THE PEOPLE OF THE MOON.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 416, 27 January 1909, Page 5

THE PEOPLE OF THE MOON.

Only the advance in optical discoveries, says Professor Giudice, an eminent Italian scientist, can- really reveal to us definitely whether the moon is inhabited or not; It: avails nothing,,he says, that astronomers deolaro the moon to be uninhabitable because of, the absence of . water and atmosphere, such as wo humans breath,- upon that sphere.' Fournier, for examplo, declares that-even the sun may be'' inhabited; and . that there is ilo conceivable , condition '.to,swhich . life is unadaptable, on. the valid assumption that, there can be no such condition as death, which, in our conimon,concei)tion, is only of -in'Whgent activity. . Everything, .in, short,, is life, .-and. death is' unknown to the. modern sciontist. . . ,

: Giudice, can; with' the best 'available instruments, be bronght within tho ran»e ■of vision, to .a: distance. of; about five hundred mileß. ;At, this distance, however, the,existence-of organic being's could-not be noted. Indeed, a large city would only appear as.a'small:blotch at such' aldistance; •Arid, as the study of the moon is not, therefore/ possible: by ocular "means, we can only base our conclusions on- the -physical conditions .which prevail in that sphcro. i. '.'; Tho moon, according to the most satisfactory, observations,,' appears to be absolutely devoid-of both air and . water. - Jupiter, Sat-' urn. Mercury, Uranus, and Neptune all'give evidence, of ;the possession, .of . atmospheric conditions; while Mars and Venus . clearly iShow; their -undulating seas. Nevertheless, it ,is; possible, -, continues Giudice,-that. beings differently formed from.ourselves should lead activetfivesjn,lunar.regions, no condition of natural , life upon earth having- been yet' shown ta,wholly exclude- animate- existence. . .It- would,, of-course, be idle, he adds, to .attfm.pt,t<>.find out what-form the-,inhabitant*', of., the moon, may., have, or may have had,-' since . .extra-terrestrial'. life must' -differ - very greatly,. from. ;ours, : • if .-hot, altogether' inconceivable to us. -