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第19节

before adam-第19节

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mates。



As was to be expected; with the doing away of one wife

Red…Eye proceeded to get another。  He decided upon the

Singing One。  She was the granddaughter of old

Marrow…Bone; and the daughter of the Hairless One。  She

was a young thing; greatly given to singing at the

mouth of her cave in the twilight; and she had but

recently mated with Crooked…Leg。  He was a quiet

individual; molesting no one and not given to bickering

with his fellows。  He was no fighter anyway。  He was

small and lean; and not so active on his legs as the

rest of us。



Red…Eye never committed a more outrageous deed。  It was

in the quiet at the end of the day; when we began to

congregate in the open space before climbing into our

caves。  Suddenly the Singing One dashed up a run…way

from a drinking…place; pursued by Red…Eye。 She ran to

her husband。  Poor little Crooked…Leg was terribly

scared。  But he was a hero。  He knew that death was

upon him; yet he did not run away。  He stood up; and

chattered; bristled; and showed his teeth。



Red…Eye roared with rage。  It was an offence to him

that any of the Folk should dare to withstand him。  His

hand shot out and clutched Crooked…Leg by the neck。

The latter sank his teeth into Red…Eye's arm; but the

next moment; with a broken neck; Crooked…Leg was

floundering and squirming on the ground。  The Singing

One screeched and gibbered。  Red…Eye seized her by the

hair of her head and dragged her toward his cave。  He

handled her roughly when the climb began; and he

dragged and hauled her up into the cave。



We were very angry; insanely; vociferously angry。

Beating our chests; bristling; and gnashing our teeth;

we gathered together in our rage。  We felt the prod of

gregarious instinct; the drawing together as though for

united action; the impulse toward cooperation。  In dim

ways this need for united action was impressed upon us。

But there was no way to achieve it because there was no

way to express it。  We did not turn to; all of us; and

destroy Red…Eye; because we lacked a vocabulary。  We

were vaguely thinking thoughts for which there were no

thought…symbols。 These thought…symbols were yet to be

slowly and painfully invented。



We tried to freight sound with the vague thoughts that

flitted like shadows through our consciousness。  The

Hairless One began to chatter loudly。  By his noises he

expressed anger against Red…Eye and desire to hurt

Red…Eye。  Thus far he got; and thus far we understood。

But when he tried to express the cooperative impulse

that stirred within him; his noises became gibberish。

Then Big…Face; with brow…bristling and chest…pounding;

began to chatter。 One after another of us joined in the

orgy of rage; until even old Marrow…Bone was mumbling

and spluttering with his cracked voice and withered

lips。  Some one seized a stick and began pounding a

log。  In a moment he had struck a rhythm。

Unconsciously; our yells and exclamations yielded to

this rhythm。  It had a soothing effect upon us; and

before we knew it; our rage forgotten; we were in the

full swing of a hee…hee council。



These hee…hee councils splendidly illustrate the

inconsecutiveness and inconsequentiality of the Folk。

Here were we; drawn together by mutual rage and the

impulse toward cooperation; led off into forgetfulness

by the establishment of a rude rhythm。  We were

sociable and gregarious; and these singing and laughing

councils satisfied us。  In ways the hee…hee council was

an adumbration of the councils of primitive man; and of

the great national assemblies and international

conventions of latter…day man。  But we Folk of the

Younger World lacked speech; and whenever we were so

drawn together we precipitated babel; out of which

arose a unanimity of rhythm that contained within

itself the essentials of art yet to come。  It was art

nascent。



There was nothing long…continued about these rhythms

that we struck。  A rhythm was soon lost; and

pandemonium reigned until we could find the rhythm

again or start a new one。  Sometimes half a dozen

rhythms would be swinging simultaneously; each rhythm

backed by a group that strove ardently to drown out the

other rhythms。



In the intervals of pandemonium; each chattered; cut

up; hooted; screeched; and danced; himself sufficient

unto himself; filled with his own ideas and volitions

to the exclusion of all others; a veritable centre of

the universe; divorced for the time being from any

unanimity with the other universe…centres leaping and

yelling around him。  Then would come the rhythma

clapping of hands; the beating of a stick upon a log;

the example of one that leaped with repetitions; or the

chanting of one that uttered; explosively and

regularly; with inflection that rose and fell; 〃A…bang;

a…bang! A…bang; a…bang!〃 One after another of the

self…centred Folk would yield to it; and soon all would

be dancing or chanting in chorus。 〃Ha…ah; ha…ah;

ha…ah…ha!〃 was one of our favorite choruses; and

another was; 〃Eh…wah; eh…wah; eh…wah…hah!〃



And so; with mad antics; leaping; reeling; and

over…balancing; we danced and sang in the sombre

twilight of the primeval world; inducing forgetfulness;

achieving unanimity; and working ourselves up into

sensuous frenzy。  And so it was that our rage against

Red…Eye was soothed away by art; and we screamed the

wild choruses of the hee…hee council until the night

warned us of its terrors; and we crept away to our

holes in the rocks; calling softly to one another;

while the stars came out and darkness settled down。



We were afraid only of the dark。  We had no germs of

religion; no conceptions of an unseen world。  We knew

only the real world; and the things we feared were the

real things; the concrete dangers; the flesh…and…blood

animals that preyed。  It was they that made us afraid

of the dark; for darkness was the time of the hunting

animals。  It was then that they came out of their lairs

and pounced upon one from the dark wherein they lurked

invisible。



Possibly it was out of this fear of the real denizens

of the dark that the fear of the unreal denizens was

later to develop and to culminate in a whole and mighty

unseen world。  As imagination grew it is likely that

the fear of death increased until the Folk that were to

come projected this fear into the dark and peopled it

with spirits。  I think the Fire People had already

begun to be afraid of the dark in this fashion; but the

reasons we Folk had for breaking up our hee…hee

councils and fleeing to our holes were old Saber…Tooth;

the lions and the jackals; the wild dogs and the

wolves; and all the hungry; meat…eating breeds。







CHAPTER XV





Lop…Ear got married。  It was the second winter after

our adventure…journey; and it was most unexpected。  He

gave me no warning。  The first I knew was one twilight

when I climbed the cliff to our cave。  I squeezed into

the entrance and there I stopped。  There was no room

for me。  Lop…Ear and his mate were in possession; and

she was none other than my sister; the daughter of my

step…father; the Chatterer。



I tried to force my way in。  There was space only for

two; and that space was already occupied。  Also; they

had me at a disadvantage; and; what of the scratching

and hair…pulling I received; I was glad to retreat。  I

slept that night; and for many nights; in the

connecting passage of the double…cave。  From my

experience it seemed reasonably safe。  As the two Folk

had dodged old Saber…Tooth; and as I had dodged

Red…Eye; so it seemed to me that I could dodge the

hunting animals by going back and forth between the two

caves。



I had forgotten the wild dogs。  They were small enough

to go through any passage that I could squeeze through。

One night they nosed me out。  Had they entered both

caves at the same time they would have got me。  As it

was; followed by some of them through the passage; I

dashed out the mouth of the other cave。  Outside were

the rest of the wild dogs。  They sprang for me as I

sprang for the cliff…wall and began to climb。  One of

them; a lean and hungry brute; caught me in mid…leap。

His teeth sank into my thigh…muscles; and he nearly

dragged me back。  He held on; but I made no effort to

dislodge him; devoting my whole effort to climbing out

of reach of the rest of the brutes。



Not until I was safe from them did I turn my attention

to that live agony on my thigh。  And then; a dozen feet

above the snapping pack that leaped and scrambled

against the wall and fell back; I got the dog by the

throat and slowly throttled him。  I was a long time

doing it。  He clawed and ripped my hair and hide with

his hind…paws; and ever he jerked and lunged with his

weight to drag me from the wall。



At last his teeth opened and released my torn flesh。  I

carried his body up the cliff with me; and perched out

the night in the entrance of my old cave

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