“This was the case with our earth. While yet a yielding or molten mass, it whirled very rapidly on its axis, the surface cooled and became rigid, and the molten matter contracted. During this process, the plastic interior moved towards the crust, the cooling mass requiring less and less space. Thus the centre parted, and our earth became, not a solid globe, as you were taught to believe, but an oval ring, a hollow ball, revolving rapidly as do the rings of Saturn, formed under the same law, but owing to the mass in her case being greater, the gravitation of the interior held the central mass together as a planet. ‘As a fact,’ he said, taking a large apple in his hand, ‘if the core of this apple were removed with a care that would preserve the proper curvature, I will venture to say “ovality,” it would present an exact model of our world. Then the world is hollow, not solid, and it is habitable and inhabited over the oval.’
“The members of the party looked at each other with amused curiosity. ‘Symmes!’ said the captain; ‘Hurra for old Kentuck!’ said the Yankee; ‘Logic!’ said the engineer.
“‘You smile,’ said Oseba, ‘but a man may smile and smile, he may even sneer, and still be wrong.’
“He looked so undisturbed, so dignified and earnest, that levity ceased, and he said ‘As a rule, men accept their opinions ready made, and they only search for corroborating evidence. When Galileo proclaimed a new truth, he was silenced, by the frowns of authority. Who was right? When Bruno proclaimed a great truth, he was cooked, by authority. Who was right? All your schoolboys of to-day know.’
“‘But when Symmes advanced a new theory, because the world had grown more tolerant or less earnest, he was laughed out of court, while those who imprisoned Galileo, and cooked Bruno, and ridiculed Columbus and Magellan, having grown careless, amused themselves by writing of Symmes’ northern regions as “Symmes’ Hole.”’
“‘Well, gentlemen,’ said Mr. Oseba, ‘I am from over the Oval, from “Symmes’ Hole,” and after five years of constant travel and hard study among the people of the outer world, whom we call Outeroos, I am returning to “Symmes’ Hole,” and this young man,’ turning to me, ‘is going with me to report.’
“There was no mirth, the captain drumming on the table said, ‘Ahem!’ The Yankee said, as he looked quizzically at me, ‘Well, I guess he’ll have to muffle himself up pretty good, and I think our house could give him a proper outfit,’ and the engineer said to me, ‘raising the curtain is the most interesting part of the performance.’
“‘But this is so far outside of our experience and our observations,’ said the good-natured skipper.
“‘Pardon,’ said the calm Oseba, ‘the observations of your men of experience have but confirmed our contentions, though the evidence so far, has not disturbed the hypotheses of your theorists. But what are the observations of your men of hard experience? This leads to another line of inquiry.’