Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1883-10-17
LIFE ON THE PLANETS.
Reasons for Relieving They Are Not
Inhabited.

Prof. Mcfarland, of the Ohio State Univer.
sity, in the Sidereal Messenger for thismonth,
says:
Thirty years ago the question Of the habit
ABILITY or the planets was widely, and, in some
instances, Unexpectedly discussed. Several
volumes were written, pro and con, the writers
mostly seeming to think that they had direct
commission from on high to settle the question
or to settle their opponents; which things they
proceeded then and there to do. And both sides
about equally forgot or disregarded the facts.
ciples
An article in the June number of the Popular
Science Monthly entitled, 1.-The Cost of life, ~
and which was in part criticised in late num-
Der OF the Messenger. is kind of renewal of
the useless debate, and is clothed in logic
equally conclusive as was that of the original
controversy The points given lately touching
the weight of man on Jupiter and on Mars
were intended as part of the proof that those
planets are not habitable. To pass in review all
the points Of error would require an article of
too great length for the pages of this journal;
SO shall confine myself pretty closely to a few
OF the more prominent ones.
The same author. speaking OF Mercury. says:
with temperature of. boiling water in the
frigid zones. and red-hot iron at the equator, -
etc.-therefOre there can be no life on the planet
But there is no proof of any such temperature,
and in the nature of the case there can be none
Wherefore the conclusions are of no force. The
error consists in virtually assuming that the eli
mate Of place depends solely on it's distance
from the sun-whereas this is only one of sPhun-
dred causes.
1t is well known that even in the torrid zone.
at an elevation of about three and One-half
miles, snow does not melt; that century after
century eternal SHOWS whiten lofty peaks in
all ATTITUDES.
The temperature of place on the earth's sur
face depends on many Influences any one or
several of which may be greatly modified or an
nulled by the others; SO that there is no general
rule for climate.
AS part of the multitude Of things to be
taken into consideration, as touching the matter
in hand, we may name these, viz: The latitude,
the elevation above the sea-level the ocean cur
rents, the direction of the prevailing winds, the
presence and trend Of mountain ranges, the
amount of vapOr usual in the atmosphere, the
degree of cloudiness, the quantity of rain and
snowfall the size of the body of land. the
amount of land in close proximity and it's sur
roundngs, the nature Of the soil, the amount
and kind OF vegetation, the density and height
of the atmosphere, the length of the day, the
obliquity of the suns rays. and the thou
sand and one other things which go to make up
the whole temperature and climate. OF the
greater part of these-indeed of almost every
one Of them-as exhibited on other planets, it
is absolutely impossible to know anything at
all; and, as a matter of course, no one can
VIlc Oil any planet,
except our own. But should all these items be
known, the further question arises whether it
Is not possible that animated beings could live
in an environment totally unlike that which
surrounds us. The conclusion of the whole
matter, so far as astronomy and physics can
now tell, is this: That the four large outer
planets have not sufficiently cooled down
to allow life on their surface, such as we see
on the earth; that Mars gives all telescope and
stereOscopic probabilities of conditions COM
patible, with life as we see it; that the earth
certainly for millions Of years has been COW
cred with multifariOus life; that of Venus and
Mercury we have no certain knowledge; and
that the satellites are pretty certainly not fitted
for such life as is on the earth; that in particu-
lar, our moon has no water and no atmosphere,
consequently no climate or vegetable life. If
the sun and the planets continually lose heat
then there will come time in the far future
when the snn itself shall 60 out in everlasting
night, and the planets cool down SO that the
eternal snow" would be hot compared with
the degree of cold throughout all space where
everything shall be dead.