The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1878-07-12
PEOPLE ON MARS MOONS,
THE i LEADINa ASTRONOMER OF ENGLAND
gg sa5 DIsPosEs OF THE THEORY. sa
Prof. R. A. Proctor in Belgravia.

r" S9s Prof. R. A. Proctor in Belgravia 5ga
Probably the most convenient ,assump.
tion we can make is that there may be
creatures in a general respect like ourselves
on those moons of Mars, but owing to the
extreme rarity Of the atmosphere, their Vi
tai energy is So far reduced that they are
m ore active than we are, despite the feeble
action Of grsvityin their world. The air
must he exceedingly rare, most certainly,
even if the quantity is proportioned to the
volumes of these moons. dp On this assump-
.tion the quantity Of air is less dthan the
quantity of terrestrial as 1isless than 400
times 400 times 4o0--that lis, it amounts
only to g1-64, ,000,o00 part ofithe terrestrial
cair. Being spread overs a surface which is
Fbutd -160, 900 Of the earth's it follows that
1.-THE quantity of air ABOVE each square mile
sofisurface is, 1-400 parto of the quantity
over each square mile of cur 3earth's sur
face. This would be little enough in all
conscience; buttthis is not all. Forthe ae-1
tion of gravity being, according tosour as
only 1-600 Of Iterrestrialag gravity,
ht follows that the ATMOSPHERIC pressure, and
itherefore density, is furtben reduced in this
Tdegreey giving finally adensity4 of equal
sonly to- 1-240, 600 OF the density of our own
Tains1ijou y&bTetsR tsaE hGs .a7edi 8oa ~
1 Now; ait height of seven miles, where
the atmospheric pressure is reduced to one
fourth that at tils sea levely men of iordina-
ryreonstitutions would perish in afew mo-
iments. if not instantly In Coxwell's as
cent ognearly that height, Glaisherfainted,i
{ and gCoxwell only just had strength left TO-
draw theo valve-string withhis teeth (his
hands being alyaady poweriess.) Yetsat the
height of seven miles the density of the air
1is g60, 900 times greater than that which, ae-L
cerding tonur very reasonable assumption
sprevailss at lthe nsnrfacsriofl the1 Martian
1moons.us ,Wecan very wen believe, thens,
vthatoin Whatever way the3 inhabitants of
these moonsCrnay be adaptsa, oorporeallys
and constihutio for lexistence In their
small hemes,gt the rarity ofs the air there
must tend tosreduee their vitabenergy.1 So
that we may well Imagine chat, instead Of
being able ablesto leap to aeheight Of fsthalf
o. mile or ever a distance aof tive or three
miles, they are not more active than we are
on earth with 600 times greater weight, but
far more effective respiration. We might,
perhaps, goieyen further than this, and as
sumo that, in order tolgiye the inhabitants
Of these moons locomotive powers proper
toned in the same waysto our OWE dimen-
Ysions as ours are, itheys must be Supposed
very much smaller than we are.9 dasos
We might imagine them in an atmos-
phere SO exceedingly attenuated that crea-
lures which. could have vitality enough to-
move freely about must be no larger than
flies or, ants, and must have also some such
provision as insects, have for more effective
inspi ration. In this way We might find in
the MAJ tian moons a miniature aof our own
earth, not only in the proportions Of these
worlds themselves, but also in thoseof the
creatures living upon them.st But it would
not be very interesting to consider mere
miniatures ofTour earth, such as the lnoons
of Mars1wouldi thus come 10 be regarded.
Indeed in that case, little more could be
said than THAT ali tie relations presented
BIZ thisrearth were orlnight be represented
in the Marian moons, but on greatly re-
rdnced lscaleans ,asa5 8aa aaioa vs. ed3
: