Evening star., 1923-07-08
BY STERLING HEILIG,

then a tenth, then disappear, like the
lakes and rivers, seeping into earth
quake crevices-or flying of into
space, as hydrogen atoms.
The thing is going on to-day, but
undesirable because earth still has
such vast quantities of water. Oceans
occupy three-fourths of its surface.
But there was a time when water
covered all. Land emerged only as
the oceans receded. The process is
continuous. implacable. Vast areas
of the world. once fiourishing. are
now sun-baked deserts.
The earth will dry up, predicts a
great philosopher of Paris. Rosny, the
elder Of the Goncourt Academy. And,
looking ahead, in pluralist philosophy,
he tells how 1t will happen.
Rosny is not science popularizer.
but a deep leader of the school of the
new pluralism and a man of wide
and various attainments. AS for the
Goncourt Academy. all have heard of
it-foundation of two wealthy broth
ers. famous writer's, who left Paris
mansion ard great fund Of money,
so that ten chosen writer's might live
free from sordid cares, and appoint
successors to maintain their number.
called "the august ten." In perpetuity.
| AS to Rosny's philosophy. 1t Is like
this. "Monism" says that if you get
at the bottom of things, you will find
that reality is "one"-one matter.
one force. one being which ripples
into things as they appear. "Prag-
matism.' astraddle, says take 1t for
granted that appearances are real.
and let it go at that But "pluralism"
claims that. even in the uttermost
reality, things are many and discon-
tinuous. Forever and everywhere are
different forces. matter, being, which
are not simply variations of "one.'
So, now, for the drying earth.
I'VE are entering the radioactive
w period, says Rosny, in which the
apparent prodigy Of radium will be
left away behind as slow and neg
ligible "untying" of gigantic energies
packed into atoms of all known mat
ter. Any day we may learn to ''un-
tie" the atom. Then We shall arrive
at vest-pocket motors. Already we
are on the edge of discoveries which
will give leisure and we'll being to all
men and women.
Skip 10000 years of constantly in
crcasing ease and luxury. All we can
think of will appear as nothing to
those of the glorious proto- atomic
age to come. No more half measures
of untying matter Men will draw
inconeeivable forces directly from the
forming atoms of interstellar space:
and all humanity. become like gods
will loll in universal learning. luxury
and ease.
Men will begin to change in ply
sique. too when, after 10000 years of
perfect agriculture and nutrition, the
digestive organs become smaller and
the breathing organs larger-follow-
ing on the rarefaction of the air.
Look out. The rarefaction of the
air.
Behold the progress of earth's dry
ing up. But men will laugh. They
have such powers! The last "natu-
rar' animals disappear. Food animals
become evolved deliberately to hide
Gus. weak-limbed. ovoid, stuffed meat
producers of superior quality.
Only a few species of birds escape
this food degradation. grow to sur
prisingly large size-and take surpris-
ing intellectual development.
With these birds Rosny appears
really appears to see far in the future.
From century to century they increase
in charme and sense. and are finally ini-
tiated to a human language of special
syntax and phrase imagery. to render
unique service in laboratories by rea-
son of their delicate instincts. They
become able to foretell earthquakes.
Look $4,000 years ahead Men. in
glorious proto-atomic life. will not be
happy. Magnificent and mysterious
poetry Is dead-no more Wild life in
vast. free spaces. forests, plains and
swamps of the old radioactive pc
riod; no more adventure. no more
marcel-waved by art and science.
Suicide becomes more deadly than the
ancient microbe.
! Adventure seems far off. Catas-
| trophies? Men, armed with powers
like theirs, laugh at the lowering
oceans. When they need water, they
! will make it. Later on, they do make
water-until all hydrogen matter is
used up or has fed away in proto-
atomic Juggling when not disappeared
/ into the earth's interior.
/ Terrific earthquakes begin to de-
stroy ten cities In day. New noun
tains form. three times higher than
! the Alps-but there remain no gla-
ciers. Vast quantities Of water con-
tinue to disappear with each earth