"Are we visible earth ? " I asked

"Why ? "

" some one who was rather interested in astronomy It occurred rather odd if - my friend - chanced looking through come telescope "

"It would need the most powerful telescope on earth even now us minutest speck "

For time I stared in silence moon

"It's world," ; "one feels that infinitely more than one ever did on earth People perhaps - "

"People ! " he exclaimed "No ! Banish all that ! Think yourself sort of ultra-arctic voyager exploring the desolate places of space Look at it ! "

He waved his hand shining whiteness below "It's dead - dead ! Vast extinct volcanoes, lava wildernesses, tumbled wastes of snow, or frozen carbonic acid, or frozen air, and everywhere landslip seams and cracks and gulfs Nothing happens Men have watched this planet systematically with telescopes for over two hundred years change seen ? "

"None "

" traced two indisputable landslips, doubtful crack, and one slight periodic change of colour, 's all "

"I didn't know they'd traced even that "

"Oh, yes But as for people ! "

" ," I asked, how small thing will the biggest telescopes show moon ? "

"One fair-sized church One could certainly see any towns or buildings, or anything like the handiwork of men There might perhaps be insects, something way of ants, for example, hide in deep burrows lunar light, or some new sort of creatures having no earthly parallel most probable thing, life there at all Think difference in conditions ! Life must fit itself to day as long as fourteen earthly days, cloudless sun-blaze of fourteen days, and then night of equal length, growing ever colder and colder under these, cold, sharp stars night cold, the ultimate cold, absolute zero, 273 C below the earthly freezing point Whatever life must hibernate , and rise again "

He mused "One can imagine something worm - like," , "taking its air solid as an earth-worm swallows earth, or thick-skinned monsters -"

" bye," , "why didn't we bring gun ? "

answer that question "No," he concluded, "we just have see when we get there "

I remembered something " , there's my minerals, anyhow," ; "whatever the conditions "

Presently me to alter our course little by letting the earth tug at us for moment going to open one earthward blind for thirty seconds He warned me would make my head swim, and advised me to extend my hands against the glass to break my fall as he directed, and thrust my feet against the bales of food cases and air cylinders their falling upon me Then with click the window flew open I fell clumsily upon hands and face, and saw for moment between my black extended fingers our mother earth - planet in downward sky

We were still very near - Cavor told me the distance was perhaps eight hundred miles huge terrestrial disc filled all heaven But already plain world was globe The land below us was in twilight and vague, but westward the vast gray stretches Atlantic shone like molten silver under the receding day I recognised the cloud-dimmed coast-lines of France and Spain south of England, and then, with click, the shutter closed again, and myself in state of extraordinary confusion sliding slowly over the smooth glass

When at last things settled themselves in my mind again, it seemed quite beyond question moon was "down" and under my feet, and earth was somewhere away level horizon - the earth that "down" and my kindred beginning of things

So slight were the exertions required of us, so easy did the practical annihilation weight make all we had , necessity for taking refreshment occur for nearly six hours (by Cavor's chronometer) after our start amazed lapse Even then satisfied with very little Cavor examined the apparatus for absorbing carbonic acid and water, and pronounced it in satisfactory order, our consumption of oxygen having been extraordinarily slight talk 'being exhausted , and there being nothing further , we gave way to curious drowsiness that had come upon us, and spreading our blankets bottom sphere shut out most moonlight, wished good-night, and almost immediately fell asleep

And so, sleeping, and sometimes talking and reading little, and at times eating, although without any keenness of appetite,3 but most part in sort of quiescence that was neither waking nor slumber, we fell through space that had neither night nor day , silently, softly, and swiftly down towards the moon

curious thing, that while we were sphere not the slightest desire for food, nor did the want of it when we abstained At first we forced our appetites, but afterwards we fasted completely Altogether consume one-hundredth part compressed provisions we had brought The amount of carbonic acid we breathed was also unnaturally low, but why , quite unable to explain

Chapter 6

The Landing Moon

I REMEBER how one day Cavor suddenly opened six shutters and blinded me I cried aloud at him The whole area was moon, stupendous scimitar of white dawn with its edge hacked out by notches of darkness, the crescent shore of an ebbing tide of darkness, out peaks and pinnacles came glittering blaze sun I take it reader has seen pictures or photographs moon not describe the broader features landscape, those spacious ringlike ranges vaster than any terrestrial mountains, their summits shining day, their shadows harsh and deep, the gray disordered plains, the ridges, hills, and craterlets, all passing at last from blazing illumination into common mystery of black Athwart this world we were flying scarcely hundred miles above its crests and pinnacles And now we , what no eye on earth will ever see, that under the blaze day the harsh outlines rocks and ravines plains and crater floor grew gray and indistinct under thickening haze, white lit surfaces broke into lumps and patches, and broke again and shrank and vanished, here and there strange tints of brown and olive grew and spread

But little time we had for watching then For now we had come real danger journey We had to drop ever closer moon spun , to slacken our pace and watch our chance, until at last dare to drop upon its surface

For Cavor that was time of intense exertion; an anxious inactivity I seemed perpetually getting out way He leapt sphere from point to point with an agility been impossible on earth perpetually opening and closing the Cavorite windows, making calculations, consulting his chronometer glow lamp during those last eventful hours we had all our windows closed and hung silently in darkness hurling through space

Then feeling shutter studs, and suddenly four windows were open I staggered and covered my eyes, drenched and scorched and blinded unaccustomed splendour sun beneath my feet Then again the shutters snapped, leaving my brain spinning in darkness that pressed against the eyes And I floated in another vast, black silence

Then Cavor switched electric light, and told me he proposed to bind all our luggage together blankets , against the concussion descent this windows closed, because way our goods arranged themselves naturally centre sphere That too was strange business; we two men floating loose spherical space, and packing and pulling ropes Imagine it ! No up nor down, and every effort resulting in unexpected movements Now pressed against the glass full force of Cavor's thrust, now kicking helplessly in void Now the star electric light overhead, now under foot Now Cavor's feet would float up before my eyes, and now crossways to But at last our goods were safely bound together in big soft bale, all except two blankets with head holes that we were to wrap about ourselves

Then for flash Cavor opened window moonward, and we saw that we were dropping towards huge central crater with number of minor craters grouped in sort of cross And then again Cavor flung our little sphere open scorching, blinding sun using the sun's attraction as brake "Cover yourself with blanket," he - cried, thrusting himself from me, and for moment understand