The Country of the Blind by H.G. Wells
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central village were quite unlike the casual and higgledy-piggledy agglomeration of_the mountain villages he_knew; they stood in a continuous row on either side of a central street of astonishing cleanness; here and there their particoloured facade was pierced by a door, and not a solitary window broke their even frontage . they were particoloured with extraordinary irregularity, smeared with a sort of plaster that was sometimes grey, sometimes drab, sometimes slate-coloured or dark brown; and it was_the sight of_this wild plastering first brought the word " blind" into_the thoughts of_the explorer ." the good man who did that," he thought, " must_have been as blind as a bat ."

he descended a steep place, and so came to_the wall and channel that ran about_the valley, near where the latter spouted out its surplus contents into_the deeps of_the gorge in a thin and wavering thread of cascade . he_could now see a number of men_and_women resting on piled heaps of grass, as_if taking a siesta, in_the remoter part of_the meadow, and nearer the village a number of recumbent children, and then nearer at hand three men carrying pails on yokes along a little path that ran from_the encircling wall towards the houses . these latter were clad in garments of llama cloth and boots and belts of leather, and_they wore caps of cloth with back and ear flaps . they followed one another in single file, walking slowly and yawning as_they walked, like men who have_been up all night . there_was something so reassuringly prosperous and respectable in their bearing that after a moment's hesitation Nunez stood forward as conspicuously as possible upon his rock, and gave vent to a mighty shout that echoed round the valley .

the three men stopped, and moved their heads as_though they were looking about_them . they turned their faces this_way and_that, and Nunez gesticulated with freedom . but they_did_not appear to_see him for all his gestures, and after a time, directing themselves towards the mountains far away to_the right, they shouted as_if in answer .Nunez bawled again, and then once more, and as he gestured ineffectually the word " blind" came up_to_the top of_his thoughts ." the fools must_be blind," he_said .

when at last, after much shouting and wrath, Nunez crossed the stream by a little bridge, came through a gate in_the wall, and approached them, he_was sure that_they were blind . he_was sure that_this was_the country of_the blind of_which the legends told .Conviction had sprung upon him, and a sense of great and rather enviable adventure . the three stood side by side, not looking at him, but with their ears directed towards him, judging him by his unfamiliar steps . they stood close together like men a little afraid, and he could_see their eyelids closed and sunken, as_though the very balls beneath had shrunk away . there_was an expression near awe on their faces .

"A man," one said, in hardly recognisable Spanish--"a man it_is--a man or a spirit--coming down from_the rocks ."

but Nunez advanced with_the confident steps of a youth who enters upon life . all the old stories of_the lost valley and_the country of_the blind had come back to_his mind, and through his thoughts ran this old proverb, as_if it were a refrain--

" in_the country of_the blind the one- eyed man is king ."

" in_the country of_the blind the one- eyed man is king ."

and very civilly he_gave them greeting . he talked to_them and used his eyes .

" where does he come from, brother Pedro ? " asked one .

" down out_of_the rocks ."

" over the mountains I come," said Nunez, " out_of_the country beyond there-- where men can_see . from near Bogota, where there_are a hundred thousands of people, and where the city passes out of sight ."

" sight ? " muttered Pedro ." sight ? "

" he comes," said the second blind man, " out_of_the rocks ."

the cloth of_their coats Nunez saw was curiously fashioned, each with a different sort of stitching .

they startled him by a simultaneous movement towards him, each with a hand outstretched . he stepped back from_the advance of_these spread fingers .

" come hither," said the third blind man, following his motion and clutching him neatly .

and_they held Nunez and felt him over, saying no word further until they had done so .

" carefully," he cried, with a finger in_his eye, and found they thought that organ, with its fluttering lids, a queer thing in him . they went over it again .

"A strange creature, Correa," said the one called Pedro ." feel the coarseness of_his hair . like a llama's hair ."

" rough he_is as_the rocks that begot him," said Correa, investigating Nunez's unshaven chin with a soft and slightly moist hand ." perhaps he_will grow finer ." Nunez struggled a little under their examination, but they gripped him firm .

" carefully," he_said again .

" he speaks," said the third man ." certainly he_is a man ."

"Ugh ! " said Pedro, at_the roughness of_his coat .

" and you_have come into_the world ? " asked Pedro .

"_Out of_the world . over mountains and glaciers; right over above there, half- way to_the sun . out_of_the great big world that goes down, twelve days' journey to_the sea ."

they scarcely seemed to heed him ." our fathers have told us men may_be made by_the forces of nature," said Correa ." it_is_the warmth of things and moisture, and rottenness-- rottenness ."

" let_us lead him to_the elders," said Pedro .

" shout first," said Correa, " lest the children be afraid .. . this_is amarvellous occasion ."

so they shouted, and Pedro went first and took Nunez by_the hand to lead him to_the houses .

he drew his hand away ." I_can_see," he_said .

" see ? " said Correa .

" yes, see," said Nunez, turning towards him, and stumbled against Pedro's pail .

" his senses are still imperfect," said the third blind man ." he stumbles, and talks unmeaning words . lead him by_the hand ."

" as_you_will," said Nunez, and was led along, laughing .

it seemed they knew nothing of sight .

well, all in good_time he_would teach them .

he heard people shouting, and saw a number of figures gathering together in_the middle roadway of_the village .

he_found it tax his nerve and patience more than he had anticipated, that first encounter with_the population of_the country of_the blind . the place seemed larger as he drew near to_it, and_the smeared plasterings queerer, and a crowd of children and men_and_women ( the women and girls, he_was pleased to note, had some_of_them quite sweet faces, for all that their eyes were shut and sunken) came about him, holding on to him, touching him with soft, sensitive hands, smelling at him, and listening at every word he spoke . some_of_the maidens and children, however, kept aloof as_if afraid, and indeed his voice seemed coarse and rude beside their softer notes . they mobbed him . his three guides kept close to him with an effect of proprietorship, and said again and again, "A wild man out_of_the rock ."

" Bogota," he_said ." Bogota . over the mountain crests ."

"A wild man--using wild words," said Pedro ." did you hear that-- _Bogota ? his mind is hardly formed yet . he has only the beginnings of speech ."

a little boy nipped his hand ." Bogota ! " he_said mockingly .

"Ay ! a city to your village .I come from_the great world-- where men have eyes and_see ."

" his name's Bogota," they said .

" he stumbled," said Correa, " stumbled twice as_we came hither ."

" bring him to_the elders ."

and_they thrust him suddenly through a doorway into a room as black as pitch, save at_the end there faintly glowed a fire . the crowd closed in behind him and shut out all but the faintest glimmer of day, and before he_could arrest himself he had fallen headlong over the feet of a seated man . his arm, outflung, struck the face of someone else as he went down; he_felt the soft impact of features and heard a cry of anger, and for a moment he struggled against a number of hands that clutched him . it_was a one- sided fight . an inkling of_the situation came to him, and he lay quiet .

"I fell down," he_said; "I couldn't see in_this pitchy darkness ."

there_was a pause as if_the unseen persons about him tried to understand his words . then the voice of Correa said: " he_is but newly formed . he stumbles as he walks and mingles words that mean nothing with_his speech ."

Others also said things about him that he heard or understood imperfectly .

" may I sit up ? " he asked, in a pause ." i_will_not struggle against you again ."

they consulted and let him rise .

the voice of an older man began to question him, and Nunez found himself trying to explain the great world out of_which he had fallen, and_the sky and mountains and sight and such- like marvels, to_these elders who sat in darkness in_the country of_the blind . and they_would believe and understand nothing whatever he_told them, a thing quite outside his expectation . they_would not even understand many of_his words . for fourteen generations these people had_been blind and cut off from all the seeing world; the names for all the things of sight had faded and changed; the story of_the outer world was faded and changed to a child's story; and_they had ceased to concern themselves with anything beyond the rocky slopes above their circling wall . blind men of genius had arisen among them and questioned the shreds of belief and tradition they had brought with_them from their seeing days, and had dismissed all these things as idle fancies, and replaced them with new and saner explanations . much of_their imagination had shrivelled with their eyes, and_they had made for themselves new imaginations with their ever more sensitive ears and finger-tips . slowly Nunez realised this; that his expectation of wonder and reverence at his origin and_his gifts was not to_be borne out; and after his poor attempt to explain sight to_them had_been set aside as_the confused version of a new- made being describing the marvels of_his incoherent sensations, he subsided, a little dashed, into listening to_their instruction . and_the eldest of_the blind men explained to him life and philosophy and religion, how that_the world (meaning their valley) had_been first an empty hollow in_the rocks, and then had come, first, inanimate things without the gift of touch, and llamas and a few other creatures that had little sense, and then men, and at last angels, whom one could hear singing and making fluttering sounds, but whom no one could touch at all, which puzzled Nunez greatly until he thought of_the birds .

he went on to_tell Nunez how this_time had_been divided into_the warm and_the cold, which are the blind equivalents of day and night, and how it_was good to sleep in_the warm and work during the cold, so_that now, but for_his advent, the whole town of_the blind would_have_been asleep . he_said Nunez must_have been specially created to learn and serve the wisdom, they had acquired, and_that for all his mental incoherency and stumbling behaviour he_must_have courage, and do his best to learn, and at_that all the people in_the doorway murmured encouragingly . he_said the night-- for_the blind call their day night-- was now far gone, and it behoved every_one to_go back to sleep . he asked Nunez if he_knew how to sleep, and Nunez said he_did, but that before sleep he_wanted food .

they brought him food-- llama's milk in a bowl, and rough salted bread-- and led him into a lonely place, to eat out of_their hearing, and afterwards to slumber until the chill of_the mountain evening roused them to_begin their day again . but Nunez slumbered not at all .

instead, he sat up in_the place where they had left him, resting his limbs and turning the unanticipated circumstances of_his arrival over and over in_his mind .

every now_and_then he laughed, sometimes with amusement, and sometimes with indignation .

" unformed mind ! " he_said ." got no senses yet ! they little know they've been insulting their heaven-sent king and master . I_see I_must bring them to reason . let me think-- let me think ."

he_was still thinking when_the sun set .

Nunez had an eye for all beautiful things, and it seemed to him that_the glow upon_the snowfields and glaciers that rose about_the valley on every side was_the most beautiful thing he had ever seen . his eyes went from_that inaccessible glory to_the village and irrigated fields, fast sinking into_the twilight, and suddenly a wave of emotion took him, and he thanked god from_the bottom of_his heart that_the power of sight had_been given him .

he heard a voice calling to him from out_of_the village ."Ya ho there, Bogota ! come hither ! "

at_that he stood up smiling . he_would show these people once and for all what sight would do for a man . they_would seek him, but not find him .

" you move not, Bogota," said the voice .

he laughed noiselessly, and made two stealthy steps aside from_the path .

" trample not on_the grass, Bogota; that_is_not allowed ."

Nunez had scarcely heard the sound he_made himself . he stopped amazed .

the owner of_the voice came running up the piebald path towards him .

he stepped back into_the pathway ." here I_am," he_said .

" why did you not come when I called you ? " said the blind man ." must you be led like a child ? Cannot you hear the path as_you walk ? "

Nunez laughed ." I_can_see it," he_said .

" there_is no such word as see_," said the blind man, after a pause ." cease this folly, and follow the sound of_my feet ."

Nunez followed, a little annoyed .

" my_time will come," he_said .

" you'll learn," the blind man answered ." there_is much to learn in_the_world

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