“Yes, yes, of course, it is I. . . . Yes, certainly, the Professor Challenger, the famous Professor, who else? . . . Of course, every word of it, otherwise I should not have written it. . . . I shouldn’t be surprised. . . . There is every indication of it. . . . Within a day or so at the furthest. . . . Well, I can’t help that, can I? . . . Very unpleasant, no doubt, but I rather fancy it will affect more important people than you. There is no use whining4 about it. . . . No, I couldn’t possibly. You must take your chance. . . . That’s enough, sir. Nonsense! I have something more important to do than to listen to such twaddle.”
He shut off with a crash and led us upstairs into a large airy apartment which formed his study. On the great mahogany desk seven or eight unopened telegrams were lying.
“Really,” he said as he gathered them up, “I begin to think that it would save my correspondents’ money if I were to adopt a telegraphic address. Possibly ‘Noah, Rotherfield,’ would be the most appropriate.”
As usual when he made an obscure joke, he leaned against the desk and bellowed5 in a paroxysm of laughter, his hands shaking so that he could hardly open the envelopes.
“Noah! Noah!” he gasped6, with a face of beetroot, while Lord John and I smiled in sympathy and Summerlee, like a dyspeptic goat, wagged his head in sardonic7 disagreement. Finally Challenger, still rumbling8 and exploding, began to open his telegrams. The three of us stood in the bow window and occupied ourselves in admiring the magnificent view.
It was certainly worth looking at. The road in its gentle curves had really brought us to a considerable elevation9 — seven hundred feet, as we afterwards discovered. Challenger’s house was on the very edge of the hill, and from its southern face, in which was the study window, one looked across the vast stretch of the weald to where the gentle curves of the South Downs formed an undulating horizon. In a cleft10 of the hills a haze11 of smoke marked the position of Lewes. Immediately at our feet there lay a rolling plain of heather, with the long, vivid green stretches of the Crowborough golf course, all dotted with the players. A little to the south, through an opening in the woods, we could see a section of the main line from London to Brighton. In the immediate12 foreground, under our very noses, was a small enclosed yard, in which stood the car which had brought us from the station.
An ejaculation from Challenger caused us to turn. He had read his telegrams and had arranged them in a little methodical pile upon his desk. His broad, rugged13 face, or as much of it as was visible over the matted beard, was still deeply flushed, and he seemed to be under the influence of some strong excitement.
“Well, gentlemen,” he said, in a voice as if he was addressing a public meeting, “this is indeed an interesting reunion, and it takes place under extraordinary — I may say unprecedented14 — circumstances. May I ask if you have observed anything upon your journey from town?”
“The only thing which I observed,” said Summerlee with a sour smile, “was that our young friend here has not improved in his manners during the years that have passed. I am sorry to state that I have had to seriously complain of his conduct in the train, and I should be wanting in frankness if I did not say that it has left a most unpleasant impression in my mind.”
“Well, well, we all get a bit prosy sometimes,” said Lord John. “The young fellah meant no real harm. After all, he’s an International, so if he takes half an hour to describe a game of football he has more right to do it than most folk.”
“Half an hour to describe a game!” I cried indignantly. “Why, it was you that took half an hour with some long-winded story about a buffalo15. Professor Summerlee will be my witness.”
“I can hardly judge which of you was the most utterly16 wearisome,” said Summerlee. “I declare to you, Challenger, that I never wish to hear of football or of buffaloes17 so long as I live.”
“I have never said one word today about football,” I protested.
Lord John gave a shrill18 whistle, and Summerlee shook his head sadly.
“So early in the day too,” said he. “It is indeed deplorable. As I sat there in sad but thoughtful silence ——”
“In silence!” cried Lord John. “Why, you were doin’ a music-hall turn of imitations all the way — more like a runaway19 gramophone than a man.”
Summerlee drew himself up in bitter protest.
“You are pleased to be facetious20, Lord John,” said he with a face of vinegar.
“Why, dash it all, this is clear madness,” cried Lord John. “Each of us seems to know what the others did and none of us knows what he did himself. Let’s put it all together from the first. We got into a first-class smoker21, that’s clear, ain’t it? Then we began to quarrel over friend Challenger’s letter in the Times.”
“Oh, you did, did you?” rumbled22 our host, his eyelids23 beginning to droop24.
“You said, Summerlee, that there was no possible truth in his contention25.”
“Dear me!” said Challenger, puffing26 out his chest and stroking his beard. “No possible truth! I seem to have heard the words before. And may I ask with what arguments the great and famous Professor Summerlee proceeded to demolish27 the humble28 individual who had ventured to express an opinion upon a matter of scientific possibility? Perhaps before he exterminates29 that unfortunate nonentity30 he will condescend31 to give some reasons for the adverse32 views which he has formed.”
He bowed and shrugged33 and spread open his hands as he spoke34 with his elaborate and elephantine sarcasm35.
“The reason was simple enough,” said the dogged Summerlee. “I contended that if the ether surrounding the earth was so toxic36 in one quarter that it produced dangerous symptoms, it was hardly likely that we three in the railway carriage should be entirely37 unaffected.”
The explanation only brought uproarious merriment from Challenger. He laughed until everything in the room seemed to rattle40 and quiver.
“Our worthy41 Summerlee is, not for the first time, somewhat out of touch with the facts of the situation,” said he at last, mopping his heated brow. “Now, gentlemen, I cannot make my point better than by detailing to you what I have myself done this morning. You will the more easily condone42 any mental aberration43 upon your own part when you realize that even I have had moments when my balance has been disturbed. We have had for some years in this household a housekeeper44 — one Sarah, with whose second name I have never attempted to burden my memory. She is a woman of a severe and forbidding aspect, prim46 and demure47 in her bearing, very impassive in her nature, and never known within our experience to show signs of any emotion. As I sat alone at my breakfast — Mrs. Challenger is in the habit of keeping her room of a morning — it suddenly entered my head that it would be entertaining and instructive to see whether I could find any limits to this woman’s inperturbability. I devised a simple but effective experiment. Having upset a small vase of flowers which stood in the centre of the cloth, I rang the bell and slipped under the table. She entered and, seeing the room empty, imagined that I had withdrawn48 to the study. As I had expected, she approached and leaned over the table to replace the vase. I had a vision of a cotton stocking and an elastic-sided boot. Protruding49 my head, I sank my teeth into the calf50 of her leg. The experiment was successful beyond belief. For some moments she stood paralyzed, staring down at my head. Then with a shriek51 she tore herself free and rushed from the room. I pursued her with some thoughts of an explanation, but she flew down the drive, and some minutes afterwards I was able to pick her out with my field-glasses traveling very rapidly in a south-westerly direction. I tell you the anecdote52 for what it is worth. I drop it into your brains and await its germination53. Is it illuminative54? Has it conveyed anything to your minds? What do you think of it, Lord John?”
Lord John shook his head gravely.
“You’ll be gettin’ into serious trouble some of these days if you don’t put a brake on,” said he.
“Perhaps you have some observation to make, Summerlee?”
“You should drop all work instantly, Challenger, and take three months in a German watering-place,” said he.
“Profound! Profound!” cried Challenger. “Now, my young friend, is it possible that wisdom may come from you where your seniors have so signally failed?”
And it did. I say it with all modesty55, but it did. Of course, it all seems obvious enough to you who know what occurred, but it was not so very clear when everything was new. But it came on me suddenly with the full force of absolute conviction.
“Poison!” I cried.
Then, even as I said the word, my mind flashed back over the whole morning’s experiences, past Lord John with his buffalo, past my own hysterical56 tears, past the outrageous57 conduct of Professor Summerlee, to the queer happenings in London, the row in the park, the driving of the chauffeur58, the quarrel at the oxygen warehouse59. Everything fitted suddenly into its place.
“Of course,” I cried again. “It is poison. We are all poisoned.”
“Exactly,” said Challenger, rubbing his hands, “we are all poisoned. Our planet has swum into the poison belt of ether, and is now flying deeper into it at the rate of some millions of miles a minute. Our young friend has expressed the cause of all our troubles and perplexities in a single word, ‘poison.’”
We looked at each other in amazed silence. No comment seemed to meet the situation.
“There is a mental inhibition by which such symptoms can be checked and controlled,” said Challenger. “I cannot expect to find it developed in all of you to the same point which it has reached in me, for I suppose that the strength of our different mental processes bears some proportion to each other. But no doubt it is appreciable60 even in our young friend here. After the little outburst of high spirits which so alarmed my domestic I sat down and reasoned with myself. I put it to myself that I had never before felt impelled61 to bite any of my household. The impulse had then been an abnormal one. In an instant I perceived the truth. My pulse upon examination was ten beats above the usual, and my reflexes were increased. I called upon my higher and saner62 self, the real G. E. C., seated serene63 and impregnable behind all mere64 molecular65 disturbance66. I summoned him, I say, to watch the foolish mental tricks which the poison would play. I found that I was indeed the master. I could recognize and control a disordered mind. It was a remarkable67 exhibition of the victory of mind over matter, for it was a victory over that particular form of matter which is most intimately connected with mind. I might almost say that mind was at fault and that personality controlled it. Thus, when my wife came downstairs and I was impelled to slip behind the door and alarm her by some wild cry as she entered, I was able to stifle68 the impulse and to greet her with dignity and restraint. An overpowering desire to quack69 like a duck was met and mastered in the same fashion.
“Later, when I descended70 to order the car and found Austin bending over it absorbed in repairs, I controlled my open hand even after I had lifted it and refrained from giving him an experience which would possibly have caused him to follow in the steps of the housekeeper. On the contrary, I touched him on the shoulder and ordered the car to be at the door in time to meet your train. At the present instant I am most forcibly tempted45 to take Professor Summerlee by that silly old beard of his and to shake his head violently backwards71 and forwards. And yet, as you see, I am perfectly72 restrained. Let me commend my example to you.”
“I’ll look out for that buffalo,” said Lord John.
“And I for the football match.”
“It may be that you are right, Challenger,” said Summerlee in a chastened voice. “I am willing to admit that my turn of mind is critical rather than constructive73 and that I am not a ready convert to any new theory, especially when it happens to be so unusual and fantastic as this one. However, as I cast my mind back over the events of the morning, and as I reconsider the fatuous74 conduct of my companions, I find it easy to believe that some poison of an exciting kind was responsible for their symptoms.”
Challenger slapped his colleague good-humouredly upon the shoulder. “We progress,” said he. “Decidedly we progress.”
“And pray, sir,” asked Summerlee humbly75, “what is your opinion as to the present outlook?”
“With your permission I will say a few words upon that subject.” He seated himself upon his desk, his short, stumpy legs swinging in front of him. “We are assisting at a tremendous and awful function. It is, in my opinion, the end of the world.”
The end of the world! Our eyes turned to the great bow-window and we looked out at the summer beauty of the country-side, the long slopes of heather, the great country-houses, the cozy76 farms, the pleasure-seekers upon the links.
The end of the world! One had often heard the words, but the idea that they could ever have an immediate practical significance, that it should not be at some vague date, but now, today, that was a tremendous, a staggering thought. We were all struck solemn and waited in silence for Challenger to continue. His overpowering presence and appearance lent such force to the solemnity of his words that for a moment all the crudities and absurdities77 of the man vanished, and he loomed78 before us as something majestic79 and beyond the range of ordinary humanity. Then to me, at least, there came back the cheering recollection of how twice since we had entered the room he had roared with laughter. Surely, I thought, there are limits to mental detachment. The crisis cannot be so great or so pressing after all.
“You will conceive a bunch of grapes,” said he, “which are covered by some infinitesimal but noxious80 bacillus. The gardener passes it through a disinfecting medium. It may be that he desires his grapes to be cleaner. It may be that he needs space to breed some fresh bacillus less noxious than the last. He dips it into the poison and they are gone. Our Gardener is, in my opinion, about to dip the solar system, and the human bacillus, the little mortal vibrio which twisted and wriggled81 upon the outer rind of the earth, will in an instant be sterilized82 out of existence.”
Again there was silence. It was broken by the high trill of the telephone-bell.
“There is one of our bacilli squeaking83 for help,” said he with a grim smile. “They are beginning to realize that their continued existence is not really one of the necessities of the universe.”
He was gone from the room for a minute or two. I remember that none of us spoke in his absence. The situation seemed beyond all words or comments.
“The medical officer of health for Brighton,” said he when he returned. “The symptoms are for some reason developing more rapidly upon the sea level. Our seven hundred feet of elevation give us an advantage. Folk seem to have learned that I am the first authority upon the question. No doubt it comes from my letter in the Times. That was the mayor of a provincial84 town with whom I talked when we first arrived. You may have heard me upon the telephone. He seemed to put an entirely inflated85 value upon his own life. I helped him to readjust his ideas.”
Summerlee had risen and was standing86 by the window. His thin, bony hands were trembling with his emotion.
“Challenger,” said he earnestly, “this thing is too serious for mere futile87 argument. Do not suppose that I desire to irritate you by any question I may ask. But I put it to you whether there may not be some fallacy in your information or in your reasoning. There is the sun shining as brightly as ever in the blue sky. There are the heather and the flowers and the birds. There are the folk enjoying themselves upon the golf-links and the laborers88 yonder cutting the corn. You tell us that they and we may be upon the very brink89 of destruction — that this sunlit day may be that day of doom90 which the human race has so long awaited. So far as we know, you found this tremendous judgment91 upon what? Upon some abnormal lines in a spectrum92 — upon rumours93 from Sumatra — upon some curious personal excitement which we have discerned in each other. This latter symptom is not so marked but that you and we could, by a deliberate effort, control it. You need not stand on ceremony with us, Challenger. We have all faced death together before now. Speak out, and let us know exactly where we stand, and what, in your opinion, are our prospects94 for our future.”
It was a brave, good speech, a speech from that stanch95 and strong spirit which lay behind all the acidities and angularities of the old zoologist96. Lord John rose and shook him by the hand.
“My sentiment to a tick,” said he. “Now, Challenger, it’s up to you to tell us where we are. We ain’t nervous folk, as you know well; but when it comes to makin’ a week-end visit and finding you’ve run full butt97 into the Day of Judgment, it wants a bit of explainin’. What’s the danger, and how much of it is there, and what are we goin’ to do to meet it?”
He stood, tall and strong, in the sunshine at the window, with his brown hand upon the shoulder of Summerlee. I was lying back in an armchair, an extinguished cigarette between my lips, in that sort of half-dazed state in which impressions become exceedingly distinct. It may have been a new phase of the poisoning, but the delirious98 promptings had all passed away and were succeeded by an exceedingly languid and, at the same time, perceptive99 state of mind. I was a spectator. It did not seem to be any personal concern of mine. But here were three strong men at a great crisis, and it was fascinating to observe them. Challenger bent100 his heavy brows and stroked his beard before he answered. One could see that he was very carefully weighing his words.
“What was the last news when you left London?” he asked.
“I was at the Gazette office about ten,” said I. “There was a Reuter just come in from Singapore to the effect that the sickness seemed to be universal in Sumatra and that the lighthouses had not been lit in consequence.”
“Events have been moving somewhat rapidly since then,” said Challenger, picking up his pile of telegrams. “I am in close touch both with the authorities and with the press, so that news is converging101 upon me from all parts. There is, in fact, a general and very insistent102 demand that I should come to London; but I see no good end to be served. From the accounts the poisonous effect begins with mental excitement; the rioting in Paris this morning is said to have been very violent, and the Welsh colliers are in a state of uproar39. So far as the evidence to hand can be trusted, this stimulative103 stage, which varies much in races and in individuals, is succeeded by a certain exaltation and mental lucidity104 — I seem to discern some signs of it in our young friend here — which, after an appreciable interval106, turns to coma107, deepening rapidly into death. I fancy, so far as my toxicology carries me, that there are some vegetable nerve poisons ——”
“Datura,” suggested Summerlee.
“Excellent!” cried Challenger. “It would make for scientific precision if we named our toxic agent. Let it be daturon. To you, my dear Summerlee, belongs the honour — posthumous108, alas109, but none the less unique — of having given a name to the universal destroyer, the Great Gardener’s disinfectant. The symptoms of daturon, then, may be taken to be such as I indicate. That it will involve the whole world and that no life can possibly remain behind seems to me to be certain, since ether is a universal medium. Up to now it has been capricious in the places which it has attacked, but the difference is only a matter of a few hours, and it is like an advancing tide which covers one strip of sand and then another, running hither and thither110 in irregular streams, until at last it has submerged it all. There are laws at work in connection with the action and distribution of daturon which would have been of deep interest had the time at our disposal permitted us to study them. So far as I can trace them”— here he glanced over his telegrams —“the less developed races have been the first to respond to its influence. There are deplorable accounts from Africa, and the Australian aborigines appear to have been already exterminated111. The Northern races have as yet shown greater resisting power than the Southern. This, you see, is dated from Marseilles at nine-forty-five this morning. I give it to you verbatim:—
“‘All night delirious excitement throughout Provence. Tumult112 of vine growers at Nimes. Socialistic upheaval113 at Toulon. Sudden illness attended by coma attacked population this morning. peste foudroyante. Great numbers of dead in the streets. Paralysis114 of business and universal chaos115.’
“An hour later came the following, from the same source:—
“‘We are threatened with utter extermination116. Cathedrals and churches full to overflowing117. The dead outnumber the living. It is inconceivable and horrible. Decease seems to be painless, but swift and inevitable118.’
“There is a similar telegram from Paris, where the development is not yet as acute. India and Persia appear to be utterly wiped out. The Slavonic population of Austria is down, while the Teutonic has hardly been affected38. Speaking generally, the dwellers119 upon the plains and upon the seashore seem, so far as my limited information goes, to have felt the effects more rapidly than those inland or on the heights. Even a little elevation makes a considerable difference, and perhaps if there be a survivor120 of the human race, he will again be found upon the summit of some Ararat. Even our own little hill may presently prove to be a temporary island amid a sea of disaster. But at the present rate of advance a few short hours will submerge us all.”
Lord John Roxton wiped his brow.
“What beats me,” said he, “is how you could sit there laughin’ with that stack of telegrams under your hand. I’ve seen death as often as most folk, but universal death — it’s awful!”
“As to the laughter,” said Challenger, “you will bear in mind that, like yourselves, I have not been exempt121 from the stimulating122 cerebral123 effects of the etheric poison. But as to the horror with which universal death appears to inspire you, I would put it to you that it is somewhat exaggerated. If you were sent to sea alone in an open boat to some unknown destination, your heart might well sink within you. The isolation124, the uncertainty125, would oppress you. But if your voyage were made in a goodly ship, which bore within it all your relations and your friends, you would feel that, however uncertain your destination might still remain, you would at least have one common and simultaneous experience which would hold you to the end in the same close communion. A lonely death may be terrible, but a universal one, as painless as this would appear to be, is not, in my judgment, a matter for apprehension126. Indeed, I could sympathize with the person who took the view that the horror lay in the idea of surviving when all that is learned, famous, and exalted127 had passed away.”
“What, then, do you propose to do?” asked Summerlee, who had for once nodded his assent128 to the reasoning of his brother scientist.
“To take our lunch,” said Challenger as the boom of a gong sounded through the house. “We have a cook whose omelettes are only excelled by her cutlets. We can but trust that no cosmic disturbance has dulled her excellent abilities. My Scharzberger of ‘96 must also be rescued, so far as our earnest and united efforts can do it, from what would be a deplorable waste of a great vintage.” He levered his great bulk off the desk, upon which he had sat while he announced the doom of the planet. “Come,” said he. “If there is little time left, there is the more need that we should spend it in sober and reasonable enjoyment129.”
And, indeed, it proved to be a very merry meal. It is true that we could not forget our awful situation. The full solemnity of the event loomed ever at the back of our minds and tempered our thoughts. But surely it is the soul which has never faced death which shies strongly from it at the end. To each of us men it had, for one great epoch130 in our lives, been a familiar presence. As to the lady, she leaned upon the strong guidance of her mighty131 husband and was well content to go whither his path might lead. The future was our fate. The present was our own. We passed it in goodly comradeship and gentle merriment. Our minds were, as I have said, singularly lucid105. Even I struck sparks at times. As to Challenger, he was wonderful! Never have I so realized the elemental greatness of the man, the sweep and power of his understanding. Summerlee drew him on with his chorus of subacid criticism, while Lord John and I laughed at the contest and the lady, her hand upon his sleeve, controlled the bellowings of the philosopher. Life, death, fate, the destiny of man — these were the stupendous subjects of that memorable132 hour, made vital by the fact that as the meal progressed strange, sudden exaltations in my mind and tinglings in my limbs proclaimed that the invisible tide of death was slowly and gently rising around us. Once I saw Lord John put his hand suddenly to his eyes, and once Summerlee dropped back for an instant in his chair. Each breath we breathed was charged with strange forces. And yet our minds were happy and at ease. Presently Austin laid the cigarettes upon the table and was about to withdraw.
“Austin!” said his master.
“Yes, sir?”
“I thank you for your faithful service.” A smile stole over the servant’s gnarled face.
“I’ve done my duty, sir.”
“I’m expecting the end of the world today, Austin.”
“Yes, sir. What time, sir?”
“I can’t say, Austin. Before evening.”
“Very good, sir.”
The taciturn Austin saluted133 and withdrew. Challenger lit a cigarette, and, drawing his chair closer to his wife’s, he took her hand in his.
“You know how matters stand, dear,” said he. “I have explained it also to our friends here. You’re not afraid are you?”
“It won’t be painful, George?”
“No more than laughing-gas at the dentist’s. Every time you have had it you have practically died.”
“But that is a pleasant sensation.”
“So may death be. The worn-out bodily machine can’t record its impression, but we know the mental pleasure which lies in a dream or a trance. Nature may build a beautiful door and hang it with many a gauzy and shimmering134 curtain to make an entrance to the new life for our wondering souls. In all my probings of the actual, I have always found wisdom and kindness at the core; and if ever the frightened mortal needs tenderness, it is surely as he makes the passage perilous135 from life to life. No, Summerlee, I will have none of your materialism136, for I, at least, am too great a thing to end in mere physical constituents137, a packet of salts and three bucketfuls of water. Here — here”— and he beat his great head with his huge, hairy fist —“there is something which uses matter, but is not of it — something which might destroy death, but which death can never destroy.”
“Talkin’ of death,” said Lord John. “I’m a Christian138 of sorts, but it seems to me there was somethin’ mighty natural in those ancestors of ours who were buried with their axes and bows and arrows and the like, same as if they were livin’ on just the same as they used to. I don’t know,” he added, looking round the table in a shamefaced way, “that I wouldn’t feel more homely139 myself if I was put away with my old .450 Express and the fowlin’-piece, the shorter one with the rubbered stock, and a clip or two of cartridges140 — just a fool’s fancy, of course, but there it is. How does it strike you, Herr Professor?”
“Well,” said Summerlee, “since you ask my opinion, it strikes me as an indefensible throwback to the Stone Age or before it. I’m of the twentieth century myself, and would wish to die like a reasonable civilized141 man. I don’t know that I am more afraid of death than the rest of you, for I am an oldish man, and, come what may, I can’t have very much longer to live; but it is all against my nature to sit waiting without a struggle like a sheep for the butcher. Is it quite certain, Challenger, that there is nothing we can do?”
“To save us — nothing,” said Challenger. “To prolong our lives a few hours and thus to see the evolution of this mighty tragedy before we are actually involved in it — that may prove to be within my powers. I have taken certain steps ——”
“The oxygen?”
“Exactly. The oxygen.”
“But what can oxygen effect in the face of a poisoning of the ether? There is not a greater difference in quality between a brick-bat and a gas than there is between oxygen and ether. They are different planes of matter. They cannot impinge upon one another. Come, Challenger, you could not defend such a proposition.”
“My good Summerlee, this etheric poison is most certainly influenced by material agents. We see it in the methods and distribution of the outbreak. We should not a priori have expected it, but it is undoubtedly142 a fact. Hence I am strongly of opinion that a gas like oxygen, which increases the vitality143 and the resisting power of the body, would be extremely likely to delay the action of what you have so happily named the daturon. It may be that I am mistaken, but I have every confidence in the correctness of my reasoning.”
“Well,” said Lord John, “if we’ve got to sit suckin’ at those tubes like so many babies with their bottles, I’m not takin’ any.”
“There will be no need for that,” Challenger answered. “We have made arrangements — it is to my wife that you chiefly owe it — that her boudoir shall be made as airtight as is practicable. With matting and varnished144 paper.”
“Good heavens, Challenger, you don’t suppose you can keep out ether with varnished paper?”
“Really, my worthy friend, you are a trifle perverse145 in missing the point. It is not to keep out the ether that we have gone to such trouble. It is to keep in the oxygen. I trust that if we can ensure an atmosphere hyper-oxygenated to a certain point, we may be able to retain our senses. I had two tubes of the gas and you have brought me three more. It is not much, but it is something.”
“How long will they last?”
“I have not an idea. We will not turn them on until our symptoms become unbearable146. Then we shall dole147 the gas out as it is urgently needed. It may give us some hours, possibly even some days, on which we may look out upon a blasted world. Our own fate is delayed to that extent, and we will have the very singular experience, we five, of being, in all probability, the absolute rear guard of the human race upon its march into the unknown. Perhaps you will be kind enough now to give me a hand with the cylinders148. It seems to me that the atmosphere already grows somewhat more oppressive.”
点击
收听单词发音
收听单词发音 |
1
auditors
|
|
| n.审计员，稽核员( auditor的名词复数 )；（大学课程的）旁听生 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
2
monstrous
|
|
| adj.巨大的；恐怖的；可耻的，丢脸的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
3
reverberated
|
|
| 回响，回荡( reverberate的过去式和过去分词 )； 使反响，使回荡，使反射 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
4
whining
|
|
| n. 抱怨，牢骚 v. 哭诉，发牢骚 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
5
bellowed
|
|
| v.发出吼叫声，咆哮（尤指因痛苦）( bellow的过去式和过去分词 )；（愤怒地）说出（某事），大叫 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
6
gasped
|
|
| v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
7
sardonic
|
|
| adj.嘲笑的，冷笑的，讥讽的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
8
rumbling
|
|
| n. 隆隆声, 辘辘声 adj. 隆隆响的 动词rumble的现在分词 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
9
elevation
|
|
| n.高度；海拔；高地；上升；提高 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
10
cleft
|
|
| n.裂缝；adj.裂开的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
11
haze
|
|
| n.霾，烟雾；懵懂，迷糊；vi.(over)变模糊 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
12
immediate
|
|
| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
13
rugged
|
|
| adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
14
unprecedented
|
|
| adj.无前例的，新奇的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
15
buffalo
|
|
| n.(北美)野牛；(亚洲)水牛 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
16
utterly
|
|
| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
17
buffaloes
|
|
| n.水牛（分非洲水牛和亚洲水牛两种）( buffalo的名词复数 )；（南非或北美的）野牛；威胁；恐吓 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
18
shrill
|
|
| adj.尖声的；刺耳的；v尖叫 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
19
runaway
|
|
| n.逃走的人，逃亡，亡命者；adj.逃亡的，逃走的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
20
facetious
|
|
| adj.轻浮的，好开玩笑的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
21
smoker
|
|
| n.吸烟者，吸烟车厢，吸烟室 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
22
rumbled
|
|
| 发出隆隆声，发出辘辘声( rumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 轰鸣着缓慢行进； 发现…的真相； 看穿（阴谋） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
23
eyelids
|
|
| n.眼睑( eyelid的名词复数 )；眼睛也不眨一下；不露声色；面不改色 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
24
droop
|
|
| v.低垂，下垂；凋萎，萎靡 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
25
contention
|
|
| n.争论，争辩，论战；论点，主张 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
26
puffing
|
|
| v.使喷出( puff的现在分词 )；喷着汽（或烟）移动；吹嘘；吹捧 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
27
demolish
|
|
| v.拆毁(建筑物等)，推翻(计划、制度等) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
28
humble
|
|
| adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
29
exterminates
|
|
| n.消灭，根绝( exterminate的名词复数 )v.消灭，根绝( exterminate的第三人称单数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
30
nonentity
|
|
| n.无足轻重的人 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
31
condescend
|
|
| v.俯就，屈尊；堕落，丢丑 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
32
adverse
|
|
| adj.不利的；有害的；敌对的，不友好的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
33
shrugged
|
|
| vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
34
spoke
|
|
| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
35
sarcasm
|
|
| n.讥讽，讽刺，嘲弄，反话 （adj.sarcastic） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
36
toxic
|
|
| adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
37
entirely
|
|
| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
38
affected
|
|
| adj.不自然的，假装的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
39
uproar
|
|
| n.骚动，喧嚣，鼎沸 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
40
rattle
|
|
| v.飞奔，碰响；激怒；n.碰撞声；拨浪鼓 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
41
worthy
|
|
| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
42
condone
|
|
| v.宽恕；原谅 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
43
aberration
|
|
| n.离开正路，脱离常规，色差 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
44
housekeeper
|
|
| n.管理家务的主妇，女管家 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
45
tempted
|
|
| v.怂恿（某人）干不正当的事；冒…的险（tempt的过去分词） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
46
prim
|
|
| adj.拘泥形式的，一本正经的；n.循规蹈矩，整洁；adv.循规蹈矩地，整洁地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
47
demure
|
|
| adj.严肃的；端庄的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
48
withdrawn
|
|
| vt.收回；使退出；vi.撤退，退出 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
49
protruding
|
|
| v.（使某物）伸出，（使某物）突出( protrude的现在分词 )；凸 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
50
calf
|
|
| n.小牛，犊，幼仔，小牛皮 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
51
shriek
|
|
| v./n.尖叫，叫喊 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
52
anecdote
|
|
| n.轶事，趣闻，短故事 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
53
germination
|
|
| n.萌芽，发生；萌发；生芽；催芽 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
54
illuminative
|
|
| adj.照明的，照亮的，启蒙的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
55
modesty
|
|
| n.谦逊，虚心，端庄，稳重，羞怯，朴素 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
56
hysterical
|
|
| adj.情绪异常激动的，歇斯底里般的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
57
outrageous
|
|
| adj.无理的，令人不能容忍的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
58
chauffeur
|
|
| n.(受雇于私人或公司的)司机；v.为…开车 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
59
warehouse
|
|
| n.仓库；vt.存入仓库 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
60
appreciable
|
|
| adj.明显的，可见的，可估量的，可觉察的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
61
impelled
|
|
| v.推动、推进或敦促某人做某事( impel的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
62
saner
|
|
| adj.心智健全的( sane的比较级 )；神志正常的；明智的；稳健的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
63
serene
|
|
| adj. 安详的，宁静的，平静的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
64
mere
|
|
| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
65
molecular
|
|
| adj.分子的；克分子的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
66
disturbance
|
|
| n.动乱，骚动；打扰，干扰；(身心)失调 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
67
remarkable
|
|
| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
68
stifle
|
|
| vt.使窒息；闷死；扼杀；抑止，阻止 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
69
quack
|
|
| n.庸医；江湖医生；冒充内行的人；骗子 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
70
descended
|
|
| a.为...后裔的，出身于...的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
71
backwards
|
|
| adv.往回地，向原处，倒，相反，前后倒置地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
72
perfectly
|
|
| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
73
constructive
|
|
| adj.建设的，建设性的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
74
fatuous
|
|
| adj.愚昧的；昏庸的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
75
humbly
|
|
| adv. 恭顺地，谦卑地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
76
cozy
|
|
| adj.亲如手足的，密切的，暖和舒服的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
77
absurdities
|
|
| n.极端无理性( absurdity的名词复数 )；荒谬；谬论；荒谬的行为 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
78
loomed
|
|
| v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的过去式和过去分词 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
79
majestic
|
|
| adj.雄伟的，壮丽的，庄严的，威严的，崇高的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
80
noxious
|
|
| adj.有害的，有毒的；使道德败坏的，讨厌的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
81
wriggled
|
|
| v.扭动，蠕动，蜿蜒行进( wriggle的过去式和过去分词 )；（使身体某一部位）扭动；耍滑不做，逃避（应做的事等） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
82
sterilized
|
|
| v.消毒( sterilize的过去式和过去分词 )；使无菌；使失去生育能力；使绝育 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
83
squeaking
|
|
| v.短促地尖叫( squeak的现在分词 )；吱吱叫；告密；充当告密者 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
84
provincial
|
|
| adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
85
inflated
|
|
| adj.（价格）飞涨的；（通货）膨胀的；言过其实的；充了气的v.使充气（于轮胎、气球等）( inflate的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）膨胀；（使）通货膨胀；物价上涨 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
86
standing
|
|
| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
87
futile
|
|
| adj.无效的，无用的，无希望的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
88
laborers
|
|
| n.体力劳动者，工人( laborer的名词复数 )；（熟练工人的）辅助工 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
89
brink
|
|
| n.(悬崖、河流等的)边缘，边沿 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
90
doom
|
|
| n.厄运，劫数；v.注定，命定 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
91
judgment
|
|
| n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
92
spectrum
|
|
| n.谱，光谱，频谱；范围，幅度，系列 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
93
rumours
|
|
| n.传闻( rumour的名词复数 )；风闻；谣言；谣传 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
94
prospects
|
|
| n.希望，前途(恒为复数) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
95
stanch
|
|
| v.止住（血等）；adj.坚固的；坚定的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
96
zoologist
|
|
| n.动物学家 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
97
butt
|
|
| n.笑柄；烟蒂；枪托；臀部；v.用头撞或顶 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
98
delirious
|
|
| adj.不省人事的，神智昏迷的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
99
perceptive
|
|
| adj.知觉的，有洞察力的，感知的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
100
bent
|
|
| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
101
converging
|
|
| adj.收敛[缩]的，会聚的，趋同的v.（线条、运动的物体等）会于一点( converge的现在分词 )；（趋于）相似或相同；人或车辆汇集；聚集 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
102
insistent
|
|
| adj.迫切的，坚持的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
103
stimulative
|
|
| n.刺激，促进因素adj.刺激的，激励的，促进的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
104
lucidity
|
|
| n.明朗，清晰，透明 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
105
lucid
|
|
| adj.明白易懂的，清晰的，头脑清楚的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
106
interval
|
|
| n.间隔，间距；幕间休息，中场休息 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
107
coma
|
|
| n.昏迷，昏迷状态 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
108
posthumous
|
|
| adj.遗腹的；父亡后出生的；死后的，身后的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
109
alas
|
|
| int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
110
thither
|
|
| adv.向那里；adj.在那边的，对岸的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
111
exterminated
|
|
| v.消灭，根绝( exterminate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
112
tumult
|
|
| n.喧哗；激动，混乱；吵闹 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
113
upheaval
|
|
| n.胀起，(地壳)的隆起；剧变，动乱 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
114
paralysis
|
|
| n.麻痹(症)；瘫痪(症) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
115
chaos
|
|
| n.混乱，无秩序 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
116
extermination
|
|
| n.消灭，根绝 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
117
overflowing
|
|
| n. 溢出物,溢流 adj. 充沛的，充满的 动词overflow的现在分词形式 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
118
inevitable
|
|
| adj.不可避免的，必然发生的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
119
dwellers
|
|
| n.居民，居住者( dweller的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
120
survivor
|
|
| n.生存者，残存者，幸存者 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
121
exempt
|
|
| adj.免除的；v.使免除；n.免税者，被免除义务者 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
122
stimulating
|
|
| adj.有启发性的，能激发人思考的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
123
cerebral
|
|
| adj.脑的，大脑的；有智力的，理智型的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
124
isolation
|
|
| n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
125
uncertainty
|
|
| n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
126
apprehension
|
|
| n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
127
exalted
|
|
| adj.(地位等)高的，崇高的；尊贵的，高尚的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
128
assent
|
|
| v.批准，认可；n.批准，认可 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
129
enjoyment
|
|
| n.乐趣；享有；享用 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
130
epoch
|
|
| n.(新)时代；历元 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
131
mighty
|
|
| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
132
memorable
|
|
| adj.值得回忆的，难忘的，特别的，显著的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
133
saluted
|
|
| v.欢迎，致敬( salute的过去式和过去分词 )；赞扬，赞颂 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
134
shimmering
|
|
| v.闪闪发光，发微光( shimmer的现在分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
135
perilous
|
|
| adj.危险的，冒险的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
136
materialism
|
|
| n.［哲］唯物主义，唯物论；物质至上 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
137
constituents
|
|
| n.选民( constituent的名词复数 )；成分；构成部分；要素 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
138
Christian
|
|
| adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
139
homely
|
|
| adj.家常的，简朴的；不漂亮的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
140
cartridges
|
|
| 子弹( cartridge的名词复数 )； （打印机的）墨盒； 录音带盒； （唱机的）唱头 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
141
civilized
|
|
| a.有教养的，文雅的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
142
undoubtedly
|
|
| adv.确实地，无疑地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
143
vitality
|
|
| n.活力，生命力，效力 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
144
varnished
|
|
| 浸渍过的，涂漆的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
145
perverse
|
|
| adj.刚愎的；坚持错误的，行为反常的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
146
unbearable
|
|
| adj.不能容忍的；忍受不住的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
147
dole
|
|
| n.救济，（失业）救济金；vt.（out）发放，发给 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
148
cylinders
|
|
| n.圆筒( cylinder的名词复数 )；圆柱；汽缸；（尤指用作容器的）圆筒状物 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
| 欢迎访问英文小说网 |