Page:Robert William Cole - The Struggle for Empire; A Story of the Year 2236 (1900).djvu/22

10 could be annihilated at will, and there was an enormous force at the disposal of the engineers, so cigar-shaped vessels were made perfectly air-tight, and fitted with engines for acting on the ether of space, and with the anti-gravitation apparatus. After several failures, successful trips were performed to the moon and the nearer planets. The interstellar ships were gradually improved, and an ingenious steering apparatus was added, together with instruments that registered the speed of the vessel, its distance from its destination, and the existence and exact position of any obstacles that might be in the way.

The voyages were extended to the further planets, but many fatal accidents took place before the rules upon which the navigation of space must be based were fully understood. But the dangers of the voyage were soon put into the background by the marvellous tales which the explorers brought back with them. They had found Mars, Mercury and Venus