The captain of the ship Karnak explains to Beelzebub and Hassein that Archangel Hariton’s new system of ships was unanimously acknowledged to be the best, and soon it was adopted for service throughout the Universe, gradually superseding all previous systems.

He goes on to describe how the system works and he says: That system is not very complicated. The whole of this great invention consists of a single ‘cylinder’ shaped like an ordinary barrel. The secret of this cylinder lies in the disposition of the materials of which its inner walls are composed. These materials are isolated from each other by means of ‘amber’ and, owing to their arrangement in a certain order, have the property of acting on any cosmic gaseous substance entering the space they enclose—whether ‘atmosphere,’ ‘air,’ ‘ether,’ or any other combination of homogeneous cosmic elements—causing it immediately to expand within the cylinder. The bottom of this ‘cylinder-barrel’ is hermetically sealed, but the lid, although it can also be tightly closed, is hinged in such a way that on pressure from within it opens, and then shuts again. So, when this cylinder-barrel is filled with atmosphere, air, or any other such substance, the action of its walls causes these substances to expand to such an extent that the interior becomes too small to hold them. Striving to find an outlet from this constricted interior, they naturally press against the lid of the cylinder-barrel, which opens on its hinges and allows these expanded substances to escape, and the immediately closes again. Since in general Nature abhors a vacuum, as soon as the expanded gaseous substances are released, the cylinder-barrel is again filled up with fresh substances from outside, and they in their turn undergo the same process, and so on without end. Thus the substances are always being changed, and the lid of the cylinder-barrel alternately opens and shuts. Fixed to this lid is a very simple ‘lever,’ operated by the movement of the lid, which sets in motion some also very simple ‘cogwheels,’ and these in turn revolve fans attached to the sides and stern of the ship itself.

The captain continues saying that, in spaces where there is no resistance, contemporary ships simply fall toward the nearest stability; but where there are any cosmic substances that offer resistance, it is these substances, no matter what their density, that are acted upon by the cylinder and enable the ship to move in any desired direction, and can fall wherever intended without the complicated manipulations necessary in ships of the system of Saint Venoma.

CHAPTER V

The System of Archangel Hariton

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“And indeed soon after this rumor, practical experiments open to all, again under the superintendence of the Great Archangel Adossia, were made with this new and later very famous invention.

“This new system was unanimously acknowledged to be the best, and very soon it was adopted for general-Universal-service and thereafter gradually all the previous systems we’re entirely superseded.

“That system of the Great Angel, to-day Archangel Hariton is in use everywhere at the present day.

“The ship on which we are now flying also belongs to this system and its construction is similar to that of all the ships built on the system of the Angel Hariton.

“This system is not very complicated.

“The whole of this great invention consists of only a single ‘cylinder’ shaped like an ordinary barrel.

“The secret of this cylinder lies in the disposition of the materials of which its inner side is made.

“These materials are arranged in certain order and isolated each from the other by means of ‘Amber’. They have such a property that if any cosmic gaseous substance whatever enters into the space which they enclose, whether it be ‘atmosphere’, ‘air’, ‘ether’ or any other ‘totality’ of homogeneous cosmic elements, then, owing to the mentioned disposition of materials within the cylinder, it immediately expands.

“The bottom of this cylinder-barrel is hermetically sealed, but its lid, although it can be closely shut, yet is so arranged on hinges that, at a pressure from within, it can be opened and shut again.

“So, Your Right Reverence, if this cylinder-barrel is filled with atmosphere, air or any other such substance, then from the action of the walls of this peculiar cylinder-barrel, these substances expand to such an extent that the interior becomes too small to hold them.

“Striving to find an outlet from this, for them, constricted interior, they naturally press also against the lid of the cylinder-barrel, thanks to the said hinges the lid opens and, having allowed these expanded substances to escape, immediately closes again. And as in general, Nature abhors a vacuum, simultaneously with the release of the expanded gaseous substances, the cylinder-barrel is again filled with fresh substances from outside, with which in their turn the same proceeds as before and so on without end.

“Thus the substances are always being changed, and the lid of the cylinder-barrel alternately opens and shuts.

“To this same lid there is fixed a very simple lever which moves with the movement of the lid, and in turn sets in motion certain also very simple ‘cog-wheels’ which again in their turn revolve the fans attached to the sides and stern of the ship itself.

“Thus, Your Right Reverence, in spaces where there is no resistance, contemporary ships like ours simply fall toward the nearest ‘stability’; but in spaces where there are any cosmic substances which offer resistance, these substances, whatever their density, with the aid of this cylinder enable the ship to move in any desired direction.

“It is interesting to remark that the denser the substance in any given part of the Universe’ the better and more strongly the charging and discharging of this cylinder-barrel proceed and in consequence, of course, the force of the movement of the levers is also changed.

“But nevertheless, I repeat, a sphere without atmosphere, that is, a space containing only World-Ethernokrilno, is for contemporary ships also the best, because in such a sphere there is no reistance at all, and the ‘Law of Falling’ can therefore be fully employed in it without any assistance from the work of the cylinder.

“Further than this, the contemporary ships are also good, because they contain such possibilities that in substanceless spaces an impetus can be given to them in any direction, and they can fill just where desired which was not possible for ships of the system of Saint Venoma without complicated manipulations.

“In short, Your Right Reverence, the convenience and simplicity of the contemporary ships are beyond comparison with former ships, which were often both very complicated, and at the same time, had none of the possibilities of the ships we use now.”