From the Earth to the Moon..............................................................................................................................1

Jules Verne ...............................................................................................................................................1

CHAPTER I. THE GUN CLUB ..............................................................................................................1

CHAPTER II. PRESIDENT BARBICANE'S COMMUNICATION.....................................................4

CHAPTER III. EFFECT OF THE PRESIDENT'S COMMUNICATION ..............................................8

CHAPTER IV. REPLY FROM THE OBSERVATORY OF CAMBRIDGE .........................................9

CHAPTER V. THE ROMANCE OF THE MOON ...............................................................................12

STATES .................................................................................................................................................14

CHAPTER VII. THE HYMN OF THE CANNONBALL..................................................................16

CHAPTER VIII. HISTORY OF THE CANNON.................................................................................19

CHAPTER IX. THE QUESTION OF THE POWDERS......................................................................22

CHAPTER X. ONE ENEMY v. TWENTYFIVE MILLIONS OF FRIENDS...................................25

CHAPTER XI. FLORIDA AND TEXAS.............................................................................................27

CHAPTER XII. URBI ET ORBI ...........................................................................................................30

CHAPTER XIII. STONES HILL..........................................................................................................32

CHAPTER XIV. PICKAXE AND TROWEL .......................................................................................35

CHAPTER XV. THE FETE OF THE CASTING .................................................................................37

CHAPTER XVI. THE COLUMBIAD..................................................................................................39

CHAPTER XVII. A TELEGRAPHIC DISPATCH..............................................................................41

CHAPTER XVIII. THE PASSENGER OF THE ATLANTA..............................................................41

CHAPTER XIX. A MONSTER MEETING.........................................................................................44

CHAPTER XX. ATTACK AND RIPOSTE.........................................................................................47

CHAPTER XXI. HOW A FRENCHMAN MANAGES AN AFFAIR .................................................53

CHAPTER XXII. THE NEW CITIZEN OF THE UNITED STATES .................................................58

CHAPTER XXIII. THE PROJECTILEVEHICLE.............................................................................61

CHAPTER XXIV. THE TELESCOPE OF THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS..........................................62

CHAPTER XXV. FINAL DETAILS....................................................................................................63

CHAPTER XXVI. FIRE!......................................................................................................................66

CHAPTER XXVII. FOUL WEATHER ................................................................................................68

CHAPTER XXVIII. A NEW STAR.....................................................................................................69

During the War of the Rebellion, a new and influential club was established in the city of Baltimore in the

State of Maryland. It is well known with what energy the taste for military matters became developed among

that nation of shipowners, shopkeepers, and mechanics. Simple tradesmen jumped their counters to become

extemporized captains, colonels, and generals, without having ever passed the School of Instruction at West

Point; nevertheless; they quickly rivaled their compeers of the old continent, and, like them, carried off

But the point in which the Americans singularly distanced the Europeans was in the science of gunnery. Not,

indeed, that their weapons retained a higher degree of perfection than theirs, but that they exhibited

unheardof dimensions, and consequently attained hitherto unheardof ranges. In point of grazing, plunging,

oblique, or enfilading, or pointblank firing, the English, French, and Prussians have nothing to learn; but

their cannon, howitzers, and mortars are mere pocketpistols compared with the formidable engines of the

This fact need surprise no one. The Yankees, the first mechanicians in the world, are engineers just as the

Italians are musicians and the Germans metaphysicians by right of birth. Nothing is more natural,

therefore, than to perceive them applying their audacious ingenuity to the science of gunnery. Witness the

marvels of Parrott, Dahlgren, and Rodman. The Armstrong, Palliser, and Beaulieu guns were compelled to

Now when an American has an idea, he directly seeks a second American to share it. If there be three, they

elect a president and two secretaries. Given four, they name a keeper of records, and the office is ready for

work; five, they convene a general meeting, and the club is fully constituted. So things were managed in

Baltimore. The inventor of a new cannon associated himself with the caster and the borer. Thus was formed

the nucleus of the "Gun Club." In a single month after its formation it numbered 1,833 effective members and

One condition was imposed as a sine qua non upon every candidate for admission into the association, and

that was the condition of having designed, or (more or less) perfected a cannon; or, in default of a cannon, at

least a firearm of some description. It may, however, be mentioned that mere inventors of revolvers,

fireshooting carbines, and similar small arms, met with little consideration. Artillerists always commanded

The estimation in which these gentlemen were held, according to one of the most scientific exponents of the

Gun Club, was "proportional to the masses of their guns, and in the direct ratio of the square of the distances

The Gun Club once founded, it is easy to conceive the result of the inventive genius of the Americans. Their

military weapons attained colossal proportions, and their projectiles, exceeding the prescribed limits,

unfortunately occasionally cut in two some unoffending pedestrians. These inventions, in fact, left far in the

It is but fair to add that these Yankees, brave as they have ever proved themselves to be, did not confine

themselves to theories and formulae, but that they paid heavily, in propria persona, for their inventions.

Among them were to be counted officers of all ranks, from lieutenants to generals; military men of every age,

from those who were just making their debut in the profession of arms up to those who had grown old in the

guncarriage. Many had found their rest on the field of battle whose names figured in the "Book of Honor" of

the Gun Club; and of those who made good their return the greater proportion bore the marks of their

indisputable valor. Crutches, wooden legs, artificial arms, steel hooks, caoutchouc jaws, silver craniums,

platinum noses, were all to be found in the collection; and it was calculated by the great statistician Pitcairn

that throughout the Gun Club there was not quite one arm between four persons and two legs between six.

Nevertheless, these valiant artillerists took no particular account of these little facts, and felt justly proud

when the despatches of a battle returned the number of victims at tenfold the quantity of projectiles

One day, however sad and melancholy day! peace was signed between the survivors of the war; the

thunder of the guns gradually ceased, the mortars were silent, the howitzers were muzzled for an indefinite

period, the cannon, with muzzles depressed, were returned into the arsenal, the shot were repiled, all bloody

reminiscences were effaced; the cottonplants grew luxuriantly in the wellmanured fields, all mourning

garments were laid aside, together with grief; and the Gun Club was relegated to profound inactivity.

Some few of the more advanced and inveterate theorists set themselves again to work upon calculations

regarding the laws of projectiles. They reverted invariably to gigantic shells and howitzers of unparalleled

caliber. Still in default of practical experience what was the value of mere theories? Consequently, the

clubrooms became deserted, the servants dozed in the antechambers, the newspapers grew mouldy on the

tables, sounds of snoring came from dark corners, and the members of the Gun Club, erstwhile so noisy in

their seances, were reduced to silence by this disastrous peace and gave themselves up wholly to dreams of a

"This is horrible!" said Tom Hunter one evening, while rapidly carbonizing his wooden legs in the fireplace

of the smokingroom; "nothing to do! nothing to look forward to! what a loathsome existence! When again

"Those days are gone by," said jolly Bilsby, trying to extend his missing arms. "It was delightful once upon a

time! One invented a gun, and hardly was it cast, when one hastened to try it in the face of the enemy! Then

one returned to camp with a word of encouragement from Sherman or a friendly shake of the hand from

McClellan. But now the generals are gone back to their counters; and in place of projectiles, they despatch

"Ay! and no war in prospect!" continued the famous James T. Maston, scratching with his steel hook his

guttapercha cranium. "Not a cloud on the horizon! and that too at such a critical period in the progress of the

science of artillery! Yes, gentlemen! I who address you have myself this very morning perfected a model

(plan, section, elevation, etc.) of a mortar destined to change all the conditions of warfare!"

"No! is it possible?" replied Tom Hunter, his thoughts reverting involuntarily to a former invention of the

Hon. J. T. Maston, by which, at its first trial, he had succeeded in killing three hundred and thirtyseven

"Fact!" replied he. "Still, what is the use of so many studies worked out, so many difficulties vanquished? It's

mere waste of time! The New World seems to have made up its mind to live in peace; and our bellicose

Tribune predicts some approaching catastrophes arising out of this scandalous increase of population."

"Nevertheless," replied Colonel Blomsberry, "they are always struggling in Europe to maintain the principle

"Well, there might be some field for enterprise down there; and if they would accept our services"

"What are you dreaming of?" screamed Bilsby; "work at gunnery for the benefit of foreigners?"

"Because their ideas of progress in the Old World are contrary to our American habits of thought. Those

fellows believe that one can't become a general without having served first as an ensign; which is as much as

"Ridiculous!" replied Tom Hunter, whittling with his bowieknife the arms of his easy chair; "but if that be

the case there, all that is left for us is to plant tobacco and distill whaleoil."

"What!" roared J. T. Maston, "shall we not employ these remaining years of our life in perfecting firearms?

Shall there never be a fresh opportunity of trying the ranges of projectiles? Shall the air never again be lighted

with the glare of our guns? No international difficulty ever arise to enable us to declare war against some

transatlantic power? Shall not the French sink one of our steamers, or the English, in defiance of the rights of

"No such luck," replied Colonel Blomsberry; "nothing of the kind is likely to happen; and even if it did, we

should not profit by it. American susceptibility is fast declining, and we are all going to the dogs."

"It is too true," replied J. T. Maston, with fresh violence; "there are a thousand grounds for fighting, and yet

we don't fight. We save up our arms and legs for the benefit of nations who don't know what to do with them!

But stop without going out of one's way to find a cause for war did not North America once belong to

"Well, then," replied J. T. Maston, "why should not England in her turn belong to the Americans?"

"Go and propose it to the President of the United States," cried J. T. Maston, "and see how he will receive

"Bah!" growled Bilsby between the four teeth which the war had left him; "that will never do!"

"By Jove!" cried J. T. Maston, "he mustn't count on my vote at the next election!"

"Meanwhile," replied J. T. Maston, "allow me to say that, if I cannot get an opportunity to try my new

mortars on a real field of battle, I shall say goodby to the members of the Gun Club, and go and bury myself

Matters were in this unfortunate condition, and the club was threatened with approaching dissolution, when

On the morrow after this conversation every member of the association received a sealed circular couched in

BALTIMORE, October 3. The president of the Gun Club has the honor to inform his colleagues that, at the

meeting of the 5th instant, he will bring before them a communication of an extremely interesting nature. He

requests, therefore, that they will make it convenient to attend in accordance with the present invitation. Very

On the 5th of October, at eight p.m., a dense crowd pressed toward the saloons of the Gun Club at No. 21

Union Square. All the members of the association resident in Baltimore attended the invitation of their

president. As regards the corresponding members, notices were delivered by hundreds throughout the streets

of the city, and, large as was the great hall, it was quite inadequate to accommodate the crowd of savants.

They overflowed into the adjoining rooms, down the narrow passages, into the outer courtyards. There they

ran against the vulgar herd who pressed up to the doors, each struggling to reach the front ranks, all eager to

learn the nature of the important communication of President Barbicane; all pushing, squeezing, crushing

with that perfect freedom of action which is so peculiar to the masses when educated in ideas of

On that evening a stranger who might have chanced to be in Baltimore could not have gained admission for

love or money into the great hall. That was reserved exclusively for resident or corresponding members; no

one else could possibly have obtained a place; and the city magnates, municipal councilors, and "select men"

were compelled to mingle with the mere townspeople in order to catch stray bits of news from the interior.

Nevertheless the vast hall presented a curious spectacle. Its immense area was singularly adapted to the

purpose. Lofty pillars formed of cannon, superposed upon huge mortars as a base, supported the fine

ironwork of the arches, a perfect piece of castiron lacework. Trophies of blunderbuses, matchlocks,

arquebuses, carbines, all kinds of firearms, ancient and modern, were picturesquely interlaced against the

walls. The gas lit up in full glare myriads of revolvers grouped in the form of lustres, while groups of pistols,

and candelabra formed of muskets bound together, completed this magnificent display of brilliance. Models

of cannon, bronze castings, sights covered with dents, plates battered by the shots of the Gun Club,

assortments of rammers and sponges, chaplets of shells, wreaths of projectiles, garlands of howitzers in

short, all the apparatus of the artillerist, enchanted the eye by this wonderful arrangement and induced a kind

At the further end of the saloon the president, assisted by four secretaries, occupied a large platform. His

chair, supported by a carved guncarriage, was modeled upon the ponderous proportions of a 32inch

mortar. It was pointed at an angle of ninety degrees, and suspended upon truncheons, so that the president

could balance himself upon it as upon a rockingchair, a very agreeable fact in the very hot weather. Upon

the table (a huge iron plate supported upon six carronades) stood an inkstand of exquisite elegance, made of a

beautifully chased Spanish piece, and a sonnette, which, when required, could give forth a report equal to that

of a revolver. During violent debates this novel kind of bell scarcely sufficed to drown the clamor of these

In front of the table benches arranged in zigzag form, like the circumvallations of a retrenchment, formed a

succession of bastions and curtains set apart for the use of the members of the club; and on this especial

evening one might say, "All the world was on the ramparts." The president was sufficiently well known,

however, for all to be assured that he would not put his colleagues to discomfort without some very strong

Impey Barbicane was a man of forty years of age, calm, cold, austere; of a singularly serious and

selfcontained demeanor, punctual as a chronometer, of imperturbable temper and immovable character; by

no means chivalrous, yet adventurous withal, and always bringing practical ideas to bear upon the very

rashest enterprises; an essentially New Englander, a Northern colonist, a descendant of the old antiStuart

Roundheads, and the implacable enemy of the gentlemen of the South, those ancient cavaliers of the mother

Barbicane had made a large fortune as a timber merchant. Being nominated director of artillery during the

war, he proved himself fertile in invention. Bold in his conceptions, he contributed powerfully to the progress

He was personage of the middle height, having, by a rare exception in the Gun Club, all his limbs complete.

His strongly marked features seemed drawn by square and rule; and if it be true that, in order to judge a man's

character one must look at his profile, Barbicane, so examined, exhibited the most certain indications of

At this moment he was sitting in his armchair, silent, absorbed, lost in reflection, sheltered under his

highcrowned hat a kind of black cylinder which always seems firmly screwed upon the head of an

Just when the deeptoned clock in the great hall struck eight, Barbicane, as if he had been set in motion by a

spring, raised himself up. A profound silence ensued, and the speaker, in a somewhat emphatic tone of voice,

"My brave, colleagues, too long already a paralyzing peace has plunged the members of the Gun Club in

deplorable inactivity. After a period of years full of incidents we have been compelled to abandon our labors,

and to stop short on the road of progress. I do not hesitate to state, baldly, that any war which would recall us

to arms would be welcome!" (Tremendous applause!) "But war, gentlemen, is impossible under existing

circumstances; and, however we may desire it, many years may elapse before our cannon shall again thunder

in the field of battle. We must make up our minds, then, to seek in another train of ideas some field for the

The meeting felt that the president was now approaching the critical point, and redoubled their attention

"For some months past, my brave colleagues," continued Barbicane, "I have been asking myself whether,

while confining ourselves to our own particular objects, we could not enter upon some grand experiment

worthy of the nineteenth century; and whether the progress of artillery science would not enable us to carry it

out to a successful issue. I have been considering, working, calculating; and the result of my studies is the

conviction that we are safe to succeed in an enterprise which to any other country would appear wholly

impracticable. This project, the result of long elaboration, is the object of my present communication. It is

worthy of yourselves, worthy of the antecedents of the Gun Club; and it cannot fail to make some noise in the

Barbicane, having by a rapid movement firmly fixed his hat upon his head, calmly continued his harangue:

"There is no one among you, my brave colleagues, who has not seen the Moon, or, at least, heard speak of it.

Don't be surprised if I am about to discourse to you regarding the Queen of the Night. It is perhaps reserved

for us to become the Columbuses of this unknown world. Only enter into my plans, and second me with all

your power, and I will lead you to its conquest, and its name shall be added to those of the thirtysix states

"The moon, gentlemen, has been carefully studied," continued Barbicane; "her mass, density, and weight; her

constitution, motions, distance, as well as her place in the solar system, have all been exactly determined.

Selenographic charts have been constructed with a perfection which equals, if it does not even surpass, that of

our terrestrial maps. Photography has given us proofs of the incomparable beauty of our satellite; all is known

regarding the moon which mathematical science, astronomy, geology, and optics can learn about her. But up

A violent movement of interest and surprise here greeted this remark of the speaker.

"Permit me," he continued, "to recount to you briefly how certain ardent spirits, starting on imaginary

journeys, have penetrated the secrets of our satellite. In the seventeenth century a certain David Fabricius

boasted of having seen with his own eyes the inhabitants of the moon. In 1649 a Frenchman, one Jean

Baudoin, published a `Journey performed from the Earth to the Moon by Domingo Gonzalez,' a Spanish

adventurer. At the same period Cyrano de Bergerac published that celebrated `Journeys in the Moon' which

met with such success in France. Somewhat later another Frenchman, named Fontenelle, wrote `The Plurality

of Worlds,' a chefd'oeuvre of its time. About 1835 a small treatise, translated from the New York American,

related how Sir John Herschel, having been despatched to the Cape of Good Hope for the purpose of making

there some astronomical calculations, had, by means of a telescope brought to perfection by means of internal

lighting, reduced the apparent distance of the moon to eighty yards! He then distinctly perceived caverns

frequented by hippopotami, green mountains bordered by golden lacework, sheep with horns of ivory, a

white species of deer and inhabitants with membranous wings, like bats. This brochure, the work of an

American named Locke, had a great sale. But, to bring this rapid sketch to a close, I will only add that a

certain Hans Pfaal, of Rotterdam, launching himself in a balloon filled with a gas extracted from nitrogen,

thirtyseven times lighter than hydrogen, reached the moon after a passage of nineteen hours. This journey,

like all previous ones, was purely imaginary; still, it was the work of a popular American author I mean

"Cheers for Edgar Poe!" roared the assemblage, electrified by their president's words.

"I have now enumerated," said Barbicane, "the experiments which I call purely paper ones, and wholly

insufficient to establish serious relations with the Queen of the Night. Nevertheless, I am bound to add that

some practical geniuses have attempted to establish actual communication with her. Thus, a few days ago, a

German geometrician proposed to send a scientific expedition to the steppes of Siberia. There, on those vast

plains, they were to describe enormous geometric figures, drawn in characters of reflecting luminosity,

among which was the proposition regarding the `square of the hypothenuse,' commonly called the `Ass's

Bridge' by the French. `Every intelligent being,' said the geometrician, `must understand the scientific

meaning of that figure. The Selenites, do they exist, will respond by a similar figure; and, a communication

being thus once established, it will be easy to form an alphabet which shall enable us to converse with the

inhabitants of the moon.' So spoke the German geometrician; but his project was never put into practice, and

up to the present day there is no bond in existence between the Earth and her satellite. It is reserved for the

practical genius of Americans to establish a communication with the sidereal world. The means of arriving

thither are simple, easy, certain, infallible and that is the purpose of my present proposal."

A storm of acclamations greeted these words. There was not a single person in the whole audience who was

As soon as the excitement had partially subsided, Barbicane resumed his speech in a somewhat graver voice.

"You know," said he, "what progress artillery science has made during the last few years, and what a degree

of perfection firearms of every kind have reached. Moreover, you are well aware that, in general terms, the

resisting power of cannon and the expansive force of gunpowder are practically unlimited. Well! starting

from this principle, I ask myself whether, supposing sufficient apparatus could be obtained constructed upon

the conditions of ascertained resistance, it might not be possible to project a shot up to the moon?"

At these words a murmur of amazement escaped from a thousand panting chests; then succeeded a moment

of perfect silence, resembling that profound stillness which precedes the bursting of a thunderstorm. In point

of fact, a thunderstorm did peal forth, but it was the thunder of applause, or cries, and of uproar which made

the very hall tremble. The president attempted to speak, but could not. It was fully ten minutes before he

"Suffer me to finish," he calmly continued. "I have looked at the question in all its bearings, I have resolutely

attacked it, and by incontrovertible calculations I find that a projectile endowed with an initial velocity of

12,000 yards per second, and aimed at the moon, must necessarily reach it. I have the honor, my brave

It is impossible to describe the effect produced by the last words of the honorable president the cries, the

shouts, the succession of roars, hurrahs, and all the varied vociferations which the American language is

capable of supplying. It was a scene of indescribable confusion and uproar. They shouted, they clapped, they

stamped on the floor of the hall. All the weapons in the museum discharged at once could not have more

violently set in motion the waves of sound. One need not be surprised at this. There are some cannoneers

Barbicane remained calm in the midst of this enthusiastic clamor; perhaps he was desirous of addressing a

few more words to his colleagues, for by his gestures he demanded silence, and his powerful alarum was

worn out by its violent reports. No attention, however, was paid to his request. He was presently torn from his

seat and passed from the hands of his faithful colleagues into the arms of a no less excited crowd.

Nothing can astound an American. It has often been asserted that the word "impossible" in not a French one.

People have evidently been deceived by the dictionary. In America, all is easy, all is simple; and as for

mechanical difficulties, they are overcome before they arise. Between Barbicane's proposition and its

realization no true Yankee would have allowed even the semblance of a difficulty to be possible. A thing with

The triumphal progress of the president continued throughout the evening. It was a regular torchlight

procession. Irish, Germans, French, Scotch, all the heterogeneous units which make up the population of

Maryland shouted in their respective vernaculars; and the "vivas," "hurrahs," and "bravos" were intermingled

Just at this crisis, as though she comprehended all this agitation regarding herself, the moon shone forth with

serene splendor, eclipsing by her intense illumination all the surrounding lights. The Yankees all turned their

gaze toward her resplendent orb, kissed their hands, called her by all kinds of endearing names. Between

eight o'clock and midnight one optician in Jones'Fall Street made his fortune by the sale of operaglasses.

Midnight arrived, and the enthusiasm showed no signs of diminution. It spread equally among all classes of

citizens men of science, shopkeepers, merchants, porters, chairmen, as well as "greenhorns," were stirred

in their innermost fibres. A national enterprise was at stake. The whole city, high and low, the quays

bordering the Patapsco, the ships lying in the basins, disgorged a crowd drunk with joy, gin, and whisky.

Every one chattered, argued, discussed, disputed, applauded, from the gentleman lounging upon the barroom

settee with his tumbler of sherrycobbler before him down to the waterman who got drunk upon his

About two A.M., however, the excitement began to subside. President Barbicane reached his house, bruised,

crushed, and squeezed almost to a mummy. Hercules could not have resisted a similar outbreak of

enthusiasm. The crowd gradually deserted the squares and streets. The four railways from Philadelphia and

Washington, Harrisburg and Wheeling, which converge at Baltimore, whirled away the heterogeneous

population to the four corners of the United States, and the city subsided into comparative tranquility.

On the following day, thanks to the telegraphic wires, five hundred newspapers and journals, daily, weekly,

monthly, or bimonthly, all took up the question. They examined it under all its different aspects, physical,

meteorological, economical, or moral, up to its bearings on politics or civilization. They debated whether the

moon was a finished world, or whether it was destined to undergo any further transformation. Did it resemble

the earth at the period when the latter was destitute as yet of an atmosphere? What kind of spectacle would its

hidden hemisphere present to our terrestrial spheroid? Granting that the question at present was simply that of

sending a projectile up to the moon, every one must see that that involved the commencement of a series of

experiments. All must hope that some day America would penetrate the deepest secrets of that mysterious

orb; and some even seemed to fear lest its conquest should not sensibly derange the equilibrium of Europe.

The project once under discussion, not a single paragraph suggested a doubt of its realization. All the papers,

pamphlets, reports all the journals published by the scientific, literary, and religious societies enlarged

upon its advantages; and the Society of Natural History of Boston, the Society of Science and Art of Albany,

the Geographical and Statistical Society of New York, the Philosophical Society of Philadelphia, and the

Smithsonian of Washington sent innumerable letters of congratulation to the Gun Club, together with offers

From that day forward Impey Barbicane became one of the greatest citizens of the United States, a kind of

Washington of science. A single trait of feeling, taken from many others, will serve to show the point which

Some few days after this memorable meeting of the Gun Club, the manager of an English company

announced, at the Baltimore theatre, the production of "Much ado about Nothing." But the populace, seeing

in that title an allusion damaging to Barbicane's project, broke into the auditorium, smashed the benches, and

compelled the unlucky director to alter his playbill. Being a sensible man, he bowed to the public will and

replaced the offending comedy by "As you like it"; and for many weeks he realized fabulous profits.

Barbicane, however, lost not one moment amid all the enthusiasm of which he had become the object. His

first care was to reassemble his colleagues in the boardroom of the Gun Club. There, after some discussion,

it was agreed to consult the astronomers regarding the astronomical part of the enterprise. Their reply once

ascertained, they could then discuss the mechanical means, and nothing should be wanting to ensure the

A note couched in precise terms, containing special interrogatories, was then drawn up and addressed to the

Observatory of Cambridge in Massachusetts. This city, where the first university of the United States was

founded, is justly celebrated for its astronomical staff. There are to be found assembled all the most eminent

men of science. Here is to be seen at work that powerful telescope which enabled Bond to resolve the nebula

of Andromeda, and Clarke to discover the satellite of Sirius. This celebrated institution fully justified on all

points the confidence reposed in it by the Gun Club. So, after two days, the reply so impatiently awaited was

The Director of the Cambridge Observatory to the President of the Gun Club at Baltimore.

CAMBRIDGE, October 7. On the receipt of your favor of the 6th instant, addressed to the Observatory of

Cambridge in the name of the members of the Baltimore Gun Club, our staff was immediately called

"3. What will be the period of transit of the projectile when endowed with sufficient initial velocity? and,

consequently, at what moment ought it to be discharged in order that it may touch the moon at a particular

"4. At what precise moment will the moon present herself in the most favorable position to be reached by the

"5. What point in the heavens ought the cannon to be aimed at which is intended to discharge the projectile?

"6. What place will the moon occupy in the heavens at the moment of the projectile's departure?"

Regarding the first question, "Is it possible to transmit a projectile up to the moon?"

Answer. Yes; provided it possess an initial velocity of 1,200 yards per second; calculations prove that to

be sufficient. In proportion as we recede from the earth the action of gravitation diminishes in the inverse

ratio of the square of the distance; that is to say, at three times a given distance the action is nine times less.

Consequently, the weight of a shot will decrease, and will become reduced to zero at the instant that the

attraction of the moon exactly counterpoises that of the earth; that is to say at 47/52 of its passage. At that

instant the projectile will have no weight whatever; and, if it passes that point, it will fall into the moon by the

sole effect of the lunar attraction. The theoretical possibility of the experiment is therefore absolutely

As to the second question, "What is the exact distance which separates the earth from its satellite?"

Answer. The moon does not describe a circle round the earth, but rather an ellipse, of which our earth

occupies one of the foci; the consequence, therefore, is, that at certain times it approaches nearer to, and at

others it recedes farther from, the earth; in astronomical language, it is at one time in apogee, at another in

perigee. Now the difference between its greatest and its least distance is too considerable to be left out of

consideration. In point of fact, in its apogee the moon is 247,552 miles, and in its perigee, 218,657 miles only

distant; a fact which makes a difference of 28,895 miles, or more than oneninth of the entire distance. The

perigee distance, therefore, is that which ought to serve as the basis of all calculations.

Answer. If the shot should preserve continuously its initial velocity of 12,000 yards per second, it would

require little more than nine hours to reach its destination; but, inasmuch as that initial velocity will be

continually decreasing, it will occupy 300,000 seconds, that is 83hrs. 20m. in reaching the point where the

attraction of the earth and moon will be in equilibrio. From this point it will fall into the moon in 50,000

seconds, or 13hrs. 53m. 20sec. It will be desirable, therefore, to discharge it 97hrs. 13m. 20sec. before the

Regarding question four, "At what precise moment will the moon present herself in the most favorable

Answer. After what has been said above, it will be necessary, first of all, to choose the period when the

moon will be in perigee, and also the moment when she will be crossing the zenith, which latter event will

further diminish the entire distance by a length equal to the radius of the earth, i. e. 3,919 miles; the result of

which will be that the final passage remaining to be accomplished will be 214,976 miles. But although the

moon passes her perigee every month, she does not reach the zenith always at exactly the same moment. She

does not appear under these two conditions simultaneously, except at long intervals of time. It will be

necessary, therefore, to wait for the moment when her passage in perigee shall coincide with that in the

zenith. Now, by a fortunate circumstance, on the 4th of December in the ensuing year the moon will present

these two conditions. At midnight she will be in perigee, that is, at her shortest distance from the earth, and at

On the fifth question, "At what point in the heavens ought the cannon to be aimed?"

Answer. The preceding remarks being admitted, the cannon ought to be pointed to the zenith of the place.

Its fire, therefore, will be perpendicular to the plane of the horizon; and the projectile will soonest pass

beyond the range of the terrestrial attraction. But, in order that the moon should reach the zenith of a given

place, it is necessary that the place should not exceed in latitude the declination of the luminary; in other

words, it must be comprised within the degrees 0@ and 28@ of lat. N. or S. In every other spot the fire must

necessarily be oblique, which would seriously militate against the success of the experiment.

As to the sixth question, "What place will the moon occupy in the heavens at the moment of the projectile's

Answer. At the moment when the projectile shall be discharged into space, the moon, which travels daily

forward 13@ 10' 35'', will be distant from the zenith point by four times that quantity, i. e. by 52@ 41' 20'', a

space which corresponds to the path which she will describe during the entire journey of the projectile. But,

inasmuch as it is equally necessary to take into account the deviation which the rotary motion of the earth will

impart to the shot, and as the shot cannot reach the moon until after a deviation equal to 16 radii of the earth,

which, calculated upon the moon's orbit, are equal to about eleven degrees, it becomes necessary to add these

eleven degrees to those which express the retardation of the moon just mentioned: that is to say, in round

numbers, about sixtyfour degrees. Consequently, at the moment of firing the visual radius applied to the

moon will describe, with the vertical line of the place, an angle of sixtyfour degrees.

These are our answers to the questions proposed to the Observatory of Cambridge by the members of the Gun

1st. The cannon ought to be planted in a country situated between 0@ and 28@ of N. or S. lat.

3rd. The projectile ought to be propelled with an initial velocity of 12,000 yards per second.

4th. It ought to be discharged at 10hrs. 46m. 40sec. of the 1st of December of the ensuing year.

5th. It will meet the moon four days after its discharge, precisely at midnight on the 4th of December, at the

The members of the Gun Club ought, therefore, without delay, to commence the works necessary for such an

experiment, and to be prepared to set to work at the moment determined upon; for, if they should suffer this

4th of December to go by, they will not find the moon again under the same conditions of perigee and of

The staff of the Cambridge Observatory place themselves entirely at their disposal in respect of all questions

of theoretical astronomy; and herewith add their congratulations to those of all the rest of America. For the

An observer endued with an infinite range of vision, and placed in that unknown center around which the

entire world revolves, might have beheld myriads of atoms filling all space during the chaotic epoch of the

universe. Little by little, as ages went on, a change took place; a general law of attraction manifested itself, to

which the hitherto errant atoms became obedient: these atoms combined together chemically according to

their affinities, formed themselves into molecules, and composed those nebulous masses with which the

depths of the heavens are strewed. These masses became immediately endued with a rotary motion around

their own central point. This center, formed of indefinite molecules, began to revolve around its own axis

during its gradual condensation; then, following the immutable laws of mechanics, in proportion as its bulk

diminished by condensation, its rotary motion became accelerated, and these two effects continuing, the

result was the formation of one principal star, the center of the nebulous mass.

By attentively watching, the observer would then have perceived the other molecules of the mass, following

the example of this central star, become likewise condensed by gradually accelerated rotation, and gravitating

round it in the shape of innumerable stars. Thus was formed the Nebulae, of which astronomers have

Among these 5,000 nebulae there is one which has received the name of the Milky Way, and which contains

eighteen millions of stars, each of which has become the center of a solar world.

If the observer had then specially directed his attention to one of the more humble and less brilliant of these

stellar bodies, a star of the fourth class, that which is arrogantly called the Sun, all the phenomena to which

the formation of the Universe is to be ascribed would have been successively fulfilled before his eyes. In fact,

he would have perceived this sun, as yet in the gaseous state, and composed of moving molecules, revolving

round its axis in order to accomplish its work of concentration. This motion, faithful to the laws of

mechanics, would have been accelerated with the diminution of its volume; and a moment would have

arrived when the centrifugal force would have overpowered the centripetal, which causes the molecules all to

Another phenomenon would now have passed before the observer's eye, and the molecules situated on the

plane of the equator, escaping like a stone from a sling of which the cord had suddenly snapped, would have

formed around the sun sundry concentric rings resembling that of Saturn. In their turn, again, these rings of

cosmical matter, excited by a rotary motion about the central mass, would have been broken up and

decomposed into secondary nebulosities, that is to say, into planets. Similarly he would have observed these

planets throw off one or more rings each, which became the origin of the secondary bodies which we call

Thus, then, advancing from atom to molecule, from molecule to nebulous mass, from that to principal star,

from star to sun, from sun to planet, and hence to satellite, we have the whole series of transformations

Now, of those attendant bodies which the sun maintains in their elliptical orbits by the great law of

gravitation, some few in turn possess satellites. Uranus has eight, Saturn eight, Jupiter four, Neptune possibly

three, and the Earth one. This last, one of the least important of the entire solar system, we call the Moon; and

it is she whom the daring genius of the Americans professed their intention of conquering.

The moon, by her comparative proximity, and the constantly varying appearances produced by her several

phases, has always occupied a considerable share of the attention of the inhabitants of the earth.

From the time of Thales of Miletus, in the fifth century B.C., down to that of Copernicus in the fifteenth and

Tycho Brahe in the sixteenth century A.D., observations have been from time to time carried on with more or

less correctness, until in the present day the altitudes of the lunar mountains have been determined with

exactitude. Galileo explained the phenomena of the lunar light produced during certain of her phases by the

existence of mountains, to which he assigned a mean altitude of 27,000 feet. After him Hevelius, an

astronomer of Dantzic, reduced the highest elevations to 15,000 feet; but the calculations of Riccioli brought

At the close of the eighteenth century Herschel, armed with a powerful telescope, considerably reduced the

preceding measurements. He assigned a height of 11,400 feet to the maximum elevations, and reduced the

mean of the different altitudes to little more than 2,400 feet. But Herschel's calculations were in their turn

corrected by the observations of Halley, Nasmyth, Bianchini, Gruithuysen, and others; but it was reserved for

the labors of Boeer and Maedler finally to solve the question. They succeeded in measuring 1,905 different

elevations, of which six exceed 15,000 feet, and twentytwo exceed 14,400 feet. The highest summit of all

towers to a height of 22,606 feet above the surface of the lunar disc. At the same period the examination of

the moon was completed. She appeared completely riddled with craters, and her essentially volcanic

character was apparent at each observation. By the absence of refraction in the rays of the planets occulted by

her we conclude that she is absolutely devoid of an atmosphere. The absence of air entails the absence of

water. It became, therefore, manifest that the Selenites, to support life under such conditions, must possess a

special organization of their own, must differ remarkably from the inhabitants of the earth.

At length, thanks to modern art, instruments of still higher perfection searched the moon without

intermission, not leaving a single point of her surface unexplored; and notwithstanding that her diameter

measures 2,150 miles, her surface equals the onefifteenth part of that of our globe, and her bulk the

onefortyninth part of that of the terrestrial spheroid not one of her secrets was able to escape the eyes of

the astronomers; and these skillful men of science carried to an even greater degree their prodigious

Thus they remarked that, during full moon, the disc appeared scored in certain parts with white lines; and,

during the phases, with black. On prosecuting the study of these with still greater precision, they succeeded in

obtaining an exact account of the nature of these lines. They were long and narrow furrows sunk between

parallel ridges, bordering generally upon the edges of the craters. Their length varied between ten and 100

miles, and their width was about 1,600 yards. Astronomers called them chasms, but they could not get any

further. Whether these chasms were the driedup beds of ancient rivers or not they were unable thoroughly to

The Americans, among others, hoped one day or other to determine this geological question. They also

undertook to examine the true nature of that system of parallel ramparts discovered on the moon's surface by

Gruithuysen, a learned professor of Munich, who considered them to be "a system of fortifications thrown up

by the Selenitic engineers." These two points, yet obscure, as well as others, no doubt, could not be definitely

Regarding the degree of intensity of its light, there was nothing more to learn on this point. It was known that

it is 300,000 times weaker than that of the sun, and that its heat has no appreciable effect upon the

thermometer. As to the phenomenon known as the "ashy light," it is explained naturally by the effect of the

transmission of the solar rays from the earth to the moon, which give the appearance of completeness to the

lunar disc, while it presents itself under the crescent form during its first and last phases.

Such was the state of knowledge acquired regarding the earth's satellite, which the Gun Club undertook to

The immediate result of Barbicane's proposition was to place upon the orders of the day all the astronomical

facts relative to the Queen of the Night. Everybody set to work to study assiduously. One would have thought

that the moon had just appeared for the first time, and that no one had ever before caught a glimpse of her in

the heavens. The papers revived all the old anecdotes in which the "sun of the wolves" played a part; they

recalled the influences which the ignorance of past ages ascribed to her; in short, all America was seized with

The scientific journals, for their part, dealt more especially with the questions which touched upon the

enterprise of the Gun Club. The letter of the Observatory of Cambridge was published by them, and

Until that time most people had been ignorant of the mode in which the distance which separates the moon

from the earth is calculated. They took advantage of this fact to explain to them that this distance was

obtained by measuring the parallax of the moon. The term parallax proving "caviare to the general," they

further explained that it meant the angle formed by the inclination of two straight lines drawn from either

extremity of the earth's radius to the moon. On doubts being expressed as to the correctness of this method,

they immediately proved that not only was the mean distance 234,347 miles, but that astronomers could not

To those who were not familiar with the motions of the moon, they demonstrated that she possesses two

distinct motions, the first being that of rotation upon her axis, the second being that of revolution round the

earth, accomplishing both together in an equal period of time, that is to say, in twentyseven and onethird

The motion of rotation is that which produces day and night on the surface of the moon; save that there is

only one day and one night in the lunar month, each lasting three hundred and fiftyfour and onethird hours.

But, happily for her, the face turned toward the terrestrial globe is illuminated by it with an intensity equal to

that of fourteen moons. As to the other face, always invisible to us, it has of necessity three hundred and

fiftyfour hours of absolute night, tempered only by that "pale glimmer which falls upon it from the stars."

Some wellintentioned, but rather obstinate persons, could not at first comprehend how, if the moon displays

invariably the same face to the earth during her revolution, she can describe one turn round herself. To such

they answered, "Go into your diningroom, and walk round the table in such a way as to always keep your

face turned toward the center; by the time you will have achieved one complete round you will have

completed one turn around yourself, since your eye will have traversed successively every point of the room.

Well, then, the room is the heavens, the table is the earth, and the moon is yourself." And they would go away

So, then the moon displays invariably the same face to the earth; nevertheless, to be quite exact, it is

necessary to add that, in consequence of certain fluctuations of north and south, and of west and east, termed

her libration, she permits rather more than half, that is to say, fivesevenths, to be seen.

As soon as the ignoramuses came to understand as much as the director of the observatory himself knew, they

began to worry themselves regarding her revolution round the earth, whereupon twenty scientific reviews

immediately came to the rescue. They pointed out to them that the firmament, with its infinitude of stars, may

be considered as one vast dialplate, upon which the moon travels, indicating the true time to all the

inhabitants of the earth; that it is during this movement that the Queen of Night exhibits her different phases;

that the moon is full when she is in opposition with the sun, that is when the three bodies are on the same

straight line, the earth occupying the center; that she is new when she is in conjunction with the sun, that is,

when she is between it and the earth; and, lastly that she is in her first or last quarter, when she makes with

Regarding the altitude which the moon attains above the horizon, the letter of the Cambridge Observatory had

said all that was to be said in this respect. Every one knew that this altitude varies according to the latitude of

the observer. But the only zones of the globe in which the moon passes the zenith, that is, the point directly

over the head of the spectator, are of necessity comprised between the twentyeighth parallels and the

equator. Hence the importance of the advice to try the experiment upon some point of that part of the globe,

in order that the projectile might be discharged perpendicularly, and so the soonest escape the action of

gravitation. This was an essential condition to the success of the enterprise, and continued actively to engage

Regarding the path described by the moon in her revolution round the earth, the Cambridge Observatory had

demonstrated that this path is a reentering curve, not a perfect circle, but an ellipse, of which the earth

occupies one of the foci. It was also well understood that it is farthest removed from the earth during its

Such was then the extent of knowledge possessed by every American on the subject, and of which no one

could decently profess ignorance. Still, while these principles were being rapidly disseminated many errors

For instance, some worthy persons maintained that the moon was an ancient comet which, in describing its

elongated orbit round the sun, happened to pass near the earth, and became confined within her circle of

attraction. These drawingroom astronomers professed to explain the charred aspect of the moon a disaster

which they attributed to the intensity of the solar heat; only, on being reminded that comets have an

atmosphere, and that the moon has little or none, they were fairly at a loss for a reply.

Others again, belonging to the doubting class, expressed certain fears as to the position of the moon. They

had heard it said that, according to observations made in the time of the Caliphs, her revolution had become

accelerated in a certain degree. Hence they concluded, logically enough, that an acceleration of motion ought

to be accompanied by a corresponding diminution in the distance separating the two bodies; and that,

supposing the double effect to be continued to infinity, the moon would end by one day falling into the earth.

However, they became reassured as to the fate of future generations on being apprised that, according to the

calculations of Laplace, this acceleration of motion is confined within very restricted limits, and that a

proportional diminution of speed will be certain to succeed it. So, then, the stability of the solar system would

There remains but the third class, the superstitious. These worthies were not content merely to rest in

ignorance; they must know all about things which had no existence whatever, and as to the moon, they had

long known all about her. One set regarded her disc as a polished mirror, by means of which people could see

each other from different points of the earth and interchange their thoughts. Another set pretended that out of

one thousand new moons that had been observed, nine hundred and fifty had been attended with remarkable

disturbances, such as cataclysms, revolutions, earthquakes, the deluge, etc. Then they believed in some

mysterious influence exercised by her over human destinies that every Selenite was attached to some

inhabitant of the earth by a tie of sympathy; they maintained that the entire vital system is subject to her

control, etc. But in time the majority renounced these vulgar errors, and espoused the true side of the

question. As for the Yankees, they had no other ambition than to take possession of this new continent of the

sky, and to plant upon the summit of its highest elevation the star spangled banner of the United States of

The Observatory of Cambridge in its memorable letter had treated the question from a purely astronomical

President Barbicane had, without loss of time, nominated a working committee of the Gun Club. The duty of

this committee was to resolve the three grand questions of the cannon, the projectile, and the powder. It was

composed of four members of great technical knowledge, Barbicane (with a casting vote in case of equality),

General Morgan, Major Elphinstone, and J. T. Maston, to whom were confided the functions of secretary. On

the 8th of October the committee met at the house of President Barbicane, 3 Republican Street. The meeting

"Gentlemen," said he, "we have to resolve one of the most important problems in the whole of the noble

science of gunnery. It might appear, perhaps, the most logical course to devote our first meeting to the

discussion of the engine to be employed. Nevertheless, after mature consideration, it has appeared to me that

the question of the projectile must take precedence of that of the cannon, and that the dimensions of the latter

"Suffer me to say a word," here broke in J. T. Maston. Permission having been granted, "Gentlemen," said he

with an inspired accent, "our president is right in placing the question of the projectile above all others. The

ball we are about to discharge at the moon is our ambassador to her, and I wish to consider it from a moral

point of view. The cannonball, gentlemen, to my mind, is the most magnificent manifestation of human

power. If Providence has created the stars and the planets, man has called the cannonball into existence. Let

Providence claim the swiftness of electricity and of light, of the stars, the comets, and the planets, of wind

and sound we claim to have invented the swiftness of the cannonball, a hundred times superior to that of

the swiftest horses or railway train. How glorious will be the moment when, infinitely exceeding all hitherto

attained velocities, we shall launch our new projectile with the rapidity of seven miles a second! Shall it not,

gentlemen shall it not be received up there with the honors due to a terrestrial ambassador?"

Overcome with emotion the orator sat down and applied himself to a huge plate of sandwiches before him.

"And now," said Barbicane, "let us quit the domain of poetry and come direct to the question."

"The problem before us," continued the president, "is how to communicate to a projectile a velocity of 12,000

yards per second. Let us at present examine the velocities hitherto attained. General Morgan will be able to

"And the more easily," replied the general, "that during the war I was a member of the committee of

experiments. I may say, then, that the 100pounder Dahlgrens, which carried a distance of 5,000 yards,

impressed upon their projectile an initial velocity of 500 yards a second. The Rodman Columbiad threw a

shot weighing half a ton a distance of six miles, with a velocity of 800 yards per second a result which

"Yes," quietly replied Barbicane, "but it did burst. We must take, then, for our starting point, this velocity of

800 yards. We must increase it twentyfold. Now, reserving for another discussion the means of producing

this velocity, I will call your attention to the dimensions which it will be proper to assign to the shot. You

understand that we have nothing to do here with projectiles weighing at most but half a ton."

"Because the shot," quickly replied J. T. Maston, "must be big enough to attract the attention of the

"I mean that it is not enough to discharge a projectile, and then take no further notice of it; we must follow it

"Undoubtedly," replied Barbicane composedly, "or our experiment would produce no result."

"But then," replied the major, "you will have to give this projectile enormous dimensions."

"No! Be so good as to listen. You know that optical instruments have acquired great perfection; with certain

instruments we have succeeded in obtaining enlargements of 6,000 times and reducing the moon to within

forty miles' distance. Now, at this distance, any objects sixty feet square would be perfectly visible.

"If, then, the penetrative power of telescopes has not been further increased, it is because that power detracts

from their light; and the moon, which is but a reflecting mirror, does not give back sufficient light to enable

"Well, then, what do you propose to do?" asked the general. "Would you give your projectile a diameter of

"Exactly so. If I can succeed in diminishing the density of the atmosphere through which the moon's light has

to travel I shall have rendered her light more intense. To effect that object it will be enough to establish a

"I give it up," answered the major. "You have such a way of simplifying things. And what enlargement do

"One of 48,000 times, which should bring the moon within an apparent distance of five miles; and, in order to

"So, then," cried J. T. Maston, "our projectile need not be more than nine feet in diameter."

"Let me observe, however," interrupted Major Elphinstone, "this will involve a weight such as"

"My dear major," replied Barbicane, "before discussing its weight permit me to enumerate some of the

marvels which our ancestors have achieved in this respect. I don't mean to pretend that the science of gunnery

has not advanced, but it is as well to bear in mind that during the middle ages they obtained results more

surprising, I will venture to say, than ours. For instance, during the siege of Constantinople by Mahomet II.,

in 1453, stone shot of 1,900 pounds weight were employed. At Malta, in the time of the knights, there was a

gun of the fortress of St. Elmo which threw a projectile weighing 2,500 pounds. And, now, what is the extent

of what we have seen ourselves? Armstrong guns discharging shot of 500 pounds, and the Rodman guns

projectiles of half a ton! It seems, then, that if projectiles have gained in range, they have lost far more in

weight. Now, if we turn our efforts in that direction, we ought to arrive, with the progress on science, at ten

"But," interrupted the major, "since the weight of a shot is proportionate to its volume, an iron ball of nine

"Yes, a shell," replied Barbicane; "decidely it must be. A solid shot of 108 inches would weigh more than

200,000 pounds, a weight evidently far too great. Still, as we must reserve a certain stability for our

"If we follow the usual proportion," replied Morgan, "a diameter of 108 inches would require sides of two

"That would be too much," replied Barbicane; "for you will observe that the question is not that of a shot

intended to pierce an iron plate; it will suffice to give it sides strong enough to resist the pressure of the gas.

The problem, therefore, is this What thickness ought a castiron shell to have in order not to weight more

than 20,000 pounds? Our clever secretary will soon enlighten us upon this point."

"Nothing easier." replied the worthy secretary of the committee; and, rapidly tracing a few algebraical

formulae upon paper, among which n^2 and x^2 frequently appeared, he presently said:

"Unquestionably, my friends. This valuable metal possesses the whiteness of silver, the indestructibility of

gold, the tenacity of iron, the fusibility of copper, the lightness of glass. It is easily wrought, is very widely

distributed, forming the base of most of the rocks, is three times lighter than iron, and seems to have been

created for the express purpose of furnishing us with the material for our projectile."

"But, my dear president," said the major, "is not the cost price of aluminum extremely high?"

"It was so at its first discovery, but it has fallen now to nine dollars a pound."

"But still, nine dollars a pound!" replied the major, who was not willing readily to give in; "even that is an

"Here is the result of my calculations," replied Barbicane. "A shot of 108 inches in diameter, and twelve

inches in thickness, would weigh, in castiron, 67,440 pounds; cast in aluminum, its weight will be reduced

"Capital!" cried the major; "but do you know that, at nine dollars a pound, this projectile will cost"

"One hundred and seventythree thousand and fifty dollars ($173,050). I know it quite well. But fear not, my

friends; the money will not be wanting for our enterprise. I will answer for it. Now what say you to

"Adopted!" replied the three members of the committee. So ended the first meeting. The question of the

The resolutions passed at the last meeting produced a great effect out of doors. Timid people took fright at the

idea of a shot weighing 20,000 pounds being launched into space; they asked what cannon could ever

transmit a sufficient velocity to such a mighty mass. The minutes of the second meeting were destined

triumphantly to answer such questions. The following evening the discussion was renewed.

"My dear colleagues," said Barbicane, without further preamble, "the subject now before us is the

construction of the engine, its length, its composition, and its weight. It is probable that we shall end by

giving it gigantic dimensions; but however great may be the difficulties in the way, our mechanical genius

will readily surmount them. Be good enough, then, to give me your attention, and do not hesitate to make

objections at the close. I have no fear of them. The problem before us is how to communicate an initial force

of 12,000 yards per second to a shell of 108 inches in diameter, weighing 20,000 pounds. Now when a

projectile is launched into space, what happens to it? It is acted upon by three independent forces: the

resistance of the air, the attraction of the earth, and the force of impulsion with which it is endowed. Let us

examine these three forces. The resistance of the air is of little importance. The atmosphere of the earth does

not exceed forty miles. Now, with the given rapidity, the projectile will have traversed this in five seconds,

and the period is too brief for the resistance of the medium to be regarded otherwise than as insignificant.

Proceding, then, to the attraction of the earth, that is, the weight of the shell, we know that this weight will

diminish in the inverse ratio of the square of the distance. When a body left to itself falls to the surface of the

earth, it falls five feet in the first second; and if the same body were removed 257,542 miles further off, in

other words, to the distance of the moon, its fall would be reduced to about half a line in the first second. That

is almost equivalent to a state of perfect rest. Our business, then, is to overcome progressively this action of

"True," replied the president; "but we will overcome that, for the force of impulsion will depend on the length

of the engine and the powder employed, the latter being limited only by the resisting power of the former.

"Now, up to the present time," said Barbicane, "our longest guns have not exceeded twentyfive feet in

length. We shall therefore astonish the world by the dimensions we shall be obliged to adopt. It must

evidently be, then, a gun of great range, since the length of the piece will increase the detention of the gas

accumulated behind the projectile; but there is no advantage in passing certain limits."

"Ordinarily the length of a gun is twenty to twentyfive times the diameter of the shot, and its weight two

"I agree with you, my good friend; and, in fact, following this proportion for a projectile nine feet in

diameter, weighing 30,000 pounds, the gun would only have a length of two hundred and twenty five feet,

"I think so too," replied Barbicane; "that is why I propose to quadruple that length, and to construct a gun of

The general and the major offered some objections; nevertheless, the proposition, actively supported by the

"You surely don't think of mounting a mass like that upon a carriage?" asked the major.

"But impracticable," replied Barbicane. "No, I think of sinking this engine in the earth alone, binding it with

hoops of wrought iron, and finally surrounding it with a thick mass of masonry of stone and cement. The

piece once cast, it must be bored with great precision, so as to preclude any possible windage. So there will

be no loss whatever of gas, and all the expansive force of the powder will be employed in the propulsion."

"No, certainly not," replied Barbicane; "we require an enormous initial velocity; and you are well aware that a

On the discussion being renewed, "Gentlemen," said Barbicane, "we must now take into consideration the

metal to be employed. Our cannon must be possessed of great tenacity, great hardness, be infusible by heat,

"There is no doubt about that," replied the major; "and as we shall have to employ an immense quantity of

"Well, then," said Morgan, "I propose the best alloy hitherto known, which consists of one hundred parts of

"I admit," replied the president, "that this composition has yielded excellent results, but in the present case it

would be too expensive, and very difficult to work. I think, then, that we ought to adopt a material excellent

"In fact," continued Barbicane, "cast iron costs ten times less than bronze; it is easy to cast, it runs readily

from the moulds of sand, it is easy of manipulation, it is at once economical of money and of time. In

addition, it is excellent as a material, and I well remember that during the war, at the siege of Atlanta, some

iron guns fired one thousand rounds at intervals of twenty minutes without injury."

"Yes, but it possesses great resistance. I will now ask our worthy secretary to calculate the weight of a

"In a moment," replied Maston. Then, dashing off some algebraical formulae with marvelous facility, in a

"Well, gentlemen," replied the president, "I repeat what I said yesterday. Make yourselves easy; the millions

With this assurance of their president the committee separated, after having fixed their third meeting for the

There remained for consideration merely the question of powders. The public awaited with interest its final

decision. The size of the projectile, the length of the cannon being settled, what would be the quantity of

It is generally asserted that gunpowder was invented in the fourteenth century by the monk Schwartz, who

paid for his grand discovery with his life. It is, however, pretty well proved that this story ought to be ranked

among the legends of the middle ages. Gunpowder was not invented by any one; it was the lineal successor of

the Greek fire, which, like itself, was composed of sulfur and saltpeter. Few persons are acquainted with the

mechanical power of gunpowder. Now this is precisely what is necessary to be understood in order to

A litre of gunpowder weighs about two pounds; during combustion it produces 400 litres of gas. This gas, on

being liberated and acted upon by temperature raised to 2,400 degrees, occupies a space of 4,000 litres:

consequently the volume of powder is to the volume of gas produced by its combustion as 1 to 4,000. One

may judge, therefore, of the tremendous pressure on this gas when compressed within a space 4,000 times too

confined. All this was, of course, well known to the members of the committee when they met on the

The first speaker on this occasion was Major Elphinstone, who had been the director of the gunpowder

"Gentlemen," said this distinguished chemist, "I begin with some figures which will serve as the basis of our

calculation. The old 24pounder shot required for its discharge sixteen pounds of powder."

"Quite certain," replied the major. "The Armstrong cannon employs only seventyfive pounds of powder for

a projectile of eight hundred pounds, and the Rodman Columbiad uses only one hundred and sixty pounds of

powder to send its half ton shot a distance of six miles. These facts cannot be called in question, for I myself

raised the point during the depositions taken before the committee of artillery."

"Well," replied the major, "these figures go to prove that the quantity of powder is not increased with the

weight of the shot; that is to say, if a 24pounder shot requires sixteen pounds of powder; in other words,

if in ordinary guns we employ a quantity of powder equal to twothirds of the weight of the projectile, this

proportion is not constant. Calculate, and you will see that in place of three hundred and thirtythree pounds

of powder, the quantity is reduced to no more than one hundred and sixty pounds."

"If you push your theory to extremes, my dear major," said J. T. Maston, "you will get to this, that as soon as

"Our friend Maston is always at his jokes, even in serious matters," cried the major; "but let him make his

mind easy, I am going presently to propose gunpowder enough to satisfy his artillerist's propensities. I only

keep to statistical facts when I say that, during the war, and for the very largest guns, the weight of the

powder was reduced, as the result of experience, to a tenth part of the weight of the shot."

"Perfectly correct," said Morgan; "but before deciding the quantity of powder necessary to give the impulse, I

"We shall have to employ a largegrained powder," continued the major; "its combustion is more rapid than

"No doubt about that," replied Morgan; "but it is very destructive, and ends by enlarging the bore of the

"Granted; but that which is injurious to a gun destined to perform long service is not so to our Columbiad.

We shall run no danger of an explosion; and it is necessary that our powder should take fire instantaneously

"We must have," said Maston, "several touchholes, so as to fire it at different points at the same time."

"Certainly," replied Elphinstone; "but that will render the working of the piece more difficult. I return then to

my largegrained powder, which removes those difficulties. In his Columbiad charges Rodman employed a

powder as large as chestnuts, made of willow charcoal, simply dried in cast iron pans. This powder was

hard and glittering, left no trace upon the hand, contained hydrogen and oxygen in large proportion, took fire

instantaneously, and, though very destructive, did not sensibly injure the mouthpiece."

Up to this point Barbicane had kept aloof from the discussion; he left the others to speak while he himself

listened; he had evidently got an idea. He now simply said, "Well, my friends, what quantity of powder do

A moment of silence followed this triple proposal; it was at last broken by the president.

"Gentlemen," he quietly said, "I start from this principle, that the resistance of a gun, constructed under the

given conditions, is unlimited. I shall surprise our friend Maston, then, by stigmatizing his calculations as

"We shall have to come then to my ideal of a cannon half a mile long; for you see 1,600,000 pounds will

occupy a space of about 20,000 cubic feet; and since the contents of your cannon do not exceed 54,000 cubic

feet, it would be half full; and the bore will not be more than long enough for the gas to communicate to the

"Nevertheless," said the president, "I hold to that quantity of powder. Now, 1,600,000 pounds of powder will

create 6,000,000,000 litres of gas. Six thousand millions! You quite understand?"

"The thing is very simple; we must reduce this enormous quantity of powder, while preserving to it its

"Nothing is more easy than to reduce this mass to one quarter of its bulk. You know that curious cellular

matter which constitutes the elementary tissues of vegetable? This substance is found quite pure in many

bodies, especially in cotton, which is nothing more than the down of the seeds of the cotton plant. Now

cotton, combined with cold nitric acid, become transformed into a substance eminently insoluble,

combustible, and explosive. It was first discovered in 1832, by Braconnot, a French chemist, who called it

xyloidine. In 1838 another Frenchman, Pelouze, investigated its different properties, and finally, in 1846,

Schonbein, professor of chemistry at Bale, proposed its employment for purposes of war. This powder, now

called pyroxyle, or fulminating cotton, is prepared with great facility by simply plunging cotton for fifteen

minutes in nitric acid, then washing it in water, then drying it, and it is ready for use."

"Moreover, pyroxyle is unaltered by moisture a valuable property to us, inasmuch as it would take several

days to charge the cannon. It ignites at 170 degrees in place of 240, and its combustion is so rapid that one

may set light to it on the top of the ordinary powder, without the latter having time to ignite."

"Finally, it imparts to projectiles a velocity four times superior to that of gunpowder. I will even add, that if

we mix it with oneeighth of its own weight of nitrate of potassium, its expansive force is again considerably

"I think not," replied Barbicane. "So, then, in place of 1,600,000 pounds of powder, we shall have but

400,000 pounds of fulminating cotton; and since we can, without danger, compress 500 pounds of cotton into

twentyseven cubic feet, the whole quantity will not occupy a height of more than 180 feet within the bore of

the Columbiad. In this way the shot will have more than 700 feet of bore to traverse under a force of

At this juncture J. T. Maston could not repress his emotion; he flung himself into the arms of his friend with

the violence of a projectile, and Barbicane would have been stove in if he had not been boomproof.

Barbicane and his bold colleagues, to whom nothing seemed impossible, had succeeding in solving the

complex problems of projectile, cannon, and powder. Their plan was drawn up, and it only remained to put it

The American public took a lively interest in the smallest details of the enterprise of the Gun Club. It

followed day by day the discussion of the committee. The most simple preparations for the great experiment,

the questions of figures which it involved, the mechanical difficulties to be resolved in one word, the entire

The purely scientific attraction was suddenly intensified by the following incident:

We have seen what legions of admirers and friends Barbicane's project had rallied round its author. There

was, however, one single individual alone in all the States of the Union who protested against the attempt of

the Gun Club. He attacked it furiously on every opportunity, and human nature is such that Barbicane felt

more keenly the opposition of that one man than he did the applause of all the others. He was well aware of

the motive of this antipathy, the origin of this solitary enmity, the cause of its personality and old standing,

This persevering enemy the president of the Gun Club had never seen. Fortunate that it was so, for a meeting

between the two men would certainly have been attended with serious consequences. This rival was a man of

science, like Barbicane himself, of a fiery, daring, and violent disposition; a pure Yankee. His name was

Most people are aware of the curious struggle which arose during the Federal war between the guns and

armor of ironplated ships. The result was the entire reconstruction of the navy of both the continents; as the

one grew heavier, the other became thicker in proportion. The Merrimac, the Monitor, the Tennessee, the

Weehawken discharged enormous projectiles themselves, after having been armorclad against the

projectiles of others. In fact they did to others that which they would not they should do to them that grand

Now if Barbicane was a great founder of shot, Nicholl was a great forger of plates; the one cast night and day

at Baltimore, the other forged day and night at Philadelphia. As soon as ever Barbicane invented a new shot,

Nicholl invented a new plate; each followed a current of ideas essentially opposed to the other. Happily for

these citizens, so useful to their country, a distance of from fifty to sixty miles separated them from one

another, and they had never yet met. Which of these two inventors had the advantage over the other it was

difficult to decide from the results obtained. By last accounts, however, it would seem that the armorplate

would in the end have to give way to the shot; nevertheless, there were competent judges who had their

At the last experiment the cylindroconical projectiles of Barbicane stuck like so many pins in the Nicholl

plates. On that day the Philadelphia ironforger then believed himself victorious, and could not evince

contempt enough for his rival; but when the other afterward substituted for conical shot simple 600pound

shells, at very moderate velocity, the captain was obliged to give in. In fact, these projectiles knocked his best

Matters were at this stage, and victory seemed to rest with the shot, when the war came to an end on the very

day when Nicholl had completed a new armorplate of wrought steel. It was a masterpiece of its kind, and

bid defiance to all the projectiles of the world. The captain had it conveyed to the Polygon at Washington,

challenging the president of the Gun Club to break it. Barbicane, peace having been declared, declined to try

Nicholl, now furious, offered to expose his plate to the shock of any shot, solid, hollow, round, or conical.

Nicholl, disgusted by this obstinacy, tried to tempt Barbicane by offering him every chance. He proposed to

fix the plate within two hundred yards of the gun. Barbicane still obstinate in refusal. A hundred yards? Not

"At fifty then!" roared the captain through the newspapers. "At twentyfive yards! and I'll stand behind!"

Barbicane returned for answer that, even if Captain Nicholl would be so good as to stand in front, he would

Nicholl could not contain himself at this reply; threw out hints of cowardice; that a man who refused to fire a

cannonshot was pretty near being afraid of it; that artillerists who fight at six miles distance are substituting

To these insinuations Barbicane returned no answer; perhaps he never heard of them, so absorbed was he in

When his famous communication was made to the Gun Club, the captain's wrath passed all bounds; with his

intense jealousy was mingled a feeling of absolute impotence. How was he to invent anything to beat this

900feet Columbiad? What armorplate could ever resist a projectile of 30,000 pounds weight?

Overwhelmed at first under this violent shock, he by and by recovered himself, and resolved to crush the

He then violently attacked the labors of the Gun Club, published a number of letters in the newspapers,

endeavored to prove Barbicane ignorant of the first principles of gunnery. He maintained that it was

absolutely impossible to impress upon any body whatever a velocity of 12,000 yards per second; that even

with such a velocity a projectile of such a weight could not transcend the limits of the earth's atmosphere.

Further still, even regarding the velocity to be acquired, and granting it to be sufficient, the shell could not

resist the pressure of the gas developed by the ignition of 1,600,000 pounds of powder; and supposing it to

resist that pressure, it would be less able to support that temperature; it would melt on quitting the

Columbiad, and fall back in a redhot shower upon the heads of the imprudent spectators.

Nicholl then took up the question in its other aspects. Without touching upon its uselessness in all points of

view, he regarded the experiment as fraught with extreme danger, both to the citizens, who might sanction by

their presence so reprehensible a spectacle, and also to the towns in the neighborhood of this deplorable

cannon. He also observed that if the projectile did not succeed in reaching its destination (a result absolutely

impossible), it must inevitably fall back upon the earth, and that the shock of such a mass, multiplied by the

square of its velocity, would seriously endanger every point of the globe. Under the circumstances, therefore,

and without interfering with the rights of free citizens, it was a case for the intervention of Government,

which ought not to endanger the safety of all for the pleasure of one individual.

In spite of all his arguments, however, Captain Nicholl remained alone in his opinion. Nobody listened to

him, and he did not succeed in alienating a single admirer from the president of the Gun Club. The latter did

Nicholl, driven into his last entrenchments, and not able to fight personally in the cause, resolved to fight

with money. He published, therefore, in the Richmond Inquirer a series of wagers, conceived in these terms,

No. 1 ($1,000). That the necessary funds for the experiment of the Gun Club will not be forthcoming.

No. 2 ($2,000). That the operation of casting a cannon of 900 feet is impracticable, and cannot possibly

No. 3 ($3,000). That is it impossible to load the Columbiad, and that the pyroxyle will take fire

No. 5 ($5,000). That the shot will not travel farther than six miles, and that it will fall back again a few

It was an important sum, therefore, which the captain risked in his invincible obstinacy. He had no less than

Notwithstanding the importance of the challenge, on the 19th of May he received a sealed packet containing

the following superbly laconic reply: "BALTIMORE, October 19. "Done. "BARBICANE."

One question remained yet to be decided; it was necessary to choose a favorable spot for the experiment.

According to the advice of the Observatory of Cambridge, the gun must be fired perpendicularly to the plane

of the horizon, that is to say, toward the zenith. Now the moon does not traverse the zenith, except in places

situated between 0@ and 28@ of latitude. It became, then, necessary to determine exactly that spot on the

On the 20th of October, at a general meeting of the Gun Club, Barbicane produced a magnificent map of the

United States. "Gentlemen," said he, in opening the discussion, "I presume that we are all agreed that this

experiment cannot and ought not to be tried anywhere but within the limits of the soil of the Union. Now, by

good fortune, certain frontiers of the United States extend downward as far as the 28th parallel of the north

latitude. If you will cast your eye over this map, you will see that we have at our disposal the whole of the

It was finally agreed, then, that the Columbiad must be cast on the soil of either Texas or Florida. The result,

however, of this decision was to create a rivalry entirely without precedent between the different towns of

The 28th parallel, on reaching the American coast, traverses the peninsula of Florida, dividing it into two

nearly equal portions. Then, plunging into the Gulf of Mexico, it subtends the arc formed by the coast of

Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana; then skirting Texas, off which it cuts an angle, it continues its course

over Mexico, crosses the Sonora, Old California, and loses itself in the Pacific Ocean. It was, therefore, only

those portions of Texas and Florida which were situated below this parallel which came within the prescribed

Florida, in its southern part, reckons no cities of importance; it is simply studded with forts raised against the

roving Indians. One solitary town, Tampa Town, was able to put in a claim in favor of its situation.

In Texas, on the contrary, the towns are much more numerous and important. Corpus Christi, in the county of

Nueces, and all the cities situated on the Rio Bravo, Laredo, Comalites, San Ignacio on the Web, Rio Grande

City on the Starr, Edinburgh in the Hidalgo, Santa Rita, Elpanda, Brownsville in the Cameron, formed an

imposing league against the pretensions of Florida. So, scarcely was the decision known, when the Texan and

Floridan deputies arrived at Baltimore in an incredibly short space of time. From that very moment President

Barbicane and the influential members of the Gun Club were besieged day and night by formidable claims. If

seven cities of Greece contended for the honor of having given birth to a Homer, here were two entire States

The rival parties promenaded the streets with arms in their hands; and at every occasion of their meeting a

collision was to be apprehended which might have been attended with disastrous results. Happily the

prudence and address of President Barbicane averted the danger. These personal demonstrations found a

division in the newspapers of the different States. The New York Herald and the Tribune supported Texas,

while the Times and the American Review espoused the cause of the Floridan deputies. The members of the

Texas produced its array of twentysix counties; Florida replied that twelve counties were better than

Texas plumed itself upon its 330,000 natives; Florida, with a far smaller territory, boasted of being much

The Texans, through the columns of the Herald claimed that some regard should be had to a State which grew

the best cotton in all America, produced the best green oak for the service of the navy, and contained the

finest oil, besides iron mines, in which the yield was fifty per cent. of pure metal.

To this the American Review replied that the soil of Florida, although not equally rich, afforded the best

conditions for the moulding and casting of the Columbiad, consisting as it did of sand and argillaceous earth.

"That may be all very well," replied the Texans; "but you must first get to this country. Now the

communications with Florida are difficult, while the coast of Texas offers the bay of Galveston, which

possesses a circumference of fourteen leagues, and is capable of containing the navies of the entire world!"

"A pretty notion truly," replied the papers in the interest of Florida, "that of Galveston bay below the 29th

parallel! Have we not got the bay of Espiritu Santo, opening precisely upon the 28th degree, and by which

Thus the war went on for several days, when Florida endeavored to draw her adversary away on to fresh

ground; and one morning the Times hinted that, the enterprise being essentially American, it ought not to be

To these words Texas retorted, "American! are we not as much so as you? Were not Texas and Florida both

"Undoubtedly," replied the Times; "but we have belonged to the Americans ever since 1820."

"Yes!" returned the Tribune; "after having been Spaniards or English for two hundred years, you were sold to

"Well! and why need we blush for that? Was not Louisiana bought from Napoleon in 1803 at the price of

"Scandalous!" roared the Texas deputies. "A wretched little strip of country like Florida to dare to compare

itself to Texas, who, in place of selling herself, asserted her own independence, drove out the Mexicans in

March 2, 1846, and declared herself a federal republic after the victory gained by Samuel Houston, on the

banks of the San Jacinto, over the troops of Santa Anna! a country, in fine, which voluntarily annexed

"Afraid!" From this moment the state of things became intolerable. A sanguinary encounter seemed daily

imminent between the two parties in the streets of Baltimore. It became necessary to keep an eye upon the

President Barbicane knew not which way to look. Notes, documents, letters full of menaces showered down

upon his house. Which side ought he to take? As regarded the appropriation of the soil, the facility of

communication, the rapidity of transport, the claims of both States were evenly balanced. As for political

This dead block had existed for some little time, when Barbicane resolved to get rid of it all at once. He

called a meeting of his colleagues, and laid before them a proposition which, it will be seen, was profoundly

"On carefully considering," he said, "what is going on now between Florida and Texas, it is clear that the

same difficulties will recur with all the towns of the favored State. The rivalry will descend from State to city,

and so on downward. Now Texas possesses eleven towns within the prescribed conditions, which will further

dispute the honor and create us new enemies, while Florida has only one. I go in, therefore, for Florida and

This decision, on being made known, utterly crushed the Texan deputies. Seized with an indescribable fury,

they addressed threatening letters to the different members of the Gun Club by name. The magistrates had but

one course to take, and they took it. They chartered a special train, forced the Texans into it whether they

Quickly, however, as they were despatched, they found time to hurl one last and bitter sarcasm at their

Alluding to the extent of Florida, a mere peninsula confined between two seas, they pretended that it could

never sustain the shock of the discharge, and that it would "bust up" at the very first shot.

"Very well, let it bust up!" replied the Floridans, with a brevity of the days of ancient Sparta.

The astronomical, mechanical, and topographical difficulties resolved, finally came the question of finance.

The sum required was far too great for any individual, or even any single State, to provide the requisite

President Barbicane undertook, despite of the matter being a purely American affair, to render it one of

universal interest, and to request the financial cooperation of all peoples. It was, he maintained, the right and

duty of the whole earth to interfere in the affairs of its satellite. The subscription opened at Baltimore

This subscription was successful beyond all expectation; notwithstanding that it was a question not of lending

but of giving the money. It was a purely disinterested operation in the strictest sense of the term, and offered

The effect, however, of Barbicane's communication was not confined to the frontiers of the United States; it

crossed the Atlantic and Pacific, invading simultaneously Asia and Europe, Africa and Oceanica. The

observatories of the Union placed themselves in immediate communication with those of foreign countries.

Some, such as those of Paris, Petersburg, Berlin, Stockholm, Hamburg, Malta, Lisbon, Benares, Madras, and

others, transmitted their good wishes; the rest maintained a prudent silence, quietly awaiting the result. As for

the observatory at Greenwich, seconded as it was by the twenty two astronomical establishments of Great

Britain, it spoke plainly enough. It boldly denied the possibility of success, and pronounced in favor of the

theories of Captain Nicholl. But this was nothing more than mere English jealousy.

On the 8th of October President Barbicane published a manifesto full of enthusiasm, in which he made an

appeal to "all persons of good will upon the face of the earth." This document, translated into all languages,

Subscription lists were opened in all the principal cities of the Union, with a central office at the Baltimore

In addition, subscriptions were received at the following banks in the different states of the two continents:

At Vienna, with S. M. de Rothschild. At Petersburg, Stieglitz and Co. At Paris, The Credit Mobilier. At

Stockholm, Tottie and Arfuredson. At London, N. M. Rothschild and Son. At Turin, Ardouin and Co. At

Berlin, Mendelssohn. At Geneva, Lombard, Odier and Co. At Constantinople, The Ottoman Bank. At

Brussels, J. Lambert. At Madrid, Daniel Weisweller. At Amsterdam, Netherlands Credit Co. At Rome,

Torlonia and Co. At Lisbon, Lecesne. At Copenhagen, Private Bank. At Rio de Janeiro, Private Bank. At

Montevideo, Private Bank. At Valparaiso and Lima, Thomas la Chambre and Co. At Mexico, Martin Daran

Three days after the manifesto of President Barbicane $4,000,000 were paid into the different towns of the

Union. With such a balance the Gun Club might begin operations at once. But some days later advices were

received to the effect that foreign subscriptions were being eagerly taken up. Certain countries distinguished

themselves by their liberality; others untied their pursestrings with less facilitya matter of temperament.

Figures are, however, more eloquent than words, and here is the official statement of the sums which were

Russia paid in as her contingent the enormous sum of 368,733 roubles. No one need be surprised at this, who

bears in mind the scientific taste of the Russians, and the impetus which they have given to astronomical

France began by deriding the pretensions of the Americans. The moon served as a pretext for a thousand stale

puns and a score of ballads, in which bad taste contested the palm with ignorance. But as formerly the French

paid before singing, so now they paid after having had their laugh, and they subscribed for a sum of

Austria showed herself generous in the midst of her financial crisis. Her public contributions amounted to the

Fiftytwo thousand rixdollars were the remittance of Sweden and Norway; the amount is large for the

country, but it would undoubtedly have been considerably increased had the subscription been opened in

Christiana simultaneously with that at Stockholm. For some reason or other the Norwegians do not like to

Prussia, by a remittance of 250,000 thalers, testified her high approval of the enterprise.

Turkey behaved generously; but she had a personal interest in the matter. The moon, in fact, regulates the

cycle of her years and her fast of Ramadan. She could not do less than give 1,372,640 piastres; and she gave

them with an eagerness which denoted, however, some pressure on the part of the government.

Belgium distinguished herself among the secondrate states by a grant of 513,000 francs about two

Holland and her colonies interested themselves to the extent of 110,000 florins, only demanding an allowance

Denmark, a little contracted in territory, gave nevertheless 9,000 ducats, proving her love for scientific

The Germanic Confederation pledged itself to 34,285 florins. It was impossible to ask for more; besides, they

Though very much crippled, Italy found 200,000 lire in the pockets of her people. If she had had Venetia she

The States of the Church thought that they could not send less than 7,040 Roman crowns; and Portugal

carried her devotion to science as far as 30,000 cruzados. It was the widow's mite eightysix piastres; but

Two hundred and fiftyseven francs, this was the modest contribution of Switzerland to the American work.

One must freely admit that she did not see the practical side of the matter. It did not seem to her that the mere

despatch of a shot to the moon could possibly establish any relation of affairs with her; and it did not seem

prudent to her to embark her capital in so hazardous an enterprise. After all, perhaps she was right.

As to Spain, she could not scrape together more than 110 reals. She gave as an excuse that she had her

railways to finish. The truth is, that science is not favorably regarded in that country, it is still in a backward

state; and moreover, certain Spaniards, not by any means the least educated, did not form a correct estimate

of the bulk of the projectile compared with that of the moon. They feared that it would disturb the established

order of things. In that case it were better to keep aloof; which they did to the tune of some reals.

There remained but England; and we know the contemptuous antipathy with which she received Barbicane's

proposition. The English have but one soul for the whole twentysix millions of inhabitants which Great

Britain contains. They hinted that the enterprise of the Gun Club was contrary to the "principle of

At this intimation the Gun Club merely shrugged its shoulders and returned to its great work. When South

America, that is to say, Peru, Chili, Brazil, the provinces of La Plata and Columbia, had poured forth their

quota into their hands, the sum of $300,000, it found itself in possession of a considerable capital, of which

United States subscriptions, . . $4,000,000 Foreign subscriptions . . . $1,446,675 Total, . . . .

Let no one be surprised at the vastness of the amount. The work of casting, boring, masonry, the transport of

workmen, their establishment in an almost uninhabited country, the construction of furnaces and workshops,

the plant, the powder, the projectile, and incipient expenses, would, according to the estimates, absorb nearly

the whole. Certain cannonshots in the Federal war cost one thousand dollars apiece. This one of President

Barbicane, unique in the annals of gunnery, might well cost five thousand times more.

On the 20th of October a contract was entered into with the manufactory at Coldspring, near New York,

which during the war had furnished the largest Parrott, castiron guns. It was stipulated between the

contracting parties that the manufactory of Coldspring should engage to transport to Tampa Town, in

southern Florida, the necessary materials for casting the Columbiad. The work was bound to be completed at

latest by the 15th of October following, and the cannon delivered in good condition under penalty of a forfeit

of one hundred dollars a day to the moment when the moon should again present herself under the same

The engagement of the workmen, their pay, and all the necessary details of the work, devolved upon the

This contract, executed in duplicate, was signed by Barbicane, president of the Gun Club, of the one part, and

T. Murchison director of the Coldspring manufactory, of the other, who thus executed the deed on behalf of

When the decision was arrived at by the Gun Club, to the disparagement of Texas, every one in America,

where reading is a universal acquirement, set to work to study the geography of Florida. Never before had

there been such a sale for works like "Bertram's Travels in Florida," "Roman's Natural History of East and

West Florida," "William's Territory of Florida," and "Cleland on the Cultivation of the SugarCane in

Barbicane had something better to do than to read. He desired to see things with his own eyes, and to mark

the exact position of the proposed gun. So, without a moment's loss of time, he placed at the disposal of the

Cambridge Observatory the funds necessary for the construction of a telescope, and entered into negotiations

with the house of Breadwill and Co., of Albany, for the construction of an aluminum projectile of the

required size. He then quitted Baltimore, accompanied by J. T. Maston, Major Elphinstone, and the manager

On the following day, the four fellowtravelers arrived at New Orleans. There they immediately embarked

on board the Tampico, a despatchboat belonging to the Federal navy, which the government had placed at

their disposal; and, getting up steam, the banks of Louisiana speedily disappeared from sight.

The passage was not long. Two days after starting, the Tampico, having made four hundred and eighty miles,

came in sight of the coast of Florida. On a nearer approach Barbicane found himself in view of a low, flat

country of somewhat barren aspect. After coasting along a series of creeks abounding in lobsters and oysters,

the Tampico entered the bay of Espiritu Santo, where she finally anchored in a small natural harbor, formed

by the embouchure of the River Hillisborough, at seven P.M., on the 22d of October.

Our four passengers disembarked at once. "Gentlemen," said Barbicane, "we have no time to lose; tomorrow

Barbicane had scarcely set his foot on shore when three thousand of the inhabitants of Tampa Town came

forth to meet him, an honor due to the president who had signalized their country by his choice.

Declining, however, every kind of ovation, Barbicane ensconced himself in a room of the Franklin Hotel.

On the morrow some of the small horses of the Spanish breed, full of vigor and of fire, stood snorting under

his windows; but instead of four steeds, here were fifty, together with their riders. Barbicane descended with

his three fellow travelers; and much astonished were they all to find themselves in the midst of such a

cavalcade. He remarked that every horseman carried a carbine slung across his shoulders and pistols in his

On expressing his surprise at these preparations, he was speedily enlightened by a young Floridan, who

"Savages who scour the prairies. We thought it best, therefore, to escort you on your road."

"Gentlemen," answered Barbicane, "I thank you for your kind attention; but it is time to be off."

It was five A.M. when Barbicane and his party, quitting Tampa Town, made their way along the coast in the

direction of Alifia Creek. This little river falls into Hillisborough Bay twelve miles above Tampa Town.

Barbicane and his escort coasted along its right bank to the eastward. Soon the waves of the bay disappeared

behind a bend of rising ground, and the Floridan "champagne" alone offered itself to view.

Florida, discovered on Palm Sunday, in 1512, by Juan Ponce de Leon, was originally named Pascha Florida.

It little deserved that designation, with its dry and parched coasts. But after some few miles of tract the nature

of the soil gradually changes and the country shows itself worthy of the name. Cultivated plains soon appear,

where are united all the productions of the northern and tropical floras, terminating in prairies abounding with

pineapples and yams, tobacco, rice, cottonplants, and sugarcanes, which extend beyond reach of sight,

Barbicane appeared highly pleased on observing the progressive elevation of the land; and in answer to a

"My worthy friend, we cannot do better than sink our Columbiad in these high grounds."

"Not exactly," replied Barbicane, smiling; "do you not see that among these elevated plateaus we shall have a

much easier work of it? No struggles with the watersprings, which will save us long expensive tubings; and

we shall be working in daylight instead of down a deep and narrow well. Our business, then, is to open our

"You are right, sir," struck in Murchison, the engineer; "and, if I mistake not, we shall ere long find a suitable

About ten A.M. the little band had crossed a dozen miles. To fertile plains succeeded a region of forests.

There perfumes of the most varied kinds mingled together in tropical profusion. These almost impenetrable

forests were composed of pomegranates, orangetrees, citrons, figs, olives, apricots, bananas, huge vines,

whose blossoms and fruits rivaled each other in color and perfume. Beneath the odorous shade of these

magnificent trees fluttered and warbled a little world of brilliantly plumaged birds.

J. T. Maston and the major could not repress their admiration on finding themselves in the presence of the

glorious beauties of this wealth of nature. President Barbicane, however, less sensitive to these wonders, was

in haste to press forward; the very luxuriance of the country was displeasing to him. They hastened onward,

therefore, and were compelled to ford several rivers, not without danger, for they were infested with huge

alligators from fifteen to eighteen feet long. Maston courageously menaced them with his steel hook, but he

only succeeded in frightening some pelicans and teal, while tall flamingos stared stupidly at the party.

At length these denizens of the swamps disappeared in their turn; smaller trees became thinly scattered

among less dense thickets a few isolated groups detached in the midst of endless plains over which ranged

"At last," cried Barbicane, rising in his stirrups, "here we are at the region of pines!"

In fact, some Seminoles had just came in sight upon the horizon; they rode violently backward and forward

on their fleet horses, brandishing their spears or discharging their guns with a dull report. These hostile

They were then occupying the center of a rocky plain, which the sun scorched with its parching rays. This

was formed by a considerable elevation of the soil, which seemed to offer to the members of the Gun Club all

Barbicane, without saying a word, dismounted, seized his instruments, and began to note his position with

extreme exactness. The little band, drawn up in the rear, watched his proceedings in profound silence.

At this moment the sun passed the meridian. Barbicane, after a few moments, rapidly wrote down the result

"This spot is situated eighteen hundred feet above the level of the sea, in 27@ 7' N. lat. and 5@ 7' W. long. of

the meridian of Washington. It appears to me by its rocky and barren character to offer all the conditions

requisite for our experiment. On that plain will be raised our magazines, workshops, furnaces, and workmen's

huts; and here, from this very spot," said he, stamping his foot on the summit of Stones Hill, "hence shall our

The same evening Barbicane and his companions returned to Tampa Town; and Murchison, the engineer,

reembarked on board the Tampico for New Orleans. His object was to enlist an army of workmen, and to

collect together the greater part of the materials. The members of the Gun Club remained at Tampa Town, for

the purpose of setting on foot the preliminary works by the aid of the people of the country.

Eight days after its departure, the Tampico returned into the bay of Espiritu Santo, with a whole flotilla of

steamboats. Murchison had succeeded in assembling together fifteen hundred artisans. Attracted by the high

pay and considerable bounties offered by the Gun Club, he had enlisted a choice legion of stokers,

ironfounders, limeburners, miners, brickmakers, and artisans of every trade, without distinction of color.

As many of these people brought their families with them, their departure resembled a perfect emigration.

On the 31st of October, at ten o'clock in the morning, the troop disembarked on the quays of Tampa Town;

and one may imagine the activity which pervaded that little town, whose population was thus doubled in a

During the first few days they were busy discharging the cargo brought by the flotilla, the machines, and the

rations, as well as a large number of huts constructed of iron plates, separately pieced and numbered. At the

same period Barbicane laid the first sleepers of a railway fifteen miles in length, intended to unite Stones Hill

with Tampa Town. On the first of November Barbicane quitted Tampa Town with a detachment of workmen;

and on the following day the whole town of huts was erected round Stones Hill. This they enclosed with

palisades; and in respect of energy and activity, it might have been mistaken for one of the great cities of the

Union. Everything was placed under a complete system of discipline, and the works were commenced in

The nature of the soil having been carefully examined, by means of repeated borings, the work of excavation

On that day Barbicane called together his foremen and addressed them as follows: "You are well aware, my

friends, of the object with which I have assembled you together in this wild part of Florida. Our business is to

construct a cannon measuring nine feet in its interior diameter, six feet thick, and with a stone revetment of

nineteen and a half feet in thickness. We have, therefore, a well of sixty feet in diameter to dig down to a

depth of nine hundred feet. This great work must be completed within eight months, so that you have

2,543,400 cubic feet of earth to excavate in 255 days; that is to say, in round numbers, 2,000 cubic feet per

day. That which would present no difficulty to a thousand navvies working in open country will be of course

more troublesome in a comparatively confined space. However, the thing must be done, and I reckon for its

At eight o'clock the next morning the first stroke of the pickaxe was struck upon the soil of Florida; and from

that moment that prince of tools was never inactive for one moment in the hands of the excavators. The gangs

On the 4th of November fifty workmen commenced digging, in the very center of the enclosed space on the

summit of Stones Hill, a circular hole sixty feet in diameter. The pickaxe first struck upon a kind of black

earth, six inches in thickness, which was speedily disposed of. To this earth succeeded two feet of fine sand,

which was carefully laid aside as being valuable for serving the casting of the inner mould. After the sand

appeared some compact white clay, resembling the chalk of Great Britain, which extended down to a depth of

four feet. Then the iron of the picks struck upon the hard bed of the soil; a kind of rock formed of petrified

shells, very dry, very solid, and which the picks could with difficulty penetrate. At this point the excavation

At the bottom of the excavation they constructed a wheel of oak, a kind of circle strongly bolted together, and

of immense strength. The center of this wooden disc was hollowed out to a diameter equal to the exterior

diameter of the Columbiad. Upon this wheel rested the first layers of the masonry, the stones of which were

bound together by hydraulic cement, with irresistible tenacity. The workmen, after laying the stones from the

circumference to the center, were thus enclosed within a kind of well twentyone feet in diameter. When this

work was accomplished, the miners resumed their picks and cut away the rock from underneath the wheel

itself, taking care to support it as they advanced upon blocks of great thickness. At every two feet which the

hole gained in depth they successively withdrew the blocks. The wheel then sank little by little, and with it

the massive ring of masonry, on the upper bed of which the masons labored incessantly, always reserving

some vent holes to permit the escape of gas during the operation of the casting.

This kind of work required on the part of the workmen extreme nicety and minute attention. More than one,

in digging underneath the wheel, was dangerously injured by the splinters of stone. But their ardor never

relaxed, night or day. By day they worked under the rays of the scorching sun; by night, under the gleam of

the electric light. The sounds of the picks against the rock, the bursting of mines, the grinding of the

machines, the wreaths of smoke scattered through the air, traced around Stones Hill a circle of terror which

the herds of buffaloes and the war parties of the Seminoles never ventured to pass. Nevertheless, the works

advanced regularly, as the steamcranes actively removed the rubbish. Of unexpected obstacles there was

little account; and with regard to foreseen difficulties, they were speedily disposed of.

At the expiration of the first month the well had attained the depth assigned for that lapse of time, namely,

During the month of February the workmen had to contend with a sheet of water which made its way right

across the outer soil. It became necessary to employ very powerful pumps and compressedair engines to

drain it off, so as to close up the orifice from whence it issued; just as one stops a leak on board ship. They at

last succeeded in getting the upper hand of these untoward streams; only, in consequence of the loosening of

the soil, the wheel partly gave way, and a slight partial settlement ensued. This accident cost the life of

No fresh occurrence thenceforward arrested the progress of the operation; and on the tenth of June, twenty

days before the expiration of the period fixed by Barbicane, the well, lined throughout with its facing of

stone, had attained the depth of 900 feet. At the bottom the masonry rested upon a massive block measuring

thirty feet in thickness, while on the upper portion it was level with the surrounding soil.

President Barbicane and the members of the Gun Club warmly congratulated their engineer Murchison; the

During these eight months Barbicane never quitted Stones Hill for a single instant. Keeping ever close by the

work of excavation, he busied himself incessantly with the welfare and health of his workpeople, and was

singularly fortunate in warding off the epidemics common to large communities of men, and so disastrous in

those regions of the globe which are exposed to the influences of tropical climates.

Many workmen, it is true, paid with their lives for the rashness inherent in these dangerous labors; but these

mishaps are impossible to be avoided, and they are classed among the details with which the Americans

trouble themselves but little. They have in fact more regard for human nature in general than for the

Nevertheless, Barbicane professed opposite principles to these, and put them in force at every opportunity.

So, thanks to his care, his intelligence, his useful intervention in all difficulties, his prodigious and humane

sagacity, the average of accidents did not exceed that of transatlantic countries, noted for their excessive

precautions France, for instance, among others, where they reckon about one accident for every two

During the eight months which were employed in the work of excavation the preparatory works of the casting

had been carried on simultaneously with extreme rapidity. A stranger arriving at Stones Hill would have been

At 600 yards from the well, and circularly arranged around it as a central point, rose 1,200 reverberating

ovens, each six feet in diameter, and separated from each other by an interval of three feet. The circumference

occupied by these 1,200 ovens presented a length of two miles. Being all constructed on the same plan, each

It will be remembered that on their third meeting the committee had decided to use cast iron for the

Columbiad, and in particular the white description. This metal, in fact, is the most tenacious, the most ductile,

and the most malleable, and consequently suitable for all moulding operations; and when smelted with pit

coal, is of superior quality for all engineering works requiring great resisting power, such as cannon, steam

Cast iron, however, if subjected to only one single fusion, is rarely sufficiently homogeneous; and it requires

a second fusion completely to refine it by dispossessing it of its last earthly deposits. So long before being

forwarded to Tampa Town, the iron ore, molten in the great furnaces of Coldspring, and brought into contact

with coal and silicium heated to a high temperature, was carburized and transformed into cast iron. After this

first operation, the metal was sent on to Stones Hill. They had, however, to deal with 136,000,000 pounds of

iron, a quantity far too costly to send by railway. The cost of transport would have been double that of

material. It appeared preferable to freight vessels at New York, and to load them with the iron in bars. This,

however, required not less than sixty eight vessels of 1,000 tons, a veritable fleet, which, quitting New York

on the 3rd of May, on the 10th of the same month ascended the Bay of Espiritu Santo, and discharged their

cargoes, without dues, in the port at Tampa Town. Thence the iron was transported by rail to Stones Hill, and

about the middle of January this enormous mass of metal was delivered at its destination.

It will easily be understood that 1,200 furnaces were not too many to melt simultaneously these 60,000 tons

of iron. Each of these furnaces contained nearly 140,000 pounds weight of metal. They were all built after the

model of those which served for the casting of the Rodman gun; they were trapezoidal in shape, with a high

elliptical arch. These furnaces, constructed of fireproof brick, were especially adapted for burning pit coal,

with a flat bottom upon which the iron bars were laid. This bottom, inclined at an angle of 25 degrees,

allowed the metal to flow into the receiving troughs; and the 1,200 converging trenches carried the molten

The day following that on which the works of the masonry and boring had been completed, Barbicane set to

work upon the central mould. His object now was to raise within the center of the well, and with a coincident

axis, a cylinder 900 feet high, and nine feet in diameter, which should exactly fill up the space reserved for

the bore of the Columbiad. This cylinder was composed of a mixture of clay and sand, with the addition of a

little hay and straw. The space left between the mould and the masonry was intended to be filled up by the

molten metal, which would thus form the walls six feet in thickness. This cylinder, in order to maintain its

equilibrium, had to be bound by iron bands, and firmly fixed at certain intervals by crossclamps fastened

into the stone lining; after the castings these would be buried in the block of metal, leaving no external

This operation was completed on the 8th of July, and the run of the metal was fixed for the following day.

"This fete of the casting will be a grand ceremony," said J. T. Maston to his friend Barbicane.

"I must be very careful, Maston. The casting of the Columbiad is an extremely delicate, not to say a

dangerous operation, and I should prefer its being done privately. At the discharge of the projectile, a fete if

The president was right. The operation involved unforeseen dangers, which a great influx of spectators would

have hindered him from averting. It was necessary to preserve complete freedom of movement. No one was

admitted within the enclosure except a delegation of members of the Gun Club, who had made the voyage to

Tampa Town. Among these was the brisk Bilsby, Tom Hunter, Colonel Blomsberry, Major Elphinstone,

General Morgan, and the rest of the lot to whom the casting of the Columbiad was a matter of personal

interest. J. T. Maston became their cicerone. He omitted no point of detail; he conducted them throughout the

magazines, workshops, through the midst of the engines, and compelled them to visit the whole 1,200

furnaces one after the other. At the end of the twelvehundredth visit they were pretty well knocked up.

The casting was to take place at twelve o'clock precisely. The previous evening each furnace had been

charged with 114,000 pounds weight of metal in bars disposed crossways to each other, so as to allow the

hot air to circulate freely between them. At daybreak the 1,200 chimneys vomited their torrents of flame into

the air, and the ground was agitated with dull tremblings. As many pounds of metal as there were to cast, so

many pounds of coal were there to burn. Thus there were 68,000 tons of coal which projected in the face of

the sun a thick curtain of smoke. The heat soon became insupportable within the circle of furnaces, the

rumbling of which resembled the rolling of thunder. The powerful ventilators added their continuous blasts

and saturated with oxygen the glowing plates. The operation, to be successful, required to be conducted with

great rapidity. On a signal given by a cannonshot each furnace was to give vent to the molten iron and

completely to empty itself. These arrangements made, foremen and workmen waited the preconcerted

moment with an impatience mingled with a certain amount of emotion. Not a soul remained within the

Barbicane and his colleagues, perched on a neighboring eminence, assisted at the operation. In front of them

was a piece of artillery ready to give fire on the signal from the engineer. Some minutes before midday the

first driblets of metal began to flow; the reservoirs filled little by little; and, by the time that the whole

melting was completely accomplished, it was kept in abeyance for a few minutes in order to facilitate the

Twelve o'clock struck! A gunshot suddenly pealed forth and shot its flame into the air. Twelve hundred

meltingtroughs were simultaneously opened and twelve hundred fiery serpents crept toward the central well,

unrolling their incandescent curves. There, down they plunged with a terrific noise into a depth of 900 feet. It

was an exciting and a magnificent spectacle. The ground trembled, while these molten waves, launching into

the sky their wreaths of smoke, evaporated the moisture of the mould and hurled it upward through the

ventholes of the stone lining in the form of dense vaporclouds. These artificial clouds unrolled their thick

spirals to a height of 1,000 yards into the air. A savage, wandering somewhere beyond the limits of the

horizon, might have believed that some new crater was forming in the bosom of Florida, although there was

neither any eruption, nor typhoon, nor storm, nor struggle of the elements, nor any of those terrible

phenomena which nature is capable of producing. No, it was man alone who had produced these reddish

vapors, these gigantic flames worthy of a volcano itself, these tremendous vibrations resembling the shock of

an earthquake, these reverberations rivaling those of hurricanes and storms; and it was his hand which

Had the casting succeeded? They were reduced to mere conjecture. There was indeed every reason to expect

success, since the mould has absorbed the entire mass of the molten metal; still some considerable time must

The patience of the members of the Gun Club was sorely tried during this period of time. But they could do

nothing. J. T. Maston escaped roasting by a miracle. Fifteen days after the casting an immense column of

smoke was still rising in the open sky and the ground burned the soles of the feet within a radius of two

hundred feet round the summit of Stones Hill. It was impossible to approach nearer. All they could do was to

"Here we are at the 10th of August," exclaimed J. T. Maston one morning, "only four months to the 1st of

December! We shall never be ready in time!" Barbicane said nothing, but his silence covered serious

However, daily observations revealed a certain change going on in the state of the ground. About the 15th of

August the vapors ejected had sensibly diminished in intensity and thickness. Some days afterward the earth

exhaled only a slight puff of smoke, the last breath of the monster enclosed within its circle of stone. Little by

little the belt of heat contracted, until on the 22nd of August, Barbicane, his colleagues, and the engineer were

enabled to set foot on the iron sheet which lay level upon the summit of Stones Hill.

"At last!" exclaimed the president of the Gun Club, with an immense sigh of relief.

The work was resumed the same day. They proceeded at once to extract the interior mould, for the purpose of

clearing out the boring of the piece. Pickaxes and boring irons were set to work without intermission. The

clayey and sandy soils had acquired extreme hardness under the action of the heat; but, by the aid of the

machines, the rubbish on being dug out was rapidly carted away on railway wagons; and such was the ardor

of the work, so persuasive the arguments of Barbicane's dollars, that by the 3rd of September all traces of the

Immediately the operation of boring was commenced; and by the aid of powerful machines, a few weeks

later, the inner surface of the immense tube had been rendered perfectly cylindrical, and the bore of the piece

At length, on the 22d of September, less than a twelvemonth after Barbicane's original proposition, the

enormous weapon, accurately bored, and exactly vertically pointed, was ready for work. There was only the

moon now to wait for; and they were pretty sure that she would not fail in the rendezvous.

The ecstasy of J. T. Maston knew no bounds, and he narrowly escaped a frightful fall while staring down the

tube. But for the strong hand of Colonel Blomsberry, the worthy secretary, like a modern Erostratus, would

The cannon was then finished; there was no possible doubt as to its perfect completion. So, on the 6th of

October, Captain Nicholl opened an account between himself and President Barbicane, in which he debited

himself to the latter in the sum of two thousand dollars. One may believe that the captain's wrath was

increased to its highest point, and must have made him seriously ill. However, he had still three bets of three,

four, and five thousand dollars, respectively; and if he gained two out of these, his position would not be very

bad. But the money question did not enter into his calculations; it was the success of his rival in casting a

cannon against which iron plates sixty feet thick would have been ineffectual, that dealt him a terrible blow.

After the 23rd of September the enclosure of Stones hill was thrown open to the public; and it will be easily

imagined what was the concourse of visitors to this spot! There was an incessant flow of people to and from

Tampa Town and the place, which resembled a procession, or rather, in fact, a pilgrimage.

It was already clear to be seen that, on the day of the experiment itself, the aggregate of spectators would be

counted by millions; for they were already arriving from all parts of the earth upon this narrow strip of

Up to that time, however, it must be confessed, the curiosity of the numerous comers was but scantily

gratified. Most had counted upon witnessing the spectacle of the casting, and they were treated to nothing but

smoke. This was sorry food for hungry eyes; but Barbicane would admit no one to that operation. Then

ensued grumbling, discontent, murmurs; they blamed the president, taxed him with dictatorial conduct. His

proceedings were declared "unAmerican." There was very nearly a riot round Stones Hill; but Barbicane

remained inflexible. When, however, the Columbiad was entirely finished, this state of closed doors could no

longer be maintained; besides it would have been bad taste, and even imprudence, to affront the public

feeling. Barbicane, therefore, opened the enclosure to all comers; but, true to his practical disposition, he

It was something, indeed, to be enabled to contemplate this immense Columbiad; but to descend into its

depths, this seemed to the Americans the ne plus ultra of earthly felicity. Consequently, there was not one

curious spectator who was not willing to give himself the treat of visiting the interior of this great metallic

abyss. Baskets suspended from steamcranes permitted them to satisfy their curiosity. There was a perfect

mania. Women, children, old men, all made it a point of duty to penetrate the mysteries of the colossal gun.

The fare for the descent was fixed at five dollars per head; and despite this high charge, during the two

months which preceded the experiment, the influx of visitors enabled the Gun Club to pocket nearly five

It is needless to say that the first visitors of the Columbiad were the members of the Gun Club. This privilege

was justly reserved for that illustrious body. The ceremony took place on the 25th of September. A basket of

honor took down the president, J. T. Maston, Major Elphinstone, General Morgan, Colonel Blomsberry, and

other members of the club, to the number of ten in all. How hot it was at the bottom of that long tube of

metal! They were half suffocated. But what delight! What ecstasy! A table had been laid with six covers on

the massive stone which formed the bottom of the Columbiad, and lighted by a jet of electric light resembling

that of day itself. Numerous exquisite dishes, which seemed to descend from heaven, were placed

successively before the guests, and the richest wines of France flowed in profusion during this splendid

The festival was animated, not to say somewhat noisy. Toasts flew backward and forward. They drank to the

earth and to her satellite, to the Gun Club, the Union, the Moon, Diana, Phoebe, Selene, the "peaceful courier

of the night!" All the hurrahs, carried upward upon the sonorous waves of the immense acoustic tube, arrived

with the sound of thunder at its mouth; and the multitude ranged round Stones Hill heartily united their shouts

with those of the ten revelers hidden from view at the bottom of the gigantic Columbiad.

J. T. Maston was no longer master of himself. Whether he shouted or gesticulated, ate or drank most, would

be a difficult matter to determine. At all events, he would not have given his place up for an empire, "not

even if the cannon loaded, primed, and fired at that very momentwere to blow him in pieces into the

The great works undertaken by the Gun Club had now virtually come to an end; and two months still

remained before the day for the discharge of the shot to the moon. To the general impatience these two

months appeared as long as years! Hitherto the smallest details of the operation had been daily chronicled by

Just at this moment a circumstance, the most unexpected, the most extraordinary and incredible, occurred to

rouse afresh their panting spirits, and to throw every mind into a state of the most violent excitement.

One day, the 30th of September, at 3:47 P.M., a telegram, transmitted by cable from Valentia (Ireland) to

Newfoundland and the American Mainland, arrived at the address of President Barbicane.

The president tore open the envelope, read the dispatch, and, despite his remarkable powers of selfcontrol,

his lips turned pale and his eyes grew dim, on reading the twenty words of this telegram.

Here is the text of the dispatch, which figures now in the archives of the Gun Club:

FRANCE, PARIS, 30 September, 4 A.M. Barbicane, Tampa Town, Florida, United States.

Substitute for your spherical shell a cylindroconical projectile. I shall go inside. Shall arrive by steamer

If this astounding news, instead of flying through the electric wires, had simply arrived by post in the

ordinary sealed envelope, Barbicane would not have hesitated a moment. He would have held his tongue

about it, both as a measure of prudence, and in order not to have to reconsider his plans. This telegram might

be a cover for some jest, especially as it came from a Frenchman. What human being would ever have

conceived the idea of such a journey? and, if such a person really existed, he must be an idiot, whom one

would shut up in a lunatic ward, rather than within the walls of the projectile.

The contents of the dispatch, however, speedily became known; for the telegraphic officials possessed but

little discretion, and Michel Ardan's proposition ran at once throughout the several States of the Union.

Barbicane, had, therefore, no further motives for keeping silence. Consequently, he called together such of

his colleagues as were at the moment in Tampa Town, and without any expression of his own opinions

simply read to them the laconic text itself. It was received with every possible variety of expressions of

doubt, incredulity, and derision from every one, with the exception of J. T. Maston, who exclaimed, "It is a

When Barbicane originally proposed to send a shot to the moon every one looked upon the enterprise as

simple and practicable enough a mere question of gunnery; but when a person, professing to be a

reasonable being, offered to take passage within the projectile, the whole thing became a farce, or, in plainer

One question, however, remained. Did such a being exist? This telegram flashed across the depths of the

Atlantic, the designation of the vessel on board which he was to take his passage, the date assigned for his

speedy arrival, all combined to impart a certain character of reality to the proposal. They must get some

clearer notion of the matter. Scattered groups of inquirers at length condensed themselves into a compact

crowd, which made straight for the residence of President Barbicane. That worthy individual was keeping

quiet with the intention of watching events as they arose. But he had forgotten to take into account the public

impatience; and it was with no pleasant countenance that he watched the population of Tampa Town

gathering under his windows. The murmurs and vociferations below presently obliged him to appear. He

came forward, therefore, and on silence being procured, a citizen put pointblank to him the following

question: "Is the person mentioned in the telegram, under the name of Michel Ardan, on his way here? Yes or

"Time has no business to keep a whole country in suspense," replied the orator. "Have you altered the plans

"Not yet, gentlemen; but you are right! we must have better information to go by. The telegraph must

Barbicane descended; and heading the immense assemblage, led the way to the telegraph office. A few

minutes later a telegram was dispatched to the secretary of the underwriters at Liverpool, requesting answers

"About the ship Atlanta when did she leave Europe? Had she on board a Frenchman named Michel

Two hours afterward Barbicane received information too exact to leave room for the smallest remaining

"The steamer Atlanta from Liverpool put to sea on the 2nd of October, bound for Tampa Town, having on

That very evening he wrote to the house of Breadwill and Co., requesting them to suspend the casting of the

projectile until the receipt of further orders. On the 10th of October, at nine A.M., the semaphores of the

Bahama Canal signaled a thick smoke on the horizon. Two hours later a large steamer exchanged signals with

them. the name of the Atlanta flew at once over Tampa Town. At four o'clock the English vessel entered the

Bay of Espiritu Santo. At five it crossed the passage of Hillisborough Bay at full steam. At six she cast

anchor at Port Tampa. The anchor had scarcely caught the sandy bottom when five hundred boats surrounded

the Atlanta, and the steamer was taken by assault. Barbicane was the first to set foot on deck, and in a voice

He was a man of about fortytwo years of age, of large build, but slightly roundshouldered. His massive

head momentarily shook a shock of reddish hair, which resembled a lion's mane. His face was short with a

broad forehead, and furnished with a moustache as bristly as a cat's, and little patches of yellowish whiskers

upon full cheeks. Round, wildish eyes, slightly nearsighted, completed a physiognomy essentially feline.

His nose was firmly shaped, his mouth particularly sweet in expression, high forehead, intelligent and

furrowed with wrinkles like a newlyplowed field. The body was powerfully developed and firmly fixed

upon long legs. Muscular arms, and a general air of decision gave him the appearance of a hardy, jolly,

companion. He was dressed in a suit of ample dimensions, loose neckerchief, open shirtcollar, disclosing a

robust neck; his cuffs were invariably unbuttoned, through which appeared a pair of red hands.

On the bridge of the steamer, in the midst of the crowd, he bustled to and fro, never still for a moment,

"dragging his anchors," as the sailors say, gesticulating, making free with everybody, biting his nails with

nervous avidity. He was one of those originals which nature sometimes invents in the freak of a moment, and

Among other peculiarities, this curiosity gave himself out for a sublime ignoramus, "like Shakespeare," and

professed supreme contempt for all scientific men. Those "fellows," as he called them, "are only fit to mark

the points, while we play the game." He was, in fact, a thorough Bohemian, adventurous, but not an

adventurer; a harebrained fellow, a kind of Icarus, only possessing relays of wings. For the rest, he was ever

in scrapes, ending invariably by falling on his feet, like those little figures which they sell for children's toys.

In a few words, his motto was "I have my opinions," and the love of the impossible constituted his ruling

Such was the passenger of the Atlanta, always excitable, as if boiling under the action of some internal fire by

the character of his physical organization. If ever two individuals offered a striking contrast to each other,

these were certainly Michel Ardan and the Yankee Barbicane; both, moreover, being equally enterprising and

The scrutiny which the president of the Gun Club had instituted regarding this new rival was quickly

interrupted by the shouts and hurrahs of the crowd. The cries became at last so uproarious, and the popular

enthusiasm assumed so personal a form, that Michel Ardan, after having shaken hands some thousands of

times, at the imminent risk of leaving his fingers behind him, was fain at last to make a bolt for his cabin.

"You are Barbicane, I suppose?" said Michel Ardan, in a tone of voice in which he would have addressed a

"All right! how d'ye do, Barbicane? how are you getting on pretty well? that's right."

"So," said Barbicane without further preliminary, "you are quite determined to go."

"I waited for your arrival. But," asked Barbicane again, "have you carefully reflected?"

"Reflected? have I any time to spare? I find an opportunity of making a tour in the moon, and I mean to profit

Barbicane looked hard at this man who spoke so lightly of his project with such complete absence of anxiety.

"But, at least," said he, "you have some plans, some means of carrying your project into execution?"

"Excellent, my dear Barbicane; only permit me to offer one remark: My wish is to tell my story once for all,

to everybody, and then have done with it; then there will be no need for recapitulation. So, if you have no

objection, assemble your friends, colleagues, the whole town, all Florida, all America if you like, and

tomorrow I shall be ready to explain my plans and answer any objections whatever that may be advanced.

So saying, the president left the cabin and informed the crowd of the proposal of Michel Ardan. His words

were received with clappings of hands and shouts of joy. They had removed all difficulties. Tomorrow

every one would contemplate at his ease this European hero. However, some of the spectators, more

infatuated than the rest, would not leave the deck of the Atlanta. They passed the night on board. Among

others J. T. Maston got his hook fixed in the combing of the poop, and it pretty nearly required the capstan to

"He is a hero! a hero!" he cried, a theme of which he was never tired of ringing the changes; "and we are only

As to the president, after having suggested to the visitors it was time to retire, he reentered the passenger's

But then the two rivals in popularity shook hands heartily and parted on terms of intimate friendship.

On the following day Barbicane, fearing that indiscreet questions might be put to Michel Ardan, was desirous

of reducing the number of the audience to a few of the initiated, his own colleagues for instance. He might as

well have tried to check the Falls of Niagara! he was compelled, therefore, to give up the idea, and let his new

friend run the chances of a public conference. The place chosen for this monster meeting was a vast plain

situated in the rear of the town. In a few hours, thanks to the help of the shipping in port, an immense roofing

of canvas was stretched over the parched prairie, and protected it from the burning rays of the sun. There

three hundred thousand people braved for many hours the stifling heat while awaiting the arrival of the

Frenchman. Of this crowd of spectators a first set could both see and hear; a second set saw badly and heard

nothing at all; and as for the third, it could neither see nor hear anything at all. At three o'clock Michel Ardan

made his appearance, accompanied by the principal members of the Gun Club. He was supported on his right

by President Barbicane, and on his left by J. T. Maston, more radiant than the midday sun, and nearly as

ruddy. Ardan mounted a platform, from the top of which his view extended over a sea of black hats.

He exhibited not the slightest embarrassment; he was just as gay, familiar, and pleasant as if he were at home.

To the hurrahs which greeted him he replied by a graceful bow; then, waving his hands to request silence, he

"Gentlemen, despite the very hot weather I request your patience for a short time while I offer some

explanations regarding the projects which seem to have so interested you. I am neither an orator nor a man of

science, and I had no idea of addressing you in public; but my friend Barbicane has told me that you would

like to hear me, and I am quite at your service. Listen to me, therefore, with your six hundred thousand ears,

and please excuse the faults of the speaker. Now pray do not forget that you see before you a perfect

ignoramus whose ignorance goes so far that he cannot even understand the difficulties! It seemed to him that

it was a matter quite simple, natural, and easy to take one's place in a projectile and start for the moon! That

journey must be undertaken sooner or later; and, as for the mode of locomotion adopted, it follows simply the

law of progress. Man began by walking on allfours; then, one fine day, on two feet; then in a carriage; then

in a stagecoach; and lastly by railway. Well, the projectile is the vehicle of the future, and the planets

themselves are nothing else! Now some of you, gentlemen, may imagine that the velocity we propose to

impart to it is extravagant. It is nothing of the kind. All the stars exceed it in rapidity, and the earth herself is

at this moment carrying us round the sun at three times as rapid a rate, and yet she is a mere lounger on the

way compared with many others of the planets! And her velocity is constantly decreasing. Is it not evident,

then, I ask you, that there will some day appear velocities far greater than these, of which light or electricity

"Yes, gentlemen," continued the orator, "in spite of the opinions of certain narrowminded people, who

would shut up the human race upon this globe, as within some magic circle which it must never outstep, we

shall one day travel to the moon, the planets, and the stars, with the same facility, rapidity, and certainty as

we now make the voyage from Liverpool to New York! Distance is but a relative expression, and must end

The assembly, strongly predisposed as they were in favor of the French hero, were slightly staggered at this

"Gentlemen," he continued with a pleasant smile, "you do not seem quite convinced. Very good! Let us

reason the matter out. Do you know how long it would take for an express train to reach the moon? Three

hundred days; no more! And what is that? The distance is no more than nine times the circumference of the

earth; and there are no sailors or travelers, of even moderate activity, who have not made longer journeys

than that in their lifetime. And now consider that I shall be only ninety seven hours on my journey. Ah! I

see you are reckoning that the moon is a long way off from the earth, and that one must think twice before

making the experiment. What would you say, then, if we were talking of going to Neptune, which revolves at

a distance of more than two thousand seven hundred and twenty millions of miles from the sun! And yet what

is that compared with the distance of the fixed stars, some of which, such as Arcturus, are billions of miles

distant from us? And then you talk of the distance which separates the planets from the sun! And there are

people who affirm that such a thing as distance exists. Absurdity, folly, idiotic nonsense! Would you know

what I think of our own solar universe? Shall I tell you my theory? It is very simple! In my opinion the solar

system is a solid homogeneous body; the planets which compose it are in actual contact with each other; and

whatever space exists between them is nothing more than the space which separates the molecules of the

densest metal, such as silver, iron, or platinum! I have the right, therefore, to affirm, and I repeat, with the

conviction which must penetrate all your minds, `Distance is but an empty name; distance does not really

"Hurrah!" cried one voice (need it be said it was that of J. T. Maston). "Distance does not exist!" And

overcome by the energy of his movements, he nearly fell from the platform to the ground. He just escaped a

severe fall, which would have proved to him that distance was by no means an empty name.

"Gentlemen," resumed the orator, "I repeat that the distance between the earth and her satellite is a mere

trifle, and undeserving of serious consideration. I am convinced that before twenty years are over onehalf of

our earth will have paid a visit to the moon. Now, my worthy friends, if you have any question to put to me,

you will, I fear, sadly embarrass a poor man like myself; still I will do my best to answer you."

Up to this point the president of the Gun Club had been satisfied with the turn which the discussion had

assumed. It became now, however, desirable to divert Ardan from questions of a practical nature, with which

he was doubtless far less conversant. Barbicane, therefore, hastened to get in a word, and began by asking his

"You put before me a great problem, my worthy president," replied the orator, smiling. "Still, men of great

intelligence, such as Plutarch, Swedenborg, Bernardin de St. Pierre, and others have, if I mistake not,

pronounced in the affirmative. Looking at the question from the natural philosopher's point of view, I should

say that nothing useless existed in the world; and, replying to your question by another, I should venture to

assert, that if these worlds are habitable, they either are, have been, or will be inhabited."

"No one could answer more logically or fairly," replied the president. "The question then reverts to this: Are

"Nevertheless," retorted one of the audience, "there are many arguments against the habitability of the

worlds. The conditions of life must evidently be greatly modified upon the majority of them. To mention only

the planets, we should be either broiled alive in some, or frozen to death in others, according as they are more

"I regret," replied Michel Ardan, "that I have not the honor of personally knowing my contradictor, for I

would have attempted to answer him. His objection has its merits, I admit; but I think we may successfully

combat it, as well as all others which affect the habitability of other worlds. If I were a natural philosopher, I

would tell him that if less of caloric were set in motion upon the planets which are nearest to the sun, and

more, on the contrary, upon those which are farthest removed from it, this simple fact would alone suffice to

equalize the heat, and to render the temperature of those worlds supportable by beings organized like

ourselves. If I were a naturalist, I would tell him that, according to some illustrious men of science, nature has

furnished us with instances upon the earth of animals existing under very varying conditions of life; that fish

respire in a medium fatal to other animals; that amphibious creatures possess a double existence very difficult

of explanation; that certain denizens of the seas maintain life at enormous depths, and there support a

pressure equal to that of fifty or sixty atmospheres without being crushed; that several aquatic insects,

insensible to temperature, are met with equally among boiling springs and in the frozen plains of the Polar

Sea; in fine, that we cannot help recognizing in nature a diversity of means of operation oftentimes

incomprehensible, but not the less real. If I were a chemist, I would tell him that the aerolites, bodies

evidently formed exteriorly of our terrestrial globe, have, upon analysis, revealed indisputable traces of

carbon, a substance which owes its origin solely to organized beings, and which, according to the

experiments of Reichenbach, must necessarily itself have been endued with animation. And lastly, were I a

theologian, I would tell him that the scheme of the Divine Redemption, according to St. Paul, seems to be

applicable, not merely to the earth, but to all the celestial worlds. But, unfortunately, I am neither theologian,

nor chemist, nor naturalist, nor philosopher; therefore, in my absolute ignorance of the great laws which

govern the universe, I confine myself to saying in reply, `I do not know whether the worlds are inhabited or

Whether Michel Ardan's antagonist hazarded any further arguments or not it is impossible to say, for the

uproarious shouts of the crowd would not allow any expression of opinion to gain a hearing. On silence being

restored, the triumphant orator contented himself with adding the following remarks:

"Gentlemen, you will observe that I have but slightly touched upon this great question. There is another

altogether different line of argument in favor of the habitability of the stars, which I omit for the present. I

only desire to call attention to one point. To those who maintain that the planets are not inhabited one may

reply: You might be perfectly in the right, if you could only show that the earth is the best possible world, in

spite of what Voltaire has said. She has but one satellite, while Jupiter, Uranus, Saturn, Neptune have each

several, an advantage by no means to be despised. But that which renders our own globe so uncomfortable is

the inclination of its axis to the plane of its orbit. Hence the inequality of days and nights; hence the

disagreeable diversity of the seasons. On the surface of our unhappy spheroid we are always either too hot or

too cold; we are frozen in winter, broiled in summer; it is the planet of rheumatism, coughs, bronchitis; while

on the surface of Jupiter, for example, where the axis is but slightly inclined, the inhabitants may enjoy

uniform temperatures. It possesses zones of perpetual springs, summers, autumns, and winters; every Jovian

may choose for himself what climate he likes, and there spend the whole of his life in security from all

variations of temperature. You will, I am sure, readily admit this superiority of Jupiter over our own planet, to

say nothing of his years, which each equal twelve of ours! Under such auspices and such marvelous

conditions of existence, it appears to me that the inhabitants of so fortunate a world must be in every respect

superior to ourselves. All we require, in order to attain such perfection, is the mere trifle of having an axis of

"Hurrah!" roared an energetic voice, "let us unite our efforts, invent the necessary machines, and rectify the

A thunder of applause followed this proposal, the author of which was, of course, no other than J. T. Maston.

And, in all probability, if the truth must be told, if the Yankees could only have found a point of application

for it, they would have constructed a lever capable of raising the earth and rectifying its axis. It was just this

As soon as the excitement had subsided, the following words were heard uttered in a strong and determined

"Now that the speaker has favored us with so much imagination, would he be so good as to return to his

All eyes were directed toward the person who spoke. He was a little driedup man, of an active figure, with

an American "goatee" beard. Profiting by the different movements in the crowd, he had managed by degrees

to gain the front row of spectators. There, with arms crossed and stern gaze, he watched the hero of the

meeting. After having put his question he remained silent, and appeared to take no notice of the thousands of

looks directed toward himself, nor of the murmur of disapprobation excited by his words. Meeting at first

with no reply, he repeated his question with marked emphasis, adding, "We are here to talk about the moon

"You are right, sir," replied Michel Ardan; "the discussion has become irregular. We will return to the moon."

"Sir," said the unknown, "you pretend that our satellite is inhabited. Very good, but if Selenites do exist, that

race of beings assuredly must live without breathing, for I warn you for your own sake there is not the

At this remark Ardan pushed up his shock of red hair; he saw that he was on the point of being involved in a

struggle with this person upon the very gist of the whole question. He looked sternly at him in his turn and

"Oh! so there is no air in the moon? And pray, if you are so good, who ventures to affirm that?

"Sir," replied Michel, "pleasantry apart, I have a profound respect for men of science who do possess science,

"Decidedly. In France there are some who maintain that, mathematically, a bird cannot possibly fly; and

others who demonstrate theoretically that fishes were never made to live in water."

"I have nothing to do with persons of that description, and I can quote, in support of my statement, names

"Then, sir, you will sadly embarrass a poor ignorant, who, besides, asks nothing better than to learn."

"Why, then, do you introduce scientific questions if you have never studied them?" asked the unknown

"For the reason that `he is always brave who never suspects danger.' I know nothing, it is true; but it is

Barbicane and his colleagues devoured with their eyes the intruder who had so boldly placed himself in

antagonism to their enterprise. Nobody knew him, and the president, uneasy as to the result of so free a

discussion, watched his new friend with some anxiety. The meeting began to be somewhat fidgety also, for

the contest directed their attention to the dangers, if not the actual impossibilities, of the proposed expedition.

"Sir," replied Ardan's antagonist, "there are many and incontrovertible reasons which prove the absence of an

atmosphere in the moon. I might say that, a priori, if one ever did exist, it must have been absorbed by the

"You know," said the stranger, "that when any luminous rays cross a medium such as the air, they are

deflected out of the straight line; in other words, they undergo refraction. Well! When stars are occulted by

the moon, their rays, on grazing the edge of her disc, exhibit not the least deviation, nor offer the slightest

indication of refraction. It follows, therefore, that the moon cannot be surrounded by an atmosphere.

"In point of fact," replied Ardan, "this is your chief, if not your only argument; and a really scientific man

might be puzzled to answer it. For myself, I will simply say that it is defective, because it assumes that the

angular diameter of the moon has been completely determined, which is not the case. But let us proceed. Tell

me, my dear sir, do you admit the existence of volcanoes on the moon's surface?"

"True, but, as they furnish themselves the oxygen necessary for combustion, the mere fact of their eruption

"Proceed again, then; and let us set aside this class of arguments in order to come to direct observations. In

1715 the astronomers Louville and Halley, watching the eclipse of the 3rd of May, remarked some very

extraordinary scintillations. These jets of light, rapid in nature, and of frequent recurrence, they attributed to

"In 1715," replied the unknown, "the astronomers Louville and Halley mistook for lunar phenomena some

which were purely terrestrial, such as meteoric or other bodies which are generated in our own atmosphere.

This was the scientific explanation at the time of the facts; and that is my answer now."

"On again, then," replied Ardan; "Herschel, in 1787, observed a great number of luminous points on the

"Yes! but without offering any solution of them. Herschel himself never inferred from them the necessity of a

lunar atmosphere. And I may add that Baeer and Maedler, the two great authorities upon the moon, are quite

A movement was here manifest among the assemblage, who appeared to be growing excited by the

"Let us proceed," replied Ardan, with perfect coolness, "and come to one important fact. A skillful French

astronomer, M. Laussedat, in watching the eclipse of July 18, 1860, probed that the horns of the lunar

crescent were rounded and truncated. Now, this appearance could only have been produced by a deviation of

the solar rays in traversing the atmosphere of the moon. There is no other possible explanation of the facts."

A countermovement here took place in favor of the hero of the meeting, whose opponent was now reduced

to silence. Ardan resumed the conversation; and without exhibiting any exultation at the advantage he had

"You see, then, my dear sir, we must not pronounce with absolute positiveness against the existence of an

atmosphere in the moon. That atmosphere is, probably, of extreme rarity; nevertheless at the present day

"Not in the mountains, at all events," returned the unknown, unwilling to give in.

"No! but at the bottom of the valleys, and not exceeding a few hundred feet in height."

"In any case you will do well to take every precaution, for the air will be terribly rarified."

"My good sir, there will always be enough for a solitary individual; besides, once arrived up there, I shall do

A tremendous roar of laughter rang in the ears of the mysterious interlocutor, who glared fiercely round upon

"Then," continued Ardan, with a careless air, "since we are in accord regarding the presence of a certain

atmosphere, we are forced to admit the presence of a certain quantity of water. This is a happy consequence

for me. Moreover, my amiable contradictor, permit me to submit to you one further observation. We only

know one side of the moon's disc; and if there is but little air on the face presented to us, it is possible that

"Because the moon, under the action of the earth's attraction, has assumed the form of an egg, which we look

at from the smaller end. Hence it follows, by Hausen's calculations, that its center of gravity is situated in the

other hemisphere. Hence it results that the great mass of air and water must have been drawn away to the

"No! Pure theories! which are based upon the laws of mechanics, and it seems difficult to me to refute them. I

appeal then to this meeting, and I put it to them whether life, such as exists upon the earth, is possible on the

Three hundred thousand auditors at once applauded the proposition. Ardan's opponent tried to get in another

word, but he could not obtain a hearing. Cries and menaces fell upon him like hail.

But he, holding firmly on to the platform, did not budge an inch, and let the storm pass on, which would soon

have assumed formidable proportions, if Michel Ardan had not quieted it by a gesture. He was too chivalrous

"Yes, a thousand; or rather, no, only one! If you persevere in your enterprise, you must be a"

"Very rash person! How can you treat me as such? me, who have demanded a cylindroconical projectile, in

"But, unhappy man, the dreadful recoil will smash you to pieces at your starting."

"My dear contradictor, you have just put your finger upon the true and only difficulty; nevertheless, I have

too good an opinion of the industrial genius of the Americans not to believe that they will succeed in

"But the heat developed by the rapidity of the projectile in crossing the strata of air?"

"I have calculated for a twelvemonth's supply, and I shall be only four days on the journey."

"It will be six times less dangerous than a sudden fall upon the earth, because the weight will be only

"What is to prevent my retarding the shock by means of rockets conveniently placed, and lighted at the right

"But after all, supposing all difficulties surmounted, all obstacles removed, supposing everything combined to

favor you, and granting that you may arrive safe and sound in the moon, how will you come back?"

At this reply, almost sublime in its very simplicity, the assembly became silent. But its silence was more

eloquent than could have been its cries of enthusiasm. The unknown profited by the opportunity and once

"You will inevitably kill yourself!" he cried; "and your death will be that of a madman, useless even to

"It really is too much!" cried Michel Ardan's adversary. "I do not know why I should continue so frivolous a

discussion! Please yourself about this insane expedition! We need not trouble ourselves about you!"

The attack was direct. Barbicane, ever since the interference of the unknown, had been making fearful efforts

of selfcontrol; now, however, seeing himself directly attacked, he could restrain himself no longer. He rose

suddenly, and was rushing upon the enemy who thus braved him to the face, when all at once he found

The platform was lifted by a hundred strong arms, and the president of the Gun Club shared with Michel

Ardan triumphal honors. The shield was heavy, but the bearers came in continuous relays, disputing,

struggling, even fighting among themselves in their eagerness to lend their shoulders to this demonstration.

However, the unknown had not profited by the tumult to quit his post. Besides he could not have done it in

the midst of that compact crowd. There he held on in the front row with crossed arms, glaring at President

The shouts of the immense crowd continued at their highest pitch throughout this triumphant march. Michel

Ardan took it all with evident pleasure. His face gleamed with delight. Several times the platform seemed

seized with pitching and rolling like a weatherbeaten ship. But the two heros of the meeting had good

sealegs. They never stumbled; and their vessel arrived without dues at the port of Tampa Town.

Michel Ardan managed fortunately to escape from the last embraces of his vigorous admirers. He made for

the Hotel Franklin, quickly gained his chamber, and slid under the bedclothes, while an army of a hundred

During this time a scene, short, grave, and decisive, took place between the mysterious personage and the

The other followed him on the quay; and the two presently found themselves alone at the entrance of an open

"No! I desire that all that passes between us shall be secret. Their is a wood situated three miles from Tampa,

"Will you be so good as to enter it tomorrow morning at five o'clock, on one side?"

These words having been coldly spoken, the president of the Gun Club and the captain parted. Barbicane

returned to his lodging; but instead of snatching a few hours of repose, he passed the night in endeavoring to

discover a means of evading the recoil of the projectile, and resolving the difficult problem proposed by

While the contract of this duel was being discussed by the president and the captain this dreadful, savage

duel, in which each adversary became a manhunter Michel Ardan was resting from the fatigues of his

triumph. Resting is hardly an appropriate expression, for American beds rival marble or granite tables for

Ardan was sleeping, then, badly enough, tossing about between the cloths which served him for sheets, and

he was dreaming of making a more comfortable couch in his projectile when a frightful noise disturbed his

dreams. Thundering blows shook his door. They seemed to be caused by some iron instrument. A great deal

of loud talking was distinguishable in this racket, which was rather too early in the morning. "Open the door,"

some one shrieked, "for heaven's sake!" Ardan saw no reason for complying with a demand so roughly

expressed. However, he got up and opened the door just as it was giving way before the blows of this

determined visitor. The secretary of the Gun Club burst into the room. A bomb could not have made more

"Last night," cried J. T. Maston, ex abrupto, "our president was publicly insulted during the meeting. He

provoked his adversary, who is none other than Captain Nicholl! They are fighting this morning in the wood

of Skersnaw. I heard all the particulars from the mouth of Barbicane himself. If he is killed, then our scheme

is at an end. We must prevent his duel; and one man alone has enough influence over Barbicane to stop him,

While J. T. Maston was speaking, Michel Ardan, without interrupting him, had hastily put on his clothes;

and, in less than two minutes, the two friends were making for the suburbs of Tampa Town with rapid strides.

It was during this walk that Maston told Ardan the state of the case. He told him the real causes of the

hostility between Barbicane and Nicholl; how it was of old date, and why, thanks to unknown friends, the

president and the captain had, as yet, never met face to face. He added that it arose simply from a rivalry

between iron plates and shot, and, finally, that the scene at the meeting was only the longwishedfor

Nothing is more dreadful than private duels in America. The two adversaries attack each other like wild

beasts. Then it is that they might well covet those wonderful properties of the Indians of the prairies their

quick intelligence, their ingenious cunning, their scent of the enemy. A single mistake, a moment's hesitation,

a single false step may cause death. On these occasions Yankees are often accompanied by their dogs, and

"What demons you are!" cried Michel Ardan, when his companion had depicted this scene to him with much

Though Michel Ardan and he had crossed the plains still wet with dew, and had taken the shortest route over

creeks and ricefields, they could not reach Skersnaw in under five hours and a half.

There was an old bushman working there, occupied in selling fagots from trees that had been leveled by his

Maston ran toward him, saying, "Have you seen a man go into the wood, armed with a rifle? Barbicane, the

The worthy secretary of the Gun Club thought that his president must be known by all the world. But the

"We must go into the wood, at the risk of getting a ball which is not intended for us."

"Ah!" cried Maston, in a tone which could not be mistaken, "I would rather have twenty balls in my own

A few moments later the two friends had disappeared in the copse. It was a dense thicket, in which rose huge

cypresses, sycamores, tuliptrees, olives, tamarinds, oaks, and magnolias. These different trees had

interwoven their branches into an inextricable maze, through which the eye could not penetrate. Michel

Ardan and Maston walked side by side in silence through the tall grass, cutting themselves a path through the

strong creepers, casting curious glances on the bushes, and momentarily expecting to hear the sound of rifles.

As for the traces which Barbicane ought to have left of his passage through the wood, there was not a vestige

of them visible: so they followed the barely perceptible paths along which Indians had tracked some enemy,

"It must be all over," said Maston, discouraged. "A man like Barbicane would not dodge with his enemy, or

ensnare him, would not even maneuver! He is too open, too brave. He has gone straight ahead, right into the

danger, and doubtless far enough from the bushman for the wind to prevent his hearing the report of the

"But surely," replied Michel Ardan, "since we entered the wood we should have heard!"

For once Ardan had no reply to make, he and Maston resuming their walk in silence. From time to time,

indeed, they raised great shouts, calling alternately Barbicane and Nicholl, neither of whom, however,

answered their cries. Only the birds, awakened by the sound, flew past them and disappeared among the

For another hour their search was continued. The greater part of the wood had been explored. There was

nothing to reveal the presence of the combatants. The information of the bushman was after all doubtful, and

Ardan was about to propose their abandoning this useless pursuit, when all at once Maston stopped.

"Yes; a man! He seems motionless. His rifle is not in his hands. What can he be doing?"

"But can you recognize him?" asked Ardan, whose short sight was of little use to him in such circumstances.

But he and his companion had barely taken fifty steps, when they paused to examine the captain more

A net, composed of very fine meshes, hung between two enormous tuliptrees, and in the midst of this snare,

with its wings entangled, was a poor little bird, uttering pitiful cries, while it vainly struggled to escape. The

birdcatcher who had laid this snare was no human being, but a venomous spider, peculiar to that country, as

large as a pigeon's egg, and armed with enormous claws. The hideous creature, instead of rushing on its prey,

had beaten a sudden retreat and taken refuge in the upper branches of the tuliptree, for a formidable enemy

Here, then, was Nicholl, his gun on the ground, forgetful of danger, trying if possible to save the victim from

its cobweb prison. At last it was accomplished, and the little bird flew joyfully away and disappeared.

Nicholl lovingly watched its flight, when he heard these words pronounced by a voice full of emotion:

"To press your hand, Nicholl, and to prevent you from either killing Barbicane or being killed by him."

"Barbicane!" returned the captain. "I have been looking for him for the last two hours in vain. Where is he

"Nicholl!" said Michel Ardan, "this is not courteous! we ought always to treat an adversary with respect; rest

assureed if Barbicane is still alive we shall find him all the more easily; because if he has not, like you, been

amusing himself with freeing oppressed birds, he must be looking for you. When we have found him, Michel

"Between President Barbicane and myself," gravely replied Nicholl, "there is a rivalry which the death of one

"Captain," said J. T. Maston, with much feeling, "I am a friend of the president's, his alter ego, his second

"Our friend Maston is not joking," replied Ardan. "I fully understand his idea of being killed himself in order

to save his friend. But neither he nor Barbicane will fall before the balls of Captain Nicholl. Indeed I have so

attractive a proposal to make to the two rivals, that both will be eager to accept it."

"Patience!" exclaimed Ardan. "I can only reveal it in the presence of Barbicane."

The three men started off at once; the captain having discharged his rifle threw it over his shoulder, and

advanced in silence. Another half hour passed, and the pursuit was still fruitless. Maston was oppressed by

sinister forebodings. He looked fiercely at Nicholl, asking himself whether the captain's vengeance had

already been satisfied, and the unfortunate Barbicane, shot, was perhaps lying dead on some bloody track.

The same thought seemed to occur to Ardan; and both were casting inquiring glances on Nicholl, when

The motionless figure of a man leaning against a gigantic catalpa twenty feet off appeared, halfveiled by the

Barbicane never moved. Ardan looked at the captain, but he did not wince. Ardan went forward crying:

No answer! Ardan rushed toward his friend; but in the act of seizing his arms, he stopped short and uttered a

Barbicane, pencil in hand, was tracing geometrical figures in a memorandum book, while his unloaded rifle

Absorbed in his studies, Barbicane, in his turn forgetful of the duel, had seen and heard nothing.

When Ardan took his hand, he looked up and stared at his visitor in astonishment.

"Ah, it is you!" he cried at last. "I have found it, my friend, I have found it!"

"The plan for countering the effect of the shock at the departure of the projectile!"

"Indeed?" said Michel Ardan, looking at the captain out of the corner of his eye.

"Yes! water! simply water, which will act as a spring ah! Maston," cried Barbicane, "you here also?"

"Himself," replied Ardan; "and permit me to introduce to you at the same time the worthy Captain Nicholl!"

"Nicholl!" cried Barbicane, who jumped up at once. "Pardon me, captain, I had quite forgotten I am

Michel Ardan interfered, without giving the two enemies time to say anything more.

"Thank heaven!" said he. "It is a happy thing that brave men like you two did not meet sooner! we should

now have been mourning for one or other of you. But, thanks to Providence, which has interfered, there is

now no further cause for alarm. When one forgets one's anger in mechanics or in cobwebs, it is a sign that the

"I put it to you now," said he in conclusion, "are two such good fellows as you are made on purpose to smash

There was in "the situation" somewhat of the ridiculous, something quite unexpected; Michel Ardan saw this,

"My good friends," said he, with his most bewitching smile, "this is nothing but a misunderstanding. Nothing

more! well! to prove that it is all over between you, accept frankly the proposal I am going to make to you."

"Our friend Barbicane believes that his projectile will go straight to the moon?"

"Good!" said Ardan. "I cannot pretend to make you agree; but I suggest this: Go with me, and so see whether

The two rivals, on this sudden proposal, looked steadily at each other. Barbicane waited for the captain's

"Hurrah! bravo! hip! hip! hurrah!" cried Michel, giving a hand to each of the late adversaries. "Now that it is

all settled, my friends, allow me to treat you after French fashion. Let us be off to breakfast!"

That same day all America heard of the affair of Captain Nicholl and President Barbicane, as well as its

singular denouement. From that day forth, Michel Ardan had not one moment's rest. Deputations from all

corners of the Union harassed him without cessation or intermission. He was compelled to receive them all,

whether he would or no. How many hands he shook, how many people he was "hailfellowwellmet" with,

it is impossible to guess! Such a triumphal result would have intoxicated any other man; but he managed to

Among the deputations of all kinds which assailed him, that of "The Lunatics" were careful not to forget what

they owed to the future conqueror of the moon. One day, certain of these poor people, so numerous in

America, came to call upon him, and requested permission to return with him to their native country.

"Singular hallucination!" said he to Barbicane, after having dismissed the deputation with promises to convey

numbers of messages to friends in the moon. "Do you believe in the influence of the moon upon distempers?"

"No more do I, despite some remarkable recorded facts of history. For instance, during an epidemic in 1693,

a large number of persons died at the very moment of an eclipse. The celebrated Bacon always fainted during

an eclipse. Charles VI relapsed six times into madness during the year 1399, sometimes during the new,

sometimes during the full moon. Gall observed that insane persons underwent an accession of their disorder

twice in every month, at the epochs of new and full moon. In fact, numerous observations made upon fevers,

somnambulisms, and other human maladies, seem to prove that the moon does exercise some mysterious

"Well, I can only give you the answer which Arago borrowed from Plutarch, which is nineteen centuries old.

In the height of his triumph, Michel Ardan had to encounter all the annoyances incidental to a man of

celebrity. Managers of entertainments wanted to exhibit him. Barnum offered him a million dollars to make a

tour of the United States in his show. As for his photographs, they were sold of all size, and his portrait taken

in every imaginable posture. More than half a million copies were disposed of in an incredibly short space of

But it was not only the men who paid him homage, but the women as well. He might have married well a

hundred times over, if he had been willing to settle in life. The old maids, in particular, of forty years and

upward, and dry in proportion, devoured his photographs day and night. They would have married him by

hundreds, even if he had imposed upon them the condition of accompanying him into space. He had,

however, no intention of transplanting a race of FrancoAmericans upon the surface of the moon.

As soon as he could withdraw from these somewhat embarrassing demonstrations, he went, accompanied by

his friends, to pay a visit to the Columbiad. He was highly gratified by his inspection, and made the descent

to the bottom of the tube of this gigantic machine which was presently to launch him to the regions of the

moon. It is necessary here to mention a proposal of J. T. Maston's. When the secretary of the Gun Club found

that Barbicane and Nicholl accepted the proposal of Michel Ardan, he determined to join them, and make one

of a smug party of four. So one day he determined to be admitted as one of the travelers. Barbicane, pained at

having to refuse him, gave him clearly to understand that the projectile could not possibly contain so many

passengers. Maston, in despair, went in search of Michel Ardan, who counseled him to resign himself to the

"You see, old fellow," he said, "you must not take what I say in bad part; but really, between ourselves, you

"Yes, my dear fellow! imagine our meeting some of the inhabitants up there! Would you like to give them

such a melancholy notion of what goes on down here? to teach them what war is, to inform them that we

employ our time chiefly in devouring each other, in smashing arms and legs, and that too on a globe which is

capable of supporting a hundred billions of inhabitants, and which actually does contain nearly two hundred

In fact, a preparatory experiment, tried on the 18th of October, had yielded the best results and caused the

most wellgrounded hopes of success. Barbicane, desirous of obtaining some notion of the effect of the

shock at the moment of the projectile's departure, had procured a 38inch mortar from the arsenal of

Pensacola. He had this placed on the bank of Hillisborough Roads, in order that the shell might fall back into

the sea, and the shock be thereby destroyed. His object was to ascertain the extent of the shock of departure,

A hollow projectile had been prepared for this curious experiment. A thick padding fastened upon a kind of

elastic network, made of the best steel, lined the inside of the walls. It was a veritable nest most carefully

"What a pity I can't find room in there," said J. T. Maston, regretting that his height did not allow of his trying

Within this shell were shut up a large cat, and a squirrel belonging to J. T. Maston, and of which he was

particularly fond. They were desirous, however, of ascertaining how this little animal, least of all others

The mortar was charged with 160 pounds of powder, and the shell placed in the chamber. On being fired, the

projectile rose with great velocity, described a majestic parabola, attained a height of about a thousand feet,

and with a graceful curve descended in the midst of the vessels that lay there at anchor.

Without a moment's loss of time a small boat put off in the direction of its fall; some divers plunged into the

water and attached ropes to the handles of the shell, which was quickly dragged on board. Five minutes did

not elapse between the moment of enclosing the animals and that of unscrewing the coverlid of their prison.

Ardan, Barbicane, Maston, and Nicholl were present on board the boat, and assisted at the operation with an

interest which may readily be comprehended. Hardly had the shell been opened when the cat leaped out,

slightly bruised, but full of life, and exhibiting no signs whatever of having made an aerial expedition. No

trace, however, of the squirrel could be discovered. The truth at last became apparent the cat had eaten its

J. T. Maston grieved much for the loss of his poor squirrel, and proposed to add its case to that of other

After this experiment all hesitation, all fear disappeared. Besides, Barbicane's plans would ensure greater

perfection for his projectile, and go far to annihilate altogether the effects of the shock. Nothing now

Two days later Michel Ardan received a message from the President of the United States, an honor of which

After the example of his illustrious fellowcountryman, the Marquis de la Fayette, the government had

On the completion of the Columbiad the public interest centered in the projectile itself, the vehicle which was

The new plans had been sent to Breadwill and Co., of Albany, with the request for their speedy execution.

The projectile was consequently cast on the 2nd of November, and immediately forwarded by the Eastern

Railway to Stones Hill, which it reached without accident on the 10th of that month, where Michel Ardan,

The projectile had now to be filled to the depth of three feet with a bed of water, intended to support a

watertight wooden disc, which worked easily within the walls of the projectile. It was upon this kind of raft

that the travelers were to take their place. This body of water was divided by horizontal partitions, which the

shock of the departure would have to break in succession. Then each sheet of the water, from the lowest to

the highest, running off into escape tubes toward the top of the projectile, constituted a kind of spring; and the

wooden disc, supplied with extremely powerful plugs, could not strike the lowest plate except after breaking

successively the different partitions. Undoubtedly the travelers would still have to encounter a violent recoil

after the complete escapement of the water; but the first shock would be almost entirely destroyed by this

powerful spring. The upper parts of the walls were lined with a thick padding of leather, fastened upon

springs of the best steel, behind which the escape tubes were completely concealed; thus all imaginable

precautions had been taken for averting the first shock; and if they did get crushed, they must, as Michel

The entrance into this metallic tower was by a narrow aperture contrived in the wall of the cone. This was

hermetically closed by a plate of aluminum, fastened internally by powerful screwpressure. The travelers

could therefore quit their prison at pleasure, as soon as they should reach the moon.

Light and view were given by means of four thick lenticular glass scuttles, two pierced in the circular wall

itself, the third in the bottom, the fourth in the top. These scuttles then were protected against the shock of

departure by plates let into solid grooves, which could easily be opened outward by unscrewing them from

the inside. Reservoirs firmly fixed contained water and the necessary provisions; and fire and light were

procurable by means of gas, contained in a special reservoir under a pressure of several atmospheres. They

had only to turn a tap, and for six hours the gas would light and warm this comfortable vehicle.

There now remained only the question of air; for allowing for the consumption of air by Barbicane, his two

companions, and two dogs which he proposed taking with him, it was necessary to renew the air of the

projectile. Now air consists principally of twentyone parts of oxygen and seventynine of nitrogen. The

lungs absorb the oxygen, which is indispensable for the support of life, and reject the nitrogen. The air

expired loses nearly five per cent. of the former and contains nearly an equal volume of carbonic acid,

produced by the combustion of the elements of the blood. In an airtight enclosure, then, after a certain time,

all the oxygen of the air will be replaced by the carbonic acid a gas fatal to life. There were two things to

be done then first, to replace the absorbed oxygen; secondly, to destroy the expired carbonic acid; both

easy enough to do, by means of chlorate of potassium and caustic potash. The former is a salt which appears

under the form of white crystals; when raised to a temperature of 400 degrees it is transformed into chlorure

of potassium, and the oxygen which it contains is entirely liberated. Now twentyeight pounds of chlorate of

potassium produces seven pounds of oxygen, or 2,400 litres the quantity necessary for the travelers during

Caustic potash has a great affinity for carbonic acid; and it is sufficient to shake it in order for it to seize upon

the acid and form bicarbonate of potassium. By these two means they would be enabled to restore to the

It is necessary, however, to add that the experiments had hitherto been made in anima vili. Whatever its

scientific accuracy was, they were at present ignorant how it would answer with human beings. The honor of

"Since I am not to go," said the brave artillerist, "I may at least live for a week in the projectile."

It would have been hard to refuse him; so they consented to his wish. A sufficient quantity of chlorate of

potassium and of caustic potash was placed at his disposal, together with provisions for eight days. And

having shaken hands with his friends, on the 12th of November, at six o'clock A.M., after strictly informing

them not to open his prison before the 20th, at six o'clock P.M., he slid down the projectile, the plate of which

was at once hermetically sealed. What did he do with himself during that week? They could get no

information. The thickness of the walls of the projectile prevented any sound reaching from the inside to the

outside. On the 20th of November, at six P.M. exactly, the plate was opened. The friends of J. T. Maston had

been all along in a state of much anxiety; but they were promptly reassured on hearing a jolly voice shouting

Presently afterward the secretary of the Gun Club appeared at the top of the cone in a triumphant attitude. He

On the 20th of October in the preceding year, after the close of the subscription, the president of the Gun

Club had credited the Observatory of Cambridge with the necessary sums for the construction of a gigantic

optical instrument. This instrument was designed for the purpose of rendering visible on the surface of the

At the period when the Gun Club essayed their great experiment, such instruments had reached a high degree

of perfection, and produced some magnificent results. Two telescopes in particular, at this time, were

possessed of remarkable power and of gigantic dimensions. The first, constructed by Herschel, was thirtysix

feet in length, and had an objectglass of four feet six inches; it possessed a magnifying power of 6,000. The

second was raised in Ireland, in Parsonstown Park, and belongs to Lord Rosse. The length of this tube is

fortyeight feet, and the diameter of its objectglass six feet; it magnifies 6,400 times, and required an

immense erection of brick work and masonry for the purpose of working it, its weight being twelve and a half

Still, despite these colossal dimensions, the actual enlargements scarcely exceeded 6,000 times in round

numbers; consequently, the moon was brought within no nearer an apparent distance than thirtynine miles;

and objects of less than sixty feet in diameter, unless they were of very considerable length, were still

In the present case, dealing with a projectile nine feet in diameter and fifteen feet long, it became necessary to

bring the moon within an apparent distance of five miles at most; and for that purpose to establish a

Such was the question proposed to the Observatory of Cambridge, There was no lack of funds; the difficulty

After considerable discussion as to the best form and principle of the proposed instrument the work was

finally commenced. According to the calculations of the Observatory of Cambridge, the tube of the new

reflector would require to be 280 feet in length, and the objectglass sixteen feet in diameter. Colossal as

these dimensions may appear, they were diminutive in comparison with the 10,000 foot telescope proposed

Regarding the choice of locality, that matter was promptly determined. The object was to select some lofty

mountain, and there are not many of these in the United States. In fact there are but two chains of moderate

elevation, between which runs the magnificent Mississippi, the "king of rivers" as these Republican Yankees

Eastwards rise the Appalachians, the very highest point of which, in New Hampshire, does not exceed the

On the west, however, rise the Rocky Mountains, that immense range which, commencing at the Straights of

Magellan, follows the western coast of Southern America under the name of the Andes or the Cordilleras,

until it crosses the Isthmus of Panama, and runs up the whole of North America to the very borders of the

Polar Sea. The highest elevation of this range still does not exceed 10,700 feet. With this elevation,

nevertheless, the Gun Club were compelled to be content, inasmuch as they had determined that both

telescope and Columbiad should be erected within the limits of the Union. All the necessary apparatus was

consequently sent on to the summit of Long's Peak, in the territory of Missouri.

Neither pen nor language can describe the difficulties of all kinds which the American engineers had to

surmount, of the prodigies of daring and skill which they accomplished. They had to raise enormous stones,

massive pieces of wrought iron, heavy cornerclamps and huge portions of cylinder, with an objectglass

weighing nearly 30,000 pounds, above the line of perpetual snow for more than 10,000 feet in height, after

crossing desert prairies, impenetrable forests, fearful rapids, far from all centers of population, and in the

midst of savage regions, in which every detail of life becomes an almost insoluble problem. And yet,

notwithstanding these innumerable obstacles, American genius triumphed. In less than a year after the

commencement of the works, toward the close of September, the gigantic reflector rose into the air to a

height of 280 feet. It was raised by means of an enormous iron crane; an ingenious mechanism allowed it to

be easily worked toward all the points of the heavens, and to follow the stars from the one horizon to the

It had cost $400,000. The first time it was directed toward the moon the observers evinced both curiosity and

anxiety. What were they about to discover in the field of this telescope which magnified objects 48,000

times? Would they perceive peoples, herds of lunar animals, towns, lakes, seas? No! there was nothing which

science had not already discovered! and on all the points of its disc the volcanic nature of the moon became

But the telescope of the Rocky Mountains, before doing its duty to the Gun Club, rendered immense services

to astronomy. Thanks to its penetrative power, the depths of the heavens were sounded to the utmost extent;

the apparent diameter of a great number of stars was accurately measured; and Mr. Clark, of the Cambridge

staff, resolved the Crab nebula in Taurus, which the reflector of Lord Rosse had never been able to

It was the 22nd of November; the departure was to take place in ten days. One operation alone remained to be

accomplished to bring all to a happy termination; an operation delicate and perilous, requiring infinite

precautions, and against the success of which Captain Nicholl had laid his third bet. It was, in fact, nothing

less than the loading of the Columbiad, and the introduction into it of 400,000 pounds of guncotton. Nicholl

had thought, not perhaps without reason, that the handling of such formidable quantities of pyroxyle would,

in all probability, involve a grave catastrophe; and at any rate, that this immense mass of eminently

inflammable matter would inevitably ignite when submitted to the pressure of the projectile.

There were indeed dangers accruing as before from the carelessness of the Americans, but Barbicane had set

his heart on success, and took all possible precautions. In the first place, he was very careful as to the

transportation of the guncotton to Stones Hill. He had it conveyed in small quantities, carefully packed in

sealed cases. These were brought by rail from Tampa Town to the camp, and from thence were taken to the

Columbiad by barefooted workmen, who deposited them in their places by means of cranes placed at the

orifice of the cannon. No steamengine was permitted to work, and every fire was extinguished within two

Even in November they feared to work by day, lest the sun's rays acting on the guncotton might lead to

unhappy results. This led to their working at night, by light produced in a vacuum by means of Ruhmkorff's

apparatus, which threw an artificial brightness into the depths of the Columbiad. There the cartridges were

arranged with the utmost regularity, connected by a metallic thread, destined to communicate to them all

simultaneously the electric spark, by which means this mass of guncotton was eventually to be ignited.

By the 28th of November eight hundred cartridges had been placed in the bottom of the Columbiad. So far

the operation had been successful! But what confusion, what anxieties, what struggles were undergone by

President Barbicane! In vain had he refused admission to Stones Hill; every day the inquisitive neighbors

scaled the palisades, some even carrying their imprudence to the point of smoking while surrounded by bales

of guncotton. Barbicane was in a perpetual state of alarm. J. T. Maston seconded him to the best of his

ability, by giving vigorous chase to the intruders, and carefully picking up the still lighted cigar ends which

the Yankees threw about. A somewhat difficult task! seeing that more than 300,000 persons were gathered

round the enclosure. Michel Ardan had volunteered to superintend the transport of the cartridges to the mouth

of the Columbiad; but the president, having surprised him with an enormous cigar in his mouth, while he was

hunting out the rash spectators to whom he himself offered so dangerous an example, saw that he could not

trust this fearless smoker, and was therefore obliged to mount a special guard over him.

At last, Providence being propitious, this wonderful loading came to a happy termination, Captain Nicholl's

third bet being thus lost. It remained now to introduce the projectile into the Columbiad, and to place it on its

But before doing this, all those things necessary for the journey had to be carefully arranged in the projectile

vehicle. These necessaries were numerous; and had Ardan been allowed to follow his own wishes, there

would have been no space remaining for the travelers. It is impossible to conceive of half the things this

charming Frenchman wished to convey to the moon. A veritable stock of useless trifles! But Barbicane

interfered and refused admission to anything not absolutely needed. Several thermometers, barometers, and

The travelers being desirous of examing the moon carefully during their voyage, in order to facilitate their

studies, they took with them Boeer and Moeller's excellent Mappa Selenographica, a masterpiece of patience

and observation, which they hoped would enable them to identify those physical features in the moon, with

which they were acquainted. This map reproduced with scrupulous fidelity the smallest details of the lunar

surface which faces the earth; the mountains, valleys, craters, peaks, and ridges were all represented, with

their exact dimensions, relative positions, and names; from the mountains Doerfel and Leibnitz on the eastern

They took also three rifles and three fowlingpieces, and a large quantity of balls, shot, and powder.

"We cannot tell whom we shall have to deal with," said Michel Ardan. "Men or beasts may possibly object to

These defensive weapons were accompanied by pickaxes, crowbars, saws, and other useful implements, not

to mention clothing adapted to every temperature, from that of polar regions to that of the torrid zone.

Ardan wished to convey a number of animals of different sorts, not indeed a pair of every known species, as

he could not see the necessity of acclimatizing serpents, tigers, alligators, or any other noxious beasts in the

moon. "Nevertheless," he said to Barbicane, "some valuable and useful beasts, bullocks, cows, horses, and

donkeys, would bear the journey very well, and would also be very useful to us."

"I dare say, my dear Ardan," replied the president, "but our projectilevehicle is no Noah's ark, from which it

differs both in dimensions and object. Let us confine ourselves to possibilities."

After a prolonged discussion, it was agreed that the travelers should restrict themselves to a sportingdog

belonging to Nicholl, and to a large Newfoundland. Several packets of seeds were also included among the

necessaries. Michel Ardan, indeed, was anxious to add some sacks full of earth to sow them in; as it was, he

The important question of provisions still remained; it being necessary to provide against the possibility of

their finding the moon absolutely barren. Barbicane managed so successfully, that he supplied them with

sufficient rations for a year. These consisted of preserved meats and vegetables, reduced by strong hydraulic

pressure to the smallest possible dimensions. They were also supplied with brandy, and took water enough

for two months, being confident, from astronomical observations, that there was no lack of water on the

moon's surface. As to provisions, doubtless the inhabitants of the earth would find nourishment somewhere in

the moon. Ardan never questioned this; indeed, had he done so, he would never have undertaken the journey.

"Besides," he said one day to his friends, "we shall not be completely abandoned by our terrestrial friends;

"Nothing would be simpler," replied Ardan; "the Columbiad will be always there. Well! whenever the moon

is in a favorable condition as to the zenith, if not to the perigee, that is to say about once a year, could you not

send us a shell packed with provisions, which we might expect on some appointed day?"

"Hurrah! hurrah!" cried J. T. Matson; "what an ingenious fellow! what a splendid idea! Indeed, my good

"I shall reckon upon you! Then, you see, we shall receive news regularly from the earth, and we shall indeed

These words inspired such confidence, that Michel Ardan carried all the Gun Club with him in his

enthusiasm. What he said seemed so simple and so easy, so sure of success, that none could be so sordidly

attached to this earth as to hesitate to follow the three travelers on their lunar expedition.

All being ready at last, it remained to place the projectile in the Columbiad, an operation abundantly

The enormous shell was conveyed to the summit of Stones Hill. There, powerful cranes raised it, and held it

It was a fearful moment! What if the chains should break under its enormous weight? The sudden fall of such

Fortunately this did not happen; and some hours later the projectilevehicle descended gently into the heart

of the cannon and rested on its couch of pyroxyle, a veritable bed of explosive eiderdown. Its pressure had

no result, other than the more effectual ramming down of the charge in the Columbiad.

"I have lost," said the captain, who forthwith paid President Barbicane the sum of three thousand dollars.

Barbicane did not wish to accept the money from one of his fellowtravelers, but gave way at last before the

determination of Nicholl, who wished before leaving the earth to fulfill all his engagements.

"Now," said Michel Ardan, "I have only one thing more to wish for you, my brave captain."

"It is that you may lose your two other bets! Then we shall be sure not to be stopped on our journey!"

The first of December had arrived! the fatal day! for, if the projectile were not discharged that very night at

10h. 48m. 40s. P.M., more than eighteen years must roll by before the moon would again present herself

The weather was magnificent. Despite the approach of winter, the sun shone brightly, and bathed in its

radiant light that earth which three of its denizens were about to abandon for a new world.

How many persons lost their rest on the night which preceded this longexpected day! All hearts beat with

disquietude, save only the heart of Michel Ardan. That imperturbable personage came and went with his

habitual businesslike air, while nothing whatever denoted that any unusual matter preoccupied his mind.

After dawn, an innumerable multitude covered the prairie which extends, as far as the eye can reach, round

Stones Hill. Every quarter of an hour the railway brought fresh accessions of sightseers; and, according to the

statement of the Tampa Town Observer, not less than five millions of spectators thronged the soil of Florida.

For a whole month previously, the mass of these persons had bivouacked round the enclosure, and laid the

foundations for a town which was afterward called "Ardan's Town." The whole plain was covered with huts,

cottages, and tents. Every nation under the sun was represented there; and every language might be heard

spoken at the same time. It was a perfect Babel reenacted. All the various classes of American society were

mingled together in terms of absolute equality. Bankers, farmers, sailors, cottonplanters, brokers, merchants,

watermen, magistrates, elbowed each other in the most freeandeasy way. Louisiana Creoles fraternized

with farmers from Indiana; Kentucky and Tennessee gentlemen and haughty Virginians conversed with

trappers and the halfsavages of the lakes and butchers from Cincinnati. Broadbrimmed white hats and

Panamas, bluecotton trousers, lightcolored stockings, cambric frills, were all here displayed; while upon

shirtfronts, wristbands, and neckties, upon every finger, even upon the very ears, they wore an assortment of

rings, shirtpins, brooches, and trinkets, of which the value only equaled the execrable taste. Women,

children, and servants, in equally expensive dress, surrounded their husbands, fathers, or masters, who

At mealtimes all fell to work upon the dishes peculiar to the Southern States, and consumed with an appetite

that threatened speedy exhaustion of the victualing powers of Florida, fricasseed frogs, stuffed monkey, fish

chowder, underdone 'possum, and raccoon steaks. And as for the liquors which accompanied this indigestible

repast! The shouts, the vociferations that resounded through the bars and taverns decorated with glasses,

tankards, and bottles of marvelous shape, mortars for pounding sugar, and bundles of straws! "Mintjulep"

roars one of the barmen; "Claret sangaree!" shouts another; "Cocktail!" "Brandysmash!" "Real mintjulep

in the new style!" All these cries intermingled produced a bewildering and deafening hubbub.

But on this day, 1st of December, such sounds were rare. No one thought of eating or drinking, and at four

P.M. there were vast numbers of spectators who had not even taken their customary lunch! And, a still more

significant fact, even the national passion for play seemed quelled for the time under the general excitement

Up till nightfall, a dull, noiseless agitation, such as precedes great catastrophes, ran through the anxious

multitude. An indescribable uneasiness pervaded all minds, an indefinable sensation which oppressed the

However, about seven o'clock, the heavy silence was dissipated. The moon rose above the horizon. Millions

of hurrahs hailed her appearance. She was punctual to the rendezvous, and shouts of welcome greeted her on

all sides, as her pale beams shone gracefully in the clear heavens. At this moment the three intrepid travelers

appeared. This was the signal for renewed cries of still greater intensity. Instantly the vast assemblage, as

with one accord, struck up the national hymn of the United States, and "Yankee Doodle," sung by five

million of hearty throats, rose like a roaring tempest to the farthest limits of the atmosphere. Then a profound

The Frenchman and the two Americans had by this time entered the enclosure reserved in the center of the

multitude. They were accompanied by the members of the Gun Club, and by deputations sent from all the

European Observatories. Barbicane, cool and collected, was giving his final directions. Nicholl, with

compressed lips, his arms crossed behind his back, walked with a firm and measured step. Michel Ardan,

always easy, dressed in thorough traveler's costume, leathern gaiters on his legs, pouch by his side, in loose

velvet suit, cigar in mouth, was full of inexhaustible gayety, laughing, joking, playing pranks with J. T.

Maston. In one word, he was the thorough "Frenchman" (and worse, a "Parisian") to the last moment.

Ten o'clock struck! The moment had arrived for taking their places in the projectile! The necessary operations

for the descent, and the subsequent removal of the cranes and scaffolding that inclined over the mouth of the

Barbicane had regulated his chronometer to the tenth part of a second by that of Murchison the engineer, who

was charged with the duty of firing the gun by means of an electric spark. Thus the travelers enclosed within

the projectile were enabled to follow with their eyes the impassive needle which marked the precise moment

The moment had arrived for saying "goodby!" The scene was a touching one. Despite his feverish gayety,

even Michel Ardan was touched. J. T. Maston had found in his own dry eyes one ancient tear, which he had

doubtless reserved for the occasion. He dropped it on the forehead of his dear president.

"Impossible, old fellow!" replied Barbicane. A few moments later, the three fellowtravelers had ensconced

themselves in the projectile, and screwed down the plate which covered the entranceaperture. The mouth of

The moon advanced upward in a heaven of the purest clearness, outshining in her passage the twinkling light

of the stars. She passed over the constellation of the Twins, and was now nearing the halfway point between

the horizon and the zenith. A terrible silence weighed upon the entire scene! Not a breath of wind upon the

earth! not a sound of breathing from the countless chests of the spectators! Their hearts seemed afraid to beat!

Murchison followed with his eye the hand of his chronometer. It wanted scarce forty seconds to the moment

of departure, but each second seemed to last an age! At the twentieth there was a general shudder, as it

occurred to the minds of that vast assemblage that the bold travelers shut up within the projectile were also

counting those terrible seconds. Some few cries here and there escaped the crowd.

Instantly Murchison pressed with his finger the key of the electric battery, restored the current of the fluid,

An appalling unearthly report followed instantly, such as can be compared to nothing whatever known, not

even to the roar of thunder, or the blast of volcanic explosions! No words can convey the slightest idea of the

terrific sound! An immense spout of fire shot up from the bowels of the earth as from a crater. The earth

heaved up, and with great difficulty some few spectators obtained a momentary glimpse of the projectile

At the moment when that pyramid of fire rose to a prodigious height into the air, the glare of flame lit up the

whole of Florida; and for a moment day superseded night over a considerable extent of the country. This

immense canopy of fire was perceived at a distance of one hundred miles out at sea, and more than one ship's

The discharge of the Columbiad was accompanied by a perfect earthquake. Florida was shaken to its very

depths. The gases of the powder, expanded by heat, forced back the atmospheric strata with tremendous

violence, and this artificial hurricane rushed like a waterspout through the air.

Not a single spectator remained on his feet! Men, women children, all lay prostrate like ears of corn under a

tempest. There ensued a terrible tumult; a large number of persons were seriously injured. J. T. Maston, who,

despite all dictates of prudence, had kept in advance of the mass, was pitched back 120 feet, shooting like a

projectile over the heads of his fellowcitizens. Three hundred thousand persons remained deaf for a time,

As soon as the first effects were over, the injured, the deaf, and lastly, the crowd in general, woke up with

frenzied cries. "Hurrah for Ardan! Hurrah for Barbicane! Hurrah for Nicholl!" rose to the skies. Thousands of

persons, noses in air, armed with telescopes and raceglasses, were questioning space, forgetting all

contusions and emotions in the one idea of watching for the projectile. They looked in vain! It was no longer

to be seen, and they were obliged to wait for telegrams from Long's Peak. The director of the Cambridge

Observatory was at his post on the Rocky Mountains; and to him, as a skillful and persevering astronomer, all

But an unforeseen phenomenon came in to subject the public impatience to a severe trial.

The weather, hitherto so fine, suddenly changed; the sky became heavy with clouds. It could not have been

otherwise after the terrible derangement of the atmospheric strata, and the dispersion of the enormous

On the morrow the horizon was covered with clouds a thick and impenetrable curtain between earth and

sky, which unhappily extended as far as the Rocky Mountains. It was a fatality! But since man had chosen so

to disturb the atmosphere, he was bound to accept the consequences of his experiment.

Supposing, now, that the experiment had succeeded, the travelers having started on the 1st of December, at

10h. 46m. 40s. P.M., were due on the 4th at 0h. P.M. at their destination. So that up to that time it would have

been very difficult after all to have observed, under such conditions, a body so small as the shell. Therefore

From the 4th to the 6th of December inclusive, the weather remaining much the same in America, the great

European instruments of Herschel, Rosse, and Foucault, were constantly directed toward the moon, for the

weather was then magnificent; but the comparative weakness of their glasses prevented any trustworthy

On the 7th the sky seemed to lighten. They were in hopes now, but their hope was of but short duration, and

Matters were now becoming serious, when on the 9th the sun reappeared for an instant, as if for the purpose

of teasing the Americans. It was received with hisses; and wounded, no doubt, by such a reception, showed

On the 10th, no change! J. T. Maston went nearly mad, and great fears were entertained regarding the brain of

this worthy individual, which had hitherto been so well preserved within his guttapercha cranium.

But on the 11th one of those inexplicable tempests peculiar to those intertropical regions was let loose in the

atmosphere. A terrific east wind swept away the groups of clouds which had been so long gathering, and at

night the semidisc of the orb of night rode majestically amid the soft constellations of the sky.

That very night, the startling news so impatiently awaited, burst like a thunderbolt over the United States of

the Union, and thence, darting across the ocean, ran through all the telegraphic wires of the globe. The

projectile had been detected, thanks to the gigantic reflector of Long's Peak! Here is the note received by the

director of the Observatory of Cambridge. It contains the scientific conclusion regarding this great

To how many questions did this unexpected denouement give rise? What mysterious results was the future

reserving for the investigation of science? At all events, the names of Nicholl, Barbicane, and Michel Ardan

When the dispatch from Long's Peak had once become known, there was but one universal feeling of surprise

and alarm. Was it possible to go to the aid of these bold travelers? No! for they had placed themselves beyond

the pale of humanity, by crossing the limits imposed by the Creator on his earthly creatures. They had air

enough for two months; they had victuals enough for twelve; but after that? There was only one man who

would not admit that the situation was desperate he alone had confidence; and that was their devoted

Besides, he never let them get out of sight. His home was henceforth the post at Long's Peak; his horizon, the

mirror of that immense reflector. As soon as the moon rose above the horizon, he immediately caught her in

the field of the telescope; he never let her go for an instant out of his sight, and followed her assiduously in

her course through the stellar spaces. He watched with untiring patience the passage of the projectile across

her silvery disc, and really the worthy man remained in perpetual communication with his three friends,

"Those three men," said he, "have carried into space all the resources of art, science, and industry. With that,

one can do anything; and you will see that, some day, they will come out all right."

9. CHAPTER VI. PERMISSIVE LIMITS OF IGNORANCE AND BELIEF IN THE UNITED STATES, page = 17