The Birmingham age-herald., 1904-01-31
BY PAUL COOK.

, all his claims vindicated. The new elixir did prolong life and the Martains had spread out before them the glorious vista of eternal existence. As much as their unemotional natures would permit, the Martains were overjoyed and great fume banquets were held in each of the twelve cities where savants and philosophers gathered about the board and inhaled the purple clouds with a blissful knowlege that the bonds of nature had been broken and that they might live always until space was annihilated and time was no more.
 Almost equal astonIshment was caused when it was learned that Xore also de- sired to submit his royal person to the test. The monarch was now drawing close to the end of his 800 years Of He and had no longing for the gloomy Field of Death. Great preparations We're ms : for the event and before vast concourse in the assembly hall of the palace at Huilpi, Tare administered the first draught to the king. Beyond compliment ing Tare on the pleasing flavor Of his liquor, Xore said nothing but retired to the seclusion of his chamber. The Mar tains waited to hear reports of the royal progress and before many days rumor went abroad that the king was overjoyed at the change in his condition. Although the appointed time for him to make his journey to the Field of Death had passed long ago he felt no symptoms Of his approaching end and his strength was that of a man in his prime. Immediately the life giving draught was given to the queen. and to the entire royal family
 With all their wisdom the Martains did not stop to consider what they would do in case life became intolerable. They had no conception of self distraction and all who could quaffed the new fluid eagerly
 The years passed swiftly by in various pursuits of peace, for the great inter planetary wars had not then begun. The Martians continued to advance rapidly in the acquirement of universal knowl- ege and the secrets which yet remained to be solved could be counted on the fingers of one hand. Xore had lived in peace and prosperity and so did all those who inn bibed the elixir of life with him.
 xore had occupied the throne for 950 years when he was startled to discover that strange feebleness was creeping over his limbs. In vain he quaned draughts of Tare's liquid food and con suited the philosophers. His weakness gradually increased and In spite of the efforts of the scientists, he expired exactly at the end of his one thousandth year. All the contemporaries of the King, who began drinking the liquid food with him, also died, and the truth was borne in upon the scientists in their last moments that the wonderful exlixir would prolong life 800 years and no more. After that time 1000 years became the allotted span of life for all Martians.
 When the power of the elixir failed the. Field of Death had been forgotten so long that the journey there was neglected and the Martians had to carry many bodies to that desolate region.
 Xire succeeded to the place unexpected- ly left vacant by the demise of Xore, for no woman ever sat on the Martian throne. It was in this reign that the Mar tians made their first expedition into space, an achievement of the very first importance in the light of succeeding events, during the interplanetary strug- gle. ,
 Although some attempts had been made at aerial navigation as early as the reign of xacr they had never been successful. The extreme rarity of the Martian at mosphere was hard to overcome and the various devices used in launching vessels proved total failures until the one hum dredth year of the reign of Xire, when a noted scientist named Cax, who resided in the city of Pero, invented machine that solved the problem for all time and enabled the Martians to make their first expedition into space.
 The airship of Cax was somewhat uni que in design and different from the ves- sells previously designed by the Martians. Although the Martians had often attempt ed to hurl their ships into space by means of huge mortars and powerful explosives 1t had never ocurred to them 10 construct a ship which would rise of It's own voli- tion and be superior both to gravity and all other attractions with which 1t might come in contact while in space. Cax designed vessel equipped with chemical guns which were so powerful that no att traction could resist their discharge. The airship was something like a salmon can in shape flat beneath and with the top projecting into sharp cone. About the bottom were fixed the chemical guns,