Life is an attribute of the entire
universe.
Go forth on a moonless night and behold the firmament emblazoned with
its
myriad of scintillating stars, solar orbs, nebulae, world-systems in
the
making; the galactic circle, a jeweled band athwart the canopy of
heaven;
a seething maelstrom of light; countless suns in space; all expressing
the one reality--Omniscience.
Only presumptuous man can question the
Divine
Intent in the creation of the infinite number of giant suns, stupendous
world-systems, and place his particular world-unit at the center of the
Cosmos. Man
contemplates this handiwork of God as a mere adjunct (more ornamental
than
useful) to his terrestrial environment, conceitedly thinking that the
Father's
only consideration is centered about himself.
As these life-giving orbs are countless in
number,
their orbits extending as they do to infinity in all directions, so is
it with the habitable worlds in space. Some there are where life is not
yet possible; worlds not yet far removed from their primary state; not
long since condensed from fire mist; others where life has just begun;
others on whose surfaces live teeming millions of God's creatures, just
as you live and others have lived before you. And there are other
worlds whose life-cycle has been run; where intelligent life has
ceased;
where world-disintegration has set in, for this is in accordance with
the
universal law of growth and decay; a law that exempts neither the
one-celled
amoeba, nor the complex solar system whirling yonder in infinite space;
for all that comes from the Father into
material
expression must some day revert to its primordial state.
You have thus far received much concerning
the
idealistic conditions on Mars, whose planetary career is now reaching
the
zenith of its Cosmic cycle, and whose denizens have progressed to a
degree
of divine unfoldment not yet attained by many worlds. It is
necessary
that you now receive some information relating to one of the less
advanced
planets belonging to the family of our sun in order that you may be
able
to learn by contrast, something of the wonders of God's work.
Jupiter, owing to its prodigious size, being
nearly
eleven times larger than your earth, but whose density is
proportionately
less, might well be styled the Master Planet of our system.
Jupiter is well blessed with satellites,
having
eight, a description of which is not necessary at this time. This
planet
is in, what might be styled, its primary evolutionary stage where life
has just begun. This life has not evolved beyond the unicellular, or
amoebic
stage, and it will be only after the lapse of a long period of time,
measured
in geological units, when more complex organisms will appear, and many
of these periods will come and go before this planet's surface will
have
attained a proper development for the propagation of intelligences
capable
of being classed with the denizens of your earth.
Long before that age arrives Jupiter's
surface
and atmosphere will undergo a tremendous change. Mighty planetary
cataclysms
will raise new mountain ranges; new continents will appear and the
present
land surfaces on this planet will sink to be covered with slime and
water,
to rise again in the centuries to come; for the Father's love and
solicitude
will provide, as it has in the case of all His celestial creations, a
bountiful
supply of stored up radiant energy, such as coal and petroleum, and
other
elements, for the comfort of those who will inhabit this giant among
the
worlds of this system in time to come.
Jupiter still retains much of its internal
heat
which gives this planet a very high mean temperature. Its atmosphere is
still very dense, and owing to the very rapid evaporation of water, due
to the extreme heat a constant cloud canopy covers its surface, which
only
dissipates occasionally in a slight degree, at which times only the sun
penetrates to the surface of the globe.
By reason of the constant thick cloud canopy
over
the surface of Jupiter the planet is enveloped in deep gloom and
darkness.
As radiation is arrested to a marked degree by the clouds and
atmosphere
the temperature is very humid as well as hot. In this steam environment
grow forests of fern and fungus-like trees and rank vegetal growths
which
will in the course of time be preserved as coal for the races destined
to inhabit this planet. This vegetal growth is a flora that knows not
bloom
or seed, but is propagated by root and spores, a flora most primitive
in
type, but which will in time evolve through the law of mutation and
adaptation
into a diversified and useful vegetal kingdom for the races yet to come
on the planet.
Owing to the tremendous gravitational pull
on
Jupiter present organisms are, and future ones will be, evolved along
specially
modified lines in order that they may encompass the least possible
volume,
just as the denizens of the extreme depths of your oceans have evolved.
The modification is necessary in order that organisms may be able to
function
on a planet where the difference in gravity is as one is to three
compared
with your earth. In other words a minimum density is necessary to
produce
maximum lightness.
As there is no lesser or greater in the
economy
of nature (nature is God manifest), the most infinitesimal mote in the
universe is as perfect within itself as is the most gigantic sun. Size
is but relative. The anatomy of the midget is as perfect and complex as
is that of the mammoth, and so there exist in the universe inhabited
worlds
that are relatively very small.
Circulating around the sun in orbits between
Mars
and Jupiter are numerous small planets or asteroids. One in particular,
which is known to your astronomers as Vesta, is encompassed by an
atmosphere
and is inhabited by diminutive people and a correspondingly diminutive
fauna and flora. The diameter of Vesta is about 500 miles, although
your
astronomers give its size, erroneously, as much smaller.
While the subject of these discourses is
mainly
spiritual, you are getting many scientific facts, and although not a
volume
of them, you are getting a proper understanding of the Cosmos.
The universe with all its suns and planets
is
analogous to a perfect watch. Each sun and planet moves over a
prescribed
orbit in a given time mathematically proportional to the movements of
all
the other celestial bodies, just as the geared wheels of the watch
conform
to their prescribed movements. The celestial bodies are seemingly
actuated
by invisible gears, and are held rigidly in their proper places by a
mighty
force whose power is incalculable. This is evidenced by the fact that
all
celestial bodies conform to that inexorable law, Divine Harmony.
That all planets describe equal areas in the
same
time in their ceaseless journeyings, and that the square of the time of
their periods is as the cube of their distance from their common
centers,
is an exemplification of the reign of God's harmonious laws.
You must remember that empirical knowledge
is
but a perverted view of Truth. All the fleeting things of life are but
dross; their apparent reality an illusion. Material life is but a
projection
from the cause world into the effect world. Man is but the reflection
of
a reality that transcends his material vision.
You are on the threshold of a great
awakening
on your planet which is yet in great darkness, but the dawn of a better
day is nigh. Christ is coming into His kingdom which must be in the
hearts
of the people. His second coming means that He will come into your
lives
with the power of the Spirit. This can only become possible through an
awakened understanding of spiritual laws. Although man on your earth is
in great darkness it is not the darkness of Jupiter, which planet must
undergo many changes before it reaches your evolutionary stage.
Communication between planets in our system
and
your earth will be realized in a short time, and the initial message
will
be from Mars. This event will herald a new era for the people of your
earth
for it will be an important factor in the breaking down of the medieval
dogmatism of the past, a narrow-minded theolog built upon a perverted
corruption
of God's limitless universe; a universe narrowed down to your earth and
the inhabitants thereof.
Man's presumptuousness and sophistry is in
direct
ratio to his ignorance, and that is one reason why materialism holds
sway
among a majority of your so-called learned scientists and the people
generally.
But the materialism of the masses is not so degenerating and
destructive
as the impossible dogmas entertained by your numerous religious sects
who
have made God, who is Infinite Love, an anthropomorphic monster.
These dogmas are priestly inventions created to frighten God's
children;
to make of man, created after the image of God, a crawling, servile
creature,
instead of what he really should be, the highest manifestation of the
Divine,
the culmination of God's handiwork.
THE PLANET MARS AND ITS INHABITANTS
CHAPTER XVI
The Risen Christ
Easter Sunday, April 4,
1920.
Your earth's inhabitants are celebrating today
the
resurrection of your Savior--by gratifying the desires of self.
We of Mars do not have such events to
commemorate
for we never crucified Him. We opened the door to His wonderful Truth.
Not one of your earth's inhabitants can
perform
the miracles Christ did, but we can. Our leaders, who are our
advisers,
guides and spiritual teachers, are Christ-like men, who can do all the
works that Christ and His disciples did. He said. "These
signs
do follow them that believe," and we have never stopped believing.
Your condition is pitiful. There is nothing
but
darkness between you and the Truths Christ tried to give you. Christ is
only an idea on your planet and not a reality in the hearts of your
people.
Their whole thought, for weeks past, has been devoted to their personal
adornment, and in preparing festivals for this occasion.
In your churches, where they seem to observe
the
period of Christ's suffering, it is only a form. They go through their
vain repetition of prayers, that have no soul in them, and your six
weeks
of so-called Lent is only a mockery of its real significance.
If you would live the Christ life you would
not
crucify Him daily in the flesh, but would come to that consciousness
that
He is risen in your soul. You are continually crucifying Christ all
over
your planet in the same way that you crucified Jesus Christ, for you
either
deny Him or pervert His Truth to suit your selfishness.
All of the people on Mars have lived on
other
planets before, except your earth. The earth has not advanced enough to
be placed in the line of progression yet. However, the time is
near
when you will experience that progression. It will be after you are
high
enough spiritually to receive word from the Martians through mediums.
This
work evidences the fact that you are beginning that experience now.
Take
hope, for after the obscure darkness must come the dawn. Your whole
earth
is now in terrible travail, but the result will be the birth of the new
Christ Spirit.
You get glimpses now and then of the real
Christ
Life, but do you, or can you, realize what life on a planet is like
when
all the inhabitants live the Christ Life every day? That is why we have
the wonderful manifestations of the Father's love in our intricate and
delicate mechanisms, and in our utilization of Cosmic energy. It is
thus
that we receive the Father's wondrous gifts. But Mars never became what
it is until God purified it by His Son's example and we accepted Him as
our Savior with without murder. Your planet damned itself to
many
bloody aeons by the rejection of Him, and your Religion has been blood,
blood, blood! In your last five years you have been given enough blood
to drown all the martyrs you have given to your bloody god.
Your planet is in slavery. You are slaves to
your
conventionalities. They are like shackles on your souls; like bands of
iron. And yet you cling to them until it seems you do not want freedom.
It is only Truth that will free you, and as
long
as you cling to false ideals, and sham systems you must expect to be
slaves.
Pin your faith not in material money, but in
spiritual
wealth. "Take no heed of the morrow." Be of good cheer.
Make
the opening to the Spirit wide. He will enter!
As harmony is an expression of the Father, its coexistent,
art, is an expression of the laws of rhythm through the individual when
permanently registered in a material way.
The more a created object conforms to the laws of harmony the more
pleasing
it is to the eye.
The artist gives expression to his soul within with paint brush,
chisel
or loom, and the quality of his production is proportionate to the
development
of his spiritual nature.
All of God's creatures are artists, although only a small
percentage
of his evolutionary creatures are able to express materially that which
lies hidden in the soul. Hence, a beautifully executed painting, statue
or tapestry appeals to and interests most everyone, even though few are
able to execute their own artistic impressions.
The reason for this is that the average physical makeup is
defective
and therefore affords a poor vehicle for the expression of the real
entity.
Then again, artistic ability is a question of individual development.
Primordial man's efforts to depict that which delighted his soul
were
crude, indeed, compared to the creations of your world's foremost
artists
today. But in a relative sense only, for the state of your art is as
far
behind the art of the Martians as are the carvings of your prehistoric
cavemen behind the productions of your Michael Angelos.
As man unfolds spiritually there is a corresponding advance in his
artistic
point of view.
This is evidenced by the fact that art has flourished more on your
earth
among those races, and individuals, who are spiritually inclined. The
products
of the monastery and cloister in the middle ages are witness to this
fact.
Amongst a materially inclined people, whose selfish instincts have
stultified
their souls; a people whose ultimate goal is the acquisition of
material
things; a people whose only ambition is to satisfy self; a people whose
ideas of real happiness are the pursuit of material pleasures, art has
little place, except as a fad.
This is the condition today in many parts of your world, and
especially
so on your western continent. Prize fights and the sensualities of the
stage interest many more people than do art galleries and the beauties
of nature.
The fact that God is the Supreme Artist of the universe can be
established
not only with the microscope, but with one's natural eyes. Divine Art
is
expressed in every atom comprising the universe, and poor indeed, is he
in spiritual gifts who fails to feast his eyes on God's handiwork.
As art is an expression of God's law of harmony it can be said
that
its development on Mars has been a stimulus to the development of every
line of planetary activity and enters into every phase of Martian
social
and industrial system.
As everyone of God's creatures is an artist in the making, every
Martian
is a developed artist. Hence, every product of the loom or forge on our
planet is an artistic production and reflects in a material way the
soul
of its creator.
The incentive before the Martian is to work for the pleasure of
working,
which in ultimate analysis is God's work. Of course, such a system of
industrial
activity would be impossible among a partially developed people such as
your earth race is.
Art on Mars typifies man's spiritual and material progress on
this,
planet. This planet's Past history and present achievements are woven
into
the products of the looms. The warp and woof of our beautiful
tapestries,
so much in evidence in every home, express the spirituality of the
Martian
people, as do also the creations of the Martian sculptors and the works
of those who use brush and paint.
Some of the most beautiful productions of Martian art in painting,
sculpture,
or tapestry depict the scenes or various episodes incident to Christ's
visit to Mars ten thousand years ago. They show many wonderful works of
the Master but we do not call them miracles for, as later art shows,
the
leaders of Martian spiritual attainment were and are true disciples and
do also the works of the Master.
Mars' past has been one of achievement, spiritually, and naturally
in
a material way also, so when the Martian artist weaves the story of the
past in his loom there are no misgivings, for the Martian past is not
fraught
with hate, sin and suffering.
THE PLANET MARS AND ITS INHABITANTS
CHAPTER XXI
Scientific Sophistry
"For we are of yesterday, and know nothing because our days upon earth
are a shadow." --Job 8:9.
The term "Scientific Sophistry" well fits your multitude of
theories
concerning Truth.
Science, which connotes a higher wisdom of hidden things, has
degenerated
on your earth from its original purpose (the overthrow of ignorance and
superstition and the development among intelligent beings of a near
approximation
of Ultimate Truth) to an orthodox dogmatism which is today on a par
with
the unreality which this self-same science has sought to eliminate from
the shallowness of the human mind.
It is quite true that the modern scientific method of
investigation:
that is, along the lines of observation, followed by the formation of a
theory, and finally by demonstration, has resulted in the release of
millions
of souls from a darker thralldom than that which now besets them, but,
never the less, the human race on your planet now undergoing its
probationary
experience, is to be pitied for its blindness in matters of real
import;
namely, spiritual truths.
Your scientific method instead of leading you onward towards the
central
sun of spiritual enlightenment, has so beclouded your vision, that your
race today, that is, the so-called enlightened and learned portions of
your population, have been deflected from the main path, and they will
soon find themselves pursuing an illusionary will-o'-the-wisp.
Another result of the adoption of the modern scientific method has
been
the tendency of those endeavoring to bring light into the dark nooks
and
crannies of human existence, to immerse themselves in an abysmal
materialism
from which rescue is almost hopeless.
This condition is the result of a loss of spiritual vision and the
final
effort on the part of scientists to explain the riddle of human
existence
in accordance with a cleverly thought out, but most amazingly
deficient,
mechanistic conception of life.
Since the inception of modern science on your earth, based on the
scientific
method of investigation, its devotees adopted a spirit of skepticism
concerning
all problems of human activity not susceptible to measurement with the
foot rule, or analysis with the test tube, with the result that the
newer
science of psychology was invented to supply a reasonable and material
explanation for the subtle and mystifying phenomena of the human mind.
That the conceivers of this science of psychology have been
successful
is attested by the many remarkable explanations given to account for
every-day
manifestations of human and animal mentality.
I will venture to say that this idea applies to all branches of
modern
science, as there seems to be no class of phenomena in the entire
universe,
whether in the realm of chemistry, physics or psychology but what can
be
clearly elucidated to the satisfaction of all scientists with the aid
of
an adequate terminology. So, today your science, in final analysis, has
degenerated into a system of clever word juggling.
It is true that there are today in the ranks of your foremost
investigators
honest and God inspired men who are seeking Truth. Their names and
their
achievements will be treasured by a grateful posterity, and it is to be
regretted that their declarations, based upon tireless investigation
and
honest opinion, are derided by their fellow workers in the realm of
Truth.
All of your scientific theories are based upon certain postulates that
in time are out of agreement with observed facts and you are compelled
to cast these postulates aside, adopt others and theorize anew. This
fruitless
search for Truth must go on until a divergence is made from the
blind
trail and the right path is found that will lead you to the
ultimate
goal. Be not surprised then that the revelations in this book
will
meet with the usual criticisms launched at every new idea of Truth that
has been given to your world from the time man first walked erect and
beheld
the stars in the firmament of God.
Error must, and will dissolve presently in the presence of Truth,
which
will abide with you for all time. Help hasten the day of the Lord.
(The End)
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
THE PLANET MARS AND ITS INHABITANTS
APPENDIX
The following facts about the planet Mars have been
gleaned
from the works of the late Professor Percival Lowell of the Flagstaff,
Arizona, Observatory, who devoted his entire life to a study of this
most
interesting planet. The same can be compared to the statements made in
the general text which were given through Mrs. X-, the medium, while in
a trance state.
The first 39 paragraphs form an analysis of Dr. Lowell's "Mars
and Its
Canals," 1906, and will give the reader a clear and most comprehensive
idea of the existing knowledge of Mars and why Dr. Lowell contended
this
planet was inhabited by intelligent beings farther advanced in
civilization
than we of this earth.
(1) Mars turns on its axis in 24 hours, 37 minutes, 22.65
seconds, with
reference to the stars, and in 24 hours, 39 minutes, 35.05 seconds,
with
regard to the sun. Its day, therefore, is only about 40 minutes longer
than ours.
(2) Its axis is tilted to the plane of its orbit by about 23
degrees,
54 minutes (most recent
determination). This gives the planet's seasons almost the counterpart
of our own in character but in length nearly double ours, for
(3) Its year consists of 687 of our days, or 669 of its own.
(4) Polar caps are plainly visible which melt in the Martian
summer
to form again in the Martian winter, 'thus implying the presence of a
substance
deposited by cold.
(5) As the polar caps melt, they are bordered by a blue belt,
which
retreats with them. This excludes the possibility of their being formed
by carbon dioxide, and shows that of all the substances we know the
material
composing them must be water.
(6) In the case of the southern cap, the blue belt has widenings
in
it in places. These occur where the blue-green areas bordering
upon
the polar cap are largest.
(7) The extensive shrinkage of the polar snows shows their
quantity
to be inconsiderable and points to scanty deposition due to dearth of
water.
(8) The melting takes place locally after the same general order
and
method, Martian year after year, both in the south cap and
(9) In the north cap. This evidenced by the recurrence of rifts
in the
same place annually in each. The water thus let loose can, therefore,
be
locally counted on.
(10) That the south polar cap is given to greater extremes than
the
north one, implies again, in view of the eccentricity of the orbit and
the tilt of the axis, that deposition in both caps is light.
(11) The polar seas at the edges of the caps being temporary
affairs,
the water from them must be fresh.
(12) The melting of the caps on the one hand and their reforming
on
the other affirm the presence of water vapor in the Martian atmosphere
of whatever else that air consists.
(13) Since water vapor is present of which the molecular weight
is 18,
it follows from the kinetic theory of gases, that nitrogen, oxygen, and
carbonic acid, of molecular weights 28, 32 and 38 respectively, are
probably
there too owing to being heavier.
(14) The limb light bears testimony to this atmosphere.
(15) The planet's low albedo (reflecting power) points to a
density
for the atmosphere very much less than our own.
(16) The apparent evidence of a twilight goes to confirm this.
(17) Permanent markings show upon the disk, proving that
the surface
itself is visible.
(18) Outside of the polar caps the disk is divided into
red-ochre
and blue-green regions. The red-ochre stretches have the same
appearance
as our deserts seen from afar.
(19) And behave as such, being but little affected by change.
(20) The blue-green areas were once thought to be seas, but they
cannot
be such, because they change in tint according to the Martian season
and
the area and the amount of the lightening is not offset at the time by
corresponding darkening elsewhere;
(21) Nor by any augmentation of the other polar cap as
precipitation
into cloud. it cannot, therefore, be due to shift of substance.
(22) Furthermore, they are all seamed by lines and spots darker
than
themselves which are permanent in place; so that there can be no bodies
of water on the Planet.
(23) On the other hand, their color, blue-green, is that of
vegetation;
this regularly fades out, as vegetation would, to ochre for the most
part,
but in places changes to a chocolate brown.
(24) The change that comes over them is seasonal in period, as
that
of vegetation would be.
(25) Each hemisphere undergoes this metamorphosis in turn.
(26) That it is recurrent is proof positive of an atmosphere.
(27) The changes are metabolic, since those in one direction are
later
reversed to a restoration of the original status. Anabolic as well as
catabolic
processes go on there; i. e., growth as well as decay takes place. This
proves them of vegetable origin.
(28) The existence of vegetation shows that carbonic acid,
oxygen and
undoubtedly nitrogen, are present in the Martian atmosphere, since
plants
give out oxygen and take in carbonic acid gas.
(29) The changes in the dark areas follow upon the melting of
the polar
caps, not occurring until after that melting is under way;
(30) And not immediately then, but only after the lapse of a
certain
time, (5 days).
(31) Though not seas now, from their look the dark areas suggest
old
sea bottoms, and when on the terminator (edge) appear as low
depressions
(whether because really at a lower level or because of less
illumination,
is not certain).
(32) That they are now the parts of the planet to support
vegetation
hints the same past office, as water would naturally drain into them.
That
such a metamorphosis should occur with planetary ageing is in keeping
with
the kinetic theory of gases.
(33) Terminator observations prove conclusively that there are
no mountains
on Mars (over 3000 feet) but that the surface is surprisingly flat.
(34) But they do reveal clouds which are usually rare and are
often,
if not always dust storms.
(35) White spots are occasionally visible lasting unchanged for
weeks,
in the tropic and temperate regions, showing that the climate is
apparently
cold.
(36) But at the same time proving that most of the surface has a
temperature
above the freezing point.
(37) In winter, the temperate zones are more or less covered by
a white
veil, which may be hoar frost or may be cloud.
(38) A spring haze surrounds the north polar cap during the
weeks that
follow its most extensive melting.
(39) Otherwise the Martian sky is perfectly clear, like that of
a dry
and desert land.
(40) "Conclusions," page 376, "Mars and Its Canals." That Mars
is inhabited
by beings of some sort we may consider as certain, as it is uncertain
what
those beings may be. The theory of the existence of intelligent life on
Mars may be likened to the atomic theory in chemistry in that in both
we
are led to the belief in units which we are unable to define, but
though
in neither case can we tell anything of the bodily form of its units,
we
can predicate a good deal about their works. Apart from the general
fact
of intelligence implied by the geometric character of their canal
construction,
is the evidence as to its degree by the cosmopolitan extent of the
action.
Girdling the globe and stretching from pole to pole, the Martian canal
system not only embraces their whole world, but is an organized entity.
Each canal joins another, which in turn connects with a third, and so
on
over the entire surface of the planet. This continuity of construction
posits a unity of interest. Now, when we consider that though not so
large
as the earth, the world of Mars is only 4200 miles in diameter and
therefore
contains something like 212,000,000 square miles, the unity of the
purposes
acquires considerable significance. The supposed vast enterprises of
the
earth look small beside it, none of them but become local in
comparison,
gigantic as they seem to us to be.
(41) The first thing that is forced on us in conclusion is the
nationally
intelligent and non bellicose character of the community which could
thus
act and unite throughout its globe.
(42) War is a survival among us from savage times and affects
now chiefly
the boyish and unthinking element of the nation. The wisest realize
that
there are better ways for practicing heroism and there are more certain
ways of insuring the survival of the fittest. It is something a people
outgrow. But whether they practice peace or not, nature in its
evolution
eventually practices it for them, and after enough of the inhabitants
of
the globe have killed each other off, the remainder must find it more
advantageous
to work together for the common good.
(43) Whether increasing common sense or increasing necessity was
the
spur that drove the martians to this eminently sagacious state we can
not
say, but it is certain that reached it they have, and equally certain
that
if they had not they must all have died. When a planet has attained to
the age of advancing decrepitude, and the remnant of its water resides
simply in its polar caps, they can only be effectively tapped for the
benefit
of the inhabitants when arctic and equatorial people are one.
Difference
of policy on the question means
nothing short of death. Isolated communities cannot there be sufficient
unto themselves; they must combine to solidarity or perish.
(44) We perceive then, that considered a prior, the
possibilities
of life on a planet is merely a question of the planet's size; and then
pursuantly that the character of that life is a matter of the planet's
age. And age again is a question of size. For the smaller its mass the
quicker the body cools, and with a planet growing cold means, growing
old.
(45) "Mars, An Abode of Life," page 142. The evidence of
observation
thus bears out what we might suspect from the planet's (Mars) smaller
size:
That it is much further along in its planetary career than is our
earth.
This ageing in its own condition must have its effect upon any life it
may previously have brought forth. That life at the present moment
would
likely be of a high order. For whatever its actual age, any life now
existent
on Mars must be in the land stage of its development, on the whole much
higher than on earth. And more than this, it should probably have
gone much farther if it exists at all, for in its evolving of terra
firma,
Mars has far outstripped the earth. Mars' surface is now all land.
(46) The struggle for existence in other planets' decrepitude
and decay
tend to evolve intelligence to keep up with circumstances growing more
and more adverse. But furthermore, the solidarity that the conditions
prescribe
would conduce to a breadth of understanding sufficient to utilize it.
Communication
over the whole globe is made not only possible, but obligatory.
(47) Page 148. In regard to their width (canals), it would be
nearest
the mark to say they have none at all. For they have been found
narrower
and narrower as the conditions of scanning have improved. By careful
measurements
at Flagstaff it has been shown that the smallest appear as they should
were they a mile across. The reason so slender a filament is visible is
due to its length, this probably because of the number of retinal cones
that are struck.
(48) Page 140. About 100 inches of snow
falls on the caps at Mars. This would mean 10 inches of water. The
south cap of Mars covers 96 degrees at its greatest, which makes it 1-5
of the whole surface of the planet.
(49) The amount of water on earth is 189,000 times more than on
Mars.
(50) Page 157. The oases observed by Lowell on Mars in 1892 were
called
lakes by Professor Packering, although the former was of a contrary
opinion
and concluded they were probably centers of population and agriculture.
(51) Concise Knowledge Library, page 298, volume on Astronomy.
The diameter
of Mars is 4200 miles; its surface is nearly 2-7, its volume 1-7 those
of the earth, but in consequence of its inferior mean density nine such
spheres would go to make up the mass of the earth. The gravity on Mars
compared to our earth is as 38 to 100. A man could leap there a stile 9
feet 4 inches in height with no more effort than it would cost us to
leap
over a twofer fence.
(52) The planet's rotation is performed in 24 hours, 37 minutes
on an
axis deviating from the vertical by 24 degrees 50 minutes, hence its
seasons
resemble our own, excepting they are twice as long, for the Martian
year
is 687 days.
Page 307. Water boils at probably 115 degrees on Mars on account of
the barometric pressure, which implies that water evaporates rapidly.
(53) The atmosphere can boast no more than 1-7 of our density.
(54) In the pure sky scarcely veiled by its atmosphere, the sun
diminished
to less than half its size at our horizon, probably exist its coronal
streamers
and prominences as a regular part of its noontide glory; atmospheric
circulation
proceeds so tranquilly as not to trouble the repose of the land in
which
it seemeth always afternoon. No cyclones traverse its surface, only
mild
trade winds flow towards the equator and supply for the volumes of air
gently lifted by the power of the sun, to carry reinforcements of water
vapor north and south.
(55) Page 306, Ibid. Two moons on Mars, discovered August 17,
1917,
not more than 10 miles in diameter. Names, Demos and Phobos-----"Fear
and
Panic," taken from the Iliad. Demos revolves in 30 hours and 18 minutes
at a distance of 14,600 miles from the center of Mars. And since the
planet
rotates in 24 hours, 37 minutes, the diurnal motion of the sphere from
the East to West is so nearly neutralized by the orbital circulation of
the satellite from west to east that nearly 132 hours lapse between its
rising and its setting. During the interval it changes four times from
full to new, and vice versa. Light received on Mars is 1-1200 of full
moonlight.
(56) Phobos is more effective in illumination, because it is
larger
and less distant. At the Martian equator its brightness is equal to
1-60
of that of the moon, but beyond 69 degrees of latitude it is
permanently
shut out from view by the curvature of the globe. It is 3700 miles from
the surface of Mars. The period of Phobos is only 7 hours, 30 minutes,
or less than 1-3 of the time of rotation of Mars, its primary. It rises
in the west and sets in the east, coursing across the heavens in 11
hours,
during which interval accomplishes one entire cycle of its phases, and
gets through half another.
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