Машина времени
Chapter 7
Ilookedintothethicknessofthewoodandthoughtofwhatitmighthide. Underthatdensetangleofbranchesonewouldbeoutofsightofthestars. Evenweretherenootherlurkingdanger—adangerIdidnotcaretoletmyimaginationlooseupon—therewouldstillbealltherootstostumbleoverandthetree-bolestostrikeagainst.
‘Iwasverytired,too,aftertheexcitementsoftheday;soIdecidedthatIwouldnotfaceit,butwouldpassthenightupontheopenhill.
‘Weena,Iwasgladtofind,wasfastasleep. Icarefullywrappedherinmyjacket,andsatdownbesidehertowaitforthemoonrise. Thehill-sidewasquietanddeserted,butfromtheblackofthewoodtherecamenowandthenastiroflivingthings. Abovemeshonethestars,forthenightwasveryclear. Ifeltacertainsenseoffriendlycomfortintheirtwinkling. Alltheoldconstellationshadgonefromthesky,however: thatslowmovementwhichisimperceptibleinahundredhumanlifetimes,hadlongsincerearrangedtheminunfamiliargroupings. ButtheMilkyWay,itseemedtome,wasstillthesametatteredstreamerofstar-dustasofyore. Southward(asIjudgedit)wasaverybrightredstarthatwasnewtome;itwasevenmoresplendidthanourowngreenSirius. Andamidallthesescintillatingpointsoflightonebrightplanetshonekindlyandsteadilylikethefaceofanoldfriend.
‘Lookingatthesestarssuddenlydwarfedmyowntroublesandallthegravitiesofterrestriallife. Ithoughtoftheirunfathomabledistance,andtheslowinevitabledriftoftheirmovementsoutoftheunknownpastintotheunknownfuture. Ithoughtofthegreatprecessionalcyclethatthepoleoftheearthdescribes. OnlyfortytimeshadthatsilentrevolutionoccurredduringalltheyearsthatIhadtraversed.
