rs had taken my breath, and I dropped into
the other hard chair and exclaimed,--

"I say, Doctor, why didn't you take an office in the twelfth heaven of a
modern office building over in town, where they have elevators? I have
really forgotten how to climb stairs. Didn't I furnish you money enough
to do this thing right?"

"Don't you think this is a good place?" he inquired in some surprise.
"The rent is cheap, and it is convenient to the work. But speaking of
elevators, we are going to revolutionize all that. No more hoisting or
hydraulic lifts after we apply our ideas to the lifting of these
elevator cages!"

"I am afraid this idea of negative gravity is apt to revolutionize
everything, and generally upset the entire universe," I replied. "I
have been wondering what would happen if you were to apply a negative
current to this Earth of ours and send it whirling out of its orbit, an
ostracised Pariah, repelled by all the celestial bodies!"

"Not the slightest danger of any such calamity," he answered. "The
reversal of polarity can only be accomplished with comparatively small
and insignificant masses. It would be impossible to impart a negative
condition even to the smallest satellite. Our projectile will weigh but
a few thousand pounds, compared to the millions of tons of the smallest
celestial bodies. The Creator has looked out for the stability of the
universe, never fear for that! And He has also given us a few hints of
negative currents and repellant gravities in the form of meteorites and
falling stars, which cannot be so well explained by any other theory.
But what I want to talk to you about is the vital importance of
providing against every possible emergency before starting on this trip
through space. A trifling oversight in the preparations may mean death
in the end, and things we put no value on here we might be willing to
give a fortune for on Mars!"

"Well, let's hear how this thing is built," I said, rising and facing
the larger blue-print. "So that's the shape of it, is it? Looks like a
cigar!"

"Yes, the design resembles that of a torpedo considerably," replied the
doctor, and referring to the sectional blue-print he began explaining
the construction.

"This outer covering is a crust of graphite or black lead, inside which
is a two-inch layer of asbestos. Both of these resist enormous heats,
and they will prevent our burning by friction with atmospheres, and
protect us against extremes of cold.