by James Cowan
CHAPTER XVIII.
STRUCK BY A COMET.
"The most remarkable event in the realm of matter that ever occurredin connection with this planet, of which we have a record, was itscollision with a comet. This was many ages ago and it made an epoch inour history, so that we say such a thing occurred so many years beforeor after the collision. Although the records are rather meager we knowenough of the details to have a fair understanding of the wonderfulevent.
"The comet had no established period, as so many others have, butseemed to be an entirely new-comer, and from its first appearance showedplainly that it was making straight for our planet. The astronomerspredicted at once what the inevitable result would be, and you canimagine the consternation of the world as this monstrous, fiery objectbore down upon us, increasing in size and splendor every day, untilit filled half the sky and threatened to engulf us in flame anddestruction. There seemed to be no possible escape, and, in fact, therewas to be no escape from a collision, but almost all the harm thatfollowed was the result of pure fright. For as the comet came rushingupon us the whole hemisphere of Mars was filled with its blazingsubstance, which appeared, however, to burn itself out in ouratmosphere, and to leave, in most cases, nothing to reach the ground.
"Perhaps you have seen a shower of falling stars on the earth, brilliantand threatening in appearance, but causing in reality little damage. Sothe comet came to us. Its immense, fiery volume, which filled us withsuch dread, was so diffused that it was nearly all consumed by impactwith our atmosphere. But there was a great solid nucleus, which struckthe ground with immense force, and remains as our largest meteorite.
"Thus not only was our world spared from destruction, but that whichthreatened to be such an evil proved to be a great acquisition. For thecomet, as it is still called, has revealed to us the most astonishingsecrets. For a long time the mass of matter lay untouched, superstitionand the lack of scientific curiosity tending to preserve it as it fell.But at length the spirit of inquiry proved to be too strong, andwithin a comparatively recent period the comet has been broken into andexplored with wonderful results.
"You must know, to begin with, that this greatest natural curiosity onthe face of our planet is no common meteorite such as you are acquaintedwith. Indeed, if it had struck the earth as fair a blow as it did us Ithink the shock would have been felt much more severely by your littlerace, for it is hundreds of miles in diameter and the velocity withwhich it was traveling was simply incredible. Fortunately it fell uponan uninhabited plain, partly burying itself in the ground, and forseveral years the mass was so hot that it could not be approached. Thishelped to make it an object of awe and almost of veneration, so thatmany centuries of time passed before any critical examination was madeof it. Even then nothing was accomplished toward revealing its marveloussecrets. The surface was found to be hard and metallic, with thefamiliar burned appearance caused by contact with the atmosphere,and the substance, in its chemical composition, resembled, with somevariation, other meteoric specimens. Some attempt was made to penetrateinto the interior of the mass, but all that was discovered led to thebelief that it was of similar structure throughout.
"This was the extent of the knowledge obtained of the interesting objectuntil the beginning of the present age of advanced civilization.
"When we had learned by our successful experiments that some of oursister planets were inhabited, and when our powerful telescopes hadrevealed what we believed to be planets of other systems, there wasintense interest in the search for any evidence of life in these moredistant worlds. They were so very far away that we doubted if we couldever know enough about them to tell whether they were habitable, and itseemed as if we could only judge of their condition from analogywith our own solar system. These views prevailed until the brilliantsuggestion was made, and it is not known by whom it was first advanced,that perhaps we had, right here with us, the means of discovering whatwe so much desired to know. It had always been assumed that our cometwas of uniform structure, but why let such a matter rest in uncertainty?It is one of the strange things in our history that this question wasnot seriously asked long before that time. But now that the idea wasbroached the work was entered into with great earnestness.
"This was the position: Here was this huge mass that had come to us fromsome unknown region of the sky, almost certainly from beyond the boundsof our solar system, and we were to pry into it to see if it had anystory to tell us of its former condition. The advancement of science hadgiven us the means of easily penetrating into the interior of the comet,and it was determined to make thorough work of it. And this feeling wasfound to be necessary, for the enterprise proved to be discouragingfor many years. An immense tunnel was made through the entire mass,and nothing was found to repay the trouble. Many were now in favorof abandoning the work, but after a period of rest another trial wasdecided upon and a second tunnel begun. Never did perseverance have amore perfect reward; for, before the new excavations had proceeded far,discoveries were made which suddenly changed our comet, in regard towhich most people had lost all interest, into the most wonderful objectin all the world.
"In short, we now know that we have here a fragment of a former planet.How the planet was dismembered and how this piece happened to comeflying to us, we do not know. But could it have come about morefortunately for us if it had all been designed by an over-ruling power?When we had learned all that our expanding but limited intelligencecould teach us of the other parts of the universe, and when our mindswere ripe for more knowledge, we found this magnificent object lesson,which had been waiting for us all these years. Beneath the uninvitingsurface of that familiar comet were revealed wonders which, if theyhad been discovered when the mass first came, would not have beenhalf-appreciated, but which now told us, in answer to our eagerinquiries, more than we ever thought to know about the far-distant worksof our God."
The doctor and I were amazed beyond measure by this recital, and werequite ready to admit that a superior intelligence had directed thewonderful event. But we were exceedingly anxious to know some of thedetails of the discovery, and when the doctor had expressed this wishThorwald proceeded:
"I could talk on this subject," he said, "till night-fall if you desire,but it will be better for you to restrain your curiosity till you can betaken in person to the scene. Let me tell you in general terms what youwill find. The comet fell, as I have said, in an uninhabited plain, butit is now at the door of the largest city on our planet, which has beenbuilt there since the discoveries were made. The excavations have leftan immense opening, where galleries and chambers of great extent havebeen dug out. These have been finished off with untold labor, and newones are being constantly added. Here is our greatest museum, besidewhich all other collections of natural objects are as nothing, for allthat has been found in the comet remains there; nothing has beenallowed to be taken away. You will appreciate something of the wonderfulcharacter of these curiosities when I tell you that they give evidenceof a world many times larger than Jupiter and of an intellectual andspiritual development as much beyond ours as ours is in advance of thatof the earth.
"We have exhumed buried cities in our own planet more than once, wherevolcano or other convulsion had overwhelmed them, and found the relicsof past civilization; but here, in our comet, we look not upon the pastbut upon the future, as it were, and see what has been done in a worldmuch older than our own. The belief that the comet did not originate inour solar system has been verified, for we find that the globe of whichit was once a part revolved around an immense sun which had a retinue oftwenty-seven planets of various sizes. Whether this great sun is oneof the stars of our firmament we can only conjecture; perhaps in somefuture state of existence we shall know.
"You have wondered if the earth will ever advance to the condition inwhich you find us, and we are asking the same question in regard toourselves and the still higher development exhibited in our comet. Myopinion is that these very discoveries are to be in a measure the meansof our advancement.
We are only beginning to make out their wonderfulcharacter. As we learn more of them we hope to find out more closelyhow that people lived, and to be directed in our upward path by theirexample. In the pursuit of this knowledge we are hampered by ourignorance of their language. All that we know of them and their planethas been gained by their very suggestive pictures and illustrations, forof their written records, which exist in great abundance, we can as yetmake nothing. In our former studies of the different languages of ourown world we found something common to them all, upon which we couldwork; but in this case an entirely new principle seems to obtain, andthe problem so far baffles all our skill. So you see here is somethingfor us to do, and when we have accomplished the task, as I have no doubtthat result will come, we shall then be able to study in detail thatremarkable civilization the knowledge of which is wisely kept from usuntil we can understand and appreciate it.
"You come here from your young planet, representing a race that is stillstruggling with the lower forms of materialism, and find us so much inadvance of your condition that perhaps you imagine we are perfect. Weourselves know we are far from that state, especially since we havebeen able to compare our development with the higher civilization of thepeople who once lived on our comet."
Thorwald paused a moment, and the doctor, who showed by every indicationthat he was engrossed in the subject, took occasion to remark:
"We certainly have harbored the thought you attribute to us, Thorwald.After all you have told us of your freedom from trouble, of thedethronement of selfishness and the reign of love, of your greatachievements in every art, and of your ideal life in general, we shallalways look upon you as a perfect race. How is it possible to rise to ahigher plain? Can you express in terms suited to our comprehension youridea of that advanced state of existence of which you find indicationson your comet? What is the character of that development?"
"You will perhaps understand something of its character," answeredThorwald, "if I say it is almost entirely spiritual. While we have madesome progress in that direction, our superiority over the earth-dwellersis chiefly in physical and intellectual attainments. In the realm of thespirit we have yet far to go, and as long as we can see imperfections inour nature we feel that there is something ahead for us to strive after.With that example before us of a much more exalted life, we shall notbe satisfied until we have learned its secrets and attained to itsperfections. In this upward march we shall be sustained and helped bythe same divine Power that has thus far led us."