Amazing Stories, Vol. 3, No. 2 — page 58: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

BARON MUNCHHAUSEN made of a certain variety of tos. The sides of these pyramids are formed of thousands of small black cells, which, when exposed to the Sun’s rays, absorb the heat of the latter. As the surface of these pyramids is very large, a proportionally large amount of heat is received. This heat is directly transformed into 10m and stored within the pyramid. The latter turns on its axis, so as to present the largest possible surface to the Sun from sunrise until sunset; also as more power is generated than is needed during the daytime, the excess is used during the night. “Now, then, from the top of the pyramid a gigantic Emanation Ray bursts forth, fed from the stored ion, originally secured from the Sun’s heat. “This ray is made to fall over the entire width of the waterway, and it is directed on the latter at an angle. The ray striking the water, which because it has no weight, does not resist, must naturally move away from the direction of the ray. This it does, the Emanation Ray ‘pushing’ the water at a rate of about 2% mules an hour. If it were not for the ray, the water would, of course, be entirely motionless, for the Martian water- ways are exactly level. , “As each tower assists in moving the water over a certain distance, the water gradually acquires momen- tum and flows slowly but steadily. Before the mo- mentum has been expended, the next tower is reached, which pushes the water on to the next one, and so on through the entire length of the Canal. You will nat- urally understand that these towers wust work nights as well as during the day, else the water would not flow . 153 during the night. The stored surplus power during the day makes this possible. Furthermore, the towers work to their full efficiency and uninterruptedly year in and year out, for there are few clouds to hide the Sun on Mars, as is well known; consequently, the pyramids are hardly ever without power, except nights. “You realize that all the towers must throw their rays in the same direction, which, of course, they do; thus, if the water is to be moved in one season from North to South, the rays face the South. During the next season, when the flow of the water must needs be reversed, as explained to you yesterday, the Emanation Rays will all point northward. Thus one of the great problems on Mars has been solved. But what does the work? The all dominating Sun. “And what moves the waters on Earth? What con- denses the waters from the oceans and lifts up myriads of tons of water year in and year out, to form clouds, which later produce the rains, without which your rivers would run dry within four weeks? The Sun, of course! “Only on Earth the Sun does it in a natural manner ; here on Mars, the Sun works to the same effect, but _without the intermediary of the clouds.” There was the familiar snapping sound in my re- ceivers, a low click,and everything was quiet. I knew that the telegraphone wire on the Moon, must have been filled to capacity, and that I would not hear again from Mitnchhausen till the next evening. 8. Thought Transmission On Mars WAS still dreaming, lost completely in a blue cloud of pipe smoke when my electric chime, controlled by the Western Union clock, which gets the exact time hourly from the Naval Observatory, commenced to sound the eleventh hour in its sonorous, vibrant voice. At the stroke of eleven—my headset had been already clamped over my ears—the familiar high whistling sound sung in my ears once more. Punctually, as usual, Miinchhausen “called.” “Same, good old Miinchhausen,” I said to myself, and I listened expectantly for that dear, croaking sepul- chral voice. : However, he had a little surprise for me. He did not speak; instead, without warning, there sud- denly broke into my ears the most amazing music a mortal has ever heard. The sound was so loud that I was actually forced to take the ‘phones from my head and place them on the table, and I had to go to the far end of my laboratory in order to hear the music at its best. And to think that I was listening to music which had originated on Mars 60 million miles away! It was al- most unbelievable! But there it was, filling up the en- tire room with the most delightful music. Sometimes it sounded like an immense orchestra, then again like a celeste instrument. At other times the music sounded like a ‘cello mixed with a flute, immediately to change into a mixture of an oboe and a cornet. Occasionally there was a sound like human singing, but altogether different in quality and volume. Moreover, all sounds were sustained; they never broke off sharply; and the music from one instrument seemed to melt into that of another without the slightest break. Imagine, if you can, that you are listening to a violin which gradually, in a most harmonious manswer, changes into a cornet without-a break! I had never been stirred so deeply by music in my life, and°I have listened to exquisite music in my day. For five minutes of more I listened, entranced; then the music gradually died down to a plaintive, crying sound which almost brought tears to my eyes. When the “concert” was over I returned to the *phones and I had hardly adjusted them when Munchhausen spoke : “Good evening, my dear Alier, how is old Mother Earth and yourself to-night? Sorry you can’t tell me, at any rate I trust all is well! I hope you enjoyed my little musicale; there has never been such music on earth as far as I know. Too bad the telegraphone wire on the moon is so short, otherwise I would have given you a longer program. Anyhow, I am certain you liked my little concert. Of course, now that you have heard the Martian music, you want to know how it is produced. If I were not so far famed for my veracity, I should certainly run the risk of being called something less well sounding than a story teller, but I know you will not question my statements. The indisputable facts are that the music which you just heard was produced conmicldooolkks.conn