'THe Laving Uxivense—By Sir Younghusband,.C.bln Kel John Murray," London. "10/6, Sir Francis Younghusband is at odds with Sir James Jeans, the famous astronomer, with regard to the latter's theory that the sun and the stars will all burn themselves out in time, and that inexorable dynamic laws are even now driving the earth: ever farther and farther away from the sun into the outer cold, and that they must continue to do so until life is frozen from the earth: the other suns must die like our own, any life there may be on other planets must meet the same Inglorious end. It Is a little difficult to seo why he should, for the solu tion which he suggests amounts to nothing more than.a suggestion that the universe Is undergoing a rhythm He is inclined to ac-'Whiteheadian theory that or end of nature with: in time is excluded, and then suggests that the universe existed from everlasting and will exist to ever Tasting, world without end, "It is," he contends, much the solution of the problem and the most Intelligble" Taking the foxglove as fan analogy the author suggests that the story of the universe is much the same as that of the plant which rows to fruition, dies, but leaves the seeds of another life behind it. If this does not amount to the cyclic universe, which Sir Francis is not prepared to accept, it is not easy see what it does, Sir James Jo to be put to it that the author of this me teresting volume suggests. "For it would be necessary to assume that the whole universe was originated in heat and must of necessity-end in cold, That would put a period at both ends of time which is but a brief period in eternity, and there is no Feuson to. discard the theory, of Whitehead, or to believe that it is imately of vavience with what James Jeans "has suggested. Matter, time and. space being instructible it is only reasonable to believe that it has existed from and will exist till all time and that the combination of. these three ingredi tents In this: present universe. will ass through many cycles such even Sir James's dictum would sugest. There is positively no. reason but to believe that any universal cycle consists of much more than progress from cold to heat and heat to cold. It may. have been done myriads of times before: it may do it endlessly. But that does not destroy faith in Sir James's theory that, the present cycle will end in h by cold. That seems a reason-deduction from the facts which have at present been ascertained by astronomers throughout the world. There is evidence that some celestial Bodies have once been hot, and now are 0 cold that they are unable to support life; but there is mo evidence thats a result of some universal cataclysm they will not again become hot and go through the same cycle which they already appear to doing. Sir Francis {a on weaker round when he seeks to find in the orderly operation of natural laws, in the beauty of the Universe; the
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