A Journey in Other Worlds [33]
by the
shortest course--i. e., a straight line--so that for the present
it was not necessary to steer. Until beyond the limits of the
atmosphere they kept the greatest apergetic repulsion focused on
the upper part of their cylinder, so that its point went first,
and they encountered least possible resistance. Looking through
the floor windows, therefore, the travellers had a most superb
view. The air being clear, the eastern border of North America
and the Atlantic were outlined as on a map, the blue of the ocean
and brownish colour of the land, with white snow- patches on the
elevations, being very marked. The Hudson and the Sound appeared
as clearly defined blue ribbons, and between and around the two
they could see New York. They also saw the ocean dotted for
miles with points in which they recognized the marine spiders and
cruisers of the North Atlantic squadron, and the ships on the
home station, which they knew were watching them through their
glasses.
"I see," said Cortlandt, "that Deepwaters has been as good as his
word, and has his ships on the watch to rescue us in case we
fail."
"Yes," replied Bearwarden, "he is the right sort. When he gave
that promise I knew his men would be there."
They soon perceived that they had reached the void of space, for,
though the sun blazed with a splendour they had never before
seen, the firmament was intensely black, and the stars shone as
at midnight. Here they began to change their course to a curve
beginning with a spiral, by charging the Callisto apergetically,
and directing the current towards the moon, to act as an aid to
the lunar attraction, while still allowing the earth to repel,
and their motion gradually became the resultant of the two
forces, the change from a straight line being so gradual,
however, that for some minutes they scarcely perceived it. The
coronal streamers about the sun, such as are visible on earth
during a total eclipse, shone with a halo against the
ultra-Cimmerian background, bursting forth to a height of twenty
or thirty thousand miles above the surface in vast cyclonic
storms, producing so rapid a motion that a column of incandescent
gas may move ten thousand miles in less than ten minutes.
Whether these great streaks were in part electrical phenomena
similar to the aurora borealis, or entirely of intensely heated
material thrown up by explosions within the sun's mass, they
could not tell even from their point of vantage.
"I believe," said Cortlandt, pointing to the streamers, "that
they are masses of gas thrown beyond the sun's atmosphere, which
expand enormously when the pressure to which they are subjected
in the sun is removed--for only in space freed from resistance
could they move at such velocities, and that their brilliancy is
increased by great electrical disturbance. If they were entirely
the play of electrical forces, their change of place would be
practically instantaneous, which, however rapid their movement,
is not the case."
BOOK II.
CHAPTER I.
THE LAST OF THE EARTH.
Finding that they were rapidly swinging towards their proper
course, and that the earth in its journey about the sun would
move out of their way, they divided their power between repelling
the body they had left and increasing the attraction of the moon,
and then set about getting their house in order.
Bearwarden, having the largest appetite, was elected cook, the
others sagely divining that labour so largely for himself would
be no trial. Their small but business- like-looking electric
range was therefore soon in full blast, with Bearwarden in
command. It had enough current to provide heat for cooking for
four hundred hours, which was an ample margin, and it had this
advantage, that, no matter how much it was used, it could not
exhaust the air as any other form of heat would.
There were also a number of sixteen-candle-power incandescent
lamps, so that when passing through
shortest course--i. e., a straight line--so that for the present
it was not necessary to steer. Until beyond the limits of the
atmosphere they kept the greatest apergetic repulsion focused on
the upper part of their cylinder, so that its point went first,
and they encountered least possible resistance. Looking through
the floor windows, therefore, the travellers had a most superb
view. The air being clear, the eastern border of North America
and the Atlantic were outlined as on a map, the blue of the ocean
and brownish colour of the land, with white snow- patches on the
elevations, being very marked. The Hudson and the Sound appeared
as clearly defined blue ribbons, and between and around the two
they could see New York. They also saw the ocean dotted for
miles with points in which they recognized the marine spiders and
cruisers of the North Atlantic squadron, and the ships on the
home station, which they knew were watching them through their
glasses.
"I see," said Cortlandt, "that Deepwaters has been as good as his
word, and has his ships on the watch to rescue us in case we
fail."
"Yes," replied Bearwarden, "he is the right sort. When he gave
that promise I knew his men would be there."
They soon perceived that they had reached the void of space, for,
though the sun blazed with a splendour they had never before
seen, the firmament was intensely black, and the stars shone as
at midnight. Here they began to change their course to a curve
beginning with a spiral, by charging the Callisto apergetically,
and directing the current towards the moon, to act as an aid to
the lunar attraction, while still allowing the earth to repel,
and their motion gradually became the resultant of the two
forces, the change from a straight line being so gradual,
however, that for some minutes they scarcely perceived it. The
coronal streamers about the sun, such as are visible on earth
during a total eclipse, shone with a halo against the
ultra-Cimmerian background, bursting forth to a height of twenty
or thirty thousand miles above the surface in vast cyclonic
storms, producing so rapid a motion that a column of incandescent
gas may move ten thousand miles in less than ten minutes.
Whether these great streaks were in part electrical phenomena
similar to the aurora borealis, or entirely of intensely heated
material thrown up by explosions within the sun's mass, they
could not tell even from their point of vantage.
"I believe," said Cortlandt, pointing to the streamers, "that
they are masses of gas thrown beyond the sun's atmosphere, which
expand enormously when the pressure to which they are subjected
in the sun is removed--for only in space freed from resistance
could they move at such velocities, and that their brilliancy is
increased by great electrical disturbance. If they were entirely
the play of electrical forces, their change of place would be
practically instantaneous, which, however rapid their movement,
is not the case."
BOOK II.
CHAPTER I.
THE LAST OF THE EARTH.
Finding that they were rapidly swinging towards their proper
course, and that the earth in its journey about the sun would
move out of their way, they divided their power between repelling
the body they had left and increasing the attraction of the moon,
and then set about getting their house in order.
Bearwarden, having the largest appetite, was elected cook, the
others sagely divining that labour so largely for himself would
be no trial. Their small but business- like-looking electric
range was therefore soon in full blast, with Bearwarden in
command. It had enough current to provide heat for cooking for
four hundred hours, which was an ample margin, and it had this
advantage, that, no matter how much it was used, it could not
exhaust the air as any other form of heat would.
There were also a number of sixteen-candle-power incandescent
lamps, so that when passing through