y years. _It follows no old rut; it has found a new
path_, and the reader is permitted to walk in regions which he never saw
and of which he never read before. It is indeed a triumph of literary
genius to give a picture of intelligent life in other worlds upon a
scientific and philosophical basis. Other writers have attempted to give
a description of conditions on the Moon, Mars, or some other single
planet, but no one has succeeded in picturing the mysteries of life in a
number of star worlds with such a fascination as is here found.

Some one may say that the book is only a work of imagination, but we
challenge any one to produce a book that gives more timely thrusts at
the evils of our present day life. By showing how the people of other
worlds have fallen into their sad conditions the author sounds a note of
warning to the people of this world, and by giving a glimpse of the
manner in which other worlds have reached their great triumphs, he gives
to the people of our world a spur to loftier ideals, to greater
inventions, and to a purer life.

The publisher of this volume is proud to put upon the market a book of
such high value and dignity. It is quite unusual for the subscription
book market to see such a princely book come into its midst. Here we
have ten dollars worth of _new ideas_, packed into cream form, all for
one dollar, and we positively assert that nothing like it can be found
anywhere in literature. _Great books have no companions._

The illustrations are from the masterly hands of an artist of special
merit for this class of work. He happily places himself into the midst
of other worlds in order to draw the beautiful pictures that illustrate
and adorn this volume. The illustrations are well worth careful
examination and when studied in connection with the reading matter they
are seen in their greatest beauty and value. _The Publishers_

[Illustration: Looking Towards a Thousand Worlds.]

CHAPTER I.

Are There More Worlds Than One?

Our world is large enough to excite our interest and invite our study
until we close our eyes in death. Yet there are countless other orbs
scattered through the solar system and throughout the vast stretches of
the starry heavens. Some of these worlds are smaller than ours, but the
majority of them are hundreds or thousands of times larger.

Looking away from our solar system, we find that each star is a sun, in
most instances the center of a group of worlds.