PLANETESIMAL THEORIES OF THE EARTHS ORIGIN. 



209 



I will conclude by stating that this is in my opinion an exceedingly 

 important, because a most suggestive, paper, and will give, I think, 

 an impetus to a great amount of thought on this very important 

 subject. 



Professor Orchard wished to express his entire agreement. I 

 must say I thoroughly agree with what the author says on the first 

 page, that the physical laws of nature are Divine methods of 

 working, and with what he says on the second page, that " to learn 

 continually more and more of God's thoughts as revealed in His 

 works, is the highest reward of the student of nature." It reminds 

 me of the words of Keble, " I thank Thee, 0 God, for letting me 

 think Thy thoughts after Thee." 



The Secretary. — I trust you will allow me to be the medium 

 of conveying the thanks of the Institute to Mr. ITpham, for this 

 exceedingly important and interesting paper. He was a short 

 time ago elected Honorary Member of the Institute, and in 

 conveying that information to him, which was exceedingly gratifying, 

 as he had long been what the French call effectif member, I coupled 

 it with the provision that he should send us a paper for this Session, 

 and notwithstanding that he has on his hands an enormous amount 

 of work, he very kindly sent me the offer of two subjects, and this 

 is the one which I selected. I am not at all sorry that it is the one 

 I selected, and I shall be very pleased in sending him our warmest 

 thanks. 



As regards Professor Chamberlin's theory, while recognising its 

 originality and interest, it seems to me to fail in giving a cause for 

 the dominant forces of rotation and revolution by which the solar 

 system is governed. Given the planetesimal conditions, we have 

 to assume the force of gravitation in order that the " little planets " 

 should congregate round centres of attractions ; and in order to 

 form planets rotating and revolving in space. There must have 

 co-existed an impulse causing rotation round an axis, and revolution 

 round a central sun ; but there does not appear to be any 

 explanation of the origin of these movements in Professor 

 Chamberlin's theory. Nor do I feel disposed to accept the new 

 theory for that of Laplace and Newton regarding the origin of our 

 planet. The form of the earth (that of an oblate spheroid) is very 

 suggestive of an originally molten condition from heat, and 

 geological observations tend to support this view. The objection of 



