* * * * *

VISIT TO MARS.

[Illustration]

So Mr. PUNCH, holding TIME by the forelock, continued his journey.

"Where are we now?" asked the more elderly gentleman.

"My good friend," replied the Sage of Fleet Street, "we are
approaching Mars, which as you know, or should know (if your education
has been completed under the supervision of the School Board) is
sometimes called the Red Planet."

"So I have often heard. But why?"

"That is what we shall soon discover. But now keep quiet, as we have
arrived."

With the gentlest of gentle shocks _Mr. Punch_ and his companion
found themselves on a mound, which they soon recognised as a mountain.
Looking below them, they saw masses of scarlet, apparently in motion.
It was then that TIME regretted that he had not brought with him his
telescope.

"It would have been so useful," he murmured, "and if a little bulky,
what of that? Surely _Mr. Punch_ is accustomed to make light of
everything?"