The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1893-08-07
OTHER WORLDS THAN THIS
Human Reasoning May Be Very
Much at Fault Regarding
tho Stars.
Camille Tlammarion Shows That
Others Are Possibly In
habited Also.
Ehe Bsiass Who People Them Possibly
Fsissr aad More Ethereal and Pos-
sibiy Coavssr Than We.

In properly interpreting the spectacle OF
terrestrial life and tho positive data fur
nished by study 1t is plainly evident that
we should enlarge the circle OF our concep-
tions and Of our judgments and not limit
planetary existences to a servile image Of
what exists here below. The terrestrial or
ganic forms are due to the local causes of
our planet. The chemical constitution OF
water and OF tho atmosphere, temperature,
light, density, weight, arc so many elc-
ments which nave served to make our bod
les. Our flesh is composed of carbon, axote.
hydrogen and oxygen, combined with the
state of water and of some other elements,
among which we may mention chloride of
sodium. The flesh of animals is not chem
ically different from ours. 1t all comes
from water and air and will return to
them. The same elements In small guam
titles make up every living being. The OK,
which eats the grass, forms the same kind
of flesh as man, who eats the OK. All ter
restrial organic matter il only carbon, COM
bined in varying proportions with hydro
gen, azote, oxygen, etc.
Blu we have no right to forbid nature to
act otherwise in worlds where carbon does
not exist. A world, for example, where
olllCu WOAlu ICpluCc CtEUOu, elllC hClu, CUR
bonic acid-could it not be inhabited by
beings of an organism altogether different
from hose existing on the earth, different
not only in form but also In substancef In
a world where chloride would dominate
would we not find chloric acid and all the
fertile family Of the chlorides fulfilling an
important part in the functions of life?
And bromide. could it not be associated
with other formations? And why should
we stop ut terrestrial chemistry?
One thing certain is that the marvellous
revelations OF the spectrum analysis do not
argue in favor of unity of chemical con-
%stitution in the different celestial bodies,
nor Of an absolute unity among them
selves; far from 1t. In our own solar sys-
TEN we find essential differences between
certain planets. In the spectrum of Jupiter,
for example, we find an unknown substance
which manifests itself by a strong absorb
tion Of certain red rays. This gas, which
does not exist on the earth, shows itself
even more strongly in the atmosphere of
Saturn and of Uranus. On this last planet
the atmosphere even appears, If we leave
aqueous vapor out of consideration, to have
no analogy with ours. Moreover, in the
solar spectrum itself we find n substance to
which has been given the name of helium,
and which we have never found on the
earth.
The relationship Of the planets among
themselves is an undeniable fact, since they
are all daughters of one father, but they
differ among themselves, not only by loca-
ton, position, volume, mass, density, tenn
perature, atmosphere, but still more by
their physical and chemical constitution,
and IT, point to which we call attention
Nov &, 4lot tGs, ,,n,,f4 ,-,,l $50 L.
considered as an obstacle to the manifesto
lions of life; but, on the contrary, as a new
field open to the infinite fecundity of the
universal mother.
When, then, our thought takes fight not
only toward u neighbors the moon, We
nus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, but even to tho
myriads of unknown worlds which gravi
tate about the suns scattered in space, we
ave no plausible reason for imagining
that the inhabitants of these other worlds
of the skies resemble us in any particular,
whether in form or in organic substance.
The form Of the terrestrial human body il
due to the elements of our planet, notably
carbon. The terrestrial human form is de,
rived from ancestral animals, from which
it has gradually elevated itself by the con.
tinued progress of the Transformation OF
beings. Beyond doubt, it seems to us that
to be n man or a woman there must be a
head, a heart, lungs, two legs, two arms,
etc. Nothing Is less clearly demonstrated.
If We are constituted as we are, it is sim.
ply because the prosimians had also a head
a heart, lungs, legs, arms, not by any means
as elegant as yours, madam, but still Of the
same anatomy. And little by little wa &c
back easily today by means of pa~leontology
to the origin Of beings. Thus it Is certain
that the bird has developed from the rep
tile by n process of organic evolution; SO also
it is certain that terrestrial humanity repre-
scnts the summit of an immense genealog
ical tree, OF which all the branches art
brothers, and the roots of which plunge
into the very rudiments of the most ele
mentary primitive organisms.
All kinds Of imaginable and unimagina
bic forms should people the multitude OF
worlds. Terrestrial nan is endowed with
five senses, or rather with six. Why should
nature have stopped there? Why, for OK
ample, should she not nave endowed Ger
tain ortals with an electric sense? with ,
magnetic sense? with q sense Of locality
with an organ capable of perceiving ethe
real vibrations of intra rouge and of ultr,
violet! of u sense permitting one to hea1
at a distance. to see through the walls
We eat and digest like the grosser animals
DO there not exist worlds where the nutri
tive atmosphere dispenses its inhabitant
from so ridiculous q burden9 The smalles
swallow. the dusky bat itself, has the I'D
vantage over us of flying through the air
Is not our world. where tho man of til
greatest genius, the most exquisite woman
finds himself or herself nailed to the eartl
like the common caterpillar before it
metnmorphosis u very inferior one?
Well! Would it be so disngreeable to in
habit a world Of perfume aud voluptuous
ness, where the flowers would be animated
where SUNS of many c%olors-the damon,
joined to the ruby, garnet to the emerald
and to the sapphire-would shine nigh
and day-blue nights, scarlet days-in tn
glory Of III eternal springtime; many col
ored moons sleeping OF the mirror of tn
waters, phosphorescent mountains, aeria
inhabitants, men, women and perhap
other sexes, perfect in their forms, en-
dowcd with multiplied sensibilities, lumi
nous at will, incombustible as asbestus, i'm
mortal perbapsf At least, lilliputia,
atoms that we are, once for all let us b
convinced that all our imagination il bu
s~terility in the midst of the infinite, scarce
ly seen through the telescope.-Camill
Flammarion in st. Louis Globe Democrat
Parliamentary Popping"
A member of congress had been payinI
attention to n young lady for n long Will
and had taken her to attend the house Tin