"If only snow had remained ! "

"It's clean gone ! We're driving from arctic to tropical rate of degree minute . . "

I gnawed my hand

"The sphere ! " " nothing but the sphere "

We roused ourselves to another spurt of crawling My mind ran entirely on edible things, hissing profundity of summer drinks, more particularly I craved for beer haunted memory of sixteen gallon cask that had swaggered in my Lympne cellar adjacent larder, and especially of steak and kidney pie - tender steak and plenty of kidney, and rich, thick gravy between Ever and again seized with fits of hungry yawning We came to flat places overgrown with fleshy red things, monstrous coralline growths; pushed against them they snapped and broke I noted the quality broken surfaces The confounded stuff certainly looked of biteable texture Then it seemed smelt rather well

I picked up fragment and sniffed at it

"Cavor," in hoarse undertone

He glanced at me face screwed up "Don't,"

I put down the fragment, and we crawled on tempting fleshiness for space

"Cavor," I asked, " ? "

"Poison," I heard him say, but look round

We crawled some way before I decided

"I'll chance it," said I

belated gesture me I stuffed my mouth full He crouched watching my face, his own twisted oddest expression "It's good,"

"O Lord ! " he cried

He watched me munch, his face wrinkled between desire and disapproval, then suddenly succumbed to appetite and began to tear off huge mouthfuls For time nothing but eat

The stuff was not unlike terrestrial mushroom, only much laxer in texture, and, as one swallowed it, it warmed the throat At first we experienced mere mechanical satisfaction in eating; then our blood began to run warmer, and we tingled lips and fingers, and then new and slightly irrelevant ideas came bubbling up minds

"Its good," said I "Infernally good ! What home surplus population ! Our poor surplus population," and I broke off another large portion It filled me with curiously benevolent satisfaction that such good food moon The depression hunger gave way to an irrational exhilaration The dread and discomfort I living vanished entirely I perceived the moon no longer as planet I most earnestly desired the means of escape, but as possible refuge from human destitution I forgot the Selenites, the mooncalves, the lid, noises completely so soon as I had eaten that fungus

Cavor replied to my third repetition "surplus population" remark with similar words of approval that my head swam, but I put this down stimulating effect cf food after long fast " Ess'lent discov'ry yours, Cavor,' said I "Se'nd on'y 'tato "

"Whajer mean ? " asked Cavor "'Scovery moon - se'nd on'y 'tato ? "

I looked at him, shocked at his suddenly hoarse voice, and badness articulation It occurred in flash that intoxicated, possibly fungus It also occurred that he erred in imaging that he had discovered the moon; he discovered it, he had only reached it I tried to lay my hand arm and explain this to him, but the issue was too subtle brain also unexpectedly difficult to express After momentary attempt to understand me - I remember wondering fungus had made my eyes as fishy as his - he set off upon some observations own account

" ," he announced with solemn hiccup, "the creashurs o' Mat we eat and drink "

He repeated this, and as now in one subtle moods, I determined to dispute it Possibly I wandered little point But Cavor certainly attend at all properly He stood up as , putting hand on my head to steady I himself, disrespectful, and stood staring about him, quite devoid now of any fear moon beings

I tried to point out was dangerous for some reason that was not perfectly clear , but the word "dangerous" had somehow got mixed with "indiscreet," and came out rather more like "injurious" than either; and after an attempt to disentangle them, I resumed my argument, addressing myself principally unfamiliar but attentive coralline growths on either side necessary to clear up this confusion moon and potato at once - I wandered into long parenthesis importance of precision of definition in argument my best to ignore the fact that my bodily sensations were no longer agreeable

In some way that now forgotten, my mind was led back to projects of colonisation " annex this moon," " no shilly-shally part White Man's Burthen Cavor - - hic - Satap - mean Satraps ! Nempire Ceasar never dreamt B'in all the newspapers Cavorecia Bedfordecia Bedfordecia - hic - Limited Mean - unlimited ! Practically "

Certainly intoxicated

I embarked upon an argument to show the infinite benefits our arrival would confer moon I involved myself in rather difficult proof arrival of Columbus was, whole, beneficial to America I had forgotten the line of argument I had intended to pursue, and continued to repeat "Simlar to C'lumbus," up time

joint my memory action abominable fungus becomes confused I remember vaguely that we declared our intention of standing no nonsense from any confounded insects, that we decided it ill became men to hide shamefully upon mere satellite, that we equipped ourselves with huge armfuls fungus - whether for missile purposes or not know - and, heedless stabs bayonet scrub, we started forth sunshine

Almost immediately come Selenites There were six , were marching in single file over rocky place, making the most remarkable piping and whining sounds They all seemed aware of us at once, all instantly became silent and motionless, like animals, with their faces turned towards us

For moment sobered

"Insects," murmured Cavor, "insects ! And I'm going to crawl about on my stomach - on my vertebrated stomach ! "

"Stomach," he repeated slowly, he chewed the indignity

Then suddenly, with shout of fury, three vast strides and leapt towards them He leapt badly; series of somersaults air, whirled right over them, and vanished with an enormous splash amidst the cactus bladders What the Selenites made amazing, and to my mind undignified irruption from another planet, no means of guessing I seem to remember the sight backs ran in all directions, but not sure All these last incidents before oblivion came are vague and faint in my mind step Cavor, and tripped and fell headlong rocks , certain, suddenly and vehemently ill I seem to remember, violent struggle and being gripped by metallic clasps . .

My next clear recollection we were prisoners at not what depths beneath the moon's surface; we were in darkness amidst strange distracting noises; our bodies were covered with scratches and bruises, heads racked with pain

Chapter 12

The Selenite's Face

myself sitting crouched together in tumultuous darkness understand where , nor how I had come perplexity cupboard into which I thrust at times when child, and then of very dark and noisy bedroom I had slept during an illness But these sounds about me the noises I had known, and thin flavour air like the wind of stable Then I supposed still be at work sphere, somehow I had got cellar of Cavor's house I remembered we had finished the sphere, and fancied still be and travelling through space

"Cavor," , "cannot some light ? "

There came no answer

"Cavor ! " I insisted

answered by groan "My head ! " I heard him say; "my head ! "

I attempted to press my hands to my brow, which ached, and discovered they were tied together This startled me I brought them my mouth and felt the cold smoothness of metal They were chained together I tried to separate my legs and made out they were similarly fastened, and also that fastened ground by much thicker chain middle body

more frightened that I had yet been by anything in all our strange experiences For time I tugged silently at my bonds " Cavor ! " I cried out sharply "Why am I tied ? Why tied me hand and foot ? "

"I haven't tied you," he answered "It's the Selenites "