There rolls the deep where grew the tree, O earth, what changes hast thou seen!
There where the long street roars, hath been
The stillness of the central sea.
The hills are shadows, and they flow From form to form, and nothing stands;
They melt like mist, the solid lands,
Like clouds they shape themselves and go.
—Tennyson, In Memoriam (1850)
But if you wish at once to do nothing and be respect-able nowadays, the best pretext1 is to be at work on some profound study . . .
—Leslie Stephen, Sketches2 from Cambridge (1865)
Sam’s had not been the only dark face in Lyme that morn-ing. Ernestina had woken in a mood that the brilliant prom-ise of the day only aggravated3. The ill was familiar; but it was out of the question that she should inflict4 its conse-quences upon Charles. And so, when he called dutifully at ten o’clock at Aunt Tranter’s house, he found himself greeted only by that lady: Ernestina had passed a slightly disturbed night, and wished to rest. Might he not return that afternoon to take tea, when no doubt she would be recovered?
Charles’s solicitous5 inquiries—should the doctor not be called?—being politely answered in the negative, he took his leave. And having commanded Sam to buy what flowers he could and to take them to the charming invalid’s house, with the permission and advice to proffer6 a blossom or two of his own to the young lady so hostile to soot7, for which light duty he might take the day as his reward (not all Victorian employers were directly responsible for communism), Charles faced his own free hours.
His choice was easy; he would of course have gone wher-ever Ernestina’s health had required him to, but it must be confessed that the fact that it was Lyme Regis had made his pre-marital obligations delightfully8 easy to support. Stonebarrow, Black Ven, Ware9 Cliffs—these names may mean very little to you. But Lyme is situated10 in the center of one of the rare outcrops of a stone known as blue lias. To the mere11 landscape enthusiast12 this stone is not attractive. An exceed-ingly gloomy gray in color, a petrified13 mud in texture14, it is a good deal more forbidding than it is picturesque15. It is also treacherous16, since its strata17 are brittle18 and have a tendency to slide, with the consequence that this little stretch of twelve miles or so of blue lias coast has lost more land to the sea in the course of history than almost any other in England. But its highly fossiliferous nature and its mobility19 make it a Mecca for the British paleontologist. These last hundred years or more the commonest animal on its shores has been man—wielding a geologist’s hammer.
Charles had already visited what was perhaps the most famous shop in the Lyme of those days—the Old Fossil Shop, founded by the remarkable20 Mary Anning, a woman without formal education but with a genius for discovering good—and on many occasions then unclassified—specimens. She was the first person to see the bones of Ichthyosaurus platyodon; and one of the meanest disgraces of British paleontology is that although many scientists of the day gratefully used her finds to establish their own reputation, not one native type bears the specific anningii. To this distin-guished local memory Charles had paid his homage—and his cash, for various ammonites and Isocrina he coveted21 for the cabinets that walled his study in London. However, he had one disappointment, for he was at that time specializing in a branch of which the Old Fossil Shop had few examples for sale.
This was the echinoderm, or petrified sea urchin22. They are sometimes called tests (from the Latin testa, a tile or earthen pot); by Americans, sand dollars. Tests vary in shape, though they are always perfectly23 symmetrical; and they share a pattern of delicately burred striations. Quite apart from their scientific value (a vertical24 series taken from Beachy Head in the early 1860s was one of the first practical confirmations25 of the theory of evolution) they are very beautiful little objects; and they have the added charm that they are always difficult to find. You may search for days and not come on one; and a morning in which you find two or three is indeed a morning to remember. Perhaps, as a man with time to fill, a born amateur, this is unconsciously what attracted Charles to them; he had scientific reasons, of course, and with fellow hobbyists he would say indignantly that the Echinodermia had been “shamefully neglected,” a familiar justification26 for spending too much time in too small a field. But whatever his motives27 he had fixed28 his heart on tests.
Now tests do not come out of the blue lias, but out of the superimposed strata of flint; and the fossil-shop keeper had advised him that it was the area west of the town where he would do best to search, and not necessarily on the shore. Some half-hour after he had called on Aunt Tranter, Charles was once again at the Cobb.
The great mole29 was far from isolated30 that day. There were fishermen tarring, mending their nets, tinkering with crab31 and lobster32 pots. There were better-class people, early visitors, local residents, strolling beside the still swelling33 but now mild sea. Of the woman who stared, Charles noted34, there was no sign. But he did not give her—or the Cobb—a second thought and set out, with a quick and elastic35 step very different from his usual languid town stroll, along the beach under Ware Cleeves for his destination.
He would have made you smile, for he was carefully equipped for his role. He wore stout36 nailed boots and canvas gaiters that rose to encase Norfolk breeches of heavy flannel37. There was a tight and absurdly long coat to match; a canvas wideawake hat of an indeterminate beige; a massive ash-plant, which he had bought on his way to the Cobb; and a voluminous rucksack, from which you might have shaken out an already heavy array of hammers, wrappings, notebooks, pillboxes, adzes and heaven knows what else. Nothing is more incomprehensible to us than the methodicality of the Victori-ans; one sees it best (at its most ludicrous) in the advice so liberally handed out to travelers in the early editions of Baedeker. Where, one wonders, can any pleasure have been left? How, in the case of Charles, can he not have seen that light clothes would have been more comfortable? That a hat was not necessary? That stout nailed boots on a boulder-strewn beach are as suitable as ice skates?
Well, we laugh. But perhaps there is something admirable in this dissociation between what is most comfortable and what is most recommended. We meet here, once again, this bone of contention38 between the two centuries: is duty* to drive us, or not? If we take this obsession39 with dressing40 the part, with being prepared for every eventuality, as mere stupidity, blindness to the empirical, we make, I think, a grave—or rather a frivolous—mistake about our ancestors; because it was men not unlike Charles, and as overdressed and overequipped as he was that day, who laid the founda-tions of all our modern science. Their folly41 in that direction was no more than a symptom of their seriousness in a much more important one. They sensed that current accounts of the world were inadequate42; that they had allowed their windows on reality to become smeared43 by convention, religion, social stagnation44; they knew, in short, that they had things to discover, and that the discovery was of the utmost impor-tance to the future of man. We think (unless we live in a research laboratory) that we have nothing to discover, and the only things of the utmost importance to us concern the present of man. So much the better for us? Perhaps. But we are not the ones who will finally judge.
[* I had better here, as a reminder46 that mid-Victorian (unlike mod-ern) agnosticism and atheism47 were related strictly48 to theological dogma, quote George Eliot’s famous epigram: “God is inconceivable, immor-tality is unbelievable, but duty is peremptory49 and absolute.” And all the more peremptory, one might add, in the presence of such a terrible dual50 lapse51 of faith.]
So I should not have been too inclined to laugh that day when Charles, as he hammered and bent52 and examined his way along the shore, tried for the tenth time to span too wide a gap between boulders53 and slipped ignominiously54 on his back. Not that Charles much minded slipping, for the day was beautiful, the liassic fossils were plentiful55 and he soon found himself completely alone.
The sea sparkled, curlews cried. A flock of oyster56 catchers, black and white and coral-red, flew on ahead of him, har-bingers of his passage. Here there came seductive rock pools, and dreadful heresies57 drifted across the poor fellow’s brain— would it not be more fun, no, no, more scientifically valu-able, to take up marine58 biology? Perhaps to give up London, to live in Lyme ... but Ernestina would never allow that. There even came, I am happy to record, a thoroughly59 human moment in which Charles looked cautiously round, assured his complete solitude60 and then carefully removed his stout boots, gaiters and stockings. A schoolboy moment, and he tried to remember a line from Homer that would make it a classical moment, but was distracted by the necessity of catching61 a small crab that scuttled62 where the gigantic subaqueous shadow fell on its vigilant63 stalked eyes.
Just as you may despise Charles for his overburden of apparatus64, you perhaps despise him for his lack of specializa-tion. But you must remember that natural history had not then the pejorative65 sense it has today of a flight from reality— and only too often into sentiment. Charles was a quite competent ornithologist66 and botanist67 into the bargain. It might perhaps have been better had he shut his eyes to all but the fossil sea urchins68 or devoted69 his life to the distribu-tion of algae70, if scientific progress is what we are talking about; but think of Darwin, of The Voyage of the Beagle. The Origin of Species is a triumph of generalization71, not specialization; and even if you could prove to me that the latter would have been better for Charles the ungifted scien-tist, I should still maintain the former was better for Charles the human being. It is not that amateurs can afford to dabble72 everywhere; they ought to dabble everywhere, and damn the scientific prigs who try to shut them up in some narrow oubliette.
Charles called himself a Darwinist, and yet he had not really understood Darwin. But then, nor had Darwin himself. What that genius had upset was the Linnaean Scala Naturae, the ladder of nature, whose great keystone, as essential to it as the divinity of Christ to theology, was nulla species nova: a new species cannot enter the world. This principle explains the Linnaean obsession with classifying and naming, with fossilizing the existent. We can see it now as a foredoomed attempt to stabilize73 and fix what is in reality a continuous flux74, and it seems highly appropriate that Linnaeus himself finally went mad; he knew he was in a labyrinth75, but not that it was one whose walls and passages were eternally changing. Even Darwin never quite shook off the Swedish fetters76, and Charles can hardly be blamed for the thoughts that went through his mind as he gazed up at the lias strata in the cliffs above him.
He knew that nulla species nova was rubbish; yet he saw in the strata an immensely reassuring77 orderliness in existence. He might perhaps have seen a very contemporary social symbolism in the way these gray-blue ledges78 were crumbling79; but what he did see was a kind of edificiality of time, in which inexorable laws (therefore beneficently divine, for who could argue that order was not the highest human good?) very conveniently arranged themselves for the survival of the fittest and best, exemplia gratia Charles Smithson, this fine spring day, alone, eager and inquiring, understanding, accept-ing, noting and grateful. What was lacking, of course, was the corollary of the collapse80 of the ladder of nature: that if new species can come into being, old species very often have to make way for them. Personal extinction81 Charles was aware of—no Victorian could not be. But general extinction was as absent a concept from his mind that day as the smallest cloud from the sky above him; and even though, when he finally resumed his stockings and gaiters and boots, he soon held a very concrete example of it in his hand.
It was a very fine fragment of lias with ammonite impressions, exquisitely82 clear, microcosms of macrocosms, whirled galaxies83 that Catherine-wheeled their way across ten inches of rock. Having duly inscribed84 a label with the date and place of finding, he once again hopscotched out of science—this time, into love. He determined85 to give it to Ernestina when he returned. It was pretty enough for her to like; and after all, very soon it would come back to him, with her. Even better, the increased weight on his back made it a labor45, as well as a gift. Duty, agreeable conformity86 to the epoch’s current, raised its stern head.
And so did the awareness87 that he had wandered more slowly than he meant. He unbuttoned his coat and took out his silver half hunter. Two o’clock! He looked sharply back then, and saw the waves lapping the foot of a point a mile away. He was in no danger of being cut off, since he could see a steep but safe path just ahead of him which led up the cliff to the dense88 woods above. But he could not return along the shore. His destination had indeed been this path, but he had meant to walk quickly to it, and then up to the levels where the flint strata emerged. As a punishment to himself for his dilatoriness89 he took the path much too fast, and had to sit a minute to recover, sweating copiously90 under the abominable91 flannel. But he heard a little stream nearby and quenched92 his thirst; wetted his handkerchief and patted his face; and then he began to look around him.
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pretext
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| n.借口，托词 | |
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sketches
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| n.草图( sketch的名词复数 )；素描；速写；梗概 | |
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aggravated
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| 使恶化( aggravate的过去式和过去分词 )； 使更严重； 激怒； 使恼火 | |
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inflict
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| vt.(on)把…强加给，使遭受，使承担 | |
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solicitous
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| adj.热切的，挂念的 | |
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proffer
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| v.献出，赠送；n.提议，建议 | |
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soot
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| n.煤烟，烟尘；vt.熏以煤烟 | |
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delightfully
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| 大喜，欣然 | |
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ware
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| n.(常用复数)商品，货物 | |
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situated
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| adj.坐落在...的，处于某种境地的 | |
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mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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enthusiast
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| n.热心人，热衷者 | |
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petrified
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| adj.惊呆的；目瞪口呆的v.使吓呆，使惊呆；变僵硬；使石化(petrify的过去式和过去分词) | |
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texture
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| n.(织物)质地；(材料)构造；结构；肌理 | |
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picturesque
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| adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的 | |
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treacherous
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| adj.不可靠的，有暗藏的危险的；adj.背叛的，背信弃义的 | |
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strata
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| n.地层（复数）；社会阶层 | |
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brittle
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| adj.易碎的；脆弱的；冷淡的；(声音)尖利的 | |
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mobility
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| n.可动性，变动性，情感不定 | |
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remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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coveted
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| adj.令人垂涎的；垂涎的，梦寐以求的v.贪求，觊觎(covet的过去分词)；垂涎；贪图 | |
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urchin
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| n.顽童；海胆 | |
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perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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vertical
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| adj.垂直的，顶点的，纵向的；n.垂直物，垂直的位置 | |
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confirmations
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| 证实( confirmation的名词复数 )； 证据； 确认； （基督教中的）坚信礼 | |
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justification
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| n.正当的理由；辩解的理由 | |
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motives
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| n.动机，目的( motive的名词复数 ) | |
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fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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mole
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| n.胎块；痣；克分子 | |
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isolated
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| adj.与世隔绝的 | |
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crab
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| n.螃蟹，偏航，脾气乖戾的人，酸苹果；vi.捕蟹，偏航，发牢骚；vt.使偏航，发脾气 | |
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lobster
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| n.龙虾，龙虾肉 | |
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swelling
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| n.肿胀 | |
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noted
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| adj.著名的，知名的 | |
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elastic
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| n.橡皮圈，松紧带；adj.有弹性的；灵活的 | |
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flannel
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| n.法兰绒；法兰绒衣服 | |
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contention
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| n.争论，争辩，论战；论点，主张 | |
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obsession
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| n.困扰，无法摆脱的思想(或情感) | |
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dressing
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| n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料 | |
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folly
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| n.愚笨，愚蠢，蠢事，蠢行，傻话 | |
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inadequate
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| adj.(for,to)不充足的，不适当的 | |
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smeared
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| 弄脏； 玷污； 涂抹； 擦上 | |
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stagnation
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| n. 停滞 | |
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labor
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| n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦 | |
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reminder
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| n.提醒物，纪念品；暗示，提示 | |
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atheism
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| n.无神论，不信神 | |
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strictly
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| adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地 | |
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peremptory
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| adj.紧急的，专横的，断然的 | |
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dual
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| adj.双的；二重的，二元的 | |
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lapse
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| n.过失，流逝，失效，抛弃信仰，间隔；vi.堕落，停止，失效，流逝；vt.使失效 | |
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bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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boulders
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| n.卵石( boulder的名词复数 )；巨砾；（受水或天气侵蚀而成的）巨石；漂砾 | |
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ignominiously
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| adv.耻辱地，屈辱地，丢脸地 | |
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plentiful
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| adj.富裕的，丰富的 | |
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oyster
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| n.牡蛎；沉默寡言的人 | |
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heresies
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| n.异端邪说，异教( heresy的名词复数 ) | |
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marine
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| adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵 | |
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thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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solitude
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| n. 孤独; 独居,荒僻之地,幽静的地方 | |
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catching
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| adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住 | |
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scuttled
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| v.使船沉没( scuttle的过去式和过去分词 )；快跑，急走 | |
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vigilant
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| adj.警觉的，警戒的，警惕的 | |
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apparatus
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| n.装置，器械；器具，设备 | |
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pejorative
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| adj.贬低的，轻蔑的 | |
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ornithologist
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| n.鸟类学家 | |
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botanist
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| n.植物学家 | |
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urchins
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| n.顽童( urchin的名词复数 )；淘气鬼；猬；海胆 | |
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devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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algae
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| n.水藻，海藻 | |
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generalization
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| n.普遍性，一般性，概括 | |
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dabble
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| v.涉足，浅赏 | |
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stabilize
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| vt.（使）稳定，使稳固，使稳定平衡；vi.稳定 | |
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flux
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| n.流动；不断的改变 | |
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labyrinth
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| n.迷宫；难解的事物；迷路 | |
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fetters
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| n.脚镣( fetter的名词复数 )；束缚v.给…上脚镣，束缚( fetter的第三人称单数 ) | |
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reassuring
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| a.使人消除恐惧和疑虑的，使人放心的 | |
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ledges
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| n.（墙壁，悬崖等）突出的狭长部分( ledge的名词复数 )；（平窄的）壁架；横档；（尤指）窗台 | |
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79
crumbling
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| adj.摇摇欲坠的 | |
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80
collapse
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| vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷 | |
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81
extinction
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| n.熄灭，消亡，消灭，灭绝，绝种 | |
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82
exquisitely
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| adv.精致地；强烈地；剧烈地；异常地 | |
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83
galaxies
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| 星系( galaxy的名词复数 )； 银河系； 一群（杰出或著名的人物） | |
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84
inscribed
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| v.写，刻( inscribe的过去式和过去分词 )；内接 | |
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85
determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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86
conformity
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| n.一致，遵从，顺从 | |
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87
awareness
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| n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智 | |
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88
dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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89
dilatoriness
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| n.迟缓，拖延 | |
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90
copiously
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| adv.丰富地，充裕地 | |
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91
abominable
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| adj.可厌的，令人憎恶的 | |
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92
quenched
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| 解（渴）( quench的过去式和过去分词 )； 终止（某事物）； （用水）扑灭（火焰等）； 将（热物体）放入水中急速冷却 | |
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