ty of the creation; then he adds, and it is the conclusion of his
entire work: "The Master of the heavens governs all things, not as being
the soul of the world, but as being the Sovereign of the universe. It is
on account of His sovereignty that we call Him the Sovereign God. He
governs all things, those which are, and those which may be. He is the
one God, and the same God, everywhere and always. We admire Him because
of His perfections, we reverence and adore Him because of His
sovereignty. A God without sovereignty, without providence, and without
object in His works, would be only destiny or nature. Now, from a blind
metaphysical necessity, everywhere and always the same, could arise no
variety; all that diversity of created things according to places and
times (which constitutes the order and life of the universe) could only
have been produced by the thought and will of a Being who is _the
Being_, existing by Himself, and necessarily."

Here, Sirs, are noble thoughts, expressed in noble style. I recommend
you to read throughout the pages from which I have quoted a few
fragments. Let us now analyze the ideas of this great astronomer as thus
expounded. We may note these three affirmations:

1. The universe displays an admirable order which reveals the wisdom of
the Power which governs it.

2. The universe lives; it is not fixed, and its variations suppose an
intelligent Power which directs it.

3. The variable existence of the universe shows that it is not
necessary; it must have its cause in a Being who is _the_ Being,
necessarily, by His proper nature.

Such are the views of Newton. Examine this course of thought, and see if
it is not natural. Observation reveals to us facts. Facts in themselves,
isolated facts, are nothing for the mind; but in the facts of nature,
human reason discovers an order, and in that order it recognizes its own
proper laws. To keep within the domain of astronomy--there is harmony
between our mind and the course of the stars. If you have any doubt
about this, I appeal to the almanac. We there find it stated that in
such a month, on such a day, at such an hour, there will be an eclipse
of the sun or of the moon. How comes the editor of the almanac to know
that? He has learnt it from the savants who have succeeded in explaining
the phenomena of the skies. The savant therefore can in his study meet
with the intelligence which directs the universe. If he makes no mistake
in his calculatio