“The pill dissolves in the tank of water, generating a lot of pressure,” Mr. Cooper replied. “It’s the jet pressure that moves us along.”
There was a steering wheel to guide the boat and a “gas pedal” to control the release of pressure and their speed. Mr. Cooper turned the boat into Main Canal, which was filled with other craft like their own coming and going. Presently the pilot turned out of Main Canal into a narrow waterway scarcely wider than the boat.
“This is like the ‘Old Mill’ run at the carnival!” Jill said, as the craft wound in and out along the irregular course.
“This boat is great fun!” Ted said. “May Jill and I run it some time, Dad?”
“I guess you’ll have to when I’ve gone off on my expedition,” Dr. Kenton answered.
“Why doesn’t this water freeze?” Ted asked.
“It contains a kind of antifreeze mineral supplied by nature herself,” his father said. “It never freezes, no matter how cold it gets. It’s another one of the marvels of this planet.”
As they rode along, Ted was intrigued by the strange glow of the Martian sky. The thin, purplish atmosphere permitted the more brilliant stars to burn through even in the bright daylight. But then, Ted decided, it wasn’t such bright daylight after all, because the faraway sun looked incredibly tiny to him, and there was a sort of twilight glow to the whole scene.
Mr. Cooper guided the boat the last few feet of its journey into a little dock beside the sprawling bungalow which was to be their new home.