“You said, Mr. Midith, that you were born on Mars about fifty years ago. Do you mean fifty Marsian years, or fifty of _our_ years?” asked Viola. “I mean fifty of your years,” replied Mr. Midith. “How long have you lived on earth then, Mr. Midith?” asked Rev. Dudley. “I have been an inhabitant of the earth a little over ten years. I was twenty Marsian years old when I arrived on earth, and the ten years I have lived here makes my age the same as thirty mundane years. You see a Marsian year to a Marsite is no longer than your year is to you. Everything on Mars corresponds with its length of year.” “Did the increased intensity of heat and light affect you much when you first landed on earth?” asked Mr. Uwins. “Yes at first I experienced quite a discomfort; but my system and senses soon adjusted themselves to the new conditions somewhat, the same as an eye adjusts itself when going from a dark to a brilliantly lighted apartment. The temperature gave me more and longer discomfort than the light did.” “How old does a person on Mars get to be, Mr. Midith?” asked Roland, as he was edging still nearer to Mr. Midith. “A person, with the same care of himself, lives as many Marsian years on Mars as you live earthly years. But as society, on account of the greater age of Mars, has advanced much further than it has on earth, people, as they continually learn by experience, live more in harmony with the laws of life and health, and consequently they get much older. Many Marsites live now to be over 150 years and are still in vigorous health,” replied Mr. Midith. “Did the difference in the atmospheric pressure and the difference in the intensity of gravitation cause you much inconvenience, Mr. Midith?” I asked. “Not very much,” replied Mr. Midith. “We are going to crowd you with questions,” said Viola with a smile. “I was going to ask you where you landed when you reached the earth.” “Miss Viola, to tell you the truth I did not land on a very pleasant spot. I landed in the Pacific ocean, about a mile from the western shore of the United States. When I entered the dense atmosphere, very near the earth, my interplanetary projectile became unmanageable and out of repair. This landed me in the Pacific. But the Marsites are all good swimmers, as I shall explain to you hereafter, and so I swam to the nearest shore.” “Could you speak the English language when you landed on earth?” asked Rev. Dudley. “No; I could not. I could understand no language that I heard spoken here. There are a few words in the English language that sound similarly to our words, but they signify entirely different ideas and things. I had to learn every word of your language that I now know.” “Do I understand you, then, Mr. Midith, that you have but one language on Mars?” asked Mrs. Uwins.