A 1909 Space Opera! An Aerial Adventure, Or The Secrets Of A Scientist By Victor D. A. Courtney – A Review (Continued)
The shock with the September 1909 release is two fold. First, the planet they land on is confirmed to be still under the star Sol. ie, they have visited another planet in the Solar System, while the language used earlier suggested that it was to another star. Secondly, even though much of the narrative might have been across several months, Barrington confirms he hasn’t been on a planet for 5 years.
The three, Ratazzini, Lerdini and Barrington, encounter alien plants, animals and a resident giant of about 9.5 feet tall (almost 3 metres). We learn more about the giant alien, then meet another with an alien knife. Ratazzini is determined to learn everything he needs to know about these residents so it is assumed that the next chapters will be all about this.
It turns out that this is an additional planet, one not Mars or Venus, called Li-ca-loo-kah. While hot, suggesting Venus, and taller humanoids, suggesting lower gravity, it is interesting that the author chose not to relegate the story into the annals of Venus- or Mars-focused stories.
This chapter involves the crew of three fighting the aliens, killing 20 of them, then coming before the King, explaining their case, and being released, giving the King a quick tour in their aeroplane in the process.
Unfortunately the rest of September is spent on describing the residents called ‘Lics’, their society, their religion, their politics, in great detail, including their barbaric need to torture their children once a year. (It is also at this time that Courtney’s age is updated to 15)
I believe the stories told during Australia’s winter are by Courtney’s father, (especially the cigar smoking paragraphs), as this world they land on in the October 1909 release is more like something a 15-year-old might write. After being pardoned by the King, after 3 months of imprisonment for killing 20 giants in defence, then taking him on a tour of the plane, and getting a house and land gift, the crew is suddenly worried about the King really wanting the space plane for himself. They avoid being locked in a dungeon, and have an insider on the side of the true royal line who can help. It soon jumps to a giant being executed, then Ratazzini wanting to investigate why the giant dissolved to dust by climbing to the top of the hill and not succeeding, then a visit to petrified bodies of kings. Sadly, while they are surrounded by aliens on an alien planet that is unknown in our Solar System, the story continues to be unbelievable and more focused on fantasy than science, with a crazed chief priest chasing the characters.
In an interesting turn of events for this story, it now features more prominently in the children’s pages of the newspaper.
It seems that the 15-year-old Victor is already familiar with both Samuel Johnson and George Bernard Shaw, in that he combined two common phrases of the time ‘rich beyond the dreams of avarice’ and ‘far beyond the dreams of avarice’ into this most inspired line by the inventor: “before I leave this place every one of us will be rich; ineffably, unspeakably, far beyond the dreams of grasping, heartless avarice.”
But the dialogue is brief. Soon it descends into a massacre again with Barrington objecting to more murder.
Ratazzini: I forgot that we had a moralist in our party. Your English compassion again,” he concluded sneeringly. “Say rather my Australian love of justice and humanity,” I replied proudly.
Much of the story at this point jumps from fighting to resting to running to fighting again. They all have guns and an almost endless supply of bullets. They kill multiple 3 metre tall aliens and find ways to elude their attackers. This part of the story is most definitely for children, until…
(to be continued)