Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-01-03
37 SNAKES ON PLANET VENUS.
French Astronomer Says It's Nest Of
Reptiles.

Life on the, planet Venus is the
title of a remarkable article which has
Just appeared in the Paris magazine,
Lectures Pour Tous, and has attracted
widespread attention from the boldness
of its theories.
According to the, writer. who.
although ANONYMOUS, is believed
to be Camille Flanlmarien. Venus.
which is younger than the earth and
older than Mercury, is now passing
through the equivalent of what is
called the secondary period by geolo-
gists.
1T is he says. "a nightmare planet.
nest of reptiles, and a swarm Of
monsters. Under the sitting mist Of
air, saturated with; hot water, lies
vast niry swamp, covered with rottiug
vegetable matter From this spring
forests Of toadstools and. ferns as high
us date palms. and forests in which all
creeping ard slimm Creatures that arc
-yerpin here take itFTagtici proportions.
Insects are1 mQrsters Ahere. Cent?
pedes n yard teng trqilio their soft
feet ENORMOUS spiders, black and vel-
vettX p2lsSseSs Jaws Ike wolftraps filled
With poison, f1,,s
I'm tie prairies of giant moss grass"
continues tie writer. lives the dipio-
E5oeeus, as high a d house, always en-
desvoring TO appease it's Unsuitable
hunger and keeping a lookout for 3
swift onslaught of the cGrnivorous tri-
'ccratops, which it cannot hope 10 es-
cape.
Everywhere are sinister croakines
whistlings, forked tongues, and the
slaughter of giant saurians. which fight
for the supremacy of the world. There
are no flowers among this riotous fern
like vegetation and no birds, but In the
fiery air are seen constantly the men,
branous wings, ten yards across, and
the swapping jaws of pterodactyls.
THE hot sea filled with floating
weeds is above all full of innumerable
living beings, octopi with livid tent
acles colossal fish, and zoophytes like
living flowers. while here and there in
the maddened whirlpools. fearful fira-
CONS rise from the abyss. raising like
masts over spasm shaken backs and
swollen necks surmounted by viEers'
heads.
Twilight on Venus is red blood. The
angry sun, as big as a milestone, de-
scends to the horizon in the smoke or
VOLCANOES and storm clouds. And black
night comes, lighted by no moon ana
full of clamors and horrors.
But when the ichthyosaurus rises
on the crests of waves to roar IN the
darkness he reflects IN his eyes. pupil
less and hard as glass, a beautiful star,
accompanied by little luminous point,
which is the queen of heaven of Venus.
1t is our earth and the moon. ner
satellite"
This writer thinks. that owing TO the
relative warmness or the poles of VEN
us while this period of evolution IS
proceeding, in the torrid zcne, when
occupies the greater part of the surface
of the planet. it is possible that at the
poles species are already appearing
which did not. come until long after the
secondary epoch on the earth, such as
great pachy dernrs covered With hair.
And perhaps near those poles dweils
already in caves a hairy. being with
projecting Jaws brutal and savage. but
within whose thick skull pass some
gIimmerings of reason. and who is bus
ily engaged in striking sparks from
aints to protect his food for great
carnivorotis animals