,transcriber's note3    ,text enclosed  
by underscores is in italics 7italics74 
,small capital text has been replaced   
with all capitals4    ,archaic spelling 
and variations in spelling1 punctuation 
and hyphenation  have been retained     
except in obvious cases of typographical
 error4            ,,the ,,spirit ,,of  
,,god ,,as ,,fire2      ,,the           
,,globe ,,within ,,the ,,sun      ,,our 
,,heaven4      ,,reasons ,,for ,,such   
,,hypothesis ,,founded ,,upon ,,god',s  
,,own ,,revelations ,,and ,,recent      
,,developments      ,,through ,,the     
,,lights ,,of ,,astronomy4      ,,by    
,d4 ,,mortimore1 ,m4 ,d4                
,,published ,,by      ,f4 ,c4 ,,cook    
,,co41 ,,new ,,york4      ,,new ,,york3 
,,sheldon  ,,company1 #dih  #ejj        
,,broadway4      #ahgj4      ,entered   
according to ,act of ,congress1 in the  
year #ahfi1 by      ,d4 ,,mortimore1 ,m4
 ,d41      ,in the ,clerk's ,office of  
the ,district ,court of the ,united     
,states for the    ,western ,district of

 ,tennessee4          ,,contents4       
,,page      ,,preface                   
#g      ,,the ,,theme                   
#ac      ,,the ,,immortality ,,of ,,the 
,,soul ,,and ,a ,,future    ,,state ,,of
 ,,existence                            
#ah      ,,the ,,possibility ,,of ,a    
,,more ,,intimate ,,knowledge    ,,of   
,,god2 ,,our ,,relations ,,to ,,him1    
,,and ,,of ,a    ,,future ,,state ,,or  
,,place ,,of ,,habitation               
#bh      ,,the ,,creation               
#cj      ,,the ,,sun1 ,,the ,,source    
,,of ,,light ,,and ,,heat               
#cc      ,,wondrous ,,works ,,of ,,god  
#ce      ,,the ,,discoveries ,,of ,,the 
,,motion ,,of ,,the ,,earth    ,,and    
,,heavenly ,,bodies                     
#dc      ,,the ,,romish ,,church        
#ea      ,,ghastly ,,revelations        
#fa      ,,attraction1 ,,gravitation1   
,c4                         #gc         
,,suns1 ,,stars1 ,,planets1 ,c4         
#ge      ,,fixed ,,stars ,,are ,,suns   
#hi      ,a ,,contemplation             

#if      ,,the ,,sun1--,,and ,,globe    
,,within                          #ajj  
,,the ,,planets ,,of ,,our ,,solar      
,,system                     #ajh       
,,god',s ,,throne ,,shall ,,endure      
,,forever2 ,,so ,,also    ,,shall ,,the 
,,sun4 ,,scriptural ,,evidence ,,for    
,,all ,,that ,,we ,,claim               
#aah      ,,sun ,,and ,,heaven          
#ada      ,a ,,plurality ,,of ,,heavens 
#ade      ,a ,,place ,,for ,,the        
,,wicked                                
#aej      ,,the ,,nature ,,of ,,the     
,,light ,,of ,,the ,,heavenly    ,,world
                                        
#aff      ,,that ,,heavenly ,,world     
#afi      ,,the ,,dimensions ,,and      
,,capacity ,,of ,,the ,,city--,,there   
,,is ,,room ,,for ,,all1 ,,and ,,to     
,,spare                       #age      
,,the ,,native ,,population ,,of ,,the  
,,heavenly    ,,world                   
#agi      ,,the ,,vast ,,numbers ,,of   
,,the ,,angels                      #ahc
      ,,amazing ,,strength ,,of ,,angels

                          #ahd          
,,rapidity ,,of ,,movement ,,of ,,the   
,,angels                  #ahe          
,,certainty ,,of ,a ,,resurrection      
#aij      ,,the ,,resurrection          
#aie      ,a ,,serious ,,contemplation  
#bja      ,,the ,,final ,,judgment      
#bje      ,a ,,home ,,in ,,heaven       
#bjf      ,,conclusive ,,and            
,,concluding ,,argument                 
#baa      ,,will ,,all ,,take ,,heed8   
#bae      ,,appeal ,,to ,,christian     
,,ministers                       #bah  
,,appeal ,,to ,,all                     
#bcg          ,,preface4      ,in       
presenting this volume to the           
intelligence of the world1 the  author  
is fully aware of the incredulity with  
which it may meet in  many literary     
minds4 ,nevertheless1 the truths which  
it contains will  remain unmarred by the
 salient attacks of critics1 when they  
have  passed away and have ceased to be 
remembered4 ,thus it has ever been  with
 the discovery of all great and         

important truths1 from the  creation of 
man down to the present day4 ,for more  
than eighteen  hundred years now past1  
the succession of a once prominent race 
have  disbelieved in the ,messiahship of
 ,christ4 ,and even the ,christian world
  are still divided in their belief as  
to a ,trinity in ,unity4    ,some three 
hundred years ago1 the great and learned
 philosopher and  astronomer1 ,galileo1 
made an ascent in the empire of mind and
 science1  and promulgated immutable    
truths founded upon the laws of         
creation1  emanating from ,god himself2 
yet these were1 for a time1 disbelieved1
  and1 through the bigotry of a         
controlling ,priesthood1 he was even    
forced to renounce them before a court  
of ,cardinals of the ,romish  ,church1  
sitting as inquisitors against heretical
 depravity at the  city of ,rome2 and at
 the venerable age of seventy years1 to 
accept the  sentence to a dungeon for   
life1 in the ,inquisition2 and yet these
  same truths have universally          

prevailed4 ,so1 also1 are there         
unbelievers to-day1 in the existence of 
a ,god1 and the immortality of  the     
soul--the truth of which all            
,christians1 and even heathens1         
believe4    ,we1 therefore1 feel that in
 advancing a new theory1 especially one 
of  such magnitude and import1 that we  
shall meet more or less opposition2  but
 we are willing to abide time's         
inevitable changes1 in advancing  the   
mind to grasp and comprehend truths     
which ,god himself has revealed  for our
 contemplation4 ,still1 we believe that 
there are many millions  who are now    
ready to comprehend and believe1 and are
 only waiting for  a little additional  
light1 or the grouping together of facts
 founded  on the revelations of ,god1   
and examined in the light of a true     
science4    ,philosophers and           
astronomers have advanced the idea of a 
plurality of  suns1 and a plurality of  
worlds1 and have sustained this theory  
by  the most convincing evidence4 ,this 

lays the foundation for a further       
advance in the contemplation of the     
wonderful works of the ,creator1  and   
justifies the hypothesis of a plurality 
of heavens2 and we think  the           
revelations of ,god1 and revelations    
through the science of  astronomy1 will 
sustain the additional hypothesis that  
within what are  denominated suns there 
are vast globes or worlds1 separate and 
apart  from the surrounding photosphere 
of ethereal fire1 and that within  what 
we denominate our sun1 is our heaven4   
,we have1 therefore1 penned the         
following pages with this impression    
fixed in our mind1 and send this volume 
forth to encounter the  enlightenment of
 the age1 to be sifted and weighed in   
the sieve and  scale of intellect2 and1 
relying on the ,word of ,god and ,his   
revelations to man1 we feel satisfied   
that when the ordeal is past1 we  shall 
still have remaining full measure and   
weight4    ,in order to afford a more   
perfect comprehension of the wonderful  

works of ,god1 and of ,his revelations  
to man1 we have1 necessarily1  availed  
ourselves largely of the results of the 
science of astronomy1  quoting the      
writings and conclusions of various     
eminent authors1  giving due credit     
therefor2 and to them the author        
acknowledges his  indebtedness for      
statistical data and facts which could  
not otherwise  be obtained by any single
 individual4 ,grouping these together as
  assistant lamps1 we have relied1      
mainly1 upon the ,word of ,god1 and ,his
  revelations1 as found recorded in the 
,bible1 and evidences manifest in       
perceptible and visible nature around   
us1 while we trust that all we  have    
written will the more forcibly impress  
the mind with deep  humility1 and with  
awe and reverence for the ,great        
,jehovah1 who  created all by the ,word 
of ,his power4    ,we have endeavored to
 avoid sectarian issues1 as to          
,protestant  communities1 throughout the
 world--save our own convictions of     

immutable truth in regard to the true   
principles of ,christianity1 and  that  
salvation is offered alike freely to    
all1 and that by due  repentance toward 
,god1 and faith in our ,lord ,jesus     
,christ1 all may  come to the knowledge 
of ,his ,truth1 and know the ,lord1 whom
 to know  aright is eternal life4 ,and1 
believing as we do1 that every soul is  
held alike accountable to ,god          
alone--and in nowise to ,pope1 ,bishops1
  or ,priests--there were historical    
facts connected with our subject1       
which1 we thought1 justified our        
strictures on the ,romish ,church1 and  
these it may be well for ,protestants to
 consider4    ,we1 therefore1 dedicate  
this volume to the                      
,,protestant ,,world1    and1 while we  
acknowledge our inability to do the     
subject ample  justice2 yet--hoping we  
have been made the humble instrument1   
under  the direction of ,divine         
,providence1 of opening up to the mind a
 new  field for profitable              

contemplation--we ask for it a candid   
perusal1 in  the spirit of prayer and   
,christian leniency1 commending all to a
  careful consideration of the words of 
the ,psalmist3         ,by the word of  
the ,lord were the ,heavens made1 and   
all the       hosts of them by the      
breath of his mouth4         ,the       
,heavens declare the glory of ,god1 and 
the firmament       sheweth ,his handy  
work4         ,whoso is wise1 and will  
observe these things1 even they         
shall understand the loving-kindness of 
the ,lord4                              
,,the ,,author4          ,,the ,,theme4 
,the theme we are now about to          
contemplate is one of deepest interest  
to the human mind4 ,if we can fathom and
 unfold the mystery--as we  believe we  
shall--by analogy1 founded in the light 
of reason1 ,divine  revelations1 and the
 lights afforded us by the science of   
,astronomy1  and give tangibility to    
the--hitherto--chaos of the mind upon   
the  subject1 we may lay the foundation 

for a more comprehensive and  intimate  
knowledge of ,god1 the great ,creator of
 all things1 and this  knowledge should 
lead to more speedily ,christianizing   
the world4    ,god has made himself     
manifest in everything1 and to every    
individual4  ,nature yields to this     
manifestation1 yet does not comprehend  
it4 ,even  man1 the human family--the   
only creatures of a high order of       
intelligence placed by ,him upon this   
earth--seem not to have risen to  that  
comprehension of knowledge to which they
 should attain from his  lessons of the 
,past1 as well as those of the ,present1
 and which  lessons are renewed unto us 
day by day4    ,our principal theme is  
that of the place of our future         
existence--especially ,,heaven4    ,we  
approach the subject with fear and      
trembling1 asking wisdom and  ,divine   
aid of ,him who hath said1 ,seek and ye 
shall find1 and of whom  it is written1 
,if any lack wisdom1 let him ask of     
,god1 and it shall  be given him4    ,we

 know that we cannot throw that         
flood-tide of light upon the subject    
that the theme demands1 yet we may be   
the humble instrument1 under  direction 
of ,divine ,providence1 to mark out a   
path through the  wilderness of doubt1  
along which may shine1 or through which 
the eye  of faith may catch1 a ray of   
light from the bright celestial  throne1
 which may induce others--more able     
minds and giant  intellects--to step    
forth1 wielding mightily the sword of   
the  spirit1 and open out to the mind a 
plainer path1 as the king's  highway1   
leading up to that celestial world1 to  
glory and to ,god4    ,we believe that  
if a reasonable1 tangible idea of the   
constant  presence of ,god with us      
prevailed1 as also of the heavenly      
world1 and  the glories that shall be   
revealed2 the nature of the soul of man2
  from whence derived2 the certainty    
that it must endure forever2 the        
requirements of the law of ,god2 the    
certainty of the judgment2 who is  to be

 the judge2 the certainty that no error 
can be committed in ,his  judgment2 no  
influences can be brought to bear to    
defeat the ends of  justice2 that the   
righteous shall be adjudged to the      
enjoyment of  happiness and eternal     
life2 the wicked be banished from the   
presence  of ,god1 and from the glory of
 ,his power1 to dwell in everlasting    
flame1 and languish in eternal fire1 and
 that this righteous judgment  will     
never be revoked1 but stand immutable as
 ,god ,himself--on and on  through all  
eternity--we say we believe if this     
could be fully  comprehended by finite  
minds1 the time would not be distant    
when all  would come to a knowledge of  
the truth1 and know the ,lord1 whom to  
know aright is eternal life4 ,this      
knowledge should not be sought  through 
fear alone1 but mainly through love to  
,god1 and faith in ,his  ,son1 our ,lord
 ,jesus ,christ1 and from the delights  
we feel in our  consciousness of the    
constant presence of ,god--by ,his      

,spirit--with us2  stimulated by love to
 our fellow-men2 love of all ,nature    
around us2  love of the wonderful works 
of the creative power of the            
,omnipotent--even the vast wonders of   
,his creations throughout ,his own      
native ,empire4    ,may we not8 ,can we 
not know more of all this8 ,we are not  
forbidden to  investigate1 to found     
reason on ,his revelations4 ,nay1 ,he   
hath said1  search the ,scriptures1 for 
in them ye think ye have eternal life1  
and  these are they which testify of    
,me4    ,we do not propose the building 
of a ,tower like unto that of ,babel1   
for ,he hath said1 not by might1 but by 
my ,spirit4 ,therefore1 by  the         
manifestations of ,his ,spirit1 which   
becomes sufficiently  enlightening1 when
 properly comprehended1 we will endeavor
 to throw a  faint--if not a flood-light
 from that eternal world into the eye of
  faith4 ,and1 if we cannot1 like the   
martyr ,stephen1 see ,heaven  opened1   
and the ,son of man standing at the     

right hand of ,god1 or  ascend to it    
with ,elijah in a chariot of flaming    
fire1 we may1 by  the mind's eye of     
faith1 see through the vail darkly1 yet 
with  sufficient light to direct us1 and
 guide our wandering footsteps in  the  
path that leads to that bright clime1   
where the glory of ,god  is the light of
 that heavenly world4    ,our theme     
necessarily leads us forth through      
trackless realms of  boundless space1   
where1 with the mind's eye1 we shall    
behold with  wonder and amazement some  
of the vast creations of the ,omnipotent
  power of ,god2 such as will inspire   
the mind1 and fill it with awe and      
reverence for the ,great ,jehovah4 ,we  
shall have a panoramic view of  millions
 of ,suns--,heavens--planets1 and       
worlds1 standing out1 or  careering     
through ethereal regions2 peopling the  
realms of illimitable  space4 ,we shall 
comprehend more fully the diminutiveness
 of this  earth2 on which we dwell1 as  
compared to the vast creations brought  

forth by the ,word of ,his power1 and of
 our own nothingness before  ,him1 while
 all must inspire us1 not only with awe1
 but with gratitude  and love for ,his  
merciful provision for our redemption1  
and for  regaining an inheritance which 
is incorruptible1 undefiled1 and that   
fadeth not away4          ,,the         
,,immortality ,,of ,,the ,,soul1 ,,and  
,a ,,future ,,state ,,of ,,existence4   
,the ,bible--now ,the ,book of the      
,world--is ,god's own revelation to     
man4 ,that it was penned by holy men of 
,god1 who wrote as they were  inspired1 
has been fully manifested by the        
fulfilment of prophecies2  many of which
 were miracles1 and others--in their    
accomplishment--awful  and fearful      
judgments4 ,hence1 none can doubt its   
authenticity as ,god's  own revelation  
to man4 ,it is our only history of the  
wonderful  creations emanating from the 
,great ,first ,cause2 especially the    
creation of man2 his mortal1 as well as 
his immortal nature4 ,from  this history

 we learn that         ,god created man 
in his own image2 in the image of ,god  
created he him2 male and female created 
he them4 ,and ,god       breathed into  
his nostrils the breath of life2 and man
       became a living soul4    ,now1   
man is here spoken of in the plural3    
hence1 the whole race--the  entire human
 family1 are included1 and this living  
principle1  emanating from ,god himself1
 partakes of his own immortal nature1   
and  can never cease or be extinguished4
 ,therefore1 the soul1 or spirit of     
man1 must continue to endure through all
 eternity4    ,the belief in a future   
state of existence has obtained in all  
ages2  even in the dark regions of      
heathen lands1 where the light of       
,christianity has never yet shed its    
radiance1 and where missionaries  have  
never penetrated4 ,the mind of man--the 
thinking principle of  human            
intelligence--seems to have comprehended
 this great truth2 even  where          
,christianity1 founded upon ,bible      

truths1 is unknown4 ,indeed1 the  idea  
of the immortality of the soul of man   
seems inherent4 ,for1 go  where we may1 
among the aborigines of every heathen   
clime1 even from  the ,islands of the   
,bahamas to ,hindostan1 ,india1 ,japan1 
and ,china2 the  savage tribes of ,south
 ,america1 the red tribes of our own    
continent1  or even the black races of  
,africa--all hold the idea of a future  
state  of existence4 ,true1 they may not
 have formed correct opinions as to  the
 nature of the place to which they      
expect to be transported1 nor of  the   
felicities to be enjoyed there2 yet all 
have the idea of a future  state1 and it
 has ever prevailed4    ,if we trace    
history back to the ancient ,egyptians1 
the ,persians1 the  ,scythians1 the     
,assyrians1 ,greeks1 and ,romans2       
indeed1 with all nations  of which      
history gives us any knowledge1 we find 
that it has ever  prevailed4 ,plato1    
,socrates1 and ,demosthenes held the    
doctrine of the  immortality of the     

soul1 and of a future state of          
existence2 while  such belief almost    
universally prevails in every land and  
clime where  civilization and           
,christianity are known4 ,thus we see it
 an inherent  law of human nature1 and1 
in the minds of all1 there is a longing 
after immortality4    ,may we not ask1  
from whence comes this intuition1 that  
all feel that  death to the body is not 
the end of existence8 ,is it not that   
immortal  spirit-life which ,god        
breathed into our first parents8 that   
spirit-fire which is eternal in its     
nature8 that which can never be         
quenched nor extinguished8    ,the      
,patriarchs1 the ,prophets1 and ,seers  
of old realized that here they  had no  
abiding place1 and that they were but   
pilgrims and strangers on  the earth4   
,we are told that ,abraham1 ,isaac1 and 
,jacob desired a better  country1 and   
looked forward to a heavenly one4 ,paul 
tells us these  all died in the faith1  
not having received the promises1 but   

having  seen them afar off4 ,see how    
,moses submitted to sufferings1 and     
endured privations2 yet in all these he 
had respect unto the  recompense of     
reward4    ,how many of those worthy    
ancients suffered persecutions in       
various  ways for their acts of piety8  
even cruel mockings1 scourgings1 bonds1 
and imprisonments4 ,some were cruelly   
tortured1 others were stoned1  and still
 others sawed asunder2 and yet under all
 these trials1 and  even scourgings unto
 death1 they held firm in the faith of a
 living  ,god1 a future existence1 and a
 sure recompense of reward4    ,see     
,job1 that faithful servant of the      
living ,god1 how his faith was  sorely  
tried by all manner of afflictions4 ,his
 flocks and herds  destroyed2 his wealth
 dissipated2 while disease1 painful and 
loathsome1 preyed upon him4 ,his        
sufferings and agonies were so intense  
that all his friends believed him cursed
 of ,god1 and forsook him2 and  even his
 wife--who had enjoyed the fruits of his

 efforts in life1  reviled his integrity
 of faith1 and scornfully told him to   
curse ,god  and die4    ,but let us hear
 this patient1 suffering child of ,god3 
,true1 my flesh is clothed with worms   
and clods of dust2       my skin is     
broken and become loathsome1 and ,i feel
 as though       ,i would not live      
alway4 ,yet all the days of my appointed
       time will ,i wait1 until my      
change comes1 and even though       ,he 
slay me1 yet will ,i trust in ,him4 ,i  
know that ,i shall be       justified4  
,for ,he shall be my salvation4 ,if a   
man die he       shall live again4 ,and 
now1 behold my witness is in heaven1    
and my record is on high4 ,for ,i know  
that my ,redeemer       liveth1 and that
 ,he shall stand in the latter day upon 
the       earth4 ,and though worms      
destroy this body1 yet in my flesh      
shall ,i see ,god1 whom ,i shall see for
 myself1 and mine eyes       shall      
behold4    ,where6 oh1 where1 hath such 
faith been shown6 ,and his faith being  

sorely tried and found true and         
unwavering1 his ,god came to his        
relief1 restored him to health1 and     
blessed him--even more abundantly  than 
before2 after which he lived an hundred 
and forty years and died  in peace4     
,here we see1 that1 long anterior to the
 coming of ,christ1 ,job declared  that 
he knew his ,redeemer was then living1  
and that in the latter  days he should  
stand on the earth4 ,see this truthful  
evidence of  the ,son of ,god coming    
down from heaven to ransom and redeem   
fallen  man6    ,the prophets foretold  
the coming of the ,messiah1 who should  
ransom  his people from the power of the
 grave1 and redeem them from the  second
 death4    ,the sweet singer of ,israel1
 looking forward to coming ages1 through
  the vista of revelations1 breaks forth
 in rapturous confidence--         ,thou
 shalt guide me with thy counsel1 and   
afterward receive       me to glory4    
,whom have ,i in heaven but thee1 and   
there is       none upon earth that ,i  

desire beside thee4 ,though my heart    
and my flesh fail me1 yet ,thou art the 
strength of my heart       and my       
portion forever4    ,the prophet ,isaiah
 declares1         ,thy dead men shall  
live1 together with my dead body shall  
they arise4         ,and1 calling in    
spirit unto the silent dead1 he saith3  
,awake and sing1 ye that dwell in the   
dust1 99 99 the earth       shall cast  
out her dead4    ,in fulfilment of      
prophesy1 the ,son of ,god came as the  
plague of  death and destruction of the 
grave4 ,his advent into the world was   
signalized by a star in the ,east1      
guiding the wise men--who were  looking 
for his coming--to the town of          
,bethlehem1 where lay the babe  in the  
manger4 ,while an angel1 commissioned by
 the ,father1 announced  his arrival1   
and good tidings of great joy to the    
shepherds who were  watching their      
flocks by night upon the plains of      
,judea1 saying1 ,unto  you is born this 
day in the city of ,david a ,saviour1   

which is ,christ  the ,lord4 ,and       
suddenly there was with the angel a     
multitude of the  heavenly host1        
praising ,god1 and1 as a heavenly choir1
 sounding the  loud anthem1 ,glory to   
,god in the highest1 and on earth peace1
 good  will toward men4 ,this was ,him  
of whom ,moses in the law1 and the      
prophets did write1 even the ,sun of    
righteousness1 whose coming was         
foretold by the prophet ,malachi4    ,by
 his teachings1 and miracles wrought in 
after life1 he proved his  origin and   
mission4 ,but this mission could not be 
fully accomplished  until he should     
conquer death1 hell1 and the grave1 and 
bring life  and immortality to light    
through his own ,gospel4 ,finally1 the  
day  and the hour came for its complete 
fulfilment4 ,borne down with the  weight
 of the sins of a guilty world1 he      
prayed his ,father to  strengthen him1  
while in agony he sweat great drops of  
blood4    ,see him ascending the rugged 
steeps of ,calvary1 bearing his own     

cross1  upon which his human nature must
 expire between ,heaven and ,earth4     
,nailed to that cross1 he hung upon it  
in painful agony1 and for three         
dreadful hours the sun1 the source of   
light1 was veiled1 and there  was       
darkness over all the land1 and about   
the ninth hour1 his  humanity cried with
 a loud voice1 my ,god1 my ,god1 why    
hast thou  forsaken me6 and gave up the 
ghost4 ,and behold the vail of the      
temple was rent in twain from the top to
 the bottom2 and the earth did  quake1  
and the rocks were rent1 and the graves 
were opened1 and many  bodies of the    
saints which slept1 arose4    ,now1     
while his lifeless body was still       
suspended upon the cross1 the  work was 
not yet complete until the ,roman       
soldier approached and  plunged his     
spear into his side1 and thus ,baptized 
the world in a  fountain of ,blood4     
,and1 through faith in him1 that is the 
only  fountain that can wash our guilty 
stains away1 and present us purified    

before his ,throne4    ,mark you the    
circumstances as they then transpired4  
,the sun was  veiled1 and darkness      
prevailed over all the earth1 from the  
sixth  until the ninth hour1 and it was 
at the ninth hour he cried1 ,it is      
finished and gave up the ghost4 ,it was 
his mission to bring life and           
immortality to light4 ,god1 the ,father1
 had veiled the sun1 that the  earth    
should be in utter darkness4 ,may it not
 have been the first act  of ,his son's 
immortality--after this tragic scene--to
 unveil the sun1  and throw its         
light--under a new dispensation--upon   
the world8 ,but he  had come to conquer 
death1 hell1 and the grave1 and lead    
captivity  captive4 ,his body was placed
 in a sepulchre2 from whence he had said
  he would rise on the third day4 ,the  
,priests and ,pharisees remembering     
this1 besought ,pilate1 who commanded   
that the sepulchre be made  secure1     
which was done by a great stone under   
seal1 and a guard  stationed over it1   

that no one might approach by day or by 
night4 ,but1  behold1 on the morning of 
the third day1 an angel of the ,lord    
appeared from heaven1 whose descent     
caused a great earthquake1 who  rolled  
back the stone and sat upon it2 and his 
countenance was like  lightning1 and his
 raiment white as snow2 and for fear of 
him the  keepers did shake and became as
 dead men4 ,the angel said unto the two 
,marys1 ,i know ye seek ,jesus1 which   
was crucified2 ,he is not here1 for  he 
is risen4    ,thus1 behold his triumph6 
,he burst the bands of death asunder1   
and  rushing forth from the tyrant's    
grasp1 shouted in triumph over this     
last enemy1 ,oh1 death where is thy     
sting8 ,oh1 grave where is thy  victory8
 ,i am the resurrection and the life4 ,i
 am he that liveth  and was dead1 and   
behold ,i am alive forevermore1 and have
 the keys of  hell and of death4 ,thus  
the fulfilment of prophesy and the      
promise1  that he should become the     
first fruits of them that slept4    ,we 

have subsequent evidence of his         
resurrection1 where he appeared in  the 
midst of his disciples1 when they had   
met in their private chamber  and had   
closed the door4 ,but there have been   
doubters1 and  unbelievers1 in all      
ages--even though confirmative evidences
 have been  strong and plain4 ,so1 also1
 was there one in that little assembly4 
,poor ,thomas could not believe1 even   
though his ,lord and ,master stood      
before him2 but the ,saviour1 full of   
tender compassion1 said to him3  ,come1 
place thy fingers in the nail prints1   
and thrust thy hand into  the opening   
made by the soldier's spear in my side1 
and be not  faithless1 but believing4   
,now while ,god through his prophet hath
 said1 ,there is a spirit in  man1 and  
the inspiration of the ,almighty giveth 
him understanding1  revelation is       
replete with evidence that though a man 
die1 yet shall  he live again4 ,christ1 
the ,son of ,god1 illustrated his power 
in  uttering the command1 ,lazarus1 come

 forth1 and he that had been dead  four 
days1 whose mortality was fast          
decomposing and yielding to  corruption1
 arose again into life4 ,thus in the    
days of his  incarnation1 he manifested 
his power by the miracles he wrought in 
numerous instances of restoring sight to
 the blind1 causing the deaf  to hear2  
the dumb to speak2 the lame to walk2    
healing the sick2  cleansing the        
leprous1 and bringing the dead to life  
again3 while1 in  the power of his own  
resurrection1 he made triumphantly      
manifest the  immortality of the soul2  
and the entire ,new ,testament          
scriptures  abound with evidences that  
through ,him life and immortality have  
been  brought to light4 ,thus we see    
that the immortality of the soul1 and a 
future state of existence are plainly   
manifest4          ,,possibility ,,of ,a
 ,,more ,,intimate ,,knowledge ,,of     
,,god2 ,,our ,,relations ,,to           
,,him1--,,and ,,of ,a ,,future ,,state  
,,or ,,place ,,of ,,habitation4      ,we

 believe that ,god himself has furnished
 us evidences through which  we should  
gain a more intimate knowledge of him2  
of our relations to  him1 and of our    
future state and place of habitation4   
,in sustaining this belief1 and the     
hypothesis we have already  advanced1 as
 to the location of heaven1--to which we
 shall also add  our views as to the    
location of hell1--we shall rely mainly 
upon the  revelations of ,god1 as found 
recorded in the ,bible4 ,should we not  
furnish positive1 we believe we shall   
furnish strong circumstancial1  evidence
 which will as forcibly impress the     
minds of our readers with  the          
correctness of our theory1 as it has our
 own1 upon the  investigation of it4    
,with this we shall grasp1 and          
intermingle1 the  evidences afforded by 
the science of astronomy2 the mighty    
revelations of the wondrous works of    
,god as now revealed to us by the  aid  
of the telescope4    ,we know that some 
of the most learned theologians and     

ablest divines1  of the past1 as also   
many of the present age1 have written1  
and have  labored                       
hard--theoretically--to point out to the
 mind's eye the  locality of heaven1    
fixed somewhere in illimitable space4   
,but1 as yet1  their most profound      
efforts1 aided though they might have   
been by the  lights afforded through the
 science of astronomy2 the ,bible1 and  
all  nature around them as assistants to
 their own brilliant imaginations1  have
 failed to satisfy1 even themselves1 and
 all has resolved itself  back again    
into doubt and uncertainty1 leaving the 
minds of all  bewildered with ideas as  
numerous1 yet as vague and uncertain as 
mystery itself4 ,and yet we believe we  
have within1 and all around us1         
evidences which1 if properly considered 
and comprehended1 may shed  true light  
upon the subject1 and give to us ideas  
and faith more  reasonable and tangible 
than any heretofore contemplated4       
,,the ,,creation4      ,let us now make 

some investigations of the evidences    
given us in the  ,bible in regard to    
creation4 ,no one ever has1 no finite   
mind ever can  fully comprehend the     
creative power of the ,almighty2 nor can
 we form  an idea of the time1 in the   
remote past1 when creation1 by the word 
of ,his power commenced4    ,we learn   
from ,bible history1 that ,in the       
beginning ,god created the  ,heavens and
 the ,earth4 ,now as to the time when   
that beginning was1  we can form no     
positive idea4 ,it is as reasonable to  
suppose it to  have been untold millions
 of years ago1 as at any later period4  
,so far  as this earth on which we dwell
 is concerned1 it is but as an atom     
when compared to the productions of ,his
 creative power2 and of the  time when  
this atom was created1 no one knoweth4  
,geologists1 tracing  effects back to   
causes1 agree on the fair probability   
that the  earth--this globe and its     
solid elements--have been in process of 
change and formation1 many thousands1   

and possibly millions1 of years4  ,these
 students understand1 in a great        
measure1 the laws which govern  and     
control such formation in nature1 and   
have data for their  conclusions4 ,as   
for the time when ,god created man to   
dwell on this  earth1 we need not now   
stop to investigate4    ,but1 continuing
 this history1 we read3         ,and the
 earth was without form1 and void2 and  
darkness was       upon the face of the 
great deep4 ,and the ,spirit of ,god    
moved       upon the face of the waters2
 and ,god said1 ,let there be           
light2 and there was light4    ,thus we 
see that the ,spirit of ,god was then1  
as it ever has been1  and still is1 the 
source of light4 ,now1 to our finite    
comprehension1  the ,sun is the source  
of light and heat2 or1 rather that which
 we  denominate the ,sun is a vast body 
or volume of intense heat1 and  heat--or
 that which we denominates fire--is1 to 
us1 the source of  light4 ,that ,god's  
spirit is fire1 and light1 we shall be  

able to show  in our further            
contemplation of the subject    ,the    
,psalmist tells us that3         ,by the
 word of the ,lord were the heavens     
made1 and all the       hosts of them by
 the breath of his mouth4    ,job tells 
us that3         ,a flame goeth out of  
his mouth and ,god by his spirit        
garnished the heavens4    ,now let us   
bear these facts in mind3 that the      
,psalmist speaks of a  plurality of     
heavens made by the word and breath of  
,god1 while ,job  also tells us of a    
plurality of heavens1 and that a flame  
goeth out  of his mouth1 and ,god by his
 ,spirit garnished the heavens4    ,we  
know that ,god is the ,great ,first     
,cause1 and the ,creator of all  things 
that exist4 ,he created the ,heavens and
 the ,earth1 ,suns1 ,moons1  ,planets1  
and ,stars1 and all pertaining          
thereunto2 as1 also1 the  firmament of  
the heavens1 in which all are placed2   
and while all come  forth at ,his       
command1 or by ,his word1 yet we are    

plainly told1 that  ,his breath1 or     
,spirit1 was the active agency in this  
mighty creation4    ,when we come to    
investigate the nature of this active   
agency--,spirit--we find that it is     
fire1 a principle1 or element  which    
pervades all nature2 one which is       
indestructible--can never be            
destroyed--and yet an element of        
destruction2 indeed1 one of seeming     
annihilation4 ,now1 seeing that the     
element of fire pervades all  things1 so
 also are we told1 that ,god's ,spirit  
is everywhere4          ,,the           
,,sun--,,the ,,source ,,of ,,light ,,and
 ,,heat4      ,first1 acknowledging     
,god--the ,supreme1 ,infinite1 and      
,eternal ,one--as  the ,great ,first    
,cause1 and ,author of all things       
created1 we all know  that the ,sun is  
the mainspring of animated ,nature4     
,without its genial  rays1 the present  
system of ,earth's government could not 
endure1 and  life itself would soon     
disappear from our globe4 ,it is the    

source of  light and heat--the two great
 stimulants of vital force4    ,now1 so 
far as we can comprehend1 the ,sun is   
the immediate or direct  source of light
 and heat--or fire--hence1 the source of
 animated  existence of all pertaining  
to this ,earth2 and so1 also1 as we     
believe1 to all the other planets1 or   
worlds belonging to our solar  system1  
or within the ,sun's vast domain4 ,that 
source is fixed and  permanent1 and is  
ever the same2 neither increasing nor   
diminishing1  although constantly       
dispensing its influence to all around  
it4    ,its source is eternal1 and it   
is1 evidently1 an attribute of ,jehovah1
  and the time of its past existence we 
cannot comprehend1 nor can we  believe  
otherwise than that it will continue to 
exist through all  eternity4 ,we believe
 it one of ,god's eternal lamps1 placed 
by ,his own  ,omnipotent power to light 
up the sphere which ,he has appointed   
unto  it1 and to give its warmth and    
animation to this1 and all other worlds 

belonging to its domain4 ,cast your eye 
upward at noon-day1 when no  clouds     
intervene1 and behold that brilliant    
orb1 whose light pales  that of all     
else1 and seems to make all dark in     
illimitable space  beyond its own       
empire4 ,look at it but for one second  
of time only1 for  a steady gaze at that
 bright flame for one minute alone1 is  
fatal to  the sight of the eyes4        
,there is a dimning veil to mortal      
vision1 which hides the glories  of that
 inner world from our sight2 even those 
resplendent glories  which1 while yet in
 the body1 we can contemplate only by   
the eye of  faith4          ,,wondrous  
,,works ,,of ,,god4      ,we now propose
 to devote a short time to the          
contemplation of some of  the wonderful 
works of the ,creator1 as we see them   
displayed in the  firmament1 and        
standing out in illimitable space1 and1 
with the aids  afforded us by that most 
exact of all sciences--astronomy--we    
hope to  unveil mysteries1 long since   

revealed by the revelations of ,god2    
yet1  hitherto1 not fully comprehended4 
,these seeming mysteries1 we shall      
endeavor to assist you to analyze by the
 light of ,god's own  revelations4 ,in  
order to our purpose1 we shall avail    
ourselves of the  writings of some of   
the most scientific1 and eminent        
astronomers the  world has ever known1  
even from the early days of ,anaximander
 and  ,pythagoras1 down to the times of 
,copernicus and ,galileo1 when feeble   
rays of light seemed to break in upon   
the intellect and mind of man1  and from
 thence1 the flood-lights which have    
been thrown in upon us by  the          
,herschels1--the leading stars of the   
empire of this science1--and  calling to
 our aid ,la ,lande1 ,maury1 ,guillemin1
 ,lardner1 ,darwin1 ,owen  and ,olmsted1
 and many others equally known to fame4 
,yet in our  present effort1 we shall   
rely mainly upon that master mind in    
compilation1 ,dr4 ,child1 of ,england1  
who has grouped together the  leading   

facts of discoveries1 in order to incite
 the mind to the  contemplation of the  
wonderful works of the ,creator1 that   
all  intelligences of the world may be  
induced to join in with the three       
,hebrew ,children1 in praising and      
magnifying the name of the ,lord4 ,we   
find1 upon examination of the works of  
various leading authors1 that  his      
statements are as nearly correct as any 
compilation well could be1  while1 with 
a mind seemingly inspired for the work1 
his delineations  are so graphic1       
sublime and beautiful1 we shall take    
data1 and quote  freely from his        
writings1 especially wherein he dwells  
upon the  ,heavens1 ,sun1 ,moon and     
,stars1 adding as we pass along1 such   
reflections crowding upon our mind as we
 deem appropriate2 and we  think that in
 the contemplation of the subject now   
before us1 that ere  we have finished   
this feature of it1 all will be ready to
 exclaim with  the ,psalmist1 truly1    
,the heavens declare the glory of ,god1 

and the firmament       sheweth his     
handy work4    ,dr4 ,child says1 ,among 
all the sights the eye can look upon1   
nothing  is comparable to the ,heavens  
for the sentiment with which they charm 
the mind4 ,the language they speak comes
 to us from remote mysterious  worlds2  
but1 though it may be imperfectly       
understood1 it is at least  universally 
felt4 ,the great and the small--the     
civilized man and the  savage1 the      
philosopher1 the divine1 and the        
illiterate or humble  citizen--all feel 
their influence1 and are from time to   
time  irresistibly drawn toward them by 
mingled emotions of admiration1         
gratitude and awe1 such as none of the  
other features of nature can  excite in 
an equal degree4    ,so strongly1       
however1 is the idea of the             
'incomprehensible'  associated by many  
with the mysteries of the firmament1    
that they are  habitually prone to      
regard the teachings of astronomers as  
little else  than scientific guess-work4

 ,nevertheless1 the best intellects in  
all  countries assure us1 and           
demonstrate before our eyes1 that1      
within  certain limits1 ,astronomy is   
the most exact and perfect of sciences1 
and that1 even when it deals with       
distances and magnitudes1 which are     
practically inconceivable1 its          
conclusions1 though often claiming to   
be approximative only1 have yet no      
affinity whatever with guess-work4  ,let
 such sceptics think of the certainty   
with which sidereal events  are         
predicted beforehand4 ,let them reflect 
on the evidence of the most  exact      
knowledge of the heavenly bodies        
involved in the calculation of          
eclipses1 in fixing the very moment when
 the moon's dark outline shall  begin to
 creep over the sun's bright disk2      
marking its progress to the  highest    
maximum1 and its waning--giving the     
moment when the last  visible shadow    
will disappear--predicting the instant  
when a planet's  light shall be         

extinguished behind our satellite4 ,and 
yet even more  wonderful1 the tracking  
of a comet's wanderings1 millions of    
miles  beyond the far-off regions of    
,uranus1 the foretelling the time of its
  return after long years of absence6   
,do not these1 and a thousand other     
equally wonderful feats1 attest both the
 soundness of the principles  on which  
the astronomer works1 and the           
reasonableness of receiving his         
assurances with confidence and trust1   
even though it may be impossible  for   
more than a few gifted minds to follow  
the calculations on which  they are     
based8    ,examine the ,nautical        
,almanac1 published by the ,british     
,government1 a  chart found on every    
sea-going vessel4 ,on the trackless     
ocean it is  the mariner's guide1 his   
trusted friend and counsellor4 ,he may  
embark  upon a long voyage over the     
trackless ocean1 to be absent for years1
  yet through all this time1 and in any 
part of the world he has his  truthful  

friend to consult1 who will warn him of 
dangers1 and direct  his ship in safety 
in every changeful clime4 ,he left his  
native land  years ago1 yet now far out 
amid ocean's waves1 in a different      
hemisphere1 he consults this little     
chart of astronomers4 ,he knows in  any 
and every latitude the time of eclipses 
of the ,sun and ,moon1 and  of          
,jupiter's satellites1 their sidereal   
positions1 distances1 etc4 ,it  seems   
charged with messages from the skies for
 his guidance and  safety4    ,when we  
consider the acquisition of such rare   
and precious  knowledge--this mapping   
out beforehand1 almost to a             
hair's-breadth1  the exact order and    
track in which the heavenly bodies will 
run their  course through space1 and the
 precise relative position they will    
occupy at any given moment1 when they   
can be seen in any part of the          
world--is not this convincing evidence  
of the correctness and  truthfulness of 
the science of astronomy8    ,but we    

have on record a more startling         
demonstration of its  correctness--we   
say startling because of its magnitude  
and  importance1 and because when we    
come to examine suns1 planets1 and      
worlds1 through the lights of this      
science1 when we contemplate their      
distances1 magnitudes1 and numbers1 we  
shall be startled by their  immensity1  
and exclaim3         ,how wonderful are 
,thy works1 ,o ,lord of ,hosts6    ,the 
year #ahdf will ever be memorable for   
having witnessed one of the  most       
striking illustrations of the truth of  
,astronomy4 ,few can have  forgotten the
 astonishment with which the discovery  
of the planet  ,neptune was then        
received1 or the fact that it was due   
not to a  lucky or accidental pointing  
of the telescope toward a particular    
quarter of the heavens1 but to positive 
calculations worked out in  the closet2 
thus proving that before the planet was 
seen by the eye1  it had already been   
grasped by the mind4 ,the theory of its 

finding was  a triumph of human         
intellect4 ,the distant ,uranus--a      
planet hitherto  orderly and            
correct--begins to show unusual         
movements in its orbit4 ,it  is1        
somehow1 not exactly in the spot where1 
according to the best  calculations1 it 
ought to have been1 and the whole       
astronomical world  is thrown into      
perplexity4 ,two mathematicians1 as yet 
but little known  to fame1 living far   
apart in different countries1 and acting
  independently of each other1          
concentrate the force of their          
penetrating intellects to find out the  
cause4 ,the most obvious way of         
accounting for the event1 was to have   
inferred that some error in  previous   
computations had occurred2 and in a     
matter so difficult1 so  abstruse1 and  
so far off1 what could have been more   
probable or more  pardonable8 ,but these
 astronomers knew that the laws of      
gravity were  fixed and sure1 and that  
figures truly based on them could not   

deceive4 ,by profound calculations1 each
 arrives at the conclusion that  nothing
 can account for the perturbation except
 the disturbing  influence of some      
hitherto unknown mass of matter1        
exerting its  attraction in a certain   
quarter of the ,heavens4 ,so implicit1  
so  undoubting is the faith of the      
,french astronomer ,leverrier1 in the   
truth of his deductions1 that he        
requests a brother astronomer in        
,berlin1 ,prussia1 to look out for this 
mass at a special point in  space1 on a 
particular night2 and there1 sure       
enough1 the disturber  immediately      
discloses himself1 and soon shows his   
title to be admitted  into the steady   
and orderly rank of his fellow-planets4 
,the  coincidence of the two            
astronomers--,leverrier1 of ,france1 and
 ,adams1  of ,england1 arriving at this 
discovery through scientific            
calculations1 based upon knowledge      
derived from physical observation1      
precludes every idea of guess-work1     

while such was the agreement  between   
their final deductions1 that the point  
of the ,heavens fixed  upon by both as  
the spot where the disturber lay1 was   
almost  identical4 ,such a discovery    
says ,arago1 is one of the most         
brilliant manifestations of the         
exactitude of the system of modern      
astronomy4    ,child continues3         
,astronomy is without question1 the     
grandest of  sciences4 ,it deals with   
masses1 distances1 and velocities1 which
 in  their immensity belong specially to
 itself alone1 and of which the  mere   
conception transcends the utmost stretch
 of our finite faculties4  ,in no other 
branch of science is the limited grasp  
of our intellect  more forcibly brought 
home to us1 yet1 though baffled in the  
effort to  rise to the level of its     
requirements1 our strivings are by no   
means  profitless4 ,is it not truly a   
precious privilege to be able to trace1 
imperfect though it may be1 the hand of 
the ,almighty ,architect in  these1 ,his

 grandest works1 and to obtain by this  
means a broader  consciousness of ,his  
,omnipotence8    ,could each one be     
privileged to look through ,herschel's  
telescope on a  clear night1 and visibly
 behold the wonders of the ,heavens1 our
 faith  in the realities of astronomy   
would pass with a sudden bound from     
theory into practice2 planets and stars 
would become henceforth  distinct and   
solid existences in our minds1 our      
doubts vanish1 and our  belief settle   
into conviction4 ,we should behold the  
mysterious moon of  our childhood1      
mapped into brilliant mountain-peaks1   
and dark  precipices1 and softly lighted
 plains2 we should see ,jupiter shining 
like another fair ,luna1 with attendant 
satellites moving round him in  their   
well-known paths2 or turn with          
admiration to ,saturn encircled by  his 
famous ring1 with outlines as distinct  
as if that glorious  creation lay but a 
few miles distant4 ,perhaps we may      
behold the  beauteous ,venus shining    

with resplendent circular disk1 or      
curiously  passing through her many     
phases in mimic rivalry of the ,moon4   
,or1  leaving these near neighbors far  
behind1 we may penetrate more deeply    
into space1 and mark how the bright     
flashing stars are reduced to a  small1 
round1 unmagnifiable point4 ,such a     
privilege would give us a  more         
realizing sense of the power of the     
great ,creator4          ,,the          
,,discovery ,,of ,,the ,,motion ,,of    
,,the ,,earth ,,and ,,heavenly ,,bodies4
      ,the science of ,astronomy is one 
of the oldest that has occupied the     
human mind4 ,that the belief in         
,astrology was its forerunner1 we cannot
  doubt4 ,professor ,olmsted tells us1  
that1 ,at a period of very remote       
antiquity1 ,astronomy was cultivated in 
,china1 ,india1 ,chaldea1 and  ,egypt4  
,three several schools were established1
 ranging from three to  six hundred     
years before the ,christian era4        
,anaximander1 in the school  of         

,miletus1 taught the sublime doctrine   
that the planets are  inhabited1 and    
that the stars are suns of other        
systems4 ,pythagoras  was the founder of
 the celebrated school of ,crotona1 upon
 the  south-eastern coast of ,italy1    
some five hundred years before the      
,christian era4 ,he held that the ,sun  
was the centre of the solar  system1    
around which all the planets revolve1   
and that the stars are  so many suns1   
each the centre of a system like our    
own4 ,he also held  that the ,earth     
revolves daily on its axis1 and yearly  
around the sun4  ,although many of his  
opinions were founded in mere           
conjecture1 and  were erroneous1 yet we 
see that some important ones were       
founded on  truth4    ,he also held that
 the planets were inhabited1 that the   
earth and  planets were ever revolving  
in regular order1 keeping up a loud and 
grand celestial concert1 inaudible to   
man1 but1 as the 'music of the          
spheres1' audible to the ,gods4    ,but 

the mind of man was not then prepared to
 grasp the feeble rays of  light1 and   
add thereto1 by the power of expanding  
intellect4 ,although  many succeeded    
,pythagoras1 whose scientific           
attainments proved a  blessing to the   
world1 and whose names will go down to  
all succeeding  generations1 as the     
learned1 the good1 and the great of     
their time2  yet prejudice and          
superstition again prevailed1 and the   
true lights of  this science were lost  
sight of1 and1 for near two thousand    
years1  ages of darkness prevailed1     
until ,copernicus appeared about the    
fifteenth century of the ,christian era4
 ,he again revived the idea  advanced by
 ,pythagoras1 that the earth and planets
 moved regularly in  their orbits1 and  
that the sun was the centre of the solar
 system4 ,yet  with him1 as with the    
former1 it was little more than mere    
conjecture4    ,we quote again ,prof4   
,olmsted1 in regard to these earlier    
astronomers1  who were struggling after 

light1 and truth1 in this grandest of   
sciences3 ,although1 therefore1         
,pythagoras fathomed the profound       
doctrine1 that the ,sun is the centre   
around which the earth and all  the     
planets revolve2 yet we have no evidence
 that he ever solved the  irregular     
motions of the planets1 in conformity   
with his hypothesis1  although the      
explanation of the diurnal revolution of
 the heavens1 by  that hypothesis1      
involved no difficulty4    ,again he    
says1 ,ignorant as ,copernicus was of   
the principle of  gravitation1 and of   
most of the laws of motion1 he could go 
but little  way in following out the    
consequences of his own hypothesis2 and 
all  that can be claimed for him is1    
that he solved1 by means of it1 most  of
 the common phenomena of the celestial  
motions4 ,he was indeed upon  the road  
to truth1 and advanced some way in its  
sure path2 but he was  able to adduce   
but few independent proofs1 to show that
 it was truth4  ,it was only near the   

close of his life that he published his 
system to  the world1 and that only at  
the urgent request of friends2          
anticipating1 perhaps1 the opposition of
 a bigoted priesthood1 whose  fury was  
afterwards poured upon the head of      
,galileo1 for maintaining  the same     
doctrines4    ,the bigotry and          
superstition of the priesthood of the   
,church of ,rome  again crushed out the 
lights of this science1 and forbade     
further  investigations1 and all was    
resolved back again into the doctrine   
first taught by ,eudoxus1 who lived more
 than three hundred years  before       
,christ4 ,this doctrine was the system  
of crystalline spheres2  the earth the  
centre of the world1 and all heavenly   
bodies set like  gems in hollow1 solid  
orbs1 composed of crystal so            
transparent1 that  no anterior orb could
 obstruct in the least1 the view of any 
of the  orbs lying behind it1 that the  
heavens revolved or rolled round from   
,east to ,west1 performing the circuit  

every twenty-four hours1 carrying  along
 the sun1 planets1 orbs1 c41 and that   
above the whole were  spread the grand  
empyrean1 or 'third heavens1' the abode 
of  perpetual serenity4    ,to account  
for the planetary motions1 it was       
supposed that the  planetary bodies1 as 
also the stars1 and sun1 each had a     
motion of its  own from ,east to ,west1 
while all partook of the common diurnal 
motion  of the starry sphere4           
,aristotle taught that these motions    
were effected by a tutelary  genius of  
each planet1 residing in it1 and        
directing its motions1 even  as the mind
 of man directs his own movements4      
,thus1 from the time of ,copernicus1    
until ,galileo appeared in the          
sixteenth century1 the lights of this   
science were again extinguished  by the 
superstition1 bigotry1 and intolerance  
of the priesthood1 who  would make no   
proper advance with intellect beyond the
 established  dogmas of the church2 even
 to ascertain truths which ,god himself 

had  made plainly perceptible in ,his   
wondrous works4    ,galileo1 born in    
,pisa1 ,italy1 in the year #aefd1       
evinced in early life1  a fondness for  
the study of philosophy1 and the higher 
order of  sciences1 and proved himself  
also a genius in mechanical inventions4 
,fortune favored him in his day1 and1   
enjoying all the greater  advantages of 
the best schools of his time1 he studied
 well all the  old masters1 who had     
preceded him1 and became perfectly      
familiar with  every theory of          
philosophy and astronomy then known1 and
 prepared  himself for an advance in the
 sciences4 ,he invented the first       
telescope1 with which to survey the     
heavenly bodies1 and the result of  his 
experiments proved conclusively the     
correctness of the theory  advanced by  
the conjectures of ,copernicus4    ,he  
pursued his investigations for years1   
and established the truth1 in  his own  
mind1 of the constant movements of the  
earth and planets1 each  revolving in   

its own orbit1 with the ,sun as the     
common centre of all2  of the truth of  
which he could never more entertain a   
single doubt4  ,but the laws which      
governed and controlled their           
movements--the power  and force of      
attraction and gravitation--he could not
 yet fully  comprehend4 ,this great work
 of discovery was left for ,sir ,isaac  
,newton4 ,knowing the bigotry and       
intolerance of the ruling powers of     
,rome1 he1 ,galileo1 resorted to        
subterfuge in order to obtain           
permission to publish his opinions to   
the world4 ,yet1 when published1  these 
drew down upon his head the stern       
persecution of the ,pope and            
,cardinals1 and also opposition and     
accusations from all other  philosophers
 and astronomers of his time4 ,at       
length1 hearing the  distant muttering  
thunders of the ,vatican1 he resorted to
 ,rome1 to  reason with the powers that 
then held universal sway4 ,but1 like all
  other lights of reason--from time     

immemorial to the present hour--the     
fiat of the ,romish ,church would ever  
obscure1 or crush out light1  chain down
 the intellect1 become the arbiter of   
the consciences of  men1 and permit no  
advance1 save as she might lead2 and    
even then  binding all to her dogmas1   
and decrees1 by the power of force1 and 
threatenings of her ,inquisitions4 ,she 
has ever stood ready1 where she  had the
 power1 to crush with her iron heel     
every one who dared to  oppose1 or      
sought to lead the mind of man to light 
and liberty4 ,and it  has been the force
 of circumstances alone1 that has1 in   
part1 broken  this chain of bondage1    
emancipated the mind1 given freedom to  
thought1  and permitted the advance of  
human intellect4    ,galileo seemed1    
indeed1 as ,nature's philosopher of his 
time4 ,he  interrogated the laws of     
nature by experiments and observations1 
and  we have to ascribe to him the first
 true investigation of the laws of      
terrestrial gravity4 ,had he stood firm 

and maintained the truths  which ,god   
had permitted him to comprehend1 the    
lights of a true  science would then    
have shone forth1 and it is possible    
that our  knowledge to-day would be far 
in advance of what it is4 ,we judge     
thus1  because of the rapid advance made
 during the last century1 especially    
since ,dr4 ,william ,herschel first     
pointed his telescope toward the        
heavens4    ,but on ,galileo's arrival  
at ,rome1 neither his venerable age1 his
  enlightened mind1 his acknowledged    
comprehensive and brilliant  intellect1 
nor even his honorable and eloquent     
appeals for a full and  scientific      
investigation as to the correctness of  
his theory1 could  gain a generous      
response4 ,the powers that ruled had not
 made the  advance1 and it was dangerous
 to them to permit any one outside to do
  so4 ,hence1 all new doctrines were    
held as heretical1 and must be  crushed 
at once4 ,he was placed in confinement1 
charged with treason  and conspiracy    

against the ,church2 his views          
heretical1 such as  demanded the most   
rigorous punishment2--even after he     
should renounce  them before the        
cardinals sitting as ,inquisitors in his
 case4 ,the  charges against him were   
those of his published views1 which he  
freely  acknowledged1 and1 while he knew
 them to be truths1 yet so  controlling 
was the influence of his belief in the  
dogmas of that  church--even as it is   
with all its adherents--that he bowed to
 its  fiat1 and1 on bended knees laid   
his hand upon the ,holy ,gospels1 and   
swore by them and the ,roman ,catholic  
,church1 before ,god1 and the           
,inquisition of ,cardinals1 that the    
truths he had published were  false1    
abjuring1 cursing1 and detesting them as
 heresies2 and swore  a life allegiance 
to the ,church1 and received            
submissively1 his  sentence to a dungeon
 in the ,inquisition for life4    ,says 
,prof4 ,olmsted1 ,we cannot approve of  
his employing artifice in  the          

promulgation of truth2 and we are       
compelled to lament that his  lofty     
spirit bowed in the final conflict4 ,how
 far1 therefore1 he sinks  below the    
dignity of a ,christian martyr6    ,says
 ,dr4 ,brewster1 ,at the age of seventy1
 on his bended knees1 and  with his     
right hand resting on the ,holy         
,evangelists1 did this  patriarch of    
science avow his present and past belief
 in the ,romish  ,church2 abandon as    
false and heretical the doctrine of the 
earth's  motion1 and of the sun's       
immobility1 and pledge himself to       
denounce to  the ,inquisition1 any other
 person who was even suspected of like  
heresy4 ,he abjured1 cursed1 and        
detested1 those eternal and immutable   
truths which the ,almighty had permitted
 him to be the first to  establish4 ,had
 ,galileo but added the courage of a    
martyr1 to the  wisdom of the sage2 had 
he carried the glance of his indignant  
eye  round the circle of his ,judges2   
had he lifted his hands to heaven1 and  

called the living ,god to witness the   
truth and immutability of his  opinions2
 the bigotry of his enemies would have  
been disarmed1 and  science would have  
enjoyed a memorable triumph4            
,,the ,,romish ,,church4      ,it is    
impossible for the mind to contemplate  
the scene presented to  the world1 by   
the history of that trial and unjust    
condemnation1  without a shudder1 if not
 a premonition of what may yet be in the
  future4    ,religious bigotry is more 
intolerant than any other power of      
dominion1  and where the mind and       
conscience is trammelled1 and brought   
under the  subjection of superior       
intellect1 the masses become almost as  
menials1  ready to do their masters'    
bidding4 ,we hold to a system of        
religion1  one which leaves the mind    
untrammelled1 and permits free          
intercourse  with the spirit of ,god2   
that which casts aside all that might   
obstruct  or intervene1 and which       
enables the soul to commune with its    

,maker and  ,redeemer2 that which       
enables each to know for himself and not
  another4 ,this is the ,protestant     
faith and doctrine1 contra-distinguished
  from the ,roman ,catholic faith1 whose
 ,popes1 ,bishops1 and ,priests1        
become1 as it were1 the arbiters of the 
minds and consciences of their          
adherents2 stand between them and their 
,maker1 and trifle with the  souls of   
men1 as implements and matters of       
commerce4 ,it is time that  the days of 
superstition were ended4    ,it is fast 
losing ground in the old world1 where1  
for long centuries  past1 it has held   
the masses in ignorance4 ,but1 of late  
years1 it has  been rapidly gaining     
ground on our own continent1 and its    
progress of  late has been fearful1 and 
may well alarm the ,protestants of our  
own  country4 ,we hold that ,catholicism
 is little else than a complete  system 
of superstition4 ,the minds of the      
masses of its votaries are  trained and 
educated to it from childhood4 ,hence1  

there is no  possibility of ever        
eradicating it from the minds of those  
thus  educated4 ,the priests1 cardinals1
 and ,pope1 can1 at any moment1  trammel
 free thought by their own edicts1 and  
bring their subjects to  their own      
terms4 ,their subjects are taught to    
believe them to possess  superior power2
 to be able to stand between them and   
heaven1 or hell1  to lock1 or unlock at 
pleasure2 and so ingenious is their     
system of  religion taught1 that it     
ensnares the mind and holds it ever     
subservient4    ,we have seen with what 
submission that mighty man of learning  
and  towering intellect1 ,galileo1 bowed
 to this imperial power4 ,by arduous    
study1 labor and experiments1 he had    
gained a knowledge of his  ,creators    
wonderful works1 far transcending all   
that was known of it by  the ruling     
powers of ,rome4 ,he knew this knowledge
 was truth1 as  immutable as ,god       
himself1 yet1 if cursed by the ,pope of 
,rome1 he1  doubtless1 believed this    

curse would place him in perdition1 and 
no  one would pray his soul out of      
purgatory4 ,therefore1 he perjured      
himself 7for when he had sworn it false1
 he still believed it true7 in  order to
 reconcile the rulers1 and secure their 
intercession4 ,this is  only an isolated
 case out of1 doubtless1 thousands of   
others1 where  mind and conscience is   
brought fully under their subjection4   
,rome to-day1 and the ,romish ,church1  
is the same in spirit and ambition  of  
universal sway1 as in the days of       
,galileo4 ,give her but the power1  and 
rather than lose it again1 she would    
bind humanity in chains of  perpetual   
ignorance as to the source and lights of
 eternal truth1 save  that which she    
alone might graciously promulgate2 and  
this to a  favored few1 whose trainings 
were such that their consciences were   
securely chained to her car1 more       
ponderous and destructive1 than that  of
 ,juggernaut4    ,some1 perhaps1 are    
ready to say we have borne down too     

severely upon  the ,roman ,catholics1   
that they1 too1 are now more            
enlightened1 and  more liberal in their 
views than formerly1 that they have     
founded  schools and institutions of    
learning1 equal--perhaps superior1 to   
those of any other denomination in our  
country4 ,grant all this2 but  why1 and 
for what purpose8 ,answer4 ,the force of
 circumstances2 the  enlightenment of   
the age has compelled them to move      
forward4 ,they are  ever wily and on the
 alert2 the philosophy of science was   
marching  onward2 the millions could no 
longer be held in the old beaten track  
of ignorance to pander to the few1 and  
,rome1 comprehending all this1  foresees
 her impending downfall1 unless she1    
too1 steps forward with  her gilded     
robe4 ,she therefore1 takes a new tack1 
with her ponderous  ship1 upon the sea  
of mind4 ,she has in store her mines of 
wealth1  gathered daily from the poor   
sons and daughters of toil1 some of whom
  almost starve themselves in order to  

pay penance to the ,priests for  sins   
laid to their charge1 committed--if sins
 they be1 in ignorance4  ,these         
priests--some of whom are               
besotted--still stand forth as the      
arbiters of the consciences of their    
deluded followers2 pretend to bar  the  
gates of heaven2 admitting none1 save   
for the shillings or the  pounds1       
showing plainly that the continued      
organization of this  church1 in this   
enlightened age1 is but the force of    
early education4    ,yes1 they have     
erected their school and college        
edifices1 and also  their convents and  
monasteries4 ,they have ample material  
for  efficient teachers3 but mark you1  
these have all been well trained  from  
infancy in the lap of the ,church4 ,they
 are obedient1  efficient and orderly1  
and1 at proper times1 are ready to make 
advantageous displays4 ,they take charge
 of all the youth of their  flock1 and1 
alas1 by their seductive insinuations1  
are now making  rapid progress against  

,protestantism in our own country4 ,they
 are  educating tens of thousands of    
,protestant youth4    ,do they ever     
exhibit to1 or instruct them in your    
,protestant ,bible8  ,no1 never6 but on 
the other hand2 are they not constantly 
trying to  instruct1 charm1 and         
fascinate them with their own system of 
religious  worship8 ,they are partial to
 your children--especially to your      
daughters1 who will1 in time1 be among  
the mothers of the succeeding           
generation1 and who1 of course1 will    
train up their offspring in the  same   
faith4 ,just let them secure a majority 
of mothers as firm  believers in the    
,romish faith1 and they will bid        
defiance to all  opposing influences4   
,how long since one of their            
,archbishops said1 in  a public address1
 in one of our leading cities3 ,let us  
once control  the children1 the youth of
 the land1 and we can soon control the  
nation2 or words of this import8 ,see   
their indefatigable exertions2  their   

complete system of organization2 their  
primary schools1 their  ,seminaries1    
,academies1 ,colleges1 ,convents1 and   
,monasteries1 already  established1 and 
to which they are adding1 annually1 many
 more1 while  ,protestants seem to be   
slumbering over the kindling fires of a 
volcano1 which may in time break forth  
in all its destructive fury1 as  it     
oft-times has during past centuries4    
,is it not high time that ,protestants  
of our own country1 were waking  up in  
regard to their present1 and eternal    
interests8 ,let a  preponderance of     
power be centered in any one man1 and   
you may then  bid a final adieu to a    
republican form of government1 and must1
  perhaps1 bow to infamous and          
oppressive decrees emanating from an    
iron will4    ,in our own country1 this 
cannot yet be1 unless the usurper is    
backed  by a soldiery1 who are hired1   
and paid1 out of a controlled treasury4 
,this could not long maintain1 in this1 
or any country1 where there is  freedom 

of mind and thought1 and where          
conscience remains  untrammelled4 ,but  
let the masses be thus controlled by one
 superior  intellect1 and feel that     
their ,,eternal interests are subject to
 his  will1 and they will be ever ready 
to do his bidding4    ,the ,popes of    
,rome have--successively--held this     
power over a portion  of ,europe1 even  
as the history of the dark days of the  
,inquisitions  and martyrdoms attest4   
,thus it has been1 and thus we believe  
it ever  will be1 where ,roman          
,catholics gain universal sway3 for we  
believe  there is scarcely a member of  
that organization living to-day1 who    
would not--at the ,pope's command--make 
every desired sacrifice2 not  only of   
worldly goods and interests1 but even of
 life itself--if  required4    ,we do   
not condemn--collectively1 nor          
individually1 the masses1 and  members  
of that faith4 ,far be this from us4 ,we
 believe that a very  large majority of 
them are honest1 and truly devotional4  

,no other  class of people on the globe 
have been more self-sacrificing than    
many  of them1 in performing acts of    
kindness1 charity and mercy1 and these  
offices have been performed in a true   
spirit of ,christian benevolence4       
,would that all other professed         
,christian organizations would equal    
them in this respect4 ,all should render
 relief1 when within their  power1 to   
suffering humanity4 ,we believe that all
 such efforts upon  the part of any one1
 will merit1 and obtain1 individual     
reward4 ,what  we condemn is the spirit 
of the ruling powers of the ,romish     
,church2  its bigotry1 and intolerance2 
and because they--by educating into     
their system of religion--trammel the   
mind1 and control the  conscience1      
rendering them subservient to the       
dictation and will of  the rulers4 ,the 
,pope1 bishops1 and priests1 claim to be
 the mediums  through which their       
adherents are saved1 as1 also we believe
 mediums1  whose curses pronounced      

against any1 will consign the soul to   
perdition1 while they chain the mind to 
superstition4    ,the ,bible teaches    
that ,christ is our only mediator1 that 
all may come  to ,god through faith in  
,his ,son2 every soul is held alike     
responsible1  and is alike accountable  
to its ,creator4 ,that life and         
salvation are  freely offered alike to  
all1 the requirement being1 to forsake  
the  ways of sin1 and through faith in  
,jesus ,christ1 return unto the ,lord   
who will have mercy1 and to our ,god who
 will abundantly pardon4    ,it will be 
perceived that our principal objections 
to that sect are  their superstitions1  
bigotry1 arrogance and intolerance2 the 
chaining  down the mind1 and controlling
 the conscience1 and using all for      
temporal sway4 ,the antecedents of this 
power are sufficient to warn  all       
,protestants against its encroachments1 
and stimulate them to say1  ,thus far   
shalt thou go and no farther1 and in    
order to this1 let  every ,protestant   

denomination see to the educating of    
their own  children4    ,but1 say some  
of our ,protestant mothers1 they have   
the best  schools1 and ,i want my       
daughters to be well educated1 and      
accomplished2 and ,i do not fear their  
making ,catholics of them4 ,so1         
likewise1 have said thousands of others1
 and yet1 trying the  experiment1 they  
have been mistaken4 ,their daughters    
have returned  home fascinated with show
 and tinsel1 and firm adherents to that 
doctrine1 which1 when educated into the 
mind1 can never thence be  eradicated4  
,few are aware of the rapid advance the 
,catholics are making against           
,protestantism1 at the present time4 ,it
 is safe to say1 that not less  than    
from fifteen to twenty thousand         
daughters1 belonging to  ,protestant    
families1 are baptized into that church 
annually1 in the  ,united ,states4 ,on  
the other hand1 few1 if any1 ,catholics 
ever become  ,protestants2 and nine out 
of every ten who do1 will--if sick and  

fearing the approach of death1 send for 
,catholic ,priests2 make  confession1   
and implore their intercession1 to      
rescue their souls from  purgatory1     
where they feel sure of going for this  
great sin of  apostasy4    ,now we ask1 
how long will it take1 with so large and
 ever increasing  accessions of our     
,protestant daughters1 for that         
organization to gain  the ascendancy in 
our country8 ,their motto is eternal    
vigilance1  while they wage eternal     
warfare against the ,protestant faith1  
and  ,christian religion4 ,the time was1
 when they held almost universal  sway  
throughout a large portion of ,europe4  
,the edicts of the ,pope1 and  ,roman   
,catholic rulers1 must be obeyed by all4
 ,curses1 torture1  imprisonment1 and   
death--where they had the power--was the
 portion  of all who disregarded their  
mandates4 ,and then1 as now1 their      
hatred  and persecutions were against   
those whom they termed heretical        
,protestants2 against your ancestors1   

and your religion4 ,kings1 and          
,emperors1 trembled on their thrones1   
and lent willing obedience1 lest  a     
,bull should be issued against them from
 the ,vatican by the  ruling ,pope4     
,those were dark days for poor          
,protestants2 they had to  worship ,god 
in secret1 or in dens and caves4 ,even  
only a few  centuries ago1 terror and   
darkness reigned2 multiplied thousands  
were  slaughtered1 or dragged to the    
stake and consumed by fiery faggots2    
grey hairs1 age or decrepitude1 were no 
shields against their bigoted  fury4    
,the priests then1 as now1 controlled   
and directed the  consciences of their  
followers4 ,no compassion1 could be     
shown--even to  purity and innocence of 
defenceless females1 or helpless        
children4  ,those who could manage to   
escape and flee the country1 did so1    
leaving all of worldly goods and        
possessions behind them confiscated  to 
the ,church1 and1 as strangers1 poor and
 friendless1 sought1 as  best they      

could1 asylums in other lands--some of  
whom1 finally reached  our own          
continent1 here to enjoy liberty and the
 freedom of  conscience4 ,and we have to
 lament the fact that many of them1     
still  tinctured with the rule and form 
of despotism1 had1 by the force of      
previous circumstances1 imbibed notions 
akin to despotism and  persecution1 and 
were1 for a time1 while they had the    
power1 disposed  to use it as manifested
 by the ,puritans first landing on our  
shores4  ,but they could not hold this  
power1 because of lack of a complete    
organization of a hierarchal power4     
,free thought and free speech1 and  the 
liberty of a free untrammeled conscience
 prevailed1 and soon  swept away every  
vestige of religious intolerance and    
despotism1 and  our ,north ,american    
continent soon towered in sublime       
grandeur and  beauty1 and became the    
home and asylum of freedom for the      
oppressed of  every clime4 ,this land is
 the birthright of ,protestants1 wherein

 those  of every religious faith1       
,catholics1 and all others1 have equal  
rights  and privileges2 but to maintain 
our liberties1 we must educate into  the
 minds of all1 personal liberty1 and    
accountability1 and leave  the          
conscience untrammeled so far as regards
 popes1 priests1 bishops1  or ministers1
 controlling man's future destiny4 ,all 
are held  individually1 and personally1 
accountable to ,god1 and ,he hath sent  
,his ,spirit to enlighten every one1 and
 all who go direct to ,him in the       
spirit of humility1 with faith and      
prayer1 will obtain this light4    ,in  
regard to the workings of the ruling    
powers of the ,roman ,catholic  ,church 
less than two centuries ago1 we give    
place to the following  recent          
developments1 written as a matter of    
history1 by one who  assisted in the    
investigations only a few weeks ago4    
,this is from  ,catholic ,spain3        
,,ghastly ,,revelation6                 
,,more ,,relics ,,of ,,the ,,spanish    

,,inquisition ,,unearthed4      ,the    
,london ,star has the following from    
,madrid3         ,a somewhat ghastly    
incident has caused considerable        
excitement here within the last few     
weeks4 ,within a few       hundred yards
 of the new ,plaza de ,dos ,mayo1       
inaugurated on       the #b;d of this   
month1 there is a locality called the   
,cruz       del ,quemadero4 ,it is a    
field some three hundred metres         
square1 at the top of the ,calle ,aricha
 de ,san ,bernardo1 near       the      
hospital built by the ex-,queen4        
,through it a new road       was lately 
opened1 and as the ground was elevated1 
a cutting       of considerable depth   
had to be dug4 ,the workmen laid bare   
several peculiar looking horizontal     
strata1 of irregular       formation4   
,one was one hundred and fifty feet in  
length1       another fifty1 another    
ten4 ,the thickness varied from eight   
to eighty centimetres4 ,in color the    
soil was black1 the       lower strata  

being much blacker than the superior    
ones4         ,on examination lumps of  
charred wood were found1                
interspersed with ashes1 evidently the  
remains of some huge       fire4        
,curiosity was soon excited1 and further
 investigation       demonstrated that  
in portions of these ugly-looking       
strata1       the finger came upon small
 pieces of adipose matter1 which        
yielded1 like butter1 to the touch4     
,iron rings were grubbed       up2 human
 bones1 a cranium1 a long tuft of hair1 
having       belonged to some female4   
,all these were more or less            
charred4 ,some of the iron was partially
 fused1 and the       texture of bone   
intermingled with sand was plainly      
discernible4 ,a gag turned up4 ,the     
question1 what were       these         
lugubrious records was answered at once4
 ,this field of       the ,cruz del     
,quemadero was the place where the      
,inquisition disposed of some of its    
victims4 ,here were       the ghastly   

proofs of the horrors of which this     
place had       been the scene1 suddenly
 brought to light after the lapse of    
two centuries4 ,on the #abth of ,may1   
#afhi1 eighty-three       heretics1     
including twenty ,hebrews1 of whom five 
were women1       were immolated on this
 very spot4 ,the pile of wood was       
eighty feet in length by seven feet in  
height4 ,a great       concourse        
witnessed the auto da fe1 and the       
horrible       ceremonial completed1 the
 people buried the remains of their     
victims under cart-loads of earth4      
,these irregular       geological strata
 are naught else but the silent         
testimony       to the atrocities       
perpetrated on this in the name of      
religion and ,catholic ,unity4 ,out of  
one1 your special       correspondent   
hooked out with his finger1 one entire  
bone of       a human vertebral column1 
a portion of the tibia1 a       fragment
 of a shoulder-blade with a hole through
 it1 and a       bit of a rib1 all      

bearing the marks of fire4 ,upward of   
two       cart-loads of remains of this 
sort have been carried away       and   
decently buried4 ,but these horrible    
strata6 ,there they       remain to tell
 their own tale1 and instruct the       
present       generation4 ,on the #acth1
 a public meeting was convened1 to      
be held at the ,quemadero1 by the       
,republican youth of ,madrid1       to  
protest against priestly intolerance and
 to advocate       freedom of           
conscience4 ,that this discovery should 
have       been made at a moment when   
the ,spanish clergy are striving        
their utmost to affirm the unity of the 
,roman ,catholic       ,church1 and are 
preaching in the churches of the        
metropolis       against heresy1 is a   
striking coincidence4         ,the      
,quemadero is so frequented by people in
 search of       relics1 and the        
explorations of these strata have been  
so       extensive1 that the authorities
 have barred the frontage       off1 and

 prohibited access4 ,it is their        
intention to cut a       square block1  
and there erect a monument4 ,it is      
estimated by       ,llorente1 the great 
historian of the ,inquisition1 that this
       atrocious tribunal has deprived  
,spain of twelve millions of            
souls1 including the ,jews1 and ,moors1 
expelled from the       country4        
,thirty-one thousand and ninety-two     
perished by       fire2 #ag1fei were    
first butchered and then burned2        
#bba1ihe       died of torture4 ,total1 
#bgj1gcf4    ,rome1 ever intolerant in  
spirit1 her persecutions have ever been 
the  same through all ages1 and in all  
countries1 where she had the power  of  
physical force4 ,and thus1 we believe1  
it would be to-day1 on this  continent1 
had she now the ascendency here4 ,daily1
 in private1 are you  denounced by their
 priests1 and minions1 as heretics1     
while it would  seem that no bishop1 or 
priest1 of that church1 can ascend a    
rostrum  in any of their cathedrals1    

without venting his spleen in outspoken 
or  implied anathemas against all       
,protestants4    ,your daughters1 under 
their special care in their schools and 
academies1 are taught by the ,lady      
,superiors1 and sisters--by             
insinuations1 if not directly--to       
believe theirs the only true church  of 
,god on earth4 ,they are told by their  
confidential associates1 that  all who  
do not believe their faith1 and in the  
,roman ,catholic ,church1  are held by  
them as heretics and1 without this      
belief1 need never  hope to get to      
heaven4 ,their governesses and teachers 
are ever wary1  at first1 of            
manifesting1 or of exercising a direct  
influence1 as  regards controlling their
 religious belief1 and will tell you1   
when  you are about to place your       
daughters under their care1 that they   
never teach the children of ,protestants
 the ,catholic religion1 and  yet1 by   
their machinations1 adopt the most      
efficient means of  accomplishing it4   

,they are sure to gain their confidence1
 and1 very  soon1 with nine out of ten1 
they have more of this than even the    
mother enjoys4 ,when they have gained   
this1 confidence1 their task  becomes an
 easy one1 and they know well how to    
perform it4 ,on each  recurring         
,sabbath1 all who are under their care  
must attend church1  and they are       
accompanied by the superiors or         
teachers1 to their  church1 and there   
must sit and hear the religion and faith
 of their  own parents denounced in the 
boldest terms4 ,they are young and      
inexperienced2 their minds susceptible  
of impressions1 and these they  receive 
and nurture with such effect1 that long 
before the period  arrives for them to  
leave the ,institution1 the faith and   
doctrines  of the ,church of ,rome are  
firmly ingrafted in their minds2 and    
they  return home fully resolved to be  
7even if they have not already been7    
confirmed by the ordinance of ,baptism  
in that church4 ,thus1 their  religious 

belief is educated into their minds1 and
 no parental  influence can ever change 
their views4    ,but1 say some1 we send 
our children to their day-school1 and   
hence1  have them under home influence  
most of the time1 and in this way there 
is no danger4 ,let us examine and see   
whether there is1 or is not4    ,this   
mode of procedure is one of their       
organized systems for induction  into   
your good graces1 so that they may      
eventually accomplish their  ends4 ,by  
this seeming open-heartedness1 they     
allay all suspicion1 and  overcome any  
prejudices you may have cherished       
against their system of  religion4 ,they
 are all working for the future         
ascendency of their  church4 ,it must   
not be a matter of haste2 the minds of  
,protestants1  who are yet in the       
ascendency1 are not prepared to yield   
all in open  conflict4 ,hence1 they must
 be patient2 must work and wait4 ,such a
  course1 on their part1 will disarm you
 of even suspicion1 and cause  you to   

think and speak well of them4 ,this is  
always their first step4  ,soon they    
will open the doors of their academies  
to admit your  daughters1 where they    
,,must remain during all the term--save 
a short  home visit now and then1 from  
which they must return on the day1 and  
even the very hour stated by the        
,superior4 ,have you ever noticed how   
promptly your daughter has felt it her  
duty to obey this command1  and return  
to that school8 ,was it ever thus while 
she was attending a  ,protestant school8
 ,think you she would be so mindful of  
your  request2 so anxious to leave      
pleasant society2 unwilling to remain   
even an hour longer1 and return to you  
and loved ones at home8 ,nay1 ,i  tell  
you she would not do it under ordinary  
circumstances4 ,see now who  already    
holds the confidence of1 and greater    
influence over your  child6    ,but see 
on yonder eminence a ,convent1 a        
,monastery1 a ,nunnery1 with its        
towering dome1 and surrounded by massive

 walls4 ,there1 perhaps1 is the  place  
wherein your young and beautiful        
daughter will be immured to  spend a    
weary life in crucifying herself1 and   
doing penance daily  for imaginary sins 
she has never committed4 ,thus1 shutting
 herself up  within that living tomb    
from all the outside world1 and the     
happiness  to be enjoyed in social life2
 she is as dead to you1 and to the      
world1  as though in her coffin1 and in 
her grave2 while the mind is as         
obscured as to the true lights and      
freedom of eternal truth and  salvation1
 as though reason were dethroned1 and   
she a maniac4 ,this  condition has been 
brought about by influences brought to  
bear upon  her mind1 commencing with    
your daughter's first entrance into     
their  primary schools4 ,confessions    
must soon be made to the priest1 and1 by
  his arts1 he soon gains the ascendency
 over1 and becomes the arbiter  of the  
mind and conscience1 and more especially
 is this influence  exerted to this end1

 if the child is an orphan1 and is the  
rightful  inheritor of a valuable       
estate4 ,for it would seem that to this 
end do  the ruling powers of that sect  
devote time1 energy1 and influence--as  
witnessed by so many young females1     
whose parents left them fortunes1       
surrendering all to the church1 and     
taking up a life abode in their         
convents4    ,we do not condemn the poor
 deluded victims1 nor believe they are  
held  accountable in their delusion4    
,they are honest in their devotions1 yet
  perform these under false delusions4  
,and when their spirits are  released   
from this double prison-house1 and      
return to ,god who gave  them1 they will
 then realize the freedom of the ,spirit
 of ,god1 and how  abundantly it giveth 
light1 life and liberty4 ,and they will 
then  also realize that their salvation 
is alone of ,god--through his  boundless
 mercy2 and not in anywise through      
intercession of the  ,priest4    ,we    
warn you to look well to passing events4

 ,history so oft repeats  itself1 that  
we can but believe there is danger4     
,remember that when  ,luther--the bold  
pioneer of ,protestantism--stood forth  
the champion of  ,christianity1 to his  
followers there came1 from this same    
source1  persecutions1 martyrdoms1 and  
massacres--even a reign of terror and   
darkness upon ,europe4 ,but it proved a 
darkness that preceded a dawn2  and     
although seemingly1 at the time1        
dreadful in its consequences1 yet  none 
can deny but that the world is far      
better because of his efforts1  than to 
have slumbered on in ignorance and in   
sin4 ,from this same  cause1 our own    
continent may be destined to pass       
through a period like  that of the dark 
ages4 ,if so1 we trust in ,god it may   
come forth from  it cleansed and        
purified2 even as the current of the    
lost river1  that loses itself in the   
bosom of the ,blue ,ridge1 where1 with a
 wild  whirl1 its turbid waters dash    
into the resounding cavern1 but on the  

other side reappear1 clear1 placid1 and 
beautiful4    ,we say to all            
,protestants1 remember1 that in placing 
your children  under the care and       
influence of ,catholic teachers1 and    
,priests of that  ,church1 you lend your
 aid to obscuring their minds1 and1 in  
accordance to your own belief1 shutting 
out from the eye of faith  ,god's own   
eternal truth4 ,they go to men as       
intercessors instead of  to ,christ the 
,lord--the ,son of ,god1 who redeemed   
them with ,his own  precious blood--who 
alone can intercede for them4 ,and you  
also aid in  re-establishing universal  
sway to the ever-intolerant ,romish     
,church4  ,the time may come            
when--driven from the ,old ,world--her  
central power  will be on this          
continent3 and1 erecting here her       
gorgeous temples  from the estates you  
leave to your children1 the ,pope will  
ascend the  throne of the ,american     
,vatican--under and around which will be
 the  dark dungeons of the              

,inquisition--and thence thunder forth  
his  ,bulls and ,anathemas against the  
feeble followers of the blessed         
,redeemer4 ,that ,church is by far the  
most intolerant of all the  professed   
,christian organizations on this globe4 
,their members are not  even allowed the
 privilege of attending religious       
worship anywhere  else than under their 
own instructions1 and we opine1 that    
should any  one of them do so without   
dispensation1 they are held as having   
committed a sin1 for which they must    
soon repair to the ,priest1 make        
confession1 do penance1 receive         
absolution from him1 and pay the  price4
    ,behold the avarice of this whore of
 ,babylon6 ,not content with  tribute   
paid to her--perhaps weekly--through a  
long lifetime by her  deluded followers1
 when nature yields to the fiat of the  
,eternal ,one1  mortality drops to      
moulder into dust1 and the spirit       
returns to ,god  who gave it1 so        
completely are the minds of all her     

adherents under  the control of the     
,priests1 that they can still lay       
penance upon the  dead1 and demand and  
obtain tribute from the living          
offspring4    ,in closing our remarks   
upon this subject1 we submit1 for the   
reflection of all ,protestant ministers 
and members in every quarter of  the    
world1 the following1 a portion of the  
,pope's address to the  ,english        
clergymen1 who presented him an address 
signed by some  eighteen hundred clergy1
 ,april #bjth1 #ahfi4 ,after examining  
the  document closely1 following other  
remarks1 he said3    ,in the mean time1 
we must cultivate in a most special     
manner the  spirit of unity1 for in that
 lies our strength1 and its want is the 
weakness of our adversaries4 ,i have    
noticed the ,protestants are            
perpetually appealing to the primitive  
,church2 but when ,i turn to the  early 
ages of history1 what do ,i see8 ,unity6
 all the more reasonable  because       
existing undoubtedly in a different     

state of society from the  present4 ,the
 ,apostles were all of one accord1 and  
one mind4 99 99 99 99  ,protestants1 on 
the other hand1 are disunited2 and our  
strength1 in  the difficulties we have  
to encounter1 lies in perfect union4 99 
99 99  ,it will be the old story over   
again4 ,there will be waves and storms  
and threatenings on all sides1 but we   
shall be brought safely through  99 99  
99 while our adversaries are struggling 
with the waves4    ,let all ponder well 
these remarks4 ,the philosophy that in  
union there  is strength is a true one4 
,and if all ,protestants cannot unite as
 one  great body and family--because of 
minor non-essentials in matters of      
faith1 forms and ceremonies--let all    
unite in the one great essential1  that 
all their children1 and orphan children 
of ,protestants1 shall be  educated in  
other than ,catholic schools4 ,for1 in  
these latter1 we hold  that the mind is 
chained to error and superstition1 and  
the true  lights of ,god's truth and    

plan of salvation are obscured4 ,every  
parent  and guardian will be held       
accountable in a coming day1 should they
  neglect to train up their children in 
the way they should go4           99    
99       99       99       99    ,our   
readers will please pardon us for the   
digression we have made from  the       
special subject we have under           
consideration4 ,had we not been duly    
impressed with the importance and       
correctness of our views upon the       
subject of the freedom and liberty of   
mind and conscience1 and of the         
personal accountability of all to ,god  
alone1 we should not have thus  pursued 
the theme4 ,we believe firmly in the    
good offices of a  teaching and advising
 ministry1 but not in anywise where it  
trammels  the mind or becomes the       
arbiter of the conscience4           99 
99       99       99       99           
,returning to our subject1 viz41 the    
earlier discoveries of the  science of  
,astronomy4 ,the intelligence of the    

world is indebted to ,sir  ,isaac       
,newton1 who lived during the latter    
part of the sixteenth  century1 for the 
discovery of the laws of universal      
gravitation4 ,his  discovery1 and       
philosophy1 furnished the basis upon    
which all  subsequent astronomers have  
worked4          ,,attraction1          
,,gravitation1 c4      ,the power of    
attraction and force of gravitation are 
the laws which  govern the universe of  
matter4 ,the discovery of this law1 says
 ,prof4  ,olmsted1 made us acquainted   
with the hidden forces that move the    
great machinery of the universe4 ,it    
furnished the key which unlocks  the    
inner temple of ,nature1 and established
 the science of ,astronomy  upon a sure 
and firm basis4 ,thus we discover in    
,nature a tendency of  every portion of 
matter toward some other4 ,this tendency
 is called  gravitation4 ,the larger the
 body1 the more powerful the attraction2
  and this attraction is always toward  
the centre4 ,hence1 you may cast  an    

object of weight into the air1 and1 when
 the impelling force you  have given it 
ceases to force it upward1 it falls in a
 direct line to  the earth4 ,so also may
 the ,chinaman1 placed on the opposite  
side of  the globe1 cast one as he deems
 upward1 which is forcing it in an      
opposite direction from where you sent  
yours2 yet1 when his impelling  force is
 lost1 his too falls back to the earth1 
each falling toward  the other4 ,this is
 gravitation1 produced by the power of  
attraction4  ,thus we now see this      
principle made plain to the simplest    
comprehension4          ,,suns1 ,,stars1
 ,,planets1 c4      ,we come1 now1 to   
the contemplation of that which is of   
far greater  importance to us than all  
other planets1 worlds1 stars1 and       
wonders in  the siderial ,heavens4 ,this
 is the ,sun1 which warms and lights up 
our  earth1 and all the other planets   
within its sphere4    ,says ,dr4 ,child1
 ,there are not a few in this world who 
habitually  receive ,god's blessings so 

much as a matter of course1 that they   
are  scarcely conscious of any active   
feeling of gratitude in regard to  them4
 ,the very regularity and profusion with
 which these blessings are  showered on 
all alike1 seem to have the effect of   
deadening the sense  of individual      
obligation4 ,a general admission of     
thankfulness may  occasionally be made  
at church or in the closet1 but there is
 a want  of that abiding consciousness  
of it1 with which we ought to be imbued1
  as well as that frequent pondering    
upon details which1 by illustrating  the
 dependence of every creature upon ,god1
 causes the heart to swell  with        
grateful adoration4 ,such thoughts never
 fail to improve our  moral nature by   
bringing the truth home to us more and  
more that we  are ,god's children4      
,it would be no easy task for a thankful
 mind to sum up all the  blessings      
diffused over our planet by the ,sun4   
,it is the mainspring of  animated      
,nature4 ,without its genial rays the   

present system of ,earth's  government  
could not endure1 and life itself would 
soon disappear from  the globe4 ,to it  
we are indebted for light and           
warmth--the two  stimulants of vital    
force--for our food and raiment2 for our
 busy days  and rest-bringing nights1   
for months and years1 and happy         
alternations  of seasons4 ,its rays1 in 
short1 are intertwined with all our     
wants and  comforts2 they gladden the   
eye and cheer the heart4 ,contemplating 
all  these temporal blessings1 the      
,psalmist exclaims3         ',i will    
praise the name of the ,lord with a     
song1 and       magnify it with         
thanksgiving4'    ,the ,sun is the      
central pivot of the solar system1 and  
round it the  earth and all the other   
planets keep whirling in elliptical     
orbits4  ,its power and influence1 its  
light1 heat1 and attraction1 reach      
through a domain in space which it would
 require six thousand  millions of miles
 to span4 ,with the greater part of this

 wide field1  astronomers are familiar1 
and it may be truly said that scarcely a
 man  knows the roads of his own parish 
or neighborhood1 or a citizen the       
streets of his own city or village1 with
 more exactness than they do  the       
highways of the skies4 ,not only can    
they map out to a nicety the  paths of  
the planets careering through it like   
islands floating  through a sea of      
ether1 but they can look backward and   
tell the exact  spot where each globe   
was at any moment of the remote past1 or
  forward1 and point to the place where 
each will be found at any given  moment 
of the remote future4    ,what is the   
mighty power which maintains such order 
in the ,heavens1  which steadies the    
planets in their orbits1 and traces out 
for them a  route so wisely planned as  
to avoid all chances of collision8 ,two 
antagonistic forces--gravitation and    
attraction1 combined with a  centrifugal
 impulse--accomplish the wonderful task4
 ,to these faithful  servants1 ,god     

commits the safety of the ,universe1 nor
 can anything  disturb or derange the   
order of this machinery1 save the ,word 
which  created it4    ,the ,sun was     
placed in the centre1 and became the    
pivot of the whole  system1 tying to    
itself the different planets by the cord
 of its  superior attraction4 ,in       
accordance with the law we have         
mentioned1  this loadstone power of the 
,sun is the inevitable result of its    
superior mass1 as it is computed to be  
six hundred times greater in  magnitude 
than this earth and all the planets put 
together4 ,but  behold the wisdom and   
wondrous power of the ,great ,architect1
 in  creating these vast worlds1 and    
placing each in its proper position  in 
space2 where each revolves within its   
own orbit--some with the  velocity of   
even one hundred thousand miles an      
hour--yet maintaining  toward each other
 that centrifugal force which prevents  
their being  drawn by the attractive    
power of that vast globe within the     

,sun1  into certain destruction1 by its 
surrounding fires4    ,astronomers      
inform us there are innumerable ,suns1  
each of which is  supposed to control a 
separate1 or its own system of planets2 
giving  light and heat thereto1 even as 
our ,sun does to this ,earth1 and its   
own system of planets4 ,their distances 
from the ,sun that lights up our        
,heavens are immeasureable--far         
transcending our conceptions1 or even   
our imagination--in illimitable space4  
,they also inform us that the  distance 
from this ,earth1 to the nearest one of 
these distant stars1  or suns1 is about 
twenty billions of miles4 ,so vast is   
the distance  here stated1 that the mind
 cannot grasp or comprehend it4 ,we can 
more  nearly approximate by the         
measurement of light2 a ray of which    
darting  from its surface and travelling
 at the speed of #aib1jjj miles a       
second1 would not reach our eye under   
three years and eight months4  ,such    
then1 says ,sir ,john ,herschel1 is the 

length of the  sounding-line with which 
we first touch bottom in the attempt to 
fathom the great abyss of the sidereal  
heavens4 ,says ,olmsted1 ,until         
recently1 astronomers gave almost       
exclusive attention to  observations1   
and the study of the solar system4 ,but 
,dr4 ,william  ,herschel turned his     
attention to the sidereal heavens1 and  
opened up  new and wonderful fields of  
discovery1 as well as of speculation4   
,his  son1 ,sir ,john ,herschel1 and    
,sir ,james ,south1 of ,england1 have   
followed  the old master1 with grasping 
minds and brilliant intellects1 until   
more has been accomplished by them1 and 
others of the present day1  than all    
preceding astronomers had even ventured 
to conjecture1 and  that their          
deductions are founded mainly on facts1 
no intelligent mind  will--on           
investigation--have reason to doubt4    
,but having thrown anchor and touched   
bottom in the wide expanse of  the      
unlimited sphere of the sidereal        

heavens1 let us1 says ,dr4  ,child1 take
 another flight4 ,here next1 within the 
domain of ,sirius1  we find ourselves   
six times as far distant as when at     
,centauri1 first  mentioned--say one    
hundred and twenty billions of          
miles--from which  it would require     
twenty-two years for a ray of light     
travelling at  the rate of #aib1jjj     
miles a second to reach our ,earth4     
,but1 far  distant1 yonder1 we behold   
the beauteous ,capella1 in all its      
splendor and glory1 throwing its        
effulgent rays across the wide  expanse 
of universe1 and yet these rays of      
light1 travelling at the  same mentioned
 rate--#aib1jjj miles each passing      
second of  time--require about seventy  
years in transit1 before the inhabitants
  of our ,earth catch a glimpse of their
 brilliancy and beauty4 ,and yet  now   
the mind has only entered the borders of
 'the starry  regions'--far beyond1 in  
illimitable space1 lie the ',hosts of   
the  ,stars2' their vast distances      

cannot be computed even by light itself4
    ,it is wonderful to contemplate the 
probability that of some of the  more   
distant stars discovered1 the rays of   
light which have found rest  in the eye 
of the ,astronomer1 through the aid of  
the telescope1 may  have left their     
native sun thousands of years ago1 and  
travelled at  the rate of #aib1jjj miles
 a second ever since4 ,a certain cluster
 of  stars was estimated by ,sir        
,william ,herschel to be #gjj times the 
distance of a star of the first         
magnitude--therefore at least #gjj      
times nineteen billions of miles6 ,but1 
observes ,guillemin1 if this  cluster   
was removed to five times its actual    
distance1 that is to say  #c1ejj times  
the distance of ,sirius1 the large      
,herschelian telescope of  #dj feet     
focus would still show it1 but only as  
an irresolvable  ,nebula4 ,it is1 then1 
extremely probable that1 among the many 
,nebul  indecomposable into stars1      
beyond the ,milky ,way1 in the depths of

 the  heavens1 many are as distant as   
that of which we speak4 ,doubtless  many
 are more so4 ,now to reach us1         
light-rays must have left stars         
situated at such a distance more than   
#gjj1jjj years ago6 ,says ,child1  ,when
 we have touched the verge of this      
uttermost range1 ,infinity1  boundless  
as ever1 still lies beyond4 ,the idea of
 ,god extinguishes in  our mind every   
suspicion that there can be any limit to
 space1  magnitude1 or power1 in        
relation to ,his works4 ,the mighty     
universe we  have been considering is   
but the stepping-stone to what is       
farther on2  and although our           
imagination fails to grasp it1 our      
reason assures us  it must be so4 ,there
 is no such thing as taking from or     
adding to ,the  ,illimitable4    ,with  
what just propriety of thought has light
 been called the 'voice'  of the stars4 
99 99 99 ,in the 'speechless' voice of  
light the stars  proclaim to us from the
 depths of space1 the existence of      

innumerable  other worlds which1 like   
our own1 share the ,creator's care4 99  
99 99 ,with  mute argument stars prove  
to us that1 in those far-off regions1   
gravitation--the power that brings the  
apple to the ground--still  reigns      
supreme1 and with suggestive whispers of
 probability1 they  persuade us that1   
like our own ,sun1 they bathe attendant 
worlds in  floods of light2 deck them in
 colors of beauty1 and shower countless 
blessings on the life of myriads of     
beings4    ,having glanced at the       
distances and magnitudes of some of the 
stars1  or suns1 let us pause for a     
moment to consider their number1 and the
  vast space they must necessarily      
occupy in the domain of ,creation4 ,by  
the most moderate estimate the number of
 stars that can be counted in  the      
firmament by telescopic aid1 does not   
fall short of one hundred  millions4    
,there is no doubt that most of those   
stars are ,suns1  dispensing light and  
heat to earths and planets like our own2

 and1  indeed1 no bodies shining by     
reflected light would be visible at such
  enormous distances4    ,from the      
superior magnitude of those that have   
been measured--as  compared to our      
,sun--it may be assumed that the average
 diameter of  their solar systems must  
exceed our own2 but taking them as      
nearly  equal1 it would give a breadth  
of at least six thousand millions of    
miles as the field of space occupied by 
each1 while every star1 or  sun-system1 
is probably begirt with a gulf or void  
like that  encircling our own1 in which 
the antagonistic forces of attraction   
are  lost1 so as not to disturb each    
other4 ,hence1 the distance from each   
of those suns to its nearest neighbor is
 probably not less than that  which     
intervenes between our ,sun and the     
nearest star1 which cannot be  less than
 about twenty billions of miles4 ,how   
inconceivably vast1  therefore1 must be 
the space required to give room for so  
many and  such stupendous solar systems4

 ,the mind absolutely reels under the   
load of conceptions so mighty4 ,yet     
,infinity still lies beyond4    ,for    
what purpose1 says ,sir ,john ,herschel1
 are we to suppose such  magnificent    
bodies scattered through the abyss of   
space8 ,surely not to  illume our       
nights1 which an additional moon of the 
thousandth part of  the size of our own 
would do much better2 not to sparkle as 
a pageant1  void of meaning and reality1
 and to bewilder us among vain          
conjectures4 ,he must have studied      
astronomy to little purpose1 who can    
suppose man to be the only object of his
 ,creator's care1 or who does  not see1 
in the vast and wonderful apparatus     
around us1 provisions for  other races  
of animated beings4    ,the ,psalmist   
says3         ,whoso is wise will ponder
 these things1 and they shall           
understand the loving-kindness of the   
,lord4    ,let us here suggest the      
reasonable hypothesis1 that those       
distant  suns1 standing far out in the  

sidereal regions of illimitable         
space--created1 and placed there by the 
,word of the ,almighty  architect--may  
have been shining thus for untold       
billions of years2  and so1 also1 the   
sun which shines upon and lights up and 
warms this  earth1 and the other planets
 within its domain2 and will thus remain
  forever1 as ,god's own lamps of       
eternal light1 to all created           
intelligences4    ,hear the ,psalmist   
break forth again1         ,thy         
testimonies are wonderful4 ,who alone   
doeth great       wonders4         ,the 
heavens declare the glory of ,god1 and  
the firmament       sheweth ,his handy  
works4         ,such knowledge is too   
wonderful for me4    ,job tells us1     
,he alone spreadeth out the heavens1 and
 treadeth upon the       waves of the   
sea1 and doeth wonders without number4  
,fixed stars--held by astronomers to be 
suns--are known from the  planetary     
stars by their perpetual twinkling1 and 
by their being1  apparently1 always in  

the same position relative to each      
other4 ,now1  while the number of stars 
to be seen in the heavens by the naked  
eye  on a clear night does not exceed   
about #c1jjj in each1--the northern  and
 southern hemispheres1--yet ,herschel1  
,olmsted1 and other examiners  tell us  
that by the aid of the telescope1 many  
millions stand out in  brilliant        
array--so vast their number that they   
cannot be correctly  computed1 but are  
supposed to be at least one hundred     
millions4    ,prof4 ,olmsted declares it
 fully demonstrated that the fixed stars
  are suns1 and1 with other astronomers1
 argues the fair probability  of many of
 them being of far greater magnitude    
than our own sun4 ,dr4  ,wollaston1 a   
distinguished ,english philosopher1     
attempted to estimate  the magnitude of 
certain of the fixed stars from the     
light which they  afforded4 ,by means of
 an accurate photometer 7an instrument  
for  measuring the relative intensities 
of light71 he compares the light of     

,sirius with that of the sun4 ,he next  
computed how far the sun must be        
removed from us in order to appear no   
brighter than ,sirius4 ,he found  it    
would require to be one hundred and     
forty-one thousand times its  present   
distance1 and even at that great        
distance ,sirius must give out  twice as
 much light as the sun1 or that1 in     
point of splendor1 ,sirius  must be at  
least equal to two suns4 ,but1 adds     
,prof4 ,olmsted1 as  ,sirius is more    
than two hundred thousand times as far  
off as the  sun1 he has rendered it     
probable that its light is equal to that
 of  fourteen suns4 7,we wish you to    
bear these facts in mind1 they will     
serve you when we come to speak of the  
magnitude of our own sun47    ,but let  
us follow ,prof4 ,olmsted a little      
farther4 ,he says1 ,we have  already    
seen that they are large bodies2 that   
they are immensely  farther off than the
 farthest planet2 that they shine by    
their own  light2 in short1 that their  

appearance is1 in all respects1 the same
  as the ,sun would exhibit if removed  
to the region of the stars4 ,hence1  we 
infer that they are bodies of the same  
kind with the ,sun4    ,we are          
justified1 therefore1 by a sound        
analogy1 in concluding that  the stars  
referred to were made for the same end  
as the ,sun2 namely1  as the centres of 
attraction to other planetary worlds1 to
 which they  severally dispense light   
and heat4 ,although the starry heavens  
present1 in a clear night1 a spectacle  
of unrivalled grandeur and  beauty1 yet 
it must be admitted that the chief      
purpose of the stars  could not have    
been to adorn the night1 since by far   
the greater part  of them are ever      
invisible to the naked eye1 nor as      
landmarks to the  navigator1 for only a 
small proportion of them are adapted to 
this  purpose1 nor1 finally1 to         
influence this ,earth by their          
attraction1  since their distance       
renders such an effect entirely         

insensible4  ,therefore1 arriving at the
 only rational conclusion that they are 
,suns1 many of them suns of vast        
magnitude2 shining with splendor and    
brilliancy equal to1 or surpassing that 
of our own ,sun2 each giving  out light 
and heat to their attendant planets and 
revolving worlds  within their own      
domain1 or sphere1--may we not ask1 for 
what purpose  are these gifts dispensed 
to those surrounding worlds1 if not for 
the  use of percipient beings8    ,we   
are therefore led to the inevitable idea
 of a plurality of worlds2  and that    
they are inhabited by some order of     
intelligences1 and the  conclusion is   
forced upon our minds that the spot     
which the ,creator  has assigned to us  
is but a humble province in his         
boundless empire4    ,none1 however1 can
 form a correct estimate1 or comparison1
 between  this1 our diminutive ,earth1  
and those vast orbs--suns--fixed so     
remote  from us in the sidereal regions1
 nor of the numbers1 until in some      

measure they have familiarized their    
minds with1 and understand1 to  some    
extent1 the science of astronomy1 and   
then survey the vast field  through a   
suitable telescope4 ,even the first view
 through it1 pointed  heavenward1 will  
astonish and fill the mind with awe and 
wonder2 and  as each new-grasping power 
is given to the instrument2 new fields  
of  those regions are joined on to those
 already explored1 and every new        
stratum of space thus added is found to 
be studded with stars in ever           
increasing ratio2 until myriads have    
come forth from the dark depths  of the 
firmament1 and they have a grand        
panoramic view of a ,universe  of       
,worlds peopling the realms of boundless
 space4 ,then1 in wonder and  amazement1
 they will more fully realize and       
comprehend the ,omnipotent  power of    
,god in the manifestations of ,his      
creative word4 ,then1 in  comparison1   
each realizing his own diminutiveness3  
that he is even  less than an           

unperceived infinitesimal atom floating 
along in the  gentle breeze1 he will be 
led to exclaim with the ,psalmist3      
,how wonderful are thy works1 ,o ,lord  
of hosts6         ,what is man that thou
 art mindful of him1 or the son of man  
that thou takest knowledge of him8      
,dismissing1 for the present1 the       
further contemplation of those  far-off 
millions of stars1 or suns1 and their   
multiplied millions of  attendant       
planets and worlds1 we come back to the 
contemplation of our  own ,sun1 and its 
attendant planets1 things with which we 
are more  familiar1 and which           
are--seemingly--more tangible4    ,as we
 have before remarked1 the ,sun governs 
and controls our ,earth1  and the other 
planets and worlds within its domain4   
,some of these  worlds are not greatly  
dissimilar to this in which we live2    
some are  smaller1 while others are     
vastly larger--some computed to be even 
a  thousand times larger than this      
,earth1 and1 as we believe1 all are     

peopled with some high order of         
intelligence4    ,having gathered the   
foregoing facts from the most undoubted 
authorities--astronomers1 whose         
mathematical and philosophical          
calculations have for their base the    
immutable laws established by  creative 
wisdom1 as now revealed in ,nature1 we  
shall still rely--more  or less--upon   
them for statistical facts and data1 in 
further  expositions from which to make 
deductions and draw our conclusions4    
,we are desirous of familiarizing your  
mind with the mighty and  wondrous works
 of ,god1 so plainly manifested in ,his 
creating and  sustaining power1 which   
few1 comparatively speaking1 seem to    
comprehend in any other way save in the 
daily temporal blessings of  life4      
,should our feeble efforts raise your   
thoughts higher1 and enable  you to     
contemplate ,him with the eye of faith  
in the light of reason1  and ,divine    
revelation2 to know more of ,his        
greatness and power1 and  your entire   

dependence upon ,him for all temporal   
blessings in life2  for the only        
consolation you can have in the dying   
hour1 and as your  only hope for the    
future1 and should such contemplation   
draw your mind  and heart to ,him in    
holy love1 and godly fear1 we shall be  
well  rewarded for our efforts4         
,,fixed ,,stars ,,are ,,suns4      ,we  
now propose to dwell for a short time   
upon the distance1 magnitude1  elements1
 and offices of the ,sun4    ,the ,sun  
itself speaks to us with its voice of   
light1 and it is our  high privilege to 
understand1 and thus comprehend         
mysteries long  hidden1 which are now   
being revealed4 ,special manifestations 
were long  since made by ,jehovah1 which
 were left for those of the present     
enlightened age to comprehend2 when the 
mind of man is more fully able  to grasp
 ,his truths1 and look up through       
,nature to ,nature's ,god4    ,now fix  
your mind's eye upon that brilliant orb 
of--seeming--eternal  day2 that ,sun    

which is ever shining1 ah6 whose light  
never pales1 nor  fails its vast empire4
 ,no storm-clouds obscure its brightness
 in the  higher realm1 neither is there 
waning of light1 nor a wasting of its   
substance4 ,possibly1 from all eternity 
of the past it has been1 and  through   
eternity to come it will remain the     
same4 ,we1 on this ,earth1  have our    
days and nights1 our sun-shine and      
shadows1 tempests and  storms4 ,our     
nights are the result of the daily      
revolution of the  ,earth1 these are    
when that portion of it on which we     
dwell is turned  away from the ,sun1 and
 the shadow of the ,earth--which is     
surrounded by  a dense atmosphere--is   
that which constitutes our darkness4    
,this  atmosphere is a screen to us by  
day to modify the intense heat of the   
,sun's rays4 ,otherwise1 it is possible 
that no animated life could  exist4     
,this atmosphere has in it the elements 
of production1  which--when absorbed by 
the ,earth--assists in bringing forth   

for the  sustenance of man and beast1   
and all living things4 ,did not this    
atmosphere exist1 our midnight hours    
would be almost as bright as  noonday4  
,see in this the wise provision of our  
heavenly ,father4    ,that ,sun is      
farther away1 and of far greater        
magnitude1 than you now  comprehend1 or 
even imagine4 ,we will now state its    
dimensions1  distance1 elements1 c41 as 
measured and determined by the science  
of  astronomy1 and as agreed upon by all
 the best informed and most  profound   
mathematicians and astronomers          
throughout the world4    ,the diameter  
of the ,sun is eight hundred and        
fifty-five thousand  miles4 ,it would   
require one hundred and seven worlds1   
the size of  this ,earth1 set side by   
side to reach across it1 and one million
 four  hundred thousand ,earths1 the    
size of this1 to make a globe of equal  
magnitude4 ,it is two millions six      
hundred and fifty-five thousand  miles  
round it1 while its bulk is not less    

than six hundred times  as great as all 
the worlds and planets it controls      
within its sphere  put together1--some  
of which1 as we have told you1 are      
estimated to be  a thousand times larger
 than this ,earth4    ,is your mind     
expanding8 are your views enlarging1 so 
as to enable you  to comprehend its vast
 dimensions8 ,let the revelations of    
astronomy  assist you4 ,look at it      
again4 ,from the comparatively small    
size of its  disk as we see it from the 
,earth1 the distance must be vast indeed
 to  dwarf it down thus4 ,the distance  
is great1 no less than about            
ninety-five millions of miles4 ,it is   
three hundred and eighty-five  times as 
far away as the ,moon3 it is estimated  
that a cannon ball  fired from this     
,earth and keeping up its velocity at   
the rate of five  hundred miles an hour1
 would not reach it in less time than   
about  twenty-two years4 ,still1 though 
these are well demonstrated facts1      
ascertained by very correct measurement1

 by the most scientific  mathematical   
surveyors of the heavens1 yet we desire 
some more plain  or familiar            
illustration4 ,let us investigate4 ,here
 we have it2 are you  ready for a       
journey8 ,the celebrated ,braley has    
calculated the time  required for a trip
 of ocular exploration4 ,he observes1 ,a
 railway  train starting from this      
,earth1 and running continuously1 at the
 rate  of thirty miles an hour1 would   
arrive at the ,moon in eleven months1   
but would not reach the ,sun in less    
time than about three hundred  and      
fifty-two years4 ,we can partially      
comprehend this by calculation          
7although the years of the oldest       
individual of our country have not  been
 sufficient to take him more than one   
third of the journey1 even  had he been 
placed on such train and started when an
 infant at his  mother's breast74 ,had  
the train been started only nineteen    
years later  than the discovery of      
,north ,america by ,columbus1 in #adih1 

and  travelled thirty miles each hour   
since1 it would just now be  approaching
 the border of the ,sun1 and1 on        
arriving there1 if a tunnel  was opened 
and a track laid direct through it1 this
 train1 continued  at the same speed1   
would require more than a year and a    
half to reach  the ,sun's centre2 three 
years and a half to pass through it1 and
 more  than ten years to pass round it4 
,now this same train would attain the   
centre of this ,earth in five  days and 
a half2 pass through it in eleven days2 
and go round it in  about thirty-five   
days4 ,thus you see the diminutiveness  
of this ,earth  as compared to the ,sun4
 ,these calculations are founded on     
facts so  clearly demonstrated by the   
science of astronomy1 that but few who  
examine into it will question their     
approximation to correctness4    ,now   
while the mind is somewhat familiarized 
with that vast globe1 the  ,sun1 let us 
contemplate it further4    ,sir ,john   
,herschel1 the most profound philosopher

 in the science of  astronomy the world 
has ever known2 one whose inventions and
  improvements in the telescope have far
 surpassed those of all others2  one who
 has enjoyed the highest advantages in  
the study and  demonstration of the     
science1 and who has made most important
  discoveries in regard to the sun1 and 
moon1 and the planets--and even  the    
fixed stars1 or suns1 in the far off    
sidereal regions--tells us  that from   
his investigations and discoveries in   
regard to the ,sun1  there appears to be
 a vast globe within the surrounding    
photosphere  of fire1 shielded by a void
 or non-luminous atmosphere1 thus       
apparently protecting it from the       
surrounding flame of fire1 and          
rendering it possible that the vast     
globe within is susceptible of  animated
 life1 which may exist there in some    
form4 ,this1 with the  general          
corroboration of other astronomers1 as  
to the two encircling  volumes of       
atmosphere--the outer a luminous1 and   

the inner a  non-luminous one--is strong
 evidence confirmative of our hypothesis
 of  the existence of that immense inner
 globe1 or world1 which is  doubtless in
 reality the ,heavenly world2 the       
,saviour's empire1 and  the abode of the
 righteous4    ,methinks1 had ,sir ,john
 ,herschel but turned his attention for 
awhile to  the flood-lights of ,divine  
,revelations1 made by ,god himself      
through  ,his ,spirit to fallen man1 he 
would ere this have opened the gate to  
the eye of faith1 and bid the weary     
,christian to look and behold the       
confines of that bright world which was 
opened1 and flashed its inner  light    
upon the eyes of the dying martyr       
,stephen1 when1         ,being full of  
the ,holy ,ghost1 he looked up          
steadfastly into       heaven1 and saw  
the glory of ,god1 and ,jesus standing  
at the       right hand of ,god1 and    
said1 ,behold1 ,i see heaven opened4    
,thus1 we are led to the inevitable     
conclusion that heaven is not so  far   

distant but that it can be seen from    
earth by the spirit-eye1 if  ,god shall 
but open1 and disclose it to view4      
,where else can we imagine  its         
location1 to be within range of--even   
immortal--vision from this  earth8 ,st4 
,john1 while in the spirit1 had a view  
of that heavenly  world1 and the vast   
city with glittering jasper walls1 and  
gold-paved  streets1 and even the great 
white throne1 the ,saviour on that      
throne1 surrounded by an innumerable    
company that no man can number4    ,st4 
,paul1 in spirit1 was caught up1 even   
into the third heaven1 and  saw and     
heard things which it were not lawful   
for man to utter to  mortals on earth4  
,he tells us that eye hath not seen1    
neither ear  hath heard1 nor hath it    
entered the heart of man1 the glory that
 shall  be revealed4 ,but we will not   
here anticipate the still stronger      
evidence we have yet to lay before the  
mind as we pursue this  interesting     
theme4    ,bear in mind the fact that   

heaven is considered by the most learned
  and ablest writers on theology1 as a  
fixed place1 permanent and  abiding4    
,that it is vast in extent1 and glorious
 in appearance1 and  has1 within1 all   
the necessary elements and arrangements 
for complete  happiness4 ,and1 we       
believe1 that not very remotely distant 
from it is  the place where is the      
element of punishment for the wicked4   
,we think  the revelations of ,god1 and 
the manner and mode of his              
manifestations  to the children of men1 
together with the revelations of        
astronomy in  regard to the ,sun2 its   
magnitude and elements1 will1 when we   
come to  consider them further1 not only
 startle the mind1 but prove our        
hypothesis well-founded4          ,a    
,,contemplation4      ,just here1 may we
 not1 for a few moments1 speculate in   
mind upon a  possibility1 which1 as we  
advance1 will assume more the form of a 
probability8    ,look once more upon    
that brilliant orb1 whose light1        

without1 may be  one of the lamps of    
eternal day4 ,look but for one second of
 time only2  for1 as we have told you1 a
 steady gaze into its fiery flame of    
brightness for one minute alone is fatal
 to the blinding of the  unprotected    
eye4 ,may not within be the place of    
which the poet's  spiritual eye caught a
 glimpse1 when alone in silent          
meditation he  penned those sublime and 
beautiful lines3        ,there1 on those
 wide extended plains1 shines one       
eternal day1      ,there ,god1 the ,son1
 forever reigns1 and scatters night     
away4      ,no chilling winds1 nor      
poisonous breath1 can reach that        
healthful shore1      ,sickness and     
sorrow1 pain and death1 are felt and    
feared no more4    ,may not that be the 
,heavenly world wherein stands the ,city
 of ,god1  whose foundations are        
eternal1 and whose maker and builder is 
the  great ,architect of the ,universe8 
,its walls are ,jasper1 and are ever    
glittering in the glory-light of eternal

 day4 ,its apartments are  gorgeously   
furnished in brilliant array4 ,i go said
 the ,saviour1  to prepare a place for  
you4 ,there the gold-paved streets1     
there  the ,great white ,throne and     
,christ the ,lord who sits thereon as   
the  judge and ruler of ,his own native 
,empire--for it is ,he that shall  judge
 the nations of this ,earth1 and in the 
great day of final  judgment he will    
recount1 in evidence1 some of the scenes
 through  which he passed on this       
,earth1 to justify his final and        
unalterable  decision4    ,may not there
 gush forth the crystal fountains of    
life from which to  drink will quench   
all thirst2 and there the rivers of life
 ever  flowing1 in whose waters to bathe
 will renew eternal youth1 and          
immortality1 to dwell on and on with    
eternity itself8 ,may not ,moses1  and  
,elijah1 and the ,prophets1 and ,martyrs
 be there8 ,may not many of  us1 who are
 still on this ,earth1 contemplate the  
theme that there 7in  that bright world 

at whose boundary surface we cannot1    
while dwelling  in mortality1 gaze for  
even one minute of time without being   
blinded7  we have a father1 a mother1   
sister1 brother1 husband1 wife1 a child1
  or some loved friends1 who have left  
the shores of ,time1 and are safe  with 
their blessed ,saviour1 to dwell in his 
sun-light throughout  eternal day8      
,may we not contemplate the possibility 
of these things1 when we  remember that 
it is said of ,heaven1 the ,righteous   
shall dwell  therein1 and that ,god in  
,his eternal manifestations dwells in   
light unapproachable to us in our       
mortality1 and is only manifest to  us  
here by ,his invisible ,,spirit ,,veiled
 ,,in ,,fire8    ,startle not when we   
come to lay before you the well-defined 
elements  surrounding that vast globe4  
,the timid mind might naturally recoil1 
and stand aghast at the thought of      
approaching such volume of intense  heat
 and devouring flames4 ,remember that   
you are still in the body1  subject to  

all the pains and penalties of fallen   
humanity4 ,remember  that ,god has      
created no element incompatible with his
 own nature2  remember that ,he is the  
,almighty power who hath created all    
things1  and in the infinity of ,his    
power1 can control any element for our  
happiness1 and also the same for our    
misery4 ,thus it will appear that  every
 man's work shall be tried as by fire2  
the righteous to be  saved as by fire1  
and yet the wicked to be destroyed or   
tormented by  fire4 ,in this we can see 
the ,infinity of the power of ,god in   
the  salvation and happiness of ,his    
children--who are the children of       
light1 as also in the torments of the   
children of darkness4    ,but we shall  
be able to show that ,god's ,spirit is  
fire and that ,he  does so control this 
element1 or change our nature1 that     
whatever  these may be1 they are        
properly adapted to constitute ineffable
  happiness to the immortal state of the
 righteous4 ,this1 we trust1 will       

appear plain to you before you have     
finished the perusal of these  pages4   
,,the ,,sun1 ,,and ,,globe ,,within4    
,we now propose to continue our         
investigations of the ,sun2 in          
considering its surrounding elements1   
offices1 c4    ,we have already said    
that it is the main-spring1 and we may  
add1  barring the ,great ,author1 the   
source and fountain of animated ,nature2
  the source of light and heat1 the two 
stimulants of vital force1  without     
which no animated life could exist on   
this earth2 and so1  doubtless1 with all
 the other planets and worlds which it  
controls4  ,and1 while contemplating it 
thus as the immediate source of         
unnumbered  blessings to the human race1
 and to all intelligences or animation  
belonging to this1 or other worlds      
within its domain1 we should not  fail  
in devout reverence to the great        
,author1 who created all by the  ,word  
of ,his ,power--not only our ,sun and   
its retinue of attendant  planets1 but  

those innumerable1 far distant ones of  
which we have told  you1 with all their 
attendant trains1 yea1 even all things1 
above1  around1 and beneath2 the        
computation of whose numbers1 their     
magnitude1 grandeur1 and transcendent   
glory so far exceeds our finite         
comprehension1 that we are lost in      
wonder and amazement1 and can but  feel 
that1 in comparison1 we are less than an
 atom of this vast and  boundless       
,universe of ,creation4    ,the ,sun1   
represented as a brilliant orb a        
luminary or luminous  body1 has also    
been denominated a globe of fire4 ,some 
astronomers  consider it an incandescent
 body 7glowing whiteness of intense     
heat74    ,dr4 ,herschel's views        
respecting the ,sun are1 that it is a   
planetary  body like our earth1         
diversified with mountains and valleys1 
to which1  on account of the magnitude  
of the ,sun1 he assigns a prodigious    
extent--some mountains six hundred miles
 high1 and valleys  proportionately     

deep4 ,he does not employ in his        
explanations volcanic  fires1 as some   
others have done1 but supposes two      
separate regions of  dense clouds       
floating in the solar atmosphere at     
different distances  from the sun4 ,the 
exterior stratum of clouds he considers 
as the  depository of the sun's light   
and heat1 while the interior stratum    
serves as an awning or screen to the    
body of the sun itself1 which  thus     
becomes fitted to sustain               
life-animation4 ,this refutes the idea  
advanced by that celebrated ,french     
,astronomer1 ,la ,lande1 who held  that 
the sun is a solid opaque body1 having  
its exterior diversified  with high     
mountains and deep valleys1 and covered 
all over with a  burning sea of liquid  
matter4 ,the solar spots1 he supposed1  
were  produced by the flux and reflux of
 the fiery sea1 retreating  occasionally
 from the mountains1 and exposing to    
view a portion of the  dark body of the 
sun4    ,but ,prof4 ,olmsted 7to whom we

 are indebted for this and much other   
information on this subject71 refutes   
this hypothesis by showing the          
inconsistency that fluid1 of the nature 
here spoken of1 or supposed to  exist1  
should depart so far from its           
equilibrium and remain so long  fixed1  
as to lay bare the immense space        
occupied by the solar  spots--some of   
which are supposed to be fifty thousand 
miles in  diameter4    ,prof4 ,olmsted  
also examines the hypothesis of ,dr4    
,herschel1 relative  to clouds          
surrounding the sun1 and reasons as     
follows3 ,i am compelled  to think the  
hypothesis 7of ,dr4 ,h47 is encumbered  
with very serious  objections4 ,clouds  
analogous to those of our atmosphere    
7and ,dr4 ,h41  expressly asserts that  
his lower stratum of clouds are         
analogous to  ours1 and reasons         
respecting the upper stratum according  
to the same  analogy7 cannot exist in   
hot air2 they are tenants only of cold  
regions4 ,how can they be supposed to   

exist in the immediate vicinity  of a   
fire so intense1 that they are even     
dissipated by it at the  distance of    
ninety-five millions of miles8 ,much    
less can they be  supposed to be the    
depositories of such devouring fire1    
when any thing  in the form of clouds   
floating in our atmosphere1 is at once  
scattered and dissolved by the accession
 of only a few degrees of  heat4        
,nothing1 moreover1 can be imagined more
 unfavorable for  radiating heat to such
 a distance than the light1 inconstant  
matter of  which clouds are composed1   
floating loosely in the solar           
atmosphere4    ,prof4 ,olmsted          
continues1 ,if we inquire whether the   
surface of the ,sun  is in a state of   
actual combustion1 like burning fuel1 or
 merely in a  state of intense ignition1
 like a stone heated to redness in a    
furnace1 we shall find it most          
reasonable to conclude that it is in a  
state of ignition4 ,if the body of the  
,sun were composed of combustible       

matter and were actually on fire1 the   
material of the ,sun would be           
continually wasting away1 while the     
products of combustion would fill  all  
the vast surrounding regions1 and       
obscure the light of the ,sun4  ,but    
solid bodies may attain a very intense  
state of ignition1 and glow  with the   
most fervent heat1 while none of their  
material is consumed1  and no clouds or 
fumes rise to obscure their brightness1 
or to impede  their further emission of 
heat4 ,hence1 for these and other       
reasons1  ,prof4 ,olmsted thinks it more
 probable that the heat is that of a    
high  state of ignition1 rather than    
produced from combustion4    ,thus we   
see that while all ,astronomers agree   
that the ,sun is the  source of light   
and heat2 that this heat is vastly      
intense2 consuming1  and yet never      
consumed or exhausted1 it is a difficult
 matter to  determine the nature and    
true element composing it4 ,all agree   
however1  that ,god himself created it  

and placed it in its proper position1   
and  controls it for ,his own wise      
purposes4    ,most ,astronomers consider
 it an incandescent body 7glowing       
whiteness  of intense heat71 encircled  
with two atmospheres4 ,that next its    
surface is supposed to be nonluminous1  
while the outer one which  floats upon  
it is luminous--and forms a photosphere1
 this is  what we see in looking at the 
,sun's bright disk4 ,this photosphere   
radiates the heat and light which vivify
 the planets of the solar  system1 and  
imparts the stimul of life and          
animation4 ,it is said that  flame-like 
masses--some computed to be one hundred 
and fifty thousand  miles in length--are
 piled upon1 and overlap each other1 and
 sweep  onward in constant agitation    
like mountain billows of living fire4   
,its  brightness far transcends and     
pales that of all other luminaries1 and 
would that of millions of stars as      
bright as ,sirius1 or even hundreds  of 
thousands of full moons4    ,we accept  

this view1 as to the outer photosphere1 
and believe this  incandescent1 yet not 
a solid body1 but rather a photospheric 
ethereal element occupying its appointed
 space1 and that it has  nothing to do  
whatever1 with the vast inner globe     
which is entirely  shielded from it by  
the intervening void1 denominated by    
,astronomers  as a surrounding          
nonluminous atmosphere4 ,sir ,john      
,herschel tells us  that his            
investigations led him to the belief    
that this shields the  globe within1 and
 thus renders it susceptible of         
maintaining life1 or  some form of      
animated existence4 ,hence1 we deem the 
evidences afforded  by astronomy1       
strong1 if not fully conclusive that our
 hypothesis is  correct4 ,but when we   
add to this the evidences found in the  
,bible--,god's own revelations to       
man--we think there can scarcely  remain
 a doubt in the mind of any who follow  
us in this investigation4           99  
99       99       99       99    ,we now

 propose to consider more definitely the
 nature of that volume  of flame1 or    
intense heat1 which we denominate the   
,sun4 ,of its  temperature it is        
difficult to form an estimate the least 
comprehensive4 ,we know our furnace heat
 will fuse cast-iron at a  little less  
than #c1jjj degrees4 ,oxy-hydrogen      
flame--one of the hottest  known--is    
estimated at about #ad1jjj degrees      
,fahrenheit1 while the  temperature     
ascribed to the ,sun is about           
#ab1jjj1jjj4 ,there is nothing  our     
senses can realize1 or our minds        
conceive1 that will enable us  even to  
approximate the intensity of this heat4 
99       99       99       99       99  
,now we have seen that the ,sun is the  
source of all light and heat2 the       
source--when the element is             
concentrated--of that which we          
denominate  fire4 ,the phenomena that   
fire pervades1 by some of its           
constituents1  every thing1 and all     
space1 is incomprehensible otherwise    

than in the  belief that the ,spirit of 
,god is everywhere4 ,although fire is   
always  on this ,earth in a concentrated
 form1 yet its source is the ,sun1 and  
from this source we can concentrate it  
into visible ignition4 ,and yet  we see 
that the element itself is ethereal2 it 
will consume by  combustion1 yet its    
heat and flame always tends upward1 and 
disappears  in its own ethereal element1
 and we can recognize no solid substance
  in it4 ,we can feel and realize its   
warmth and vivifying influence2 we      
enjoy the light1 as one of its          
productions1 yet all are ethereal1  and 
we cannot grasp1 mould1 or retain it4   
,we know that the ,sun--that  volume of 
heat--is the active source and agency of
 life and animation1  and it imparts its
 blessings to us in a thousand ways2    
yet1 misused1  it proves the source and 
element of punishment and destruction4  
,we have said that light and heat are   
the two great stimulants of vital       
force4 ,these two stimulants are        

inseparably connected4 ,heat is the     
source of light1 and without heat there 
would be no light1 for even  reflected  
light is derived from this source2 this 
is manifest to every  intelligent mind4 
,therefore1 we see plainly that the ,sun
 is the  source and mainspring of all   
animation1 and to its influence1        
directed  and controlled by the ,allwise
 ,creator1 are we indebted for every    
blessing--nay1 even life itself4 ,it    
acts upon the elements appointed  unto  
it1 and brings forth all animation4 ,it 
causes the earth to yield  her          
productions2 clothes the forest with    
green1 gives to the rose  and the lily  
their beautiful tints and fragrance1 and
 imparts to the  flowers of garden and  
forest their thousand variegated hues4  
,it gives  to man his strength and      
wisdom1 and to woman her beauty and     
loveliness1 and--with refined and       
cultivated intellect--her ten  thousand 
charms4          ,,the ,,planets ,,of   
,,our ,,solar ,,system4      ,let us now

 turn our attention1 for a short time1  
to the contemplation  of the planets1 or
 worlds1 belonging to our own solar     
system2 those  within the domain of our 
own ,sun1 and to which it dispenses     
light and  heat4 ,with these1 our       
,astronomers are1 so to speak1 quite    
familiar4 ,we  cannot do better than to 
present them to you in the language of  
,dr4  ,child1 whose writings have       
afforded us so much correct data in     
preceding pages4    ,in gazing at our   
fellow-planets on a clear night1 as we  
see them  stand out with pre-eminent    
brightness among the twinkling stars1   
who  has not longed to penetrate the    
mystery of their being1 and to know     
whether they1 like our own ,earth1 are  
worlds full of life and  movement8 ,the 
vast distance that intervenes between us
 forbids us to  expect a direct solution
 of the question1 for no instrument yet 
made1  or that we can hope to make1 will
 bring their possible inhabitants       
within the range of our vision4 ,we are 

reduced1 therefore1 to survey  them with
 the sifting force of intellect1 and to 
rest contented with  such circumstantial
 proof as is derived from a knowledge of
 their  general structure1 and the      
analogies subsisting between them and   
our  ,earth4    ,among our nearest      
neighbors1 ,venus is nearly the size of 
our ,earth2  and ,mercury and ,mars1    
though considerably smaller1 would still
  form worlds which1 to our ideas1 would
 not in their magnitude be so  very     
different from our own4 ,as before      
remarked1 all the planets  revolve in   
elliptical orbits round the ,sun1 and   
the time consumed in  their journey     
constitutes their year4 ,their polar    
axis is not  'straight up and down1' but
 leans over or is inclined to the plane 
of  their orbit1 so that each pole is   
turned toward the ,sun at one period  of
 the year1 and away from it at another4 
,this arrangement insures the  regular  
alternation of seasons and a variety of 
climates on their  surface4 ,the orbital

 inclination of ,mars1 for example1 is  
much the  same as that of the ,earth1   
and1 therefore1 the relative proportion 
of  his seasons must have a close       
resemblance to our own4 ,it might be    
expected under these circumstances that 
ice would accumulate toward  the poles  
in winter time1 as on our ,earth1 and   
accordingly glacial  accumulations have 
not only been observed by ,astronomers1 
but it has  been remarked that they     
occasionally diminish by melting during 
the  heats of summer1 while they        
increase in winter4 ,now as the planets1
  like the ,earth1 turn round on their  
axis with perfect regularity--and  those
 just mentioned do so in very similar   
periods of time1 hence1 all  have their 
days and nights4    ,we have already    
stated that the ,earth and its          
fellow-planets are kept  steadily in    
their orbits by the exact adjustment of 
centrifugal and  centripetal forces4    
,hence each moves in its regular order4 
,now by way of comparison1 ,astronomers 

have denominated the ,sun as a  globe   
two feet in diameter1 or six feet in    
circumference4 ,starting  from this     
globe let us wing our way across the    
space filled by the  solar system4 ,a   
short flight of thirty-seven millions of
 miles brings  us to a world which1     
compared to the two-feet globe1 is no   
larger than  a grain of mustard seed1   
while it is so bathed in the ,sun's     
dazzling  rays that it is not easily    
distinguished when viewed from the      
,earth4  ,this fussy little planet      
whirls round the ,sun at the tremendous 
pace  of #ajj1jjj miles an hour1 by     
which he proves his title to be called  
,mercury1 the 'swift-footed1' of        
mythology4 ,at a distance of            
sixty-eight millions of miles from the  
,sun we behold ,venus1 the  brightest   
and most dazzling of the heavenly hosts4
 ,in comparative size  she may be       
represented as a pea4 ,she is our       
nearest neighbor among  the planets1 and
 the conditions under which she exists  

recall many of  those under which we    
ourselves live4 ,about ninety-five      
millions of  miles from the ,sun we come
 upon another 'pea' a trifle larger than
 the  one representing ,venus1 and in it
 we hail our own familiar ,mother       
,earth4 ,here we shall not now linger1  
but passing onward some fifty  millions 
of miles we are attracted by the        
well-known ruddy glow of  ,mars--whose  
comparative size is that of a pin's     
head4 ,his mean  orbital speed is       
#ed1jjj miles an hour--nearly our own   
pace--but as he  takes twice as much    
time to run round the ,sun as we do1 his
 year is  consequently twice as long4   
,casting a glance behind1 we are        
reminded of the growing distance that   
now separates us from the sun by the    
perceptible waning of his light4    ,we 
next spread our wings for a very long   
flight4 ,in passing through  the        
asteroid zone of solar space1 about #bfj
 millions of miles from  the sun1 we may
 chance to fall in with some worlds of  

smaller  dimensions than those we have  
been contemplating4 ,we know very little
  about them1 except that their ways are
 eccentric and mysterious4 ,at  length  
the shores of huge ,jupiter are reached 
at a distance of  nearly #ejj millions  
of miles from the sun4 ,to carry on the 
comparison1  he is a small orange to the
 pea of our earth1 or to the two feet   
globe that represents the sun4 ,his     
orbit is a path #c1jjj millions of      
miles long1 which he accomplishes in an 
annual period of about #ab of  our      
years4 ,the sun's light has now shrunk  
considerably2 but four  brilliant moons 
or satellites1 one or more of which are 
always full1  help to afford some       
compensation4 ,but let us onward in our 
outward-bound course4 ,we again pass    
through a space of nearly equal         
distance as that of ,jupiter from the   
sun4 ,we are now more than #ijj         
millions of miles distant from the      
central pivot4 ,here we fall in  with   
,saturn1 whose comparative size may be  

represented by an orange  considerably  
smaller than the last 7bear in mind the 
comparative  sizes1 our earth as a pea  
to these each an orange74 ,his year     
swallows up almost thirty of our own4   
,and in this far distant region  the    
,sun1 though giving only about one      
ninetieth part of the light  which we   
receive1 is still equal to #cjj full    
moons1 and is at least  sufficient for  
vision1 and all the necessary purposes  
of life1 while  no fewer than eight     
satellites supplement the waning        
sun-light1  besides a mysterious        
luminous ring of vast proportions4      
,twice as far away from the ,sun as     
,saturn1 ,uranus1 represented by a      
cherry1 plods his weary course4         
,although his real diameter is #ce1jjj  
miles1 his circumference over #ajj1jjj1 
being more than four times the  size of 
our own earth1 yet he is rarely seen by 
the naked eye4 ,his  annual journey     
round the ,sun is #aj1jjj millions of   
miles1 and he  consumes what we should  

consider a lifetime1 #hd years1 in      
getting  over it4 ,our little earth has 
now faded out of sight4    ,only a few  
years ago1 ,uranus was the last         
planetary station of our  system1 but   
the discovery of ,neptune in #ahdf1 gave
 us another  resting-place on the long  
journey into space4 ,here1 at a distance
 of  nearly #c1jjj millions of miles    
from the ,sun1 we may pause awhile      
before entering upon the more remote    
exploration of the 'starry  universe4'  
,we are approaching the frontier regions
 of our system1 and the ,sun's  light   
and the power of his attraction are     
gradually passing away4  ,between the   
shores of our ,sun-system and the shores
 of the nearest  star-system--they also 
being suns--lies a vast1 mysterious     
chasm1 in  the recesses of which may    
still lurk some undiscovered planets1   
but  into which1 so far as we yet know1 
the wandering comets alone plunge       
deeply4    ,we now stand on the frontier
 of the ,sun's domain1 and are1 in      

imagination1 looking across one of those
 broad gulfs which1 like  impassable    
ramparts fence off the different systems
 of the universe  from each other4 ,it  
seemed needful that the great ,architect
 should  interpose some such barrier    
between the contending attractions of   
the  giant masses of matter scattered   
through space2 that there should be a   
sea of limitation in which forces1 whose
 action might disturb each  other1      
should die out and be extinguished4 ,in 
it the flood-light of  our glorious ,sun
 gets weaker and weaker1 and its bright 
disk wastes  away by distance1 until it 
shines only as a twinkling star4 ,and   
the  strong chain of its attraction     
which held with firm grasp the planets  
in their orbits1 after dwindling by     
fixed degrees into a force that  would  
not break a gossamer1 is finally        
dissipated and lost4    ,now we ask1 ,is
 it likely that those vast orbs--with   
masses and  densities so wonderfully    
modified and adjusted in accordance with

 what  we perceive to be the            
requirements of living creatures--with  
years and  months1 days and nights1     
seasons and climates--with atmosphere   
and  twilights1 trade-winds and         
currents--with clouds and rains1        
continents  and seas1 mountains and     
polar snows--with sun1 moon1 and stars1 
and1  in short1 with all the elements   
that make up the conditions of a        
habitable globe--is it likely that those
 glorious works of the ,creator  should 
have been formed to lie waste1 sterile1 
and unprofitable8 ,or  even if we could 
bring ourselves to think that those     
masses1 whose  united bulk dwarfs our   
,earth into insignificance1 had been    
solely  created as make-weights to keep 
this little atom of ,earth in its       
place1 why should they have been        
provided with complicated systems of    
moons revolving round them to give them 
auxiliary light8 ,the ,sun's  light they
 share in common with ourselves2 but for
 what conceivable  purpose should       

deserts void of life have been supplied 
with those  wonderful lamps to light    
them up in the absence of the ,sun8     
,conditions  that might be incompatible 
with our organization1 may be by        
adjustment of creative wisdom exactly   
suited to the beings placed to  inhabit 
them4 ,all life1 even if it be          
essentially the same in  principle1 may 
not everywhere assume the same phase of 
outward  existence1 nor need we attempt 
to set limits in this respect to the    
,lord of ,life4 ,the spaces lie there   
furnished ready--the ,word was only     
required to people them with life4      
,such inquiries have an interest which  
goes beyond their mere  astronomical    
import1 for they touch our conceptions  
of ,god's  greatness1 wisdom1 and power4
 ,is there one who does not long to be  
able reasonably to cherish the thought  
that1 far away from this tiny  speck of 
,earth1 in the remote realms of space1  
we behold worlds  inhabited by beings   
who1 it may be1 are privileged to know  

their  ,creator1 and to bless1 praise1  
and magnify ,him forever4          ,we  
have seen that all leading ,astronomers 
agree in the fact of a  plurality of    
suns1 and a plurality of worlds1 and    
their  numbers so vast that they are    
beyond our computation4 ,now we hold    
that  in all this vast creation1 there  
is a controlling element1 and that  this
 element is necessarily manifest in all 
things1 and so  predominates that       
percipient intelligences should1 and we 
believe  can--to a certain              
extent--comprehend it4 ,do you ask1 what
 is this  element8 we answer fire6      
,we have presented to your mind--as far 
as we are able to  comprehend--the      
,infinity of ,god's wisdom and power1 as
 manifested in  his wonderful           
,creations2 not only in creating this   
,earth on which we  live1 and all       
pertaining thereunto1 but of ,heavens1  
,suns1 ,planets and  ,worlds1 whose     
numbers are millions1 as they are seen  
standing out  and peopling the realms of

 boundless space1 and yet we know that  
so  vast is the infinity of ,his        
wonderful creations1 that we have given 
to  the mind only a bird's-eye view     
within the borders of ,his boundless    
,empire4    ,we are aware that the idea 
we advance--that the vast globe1        
encircled  by the photosphoric1 ethereal
 flame 7that which we denominate the    
,sun71 is our heaven1 as also the heaven
 for intelligences of the  other planets
 of our solar system1 and that there are
 numerous other  suns of similar import 
which may also be heavens for created   
intelligences inhabiting their          
surrounding planets--is new to the mind 
of man1 and that at first thought some  
may be incredulous2 thus1 as we  said in
 the beginning1 it has ever been with   
all important  discoveries1 and         
especially so of discoveries through the
 lights and  science of astronomy4      
,nevertheless1 the wondrous works of the
 ,creator1  as we have surveyed and     
contemplated them--we think--will       

justify our  hypothesis4 ,but to all the
 foregoing we shall still add stronger1 
and  we think1 more convincing          
evidences1 when we come to contemplate  
the  elements of the ,sun--fire1 heat1  
and light--in connection with ,god's    
intercourse by ,his ,spirit1 and ,his   
dealings with man4          ,,god',s    
,,throne ,,shall ,,endure ,,forever2    
,,so ,,also ,,shall ,,the ,,sun4        
,,conclusive  ,,scriptural ,,evidence   
,,for ,,all ,,that ,,we ,,claim4        
,god hath sworn by ,his ,holiness1 that 
the seed of ,david 7the ,,messiah71     
should endure forever1 and his throne as
 the ,sun before him4    ,the ,psalmist1
 referring to the ,messiah says1 ,his   
name shall endure  forever4 ,his name   
shall be continued as long as the ,sun1 
and all  nations shall call him blessed4
 ,here we have the assurance of the     
eternal duration of the ,sun2 even as   
the ,throne of ,god which is to  endure 
forever and ever4 ,the promise is1 that 
,his seed also will ,i make to endure   

forever1 and his throne       as the    
days of heaven4 ,thy throne ,o ,god is  
forever and       ever4    ,thus1 we see
 that the ,sun and the heaven are to    
endure as long as the  throne of ,god1  
and his throne is to endure forever and 
ever4    ,now to us1 to all1 while      
dwelling in mortality1 the ,sun         
dispenses its  blessings alike4 ,he     
maketh the ,sun to shine on the evil and
 on the  good1 and sendeth the rain on  
the just1 and on the unjust4    ,thus1  
we see that the ,sun is the active      
agency for the dispensing of  ,his      
blessings to man and all animation on   
this ,earth4 ,its rays of  light and    
heat penetrate the bosoms of oceans and 
seas1 and draw up  from the fountains of
 the deep the liquid element in         
ascending  vapor1 and condensing it into
 clouds1 scatter and return it in rains1
  and gentle showers1 to water and      
replenish the ,earth and make it bring  
forth for sustenance of man and beast1  
and renew the verdure of  nature4       

,now do we not see in all this1 as in   
all things else1 that the  ,sun--its    
heat and light--are ,god's agencies in  
sustaining all things8  ,we have told   
you that we could comprehend that it was
 an agency  pervading and controlling   
all things4 ,but you have doubtless     
noticed  the fact that as we have       
followed up and grasped the revelations 
made  by ,philosophers and ,astronomers1
 that the ablest of them have failed  to
 comprehend the nature of the eternal   
source of fire4 ,all agree in  the one  
fact1 however1 that it is derived from  
the ,sun4 ,no finite mind  ever has     
comprehended1 nor1 it may be1 ever will 
be able to fully  comprehend it4 ,we    
know that it exists4 ,we apply to it    
properties and  principles1 or          
components which form the element4      
,beyond this we  cannot go1 only we know
 that ,god himself is its author2 that  
it is an  element intimately connected  
with ,himself--nay more1 that ,he has   
even  revealed to us that ,his ,spirit  

is fire6 ,and when we contemplate the   
fact that it is the only completely     
destructive1 or annihilating  element1  
and yet one that can never be destroyed2
 one that is to  purify the righteous1  
and yet punish the wicked1 we are led to
 the  inevitable conclusion that it is  
an attribute of the ,great ,jehovah4    
,we believe it an element of creative   
agency1 one that has                    
existed--possibly--from all eternity1   
and will continue through all  eternity 
to come4 ,we are told that ,god1 by ,his
 ,spirit1 is manifest in  all ,his      
works4 ,now1 what else than light1 and  
heat1 is thus  manifest to us8 ,it is   
positively the source of all light1 and 
,st4  ,paul tells us that ,all things   
are made manifest by light2 while the   
,psalmist declares ,his going forth is  
from the end of the heaven1  and ,his   
circuit unto the ends of it1 and there  
is nothing hid from the  heat thereof4  
,now we see that this declaration       
establishes our hypothesis of the       

location of heaven4 ,his going forth    
from the end of the heaven--from  the   
sun--and nothing is hid from the heat   
thereof--the ,sun being the  source of  
heat--is conclusive evidence that the   
,sun is near--even at  the ends of the  
heaven4    ,in the further contemplation
 of the hypothesis1 that the ,spirit of 
,god is as fire1 you will remember that 
we have stated that some of  the        
constituent elements of fire pervades   
all things1 and also that  ,god--by ,his
 ,spirit--is everywhere1 and in all ,his
 works4 ,hear the  ,psalmist1 on this   
subject3         ,whither shall ,i go   
from thy ,spirit8 ,whither shall ,i flee
       from thy presence8 ,if ,i ascend 
up into heaven1 thou art       there2 if
 ,i make my bed in hell1 behold1 thou   
art there4 ,if       ,i take the wings  
of the morning1 and dwell in the        
uttermost       parts of the sea1 even  
there thy hand shall lead me1 and thy   
right hand shall hold me4         ,if ,i
 say1 surely the darkness shall cover   

me2 even the       night shall be light 
about me4 ,yea1 the darkness hideth not 
from thee3 but the night shineth as the 
day3 the darkness       and the light   
are both alike to thee4    ,mark well   
this testimony1 that while the ,spirit  
of ,god is everywhere1  so1 also1 is    
that ,spirit light1 and there is no     
darkness1 save to  those vailed in      
humanity4 ,when spirit is free from     
mortality2 is  accepted of ,god1 and    
clothed upon with immortality2 as       
spirit1 it  partakes of ,his own nature1
 and will1 henceforth1 dwell forever in 
eternal light4    ,now what the ,sun is 
to this earth and its inhabitants1 so   
also we  believe it to be to the        
inhabitants of all the other planets    
belonging  to its system2 all of which  
worlds it controls1 even as it does     
this4  ,and here the mind goes out in   
the contemplation of the hypothesis1    
that all those other suns1 standing far 
out in sidereal regions--each  governing
 and controlling its own system of      

planets1 or worlds--are  also heavens   
for created intelligences inhabiting    
such planets4 ,god  is ,infinite1 as    
well as ,omnipresent4 ,infinite in      
wisdom1 and in ,his  creative power4    
,who can set bounds to the ,almighty8   
,therefore ,suns1 and consequently      
heavens1 may be numbered by  millions1  
and their surrounding worlds by         
billions2 yet all  created1 governed1   
and controlled by the infinite wisdom   
and power of  the great ,architect of   
the ,universe4 ,such hypothesis is      
wonderful for  finite minds to          
contemplate1 yet not more so than the   
fact of the  existence of our own solar 
system4    ,that the ,sun shall endure  
forever1 no rational mind can doubt4    
,god's  own word assures this1 and that 
,his throne shall endure as long as the 
,sun4 ,should ,he quench the fires of   
the ,sun1 and yet make no other         
provision for light and heat1 all would 
be blackness1 darkness1 and  desolation1
 and no animated life could exist on    

this earth1 or  surrounding worlds4     
99       99       99       99       99  
,having assumed the hypothesis that that
 which we denominate the ,,sun is  a    
volume of photospheric-ethereal1 or     
,,spirit-,,fire2 that it is the  source 
of all that we can comprehend of light  
and heat2 we have  also stated our      
belief that it is an attribute of the   
,eternal  ,one--possibly an agency of   
creative power--we believe we shall be  
able to make this plain to every        
reflecting mind1 in our further         
contemplations of the revelations which 
,god has made of himself1 as we  find   
them recorded in the ,bible4 ,these     
revelations are plain1 and we  believe  
the time in the history of our world has
 come1 when we should  more fully       
comprehend them--even the nature of ,his
 manifestations1 and  thus comprehend   
more our own relations to ,him1 and by  
this means be  enabled to come to a     
knowledge of ,his truth1 and more fully 
realize  ,his prescience1 day by day4   

,that this has not been more fully      
comprehended heretofore1 must seem a    
mystery to every reflecting mind4       
,now what are these revelations8 ,let us
 examine4    ,we learn from ,bible      
,history1 that ,god created man in ,his 
own image1  and after ,his own likeness4
 ,in the image of ,god created ,he him2 
male  and female1 created ,he them4     
,thus1 in creation1 man is spoken of in 
the plural4 ,and the ,lord ,god formed  
man of the dust of the ground1  and     
breathed into his nostrils the breath of
 life2 and man became a  living soul4   
,now the first ,adam was made a living  
soul1 and the  second ,adam a quickening
 spirit4 ,the terms soul and spirit are 
held  as synonymous2 both having        
reference to our immortal nature1 and1  
as  this immortal nature emanated from  
,god our ,creator1 and is of ,his own   
eternal attribute1 it can never die2    
hence1 it must exist through all        
eternity4    ,job asks1 ,to whom hast   
,thou uttered words8 whose spirit came  

from  ,thee8 and in ,ecclesiastes it is 
declared1 ,the spirit shall return to   
,god who gave it4 ,st4 ,john1 the       
revelator1 tells us that ,god is a      
spirit3 and they that worship ,him must 
worship ,him in spirit and in  truth4   
,while ,st4 ,paul says1 ,his spirit     
beareth witness with our  spirits1 that 
we are the children of ,god4    ,now you
 will remember that ,st4 ,john1 the     
revelator1 has told us that  it was     
revealed to him that the seven lamps of 
fire1 were the seven  spirits of ,god1  
while ,job says1 ,a flame goeth out of  
,his mouth1 and  ,god by his spirit     
garnished the heavens4    ,we wish you  
to bear this evidence in mind4 ,for ,job
 not only speaks of  a plurality of     
heavens1 but explains by what agency    
they were  garnished--even by the       
,spirit of ,god4 ,now we know that      
garnishment  is transcendent brightness1
 and brilliancy2 to adorn and polish    
surface4 ,is it not therefore1 probable 
that ,job had reference to  that bright 

ethereal spirit flame1 whose brilliancy 
blinds us if we  attempt a lingering    
gaze at the ,sun's bright disk8 ',tis   
said that  heaven within is lighted with
 the glory of ,god4    ,in our previous 
arguments1 we have showed1 conclusively1
 that the ,sun  is the source of fire1  
heat1 and light4 ,let us now further    
examine the  offices of this element    
thus derived from the ,sun1 and note in 
this  investigation whether it is not1  
in some way1 intimately connected  with 
heaven4    ,first4 ,under the ,mosaic   
dispensation1 ,god commanded ,his       
,prophets1  and ,priests1 to build unto 
,him an ,altar1 and to offer sacrifices 
thereon2 and such sacrifices would be   
accepted by ,him1 as should be          
evidenced by his sending down fire from 
heaven to consume the  offerings4 ,he   
also commanded1 through ,moses1 that the
 fires should  ever be burning upon the 
altar1 and that the ,priests should     
continue  to renew sacrifices and burnt 
offerings upon it4 ,these sacrifices    

were  as memorials before the ,lord1 and
 typical of the coming of ,christ1 who  
should be the great sacrifice1 to ransom
 fallen man4    ,now it will be         
remembered that when such offerings were
 made1 fire  came down from heaven and  
consumed the offerings1 and thus made   
manifest that the sacrifices were       
accepted of ,god4 7,let it be           
remembered that we have shown1 as far as
 finite mind can comprehend1  that the  
,sun is the only direct source of fire1 
and then remember  that fire came down  
from heaven47    ,in the book of ,job we
 read1         ,the fire of ,god has    
fallen from heaven4    ,the ,psalmist   
tells us that         ,god is a ,sun and
 a shield1 who maketh ,his angels       
spirits1       and ,his ministers a     
flaming fire4    ,now we know that      
angels are ,god's ministers1 and how oft
 do we find  recorded in the ,bible1    
how--under the earlier                  
dispensation--they  appeared on earth in
 forms of fire1 and with the brightness 

of the  ,sun4    ,the ,psalmist tells us
 again that3         ,our ,god shall    
come1 a fire shall devour before ,him4  
,a fire       goeth before ,him and     
burneth up ,his enemies4    ,the prophet
 ,jeremiah proclaims3                   
,wherefore1 thus saith the ,lord ,god of
 hosts1 ,behold1 ,i will       make my  
words in thy mouth fire4    ,the        
,psalmist answers3         ,while ,i was
 musing the fire burned4    ,thus1 how  
plain the revelations that ,god's       
,spirit is fire4 ,not  necessarily      
manifested at all times1 by the burning 
and consuming our  mortal bodies--this  
only in ,his wrath--but by the purifying
 of our  natures2 burning up the dross1 
and base desires1 and thus fitting us   
for the enjoyment of heaven and         
happiness1 for         ,he shall be as a
 refiner's fire1 and the righteous are  
saved as by fire4    ,let us hear what  
the prophet ,jeremiah saith3            
,for behold the ,lord will come with    
fire2 and with ,his       chariots like 

a whirlwind1 to render his anger with   
fury1       and ,his rebukes with flames
 of fire1 and the slain of the          
,lord shall be many4    ,ah1 when ,he   
comes forth with ,his ,spirit of fire in
 wrath and  indignation1 then it is that
 this element is one of terrible        
destruction4 ,comprehending this1 the a 
same prophet inquires3         ,who     
among us shall dwell with devouring     
fire8 ,who among       us shall dwell in
 everlasting burnings8    ,hear the     
answer of ,god1 given through his       
prophet to all ,his obedient  and       
faithful children3         ,though thou 
walkest through the fires1 thou shalt   
not be       burned1 neither shall the  
flames kindle upon thee4    ,again1 of  
,his ,spirit in a milder form3          
,is not my word like fire1 saith the    
,lord8    ,the prophet answers3         
,his word was in my heart as a burning  
fire4    ,now remember that3         ,by
 the word of the ,lord were the heavens 
made1 and all       the hosts of them by

 the breath of ,his mouth4    ,and here 
,his word is represented as ,,fire6     
,in the first book of the ,chronicles it
 is written3         ,every man's work  
shall be tried by fire4    ,and1 in the 
second book of the ,chronicles3         
,and when the children of ,israel saw   
how the fire came down1       and the   
glory of the ,lord upon the ,house1 they
 bowed       themselves with their faces
 to the ground1 and worshipped       and
 praised the ,lord4    ,thus1 no one    
dared gaze on the brightness of that    
glory1 and all  bowed with their faces  
to the ground4    ,turning to the book  
of ,deuteronomy1 we find written3       
,the ,lord thy ,god is a consuming fire4
 ,understand therefore       this day1  
that the ,lord thy ,god is ,he that     
goeth over before       thee as a       
consuming fire4 ,out of heaven ,he made 
thee to hear       ,his voice1 that ,he 
might instruct thee2 and upon earth ,he 
showed thee ,his great fire2 and thou   
heardest ,his words out       of the    

midst of the fire4    ,in ,leviticus we 
find written3         ,and there went   
out a fire from the ,lord and devoured  
them1       and they died before the    
,lord4 ,and there came a fire out       
from before the ,lord1 and consumed upon
 the altar the burnt                    
offerings--which1 when the people saw1  
they shouted and fell       on their    
faces4    ,let us contemplate1 for a    
moment1 the sacrilege of the attempt at 
using this element--during the old      
dispensation--to the consuming of  an   
offering or sacrifice to any other than 
the one true and living  ,god4 ,turn to 
the ,book of ,numbers1 and read1        
,when the people offered incense upon   
the strange altar1       there came down
 fire from the ,lord and consumed the   
two       hundred and fifty who offered 
the incense4 ,and ,nahab and            
,abihu died1 when they offered strange  
fire before the ,lord4    ,second       
,kings1 vi4 #ag3         ,elisha said1  
they that be for us are more than they  

that       are against us2 he prayed1   
and ,god opened the young man's         
eyes1 and he saw2 and behold1 the       
mountain was full of       horses and   
chariots of fire round about ,elisha4   
,thus we see that this element--in its  
destructive form--is the ready          
manifestation of ,god's displeasure4    
,turn to ,exodus1 and read1--           
,and the angel of the ,lord appeared    
unto him 7,moses71 in a       flame of  
fire out of the midst of a bush1 and he 
looked1 and       behold the bush burned
 with fire1 and the bush was not        
consumed4 ,again1 ,the cloud of the     
,lord was upon the       ,tabernacle by 
day1 and a fire was upon it by night in 
sight       of all the house of ,israel4
 ,again1 ,and the sight of the          
glory of the ,lord was like devouring   
fire upon the top of       the mount in 
the eyes of the children of ,israel4    
,now let us consider this element in its
 offices when controlled by the  ,great 
,jehovah4    ,judges1 xiii4 #bj3        

,for it came to pass when the flame went
 up toward heaven       from off the    
altar1 that the angel of the ,lord      
ascended in       the flame of the      
altar4    ,here there was no delusive   
manifestation1 but the actual flame of  
fire1 ascending upward toward heaven2   
even to the ,sun its original  source4  
,we will now turn to the ,book of the   
,second ,kings1 and--in our mind's      
eye--join the prophets as they walked   
and talked with ,elijah and  witness one
 of the most sublime scenes the eye of  
man has ever beheld3         ,and it    
came to pass as they still went on and  
talked1 that       behold there appeared
 a chariot of fire1 and horses of fire1 
and parted them both asunder1 and       
,elijah went up by a       whirlwind    
into heaven4    ,was there not a        
startling1 and sublime revelation1 that 
this element  controlled1 can be suited1
 even to our enjoyment of happiness when
  the great change comes2 when this     
mortal shall put on immortality8    ,in 

the ,book of ,malachi--the last of the  
,old ,testament scriptures--we  hear the
 voice of ,him who had promised         
deliverance1 speaking to us  through    
,his prophet3         ,unto you that    
fear my name1 shall the ,sun of         
righteousness arise4    ,thus we see    
that the promised ,messiah was spoken of
 as a ,sun4    ,turning to the record of
 the ,new ,testament1 we find the       
,saviour's  advent into this world      
signaled by a brilliant ,star1          
emblematical of  the ,sun1 shining in   
all its splendor1 brilliancy1 and       
beauty1 and  leading the wise men to    
where lay the ,infant of days--the      
veiled  ,star1 or ,sun1 of light and    
immortality4    ,at a later day1 behold 
,him manifesting ,his veiled brightness1
 as he  stood transfigured on the ,mount
 before ,peter1 ,james and ,john1 when  
,his face did shine as the ,sun1 and    
,his raiment white as the light4    ,but
 we deem it unnecessary to dwell upon   
all the symbols of fire1  heat1 and     

light1 so clearly representative1 which 
may be found  interspersed throughout   
the ,old1 and the ,new ,testament pages4
 ,we will  catch up a few others as we  
pass along1 before1 in mind1 taking our 
stand with ,john1 the revelator1 on the 
,isle of ,patmos4 ,st4 ,paul tells      
us1--         ,the ,lord ,jesus shall be
 revealed from heaven with ,his         
mighty angels in flaming fire1 taking   
vengeance on them that       know not   
,god1 and that obey not the gospel of   
our ,lord ,jesus       ,christ4 ,and    
that the ,lord shall consume with the   
spirit of       ,his mouth1 and shall   
destroy with the brightness of ,his     
coming4    ,st4 ,john1 says3         ,i 
indeed baptize you with water1 but he   
that cometh after       me is mightier  
than ,i1 he shall baptize you with the  
,holy       ,ghost and ,,with ,,fire4   
,thus we see that spirit is denominated 
fire in the ordinance of  ,spiritual    
,baptism4    ,and ,st4 ,paul says3      
,by one spirit are we all baptized into 

one body4           99       99       99
       99       99    ,let us now glance
 at the account of ,john's spiritual    
vision while on  the ,isle of ,patmos1  
as recorded in the ,book of ,revelation3
    ,i heard behind me a great voice as 
the voice of a trumpet1 saying1 ,i  am  
,alpha and ,omega1 the first and the    
last1 the beginning and the  ending1    
saith the ,lord1 which is1 and which    
was1 and which is to come1  the         
,almighty4 ,and ,i turned to see the    
voice that spake with me1 and ,i  saw   
seven golden candlesticks1 and ,one in  
the midst of the  candlesticks like unto
 the ,son of ,man4 ,his head and his    
hair were  white as the snow1 and his   
eyes were as flames of fire1 and his    
feet  like unto fine brass1 as if they  
burned in a furnace1 and his voice as   
the sound of many waters4 ,and he had in
 his right hand seven stars2  and out of
 his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword2
 and his  countenance was as the ,sun   
shining in his strength4    ,john saw   

the door of heaven opened and a voice as
 of a trumpet said  unto him1 ,come up  
hither1 and ,i will shew thee the things
 which must  be hereafter4 ,he          
continues4 ,and immediately ,i was in   
the spirit1  and1 behold a throne was   
set in heaven1 and one sat on the       
throne1  who1 to look upon was like     
jasper1 and there was a rainbow round   
about  the throne1 in sight like unto an
 emerald1 and around the throne sat     
four and twenty elders in raiment of    
white1 and out of the throne  proceeded 
lightnings1 and thunderings1 and voices1
 and there were  seven lamps of fire    
burning before the throne1 which are the
 seven  spirits of ,god4 ,and the temple
 of ,god was opened in heaven1 and there
  was seen in his temple the ark of his 
testament1 and there were  lightnings1  
and voices1 and thunderings4 ,and there 
appeared a great  wonder in heaven1 a   
woman clothed with the ,sun4 ,and ,i saw
 another  mighty angel coming down from 
heaven clothed with a cloud1 and a      

rainbow was upon his head and his face  
was1 as it were the ,sun1 and  his feet 
as pillars of fire4    ,and the city had
 no need of the ,sun1 for the glory of  
,god did  lighten it1 and the ,lamb is  
the light thereof4 ,and there shall be  
no  night there1 for the ,lord ,god     
giveth them light1 and they shall reign 
forever and ever4 ,the ,lord ,god shall 
be unto them an everlasting  light1 and 
the days of their mourning shall be     
ended4         ,then shall the righteous
 shine forth as the ,sun in the         
,kingdom of their ,father4 ,who hath    
ears to hear let him       hear4 7,matt4
 xiii4 #dc47           99       99      
99       99       99    ,we have quoted 
the foregoing ,scriptural passages--to  
which we might  add scores of others of 
similar import--to show the connection  
of the  element of fire1 heat and       
light--with ,god himself1 and that while
 it  proves the agency2 at least in     
dispensing ,his blessings to all        
animated life1 and can be so controlled 

by ,him that--even in its  intensity--it
 cannot harm the righteous1 either in   
body or spirit1  when ,he interposes2   
yet it is the certain agency of         
destruction1 and  the torment of the    
wicked at ,his will2 or without this    
interposition4  ,certain it is1 that it 
is the agency by which ,he has made     
,himself  manifest to man1 and this     
agency still continues in the dispensing
 of  all the manifold blessings we      
enjoy1 day by day1 and should cause     
every heart to turn to ,him with        
reverence and grateful emotions4 ,the   
mind of the ,christian world should     
acknowledge the omnipresence of the     
,infinite ,one2 that ,he pervades all   
space1 and is manifest in all  things2  
while each individual should feel as    
,elihu did when he uttered  the words1  
,the ,spirit of ,god hath made me1 and  
the breath of the  ,almighty hath given 
me life2 and exclaim with the ,psalmist3
         ,i will bless the ,lord at all 
times1 ,his praise shall                

continually be in my mouth4 ,the eyes of
 the ,lord are ever       upon the      
righteous1 and ,his ears are open unto  
their cry4 ,o       magnify the ,lord   
with me1 and let us exalt ,his name     
together4 ,god is our refuge and        
strength1 a very present       help in  
trouble4 ,lord1 thou hast been our      
dwelling-place       in all generations4
 ,before the mountains were brought     
forth1       or ever thou hadst formed  
the earth and the world1 even from      
everlasting to everlasting1 thou art    
,god4    ,now we have seen that ,god--by
 ,his ,spirit1 or influence--is         
everywhere2  that he pervades the       
universe of ,his ,creation2 that his    
nature is  eternal and indestructible1  
while all else--save man's immortal     
nature  derived from ,god--is           
destructible4 ,we are plainly told in   
the ,bible  that the ,spirit of ,god is 
fire2 that ,his ,word is fire2 that ,he 
is  like a refiner's fire--even as a    
purifier of silver4 ,that every  man's  

work shall be tried by fire2 the        
righteous saved as by fire2  that1 to   
his people1 ,he will be as a wall of    
fire2 and though they  pass through the 
fire they shall not be burned2 neither  
shall the  flames kindle upon them4 ,and
 yet our ,god is a consuming fire1      
before  whom the wicked shall not stand4
 ,that the fire of ,his anger1 and ,his 
wrath1 shall be kindled against them1   
when all the proud1 yea1 and  all that  
do wickedly shall be cast into the fire 
that will never be  quenched2 whose     
flames shall ascend up forever and ever4
 ,oh1 how plain  the revelations of ,god
 as to the immortality of the soul1 and 
a future  state of existence6 ,the      
righteous to enter into1 and enjoy      
eternal  life2 the wicked--who are dead 
in trespasses and in sins--to enter     
into eternal death1 even the death that 
never dies4    ,how startling the fact  
of these plain revelations6 ,god is now 
made  manifest to our daily and hourly  
comprehension4 ,how dare we trifle  with

 ,him1 and our own soul's immortal      
interest8 ,we are daily and  hourly     
rushing on to our own eternal destiny4  
,ere another year1 a  month1 a week or  
day is past1 we may realize that it is  
not all of  life to live1 nor yet of    
death to die4 ,no one can escape the    
eternal  fiat of ,jehovah1 dust thou art
 and unto dust shalt thou return4 ,as   
death leaves the body so judgment finds 
the soul4 ,the righteous shall  inherit 
eternal life2 the wicked shall be driven
 away from the  presence of ,god1 and   
from the glory of ,his power1 and take  
up their  abode with tormenting devils  
in everlasting burnings4    ,stop1 poor 
wandering child of sin2 yield obedience 
to the requirements  of ,god's law2     
acknowledge ,him in all thy ways1 and   
,he shall direct  thy paths4    ,the    
,psalmist tells us that the ,lord ,god  
is a ,sun4 ,saint ,john tells  us that1 
while in the ,spirit1 it was revealed to
 him that the  burning lamps of fire    
were spirits of ,god4 ,now remember that

 we  have told you that the vast volume 
of flame of ethereal fire outside  and  
around the heavenly world1 is all that  
we can see or comprehend  as the ,sun2  
that flame is the source of all light1  
heat1 and  animation3 hence1 considered 
in connexion with its offices1 may we   
not  safely conclude that it is an      
attribute of ,jehovah8    ,the prophet  
,malachi foretold the coming of the ,sun
 of righteousness1  behold the star in  
the east6 ,who can doubt this star being
 a visible  manifestation of the ,spirit
 of ,god8 ,christ1 the ,son of ,god1 is 
called the ,sun of righteousness2 the   
bright morning star4 ,his  advent into  
the world was signalized by this sacred 
emblem--even by  the ,spirit of ,god    
revealed as the brightness of a star4   
,how  appropriate this representation1  
when the ,son of ,god came to usher in  
the light of an eternal day to his      
people4 ,transfigured during ,his  stay 
on earth1 ,his face did shine as the    
,sun1 and ,his raiment was  white as the

 light4 ,now remember1 we are assured   
that the heavenly  world and city hath  
no need of the ,sun1 for the glory of   
,god doth  lighten it1 and the ,lamb    
7the ,son of ,god7 is the light thereof4
    ,thus we think we have furnished    
conclusive ,scripture evidence that     
,god's ,spirit is manifested by fire4   
,fire is the source of all light1  and  
is also an element pervading all things 
throughout the vast  universe of        
,god--in air and earth1 seas and floods1
 rocks and  mountains1 throughout all   
heights and depths4 ,hence1 hear again  
the  exclamation of the ,psalmist3      
,whither shall ,i go from thy ,spirit8  
or  whither shall ,i flee from thy      
presence8 ,behold1 ,god1 by ,his        
,spirit1  is everywhere1 even throughout
 the vast extended universe of all ,his 
wondrous works4    ,we have but to      
consider the source of this             
element--which is ,god  himself--and we 
shall then easily comprehend how it can1
 by the same  power1 be adapted or made 

congenial to our mortal or immortal     
natures4  ,we have said1 ,he has created
 no element incompatible with1 or       
uncongenial to ,his own nature1 nor any 
that ,he cannot adapt to the  condition 
of the spirit-life of ,his children4    
,fire is an element  destructive of all 
things else save immortality1 and that  
it is not  destructive of this1 we have 
evidence in the fact that the wicked    
shall be cast into the flames of hell1  
and suffer its torments for  ever and   
ever4 ,and yet1 while it is an element  
destructive of all  else1 save          
immortality1 it is one1 and the only one
 we can--even  partially--comprehend1   
that can never be destroyed4 ,mortality 
shall  be destroyed1 and naught remain  
but immortality1 purified by  fire--the 
,spirit of ,god4    ,now in order that  
,his children here1 might comprehend    
,his infinite  power in controlling1 or 
adapting this element to their          
happiness1 ,he  has manifested this     
power even with mortality on this earth4

 ,our  mortal bodies are susceptible of 
feeling its painful influences1 and  of 
being destroyed by it--save when ,he    
intervenes1 and changes our  nature so  
that it can have no impression upon us1 
or makes it a  congenial element in     
which we can enjoy happiness4 ,that ,he 
can do1  and has done this1 we have     
manifest in the miraculous preservation 
of  the three ,hebrew children4 ,for    
their refusal to forsake the ,living    
,god1 and worship the idol1 or golden   
image set up by ,king  ,nebuchadnezzar1 
the king commanded that the furnace     
should be heated  seven-fold1 and they  
be bound and cast into it4 ,this was    
done1 and  while the heat was so intense
 as to destroy those who bore them to1  
and plunged them into the fiery furnace1
 yet when the king looked into  it he   
saw four men loose and walking in the   
midst of the flames2  praising ,god1 and
 blessing the name of the ,lord1 and the
 fourth was  like unto the ,son of ,god4
 ,the king called them to come forth1   

and  when the three who were cast in    
came forth1 not a hair of their heads   
was singed1 nor even the smell of fire  
passed on their garments4    ,thus we   
see the power of ,god manifest in the   
adaptation at ,his own  will1 of        
this1--to our mortal bodies--painful and
 consuming element1  to our condition of
 happiness4 ,and1 on the other hand1    
when this  saving power is withheld1 how
 certain is destruction1 as manifested  
by  its destroying those who approached 
near enough to the furnace to cast  them
 in4 ,o1 the measure of happiness those 
children of the ,most ,high  enjoyed in 
the midst of the burning flames6        
shouting and praising ,god4  ,and when  
they came out of the fiery furnace1 they
 still continued  their triumphant      
shout2 calling upon everything--animate1
 and  inanimate--throughout the vast    
,universe1 to bless1 praise and magnify 
the name of the ,lord forever4    ,that 
,god can1 and does make this element    
suited to the enjoyment of  happiness of

 ,his people1 we have also seen         
manifested in the case of  ,elijah      
taking his seat1 at the command of ,god1
 in the chariot of  fire1 and with      
horses of fire ascending up into heaven4
 ,thus1  changed1 as the apostle        
expresses it1 in the twinkling of an    
eye1  his mortality ceased1 and clothed 
upon with immortality1 by ,divine       
power1 he could ride in triumph with his
 steeds of fire1 sitting in  his chariot
 of burning flame4    ,we scarcely deem 
it necessary to refer again to          
the--almost  universally conceded--fact 
of man's immortal nature4 ,by the breath
 of  ,god1 man was made a living soul or
 spirit4 ,god's spirit is living  fire2 
hence this immortal nature of man is    
living fire1 an  attribute of ,god      
himself1 and one which can never cease  
to exist2 can  never be annihilated1 but
 will live on1 and on through all       
eternity4  ,but when this immortal      
principle of spirit-fire leaves the     
body1  mortality ceases to live1 and    

must decay and moulder into dust4 ,for1 
speaking of this mortal body1 ,he hath  
said1 dust thou art1 and unto  dust     
shalt thou return1 and the soul shall   
return to ,god who gave  it4            
,,sun ,,and ,,heaven4      ,now to show 
the intimate connexion with the ,sun and
 ,heaven1 spoken  of in the ,scriptures1
 we will here group together a few of   
the many  passages found written        
therein4    ,the prophet ,jeremiah1 in  
referring to the great and terrible day 
of  the ,lord1 says the light shall be  
darkened in the heavens2 and in  the    
,gospel according to ,st4 ,mark1        
referring to the same1 we read that  the
 ,sun shall be darkened2 and in the     
,revelation1 that the ,sun  and the air 
were darkened4 ,again1 ,jehovah1        
speaking to ,his people1  saith3 ,i will
 cover the heaven1 and make the stars   
thereof dark2  and1 in order that we may
 more fully comprehend1 he added3 ,i    
will  cover the ,sun with a cloud2 and  
the ,psalmist tells us that ,he         

covereth the heaven with a cloud2 and   
thus saith the ,lord through  ,his      
prophet3 ,be not dismayed at the signs  
of heaven2 for the  heathen are dismayed
 at them4    ,thus we see that the ,sun 
and heaven are often spoken of in       
connexion with each other in regard to  
light4 ,the ,sun is to us the  source of
 all light1 and in covering the heaven  
,he covereth the  ,sun4 ,but we see1 as 
above1 that ,he hath made this matter   
plain to our  comprehension by ,his own 
utterance3 ,be not dismayed by the signs
 of  heaven2 for the heathen are        
dismayed at them4    ,now you will      
remember that the heathen1 in ancient   
times--and even so  with them at the    
present day--were always dismayed and   
frightened at  the recurrence of an     
eclipse of the ,sun1 and imagined the   
time of the  world had come to an end4  
,but the science of astronomy has       
comprehended the laws of nature1 and has
 revealed the true causes of  these     
seeming phenomena to the enlightenment  

of the world1 and many  years previous  
to their occurrence4 ,astronomers can   
foretell the day1  the hour1 and even   
the very moment when they will appear1  
or be  visible in any part of the world1
 as1 also1 when they will disappear4    
,but we see1 however1 that ,god himself 
has spoken of such eclipses as  signs in
 the heaven1 and yet they are eclipses  
of the ,sun4    ,but still more pointed 
and clear is the evidence of their      
connexion  given by the ,saviour1 where 
the ,pharisees and ,sadducees desired   
him to  show them a sign from heaven4   
,hear ,his answer3 ,when it is  evening1
 ye say1 ,it will be fair-weather1 for  
the sky is red2 and in  the morning1 ,it
 will be foul weather to-day1 for the   
sky is red and  lowering4 ,o ye         
hypocrites6 ye can discern the face of  
the sky1 but ye  cannot discern the     
signs of the times4 ,now we here see    
that they  asked ,him for a sign from   
heaven1 and the ,saviour answered       
promptly  by referring to the apparent  

phenomena produced by the disappearing  
and reappearing of the ,sun4 ,thus      
answering by signs which they had       
marked2 produced by the ,sun1 which     
covereth the heaven from our  view4     
,we have shown what all must            
acknowledge2 that the ,sun is the only  
source of fire1 heat1 and light which is
 comprehended in ,nature4  ,revelations 
of the ,past1 and predictions as to the 
,future1 assure us  that ,god's wrath is
 revealed by fire4 ,now from whence     
cometh this  fire when ,his wrath is    
thus revealed8 ,god rained down fire and
  brimstone from heaven upon ,sodom and 
,gomorrah1 and thus destroyed  those    
cities and their wicked inhabitants4    
,now1 as the wrath of ,god  is revealed 
by fire1 ,st4 ,paul sets this matter at 
rest4 ,hear him3  ,the wrath of ,god is 
revealed from heaven against all        
ungodliness and  unrighteousness of men4
 ,thus1 ,his spirit of wrath is         
manifested by  fire2 the source of fire 
is the ,sun1 and ,he sends fire from    

heaven4 ,hence1 we cannot for a moment  
doubt the correctness of our  hypothesis
 that the source of fire1 as manifested 
in the ,past1 and  also that which shall
 be manifested in the ,future1 is the   
,sun4 ,and  wherein it is declared that 
fire came down from heaven1 or out of   
heaven1 it was natural that such        
expressions were used1 because it was   
held that ,god resided in heaven1 and   
,he sent down fire from thence to       
execute ,his judgments4          ,a     
,,plurality ,,of ,,heavens4      ,the   
idea of a plurality of heavens1 and     
their numbers almost  infinite1 would   
seem at first thought to startle the    
mind1 and  disarrange all our           
conceptions of the extent and machinery 
of the  universe1 and of the employment 
of ,god1 and all the angels1 and other  
intelligences ,he has made4 ,yet its    
truth only brings home to us the        
insignificance of our own earth1 and    
still more that of ourselves4 ,we  are  
too prone to think that this earth and  

its inhabitants are the  principal      
objects of the ,creator's care1 and that
 man is of vast  importance in the order
 of ,his arrangements1 and of augmenting
 ,his  kingdom and glory4 ,while the    
truth is1 our world is insignificant1   
when compared to ,his wonderful         
creations1 and each individual as but a 
single grain of sand among all that may 
be found upon the shores of  oceans and 
seas4 ,and yet all that ,he hath made   
are the objects of  ,his government and 
care4 ,for not even a sparrow falleth to
 the  ground unknown to ,him4    ,that  
in ,his omnipotent and infinite power   
,he can1 and has created  separate      
systems of planet-worlds1 and a central 
sun and heaven for  controlling each1 we
 cannot doubt2 neither is there more of 
incomprehensible mystery in this        
contemplation than in that of our own   
system of planets1 with its central and 
controlling ,sun and heaven4    ,let us 
turn to revelations made1 as recorded in
 the ,bible1 and see if  there are not  

declarations which sustain this         
hypothesis4 ,in the  second book of the 
,kings it is written3 ,but will ,god    
indeed dwell on  earth8 behold1 the     
heaven1 and heaven of heavens cannot    
contain him2  and in the second book of 
the ,chronicles3 ,but who is able to    
build  him an house1 seeing the heaven1 
and heaven of heavens cannot contain    
him4 ,the ,psalmist says3 ,the heavens2 
even the heavens are the  ,lord's1 and  
,the heavens declare the glory of ,god1 
and that ,by  the word of the ,lord were
 the heavens made1 and all the hosts of 
them  by the breath of his mouth4       
,thus we have conclusive evidence of a  
plurality of heavens1 while1  possibly1 
their numbers are millions1 their       
surrounding  planet-worlds billions1    
with a wide expanse of surrounding      
firmament of the heavens bestrewn with  
glittering gems1 standing  out the grand
 empyrean covering of all4    ,says ,dr4
 ,nichol3    ,mystery1 indeed1 heavy1   
almost oppressive1 hangs over all the   

perceptive2 but the shapes strown       
through that bewildering territory  have
 nothing in common with the fantastic   
creations of a dream4 ,it is  the       
essence of these nebul that they are not
 formless1 but1 on the  contrary1       
impressed indelibly by system on the    
grandest scale2 clearly  as a leaf they 
have organism2 something has seized on  
their enormous  volumes1 and moulded    
them into a wonderful order4 ,says      
,child3 ,thus  every thing bears the    
mark of order impressed upon it by the  
,almighty  hand4 ,that noble gift of    
,god to man--the telescope--has         
magnified ,him  by driving away every   
semblance of chance from the firmament1 
and by  exhibiting in its place designs 
and established law4 ,up there1 as down 
here1 the idea of irregularity or chance
 is but the suggestion of our           
ignorance4    ,thus1 from a knowledge   
gained through that wonderful1 and yet  
most  exact of all                      
sciences--,astronomy--we base our       

conclusions4 ,that  science is the      
grandest1 most perfect1 and             
comprehensive of all  sciences known to 
the human mind4 ,it grasps1 analyzes1   
and comprehends  the laws and forces    
which make up and control the universe1 
and every  other science known is       
intimately connected with1 or based upon
 it4  ,there is no chance-work in       
,nature2 all things are moulded and     
formed  complete by the great           
,architect1 whose ,word created them1   
and all the  grand panorama of suns1    
moons1 planets1 worlds1 and stars1 are  
perfect  and in the exact order of ,his 
creative wisdom4    ,whatever of        
incomprehensible mystery our hypothesis 
of those  far-distant suns and heavens  
may involve1 we feel satisfied of the   
correctness of our theory in regard to  
our own1 and our mind is  equally       
impressed with the probability of all   
the other planets  belonging to the     
,sun's domain1 being inhabited by living
  intelligences1 and that1 in the order 

of their ,creator's arrangement1  they  
too find their heaven of eternal        
existence there4 ,we know there  is room
 for all and to spare1 within that      
heavenly empire1 and would  be if they  
and our own earth should remain         
repeopling and passing  thither for     
cycles of ages to come2 for1 as we have 
seen from  astronomical measurement1 it 
is computed to be more than one million 
times the size of this earth4    ,how   
enrapturing the thought1 that there we  
may not only meet the  prophets and     
seers of old2 the apostles and martyrs2 
those who went  up through great        
tribulations1 who washed their robes and
 made them  white in the blood of the   
,lamb2 our counselling ministers1 who   
have  assisted us in the way2 there the 
loved ones of our hearts1 who have      
already left us and this world of sin   
and sorrow1 and are now safely  at home2
 there other loved ones who are yet on  
this earth and are  striving with us for
 a home in that better land2 but also1  

perhaps1  there we shall meet           
messengers1 and children of ,god from   
all the other  worlds belonging to the  
,sun1 or that heaven's domain2 and with 
the  innumerable company of angels1 and 
all the ransomed hosts1 dwell  forever  
with our ,saviour in the glory-light of 
the ,spirit of ,god4 ,o1  who will not  
seek and strive for a home in heaven8   
,a ,,place ,,for ,,the ,,wicked4        
,that there are two separate places and 
conditions--one for the  righteous and  
the other for the wicked--we cannot     
doubt4 ,in regard to  no other fact are 
the revelations of ,god and declarations
 of the  ,scriptures more clear and     
explicit4 ,this of itself should startle
  every inhabitant of ,earth2 cause due 
and solemn reflection2 and  incline     
every one to search for light1 and      
truth1 and for the way of  salvation4   
,in stating the facts contained in this 
volume1 it has not been our  design to  
indulge in a tirade against those who   
seem careless and  indifferent in regard

 to their own souls' eternal interest4  
,if our  picture makes the final doom of
 the wicked a fearful one1 we have only 
presented the declarations of ,god      
through his prophets1 and of the        
,saviour and his apostles4 ,these       
declarations are startling1 when        
properly considered1 and should awaken  
every mind to the consideration  of what
 must be their final destiny1 if they   
continue to neglect the  overtures of   
mercy4 ,the law of ,god is fearful in   
its denunciations  against the wicked1  
and its sentence will be sternly        
executed4  ,therefore we would persuade 
all to be ,christians4    ,if all the   
inhabitants of this ,earth--all who have
 lived during the  past1 or may live and
 die on it through long ages to         
come--were saved  and should go to dwell
 in that heavenly world1 there would    
still be  room there for more4 ,yea1    
even then1 untold millions of chambers1 
ready and beautifully furnished by the  
,saviour in that vast and  glittering   

,city of ,god1 would still be           
unoccupied4 ,and to the  wicked1 who    
will not turn from their evil ways1 is  
lost forever the  privilege of occupying
 those mansions2 of walking the gold    
paved  streets2 of drinking the waters  
from the fountains of life2 of          
wandering amidst the shady groves1 and  
along the banks of the  beautiful       
rivers2 of traversing valleys1 and      
ascending the hills and  mountains of   
the ,lord1 and of plucking and eating   
the ambrosial  fruits that grow on the  
trees of life2 of having wealth and     
honor1  and a safe and permanent home   
with the angels2 the ,prophets and      
,apostles of old2 with ,moses1 and      
,david1 and ,elijah2 with ,abraham1     
,isaac1 and ,jacob1 and with all the    
great and good of every age and         
clime--even with all the redeemed of the
 ,lord who have washed their  robes and 
made them white in the blood of the     
,lamb--with kindred  friends from       
,earth2 with angels and spirits of just 

ones made perfect1  yea1 with all the   
ransomed hosts1 and above all1 with     
,christ1 the  ,son of ,god1 who is1 and 
will there be ,king and ruler forever4  
,and for what are all these exchanged8  
,let us see4 ,the ,bible is the  sure   
,word of ,god4 ,it tells us that the    
wicked shall be driven away in  their   
wickedness2 that they shall be cast into
 outer darkness1 where  shall be weeping
 and wailing1 and gnashing of teeth4    
,they shall be turned into hell with all
 the nations that forget ,god3  ,they   
shall be cast into the lake of fire1 and
 the smoke of their  torment shall      
ascend up forever and ever4 ,these shall
 go away into  everlasting punishment1  
,but the righteous into life eternal4   
,the  blessed ,saviour1 who died that   
they might have eternal life1 shall  say
 unto those on his left hand 7the       
wicked71 depart into everlasting  fire2 
while to those on his right hand 7the   
righteous71 ,come1 ye  blessed of my    
,father1 inherit the ,kingdom prepared  

for you before the  foundation of the   
world2 enter thou into the joys of thy  
,lord4    ,yes1 reader1 ,god has        
prepared the two places1 and it rests   
with  you--as a free moral agent--to    
make your choice1 and act  accordingly4 
,he will never drag you into heaven by  
force4 ,you are the  rightful inheritor 
of a precious immortal soul4 ,he has    
prepared a  place of perpetual          
happiness1 and invites you to come to   
it4 ,there  you may find a home1 with   
peace1 love and joy4 ,there is for you  
honor  and wealth1 and a crown of glory4
 ,there the fountains1 and rivers  of   
life1 and an abundance of spiritual     
food4 ,there neither  decrepitude nor   
old age1 nor sickness1 sorrow1 pain1 nor
 death2 but  the bloom of eternal youth 
and beauty may rest on thy brow forever4
  ,make your choice1 and make it now1   
for delays are dangerous1 and  death and
 the judgment may be near unto you4 ,the
 spirit-fire of  ,god's love is now     
kindling in your heart1 and ,i hear you 

say1 yes1  ,i would like to be there4   
,we implore you1 quench not that        
spirit-fire of love1 or it will change  
to a consuming ,,spirit-,,fire ,,of     
,,wrath1 and when your soul is released 
from the body1 that spirit-fire  will   
become an intense burning flame1 and    
will be your torment forever  and ever4 
,the very thought of enduring           
forever--after this short life has      
past--should startle the mind of every  
intelligent being1 and cause  the most  
serious reflections4 ,none can save but 
,god1 and this  salvation is through    
,his ,son1 the ,lord ,jesus ,christ4    
,all must go to  ,him4 ,our ministers   
can only advise and instruct1 and to do 
this  properly1 they must themselves be 
holy men of ,god4 ,christ ,himself      
assumed the office of the ,priesthood4  
,he made the atonement4 ,he is now  our 
only ,high ,priest1 and all must go to  
,him4 ,the wealth of the  universe1     
given to an earthly ,pope1 ,bishop1 or  
,priest1 could not save  one single     

soul1 nor purchase it from perdition4   
,and yet salvation is  freely offered to
 all who will forsake their wicked ways1
 and come to  ,god through love1 and    
faith in the ,lord ,jesus ,christ4      
,all are convinced of the immortality of
 the soul1 and of a future  state of    
existence4 ,the ,word of ,god has set   
this matter at rest1 while  it is fully 
evidenced by the inherent desire in     
every heart and mind  that it should be 
so2 even this longing after immortality4
 ,so1 also1  does enlightened reason    
convince all that there will be a       
separation  of the righteous from the   
wicked in their future conditions4      
,there is  no true harmony of mind and  
spirit between them even in this world2 
much less could there be when the       
righteous are made pure and clean by    
the blood of the ,lamb4    ,there has   
always been antagonism between the      
spirit of light and the  spirit of      
darkness4 ,the first gives light1 life1 
and liberty4 ,the  second1 darkness1    

death1 and bondage4 ,the word and       
revelations of ,god  teach this fact1   
while the experience and heart          
admonitions of all  confirm it4 ,even   
the ungodly condemn wickedness1 and yet1
 strange to  say1 continue on in sin4   
,there has1 from the beginning1 been    
spiritual  antagonism between the good  
and the bad1 and a consciousness upon   
the  part of the wicked of their own    
wrong-doing4 ,this has been the case    
ever since wicked ,cain slew his brother
 ,abel2 ,god then pronounced ,his  curse
 upon the perpetrator of that wicked    
deed1 and ,his curse has  stood against 
all wicked doers from that time to the  
present1 and  will through all time to  
come4 ,bible history is replete with    
evidences  of ,his judgments against    
them1 and plainly tells us that there   
are two  separate places1 one wherein   
the righteous shall enjoy happiness and 
eternal life2 the other wherein the     
wicked shall be punished1 and  endure a 
living death that never dies1 showing us

 plainly that1    ,it is not all of life
 to live2 nor yet of death to die4      
99       99       99       99       99  
,now1 the location of that place of     
torment will claim a few moments  of our
 attention4 ,of this we think we are not
 left to conjecture  alone4 ,we believe 
our hypothesis of the location of heaven
 is correct1  and that we have one      
equally certain of the location of      
,hell1 and  that each hypothesis        
strongly corroborates the other4        
,first1 let us take direct testimony2   
that given by the ,son of ,god  himself1
 who is to be the judge of all--even the
 quick and the  dead4 ,the first are    
those quickened into life by the spirit1
 the  last are those who are dead in    
trespasses and in sin4    ,you will find
 this evidence in the #afth chapter of  
the ,gospel  according to ,saint ,luke4 
,christ1 the ,son ,god1 said1           
,there was a certain rich man1 who was  
clothed in purple and       fine linen1 
and fared sumptuously every day3 ,and   

there was       a certain beggar named  
,lazarus1 who laid at they rich man's   
gate1 full of sores1 and desiring to be 
fed with the crumbs       which fell    
from the rich man's table2 moreover1 the
 dogs       came and licked his sores4  
,and it came to pass that the           
beggar died1 and was carried by the     
angels into ,abraham's       bosom2 ,the
 rich man also died1 and was buried1 and
 in hell       he lifted up his eyes4   
,being in torments1 and seeing ,abraham 
afar off1 and ,lazarus in his bosom1 he 
cried and said1       ,father ,abraham1 
have mercy upon me1 and send ,lazarus1  
that       he may dip the tip of his    
finger in water1 and cool my            
parched tongue1 for ,i am tormented in  
this flame4 ,but       ,abraham said1   
,son1 remember that thou in thy lifetime
       receivedst thy good things1 and  
likewise ,lazarus his evil       things1
 but now he is comforted and thou art   
tormented4 ,and       beside all this1  
between us and you there is a great     

gulph       fixed2 so that they who     
would pass from hence to you cannot2    
neither can they pass to us that would  
come from thence4         ,then he said1
 ,i pray thee1 therefore1 father1 that  
thou       wouldst send him to my       
father's house1 for ,i have five        
brethren2 that he may testify unto them1
 lest they also come       into this    
place of torment4 ,abraham said unto    
him1 they have       ,moses and the     
prophets2 let them hear them4 ,and he   
said1       nay1 father ,abraham2 but if
 one went unto them from the       dead1
 they will repent4 ,abraham answered and
 said unto him1       ,if they hear not 
,moses and the prophets1 neither will   
they       be persuaded though one rose 
from the dead4    ,thus1 we see plainly 
that there are two separate places2 one 
for the  righteous1 who are saved       
through obedience and faith1 and the    
other  for the wicked who are lost      
through disobedience and unbelief4      
,nothing  could be more plain1 pointed1 

or conclusive4    ,now let us recall to 
your mind that which we have related in 
preceding  pages2 wherein we have told  
you that most ,astronomers have agreed  
upon  the fact1 or hypothesis1 of two   
atmospheres around the vast globe we    
have denominated heaven4 ,the one next  
to it appears to be  non-luminous2 while
 the outer one--around this--is         
luminous1 which  they denominate        
photosphere1 to which we have added     
ethereal1 or  spirit-fire4 ,this is what
 we see in looking at the ,sun1 and is  
the  vast volume of fire1 or ethereal   
flame1 that sends out heat and  light to
 this and other surrounding worlds4     
,this light and heat extend  over a     
region of the illimitable space1 not    
less than six thousand  millions of     
miles in extent4 ,we have endeavored to 
approximate to the  mind the intense    
heat of the ,sun at its source1 but it  
far exceeds  finite comprehension4      
,we have also given you the views and   
suppositions of able  investigators that

 the extent of that photosphere1 or     
volume of flame1  is vast indeed4 ,it is
 said that 'flame-like masses--some     
computed to  be one hundred and fifty   
thousand miles in length--are piled upon
 and  overlap each other1 and sweep     
onward in constant agitation like       
mountain billows of living fire4' ,this1
 as we have told you1 is the  source of 
all fire1 or heat known to us on this   
,earth1 and to all the  other planets of
 our solar system4    ,the precise      
nature and elements of fire1 we have    
said1 we cannot fully  comprehend2      
neither its original source1 save that  
it emanated from  the ,great ,first     
,cause4 ,the ,sun is its direct source  
to us1 and we  realize it always the    
same2 never augmenting nor diminishing4 
,we know  that it is the source of light
 to a vast region around1 and1 from the 
offices it performs1 we cannot think    
less than that it is--as we have  before
 said--an attribute of the ,great       
,jehovah2 and especially this  when we  

consider ,god's own revelations as found
 recorded in the ,bible4    ,in         
describing the dimensions of the ,sun1  
we have said it is  #b1fee1jjj miles    
round it1 or to bring this vast extent  
nearer our  comprehension1 we may state 
that it would require #cba ,earths1 the 
size  of this1 set side by side to reach
 around it1 and vast numbers more to    
cover its surface1 and when thus covered
 with worlds like this1 the  stratum    
would only be about #h1jjj miles deep1  
while it is reasonable  to estimate that
 photospheric flame to be #ajj1jjj miles
 in depth4    ,we have mentioned the    
inner globe1 estimated to be more than a
  million times the size of this ,earth1
 and we have denominated it  heaven1 and
 this outside surrounding volume of     
ethereal fire we  shall denominate hell1
 as we believe no other true hypothesis 
can  be advanced4 ,and1 in assuming     
this1 we believe ourselves sustained by 
the revelations of ,god1 as well as by  
all we can comprehend of ,nature4    ,in

 order to incite our minds to know and  
comprehend more of ,him1 and  become    
obedient to ,his requirements1 ,god has 
shown us1 by  manifestations1 ,his      
instrument of destruction and           
punishment4 ,his  prophets have also    
announced ,his threatenings against the 
wicked1 and  have told us that fire--the
 element of heat--is the instrument with
  which ,he will fulfil ,his threatened 
vengeance1 and we have seen this        
manifested by the destruction of the    
cities of the plains--even  ,sodom and  
,gomorrah1 as also the destruction of   
those who offered  incense upon strange 
altars4    ,now as this volume of flame1
 denominated the ,sun1 is the only      
source of fire2 and as fire seems to us 
one of the controlling  elements of     
nature1 and pervades all things1 and    
,god rained down fire  and destroyed    
those cities1 and also sent down fire   
and destroyed  those who offered incense
 on a strange altar1 we plainly see     
where the  fire is that is to be the    

punishment of the wicked4 ,that it is   
said  fire came down from heaven1 or out
 of heaven1 does not vitiate1  but      
rather confirms our hypothesis4 ,for    
,god is omnipresent1 and dwells  in all 
heavens1 and1 from that region1 that    
permanent source of  fire1 ,he          
commanded--doubtless--the concentration 
of the rays of the  ,sun1 and it thus   
came at ,his command from heaven1 and   
fell as flame  of fire4 ,but to prove   
that our hypothesis as to the location  
of hell  is correct1 we direct your mind
 again to the narrative of the ,saviour1
  of the rich man in hell1 and ,lazarus 
in ,abraham's bosom4 ,that  ,abraham was
 in heaven no one can doubt1 while we   
are plainly told that  the rich man was 
in hell1 and1 although afar off1 yet    
within  speaking distance4    ,how far  
distant the voice of spirit can be      
heard1 no one in  mortality can know4   
,we know that on this earth sound is    
limited  because of the density of the  
atmosphere1 and we realize even here    

that when the atmosphere is the more    
rarified1 the greater the  distance of  
sound4 ,it is computed that the         
condensed1 or  earth-atmosphere1 extends
 outward from the earth about forty     
miles4  ,when we have passed this       
stratum1 and have gained space in the   
ethereal atmosphere1 it may be possible 
that the same volume of  voice we are   
accustomed to here1 might be heard      
thousands1 or even  millions of miles   
distant from us4 ,heat rarifies         
atmosphere as we here  realize by the   
influence of the sun4 ,if the addition  
of a few rays of  the sun will dissipate
 the dense clouds1 and so materially    
rarify our  atmosphere at the distance  
of ninety-five millions of miles1 what  
may  we suppose the condition of the    
atmosphere ninety millions of miles     
nearer its source8 ,therefore1 we may   
readily believe that although  ,dives1  
and ,abraham1 were far apart--possibly  
thousands of miles--yet  they could see 
and converse with each other4    ,you   

will remember that astronomers inform us
 that there seems a volume  of          
non-luminous atmosphere1 or void1       
between the outer phostosphere of  fire 
and the body of that inner globe 7which 
globe we believe is  heaven74 ,now      
remember the words of ,father ,abraham1 
,beside all this1  between us and you   
there is a great gulph fixed2 so that   
they who  would pass from hence to you  
cannot2 neither can they pass to us that
  would come from thence4 ,is not here  
conclusive evidence that the two        
places--heaven and hell--are not in far 
distant regions from each  other8       
,remember4 ,it is said of the wicked    
,these shall go away into outer         
darkness1 there shall be weeping1 and   
wailing1 and gnashing of teeth4  ,when  
death and hell shall give up their dead 
7for the souls of the  wicked--who are  
dead in trespasses and in sin--are still
 enduring that  death that never dies71 
and all appear before the ,judgment seat
 of  ,christ1 where every one shall     

receive according to the deeds done in  
the body1 and the wicked are driven from
 ,god1 and from the glory of  ,his      
power1 to reach again their eternal     
destiny1 they will doubtless  pass      
through that dark void1 even that great 
gulph fixed between1  and there will be 
weeping and wailing1 and gnashing of    
teeth4           99       99       99   
99       99    ,although we believe the 
evidence furnished is conclusive beyond 
cavil  or doubt to every intelligent    
mind1 yet we will still add more        
affirmative arguments which we desire   
that all should consider4    ,first1    
,let us refer again to the              
declarations--we have several times     
repeated--of the ,prophets and          
,apostles4 ,that heaven1 and the ,holy  
,city  in it1 hath no need of the light 
of the ,sun4 ,that the glory of ,god    
doth lighten it1 and the ,lamb is the   
light thereof4 ,that there is no  night 
there1 but one eternal day4    ,now let 
us call to your mind the extent of that 

empire wherein the  ,sun does not shine4
 ,from astronomical measurement1 we may 
form in our  minds an approximation of  
its dimensions4 ,to fix for it a low    
estimate1 we may safely conclude that   
the domain proper1 is at least  five    
hundred thousand miles in diameter1 and 
one million five  hundred thousand miles
 around it4 ,the empire is vast indeed1 
so great  that1 by comparison1 we can   
form no correct idea of it4 ,we can only
  approximate by saying that it would   
require about one million of  earths1   
the size of this1 to make a globe of    
equal magnitude4    ,in order to bring  
all home to your own reason and         
comprehension1 let  us ask1 ,where else 
is it feasible for so large a place to  
be  whereon1 or into which the ,sun1 or 
suns1 do not or cannot shine8  ,we have 
shown you that suns 7the surrounding    
volumes of photospheric  ethereal fire7 
are--so far as we can comprehend--the   
natural sources  of light throughout the
 ,universe of ,jehovah's empire4 ,they  

seem as  ,god's own eternal lamps1      
scattered and placed at ,his will in    
different regions of illimitable space1 
to illumine the universe  without1 and  
give light everywhere1 as also life and 
animation to  all their surrounding     
worlds4 ,each perhaps to its own1 even  
as our ,sun  does to its own            
planet-worlds4 ,now when we consider    
that the fact is  well established by   
all leading ,astronomers that this      
outside flame or  volume of fire is far 
out from that ,,inner ,,globe1 or world1
 and that  between them there is a void1
 possibly thousands of miles in depth2  
that the fires and light of the ,sun    
have no perceptible effect upon  this   
non-luminous void--and1 indeed1 the void
 shields the globe within  from the     
light and heat of the ,sun--we can      
readily imagine the wise  arrangement of
 the ,great ,architect1 and also        
comprehend the truth of  ,his own       
declarations1 that heaven is a place    
where neither the ,sun nor  its heat    

shall light upon its inhabitants4       
,now the nature of the element of this  
intervening void or space1  whether it  
is ethereal or not1 we cannot now       
comprehend4 ,that it  is a safe covering
 or shield to the world within1 we can  
readily  suppose4 ,for ,sir ,john       
,herschel says that it seems as an      
awning or  screen1 protecting the body1 
or world within1 from the ,sun's heat4  
,but we are not left to conjecture      
alone1 without philosophical reason  in 
this matter4 ,we know the laws of       
gravitation and attraction are  fixed   
and sure1 and upon these universal laws 
we can base correct  conclusions4       
,the tendency of fire or heat is outward
 and upward4 ,the sense in  which we use
 the term upward is that of space far   
out from the  earth1 or like solid      
bodies4 ,we have shown1 in our          
explanation of the  law of gravitation1 
that upward is simply away from the     
earth4 ,thus1  we ignite material with  
fire and produce combustion here1 and we

 see  the flame rise1 and feel and know 
the heat ascends upward4 ,so also  may  
the ,chinaman do the same1 at the same  
moment1 on the opposite side  of the    
globe--while his position is directly   
under us1 as we construe  downward--and 
yet the flame and heat of his fire      
ascends upward from  the earth where he 
stands1 which is in a directly opposite 
direction  from the course ours pursues4
 ,thus1 to us1 outward from the earth is
  upward1 no matter where our position  
on it4    ,this tendency of heat upward1
 or away from the base of the fire1 is  
plainly evident by the fact that heat   
will not penetrate to any  considerable 
depth downward1 neither when on the     
earth1 or on a  solid non-combustible   
foundation2 nor yet when on an elevated 
platform1 for its tendency1 as we have  
shown1 is always outward or  upward4 ,so
 also with the fires of the ,sun2       
whatever the base of its  fires may be1 
we see by the fixed laws of ,nature that
 the tendency of  its heat is outward1  

no matter from what portion of that base
 it may  emanate4 ,we cannot now        
comprehend the nature of the base of the
  ,sun's fires1 but we know that the    
great ,jehovah has provided it1 and     
that it is founded in ,his wisdom1 and  
is fixed and sure1 and we have  reasoned
 conclusively that it cannot be of      
combustible material4  ,hence1 the only 
rational conclusion we can arrive       
at--from a thorough  investigation of   
,divine revelations2 from all the lights
 afforded by  the science of astronomy2 
from the true philosophy of ,nature1 as 
well  as from all that is visible and   
perceptible--is1 that far within the    
circling photosphere of ethereal fire   
which we see and realize as the  ,sun1  
there is a solid body1 a globe1 a ,,vast
 ,,world1 and that world is  the heaven 
for all the righteous from this earth2  
that it is the  ,saviour's allotted     
empire1 and that ,he is there the ruler 
of ,his  people4          ,,the ,,nature
 ,,of ,,the ,,light ,,of ,,the          

,,heavenly ,,world4    ,the glory of    
,god doth lighten it1 and the ,lamb is  
the light  thereof4      ,we have given 
the above ,scripture quotation          
repeatedly in these pages1  in order to 
forcibly impress the minds of all with  
the fact that the  light of the heavenly
 world is different from the light of   
the ,sun2  that it far transcends it in 
brightness4 ,for we are told that it is 
far above the brightness of the ,sun    
shining in its strength1 even           
seven-fold brighter than the ,sun4      
,let us contemplate what has been       
revealed of this glory light4    ,first4
 ,no mortal ever has beheld the full    
radiance of the face1 or  glory of ,god4
 ,for ,he hath said that no one should  
see ,his face and  live4 ,in evidence of
 this1 when ,moses1 who was so near     
,him1 and  desired so much to behold    
,his face unveiled1 prayed to ,him      
saying3 ,i  beseech thee1 show me thy   
glory4 ,there came an answer unto him4  
,thou canst not see my face1 for there  

shall no man see me and  live4 ,and in  
order to preserve the life of ,moses1   
,god placed him in  the cleft of a rock 
and covered him with ,his hand while    
,his glory  was passing by4    ,others  
have desired to see ,god1 and the       
brightness of ,his glory1 yet  such     
desire1 while in mortality1 is wrong1   
for none could behold it  and live4     
,it is recorded of ,trajan1 the ,emperor
 of ,rome1 that he accosted ,rabbi      
,joshua1 saying3 ,you teach that your   
,god is everywhere1 now ,i should  like 
to see ,him4 ,joshua replied1 ,he cannot
 be seen1 no mortal eye  can behold ,his
 glory4 ,the ,emperor1 however1         
persisted1 contending  that if ,he was  
everywhere1 ,he could surely be seen1   
and thus derided  the doctrine taught by
 ,joshua4 ,well1 said the ,rabbi1 let us
 try  first to look at one of ,his      
ambassadors4 ,to this ,trajan consented4
  ,joshua then led him forth into the   
open air at noon-day1 and bade him  look
 at the ,sun4 ,the ,emperor replied3 ,i 

cannot1 for its light  dazzles1 and will
 blind me4 ,then replied ,joshua1 ,if   
thou art  unable to endure the light of 
one of ,his creatures1 how canst thou   
expect to be able to behold the         
resplendent glory of the ,creator8 ,the 
sight would annihilate thee4    ,thus we
 find that in every representation of   
the glory of ,god1 its  light is beyond 
our comprehension1 and so overpowering  
that no mortal  could behold it and     
live4    ,we have1 however1 a feeble    
representation of this glory manifested 
by  ,his ,son4 ,when ,saul1 of ,tarsus1 
was on his way to ,damascus1 to         
persecute the disciples and followers of
 ,christ1 behold1 at mid-day1 a  light1 
above the brightness of the ,sun1 shone 
around him and his  band1 and they all  
fell to the earth1 and their leader was 
smitten  with blindness1 which continued
 for three days1 and was only then      
relieved by the agencies which the      
,saviour appointed4 ,when first         
smitten1 hearing a voice that was not of

 ,earth1 he exclaimed1 ,lord1  who art  
thou8 ,the answer was1 ,i am ,jesus whom
 thou persecutest4    ,when the beloved 
disciple ,john beheld the ,son of ,man1 
walking in the  midst of the golden     
candlesticks1 the light and influence   
was so  overpowering1 that he fell at   
,his feet as dead4 ,thus we have a      
faint prelude of the light of the glory 
of ,god4 ,yet no one in  mortality can  
behold it1 even in a veiled form4 ,but  
the strength of  the spirit-eye will    
enable us to behold the ,king in all    
,his glory1  for we shall see ,him as   
,he is4          ,,that ,,heavenly      
,,world4      ,we need not stand on     
,pisgah's height1 nor climb to the      
summit of the  ,andes1 to catch a       
glimpse of that ,,heavenly ,,world4     
,but1 grasping the  telescope of ,faith1
 and looking through ,revelations1 the  
humblest  ,christian1 low down in the   
valley1 may see through the storm-clouds
  and tempests of life--yea1 even       
through the shadow of death--and  gaze  

with rapture upon the enchanting scene4 
,the light of the ,sun  pales without1  
as the flood-light of that inner world  
breaks upon  the eye4 ,there is the     
resplendent glory of ,god1 shining with 
unequalled radiance and beauty4 ,to the 
spirit-eye it is not blinding1  neither 
will it even dim the sight4 ,fear not1  
ye feeble followers of  the blessed     
,redeemer1 to approach--even now--by    
faith and  contemplation1 the confines  
of that bright world2 even though it is 
within that encircling photosphere of   
ethereal fire4 ,there is no  danger1 for
 by-and-by that bright world will be    
your place of  habitation4 ,when the    
winged messenger comes and escorts you  
away from  your earthly prison-house1 he
 will conduct you to that bright  world1
 where an abundant entrance shall be    
administered unto you by  your blessed  
,saviour4 ,remember it is written in the
 ,sacred ,volume3  ,the voice of ,god   
divideth the flame2 and ,he hath said3  
,i will be  as a wall of fire4 ,when    

thou goest through the fire1 thou shalt 
not be burned2 neither shall the flames 
kindle upon thee4 ,enter  thou into the 
joys of thy ,lord4 ,no such flames      
within4 ,the ,sun  shall not light on   
thee2 nor any heat2 and yet there is a  
resplendent light1 even the glory of    
,god1 which illumines the ,great  ,city 
and all the vast realm4 ,there is no    
night there1 but one  eternal day2 and  
when thou hast entered1 ,the days of thy
 mourning  shall be ended4    ,but hold 
heavenward the telescope of faith2 let  
us1 through the  lights of revelation1  
endeavor to get a slight panoramic view4
 ,the  inspired poet caught a glimpse   
before us4 ,hear him exclaim3           
,there1 on those wide extended plains1  
,shines one eternal day2      ,there    
,god the ,son forever reigns1           
,and scatters night away4    ,behold6   
,spread out before us is the wide       
expanse of a glorious  universe4 ,see in
 the distance those hills and towering  
mountains2  those beautiful valleys and 

wide-extending plains4 ,see the         
innumerable  set thrones1 and1 in the   
midst of all1 ,,the ,,great ,,white     
,,throne6  and ,he who sits thereon is  
the ,,son ,,of ,,god1 who reigns1 and is
 the  ruler of this vast empire4 ,see   
before the throne a sea of glass like   
unto crystal1 and around about the      
throne four-and-twenty elders in        
raiment of white1 with crowns of gold1  
while all around is a  rainbow1 in sight
 like unto an emerald1 or grand empyrean
 covering  resplendent with the light of
 the glory of ,god4 ,see that fountain  
of  the river of life gushing from      
beneath the throne1 and flowing on  and 
on1 meandering amidst mountains and     
hills1 and through vast plains  and     
beautiful valleys4 ,see the crystal     
fountains playing on every  hand1 and   
whose waters are forever sparkling in   
the light of eternal  day4 ,see the     
towering forest trees and shady groves  
of heaven1  placed there by the ,word of
 the ,creator1 during past cycles of    

eternity1 and long before time          
commenced1 their rich foliage           
presenting every variegated hue1 their  
boughs laden with all manner of         
precious fruit suited for spiritual     
food1 and their seasons for  bearing are
 now and forever4 ,but see yonder1 near 
the base of that  towering              
mountain1--whose summit seems to mount  
up a thousand miles  high1 and whose    
towering forests are waving in the      
gentle breezes of  heaven1 and1 with all
 things else1 seem but to reflect the   
light of  the glory of ,god2--that vast 
plain spreading out from its base is    
the ,,garden ,,of ,,the ,,lord4 ,its    
extent is even greater than that of our 
whole ,earth4 ,it is filled with trees  
bearing fruits2 with shrubbery1  and ten
 thousand times ten thousand various and
 variegated flowers  perennially        
blooming4 ,see the vast multitude of    
saints1 attended by  angels1 as they    
meander through its labyrinths1 culling 
choicest  flowers1 or lingering under   

native bowers or amid shady groves4 ,no 
old age or decrepitude2 no gray hairs to
 distinguish ages4 ,the old  seers and  
prophets2 neither are ,adam nor         
,methuselah1 who dwelt on the  earth    
nearly a thousand years1 known here by  
age2 neither do our own  aged fathers   
and mothers show here any signs of      
decrepitude or  advanced years1 but1    
even as their own children--our         
brothers1 our  sisters1 our husbands1   
our wives1 and our own children1 who    
have  found an inheritance here--all are
 as in the bloom of youth and  maturity1
 and will thus remain forever through   
succeeding cycles of  eternity4 ,ah6    
methinks1 amid that vast multitude you  
espy a father1 a  mother1 a sister1 a   
brother1 companion or child1 or some    
dear1 loved  friends from earth1 who are
 now radiant with beauty in that        
,paradise of ,god1 and that you would   
fain drop mortality1 and1 on            
spirit-wings of love1 go and join them  
and be forever at rest4 ,wait1  not now2

 but if you have sought and found the   
pearl of price1 and  are abiding in the 
love of ,god1 you1 too1 will get there  
by-and-by4 ,remember afflicted ,job1 who
 knew his record was in  heaven1 yet    
with all this perceptive knowledge1 hear
 him meekly say3  ,all my appointed time
 will ,i wait1 until my change cometh1  
and  though ,he slay me1 yet will ,i    
trust in ,him4    ,but while we have in 
hand the telescope of faith and the     
revelations  of ,god as our light1 let  
us change its direction a little1 and   
add a  new grasping power4    ,see6     
,behold the ,city of ,god of which      
glorious things were  spoken1--even the 
city of which ,john had a panoramic view
 while in  the spirit on the ,isle of   
,patmos4 ,see its glittering jasper     
walls  as they loom up in the           
glory-light fifteen hundred miles high2 
and  whose foundations are fifteen      
hundred miles square1 covering a        
superficial extent of two millions two  
hundred and fifty thousand  square      

miles4 ,see6 ,its foundations are       
garnished with all manner of  precious  
stones1 and there are twelve vast gates 
of entrance1 and  the twelve gates are  
twelve pearls3 every several gate is one
 pearl4  ,those gates are now thrown    
wide open1 never to be shut again1 for  
it  is the city of habitation for the   
redeemed from ,earth1 and hundreds  are 
arriving from our world every minute of 
time4 ,see6 its walls are  of pure      
gold--even as jasper1 while its streets 
are paved with gold  transparent as     
glass4 ,see its vast arches1 minarets   
and towers1 and  its palatial mansions4 
,remember the blessed ,saviour said1    
when about  to leave our ,earth1 ,in my 
,father's house are many mansions2 and  
added1 ,i go to prepare a place for you1
 that where ,i am1 there ye  may be     
also4 ,some of our friends have homes in
 those beautiful  mansions4 99 99 99 99 
99 ,it is enough4 ,our vision of these  
enchanting  scenes is ended1 and we are 
left to contemplate them in mind until  

our  appointed time shall come1 and then
 if we are ready when our ,lord  and    
master calls1 we1 too1 shall find a     
permanent home with the  redeemed of the
 ,lord in that heavenly world1 and then 
with ,st4  ,paul1 we may see the glory  
which shall be revealed4          ,,the 
,,dimensions ,,and ,,capacity ,,of ,,the
 ,,city--,,there ,,is ,,room ,,for      
,,all1 ,,and  ,,to ,,spare4    ,and the 
city lieth foursquare1 and the length is
 as large as the  breadth2 and he       
measured the city with a reed1 twelve   
thousand  furlongs4 ,the length and the 
breadth and the height of it are equal4 
,rev4 xxi4      ,twelve thousand        
furlongs constitutes1 by our            
measurement1 #a1ejj miles4  ,thus we see
 that the city lieth four-square1 and   
its height is equal  to its length or   
breadth of foundation4 ,the base surface
 covers a  superficial extent of        
#b1bej1jjj square miles4 ,the extent of 
the city  will give us over             
#c1cge1jjj1jjj cubic miles4 ,one cubic  

mile alone will  afford measurement of  
space for over #ae1jjj1jjj rooms #bj    
feet square1 and  the entire square of  
the city would afford about             
#ej1fbe1jjj1jjj1jjj1jjj  rooms of       
similar dimensions4    ,but we are not  
justifiable in the belief other than    
that it is a city  of vast proportions1 
and one of grandeur and beauty4 ,we are 
told that  it is a city of many         
mansions4 ,let us therefore contemplate 
it in  this light1 and estimate that    
only one-fiftieth portion of its vast   
space is occupied by mansions2 the      
balance open space1 streets1  avenues1  
and courts4 ,such mansions would thus   
afford over  #a1jjj1jjj1jjj1jjj1jjj     
rooms #bj feet square4    ,we will now  
compute the number of inhabitants who   
have lived and died  on the earth for   
#f1jjj years past2 the number living on 
it at present1  and estimate how long of
 future time would be required to       
furnish one  soul to occupy each room4  
,it is estimated that there are at      

present  #a1jjj1jjj1jjj1 and that this  
number die during each period of thirty 
years4 ,now if all should find a home   
there1 it would require more than       
thirty millions of years1 at the same   
ratio1 to furnish one soul for  each    
room thus computed in those mansions4   
,and if we estimate that  only          
one-hundredth part of the space is      
occupied by mansions1 it  would even    
then require #ae1jjj1jjj of years to    
thus people them4    ,but we are assured
 that the wicked shall not enter there4 
,that wide  is the gate1 and broad is   
the way that leadeth to destruction1 and
  many there be which go in thereat4 ,we
 are therefore led to the  inevitable   
conclusion1 that by far the larger      
number of those who have  lived and died
 on this earth1 have failed to find     
their home in that  city of which       
glorious things are spoken4             
,contemplating1 as we have1 the vast    
magnitude of that city1 we are          
justifiable in the conclusion that there

 is ample provision of  mansions there1 
as the dwelling-place for other         
intelligences beside  those from this   
earth2 probably the home and abode of   
the angels2  possibly1 for inhabitants  
of the other planets belonging to the   
same  solar system with our own earth1  
as all receive light and animation  from
 the same sun1 and all are governed and 
controlled by the  load-stone power of  
attraction of that vast globe4          
,again1 may it not be that all that has 
been revealed to us1 is simply  that    
which relates to our future habitation1 
and that the city we  have been         
contemplating is for the abode of the   
righteous from this  earth8 ,may there  
not be many other cities of equal1 or   
even greater  magnitude within that vast
 empire--even one such allotted to the  
inhabitants of each separate planet1 and
 that each may have a king  and ruler   
provided by the ,creator of all8 ,for   
all that we can  comprehend of our      
,saviour--who is to be our king and     

ruler--is1 that  he came from ,god the  
,father to ransom the inhabitants of    
this earth1  and offer life and         
salvation to all who should believe in  
,him with a  heart unto righteousness4  
,remember1 he said1 ,in my ,father's    
house  are many mansions4 ,and added1 ,i
 go to prepare a place for ,,you1  that 
where ,i am there ye may be also4       
,the ,new ,testament ,scriptures teach  
the sublime truth that the great        
interest of our blessed ,saviour is the 
salvation and happiness of  those whom  
,he denominates his children from this  
earth2 those for  whom ,he died1 and who
 shall believe in ,him unto everlasting 
life4  ,hence1 from all his teachings we
 believe this suggested hypothesis      
correct4 ,the ,psalmist says1 ,there are
 set thrones of ,judgment1  while the   
,apostles speak of thrones and          
dominions2 principalities  and powers4  
,there is ample room in that ,heaven for
 all4          ,,the ,,native           
,,population ,,of ,,that ,,heavenly     

,,world4    ,the ,angels of ,god4--,heb4
 #a4 #f4      ,so far as revealed to us 
by record of the ,bible1 the original or
  native inhabitants of ,heaven are     
called ,angels4 ,these are also  called 
messengers of ,god1 and from all the    
lights we have1 it would  seem that     
their principal occupation and          
employment is to act as  messengers2    
execute the commands of ,jehovah1 and to
 worship1 and  magnify the name of their
 ,creator4 ,their perpetual residence1  
it  seems1 is in ,heaven1 yet from the  
manifestations of repeated visits to    
our earth1 we can but suppose they are  
,god's messengers1 oft sent to  other   
worlds to do ,his pleasure4    ,it would
 seem that they are possessed of        
intellectuality next to  ,jehovah       
himself1 yet all knowledge is not given 
unto them4 ,it also  appears that there 
is a vast difference in their grades and
 positions4  ,we read of ,archangels1 of
 ,michael1 and ,gabriel1 of the ,sons of
 ,god4  ,they are sometimes called      

,stars4 ,thus1 we read of the morning   
stars  which sang together4 ,we also    
read of ,cherubim and ,seraphim4 ,and it
  may be that some of the most exalted  
among them occupy thrones1 and  have    
control of dominions1 principalities1   
and powers4 ,we are  told that ,michael 
and his angels fought the ,great ,dragon
 and his  angels4 ,thus we see that they
 were the leaders1 or had command over  
many angels4    ,we are also justified  
in the belief that they are princes and 
peers1  and belong to the ,court2       
possibly form the ministerial cabinet1  
and  are attendants in the council      
chambers of heaven4    ,we have seen1   
through revelations1 how oft--under the 
earlier  dispensation--they visited our 
earth1 to bear messages from ,god to the
  prophets1 and to ,his people2 to warn 
or announce ,his threatenings1 or       
execute ,his commands in judgments upon 
the wicked4 ,as angels they are         
,spirits1 and as commissioned ministers 
oft appeared as flames  of fire4        

,from the revelations made to us1 we    
know they are spiritual creatures  of   
,god1 and that their nature is          
immaterial1 or that they have  existence
 in highly etherealized bodies1 which   
can be transported at  pleasure to any  
remote or distant region of ,jehovah's  
empire1 with a  celerity                
surpassing--possibly--the flight of     
electricity itself4    ,angels1 as      
spirits1 are immortal1 and hence will   
live forever4 ,and  thus also our own   
spirits must live forever1 because      
derived from the  spirit-life of ,god4  
,revelations furnish us abundant        
evidence of the  spirit nature of       
angels4 ,they were oft present and      
speaking with the  prophets1 and were   
yet invisible1 as also within doors     
where locks  and bars precluded the     
possibility of substance1 or of         
earth-life  animation entering4 ,and yet
 again1 we have evidence of their       
appearing  in tangible form1 and could  
be seen1 and felt1 and we read of their 

being entertained as men unawares4      
,when1 however1 they appeared as        
angels1 we learn that their bodily      
aspect was that of transcendent  beauty2
 their face and form resplendent with   
light1 and a halo1 as of  ,divinity     
itself1 shone around them4    ,it seems 
that angels have ever manifested a deep 
and abiding interest  in behalf of our  
,earth1 and of man4 ,we are told that   
they celebrated  the creation of this   
world with songs of praise and shouts of
 joy4  ,at the time of the birth of the 
,saviour1 an angel from ,god appeared to
  the shepherds1 who were watching their
 flocks by night1 and announced  the    
glad tidings of great joy1 and          
immediately there appeared with  the    
angel1 a multitude of the heavenly hosts
 sounding loud the anthem  of praise1   
,glory to ,god in the highest1 peace on 
,earth and good-will  to men4 ,how      
strange this incident6 ,the tongues of  
men were silent in  this the hour of    
dawn of their redemption1 and the angels

 alone  heralded the event1 and sang the
 anthem of praise4 ,an angel            
subsequently warned ,joseph to seek a   
place of safety for the ,infant  of     
days1 as ,herod1 the ,king1 would seek  
to destroy the young child's  life4     
,during the ,saviour's sojourn on       
,earth1 how oft did angels appear and   
minister unto ,him2 even strengthening  
,him1 when ,his human nature  staggered 
under the load of the sins of a guilty  
world4 ,and  when--seemingly--the star  
of ,bethlehem had set1 and the hope of  
the  world seemed lost2 when the        
promised ,messiah was entombed2 when    
dismay  seized upon1 and thick darkness 
shrouded the minds of all who had       
followed the ,saviour2 when even the    
,marys who loved ,him1 repaired at      
early dawn to shed their tears at ,his  
sepulchre3 ,behold6 ,the angel  of the  
,lord was there2 had rolled away the    
stone and sat upon it4  ,he did not need
 to inquire their errand1 but said unto 
them3 ,i know  it is ,jesus whom ye     

seek1 he is not here1 for ,he is risen4 
,oh1 see  what interest the angels have 
ever manifested in our behalf6 ,are     
they not all ministering spirits1 sent  
forth to minister unto those  who shall 
be the heirs of salvation8              
,,the ,,vast ,,number ,,of ,,the        
,,angels4    ,an innumerable company of 
angels4 ,heb4 xii4 #bb4      ,of the    
number of the angels we can form no     
proper conception4 ,that  their numbers 
are very great1 we have evidence through
 ,divine  revelations4 ,we are told that
 when the ,law was given from ,mount    
,sinai1  there was in attendance upon   
the great ,author of all thousands of   
angels4 ,daniel1 speaking of their      
attendance upon the ,ancient of  ,days  
says1 thousand thousands ministered unto
 him1 and ten thousand  times ten       
thousand stood before him4 ,when the    
star appeared in the  east1 and led the 
wise men to ,bethlehem where lay the    
promised hope  of a perishing world1    
there appeared a multitude of the       

heavenly  hosts1 singing with sweet     
melody the anthem of redemption1 and    
praises  to ,god in the highest4 ,when  
,peter unsheathed his sword to smite the
  servant of the ,high ,priest who came 
to arrest his ,master1 the ,saviour     
restrained him and said3 ,thinkest thou 
that ,i cannot now pray to my  ,father1 
and he shall presently give me more than
 twelve legions of  angels4 ,while ,st4 
,paul speaks of an innumerable company  
of angels  in the heavenly ,jerusalem4  
,,amazing ,,strength ,,of ,,angels4     
,bless the ,lord1 ye his angels1 that   
excel in strength1 that do his          
commandments1 hearkening unto the voice 
of his word4--,ps4 ciii4 #bj4      ,of  
the amazing strength of angels1 we can  
form no adequate conception4  ,god is a 
,spirit1 and by ,his ,spirit hath       
created all things4 ,we have  seen that 
,his angels are spirits1 and that these 
spirits are  ethereal in their nature1  
so far as finite mind can comprehend4   
,and  yet their strength is wonderful to

 contemplate4 ,st4 ,john represents     
them as holding the four winds of       
heaven1 and controlling the elements    
with a supernatural power4 ,commissioned
 by ,jehovah for the purpose1 an  angel 
destroyed seventy thousand people of the
 tribes of ,judah and  ,israel in three 
days4 ,and again1 an angel destroyed1 in
 one night1 one  hundred and eighty-five
 thousand of a mighty army4 ,it would   
seem that  by permission1 or at command1
 they are capable of exercising a power 
almost omnipotent4 ,in the last days1   
great power shall be given them4  ,they 
shall pour out the vials of ,jehovah's  
wrath1 smite earth and  seas1 cause the 
stars to fall1 and even chain the great 
dragon and  cast him into the bottomless
 pit4          ,,rapidity ,,of          
,,movement ,,of ,,the ,,angels4      ,we
 will now consider another feature of   
the capacity of the angels1  one that is
 fraught with deepest interest to the   
human mind1 as it  will give us some    
light of probabilities attending our    

future1 when  our spirits shall be      
released from our mortal bodies4 ,this  
is the  celerity1 velocity1 or rapidity 
of their movements4    ,these celestial 
creatures seem to possess the power of  
transporting  themselves with a celerity
 incomprehensible to finite mind4 ,that 
it is  equal1 even if not more rapid    
than electricity1 we cannot doubt4 ,we  
incline to the opinion1 however1 that   
the velocity of their movement  is1 at  
pleasure1 the same as that of the flight
 of electricity2 and  so also with our  
spirits1 after leaving the body4 ,no one
 can fully  comprehend the nature of    
electricity4 ,we know that it exists1   
and to  some extent we can control and  
use it as an agency for useful          
purposes2 yet it is an existing element 
in nature1 even as fire is4 ,we  may    
concentrate and use it1 and we may      
profess to understand the  combination  
of agencies which produce it4 ,yet all  
resolves itself back  again into the    
simple fact that it is an element       

existing in nature1  and its source is  
that of all else--the ,,great ,,first   
,,cause ,,of ,,all  ,,things4           
,electricity is of more rapid flight    
than any other element or agency  we    
can--even partially--comprehend in      
nature4 ,if we had a wire laid  around  
this ,earth1 it is estimated that a     
current of electricity  would belt the  
globe in about the tenth part of a      
second of time1 or  travel at nearly the
 speed of three hundred thousand miles a
 second1  and would reach the           
,sun--ninety-five millions of miles     
distant--in a  fraction over five       
minutes of time4 ,the discovery and     
application of  electricity is the most 
wonderful phenomenon that has ever been 
grasped by the human intellect1 and we  
contend it is one of ,jehovah's         
invisible agencies in nature1 which ,he 
has permitted man to  comprehend in     
part1 and thus to prepare the mind to   
comprehend more  fully the infinity of  
,his power1 and the nature of our       

relation to  ,him4 ,hitherto1 even the  
mind of faith has stood bewildered in   
regard  to the transit of the soul1     
after death1 to the place of its future 
habitation4 ,astronomers1 by the aid of 
that wonderful gift of ,god to  man--the
 telescope--have penetrated the borders 
of the far-distant  sidereal regions2   
have caught rays of light which1 it is  
now rendered  probable1 left their      
native nebul1 or suns1 more than five   
hundred  thousand years ago1 and have   
travelled at the rate of #aib1jjj miles 
a  second ever since1 and are now       
successively beaming upon the assisted  
eye4 ,now1 it would require more than   
three hundred thousand years  for a     
current of electricity to travel thence1
 even at the rate of  #cjj1jjj miles    
each second of time4 ,and yet1 although 
far distant  regions have been          
penetrated and partially surveyed1      
still1 nowhere  within the trackless and
 boundless domain of illimitable space  
have  ,astronomers descried an object   

which they could denominate ,heaven4    
,we say1 considering all these          
circumstances1 and that it would require
  three hundred thousand years1         
travelling with the rapidity of three   
hundred thousand miles a second1 to     
reach the extent of space surveyed  by  
the eye through the telescope1 and yet  
the supposition that heaven  was still  
far out beyond2 the mind of faith has   
ever been bewildered  as to the locality
 of the place1 and of the time1 or      
period of  eternity required to reach   
it4 ,and yet it was right and proper    
that  ,christians should hold firm to   
faith in ,god2 that ,he had provided a  
place of happiness for his people1 and  
also provided the necessary  agencies   
for transporting them thither4 ,but now1
 when we consider that  every blessing  
vouchsafed to man is derived from       
heaven1 or the  ,sun--which is ,god's   
agency--when we have contemplated the   
nature of  ,god's manifestations in the 
bestowment of his blessings1 and        

visitations of his judgments2 when we   
see how soon1 at ,his bidding1  ,his    
messengers can descend from heaven to   
earth to execute ,his  commands1 and the
 daily intimate relations in ancient    
times between  ,his angels residing in  
heaven1 and ,his prophets and people on 
earth2  how instantaneously they were   
present when emergency demanded--for    
when ,daniel bowed1 and his prayer went 
up to heaven1 the angel  ,gabriel came  
with the answer from ,god while he was  
still on his knees1  and yet            
speaking1--and accepting the hypothesis 
we have laid1 that  our heaven is the   
vast globe descried by ,astronomers     
within that  encircling photosphere of  
ethereal fire1 which is denominated the 
,sun1 our veiled faith of the past takes
 a sudden bound and lights  upon--an    
almost fully revealed reality2 we can   
now partially  comprehend the mode1 and 
short space of time required for the    
transit  of our immortal spirits to that
 heavenly world4 ,it is reasonable to   

suppose that spirit can pass with the   
velocity of electricity1 and  travelling
 thus1 we have seen that to reach that  
world within the ,sun1  will require but
 about five minutes4 ,well hath the     
apostle said1 to  be absent from the    
body1 is to be present with the ,lord4  
,there are fixed laws1 and a certain    
reality1 in all things  pertaining unto 
,jehovah and ,his vast creations        
throughout ,his own  ,universe1 and it  
is not unreasonable to suppose that he  
has designed  that we should comprehend 
,his laws relating to us1 and thereby   
understand ,his own plain revelations4  
,we therefore believe that  reason1     
founded upon revelations1 sustains our  
hypothesis1 as to the  location of      
heaven--as also of hell--and that the   
,spirit of ,god is--in  some of its     
offices--as fire4 ,and we cannot doubt  
but that1  henceforth1 these views will 
be sustained by the intelligence of the 
world2 and that still more of seeming   
mystery will be comprehended1  and new  

light opened to the mind upon the       
subject1 while all will tend  to the    
glory of ,god1 and the salvation of the 
human family4          ,,certainty ,,of 
,a ,,resurrection4      ,st4 ,paul1 the 
apostle of the ,gentiles1 says3 ,if in  
this life only we  have hope in ,christ1
 we are of all men most miserable4      
,no wonder that he came to such         
conclusion1 when he knew that kings1    
rulers1 and the populace were           
overwhelmingly against the few disciples
  and followers of the ,lord ,jesus     
,christ1 and that persecutions1 bonds1  
imprisonment1 and even violent death    
were in store for many of them4    ,but 
hear him again3         ,since by man   
came death1 by man came also the        
resurrection       from the dead4 ,the  
last enemy that shall be destroyed is   
death4         ,now ,i say1 brethren1   
that flesh and blood cannot inherit     
the kingdom of ,god4 ,behold1 ,i show   
you a mystery2 we shall       not all   
sleep1 but we shall all be changed in a 

moment1 in       the twinkling of an    
eye1 at the last trump2 for the trumpet 
shall sound1 and the dead shall be      
raised incorruptible1 and       we shall
 be changed4 ,for this corruption must  
put on       incorruption1 and this     
mortal must put on immortality4 ,death  
shall be swallowed up in victory4       
,thanks be to ,god1 which       giveth  
us the victory through our ,lord ,jesus 
,christ4    ,that there will be a       
resurrection of our spiritual bodies1 is
 plainly  taught in the ,old and in the 
,new ,testament scriptures4 ,we have    
already  shown this conclusively in our 
opening chapter on ,the ,immortality of 
the ,soul1 and a future ,state of       
,existence4 ,but had doubts remained in 
the minds of any1 we think ,st4         
,paul--as quoted above--removes them1   
and sets the matter at rest4    ,st4    
,john1 the revelator1 tells us that     
while in the spirit1 the scene  of the  
judgment was brought before his vision4 
,he says3         ,and ,i saw the dead1 

small and great1 stand before ,god1 and 
the books were opened1 and the dead were
 judged out of those       things which 
were written in the books1 according to 
their       works4    ,now we understand
 that this general judgment will be at  
the close of  the time allotted to this 
world4 ,whether that period is far      
remote or  near at hand1 no one knoweth 
save ,god himself2 no1 not even the     
angels of heaven4 ,but as to that time1 
it matters not1 so far as  salvation and
 a condition of happiness to the        
righteous is concerned1  nor to the     
wicked1 as regards future punishment4   
,revelations and the  ,word of ,god     
establish the fact that as soon as the  
soul1 or spirit  leaves the body1 it    
enters upon its future and final        
condition1  whether of happiness or     
misery1 ,lazarus died1 and was carried  
by the  angels to ,abraham's bosom4 ,the
 rich man also died and was buried1 and 
in hell he lifted up his eyes1 being in 
torment4 ,the ,saviour1 while  suspended

 upon the cross1 manifested ,his        
pardoning and saving power to  the      
thief1 forgave his sins1 accepted him1  
and said3 ,to-day shalt  thou be with me
 in ,paradise4    ,under the            
circumstances--the extreme sufferings   
and agonies the  ,saviour was enduring  
at the time--some have cavilled at this 
exhibition of grace and pardoning mercy 
to the dying thief4 ,let it be          
remembered1 ,his mission was to save    
sinners4 ,and that it is written1       
,believe on the ,lord ,jesus ,christ1   
and thou shalt be saved4    ,here is a  
plain exhibition of the possibility1 and
 plan of salvation  to all4 ,this thief 
had sinned2 and had also violated the   
laws of his  country1 and in rebuking   
his fellow culprit in crime--who had    
reviled  the ,saviour--he acknowledged  
his own guilt by saying1 this man       
suffereth innocently2 yet we are guilty1
 and justly deserve our  punishment4    
,indeed1 he seemed to be the first to   
comprehend  ,christ's kingdom1 and the  

plan of salvation through faith in ,him4
 ,by  faith1 he grasped the hope1 then  
springing from the ,cross whereon the   
,saviour hung1 and penitently cried unto
 the ,redeemer of the world1  ,lord1    
remember me when ,thou comest into ,thy 
kingdom4 ,see this flash  of light in   
the midst of spiritual darkness1 dismay1
 and surrounding  gloom--even the light 
of immortality and eternal life6 ,all   
the  followers had forsaken the dying   
,redeemer1 and those who had been his   
acknowledged disciples were fleeing in  
dismay1 and even ,peter denied  his     
,lord and ,master with an oath4 ,the    
hope of the world's deliverance2        
through the ,messiah1 seemed lost4 ,yet 
here was one--even a poor dying         
thief--whose faith penetrated the veil1 
and he saw that ,christ's  kingdom was  
not of this world4 ,he believed on the  
,lord ,jesus ,christ1  and the promise  
made to all who believe in ,him2 with a 
heart unto  righteousness1 was          
vouchsafed to him4 ,we look upon this as

 the  strongest exhibition of faith the 
world had ever yet known4 ,and we  think
 the evidence conclusive1 that as soon  
as the soul leaves the  body--this      
tenement of clay--it enters at once upon
 its future  condition of happiness1 or 
of misery4    ,of the certainty of the  
final resurrection of our               
bodies--changed and  transformed into   
spiritual bodies--and of a general      
judgment1 the  ,scripture revelations   
are plain and conclusive4 ,may we not   
therefore1  for a few moments1          
contemplate the eventful1 and1 to some1 
the  pleasant1 yet to others the        
startling scene8    ,that the bodies of 
some who lived on this earth have       
already undergone  this great1 and to us
 mysterious change of corruption putting
 on  incorruption1 and mortal putting on
 immortality1 we cannot doubt4  ,this   
seems manifest in the case of ,elijah1  
and so also1 as seems  evident1 with    
,moses4 ,and it will be remembered that 
these two appeared  in their heavenly   

vestments2 bright and shining1 and stood
 with the  ,saviour when he was         
transfigured on the ,mount4 ,so also at 
the time of  the crucifixion of the ,son
 of ,god4 ,when1 at the last moment of  
his  expiring agony he cried to his     
,father1 with a loud voice1 and gave up 
the ghost2 the earth did quake1 and the 
rocks were rent1 and the  graves were   
opened1 and many bodies of the ,saints  
that slept arose4  ,and to make         
this--seeming mystery--more clear to    
those ,he had  commissioned to preach   
,his everlasting gospel--the power of   
which  should be the resurrection from  
the dead--the ,saviour himself1 after   
,his body had risen from the grave1     
appeared unto them--,his  disciples--and
 thus gave them a visible manifestation 
of this  wondrous truth1 and            
re-commissioned them to go forth into   
all the  world and proclaim his own     
resurrection1 and that by repentance and
  faith all might come to a resurrection
 of life4          ,,the ,,resurrection4

      ,therefore1 behold1 the time      
cometh when all that are in their       
graves1  shall hear ,his voice--even the
 voice of ,god--and the angel shall     
sound the trumpet1 and its tones of     
melody and the voice of love will  move 
earth and seas1 from centre to          
circumference1 and awake into  immortal 
life the decayed bodies and mouldering  
dust of ,his sleeping  children4 ,for   
the dead in ,christ shall rise first1   
and blessed are  they who have part in  
the first resurrection1 for on such the 
second  death hath no power4 ,they shall
 have a right to the tree of life4  ,see
 the myriads of sepulchres and graves   
opening1 and saints rising in  the light
 of the glory of ,god1 and millions of  
the sheeted dead--who  have slept       
beneath the bosom of deep blue seas2 in 
the depths of  oceans1 or were swept    
away by floods and flowing              
rivers--rising and  riding in triumph   
upon the swelling1 bright-crested waves 
which  sparkle in the resplendent       

glory-light of heaven4        ,see these
 all arrayed in white1      ,brighter   
than the noon-day sun4    ,these come   
forth at their ,creator's call1 and now 
at ,his bidding1 the  happy reunion of  
the long separated partners--souls and  
bodies--takes  place1 and the vast realm
 resounds with shouts of triumph and    
songs of  praise4 ,while the ,morning   
,stars who sang the pean of ,creation1  
and the angelic host--who celebrated in 
the hill-country of ,judea1 the  advent 
of the ,saviour on earth to ransom      
fallen man--join in melody  and again   
swell the loud anthem1 ,,glory ,,to     
,,god ,,in ,,the ,,highest6 ,then  shall
 be repeated the saying which was       
written1 ,o death1 where is thy  sting8 
,o grave1 where is thy victory8 ,thanks 
be to ,god who giveth us  the victory   
through our ,lord ,jesus ,christ4 ,and1 
ascending again with  their resurrected 
glorified bodies1 the voice of the      
archangel  ,gabriel--who sounded their  
resurrection trumpet--will be heard from

  the portal of heaven1 throughout the  
vast domain4 ,,behold ,,they ,,come6    
,we would fain close this chapter with  
these delightful reflections1  and leave
 the minds of all free from fearful     
apprehensions1 and happy  in the        
contemplation of a future resurrection  
to the enjoyment of a  blissful         
immortality and eternal life4 ,but the  
,laws of ,god are stern  and inflexible 
in their requirements2 ,his judgments   
sure2 ,his  revelations plain1 and all  
are in duty bound to contemplate them4  
,we have told you that at ,his call the 
righteous shall come forth  to a        
resurrection of life4 ,and now we have  
to record the fact  that--at ,his       
command--the wicked shall come forth to 
a resurrection  of damnation4 ,to       
contemplate or depict the scene startles
 the mind1  and baffles and beggars the 
human intellect4    ,we fancy a         
death-like silence prevails throughout  
the earth and seas1  and the vast domain
 of ,heaven4 ,songs of triumph1 and     

shouts of joy1 of  both saints and      
angels1 have ceased for one hour of     
eternity4 ,the  ,judge ascends ,his     
throne1 from which to issue ,his        
command4 ,the four  and twenty ,elders  
remove their glittering crowns of gold1 
and bow  before ,him4 ,moses and        
,elijah1 and all the prophets1 apostles1
 and  martyrs are there4 ,there the     
redeemed of the ,lord--whom no man can  
number--are assembled with legions of   
angels4 ,all bow before the ,lord1  and 
there is silence in ,heaven4 ,hark6 the 
command was given6 ,the  voice of the   
final judgment-trumpet2 in thunder      
tones1 waxes louder  and louder6 and    
seems to shake heaven itself1 with its  
surrounding  universe of worlds4 ,it is 
the trumpet-voice of the ,,wrath ,,of   
,,god  summoning the wicked of a        
sin-cursed world1 to arise and come to  
judgment4    ,see6 the ,earth is        
convulsed from the centre to its        
circumference1 and  is rocking to and   
fro1 as a drunken man4 ,graves are      

opening on every  hand1 and from all the
 ,earth1 from deep dark seas and oceans'
 depths1  behold the pale1 ghastly      
multitudes coming forth1 filled with    
terror  and dismay4 ,mountains are      
sinking1 and valleys rising1 like       
surgings  of contending billows2 and    
their rocky foundations1 though ten     
thousand feet deep1 are breaking into   
fragments6 ,a tempest of ,god's  fiery  
indignation is smiting the ,earth6 ,hear
 the muttering thunders of  the judgment
 storm6 see the dread lightnings        
flashing amidst the  surrounding gloom6 
,the internal magazine-fires of the     
,earth are  belching forth their molten 
lava1 which is lifting the deep         
foundations of seas and oceans into     
mountain-peaks1 and rolling fiery       
billows4 ,see6 behold6 the ,universal   
conflagration of the world6 seas1       
oceans1 and all the ,earth1 one vast    
sheet of flame4 ,while the angel  7which
 ,john saw7 standing in the ,sun calls  
in thunder tones1 ,,arise  ,,ye ,,dead  

,,and ,,come ,,to ,,judgment6 ,and then 
swears by ,him1 that liveth  forever and
 ever1 ,,time ,,shall ,,be ,,no         
,,longer4    ,the unnumbered millions of
 resurrected bodies of the wicked would 
fain  refuse a reunion with their long  
lost souls1 and fall back and be        
consumed or annihilated by the raging   
elements4 ,but now1 for the  wicked     
there is no place of safety4 ,they      
refused the refuge once  freely offered 
them in the cleft side of the ,redeemer1
 and trifled  away their days of grace1 
and now the stern reality of the        
threatened  judgment is upon them4      
,their souls1 perhaps1 have already     
suffered  for thousands of years in     
fiery torments1 and now death and hell  
give  up their dead to a reunion1 that  
all may receive their final sentence    
from the ,judge of quick and dead to    
depart and dwell in everlasting         
burnings4    ,in their direful extremity
 they would fain flee from the presence 
of  ,god4 ,hear them calling upon the   

fiery whirlwind-tempest of rocks1 and   
moving mountains to fall on them1 and   
hide them from the face of ,him  that   
sitteth on the ,throne1 and from the    
wrath of the ,lamb1 and  crying aloud1  
,,behold6 ,,the ,,great ,,day ,,of ,,his
 ,,wrath ,,has ,,come2 ,,who ,,shall    
,,be ,,able ,,to ,,stand8 ,yet these    
fragments of a convulsed and dismembered
  universe are restrained from          
performing such office of mercy1 and by 
the ,word--which created them--are      
hurled back into the raging chaotic     
storm1 to melt with fervent heat and    
mingle with the elements in the         
convulsive throes of a wrecked world1   
which is being consumed by the          
,,spirit-,,fires ,,of ,,jehovah',s      
,,wrath4         ,and the sea gave up   
the dead which were in it1 and death    
and hell delivered up the dead which    
were in them2 and ,i saw       the dead 
small and great stand before ,god1 and  
they were       judged according to     
their works4 ,and death and hell were   

cast into the lake of fire4 ,this is the
 second death4 ,and       whosoever was 
not found written in the book of life1  
was       cast into the lake of fire2   
and the same shall drink of the         
wine of the wrath of ,god1 which is     
poured out without       mixture into   
the cup of ,his indignation4 ,and ,i saw
 an angel       standing in the ,sun4   
,and the fourth angel poured out his    
vial upon the ,sun1 and power was given 
unto him to scorch       men with fire2 
and men were scorched with great heat4  
,and       they shall be tormented with 
fire and brimstone in the       presence
 of the holy angels1 and in the presence
 of the       ,lamb1 and the smoke of   
their torment ascendeth up forever      
and ever4          ,a ,,serious         
,,contemplation4      ,the contemplation
 of the final judgment1 and the sentence
 to be passed  upon the wicked1 is truly
 a solemn one1 and should startle every 
mind1  ,but oh1 how few1 comparatively1 
seem to stop and reflect upon this      

momentous subject8 ,and yet all are     
rapidly hastening on to their  final    
doom4 ,few are aware of the vast numbers
 that are passing from  time into       
eternity--even each year1 each month1   
each day each hour1 or  each minute4    
,we will here state the numbers1 as well
 ascertained1 or approximated1  by the  
ablest staticians of the world4 ,they   
tell us there is one death  for every   
second of time1 #fj every minute2 #c1fjj
 every hour2 #hd1djj  every day2        
#b1eie1jjj every month2 #ca1adj1jjj     
every year1 and a number  equal to the  
entire population of the globe1 viz43   
one thousand  millions every thirty     
years4 ,and we are forced to the        
conclusion1  that by far the larger     
portion of adults pass away without any 
conscious knowledge of the plan of      
salvation1 or a tenable hope of  heaven4
    ,reader1 stop and reflect4 ,no      
matter what your age1 your condition of 
health1 or in life1 you1 too1 must soon 
know the realities of your  future2 your

 eternal state of existence4    ,we have
 heard the remark from the ungodly1 that
 if they failed to  reach heaven1 they  
would1 at least1 be with a large crowd4 
,yes1 we  have no doubt of it4 ,for we  
read of legions of devils1 and there    
will also be legions from earth to be   
tormented by them4 ,now we  appeal to   
the reason of every intelligent mind1   
can you expect to  enjoy happiness in   
your eternal existence1 amid devouring  
flames8    ,we learn that devils are    
fallen angels4 ,once they enjoyed       
happiness in  that heavenly world1 and  
were1 doubtless1 ,god's messengers2 oft 
sent  to different regions of ,his      
empire to do ,his pleasure4 ,yet viewing
 the  grandeur and glory of ,god1 it    
appears that the great ,dragon--who had 
the control of many angels--enlisted    
them to sustain him in some  unlawful   
usurpation4 ,this was resisted by       
,michael and his angels1 and  there was 
war in heaven4 ,michael and his angels  
prevailed1 and the  great ,dragon1 that 

old serpent called the devil1 and satan1
 was cast  out1 and his angels were cast
 out with him2 neither was their place  
found any more in heaven4 ,these1 we    
learn1 are the wicked spirits1  which go
 to and fro1 up and down1 through the   
earth1 tempting man to  sin1 and to do  
wickedly4 ,satan is the prince of the   
powers of  darkness1 and he and his     
minions are ever arrayed against the    
prince  of life and salvation4 ,and man 
as a free moral agent--having life and  
death set before him--is left the free  
choice as to whom he will  serve4 ,if   
your choice be the ,god who created all 
things by the word of  ,his power1 and  
whose glory is the light of eternal day1
 serve ,him4 ,but  if ,baal1 the prince 
of darkness1 whose reign is terror and  
death1 then  serve him4 ,ye cannot serve
 two masters at once4    ,remember6     
,when death shall come and claim you for
 its victim1 with the  cessation of     
mortal life1 there is cessation of all  
the sensations and  faculties of your   

human nature4 ,you will not be moved    
upon to the  enjoyment of pleasure by   
human passions or desires4 ,these1 as   
realized  here1 will forever cease1 and 
the spirit can no more be controlled by 
flesh and blood1 nor by human desires4  
,yet that immortal  principle--the      
soul--will be susceptible of ineffable  
happiness1 or of  intense misery4 ,will 
it be any comfort or pleasure to you to 
know that  others are1 like yourself1   
doomed to suffer eternal torments8 to   
witness their agonies1 and hear their   
wailings in that pandemonium of  the    
lost8 ,think for a moment1 of the rich  
man--,dives--who realized  those        
torments4 ,no hope for him in the       
future2 his day of probation  had       
passed2 his eternal state was fixed2 yet
 he prayed ,father ,abraham  to send    
,lazarus back to this world1 to warn his
 five brethren1 lest  they also should  
come to that place of torment4          
,remember1 that as  death leaves the    
body1 so judgment finds the soul1 for   

the prophet has  warned you that1       
,there is no work1 nor device1 nor      
knowledge1 nor wisdom in       the grave
 whither thou goest4          ,,the     
,,final ,,judgment4      ,the ,lord     
shall endure forever1 he hath prepared  
his throne for  judgment4 ,we shall all 
stand before the judgment-seat of       
,christ4  ,then every one of us shall   
give an account of himself to ,god4     
,and ,i saw the dead1 small and great1  
stand before ,god2 and the books  were  
opened1 99 99 99 and the dead were      
judged out of those things which  were  
written in the books1 according to their
 works4    ,then shall the king say unto
 them on his right hand3 ,come1 ye      
blessed of my ,father1 inherit the      
kingdom prepared for you from the       
foundation of the world2 99 99 99 an    
entrance shall be administered  unto you
 abundantly2 99 99 99 enter ye in       
through the gates into the  city2 99 99 
99 enter thou into the joy of thy ,lord4
    ,then shall he say also unto them on

 his left hand3 ,depart from me1  ye    
cursed1 into everlasting fire1 prepared 
for the devil and his  angels4 ,these   
shall go into everlasting punishment1   
but the  righteous into life eternal4   
,a ,,home ,,in ,,heaven4      ,our      
pilgrimage on earth is one of unrest1 is
 one of toil1 sorrow1 and  affliction4  
,here we have no abiding place1 no      
continuing city4 ,our  days on earth are
 few1 and are full of trouble4 ,there is
 no  permanency here4 ,from the time of 
the first infant breath and short       
unconscious slumber on a mother's bosom 
to the latest hour and moment  of life1 
we are ever restless and moving onward1 
and endure all the  disquietude and     
sufferings of mind and body incident to 
our mortal  existence4 ,the original sin
 of our first parents1 blighted all hope
 of  permanence or enduring happiness on
 this earth4 ,at the time of their      
fall1 ,god pronounced as to our         
existence here1 saying3 ,cursed is the  
ground for thy sake2 in sorrow shalt    

thou eat of it all the days of  thy     
life2 thorns and thistles shall it bring
 forth to thee4 ,in the  sweat of thy   
face shalt thou eat bread till thou     
return to the ground2  for out of it    
wast thou taken3 dust thou art and unto 
dust shalt thou  return4 ,and the spirit
 shall return to ,god who gave it4      
,yet to the true and faithful followers 
of the blessed ,redeemer--who  ransomed 
the world by the pouring out of ,his own
 blood1 and opened up  a way whereby we 
may escape the further penalties of a   
violated  law--rest will come by-and-by4
 ,there is rest for the weary1 and      
mansions prepared for them in the ,city 
of ,god1 in that better world4          
,remember1 the ,saviour said3         ,i
 go to prepare a place for you1 that    
where ,i am there ye       may also be4 
,to him that overcometh will ,i give to 
eat of       the tree of life1 which is 
in the midst of the ,paradise of        
,god4 ,the same shall be clothed in     
white raiment2 and ,i will       not    

blot out his name out of the book of    
life1 but ,i will       confess his name
 before my ,father and before his       
angels4 ,he       that overcometh shall 
inherit all things1 and ,i will be his  
,god1 and he shall be my son4           
,,whosoever ,,will1 ,,let ,,him         
,,come4 ,i will give unto him that is   
athirst of the fountain       of the    
water of life freely4 ,,they ,,shall    
,,live ,,for ,,ever       ,,and ,,ever4 
,there the redeemed of the ,lord shall1 
with their blessed ,saviour1  inherit   
the kingdom1 where the glory of ,god    
illumines the city1  and throws its     
radiance over all the vast realm4 ,o    
what a delightful  place for a permanent
 ,home6 ,how singularly different it    
contrasts  with our residence on earth4 
,here we have to endure toil1 pain1 and 
death2 there1 rest1 happiness1 and      
eternal life4 ,see here the  care-worn1 
weary husband1 toiling and striving     
against contending  billows and waves of
 misfortune1 to earn a support for a    

helpless1  dependent family2 perhaps his
 strivings are the more difficult       
because  of pain of body or anguish of  
mind4 ,disease in some form may be      
preying upon his vitality1 even through 
long years of existence1 and  he knows  
that it will eventually conquer1 and    
consign him to his  grave4 ,or1 if      
bodily health prevails1 the mind may be 
tortured and  distracted at witnessing  
the sufferings of a beloved wife1 or    
children1 as one by one they are smitten
 down or snatched away by  death2 or    
still more poignant the grief and       
anguish he endures because  of the      
alienation of affections1 or family     
tumults1 of strifes and  contentions4   
,see that wife and mother lingering by  
the bedside of a  devoted1 yet now dying
 husband1 or clasping to her tortured   
and  heaving bosom the lifeless form of 
a beloved child1 and yet powerless  to  
save the one or call back the other4    
,these are the heart-struggling  in the 
tempest of life4 ,soon they will be     

over4 ,a few years more1 at  most1 and  
then all will be still2 this mortality  
will be silent in the  grave4    ,but of
 that home in heaven4 ,glorious things  
are spoken of thee1 ,o  ,city of ,god4  
,there love1 peace1 and joy forever     
reigns4 ,there is the  full fruition and
 realization of the hope of the glory of
 ,god4  ,there their lines have fallen  
to them in pleasant places4 ,there they 
realize fulness of joy1 and their       
heritage pleasures for evermore4  ,there
 they find that inheritance which is    
incorruptible1 undefiled1  and that     
fadeth not away4 ,there they have a home
 in an enduring city1  whose foundations
 are eternal4 ,there the palms of       
victory2 and crowns  of glory4 ,there   
they walk the gold-paved streets of the 
city1 or  wander at pleasure in the     
',garden of the ,lord1' or amidst       
forests  green1 or pleasant groves4     
,there the crystal fountains play their 
sparkling waters in the light of eternal
 day1 and the river of life  flows from 

beneath the throne of ,god1 onward and  
onward1 meandering  through1 and        
encircling the vast realm of that       
heavenly empire4 ,there  perennial      
spring1 and never-fading flowers4 ,there
 old age and  decrepitude are never     
known1 but all clothed upon with        
garments of  righteousness1 will live   
and dwell in perpetual immortal youth1  
through the ever-recurring cycles of    
endless eternity4 ,angels of ,god  are  
there4 ,the ,prophets1 ,apostles1 and   
,martyrs are there2 ministers of  ,god  
are there2 some of our kindred friends  
are there2 others of them  will soon be 
there4 ,the redeemed of earth1 who were 
accepted of the  ,lord are there1 and   
the remainder of the ransomed hosts1 are
 now  pressing on1 or coming after1 and 
will all be there1 and form an          
innumerable company which no one can    
number1 each can form pleasant          
associations there1 never to be broken  
up1 ,for nothing shall disturb  in all  
the holy mountains4 ,reader1 are you    

striving for that ,,happy  ,,home8      
,,conclusive ,,and ,,concluding         
,,argument4      ,the ,sun is held by   
all ,philosophers and ,astronomers to be
 the central  pivot of the solar system1
 and the loadstone power of attraction1 
which governs1 steadies1 and controls   
all its surrounding  planet-worlds in   
their orbits4 ,so great is its power of 
attraction1  that a counter-balancing   
force was necessary to keep the         
machinery of  ,nature in order4 ,this   
force is produced by the attracting     
power of the  various planet-worlds1    
placed in proper positions in           
surrounding  space1 and thus furnishing 
the centrifugal1 to counterbalance the  
centripetal force ascribed to the ,sun1 
by which means our earth1  and the other
 planets1 are kept whirling in their    
elliptical orbits1  and thus each       
prevented from being drawn by the       
superior centripetal  or attracting     
power of that globe into certain        
destruction by the  fires of the ,sun4  

,this is the hypothesis1 we believe1 of 
every ,philosopher and  ,astronomer of  
the present day4    ,now let us examine 
this hypothesis1 and see if it does not 
foreshadow  and sustain our own4    ,in 
the first place1 it is true that the    
loadstone power of  attraction is there3
 but it is within what all denominate   
the ,,sun1  and by this the surrounding 
planets are controlled4 ,but this power 
is not the ,sun4 ,for what all          
denominate the ,sun1 is that which gives
  out light and heat4 ,the ,sun is fire1
 heat1 and brightness or  light4 ,fire1 
or heat1 is ethereal2 has no such power 
of attraction3  but on the contrary1 is 
repelling and dissipating4 ,there is no 
solid  substance in fire2 it is an      
invisible agency--save when it is       
concentrated4 ,it would be an           
unreasonable hypothesis to conclude that
  the fires of the ,sun were fed on     
combustible material4 ,the ,sun may     
have been just the same as it is now1   
for untold billions of  years--possibly 

from all eternity--and ,god1 by ,his    
,word has revealed  the fact that it    
will continue forever--even as long as  
,his throne4  ,hence1 if produced by    
combustion1 its material would be       
constantly  wasting away1 and1 as ,prof4
 ,olmsted says1 the products of         
combustion  would obscure its light4    
,therefore1 as there is no tangible     
source1  and all agree that ,god        
,himself was1 and still is its source1  
we hold that  our hypothesis1 that it is
 a fixed volume of                      
,photospheric-ethereal1 or  spirit-fire1
 is correct4 ,that it is one of         
,jehovah's attributes2 ever  existing   
and performing its offices in creative  
and enduring ,nature2  never increasing 
nor diminishing4    ,now1 this being the
 only reasonable1 and--as we            
believe--correct  hypothesis1 of the    
origin1 nature1 and element of the      
,sun--the ,sun  being the brightness we 
see in looking at it--where and what is 
the  loadstone power of attraction1     

which reaches out millions of miles     
into space1 and controls vast worlds1   
steadying each in its own  orbital path1
 while they are flying round at the rate
 of from fifty  thousand1 to one hundred
 thousand miles an hour8 ,we think the  
answer  plain1 and that all can         
comprehend it4 ,this ,earth is a solid  
body1 and  all such possess1 within     
themselves1 the power of attraction4    
,therefore1 the laws of ,nature reveal  
the fact to us1 that the great  central 
and controlling power of attraction     
attributed to the ,sun1  is the vast    
,,inner ,,globe we have been            
contemplating2 a globe1 or world1  more 
than a million times the size of this   
,earth4 ,leading ,astronomers  have     
agreed on the existence of such a body  
within2 and far  separated--by a        
non-luminous atmosphere or void--from   
the outer  photosphere of ethereal fire4
 ,that globe we hold is--beyond a       
doubt--the ,,heavenly ,,world spoken of 
throughout the ,holy ,scriptures1  and  

is the final and eternal home of the    
righteous4    ,we see wisdom displayed1 
and find law and order in every thing we
  comprehend which pertains to ,god and 
,nature4 ,phenomena1 which for long     
ages were mysteries1 are now1 through   
the lights of science1 being  fully     
comprehended and made plain to all4     
,and1 by reasoning from  analogy1 new   
arts and sciences are comprehended1     
while each additional  light gained     
flashes upon some other hidden mystery1 
and reveals in it  nothing but law and  
order1 in all its arrangements4    ,the 
progress made of late in the arts and   
sciences is wonderful  indeed2 yet this 
is only the progress of the mind of man1
 and the  enlightenment of his          
intellect4 ,and we believe that the next
 decade of  years will develop facts    
which might startle the minds of the    
wisest  of to-day to contemplate4       
,that vast world--surrounded by the     
,sun--controls this ,earth and its      
other surrounding planets4 ,from that   

world1 and ,sun--in its  offices--we    
derive every blessing while on ,earth1  
and we cannot doubt  but that when we   
find our future1 ,,it ,,will ,,be       
,,there4 ,the righteous to  dwell within
 where1 we have shown you1 the ,sun does
 not or cannot  shine2 but where the    
glory of ,god is the light of the holy  
place1  and yet we have the evidence    
that one of the offices of the ,sun will
  be the punishment of the wicked who   
cannot enter that ,,heavenly ,,world4   
,whoso is wise will observe these       
things4 ,psalms1 cvii4          ,,will  
,,all ,,take ,,heed8           99       
99       99       99       99      99   
,gentle reader1 we are about to take our
 leave  of you4 ,we have penned the     
lines which compose this volume at short
  intervals obtained recently from a    
laborious professional life4 ,our  mind 
has been duly impressed with the        
correctness of the views we have        
advanced4 ,indeed1 to disbelieve them1  
would seem to disbelieve ,divine        

revelations1 and let the mind become    
again shrouded with impenetrable        
mystery in regard to the place of our   
future habitation1 and of the  manner   
and mode of the spirit's transit thither
 after the death of the  body4 ,all     
should remember that they will be held  
accountable for the  light and knowledge
 they receive4    ,we feel fully assured
 that our hypothesis as to the location 
of  ,heaven--as also that of ,hell--is  
well founded and fully sustained by     
,god's own revelations1 both as recorded
 in the ,bible1 and as seen in  visible 
nature4 ,as to the ,spirit of ,god as   
fire1 we have presented  such evidence  
as ,divine revelations have furnished   
us1 and only added  to these such as    
reason1 as the perceptive faculties of  
all1 do or  may comprehend1 and we do   
not see wherein the ,christian ,world   
can  found any objections to our        
conclusions4    ,that there might be    
culled from the ,bible a few passages   
which may  seem not to reflect our views

 is natural1 when we consider how it is 
interspersed with the views and versions
 of various historical writers  in the  
chronicling of events4 ,but we believe  
,divine revelations  furnish sufficient 
positive evidence to sustain us2 such   
evidence as  the reason of every        
enlightened and reflecting mind will    
comprehend  and approve4 ,we believe    
this knowledge should--nay1 doubtless1  
will--have a salutary and beneficial    
effect upon the minds and  hearts of    
all4 ,we now leave all as a personal    
matter with you4 ,that  you will have a 
future you cannot doubt4 ,we therefore  
beseech you to  remember that ,god will 
not be mocked with impunity2 neither can
 he  be deceived4    ,for whatsoever a  
man soweth1 that shall he also reap4 ,he
 that  soweth to the flesh1 shall of the
 flesh reap corruption2 but he that     
soweth to the spirit shall of the spirit
 reap life everlasting4    ,hear the    
,preacher of ,god 7,eccl4 xii4 #ac1     
#ad73    ,let us hear the conclusion of 

the whole matter3 ,fear ,god and keep   
,his commandments2 for this is the whole
 duty of man4 ,for ,god shall  bring    
every work into judgment1 with every    
secret thing1 whether it be  good1 or   
whether it be evil4           99        
99       99       99       99           
,,appeal    ,,to    ,,christian         
,,ministers4      ,it might reasonably  
be expected that as we have advanced a  
new  hypothesis as to the location of   
,heaven1 and also of ,hell1 that we     
should also give our views as to what we
 deem the correct faith and  principles 
of the true ,christian ,religion4 ,you  
will see in our  ,preface that we have  
not designed to make our book sectarian 
in  behalf of any one of the different  
,protestant organizations4 ,and1 not    
being a minister of the ,gospel1 we     
leave the great and important work  of  
thus directing the mind to those whose  
rightful mission it is to  instruct4    
,true1 our views upon this subject are  
foreshadowed in these  pages1 but we    

believe the time has now come when there
 should be a  general review by all     
leading ,divines4 ,that they should take
 under  consideration all new lights    
afforded by the sciences--especially the
  science of ,astronomy--and bring these
 to bear with philosophical  reason upon
 ,divine ,revelations and ,bible truths2
 and thereby  comprehend more fully the 
nature of ,god1 and his requirements of 
man  in order to salvation4 ,we think   
that by such action on their part1  that
 most1 even if not all of the minor     
sectarian differences of  opinion can be
 removed1 and that all can unite as one 
great ,family of  the ,church of ,god on
 ,earth2 and that mysteries which have  
hitherto  shrouded the minds of the     
masses--as to the necessary faith and   
practice in a true religion--may thereby
 be removed1 and all the world  of      
mankind be brought to a saving knowledge
 of the truth1 and know  the ,lord1 whom
 to know aright is ,eternal ,life4      
,we know that1 at first thought1 this   

may seem to be a great  undertaking2    
and1 however desirable1 some may        
entertain doubts as to  its             
accomplishment1 and therefore hesitate  
to move in the matter2 yet  we believe  
that it can1 and1 sooner or later1 will 
be accomplished1  and that the final    
results will prove worthy the life      
efforts of every  ,christian minister on
 this ,earth4    ,neither ministers1    
their flocks1 nor the entire human      
family now on  the ,earth1 have long to 
live1 nor time to delay in this great   
matter4  ,one decade of ten short years1
 and about one third of all now  living 
will have passed away1 while thirty     
years will close the  drama of life with
 one thousand millions1 or most of the  
present  inhabitants of this globe1 and 
all must find their future state of     
existence4 ,many of us can look back    
over thirty years past1 and  realize    
that the time has been short4 ,so1 also1
 will be the few  remaining years       
allotted to any of us4 ,therefore1 it   

becomes all to  heed well the warning   
voice of ,him who hath said3            
,whatsoever thy hand findeth to do1 do  
it with thy might2 for there  is no     
work1 nor device1 nor knowledge1 nor    
wisdom1 in the grave1  whither thou     
goest4    ,all the different church     
organizations cannot be right in their  
present faith and practice1 however     
lenient they may profess to be  toward  
each other1 or even hope that such is   
the case4 ,this were  impossible4 ,god  
has designed to establish one true      
universal ,church  on this ,earth1 and  
,,he ,,will ,,do ,,it1 though it should 
sweep away every  such organization now 
in existence1 and even obliterate their 
every  land-mark4 ,we do not say that   
there is not now in each1 more or less1 
of the germ of truth1 nor that from     
these scattered fragments may  not yet  
be gathered that which shall constitute 
the body and life of  the whole4 ,there 
may be a struggle first with the powers 
of darkness1  yet this ,,great ,,church 

,,will ,,be ,,established ,,and         
,,prevail4    ,the lights of true       
science1 which are revealing more fully 
,god's own  revelations1 we believe1    
will force a change to a more universal 
system of religion4 ,the mind will      
comprehend more of the ,great  ,jehovah1
 and of ,his will and plan of salvation4
 ,therefore1 we believe  it to be the   
duty of all ,christian ministers to move
 in this matter4  ,they should          
investigate and comprehend all the new  
lights afforded  them1 and thereby be   
enabled to make plain the revelations of
 ,god2  remove all mystery2 establish   
,his ,eternal ,truth1 and teach all     
minds  and hearts to look up through    
,nature to ,nature's ,god4    ,this will
 not be the work of only a day1 or a    
week1 nor yet of any one  individual2   
but the work of time1 with the united   
efforts of  leading minds of the age1   
and we hope that its commencement will  
not  long be delayed4    ,it must be    
acknowledged that the plans of          

salvation1 as now taught  by the many   
different ,protestant ,church           
organizations1 are all1 more  or less1  
mystery to the outside world4 ,hence1   
,infidelity has in this  highly colored 
reasons--at least to sustain their      
assertions against  the truth of the    
,christian religion1 and so also have   
the ,,jews4  ,this fact no one can      
reasonably deny4 ,the mind of man--his  
thinking1  reasoning faculty--must be   
convinced by evidence before he can be  
brought to believe1 and in this great   
and important matter he must  believe   
before he will act4    ,the ,mind must  
be left free and untrammelled1 and      
governed only by  enlightened reason4   
,this should be the course pursued by   
all  teaching ministers4 ,,light1       
,,liberty1 and ,,eternal ,,life should  
be the  watchwords of those who stand   
upon the ,walls of ,zion6 ,the mind must
  be taught to love ,god in all ,his    
,immaculate perfections1 and to  serve  
,him through that love which casteth out

 all fear4 ,st4 ,paul  says1 ,god hath  
not given us the spirit of fear2 but of 
power1 and  of ,,love and of a sound    
mind4 ,john tells us1 ,there is no fear 
in  love2 but perfect love casteth out  
all fear2 because fear hath  torment4   
,he that feareth is not made perfect in 
love4 ,and yet in  ,,perfect ,,love1 we 
shall always have the fear of ,god      
before our  eyes2 we shall ever fear to 
offend ,him1 and thereby fulfil every   
commandment given us to fear ,him4 ,but 
,,he ,,that ,,dwelleth ,,in ,,god1      
,,dwelleth ,,in ,,love4    ,we believe  
that if the ,christian ministry         
throughout would properly  present the  
claims of ,god to the love of the human 
heart1 there  would soon be a turning of
 the masses to ,him1 such as has never  
been  witnessed since the beginning of  
the world4    ,that by the teachings of 
so many different creeds1 their widely  
different faith and doctrines1 the mind 
of man in general has become            
bewildered2 and that mystery1 deep1     

dark1 almost impenetrable1  hangs--more 
or less--over all1 we cannot deny4 ,see 
the numerous  different ,church         
organizations1 founded and presided over
 by men of  intellect and learning2 each
 claiming to be established by          
,scriptural  authority6 and yet in their
 faith and teachings1 all conflicting1  
more or less1 with each other4 ,we      
cannot doubt the honesty and  sincerity 
of these ministers1 nor of their church 
members2 yet may  not many of them be   
blind leaders of the blind8 ,to each of 
these1  all other organizations1 faith1 
and doctrine seem a mystery2 and if a   
mystery to those who are striving after 
light and truth in the way of  life and 
salvation1 is it not far more of mystery
 to those outside1  who have not been   
educated into any system of religious   
belief8 ,the  truth is1 enlightened     
reason condemns this exhibition as the  
,church  of ,god1 for it has become a   
stumbling block in the road to truth    
and the way of salvation4 ,when we go to

 the founders and leaders of  these     
different organizations1 and ask1 why   
all these conflicting  elements8 the    
majority of them will answer1 remember  
that ,christ hath  said1 ,i am the vine1
 ye are the branches1 and add a garbled 
quotation from the writings of ,st4     
,paul1 ,great is the mystery of         
godliness4    ,now there is but one true
 vine1 and all its branches will bring  
forth the same good fruits of           
righteousness by which all shall be     
known4 ,and as to mystery1 let us see   
what the great apostle of the  ,gentiles
 did say4    ,and without controversy   
great is the mystery of godliness2 ,god 
was  manifested in the flesh1 justified 
in the ,spirit1 seen of angels2         
preached unto the ,gentiles1 believed on
 in the world1 and received up  into    
glory4    ,there we have all of it1 and1
 taken together1 it explains itself to  
every intelligent mind1 and thus1       
properly comprehended1 removes all      
mystery1 and implies the necessary faith

 and plan of salvation4                 
,,foreshadowings4    ,the signs of the  
times are pregnant with coming and      
wonderful  events4 ,the rapid progress  
of mind1 the developments through the   
sciences--which are now throwing        
flood-lights upon ,divine revelations1  
and giving to the enlightened world a   
more comprehensive knowledge of  the    
,great ,jehovah1 and of ,his wonderful  
works--are all potent with  argument of 
the necessity that the effort for a     
,,united ,,church should  speedily be   
made4 ,a partial comprehension of these 
wonderful  developments1 without further
 aids1 may tend to throw doubt and      
suspicion upon the minds of many1 as to 
whether or not any of the  ,christian   
organizations have comprehended the true
 plan of salvation4  ,whilst a divided  
church1 a divided ministry1 and their   
opposite  teachings can but tend to     
strengthen such doubts1 bewilder the    
mind1  and lead to ,infidelity4    ,now 
it rests with leading spirits and       

teachers of every ,christian            
denomination--whether ,protestant or    
,catholic--to say whether this  advance 
shall be made in behalf of true         
religion3 the ,church of ,god1  and the 
salvation of souls1 or in the interest  
of ,satan1 the opposing  enemy2 whether 
this advance shall be true              
,christianity1 or  ,infidelity2 whether 
the upbuilding of the ,kingdom of       
,christ1 and  hastening the time when   
,he shall reign in the hearts of all2   
or1 by  indifference and default1       
permitting the upbuilding of ,babylon1  
and  the reseating of the ,,scarlet     
,,woman1 and thus tenfold intensifying  
the great and final struggle4    ,there 
is a true philosophy in religion1 and by
 instructing the mind  to comprehend    
this1 the final happy results will      
ensue4    ,we often hear ministers      
praying for the time to come when the   
world  shall be converted to ,god2 when 
all shall know ,him from the least unto 
the greatest4 ,they claim the promise   

that such a time will come1  and yet can
 but see that wickedness is gaining     
ground1 and that within  their church   
organizations they do not number one    
third of the  population--even in what  
are denominated ,christian countries1   
nor do  they keep pace with the increase
 of population1 and yet they seem       
contented with their little flocks4     
,ye ministers of the ,,living ,,god1 if 
ye have come to ,mount ,zion by  faith  
and prayer1 and holy living1 we call    
upon you to unite your  efforts in the  
spirit of brotherly love and ,,christian
 ,,unity1 and  show to a perishing world
 that you are in earnest in your        
,master's  cause1 and that you desire   
the salvation of the whole human family1
  else ,he may say to you1 ,i will come 
quickly1 and will remove thy            
candlestick out of his place4           
99       99       99       99       99  
,in regard to the theory we have        
advanced as to the location of ,heaven1 
we leave you1 and all1 to examine the   

revelations of ,god through the  lights 
of science2 ,nature around you1 and with
 reason bearing upon  the fact that     
,god1 the ,great ,jehovah1 the ,creator 
of all1 though a  ,spirit1 is not a     
myth2 and that reality1 law1 order1 and 
system  universally prevail throughout  
all ,his works1 and with these ,he      
governs ,his ,universe4    ,god's own   
revelations1 the lights afforded through
 the sciences1  ,nature around us1 true 
philosophy and reason1 all confirm our  
hypothesis4 ,cut loose now from this1   
and we can anchor nowhere1 save  in a   
blind incomprehensible faith1 ever      
floating and drifting as in a  sea of   
ether1 and surrounded by impenetrable   
mystery and gloom4    ,all hold and     
teach that the spirit1 when it leaves   
the body1 flies  away from mortality and
 ,earth1 and goes to the place prepared 
for it  by its ,creator4 ,the celerity  
with which spirit moves we do not now   
know1 but the reality and law of its    
flight does exist1 and this by  ,god's  

own arrangement and established agency  
in ,nature4 ,that such  agency is       
continually with us1 and ready at all   
times for the use of  disembodied       
spirit1 we cannot doubt--nay1 possibly  
its principle or  element is in and of  
us1 from the first moment of our        
existence1  through all subsequent time1
 and will continue to all eternity to   
come4    ,the blood is the life of man1 
its element or stimul of life is        
electricity1 let this but escape from   
the blood1 and with it the  soul or     
spirit has fled1 and the body is left to
 moulder back to dust4  ,we find        
electricity to be a principle of        
immateriality2 an element  of fire1     
which pervades all things1 in a greater 
or less degree1 not  only solids and    
fluids1 but also atmosphere or air4     
,now let us consider this element which 
,god has permitted man to  comprehend as
 existing in nature1 and yet veils it   
from our sight1  and1 although he       
permits us to use it for beneficial     

purposes1 yet we  can never see or      
comprehend more than its effects1 for1  
in itself1  it is ethereal and no mortal
 eye can behold it4 ,man has not only   
been permitted to comprehend that the   
principle of electricity does  exist in 
,nature1 but also to measure1 by time1  
its rapid flight4 ,thus1  with proper   
appliances1 this ,earth can be belted   
with it in about one  tenth part of a   
second of time4 ,it would seem to almost
 annihilate  time1 and space1 as its    
flight is nearly #cjj1jjj miles a       
second--being  more than one third      
swifter than light4    ,in preceding    
pages1 we have dwelt upon the distance  
of our ,earth from  the ,sun1 and also  
distances to various planets1 and to    
some of the  fixed stars1 and nebul1 far
 away in sidereal regions4 ,we have     
given  you the conclusions of the most  
scientific ,astronomers throughout the  
world4 ,their measurement of distances  
by light have been shown to  approximate
 correctness1 and the truth of their    

deductions we cannot  doubt4 ,they have 
explored regions so far remote1 that it 
is rendered  certain that it has        
required light several hundred thousand 
years  from the time it left its native 
,sun1 to reach our ,earth1 and that     
these rays travelling from thence1 are  
now successively arriving and  beaming  
upon the eye when it is placed to the   
telescope4 ,indeed1 from  one cluster of
 suns1 or nebul1 beyond the milky way1  
it is computed  that the light derived  
from thence has been #gjj1jjj years in  
transit1  although travelling at the    
rate of #aib1jjj miles a second4    ,now
 all these facts are astounding1 and    
must impress every reflecting  mind with
 force4 ,all can see that ,astronomers1 
by the aid of that  wonderful gift of   
,god to man--the telescope--have looked 
abroad1 and  have penetrated and        
surveyed with the eye space far remote  
in sidereal  regions1 to the extent of  
which it would require #cjj1jjj years   
for  electricity to reach at a flight of

 #cjj1jjj miles a second1 and yet  they 
have not discovered any thing greatly   
different from our own  planetary       
system1 nor any object or seeming       
phenomenon they could  denominate       
heaven4 ,without a solution of these    
facts1 is not the  mind bewildered and  
lost in the hazy contemplation8 ,if     
heaven is  still far out beyond1 what   
period or measure of ,eternity may it   
requite for the spirit1 or soul to reach
 it after leaving the body8  ,knowing   
that there is stern reality1 regulated  
law1 order1 and motion  in all          
pertaining to ,jehovah1 ,his creations  
and government2 even the  mind of faith 
staggers1 and must founder in the       
contemplation of  conceptions so mighty 
and so mysterious4    ,you have taught  
us to believe that heaven is a fixed    
place1 and has  a permanent locality1   
but while accepting this through faith1 
you  have failed to give us a permanent 
thought4 ,therefore1  notwithstanding   
all our hopes and desires1 mystery and  

gloom1 dark  and impenetrable1 have     
shrouded the mind's eye of faith2       
leaving no  light but an excited and    
restless imagination1 and we call upon  
you  to give faith and hope a           
resting-place somewhere else than       
floating in ethereal regions1 and       
wandering about with blind chance       
through illimitable space4    ,our      
hypothesis locates heaven just where we 
believe it is1 and to  it the spirit can
 ascend1 on angel-wings of electricity1 
in a  fraction of eternity equal to only
 five minutes of time4 ,and1  although  
discoveries through the lights of       
science directed our mind  thither1 and 
assisted its comprehension1 yet we      
believe ,divine  ,revelations alone     
sustain our views1 and thus afford the  
mind a  resting place where faith and   
hope can anchor1 and be founded in      
reality1 in immutable and ,,eternal     
,,truth4 ,the laws of ,nature1 the      
controlling influence of that world1 our
 perceptive faculties and  reason1 all  

proclaim that it must be so4 ,its       
protecting fires shield  it from mortal 
sight1 yet proclaim to us through ten   
thousand  blessings showered upon our   
earth1 'tis there6 ',,tis ,,there66     
99       99       99       99       99  
,are any ready to ask why the           
glory-light of that heavenly world1     
represented as far above the brightness 
of the ,sun cannot be seen8  ,such      
inquiry must exhibit a lack of knowledge
 respecting the nature of  ,god1 the    
,,great ,,spirit2 as also of any proper 
conception of the  immortal spirit of   
man4 ,that light is for spirit alone1   
and cannot  be seen by mortal eyes1 and 
that which is darkness to us while our  
sight is veiled with mortality1 so far  
as relates to that heavenly  world and  
our future1 becomes--after the death of 
the body--transcendent  brilliancy1 and 
the light of the glory of ,god4    ,we  
have abundant evidence of this fact4    
,remember that when the ,great  ,jehovah
 made ,his presence manifest on ,mount  

,sinai1 although the  mountain burned   
with fire1 yet--to mortal vision--all   
the surroundings  were filled with thick
 clouds and darkness4 ,yea1 clouds and  
darkness were made ,his pavilion1 and1  
to mortal eyes1 are the  habitations of 
,his throne4    ,the light of the glory 
of ,god is for spirit alone1 and its    
radiance will make even the light of the
 ,sun darkness to the  spirit-eye4 ,it  
is possible that should ,he unveil      
,himself1 and throw  a flash of ,his    
glory-light upon this world1 it would in
 an instant  of time destroy the whole  
race of man1 and every living thing1 for
 ,he  hath said1 ,no one shall see me   
and live4    ,we have on record         
evidences sustaining our views in regard
 to such  effects1 should the light and 
brightness of ,his face or glory be     
revealed4 ,see the effects of the light 
of ,his glory1 even in a veiled  form1  
when the ,son of ,god made himself      
manifest from heaven 7that  bright world
 we have been contemplating1 wherein he 

is enthroned1 and  where all the        
righteous shall dwell7 to ,saul of      
,tarsus2 although ,he  did not unveil   
himself1 yet a light above the          
brightness of the ,sun  at mid-day shone
 around1 and ,saul fell to the earth    
smitten with  blindness4 ,yes1 this     
glory-light is darkness to mortal eyes2 
and  when beheld by spirit1 the light of
 the ,sun may even be darkness4  ,see   
again its effects upon ,st4 ,john1 the  
revelator1 when1 catching but  a glimpse
 of the ,son of man in the midst of the 
golden candlesticks1  he fell at his    
feet as dead4 ,ah1 it is possible that  
all seeming  natural light to us1 while 
in mortality1 may become as darkness to 
our spirit vision2 and we are assured by
 the word of ,god1 that none  shall see 
the light of ,his glory save those who  
seek regeneration  through ,,love and   
,,faith1 for the wicked shall go into   
outer darkness1  and dwell forever in   
death1 while the righteous shall enter  
into and  enjoy eternal life4    ,our   

hypothesis is a pleasing one for the    
contemplation of every  ,christian1 and 
yet cannot interfere in the least with  
the doctrines of  any who believe there 
is a heaven4 ,and he who believeth not  
in either  ,god or heaven1 has lost the 
intellectual dignity of man in proper   
conceptions1 and knoweth not even now   
what manner of man he is4    ,we have   
given something tangible upon which to  
fix the mind1 and which  will inspire   
hope2 something of reality that all may 
contemplate4  ,remember that we are not 
forbidden to investigate1 nor yet form  
conclusions founded on reason2 neither  
is it declared that we shall  not know  
the location of our future home4        
,from all that man can comprehend of    
nature1 reason teaches him to  look for 
and find--if not in life1 after         
death--his future home  somewhere in    
connection with our own planetary       
system4 ,this system is  large and grand
 enough to justify all our aspirations1 
and satisfy all  our hopes and desires4 

,the extent1 grandeur1 and glory of the 
heaven  we have contemplated1 will fully
 satisfy the immortal mind of man1  even
 as it does the angels of ,god1 and its 
,king and ,ruler1 and we  may all       
consider ourselves fortunate to get     
there4           99       99       99   
99       99    ,we have written our     
book1 and thrown out these suggestions  
with purest  of motives4 ,from the first
 conception of the idea of heaven being 
where1 in mind1 we locate it1 we have   
felt impressed with the  correctness of 
our views2 so much so1 that it impelled 
us to make the  effort to give them to  
the world1 believing that in doing so we
 should  advance the true theory which  
would sustain ,christianity1 and cause  
it  to spread and triumph over all      
opposition2 give to faith that hope     
which is an anchor to the soul1 and draw
 the hearts and minds of all  to love   
,god1 and yet in that love fear to      
offend ,him4    ,we have refrained from 
consulting the clergy or ministers of   

any and  every denomination in this     
matter1 desiring simply to give our own 
views4 ,we now ask of you all a         
prayerful and thorough examination by   
the evidences of ,divine ,revelations   
and all other lights afforded you2  and 
if you discard our views as to the      
location of heaven1 be  careful and     
explicit in giving us your hypothesis as
 to the one  you are inviting us to1 and
 locate it where the mind of reason can 
contemplate it1 and where hope may span 
the voyage the soul must  make to reach 
it after the death of the body4         
,,appeal ,,to ,,all3    ,,whether ,,jews
 ,,or ,,gentiles1 ,,protestants1        
,,catholics1 ,,infidels1 ,,or           
,,indifferent ,,believers4      ,we     
desire the salvation of the entire human
 family4 ,we believe that  ,god has     
provided a way and plan of salvation by 
which all should gain  a true and saving
 knowledge of ,him2 and we have appealed
 to  ,christian ministers to unite their
 efforts in prayerful investigation  of 

,his revelations through all new lights 
afforded them1 and to point  out to all1
 the plain path of duty and safety--but 
not in any wise  labor under the false  
or mistaken belief that they can stand  
as sole  mediator1 or umpire1 between   
,god and the souls of men1 and1 at their
  own will or pleasure1 mete out to them
 eternal happiness or misery4  ,such as 
do this are blind leaders of the blind1 
and their doctrine  a fatal delusion4   
,we believe in a living1 teaching       
ministry2 and1 where heart and life  is 
fully consecrated to ,god and ,his      
cause1 all such may feel that they  are 
divinely called and commissioned4 ,we   
hold that such a ministry  should be    
sustained1 and that all should give     
liberally out of their  abundance1 to   
secure them against want or             
contingencies which might  retard or    
prevent their usefulness4    ,but our   
appeal is now to you1 in regard to your 
own individual  responsibility4 ,each   
has an immortal soul1 which must be     

saved or  lost4 ,no one1 save ,christ   
,jesus our ,lord1 can stand as mediator 
in  behalf of any to insure salvation or
 heaven4 ,popes1 bishops1  ministers1   
and priests are but men1 and are mortal 
like ourselves4  ,they may1 by          
application to study and investigation1 
gain light and  knowledge--nay1 should  
do it1 so as to instruct us in the way  
of life  and salvation1 but further than
 this they cannot go4 ,we have no       
evidence1 neither in the ,old or ,new   
,testament ,scriptures1 where1 by       
intercession of man alone1 salvation or 
heaven was ever obtained by  an         
unbelieving heart4    ,we see that1     
under the earlier dispensation1 ,moses  
was the chosen  servant of ,god1 and    
divinely commissioned as ,high-,priest  
to the  children of ,israel4 ,yet when  
they sinned1 and ,jehovah's wrath was   
kindled against them1 ,moses made direct
 intercession in their  behalf1 and even
 plead1 saying3 ,if thou wilt not       
forgive them1 blot  me1 ,i pray thee1   

out of thy book which thou hast written4
 ,hear the  answer of the ,lord3        
,whosoever hath sinned against me1 him  
will ,i  blot out of my book2 99 99 99  
99 mine angel shall go before thee2     
nevertheless1 in the day when ,i visit1 
,i will visit their sins upon  them4    
,thus1 although ,his judgments were     
stayed for a season1 because  of ,his   
covenant1 yet their final execution was 
certain4    ,we are assured by the      
,scriptures that there is ,one ,god and 
,one  ,mediator1 and we may go to ,god  
through faith in this ,one ,mediator1   
and that all who go thus shall obtain   
eternal life4 ,we have record of  the   
efficacy of this faith in the           
application of the dying thief4 ,when   
he had signified his belief1 hear the   
answer of the ,saviour3 ,to-day  shalt  
thou be with me in ,paradise4 ,oh1 how  
plain the plan of  salvation6    ,all   
nature proclaims there is a ,god4 ,his  
revelations proclaim an  eternal        
existence of the soul4 ,we all know that

 we must die4 ,however  disappointed we 
may be in our earthly hopes or fears1   
yet as to the  certainty of death none  
will be disappointed--it is sure to     
come4  ,when the angel of death is      
commissioned to summon us1 soon the pale
  horse and his rider will be at the    
door2 then there can be no delay4  ,dust
 thou art1 and unto dust shalt thou     
return4 ,and the soul  shall return to  
,god who gave it4 ,it is appointed unto 
men once to  die1 but after this the    
judgment4    ,what can you lose by      
giving your heart to ,god8 ,what may you
 not lose  by neglecting to do it8 ,it  
is all gain and no loss4 ,may you all   
yield to the gentle drawings of the     
spirit1 which now whispers to your      
heart in loving tones with accents of   
mercy1 and your spirits  finally be     
gathered in the fold of angels' wings1  
and by them borne to  the ,paradise of  
,god1 where ,his glory is the light of  
eternal day4