Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1881-07-21
NO LIFE IN METEoRIrEs.

An account is now going the rounds of
the daily papers to the effect that traces Of
organic life have been found In meteorites,
and that hence the other members of the
solar system are inhabited by living beings.
The subioined extract from the London
Telegraph gives the substance Of the sup
posed discovery, and We quote it as fol-
lows: 1.-TWO interesting problems, which
have long perplexed the scientific world,
appear to have been at last definitely
solved by the eminent geologist, DR.. Hahn.
These questions are, first, whether or not
celestial bodies, other than the earth, be-
longing TO our solar system, are inhabited
by animate beings and. secondly, whether
the meteoric stones from time to time cast
upon the surface OF this globe emanate
from incaudescent comets or from volcanic
planets. That they at no time formed a
part of the earth itself has been conclu-
Gently completed a series Of investigations
upon some OF the huge meteoric stones
that fell from the skies in Hungary during
the summer of 1866. Thin lamine of
these mysterious bodies, subjected to ex.
animation under powerful microscope,
have been found to contain coralline and
spongeous formations, and TO reveal unmis-
taxable traces OF the lower forms OF vege-
tation. All the organisms, animal and
vegetable, discovered by Dr.. Hahn in the
delicate stone shavings he has thus dealt
with indicate the condition of their parent
world to be one Of what is technically
termed primary formation. But the
presence OF water in that world is proved
by the fact that the tiny petrified creatures
revealed by the magic Of the lens, one and
all, belong to the so.called subaqueous
classes of animals. They could not, there
fore, have possibly existed in comets, at
least il the assumption be correct that
these are in a state of active combustion.
This supposed discovery, about which such
pother has been raised is no discovery
at all, and the work of DIR. Hahn merely
shows how utterly he has misconcsived the
character Of the material which he has
studied. The plates of his volume are
beautiful, but they only serve to illustrate
the meteorological nature of TIE material.
What he has supposed to represent coral.
line and spongiform organisms are in fact
only concretionary forms which the CON-
mon minerals of meteorites often take.
These forms are well understood by min
eralogists. have long since been described,
and are to be seen in nearly all the stony
meteorites. While we know that there
are other worlds than ours, and while it is
possible that they may support life in some
form or other, there is, we believe, as yet
no evidence whatever that this is the case.
Somewhat on the same level with this
meteorite story is the one recently pub
lished by San Francisco paper with re-
gard to the enormous mapifying power of
large telescope in California. It was
said that when the telescope was directed
toward the planet Mars, the whole topog.
raphy of one face of that orb could be
distinctly seen. Rivers, seas, lakes and
forests were plainly distinguishable, even
cultivated fields were known by their
shape and color, rectangular objects were
supposed to be buildings, and certain small
moving bodies were undoubtedly the in.
habitants of the distant planet engaged in
the pursuit Of their daily vocations. All
of which was good. N. Y. Exchange.