"'They built this City of Light from phosphorescent stone quarried from
the Mountains of Tiniti. Formerly the spirits came helter skelter to
Mars all over its surface and went wandering about, helped to
reincarnation by the various villagers or citizens. The great new
improvement in the last half century has been the creation of the
receiving station at the Hill of the Phosphori, the building of the
Chorus Halls, and the establishment of the City of Light. Light draws
the spirits, and though spirits reach other points of Mars, the
centralization of Light here, draws most of them to this side. The
Martians are not immortal. They vanish in time.
"'As reincarnated all spirit becomes young but nourishment has undergone
a change. The physiological process is singular. I need not dwell upon
it. Evaporation replaces defecation. Love enters the Martian world, but
it has lost much of the earthly passion. The physiological effects are
also different. There are no children here.
"'We live in the tropical regions mostly of Mars, and the polar and
north temperate zones are empty. The natural Martian races are found
more plentifully there. They are strong and small and work under the
supervision of the supernaturals. They are like the earthlings and eat
meat. Our food is bread and fruit. Our language does not lend itself to
composition; it only sings. Literature, as we knew it on earth, does not
exist here. The natural Martians have tales and stories and plays and
some books.
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