Such
elements as iron, hydrogen, and calcium were found not to belong
merely to our earth, but to form important constituents of the
whole universe. We can conceive of no reason why, out of the
infinite number of combinations which might make up a spectrum,
there should not be a separate kind of matter for each
combination. So far as we know, the elements might merge into one
another by insensible gradations. It is, therefore, a remarkable
and suggestive fact when we find that the elements which make up
bodies so widely separate that we can hardly imagine them having
anything in common, should be so much the same.
In recent times what we may regard as a new branch of astronomical
science is being developed, showing a tendency towards unity of
structure throughout the whole domain of the stars. This is what
we now call the science of stellar statistics. The very conception
of such a science might almost appall us by its immensity. The
widest statistical field in other branches of research is that
occupied by sociology. Every country has its census, in which the
individual inhabitants are classified on the largest scale and the
combination of these statistics for different countries may be
said to include all the interest of the human race within its
scope.
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