Edisons Conquest of Mars | Page 2

another invasion of the
earth, and who could doubt that with the invincible powers of destruction at their
command they would this time make their work complete and final?
A Startling Announcement.
This startling announcement was the more pitiable in its effects because it served to
unnerve and discourage those few of stouter hearts and more hopeful temperaments who
had already begun the labor of restoration and reconstruction amid the embers of their
desolated homes. In New York this feeling of hope and confidence, this determination to
rise against disaster and to wipe out the evidences of its dreadful presence as quickly as
possible, had especially manifested itself. Already a company had been formed and a
large amount of capital subscribed for the reconstruction of the destroyed bridges over
the East River. Already architects were busily at work planning new twenty-story hotels
and apartment houses; new churches and new cathedrals on a grander scale than before.
The Martians Returning.
Amid this stir of renewed life came the fatal news that Mars was undoubtedly preparing
to deal us a death blow. The sudden revulsion of feeling flitted like the shadow of an
eclipse over the earth. The scenes that followed were indescribable. Men lost their reason.
The faint-hearted ended the suspense with self-destruction, the stout-hearted remained
steadfast, but without hope and knowing not what to do.
But there was a gleam of hope of which the general public as yet knew nothing. It was
due to a few dauntless men of science, conspicuous among whom were Lord Kelvin, the
great English savant; Herr Roentgen, the discoverer of the famous X ray, and especially
Thomas A. Edison, the American genius of science. These men and a few others had
examined with the utmost care the engines of war, the flying machines, the generators of
mysterious destructive forces that the Martians had produced, with the object of
discovering, if possible, the sources of their power.
Suddenly from Mr. Edison's laboratory at Orange flashed the startling intelligence that he

had not only discovered the manner in which the invaders had been able to produce the
mighty energies which they employed with such terrible effect, but that, going further, he
had found a way to overcome them.
The glad news was quickly circulated throughout the civilized world. Luckily the
Atlantic cables had not been destroyed by the Martians, so that communication between
the Eastern and Western continents was uninterrupted. It was a proud day for America.
Even while the Martians had been upon the earth, carrying everything before them,
demonstrating to the confusion of the most optimistic that there was no possibility of
standing against them, a feeling--a confidence had manifested itself in France, to a minor
extent in England, and particularly in Russia, that the Americans might discover means to
meet and master the invaders.
Now, it seemed, this hope and expectation were to be realized. Too late, it is true, in a
certain sense, but not too late to meet the new invasion which the astronomers had
announced was impending. The effect was as wonderful and indescribable as that of the
despondency which but a little while before had overspread the world. One could almost
hear the universal sigh of relief which went up from humanity. To relief succeeded
confidence--so quickly does the human spirit recover like an elastic spring, when
pressure is released.
"We Are Ready for Them!"
"Let them come," was the almost joyous cry. "We shall be ready for them now. The
Americans have solved the problem. Edison has placed the means of victory within our
power."
Looking back upon that time now, I recall, with a thrill, the pride that stirred me at the
thought that, after all, the inhabitants of the Earth were a match for those terrible men
from Mars, despite all the advantage which they had gained from their millions of years
of prior civilization and science.
As good fortunes, like bad, never come singly, the news of Mr. Edison's discovery was
quickly followed by additional glad tidings from that laboratory of marvels in the lap of
the Orange mountains. During their career of conquest the Martians had astonished the
inhabitants of the earth no less with their flying machines--which navigated our
atmosphere as easily as they had that of their native planet--than with their more
destructive inventions. These flying machines in themselves had given them an enormous
advantage in the contest. High above the desolation that they had caused to reign on the
surface of the earth, and, out of the range of our guns, they had hung safe in the upper air.
From the clouds they had dropped death upon the earth.
Edison's Flying Machine.
Now, rumor declared that Mr. Edison had invented and perfected a flying machine much
more complete and manageable than those