around the gorgeous and many-coloured orb — the sovereign world to both. It was a wonderful and splendid scene of glowing hues, and in the evening, when the stars decked the sky, the cities' lights made it appear hardly less glorious than by day.
We lingered several days on that tiny moon, rolling round the ruddy planet, thus watching the oceans and continents opening to our vision. There was a fascination in the scene, so that we could hardly tear ourselves from it. It was like rolling in a car through space—a car so small and rapid that one felt and perceived its motion, which one cannot do in larger satellites.
As we spent our time watching Mars, we also compared notes. I told my companions of my travels, and pointed to them the cities and long lines of roads of Mars. They in their turn showed me the natural treasures they had collected—the plants, the rocks, the smaller animals. They explained the variations of nature they had observed, the operation of the natural laws, the combinations of the elements. They pointed out to me the lakes and rivers, the mountains and morasses of Mars, and told me of the measures they had taken and the wonders they had seen in the many ruddy lands that we saw rolling before us.
