Lee Parker Dean

“ It may be asked in this widespread universe, will He recognize earth or us? Yet we must remember there is evidence of the same formative Hand alike in each atom of air, the countless worlds, and man himself. Then who but a mightier Power can do what man can not? We may securely feel that if God made man in his own image,—which we are led to believe without the Bible’s revelation—He can give to him protection, thought, and love. ”

“ Again, in a million years of light’s flight there might be as many earths as drops of water in 1300 quintillions of such oceans, or the number of oceans equalling the drops of water in 26,000 cubic miles.
If a sphere with a radius of light’s flight for but one year could contain 3,000 septillions of bodies like our earth, and yet that sphere be but an atom in space, it would seem that space might be infinite in its extent, with our conception of infinity. But if space is finite and light, after a flight of a million of millions of years, reaches its utmost bound ”

“ When we think of ourselves, our earth, and the sun more than a million times larger, and the size that it assumes at a distance of ninety millions of miles, while we receive but 1/2300 millionth of its light and heat; when we think of the millions of suns equally great, but all, taken together, no more than a leaf in a great forest compared with the universe that embraces myriads of suns and systems ”

“ It is even true of animals, for they are enclosed in such varied coverings that their nature is often quite concealed from us. We may as well believe there is something in earth’s interior, away from winds and cold, as precious over and above its crust as the chestnut is better than the burr that encloses it; the fruit better than its rind; or fish, birds, and animals better than their skins. Knowing this, man, while he would grasp the greatness of the universe, may somewhat under-rate the contents of his own earth. ”

“ Remember the same calculations that enable us to determine the number of cubic feet in our earth, sun, or any other sphere, bring these astounding but certain results. And when we further remember this space is every where so clear and powerful that it transmits light at the rate of over eleven million miles each minute, enabling us to see in every part of the heavens the wonderful stars at an immense distance; and that if we bring to our aid the most powerful telescopes they only tend to magnify the already vast number of stars ”

“ That we see their light even, at so great a distance, is proof that they can be no less great. We must account, then, not only for our own planetary system, but for the countless millions that exist; and we must concede that the laws that govern one would, presumably, govern every one. Hence, a period of fire-mist for one implies the same for all.
If the distance from our sun to the next nearest sun is 20 trillions of miles, a sphere whose radius reaches half way, that is ten trillion miles, could contain eight sextillions of suns, each with a diameter of one million of miles. ”

“ If we do not choose to use one cycle of time we may take millions of them, as in the cooling fire-mist theory; but we must not forget that the life we know is only on the crust of earth and goes back but a few thousand years. If earth is the same material as the sun and it takes, as we have stated, two million earths to make one sun of a million miles diameter, with no limit to the number of such suns; we can readily understand, from what we know of life here, that there may exist other great and wonderful beings beyond our highest apprehension. ”

“ To resolve, then, the mystery of the universe we believe that a great stride would be made could we find a being with wisdom like to man’s, but possessing power to create a fire-mist such as is conceived in the Nebular Hypothesis. Finding such a being we should never for a moment think, from what we know of dead matter, of its resolving itself into the order and system displayed in the universe, but unhesitatingly ascribe its formation to a being possessing such wisdom and power. ”

“ When we realize that without the sun’s heat and light we ourselves could not here exist; that it has power to lift the waters that are unfit for man’s use and restore them again in a purified state; and power to produce food for him both in the animal and vegetable kingdom, the truth is not lessened. Were the sun nearer the earth or farther away all life would here be destroyed; and should any one of all the suns in space vary the least in its orbit it would be the destruction of earth. ”

“ It is our first living, our living now, that is wonderful and mysterious; for we find of every invention of man, the first invented one of its kind is the one most wondrous. Then with all this great universe around us shall we not live again? Are we so blinded that we see no chance of living without these bodies, when we possess faculties fitted for the contemplation of an Eternal Universe, although not the power of fully understanding its significance? ”

“ When we think that each one of those earths would contain 260,000 millions of cubic miles it is seemingly all that our minds can well grasp.
We may not know how many millions of years each atom of ether has been in existence, but probably before any worlds ever floated within it; and how can we conceive the thought of death in this immensity of space where there is not the slightest indication of subsidence or decay? We must remember that this ether is a million times more active than air and possesses energies that we cannot conceive of in the more solid substances of the spheres. ”

“ If the sun was once so much greater that it reached out to Neptune,—as it must have done if Neptune was cast off from it,—would not its poles have flattened like those of Earth, and have cooled first, and any matter thrown off from the globe have been at the poles? Yet the poles of Earth seem scarcely to change as it turns on its axis, and a body thrown off from them would not go around the planet; but, on cooling, fall back to the liquid centre. Such being the case why has earth a density greater than the sun, and what was the power that kept, and still keeps it, from sinking into the sun? ”

“ We have seen thus how improbable it is that the earth could be expanded to fill the space it must once have occupied according to the nebular theory; and as we imagine the denser any volume is the more it will expand can we suppose the other planets, with a volume thousands of times greater than that of earth but a density not averaging one-fourth as much, will expand to a greater degree? Were they all ground to the finest dust, even like the atoms we detect floating in the sunbeams, they would no more than fill a globe, with the sun for its centre, whose circumference reached out to Neptune. ”

“ What is true of the seed is true also of every variety of vegetable and animal life. The present ocean and earth are invisible to one born blind, and as little do we see the oceans of life about us. Knowing as we must that such life exists let us look for the fire-mist of life, a few particles of which are familiar to us. We reason from the life we now see that it can be extended; then let us extend it, as the fire-mist of our planetary system, to Neptune’s bounds, reasoning in the same manner from the least to the greatest. ”

“ It seems more agreeable to believe there will be no limit to the sun’s bright radiance. Its unbounded flow of light throughout all the years of past time should give us assurance (until there is certain evidence to the contrary) that it is as capable of existence, and as able to resist the inroads of time, as the water in our oceans, the earth upon which we live, the air surrounding earth, and the ether above; all of which we feel exist and are preserved by the Powerful Hand and All-Seeing Eye of an Almighty Creator. ”

“ The thought we may now well entertain is this; it is remarkable that the earth’s surface where we are dwelling is well adapted for our existence. At present there is life here; that death was in the past, and destruction will be in the future, we may believe as we choose, but have no certainty of the fact; for the indestructibleness of every atom of ether in the universe would seemingly question the power of time to work destruction to our earth so minute in comparison. ”

“ If the stars were formed at different periods of time should not many be still forming? whereas space appears wondrously clear. We would think if all this great space were to-day filled with nebulae composed of material similar to that of earth, we could not see; for our vision of the heavens would be obstructed thereby, and we should know nothing about the countless numbers of stars that, with the aid of the telescope, now make the very heavens to blaze with light. Why is it that the space about all, or nearly all, of the suns has thus cleared if a state of fire-mist is common to all of them? ”

“ Though it is difficult to understand, from all the materials that we are familiar with, how a fire can burn without its substance being consumed, we should remember the bush that astonished Moses by burning without consuming. As little can we conceive that there is a great globe of fire keeping up its flame and heat for thousands of years without being diminished. The sun, although seeming to us small as a ball, is visible at a distance of over 90,000,000 miles. ”

“ There are many qualities of life—as love, goodness, virtue, hate, jealousy, and revenge—that are as dissimilar as fire and water, or darkness and light; and could we behold them they would assume shapes differing as greatly as globes, squares, and triangles differ. ”

“ And yet a sphere of this dimension, even, may be small beside the whole universe of ether whose every atom in all the millions of years past, as far as known, has not in the least diminished its wonderful energy; and, with lightning-like transmission, still brings to our sight light from distant stars, all of which are so distant that they do not materially increase the present flow of light. For if but a single one were to come between us and the sun the increase of that light and heat would be unendurable. ”

“ I conceive that one reason why scientists believe in the nebular hypothesis is because of their knowing that heat consumes. One cannot contemplate a burning object without perceiving that it grows smaller and smaller; therefore why should not the sun with its flaming hydrogen, rising sometimes to a height of 200,000 miles, consume the sun? It is claimed but 1/2300 millionth of its force reaches earth, and yet it is asserted that the sun could melt 287,200,000 cubic miles of ice per second without quenching its heat. ”

“ Could we conceive of any object, even though a million times larger than earth, being seen by us at that distance only from the fact that it is thus daily seen, and apparently is the same size as when our eyes first rested upon it. ”

“ In some manner, like the waters that rise from ocean and return again; like the steam, and burning bodies that are not lost; and like the atmosphere the earth holds, the sun may be also holding its every atom of heat; though changed, perhaps, in some of its combinations. We must remember that the sun’s rays, as they pass into space, can be seen by us only when the vibrations are between 400 and 800 trillions per seconds, for above or below that number they are invisible to human sight. ”

“ In a like manner we are unable with the sun 90,000,000 miles distant, to detect any diminution of its light or heat; and judging only of the condition it was in 2,000 years ago by its power of gravitation, and its hold upon the planet-worlds—as evidenced by the transits of Venus and the eclipses—we are led to believe that, wise as men are, they do not yet fully comprehend all the laws relating to this wonderful Solar Energy. ”

“ Few people are able to see two thousand of them on the clearest night, while many do not see one thousand, because of their inability to detect those of the sixth magnitude. The Milky-Way, therefore, is quite like a great nebula to man’s unaided vision. At each increase of photographic and telescopic power new stars are observed, until it is now said that 100 millions may be visible by their aid. If all these knowable stars are no more to space than a drop of water is to the Atlantic ocean, as the above writer has said, it is not in the least surprising that we see a great number of nebulae. ”

“ If nebulae are thus translucent it does not seem possible that they can be composed of the same materials as the planets of the solar system, whose densities are generally so great. For were the whole of earth’s substance spread out to one-hundredth of an inch in thickness we can not believe it would be sufficiently clear to allow light to penetrate it to any great extent, as earth has a density that leads one to think it is centrally composed almost—if not wholly—of iron, lead, gold, or like weighty elements that seemingly would never be transparent however highly heated and expanded. ”

“ Were earth’s crust no thicker in comparison than the skin of an apple or peach, or 1/100 of its radius even, still man has never penetrated to one-twentieth of that depth; for I know of no place where he has as yet reached one mile below earth’s general level, unless it be in ocean-soundings. In most places the mines or gorges have been in the mountains high above the valleys, consequently we know little of what is far beneath the earth’s surface. ”

“ Sooner or later all men are cast into the great fire-mist of Eternity, but ere they go hence accept or refuse a belief that may affect them throughout eternity. Many men are urging people to accept of the Salvation offered in the Bible, and the spirit within man feels the wisdom of such an acceptance. Men of thought see from their own anatomy that there must be a Being greater than themselves to have formed so wondrous a body, or even to have formed one of the smallest, as a grass-seed or animalcule. ”