THE ATOMIC WORLD.

New Zealand Times, Volume LXXI, Issue 4407, 13 July 1901, Page 6 (Supplement)

THE ATOMIC WORLD.

AN INVISIBLE UNIVERSE. A NEW CHAPTER IN EVOLUTION. (By C. C. Ross.) PART I. The above is the heading to a paper forwarded by me to Dr. AJfred Russell Wallace, which may b'e submitted to discussion in England shortly, and it has occurred to mo that a simple summary of its contents may interest Wellington readers. The statement that psychical and socalled spiritual phenomena must remain unexplained in the absence of any definite knowledge of the physical pro cesses involving nervous structure and action leads to an investigation as to what is life and what is death —or, in other words, what is the nature of ner vous action and nerve repair, and to what extent do those physical operations explain psychical phenomena? in the first place, it is evident that the process cf nerve repair does not depend solely upon material or force re ceived from within the organism, for if that were the case, then (nervous ac tion being the basis of life) eliminating the element of disease, life would represent at all times a constant equation, or in' other words would be perpetual. It would, in fact, represent more than this, for —as wo shall presently see—organic operations commence with a greater store of force than is necessary to perpetuate initial vitnlityWhat, therefore, is that which physicians call SENILE DECAY? And in answering this question, shall wo—as might be expected—find a solution of those numerous psychical and spiritual problems, the subject of so much speculation and controversy in scientific and philosophical circles ? Before starting upon an investigation of the points in Question, it will be necessary to refer briefly to one or two apparently.extraneous matters,' which have, however, an important bearing on the subject. In the artificially produced Cathode and Rontgen rays and the naturally evolved Becquerel and Uranian rays, the new science called Radiology deals with a class of phenomena fixed midway between the molecular and aethereal worlds. The decision as to the real na. turo of these radiations is not at present unanimous, but the weight of opinion, headed by no less an authority than Professor Thomson, hold them to bo a minute atomic discharge or emanation from the molecular body, and the Professor further states that the physical operations attendant upon this class of phenomena are by no means limited to a few substances, but that in many inorganic substances, gaseous, liquid and solid, and in all organic bodies there is a constant interchange amongst the atomic particles composing tiro molecules of which the substance is formed, this apparently being merely an antecedent condition to radiological changes. He also points out as a most suggestive fact that the most complex molecules known (those of protoplasmic matter) possess the highest radio-activity. In addition to this, Professor Lennard, of Kiel, has quite recently discovered that when an ultra-violet light is allowed to shine' on objects charged with electricity, they lose their electricity, and Rontgen rays are generated free in the air. This is a most im portant discovery, and lends additional weight to the value of Prof. Thomson’s hypothesis. No explanation has been offered of this phenomenon, but it would appear that it is caused by the contact of two longtitudinal and equiperiodic aethereal wave motions, which, instead of passing through one another unaltered, give origin to homogeneous aethereal vortices possessing the maximum of spiral and minimum of vibratory motion or magneto-atomic (radiant) matter. This conclusion would seem more reasonable than the statement (referring to other phenomena) of Professor Dolbear that “the wave motions of all kinds can cancel similar wave motions, for the wave consists of period, ic movements—a -crest and a trough—and when the crest and trough of one wave is superimposed upon the crest and trough of another similar one the result is the destruction of both waves.’’ To avoid the danger of burdening the discussion with ..outside points, and recognising Prof. Dolboar’s total' disregard of the dynamic principle of the persistence of force, I have here to admit the inferences to be drawn from my hypothesis, namely, that the ether is not frictionless, and that there is constantly going on in the universe the evolution of matter from aethereal motion, and the conversion of matter into its original aethereal consistency arising from a dissipation of its spiral motion. And the widely accepted dynamic principles of physics are after all only rest-ing-places for the mind. THE DESIRED HYPOTHESES. With these facts before us, we can now proceed to formulate the desired hypotheses, which are as follows: All allotropic, isomeric, and polymeric transformations carry with them the evolution of a corresponding invisible atomic body, enveloping and permeating the molecular body and of such a nature that it remains undestroyed through the action of those forces which dissolve the molecular body. The degree of individual and collective coherency and structural and functional differentiation in the atomic body corresponds to that in the molecular body, from w-hich and with which it evolves. The isomeric transformation in nervous matter, the antecedent to nervous action, is caused by the evolution of new atoms (probably phosphorus) through the contact of inner electric and outer aethereal wave motion. The nerve molecules, having a greater affinity for the new atoms, accepts' them in combination, arid in doing so, reject the superfluous atoms which are the prototype of the semi-dependent atomic body. For the sake of brevity, we will pass over those phenomena manifested in inorganic and vegito-organic evolution, which appear to receive a more complete explanation than heretofore by means of. the above hypotheses and narow the investigation to the evolution of the human organism, tracing it from the ultimate to as far as our hypotheses will allow us to go, not for one moment losing sight of the general principles of evolution as laid down by Herbert Spencer.

HOW DID ORGANIC LIFE BEGIN? In fact, a use of Spencer’s own language will here be of considerable assistance in pursuing the investigation. He enquires: “How, then, did organic life begin? If a primitive mass of organic was like a mass of inorganic mat ter in respect of its passivity and differed only in respect of its greater changeableness, then one must infer that its first changes conformed to the same

general law as do the changes of an inorganic mass. The instability of the homogeneous is. an universal principle. In all cases the homogeneous tends to pass into the heterogeneous and the heterogeneous into the more heterogeneous. In the primordial unit of protoplasm, then, the step with which evolution commenced must have been the passage from a state of complete likeness throughout the mass to a state in which there existed some unlikoness. Further, the cause of this step in one of these portions of organic matter, as in any portion of inorganic matter, must have been the different exposure of its parts to incident forces. What incident forces ? Those of its medium and environment. What were the parts thus differently exposed ? Necessarily the inside and tho outside. Inevitably, then, alike in tho organic aggregate and the inorganic aggregate (suppose it to have coherence enough to maintain constant relative positions' amongst its parts) the first fall from homogeneity to heterogeneity must always have been the differentiation of the external surface from tho internal contents. No matter whether the modification was physical or chemical, one of composition or decomposition, it comes within the same generalisation. The direct action of the medium was tho primordial factor of organic evolution. ’’ In clear language Spencer thus' deals with the principles governing the molecular changes of first life, but the question follow?. Can wo not see in the very nature of these molecular change? that atomic dissociation which points to the co-ovolution of an atomic; body with the molecular? It is evident that the first change in the molecular unit is similar to that underlying the building up of nervous matter in the molecular body, and for the following reasons: In tho primordial unit of organic mat. ter, we find in its plastic condition and peculiar chemical composition a marked degree of instability. That is to say, the space occupied by tho constituent atoms of the molecule can be reduced, and the - unit would still remain in a condition permissible to further changes. In other words, tho primordial unit would have a surphis of translatory opportunity over and above ‘ what was necessary to perpetuate its condition of instability. The initial step in evolution would, as -pointed out by Spencer, consist of a differentiation of tho external surface from the internal contents. And the process is as follows:—External aethereal force acting-on the prim ordial unit containing aetherio-motor possibilities (electric charge) dislocates an atom from its internal structure, and' an atom possessing greater affinity rushing in to take its place, electric motion is generated, and the discharged atom with its spiral motion having lost its vibratory power or translatory opportunity, adheres to the primordial molecular unit with the coherence due to gravitation. Tho process of evolution has thus caused an internal structural molecular change, and with it an external cohering atomic unit. The primordial protoplasm or basis of nerve matter may for all purposes be considered as an aggregation of these molecular units with their accompanying atomic bodyguard. We will now follow up THE COURSE OF EVOLUTION.

The growth of the primordial protoplasm in the embryo consists in molecular nutriment obtained from the capillaries of the matrix, and to an extent (diminished at first by less favourable conditions) of the assimilation of aethereally produced atoms. The surplus potential energy with which the life commences (as in the case of the primordial unit) must increase in the same ratio as the molecular structure evolves, but there is of necessity at the same time a corresponding development of the accompanying atomic body. Now, here we approach a most remarkable and interest, ing position. In the same manner that we find in the co-evolution of nervous systems and organic bodies an increasing integration and co ordination of correspondences, so would we expect to find analogous conditions in the co-evo-lution of the nervous system, and the accompanying atomic body, or which, for the sake of brevity, I shall, when dealing with the psychical aspect, call

THE HOMO AND THE EGO. It is evident that if the process of nerve growth (consisting in part of outer and inner aethereal action) were allowed to continue unimpeded, the special conditions of molecular aggregation necessary to human life would be impossible. But we find a compensating factor in the commensurate growth of the atomic body with its power of intercepting and diminishing the access of external aethereal waves to the molecular body. On the other hand, a too rapid growth of the atomic would result in nervous starvation of the molecular, but w© see that the growth of the atomic is dependent upon that of the molecular and nervous. We first see a tendency to an equilibrium in the Homo and Ego, after which those factors which are hastening the dissolution of the Homo are at the time time facilitating the evolution of the Ego. We see the Homo and the Ego each struggling to assert their supremacy, the important factors being aethereal. What surplus force the Honm accumulates is eagerly sought for by the Ego, and as the Ego grows it to that extent limits the supply of aethereal food to the Homo. A state of equilibrium is reached when the Homo has access to just sufficient aethereal food to satisfy its appetite (or in other words, when the repair of nerve substance exactly answers to molecular requirements), and when the Ego receives sufficient aethereal supplies to satisfy its appetite without depriving Homo of that which it requires for its own immediate use. From that time the Ego commences to assert its supremacy, and as it does so the vital opportunities of Homo becom© more and more limited. The absorbent power of the Ego for aethereal food so increases that a time arrives' when Homo’s aethereal supply is reduced to ■zero, and it then throws up the sponge. In a perfectly healthy subject, therefore, natural death of the molecular body or Homo arrives at a period when all outer aetheral influences essential to the life of both the Ego and Homo are ohsorbed by the Ego in the process of the evolution of its own body. Before contemplating the Ego as a released body and enquiring into its physical and material nature and functions let ns return to the period when a complete HARMONY OF ENVIRONMENT existed to both Homo and Ego. It was that period which carried Homo on the road to dissolution and Ego in the dir ection of perfect evolution or complete segregation. The increased body bulk and absorption of'-aethereal motion by Ego was leading to great body (fiSusioa, so much so that its gravitative attrac tion to Homo was getting weaker and weaker. Its independent excursions were getting more frequent and pro longed, and it is not surprising that

Ego hailed with satisfaction its release from the heavy weight of material uoada which had held it to Homo. The first feelings of Ego on its release from Homo were certainly strange, for it missed the congenial electric force which its attenuated atomic form had so gratefully received from Homo. That which to Ego was consciousness (electro magnetic energy) was departing as the spiral motion of its constituent atoms became dissipated and tho danger of a disorganised atomic incohcreaey was approaching. Dark feelings of remorse and despair were taking possession of Ego, when suddenly a brilliant glow appear-* ed, and immediately all the highest* thoughts and feelings of Ego became' vivid and active. A sympathetic aether- 1 Ego sometime released from its Homo 1 had been waiting patiently for the fav-i curable condiiipps now established, and, a magnetic field was brought into exist-, ence which produced in tho rccently-ro-, leased Ego conditions of consciousness similar to that of the aether-Ego, which 1 completed tho magnetic field. Thus l was Ego initiated into the new and mar-! vellous life, and hero we will leave Trim, for a time while we once more return to a beckoning Homo on the eai-tt'sido and enquire whether in his .state off consciousness he has discerned through, his Bond-Ego just a flash of that won-! derful magnetic impulse which came as a grand revelation to the rejoicing re-1 leased Ego. The answer came that the, magnetic field just established the result of-allied sympathies betweem aether. 1 Ego and aether-Ego had its counterpart on the earth side, not only as between* aether-Ego and Bond-Ego, but ns be-i tween Bond-Ego and Bond-Ego,, as manifested in the desire for truth and universal brotherhood,! And then appeared a mighty host of scientists, theologists, advanced! politicians, physicians, mental and faith, healers, Christian scientists, psychologists, thoosophists and spiritualists, not! oue of whom admitted tho doctrines_ of the other, and while ignoring or refusing l to credit the ever-powerful presence of, the Bond and aether-Egos boro testimony to their influence in the every aot| of their every-day life. And with this preliminary introduction to our invisible: friends, we will proceed to a more seri!ous and closer study of them, in _ the 1 hope of discovering some principles, which will restore harmony in this heterogeneous but well-meaning and as. piring multitude.