The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-12-09
AFTER MARS AGAIN.

The question as to whether or not Mars is inhabited will all be threshed over next year, as it has frequently been in the past. In July next the planet will be at it's nearest approach to. our earth and the astronomers are making their preparations to make all the observations and Investigations that modern science has made possible. True, the planet will be about 10000, ,0O0 miles away. but that doespit discourage the star-gazers who do not balk at much greater distances than that.
 Many and long and learned have been. the arguments and disquisitions iptended to show that Mars is really inhabited. but not an atom of satisfac- tory evidence has~been addueed, that is, none that is, satisfactory to ordinary minds. The existence on that planet of canals apparently made by human hands has been proclaimed time and again, and others have declared that they had found evidences of the existence of intelligent beings, but when it Is all boiled down there Is nothing but con- lecture at last. The fact that these claims cannot be disproven is the strongest factor in their favor. We may say that no one has proven that Mars is inhabited and then the claim ants will ask us to disprove 1t. which we can't do. and there 1t ends. The Portland Oregonian looks at 1t this way: .-. :H Upon the face of it., there is no req l son why other worlds than ours should earth has a monopoly of life and intel l ligence is a narrow conceit which has little Justification in what we know of there is no life upon the other planets of our solar system. which we cannot do, we must forget that there are other | systems without number. worlds on through the unimaglnabie gulfs of space. Of these worlds we know at present absolutely nothing except that | they exist. The present indications of | science are that life Is a property of matter and wherever In the universe | the conditions have been favorable life has probably been evolved.
 That is taking the position that all life, human, animal and vegetable, Is the result of evolution, and if we are to look at it in that way we suppose l we may as we'll believe that all the planets and stars were evolved from | some unknown and unknowable source. l Then, when we have gone so far. we may as we'll go on and hold that life was as likely to come up by process of evolution on other planets as it was on our own. In short if we admit that all matter, animate and inanimate, came by evolution and not by creation we can see no stopping place. One theory is about as tenable as another
 Leaving out all academic discussion, however, it may be within the range
 of possibility that some discoveries of importance will result from the ob- 1 servations that will be made in July
 Astronomy and astronomical instru-
 ments have advanced as other human matters have, and we may have a sur prise not far ahead.
 Supposing by way of speculation, that irrefutable evidence is obtained that mars is inhabited the trouble for our earth people will but just have begun All the ingenuity and learning and in-
 ventivenes of humanity will then be
 put to work to find some means of
 communicating with the Martians and
 when that is accomplished the next
 problem will be to visit them and be
 visited by them. More than one nov
 ellst has written fanciful stories oi
 visits and invasions from Mars, but
 if our people find that folks are there
 they will never rest until they pay them a visit. Then the demand fol
 flying machines will be op in good
 earnest voyage to Mars will be
 more interesting than trip to tho
 North Pole. and the flyers will have sure enough incentive to effort ant adventure.