Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1920-03-19

rays of light which could much more easily be
controlled.
Are there inhabitants on Mars? That's cues
tion on which scientists differ. M ~
Among scientists who have won the right to
speak with authority the foremost was the late
Professor Lowell, director of the observatory at
Flagstaff Ariz. Not only was Professor Lowell
convinced that Mars was inhabited. but he be-
lieved the people had much higher degree Of
intelligence than those earth, He dwet par
ticularly on their inventive genius.
2 In 1914 he found new opportunity for strength
ening his pet belief by announcing that instead Of
losing any Of their canals the Martians had built
two new Ones which could be seen plainly through
the telescope.
a ave have actually seen them formed under our
eyes," Professor Lowell said at the time lard the
Importance of IT can hardly be overestimated. The
phenomenon transcends any natural law, and Is
only expcable so far as can be seen by the pres
ence out yonder of animate WILL"
Professor Lowell had little TO say about the
appearance of the beings on Mars. Edmond Per-
rer, director of the museum of the Jardin des
Plantes, in Paris. constructed the first picture Of
the AIartians as he conceived them. He said in
part
1.-THE men on Mars are tall because the force
of gravity is slight. They blond because the
daylight Is less intense. They have less powerful
limbs. Their large blue eyes, their strong noses,
their large ears. constitute type OF beauty which
we doubtless would not appreciate except as sug-
costing superhuman intelligence"
a On the other hand DIR. C. G. Abbott holds that
If wireless messages being received It Is not
Mars sending the signals, but most probably
Venus. Abbott is director of the Smithsonian
astrophysical observatory and assistant secretary
of the Smithsonian institution. He says Mars
is eliminated possibility because known con-
ditions that planet would not permit the ex-
istence of any form Of living creature. 1t is too
cold there and there Is practically no water vapor
In its atmosphere
Assuming that Mars or some other planet is
signaling US, what can we do In the crcun-
stances2q Apparently we can do much.
DIR. james Harris Rogers of Hyattsville Nd.
who has devoted his life to the study OF electric
waves and invented the underground and under
seas wireless used during the war, declares he Is
going to undertake to teach the inhabitants of
Mars the rudiments of intelligence of this planet
Within year wireless communication will be es-
tahlished with Mars, DIR. Rogers believes.
L. j. Lesh, New York radio engineer suggests
that one of the methods of constructing gigantic
station would be TO erect huge antennae suspend.
ed by balloons like the British dirigible R-34 He
asserts, however. that still better way would
be to use huge and brilliant shafts of light as
4 antennae for the system. He thinks that pro-
jectors could be grouped around one spot where
a great amount of electricity could be generated
He suggests Niagara Falls or some other spot
with an enormous amount of water power
Elmer A. Sperry has a searchlight capable OF
producing a beam having the Illuminating In
tensity OF 1.28O.00O0OO candle power He would
form group of $50 to 200 of his searchlights and
direct their combined beams In the direction OF
Mars An aggregation of that sort would possess
the luminous equivalent Of star of the seventh
magnitude such our telescopes are able to pici
up readily. Therefore assuming that the Martans
had glasses of equal power. they should have M
trouble in catching that dot Of light from dis
lance Of 350O0000 to 100000 miles. }s
1t would be possible no doubt. to operate these
lights SO that they could give slow signals which
would fill all the requirements Of a system O
communication. However. an array Of lights o
this character and the needful energizing plan
would cost pretty sum.
The outlay might be warranted some day, blu
sxcertainly not until It Ia certain that are ben
called by one Of our neighbcrs out In space.