A Voyage to the Moon

by George Tucker

  CHAPTER VII.

  _Physical peculiarities of the Moon-Celestial phenomena--Furtherdescription of the Lunarians--National prejudice--Lightness of bodies--TheBrahmin carries Atterley to sup with a philosopher--His character andopinions_.

  After we had been in the moon about forty eight hours, the sun had sunkbelow the horizon, and the long twilight of the Lunarians had begun. I willhere take occasion to notice the physical peculiarities of this country,which, though very familiar to those who are versed in astronomy, may notbe unacceptable to the less scientific portion of my readers.

  The sun is above the horizon nearly a fortnight, and below it as long; ofcourse the day here is equal to about twenty-seven of ours. The earthanswers the same purpose to half the inhabitants of the moon, that the moondoes to the inhabitants of the earth. The face of the latter, however, ismore than twelve times as large, and it has not the same silvery appearanceas the moon, but is rather of a dingy pink hue, like that of her iron whenbeginning to lose its red heat. As the same part of the moon is alwaysturned to the earth, one half of her surface is perpetually illuminated bya moon ten times as large to the eye as the sun; the other hemisphere iswithout a moon. The favoured part, therefore, never experiences totaldarkness, the earth reflecting to the Lunarians as much light as weterrestrials have a little before sunrise, or after sunset. But our planetpresents to the Lunarians the same changes as the moon does to us,according to its position in relation to the sun. It always, however,appears to occupy nearly the same part of the heavens, when seen from thesame point on the moon's surface; but its altitude above the horizon isgreater or less, according to the latitude of the place from which it isseen: so that there is not a point of the heavens which the earth may notbe seen permanently to occupy, according to the part of the moon from whichthe planet is viewed.

  From the length of time that the sun is above the horizon, the continuedaction of his rays, in those climates where they fall vertically, or nearlyso, would be intolerable, if it was not for the high mountains, from whosesnow-clad summits a perpetual breeze derives a refreshing coolness, and forthe deep glens and recesses, in which most animals seek protection from hismeridian beams. The transitions from heat to cold are less than one wouldexpect, from the length of their days and nights--the coolness of the one,as well as the heat of the other, being tempered by a constant east wind.The climate gradually becomes colder as we approach the Poles; but there islittle or no change of seasons in the same latitude.

  The inhabitants of the moon have not the same regularity in their meals, ortime for sleep, as we have, but consult their appetites and inclinationslike other animals. But they make amends for this irregularity, by a verystrict and punctilious observance of festivals, which are regulated by themotions of the sun, at whose rising and setting they have their appropriateceremonies. Those which are kept at sunrise, are gay and cheerful, like thehopes which the approach of that benignant luminary inspires. The othersare of a grave and sober character, as if to prepare the mind for seriouscontemplation in their long-enduring night. When the earth is at the full,which is their midnight, it is also a season of great festivity with them.

  _Eclipses of the sun_ are as common with the Lunarians as those of themoon are with us--the same relative position of the three bodies producingthis phenomenon; but an _eclipse of the earth_ never takes place, asthe shadow of the moon passes over the broad disc of our planet, merely asa dark spot.

  The inhabitants of the moon can always determine both their latitude andlongitude, by observing the quarter of the heavens in which the earth isseen: and, as the sun invariably appears of the same altitude at theirnoon, the inhabitants are denominated and classed according to the lengthof their shadows; and the terms _long shadow_, or _short shadow_, arecommon forms of national reproach among them, according to the relativeposition of the parties. I found the climate of those whose shadows areabout the length of their own figure, the most agreeably to my ownfeelings, and most like that of my own country.

  Such are the most striking natural appearances on one side of thissatellite. On the other there is some difference. The sun pursues the samepath in the corresponding latitudes of both hemispheres; but being withoutany moon, they have a dull and dreary night, though the light from thestars is much greater than with us. The science of astronomy is muchcultivated by the inhabitants of the dark hemisphere, and is indebted tothem for its most important discoveries, and its present high state ofimprovement.

  If there is much rivalship among the natives of the same hemisphere, whodiffer in the length of their shadows, they all unite in hatred andcontempt for the inhabitants of the opposite side. Those who have thebenefit of a moon, that is, who are turned towards the earth, are lively,indolent, and changeable as the face of the luminary on which they pridethemselves; while those on the other side are more grave, sedate, andindustrious. The first are called the Hilliboos, and the last theMoriboos--or bright nights, and dark nights. And this mutual animosity isthe more remarkable, as they often appeared to me to be the same race, andto differ much less from one another than the natives of differentclimates. It is true, that enlightened and well educated men do not seem tofeel this prejudice, or at least they do not show it: but those who travelfrom one hemisphere to the other, are sure to encounter the prejudices ofthe vulgar, and are often treated with great contempt and indignity. Theyare pointed at by the children, who, according as they chance to have beenbred on one side or the other say, "There goes a man who never sawGlootin," as they call the earth; or, "There goes a Booblimak," which meansa night stroller.

  All bodies are much lighter on the moon than on the earth; by reason ofwhich circumstance, as has been mentioned, the inhabitants are more active,and experience much less fatigue in ascending their precipitous mountains.I was astonished at first at this seeming increase in my muscular powers;when, on passing along a street in Alamatua, soon after my arrival, andmeeting a dog, which I thought to be mad, I proposed to run out of his way,and in leaping over a gutter, I fairly bounded across the street. Imeasured the distance the next day, and found it to be twenty-seven feetfive inches; and afterwards frequently saw the school-boys, when engaged inathletic exercises, make running leaps of between thirty and forty feet,backwards and forwards. Another consequence of the diminished gravity hereis, that both men and animals carry much greater burdens than on the earth.

  The carriages are drawn altogether by dogs, which are the largest animalsthey have, except the zebra, and a small buffalo. This diminution ofgravity is, however, of some disadvantage to them. Many of their tools arenot as efficient as ours, especially their axes, hoes, and hammers. On theother hand, when a person falls to the ground, it is nearly the same thingas if an inhabitant of the earth were to fall on a feather bed. Yet I sawas many instances of fractured limbs, hernia, and other accidents there, asI ever saw on the earth; for when they fall from great heights, or miscarryin the feats of activity which they ambitiously attempt, it inflicts thesame injury upon them, as a fall nearer the ground does upon us.

  After we had been here sufficiently long to see what was most remarkable inthe city, and I had committed the fruit of my observations to paper, theBrahmin proposed to carry me to one of the monthly suppers of a philosopherwhom he knew, and who had obtained great celebrity by his writings andopinions.

  We accordingly went, and found him sitting at a small table, and apparentlyexhausted with the labour of composition, and the ardour of intensethought. He was a small man, of quick, abrupt manners, occasionally veryabstracted, but more frequently voluble, earnest, and disputatious. Hefrankly told us he was sorry to see us, as he was then putting the lastfinish to a great and useful work he was about to publish: that we had thusunseasonably broken the current of his thoughts, and he might not be ableto revive it for some days. Upon my rising to take my leave, he assured methat it would be adding to the injury already done, if we then quitted him.He said he wished to learn the particulars of our voyage; and that he, inturn, should certainly render us se
rvice, by disclosing some of the resultsof his own reflections. He further remarked, that he expected six or eightfriends--that is, (correcting himself,) "enlightened and congenial minds,"to supper, on the rising of a constellation he named, which time, heremarked, would soon arrive. Finding his frankness to be thus seasoned withhospitality, we resumed our seats. It soon appeared that he was moredisposed to communicate information than to seek it; and I became a patientlistener. If the boldness and strangeness of his opinions occasionallystartled me, I could not but admire the clearness with which he stated hispropositions, the fervour of his elocution, and the plausibility of hisarguments.

  The expected guests at length arrived; and various questions of morals andlegislation were started, in which the disputants seemed sometimes as ifthey would have laid aside the character of philosophers, but for theseasonable interposition of the Brahmin. Wigurd, our host, often labouredwith his accustomed zeal, to prove that every one who opposed him, waseither a fool, or biassed by some petty interest, or the dupe of blindprejudice.

  After about two hours of warm, and, as it seemed to me, unprofitablediscussion, we were summoned to our repast in the adjoining room. Butbefore we rose from our seats, our host requested to know of each of us ifwe were hungry; and, whether it were from modesty, perverseness, or reallybecause they had no appetite, I know not, but a majority of the company, inwhich I was included, voted that their hour of eating was not yet come:upon which Wigurd remarked that his own vote, as being at home, and theBrahmin's, as being at once a philosopher and a stranger, should each countfor two; and by this mode of reckoning there was a casting vote in favourof going to supper.

  We found the table covered with tempting dishes, served up in a costly andtasteful style, and a sprightly, well-looking female prepared to do thehonours of the feast. She reproved our host for his delay, and told him thebest dish was spoiled, by being cold. I was fearful of a discussion; but hesat down without making a reply, and immediately addressing the company,descanted on the various qualities of food, and their several adaptationsto different ages, constitutions, and temperaments. He condemned the absurdpractice which prevailed, for the master or mistress of the house to lavishentreaties on their guests to eat that which they might be better without;and insisted, at the same time, that the guests ought not to consult theirown tastes exclusively. He maintained, that the only course worthy ofrational and benevolent beings, was for every man to judge for hisneighbour as well as for himself; and, should any collision arise betweenthe different claimants, then, if any one were guided by that decision,which an honest and unbiassed judgment would tell him was right, they wouldall come to the same just and harmonious result.

  "But," added he, "you have not yet been sufficiently prepared for thisdisinterested operation. As ye have proved this night that ye are not yetpurged of the feelings and prejudices of a vicious education, I willperform this office for you all, and set you an example, by which ye mayhereafter profit. To begin, then, with you--(addressing himself to acorpulent man, of a florid complexion, at the lower end of the table:)--Asyou already have a redundancy of flesh and blood, I assign the _soupemaigre_ to you; while to our mathematical friend on this side, whosedelicate constitution requires nourishment, I recommend the smoking ragout.This cooling dish will suit your temperament," said he to a third; "andthis stimulating one, yours," to a fourth. "Those little birds, which costme five pieces, I shall divide between my terrestrial friend here (lookingat the Brahmin) and myself, we being the most meritorious of the company,and it being of the utmost importance to society, that food so wholesomeshould give nourishment to our bodies, and impart vigour and vivacity toour minds."

  From this decision there was no appeal, and no other dissent than what wasexpressed by a look or a low murmur. But I perceived the corpulentgentleman and the wan mathematician slily exchange their dishes, by whichthey both seemed to consider themselves gainers. The dish allotted to me,being of a middling character, I ate of it without repining; though, fromthe savoury fumes of my right-hand neighbour's plate, I could not helpwishing I had been allowed to choose for myself.

  This supper happening near the middle of the night, (at which time it wasalways pretty cool,) a cheerful fire blazed in one side of the room and Iperceived that our host and hostess placed themselves so as to be at themost agreeable distance, the greater part of the guests being either toonear or too far from it.

  After we had finished our repast, various subjects of speculation wereagain introduced and discussed, greatly to my amusement. Wigurd displayedhis usual ingenuity and ardour, and baffled all his antagonists by hisvehemence and fluency. He had two great principles by which he tested thegood or evil of every thing; and there were few questions in which he couldnot avail himself of one or the other. These were, general _utility_and _truth_.

  By a skilful use of these weapons of controversy, he could attack or defendwith equal success. If any custom or institution which he had denounced,was justified by his adversaries, on the ground of its expediency, heimmediately retorted on them its repugnancy to sincerity, truth, andunsophisticated nature; and if they, at any time, resorted to a similarjustification for our natural feelings and propensities, he triumphantlyshowed that they were inimical to the public good. Thus, he condemnedgratitude as a sentiment calculated to weaken the sense of justice, and tosubstitute feeling for reason. He, on the other hand, proscribed the littleforms and courtesies, which are either founded in convenience, or give agrace and sweetness to social intercourse, as a direct violation of honestnature, and therefore odious and mean. He thus was able to silence everyopponent. I was very desirous of hearing the Brahmin's opinion; but, whilehe evidently was not convinced by our host's language, he declined engagingin any controversy.

  After we retired, my friend told me that Wigurd was a good man in the main,though he had been as much hated by some as if his conduct had beenimmoral, instead of his opinions merely being singular. "He not long ago,"added the Brahmin "wrote a book against marriage, and soon afterwardswedded, in due form, the lady you saw at his table. She holds as strangetenets as he, which she supports with as much zeal, and almost as muchability. But I predict that the popularity of their doctrines will notlast; and if ever you visit the moon again, you will find that their glory,now at its height, like the ephemeral fashions of the earth, will havepassed away."