“No,” answered Mr Stodham, “I never heard of it.”
“You shall,” said Aurelius, and told the tale.
“The first thing that I can remember is that a tall, gaunt man in green broke out of a dark forest, leaping extravagantly3, superhumanly, but rhythmically4, and wildly singing; and that he was leading an army to victory. As he carved and painted himself on my mind I knew without effort what had gone before this supreme5 moment.
“It was late afternoon in winter. No light came from the misted, invisible sky, but the turf of the bare hill-top seemed of itself to breathe up a soft illumination. Where this hill-top may be I know not, but at the time of[178] which I am speaking I was on foot in broad daylight and on a good road in the county of Hampshire.
“The green man, the extravagant2 leaper and wild singer, broke out of the hillside forest at the head of a green army. His leaping and his dancing were so magnificent that his followers6 might at first have been mistaken for idle spectators. The enemy came, clad in scarlet, out of the forest at the opposite side of the hill-top. The two were advancing to meet upon a level plateau of smooth, almost olive turf....
“For days and nights the steep hillside forest had covered the manœuvres of the forces. Except one or two on each side they had seen and heard nothing of one another, so dark were the trees, the mists so dense7 and of such confusing motion; and that those few had seen or heard their enemies could only be guessed, for they were found dead. Day and night the warriors8 saw pale mist, dark trees, darker earth, and the pale faces of their companions, alive or dead. What they heard was chiefly the panting of breathless men on the steeps, but sometimes also the drip of the sombre crystal mist-beads, the drenched9 flight of great birds and their shrieks10 of alarm or of resentment[179] at the invaders11, the chickadeedee of little birds flitting about them without fear, the singing of thrushes in thorns at the edges of the glades12.
“In the eventless silence of the unknown forest each army, and the scarlet men more than the green, had begun to long for the conflict, if only because it might prove that they were not lost, forgotten, marooned13, in the heart of the mist, cut off from time and from all humanity save the ancient dead whose bones lay in the barrows under the beeches14. Therefore it was with joy that they heard the tread of their enemies approaching across the plain. When they could see one another it was to the scarlet men as if they had sighted home; to the green men it was as if a mistress was beckoning15. They forgot the endless strange hills, the dark trees, the curst wizard mist. It no longer seemed to them that the sheep-bells, bubbling somewhere out of sight, came from flocks who were in that world which they had unwillingly16 and unwittingly left for ever.
“The scarlet men were very silent; if there were songs in the heads of two or three, none sang. They looked neither to left nor to right; they saw not their fellows, but only the enemy. The breadth of the plain was very great to them.[180] With all their solidity they could hardly endure the barren interval—it had been planned that they should wait for the charge, but it was felt now that such a pause might be too much for them. Ponderous17 and stiff, not in a straight line, nor in a curve, nor with quite natural irregularity, but in half a dozen straight lines that never made one, they came on, like rocks moving out against the tide. I noticed that they were modern red-coats armed with rifles, their bayonets fixed18.
“The green men made a curved irregular front like the incoming sea. They rejoiced separately and together in these minutes of approach. And they sang. Their song was one which the enemy took to be mournful because it had in it the spirit of the mountain mists as well as of the mountains. It saddened the hearts of the enemy mysteriously; the green men themselves it filled, as a cup with wine, with the certainty of immortality19. They turned their eyes frequently towards their nearest companions, or they held their heads high, so that their gaze did not take in the earth or anything upon it. The enemy they scarcely saw. They saw chiefly their leaping leader and his mighty20 twelve.
“The first love of the scarlet men for the enemy[181] had either died, or had turned into hate, fear, indignation, or contempt. There may have been joy among them, but all the passions of the individuals were blended into one passion—if such it could be called—of the mass, part contempt for the others, part confidence in themselves. But among the green men first love had grown swiftly to a wild passion of joy.
“The tall green hero danced singing towards them. His men leaped after him—first a company of twelve, who might have been his brethren; then the whole green host, lightly and extravagantly. The leader towered like a fountain of living flame. Had he stood still he must have been gaunt and straight like a beech-tree that stands alone on the crest22 of a sea-beholding hill. He was neither young nor old—or was he both young and old like the gods? In his blue eyes burnt a holy and joyous23 fire. He bore no weapon save a dagger24 in his right hand, so small that to the enemy he appeared unarmed as he leaped towards them. First he hopped25, then he leaped with one leg stretched forward and very high, and curved somewhat in front of the other, while at the same time[182] the arm on the opposite side swung across his body. But, in fact, whenever I looked at him—and I saw chiefly him—he was high in the air, with his head uplifted and thrown back, his knee almost at the height of his chin. He also sang that seeming sorrowful melody of the mountain joy, accented to an extravagant exultation26 by his leaping and the flashing of his eyes.
“If he had not been there doubtless the twelve would have astonished the scarlet men and myself just as much, for they too were tall, danced the same leaping dance, sang the mountain song with the same wild and violent joy, and were likewise armed only with short daggers27.
“Suddenly the leader stopped; the twelve stopped; the green army stopped; all were silent. The scarlet men continued to advance, not without glancing at one another for the first time, with inquiry28 in their looks, followed by scorn; they expected the enemy to turn and fly. They had no sooner formed this opinion than the tall green leader leaped forward again singing, the twelve leaped after him, the sea-like edge of the green army swayed onward29. Almost a smile of satisfaction spread over the stiff faces of their opponents, for there was now but a little distance between the armies; how[183] easily they would push through that frivolous30 prancing31 multitude—if indeed it ever dared to meet their onset32. This was the one fear of the scarlet men, that the next minute was not to see the clash and the victory, that they would have to plunge33 once more into the forest, the mist, the silence, after a foe34 that seemed to them as inhuman35 as those things and perhaps related to them.
“Suddenly again the green leader was rigid36, his song ceased. The twelve, the whole green army, were as statues. A smile grew along the line of the scarlet men when they had conquered their surprise, a smile of furious pity for such a dancing-master and his dancing-school—a smile presently of uneasiness as the seconds passed and they could hear only the sound of their own tread. The silence of all those men unnerved them. Now ... would the green men turn? Some of the scarlet men, eager to make sure of grappling with the enemy, quickened their step, but not all. The green men did not turn. Once again the dance and the song leaped up, this time as if at a signal from the low sun which smote37 across the green leader’s breast, like a shield, and like a banner. Wilder than ever the dance and the song of the green men.[184] The scarlet men could see their eyes now, and even the small daggers like jewels in the hands of the leaders. Some were still full of indignant hate and already held the dancers firm on the points of their bayonets. Some thought that there was a trick, they knew not how it might end. Some wished to wait kneeling, thus to receive the dancers on their steadfast38 points. Some were afraid, looking to left and right for a sign. One tripped intentionally39 and fell. The line became as jagged as if it were a delicate thing blown by the wind. The green leader cut the line in two without stopping his dance, leaving his dagger in the throat of a rifleman. Not one of the twelve but penetrated40 the breaking line in the course of the dance. The whole green army surged through the scarlet without ceasing their song, which seemed to hover41 above them like spray over waves. Then they turned.
“The scarlet men did not turn. They ran swiftly now, and it was their backs that met the spears of the green men as they crowded into the forest. The tall, weaponless, leaping singer seemed everywhere, above and round about, turning the charge and thrust of the green men into a lovely and a joyous thing like the arrival of Spring in March, making the very trees[185] ghastly to the scarlet fugitives42 running hither and thither43 silently to their deaths. Not one of the defeated survived, for the few that eluded44 their pursuers could not escape the mist, nor yet the song of the green leader, except by death, which they gave to themselves in sadness.
“I cannot wonder that the hero’s dancing and singing were not to be withstood by his enemies, since to me it was divine and so moving that I could not help trying to imitate both song and dance while I was walking and dreaming.”
“Nothing like that ever happened to me,” said Mr Stodham. “But I thought you meant a real battle. It was lucky you weren’t run over if you were dreaming like that along the road.”
“I suppose I was not born to be run over,” said Aurelius.
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1
scarlet
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| n.深红色，绯红色，红衣；adj.绯红色的 | |
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2
extravagant
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| adj.奢侈的；过分的；(言行等)放肆的 | |
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3
extravagantly
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| adv.挥霍无度地 | |
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4
rhythmically
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| adv.有节奏地 | |
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supreme
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| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
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6
followers
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| 追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件 | |
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7
dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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8
warriors
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| 武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 ) | |
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9
drenched
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| adj.湿透的；充满的v.使湿透( drench的过去式和过去分词 )；在某人（某物）上大量使用（某液体） | |
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10
shrieks
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| n.尖叫声( shriek的名词复数 )v.尖叫( shriek的第三人称单数 ) | |
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11
invaders
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| 入侵者，侵略者，侵入物( invader的名词复数 ) | |
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12
glades
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| n.林中空地( glade的名词复数 ) | |
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13
marooned
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| adj.被围困的；孤立无援的；无法脱身的 | |
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14
beeches
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| n.山毛榉( beech的名词复数 )；山毛榉木材 | |
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15
beckoning
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| adj.引诱人的，令人心动的v.（用头或手的动作）示意，召唤( beckon的现在分词 ) | |
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16
unwillingly
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| adv.不情愿地 | |
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17
ponderous
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| adj.沉重的，笨重的，(文章)冗长的 | |
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18
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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immortality
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| n.不死，不朽 | |
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mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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21
steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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22
crest
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| n.顶点；饰章；羽冠；vt.达到顶点；vi.形成浪尖 | |
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23
joyous
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| adj.充满快乐的；令人高兴的 | |
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24
dagger
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| n.匕首，短剑，剑号 | |
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25
hopped
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| 跳上[下]( hop的过去式和过去分词 )； 单足蹦跳； 齐足（或双足）跳行； 摘葎草花 | |
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26
exultation
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| n.狂喜，得意 | |
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27
daggers
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| 匕首，短剑( dagger的名词复数 ) | |
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28
inquiry
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| n.打听，询问，调查，查问 | |
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29
onward
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| adj.向前的，前进的；adv.向前，前进，在先 | |
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30
frivolous
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| adj.轻薄的；轻率的 | |
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31
prancing
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| v.（马）腾跃( prance的现在分词 ) | |
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32
onset
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| n.进攻，袭击，开始，突然开始 | |
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33
plunge
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| v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲 | |
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34
foe
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| n.敌人，仇敌 | |
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35
inhuman
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| adj.残忍的，不人道的，无人性的 | |
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36
rigid
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| adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的 | |
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37
smote
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| v.猛打，重击，打击( smite的过去式 ) | |
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38
steadfast
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| adj.固定的，不变的，不动摇的；忠实的；坚贞不移的 | |
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39
intentionally
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| ad.故意地，有意地 | |
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40
penetrated
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| adj. 击穿的，鞭辟入里的 动词penetrate的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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41
hover
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| vi.翱翔，盘旋；徘徊；彷徨，犹豫 | |
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42
fugitives
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| n.亡命者，逃命者( fugitive的名词复数 ) | |
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43
thither
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| adv.向那里；adj.在那边的，对岸的 | |
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44
eluded
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| v.（尤指机敏地）避开( elude的过去式和过去分词 )；逃避；躲避；使达不到 | |
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