MARVELS OF THE HEAVENS.

Cromwell Argus, Volume XXXVII, Issue 1984, 16 April 1906, Page 7

MARVELS OF THE HEAVENS.

PKOF. DARWIN AND CELESTIAL WONDERS. * In the second part of his presidential address to the British Association, delivered in Johannesburg, Professor Darwin dealt with various theories of celestial evolution. Speaking of the age of the solar system, Professor Darwin said it seemed to be imperatively necessary that the whole history of the solar system should be comprised within some 20,000,000 years. Since radio-active materials are contained in the earth, Professor Darwin thinks that it is almost certain that the sun is radio*active also. Professor Darwin concluded his address by the following remarkable passage : "Man is but a microscopic being relatively to astronomical space, and he lives on a puny planet circling round a star "of inferior- rank. Does it not, then, seem as futile to imagine that he can discover the origin and tendency of the universe as to expect a housefly to instruct us as to the theory, of the motions of the planets ? "And yet, so long as he shall last, he will pursue his search, and will no doubt discover many wonderful tilings which are still hidden. "We may, indeed, be amazed at all that man has been able to find out but the immeasurable magnitude of the undiscovered will throughout all time remain to humble his pride. Our children's children will still be gazing and marvelling at the starry heavens, but the riddle will never be read."