Los Angeles herald., 1909-10-10

United States-Studies of the Planet Mars
and Its PeOple-Suffragettes Permitted to
SuTer-PinchOt-B Controversy Set
t.ed-An International COurtship-War Scare
i'm Observation-Disclosures in Mexico.
19O9-In the early fall of this year a
party of notable japanese gentlemen,
some of them merchants, some officials
and some members of the Japa ese
nobility visited the United States in
order to become more familiar W tn
the ways of the people of America, AMI
also to evidence, on their part the
new spirit of cordiality and profound
friendliness and good will which had
sprung up between the peoples of these
two countries following some utterly
unfounded war talk, which had been
INDUCED in by the yellow jingo Jo r.
nalists of both countries Marked at
tention was accorded the visitors upon
their arrival in the United States, and
during their journeyings over the
country they were given every oppOr-
tunity to learn of the great progress
the United States was making at this
time, the wealth of the country and its
great resources. Also it was arranged
that a large fleet of battleships should
assemble on the Atlantic coast for
target practice at this time, and DEM
onstrate with what remarkable accu-
racy the American gunners could pune
ture even the smallest targets at vari-
GUS ranges and distances.
The Japanese gentlemen were de-
lighted with all they saw and heard
while in the United States, and de.
clared that their visit had been pro
ductive of great good.
19O9-In September of this year the
planet Mars approached to within only
30 900 miles of the Earth, which WAS
something like 15,OOO,0OO miles nearer
than it had been for several years, and
the visit while not entirely uneXpec.ed,
caused people in all parts of the world
to speculate upon the question of
whether Mars is inhabited or not, and
if Sc, whether the people who are now
living on the planet are for the most
part inclined to the belief that Cook
was tho first man to reach the pole or
whether some of them think that
Peary has the best of the argument.
1t was on the night of September %
of this year that Mars was nearer to
the earth than it had been for many
years before, and from his observatory
at Flagstaff Ariz, on the following
day Prof. PerCiVal Lowell announced
that the canals on Mars are disappear
ing. From this fact the belief began
at once to grow that the railroad in
terests on Mars had been grouped to-
gether, and a movement started to put
the canals out of business. 1t was con-
sidered more than likely that the rail-
road interests had claimed that it was
detriment to the country to have
heavily loaded canalboats propelled
along these inland waterways by pie
tald mules at the end of a long rope,
while men with no reverence for the
Christian religion, or the feelings of
people who lived along the banks of
the canal, followed in the wake of the
mule and ever and anon sWore coarsely
and in raucous voice to keep the
mule from gigging back and allowing
the canalboat to lose headWay.
Doubtless the interstate commerce
commission on Mars has taken the mat
ter up, and is now holding sittings in
various parts of the planet, hearing
evidence from the traffic managers Of
the railroads; and inside of the next
ten years, if the Mars congress doesn't
take away the powers of the commits
sion in the meantime, a decision in the
matter may be confidently expected.
According to the professors in charge
of the Lick observatory the atmos-
phere of Mars is almost utterly devoid
of moisture, and this would seem to in
dicate that the liquor interests have
secured a firm foOthOld there, and thai
inhab abitants are compelled to buy bot
tied moisture or go without. Anyone
who has ever attended a German picnic
at some place seven miles from the city,
and six miles and a half from the near
est available supply of drinking water
will understand readily just what this
means to the people of Mars
BY Prof. Pickering of Harvard the
contention was made at this time that
the canals on Mars are artificial, and