Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1871-08-17
The Origin of TerrestrlaI Life,

In his address before the British association
for the advancement of science, the newly
elected president, Sir William Thompson, pro-
posed new theory, not of the absolute origin
Of life, but of its origin or first appearance on
our earth. Sir William, the Tribune CORE
spondent says, deserves to be, If he is not, as
well known in this country as Huxley or OAR
win. He rejects decisvely the theory of spon-
taneous generation and adopts as an article of
scientific faith, true through all space and
through all time, that life proceeds from life
and from nothing but life. The ne
cessity of an original creation would
seem to be an inevitable corollary of this
proposition. Sir William does not dispute this.
There was a time in the physical history of the
earth when it was red hot, melted globe, on
which no life could exist. A series of changes
fitted it for the reception of living things but
there was still no life. There were rocks and
sand, water, air and sun, But no life. We see
something analogous when the lava stream from
a volcanic eruption is cooled and dsinteRrated
in the lapse of time. In few months or years
it turns with vegetable and animal life, origin
ated by the transportation of seed and the mi
grafton Of living creatures.
He suggests that the beginning of vegetable
life on the earth may be similarly explained.
Every year many thousands Of fragments of
solid matter fall upon the earth. Some, per.
haps all of these have been broken off from
greater masses and launched through space till
they come in contact with the earth. The ad-
dress proceeds as follows:-
20 a..
tween great masses moving through space as il
as mat ships, seered without intelligence direct
60 70 prevent collision, could not cross and re-
cross lhe Atlantic for thousands of years with
immunity from collisions. When two great
nlasSes Solle lnuo collision in space it is certain
tnAt large part o. each is melted; but il seems
also quite certain that in many cases a LARGE
quAnuty Oi ueOrtS must be shot forth in all d.
rections, much Of which NAV have exnar;a,cad
no greater violence imam individual pieces of rock
experience in landslip or in BLASTING INV g1,n-
powder. Should the time when this esrtb oa,aas
into collision with another body cnmnar
able in dimensions to itself, be wbanP !,
is still clothed as at present ,;.h
vegetation, many great and small fragments
carrying seed and living plants and animals
would undoubtedly be scattered through snace
Hence and because we all confidently believe
that there are at present. and have been from timt
immemorial, many worlds of life beside oul
own we must regard it as probable in the high
COS ueElee lhat thSte art couhlless seeu-Oearln'
rhetoric stones moving about through space
at the present instant no life existed upon thi
earth, one such stone falling upon 1t might, b,
what we blindlY call natural causes lead 10 il
becoming covered with vegetation. / am full,
conscious Of the many scientific objection
which may be urged against this hypothesis
put believe them to be all answerabie"
This hypothesis, Sir William maintains, is no
unscientidc; on the contrary it is not only DOS
sible, but probable. This is curious specula
ton, but whatever its merits as such, to be con
irmed or disproved by further advances 4
knowledge, ii evidently contributes nothing &c
yard the solution Of the problem Of the ult