The daily intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Territory [i.e. Wash.]) 1876-1881, 1881-09-17
THE TOPOGRAPHY OF WARS

Ss sSSH uinS 70 tue progress OF the
season; snd around each Of these polar
caps extends . polar sea. -Four great
continents occupy the equatorial re-
gions; between two of them flows the
colebroted Hoar- Glass Sea: while
oceans, straits and inlets separate III.
Continents and enclose The islands
much ss on the surface Of our planet
But. II the correspondence Is marked
between the two planets, the diver
gence Is no fess 90.
A noticeable feature in Mars il the
prevalence Of winding inlets aud bot
tle-neckcd seas. One of these, called
Huggings Inlet. Is . long. forked
stream. too wide to be comparei 10 a
terrestrial RIVER; which exteuds for
three thousand miles 1roin its two
forked commencement tn the point
where it flows into the sea. There are
two seas 90 closely milling each
other that, IL it were not for their
enormous dimensions, we might fancy
the evidence OF artificial construction.
There are slso $40 flask k-shaped seas.
which have the same marked similarity
On the earth the oceans arc three
times a. extensive as the continents
On Mars the proportion OF land and
water 10 about equal. and SO strangely
mingled that Q traveller could visit
every part Of the planet without lesv
ing the element on which he CON.
menced his journey; or by coastiag
along oceans. circumnavigating islands,
passing through open and botils-neck
ed seas. and sailing through straits. he
could traverse q coast line Of thirty
thousand miles. always in sight Of
land. and generally with q view of land
on both sides.
We can easily see reason for this
labyriethian arrangement and its adap.
tion to the necessities of the planet
The most careful examination has failed
TO detect o satellite; therefore tides
must be comparatively unknown, for
the effect OF the sun in producing them
would be almost unapprecisble.
Since the solar tide depends on The
relations which the plaLets diameter
bears 10 its distance from the sun, and
our solar-tides are very small with u
diameter Of eight thousand miles and
distance from the sun of ninety.one
million FIVE hundred thousand miles. it
may readily be seen how little lntlu-
ence the sun can exert on the Martial
Waters when the diametcr OF the planet
il less than Ave thousand miles ard it's
distance from the sun one hundred ana
fifty million miles. This arrangemel (
of water in Mars would promote free
circulation by evaporation and down
fall, while oceans would become stag.
nsnt under such conditions of exist
ence.
Such are some OF the physical fea.
lures of Mars resembling those OF our
globe. bot the parallelism does not end
here. Its day 10 about thirty seven
minutes longer than ours; its iuclins
tion to the ecliptio 10 little greater,
giving nearly the cams proportion to
the seasons; its revelation round the
sun gives IL year not qnite twice as
long 90 ours; and its size Is much more
nearly like our own than that of the
greater orbs which are the glory of the
system.
But 1t Is TO the tslismsnic power of
the spectroscope that we are indebted
for the certainty Of what before had
only been probability. Mr. Huggings
subjected the planet at its opposition
in 1857 to q searching scrutiny by spec
trum anaiysis and by the telescope. He
proved that the red color of Mars is
not due to an absorptivs power in its
atmosphere. but to ruddiness OF color
of certain ingredients in it's soil; that
it's atmosphere contains gases and va
pors like our own; that clouds float
through 10 and make beautiful its
evening sunsets aud morning sunrises;
and that fierce storms sweep over its
snrfacs and obscure the view Of the
telescope vision.
Astronomers delight to watch the
changes around
The snovs psles Of moonless Mars" -
Ia sumusr the ice bound circle Is re-
duced 10 . range within ten degrees of
the pole; in winter tue cycle enlarRes
TO forty five degrees. and the wide
spread tracts Of snowy fight cover its
surface 90 in our northern winter. II
is true our Martial neighbors have onl y
q quarter Of the light and heat which
our more favored position bestows upon
US. but Tyndsll says in his Radiation
Of Heat that slight increase of certain
vapors In the atmosphere would COM
pensate the planet for its increased dis
tance from the vivifying center.
Science 10 constantly adding to the
close analogy that binds US TO the
pl>rs. Mars. II belongs to the same
family; is revolves around the same
center; its day. its year. its seasons. its
atmosphese; its physical features; the
element of its soil: water In the various
forns Of vsper. iiaii, aud solid. which
forms 90 important . part in the econ
omy of orgsuixed beings-all tiud their
complement thsrs.
We need only one liak 10 complete
the chain. the evidence Of life. Ii i;
not much to hope that in the days tC
come simple means will be discovered
TO chow that life is not the sole inher.
itence Of The insignificant member oi
the planetary world TO which we be.
long. We are on the eve OF great dis.
coveries- An instrumes.t which Cat
detect the constituents Of sun and stsri
may be followed. and that at no dis
tant day. by one equally simple which
vii. detect the presence Of life In othel
worlds and systems Of worlds Som'
Promethsns will arise who will stea
the divine fame from the altar. an.
/ find scnoe hollow rod In which 10 cen