spots, and you reduce him to a level with an old extinguished lamp, that
is fit for nothing but to be cast away as an unclean and worthless
thing. The honor of God, and the welfare of the universe all hang on
this one question,--Spots, or no spots!'

'His fellow professors took his part, and many spoke in the same strain.
But the belief in the spots made its way, and spread further every day,
and the consequence was, the obstinate Professors were confounded and
put to shame. Facts were too strong for them, and their credit and
influence were damaged beyond remedy.

'After the Professors of the Sun were silenced, the Man in the Moon
arose and spoke. He contended that both Sun and Moon were free from
spots, but said, that no one could see the Sun as it really was, unless
he _lived_ in the Moon, and looked at it from his standpoint. 'The
Moon,' said he, 'like the Sun, is the work of the All-perfect Creator;
and its face is one unchanging blaze of absolute and unvaried
brightness.'

'Now all who had ever looked at the Moon, had noticed, that no part of
her face was as bright as the Sun, and that some portions were of a
shade considerably darker than the rest. And I noticed that even the
Professors who had spoken extravagantly about the Sun, looked at each
other and smiled, when they heard the statements of the Man in the Moon.
Indeed there was such a tittering and a giggling through the Hall, that
the meeting was broken up.

'I hastened out, and found there were a hundred discussions going on in
the street. Many of the disputants seemed greatly excited. I felt
melancholy. A quiet-looking man, with a very gentle expression of