New-York tribune., 1920-02-09
Ether. Holds Secret
] Of After-Life, Says.
. Sir Oliver Lodge
But 1t May Be Several Cen.
turtles Before Man Will
Understand Phenomena.
i. Scientist Tells Audience

Mans knowledge of the nature of his
existence after the termination Of his
earthly life may be established when
he learns more definitely what ether is,
which may be several centuries hence,
according to Sir Oliver Lodge, who at
the. Shubcrt Theater last night con-
tinued his course Of scientific lectures
with discussion of "The Ether of
Space"
Contending that ether is "a material
substance of a more subtle kind than
visible bodies," Sir Oliver asserted It
fills all space between the planets,
which apparently is empty. It's impor-
tance, he said, was shown by the fact
that it holds the universe together, en-
ables light and heat,to be transmitted
to the earth from the sun, keeps each
planet in it's course, has q motion and
energy beyond all human comprehen-
sion and underlies the law of gravita-
tion. Yet, while science is fast learn
ing ether is perhaps the most substan-
tial thing in the universe" it is an
element, like electricity, of which much
is known, but of which still more re-
mains to be known, said Sir Oliver.
Relation to Future Life Unknown
Abiding to the inability of human
senses to perceive as yet what ether is
or its relation to future life, Sir Oliver
said: Either is not discernibe by the
ordinary senses. We should be unable
to understand ether if we are limited
by the sense of touch. Hold your hand
TO, the fire, put your face in the sun
shine; what do you feel? You are con-
scious of something not arriving
through ordinary matter at all. 1t is
something akin to vibration in the ether
that our eyes and skin feel"
1t is through substantial medium
like ether, and not through empty
space, that the sun is able to exert it's
tremendous attraction for the earth,
Sir Oliver pointed out. Radiation is
not the only thing which the earth re-
ceives from the sum-" he said. "There
is the gravitative pull, force or ten
sion more than what 100000 steel
could stand. What medium transmits
this gigantic force? Again, take steel
bar itself When stretched, with how
great density its parts cling together!
Yet its particles are not in absolute
contact. They are .frtually attached
to each other by ether, medium which
is competent to bears the greatest
stresses which gravitation and cohesion
can exert"
Man Has Much to Learn
Mans efforts to learn what ether
really is, to grasp it scientifically as
substance, so far has borne him. re-
suits small in comparison to what he
has yet to learn, said Sir Oliver. "In
spite of the wide range of our re-
search and experiments our knowledge
is far from absolute" he said. "Not
yet have we any dynamical theory of
electrical currents or of static charges
of magnetism. Not yet, indeed, have we
any dynamical theory of light. In fact,
ether has not yet been brought under
the domain of simple mechanics. and
conceivably it may remain apart. When
the present century or the next century
lets US deeper into the secrets of some
other phenomena now in course OF
being nationally investigated. I feel that
it will be no merely material prospect
that will open to US, but some glimpse
into region of the universe which
science has not yet entered, but which
has been sought from afar and perhaps
blindly apprehended by painter and
poet, philosopher and saint" =
The Einstein theory has added much
to knowledge concerning light, Sir
Oliver said, but he disagreed with Elm
STEMS denial of the existence of ether
in space. The very DETECTION Of the
light of stars, calculated to an in
finitesimal fraction by Einstein in
1905 and verified recently by American
and British astronomers during an
eclipse Of the sun, showed, he said,
that light was affected by gravitation
and that there was ether in space.
II know that in these days of the
Einstein theory it is legitimate to
doubt the existence of ether" he said.
II believe that Einstein and his asso-
ciates do not deny its existence, but
ignore it. Nevertheless, believe that.
in fifteen or twenty years they will
come around to the view that they can
not dispense with it."