, 
  

   and, 
  lastly, 
  if 
  eclipses 
  occurred 
  they 
  would 
  probably 
  not 
  be 
  recorded, 
  as 
  

   small 
  black 
  patches 
  of 
  cloud 
  so 
  often 
  obscure 
  a 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  sky 
  that 
  such 
  

   an 
  occurrence 
  would 
  scarcely 
  attract 
  attention. 
  But 
  why 
  should 
  there 
  not 
  

   be 
  large 
  dark 
  bodies 
  ? 
  Laplace's 
  theory 
  of 
  a 
  universal 
  nebulae 
  may 
  be 
  

   assumed 
  to 
  be 
  against 
  it 
  ; 
  but 
  did 
  Laplace 
  assume 
  that 
  it 
  was 
  contem- 
  

   poraneous 
  ? 
  if 
  not, 
  then 
  even 
  that 
  theory 
  does 
  not 
  interfere. 
  All 
  our 
  con- 
  

   ceptions 
  seem 
  to 
  agree 
  more 
  with 
  a 
  rhythmic 
  cycle 
  than 
  with 
  any 
  definite 
  

   beginning 
  or 
  end. 
  If 
  we 
  assume 
  this 
  hypothesis, 
  then 
  the 
  period 
  of 
  dissipa- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  energy 
  seems 
  indefinitely 
  projected 
  into 
  futurity 
  ; 
  for 
  all 
  radiation 
  

   falling 
  on 
  the 
  matter 
  in 
  space, 
  must 
  prevent 
  its 
  temperature 
  from 
  falling 
  so 
  

   low 
  as 
  without 
  this 
  radiation, 
  and 
  when 
  at 
  a 
  subsequent 
  date 
  a 
  collision 
  

   occurs, 
  this 
  heat 
  must 
  exalt 
  the 
  final 
  temperature. 
  Nor 
  does 
  it 
  appear 
  that 
  

   we 
  need 
  look 
  forward 
  to 
  a 
  gigantic 
  dead 
  sun 
  as 
  the 
  final 
  condition 
  of 
  this 
  

   universe 
  ; 
  for 
  doubtless 
  our 
  universe 
  has 
  its 
  own 
  proper 
  motion 
  in 
  space, 
  

   which 
  may 
  bring 
  us 
  into 
  collision 
  with 
  other 
  universes. 
  This 
  shows 
  that 
  

   gravitation 
  may 
  be 
  as 
  competent 
  to 
  multiply 
  worlds 
  as 
  to 
  absorb 
  them 
  one 
  

   into 
  another. 
  But 
  after 
  all 
  our 
  hypothesis 
  only 
  takes 
  us 
  a 
  step 
  back 
  in 
  

   time, 
  and 
  our 
  imaginations 
  a 
  step 
  forward 
  into 
  the 
  future, 
  thus 
  removing 
  

   further 
  than 
  ever 
  from 
  our 
  conceptions 
  every 
  trace 
  of 
  a 
  beginning 
  or 
  pro- 
  

   mise 
  of 
  an 
  end. 
  

  

  