Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1921-10-10


areas of a blush green and other
areas of an ochre red, with patches
of white at the poles, was believed
by many astronomers to be capable
of supporting life in some form.
Schiaparelli, an Italian astronomer.
announced in 1871 that he had found
the surface Of the planet Scared by
many lines which were perfectly
straight and seemed to have some
system like vast engineering works.
He called the lines canals and said he
/ elieved they had been constructed
and were not simply cracks in the
surface of the planet.
Professor Perciyal Lowell erected
an observatory in Flagstaff, Ariz.,
many years ago and commenced a
systematic observation Of Mars More
than. 10 years ago he startled the
world by expressing his belief that
Mars was inhabited by intelligent Or
ganisms living in a civilization much
farther advanced than ours.
The canals, he said, were really big
bitches bringing water from the poles
to irrigate the rest of the planet The
ochre red areas on the surface of
/ Mars, he asserted, were deserts or
fallow fields which became blush
green as the water flowed along the
canals in the seasons
Later he said that he had
watched the blush green area,
dcnoting land springinc to life
! With the coming of the water,
spread down the northern hems-
phere along the borders of the canals
TO beyond the equator of the planet
and then gradually turn reddish
brown with the waning of the sea-
son. The water, he claimed. was from
ice melting on the polar caps Of the
planet.
Other scientists took the opposite
point of view. Some said the canals
were only cracks in the surface of the
planet filled with sand, impregnated
with salts of various kinds, which
became dark or light to the observer
according to its moisture content
The temperature on Mars. they said
was too cold to support life of any
kind
Lowell retorted that his observa=
I. tons showed that the average tenn
nerature of Mars is IS degrees Fab
rcnheit. The regularity of the canals:
their even spacing; the accuracy
with which they made a great circle
such as navigators employ on a
I curved surface thousands of miles in
extent; the manner in which some of
the canals were parellelled at certain
points and the regularity of the spots
at the intersections Of canals all tcs-
tlf". he asserted, to the artificial ma
turo Of the canals and justified be-
lief that they We're made 10y senticnt
organisms Of high intelligence
= More than 500 canals and cases, as
Lowell claimed the spots to be. have
been mapped out and their names arc
so well known that Harvard Observ-
atory announced last April that snow
had been observed falling at Isidis, in
the district Of Syrtis Major. Mars 1t
was held by some that the canals
tad been developed to signal the
Garth which must appear to the
Martians as of immense size being
nine times bigger than Mars.
VITA the development of wireless tie
Biography several attempts have been
made to get into communication with
Mars with hiehpoWered apparatus
Signor Marconi gave announcement
10 that field of research recently.
when he announced that in the
course Of experimenting he had
picked up signal with 4 wave length
OF loo.oOp meters. about six times as
long as any commercial apparatus in
use today. Marconi said the letter Y
mad been repeated several times in
international code. He suggested that
possibly the inhabitants of Mars
Wtee trying to get into communica-
ton with the earth.
Two engineers of Omaha devoted
TWO weeks of their time recently TO
listening for signals from Mars
They kept their apparatus tuned to
catch such q message as Narconi de-
scribed but they heard nothing.
controversy has run high over the
bold proposal Of Messrs r. McAfee
ana Todd. A mine shaft in the Chi
leap Andes, which Will point direct
~ at Mars in 1924. will provide the
barrel of their telescope. they an
nounced, and big pan Of mercury
"!ll provide the mirror. The two
Americans calculate that the surface
OF Mars will be magnified at least
zo'"oO,O0O times bringing it within a
lew miles Of their cameras.
Inc mine shaft will be widened to
20 feet in diameter ana sheathed. The
pool of mercury at the bottom will
re revolved at such high speed that
II VIII assume a concave shape and
hecome a mirror. The depth of tho
fortunately placed shaft is so great
That there will be sufficient luminos-
lty. the two scientists said. to enable
them to take snapshots instead Of
time exposures
The Goddard proposal for aerial in
vestigation also includes use of
cameras. To summarize his princi
Pc, the determining fattor of the ef
Iclency of rocket is the velocity Of
inc election of gases due to the ex
plosion of propelling material. By
increasing this velocity, through in
creaslng the proportion of the pro
pelllng material to weight of pro-
lcctIle and through greatly i'm
proved nozzle shaped passage for the
escape of gases, Professor Goddard
claims to have raised the efficiency
OF the rocket to nearly 81 per cent
Many investigators are convinced
that life exists on Mars and expect m
prove it with the novel telescope.
what they will find on their photo