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rinted in the

United State!, San Joe, California,

fl

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mars

$~ ^osst

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COPYRIGHT 1920
BY MARCIANUS

F.

ROSSI

S)C!,A601850

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INDEX
CHAPTER

Page

The Encounter

CHAPTER

II

16

First Trip

CHAPTER

III

Trip to Mars

17

CHAPTER

IV

The Battle with Winged Men

23

CHAPTER V
The King's Guest

24

CHAPTER

VI

Trip to South Continent

30

CHAPTER

VII
The Aeriolus deystroys porcupines with its Concave Glass
CHAPTER VIII
The Terrestrian Travelers are Invited to the
Observation Tower

CHAPTER

Emerald Grotto
Luminus Flowers

Hunting Trip

32

39

IX

Artificial

Rain
55

CHAPTER X
Radio Telephony

to the

Antipodes of Mars

62

CHAPTER

The

Sibyl

XI
Interpretates the Answer from Jupiter

66

CHAPTER

XII
Captain Marchy's New Projectile to Return to Mother Earth
CHAPTER XIII
25,000 Miles in 24 Hours by Traveling in the Air Current

....

71

....

72

CHAPTER XIV
Radio Telegraphy and Telephony Encircle the Globe

74

CHAPTER XV
Captain Marchy Melts, Turkish Warships and a

German Submarine

81

CHAPTER XVI
The Martians shoot a

shell to the

Earth

CHAPTER

Gold Fish skin, azur eyes, green hair, Martian maid is

reflected from the Martian shell thru the stream of light

CHAPTER
Return

to Miars

84

XVII
....

87

XVIII
,

92

ILLUSTRATIONS
1.

The

First eruption of

2.

The

Aerilous.

3.

The Earth, the Moon and

4.

Martian

girl at the

Mount Vesuvius.

its

inhabitants.

fountain of youth.

3np

tfl

iMans.

PREFACE
In tracing the source of Natural Motive Power, Ballistic and electric magnetic energy, Etheric waves and

Volcanic force and Zoatical solar air

have been finally led to the recognition of) the
sublime plans adopted by an Infinitely Intelligent Creator
Aerial

currents,

electricity, I

operation of the mechanism of his

The beautifully arranged scheme off the unireadily discovered to be working with such order-

perfecting the

for

universe.
verse,

is

and divine machine-like regularity that the descriptive

appellation of "Mechanism of Heavens, " has been applied
to them by Philosophers.
ly

No
state

portion o matter of the universe

of

rest.

All the planets

urged with a velocity similar

of the

is

in an absolute

system are
Earth in -their

solar

to that of the

respective orbits.

Zodiacal light, which can be seen after sunset extending from the Earth's horizon obliquely upwards, rising
beyond the limits of the atmosphere of our earth and

through the depths of space into the heavens as a nebulous

cone of a dense atmosphere of electricity, excites our admiration.
It is manifest, that no two planets encountered can
cume into touch at the same time in connection with this
beam of dense atmostjphere of electricity without causing

a reciprocal influence causing

mechanical action; and

re-

action; a flux and reflux penetrable between the earth

and

worlds like ours. The encounter of the two worlds in direct

line of oiur Zodiacal light constitutes the most positive^ test*
that can be adduced to prove that communications from our
world and a world inhabited like ours has existed at all
time.

Marcus Aurelius says that Pharaoh, King of Egypt,

communicated with his generals hundreds of miles off by
despatching written letters to the disk of the Moon.
Perhaps " people like us in worlds like ours have never
ceased to try to communicate with us" although infinite
intelligences are incapable ofj comprehending our world's
messages or transmitting messages to them. Yet it affords
an interesting view of the sublime Zodiacal nebula of dense
atmosphere of electricity with the immediate scope to attempt to transmit messages through this electric current
to 'people like us in worlds like ours at the same time and
moment when the worlds like ours are in straight line with
our Zodiacal beam of light, electricity and air.
By following the guidance of this Zodiacal beam extending from the earth upwards in the depths of space in
the heavens, on the 15th of November 1918, Planet Mars
appeared in conduction with our Zodiacal beam, which propagated mechanical action through the medium of electric
matter. It was then that Captain Marchy, in pursuing
this
electric current, startling as it may seem,
and
absolutely beyond the range of past human experience
was guided to fly from the earth to the planet Mars, accomplishing the trip of 45,000,000 miles in 4 minutes and
21 seconds.

Again

Scientists appear to have lost sight of the part

that volcanic eruptions have played in dealing with the ori-

gin of Meteors, which fly at high velocity through space, and

can be shown to be huge rocks blown out by dreadful

eruptions of the volcanos of worlds like ours.

But the

most significant, and must be considered that out of

The huge rocks blown out by the now extinct volcano of
Roccamonfina, in Italy the Collosseum was built, which is
the largest edifice on earth.
AVith the rocks blown out by Vesuvius the Appian
fact is

Way, 150

miles long,

was

built.

This fact establishes that

rocks blown out by Vesuvius in the year 79 A. D. in falling

150 miles distant from Naples to Rome, had been blown on

trajectory.

straight up,

Evidently those

had passed the

rocks,

which

were blown
and

orbit of the earth into space

never came back.

On

the

summit of Mount Vesuvius, previous

to

the

eruption, as the Antiquitate Italianorum says, there existed

a

swet-bath

grotto like

the

famous one of Monsulmano

(Toscany), Iron anforacunicas were used by the

take sweat-baths.)

Many surnamed

it

baby chicken

in its shell.

Romans

to

The burst-

ing of the volcano threw high above the earth's surface the
iron shells with the bathers.
One of the shells was picked

up up

in the sea, but the others were blown so high that

they never came back. The Sibyl of Cumae, who was supposed to have lived 1,000 years, was locked in one of these
shells and never returned to earth.

The terrific eruptions of the volcanos of Roccamonfina,

Vesuvius. Strompoli and Etna, establish that Italy is the

mother of many meteors, which fly, through space, and that

some of the shells, as stated, may have landed in a world
like ours.

Historians appear to have lost sight of the Sibyl, a

young woman

of supernatural knowledge,

are found throughout Italy.

With

whose temples

the departure of the

sad to note, angelic purity and true miracles

tells us that in this Prophetess' books the
facts are cited to show that the frozen terrestrial region

Sibyl,

it

died,

Pulibus

is

was caused by the dislocation of the terrestrial pole, and

that the earth had inclined on one side with it. It was the
Sibyl who, sold to Tarquin, the Proud, the Sibylline books.

Her books were entrusted to a college of 15 men, who preserved them and consulted them on occasions of national
danger. The books were kept in the Temple of Jupiter at
the Capitol. As no one lived on earth to the age of 1000
years sinde Adam and Eve, it is manifest that the Sibyl
was a pre-Christian messenger of the Creator, who departed fr om this world to dwell in a world like ours for thousf

ands of years longer.

A TRIP TO MARS

TRIP

TO MARS

CHAPTER

I.

The Encounter

On
sponded

the

fifteenth

of

November

to the invitation of his friend,

Rubeus, reMarchy, at the log

1918,

Hindu village. It was just when the clock

Mount Hamilton Observatory that Marchy
raised the curtain of his window and on sighting Rubeus
opened the door and saluted him as follows.
cottage near the

struck nine at

"My brave friend, Rubeus, J am very happy to see that

you kept your promise."
Very fortunate am I to be able to attend, worthy colleague.
Too long the curator of the hindu village entertained me and let me assure you that I am very desirous
of hearing the practicability of your plans."
"Have you faith in my genius, my good friend
Rubeus?" "I am almost ignored by the scientific world."
continued Marchy.
"Yes, worthy friend, answered Rubeus, that is the
world's way for you know that from the time arts have
beeq revolutionized by the efforts of individual men.
Often men not brought up to the art, but practicing in a
very different occupation have done the
a barber, revolutionized the art.

trick.

Arkright,

spinning.

Cartwright,
a clergyman, revolutionized the art of weaving.
Watt, a
maker of mathematical instruments, revolutionized every
industry.

Roland

of;

Hill, a schoolmaster, revolutionized

our

'

A TRIP TO MARS
communications by devising the penny post, and I am convinced that though you confine yourself to your particular
lines, you could enter upon some grand experiment worthy
of the nineteenth century.'

A profound silence

ensued, and Marchy, in an emphatic

"Man seems to be the supreme,

mentally elastic organism. He develops by trying novelNo one knows to what
ties and by taking new paths.
extent he may develop, but everyone knows that through
acquisition of knowledge, or production of it, he may
tone, continued as follows:

transcend any physical limits. We ought to see that everything distinguishing our lives from those of savages has
come firom studying something new. Now my good friend,

Rubeus, before we enter upon theobject, let me read to you

an editorial item by Mr. H. Gernsback published by the
Now listen, A few weeks ago
Electrical Experimenter.
Macaroni startled the world by stating that he had often
received strong wireless signals which seemed to come from
beyond the earth. This was concerning a recent interview
published in the New York "Evening Post." Even today
announcements such as the above are made light of by

and others of limited scientific preception,

layman still persists that intelligence
can only exist on earth. Such childish reasoning shows
what sort of intelligence blossoms on this planet.
editorial writers

for the earthbound

It never
occurs to these writers to question why
Nature in her wisdom should have singled out the little
speck called Earth on which to plant beings endowed with
reason. Why should there be such an exception? Life
in some form or other is certain of being found on myriads

A TRIP TO MARS
throughout the Universe, and if one world dies,
Savant Arrhenius shows us
it.

of worlds
all life

how

does not die with

life-bearing spores are carried l)y the pressure of light

through interstellar space, notwithstanding the absolute

Conditions on Mars we know by
zero which prevails there.
direct observation as well as deduction are favorable for

and we may be certain that it exists

this, we must also grant that

and if we
must have existed for hundreds of thousands of years prior to that on
Earth, Consequently Martian civilization must be thousands of years ahead of ours. Suppose the Martians had
sent us radio messages only thirty years ago we would
have had no means of recording them, as at that time detectors and audions were undreampt ofi.
"That is very logical, my worthy friend, answered
Rubeus with enthusiasm.
"Don't you think it possible, worthy Rubeus?"
"The word imjpossible has long been cancelled from the
life,

once grant

there,

it

vocabulary, " replied Rubeus.

I

my

have the honor,

my

worthy

friend, to reveal to

you

project to establish a communication and take a trip

to this sidereal world,

"Go

"Mars we

call it."

ahead, worthy colleague, I

you with ardent

"Your

desire of

am

here to listen to

accompanying you

to the limit."
proposition," continued Rubeus, reminds me of

Rome by old people, and was ofi the

Sweat baths were largely used by the
old Romans and they had established a bathing of this
sort in a grotto at Pompeii on the summit of a nearby
mountain. They indulged in the heat by descending into
a

story often heard at

following nature

A TRIP TO MARS

the grotto in huge hollow shell of sheet iron locked air-

anphora cunica

and fixed on an arch and

In the year 79 A. D.

dreadful volcanic eruption

tight, called

pulley.

nt burst threw up great

such that the moon's and
sun's light was totally obscured for two days throughout
Naples, and the huge shell and its bathers were carried so
high that they disappeared into space and never- returned.
The occupant was Attilius Marte, a Roman Patrican. Rocks
ashes and smoke were carried not only to Rome, but also

took place suddenly, and the

quantities of rocks to a heig.

beyond the Mediterranean into Africa. The one thousand

asteroids, that have been discovered up to the present day,
might account iior their journeys in the infinite, some of
them grouped so closely together that they appeared to
have just been blown up by that dreadful eruption of Mount
Vesuvius.

Asteroids are discovered to be simply japped

rocks, hurtling through space, whirling

I

am

round and round

is from

of the opinion that the origin of their departure

Mount Vesuvius and

man

that the iron bathing case, with

must have been attracted by magnetic pull from

Planet Mars, Moon, Jupiter or other planets. This might
account for the knowledge of these peopleup there of our
inside,

existance on this earth.

Why

do

we

receive wireless sig-

them? "Nothing could be more proper/ exclaimed Marchy. "It took Barbicane 1'600 000 lbs. of powder to fire its 30,000 lbs., weight projectile to the Moon, the
bursting of Mount Vesuvio quadrupled'it in force, blowingup an iron case weighing only about 500 lbs., man and all.
"Perfectly correct/' said Rubeus, but you are not to
fire a huge cannon to reach Planet Mars, are you worthy
nals firom

'

EC

z*

*^ 73

A TRIP TO

MARS

colleague? " Certainly not," repied Marchy.

The bombardment of

world

Paris, during the recent

war, at a distance of 120 kilometers, has put into activity

the inventive qualities of the students of the ballistics.
Here revives another dream ofj Jules Verne, showing what
he developed when making his trip to the moon. A French

M. Moreax, Director of the Bougas Observatory,

examined the question under various points of view. In
harmony with the laws of Newton, a (projectile fired on the
summit of a high mountain with a velocity of 7900 meters
per second, the projectile would pass the center of our globe
and return to the point of departure after one hour, twentyfour minutes and forty-two seconds.
scientist,

Hudson Maxim has

said that

it

is

possible to build a

gun that could shoot a projectile so high that it would actually pass beyond the limit of the earth's attraction.
In
other words, the shell might get so far away that no longer
affected by gravity it would pass out into the void of space
and never return.
In a detailed scientific discussion of the German long
range gun, which bombarded Paris, Major J. Matland
Addison, writing in the Journal of the Royal Artillery,
takes a peep into the future and considers the possibility
of a

gun capable

earth into space.

of shooting projectiles entirely off the

are able to increase five miles

When we

per second, the projectiles will travel around the earth,

as a grazing satellite, completing its orbit between 17 and
18 times daily, with a velocity of about seven miles a
second and will move off into space, never to return
The calculations of these eminent authorities on bal.

A TRIP TO MARS

10

show that by this method of velocity and altitude

would surpass the rotation of the earth. In
harmony with these authorities I am convinced that it is
an adequate method to produce luminous projectiles, which
if fired every minute for 48 hours would naturally form
a circle around the earth like the rainbow shining brilliantly and under the rays of the moon and the sun, when
the horizon sinks below the sun, they would move with us
listics

a projectile

with the rotation of the earth travelling one after another

in an endless chain.
This phosphorescent arc, would show sufficient spark
to guide sailors at sea and men on land to travel more
safely.
I have designed a shell that can be loaded with a
thick crystal ball, about the size of a street electric globe
charged with phosphorus. The shell, on reaching the limit
of its trajectory, w^ouldact like a shrapnell, forcing the
;

crystal ball out

by

a powerfjul spring, the shell dropping

after having given the crystal ball a blowout.

The

latter

hahdng been directed to its pathway, free from external

casing, would travel, showing all its brilliancy in darkness

and the rays of the moon and the sun, when falling upon
would be refracted into a partly colored arc.
A high trajectory projectile, mentioned by Maxim and
Maitland, that would move off into space, never to return,
could be utilized by another invention of mine, consisting
;

it,

of a shell loaded with a magnetized stell ball,

similarly to the crystal one described above.

actioned

This second

designed to conceal written messages addressed to

the inhabitants of the Planet Mars.
This projectile, on

ball, is

reaching the height of 45 miles, being beyond the earth's

A TRIP TO MARS
attraction,

11

would be attracted by Planet Mars. The inhabopen the ball and find our

itants of that Planet could

message.

The

possibility of firing a

magnetized projectile into

space and receive a powerfjul attraction by other Planets

is demonstrated by the fact that every fragment of load-

when broken from

its natural bed, exhibits a north

having all the characteristic properties of
develqping mechanical action, just the same as the poles
exhibit their attraction on magnets on the earth.
Observation on magnetic needles show that they are subject to
sudden starts from their usual north and south positions.
This fact shows that there exists a general cause of mag%

stone,

and south

pole,

netic force affecting, simultaneously, all parts

oft

the earth,

and that magnetic impluse of mechanical force, in relation

both to direction and intensity, are in a state of continual
fluctuation, being scarcely stationary from one minute to
another. The natural power of magnetic attraction between other Planets and the earth are discussed in treatises

on natural motion.
In Captains Scoresby's account of remarkable ethereal

phenomena accompanying a
packet ship

hail-storm, experienced by the

York, he states that the sea was in conagitation, as if acted upon by numerous

New

tinual boiling

submarine volcanoes. All knives and fprks on shipboard

were rendered strongly magnetic;, one of them being rendered capable of lifting a piece of iron, weighing 228 grains.
The magnetizing of steel being familiar effect producible

by

electric

action.

This remarkable phenomena

appears

12

TRIP TO

MARS

to be ascribable to the excitation of electro-dynamic impulses..

Experimenters in Physics have found that the velocity

is about 250,000 miles per second.
La Tribuna, a leading paper in Rome, illustrates methods
of natural attraction between Planet Mars and a ;mag*
netized steel torpedo placed in a well 16 yards deep, walled
with a magnetized steel tube. This magnetized torpedo
would be attracted by natural magnetic force, and without
changing its course the torpedo would reach Mars in 4
minutes and 21 seconds.
Suppose four men would take a trip into the torpedo,
they could return to the earth, at the place of departure,
by digging another well in Mars and putting the torpedo
16 yards deep, when the earth in turn would draw the
torpedo back with, similar force and velocity.
Natural motive power of attraction between the other
planets and the earth remain so yet imperfectly understood
of magnetic attraction

that

human

intellect is involved in a labyrinth of difficul-

the time of Seneca and his theory

concerning another continent of the globe, and the possibility of| approaching it possibilities involved in intricate
difficulties until Columbus, who proved that Seneca's
theory was a truthful doctrine. The moon's attraction in
drawing the ocean waves, moving masses of water, dislocating rock weighing hundreds of tons, directing its march
ties similar to those in

toward shore, and the open area of the bay, proves that the
law of attraction is not mistaking. Drawing of light foliage
of trees and other terrestrial objects while it is found to
be restless, gravitation ofi the earth draw them all back

A TRIP TO MARS

13

within its atmosphere which is found to be 45 miles high

surrounding it, consequently the earth is found to be a

huge magnet.
The masses of the other planets, such as Mars and the
Moon, are greater consequently an object of the earth ascending beyond its attraction, say 45 miles high, the attraction power of the other planets will draw the object
with more force, therefore, making it move with greater
speed toward them. The atmosphere is found to be dense
near the surface of the earth and rarer in high zone, so

much

that at a height of 10,000 yards the rarefaction

such that

man would

be asphyxiated.

we would be blinded by

the sun.

In

If there
fact,

was no

is

air

before the light

and heat of the sun reaches us it has to illuminate and heat

air.
Suppose a concave glass of an enormous size could
be brought at the height of 45 miles. It would collect the
the

rays of the sun so hot that

it

could render the frozen water

Hudson Bay in steam boiling water and change

winter into summer in that region. This theory is substantiated by the fact that M. de Villette's burning
g lass
was only three feet in diameter and it burned at low ground.
in the

By

it were melted silver and copper pennies in a few

minutes and that of Buffon, with the faint rays of the sun
in the month of March, he set on fire boards of wood at 150

feet distance.
It is self-evident that a

concave glass brought to such

would render future wars impossible, because

shells would burst before they were loaded into guns.For
such service, burning glass of a few feet in diameter welldirected on an enemy's front would affect his destruction,
a height

A TRIP TO MARS

14

What would

render this concave glass more advantageous

than this would be on night service suppose the glass
;

made

beyond the earth's

The concave glass would collect the bright rays of
the sun and direct a beam of light so clear that it would
change night into day on a good tract of the earth.
could be

to travel 45 miles high,

orbit.

In treating the possibility of a flight

miles high,
see

we

will return to

ofi

this glass, 45

obey the law of physics and

whether physics will obey the will or power of human

mind.
Areoplanes have proven so effective in the past years
that they have won world-wide recognition, but adverse
conditions of
is

its

all

kinds of weather, the areoplane, after all,

air, flying by the use of

nothing more than a bird in the

wings.

It is self-evident that if an areoplane can fly in the air

by the use of propellers as rapidly as 150 miles an hour,
not reaching an altitude of 21,000 feet, a new method
should be adopted to run thousands of miles per hour at
an altitude of many miles, beyond the earth's attraction,
which is about 45 miles high. In ascending to an altitude
of 40 miles, the motor could be stopped and a new device
could be exposed for planetary attraction, and this attraction would produce a natural motion known under the laws
This natural power,
of physics as natural magnetic power.

according to philosophers of physics, has a velocity of

250,000 miles per second. "Do you see," my friend Rubeus
there is my ariplane "yes! but how does it run?"
The principle ofi this airplane is the drawing of heat

from the sun's rays into a thick crystal covered tank.

The

A
water when

once

TRIP TO
heated,

and eventually

MARS

passes into a

15

sulphur

dioxid

water returns to the glass

heating tanks exposed to the sun's rays.
The scheme
of this solar jpower is that I w ill be able to run
my engine and dynamo without storage batteries.
When the glass revolves towards the sun by a
regulating device, the heated water runs from these storage
tanks into the sulphur dioxid engine and boiler system.
Sulphur dioxid, as is well known, has a low boiling point,
so that it can be placed in the boiler and heated up, allowing the hot water to come into contact with the boiler tubes
boiler,

this

When

containing the sulphur dioxid.

the boiler

commences

dioxid steam

you

is

the sul|phur dioxid in

then the necessary sulphur

to boil,

obtained wherewith to run the engine.

see, insted of

using the fire to

make steam

So

in the boiler,

used instead, which originally obtained its heat

directly.
As the sulphur dioxid steam leaves
the engine cylinder it is repumped back again into the
boiler to be heated all over again by the hot water coming
from the sun tank. Free energy power plants in the southhot water

is

from the sun

ern part of the United States and the sun power plant of
r.H. E, Willsie proves that the water will remain hot

from four to ten days when stored in the tanks by insulated layers of dry sand an engine and dynamo will run at
Mr. Willsie 's solar plant in Arizona has produced
night.
electric light at night, which was actually made by the
rays of the sun shining during the preceding day.
"Yes, I believe you" the aeriolus could not be more

reminds me of the nautilus of Jules

Yes Rubens this areiolua
Vera and a German submarine
perfect Captain!

it

16

is

MARS

TRIP TO

a locked hull similar to a submarine

the

oxygen tanks

are fitted within the aeriolus for the purpose of supplying

us with oxygen during the time that

we

are confined there-

a larger volume of air

prow and the side

to work upon and

lifting their full load

without

The

in.

helicopter, the

wings.

propellers have
are capable of

Do you

see the

under the prow?

"Yes." Well
continually,
aeriolus
firing
the
would
as'cend in a
them
by
reason
would
vacum for the same
that a gun
kick if fired
in ;a vacuum and that the propelling force would be a
continued kick. The hull is fitted with binoculars, electric
heater, cold gelatine, electric lights, and is housed with all
modern comforts.
Captain I am anxious to fly with you to Europe, Asia
and back.
Well will you take a seat." "Sure I will"
Are you seated
units of short little guns

'

'

'

'

"Yes

Captain, I am.

CHAPTER

II.

First Trip

Captain Marchy steered the aeriolus straight ahead.

Jose, then Palo Alto, and next San Mateo is observed.
Their attention is drawn to a bay, ending with the Pacific
Ocean. This, they are phoned, is San Francisco Bay, and
that landing is to be made.
Suddenly the water becomes
steaming hot. A large crowd of people is heard to make
the remark that they are feeling warm, saying that winter
has been turned into summer. Many prespiring in this
sweltering heat jump into the bay to take a swim. When

San

the aeriolus apperas, in

descending

direction, a

cover

is

'

A TRIP TO MARS

17

turned over the concave glass and the burning sun is nulDescending on the bay, they are overwhelmed by the

led.

who were swimming toward the

The people were skeptical, for whoever
heard of summer heat in the winter season, [produced by
an areoplane, but being Americans, in view of what happens
crowd

oft

curious people,

floating Aeriolus.

every day, they are naturally convinced.

"All aboard for Planet Mars", exclaims the commander.

"What

is wrong with you fellows?"

One remarks, "this confounded trip to the Moon and
Mars is an old dream, and a great joke perpetrated on the

public.

"Are you an astronomer, Sir?"

"Yes, you bet I am."
Would you like .to ride with us to Mars ?
"Yes, I'll go with you fellows."

CHAPTER

'

III

Trip to Mars

The aeriolus rapidly

starts to rise into the air.

Tlhe

travelers, full of hope, gaze peacefully

through the crystal

windows, whilst the aeriolus, under an uniformly speed,
crosses the sky.
Out into vacuum. "Bam
Bam
Bam
Volley of the muskettery went on, and on
kicking its way through space tremendously. During which
time the Professor looked over the compasses and found
them to mark the velocity running at 186,324 miles per
second. -He then began to work out figures with unparral,

led dexterity, looking seriously at the captain,

ed.

and remark-

"

A TRIP TO MARS

18

'Why, Captain, the Aeriolus, is simply falling upon

Mother Earth, caused by your stopping the ringer and the
speed at which it. is falling is enough to punch a well large
enough so it would sink into the bowels of the earth.
The Captain and Rubeus could not help laughing. "Do
voxjl know what I am doing.
"No, I do not," answered the Professor quite seri'

ously.

"I am using the magnetized globe for planetary atThe Professor then looked at the glasses and

traction.

discovered the disc of a strange world appearing at a distance of 40 miles.

"We

are falling," said the Professor, quite frightened.

"Very

well, old Professor, I shall

now make

use of the

The propellers will row in the air, surrounding

Mars, and we will descend gracefully on to the new world.
"Nothing could be easier", replied Rubeus, "but beengine.

fore

we descend

am

curious to

know how our

aeriolus

round
Professor,
in a
the
answered
this new
the
observe
opportunity
good
to
is
"This
a
serious tone.
It
was
ten
Rubeus.
then
answered
other side of Mars,"
folAeriolus
was
afternoon.
The
minutes past two in the
lowing its curvation round Mars. The Captain requested
his colleagues to observe two chains of mountains striped
along plains enclosing two channels, wonderfully extending
over immense large plains covered with ever-green vegetaThese mountains formed an orography similar to
tion.
The travItaly, thereby making it a world fit to live in.
ellers could see two craters on the summit of two mountains,

will act in a parabola, travelling as grazing satellite

planet."

"No"

A TRIP TO MARS
one ending at the north and the other

19
at the

South of the

channel, emanating a column of vapor similar to a flush

of cyclonic air current at an interval

the ocean tide flowing high

of)

6 hours, similar to

and low.

The Professor said that the blowing of the air proved

was formed by means' of a current, which
ceaselessly flowed from north to south through the canyon
between the two chains of mountains, the velocity of which
surpassed several miles per second, running through subterranean channels, and when it rises in one mountain
flux forms a reflux in the other crater
ciat.er
its
Captain observed that the thermometer marked intensive
that such air tide

heat over this hot air vapor.

"Ah", exclaimed Rubeus, "nature has provided

world

with

natural

heat.

Mars

the

center

of

this

his

than 13,000,000 miles from the sun. The!

light and heat received from that luminary vary to an
important extent. In fact, Mars gets about half as
much heat and light as the earth. The fact that hot vapors
are flushed in many mountains, valleys and craters on land
w;ould indicate the process of the formation of hot clouds,
a process by which Nature arranges and modifies the temperature similar to the best climatic regions on the earth.
Surely, this charming planet must be tenanted by living
creatures and beings belonging to the highest order of animated existence. Professor Emanuel, look over your Chart
of Mars and try to locate the continents, oceans and channels designed by our Astronomers.
Captain, we are flying over the so-called long Maraldi
Maraldi Sea runs into Hooke Sea, trending dn a
Sea.
orbit

is

'

no

less

A TRIP TO MARS

20

northwesterly direction, and so running into Dawes Ocean.

Farther west are two vast islands, which are called Jacob
Island and Phillips Island, between which runs Ar^ago
Beyond these islands lies la Rue Ocean, communStrait..
icating by narrow straits with two strikingly similar seas.
Here* the zone of water ends, and we have only to note
further

respecting

it

that in

De

la

Rue Ocean

there

is

large island, which presents such a brillant aspect that

a
it

seems to be covered with Radiosand. This is called Dawes'

Island..
There is Herschel I. Continent. Next is Dawes
Continent, separated from that long sea called Kaiser Sea.
Don't get too close to the planet, Captain, spin of ft"
"Why, Professor?" "There is a shower of meteorites, by
Jove I caught one, gee, it burned my glove." "Behave
Professor, do not thrust your hand out." "You see, Captain this meteor is composed of alloys of nickel, iron and
chiefly of white and black diamonds." "Yes, Professor,
I have been on Coon Mountain Crater in Northern Arizona
and I saw the same meteorites strewn concentrically around
the crater, covering about five miles of the mountain and
they are composed of the same chemical elements." "Yes,
I saw that my friends, said Rubeus.
Coon Mountain, or
Meteor Crater itself is a round hole about six hundred feet
deep and about four thousand feet in diameter and was
formed, it is believed, by the impact of a huge meteorite,
which has never been found. It is believed that the Canyon
Diablo Meteorites, of which there are found hundred individuals in the U. S. National

Museum, were members of

same flail. It is possible that these meteorites that produced the crater itself fell from Mars and struck the earth

this

'

A TRIP TO MARS
thousands of years ago."

21

"Yes, Rubens, weak acid shows

the polished section to contain iron sulphide, phosphide,

'

graphide, but more abundantly white and black diamonds.

"If that is the case, I will not be surprised if we shall find

diamonds as abundantly as mercury on the

mountains of Almaden in California," said the Captain
with a smile. Further West lies Madler Continent, separated ftrom Dawes Continent by a long strait, which runs north
and south. There is Secchi Continent, separated from Madler Continent by Bessel Inlet and from Herschel Continent
by Huggins Inlet. Now, before we return to the Southern
Hemisphere, past the equatorial zone of continents, ther^
appears a zone of water, expanding at one point into Beer
Sea, and at the other into Tycho Sea.
There also appears
a zone of land, called Laplace Land, with its large lake
called Delambre Sea.
That narrow zone of water is called
a deposit of

Schroter Sea.
Captain, I have heard the names of nearly all the Astronomers on Mother Earth with the exception of Schiapparelli, Lowell and Pickering.
What is the matter with that

map anyhow?

Wait

we

down there. I'm going

Do you know what I
am going to name that sand down there, Rubeus? "No.
I do not, Professor."
"I am going to name it Radium."
"What good is it to you anyhow?" "Why, radium
gives ofif heat at the rate of 133 gram colories per hour, and
until

get

to give those channels real names,.

you know,

fjive ounces of that precious stuff, which

you
can hold in a thimble, would propel a passenger train of
10 cars from one city to another, a distance of 900 miles by

railroad.

How many

tons of coal do you think

it

takes to

A TRIP TO MARS

22

operate such a train 900 miles, making a 22-hour journey ?

make one trip of 900 miles.

Martians if they do not make use of
passenger trains?" "Well, Rubeus, nature uses it. The
effect, resulting from an increased heat of the sun's rays,
produced by the calories of the radium-sand, is sufficient
It

requires 60 tons of coal to

What good

is it

to the

The aerial currents

uniform motion suffices to adjust conditions which the excess of heat at the radium desert would otherwise tend to
The propagation over a wide area of this planet \s
disturb.
surface of cyclonic or whirling winds serves as a rule to
adjust the conditions, and in a thousand ways Nature's
busy forces may be at work, providing there is a due supply of wind and rain, distributing heat and cold, which
acts in precisely the same manner as on Mother Earth,
making this planet a world fit to live in.
The Captain started
It was five minutes past nine.
to retain the requisite excess of heat.

the engine.

"What, we

"We

are descending?" exclaimed Rubeus.

are 20 miles from the surface," replied the Cap-

tain.

"Ah," exclaimed Rubeus,

a

city,

resembling

that

of

enthusiastically

Necropolis

of

upon seeing
Tarquinio.

This city, built by the western shore of the channel, was

constructed of diamond rocks, roofed with ruby tiles. The

narrow streets were paved with green sapphire, the squares
Avere adorned with myrtle and laurel trees and the low hills
were covered with eternal vegetation. The load-stone
rocky mountains constituted a barrier against the canals.
Swift torrents, sweeping down the slopes of the mountain

"

A TRIP TO MARS

23

range, exhibited denuted extensive deposits of diamonds.

The canyons cut into the solid ruby rocks to a depth of

yards, and were shadowed by vineyards. Along the
valley of the channels the fertilities viewed by the travellers were very vast and produced fruit, resembling pineapples and strawberries, the latter being as large as pump=

many

kins.

CHAPTER

IV

The Battle with Winged Men

While the occupants of the Aeriolus were making observations of the new world and the Captain was searching for a landing place, the Aeriolus was suddenly attacked
by a flock of winged men, about the size of five year old
boys, who began shooting at the Aeriolus with their arrows.
Rubeus aimed the Brown's machine gun of 30,000 shots
a minute, and a few hundred blanks were fjired toward
them, which quickly disbanded the Martian warriors, but
they soon returned in a storm by the hundreds, howling,
"fugit, mortem, noli (prosequi in urbe, sine mora, fugit,
fugit." "Let me use that machine gun with real stuff.

By

Jove, those lads are looking for trouble."

"Do

my

dear colleague, replied the

little fellows.
Can't you
understand Latin ?" "Go away, Captain," answered the
"Tui generis, tui generis, ave generis bonum,
Professor.
not excite yourelf,

Captain, they are a Latin race of

howls the Captain. "Ave ave," howls Rubeus.

howls the Professor. "Ave ave," answered

winged men

"Ave ave"
all

the

little

same time approaching the

Aeriolus, amiable and happy.
Then they formed a procession and started to fly toward their City singing, their
in chorus, at the

24

TRIP TO

voices being so harmonious

MARS

and sweet that the occupants

and

of the Aeriolus looked at one another in astonishment

over joyment.

CHAPTER V
The King's Guest
The Professor exclaimed. "Are those little fellows
Is this world a [paradise?
God be lauded," answered the Captain. Grateful, God,
The Captain landed the
said Rubeus, what a fortune
Aeriolus on the largest square, then opened the door and
the occupants stepped out and began looking round and
round, admiring the sublimity of the City and its enchanting surroundings. Several thousands of) winged men from
a blue sapphire rock house, roofed with purple diamond
The travelers were invited to pay a
tiles, formed a line.
visit to their King and the strangers marched along the
line of armed warriors and entered the house.
"What" captain, the King is a regular sized man without wings? "Man from Mother Earth," said Rubeus.
"Good God, he is," answered the Captain.
The king on sighting the visitors diligently stepped
toward them, grasping their hands and pronouncing an
oratory worthy of Cicero. The king made a narrative
story, telling them how he was blown up by a subterranean
force in the year 79 A. D. while he was bathing in a grotto
on Mount Vesuvius; also how he had instructed his little
pecjple in the new world to speak the Latin language.
The
angels?"

Captain inquired as to the length of time the people on

Planet Mars lived.

The king

said.

"The people on Mars

live longer

than

A TRIP TO MARS
the eagle on Earth, which

25

5000 years and sometimes

is

longer.

Your Majesty, said the Captain, I beg to ask why

Nature has made your people so beautiful. Their hair is
bright like the fur on a seal; their wings are as pretty as
the feathers on the paradise bird; their eyes are so luminous that when they bath they give the surrounding waters
vari-colored
scintillating
lights,
producing
a
phos phoroscent effect on the water. Why, they are equipped
with feathers on their wings, but the rest of their bodies
consists of skin similar to ours.
Why they all look young
and their teeth shine like diamonds.
"God's

Look up

gift,

nature's

gift."

in the sky, Captain,

and

Answered
tell

me how

the

King.

large your

Mother Earth appears, continued the King. The Captain

looked up through the blue sapphire roof and said.
"Mother Earth appears to be as large as a pea."

"Very

well,

now

ask one of

my men

to look at the

you how large it appears to him."

A close-by Martian was asked to look
and he replied. "Planet Earth looks to me
and

Earth

tell

at the Earth,
to be as large

as this house.

"Wonderful long eye-sight," answered the Captain.

"Not only can my people see at an extreme long distance, but they can see through

your body," exclaimed the

King.

"They have x-ray eyes," said Rubeus.

"Wonderful gift, said the Professor.
The birds in the air, the animals in the
fish in the

forest and the

water also have strong eye-sight and luminous

A TRIP TO MARS

26
at night/'

"By

continued the King.

Jove, Captain our fire-flys on Mother Earth must

have strong eye-sight, " said the Professor.

"Keep silent," they are too small answered the Cap"Yes, but" grumbled the Professor.
tain.
"Now take a look through the window, my dear terrestrian friends and you shall see our nymphs," continued
the King. "Those creatures are our inferior race, the
same as your terrestrian negroes. Nature has not given
them feathers on their wings and the fingers on their hands
and the toes on their feet are webbed together just the
same as your terrestrian bats. They can talk, sing swim
and fly, and when they go on a high journey they make use
of a large dry fish, resembling a bladder and anti graviAt times they
tation shoes soon disappearing from sight.
'return, after having been gone months and relate to us
strange things which they have seen in other worlds."
"By Jove, Captain, said the Professor, I once saw one of
thesie creatures in the Museum of Nevada.
I believe that,
answered Rubeus, very enthusiatically. I saw a document
in the Museum of the Geographical Socitey of Paris and
also read about it in the Bulletin of the Geographical
Society ofl Milan, such creatures were seen by Duminicus
Ducier, a French Monk of the Abbey of Besancon, in the
Fourteenth Century, and this fact was printed in proventI have a copy in my note book; let me read
ial dialect.
"Dominicus Docier, monaco, di Domremy, studit to you.
soa collectione disegnoe

un

acqua dil diluviu

termoti, dicta parte rotta trovoe logo a molta distanza

nil

ioso

di

antiche scripture

mappamundu

di

coa parte rotta

(

dile

et

A TRIP TO MARS

27

insula Tullia Major et da

Havi foresta di erbe marem
habitata da uceelli con cocuzzo come homo, capeli, ohi,
horechi, naso, bucca co denti, co ali come scorpion et gambe
come rane, no corpu. Dicto parla, canta, vola et nota,

m#re oceanus predieto da

ilia

dicta et insula Tullia minor.

dicto va in delirio nil vidi marinai co nere vesti. ect

cronaca di Besancon di Sancta madre chiexia

dil,

Vidi

20 majo.

I wonder
Published, Milan, September 1st 1907.
they were these same creatures," exclaimed the Captain.
These Martian aborigins have another way of reaching the

1439.
if

other worlds, continued the King.

All our drinking pit-

made by them. They also make things for their

They make a load-stone mud shell, which is dried
The shell is made with a door. The aborigin

chers are

own

use.

hard.

up in this shell and is carried by his compansummit of a mountain, where there is a crater.
They then fit the shell over the crater and wait for the
current ofi air to blow it up. When the current reaches
the crater the shell is blown up with such force that it
passes into space, and as loadstone is a strong magnet the
shell is pulled by magnetic attraction of some other Planet,
and then our Martian aborigin travels over land and sea
hunting for his preferred birds and fish and especially
iittle grapes that grow on fugus natans (sea-weed,) of
which he is very fond. The fish-skin bag is always carried by him and he makes use of it whenever he wishes to
return to Mother Mars. "Now my dear terrestrian friends"
continued the King, "step back into my dining room and
have supper with me.Be seated on those red diamond long
benches, as the ruby tables have been prepared with our
locks himself

ions to the

28

TRIP TO

MARS

hope you will like it, said the King, smiling.

very delicious, very delicious," answered the terrestrians. God, tliis is a paradise of food, exclaimed the Professor. Some flavor, said Rubeus. "Extra
good," answered the Captain. The Martian servants then
served wine in large diamond mugs.
"Salute," said the King.
"Viva," answered the terrestrians.
"Very delicious," said the Captain. "Some wine,"
answered Rubeus and the Professor.
"Say, Captain, suppose we tell the King about prohibition on Mother Earth."
"Keep silent, Professor, you always with your Americanate.
"Do you want to be thrown out of this Planet?"
said the Captain seriously.
food,

"Very

delicious,

"No wonder

that these people live to be thousands of

years old," exclaimed Rubeus.

"This food is extremely

nourishing and immensely agreeable. Talk about our pineapples, our strawberries and our figs.
Why, there is no
comparison to

this food,

on Mother Earth," exclaimed the

Captain.

"Talk about our

olives-these are

most delicious," said

Rubeus.
This

is

our ground meat."

of* these mushrooms, my terrestrian friends.

"God, but these are excellent," answered the Captain.
You >see all these things grow natural and in large
abundance," repeated the King.

"Eat some

"Now my terrestrian friends, over there

ing room, sleep well."

is

your

rest-

A TRIP TO MARS

29

Good night

"Feather beds!" exclaimed the Professor.

all.

The Captain is soon sound asleep. He dreams and

is having a wireless communication with Mother
Earth. He first starts by picturing in his mind how to
send} a shell to the Earth, forcing it, to travel round and
round in a dense stratus of etheric field in a grazing satellite.
Then he would visualize systems comprising wireless
$>paratus and transmit the message on the antennas on
land.
The images he sees are perfectly real and tangible
Rubeus is dreaming of the Adam of the Earth paradise.
The Professor dreams of the Angels flying with him to

imagines he

heaven.

The Professor awakes,

tain, those little

Let us get up

Aeriolus.

raises his head,

and

says.

"Cap=*

rascals are blowing the trumpet in the

my worthy

colleagues.

It is

day

light, said the Captain.

and
fly

The Professor opens the door, runs out to the square

cries.
""What's all this noise, eh?" The Martian's

away

laughing.

"You
fessor,

little rascals,

you

,"

continued the Pro-

clapping his hands loudly.

"Professor don't howl at those boys," said the Captain

seriously.

Rubeus examines the Aeriolus and says. "Nothing

wrong with the Aeriolus."
The Captain grasps the hand of his colleague and re.
-marks.
"My dear friends, nothing will give us greater
pleasure than to try to telegraph to our people on Mother

Earth,"

A TRIP TO MARS

30

"Why

should

we not," answered

the

colleagues."

Mars Radio Station, go away, Captain, what Mars? Mars

of Egypt?"
"Oh, yes. How did you get up there? Bravo, Captain
Good
Inhabited? Men with wings? Bravo. Indeed

God

is

that a fiact?

Wonderful

sible?.

ahead,"

God be with

Diamond

Cities?

Veryplain,
you.

What?

Captain.

Yes.

Pos-

Go

Good-bye.

When the Captain was busy telegraphing to Mother

Earth a young prince arrived flying, carrying a note from
the King. The Captain read it and said. "I should consider myself very fortunate to have thepleasure of taking his
Majesty for a flight to the Ministry of Public Works out
to Terra laboris."

CHAPTER VI
Trip to South Continent

The prince then flew back to the royalpalace. Ten

minutes later the King arrived, being carried in a wicker
basket by twelve dignitaries, who were walking suspended
in the air towards the Aeriolus.
"Your Majesty, it gives me great pleasure to be able
to take a flight with you."
Well, dear Captain, It will be necessary for one of my
men to go along, as we will travel though foggy regions
and my man can see many miles ahead through the fog."
"Yes, your Majesty, your man shall be our pilot." The
Aeriolus is started to run at at a speed of 100 miles per
hour.
It

was two hours

eight o 'clock a

since

it

left

Alba, the capitol.

At

fogy region was reached, above a large lake.

'

A TRIP TO MARS

31

where there was a large

The
Professor promptly pointed the binocular towards the sea
but after a search, he grumbled. "That bird has x-ray
eyes for sure. Half an hour later, when the Professor was

The

sea,

pilot pointed to the Southeast,

connecting with the lake by several channels.

still

gazing into the distance with his glass in his hand,

he remarked in a ringing voice! "Forest, forest! Flocks

of curious monkeys, carrying small shovels, were seen working the ground of the marvelous fields of cultivated land

Innumerable flocks of birds were flying

Some of them had such beautiful feathers
that the travelers exclaimed. "Nature loves this world
better than ours !" The monkeys walked on their hind legs,
and had wings like the terrestrian seal. Their fur was
green and their heads were like our terrestrian cats, with
long beards under their chins. The travelers were aston-^
ished when they looked at the fields and saw that the
monkeys were cultivating the land. The Captain exclaims,
near the forest.
over these fields.

"Your Majesty, kindly tell us why those monkeys

work the land?
"Ah, those monkeys are our slaves. They work for us.
Look in the forest, there you will see my men in the tall
trees, armed with bows and arrows, watching these monkeys.'

'

"Yes, indeeed," answered the Captain. Then your

men do not work. "Yes, Captain, they work one hour each
day with the exception of Sundays. Let us go direct to
their factories,

machinieries.

and

I shall

show you how they operate

their

'

The Aeriolus was running

fast,

As

the water in the

A TRIP TO MARS
lake was cradling on the diamond gravels, the Professor
takes a peep with the binocular and exclaimed. "Oh, you

kid!"

"What is wrong with you, ProfesAh, you see I thought I saw Professor
Campbell, of Lick Observatory, grazing his fiorty inch telRubeus answered.

sor

Emmanuel?

No, by Jove,

escope.

it is

the

Moon

of

Mars

reflecting in

There are the other ones, Deimos and Phobos,

just as our terrestrian Astronomers call them.
They appear larger than the Moon that shines on Mother Earth."
"Perhaps the diamond gravel bed of the lake enlarges
the Moons," answered Rubeus,
the w^ater.

"Must be
ning

'
!
'

"Lightning!

so," said the Professor.

CHAPTER VII
The Aeriolus Deystroys porcupines with
"No

Captain.

the north of

skin

is

light-

exclaimed the Captain excitedly.

We

are tormented

many thousands

its

Concave Glass

by an invasion from

of toad porcupines.

Their

hard, similar to that of the terrestrial crocodile.

These swine chew up everything.

My men

are using a gun,

shooting lightning on trajectory, but you know trajectory

is a difficult {problem, it kills but is very slow."

ask your Majesty ifj the swine join in flocks."

"Yes, Captain, they usually flock by the thousands."
Will your Majesty allow me to destroy them?" "How
can you worth, Captain?"
"Your Majesty will show me where the swine are and
I will show you how quickly I can destroy them,"
I

'

A TRIP TO MARS
Very well Captain.

Let us go direct to that large

near that river. Oh, yes. Let
us fly up forty- five miles and I will fix them.
After twenty minutes the Aeriolus reached the desired
altitude.
The sun was extremely hot.
"Now, your Majesty, look through the telescope." Do
you see the swine?
field.

There they

are, see,

'

Yes, Captain, I see them jumping and struggling.

spasms I see them roasting they are dying

they are dying by the thousands' Well we will keep on
spinning. After ten minutes the King exclaimed.
"There isn't one pig left, they are all dead!"
The King grasped the hand of Captain Marchy and
said.
"I must praise you, worthy Captain, for having
destroyed the enemy ofs my people.
This was the proper altitude for the Aeriolus to collect
the rays of the sun in order to burn anything disturbing
human generation on Mars. Directly North East lay the
Campanian desert, resembling the western zone of the
United States of America, covered with red sand. Everywhere on its surface showed ample oasis of cultivated land
under eternal vegetation. A little to the East rose the
Ausania, the highest mountain in Terra Laboris, which revealed itself as a plain [projecting eastward from the
diamond coast enveloping the Marian Sea.
Suddenly
while the travelers were admiring the brilliancy ofi the
mountain, which was sparkling its diamonds and rubies in
the' full blaze of the morning sun over the plain, an explosion attracted the immediate attention of the travelers.
They instantly looked down and saw to their suprise that
see

them

in

A TRIP TO MARS

34

hundred of cannons, in formed batteries, many miles apart,

were firing.
"There is war!" cried the Captain.
The enemy is marching toward the South
cried the
King. My armies are breaking up, no hope no hope
They are moving their batteries toward the South, the
ground is lost. I hope they will hold out until we get
there!" answered the Captain. The Aeriolus began spinning directly for the battle-ground. The enemy had thou'

'

'

'

sands of cannons.

"No hope!" cried the King.

"Never despair! Majesty," cried the Captain solemnly
spinning glass of the Aeriolus down
directing the
towards the enemy's batteries.
A terrible explosion threw up an immense portion of

ground and rocks into the air.

"The cannons are melting!" cried the King. The
My victorious
enemies are running running running
My victorious
enemies are running, running, running
!

armies are celebrating the victory."

"Hurrah f or the King," cheered the travelers.
s

The sensation

of the

occupants of the Aeriolus had

now reached the highest pitch of exaltation. They felt

like the old Romans conquering Gallia, for which they had
been fighting for years. The king ordered them to fly
toward the south for a resting jpiace. Suddenly the Aeriolus in flying straight through the indicated place met
some obstacles.
"Strange," exclaimed the Captain.
"Turn north, Captain," answered the King. "We

A TRIP TO MARS

35

have reached 2000 miles from the war region. Here is the
South Sea. There beneath us is constructed a ring around
the equator, which floats freely in spinning motion by reactionary force, running our transportation and working
machineries at the rate of one thousand miles an hour.
You see the Aeriolus is effected by magnetic force of that

enormous ring."
"This is a miracle of a discovery/' answered the

tra-

velers, in astonishment.

The Aeriolus then begins to fjy in a northerly diAt last the King orders them to stop and descend,
A large City, consisting of low and long-narrow diamond
rock houses, is pointed out by the King. The Aeriolus
landed on a large round square, twelve winged Martians
approached the Aeriolus, carrying a chair. The King is
seated and carried to the Ministry of Public Works. Two
Martins approached the Aeriolus with a note from the
King. The ocqpants of the Aeriolus march toward the hall
of the Ministry and are met by the King and twenty winged men, who were from the Ministry of Public "Works.
"Ave, ave, " cheered all the Martians.
"Ave viva!" answered the Captain and his colleagues.
The King made a long commendation, which was
answered by the Martians with an ovation and sympathetic
admiration for the terrestrian visitors. A most delicious
dinner was served, which consisted of oysters, frogs, mushrooms, olives, pineapples, like fjruit, figs and other species
It was about one o' clock P. M.
of grapes and old wines.
when the terrestrians had finished dinner and were taken
Suddenlv the bell of the Aeriolus startto see the works.
rection.

A TRIP TO MARS

36

^d to sound dreeeeeeee, Ah, ha

joiced.
his

He walked toward

exclaimed the Captain

re-

the Aeriolus, with telephone in

hand and opened the door.

"Yes, yes," Captain Marchy. Yes, where are you?

This is the San Francisco Examiner. Yes.
The Presidents of the Aviation Clubs of London, Paris,
Rome, Madrid, Jajpan, Australia, Bonsaries, Mexico' MonThe Directors of the Observatories
treal and New York.
of Florence, Paris, Bourgas, London, Japan, Mount "Wilson,
Mount Lowell and Mount Hamilton (Lick) are already
with telephones in their hands, waiting to hear you talk
about your discovery on Mars. Will you kindly tell us
something about it? All the newspaper Editors of the
globe are ready to listen. The Editor of La Tribuna, il
Mattino, il Corriere, il Messaggiero, Le Petit Parisian, Je
Saint Paul Gazet, Berlin Zetung, New York Amerso tut.
ican, the World, St. Louis Globe, Star, San Francisco
Chronicle, Call, Tribune, San Jose Mercury and every other
paper on Mother Earth. Captain Marchy answered.
"Gentlemen," the Aeriolus reached Planet Mars in 4
Planet Mars.

minutes and 21 seconds, travelling at the electric rate of

186,324 miles a second. This planet is an extremely beauIts mountains are composed of soft diamonds
tifiul world.

and

its

plains are fertile and cultivated.

Its inhabitants

angels having
round tojpped diamond and ruby
The
streets are paved with sapphire stones.
some
their
diamonds
and
slopes
of
mountains are rocky
The
are rocky rubies, covered with eternal vegetation.
Praries are like our Western American deserts, resembling
are

of

supernatural

wings. They
houses. The

beauty,

live in small

resembling

A TRIP TO MARS
California, but the oasis

making

tent,
j

ox,

tic

often thousands of miles in ex-

fine natural pasture for great herds of

resembling

grown with

is

37

buffalo.

The

barrens

are

domeover-

forests of olives, chestnuts, very large oranges,

The same pine and numerous growth

and unknow n plants. The plains
are pineapples, overgrown with cypress, and many unknown
plants.
The region of the eastern continent consists of
Connected
brillant red clay, mixed with diamond sand.
with the same diamond rock formation is the bursting forth
of numerous channels, appearing like eruptions of subterraneous streams, suddenly emerging firom red labyrinthhs
underneath, through which they have long crept. There
are many cypress barrens, but among them are gentle eminences of fertility, supporting a vigorous growth of hickories
and pine, while numerous streams flow through the country
or expand into beautiful lakes. My colleagues have described the water in these canals and lakes as pellucid, that
the nympths seem swimming in the air and the stars in
heaven shine with brilliancy greatly enlarged. Groves of
very large roses cover immense tracts, bending beneath the
figs

and pineapples.

of laurel, myrtle, pine

weigt of their vivid yellow flowers, filling the air with perfume. All the fruits known and strange to us flourish
here and their flavors are extremely excellent. All the
animals have wings like terrestrian seals, but they do not
Birds are mostly similar to terrestrian pheasant. The
fly.
aborigin people of the country are beautiful creatures, having wings like terrestrian bats, capable of invincible swift
flight.

Italy.

The climate

is

similar to that of California and

Cold at the poles.

The Martians run their

fiact-

'

A TRIP TO MARS

38

by prepetual motion, but work only one hour each

day with the exception of Sundays. They speak a universal language and are very friendly.
The Martians had a
w ar, but I settled it. They live to a great age, 5000 years
and sometimes longer. I will return to Mother Earth within a few day, making the trip in 4 minutes and 21 seconds.
"Bravo, viva, hurrah," answered they, Professor Emanuel
and Rubeus approached the Aeriolus with some anxiety.
Captain Marchy promptly saluted his colleagues, announcing to them that radio telegraphy had encircled Mother
Earth and that w ireless communications had been received
at the Aeriolus from all parts of the terrestrian globe, from
ories

'

Italy,

Japan, Australia, Argentine, Brazil, the United States

Russia, Norway, England, Germany, Austria,

Canada,

Prance, Spain, Portugal, Egypt, Persia, India and China.

answered the Professor and
Viva, viva the Aeriolus,
'

'

Rubeus enthusiastically, being elated over the fact that

news had been received from all over Mother Earth.
"Captain Marchy," continued the Professor, let us fly
upwards about one mile. I am anxious to view the physical
transportation of magnetized barrels, carrying the products

from north to south 2000 miles on the canal's current, and the products of south to north on the
other canal's stream. The Captain started spinning. Ah!
of the country

A chain o barrels, 2000

exclaimed Rubeus, there the are
is seen going forward and back in a never ending line. "What," those birds have utilized the canal's current as conductor of food stuff, said the Professor, looking
down attently. "Why," that magnetic transportation
scheme of carrying products from New Orleans to Cadiz in
!

miles long,

'

A TRIP TO MARS
Spain could be accomplished on the Gulf Stream, answered
Rubeus.

'

"Yes," grumbled the Captain.

people

down

You

talk

to

those

there."

"Look, look, exclaimed the Professor, (pointing to the

summit of a hill. Do you see the diamond shower blowing
out from that volcano?
"Ah ha! exclaimed Rubeus. "Captain Marchy we
shall get up as high as the jet."
Very well, my good colleagues, hold on to your telescopes.
One hundred miles,
one thousand miles, ten thousand miles.

Let us fly back,

my

good colleagues, as there is no end to the jet. The

shower is striking Mother Earth. Captain, don't you see
it?

CHAPTER

VIII

The Terrestrian Travelers are Invited

to the

Observation Tower.

Yes, my worthy colleagues, they fall in South Africa

on the same spot. There seems to be a strong pull for the
diamonds. Must be so. Terra firma, my good colleagues.
I have an idea.
let us go to the Ministry of Public Works.
The Chief Engineer
I shall see if I can work it out here.
is then approached by the Captain and the drawings are
showed. He simply states.
"I will get these things out in five days."
However, he appears to be very much surprised. On
the following night, after the usual banquet, the State's

famous Astronomer invited the guests to the Observatory.

A TRIP TO MARS

40

The party walked through a-earern

tain.

soft,

purple

light

visitors, coloring the walls

thousands of ruby

at the foot of a

mysteriously

moun-

envelops

the

with a magic purple from which

stalactities

hang from

its

vaults.

square then appears, imprisoned by a circle of walls, measuring 20 feet in circumference and 1000 feet high. The
tower, elevating horizontally grew into a black diamond,

vaulted smoothly, having the shape of an immense telescope.

At the summit was a white diamond disc. The heavens

appeared to the visitors beautiful beyond description as
viewed through the huge telescope.
The mighty Planet Jupiter came into view in the direction of the telescope, presenting a spectacle such as the

eyes of the observers had never been privileged to behold.

The huge globe, ninety thousand miles in equatorial diameter, was equal in mass to three hundred (planets such as
our own globe. The huge ball glided rapidly but majestically onward through the sky, showing beautiful red,
brown and yellow shades of color. Jupiter presented itself and was a wqrld as different from our own as it is
possible to imagine.
Surface crust appeared with an immense flattened region. Then mountains of considerable
elevation came into view, extending as rings round and
round the planet, enclosing large canals of crystallized
water, forming currents of incredible speed. All in constant flux changed color under the silvery radiance and

surpassing brilliancy of the sun's rays.

vatory, Jupiter,

at

first

From

the Obser-

strongly reminded the

Norway on Mother Earth. A second

showed Jupiter had cultivated land, and on

observers of streams of
glance, however,

glance,

A TRIP TO MARS
was seen to have large
Every house appeared

a third glance Jupiter

of Gothic architecture.

structed with several

towers,

41
cities built

to be con-

adorned with innumerable

statues.

The observers gave a sigh of regret, mixed with a

generous amount of surprise. Too bad those mountains,
streams and beautiful cities were not distinguishable from
Mother Earth, they complained. It reminded the Professor
of the cathedral of Milan.

"If I did not know where I was," he declared, "I

would be endeavoring to locate Milan right there."
Rubeus smiled tolerantly. He had spent his young
days in Rome and he felt sure, he obligingly told his colleagues, that this large city was more like Rome than Milan
owing to the number of statues adorning the building.
This he said frankly, which made the Captain laugh loudly.
He pointed toward a region west of that which they were
observing and gave an exclamation of surprise.
"It is just like the hills in Latium, the valley of the
Sacco River, surrounded by low hills." "Do you see anything like people?" Good colleagues, asked the Captain.
Rubeus inquired

"Where

The Captain pointed to that part

which laid at the foot of the hills.
"By Jove," answered the Professor, "that is a procession of giant people." Rubeus strained his eyes to see.
""Well, declared he, that is a procession and a long
one too. Talk about our giants on Mother Earth, they
seem to be about 14 feet by 200 inches abreast."
"Exactly," answered the Professor. Our Astronomers
of the valley,

are they."

A TRIP TO MARS

42

on the Earth have gone into Geology business with their

and I haven't seen a thern' snake or
Brontasaurus to fear in this and the other world. Darwin
surely had a picnic when he claimed the derivation of man
from monkey. Boys and girls there, boys and girls here
and boys and girls over on Jupiter, that is all. Professor,
let us take a ride vp to Jupiter/'
"Why, Rubeus, those people are too big for us, we
would get licked. Do you know how we would look when
we reached there? We would look like five year old boys.
prehistoric animals

You don't want those people to play foot ball with us, do
you?"
"No, sure not,"
"Well then keep silent."
"Well don't get excited, Professor, you see that girl
looking at you? Let her look, perhaps she loves me."
"Love you, you bald-head." I told you to keep silent,
didn't!? "Yes."
Well, hush, then!"

"Oh you

kid!"

"What's going on boys?"

"Oh, nothing, Captain, we are

just joking!"
"Well, my terrestrial visitors, how does this giant globe
appear on your planet?" asked the Astronomer. "Answer
that, Professor," whispered Rubeus with a smile.
"Yes,
I shall answer that pretty quick.
"Worthy Doctor, said the

Professor,

it is

believed that the density of Jupiter aver-

ages about the same as the density of the sun.

It is as-

sumed from these

facts that Jupiter is largely in a gaseous

condition; but

is

it

known

that

it

possesses dense atmos-

A TRIP TO MARS
phere and in spite of

its

huge

On account

great rapidity.

size rotates

43

on

its

axes with

of this gaseous condition, life

"Why gaseous
an illusion of the
{planet s four moons, shining powerfully on the planet that
Well then, how does Planet
gives you such an appearance.
Venus appear on your globe? Planet Venus is more visible.
It shows mountains, oceans and rivers.
It is believed
from these facts that vegetation and life is possible. Look,
look, Jupiter is gone
there are two moons, exclaimed Rubon

this planet

is

believed to be impossible.

condition? asked the Astronomer.

It is

AVell

eus.

my worthy

terrestrian visitors

we

shall take a

glance at Venus at one o'clock.

Six hours were spent in walking along the luminous and

enchanting grotto, admiring the wonders of nature.
Sud-

denly the Astronomer announced that Planet, Venus, was

The party were seated. Venus

in a position of observation.

Venus, exclaimed the Captain.

Magnificent, great, answer-

ed the colleagues.

most striking structure of columnar shining rocks

hundred feet in
height, standing perpendicularly and presenting a picturesque appearance such as castles bathed by the flux of the
waves of the sea upon the flanks of this sharp ascent and
Elevated moutain ranges were seen,
abrupt precipice.
while a large river appeared snugly locked in the valley,
formed by other mountains. A second valley, at the foot of
a lofty mountain is seen, which is covered with eternal veg-

was

seen, crystallized into prisms several

etation.

Suddenly herds of thousands of Rangifer Tarantus are

seen running toward a lake.

Look, look, exclaimed Rubeus,

A TRIP TO MARS
herds of cariboos.

By

Jove, said the Professer,

men

are

running after them on camelopard's backs! Gee! those

giraffes can run, can't they, answered Rubeus.
Men! men
exclaimed the Captain. Yes, they are dressed in
like us
nice fur armed with spears.
One of the best gateways to another valley is seen,
which greets the observers as with a smile, peacefully resting by its lovely lake. There appears a curious city. From
the roof of the houses rise many beautiful towers ofi different forms, crowned with cupolas, resembling the turbans of
!

terrestrial Oriental giants.

The

effect of its coloring could

hardly be exaggerated. It is painted in all the colors of the

its cupolas either sparkle with gold or shine

rainbow, and

with brightly tinted tiles. Thus purple, orange, red, violet,

green, blue, gold and silver are strangely blended here in
one picturesque mass, like fantastic castles
Its

pretty river

is

made

of jprisms.

crossed by arch-bridges, adorned with

numerous statues
One ofi the mountains, which almost casts its shadow
on the town itself, is about 5,000 feet in height, appearing
very harsh, cold and univiting, yet in reality containing ten
hills, or mountain meadows, upon which graze several thhousand head of blue fured sheep. The valley showed a natural
and wonderfully fertile productive plain, blessed with
charming climate and delightful scenery. Another ridge
of mountains encircles another valley.
This is the rainy season in the southern country. The
dense forests in this valley are in a mass of vapor, which
envelopes people in suffocating warmth, rivalling a Turkish
bath as a prespiration producer.

A TRIP TO MARS
Under

45

the thick foliage of this wood, a world of giant

birds are seen flying from branch to branch, being

nificent

birds of all colors, brillant

azure,

green,

magblack,

purple and the finest of red colors. The disposition of

their long feathers obliged them to fly at a height of thousands of feet against the wind. "Look, look," exclaimed

Rubens, with a surprised emotion.

Those ostrich birds are

What is wrong with
answered the Professor.

carrying young Yenisans for a flight.

your eyes.
"Can't you
tall

"X-ray/'
them," Professor?

Rubens,
see

pines over there.

By

Look

at the top of those

Jove, those lads surely hold on

Those birds are domestic fowls, said the

Their undulating flight, graceful aerial curves
and the shading of* their colors attracted and charmed the
to their bridles.

Professor.

and their obedience to their young Yenian

Masters produced a great impression on them, and they
exclaimed. "This is the most magnificent spectacle." The
birds, carrying these young Yenians on their backs, at a
height of thousands of feet, bring in view distinctly the
the features of the Yenians. which were stricking similar
to our boys on our Earth.
In this southern region they were
nude, showing a genteel white skin, perfect form, beauobservers,

tiful features,

with long

wavy black

hair and brillant black

eyes.

Suddenly the Professor gave an exclamation of wonder,

looking toward a position west of the valley. At first it
was hard to see. Then, little by little, there unfolded before
their eyes a balloon in a very high latitude, in an almost
direct line with their giant telescope.
The balloon proved
to be a

huge hide bag, adjusted with two lon cylinders,

A TRIP TO MARS

46

two miner ones connecting and a larger

The whole thing proved
to be either, or aerial electricity, sucked by the side cylinders feeding the motor. The central one serving to suck
the air and the minor ones carrying compressed air, thereby enabling the occupants to steer the machine. Captain
Marchy said the other day that the air, surrounding a
planet, is chuck full of electricity, which Marconi uses for
bis wireless telegraphy and the Venians have adopted it to
run their dirigibles. "Viva the Venians! by Jove!" exclaimed the Professor, immensely surprised. I wonder if
the Venians are taking a trip to Mars like we did, said
Kubeus. They are not, answered the Captain. They cannot get higher than 45 miles, because the sun would burn
the balloon, Perhaps they have a metallic torpedo like
lateral-positioned,

central one with a strange motor.

nreoplanes for that purpose, adjusted with cooling gelatine

like our Aeriolus.

"Well, they have not yet reached Mars or Mother

Earth," answered the Professor. "Viva the Aeriolus then! "
said the Captain.

Viva, viva, cried the colleagues.

Venus

beneath them begins to show dense clouds, and further

vision is then cut off.
In one hour the satellite of the earth will be in view
also your planet earth.
You will be able to see people in
both planet and satellite. What! people in the moon?
Dont you think so Proffessor? "No I do not Doctor," the
sun does not heat the moon like the earth, there is no air.
"There is not such extinction of light, the whole heavens
one blaze of solar light, the universe is infinite there
]>s
i

no direction in space in which the visual ray does not

A TRIP TO MARS
encounter a
sure of
this is

47

star, light is material, sunlight exerts a pres-

many thousand

tons

upon the surface

termed the pressure of

gravitational field,

it

is

light, light

material,

it

of the planets,

ray

is

deflected in

reaches with the

same heat and light as on this planet everywhere/'

"How and thru which agency does the sun derive all
Why, Professor, the sun is a radium
this heat Doctor?"
planet.
It may be, but radium is disproved by the spectroscope.
It may be disproved by your spectroscope for
the reason that other chemical elements contained in the

sun absorbs the radium. That settles the whole question

I believe with you, the instruments we have up

Doctor,

there in the earth are inadequate, they do not detect things

like

your instruments.

the

moon

That vegetation and

Why, Professor?

impossible

is

life

Why,

exist

on

Doctor,

no heavy gases can be detected in the moon. Gases exist

in considerable quantities in the moon, carbon dioxide and
water vapor so essential to the growth of organism exist
in deep land and the people there have built ring-plains

and

profit

ring-plains.

by

Have

this system.

"Listen,

Why,

people are there?

walls of China?

Captain,

Yes.

Professor, have

Well,

Well, people in the

settles

Captain,

if

What

Yes,

kind of

you not seen the

them? People on

who built
moon built

the earth.
it.

built ring-plains?

ant-hills."

ring-plains, that

active volcanic vents do exist on the

moon as Maggini observed in 1916, there is a source of

supply of carbon dioxide and water vapor for the growth
of lunar organism in low-lying regions.
Certainly, Rubeus,
the walled plains, serve to mitigate the extremes cf heat
and cold

at closed levels,

The blanketing

effect

of th>

'

A TRIP TO MARS

48

carbon dioxide and vapor in our own atmosphere is well

known as agency to modify extremes ofi temperature, the
prepetual mantle of snow of the high plateaus of the moon
like on the Alps of the earth is modified by the walls, some
65 miles wide and some as wide as 100 miles. Why then,
Jule Verne thought that the moon w&s a death world?

My

good friend Rubeus, that great french novelist was

student of Flamarion's popular astronomy, Telescopes at

that time were of limited sizes but, at the present time

we

American
popular Astronomer Isabel Lewis points out modern dispossess telescopes as large as 100 inches and our

"Yes, Captain,

coveries.

have often read her popular

Astronomy on the Science and Inventions, "you read them

often do you?" "I read them over and over again, too bad
that Magazine does not come out weekly, I prefer to read
that paper than to eat, "So do I!,'
"Good for you
Professor

The
visitors,

'

Satellite of planet

Earth

is

now

in view,

"my

good

look in the reflector, as your satellite always pre-

sent the same side to

Mars

as our Earth, our telescope

is

now
it

adjusted to invert the disc of the moon, "you can see

upside down. There is a landscape at the base of the

mountain ranges.

"Desolated valley, "Captain, desolated

So it appears to you
Rubeus. "Rubeus is telling the truth Captain that is the
valley of death! "Cold Planet," death world! "What a
terrible scene those rugged mountains!"
Mercy, Domines,
Domine! "You seem to be terrorized Professor." Am I
not Doctor? "Be calm my dear Earth visitors," look down
deep in that walled plain, you will see something, "What

valley!

"No

vegetation whatever!"

'

A TRIP TO MARS
walled plain, that

is a

a walled plain.

"How

miles wide Captain, "

"Good God!"

great crater!

cultivated land in that crater,

wide

"no
is

oh, yes,

49

it

is

I see

not a crater,

that iplain Doctor?"

that

is

it

is

65

the Albategnius.

'

Look the caverns in side of the wall. "Where Captain?"

Look way down deep. "By Jove," I see little men sliding
up and down the walls, side way, head down feet upward
any ways. "Yes, Professor I. can see them even raise big
rockes way up to the top of the ream of the wall with a
small instrument. "Well Rubeus you have gained martian
X ray eye-sight. You can 't see him eh ? " Go way Rubens
"Why, Professor," can't you see that man raising that
mass up on that wall?" Well the little rascal! If that
'

'

don't beat anything

I ever saw!
"That's suspended graviyou Professor!" Is'nt though? "They wear
fur clothes don't they?" Yes, lion hairy clothes.
"They are
a sort of beautiful creatures are they not Ca(ptain?
Yes
Rubeus, "they look like our terrestian youths." Look the
whitish skin! "Doctor, how old you think that boy is?"
Boy?
"Why Captain, he is one thousand years old."
How do you know Doctor? "By telepathy." How do
they live such a long life?" There is more carbon dioxide
irf|he air and water in the moon, the effect of such chemical substances prolong human life, don't you know?"
Do
they feel by telepathy as you do?" Certainly they do."
now, smoke that in your pipe Professor. "Silence you,
you devil! "What's going on, boys? "Oh, this devil here!
"Rubeus, can't you behave? "Excues me Captain." "I"
What is it? "I am joking, that's all.
"Doctor, do you

tation

for

think that the people in the

moon can produce

sufficient

A TRIP TO MARS

50

crop in that round valley for yearly food?"

Certainly

"Besides the enourmous crop, there are fish in

abundance in the oceans and water birds to supply your
planet earth." Now look at that adjoining walled plain,
"Yes that's Hiparchus," well, that is 100 miles wide. "Do
Captain.

you

come out of their caverns? "Yes, by

"See how busy they go about their affair ?"
"By Jove the rascals walk suspended in the air. "Sure,
they wear anti-graitation shoes like us here in Mars."
"Doctor, who makes anti-gravitation shoes here in Mars."
see the people

the hundreds.

There is the shoemaker. "Who that big monkey over

there?" "Yes." "Well, boss,, will you make me a pair of
anti-gravitation shoes, so when I return to mother earth,
my wife can see me walk suspended in the air and think
I have turned into a devil.
Warrow rooowa. "What
"Domine Emanuel," he
devil of talk do you call that?"
makes shoes in your planet. Why,
is asking you who
Lyvia, do you understand the language of that monkey?
"Yes Domine, I can feel it." Feel it? How? "By telepathy, well, I'll be switched." Rubeus, what do you think of
that? "Ifi I stay in this planet a little longer I will be able
Next is another walled valley 115 miles
to feel it too."
,

w^de.

"That must be Ptolemaeus, the great walled plain."

Look at all the people down in that round valley, "they
are having a pinic, are they not Doctor?

"It seems that

"Gee, Iwish I could fly down there." You don't
think you are growing wings, do you professor? "Well,

way."
are

you Rubeus?"

"No,"

silence then.

See, to the northwest of this ring plain

is

deep lunar


A TRIP TO MARS
valley about 80 miles long, and

in places 10 miles wide

South from Ptolemaeus extends a long chain of great walled
There are ring
plains reaching to the southern border.
plains and craters.
" Where is the 50 mlies walled plain
Doctor?" There it is .wait I will adjust the reflector
Captain, " there it is now, how does it appear to you?"
"Wonderful," that's what we call Copernicus 50 miles of
ring plains." Look at the fertility oj that round valley,
there must be all kinds of fruit and gardens. Look at the
water fountains. By Jove. Rubeus there is a martian girl
flying around the ream of that wall, "what an angel!"
Here, Professor, this is Syrena reflecting in the glass,
"where is your head?" Why, is that you Syrena, God
bless you. how happy I am that you have not departed
from my side. I thank you Domine, I shall remain with
"Isn't she the most graceful creature Rubeus?"
you.
Do you like her? "Do I?" Too bad she is so young.
Young yes. she only made 500 nests. "Is that all?" That's
Why how old do you think she is? Oh, about 3000
all."
years old. Why. my wife in mother earth in only forty,
and is full of wrinkles. "My wife lost all her teeth." Is
she getting gray to? I hate to tell you. Ha, ha, ha ha
"What's the matter Captain, you seem to be somewhat

disturbed."

"Why,

"Oh!

my

collegues

are

acting

foolish."

Captain, they are getting younger," naturally, the

younger age makes them feel extremely happy."

Your Majesty telling me they are getting
younger!" "Certainly so, Captain." "Why, what makes
that?" "The the difference in the atmostphere, don't you
know there is more Carbon dioxide in Mars than there is
effect of

"What!"

A TRIP TO MARS
your planet earth." "The air we breathe, the water we
drink here renew and prolong life." "What!" Is that
why your Majesty is keeping young? How old do I apin

pear to you Captain?" "Oh, about twenty." Well, I was

forty when I departed from planet earth 1846 years ago.
Has your Majesty ever been married 1 "Not yet Capbut I am engaged to Vergil's old girl from Cumae."
The Captain did not want to be inquisitive but did not
comprehend the meaning for a Virgil who lived on mother
earth some 2000 years ago and whose girl, according with
the Historian Freccia, was the Sibil of Cumae who had been
dead nearly 2000 years. As Roman names were comon

tain,

throught Mars, the Captain passed over the subject but

was

quite unsatisfied.

"Your Majesty can

cipal channels

tell

me

running through

the

names

of the

two prin-

planet?"
names, but

this beautiful

"Captain, my people give them many

I
would be glad to give them some good terrestrian names
if you will propose them and my order shall remain."
"How would it be to call them Schiapparelli?" "Who
is he, an Italian?"
"Yes, your Majesty."
"Very well
Captain, Schiapparelli Channels shall remain."

Captain,

the small Island on the shore of this Observatory Hill

is

furrowed by three small rivers have you any good names

for them?
"Yes, I have your Majesty, Flamarion is one."
Who is he a Gallian? "Yes, your Majesty he is a
French Astronomer." "Very well, Captain. Flamarion
shall remain, and the second and third are Pickering and
Lowell." "Who are they Captain?" Your Majesty they
are two American Astronomers.
"Is America a new


'

A TRIP TO MARS

53

it was discovered by an
you departed, it is situated on the western
hemisphere." "Oh, yes. the land of my friend Seneca, a
big continent on the western part of the earth, there was
an Egyptian and Etruscan emigration to that country, in
early times, but they must have perished because it was
extremely hot on the southern part and cold on the northern

country;"

"Yes your Majesty,

Italian after

part of that gold country."

bad

as

"Why,

you Romans thought

Captain, Seneca thought

there, very fertile

So,

you wish

and rich

to

name

"Not

not Captain?

Is it

as

your Majesty."
good temperature

at that time

was

it

in gold.

'

the other two rivers Pickering and

Lowell, do you Captain?

"Yes your Majesty, very well

and Lowell shall remain." Now, your

Majesty will you let me name the Island? "Sure Captain.
Isabel Lewis.
Who is she, an American Astronomer?
"Good, Lewis shall remain.
"Say boss, do you wish to know who makes shoes in our
planet," "Men like us." You know why? "Because
according with Darwin's doctrine, the monkey is the ancestor of man, consequently man does the work and
monkey's stay at rest," "He is respected there, don't you
see." "Monkey's admirers over there, place us in prison
if we make a monkey do the work."
Isn't that the fact
Rubeus? "Yes, you bet, ha, ha, ha
then,Pickering

All off for the

The Earth
look

the

at

America

Captain."

is

Moon."

now

earth.

visible

my

"Africa!

visitors.

"South
"North America cried the
them all. Hurrah! hurrah! hurrah.

cried the Professor."

Hurrah, for

good terrestrian
cried

Rubeus. "
!


A TRIP TO MARS

54

as they looked at the different countries, there

was Africa,

south and north America, undulated by the ocean.

substratum

oi]

the countries

with numerous streams

The

showed mountains and plains

emerging from dark labyrinths

flowing into beautiful lakes which appeared so pellucid

that the boats seemed floating in the

Like children

air.

dance looking at a flying balloon, their enthusiam had now

"Mother,

reached the highest joy

hurrah for you

crying, Processor!
is

crying too

"What

'

me mother!" "Forgive me

"Bless

off!

all.

sister, brother, friends,

Good God, Rubeus

'

'
!

'

"Why

You
you

too.

'
'

should 'nt

Forgive

1,

me

45,000,000 miles

You

sister!"

Rebeus. "

wife

Ha

are

Captain
!

ha ha
!

that?"
Syrena heard you askha ha ha the devil she did.
"Sure, don't you know that she can feel your language."
"Didn't I make a fool of myself well enough ha! ha! ha
"That's enough now Rubeus."
devil

call

ing pardon from your wife

"All off for the Earth." It is late, let us go to rest,

The Captain and his collegues took
said the Astronomer.
oif\ their caps and bowed their heads in silent gratitude to
the Astronomer ,the King and his escort for their wonderful
Astronomical observation. The shoemaker that had gone
to the shop returned with three pair of shoes, and the terrestrian visitors were able to walk home suspended up in
the air through the streets adorned with luminous flowering
trees.

A TRIP TO MARS

55

CHAPTER IX
Hunting Trip

Emerald GrottoArtificial Rain

Luminus Flowers

It

was ten o'clock that morning when the Captain,

Let us get up, my good

rubbing his eyes exclaimed.

colleagues.

All right Captain, they answered.

see the

lovely plain of the forest, covered with fig trees, crops of

various kinds, flocks ofj birds, etc. Let us go hunting for

Yes Captain, the King is desirous of seeing us

their way toward the Aeriolus, they were
met by two escorts, carrying bows and arrows. In less than
half an hour they reached the forest, Birds were seen
Hying all around. The King's servants arrived, loaded
with provisions and twelve maidens, fire-keepers of the
forest chapel, welcomed the terrestrials with the most
The grotto of the Nymphs was enenthusiastic cheers.
This great cave consisted oi a lava-like mass at the
tered.
base, with two ranges of red emerald columns resting upon
it, which presented to the eye an appearance of regularity
almost architectural, supporting an irregular ceiling of
diamond rocks. This grotto was accessible by a narrow
entance but the landing was level. Aftes a series of cura change.

joyful.

On

vations, the travelers arrived at the Great Hall, the sides

and roof of which were covered with immense incrustations

The purity of the surrounding stone,
of precious stones.
and the thickness of the floor of the water stream, called
by the terrestrian visitors la Seine, could deposit all mixTall
tures, and gave to its stalactites a beautiful splendor.

A TRIP TO MARS

56
pillars

stood in

many

places free, near each other, and

from them
Along the hallways

single groups of stalagmites endeavored to prove

the petrification nature in diamonds.

and around the great

hall were luminous plants, so called

on account of the brillancy of their leaves. They had all

the singular properties that their leaves recede from shadow

human

human footstep. The

downward, as fastened by
hinges.
These plants all had winged leaves, each wing consisting of many small pinnae.
The grotto was always illuminated by these beautiful plants, and the various colors
produced by the hanging stalagmites of emerald is beyond
of

human

humble

figure,

voice and

sensitives instantly fell

imagination.
It

was

in this 5 mile

wide grotto that the terrestrian

travelers first observed there existed, in great abundance,

on Mars a genus of fossils, emenating from the ground a

vapor that becomes on JfHre in the air, burning with a redish flame in great splendor, but not burning one 's skin.
Be
not surprised, said a beautiful Nympth, to Captain Marchy,
if in our planet you should find trees producing luminous
Examine this nut. Light is shut up in this shell, it
fruit.
The trees, which adorn our city
will shine at night-time.
squares, produce such luminous fruit in every season. Be
not surprised, Captain, if in our planet you should find a
way of boiling the water without fire, said another Nymph,
with a graceful smile. What exclaimed the terrestrian
!

Yes yes, my terrestrian visitors, you know

that there is an immense ring around the Equator. Well
that same ring actionates on the metallic rings or fan-like
circles adjusted in the wells of our houses and in the lakes
astonished."

A TRIP TO MARS

57

and everywhere.

The water has all the singular properties

it is put under an energic and continuous mechanical action. Whenever hot water is desired
a valve is pressed.
The ring strongly and uniformly
agitates the water, which soon becomes tepid and gradually
comes to boiling point. This is a systematic means of regulating temperature, besides what Nature adjusts itself.
Wonderful planet, wonderful creatures, exclaimed the terrestrians.
Worthy Prophetess,your knowledge is so in
teresting that one would believe in a paradise if you could
locate it in some star in the infinite.
"Well Captain, said
the Nymph, with a smile." When you direct your prayers
to the Creator, how long does it take you to get a reply?
Thirty-five minutes, Nymph. Very well, human mind is
to develop heat

electricity,

is it

when

not?

Yes,

Nymph.

How

long does

it

take

from your planet to another. From

Earth to Jupiter, 35 minutes. There is Paradise Captain,
in Jupiter.
I believe with you worthy Prophetess.
Jupiter
has no seasons in our sense of the word, since his equator is
inclined but little more than three degreese to his orbit.
Thus a prepetual spring reigns all over his surface. A
planet under the condition of perpetual spring, which is
usually the most pleasant portion of our year, leads to a
or electricity to travel

state of things such as

What, Jupiter,

rest.

with

sigh.

we may
a

Possible,

find so agreeable to eternal

Paradise planet?
said

Asked Rubens

Professor Emanuel.

Jupiter

exceeds our earth 1,230 times in volume, and more than

300 times in mass.
lected

This magnificent orb was rightly

by Astronomers

as

the

crowning

proof

of

se-

the

relative insignificance of the earth in the scale of creation.

A TRIP TO MARS

58

Captain, they say on Mother Earth that a terrestrian

on Mars could run faster than the best of our terrestrial
athletes.

"Well, Rubeus, try to leap over that 12-foot emerald

wall/'

"By
Now
How

Jove Captain,

it is

not easy."

run.
this for speed?

is

"Slow."
"Captain, here

What kind

is

is

this,

Nymph

with some strange fruit."

Professor?

the

"Captain, this fruit has butter enclosed in its shell."

This is a very large nut, Nymph, as large as an orange
on our Earth.

Try the juice on the bread.

Where
Taste

is

the bread.

Why

no, this

is

melon.

it.

Good God,

this has

the real taste

oil

our terrestrial

and has the flavor of our best butter.

The light, emanating from the plams growing along
ihe river Seine, produced a thousand charming varieties,
read,

playing in the joists of fantastic architecture of the grotto

were

1b at

At

so vididly colored.

last,

after

walking

four hours,

the terrestrial

visitors entered into the forest that was enlivened by the

songs and flight of a large number of pheasants

the thick foliage of this
birds

and under

of those magnificent

The travelers were attracted and

and graceful aerial curves and shadof their feathers.
Under the numerous shrubs

appeared.

charmed by the
ing of colors

wood a world

flight

A TRIP TO MARS
and trees that grew on the earth, and under their shadows,
were massed real bushes of blossomed flowers, from which
red and green little birds flew from branch to branch like
It was an immense forest of ena swarm of butterflies.
ormous trees, united by garlands of elegant foliage, all
adorned with red veil crape and luminous fruit. They
passed freely under the high branches of the trees, lost in
the shade

of the

crapes,

while at their

feet, jessamines,

formed a carpet ol5 flowers of an indescribable beauty.

They occupied, in this place
an emerald
lofty
house surrounded by the
foliage of the forest.
The
little luminous fruit of the ferns threw over this transparent house little sparks, reflected by the emerald walls
in violet, red, opaque, green and yellow tints.
Under the
transparent floor gold fish fled on all sides, while their
retreat was thus being disturbed by the foot-steps.
"Look! look! exclaimed the Professor, that artesian
liles

and

violets

well furnishes

"Yes

warm water."

Signor, said the

Nymph, every

large house in
heated by water from
artesian wells." "Most of the wells are 2000 feet deep."
"They furnish a steady temperature, fountains of boiling
water are found everywhere." "There is an immense
spring in the North that is so hot that people cook their
this

planet and the big grotto

is

provisions in it."

Look look that well out there throws up a column of

white powder, there is another one throwing up a mingled
!

white and redish powder to a height of 1000 feet.

That is an indication of fog and rain. Do you see the
mass of clouds. Soon thev will become condensed into

A TRIP TO MARS

GO

water and will

Yes,

By

Jove,

elements.
acid,

fall in rain.

Nymph, but
I

that powder cannot be magnesia.

have a pocket Spectroscope. I shall detect the
Ah, those substances form magnesia. Citric

bicarbonate

of

soda.

The elements dissolved

into

humidity of dense fiog forms clouds of steamy vapor and

soon fall in rain-drops.
"You see," Signor, said the Nymph, whenever rain is
desired, a valve is pressed, uncovering the metallic lid
over the powder wells, and a tube, actioned by the equatorial

motion, blows out the powder with more force and rain

adopted when fog is floatAh, exclaimed the colleagues.

That could be accomplished on the earth by
disseminating magnesia powder on the fog with our aeroplanes.
About ten minutes later a torrent of rain fell,
and began violently beating like melodious music on the
walls of the house. The sunlight produced a thousand
charming varieties, shining through the transparent walls.
The horizon grew lighter and lighter. After two hours of
is

so obtained.

This means

is

ing near the surface of the land.

violent rain the terrestrian colleagues followed the

Nymph

emanating odors
delicious and restoring, offered a journey in its blossoming
meadows and bushes, which seemed to say "come along,
come farther." Birds got up from the bushes like butterflies.
Charmed by the immensity of beautiful birds, five
days passed rapidly away. On their departure, a world of
pheasants, flying from branch to branch, under the thick
foliage of the bushes, seemed to say.
"Farewell, forgetme-not."
into the

forest.

carpet of

flowers,

A TRIP TO MARS
About one mile
huge rock, with

its

imagination of the

rock
of

is

known

off this

charming wood an arch of

fantastic sha^pe pillared,

visitors.

61

The formation

excited the
of this

huge

as chondrules, oval-shaped, about the size

an orange, appearing in many varieties of

stone, which
The chondrules
the rock that they would

are abundantly found in terrestrial rocks.

embedded in
with a
scraped
when
away

were

so

loosely

According to Proknife.
chondrules
were originally
opinion
the
Emanuel's
fessor
internal
structure
their
fiery
rain,
and
molted drops, like
meteorite.
depends on the conditions of cooling of the huge
There were white and red round marble stones, which are
usually found in terrestrian soil. Rubeus was seen scraping, with unceasing activity, something resembling a bionze
After half an hour of hard labor the case fell, the
case.
cap fell off and number of little silver coins were strewn
on the ground. The presence of these coins strengthened
the belief that the huge meteorite was a fragment of other
worlds and such a world must have been the Earth at the
fall

time of the catastrophe.

Nymph, who was claimed

to

be 5000 years of age, was questioned on the subject. She

stated that one day, when she was anly a child, during a
tempest, the rock
rattle of artillery

fell, which produced a noise like the

and similar to the rumbling of thunder.

One thousand years later, a dagger, bearing the Latin name

of Caprys, was scraped out of the rock, bearing the effigy
of a human head and a cross.
Such is the effigy on these
exclaimed the terrestrians with enthusiasm.
" Etruscan coin," cried the Captain. This meteorite

coins,

was blown out by the volcano

of Roecamonfina,

howled

A TRIP TO MARS

the companions with astonishment.

The party returned, safe and joyful. In the engineer's

found two huge shells.
"Ah," cried the Captain, jumping up at the sight of
shells.
The chief engineer approached the Captain with

office the Captain

his

a smile.
There are your shells, Captain, The Captain warmly grasped his hands.
Conversation soon became interest'

'

'

ing,

'

principally to the interrogations, which the Captain

and the engineer answered with great

Give us

a<n

explanation of the

readiness.

shells,

Captain, cried the

party,

CHAPTER X
Radio Telephony to the Antipodes of Mars
Captain Marchy answered. A new era that will cause
the globe to be enveloped in radio oscillation is demonstrated in that shell invented by me. This invention actually
brings true the dreams of our Earthly friends.
Marconi and Tesla, who have predicted that the day
would come when wireless waives would encircle the globe.
I have invented that shell equipped with a wireless transmitter, adjusted to a receiver.

The

shell is adjusted

a wire projecting through a hole as used on

transmitters.

shell, becoming
and round it for

This

travelling round

common

with
radio

a satellite of this globe,

eternity, could be used

by
The electro-magnetic gun, used by the
Martians, is similar to the gun invented by our terrestrian
friend, Professor Bfrkeland, and works by the equatorial
as a transmitter to encircle this Planet Mars, governed

the etheric waves.

TRIP TO

MARS

63

motion, thus offering the best facilitation for ejecting

my

on high trajectory into space.

Three cheers for Captain Marchy 's invention. Hurrah
viva, bravo.
"Let us try it. Captain," cried the party,

shell

enthusiastically.

"My

40 inch cannon

is

ready, Captain," said the chief

engineer.

All right.

King and

Viva, bravo, answered his colleagues.

The

his escorts stepped out to the square desirous of

seeing Captain
the globe Mars.

Marchy 's

shell

grazing as satellite round

Yourself in person should shoot

it

Captain,

up my worthy friends ready Look, look,

disappeared no more
Shouted the King.
No, my good colleagues, take these two radio apparaThe Aeriolus flies uptus and carry them to the Aeriolus,
wards 45 miles and in less than one minute reaches the antipodes of Planet Mars. Rubeus, you land here with your
radio apparatus until we get back. "Yes, Captain." The

Look

straight

Aeriolus

Mars.

is

flying at the extreme west point of the globe

Professor Emanuel, you shall land here with your

radio apparatus.

All right, Captain.

Captain Marchy

flies

back to the place of departure and descends.

Now, your Majesty, chief, and Martian friends, if the
shell was fired on proper trajectory it has by this time be"
come a satellite of this globe of yours Mars. Look at the
Should it move. It is a
radio apparatus in the Aerilous.
Telegram.
Drrreeeee.
A message from Rubeus.
success.
Viva, ave. Rreeeee. A dispatch from Professor Emanuel.
Viva, bravo, cried the Martians. Radio communications
soon became exceedingly frequent during the whole day,

A TRIP TO MARS

64

At sunset they took

the Chief Engineer for a ride and

they descended where Rubeus was sitting by his radio apparatus.

my

good colleague Rubeus, how did my messages

clear, Captain.
I think your invention
is worthy of the 20th Century.
Do you think so, Rubeus?
Yes, I do worthy Captain. Let us go and get Professor
Emanuel. The party then flew west and landed near the
Professor. Well, my good colleague, were my dispatches
clear? Yes, very clear Captain.
You have certainly invented a satellite worthy of having around any inhabited
world. Let us go back, my good colleagues, his Majesty is
waiting for supper. The Aerilous landed at the square
and was welcomed with loud cheers. During supper the
Astronomer entered, announcing the discovery of a new
Martian satellite, but when he was informed of the Captain 's
invention, he cried. "You have created a satellite/' You
are worthy of great consideration, Captain.
God be with
you. Thank you Doctor, and I now will ask you when
is the best time to direct his Majesty's artillery toward
Planet Earth. Artillery? Yes, one of your huge 40 inch
canons. "Planet Earth is in full view early in the mornVery well. When is
ing, answered the Astronomer."
Planet Jupiter in full view ? Planet Jupiter, having a force
316 times greater than Mars, this giant planet would arrest
my magnetized projectile and in capturing it the Jupitians
could telegraph to us and we would telegraph back to them.
In this case, as said, the shell would not become a satellite
of Jupiter, forced to travel round and round it, as it is
magnetized, and would, therefore, be attracted by that giant
Well,

reach you?

Very

A TRIP TO MARS
planet and naturally our cousins up there would at once
press the button on the side of the projectile and the
message would be received on our wireless station. Similar
shells could be sent to Planet Venus, Neptune, Moon and
other planets. The only difficulty would be the possibility
of interplanetary communication by wireless telphony and

telegraphy

is

the interpretation of languages.

tion of the languages?

Interpreta-

Interrupted the Astronomer.

Captain, your worthy Sibyl of

Why

Cuma

has been with us for

thousands of years, and she can prophesy and foresee the
complicated code called diversity of language, anticipating
speech transmission, thoughts and ideas of dwellers, provided there are any in other planets. This Prophetess

The terrestrian
The
king interrupted, saying. Yes, my good colleagues and
terrestrian visitors, my presence here is due to our Sibyl.
My departure from Mother Earth was a frightful catastrophe, but my accension in the infinite was miraculously
brought about by the divine hand of our Sibyl. The Sibyl
introduced our Latin language here and it was universally
learned and adopted. Whenever we consult her we never
fail.
My nativity was casual in the temple of the Sibyl
and my mother offered her infant to the Sibyl. She has
protected me ever since and I am in debt to her for my long
life and my existance in this heavenly world.
The Captain,
with soul still excited from the emotion produced by the
account of the King, was suddenly shaken by the exquisitness of a woman entering the hall, followed by twelve
young pages.
should be consulted on this great occasion.
colleagues looked

at

one

another

in astonishment.

A TRIP TO MARS

66

"Ave, ave," cried all. Laudem Sibylla,'' cried the

"Ave, ave, " cried all. The Sibyl was soon seated
on a high blue emerald chair, showing the most majestic

King.

exquisitness of a terrestrial princess, but of supernatural

beauty.

CHAPTER XI
The Sibyl Interpretates the Answer from Jupiter
Captain Marchy bowed and said. Ave Sibylla, do you
know who I am? Yes, you are descended from the Rubeus
family,
Selve.

principality

You have

of

Parma and

the noble

ancestors and have created a

of having in the infinite.

natural

new

At

dukedom

the late

satellite, a satellite

this

moment you

are thinking

of communicating with the people in the Moon.

few people

there,; as there is little

of

your
worthy

disposition of

atmosphere.

There are
Vegetation

is just beginning and life is consequently commencing, but

proceeding gradually. You must increase through birth
in that planet, by pointing hundreds of huge cannons toward that planet and continue shooting hollow shells, loaded

with magnesia, adjusted to burst up there, which will form

nebula, or fog. The Moon then wrapped in this mass of
atmosphere will cause vegetation and life to sprout up.
At the present time human life up there is in its infancy,
people are puppet-sized but are perfect human creatures
dwelling in caverns. Animal life is small. Oak and pine
You are thinking of shooting a protrees are like herbs.
Jupiter.
The projectile is loaded with a
jectile up into
apparatus
and will communicate with the
radio telephone

A TRIP TO MARS

67

Do so, and if they answer I will

Captain Marchy, encouraged by
the Sibyl, steps out doors with the chief engineer and was
followed by all the public. The Astronomer pointed at
Jupiter and the Captain fired the shell. No roar was heard
as the electro-magnetic gun produces no noise.
After
fifteen minutes the Aeriolus telephone started, Dreee.
The
telephone is ringing, many shauted, full of enthusiasm.
Then Sibyl flew to the Aeriolus, followed by the Captain,
giants of that huge planet.

interpret their language.

the

King and the

Well,

who

is

public.

this talking?

Juvinus, the Astronomer of

What

Planet is this? Planet

have received a shell and wish to learn from
where it was sent. It was sent from the people of Planet
Earth, who came to Planet Mars for a visit. Your language
Yes, T
is similar to ours, how do you account for that?
speak your language, you bet I can. Well then, we can
communicate with you every day. No you can not. Why?
Because your planet will not be in direct line with our
planet, consequently the electro-magnetic flush, between
Why do electro-magnetic curthe two planets will cease.
They certainly do. We have
rents carry dispatches?
tried to signal with Planet Earth time and time again, but
we have never received any answer. Well can you locate
the point on that planet where you have directed your
signals? Yes, in a desert near the equator. Yes. T know.

Funclis Observatory.
Jupiter.

Yes.

We

in a region called Brazil.

Say. Doctor,

of inhabitants on Jupiter?

me

what

billions.

is

It

the
is

number

ruled by

Yes. Very well,

is it not?
you?
will
next
October,
again
Sure I will.
up

several emperors and Kings,

ring

Five

A TRIP TO MARS
Good-bye. Farewell.
Captain, the Jupiters have made use of an electric curYes,
rent to communicate with you on Mother Earth.

we have noticed it, but were not able to

Too bad, answered the Sibyl. Well, when you
return to Planet Earth, as you are familiar with occultism,
take five deep breaths and direct a mental communication
visualizing me then I will give you an inspiration of how
Will you do that,
to create an electrical current signal.
Captain? Yes, my worthy Sibylla, I shall do so. "Worthy
Prophetess.,, we read in Pulibius of your high knowledge
worthy
answer

Sibylla,

it.

spherocity

concerning the

of

our

planet

Earth.

"Did

you really prophretize the rotundity of the earth in the

same way that Galileo proved to be true nearly two thou?"
sand years after w ith the invention of his telescope
"Certainly so, Captain." As the elements of matter of
which the farthest star in the universe is composed are the
same as those which makes up all worlds, the laws which
govern this world of Mars govern all worlds. My account
of the creation ofi all the worlds were inspired by the same
creator

who made

The earth was

the planet Earth.

at first in the

darkness and deep in

the infinite, far, far off from the sun, the earth

was a

fro-

zen semisphere.

The hand
ness and cold.
r

God uplifted the planet earth from darkWith the first motion of rotation under the

ofi

sim's rays light appeared and at last heated.

name

of that planet

was Opus.

yet attained the consistency to

land and water, at

last,

The orginal
The Earth (Opus) had not
keep with raging between

Tules, a glowing star lashed into

A TRIP TO MARS

69

fury by magnetic attraction, traveling at electromagnetic

speed billions of miles. Tules running swiff ty in the region of the sydereal ocean furrowed by Saturn threw up
along its journey intermittent massives of huge rocks from
Planet Saturn whos' rotation was as
its tremulous body.
swiftly as a spin caused the thousands of rocks

thrown by

the trembling Tules to rotate ring-like, forming a circle of

moons shining as brilliantly as do now

earth.
As Tules continued to approach the syderal ocean floated by the earth, a time arrived when the atmostphere of the earth was not sufficient
several thousands of

the

to

moon on mother

support the clash

of|

the falling star, thus a fierce conflict

was raging between the atmosphere and the falling star.

At last Tules triumphed, and the Atlantic ocean became
the cradle of Tules. Hence, this enormous clash, dislocThe earth, trembling teriobly, huge
ations were made.
crevices were opened, and the surface was furrowed with
enormous clets and cracks, and torrents of water were
poured in fiery floods running over the entire globe. Thus
a struggle of the children ofj God was raging between life
and death. Finally water triumphed and the flood became
universal.

The unbroken extent of water between the western

shores of Europe and Africa and East Indies, at

last,

Atlan-

which was situated between Spain and extended

tis
as far as Iceland, was swallowed by the wktets and Tules
rose fr'om the bottom of the ocean.
One hundred lucky pair were saved in the hollows of
trees closely tied together as a flat barge, floating on the
water for many days following the flight of millions of
an

isle

70

MARS

TRIP TO

At last the new world Tules was safely reached.

Hundreds of years had passed, news was spread quite
widely in Egypt and Persia by the report that the new
world presented a scene of sylvan beauty. The prominance
of its mountains, the fragrance of its flowers and the abundance of ist delicious fruit was phrased in the songs of some
Persian Poets, and in Geography, the Etruscan masters
named the new continent Columbae, which denoted (the
doves.

land of the doves.)

''Worthy Prophetess,"
the emotion produced

"My

my

soul

is

in vibration

astonishment dazzles the sentiment or

my mind
moment

finds no
to

prompt words

listen

to

to express

your angelic

admiration.

my

continent

companions and

The origin of that part of mother earth

now

called America,

immensley, because, some five

that country

was discovered,

hundred years ago, when

it

should have been named

Infiact,

descended from one of the most distinquished

Italy preserves the first

name

of

We

map

to that

certainly pleases us

Columbia after the dove name of Columbus.

a lucky

Dukedom

of

of that country bearing the

Columbia Settentrionalis,

and Terra

Allow,

'

and particularly the name given by the ancients

new

by

my spirit and
my fortunate

devtnities.

Prophetess the respect and devotion of

my

still

by your heavenly inspired eloquence.

Columbia Meridinalis

dei Fiori.

thank you worthy Prophetess, we thank you.

A TRIP TO MARS
CHAPTER
Captain Marchy 's

New Projectile

71

XII
to return to

Mother Earth.

Now your Majesty, worthy Sibylla, my able engineer

and good public we shall take a trip to mother earth in a
huge shell, made by the able chief engineer, provided, the
worthy Sibylla will press the button. Yes, Captain, I will
press the button for you. How long before you will start
Captain, exclaimed the King. We will leave the Aeriolus
here with your Majesty and shall return just as soon as the
electric current is flushing in direction with Mars.
A screen was placed between the magnetic gun on the
ground to nullify all gravitational effects by means of aerial
ether.
The metallic screen no longer acting like a sieve
was unable to pass magnetic lines of force, but absorbed
them.

What

is

that screen for, chief?

Well, Captain, any

object placed above the screen, no matter

how

high above

become weightless. It will have mass but no weight.

Look this five ton weight lead ball, is suspended above

it,

will

the screen.

Yes,

it

stays freely suspended.

If the

sun

nr

other planets were overhead the ball would immediately

skyward, due to the attraction of the sun or planet

When the planet Earth is overheads- the- ball
will rise by the attraction of the earth, but it^an be stopped
by another electrified screen, placed high like an umbrella,
then the ball will stay readily suspended in mid-air. The
current was gradually reduced, when the gravitation made
itself felt again, and the lead ball settled down gracefully.
rise

overhead.

A TRIP TO MARS

72

The Captain and his comThe door was closed and the
The
shell was placed at the breech of the 40 inch gun.
Sibyl pressed the button and the engineer raised his hand.
The public

cried,

"Farwell. "

panions entered the

shell.

''Look, look," said the Astronomer.

is

in direction

with Mars.

Just in time, the earth

After four minutes the projectile

descended at 40 miles from the surface of the earth, which

of the limit of/ the earth's atmosphere.
met air currents of such high velocity
the
aviators
There
that they were not able to make use of their engine, instead they practically shut off the power and travelled at
the air-speed of 25,000 miles in 24 hours.

was the region

CHAPTER

XIII

25.0Q0 Miles in 24 Hours by Traveling in the Air Current

By

Jove, Captain, exclaimed the Professor, I cannot

whether I
normal position.
tell

am

flying upside

Very

down, sideways, or in

my

brave colleagues, answered

the Captain, we are housed with oxygen tanks and atmospheric compressor to survive the extremely rarefied
atmosphere.
We are travelling on an air current, moving westward
with the rotation of our Mother Globe, which has a speed
well,

of 1,000 miles an hour, thereby giving an opportunity of

travelling around the earth in 24 hours and take a close

view of our satellite. That's it, Captain, I am desirous of

seeing our satellite in order to talk to her, answered Rubeus.

well, said the Professor.
Have you dropped the sat-

Very
ellite

high enough,

Captain.

Yes Rubeus,

dropped

it

A TRIP TO MARS

7^

50 miles from the earth's surface, and I saw it travelling

very rapidly with the earth's rotation. It will run around
the earth about 17 times daily for eternity. As Rubeus
watched our Mother Planet appeared, green with vegetation and gray with water, and the atmosphere looked
cloudy.
The Professor exclaimed. What is our Captain
doing Rubeus? I think he is working out another invention.
You see, there are a series of tubes externally exposed
on the turret. The engineer made him a combination of
concave mirrows, of various colors, for the sun's rays, in
order to collect and direct the sun's beams from the earth
to

on

Mars
its

Each glass had a letter cut

and the words were shown by a tact key like

for signal purposes.

disc

a typewriter.

Well, Rubeus,

do not think that the rays

can be switched back from earth to another planet. It

vanishes very close to the transmitter. It will eyh? Why

know

was not for the earth, which

would shine on another Planet
millions of miles from the earth?
They would shine on
Neptune, Venus and other planets? Yes. Well then, the
concave glass stops the sun's rays. They collect them and
direct them toward another planet.
Yes, if that was possible, someone would have used them by this time.
Why
don't you

that

if

it

stops the sun's rays, they

haven't they?
them.

Because they didn't know how

Now you

to

direct

are talking Professor.

Dreeeee, what

is that talking?
The Aeriolus Station.
you Captain Marchy directing .these beams of
various colored lights? Yes, who is this talking? The
Sibyl.
Oh, worthy Sibylla, I am very fortunate to be able
to communicate with you way down here near mother Earth.

Is

that

74

TRIP TO

MARS

Captain, will you direct your signals 40 degrees toward

North Pole? There they will shine on the blaojk

diamond rock mountain and every one will be able to read
your signal. By Jove, Captain, you have accomplished another interplanetary communication. I must congratulate
you. So do I, Captain, answered Rubeus. I thank you my
the'

brave colleagues, said the Captain smiling.

CHAPTER XIV
Radio Telegraphy and Telephony Encircle the Globe

Dreeee.

Labravecia.

Hello,

Hello,

Here,

Professor,

can you comprehend that language? Hello, what, Fiume?

Well do you think that the King of Mars is going to help
.you to keep Fiume if the D'annunzio do not want to give
Talk to him yourself, he has a telephone.
it
to you?
What? You do eh? Go to hell. What is wrong, Professor?

Well, Captain, this territorial

claimer

my

gets

goat.

Dreeeeee.

Hello.

The King of Mars?

Ring him up,

will. $oui

-Aeriolus Station, Aeriolus Station, Aeriolus StaNo. Aerious Station. No, no, no not that way, Aer-

tion.

iolus Station.

Well

say, I haven't

much time

to

waste with

Say, keep silent, or I will throw a meteor on your

you.

head.

What

is

wrong now, Professor?

kicking afaout Shangtung,

am no

for that Ching.

Oh, you kid.
angry with those antipodeans.

Dreeee.

Hello, Hello, this

gas Observatory.

Keep
is

Oh, that Ching

is

thern' plenipotentiary
silent,

Rubeus,

am

the senior of the Bour-

Yes, Captain Marchy.

What

are those

A TRIP TO MARS

75

beams of colored solar lights emerging from your frying

machine toward Planet Mars? They are solar signals.
How do they work? I have discovered a new stone, and
it does part of the work.
Bravo, Captain, when will you
land? Well, Doctor, we are taking a trip around the earth,
grazing round and round it like a satellite. We are using
no motor. The aero is holding on its wings and is running
by the air current, which is enormousely strong up here,
18 miles high. We could fly by this air current for eternity as a satellite does, but you know, provition and oxygen

We are only proving the possibility

around the earth, 25,000 miles, in 24 hours, that
is all.
At the same time, we are proving that at this height,
radio energy can encircle the earth, and that the antennas
are a thing of the past, as etheric waves surround the
atmosphere, enveloping it in great abundance, and whatever you get down there are jets emerging from this dense
stratum up here. Oh, you are navigating on the air current like mariners on the gulf -stream or ocean current, eh?
That is it, Doctor, but on acurrent of) much greater velocity.
Go ahead, Captain, and God bless you. It will be a
good lesson for future aerial flights. Good-bye, Captain.
Good-bye, Doctor. By the way, Captain, we saw a small
satellite drop in the infinite about five hours ago.
Have
you seen it? Drop into space? Yes. Oh, my poor satdoes not last forever.
of flying

ellite is lost.

Say, Doctor, in which direction did

Toward Venus! Captain.

What!

it

fall?

Captain, our satellite

is

exclaimed Rubeus in embarassment. Lost? said the

Professor displeassed. Yes, lost, my good colleagues! I

lost!

now acknowledge my

mistake.

At 50 miles

it

was out

of

A TRIP TO MARS
the earth's attraction.

It

was too

high.

If

it

would only

reach Venus the atmosphere and the rotation of that planet

it to become a satellite of Venus and if the
Venians have a wirelesss apparatus they could make use

would force
of

it

for their central wireless station.

Yes, that

is so,

ans-

wered the colleagues, afflicted by the loss.

Well, my worthy colleagues, let us eat some martian
food and forget it. That is what I say, answered the
Professor with a smile. This huge potato tastes like bread,
does it not? Said Rubeus. Exactly, answered the colleagHere is some buffalo cheese. It tastes like our gorues.
gonzola, does it not? Exactly, answered the colleagues.
Here are some olives and some figs. Good for you Rubeus,
said the Professor.
Now, here is some wine. Salute, salute.
No, more
It tastes like our good old chiandi, dosen't it?
like Barbera, answered the Professor.
No, more like old
California Zinfandel, answered the Captain smiling.
eh? Answered Rubeus, lookout. Pastor Swiny
Go'od
may see you. The devil with that tipsy fellow, I
will throw a meator over his head.
Meteor eh? Answered
Yes,
smiling.
meteor,
repeated
the Professor laughRubeus.
ing..

Well, Captain, suppose

Planet Venus and

it

your

satellite

we could telegraph

take for the message to get there?

The nearest

to her,

should

Asked the

of all heavenly bodies to the earth

only 236,000 miles distant.

reach

how long would

is

Professor.

the Moon,

Electricity travels at the rate

It would take a message 1%

seconds to fly from the earth to the moon, to Venus 2

oft

186,324 miles per second.

minutes 185 seconds, to Saturn

hour and 11 minutes,

to

A TRIP TO MARS
Uranus

hours

and 32 minutes,

minutes, to Alpha

Neptune 4 hours 2

to

Centauris 4 years.

19 hours and 12 minutes.

Captain,

77

4 months.

my

days

friend Caproni's

Supposing there was

vaeeuum between the earth and other heavenly
bodies, and his machine would fly, never stopping day or
night, how long would it take for the aeroplane to reach
other worlds? Asked Rubeus. To reach the Moon from
earth it would take 7 weeks from the earth to Venus 14
years to Mars 27 years to Jupiter 222 years to Saturn 452
years: to Uranus 963 years to Xeptune 1539 years and to
Alpha Centauri 14y2 million years. Well then, how long
would it take ftor your Aeriolus to fly from the earth to
other worlds.
Good God. Rubeus, you should know that
aeroplane can fly 200 miles an hour,

air instead of

the Aeriolus does

It

m*

fly outside of the air into

vaeeuum.

runs by magnetic electrical pull, or planetary attraction,

which minimum calculation

is

electric

at the rate of 186,324 miles a second.

from the earth

velocity,

traveling

"We made the trip

Mars

in 4 minutes and 21 seconds.

You
be our desire to take a trip from here
to the Moon it would take the Aeriolus 1% seconds to Venus
2 minutes 185 seconds and way down to Xeptune 4 hours
I hope you don't wish to go to Alpha-Centauri.
2 minutes.

know

to

that should

it

do you? I will tell you where I would like to go Captain,

answered Rubeus. I woud like to go up to Eros, where
would be able to lift a locomotive and train, weighing
1
684.000 pounds.

Yes, T too would like to do that: not up

however, but on mother earth, answered the Captain smiling.
Rubeus wishes to be a giant, eh? Said the
Professor laughing. Keep silen you. I ha.ve a right to tc
in Eros,

T8

haven't I?
Well,

TRIP TO

Oh, you kid

my

MARS

answered the Professor playfully.

brave colleagues,

let

us rest.

It

is

nearly

The whistling and roaring of the air current was not heard, and the travellers fell asleep.
The Captain was the first to awaken. Where are we?
twelve o'clock.

asked Rubeus. "Seems to me, Rubeus, we are five hours

from the equator." What we have been asleep until 4
o'clock.

Life condition

up

in this strong air current

and
The wind up here is ten times
more violent than the most terrible hurricane, such state
of things soon envelops one in sound sleep.
By Jove,
Captain, one of the windows is half open, said the Professor.
You see, that is what caused it, answered the Captain.
Drreee, Hello, hello.. Is this Captain Marchy? Yes
density of etheric waves.

Say, Captain, there

is

a terrible pestilence on the earth,

The United States Goverment

germ destroyer.
What is ft&ed by ''the pteople of Mars? Why, the people of
Mars do not suffer from any disease at all. The climate,
the water they drink gives them a healthy life, and you
know, they live very long lives. Whenever they get ill they
take marshy sulphoric baths in sweat grottos. The use
I would suggest the grotto sudorifero of
salt internally.
Monsulmano, near Lucca, Italy, and acqua di Montecantini,
and acqua di Fiuggi, also acqua caltarelle of Teano. Too
Good-bye. By
far off. Well then you shall have to die.
the way, Captain, when will you land? I don't know
whether I will or not. Why? If you people down there
are all sick, why should I land? Well you can't go back
Can't get back eh?
to Mars, Captain,
called

lias

Spanish Influenza.

of f eired'. 'One Million Dollars for the

A TRIP TO MARS
Dreeee. Hello, hello.

this

Is

Captain

Marchy!

Yes,

Say. Captain your solar photography transmissions are fine.

did you see them? On the rocky mountains

The images are colored beautifully and are very

Where

Yes.

of Alaska.
clear.

This

is

a fine solar

Thank

photography. Captain,

you. Good-bye.

The sun was now setting

in

the

eastern sky.

Five

hours were spent in answering questions to different telephone calls from ailparts of the globe. Finally the equator

was reached.

Well,

my worthy

colleagues, the circumfer-

YTe have travelled

having made the trip, grazing like a satellite.
in less than 24 hours, covering a distance of 25.000 miles.
From this height and in this calm region we can remain
immovable, simply awaiting the moment when the earth,
rotating underneath, should present a place on which we
should wish to descend, as the atmospheric strata revolves
with the earth. By Jove, I know where I would like to
descend and that would be in Toscany. and in case I should
get sick with the Spanish Influenza I could run to the
I would like to
grotto at Monsulmano and sweat it out.
ence of the earth has been reached.

around

it.

land in San Jose. California, in order to deliver my written

Bestory to myfriend Mtarcianus Rossi, said the Captain.
fore we select the place on which we wish to land it will
be necessary for us to ascend beyond the earth's attraction
continued the Captain. The motor was put in action for
the firt time, and the height of 30 miles was soon reached.
In this calm region the night was spent in reading the
Schiapparelli.
of Flamarion, Lowell. Pickering.

works

Capelli

and

the

story

of

"\Yells

At

five

o'clock

A TRIP TO MARS

80

morning

Rubens

was

awaken.
Rubeus,
answered the Captain, and in less than ten minutes the
The
shell aeroplane landed in the public park at Tokio.
Aeronatic Club of Tokio offered the occupants of the proCaptain Marchy
jectile aeroplane a delicious banquet.
charged the Secretary of the Club with a fold, addressed to
Marcianus Rossi at San Jose, California. The travellers
returned to the shell aeroplane and started in a westerly
direction for a second journey. The height of 18 miles was
again reached. The whistling of the west-bound current
was soon heard roaring violently and the 25,000 mile trip
was again accomplished in 24 hours. When the equator
was again reached, the Captain said. My worthy colleagues
we have again encircled the globe. We have successfully
travelled around the earth and have descended on its surNow, I am desirous of descending and returning to
face.
Planet Mars, not only to show the good Martians that we
have kept our promise, but to try the device given me by
the Martian Sibyl. Very well, Captain, but have you,
worthy Captain, sent your mental message to her! Asked
the Professor. Yes, I have communicated with the Sibyl
and she answered favorably. That's it, Captain, said
Rubeus. Why not descend to New York and let Professor
Birkeland fire our projectile straight up to Mars with his
electro-magnetic gun. Our shell, when once in space, would
receive a powerful attraction by Mars and in reaching its
atmosphere we could gracefully descend to the same place
of departure.
Next time, Professor, but now I shall try
equatorial
motion, Arc you both willing to go along
my
in

the

Captain,

let

us

descend

in

the

Japan.

first

Very

to

well,

A TRIP TO MARS

81

Good-bye terrestrian friends. Three

cheers for the bullet aeroplane. Hurrah! hurrah! hurray!

with me!

Yes, yes.

hurray.

Next morning

all

the newsboys on the earth were run-

ning and crying. "Extra! extra! all about the bullet aeroplane flying to Mars." People ofi all ages and conditions
There was
ran, pushing their way toward the newsboys.
a general movement. All were running, elbowing one another.
The crowds were increasing more and more in an
The news was printed in large
effort to secure the papers.
type and the notices astonished everyone.

CHAPTER XV
Captain Marchy Melts, Turkish Warships and a

German Submarine

While the news had reached the whole globe that the
had returned to Mars, thousands of cities,
slumbering under the darkness of night, were suddenly
awakened by brilliant sunshine. Men, women and children,

bullet aeroplane

dancing with joy, gathered at the squares to shake hands.

Music bands started to play. The streets, which had so
lately been dark and empty, were crowded with people.
Church bells suddenly caught the news and in a moment
all the antipodes were bell ringing.
Constantinople seemed
a carnival city; people rushed from their houses into the
streets and in their wildness had exchanged clothes.
The
husband would have the skirt of his wife, and the wife the
pants of her husband. Others had slipped on a boot and a

A TRIP TO MARS

82

wooden shoe and a slipper. A man would have

on his wife's apron and the woman would have on her husband's coat; a boy would be wearing his father's pants
and a man the knee breeches of his son. The asses were

sandal, or a

braying, the camels were roaring, roosters were crowing,

dogs were barking and cats were mewing. Thousands of
bats and millions of chatter bugs were flying. The chirping of the frogs in the marshes increased the joy of the
antipodes, who w ere thanking Mahumet with folded arms
r

for having turned night into

day and winter

into

summer.

In the excess of .joy,<an artiltery division, consisting of 50

nine inch cannons was pointed on Artaxata in Armenia to

massacre the ChristiansV suddenly a beam of

ing from
crater,

who

tlie<

light,

descend-

horizon^ skiniiig- like the blaze of a volcano's

was miracouftly directed over these

vicious Turks,

quickly disbanded and got to their heels, crying for

mercy.

w,ei|Gtffceen

few seconds later the 50 pieces of big cannons

melting in a heap of

^emanating clouds of smoke.

mushy

lava like substance,

The bursting of the munitions

was heard, with a terrific detonation, as for as Jerusalem.

Then three warships were seen, steaming toward the scene
of the disaster, when suddenly the beam of blaze was quickly
directed from the horizon and a terrible explosion was heard
and a heap of melting metal was seen elevating like an
island of volcanic lava.

Francisco appeared to be a city of wandering

The news was brought to shore that a German
submarine had been seen 300 miles off the Pacific Coast in
an attack on a British ship. Suddenly a beam of light,
shining from the horizon in full blaze, caused the ammunition to explode and the submarine was seen melting
Saij.

,,fl$ople.

A TRIP TO MAES
like a

83

heap of wax.

Bulletins were fastened on the

windows

of the

Cal-

announcing that the bullet aeroplane

was still spinning round the Equator at the height of 50
miles, and that Captain Marchy was speaking by wireless
ifornia leading papers,

telephone to the instructor of the baloon service of the

War

Department, who had ascended 29,500 feet, and who in

turn was telephoning Captain Marchy 's communication to
The communication read as Holthe San Francisco papers.
Amherst,
Professor Todd of
who attempted to get
lows.
into communication with Planet Mans by ascending 22,000
feet, was under the pressure of the strong air currents, consequently his emission of electric waves encountered cyclone air current at a height of 40 miles and was
perturbed.

Many

other bulletins were fastened on the windows.

This time the announcement was quickly repeated by the

Italian, French and Spanish papers ofl the Latin quarter,
the
captions SHALL WE ENJOY SUMMER
CLIMATE IN THE WINTER SEASON? Captain Marchy 's

under

sun blaze marks the nullity of the submarine, warships,

cannons and ammunition. Captain Marchy 's blaze makes
future wars impossible. Shall we enjoy sunshine at night
Captain Marchy will bring down a couple of Martians .and
the young generation will have wings. LeFranco-California fastened a bulletin with the caption of JULES

VERNE'S DREAM OF A TRIP TO THE MOON HAS

BEEN REALIZED.

El Pueblo Espangnolo fastened an-

SHALL WE TRAVEL WITH THE

EARTH'S ROTATION? L 'Italia and La Loce del Popolo
other bulletin headed,

A TRIP TO MARS

84

both fastened bulletins headed. Dispatches from Capua

say that the fountain ofi youth can be found at Cumae in
the grotto of the Sibyl, where that Prophetess lived 1000
years.
In reading this news, hundreds of old people threw
their canes away and hastened to the steamship offices,
shouting joyfully "Viva la gioventu." Columbus Avenue
was black with old people, running and running. A regiment of infantry was sent to the scene to keep order.
When peace was restored some of the people found that
they had mislaid their hats or lost their overcoats; others
had mislaid their boots and lost their caps. Children were

begging the old fathers not to depart daughters w ere crying and grandchildren were screaming. The blessings of
the wifes and the provocation of the sons-in-laws turned the
Latin quarters of San Francisco into a Babylon of conr

fusion.

CHAPTER XVI
The Martians shoot a

shell to the Earth.

\i everyone could have had a telescope they might have

seen another shell falling from the infinite. During the

confusion, created

by the joyful

event, a beautiful object

appeared in the sky. The astronomers at Lowell Observatory first saw it then Bourgas and finally Lick and others.
The object was not large but very brilliant, with a graceful oval form.
The Martians seemed to have calculated
their jet with mathematical accuracy.
The newspapers in
San Francisco soon learned that Captain Marchy had announced that the Martians had fired at us with their huge

A TRIP TO MARS
equatorial motion magnetic gun.

As the

85
shell

approached

the terrestrian air current at the height of 40 miles

it

set

and wires of the Astronomical ObservatorSuddenly the enormous velocity, with

ies palpitating.
which the shell was moving toward the earth, was arrested
by the air current, causing it to be violently shifed and
forcing it to graze around the earth like a satellite. Astronomers were immensely excited at the spectacle, but in spite
of what had happened, the shell suddenly transformed its
oval shape and extended a sort of a parachute. Captain
Marchy announced that the Martian shell was equipped
with a machine, generating electrical power from the air,
and that it was operated indefinitely without the apall

the needles

plication of other sources of energy taking the place of

all

power generators on earth. The shell, with

its electrical power generator, was runspeed of 2,034 miles per hour, passing the same

existing

the disposition of

ning

at a

point on the earth's surface twice in twenty-Jour hours.

People in the excess of their feelings started to teleto the andipodes in the search of a new central wire-

graph

less station,

but really this was the central station vibrat-

ing with the activity of radio bells and the ringer was
audible at every station.

An

interplanetary communication was started at the

in Paris and soon Rome was

with joy. The last bulletin was fastened on the
windows, under the caption, CAPTAIN MARCHY HAS

Eiffel

Tower Wireless Sation

set wild

CAPTURED THE FLYING SHELL AND

IS RETURNThis news set the people of San Franciso

All the street cars were filled with
in a walking spell.

ING TO MARS.

A TRIP TO MARS

86

The first rush was already over. Large crowds of old Italians were marching
to the Perry Station on their departure for Italy.
One old
man was walking very fast but making short steps, thinking
that he, by drinking at the fountain of youth, could be
turned young, and with this in mind, extended his hands
toward heaven and started thanking God, "Good-bye
grandpa, come back young cried little Romeo. Good-bye
Grandpa, repeated a parrot, busy cracking a peanut, This
peo.ple returning to their homes.

time the old Italian lost his patience, pulled his revolver

and aimed

at the parrot, but the bird

merely

cried,

"Good

"Oh, excuse me, Mr. Martian, said the old

man, I thought you was a bird.
It may surprise some people to learn that a thick
$LOwer of meteors fell toward the earth, about 50 miles
from the bullet aeroplane. The sky at Brazil, Guatemala
&nd Mexico appeared to be on fire with flying meteors.
morning, Sir."

In

many

places people

laid

prostrated

on the

ground.

mercy could be heard for a mile offj. Meteors fell

speed of 40 miles a second. One of the larger of these

Cries of
at a

massess, weighing several ounces, fell on the old castle of

weighed several hunsame elements

as the earth, and a scientist said that the sun. which is considered the mother of the earth, moon, Mars and. other planets, and the meteors are the same.
We see the result of
*fche uniformity of these laws in the world we inhabit; the
same Materials have produced organization and human life
similar'to these on the earth in many other .planets.
We have detected in the sun many of those substances
Casteltenanco near the tower and

dred pounds.

It

was found

it

to consist of the

A TRIP TO MARS
that form so large a part of the earth's crust.

The follow-

twenty-two elements have been detected: Sodium,

calcium, magnesium, iron, chromium, nickel, cabalt, hydrogen, maganese, aluminum, titanium, palladium, vanadium, molybdenum, strontium, lead, uranium, carium,
cadmium, oxygen, carbon, silver, tin. etc.
The uniformity of law and matter is proof that there
must be through the universe organizations similar to those
We must suppose that chemical chanof our own system.
ges have a certain fixed composed materials, like all natural
objects, one planet having larger deposits oi silver, mercury and iron, another more diamonds, rubies and -saping

phires.

CHAPTER XVII
Gold Fish
reflected

skin,

azur eyes, green hair ,Martian maid

from the Martian

may

shell thru the

is

stream of light

surprise some people to learn that the shower

formed the fragments of some comet that had
been recently changing its path, coming nearer the earth.
The Astronomical Observatory of Florence /ohsasw/ed
the Martian shell, passing through space, had forced the
meteor (Phobus) to descend within 100,000 miles from the
earth's orbit.
The French Astronomers were assume dj^at
this movement was a consequence of the .attraction of the
superior magnetic pull of the Martian shell, and finally,
its rotation would be capable of producing light, which it
would receive from the sun and that it would shine brilliantly, rivaling that of the Moon, having a diameter of 15
It

of meteors

A TRIP TO MARS

88
miles,

tn fact about 8 o'clock that night the sky appeared

man had never been .privi-

a spectacle such as the eye of

leged to behold. This spectacle had just started when a

majestic blue light, larger than a rainbow, appeared on
the horizon, streaming up to the

new moon from the blue

Campanian shore.

grotto of the lovely Isle of Capri on the

Naples seemed to be mysteriously enveloped in this beautiful light and Paris appeared, presenting a vision such as
man had pictured it would be in paradise. The street
lights at London were extinguished in order that a better
view might be obtained of this majestic conical shaped
stream of blue, violet and red colors, flashing upward. While people were walking on their heels, admiring this new natural wonder, the Martian girl, flying in
the shell-aeroplane, was privileged by Captain Marchy to
brilliant

descend about 25 miles from the surface of the earth and

within the violet stream of light flashing to the new moon

from the earth. As the top and bottom of< the Martian
was now uncovered the round diamond bottom showed the Martian girl, who appeared to the eye of man on
Mother Earth scracely less beautiful than the best looking
angels depicted by Murillo. Her brilliant gold-fish skin
shell

vivid azur eyes, beautiful green hair, shining pearl teeth,

paradise bird feathers on her wings and her angelic figure

astonished

all

the people of the earth.

Unfortunately, the

new Moon Phobus

at

midnight mov-

ed upward, with an incredible velocity towards Mars, ceaseing to shine on the earth, and the azure stream of light

animating by the the blue grotto ol Capri ceased to shine

with it, and the Martian girl flew back to Captain Marchy 's

A TRIP TO MARS

89

bullet aeroplane.

No
sessing

one should be surprised

its

parts of the world

its

blue grotto.

when

new

People came from

and
renowned

latter

calm, as the opening in the rock

is

magic

air a

azure as well as

thousands of stalactites which hung* from

In Imperial times the

is

so

blue mysteriously enveloped the

soft

coloring the

pos-

satellite,

in order to see this lovely Isle

One can only enter the

the sea

small and low.

visitors,

the

original chemical properties.

all

spot,

if

Romans had

the

Its vaults.

mirrors, invented

by

Archimedes, large enough to reflect the entire persons and

thousands of soldiers were made to march in front of| a
large mirror, held in front of the blue grotto, and the flashing of pictures were sent to Turkey and Rumania on
trajectory.

The

Romans

were

able

frighten

to

nations and compel them to obey the laws of Rome.

Diurna acta and

the

authorized

were

news,

Publica acta Senate

sent

to

Emjpror

those

The

Journal, and

Constantine at

Constantinople, to Adrianus at Adrianoplus and to Mar-

cianus at Maricanoples. Virgil frequently alluded to this

system of sending messages and images by the Archimedes
mirror, but Freccia points out the light of the azur grotto
as sending station from Capri to Ischia,, to Rome and on the
same mathematical trajectory to Turkey, Rumania and

God knows
London and

if

the

Berlin.

direct signals

Had

were not sent

to Paris

the blue grotto the same chemical

properties at the present day this system of sending mes-

sages and pictures could be utilized to reflect letters on

the disc of the moon, as

was acomplished

in earlier times

A TRIP TO MARS

HO

and the news could reach everyman on earth with the cost
a penny
The air and the electricity in the Zodiacal lisrht, which
is caused by a ring of meteoric bodies, moving about the
sun in sufficient numbers, was increased bv molecoles or
dust from the shower of) meteors flying through the Zodiacal light and this offered the bullet aeroplane a good
chance to fly up to Mars, but this beautiful nlanet had to
get in line with the zodiacal light in order to be reached, as
space has no air planetary trips and telegraphv.
As Captain Marchy was spinning around the zodiacal
light, waiting for the world Mars, the Professor asked RubAh, this i delicious.
eus for a drink of acqua ardiente.
Yes Processor cactus up in Mars are better than they are
in Mexico, so acqua ardiente is better.
By Jove, Rubeus,
you are looking 25 years younger. Go away, Professor, it
is yourself that is getting gold fish skin and growing green
The first thing you know I will be
hair like the Martians'.
growing wings. I am anxious to return to Mars in order
to drink some more water at the fountain of youth.
It is
alliwater-'tff- youth up there, Rubeus, expecially in the Schiapparelli's channels.
Do you know why I am anxious to
return to Mars, Rubeus? I want to study the cold and
warm channel forming such steady delightful climate. You
know, Mars has less heat than the earth. Why, Profesof

sor,

that

is

easy to understand.

Mars

receives less heat

from the sun, more natural heat from its springs. There
you are. You are pretty clever, Rubeus, are vou not? Yes,
I know one thing that you don't know, and that is that a
cannon-ball, flying at the rate of one mile in five seconds

A TRIP TO MARS
would expend 3,400,000 years

continue
in

its

run 263,000 miles

than the moon.

order to reach the closest

14V2

will

Alpha

The car must

unceasing speed for more than 80 million years

Aeroplane would

many

in the journey to reach

At 30 miles an hour, a car

Centauri.

in a year, a little farther

91

fly at a

years would

it

star.

Yes, suppose a Caproni

speed of 200 miles an hour

expend

in

the the journey?

how

Why

million years.

tell me how old the people live to

Why, every year up there counts eighty-

Now, Rubeus, can you

be in Uranus?

four of ours, therefore, a child of 10 would be 340 years

old,

and

to

become

grandfather up trere you would have

Very well, now how about

Why, golden weddings up there would be celebrated when you would be 12,000 years old. Well, Professor, do you know how many moons there are around
to live 5000 terrestrian years.

Neptune?

Uranus?
ling

No.

from east

ignorant.

do not,

to west.

Well there are 4

satellites, travel-

Karamba, Rubeus, you are not

so

Here, here, boys, give up that dispute, turn some

gelatine on the walls of the bullet aeroplane, the sun

almost melting

is

and keep the mirror well covered before

some of those villages go up in flames. Very well. Captain
answered the colleagues. We must not use this mirror like
it,

the one employed by Archimedes at the sie^e of Syracure

and burn

vessels,

exclaimed the Captain with

a smile.

'

A TRIP TO MARS

92

CHAPTER
Return

By

Mars

Jove, Captain,

telescope

Yes, Processor,

good colleagues, we

to

shall

is

XVIII

Mars

now

through the
very clearly. My
I wish to call your

in line, look

can see

depart.

it

When the dial marks 40 miles off

Mars press the button and be sure that the
well extended. Very well, Captain. Good-bye

attention to the wings.

the surface of

wings are
Mother Earth, cried the Captain.

Oood-bve howled the

colleagues.

The Brass bands that had ceased

to play

when

it

was

reported that the bullet aeroplane had really returned to

Mars, again started playing, and continued until the whole

world was wild with music. Newspaper boys were running

and shouting.
Extra extra
I know where I am going,
said the youngest one, I am ?oing to Mars and grow wings,
!

'

'

lam."

'

Boston, Mass., July, 12, 1920

Dear Mr. Rossi:

Sometime ago when

I was teaching at the University

Santa Clara, in reading some of your works I found
them very original and noticed that you was a scholar
c.f

and close student.

Your manuscript "A TRIP TO MARS." keeps one
touch with the actual science of the present day, to
study closely and then take just the one step forward
which science is about to take. You illuminate the
you inspire many of us to take the road not only
path;
to your visions which seem becoming our facts, but also
to those which lie beyond.
A great many of Jules Verne's marvelous scientific
prophesies once thought impossible have come true.
You surpass them by illuminating the way with modern
means which were not discovered in the past century."
"You have discarded all the brutal imagination concerning the inhabitants of Mars which was so horrible
"You have illustrated."
depicted by other authors."
God's creatures in other worlds with that advanced step
tlat has separated the Latin artists for paintings beautiful and inspiring, from the Egyptian and Aztec pictures.
"You have pictured the visions
i gly and monstrous.
of that beautiful planet with a deep and understanding
sympathy with it." Such is your genius in this work
that one feels for your story the same understanding
that ail do for Jules Verne's. "TRIP TO THE MOON."
You have determined your' story with less speeching, which is the professional refinement of many modern
authors who can explain in a few lines what the common novelist generally cover several pages; thus shoeing the fruit that you have derived from the classic
studies;
"a lot of logic and little rhetoric."
"Now that there is talk of sending message to Mars,
"Mars becomes doubly interesting." Novelists have
written fictions about it to satisfy their imaginations.
How much do we know about Mars, Venus, Jupiter and
in

l,

the

Moon?

There are facts in your work that can not be found

hundreds of technical books.
The scheme of solar energy and the battery shooting
volley and thus kicking its way into space which is the
principal scheme of your interplanetary flight seem 99%
possible.
The whole story is so fascinating and sympain

thetic that it will be remembered long after the little

quarrels of today are all forgotten.
Hoping that your work will be crowned with success.
Sincerely Yours.
Prof., A.

GRASSY.

LBFe21