It was quite natural that astronomers, the most conservative of all classes of observers, should have doubted the first announcement of Schiaparelli of the startling discovery of the canali marking the face of the planet, the more so as year after year went by and yet with the utmost efforts of astronomers nothing of the nature of Schiaparelli's lines could be seen.
What added greatly to the doubt about the lines, and at the same time strengthened the idea that the lines were illusory, was the subsequent announcement by Schiaparelli—undeterred by the universal skepticism—that at times the lines appeared double. What more convincing evidence could be offered than that the phenomenon was purely subjective?
A few astronomers expressed their doubts in a courteous though hesitating manner. Professor Young, in his valuable text-book, "Elements of Astronomy" (1890), in correctly reporting Schiaparelli's discovery says: "He is so careful and experienced an observer that his results cannot be lightly rejected; and yet it is not easy to banish a vague suspicion of some error or illusion, partly because his observations have thus far received so little confirmation from others, and partly because his 'canals' are so difficult to explain. They can hardly be rivers, because they are quite straight; nor can they be artificial water-ways since the narrowest of them are forty or fifty miles wide. To add to the mystery, he finds that at certain times many of them become doubled,—the two which replace the former single one running parallel to each other for hundreds, and sometimes thousands, of miles, with a space of 200 or 300 miles between them. He thinks that this gemination of the canals follows the course of the planet's seasons."
The overpowering belief that this world alone sustained creatures of intelligence formed an obstructive barrier to any and all attempts made to uphold—at least by analogy—the idea of intelligence in other worlds. One cannot but regret that some philosopher had not, years before Schiaparelli's time, expressed the conviction that Mars might perhaps be more favorable to the existence of intelligent life than our own world, and with this conviction proceed to formulate the conditions which must of necessity exist: namely, that the planet being a much older world than ours, its waters had mostly vanished by chemical combination with the rocks and otherwise. Following this assumption, the philosopher might have insisted that in the last extremity the melting snow caps would be utilized by the supposed intelligences to furnish water for potable and irrigating purposes. The philosopher might have superadded to this idea the prediction that, when telescopes were strong enough and eyes were keen enough, evidence of the truth of this supposition would be found in canals of some sort and that such lines should be carefully sought for. Fancy the exultation of Schiaparelli when at last he found the lines precisely as indicated. Such an announcement from so distinguished an astronomer would have been hailed with acclaim. Alas! for the conservatism of astronomers, such powers of prevision are sadly wanting. Le Verrier's prediction of an outer planet was a matter of dead certainty. The perturbations of Uranus could not be accounted for except by the assumption of an outside body, and had it not been for the characteristic reserve of English astronomers, Adams might have had the full credit. So rare are predictions of this nature in the history of astronomy that this instance will probably be quoted to the end of time. The masses, still ignorant of the certainty of mathematical astronomy, regard the prediction of an eclipse as in the nature of a prophecy. The liberal attitude of naturalists stands in marked contrast, and the history of their work is filled with examples of prediction and repeated confirmations. Until the middle of the last century—grounded in the belief of special creation—how wonderfully rapid was the conversion of naturalists to the theory of evolution after Darwin had offered his rational views on the subject. The existence of forms was predicted, based on the idea of evolution, and these have been found again and again. Our museums display in their cases remains of fossil animals which complete many series undreamed of in pre-Darwinian days. This wonderful work has been accomplished without resort to algebraic formulæ, and yet when mathematics can be applied, as it is in the law of variation, quantitative studies in heredity, and statistical methods generally, it is promptly seized upon by the biologist.
To one unconvinced of the existence of some signs of intelligent activity in Mars the suggestions that have been made to account for certain appearances in the planet will seem absurd. If, on the other hand, he finds himself in agreement with those who believe the markings are the result of intelligent effort, then he is justified in using the various artificial markings of the surface of the Earth as standards of comparison in explaining the many curious markings of Mars. Indeed, he is compelled to do so, just as would be demanded of him if he should stand on some high mountain peak in some hitherto unexplored region of Africa and should minutely scan the hazy stretch of plains below. Large white spots in equatorial regions which could not possibly be snow-covered hills, might be masses of white flowers or cloth-covered areas for the better cultivation of certain plants. Lines that dimly stretched across the surface might be rivers, cañons, rifts, or bands of irrigation, according to their character.
As we compare the circular markings on the Moon with our terrestrial craters and fissures, and cracks on its surface with similar fissures on the Earth, so we are forced to compare the markings on the surface of Mars with what seems analogous to them on the surface of our own Earth.
Once proved that the markings of Mars are due to erosion, cracks, encircling meteors big enough to raise ridges by their attractive force, then all that has been written in demonstration of their artificial character goes for naught. The intelligent reader unprejudiced in the matter will, however, judge for himself the merits of our contention and will determine the reasonableness of the comparisons that have been made by Lowell in solving the mystery of Mars.
INDEX
- Algebraic formulæ, 73.
- American astronomers, Holden, Pickering, Young, Swift, Comstock, Barnard, Wilson, drew the more conspicuous canals, 65.
- Ancient irrigation, 115.
- Ants surviving at high altitudes, 157;
- unique intelligence, 156.
- Astronomer's chief work, 74;
- conservatism, 75.
- Astronomers who have seen the canals, 83.
- Astronomical subjects remote from Martian studies, 72.
- Atmosphere and moisture, Barnard and others, 134, 135;
- Sir Robert Ball, 137.
- Austria's care of water, 117.
- Ball, Sir Robert, difficulties of observation, 84;
- Barbour, W. D., with a four inch achromatic, 88.
- Barnard's, Dr., description of dark regions, 43.
- Bees, wasps, and ants, 156.
- Canali supposed to mean canals, 39.
- Canals appear double, 41;
- Cassini, 33.
- Chandler's oscillation of pole, 126.
- Checkerboard appearance of West, 48.
- Clerke's, Agnes M., expressions, 55.
- Clouds in Mars, 139;
- in Mars, Sir Norman Lockyer, 136.
- Comments and criticism, 125.
- Committee of British Astronomical Association, 126.
- Conception of life in other worlds, 17.
- Conservatism of astronomers, 185.
- Cracks all of the same nature, 108;
- Cultivation under cloth, Porto Rico, 50.
- Dark regions not seas, 45.
- Dawes, remarkable distinctness of vision, 89.
- De la Rive, memoir of Faraday, 76.
- Denning's, Mr., testimony, 56, 57.
- Difficulties of seeing, 79.
- Dighton Rock, 97.
- Draper, Dr. Henry, "Are other worlds inhabited?" 87;
- Drawings of Mars by different observers, 98.
- Dust storms in Mars, 140.
- Earth, a standard, 25, 26, 186;
- Earth's distance from the sun, 11;
- temperature above normal, 37.
- Emerson's expressions, 21.
- England's unsteady atmosphere, 84.
- Epicyclic theory of Ptolemy, 8.
- "Evolution of the Solar System," T. J. J. See, 23.
- Failure of water in England, 116.
- Faraday's, Michael, attitude, 76.
- Fauth, Dr. Phil., 63;
- drawings of Mars, 63.
- First look at Mars, 80.
- Fison's, Mr., comments, 97.
- Flammarion's picture of the Earth from Mars, 169;
- work on Mars, 51.
- Fruit trees, Santa Clara Valley, 49.
- Gill's, Sir David, testimony, 90.
- Hebraic conceptions, astronomers imbued with, 21.
- Hebraic conceptions of the universe, 8.
- Herschel, Sir John, on snow caps, 76.
- High altitudes favorable to health, 152.
- Holden, E. S., on nebula of Orion, 96.
- Howe's, Herbert A., remarks, 65, 66.
- Huxley's estimate of mathematicians, 74.
- Huyghens, 32.
- Ice caps of Himalaya, 115.
- Iles, George, illustration of cooling bodies, 25.
- Illusions, supposes, 59.
- Irrelevant criticism, 126.
- Irrigation, ancient in Arizona, in Egypt, in India, 145;
- Joly's, Dr. J., theory, 100.
- Keeler's definition of astrophysics, 77.
- Lampland, photographs of Mars, 32.
- Ledger's, Rev. E., canals of Mars, 131.
- Liberal attitude of naturalists, 185.
- Life at high altitudes, 150;
- Lindsay's, Thomas, expressions, 55.
- Lines of artificial character, 112.
- Lockyer, Sir Norman, saw clouds in Mars, 136.
- Lockyer's, W. J., testimony, 89.
- Lowell, Percival, brief sketch of, 174;
- Lung capacity, 155;
- at high altitudes, 152.
- Macpherson, Hector, Jr., agrees with Lowell, 68.
- Mars, appearance of Earth from, 118;
- beginning of life in, 16;
- canals, 40;
- canals continuous, 109;
- dark regions change with the season, 38;
- dark regions not seas, 37;
- desert lands, 39;
- detached fields of snow, 37;
- disappearance of southern snow cap, 37;
- distance from sun, 12;
- double canals, 45, 46;
- drawings of, coincided, 81;
- glints of brilliant light, 37;
- has it water? 35;
- has life appeared in? 15;
- life in, from analogy, 15;
- much like the world, 16;
- nearest approach to earth, 32;
- oases, 44;
- seasonal changes in, 34;
- seasons, 33;
- rarefaction of atmosphere in, 35;
- rotation of, Cassini, 33;
- temperature of, 35;
- terminator of, Douglass, 35;
- those who see and those who do not see, 85;
- tilt of axis, 33;
- white polar caps, 33.
- Maunder, director of committee, 126.
- Maunders's, E. W., comments, 103.
- Maunier, Stanislaus, on canal doubling, 119.
- Maxwell, Clerk, on mathematicians, 74.
- Mediæval attitude of some astronomers, 181.
- Michel, Louise, teaching children, 73.
- Morehouse, George W., believes Mars is inhabited, 67, 68.
- My own work, 158.
- Newcomb's, Professor, opinion, 24;
- Number of acres under irrigation, 122.
- Observations of Mars, 1st period, 51;
- Orr's, J., theory, 102.
- Parallel case of interpretation, 181.
- Patterson's, John A., expressions, 56.
- Perrotin, brief sketch of, 177.
- Perrotin and Janssen describes the canals, 63;
- and Thollon, 58.
- Perrotin's painstaking care, 63, 64.
- Phillips', Rev. Theo. E. R., drawing, 62.
- Pickering, W. H., canals seen by, 63;
- Planetology, 77.
- Plurality of worlds, astronomer's belief in, 18;
- Polar snow cap, proof deduced from Lowell, Douglass, and Pickering, 135.
- Profound changes by man, 123.
- Railroads in Iowa and Texas, 142.
- Review of Lowell's book, 66.
- Rift in Southern Africa, 112.
- Schiaparelli, abstemiousness when observing, 84;
- Sea, so-called, land areas, 39.
- Seasonal changes, 136.
- Snow storms in Mars, W. H. Pickering, 138.
- Solar system a standard for universe, 26.
- Stars, bright points of light, 7;
- similar to our sun, 9.
- Stetefeldt's, C. A., views, 129.
- Study of planetary markings, 70.
- Sun and planets reduced to minute scale, 11.
- Temperature under which man exists, 149.
- Terby, Dr., identifies many canals, 64.
- Theories regarding canals, 100.
- Thollon, brief sketch of, 178.
- Titles of papers in astronomical journals, 71.
- Todd, Professor, says canals result of design, 68.
- Turner, H. H., "Astronomical Discovery," 78;
- on the difficulties of seeing, 91.
- Tycho Brahe, 8.
- Tyndall on imagination, 77.
- Tyndall's expressions on the Nebular Theory, 15;
- reference to Nebular Theory, 24.
- Unfolding of plant life on the earth, 45.
- Variation in drawings by different observers, 94, 95;
- Variety of conditions under which life exists, 147.
- Vastness of the universe, 10.
- Wallace, Alfred Russel, human paradox, 29;
- review of, in London "Nature," 18.
- Water vapor, no spectroscopic proof of, Campbell, 135.
- Webb's, Rev. T. W., difficulties of seeing, 91, 92.
- What the Martians might say of us, 166.
- White spots in equatorial regions of Mars, 48.
- White weed in New England, 49.
- Williams, A. Stanley, difficulty in observation, 82.
- Would the work of man show in Mars? 122.
- Young, C. A., on snow caps, 76, 126;
- on Schiaparelli's discovery, 183.
FOOTNOTES
1 Some of our readers may not know that light travels, in round numbers, at the rate of 186,000 miles a second.
2 The terminator represents the limit of light on that side of the planet in the shade, in other words, where the light terminates. In viewing the Moon, when at quarter or half, the terminator is seen very ragged on account of the illumination of higher points on the surface. If the Moon was as smooth as a billiard ball the terminator would be clear cut.
3 The world in its ignorance of Italian assumed that the word meant exclusively canals, and, if canals, then dug by shovels. What! a canal thirty miles wide and two thousand miles long dug in the snap of the finger? Impossible conception, you say. We shall see later the sober utterances of a member of the British Astronomical Society on this gratuitous assumption, and an equally serious comment by the chief assistant of the Royal Observatory at Greenwich (E. S. M.).
4 The views so long held that the dark shaded regions were bodies of water, or seas, was disproved by the observations of Pickering and Douglass, who distinctly traced the course of the canals across these dark areas. The observations of Dr. E. Barnard certainly sustain the contention that they are land areas and probably depressions, representing ancient ocean beds. Dr. Barnard, using the telescope at the Lick Observatory, says: "Under the best conditions these dark regions which are always shown, with smaller telescopes, of nearly uniform shade, broke up into a vast amount of very fine details. I hardly know how to describe the appearance of these 'Seas' under these conditions. To those, however, who have looked down upon a mountainous country from a considerable elevation, perhaps some conception of the appearance presented by these dark regions may be had. From what I know of the appearance of the country about Mt. Hamilton, as seen from the Observatory, I can imagine that, as viewed from a very great elevation, this region, broken by cañon, and slope and ridge, would look like the surface of these Martian seas."
5 Sterling Heiley, in "Pearson's Magazine," June, 1905.
6 A translation of which may be found in the "Popular Science Monthly," Vol. XXXV, p. 532.
7 I may add that in a similar case an American student of Mars moved his telescope to Mexico and remounted it at a cost of some thousands of dollars.
Transcriber's Notes
Punctuation and spelling were made consistent when a predominant preference was found in this book; otherwise they were not changed.
Simple typographical errors were corrected; occasional unbalanced quotation marks retained; inconsistent hyphenation retained.
Ambiguous hyphens at the ends of lines were retained.
Page 146: Quotation mark preceding 'The sale value' has no matching closing mark.
Page 192: "Stetefelt's" is spelled "Stetefeldt" on page 129. The latter is correct.
Page 192: "Tycho Brahe" probably should be indexed as "Brahe, Tycho".