Democratic enquirer. [volume] (M'arthur, Vinton County, Ohio) 1867-1873, 1872-06-05
Among the stars.

worlds and suns. Science is
driving imagination out of her
old realms, and the muse has
taken flight before the storm
Of facts which is pelting this
generation. Men are troubled
about the destruction Of old
systems to which their fathers
pinned their faith, and children
are mourning over the wrecks
of pleasant tradition which lie
strewn in their peculiar do
main of fairyland. Ithas been
stated by some poet.philoso>
pher' that the line of beauty is
a curve, and that the most es-
sential element of beauty is
mystery. The world is now
making a straight line for facts,
and the beauty of mystery is
grad ually fading before its
eyes. 1t is like a child tearing
to pieces plaything in eager,
ness to comprehend it.
Mr. r. A. Proctor has been
after the stars again since he
published his famous book,
"Other Worlds than Ours
and has more fully developed
his theory that the superior
planets in our system have a
partially solar character. He
has paid Jupiter a flying visit
and discovered a hurricane go>
ing on there among the clond-
belts, driving at the rate of $50
miles per hour for six weeks,
over an extent Of Jovian ter
ritory equal to the whole sur.
face Of our earth. Nothing
terrestrial that we know of
could stand such a strain as
this a minute. 1t would in an
instant whirl the world into
heap of rubbish, and then blow
the rubbish away like chaff.
In examining into the causes
of such an atmospheric convul-
sion, Mr.. Proctor concludes that
one Of the conditions must be
the great heat Of the body of
the planet itself. This be as
certains to be equal to the tenn
perature Of red.hot iron, too
warm for any life of which we
can have the least conception.
The astronomer concludes that
Jupiter was not made to live
in, and that the province Of
the planet is to give Light and
heat to his satellites, and make
them comfortable dwelling.pla-
ces. Jupiter, therefore, shines
partially by his own light, as
we'll as that of the sun, and
performs a sort of double duty
in the solar system in nourisb-
ing and keeping his satellites
good order for the life they
bear. Mr.. Proctor is Of the
opinion that the superior plan
cts are most likely quasi-suns;
sources of heat and light for
the satellites which circle them.
The inference is that if life ex-
lists at present, at least, in the
Jovian and Saturnian systems
at all, it must be on the Satel-
lites, not on the planets them.
selves, which are probably as
uninhabitable to beings like
ourselves, as the sun.
Accepting this theory, and
following it to its inevitable
conclusions, it appears that it
is the smaller worlds for which
the great globes are made; and
that the smaller the world the
brighter and fairer the life it
contains. 1t may be supposed
that as the seasons are shorter
and changes quicker, therefore
life must be intenser and more
rapid, though in many respects
smaller in scale than on our
own little planet. Certainly
the big places of the universe
seem absolutely untitled for
any life sharing the smallest
analogies to cur own; they are
therefore supposed to be sub
tsidiary to the life of the small
er spheres, and the great globes
from the sun downwards are
rather subservient to the small
ones, than the small to the great.
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The people of Massachusetts