ent; upon the eternal granite of her hills he
inscribed his name, and there, upon everlasting stone, his genius wrote
this, the sublimest of truths: The universe is governed by law."

[Illustration: WILLIAM HERSCHEL]

WILLIAM HERSCHEL

The great number of alterations of stars that we are certain have
happened within the last two centuries, and the much greater number
that we have reason to suspect to have taken place, are curious
features in the history of the heavens, as curious as the slow
wearing away of the landmarks of our earth on mountains, on river
banks, on ocean shores. If we consider how little attention has
formerly been paid this subject, and that most of the observations
we have are of a very late date, it would perhaps not appear
extraordinary were we to admit the number of alterations that have
probably happened to different stars, within our own time, to be a
hundred.

--_William Herschel_

WILLIAM HERSCHEL

William Herschell, born Seventeen Hundred Thirty-eight, in the city
of Hanover, was the fourth child in a family of ten. Big families, I am
told, usually live in little houses, while little families live in big
houses. The Herschels were no exception to the rule.

Isaac Herschel, known to the world as being the father of his son, was a
poor man, depending for support upon his meager salary as bandmaster to
a regiment of the Hanoverian Guards.

At the garrison school, taught by a retired captain, William was the
star scholar. In mathematics he propounded problems that made the worthy
captain pooh-pooh and change the subject.

At fourteen, he was playing a hautboy in his father's band and
practising on the violin at spare times.

For music he had a veritable passion, and to have a passion for a thing
means that you excel in it--excellence is a matter of intensity. One of
the players in the band was a Frenchman, and William made an arrangement
to give the "parlez vous" lessons on the violin as payment for lessons
in French.

This whole brood of Herschel children was musical, and very early in
life the young Herschels became self-supporting as singers and players.
"It is the only thing they can do," their father said. But his loins
were wiser than his head.

In Seventeen Hundred Fifty-five William accompanied his father's band to
England, where they went to take part in a demonstration in honor of a
Hanoverian, one Geo