Війна світів
What We Saw From the Ruined House
Itiscommonlysupposedthattheycommunicatedbysoundsandtentaculargesticulations; thisisasserted,forinstance,intheablebuthastilycompiledpamphlet(writtenevidentlybysomeonenotaneye-witnessofMartianactions) towhichIhavealreadyalluded,andwhich,sofar,hasbeenthechiefsourceofinformationconcerningthem. NownosurvivinghumanbeingsawsomuchoftheMartiansinactionasIdid. Itakenocredittomyselfforanaccident,butthefactisso. AndIassertthatIwatchedthemcloselytimeaftertime,andthatIhaveseenfour,five,and(once)sixofthemsluggishlyperformingthemostelaboratelycomplicatedoperationstogetherwithouteithersoundorgesture. Theirpeculiarhootinginvariablyprecededfeeding; ithadnomodulation,andwas,Ibelieve,innosenseasignal,butmerelytheexpirationofairpreparatorytothesuctionaloperation. Ihaveacertainclaimtoatleastanelementaryknowledgeofpsychology,andinthismatterIamconvinced—asfirmlyasIamconvincedofanything—thattheMartiansinterchangedthoughtswithoutanyphysicalintermediation. AndIhavebeenconvincedofthisinspiteofstrongpreconceptions. BeforetheMartianinvasion,asanoccasionalreaderhereortheremayremember,Ihadwrittenwithsomelittlevehemenceagainstthetelepathictheory.
TheMartiansworenoclothing. Theirconceptionsofornamentanddecorumwerenecessarilydifferentfromours; andnotonlyweretheyevidentlymuchlesssensibleofchangesoftemperaturethanweare,butchangesofpressuredonotseemtohaveaffectedtheirhealthatallseriously. Yetthoughtheyworenoclothing,itwasintheotherartificialadditionstotheirbodilyresourcesthattheirgreatsuperiorityovermanlay. Wemen,withourbicyclesandroad-skates,ourLilienthalsoaring-machines,ourgunsandsticksandsoforth,arejustinthebeginningoftheevolutionthattheMartianshaveworkedout.
