The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1897-04-29

while helping the Cubans in their late
struggle for liberty.
At last we came to what we supposed
to be Venus, and Stacked speed pre-
paratOry to making landing. When
favorable site was found adjacent to
large city we slowly sailed to ground.
Leaving Sinbad in charge of the air.
ship we went on tour of inveStiga-
tion. We were surprised at the SINH
larity to our own world; but, while the
people were surely far advanced in
civilization, yet we could see that they
were behind our world in some re.
spects. Their airships were, however,
models of convenience, aerial naviga-
tiOn having been in vogue for centu-
rieS; but it was only very recently that
they had navigated outside their own
atmosphere, and then only to their
three moons, one of which was used as
penal institute.
Here at last was what the doctor was
looking for and on making inquiries in
regard to the moon on which lived the
convicted criminals, we were told that
it was nearly opposite to Terra (our
wOrld) and would not be visible for
several hours. Our informant also
stated that it was about 81 degrees
left declination from Venus at that
date. Venus Then we were out of
our road and on some other planet.
We had miscalculated our course and
discovered that our present stop was
at Mars. Returning at once to the air
ship we held a council and Sinbad was
roundly scored for his carlessness. He
retorted that the ship hadn't a better
man for the "Price."
After a short deliberation we de.
cided to continue our journey, and
having distributed a number o. copies
of The PRISON MIRROR as represent
ing the best journalism of Terra, we
again assembled ready for the start.
The doctor pressed the button and
away we sailed. Having stopped but
a few hours on Mars we were all
heartily glad when at last the good
ship was safely landed on Venus and
our journey for time, was at an end.
We found Venus in a much higher
state of civilization than either Terra
or Mars. The doctor, true to his pur-
pose of discovering some method of
improving the condition of the penal
fortresses on Terra, at once began to
make inquiries along that line. What
must have been his surprise at the re-
suit. They had no penitentiaries on
Venus, no courts, no jails, no sheriffs
and what was most surprising of all
on planet far superior to our own in
civilization-nO laws. After making
exhaustive enquiries we elected the
fact that at some far remote period
they had had laws and penitentiaries,
but it had been discovered by them
that "it was the laws that made the
criminals" When they had their code
of laws, men endowed with a superior
intellect preyed on those less fortunate
until most of the surface of their globe
was owned b. few, and the balance
of the population were in dire need.
This condition was fruitful source of
crime, and the population was further
impoverished by the expensive execu-
tive machinery necessary to preserve
this unnatural state of affairs.
With them crime was absolutely un-
known. There seemed to be no in
centive to crime, the people were
happy and contented. The doctor,
though thwarted in his design to dis
cover new methods of treating crimi-
nails, was delighted with the people and
their freedom from the ills that make
life on earth a burden to the inhabit-
ants, but believing that their mode of
life was unsuited to the people of our
world, we made but short though a
delightful visit.
One popularity of the inhabitants of
Venus is their form of greeting. In
stead of "How do you do," or "Good
morning" they use words the equiva-
lent of which in our language would
be 'You are looking beautiful this