the possessor of a first-rate telescope, mounted in a little
observatory, on a rocky peak of ground which rose up a hundred feet or
more in the immediate neighbourhood of the house, that itself stood
high. This instrument, which its owner had acquired secondhand at some
sale, of course was not of the largest size. Still, it was powerful
enough for all ordinary observations, and to show many hundreds of the
heavenly bodies that are invisible to the naked eye, even in the clear
air of Switzerland.

To Godfrey, who had, it will be remembered, a strong liking for
astronomy, it was a source of constant delight. What is more, it
provided a link of common interest that soon ripened into friendship
between himself and his odd old tutor, who had been obliged hitherto
to pursue his astral researches in solitude, since to Madame and to
Juliette these did not appeal. Night by night, especially after the
winter snows began to fall, they would sit by the stove in the little
observatory, gazing at the stars, making calculations, in which,
notwithstanding his dislike of mathematics, Godfrey soon became
expert, and setting down the results of what they learned.

In was in course of these studies that the whole wonder of the
universe came home to him for the first time. He looked upon the
marvel of the heavens, the mighty procession of the planets, the
rising and setting of the vast suns that burn beyond them in the
depths of space, weighing their bulk and measuring their differences,
and trembled with mingled joy and awe. Were these the heritage of man?
Would he ever visit them in some unknown state and age? Or must they
remain eternally far and alien? This is what he longed to learn, and
to him astronomy was a gateway to knowledge, if only he could discover
how to pass the gate.