Page:Gods Glory in the Heavens.djvu/356

320. This is very much a question of fact, but he concedes the point so far, that in some of the planets inferior forms of life may exist—zoophytes in Jupiter, ascending to reptiles in Mars. Now, this concession is the relinquishment of the whole argument; for the grand point to be established is this. Can the planets support animal organisations at all? This is the real question in an astronomical point of view. The question is, Is life possible? Let astronomers determine this point, and the question of intelligence will be settled on totally different grounds. Now, the author is forced to admit that life is possible; but though he admits this, he thinks he has gained his point, as he holds that man could not exist in any of the planets, and that if there be intelligences at all, they must be men. But not holding this absurd conclusion, we feel that it is enough to have the point of life established, for then conception of intelligence is an easy and natural one. Surely it is a most unwarranted supposition to hold that intelligence can only have one material wrapping—one kind of mortal coil; that mind, if it is to be clogged by matter, the clog must be a human clog; that if mind is to work through material machinery, it must have machinery after the human pattern. Surely it is no very unwarrantable assumption to maintain, that there may possibly be organisations widely different from our own, fitted to enclose the spiritual being. What a range of organisation do we see in this world