The Saturn
Presentation of this planet and its moons, including ring and creatures
- Chapter 19 -
The different kinds of bats. The Flying Cow. The flying ribbon. The jewelry trade on Saturn.
Before we begin with the actual species of birds, we will discuss a species of flying animal which on earth belongs to the class of bats (chiroptera) and others like it, animals with modified limbs covered with a membranous skin that serves as wings. Do we find these kinds of animals on Saturn? Most definitely so, and considerably more so than on earth. There are no bats in the actual sense; however, there are other creatures in large amounts which have such wings. If you were to deal with each of these animals in particular, you would require more than 10,000 sheets of paper. In this instance, however, it serves no particular purpose. Therefore we will discuss only a few animals of this order, and with the others we will deal only in general.
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A particularly peculiar type of these animals is called the "flying cow." It is exceptionally beautiful and is approximately the size of a fully-grown ox on earth, except that towards the tail it is about 3 feet longer; it has four feet with beautiful dazzling white claws. It is red on the back and light green in the abdominal area. The skin has a shine to it, similar to the finest silk velvet on earth. The head has a great resemblance to a greyhound, only it is a completely different color. Beginning from the neck to the head it is light blue, and from the back of the neck to the snout it has a red stripe. The lower part of the head gradually changes to a dark blue.
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In the area of the front feet there are two long arms right and left, which, when stretched out, cover a diameter of 36 feet. From these arms span a strong skin in connection with the hind feet; it is understood that this only occurs when the animal intends to fly; when this animal does not fly the arms are folded; each arm has three members. The arms fit so snugly to the rest of the body that they are hardly noticeable even if you are close by. However, when the flying cow spreads its wings to fly, it has the most beautiful appearance. The skin of the arms is also a dazzling white. And each arm has at its end four well-shaped fingers with strong pointed nails for the purpose of holding onto things. The winged skin looks like the finest polished gold and is adorned with light red dots and stripes in regular intervals that run into each other. The edges of this winged skin are trimmed as if with a shining rainbow which ends everywhere into completely dazzling white strings more than 30 inches long which shine like glass threads, more than the finest silk.
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The eyes of the flying cow are extremely sharp and lively, and at dusk they sparkle like diamonds. The snout of this animal is dark red and its mouth has a fresh red color like roses. Its numerous teeth look like pure crystal. Its tongue is bright red and proportionately very long, so that this animal can make use of it for many things, such as washing its face and cleaning its entire body; because this animal has a particularly pliable body. It can use its tongue for drinking just like a dog on earth. And when this animal rolls up its tongue lengthwise, which it does all the time when it takes to the air, it produces through this tube-like tongue a very loud whistling sound which can be heard far and wide.
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Why do they call this animal the "flying cow"? It has a full and complete udder with four teats between its two hind legs, and this udder is filled with an extremely fine tasting milk as soon as its young are born. That is why the Saturnites often capture it, and in many areas it is tamed as a highly beneficial domesticated animal; and this is made easier because the animal is extremely gentle. When it bears its young, there is only one male among six calves. When this male is fully grown, it differs from the female in that instead of having an udder, like a/sheep earth, it has a scrotum, and on its head it has one small completely white horn that is slightly bent backwards between its two down-hanging white ears.
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If you could make use of the power of your imagination, it would not be difficult to imagine the beauty of this animal. You will probably think and say: "Why is this animal so beautiful and what purpose does it serve?" But I say to you: If you direct your attention towards the beauty of the flowers on earth as well as their multifarious forms and shapes, could you not ask in this instance as well: "Why must the blossom be so beautiful? Would it not be more suitable for such a simple seed kernel to produce a much less striking blossom?" Behold, for questions of this kind the answers have not yet matured, for regarding the beauty of such creatures it will be impossible for you to grasp the reason, since it lies in the realm of My light or wisdom. Therefore, be content solely with the idea that, by accepting the commonly valid reason for all these kinds of forms and shapes, I, the good above all and the most wise Creator of all things, know why I created all things and creatures in this manner.
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After we have taken a look at this creature, we will take a look at other flying animals. The Saturnites call this animal the "flying ribbon" or at times the "flying rope." How does this animal come by its name? Once we have taken a closer look at it, the explanation will become clear. Behold, the body of this animal resembles the body of a well-shaped monkey on earth. When it walks, it does so on its hind feet just like a human being. The front paws are very long and equipped with a flying membrane along the side of the body right to the middle of the hind legs; otherwise this animal uses his front paws in the same manner as a monkey. When it stands upright it is 18 feet tall, and when it squats it is half as tall. The body of the flying ribbon has nothing exceptional about it other than that the abdominal area is light blue and it has dark red wool towards the end of the back.
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In accordance with that, what is actually distinctive about this animal? It is its long tail, which it only spreads out when it flies. When this animal walks around, it rolls up its tail so skillfully that it comes to rest right above the coccygeal vertebra, as if someone would have a tight round roll on his back. A mature animal has a tail approximately 540 to 600 feet long, with an approximate width of 30 inches. However, this tail is so fine when it is rolled up that it hardly has a diameter of 18 inches. The entire tail has so-called "internal feeling threads" which cause the rolling up of the tail. Because the tail has no bony members, this is only an extension of the skin on the back. The tail has the colors of the lightest rainbow and, on the top as well as on the bottom, it has extremely short and fine wool like uncut silk velvet, so that this wool forms many little very light glimmering wool-warts. Now you know why this animal is called the "flying ribbon."
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You will rarely find this creature still in possession of its rail, especially in highly inhabited areas, because the Saturnites hunt it to a great extent, and it can be easily caught during the day since it does nor fly during the daytime. Once it is caught, nothing will happen to this animal other than losing its tail. The tail is cut off very close to its back and is used by the Saturnites, especially the aristocrats, to enhance one's clothing. Again, the women are the ones who adorn themselves with it, after the tail has been treated with fragrant flower oils in order to make it pliable and, like your leather, durable and tough. Usually the tail is worn as a headband, but it is also girded around the loins. This animal is always a welcome guest for the Saturnites. And since the tail grows back again, this animal is tamed and kept as a domesticated animal.
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The jewel merchants on Saturn breed these animals. And since the price is determined by the length of the tail, they usually stitch two or even three shorter tails together and sell them as one. When such a fraud is discovered, the women will punish such jewel merchants severely.
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On Saturn it is often the case that women exercise jurisdiction over men, since the men on Saturn are usually much in love, just as on earth. This is the reason why men are more yielding and therefore often fooled because of their love for their women; and therefore they are also at the mercy of these fashion-conscious women. On the other hand, in comparison to those on earth these women are incomparably more modest and more domesticated. This is why the men are so inclined towards them and gladly grant them many privileges. However, when we discuss the Saturnites we will deal with this aspect in more detail. Let us now return to the animals.