254 ASTRONOMYANDTHEBIBLE
"Thesenegativesrevealtheopeningandinteriorof
acavern sostupendous that ourentire solar system,
includingtheorbitofNeptune,wouldbelosttherein.
Inallordinarytelescopes,thenebulalookslikeaflat
surface. I havewatched itsince thedaysofyouth,
inmanytelescopesofmanypowers,butneverdreamed
thatthecentralregionisthemouthofacolossalcave."
"Humanspeechis impotent. Penofwriter,brush
ofartist,alikearelifelessandinertinanyattempteven
to describe this interior. Mammoth Caveglories in
Kentucky,illuminedbyelectriclights,aresobeautiful
thatwordscannotbeusedintheirdescription. What,
then,shouldbesaidofthemightycaverninthedepths
ofdepthsofOrion'snebula? Torn,twisted,andriven
massesofshininggas,irregularpillars, columns and
stalactites inglittering splendor, and stalagmitesris-
ing fromthemightyfloor! Theappearance is that
oflightshiningand glowingbehindHerculeanwalls
ofivoryorpearl, andthesestuddedwithmilUons of
diamondpoints—shiningstars."
Professor Larkin estimates that the depth of the
chasmcannotbelessthanfiftytrillionmiles. Thisis
the distanceapproximately of thebright star Sirius
from this earth. It isa distancethatlight, though
traveling atthe velocity of 186,000 miles asecond,
wouldtakeeightyearstotraverse. Thedistancemay
be muchmorethanthis. It cannotbe less. Truly,
then,thisis anopenspace,andoneofsuchsizeand
grandeurastorevealthemajestyoftheCreator.
Indeed,therefore,theOrionnebulaisan objectof
interesttousall. Howinfinitelyworthyofourstudy
!