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第24节

before adam-第24节

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wife did not win this shelter。  An arrow brought her to

the ground。  She was severely hurt; for she made no

effort to get away。  She crouched in a sheltering way

over her baby (which clung tightly to her); and made

pleading signs and sounds to the Fire…Men。  They

gathered about her and laughed at hereven as Lop…Ear

and I had laughed at the old Tree…Man。  And even as we

had poked him with twigs and sticks; so did the

Fire…Men with Red…Eye's wife。  They poked her with the

ends of their bows; and prodded her in the ribs。  But

she was poor fun。  She would not fight。  Nor; for that

matter; would she get angry。  She continued to crouch

over her baby and to plead。  One of the Fire…Men

stepped close to her。  In his hand was a club。  She saw

and understood; but she made only the pleading sounds

until the blow fell。



Red…Eye; in the hollow of the trunk; was safe from

their arrows。 They stood together and debated for a

while; then one of them climbed into the tree。  What

happened up there I could not tell; but I heard him

yell and saw the excitement of those that remained

beneath。  After several minutes his body crashed down

to the ground。  He did not move。  They looked at him

and raised his head; but it fell back limply when they

let go。  Red…Eye had accounted for himself。



They were very angry。  There was an opening into the

trunk close to the ground。  They gathered wood and

grass and built a fire。 The Swift One and I; our arms

around each other; waited and watched in the thicket。

Sometimes they threw upon the fire green branches with

many leaves; whereupon the smoke became very thick。



We saw them suddenly swerve back from the tree。  They

were not quick enough。  Red…Eye's flying body landed in

the midst of them。



He was in a frightful rage; smashing about with his

long arms right and left。  He pulled the face off one

of them; literally pulled it off with those gnarly

fingers of his and those tremendous muscles。  He bit

another through the neck。  The Fire…Men fell back with

wild fierce yells; then rushed upon him。  He managed to

get hold of a club and began crushing heads like

eggshells。  He was too much for them; and they were

compelled to fall back again。  This was his chance; and

he turned his back upon them and ran for it; still

howling wrathfully。  A few arrows sped after him; but

he plunged into a thicket and was gone。



The Swift One and I crept quietly away; only to run

foul of another party of Fire…Men。  They chased us into

the blueberry swamp; but we knew the tree…paths across

the farther morasses where they could not follow on the

ground; and so we escaped。  We came out on the other

side into a narrow strip of forest that separated the

blueberry swamp from the great swamp that extended

westward。  Here we met Lop…Ear。  How he had escaped I

cannot imagine; unless he had not slept the preceding

night at the caves。



Here; in the strip of forest; we might have built

tree…shelters and settled down; but the Fire People

were performing their work of extermination thoroughly。

In the afternoon; Hair…Face and his wife fled out from

among the trees to the east; passed us; and were gone。

They fled silently and swiftly; with alarm in their

faces。  In the direction from which they had come we

heard the cries and yells of the hunters; and the

screeching of some one of the Folk。  The Fire People

had found their way across the swamp。



The Swift One; Lop…Ear; and I followed on the heels of

Hair…Face and his wife。  When we came to the edge of

the great swamp; we stopped。  We did not know its

paths。  It was outside our territory; and it had been

always avoided by the Folk。  None had ever gone into

itat least; to return。  In our minds it represented

mystery and fear; the terrible unknown。  As I say; we

stopped at the edge of it。  We were afraid。  The cries

of the Fire…Men were drawing nearer。  We looked at one

another。  Hair…Face ran out on the quaking morass and

gained the firmer footing of a grass…hummock a dozen

yards away。  His wife did not follow。 She tried to; but

shrank back from the treacherous surface and cowered

down。



The Swift One did not wait for me; nor did she pause

till she had passed beyond Hair…Face a hundred yards

and gained a much larger hummock。  By the time Lop…Ear

and I had caught up with her; the Fire…Men appeared

among the trees。  Hair…Face's wife; driven by them into

panic terror; dashed after us。  But she ran blindly;

without caution; and broke through the crust。  We

turned and watched; and saw them shoot her with arrows

as she sank down in the mud。  The arrows began falling

about us。  Hair…Face had now joined us; and the four of

us plunged on; we knew not whither; deeper and deeper

into the swamp。







CHAPTER XVIII





Of our wanderings in the great swamp I have no clear

knowledge。 When I strive to remember; I have a riot of

unrelated impressions and a loss of time…value。  I have

no idea of how long we were in that vast everglade; but

it must have been for weeks。  My memories of what

occurred invariably take the form of nightmare。  For

untold ages; oppressed by protean fear; I am aware of

wandering; endlessly wandering; through a dank and

soggy wilderness; where poisonous snakes struck at us;

and animals roared around us; and the mud quaked under

us and sucked at our heels。



I know that we were turned from our course countless

times by streams and lakes and slimy seas。  Then there

were storms and risings of the water over great areas

of the low…lying lands; and there were periods of

hunger and misery when we were kept prisoners in the

trees for days and days by these transient floods。



Very strong upon me is one picture。  Large trees are

about us; and from their branches hang gray filaments

of moss; while great creepers; like monstrous serpents;

curl around the trunks and writhe in tangles through

the air。  And all about is the mud; soft mud; that

bubbles forth gases; and that heaves and sighs with

internal agitations。  And in the midst of all this are

a dozen of us。  We are lean and wretched; and our bones

show through our tight…stretched skins。  We do not sing

and chatter and laugh。  We play no pranks。  For once

our volatile and exuberant spirits are hopelessly

subdued。  We make plaintive; querulous noises; look at

one another; and cluster close together。  It is like

the meeting of the handful of survivors after the day

of the end of the world。



This event is without connection with the other events

in the swamp。  How we ever managed to cross it; I do

not know; but at last we came out where a low range of

hills ran down to the bank of the river。  It was our

river emerging like ourselves from the great swamp。  On

the south bank; where the river had broken its way

through the hills; we found many sand…stone caves。

Beyond; toward the west; the ocean boomed on the bar

that lay across the river's mouth。  And here; in the

caves; we settled down in our abiding…place by the sea。



There were not many of us。  From time to time; as the

days went by; more of the Folk appeared。  They dragged

themselves from the swamp singly; and in twos and

threes; more dead than alive; mere perambulating

skeletons; until at last there were thirty of us。 Then

no more came from the swamp; and Red…Eye was not among

us。 It was noticeable that no children had survived the

frightful journey。



I shall not tell in detail of the years we lived by the

sea。  It was not a happy abiding…place。  The air was

raw and chill; and we suffered continually from

coughing and colds。  We could not survive in such an

environment。  True; we had children; but they had

little hold on life and died early; while we died

faster than new ones were born。  Our number steadily

diminished。



Then the radical change in our diet was not good for

us。  We got few vegetables and fruits; and became

fish…eaters。  There were mussels and abalones and clams

and rock…oysters; and great ocean…crabs that were

thrown upon the beaches in stormy weather。  Also; we

found several kinds of seaweed that were good to eat。

But the change in diet caused us stomach troubles; and

none of us ever waxed fat。  We were all lean and

dyspeptic…looking。  It was in getting the big abalones

that Lop…Ear was lost。  One of them closed upon his

fingers at low…tide; and then the flood…tide came in

and drowned him。  We found his body the next day; and

it was a lesson to us。 Not another one of us was ever

caught in the closing shell of an abalone。



The Swift One and I managed to bring up one child; a

boyat least we managed to bring him along for several

years。  But I am quite confident he could never have

survived that terrible climate。  And then; one day; the

Fire People appeared again。  They had come down the

river; not on a catamaran; but in a rude dug…out。

There were t

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