Evening Republican, Volume 15, Number 93, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 19 April 1911 — A Columbus of Space [ARTICLE]

A Columbus of Space

By Garrett P. Serviss.

Copyright by Frank A. Munsey Co. o CHAPTER XXIV. 1 The Earth. For a few minutes after this terrible consummation none of us spoke a •word. Henry had swooned. Jack stood motionless by my side. Where the tower had been, and the leaping flames had raged, was a vast vacity, with wreathes of smoke rising from far below. The conflagration was now spreading all over the splendid city. A hundred towers were burning fiercely on all sides, the pointed flames licking the sky, and thousands of aeroplanes and airships that had also caught fire were dropping like flaming brands into the furnace. The sight filled me at once with pity and with horror. I saw one large aeroplane, filled with people, driven, in spite of the of its engineers, directly over a burning tower. A long spire of flame reached up and touched it. It seemed to shrivel like a moth in a candle, and down it went with all its living freight. “Get away from here!” cried Jack, at last recovering his voice. I turned the car and we sped away. For hours we rushed on, not particular to choose our direction. Our only thought was to escape from this dreadful place. At lasi 1 slowed down to take oar bearings. We had left the doomed capital behind the horizon, and only the well known expanse of land beneath, with a few aeroplanes sailing about over It. and the cloud dome above our heads, reminded us that we were still on the planet Venus. In the meantime Henry had recovered from his swoon, but he seemed dazed and half mad, muttering continually under his breath. I brought the car to reßt and sat down with Jack to consult Ws looked at each other for a time in silence. Then we both burst into tears. When we had recovered ourselves we got out some provisions and set

the little table on which Edmund had served our first morning meal after leaving the.earth. We were ravenous with hunger, but it was a sad repast. Henry had to be forced to eat a few mouthfuls, for he was yet out of his head and kept up his strange mutterings. When the meal was finished Jack and I decided upon our course. “There is no reason for staying here another hour,” I said. “We must start at once for the earth.” "But are you sure that you can manage the car in open space?” Jack eagerly inquired. “Yes; Edmund told me everything that needs to be done,” and my eyes filled with tears as 1 spoke. “Then let us go,” said Jack solemnly. We rose swiftly through the cloud dome, and once more the magnificent spectacle of the great white globe was before us. As rapidly as possible I accelerated the speed of the car, and the huge planet seemed to sail away into space. Once above the atmosphere the heavens turned black and the stars sprang out to view. There was the earth again, shining brilliantly, with the moon close at her side, and I set our course for them. After a while the indicator showed a speed of 20 miles a second. “I hardly dare to work it up higher,” I said, “but since Venus and the earth are now again in conjunction, the distance we have to travel is only about 26,000,000 miles and we can make it in a little over 11V4 days.” “And the meteors?” suggested Jack. “We shall have to trust to luck,” 1 replied. Oh! what a trip that was. Our hearts were filled with sadness, for, upon my word, we thought more of Edmund and Aia and Juba than of the borne to which we were returning. Henry added to our trouble, for his mind became every hour more clouded. At length he grew violent in his insanity, and sometimes we were obliged to use force to prevent him from injuring himself. We had arrived, according to my calculations, within a quarter of a million miles of the earth, and already we could begin to see many of its geographical features, when a crisis arose in Henry’s case; He had been quiet for a long time, and we had ceased to watch him as carefully as we should have done, when, quite unexpectedly, he was seized with a maniacal fit, and before a hand could be laid upon him he had thrown open one of the windows and precipitated himself out of it He leaped with such force that he

shot several rods away from the car. I realized in a flash that he had gone to his death, for we could not recover him before his breath would be exhausted. It was necessary instantly to close the window, because the air was rushing out, and we could not replace it. The apparatus which Edmund had provided, automatically purified the air in the car, and rendered it fit to be breathed over and over again'for an indefinite time, but there was no means of making more air. Already in. the few seconds that tut window had remained open the larger part of our supply of air had escaped, and the moment we had slammed the window back into its air-tight settings Jack and I sank almost helpless on the floor. For several minutes we were unable to rise. At last I struggled to my feet and looked out of the window. There floated Henry’s body, accompanying us in our flight! “Oh, Jack!” I said, faintly. “I cannot bear this!” “What is it?” he managed to whisper, painfully lifting himself to the window. The instant he looked out he dropped back ,to the floor with a groan. The thought of Henry following us was too horrible to be entertained. Desperately I turned a guiding wheel, and the car moved away on a different course. But with fascinated eyes I continued to watch the body of our friend until, a mere speck, it faded into the blackness of the sky. Henry! He had chosen a strange tomb, as deep as the heavens and as lasting. I shuddered at the thought that there he would continue to float forever, imperishable in germless space, unless, perhaps, his mother earth' should draw him at last to her bosom, when, flashing, for an instant with meteoric fire, his ashes would be scattered unpreceived through the wide atmosphere. The desperation of the situation in which I now found myself it is impossible to put into words. Jack, whose stoutness served ♦o diminish his breathing capacity, continued lying on the floor, gasping and half asphyxiated. I myself was as weak as a child, yet I had to guide the car. Without thought of anything but the necessity of reaching the earth, or at least of getting within the limits of the atmosphere, at the earliest possible moment, I recklessly increased the speed. A few minutes’ time saved might mean life for Jack. When I spoke to him he was still breathing How that car did sn'n!

Before I was aware that we were'V) near I suddenly perceived a vast dark mass filling all the sky that was visible from the window. The earth! At last we were almost there, would soon be at the upper limit of the atmosphere, and I dared not continue this speed any longer. I slowed down as rapidly as I could, and not a minute too soon, for I could feel heat coming through the walls of the car, and at the same moment the stout glass in one of the windows cracked with a loud report. We were already in the rare upper air, and* the friction of our swift rush through it had begun to inflame the steel. In a few moments more, I thought, I could throw open a window and let in fresh air to revive Jack and to restore my own strength. But, alas! Jack was already beyond ail help. When I had opened the window and drawn one refreshing breath I turned to him and found him pulseless. It is a wonder that I did not go mad myself. I had brought the car almost to rest, and now it slowly settled until it lay motionless. I was at home at last —but what a home-coming! Long I sat, discouraged and desperate, with bitter thoughts, and Jack lying there beforp me. Finally a soft breeze stealing into the open window roused me. The electric lights were glowing in the car, but I found that it. was night outside. I turned back and looked once more at Jack. He lay as peaceful as a sleeping child. I could bear it no longer. 1 turned off the light and emerged from the car. It bad landed in a swamp. Straggling trees covered with wild grape vines were all about. Heedless of where I went, I began to run. Several times I fell headlong, but, recovering my feet, went on. After several hours I found a hunter’s deserted hut and entered it Tired out, l lay down there and slept until the morning sun awoke me. It is needless to detail all that followed. I found out that the car had come down in the very heart of the Adirondack wilderness. I occupied a whole day in walking to an inhabited clearing. When I arrived there I had made up my mind what to do. I would keep the secret -t— -—r^ —r As soon as I could reach New York I hunted up Church. His amazement upon seeing me was boundless. He bad long believed that we .were all drad. But he agreed with me to keep ttr secret. Together we went to the

Adirondacks, found the car after -i week’s search, buried Jack’s body under a great pine tree and labored for two whole days to sink the accursed car forever from the sight of men in the mud of the swamp. Now at last I have told the story, and the world knows what a genius it lost in Edmund Stonewall. (The End.)