Life in a Thousand WorldsHarris, W. S. (William Shuler)
Science
Life in a Thousand Worlds
Harris, W. S. (William Shuler)
Utopias
Their words have a marvelous correspondence with the thought or the
action expressed, the manner of emphasizing syllables going a great
distance toward expressing the shade of emotion desired.
I admired especially one thing on this bulky planet. They have but one
authority for language. Hence there is no Century, Webster, Worcester or
Standard, each rivaling the others for supremacy, to confuse the honest
student with diverse spellings and pronunciations.
The words of the language of Jupiter are all embodied in one unique
dictionary which is revised at intervals by a board of official
educators; to this board all suggestions for inserting new words and
changing the classification of old ones must be given for their
consideration.
This dictionary is printed by the government, and a copy of it is
furnished free to all public places and to each private family. When a
revision is made, a copy of all the changes is furnished to each
dictionary holder. The authority of this dictionary is final, and no one
is permitted to publish a conflicting work.
The Jupiterites have displayed their highest genius in their
astronomical advancements. They know all about the Solar System, and
have made discoveries inside of Neptune's orbit which our astronomers
have never observed. I was thrilled with delight when I saw their
telescopes with the marvelous lenses that opened the locked doors of the
Milky Way. No wonder the astronomers of Jupiter have a more
comprehensive view of the universe than we have. Their lenses are so
powerful that they have seen the outlines of our rugged mountains, and
have discovered on our world unmistakable signs of human life. During my
visit thither the experts were working on a much larger lens, and it is
claimed that when this is finished human forms can be discerned on the
Earth and can be seen with more accuracy on Mars.
The five moons that revolve around Jupiter have been studied with marked
interest. Two of these moons have displayed definite signs of human
life. It is promised also that the coming lens will unlock the doors of
the several moons and permit the astronomers of Jupiter to pry into the
secrets of their celestial neighbors.
During the past one thousand years, the Jupiterites have made
numberless attempts to establish communication between these moons and
their planet, but all their efforts have failed. Either the Moonites are
too stupid, or the Jupiterites are not expert enough in throwing out
signals or in building air ships.
For no one thing more than another did I envy the astronomers of Jupiter
than for their marvelous magnifying lenses. I knew that if we had such
lenses, or the material to make them, we could watch with ease the
inhabitants of the Moon or of Mars, and we could study the intelligent
life on Mercury and Venus, to say nothing of the great advantages we
should have in observing comets and all the numberless starry systems
scattered throughout illimitable space.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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