But to return from this digression to our experience of the asteroid. The latter being a body of some mass was, of course, able to impart to us a measurable degree of weight. Being five miles in diameter, on the assumption that its mean density was the same as that of the earth, the weight of bodies on its surface should have borne the same ratio to their weight upon the earth that the radius of the asteroid bore to the radius of the earth; in other words, as 1 to 1,600. Having made this mental calculation, I knew that my weight, being 150 pounds on the earth, should on this asteroid be an ounce and a half. Curious to see whether fact would bear out theory, I had myself weighed with a spring balance. Mr. Edison, Lord Kelvin and the other distinguished scientists stood by watching the operation with great interest. To our complete surprise, my weight, instead of coming out an ounce and a half, as it should have done, on the supposition that the mean density of the asteroid resembled that of the earth--a very liberal supposition on the side of the asteroid, by the way--actually came out five ounces and a quarter! "What in the world makes me so heavy?" I asked. "Yes, indeed, what an elephant you have become," said Mr. Edison. Lord Kelvin screwed his eyeglass in his eye, and carefully inspected the balance. Weight, Five and a Quarter Ounces. "It's quite right," he said. "You do indeed weigh five ounces and a quarter. Too much; altogether too much," he added. "You shouldn't do it, you know." "Perhaps the fault is in the asteroid," suggested Professor Sylvanus P. Thompson. "Quite so," exclaimed Lord Kelvin, a look of sudden comprehension overspreading his features. "No doubt it is the internal constitution of the asteroid which is the cause of the anomaly. We must look into that. Let me see? This gentleman's weight is three and one-half times as great as it ought to be. What element is there whose density exceeds the mean density of the earth in about that proportion?" "Gold," exclaimed one of the party. The Golden Asteroid! For a moment we were startled beyond expression. The truth had flashed upon us. This must be a golden planet--this little asteroid. If it were not composed internally of gold it could never have made me weigh three times more than I ought to weigh. "But where is the gold?" cried one. "Covered up, of course," said Lord Kelvin. "Buried in star dust. This asteroid could not have continued to travel for millions of years through regions of space strewn with meteoric particles without becoming covered with the inevitable dust and grime of such a journey. We must dig down, and then doubtless we shall find the metal." This hint was instantly acted upon. Something that would serve for a spade was seized by one of the men, and in a few minutes a hole had been dug in the comparatively light soil of the asteroid. The Precious Metal Discovered.