The Origin of Force. 



83 



mystery from the universe; nothing can do that. But wc reduce 

 mystery to the minimum, and adopt an intelligible explanation of the 

 universe, which fully accounts for all its physical and psychical phe- 

 nomena. It is thus scientifically true that in the beginning God 

 shaped or carved the heavens and the earth out of ether. 



On the evening of the first day the unwrought earth was speeding 

 its way around the central nucleus of our system of worlds. Neither 

 the sun nor the earth existed then as now ; but in their places were 

 the materials out of which they were to be formed. As the nebulous 

 earth continued to contract, its revolutions increased in velocity. 

 Heat, which is but a form of motion, was liberated in the great con- 

 test with gravity; rotation tending to expansion on the surface and to 

 contraction in the interior. In the progress of contraction, atoms 

 approached so near that other laws found practical application. The 

 varying conditions had differentiated atoms. Atoms which were alike 

 tended to cohesion ; atoms which were unlike possessed chemical affin- 

 ities. The process of cooling by the radiation of heat into space has- 

 tened contraction, which produced changed conditions among the 

 atoms and new forms of matter. By the constant attraction caused 

 by contraction, cohesion and chemical affinity, heat was set free in 

 such abundance that it could not be stored away. It then took the 

 form of a wave ; became radiant heat, light. 



As heat is the product of motion, so light is the product of heat. 

 The Hebrews expressed this relation of light to heat with scientific 

 precision, using the same word for both, only changing the pronunci- 

 ation — as or and tir. 



A dark, unwrought globe, followed by one emitting light, is the 

 testimony alike of scientific investigation and the illumination of 

 Scripture. The ancient Psalmist sings the story* grandly as follows: 



And the earth was formless f and empty ,\ 



And darkness was upon the face of the abyss. 



And the spirit of God broodeth upon the face of the vapors. 



And God said, Let there be light ; 



And there was light. 



And God saw the light that it was good. 



*The translation is from " The Theistic Conception of the World," by Dr. 

 Cocker. 



tin the oriffinal, toTiM (confused, unwroufrht). 

 $In the original, ho\m (empty). 



