All speculative disputes he should henceforth avoid; he would listen with pleasure to all that could be urged on each side; he might even skirmish a little here and there as the spirit moved him; but a regular pitched battle on a subject purely speculative he was fully determined never again to enter into.
"Yes, dear Captain," he continued, "that pointed arrow of yours has by no means missed its mark, but I can't deny that my faith is beginning to be what you call a little 'shaky' in the existence of my friends the Selenites.

However, I should like to have your square opinion on the matter.

Barbican's also.

We have witnessed many strange lunar phenomena lately, closer and clearer than mortal eye ever rested on them before.
Has what we have seen confirmed any theory of yours or confounded any hypothesis?
Have you seen enough to induce you to adopt decided conclusions?
I will put the question formally.

Do you, or do you not, think that the Moon resembles the Earth in being the abode of animals and intelligent beings?
Come, answer, _messieurs_.