Part 9

I would rather tire them said the Marchioness, with a monotonous appearance, than entertain them by the ruin of provinces.

That is nothing, answered I, to what takes place in Jupiter. He appears to be surrounded with belts, which are distinguished from each other, or from the spaces betwixt them, by their different degrees of light. These are land and seas--or at least parts of the planet differing in their nature. Sometimes these lands grow narrower, sometimes wider. New ones are formed in various parts, and some of the old ones disappear: and all these changes visible only through our best telescopes, are in themselves much more considerable than if our ocean were to inundate all the land, and leave its own bed to form new continents. Unless the inhabitants of Jupiter are amphibious, and live with equal ease either on land or in water, I hardly know what can become of them. We see likewise great alterations on the surface of Mars, even from one month to another. In that short time seas overflow large continents, and retire by a flux and reflux a thousand times more violent than ours; or if this be not the case, some change equivalent to it takes place. Our planet is very quiet compared with these; we have great reason to congratulate ourselves, especially if it is true that in Jupiter countries as extensive as Europe have been set on fire. Set on fire! cried the Marchioness; that would be a great piece of news there. It would indeed, answered I. We have observed in Jupiter, for perhaps twenty years, a long stream of light more brilliant than the rest of the planet. We have had deluges here, but very seldom; perhaps in Jupiter they have now and then a large conflagration as well as frequent deluges. But be that as it may, the brilliant light I spoke of is very different from another, which apparently is as old as the world, though it has but lately been discovered. How can a light be formed for concealment? said she, that is something quite out of the common way.

This light, I replied, is only visible at twilight, which is most frequently long enough, and of sufficient power to conceal it; and when it is not hid by the twilight, either the vapours of the horizon prevent us from seeing it, or without great attention we may even mistake it for twilight. However, about thirty years since it was discovered with certainty, and for some time gave great delight to the astronomers, whose curiosity wanted stimulating by something new. They might find as many new subaltern planets as they chose without feeling any interest in them. The two last moons of Saturn, for instance, did not enrapture them as Jupiter's satellites had done; custom destroys the power of every thing.

We see, during a month before and after the equinox of March, when the sun is set and the twilight disappeared, a sort of whitish light resembling the tail of a comet. It is seen before the dawn and sun-rise, towards the equinox of September, and morning and night towards the winter solstice. At other times, as I have before said, the twilight conceals it; for we have reason to believe it always exists. It has lately been conjectured that it is produced by a large mass of matter, somewhat dense, which environs the sun for a certain extent. The greatest part of his rays penetrate this covering, and come to us in a straight line; but some of these rays by striking against the internal surface are reflected back to us, either before the direct rays can reach us in the morning, or after they have ceased to enlighten us in the evening. As these reflected rays come from a higher region than the direct ones, it is therefore earlier when we receive them, and later before we lose them.

On this ground I must retract what I said on the probability of the moon having no twilight, for want of a surrounding atmosphere as dense as that of the earth. She is no loser by it, if she can receive a twilight through this thick air which surrounds the sun, and reflects his light to places which could not have his direct rays. Then, enquired the Marchioness, will not this be a source of twilight to all the planets, without the necessity of a dense atmosphere to environ each, since that which surrounds the sun may produce the same effect for all the planets in the vortex? From the frugality of nature, I am disposed to believe she has effected the purpose by this means only. Yet, said I, in spite of this frugality, the earth would have two causes of twilight, one of which (the dense air before the sun), would be useless, and could only serve as an object of curiosity to the frequenters of the observatory: but it may be that the earth alone sends out exhalations sufficiently gross to produce twilight; and therefore a general resource has been provided for the other planets, if their evaporations are more pure and subtile. We, perhaps, of the inhabitants of all the worlds in our vortex breathe the grossest air; did the people of the other planets know that, with what contempt they would survey us!

That would be wrong, answered the Marchioness; we are not contemptible for being surrounded by a thick atmosphere since the sun himself is in the same situation. Tell me, is not this air produced by certain vapours that you formerly told me issued from the sun; and may it not be to moderate the power of the first rays which perhaps would otherwise be excessive? I think it probable that the sun may be thus veiled, to accommodate it to our use. That is a happy idea, madam, said I; you have founded a pretty little system. We may add that this vapour possibly falls back in a sort of rain to refresh the sun, in the same manner as we sometimes throw water into a forge when the fire becomes too fierce. We cannot attribute too much to the power of nature; but all her operations are not made visible to us, therefore we cannot feel assured of having discovered her designs, or her manner of acting. We should not consider any new discovery a certain foundation for reasoning on, though we are very much inclined to do it: philosophers are like elephants, that in walking never put one foot to the ground till they feel the other firmly supported. That comparison, said she, is the more just because the merit either of elephants or philosophers does not consist in external charms; we shall however do well to imitate the superior judgment of both: inform me more of the new discoveries, and I promise not to be in a hurry again to form systems.

I have told you, I replied, all the news I have heard from the sky, and I believe no later intelligence has been received. I am sorry it is not so entertaining and wonderful as some observations I read the other day in an abridgment of the Annals of China, written in Latin. They there see a thousand stars at a time fall from the sky into the ocean with an amazing noise; or dissolve and disperse in rain. This has not merely been seen once in China; I have met with the same account given at two remote periods of time, besides that of a star which goes towards the east, and bursts with the noise of a gun. It is a pity such sights should be confined to China, while this part of the world is never favoured with them. It is not long since all our philosophers thought they had had sufficient experience to pronounce the heavens and all the celestial bodies incorruptible and incapable of change; and at the same time people at the other end of the world were seeing stars dissolve by thousands: there appearance must have differed very much from ours. But, said she, I never heard that the Chinese were great astronomers. No, answered I, but the Chinese are gainers by being at so great a distance from us, as the Greeks and Romans were by being separated by a long space of time; whatever is remote assumes the right of imposing on us.

Really I am more and more of opinion that Europe is in possession of a degree of genius which has never extended to any other part of the globe, at least not to any distant part. It is not perhaps able to diffuse itself over a great proportion of the earth at once, and some invincible fatality prescribes to it very narrow bounds. Let us then make use of it while it is in our possession: and let us rejoice that it is not confined to science and dry speculations, but equally extended to objects of taste, in which I doubt whether any people can equal us. Such, madam, are the things that should engage your attention and constitute your philosophy.

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THE END.

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