204 ASTRONOMYANDTHEBIBLE
there inspacemaybesystems evenvaster andmore
splendidthanourown. Asthestarsarewithoutnum-
ber,soprobablyarethese systemsofworlds. Who,
then, canmeasurethe power ofthe Creator inthis
matterofgravitationbetweensunsandworlds! God
peoplesimmensitywithHiswonders,andreignswith
majesty andmight throughthe unsounded deeps of
Hisunlimiteddominions.
''Standinguponthelatestfoundofalltheplanets,
atadistanceofmorethan3,000,000,000milesfromthe
sun, we are able to look backwards, and examine
theworldsandsystemswhichareallembracedwithin
thevastcircumferenceofNeptune's orbit. Anocca-
sional comet, overleapingthismighty boundary, and
flyingswiftlypastus,buriesitselfinthegreatabyss
ofspace,toreturnafteritslongjourneyofathousand
years, andreport totheinhabitants of earththein-
fluenceswhich have swayedits movementin thein-
visibleregionswhitheritspeedsitsflight.
"Themagnificenceandcomplexityofthegreatsys-
temofplanets,andsatellites,andcomets,whichcon-
stitute the sun'sretinue, the immense magnitude of
someoftheseglobes,theirperiodsofrevolution,and
reciprocalaction,wouldseem tofurnishsufficientex-
ercise,notonlyforthehighestintellectualefforts,but
fortheentireenergywhichthehumanmindcanexert.
Butthewholeofthisstupendousscheme,asweshall
soonsee,isbutaninfinitesimalportionoftheuniverse
of God, one unit among the unnumbered millions
which fillthe crowded regions of space. Standing
on theverge of theplanetary system, we findour-