This we did.
About twenty minutes elapsed between the time the big ship had left the field and our arrival at the observatory. As we entered this vast structure, the scientist in charge of operating the big telescope focused this instrument on the dark moon and on the screen we saw the ship that we had just seen leave here, already landing there. The part it was landing on, as we could see, must have been very cold and it seemed that something was falling which looked to us as if it was snow.
Dr. Johnston asked if it was snow.
The answer was given in the affirmative.
Then Bob wanted to know, "why do they land there? Are there any inhabitants there or is it just a landing place for some reason," because during our flight in the Martonian ship we had been told that the ship could make it straight through to Mars without stopping.
In response to Bob's query, the scientist did something to the telescope that seemed to draw the Moon right in, for behold we saw people gather around the ship after it landed and start unloading parcels, as well as loading others. They were small people averaging about four feet in height and well built in proportion to their height. They were wearing heavy clothing, something like our Eskimos wear. These people seemed to be white. The scientist explained to us that these were sturdy people and very brilliant, with a life span of five hundred years. He said that these people raise hardly no food because of the intense cold of their Moon homeland; but that it is all delivered to them by Martonian ships from Mars and from this Moon. However, they do have plenty of wild life there, should they ever run short of other food.
Dr. Johnston wanted to know how people living in such a cold place manage to keep warm: what system of heating is used.
To answer this question another section of this dark moon is brought into view upon the screen and here is shown a heating unit for community service. This was located quite a distance from any settlement, yet as it was explained to us, heat was piped to each dwelling from this central unit.
We immediately thought of the atomic power, or as known on the Earth, the atomic pile, about which Dr. Johnston was well informed. So he inquired further in reference to it; if the power used for heating there is similar to what we have on Earth, but which so far we have never used in this manner.
Our scientist friend seemed to understand the information which Dr. Johnston was seeking, for his answer was, "what you Earth men have now is very dangerous to work with, for you really haven't got anything except wild, uncontrolled power. Your job is taming this power down so that it will not be injurious to anyone. You will have to get another element to do this with, as we have done. Then you will be able to use it so well that even a child can handle it without any harm. You have some of that element on Earth, but you have not yet found it. It is through the proper use of this power that the dwellings on the dark moon are being heated."