"Miss Miller, they should each have a demerit for disturbing the peace like this," said Zan, in mock severity.
"They'll soon cancel it then, with a merit, just as you constantly cancel your merits with de-merits for crime!" laughed Miss Miller.
As soon as the girls had quieted down again, Zan continued her harangue in a lecture-tone.
"The moon has mountains known to us as moon-mountains. There are many extinct volcanoes on its face that are supposed to have formed these mountains. The moon is a satellite of the earth—it follows the earth like the little lamb followed Mary. If our earth should take it into its head to shoot off to a corner of the ether, a few million miles away, the moon would just trail along after, and most likely cry all the way for its mother earth."
The girls were delighted with Zan's lecture and Miss Muller had to pull her face into control before she said, "We won't be able to tell fact from fancy, you are so ready with both kinds of information."
"Fancy will not deserve a demerit, I trust!" said Zan.
"Oh, no, but how can it win a merit? You must give us facts that will stand water at Headquarters," said Miss Miller.
"I know that the moon was once a wonderful planet like our earth is but its seas dried up and its surface broke into chaotic mountains—likely from volcanic eruptions, as its mountains present such an appearance through the telescope. It has no trees, flowers, or living creature! It may be grand to look at from this distance but it is really a great hulk of desolation, and I'm sure I'd not care to live there!"
When Zan concluded, Miss Miller asked how many knew the cause of the moon's changing so often each month, to our belief. No one ventured to reply, so the Guide tried to demonstrate to them.
"If I take a round object—here's a stone—and hold it between the moon and my eyes, the side toward me is dark while the side of the stone toward the moon is light where it reflects from the moon. Now, suppose I hold this flash-light for the sun. As I move, or turn the stone around, the side which was toward my eyes before gradually turns toward the reflection of the sun's rays upon the moon and thence to the stone. As we are stationary on the earth, while the earth revolves, we advance toward the light, then leave it again, thus seeming to see the moon grow or dwindle as the time may be."