From the Earth to the Moon Chapter 6 - The Permissive Limits of Ignorance and Belief in the United States

In which the whole of America becomes engrossed in a fervent study of the moon, as scientific journals and learned societies elucidate its motions, phases, distance, and peculiarities with remarkable clarity for the general public. Amidst this spreading lunar knowledge, fanciful superstitions and doubts are gently dispelled, while the spirit of human enterprise looks eagerly towards the moon as a new frontier for exploration.