第16章

Anothersceneofstupendousandchangingawfulness。Countriesweresinking，citiescrashingdown，volcanoeswerespoutingfire；

theendoftheearthseemedtobeathand。Wecouldseehumanbeingsrunningtoandfrointhousandslikeants。Theninhugewaveshundredsandhundredsoffeethigh，theoceanflowedinandallwastroubled，yeastysea。

"OrocarriesouthisthreattodestroytheNationswhohadrebelledagainsthim，"saidYva。"Muchoftheworldsinksbeneaththewaves，butinplaceofitotherlandsariseabovethewaves，tobeinhabitedbytheseedofthosewhoremainlivinginthoseportionsoftheEarththatthedelugespared。"

Thishorriblevisionpassedandwassucceededbyonemore，thatofOrostandinginthesepulchreofthecavebythesideofthecrystalcoffinwhichcontainedwhatappearedtobethebodyofhisdaughter。Hegazedather，thendranksomepotionandlaidhimselfdowninthecompanioncoffin，thatinwhichwehadfoundhim。

AllvanishedawayandYva，appearingtowakefromsomekindoftrance，smiled，andinhernaturalvoiceaskedifwehadseenenough。

"Quite，"Iansweredinatonethatcausedhertosay：

"Iwonderwhatyouhaveseen，Humphrey。MyselfIdonotknow，sinceitisthroughmethatyouseeatallandwhenyouseeIaminyouwhosee。"

"Indeed，"Ireplied。"Well，Iwilltellyouaboutitlater。"

"Thankyousomuch，"exclaimedBastin，recoveringsuddenlyfromhisamazement。"Ihaveheardagreatdealofthesemoving—pictureshowswhicharebecomingsopopular，buthavealwaysavoidedattendingthembecausetheirinfluenceontheyoungissupposedtobedoubtful，andapriestmustsetagoodexampletohiscongregation。NowIseethattheycanhaveadistincteducationalvalue，evenifitispresentedintheformofromance。"

"Howisitdone？"askedBickley，almostfiercely。

"Idonotaltogetherknow，"sheanswered。"ThisIdoknow，however，thateverythingwhichhashappenedonthisworldcanbeseenfrommomenttomomentatsomepointinthedepthsofspace，forthitherthesun’slighttakesit。There，too，itcanbecaughtandthenceinaninstantreturnedtoearthagain，tobereflectedinthemirrorofthepresentbythosewhoknowhowthatmirrorshouldbeheld。Askmenomore；onesowiseasyou，O

Bickley，cansolvesuchproblemsforhimself。"

"Ifyoudon’tmind，LadyYva，"saidBastin，"IthinkIshouldliketogetoutofthisplace，interestingasitis。Ihavefoodtocookupaboveandlotsofthingstoattendto，especiallyasI

understandIamtocomebackheretomorrow。Wouldyoumindshowingmethewaytothatliftormovingstaircase？"

"Come，"shesaid，smiling。

SowewentpasttheimageofFate，outofthetemple，downthevastandlonelystreetssounnaturallyilluminated，totheplacewherewehadfirstfoundourselvesonarrivalinthedepths。

Therewestood。

Amomentlaterandwewerewhirlingupaswehadwhirleddown。

IsupposethatYvacamewithusthoughIneversawherdoso，andtheoddthingwasthatwhenwearrivedinthesepulchre，sheseemedalreadytobestandingtherewaitingtodirectus。

"Really，"remarkedBastin，"thisisexactlylikeMaskelyneandCook。Didyoueverseetheirperformance，Bickley？Ifso，itmusthavegivenyoulotstoexplainforquitealongwhile。"

"Juggleryneverappealedtome，whetherinLondonorinOrofena，"repliedBickleyinasourvoiceasheextractedfromhispocketanendofcandletowhichhesetlight。

"Whatisjugglery？"askedBastin，andtheydepartedarguing，leavingmealonewithYvainthesepulchre。

"WhathaveIseen？"Iaskedher。

"Idonotknow，Humphrey。Everyoneseesdifferentthings，butperhapssomethingofthetruth。"

"Ihopenot，Yva，foramongstotherthingsIseemedtoseeyouswearyourselftoamanforever。"

"Yes，andthisIdid。Whatofit？"

"Onlythatitmightbehardforanotherman。"

"Yes，foranothermanitmightbehard。Youwereoncemarried，wereyounot，Humphrey，toawifewhodied？"

"Yes，Iwasmarried。"

"Anddidyounotsweartothatwifethatyouwouldneverlookinloveuponanotherwoman？"

"Idid，"Iansweredinashamedvoice。"Buthowdoyouknow？I

nevertoldyouso。"

"Oh！Iknowyouandthereforeguessed。"

"Well，whatofit，Yva？"

"Nothing，exceptthatyoumustfindyourwifebeforeyouloveagain，andbeforeIloveagainImustfindhimwhomIwishtobemyhusband。"

"Howcanthathappen，"Iasked，"whenbotharedead？"

"Howdidallthatyouhaveseento—dayinNyohappen？"shereplied，laughingsoftly。"Perhapsyouareveryblind，Humphrey，orperhapswebothareblind。Ifso，mayhaplightwillcometous。Meanwhiledonotbesad。TomorrowIwillmeetyouandyoushallteachme——yourEnglishtongue，Humphrey，andotherthings。"

"Thenletitbeinthesunlight，Yva。IdonotlovethosedarksomehallsofNyothatglowlikesomethingdead。"

"Itisfitting，foraretheynotdead？"sheanswered，withalittlelaugh。"Sobeit。Bastinshallteachmyfatherdownbelow，sincesunandshadearethesametohimwhoonlythinksofhisreligion，andyoushallteachmeupabove。"

"IamnotsocertainaboutBastinandofwhathethinks，"I

saiddoubtfully。"AlsowilltheLordOropermityoutocome？"

"Yes，forinsuchmattersIrulemyself。Also，"sheaddedmeaningly，"heremembersmyoaththatIwillwednoman——saveonewhoisdead。NowfarewellawhileandbidBastinbeherewhenthesunisthreehourshigh，notbeforeorafter。"

ThenIlefther。

ChapterXVII

YvaExplainsWhenIreachedtherockIwaspleasedtofindMaramaandabouttwentyofhispeopleengagedinerectingthehousethatwehadorderedthemtobuildforouraccommodation。Indeed，itwasnearlyfinished，sincehouse—buildinginOrofenaisasimplebusiness。Theframeworkofpolesletintopalmtrunks，sincetheycouldnotbedrivenintotherock，hadbeenputtogetheronthefurthershoreandtowedoverbodilybycanoes。Theoverhangingrockformedonesideofthehouse；theendswereofpalmleavestiedtothepoles，andtheroofwasofthesamematerial。Theothersidewasleftopenforthepresent，whichinthatequableandbalmyclimewasnodisadvantage。Thewholeedificewasaboutthirtyfeetlongbyfifteendeepanddividedintotwoportions，oneforsleepingandoneforliving，byapalmleafpartition。

Really，itwasquiteacomfortableabode，coolandrainproof，especiallyafterBastinhadbuilthishutinwhichtocook。

Maramaandhispeoplewereveryhumbleintheirdemeanourandimploredustovisitthemonthemainisland。Iansweredthatperhapswewouldlateron，aswewishedtoprocurecertainthingsfromthewreck。Also，herequestedBastintocontinuehisministrationsasthelattergreatlydesiredtodo。ButtothisproposalIwouldnotallowhimtogiveanydirectansweratthemoment。Indeed，IdarednotdosountilIwassureofOro’sapproval。

Towardseveningtheydepartedintheircanoes，leavingbehindthemtheusualamplestoreofprovisions。

Wecookedourmealasusual，onlytodiscoverthatwhatYvahadsaidabouttheLife—waterwasquitetrue，sincewehadbutlittleappetiteforsolidfood，thoughthisreturneduponthefollowingday。Thesamethinghappeneduponeveryoccasionafterdrinkingofthatwaterwhichcertainlywasamostinvigoratingfluid。

Neverforyearshadanyofusfeltsowellasitcausedustodo。

Sowelitourpipesandtalkedaboutourexperiencesthoughofthese，indeed，wescarcelyknewwhattosay。Bastinacceptedthemassomethingoutofthecommon，ofcourse，butasfactswhichadmittedofnodiscussion。Afterall，hesaid，theOldTestamenttoldmuchthesamestoryofpeoplecalledtheSonsofGodwholivedverylonglivesandranafterthedaughtersofmenwhomtheyshouldhaveleftalone，andthusbecametheprogenitorsofaremarkablerace。Ofthisrace，hepresumedthatOroandhisdaughterweresurvivors，especiallyastheyspokeoftheirfamilyas"Heavenborn。"Howtheycametosurvivewasmorethanhecouldunderstandandreallyscarcelyworthbotheringover，sincetheretheywere。

ItwasthesameabouttheDeluge，continuedBastin，althoughnaturallyOrospokefalsely，or，atanyrate，grosslyexaggerated，whenhedeclaredthathehadcausedthiscatastrophe，unlessindeedhewastalkingaboutatotallydifferentdeluge，thougheventhenhecouldnothavebroughtitabout。Itwascurious，however，thatthepeopledrownedweresaidtohavebeenwicked，andOrohadthesameopinionaboutthosewhomheclaimedtohavedrowned，thoughforthematterofthat，hecouldnotconceiveanyonemorewickedthanOrohimself。Onhisownshowinghewasamostrevengefulpersonandonewhodeclinedtoagreetoaquitesuitablealliance，apparentlydesiredbybothparties，merelybecauseitoffendedhisfamilypride。No，onreflectionhemightbeunjusttoOrointhisparticular，sincehenevertoldthatstory；itwasonlyshowninsomepictureswhichverylikelywerejustmadeuptoastonishus。Meanwhile，itwashisbusinesstopreachtothisoldsinnerdowninthathole，andheconfessedhonestlythathedidnotlikethejob。Still，itmustbedone，sowithourleavehewouldgoapartandseekinspiration，whichatpresentseemedtobequitelacking。

ThusdeclaimedBastinanddeparted。

"Don’tyoutellyouropinionabouttheDelugeorhemaycauseanotherjusttoshowthatyouarewrong，"calledBickleyafterhim。

"Ican’thelpthat，"answeredBastin。"CertainlyIshallnothidethetruthtosaveOro’sfeelings，ifhehasgotany。Ifherevengeshimselfuponusinanyway，wemustjustputupwithitlikeothermartyrs。"

"Ihaven’ttheslightestambitiontobeamartyr，"saidBickley。

"No，"shoutedBastinfromalittledistance，"Iamquiteawareofthat，asyouhaveoftensaidsobefore。Therefore，ifyoubecomeone，IamsorrytosaythatIdonotseehowyoucanexpectanybenefit。Youwouldonlybelikeamanwhoputsasovereignintotheoffertorybaginmistakeforashilling。Theextranineteenshillingswilldohimnogoodatall，sinceinhisheartheregretstheerrorandwishesthathecouldhavethemback。"

Thenhedeparted，leavingmelaughing。ButBickleydidnotlaugh。

"Arbuthnot，"hesaid，"IhavecometotheconclusionthatI

havegonequitemad。IbegyouifIshouldshowsignsofhomicidalmania，whichIfeeldevelopinginmewhereBastinisconcerned，orofotherabnormalviolence，thatyouwilltakewhateverstepsyouconsidernecessary，eventoputtingmeoutofthewayifthatisimperative。"

"Whatdoyoumean？"Iasked。"Youseemsaneenough。"

"Sane，whenIbelievethatIhaveseenandexperiencedagreatnumberofthingswhichIknowittobequiteimpossiblethatI

shouldhaveseenorexperienced。TheonlyexplanationisthatI

amsufferingfromdelusions。"

"ThenisBastinsufferingfromdelusions，too？"

"Certainly，butthatisnothingnewinhiscase。"

"Idon’tagreewithyou，Bickley——aboutBastin，Imean。Iambynomeanscertainthatheisnotthewisestofthethreeofus。Hehasafaithandhestickstoit，asmillionshavedonebeforehim，andthatisbetterthanmakingspiritualexperiments，asI

amsorrytosayIdo，orrejectingthingsbecauseonecannotunderstandthem，asyoudo，whichisonlyaformofintellectualvanity。"

"Iwon’targuethematter，Arbuthnot；itisofnouse。IrepeatthatIammad，andBastinismad。"

"Howaboutme？Ialsosawandexperiencedthesethings。AmI

mad，too？"

"Yououghttobe，Arbuthnot。Ifitisn’tenoughtodriveamanmadwhenheseeshimselfexactlyreproducedinanutterlyimpossiblemoving—pictureshowexhibitedbyanutterlyimpossibleyoungwomaninanutterlyimpossibleundergroundcity，thenI

don’tknowwhatis。

"Whatdoyoumean？"Iasked，starting。

"Mean？Well，ifyoudidn’tnoticeit，there’shopeforyou。"

"Noticewhat？"

"Allthatenvoyscene。There，asIthought，appearedYva。Doyouadmitthat？"

"Ofcourse；therecouldbenomistakeonthatpoint。"

"Verywell。Thenaccordingtomyversiontherecameaman，stillyoung，dressedinoutlandishclothes，whomadepropositionsofpeaceandwantedtomarryYva，whowantedtomarryhim。Isthatright？"

"Absolutely。"

"Well，anddidn’tyourecognisetheman？"

"No；Ionlynoticedthathewasafine—lookingfellowwhoseappearanceremindedmeofsomeone。"

"Isupposeitmustbetrue，"musedBickley，"thatwedonotknowourselves。"

"SotheoldGreekthought，sinceheurgedthatthisshouldbeourspecialstudy。’Knowthyself，’youremember。"

"Imeantphysically，notintellectually。Arbuthnot，doyoumeantotellmethatyoudidnotrecogniseyourowndoubleinthatman？Shaveoffyourbeardandputonhisclothesandnoonecoulddistinguishyouapart。"

Isprangup，droppingmypipe。

"Nowyoumentionit，"Isaidslowly，"Isupposetherewasaresemblance。Ididn’tlookathimverymuch；IwasstudyingthesimulacrumofYva。Also，youknowitissometimesince——Imean，therearenopier—glassesinOrofena。"

"Themanwasyou，"wentonBickleywithconviction。"IfIweresuperstitiousIshouldthinkitaqueersortofomen。ButasIamnot，IknowthatImustbemad。"

"Why？Afterall，anancientmanandamodernmanmightresembleeachother。"

"Therearedegreesinresemblance，"saidBickleywithoneofhiscontemptuoussnorts。"Itwon’tdo，Humphrey，myboy，"headded。"Icanonlythinkofonepossibleexplanation——outsideoftheobviousoneofmadness。"

"Whatisthat？"

"TheGlitteringLadyproducedwhatBastincalledthatcinematographshowinsomewayorother，didshenot？Shesaidthatinordertodothissheloosedsomehiddenforces。Isuggestthatshedidnothingofthesort。"

"Thenwhencedidthepicturescomeandwhy？"

"Fromherownbrain，inordertoimpressuswithacock—and—

bull，fairy—bookstory。Ifthisweresoshewouldquitenaturallyfilltheroleoftheloverofthepiecewiththelastmanwhohadhappenedtoimpressher。Hencetheresemblance。"

"Youpresupposeagreatdeal，Bickley，includingsupernaturalcunningandunexampledhypnoticinfluence。Idon’tknow，first，whysheshouldbesoanxioustoaddanotherimpressiontothemanywehavereceivedinthisplace；and，secondly，ifshewas，howshemanagedtomesmerisethreeaveragebuttotallydifferentmenintoseeingthesamethings。Myexplanationisthatyouweredeceivedastothelikeness，which，mindyou，Ididnotrecognise；nor，apparently，didBastin。"

"Bastinneverrecognisesanything。Butifyouareindoubt，askYvaherself。Sheoughttoknow。NowI’mofftotrytoanalysethatconfoundedLife—water，whichIsuspectisoftheordinaryspringvariety，lightenedupwithnaturalcarbonicacidgasandpossiblynotuninfluencedbyradium。ThetroubleisthathereI

canonlyapplysomeveryelementarytests。"

Sohewentalso，inanoppositedirectiontoBastin，andIwasleftalonewithTommy，whoannoyedmemuchbyattemptingcontinuallytowanderoffintothecave，whenceImustrecallhim。Isupposethatmyexperiencesoftheday，reviewedbeneaththesweetinfluencesofthewonderfultropicalnight，affectedme。Atanyrate，thatmysticalsideofmynature，towhichI

thinkIalludedatthebeginningofthisrecord，sprangintoactiveand，inasense，unholylife。Thenormalvanished，theabnormaltookpossession，andthatisunholytomostofuscreaturesofhabitandtradition，atanyrate，ifweareBritish。

Ilostmyfootingontheworld；myspiritbegantowanderinstrangeplaces；ofcourse，alwayssupposingthatwehaveaspirit，whichBickleywoulddeny。

Igaveupreason；Isurrenderedmyselftounreason；itisanotunpleasantprocess，occasionally。Supposingnowthatallweseeandacceptisbutthemerestfragmentofthetruth，orperhapsonlyarefractionthereof？Supposingthatwedoliveagainandagain，andthatouranimatingprinciple，whateveritmightbe，doesinhabitvariousbodies，which，naturallyenough，itwouldshapetoitsowntasteandlikeness？Wouldthattasteandlikenessvarysoverymuchover，letussay，amillionyearsorso，which，afterall，isbutanhour，oraminute，intheaeonsofEternity？

Onthishypothesis，whichissowildthatonebeginstosuspectthatitmaybetrue，wasitimpossiblethatIandthatmurderedmanofthefarpastwereinfactidentical？Ifthewomanwerethesame，preservedacrossthegulfinsomeunknownfashion，whyshouldnotherloverbethesame？WhatdidIsay——herlover？WasIherlover？No，Iwastheloverofonewhohaddied——mylostwife。Well，ifIhaddiedandlivedagain，whyshouldnot——whyshouldnotthatSleeper——havelivedagainduringherlongsleep？

Throughallthoseyearsthespiritmusthavehadsomehome，and，ifso，inwhatshapesdiditlive？Therewerepoints，similarities，whichrushedinuponme——oh！itwasridiculous。

Bickleywasright。Wewereallmad！

Therewasanotherthing。OrohaddeclaredthatwewereatwarwithGermany。Ifthiswereso，howcouldheknowit？Suchknowledgewouldpresumepowersoftelepathyorvisionbeyondthosegiventoman。Icouldnotbelievethathepossessedthese；

asBickleysaid，itwouldbepastexperience。Yetitwasmoststrangethathewhowasuninformedastoournationalhistoryanddangers，shouldhavehituponacountrywithwhichwemightwellhavebeenplungedintosuddenstruggle。HereagainIwasbewilderedandovercome。Mybrainrocked。Iwouldseeksleep，andinitescape，oratanyraterestfromallthesemysteries。

OnthefollowingmorningwedespatchedBastintokeephisrendezvousinthesepulchreatthepropertime。HadwenotdonesoIfeltsurethathewouldhaveforgottenit，foronthisoccasionhewasforonceanunwillingmissioner。Hetriedtopersuadeoneofustocomewithhim——evenBickleywouldhavebeenwelcome；butwebothdeclaredthatwecouldnotdreamofinterferinginsuchaprofessionalmatter；alsothatourpresencewasforbidden，andwouldcertainlydistracttheattentionofhispupil。

"Whatyoumean，"saidthegloomyBastin，"isthatyouintendtoenjoyyourselvesuphereinthefemalecompanionshipoftheGlitteringLadywhilstIsitthousandsoffeetundergroundattemptingtolightenthedarknessofaviolentoldsinnerwhomI

suspectofbeinginleaguewithSatan。"

"Withwhomyoushouldbeproudtobreakalance，"saidBickley。

"SoIam，inthedaylight。Forinstance，whenheusesyourmouthtoadvancehisarguments。Bickley，butthisisanothermatter。However，ifIdonotappearagainyouwillknowthatI

diedinagoodcause，and，Ihope，trytorecovermyremainsandgivethemdecentburial。Also，youmightinformtheBishopofhowIcametomyend，thisis，ifyouevergetanopportunity，whichismorethandoubtful。"

"Hurryup，Bastin，hurryup！"saidtheunfeelingBickley，"oryouwillbelateforyourappointmentandputyourwould—beneophyteintoabadtemper。"

ThenBastinwent，carryingunderhisarmalargeBibleprintedinthelanguageoftheSouthSeaIslands。

AlittlewhilelaterYvaappeared，arrayedinherwondrousrobeswhich，beingaman，itisquiteimpossibleformetodescribe。Shesawuslookingatthese，and，aftergreetingusboth，alsoTommy，whowasenrapturedathercoming，askedushowtheladiesofourcountryattiredthemselves。

Wetriedtoexplain，withnostrikingsuccess。

"YouareasstupidaboutsuchmattersaswerethemenoftheOldWorld，"shesaid，shakingherheadandlaughing。"Ithoughtthatyouhadwithyoupicturesofladiesyouhaveknownwhichwouldshowme。"

Now，infact，Ihadinapocket—bookaphotographofmywifeinevening—dress，alsoaminiatureofherheadandbustpaintedonivory，abeautifulpieceofworkdonebyamasterhand，whichI

alwayswore。These，afteramoment’shesitation，Iproducedandshowedtoher，BickleyhavinggoneawayforalittlewhiletoseeaboutsomethingconnectedwithhisattemptedanalysisoftheLife—water。Sheexaminedthemwithgreateagerness，andasshedidsoInotedthatherfacegrewtenderandtroubled。

"Thiswasyourwife，"shesaidasonewhostateswhatsheknowstobeafact。Inodded，andshewenton：

"Shewassweetandbeautifulasaflower，butnotsotallasI

am，Ithink。"

"No，"Ianswered，"shelackedheight；giventhatshewouldhavebeenalovelywoman。"

"Iamgladyouthinkthatwomenshouldbetall，"shesaid，glancingathershadow。"Theeyesweresuchasmine，weretheynot——incolour，Imean？"

"Yes，verylikeyours，onlyyoursarelarger。"

"Thatisabeautifulwayofwearingthehair。WouldyoubeangryifItriedit？Iwearyofthisoldfashion。"

"WhyshouldIbeangry？"Iasked。

AtthismomentBickleyreappearedandshebegantotalkofthedetailsofthedress，sayingthatitshowedmoreoftheneckthanhadbeenthecustomamongthewomenofherpeople，butwasverypretty。

"Thatisbecausewearestillbarbarians，"saidBickley；"atleast，ourwomenare，andthereforerelyuponprimitivemethodsofattraction，likethesavagesyonder。"