the jacket (the star-rover)-第59节

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it；　it　popped　right　out　of　my　brain　to　the　tip　of　my　tongue。

'Stacy；'　I　said　right　out　loud。　　'Joseph　Stacy。'　　That　was　it。　　Get

my　drive？



〃You　only　tell　me　about　them　scars　what　thousands　of　men　know。　　I

don't　know　how　you　got　the　information；　I　guess　you　don't　know

yourself。　　That　ain't　my　lookout。　　But　there　she　is。　　Telling　me

what　many　knows　buys　nothing　with　me。　　You　got　to　deliver　a　whole

lot　more　than　that　to　make　me　swallow　the　rest　of　your　whoppers。〃



Hamilton's　Law　of　Parsimony　in　the　weighing　of　evidence！　　So

intrinsically　was　this　slum…bred　convict　a　scientist；　that　he　had

worked　out　Hamilton's　law　and　rigidly　applied　it。



And　yetand　the　incident　is　deliciousJake　Oppenheimer　was

intellectually　honest。　　That　night；　as　I　was　dozing　off；　he　called

me　with　the　customary　signal。



〃Say；　Professor；　you　said　you　saw　me　wiggling　my　loose　tooth。　　That

has　got　my　goat。　　That　is　the　one　thing　I　can't　figure　out　any　way

you　could　know。　　It　only　went　loose　three　days　ago；　and　I　ain't

whispered　it　to　a　soul。〃







CHAPTER　XXI







Pascal　somewhere　says：　　〃In　viewing　the　march　of　human　evolution；

the　philosophic　mind　should　look　upon　humanity　as　one　man；　and　not

as　a　conglomeration　of　individuals。〃



I　sit　here　in　Murderers'　Row　in　Folsom；　the　drowsy　hum　of　flies　in

my　ears　as　I　ponder　that　thought　of　Pascal。　　It　is　true。　　Just　as

the　human　embryo；　in　its　brief　ten　lunar　months；　with　bewildering

swiftness；　in　myriad　forms　and　semblances　a　myriad　times　multiplied；

rehearses　the　entire　history　of　organic　life　from　vegetable　to　man；

just　as　the　human　boy；　in　his　brief　years　of　boyhood；　rehearses　the

history　of　primitive　man　in　acts　of　cruelty　and　savagery；　from

wantonness　of　inflicting　pain　on　lesser　creatures　to　tribal

consciousness　expressed　by　the　desire　to　run　in　gangs；　just　so；　I；

Darrell　Standing；　have　rehearsed　and　relived　all　that　primitive　man

was；　and　did；　and　became　until　he　became　even　you　and　me　and　the

rest　of　our　kind　in　a　twentieth　century　civilization。



Truly　do　we　carry　in　us；　each　human　of　us　alive　on　the　planet　to…

day；　the　incorruptible　history　of　life　from　life's　beginning。　　This

history　is　written　in　our　tissues　and　our　bones；　in　our　functions

and　our　organs；　in　our　brain　cells　and　in　our　spirits；　and　in　all

sorts　of　physical　and　psychic　atavistic　urgencies　and　compulsions。

Once　we　were　fish…like；　you　and　I；　my　reader；　and　crawled　up　out　of

the　sea　to　pioneer　in　the　great；　dry…land　adventure　in　the　thick　of

which　we　are　now。　　The　marks　of　the　sea　are　still　on　us；　as　the

marks　of　the　serpent　are　still　on　us；　ere　the　serpent　became　serpent

and　we　became　we；　when　pre…serpent　and　pre…we　were　one。　　Once　we

flew　in　the　air；　and　once　we　dwelt　arboreally　and　were　afraid　of　the

dark。　　The　vestiges　remain；　graven　on　you　and　me；　and　graven　on　our

seed　to　come　after　us　to　the　end　of　our　time　on　earth。



What　Pascal　glimpsed　with　the　vision　of　a　seer；　I　have　lived。　　I

have　seen　myself　that　one　man　contemplated　by　Pascal's　philosophic

eye。　　Oh；　I　have　a　tale；　most　true；　most　wonderful；　most　real　to　me；

although　I　doubt　that　I　have　wit　to　tell　it；　and　that　you；　my

reader；　have　wit　to　perceive　it　when　told。　　I　say　that　I　have　seen

myself　that　one　man　hinted　at　by　Pascal。　　I　have　lain　in　the　long

trances　of　the　jacket　and　glimpsed　myself　a　thousand　living　men

living　the　thousand　lives　that　are　themselves　the　history　of　the

human　man　climbing　upward　through　the　ages。



Ah；　what　royal　memories　are　mine；　as　I　flutter　through　the　aeons　of

the　long　ago。　　In　single　jacket　trances　I　have　lived　the　many　lives

involved　in　the　thousand…years…long　Odysseys　of　the　early　drifts　of

men。　　Heavens；　before　I　was　of　the　flaxen…haired　Aesir；　who　dwelt　in

Asgard；　and　before　I　was　of　the　red…haired　Vanir；　who　dwelt　in

Vanaheim；　long　before　those　times　I　have　memories　（living　memories）

of　earlier　drifts；　when；　like　thistledown　before　the　breeze；　we

drifted　south　before　the　face　of　the　descending　polar　ice…cap。



I　have　died　of　frost　and　famine；　fight　and　flood。　　I　have　picked

berries　on　the　bleak　backbone　of　the　world；　and　I　have　dug　roots　to

eat　from　the　fat…soiled　fens　and　meadows。　　I　have　scratched　the

reindeer's　semblance　and　the　semblance　of　the　hairy　mammoth　on　ivory

tusks　gotten　of　the　chase　and　on　the　rock　walls　of　cave　shelters

when　the　winter　storms　moaned　outside。　　I　have　cracked　marrow…bones

on　the　sites　of　kingly　cities　that　had　perished　centuries　before　my

time　or　that　were　destined　to　be　builded　centuries　after　my　passing。

And　I　have　left　the　bones　of　my　transient　carcasses　in　pond　bottoms；

and　glacial　gravels；　and　asphaltum　lakes。



I　have　lived　through　the　ages　known　to…day　among　the　scientists　as

the　Paleolithic；　the　Neolithic；　and　the　Bronze。　　I　remember　when

with　our　domesticated　wolves　we　herded　our　reindeer　to　pasture　on

the　north　shore　of　the　Mediterranean　where　now　are　France　and　Italy

and　Spain。　　This　was　before　the　ice…sheet　melted　backward　toward　the

pole。　　Many　processions　of　the　equinoxes　have　I　lived　through　and

died　in；　my　reader　。　。　。　only　that　I　remember　and　that　you　do　not。



I　have　been　a　Son　of　the　Plough；　a　Son　of　the　Fish；　a　Son　of　the

Tree。　　All　religions　from　the　beginnings　of　man's　religious　time

abide　in　me。　　And　when　the　Dominie；　in　the　chapel；　here　in　Folsom　of

a　Sunday；　worships　God　in　his　own　good　modern　way；　I　know　that　in

him；　the　Dominie；　still　abide　the　worships　of　the　Plough；　the　Fish；

the　Treeay；　and　also　all　worships　of　Astarte　and　the　Night。



I　have　been　an　Aryan　master　in　old　Egypt；　when　my　soldiers　scrawled

obscenities　on　the　carven　tombs　of　kings　dead　and　gone　and　forgotten

aforetime。　　And　I；　the　Aryan　master　in　old　Egypt；　have　myself

builded　my　two　burial　placesthe　one　a　false　and　mighty　pyramid　to

which　a　generation　of　slaves　could　attest；　the　other　humble；　meagre；

secret；　rock…hewn　in　a　desert　valley　by　slaves　who　died　immediately

their　work　was　done。　。　。　。　And　I　wonder　me　here　in　Folsom；　while

democracy　dreams　its　enchantments　o'er　the　twentieth　century　world；

whether　there；　in　the　rock…hewn　crypt　of　that　secret；　desert　valley；

the　bones　still　abide　that　once　were　mine　and　that　stiffened　my

animated　body　when　I　was　an　Aryan　master　high…stomached　to　command。



And　on　the　great　drift；　southward　and　eastward　under　the　burning　sun

that　perished　all　descendants　of　the　houses　of　Asgard　and　Vanaheim；

I　have　been　a　king　in　Ceylon；　a　builder　of　Aryan　monuments　under

Aryan　kings　in　old　Java　and　old　Sumatra。　　And　I　have　died　a　hundred

deaths　on　the　great　South　Sea　drift　ere　ever　the　rebirth　of　me　came

to　plant　monuments；　that　only　Aryans　plant；　on　volcanic　tropic

islands　that　I；　Darrell　Standing；　cannot　name；　being　too　little

versed　to…day　in　that　far　sea　geography。



If　only　I　were　articulate　to　paint　in　the　frail　medium　of　words　what

I　see　and　know　and　possess　incorporated　in　my　consciousness　of　the

mighty　driftage　of　the　races　in　the　times　before　our　present　written

history　began！　　Yes；　we　had　our　history　even　then。　　Our　old　men；　our

priests；　our　wise　ones；　told　our　history　into　tales　and　wrote　those

tales　in　the　stars　so　that　our　seed　after　us　should　not　forget。

From　the　sky　came　the　life…giving　rain　and　the　sunlight。　　And　we

studied　the　sky；　learned　from　the　stars　to　calculate　time　and

apportion　the　seasons；　and　we　named　the　stars　after　our　heroes　and

our　foods　and　our　devices　for　getting　food；　and　after　our

wanderings；　and　drifts；　and　adventures；　and　after　our　functions　and

our　furies　of　impulse　and　desire。



And；　alas！　we　thought　the　heavens　unchanging　on　which　we　wrote　all

our　humble　yearnings　and　all　the　humble　things　we　did　or　dreamed　of

doing。　　When　I　was　a　Son　of　the　Bull；　I　remember　me　a　lifetime　I

spent　at　star…gazing。　　And；　later　and　earlier；　there　were　other

lives　in　which　I　sang　with　the　priests　and　bards　the　taboo…songs　of

the　stars　wherein　we　believed　was　written　our　imperishable　record。

And　here；　at　the　end　of　it　all；　I　pore　over　books　of　astronomy　from


the　prison　library；　such　as　they　allow　condemned　men　to　read；　and

learn　that　even　the　heavens　are　passing　fluxes；　vexed　with　star…

driftage　as　the　earth　is　by　the　drifts　of　men。



Equipped　with　this　modern　knowledge；　I　have；　returning　through　the

little　death　from　my　earlier　lives；　been　able　to　compare　the　heavens

then　and　now。　　And　the　stars　do　change。　　I　have　seen　pole　stars　and

pole　stars　and　dynasties　of　pole　stars。　　The　pole　star　to…day　is　in

Ursa　Minor。　　Yet；　in　those　far　days　I　have　seen　the　pole　star　in

Draco；　in　Hercules；　in　Vega；　in　Cygnus；　and　in　Cepheus。　　No；　not

even　the　stars　abide；　and　yet　the　memory　and　the　knowledge　of　them

abides　in　me；　in　the　spirit　of　me　that　is　memory　and　that　is

eternal。　　Only　spirit　abides。　　All　else；　being　mere　matter；　passes；

and　must　pass。



Oh；　I　do　see　myself　to…day　that　one　man　who　appeared　in　the　elder

world；　blonde；　ferocious；　a