A rolling country was now beneath, which we speeded over at the rate of a mile a minute, not wishing to waste time upon extended areas that could be comprehended at a glance. Here we saw herds of cattle carrying four horns and tailless. Probably there were no flies to annoy them, and tails would have been useless. There were also more of those diminutive sheep of a pinkish hue, and wool like silk that trailed upon the ground. One and all they scampered away upon catching sight of us, but we quickly passed beyond their range of vision.
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Here were great parks of magnificent timber and brilliant flowers, and limpid sheets of water. Occasional palaces of reddish stone under partial roofs of a dark yellow metal were also encountered. Dropping earthward to examine these we were saluted by the occupants, who coming out of the buildings would wave banners, and blow upon a powerful, sweet-toned trumpet, whose music would linger in the air for quite awhile after the performer had removed it from his lips.
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Howbeit, our speed was so great, that these heavenly strains of music were lost by reason of their distance, while other sounds would greet our ears ahead.
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Our anxiety to learn something of these people and their history was ungratified, from the impossibility of communication.
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It was easy to see that our air ship was an object of intense curiosity both to man and beast. We were as great a wonder to them as they to us, which, to be sure, was true of our vessel upon the outer world, and it showed that aerial navigation was as little understood here as above. We received various unmistakable invitations to halt, but these we declined on the ground of haste. We determined, however, to accept one before our final exit.
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