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OnlyinfantasticnightmarescouldanyhumanbeingsbutDanforthandmeconceivesuchopticaleffects. Betweenusandthechurningvaporsofthewestlaythatmonstroustangleofdarkstonetowers,itsoutreandincredibleformsimpressingusafreshateverynewangleofvision. Itwasamirageinsolidstone,andwereitnotforthephotographs,Iwouldstilldoubtthatsuchathingcouldbe. Thegeneraltypeofmasonrywasidenticalwiththatoftherampartwehadexamined;buttheextravagantshapeswhichthismasonrytookinitsurbanmanifestationswerepastalldescription.
Eventhepicturesillustrateonlyoneortwophasesofitsendlessvariety,preternaturalmassiveness,andutterlyalienexoticism. ThereweregeometricalformsforwhichanEuclidwouldscarcelyfindaname—conesofalldegreesofirregularityandtruncation,terracesofeverysortofprovocativedisproportion,shaftswithoddbulbousenlargements,brokencolumnsincuriousgroups,andfive-pointedorfive-ridgedarrangementsofmadgrotesqueness. Aswedrewnearerwecouldseebeneathcertaintransparentpartsoftheicesheet,anddetectsomeofthetubularstonebridgesthatconnectedthecrazilysprinkledstructuresatvariousheights. Oforderlystreetsthereseemedtobenone,theonlybroadopenswathbeingamiletotheleft,wheretheancientriverhaddoubtlessflowedthroughthetownintothemountains.
Ourfieldglassesshowedtheexternal,horizontalbandsofnearlyeffacedsculpturesanddotgroupstobeveryprevalent,andwecouldhalfimaginewhatthecitymustoncehavelookedlike—eventhoughmostoftheroofsandtowertopshadnecessarilyperished.
