The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1882-08-17
The Glories of the Starlit Heavens.

If the eye could gain gradually in
hght-gathering power, until it attained
something like the range of the great
gaugng telescopes OF the Herschels,
how utterly would what we gee now seem
lost in the inconceivable glories thus
gradually unfolded. Even the revela-
tons of the telescope, save as they ap-
peal to the minds eye; would be DIS
nothing. to the splendid scene revealed;
when within the spaces which now show
black between the familiar stars of our
consultations, thousands of brilliant
orbs would be revealed. The milky
luminosity of the Galaxy would be seen
aglow with millions Of suns, its richer
portions blazing so reSplendently that
no eye could bear to gaze long upon the
wondrous display. But with every in
crease o. power more and more ihyr.
lads of stars would break into view.
until at last the scene would be unbear-
able in its splendor. The eye would seek
for darkness as for rest. The mind
would ask for scene less oppressive in
the magniticence of its inner meaning; /;
Tor even as seen, wonderful though the
display would be, the glorious scene
would scarce express the millionth part
OF its real nature, as recognized by q
mind conscious that each point of light
was q sun like ours, each sun the CEN
ter of q scheme of worlds such as that
globe on which we 'slive and move and
have our being"
Who shall pretend to picture q scene
80 gloriousp II the electric light could
be applied to iliumine fifty million lamps
over the surface of black domed vault,
and those lamps were here gathered in
rich clustering groups, there strewn
more sparsely, after the way in which
the stairs are spread over the vault of
heaven, something like the grandeur OF
the scene which we have imagined would
be realized-but no human hands could
every produce such an exhibition OF
celestial imagery. AS for maps, it is
obviously impossible by any maps which
could be drawn, no matter what their
scale or plan, to present anything even
| approaching to correct picture of the
| heavenly host. There is no way even
of showing their numerical wealth in q
single picture.
1t is not till we have learned to look
on all that the telescope reveals as in its
turn nothing, compared with the real
universe, that We have rightly learned
the lessons which the heavens teach, so
far, at least, as it lies within our feeble
powers to study the awful teaching OF
the stars. The range Of the puny in
struments man can fashion Is no meas
ure, we may be we'll assured, of the uni
verse as it is. The domain of telescop-
lcally visible space, compared with which
the whole range Of the visible universe
of stars eeems but a point, can be III
turn but as point compared with those
Infinite realms of star-streWn spaoe
which lie on every side of our universe,
beyond the range-millions of times
further than the EXTREMIST scope-of the
Instruments by which man has extended
the powers of visions given to him by
the Almighty. The finite-for after ali,
infinite though it seems to us, the region
OF space through which we can extend
our survey is but fnite-can never bear
any proportion to the infinite save that
of infinite disproportion. All that we
can see is as nothing compared with that
which is; all we can know is as moth
ing; though our knowledge "grow from
more to more," seemingly without limit
In fine, we may say Gas our gradual,
widening vision shows us the nothing
ness OF what we have seen, of what W.
see, OF what we can ever see), not, a.
Laplace said: "7he K710a0n IS Little.
but "THE KNOWN rs NoTHING;" no
"7he U9atno,On IS hn1neenSe," but eth
UNKNOWN IS INFINITE. ."-Prof. Proc
Tor, IN KnoeOled0e.