The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-10-26

Marian view in the suns rays. IN
less the Martians realize these condi-
tons as well as our astronomers, they
will not be prepared 10 take advantage
VI our then proximity.
Under more favorable placing, the
earth appears to the inhabitants Of
Mars as a brilliant star attended by
al fainter star, our moon. To them We
are alternately evening and morning
star just as Venus is to us. Assum-
ing that the Martians have telescopes.
our planet is seen from Mars as a
brilliant crescent moon, with light
and dark markings and irregular
flecks of color, white, green and red,
representing floating Clouds SNOW.
vegetation and other features OF the
earth's atmosphere and surface 1t
has been suggested that a high tower
! painted black and built on an alksli
plain, and gigantic white screen ar
ragged so that IL might periodically
conceal and reveal the tower and pro
duce a winking effect. could be seen
by Marian astronomers. This sus
gestion was made ten years ago by
Professor r. W. Wood. but it never
has got beyond the suggestive phase
The People on Mars.
Interest in speculations on life as
II may be lived on Mars Is not con
fined to the astronomical, but extends
! to persons who know and care littls
about that science except so far as il
may bring support to their widest i'm
aginings. 1t has been INDUCED in by
adventurous intellects almost II not
/ quite from Chaldean days, and Mars
has, both in astronomy and philos-
ophy, absorbed moro attention than
any other planet. The beings on Mars
are not necessarily judged to be
souls, that is men like earth men en-
dowed with spirit in the sense Of
belf-consCiousness. A meeting be
tween men and Martians was Judged
by the ancients as one sure to take
place, and when il did to be attended
tby the most ludicrous absurdities n
not with clashes that would result III
the annihilation of one or the other.
1t was, perhaps the dilution OF this
ancient fear that set the mind Of II
G. Wells to work on the book War OF
the Worlds" in which Martians con-
tended with earth men. In this work
of the imagination the Martans are
supposed to exist as instructive, essen
TALLY intellectual beings, far removed
from beasts, but rot self-knowing. or
in other words, not endowed with soul
and its restraining conscience. To
say that this race is evil, essentially,
might be too gross statement: but TO
mix with them, whether in peace or
war, should seem a danger to be
avoided. A race without conscience
could not sut spread deadly miasma
, for who shall dare measure what
spiritual influences might not arise
out OF the collective evil wills OF
, wrecked beings2
Dr. Todd. then, IN his titanic effort
to bring about a meeting between Mar
tians and men, were it but long sIs-
lance conversation. may be inviting
disaster on his fellow men. This
thought might deter him or II might
raise up fanatics (persons who look
upon phenomena without brains to in
vestigate them) who would wreck his
balloon I'm order to stop him II 10
scarcely reasonable to suppose either
the danger of the mad attempt to
avert t. for TO most of US these IN
Ve9tlSatlonS aIe interesting HeTely as
! intellectual excursions. The associa-
| tons which must have given rise TO
such conceptions as lead the astrono-
mers across the cosmogony are the
| sources of interest which they Inspire
They exhibit, through what the imaGi-
nation will urge man TO do. as in this
| instance to build a balloon and defF
gravitation or any other natural law,
the idea of power in the will.
As mortals we like this exhibition OF
grandiose imagination; It draws US. We
think, little nearer to immortals. In
that straining to be other than poor,
weak denizens of earth we like to
know all things. and we particularly
prefer to be told Of the knowledge we
possess rather than OF the Ignorance
we suffer. 4