The First Men in the Moon by H.G. Wells
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use for_the moon . what good would the moon be to men ? even of_their own planet what have they made but a battle- ground and theatre of infinite folly ? small as his world is, and short as his time, he has still in_his little life down there far more than he_can do . no ! science has toiled too long forging weapons for fools to use . it_is time she held her hand . let him find it out for himself again - in a thousand years' time ."

" there_are methods of secrecy," I_said .

he looked up at me and smiled ." after all," he_said, " why should one worry ? there_is little chance of_our finding the sphere, and down below things are brewing . it's simply the human habit of hoping till we die that makes us think of return . our troubles are only beginning . we_have shown these moon folk violence, we_have given them a taste of_our quality, and_our chances are about as good as a tiger's that has got loose and killed a man in Hyde park . the news of us must_be running down from gallery to gallery, down towards the central parts .. .. no sane beings will ever let_us take that sphere back to earth after so_much as_they_have seen of us ."

" we aren't improving our chances," said I, " by sitting here ."

we stood up side by side .

" after all," he_said, we_must separate . we_must stick up a handkerchief on_these tall spikes here and fasten it firmly, and from_this as acentre we_must work over the crater . you_must go westward, moving out in semicircles to and fro towards the setting sun . you_must move first with your shadow on_your right until it_is at right angles with_the direction of your handkerchief, and then with your shadow on_your left . and_I_will do_the same to_the east . we_will look into every gully, examine every skerry of rocks; we_will do all we_can to_find my sphere . if_we see the Selenites we_will hide from_them as_well as_we_can . for drink we_must take snow, and if we_feel the need of food, we_must kill amooncalf if_we_can, and eat such flesh as it has - raw - and so each will go his own way ."

" and if one of us comes upon_the sphere ? "

" he_must come back to_the white handkerchief, and stand by_it and signal to_the other ."

" and if neither ? "

Cavor glanced up at_the sun ." we go on seeking until the night and cold overtake us ."

" suppose the Selenites have found the sphere and hidden it ? "

he shrugged his shoulders .

" or if presently they_come hunting us ? "

he_made no answer .

" you had better take a club," I_said .

he shook his head, and stared away from me across the waste .

but for a moment he_did_not start . he looked round at me shyly, hesitated ."Au revoir," he_said .

I_felt an odd stab of emotion .a sense of how we had galled each_other, and particularly how I_must_have galled him, came to_me ." confound it," thought I, " we_might_have done better ! " i_was on_the point of asking him to shake hands - for_that, somehow, was how I_felt just then - when he put his feet together and leapt away from me towards the north . he_seemed to drift through_the air as a dead leaf would do, fell lightly, and leapt again .I stood for a moment watching him, then faced westward reluctantly, pulled myself together, and with something of_the feeling of a man who leaps into icy water, selected aleaping point, and plunged forward to explore my solitary half of_the moon world .I dropped rather clumsily among rocks, stood up and looked about me, clambered on to a rocky slab, and leapt again .. ..

when presently I looked for Cavor he_was hidden from my eyes, but the handkerchief showed out bravely on its headland, white in_the blaze of_the sun .

I determined not to lose sight of_that handkerchief whatever might betide .

chapter 19

Mr Bedford alone

in a little while it seemed to_me as_though I had always been alone on_the moon .I hunted for a time with a certain intentness, but the heat was still very great, and_the thinness of_the air felt like a hoop about one's chest . I_came presently into a hollow basin bristling with tall, brown, dry fronds about its edge, and I sat down under these to rest and cool .I intended to rest for only a little while .I put down my clubs beside me, and sat resting my chin on my hands . I_saw with a sort of colourless interest that_the rocks of_the basin, where here and there the crackling dry lichens had shrunk away to show them, were all veined and splattered with gold, that here and there bosses of rounded and wrinkled gold projected from among_the litter . what did that matter now ? a sort of languor had possession of_my limbs and mind, I_did_not belive for a moment that we_should ever find the sphere in_that vast desiccated wilderness .I seemed to lack a motive for effort until the Selenites should come . then I supposed i_should exert myself, obeying that unreasonable imperative that urges a man before all things to preserve and defend his life, albeit he_may preserve it only to die more painfully in a little while .

why had we come to_the moon ?

the thing presented itself to_me as aperplexing problem . what_is this spirit in man that urges him for ever to depart from happiness and security, to toil, to_place himself in danger, to risk even a reasonable certainty of death ? it dawned upon me up there in_the moon as a thing I ought always to_have known, that man is_not made simply to_go about being safe and comfortable and well fed and amused . almost any man, if_you put the thing to him, not in words, but in_the shape of opportunities, will show that he knob as_much . against his interest, against his happiness, he_is constantly being driven to_do unreasonable things . some force not himself impels him, and go he_must . but why ? why ? Sitting there in_the midst of_that useless moon gold, amidst the things of another world, i_took count of all my life .Assuming i_was to die acastaway upon_the moon, I failed altogether to_see what purpose I had served .I got no light on_that point, but at any rate it_was clearer to_me than it had ever been in my life before_that i_was not serving my own purpose, that all my life I had in truth never served the purposes of_my private life . whose purposes, what purposes, was I serving ? .. .I ceased to speculate on why we had come to_the moon, and took a wider sweep . why had I come to_the earth ? why had I a private life at all ? .. .I lost myself at last in bottomless speculations .. ..

my thoughts became vague and cloudy, no longer leading in definite directions .I had_not felt heavy or weary - I_cannot imagine one doing_so upon_the moon - but I suppose i_was greatly fatigued . at any rate I slept .

Slumbering there rested me greatly, i_think, and_the sun was setting and_the violence of_the heat abating, through all the time I slumbered . when at last i_was roused from my slumbers by a remote clamour, I_felt active and capable again .I rubbed my eyes and stretched my arms .I rose to my feet - i_was a little stiff - and at once prepared to resume my search .I shouldered my golden clubs, one on each shoulder, and went on out_of_the ravine of_the gold- veined rocks .

the sun was certainly lower, much lower than it had_been; the air was very_much cooler .I perceived I_must_have slept some_time . it seemed to_me that a faint touch of misty blueness hung about_the western cliff I leapt to a little boss of rock and surveyed the crater .I could_see no signs of mooncalves or Selenites, nor could I_see Cavor, but I could_see my handkerchief far off, spread out on its thicket of thorns .I looked bout me, and then leapt forward to_the next convenient view- point .

I beat my round in a semicircle, and back again in a still remoter crescent . it_was very fatiguing and hopeless . the air was really very_much cooler, and it seemed to_me that_the shadow under the westward cliff was growing broad . ever and again I stopped and reconnoitred, but there_was no sign of Cavor, no sign of Selenites; and it seemed to_me the mooncalves must_have been driven into_the interior again - I could_see none_of_them .I became more and more desirous of being Cavor . the winged outline of_the sun had sunk now, until it_was scarcely the distance of_its diameter from_the rim of_the sky . i_was oppressed by_the idea that_the Selenites would presently close their lids and valves, and shut us out under the inexorable onrush of_the lunar night . it seemed to_me high time that he abandoned his search, and_that we took counsel together . I_felt how urgent it was_that we_should decide soon upon our course . we had failed to_find the sphere, we no longer had time to seek it, and once these valves were closed with_us outside, we were lost men . the great night of space would descend upon us - that blackness of_the void which_is the only absolute death . all my being shrank from_that approach . we_must get into_the moon again, though we were slain in doing it . i_was haunted by a vision of_our freezing to death, of_our hammering with_our last strength on_the valve of_the great pit .

i_took no thought any more of_the sphere . i_thought only of finding Cavor again i_was half inclined to_go back into_the moon without him, rather than seek him until it_was too late . i_was already half- way back towards our handkerchief, when suddenly -

I_saw the sphere !

I_did_not find it so_much as it found me . it_was lying much farther to_the westward than I had gone, and_the sloping rays of_the sinking sun reflected from its glass had suddenly proclaimed its presence in adazzling beam . for an instant i_thought this_was some new device of_the Selenites against us, and then I understood .

I threw up my arms, shouted a ghostly shout, and set off in vast leaps towards it .I missed one of_my leaps and dropped into a deep ravine and twisted my ankle, and after_that I stumbled at almost every leap . i_was in a state of hysterical agitation, trembling violently, and quite breathless long before I got to_it . three times at_least I had to stop with my hands resting on my side and spite of_the thin dryness of_the air, the perspiration was wet upon my face .

i_thought of nothing but the sphere until I reached it, I forgot even my trouble of Cavor's whereabouts . my last leap flung me with my hands hard against its glass; then I lay against it panting, and trying vainly to shout, "Cavor ! here_is_the sphere ! " when I had recovered a little I peered through_the thick glass, and_the things inside seemed tumbled .I stooped to peer closer . then I attempted to_get in .I had to hoist it over a little to_get my head through_the manhole . the screw stopper was inside, and I could_see now that nothing had_been touched, nothing had suffered . it lay there as_we had left it when we had dropped out amidst the snow . for a time i_was wholly occupied in making and remaking this inventory . I_found i_was trembling violently . it_was good to_see that familiar dark interior again ! I_cannot tell you how good . presently I crept inside and sat down among_the things .I looked through_the glass at_the moon world and shivered .I placed my gold clubs upon_the table, and sought out and took a little food; not so_much because i_wanted it, but because it_was there . then it occurred to_me that_it_was time to_go out and signal for Cavor . but I_did_not go out and signal for Cavor forthwith . something held me to_the sphere .

after all, everything was coming right . there would_be still time for_us to_get more of_the magic stone that gives one mastery over men . away there, close handy, was gold for_the picking up; and_the sphere would travel as_well half full of gold as_though it were empty . we_could go back now, masters of ourselves and_our world, and then -

I roused myself at last, and with an effort got myself out_of_the sphere .I shivered as I emerged, for_the evening air was growing very cold .I stood in_the hollow staring about me .I scrutinised the bushes round me very carefully before I leapt to_the rocky shelf hard by, and took once more what had_been my first leap in_the moon . but now I_made it with no effort whatever .

the growth and decay of_the vegetation had gone on apace, and_the whole aspect of_the rocks had changed, but still it_was possible to_make out the slope on_which the seeds had germinated, and_the rocky mass from_which we had taken our first view of_the crater . but the spiky shrub on_the slope stood brown and sere now, and thirty feet high, and cast long shadows that stretched out of sight, and_the little seeds that clustered in its upper branches were brown and ripe .

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