powerful machinery.

Our friends wanted to take some back to earth with them, but when they
attempted to store it in their projectile, they met with objections,
for the Martians did not want them to take any. They had considerable
trouble, and the crazy machinist led an attack of the soldiers of the
red planet against our friends, the adventurers in the projectile.

Among the other curiosities brought away by our friends, was a
newspaper printed in Mars, for the inhabitants of that place where much
further advanced along certain lines than we are on this earth, but in
the matter of newspapers they had little to boast of, save that the
sheets were printed by wireless electricity, no presses being needed.

As told at the opening of this story, Jack had noticed on one of the
sheets they brought back, an account of how some of the Martians made a
trip to the moon, and discovered a field of Reonaris. This trip was
made shortly before our friends made their hasty departure, and it was
undertaken by some Martian adventurers on another part of the red
planet than where the projectile landed, and so Professor Henderson and
his friends did not hear of it at the time.

"Well, then, suppose we make the attempt to go to the moon," said
Professor Roumann, after a long discussion in the laboratory. "It will
not take long to get ready."

"I'd like to go," said Jack. "How about you, Professor Henderson? Oh,
by the way, Washington said you wanted to see Mark and me, but I was so
interested in this news item, that I forgot to ask what it as about."