A TRIP TO THE MOON. 207 



anthems, sacrifices won her favor and disarmed her just 

 wrath. Lofty were her thrones in the far East; Asia 

 and the world worshipped her, and great was the Diana 

 of the Ephesians ! 



This faith, like alas! many a better faith, is found no 

 longer among men. Superstition, alone, has remained. 

 The Chinese beats his drums and gongs to keep the great 

 dragon from swallowing up his moon at the time of an 

 eclipse, and the Wallachian peasant sees in her pale, faint 

 glimmer how the vampire rises from his brother's grave. 

 With us the telescope has stripped the moon of her di- 

 vine attributes, and dry, sober calculations have torn all 

 strange fancies and gay charms from the humble satel- 

 lite of the earth. 



Now the moon is simply a little globe, not much lar- 

 ger than America, so that the longest journey, that could 

 be undertaken there, would explore Asia from end to end. 

 We can easily get there, for she is only about two hun- 

 dred and forty thousand miles from us, a mere trifle in 

 comparison with the distance of the nearest star. Will 

 you accompany us 1 There is no luggage required, for 

 there are plenty of castles in the air, and as for provisions, 

 have not our very first lessons taught us the precious sub- 

 stance of which the moon is made 1 Passengers are not 

 expected to travel with a huge telescope under the arm, 

 and a book of logarithms in their hand. We leave that to 

 the munificent Earl of Rosse, who compels the chaste god- 

 dess to come down within the familiar distance of three 

 hundred miles, even to bold Ireland! We have, besides, 

 cunning astronomers, who marshal with ease millions of 



