could be discerned by the naked eye, until at last it would finally
fade out in utter darkness long before the new sun was reached.
Light can traverse the distance around our earth eight times in
one second. It comes in eight minutes from the sun, but it takes
three and a quarter years to come from Alpha [Page 73] Centauri,
seven and a quarter years from 61 Cygni, and forty-five years from
the Polar Star.

Sometimes it happens that men steer along a lee shore, dependent
for direction on Polaris, that light-house in the sky. Sometimes it
has happened that men have traversed great swamps by night when that
star was the light-housse of freedom. In either case the exigency
of life and liberty was provided for forty-five years before by a
Providence that is divine.

We do not attempt to name in miles these enormous distances; we
must seek another yard-stick. Our astronomical unit and standard of
measurement is the distance of the earth from the sun--92,500,000
miles. This is the golden reed with which we measure the celestial
city. Thus, by laying down our astronomical unit 226,000 times, we
measure to Alpha Centauri, more than twenty millions of millions
of miles. Doubtless other suns are as far from Alpha Centauri and
each other as that is from ours.

Stars are not near or far according to their brightness. 61 Cygni is
a telescopic star, while Sirius, the brightest star in the heavens,
is twice as far away from us. One star differs from another star
in intrinsic glory.

The highest testimonies to the accuracy of these celestial observations