446 The Fuel of the Sun. [October, 



Now, the new atmospheric matter which is thus en- 

 countered and inspired, is the recipient of the everlasting 

 radiations whose destination is the subject of Mr. Grove's 

 enquiry ; and these, when thus encountered and com- 

 pressed, will of necessity evolve more or less of the heat 

 which, through millions of millions of centuries they have 

 been gradually absorbing ; while, on the other hand, the 

 expired or ejected matter of the gaseous eruptions will, like 

 the artificially compressed air above referred to, have lost all 

 the heat which during its solar existence it had by compres- 

 sion, dissociation, and re-combination, contributed to the 

 solar radiations. Therefore, when again fully expanded, it 

 will be cooler than the general medium from which it was 

 inspired by the advancing sun. 



The daily supply of fresh atmospheric fuel will be a 

 cylinder of ether of the same diameter as the sun and 

 450,000 miles in length ! I have calculated the weight of 

 this cylinder of ether on the assumption (which of course is 

 purely arbitrary) that the density of the interstellar medium is 

 one ten-thousandth part of that of our atmosphere. Accord- 

 ing to this its weight would be 14,313,915,000,000,000,000 

 tons, affording a supply of 165 millions of millions of tons 

 per second; or, if we assume the interstellar medium to 

 have a density of only one millionth of that of our atmo- 

 sphere, the supply would be rather more than one and a half 

 millions of millions of tons per second. The proportion of 

 this which is effective in the manner above stated is that 

 which becomes stirred into the lower regions of the sun in 

 exchange for the ejected matter of the prominences. 



I will not here dwell upon the bombardment hypothesis, 

 beyond observing that my explanation of solar phenomena 

 supplies a continuous bombardment of the above stated 

 magnitude without adding anything to the magnitude of 

 the sun. 



So far, then, I answer Mr. Grove's question, by showing 

 that the heat radiated into space by each of the solid orbs 

 that people its profundities, is received by the universal 

 atmospheric medium ; is gathered again by the breathing of 

 wandering suns, who inspire as they advance the breath of 

 universal heat and light and life ; then by impact, compres- 

 sion, and radiation, they concentrate and re-distribute its 

 vitalising power ; and after its work is done, expire it in 

 the broad wake of their retreat, leaving a track of cool 

 exhausted ether — the ash-pits of the solar furnaces — to re- 

 absorb the general radiations, and thus maintain the eternal 

 round of life. 





