The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1901-11-11
MATTER AND FORCE.
ENERGY CANNOT BE CREATED NOR
CAN IT Be DESTROYED.
II !'"ny Mnn Could Accomplish Ell
ther of These Impossible Things,
He Could Cause ..thc Wreck cr Mat.
ter End .he Crasi. Of yyor.ds.-

ther of These Impn,sible Things.
He Could Cause "thc Wreck cl Mat
ter End .hc Crasi. Of Worlds"
!! you could ina gine an oar:hworm
trying TO run the Niagara Electric
Lighting and Power transmission
works. you would have some faint inca
+, OF the capacity Of the greatest ,.uman
genius that ever lived u run the visible
universe. That is probably Why tie
wiscst OF Us Is not permitted 10 un-
Icrstand the final secrets of nature.
Here is good example. Take 4 ride
into a place sufficiently far from the
habitations Of men; put the butt on the
ground and support it so that the bar
rel points straight up and pull the trig
ger. The bullet will leave the muzzle
| with velocity Of. say. 5000 feet a sec
ond. II Will rise 10 an enormous
| height. come 10 a standStiil for an in
| hnitcsimal fraction Of q second and be
gin 10 fan back again. 1t will strike
the earth with very nearly but not
| quite the same velocity as il left the
nuzzle Of the gun. 1t would be exact
~ the same but for the resistance Of
| the air.
| What has happened is this: The e.-
plcsion Of the powder has changed a
solid into n gas. ana the expansive Ell
ergy Of this has driven the bullet up
ward. In other words. it ha, for tie
| time ovcrct-ne that mysterious force
| by which the earth draws everything
toward its own center.
| But when the energy Of the exploded
powder Is exactly balanced by the pull
IF gravitation the bullet falls back. In
the first second after its turn it falls
Ii feet. in the next 81. in the next 81.
n the next lbs. and SO on till il returns
-.;h ever increasing velocty whence
ii started.
Nothing has been lost. nothing gain
ed. The gases set free by the eXplo-
| sion Of the powder weigh exactly as
much as the solid. Some Of the energy
has been used as heat some in propel
ling the bullet. Gravitaton, overcome
for awhile. has reaSserted itself The
sum OF matter and force in the uni
! verse is absolutely unchanged.
This is as true Of the quickened beat
OF girls heart when she meets her
lover as il Is OF the march Of the plan
cts and suns through the fields Of space
Every atom OF matter. every Unit OF
force, throughout the universe is con-
stant. external and exactly balanced.
and the whole strength ana genius of
humanity could not increase or dimin-
sll them by the slightest fraction.
Now. let us imagine what would hap
pen il man could make that bullet
strike the earth With greater or less
force than ii left the muZzle Of the gun.
He would either have increased or de-
creased tie total Of universal energy.
and in either case he would have
thrown first the solar system and then
the whole universe out of gear.
The earth and all the other planets
| would begin 10 rcvolvc in different or
| bits. The sun. with its family Of worlds.
would alter its path round the un-
knawD cenIe. about which II rcvolves.
| Then world would be hurled against
| world ana sun against sun. and stars
and planets would be reduced 10 the
flaming gases from which they cooled
into solids and liquids before time be-
gan to be.
Just the same catastrophe would hap
peu il man could either create or en-
tirely destroy grain Of sand on the
scashore. The balance of the universe.
| i'm which swing stars and planets.
whose weight is ineXpressible in human
figures uhis tiny world of ours weighs
& ot0. .Oou, 600. .Oo0. 600 100000 tonsl. is in
tinitely more delicate than that which
the chemist has to keep in an alright
case and ut an even temperature lest
breath OF air should throw it out OF
gear.
Thus the destruction or creation OF
| grain Of sand would change the orbit
of the earth round the sun. In the
one ease it would be drawn closer and
closer TO the sun. perhaps after thou
sands of revolutions TO be swallowed
up in fiery ruin In the other case ii
would gradually leave the sun and ye;.r
by year wander farther away into re-
rions of space where human life wouii
he impossible.
The result OF the dislocation OF such
n stupendous system. which has work
cd with unfailinE eNactitude for count
less ages, Is. OF course. utterly beyond
the scope of human imagination. ana
vet such seeming triiie as the creation
or destruction Of Il single grain o. sand
| might. and probably would. plunge il
into utter chaos and ruin.-Pearson $.
| vv-v,o,. CnlA VOOks Green.