The Savannah morning news., 1901-08-17

observed that the stars about point in
the constellation Hercules appear to be
slowly spreading apart. while those on
the opposite side of the celestial
sphere are slowly closing in. This
could have but one Interpretation, and
astronomers are unanimous in the be-
lief that the sun, with it's attendant
planets, is moving toward the point In
Hercules which has been variously de-
termined. but with an agreement with
in a few degrees. So the old-time
graduates question of WHITTIER are
we drifting?" is to some extent an
swered. The best calculations seem to
show that the rate of progress is not
far from five miles second, which,
though more than ten times as swift
as the swiftest cannon ball, is not near
ly SO swift as that of many observed
stars. In fact, the whole universe of
stars is in motion, and their apparently
fixed positions are accounted for by
their enormous distances. Even as
seen from the nearest stars, the suns
progress across the sky would seem to
about equal the distance across the
face of the moon after a period of 2,700
years. If person on earth should go
to sleep tonight after looking at the
stars, waken again after sleep of a
hundred thousand years and look again
upon the sky 1t would present almost
its accustomed aspect. Unless he was
an unusually close observer he would
see no change whatever. Yet all this
time the sun and it's attendant worlds
are rushing through space at a rate OF
close. upon half a million miles every
twenty-four hours, constantly encoun-
tering the meteoric and cometary
bodies with which the intervening
space seems to be so largely tenanted.
The results of these encounters to the
human race, in the future, as in the
past, are likely to be mainly spectacu-
lar, comets with sweeping trains and
gorgeous displays of shooting stars
The comets are no longer feared since
1t has been shown that they are COM
posed mainly of attenuated gas and
their luminosity probably electrical
light the aurora. What of the danger
of meeting swarm of meteors in
which the stones will be of great size
and weight, and which will rain down
with death and destruction upon the
earth? The answer must be that in the
millions of years that have elapsed
since the formation of the world no
such shower has taken place, or the
earth would be thickly strewn with
meteoric stones. AS a matter of fact,
they are extremely rare, and what has
not happened in several million years
past is not likely to happen very often
in the future.
1t is possible, indeed. that in our
journey we may encounter bodies of
planetary bulk now moving cold and
dead, without a sun to warm or power
to lead them right. Even in this case
there will be no collision, though the
stranger may be adopted into our fam
lily of worlds, either ranking as an in
dependent planet or a satellite, if ne
ventures too near a planet of greater
size.
But if we do not travel far-side real
ly speaking-in a hundred thousand
years, there are more and yet more of
hundreds of thousands and millions of
years to follow. AS yet we do not know
whether we are going forward in a
straight line or fulfilling part of a
mighty orbit. We only know that we
are being carried resistlessly to an I'M
known destination. What encounters
are ultimately involved? What new
constellation will come into our sky?
What knowledge will we gain of 9TH
er worlds?
There is, indeed. one mighty posi-
bility that must not be overlooked. 1t
is looked upon by astronomers as a
fixed and certain fact that after a
lapse of some millions of years the sun
will cease to give out his life giving
rays and become dark and cold. Then,
it would seem. it is the destiny of the
human race to perish. But may there
not be escape? May it not be that as
our sun nears it's extinction it may
draw up to sun of glowing life, might
Ter than itself, as we known many of
the stars to be? We know that there
are instances of these invisible attend
ants upon bright stars. and we have
strong reason to believe. in some in
stances at least, that they were not
thus from the beginning, but have
come together after the manner sug-
gested above. And it is possible that
thus the brave old earth will be res
cued from the icy death that seems
otherwise awaiting her.