Address of Sir William Thompson. 293 
and by the migration of individual _ creatures. When a 
voleanic island springs up from the se and after a few years is 
found clothed with vegetation, we do ae hesitate to assume that 
seeds has been wafted to it through the air, or floated to it on 
rafta Is it not possible, and if possible, is it not probable, that 
the beginning of vegetable life on the earth is to be similarly 
explained? Every year thousands, probably sabe of frag- 
ments of ~ matter fall upon the earth—whence come these 
fragments? What is the previous — of any one of them ? 
Was it created in the beginning of time an amorphous mass? 
This idea is so unacceptable that, tacitly or explicitly, all men 
discard it. It is often assumed that all, and it is certain that 
some, meteoric stones are fragments which had been broken off 
from greater masses aie launched free into space. It is as 
sure that collisions must occur between great masses moving 
through space as it is that ships, steered F without intelligence 
ted to prevent collision, could not cross and _ re-cross 
the Atlantic fo. ghounsade of years with immunity from col- 
ions. When two great masses come into collision in space, 
itis certain that a large part of each is melt ut it seems 
also quite certain that in many cases a large quantity of débris 
must be shot forth in all oie sala much of which may , 
other oar ae com Pobre in ieeseto to itself, be when it is 
still clothed as at present with vegetation, many great and small 
ents carrying seed and living plants and animals would 
undoubtedly be scattered through space. Hence and because 
We Jay vag eA believe that there are at present, and have 
immemorial, many worlds of life besides our 
own, wemust regardit it as = pobable in the highest degree that ae 
throug 
a sera Fpaeait no life existed upon this ~~ 
one Marach, son e falling upon it might, by what we blindly call na 
fu vais to its becoming covered with vegetation. Iam 
lly pe a the many scientific objections which may 
tae pomp one hypothesis, but I believe them to be all 
sine, Sa taxed your patience too severely 
toal “ ~ a think of discussing any of them on the present 
occasion e hypothesis that life originated on this earth 
through moss- — fra ents from the ruins of another world 
From the earth stocked with such vegetation as it could re- 
ceive seeotieallys Ae to the earth teeming with all the endless 
lety of plants and animals which now inhabit it, the step is 
