We were now moving at great speed and the sensations were most exhilarating. Looking out over the bow we beheld the horizon of water and raising our glasses as we had been directed, at an elevation of about twenty degrees, the coast line of a continent came into view. And still elevating our glasses, we rapidly passed in review a wonderful panorama of flowing rivers, cultivated fields, tangled wildwood, and lofty mountain chains until at an elevation of about forty-five degrees, we beheld the western coast line of the Altrurian continent. At the zenith, we saw the Umbrian ocean, and further down, and directly opposite to Altruria, the continent of Atlan, suspended, as it were, in the eastern sky like a map. Looking toward the north, and some ten or twelve degrees above the horizon, was the barren island on which we had landed.
We were so engrossed with our observations in a world where we could take a bird's eye view of any part of it, that we did not care to continue the conversation in which we had become so intensely interested. The continent which we were approaching, looked through our glasses like a vast concave picture of a most lovely country suspended above the horizon, and covering almost the entire western sky. But when we looked through our ordinary glasses, the general appearance was not materially different from what it would have been in the outer world. I could but wonder at this marvelous discovery, which had enabled the inventor to construct instruments that converted opaque rays into rays of light, and I could not help thinking, what a restraint the general use of such wonderful optical instruments would be upon evil doers. Nothing could be hidden from those who cared to investigate.
While my thoughts wandered into other channels, my gaze was riveted upon the wonderful panorama presented to our view. I noted that the divisions between land and water were strikingly similar to the physical geography of the outer world, except in this, that the land surface of the inner world on the line of the equator seemed to correspond very closely with the water surface of the outer world, though on a much smaller scale. The clear weather prevailing in the western hemisphere gave us a splendid view of the continent of Altruria. In a few localities dense masses of clouds obscured, but did not entirely shut out the view; and on the whole we got a clear concept of the topography of the country.