CHAPTER XII.
The artificial light in Mizora puzzled me longest to understand. When Ifirst noticed it, it appeared to me to have no apparent source. At thetouch of a delicate hand, it blazed forth like a star in the center ofthe ceiling. It diffused a soft and pleasing brilliancy that lent acharm to everything it revealed. It was a dreamy daylight, and wasproduced by electricity.
In large halls, like a theatre or opera house, the light fell in a softand penetrating radiance from the center of the dome. Its source was notvisible to either audience or actresses, and, in consequence, occasionedno discomfort to the eyes. The light that illuminated the stage wassimilarly arranged. The footlights were not visible. They were in therear of the stage. The light came upward like the rays of the settingsun, revealing the setting of the stage with vivid distinctness. I canbest describe the effect of this singular arrangement by callingattention to the appearance of the sun when declining behind a smallelevation. How sharply every object is outlined before it? How soft anddelicate is the light in which everything is bathed? Every cloud thatfloats has all of its fleecy loveliness limned with a radiant clearness.
I was very desirous to know how this singular effect was produced, andat my request was taken to the stage. An opening in the back part of itwas covered with pink colored glass. Powerful electric lights from belowthe stage were reflected through this glass upon it. The glass washighly refractive and so perfectly translucent, I at first thought therewas none there, and when I stood upon its edge, and looked down into afiery gulf below, I instinctively thought of the "Lost People," who aresaid to wander amid torturing yet unconsumable flames. But, happily, theones I gazed upon were harmless ones.
The street lights of Mizora were at a considerable elevation from theground. They were in, or over, the center of the street, and of suchdiffuse brilliancy as to render the city almost as light as day. Theywere in the form of immense globes of soft, white fire, and during thesix months that answered to the Mizora night, were kept constantlyburning. It was during this period that the Aurora Borealis shone withsuch marvelous brilliancy.
Generally, its display was heralded by an arc of delicate green-tintedlight, that spanned the heavens. The green tint deepened into emerald,assuming a delicate rose hue as it faded upward into rays that divergedfrom the top until the whole resembled a gigantic crown. Every raybecame a panorama of gorgeous colors, resembling tiny sparks, movinghither and thither with inconceivable swiftness. Sometimes a veil ofmist of delicate green hue depended from the base of the crown, andswayed gently back and forth. As soon as the swaying motion commenced,the most gorgeous colors were revealed. Myriads of sparks, no largerthan snow-flakes, swarmed across the delicate green curtain in everyconceivable color and shade, but always of that vapory, vivid softnessthat is indescribable. The dancing colors resembled gems encased in afilm of mist.
One display that I witnessed I shall attempt to describe. The arc ofdelicate green appeared first, and shot upward diverging rays of all thewarm, rich hues of red. They formed a vast crown, outlined with adelicate halo of fire. A veil of misty green fluttered down from itsbase, and, instantly, tiny crowns, composed of every brilliant color,with a tracery of fire defining every separate one, began to chase oneanother back and forth with bewildering rapidity. As the veil swayed toand fro, it seemed to shake the crowns into skeins of fire, each threadstrung with countless minute globes of every conceivable color and hue.Those fiery threads, aerial as thistle down, wove themselves in and outin a tangled mass of gorgeous beauty. Suddenly the beads of color fellin a shower of gems, topaz and emerald, ruby and sapphire, amethyst andpearly crystals of dew. I looked upward, where the rays of variegatedcolors were sweeping the zenith, and high above the first crown was asecond more vivid still. Myriads of rainbows, the colors broad andintense, fluttered from its base, the whole outlined by a halo of fire.It rolled together in a huge scroll, and, in an instant, fell apart ashower of flakes, minute as snow, but of all the gorgeous, dazzling huesof earth and sky combined. They disappeared in the mystery of space toinstantly form into a fluttering, waving banner of delicate green mistand--vanish; only to repeat itself.
The display of the Aurora Borealis was always an exhibition ofastonishing rapidity of motion of intense colors. The most glorioussunset--where the vapory billows of the sky have caught the bloom of thedying Autumn--cannot rival it. All the precious gems of earth appear tohave dissolved into mist, to join in a wild and aerial dance. The peopleof Mizora attributed it entirely to electricity.
Although the sun never rose or set in Mizora, yet for six months in ayear, that country had the heart of a voluptuous summer. It beat with astrong, warm pulse of life through all nature. The orchards budded andbloomed, and mellowed into perfect fruition their luscious globes. Thefields laughed in the warm, rich light, and smiled on the harvest. Icould feel my own blood bound as with a new lease of life at the firstbreath of spring.
The winters of Mizora had clouds and rain and sleet and snow, andsometimes, especially near the circular sea, the fury of an Arctic snowstorm; but so well prepared were they that it became an amusement.Looking into the chaos of snow flakes, driven hither and thither byfierce winds, the pedestrians in the street presented no painfulcontrast to the luxury of your own room, with its balmy breath andcheerful flowers. You saw none but what were thoroughly clad, and youknew that they were hurrying to homes that were bright and attractive,if not as elegant as yours; where loving welcomes were sure to greetthem and happiness would sit with them at the feast; for the heart thatis pure has always a kingly guest for its company.
A wonderful discovery that the people of Mizora had made was the powerto annihilate space as an impediment to conversation. They claimed thatthe atmosphere had regular currents of electricity that were accuratelyknown to them. They talked to them by means of simply constructedinstruments, and the voice would be as audible and as easily recognizedat three thousand miles distant as at only three feet. Stations werebuilt similar to our telegraph offices, but on high elevations. Iunderstood that they could not be used upon the surface. Every privateand public house, however, had communication with the general office,and could converse with friends at a distance whenever desirable. Publicspeakers made constant use of it, but in connection with anotherextraordinary apparatus which I regret my inability to perfectlydescribe.
I saw it first from the dress circle of a theater. It occupied the wholerear of the stage, and from where I sat, looked like a solid wall ofpolished metal. But it had a wonderful function, for immediately infront of it, moving, speaking and gesturing, was the figure of a popularpublic lecturer, so life-like in appearance that I could scarcely beconvinced that it was only a reflection. Yet such it was, and theoriginal was addressing an audience in person more than a thousand milesdistant.
It was no common thing for a lecturer to address a dozen or moreaudiences at the same time, scattered over an area of thousands ofmiles, and every one listening to and observing what appeared to be thereal speaker. In fact, public speakers in Mizora never traveled on pureprofessional business. It was not necessary. They prepared a room intheir own dwelling with the needful apparatus, and at the time specifieddelivered a lecture in twenty different cities.
I was so interested in this very remarkable invention that I madevigorous mental exertions to comprehend it sufficiently to explain itsmechanism and philosophical principles intelligently; but I can only saythat it was one of the wonders those people produced with electricity.The mechanism was simple, but the science of its construction andworkings I could not comprehend. The grasp of my mind was not broadenough. The instrument that transmitted the voice was entirely separate.
I must not neglect to mention that all kinds of public entertainments,such as operas, concerts and dramas, could be and were repeated toaudiences at a distance from where the real transaction was takingplace. I attended a number of operas that were only the reflex of othersthat were being presented to audiences far distant.
These repetitions wer
e always marvels of accuracy of vividness.
Small reflecting apparatus were to be found in every dwelling andbusiness house. It is hardly necessary to state that letter-writing wasan unknown accomplishment in Mizora. The person who desired to conversewith another, no matter how far distant, placed herself in communicationwith her two instruments and signaled. Her friend appeared upon thepolished metal surface like the figure in a mirror, and spoke to heraudibly, and looked at her with all the naturalness of reality.
I have frequently witnessed such interviews between Wauna and hermother, when we were visiting distant cities. It was certainly a moresatisfactory way of communicating than by letter. The small apparatusused by private families and business houses were not like those used inpublic halls and theaters. In the former, the reflection was exactlysimilar to the image of a mirror; in the latter, the figure wasprojected upon the stage. It required more complicated machinery toproduce, and was not practicable for small families or business houses.I now learned that on my arrival in Mizora I had been taken to one ofthe largest apparatus and put in communication with it. I was informedby Wauna that I had been exhibited to every college and school in thecountry by reflex representation. She said that she and her mother hadseen me distinctly and heard my voice. The latter had been souncongenial in accent and tone that she had hesitated about becoming myinstructor on that account. It was my evident appreciation of mydeficiencies as compared to them that had enlisted her sympathy.
Now, in my own country, my voice had attracted attention by itssmoothness and modulation, and I was greatly surprised to hear Waunaspeak of its unmusical tone as really annoying. But then in Mizora thereare no voices but what are sweet enough to charm the birds.
In the journeys that Wauna and I took during the college vacation, wewere constantly meeting strangers, but they never appeared the leastsurprised at my dark hair and eyes, which were such a contrast to allthe other hair and eyes to be met with in Mizora, that I greatlywondered at it until I learned of the power of the reflector. Irequested permission to examine one of the large ones used in a theater,and it was granted me. Wauna accompanied me and signaled to a friend ofhers. As if by magic a form appeared and moved across the stage. Itbowed to me, smiled and motioned with its hand, to all appearances amaterial body. I asked Wauna to approach it, which she did, and passedher hand through it. There was nothing that resisted her touch, yet Iplainly saw the figure, and recognized it as the perfect representationof a friend of Wauna's, an actress residing in a distant city. When Iascended the stage, the figure vanished, and I understood that it couldbe visible only at a certain distance from the reflector.
In traveling great distances, or even short ones where great speed wasdesired, the Mizoraens used air ships; but only for the transportationof passengers and the very lightest of freight. Heavy articles could notbe as conveniently carried by them as by railroads. Their railroads wereconstructed and conducted on a system so perfect that accidents werenever known. Every engineer had an electric signal attached to theengine, that could signal a train three miles distant.
The motive power for nearly all engines was compressed air. Electricity,which was recognized by Mizora scientists as a force of greatintensity, was rarely used as a propelling power on railroads. Its usewas attended by possible danger, but compressed air was not. Electricityproduced the heat that supplied the air ships and railroads with thatvery necessary comfort. In case there should be an accident, as acollision, or thrown from the track, heat could not be a source ofdanger when furnished by electricity. But I never heard of a railroadaccident during the whole fifteen years that I spent in Mizora.
Air-ships, however, were not exempt from danger, although theprecautions against it were ingenious and carefully observed. The Mizorapeople could tell the approach of a storm, and the exact time it wouldarrive. They had signal stations established for the purpose, all overthe country.
But, though they were skilled mechanics, and far in advance of my ownworld, and the limits of my comprehension in their scientificdiscoveries and appliances, they had not yet discovered the means ofsubduing the elements, or driving unharmed through their fury. Whennature became convulsed with passion, they guarded themselves againstit, but did not endeavor to thwart it.
Their air-ships were covered, and furnished with luxurious seats. Thewhole upper part of the car was composed of very thin glass. Theytraveled with, to me, astonishing rapidity. Towns and cities flew awaybeneath us like birds upon the wing. I grew frightened and apprehensive,but Wauna chatted away with her friends with the most charmingunconcern.
I was looking down, when I perceived, by the increasing size of objectsbelow, that we were descending. The conductor entered almostimmediately, and announced that we were going down to escape anapproaching storm. A signal had been received and the ship was at oncelowered.
I felt intensely relieved to step again on solid earth, and hoped Imight escape another trial of the upper regions. But after waiting untilthe storm was over we again entered the ship. I was ashamed to refusewhen everyone else showed no fear.
In waiting for the storm to pass we were delayed so long that ourjourney could have been performed almost as speedily by rail. I wonderedwhy they had not invented some means by which they could drive through atempest in perfect safety. As usual, I addressed my inquiries to Wauna.She answered:
"So frail a thing as an air-ship must necessarily be, when compared withthe strength of a storm, is like a leaf in the wind. We have not yetdiscovered, and we have but little expectation of discovering, any meansby which we can defy the storms that rage in the upper deeps.
"The electricity that we use for heat is also a source of danger duringa storm. Our policy is to evade a peril we cannot control or destroy.Hence, when we receive a signal that a storm is approaching we get outof its way. Our railroad carriages, having no danger to fear from them,ride right through the storm."
The people of Mizora, I perceived, possessed a remarkable acuteness ofvision. They could see the odor emanating from flowers and fruit. Theydescribed it to me as resembling attenuated mist. They also named othercolors in the solar spectrum than those known to me. When I first heardthem speak of them, I thought it a freak of the imagination; but Iafterward noticed artists, and persons who had a special taste forcolors, always detected them with greater readiness. The presence ofthese new colors were apparent to all with whom I spoke upon thesubject. When I mentioned my own inability to discern them, Wauna saidthat it was owning to my inferior mental development.
"A child," she said, "if you will observe, is first attracted by red,the most glaring color known. The untutored mind will invariably selectthe gaudiest colors for personal adornment. It is the gentle, refinedtaste of civilization that chooses the softened hues and colors."
"But you, as a nation, are remarkable for rich warm colors in yourhouses and often in your dress," I said.
"But they are never glaring," she replied. "If you will notice, the mostintense colors are always so arranged as to present a halo, instead ofsharply defined brilliancy. If a gorgeous color is worn as a dress, itwill be covered with filmy lace. You have spoken of the splendor of theAurora Borealis. It is nature's most gorgeous robe, and intense as theprimal colors are, they are never glaring. They glow in a film of vapor.We have made them our study. Art, with us, has never attempted tosupercede nature."
The sense of smell was also exceedingly sensitive with the Mizorapeople. They detected odors so refined that I was not aware of them. Ihave often seen a chemist take a bottle of perfumery and name itsingredients from the sense of smell only. No one appeared surprised atthe bluntness of my senses. When I spoke of this Wauna tried to explainit.
"We are a more delicately organized race of beings than you are. Ourintellects, and even sense that we possess, is of a higher and finerdevelopment. We have some senses that you do not possess, and are unableto comprehend their exquisite delicacy. One of them I shall endeavor toexplain to you by describing it as impression. We possess it in
a highlyrefined state, both mentally and physically. Our sensitiveness tochanges of temperature, I have noticed, is more marked than yours. It isacute with all of my people. For this reason, although we are free fromdisease, our bodies could not sustain, as readily as yours could, asudden and severe shock to their normal temperature, such as a markedchange in the atmosphere would occasion. We are, therefore, extremelycareful to be always appropriately clothed. That is a physicalimpression. It is possessed by you also, but more obtusely.
"Our sensitiveness to mental pleasure and pain you would pronouncemorbid on account of its intensity. The happiness we enjoy in thesociety of those who are congenial, or near and dear to us throughfamily ties, is inconceivable to you. The touch of my mother's handcarries a thrill of rapture with it.
"We feel, intuitively, the happiness or disappointment of those we arewith. Our own hopes impress us with their fulfillment or frustration,before we know what will actually occur. This feeling is entirelymental, but it is evidence of a highly refined mentality. We could notbe happy unless surrounded, as we are, by cultivated and elegantpleasures. They are real necessities to us.
"Our appreciation of music, I notice, has a more exquisite delicacy thanyours. You desire music, but it is the simpler operas that delight youmost. Those fine and delicate harmonies that we so intensely enjoy, youappear incapable of appreciating."
I have previously spoken of their elegance in dress, and their fondnessfor luxury and magnificence. On occasions of great ceremony theirdresses were furnished with very long trains. The only prominentdifference that I saw in their state dresses, and the rare and costlyones I had seen in my own and other countries, was in the waist. As thewomen of Mizora admired a large waist, their dresses were generallyloose and flowing. Ingenuity, however, had fashioned them into gracefuland becoming outlines. On occasions of great state and publicity,comfortably fitting girdles confined the dress at the waist.
I attended the Inaugural of a Professor of Natural History in theNational College. The one who had succeeded to this honor was widelycelebrated for her erudition. It was known that the ceremony would be agrand affair, and thousands attended it.
I there witnessed another of these marvelous achievements in sciencethat were constantly surprising me in Mizora. The inauguration tookplace in a large hall, the largest I had ever seen. It would accommodatetwo hundred thousand people, and was filled to repletion. I was seatedfar back in the audience, and being a little short-sighted anyway, Iexpected to be disappointed both in seeing and hearing the ceremonies.What was my astonishment then, when they began, to discover that I couldsee distinctly every object upon the stage, and hear with perfectaccuracy every word that was uttered.
Upon expressing myself to Wauna as being greatly pleased that myeyesight and hearing had improved so wonderfully and unexpectedly, shelaughed merrily, and asked me if I had noticed a curious looking band ofpolished steel that curved outward from the proscenium, and encircledits entire front? I had noticed it, but supposed it to be connected withsome different arrangement they might have made concerning thefootlights. Wauna informed me that I owed my improved hearing to that.
"But my eyesight," I asked, "how do you account for its unusualpenetrativeness?"
"Have you ever noticed some seasons of the year display a noticeablymarked transparency of the atmosphere that revealed objects at greatdistances with unusual clearness? Well, we possess a knowledge of airthat enables us to qualify it with that peculiar magnifying condition.On occasions like this we make use of it. This hall was built after thediscovery, and was specially prepared for its use. It is seldom employedin smaller halls."
Just then a little flutter of interest upon the stage attracted myattention, and I saw the candidate for the professorship entering,accompanied by the Faculty of the National College.
She wore a sea-green velvet robe with a voluminous train. The bottom ofthe dress was adorned with a wreath or band of water lilies, embroideredin seed pearls. A white lace overdress of filmiest texture fell over thevelvet, almost touching the wreath of lilies, and looked as though itwas made of sea foam. A girdle of large pink pearls confined the robe atthe waist. Natural flowers were on her bosom and in her hair.
The stage was superbly decorated with flowers and shells. A large chair,constructed of beautiful shells and cushioned with green velvet, restedupon a dais of coral. It was the chair of honor. Behind it was a curtainof sea-moss. I afterward learned that the moss was attached to a film ofglass too delicate to detect without handling.
In the midst of these charming surroundings stood the applicant forhonor. Her deep blue eyes glowed with the joy of triumph. On thedelicate cheek and lip burned the carmine hue of perfect health. Thegolden hair even seemed to have caught a brighter lustre in its coiledmasses. The uplifted hand and arm no marble goddess could have matched,for this had the color and charm of life. As she stood revealed by thestrong light that fell around her, every feature ennobled with the gloryof intellect, she appeared to me a creature of unearthly loveliness, assomething divine.
I spoke to Wauna of the rare beauty and elegance of her dress.
"She looks like a fabled Naiad just risen from the deep," was mycriticism on her.
"Her dress," answered Wauna, "is intended to be emblematical of Nature.The sea-green robe, the water lilies of pearls, the foamy lace are allfrom Nature's Cradle of Life."
"How poetical!" I exclaimed.
But then Mizora is full of that charming skill that blends into perfectharmony the beautiful and useful in life.