The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1875-08-27
Does Life Exist in the Planets

The theory, or rather hypothesis, that
many or all of the members of the stel-
lar and planetary universe are the abodes
of life, that is, of living organisms, has
long been received with favor, and, al
though the question would appear to be
beyond the limits of argument even, vet
1T has been made the subject of many
learned essay or poetic effusion. In a
recent number of the Cornhill Magazine
Richard a. Proctor ventures again to
approach the subject, reviewing it under
the title: Life, Past and Future, in
Other Worlds" Deeming it probable
that many of our readers may fail to
meet with the paper in full, we are
prompted to give extended space to a
condensed review of it's main points
convinced that they will recognize in
the authors line of reasoning, though
necessarily one of analogy, many points
IN favor of the conclusion, viz, that it is
more probable that life is wanting than
that life exists at this present time in
other worlds than ours. At the close of
brief reference to opinions expressed
IN former essays, and at variance with
those now advanced, the writer adds ::
Let the matter be explained as it may.
1T was only gradually that both the
Brewsterian and Whewellite theories of
life IN other worlds gave place in the
writer's mind to a theory in one sense
intermediate to them, in another sense
opposed to both, which seem to accord
better than either with what we know
about our own earth, about the other
members OF the solar system, and about
other suus which people space. What
we now propose to do is to present this
theory as specially illustrated by the
two planets which adorn our evening
skies during the summer months of the
present year" The planets to which
ailuslon is here made are Jupiter and
Mars, and their past, present and future
conditions are made the subject of
thoughtful consideration. The ground
work upon which Prof. Proctor bases
his whole argument against the probable
present existence of life in other worlds
may be stated as follows Organic life
Is but natural phenomenon and de-
ponds upon cOngenial physical con-
dltlons, without which there couId he no
life. In other words, to prove that life
abounds on any planet we must first
accept the fact that the physical con-
dluons on that planet are "life-sup-
porting. returning now to the main
argument, the writer notices at length
the various forms of life upon or globe
and the possible conditions under which
u exists, giving special attention to
the evidence that mature possesses a
power of modifying the different types
IN accordance with the varying condi-
tons under which they subsist.
Still" he adds, and in this sentence
sounds the keynote of all subsequent
reasoning, "theTe must be limit be-
yond which the change of the earth's
conditions, whether through the cooling
OF her own globe or the 6iminution Of
the suns heat, will be such that no con-
celVable modification of the types of
me now existing could render life posi-
ple. The struggle for life in
WIVES tle repeated victory of death.
Naturs, wasteful of individual
me- is equally wasteful of types of life."
anu at length the time comes when
the struggle for existence can mapifestIv
nave out one end, and then, though the
type may llnger long before it Actually
disappears, its disappearance is only
question of time" Admitting the ms
uce of this general proposition the
writer arrives naturally at the following
conclusion: We have also only re-
consider that life on the earth necessari-
ly mad beginning to infer that it must
necessarily have an end. Clearest evil
uence SHOWS how our earth was once n
nuld haze OF light and how for count-
less icons atterward her glObS was in
stlhct with fiery heat, amid which no
form OF lie could be conceived to exist.
after the manner of life known 70 us
though the germs of life may have been
present IN the midst of the fire. Then
iolloWed ages IN which the earth's glow
ing crust was drenched by showers of
murlatlc, nitric and sulphruic acid. not
only intensely hot, but fierceIy burning
through their chemical activitv.' ONLY
AFTER Perods Infinite to our conventions
could lie such as we know il, or even
IN the remotest degree like what is now
Known 10 us, have begun to exist upon
tle 6Srth' The reader will discover
tiHI rOI. Proctor anticipates the vaCue
oDJections OF the purely Imaginative op-
1G?Hnents py limiting his definition of
IIIo " THAT which exists after the man
nSL Known low TO us. If we have succeed
Su III the rather difficult task of con-
aenslhg an already succinct arouuent
the reader will be ready to follow +bo
author IN his next step. and ms he hos
dehned the nature of this step in a few
pref sentences, we give then. os fol-
lows We see our earth passinp
through vast period, from it's first ex2
lsCehce SIS a separate member Of the
solar system to the time when life an
Peareu upon Its surface; then began
comparatively short period, now in
progress, during which the earth has
pesh ana Will be the abode of life
ana after that must follow a period
innhlte to our conceptions. when
the cold aud inert globe of the
earth Will circle as lifelessIv round
the sun as the moon now does we
may II we please. infer this from analogy
seeing that the duration of life is aIyvsys
INFINITELY small 10y comparison wifi the
uuratlon OF the region where life an
pears so that, by analogy, the duration
VI ne on the earth would lie infinitely
n 81 compared with the duration Of
t tLe earth itself. But we are brought to
NC same conclusion Independently of
aa,,I, ~, PercelVIng that the fire of the
ola nc youth and the deathly cold of her
tio,, p|3l must alike be infinite in Gura-
iSa wi, ooLl pared with her period of vital,
preserving warmth. And what Is
true OF the earth is true of ever, ,,,o,,,
Der OF the solar system. major nianat
MINOR planet, asteriod. or sateIIite
PropaoIy OF every orb in space from
the mlnutest meteOrite TO SIMS excaa5.
ing ing our sun thousand-fold in volume"
Inc remainder of the attractive ESSAY
Is occupied IN an attempt to prove, by
analogy and fact, so far as facts orc
attalnable, that, viewed merely as
problem of chances. it is improbable
that at the present time or at anv givay,
time, the conditions of two or more
planets viii be $50 closely allied as to make
them Incorporating. Mars has in all
probability passed this stage, and Jupi-
ter is yet far from it, though advancing.
Nor need we stop" he adds, sat solar
systems, since within the infinite uni
verse, without beginning and without
end, not only suns but systems of SIMS,
galazles OF such systems, to higher and
higher orders endlessly, have long
since passed through all the stages of
Their existence as systems, or have all
those stages yet to pass through. In
the presence of time, intervals thus seen
to be at once infinitely great and in
hnltely httle-infinitely great compared
with the duration of Oy,r