The Plymouth Democrat. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1869-1941, 1870-07-07
Natures = r,ator.

WHAT goes up maSt come down, we
bows used 10 sing IN one OF our youthful
Games The converse. what comes down
must have gone up, or have been forced
up, leads To the consideration OF some OF
the most stUpendous operations OF nature.
On all hands we may see these opera
tons proceeding in silent grandeur.
Masses of matter, which, aggregated, De-
come almost inconcelvable IN magnitude,
are constantly moved upward from the
earth's surface, To descend in due time;
again to be raised and again TO fall. So
tbe ponderOus engine of nature Oscillates
constantly, without faltering, vet II moves
50 quietly and with so little friction, that
only occasionally, when the thunder
shakes the earth, or the hurricane raVaSes
the land and sea, d. We note the tremen-
dous power of the common natural forces,
which, in the calm summer day or the
winters storm, are always at woTk about
u.s.
The water constantly accumulating in
the air descends and fills the rivers We
see and wonder at the aggregated power
of these torrents as they Impetuously
rush toward the sea, learing precipices
and sweeping every obstacle before them;
b II we do not realize the great truth that
is transporting To the clouds as much
water as the rivers are carrying down.
We stand bv some m 3untain side whose
forests are being felled and transported
to the valleys, without rejecting that all
this vast mass of material was carried up,
molecule by mOlecule, in the atmosphere
and in the sap until It's accumulation be-
came so great as To be demanded Tor the
uses of mankind.
The unseen power that does sll this
work is solar heat. Where there IS lie
there is heat" and il would seem. that
heat is essential To all life. At least, We
cannot conceive of life without heat and
so intimately connected are heat and mass
melton that it is difficult to conceive OF
them as other than cO-eXisient.
Heat is the great prime mover; all else
is secondary in natural as wei as artlnclal
mechanics Does falling water turn our
wheels? Heat raised the water first.
Does wood or coal genera e our steamg
Solar heat stored up the carbon which
constitutes the bulk of that iuel, and set
the rivers running and the winds blow
ing, 10y which we transport Il To our FUR
naces Do we EN-. 10y animals 10 carry
our burdens2 The food which nourisaes
them and enables them TO perform Ia
bpr, was collected 10y the action OF the
solar heat.
We find. then, all life, all motion, all
work, traceable tn the power Of solar
heat. This is the great mechanical en-
CINE employed by nature 10 keep every
thing running To day bold inventors
are endeavoTing to bring this heat into
direct subi-ction as a motor, bat should
they succeed, So that coal, wood, peat or
other fuel should no logger be ne ded To
imnel machinery, they viii only nave
eliminated few terms of the erea' me-
chaHical equation. Ii Is the sun that does
inc work CA the water-w heel ana IN TIE
steam boiler. as truly as IN Ericssons
solar engine
And IN the ;csent state OF science
IN. re- is liz le doubt. that not only me-
chanical energy, but everv other form or
terrestrial energy included IN the cafe
CORY of force, msy be ultimately traced
Io the sun rs its source. he sun Is. IN
this view, the grr AT central motor of The
lar sy stem From whence II derives its
power, what constantly maintains ITS
ht at, is one of the gra' dest problems sci
ence has ever grsppled With and one
which is not yet sOlved.-lSc el.tific ADaeTt-
ran