IN ONE LIMB OF A SPIRAL GALAXY2, close to a star known as .Sol“ to someof its dependents, another star of the same type underwent catastrophicreadjustment and became nova. Its glory would be seen on Mars in anotherthree-replenished (729) years, or 1370 Terran years. The Old Ones noted3 thecoming event as being useful, shortly, for instruction of the young, whilenever ceasing the exciting and crucial discussion of esthetic4 problemsconcerning the new epic5 woven around the death of the Fifth Planet.
The departure of the spaceship Champion for its home planet was notedwithout comment and a watch was kept on the strange nestling sent back init, but nothing more, since it would be some time yet before it would be fruitfulto grok the outcome. The twenty-three humans left behind on Mars coped,successfully in most ways, with an environment lethal7 to naked humans butless difficult, on the whole, than that in the Free State of Antarctica. One ofthem discorporated through an undiagnosed illness sometimes called.heartbreak“ and at other times .homesickness.“ The Old Ones cherished thewounded spirit and sent it back where it belonged for further healing; asidefrom that the Martians left the Terrans alone.
On Earth the exploding neighbor star was not noticed at all, humanastronomers still being limited by speed of light. The Man from Mars, havingbeen briefly8 back in the news, had dropped out of the news again. Theminority leader in the Federation9 Senate called for .a bold, new approach“ tothe twin problems of population and malnutrition10 in southeast Asia, startingwith increased emergency grants-in-aid to families with more than fivechildren. Mrs. Percy B. S. Souchek sued the supervisors11 of Los Angeles City-County over the death of her pet poodle Piddle which had taken place duringa five-day period of stationary12 inversion13 layer. Cynthia Duchess announcedthat she was going to have the Perfect Baby by a scientifically selectedanonymous donor14 and an equally perfect host mother just as soon as abattery of experts completed calculating the exact instant for conception toinsure that the wonder child would be equally a genius in music, art, andstatesmanship-and that she would (with the aid of hormonal15 treatments)nurse her child herself. She gave out a statement to the press on thepsychological benefits of natural feeding and permitted, or insisted, that thepress take pictures of her to prove that she was physically16 endowed for thishappy duty-a fact that her usual publicity17 pictures had never really leftundecided-Supreme19 Bishop20 Digby denounced her as the Harlot of Babylon and forbadeany Fosterite to accept the commission, either as donor or hostmother. AliceDouglas was quoted as saying: .While I do not know Miss Duchesspersonally, one cannot help but admire her. Her brave example should be aninspiration to mothers everywhere.“By accident, Jubal Harshaw saw one of the pictures and the accompanyingstory in a magazine some visitor had left in his house- He chuckled21 over itand posted it on the bulletin board in the kitchen ... then noted (as he hadexpected) that it did not stay up long, which made him chuckle22 again.
He did not have too many chuckles23 that week; the world had been too muchwith him. The working press soon ceased bothering Mike and the Harshawhousehold when it was clear that the story was over and that Harshaw didnot intend to let any fresh news happen-but a great many thousands of otherpeople, not in the news business, did not forget Mike. Douglas honestly triedto insure Mike’s privacy; S. S. troopers now patrolled Harshaw’s fence andan S.S. car circled over the grounds and challenged any car that tried to land.
But Harshaw resented the necessity of having guards.
Guards kept people out; the mail and the telephone came through. Thetelephone Jubal coped with by changing his call number and having all callsrouted through an answering service to which was given a very limited list ofpersons from whom Harshaw would accept calls-and, at that, he kept theinstrument in the house set on .refuse & record“ most of the time.
But the mail always comes through.
At first, Harshaw told Jill that the problem was Mike’s. The boy had to growup someday; he could start by handling his own mail and she could help andadvise him. .But don’t bother me with it; I have enough trouble with screwballmail of my own!“Jubal could not make his decision stick; there was too much of it and Jillsimply did not know how.
Just sorting the mail into categories was a headache. Jubal solved that byfirst making a phone call to the local postmaster (which got no results), thenby a phone call to Bradley, which did get results after a .suggestion“ from onhigh trickled25 back down to local level; thereafter mail for Mike arrived sackedas first class, second class, third class, and fourth class, with mail foreveryone else in the household in still another sack.
Second and third class mail was used to insulate a new root cellar north ofthe house, the old root cellar having been dug by the former owner as afallout shelter and never having been satisfactory as root cellar. Once thenew root cellar was heavily over-insulated and could use no more, Jubal toldDuke to dump such mail as fill to check erosion in gullies; combined with asmall amount of brush such mail compacted very nicely.
Fourth class mail was a problem, especially as one package explodedprematurely in the village post office, blowing several years of .Wanted“announcements off the notice board and ruining one .Use Next Window“sign-by great good luck the postmaster was out for coffee and his assistant,an elderly lady with weak kidneys, was safe in the washroom. Jubalconsidered having all fourth class mail addressed to Mike processed by thebomb-disposal specialists of the S.S, who performed the same service for theSecretary General.
This turned out not to be necessary; Mike could spot a .wrongness“ about apackage without opening it. Thereafter all fourth class mail was unsacked ina heap just inside the gate; then, after the postman had left, Mike would prythrough the pile from a distance, cause to disappear any harmful parcel; thenLarry would truck the remainder to the house. Jubal felt that this method wasfar better than soaking suspect packages, opening them in darkness, Xrayingthem, or any other conventional method.
Mike loved opening the harmless packages; it made every day Christmas forhim. He particularly enjoyed reading his own name on address labels. Theplunder inside might or might not interest him; usually he gave it to one of theothers-and, in the process, at last learned what .property“ was in discoveringthat he could make gifts to his friends. Anything that nobody wanted woundup in a gully; this included, by definition, all gifts of food, as Jubal was notcertain that Mike’s nose for .wrongness“ extended to poisons - especiallyafter Mike had drunk, through error, a beaker of a poisonous solution Dukehad left in the refrigerator he used for his photographic work. Mike had simplysaid mildly that the .Iced tea“ had a flavor he was not sure that he liked.
Jubal told .iii that it was otherwise all right to keep anything that caine to Mikeby parcel post provided that none of it was (a) ever paid for, (b) everacknowleged, (c) nor ever returned no matter how marked. Some of theitems were legitimatly gifts; more of it was unordered merchandise. Eitherway, Jubal assumed conclusively26 that unsolicted chattels27 from strangersalways represented efforts to make use of the Man from Mars and thereforemerited no thanks.
An exception was made for live stock, from baby chicks to baby alligatorswhich Jubal advised her to return unless she was willing to guarantee thecare and feeding thereof, and the responsibilitY of keeping same from fallinginto the pool.
First class mail was a separate headache. After looking over a bushel or soof Mike’s first class mail Jubal set up a list of categories:
A. Begging letters, personal and institutionaa-erosion fill.
B. Threatening letters-file unanswered. Second and later lettersfrom any one source to be turned over to S.S.
C. Offers of business deals of any nature forward to Douglasunanswered.
D. Crackpot letters not containing threat-Pass around any realdillies; the rest to go in a gully.
E. Friendly letters-answer only if accompanied by stamped, selfaddressed envelope, in which case use one of several formletters to be signed by Jill (Jubal pointed28 out thatletters signed by the Man from Mars were valuable per se,and an open invitation to more useless mail.)F. Scatological letters-Pass to Jubal (who had a bet with himselfthat no such letter would ever show the faintest sign ofliterary novelty) for further disposition- i.e., gully.
G. Proposals of marriage and propositions not quite so formal—ignore and file. Use procedure under .B“ on third offense29.
H. Letters from scientific and educatiional institutions-handleas under .E“; if answered at all, use form letterexplaining that the Man from Mars was not available foranything; if Jill felt that a form brushoff would not do,pass along to Jubal.
I. Letters from persons who actually had met Mike, such as allthe crew of the Champion, the President of the UnitedStates, and a few others-let Mike answer them exactlY ashe pleased; the exercise in penmanship would be good forhim and the exercise in humam personal relations he neededeven more (and if he wanted advice, let him ask for it).
This guide cut the number of letters that had to be answered down tomanageable size-a few each day for Jill, seldom even one for Mike. Justopening the mail took a major effort, but Jill found that she could skim andclassify in about one hour each day, after she got used to it. The first fourcategofles remained large at all times; category .G“ waS very large duringthe fortnight following the world stereocast from the Palace, then dwindledand the curve flattened30 to a steady trickle24.
Jubal cautioned Jill that, while Mike should himself answer letters only fromacquaintances and friends, mail addressed to him was his to read if hewished.
The third morning after the category system had gone into effect Jill broughta letter, category .G,“ to Jubal. More than half of the ladies and other females(plus a few misguided males) who supplied this category included picturesalleged to be of themselves; some of these pictures left little to theimagination, as did the letters themselves in many cases-This letter enclosed a picture which managed not only to leave nothing to theimagination, but started over by stimulating31 fresh imaginings. Jill said, .Lookat this, Boss! I ask you!“Jubal read the letter, then looked at the picture. .She seems to know whatshe wants. What does Mike think of it?“.He hasn’t seen it. That’s why I brought it to you.“Jubal glanced again at the picture. .A type which, in my youth, we referred toas .stacked.’ Well, her sex is not in doubt, nor her agility32. But why are youshowing it to me? I’ve seen better, I assure you.“.But what should I do with it? The letter is bad enough ... but that disgustingpicture-should I tear it up? Before Mike sees it?“.Oh- Siddown, Nurse. What does it say on the envelope?“.Nothing. Just the address and the return address.“.How does the address read?“.Huh? .Mr. Valentine Michael Smith, the Man from-.
.Oh. Then it’s not addressed to you.“.Why, no, of course-.
.That’s all I wanted to be sure of. Now let’s get something straight. I am notMike’s guardian33. You are neither his mother nor his chaperon. I’ve simply cooptedyou as his secretary. If Mike wants to read everything that comes inhere addressed to him, including third class junk mail, he is free to do so.“.Well, he does read almost all of those ads. But surely you don’t want him tosee filth34? Jubal, Mike doesn’t know what the world is like. He’s innocent.
.So? How many men has he killed so far, Jill?“Jill did not answer; she looked unhappy. Jubal went on: .If you want to helphim, you will concentrate on teaching him that casual killing35 is frowned on inthis society. Otherwise he is bound to be unpleasantly conspicuous36 when hegoes out into the world.“.Uh, I don’t think he wants to .go out into the world.’“.Well, I’m damned well going to push him out of the nest as soon as I thinkhe can fly. He can come back later, if he wishes—But I shan’t make itpossible for him to live out his life here, as an arrested infant. For one thing, Ican’t even if I wanted to . . because Mike will probably outlive me by sixty orseventy years and this nest will be gone. But you are correct; Mike isinnocent our standards. Nurse, have you ever seen that sterile37 laboratory atNotre Dame38?“.No. I’ve read about it.“.Healthiest animals in the world_hut they can’t ever leave the laboratory.
Child, I’m not running a sterile laboratorY. Mike has got to get acquaintedwith .filth,’ as you call it-and get immunized to it. One day he’s going to meetthe gal1 who wrote this letter, or her spiritual twin sister -in fact he’s going tomeet her by the dozens and hundreds ~hucks, with his notoriety and hislooks he can spend his life skipping from one warm bed to another, if helikes. You can’t stop it, I can’t stop it; it’s up to Mike. Furthermore, I wouldn’twant to stop it, although for my taste it’s a silly way to spend one’s life-doingthe same monotonous39 exercises over and over again, I mean- What do youthink?“.I-. Jill stopped and blushed.
.I withdraw the question. Maybe you don’t find them monotonous but none ofmy business, either way. But if you don’t want Mike’s feet kicked out fromunder him by the first five hundred women that get him alone_and I don’tregard it as a good idea, either; he should have other interests as well-thendon’t try to intercept40 his mail. Letters like that may vaccinate41 him a little - . . orat least tend to put him on guard. Don’t make a thing out of it; just pass italong in the stack, cum .filthy’ picture. Answer his questionS if he asks them .
. . and try not to blush.“.Uh, all right. Boss, you’re infuriating when you’re logical.“ .Yes, a mostuncouth way to argue. Now run along.“.All right. But I’m going to tear up that picture after Mike has seen it.“.Oh, don’t do that!“.What? Do you want it, Boss?“.Heaven forbid! I told you I bad seen much better. But Duke is not asjaundiced as I am; he collects such pictures- If Mike doesn’t want it-and fiveto-one he doesn’t-give it to Duke- He’ll be delighted.“.Duke collects such trash? But he seems such a nice person.
.He is. A very nice person indeed. Or I’d kick him out.“.But- I don’t understand it“Jubal sighed. .And 1 could sit here all day explaining it and you still wouldn’tunderstand it. My dear, there are aspects of sex on which it is jmpossible tocommunicate between the two sexes of our race. They are sometimesgrokked by intuition across the gulf42 that separates us, by a few exceptionallygifted individuals. But words are useless, so I won’t try. Just take my word forit: Duke is a perfect knight43, sans peur et sans reproche- and he would like tohave that picture.“.All right, he can have it if Mike doesn’t keep it. But I’ll just pass it along toyou. I won’t give it to Duke myself_be might get ideas.“.Sissy. You might enjoy his ideas- Anything startling in the mail otherwise?“.No. The usual crop of people who want Mike to endorse44 this and that, orpeddle .Official Man-from-Mars this’s and that’s-one character had the nerveto ask for a five-year monopoly royalty45 free, on the name, but wants Mike tofinance it as well.“.I admire that sort of whole-hearted thief. Encourage him. Tell him that Mikeis so rich that he makes crepes suzettes with Napoleon brandy and needssome tax losses-so how much guarantee would he like?“.Are YOU serious, Boss? I’ll have to dig it out of the group already sackedfor Mr. Douglas.“.Of course I’m not serious. The gonif would show up here tomorrow, with hisfamily. But you’ve given me a fine Idea for a story, so run along. Front!“Mike was not uninterested in the .disgusting“ picture. He grokked correctly (ifonly theoreticly) what the letter and the picture symbolized-and studied thepicture with the clear-eyed delight With which he studied each passingbutterfly. He found both butterflies and women tremendously interesting-infact, all the grokking world around him was enchanting46 and he wanted todrink so deep of it all that his own grokking would be perfect.
He understood, intellectually, the mechanical and biological processes beingoffered to him in these letters but he wondered why these strangers wantedhis help in quickening their eggs? Mike understood (without grokking it) thatthese people made ritual of this simple necessity, a .growing closer“ possiblyalmost as important and precious as the water ceremony. He was eager togrok it.
But he was not in a hurry, .hurry“ being one human concept he had failed togrok at all. He was sensitively aware of the key importance of correct timingin all acts-but with the Martian approach: correct timing47 was accomplished48 bywaiting. He had noticed, of course, that his human brothers lacked his ownfine discrimination of time and often were forced to wait a little faster than aMartian would-but he did not hold their innocent awkwardness against them;he simply learned to wait faster himself to cover their lack.
In fact, he sometimes waited faster so efficiently49 that a human would haveconcluded that he was hurrying at breakneck speed. But the human wouldhave been mistaken-Mike was simply adjusting his own waiting in warmconsideration for the needs of others.
So he accepted Jill’s edict that he was not to reply to any of these brotherlyoffers from female humans, but he accepted it not as a final veto but as awaiting-possibly a century hence would be better; in any case now was notthe correct time since his water brother Jill spoke50 rightly.
Mike readily assented51 when Jill suggested, quite firmly, that he give thispicture to Duke. He went at once to do so and would have done so anyhow;Mike knew about Duke’s collection, he had seen it, looked through it withdeep interest, trying to grok why Duke said, .That one ain’t much in the face,but look at those legs-brother!“ It always made Mike feel good to be called.brother“ by one of his water brothers but legs were just legs, save that hisown people had three each while humans each had only two-without beingcrippled thereby52, he reminded himself~ two legs were proper for humans, hemust always grok that this was correct.
As for faces, Jubal had the most beautiful face Mike had ever seen, clearlyand distinctly his own. It seemed to Mike that these human females in Duke’spicture collection could hardly be said to have grown faces as yet, so muchdid one look like the other in the face. All young human females had muchthe same face-how could it be otherwise? Of course he had never had anytrouble recognizing Jill’s face; she was not only the first woman he had everseen but, most important, his first female water brother-Mike knew every poreon her nose, every incipient53 wrinkle in her face and had praised each one inhappy meditation54.
But, while he now knew Anne from Dorcas and Dorcas from Miriam by theirfaces alone, it had not been so when first he came here. For several daysMike had distinguished55 between them by size and coloration-and, of course,by voice, since no two voices were ever alike. But, as sometimes did happen,all three females would be quiet at once and then it was well that Anne wasso much bigger, Dorcas so small, and that Miriam, who was bigger thanDorcas but smaller than Anne, nevertheless need not be mistaken for themissing one if either Anne or Dorcas was absent because Miriam hadunmistakable hair called .red,“ even though it was not the color called .red“when speaking of anything but hair.
This special meaning for .red“ did not trouble Mike; he knew before hereached Earth that every English word held more than one meaning. It was afact one could get used to, without grokking, just as the sameness of all girlfaces could be gotten used to . . . and, after waiting, they were no longerquite the same. Mike now could call up Anne’s face in his mind and count thepores in her nose as readily as with Jill’s. In essence, even an egg wasuniquely itself, different from all other eggs any where and when- Mike hadalways known that. So each girl had her own face, no matter how small thosedifferences might be.
Mike gave the .disgusting“ picture to Duke and was warmed by Duke’spleasure. Mike did not feel that he was depriving himself in parting with thepicture; he had seen it once, he could see it in his mind whenever he wishedeventhe face in that picture, as it had glowed with a most unusualexpression of beautiful pain.
He accepted Duke’s thanks gravely and went happily back to read the restof his mail.
Mike did not share Jubal’s annoyance56 at the avalanche57 of mail; he reveled init, the insurance ads quite as much as the marriage proposals. His trip to thePalace had opened his eyes to the enonnous variety in this world and he wasresolved to grok it all. He could see that it would take him several centuriesand that he must grow and grow and grow, but he was undaunted and in nohurry-he grokked that eternity58 and the everbeautifully-changing now wereidentical.
He had decided18 not to reread the Encyclopedia59 Britannica; the flood of mailgave him brighter glimpses of the world. He read it, grokked what he could,remembered the rest for contemplation at night while the household slept.
From these nights of meditation he was beginning, he thought, to grok.business,“ and .money,“ and .buying,“ and .selling,“ and related unMartianactivities-the articles in the Encyclopedia had always left him feeling unfilled,as (he now grokked) each one had assumed that he knew many things thathe did not know. But there arrived in the mail, from Mr. Secretary GeneralJoseph Edgerton Douglas, a check book and other papers, and his brotherJubal had taken great pains to explain to him what money was and how itwas used.
Mike had failed utterly60 to understand it at first, even though Jubal showed himhow to make out his first check, gave him .money“ in exchange for it, taughthim how to count it.
Then suddenly, with a grokking so blinding that he trembled and forcedhimself not to withdraw, he understood the abstract symbolic61 nature ofmoney. These pretty pictures and bright medallions were not .money“; theywere concrete symbols for an abstract idea which spread all through thesepeople, all through their world. But these things were not money, any morethan water shared in water ceremony was the growingcloser. Water was notnecessary to the ceremony . . . and these pretty things were not necessary tomoney. Money was an idea, as abstract as an Old One’s thoughts-moneywas a great structured symbol for balancing and healing and growing closer.
Mike was dazzled with the magnificent beauty of money.
The flow and change and countennarching of the symbols was anothermatter, beautiful in small, but reminding him of games taught to nestlings toencourage them to learn to reason correctly and grow. It was the totalstructure that dazzled him, the idea that an entire world could be reflected inone dynamic, completely interconnected, symbol structure. Mike grokkedthen that the Old Ones of this race were very old indeed to have composedsuch beauty, and he wished humbly62 that he might soon be allowed to meetone of them.
Jubal encouraged him to spend some of his money and Mike did so, with thetimid, uncertain eagerness of a bride being brought to bed. Jubal suggestedthat he .buy presents for his friends“ and Jill helped him with it, starting byplacing arbitrary limits: only one present for each friend and a total cost thatwas not even a reciprocal filled-three of the sum that had been placed to hisaccount-Mike’s original intention had been to spend all of that pretty balanceon his friends.
He quickly learned how difficult it is to spend money. There were so manythings from which to choose, all of them wonderful and most of themincomprehensible. Surrounded by thick catalogs from Marshall Field’s to theGinza, and back by way of Bombay and Copenhagen, he felt smothered63 in aplethora of riches. Even the Sears & Montgomery catalog was too much forhim.
But Jill helped. .No, Mike, Duke would not want a tractor.“.Duke likes tractors.“.Um, maybe-but he’s got one, or Jubal has, which is the same thing. Hemight like one of those cute little Belgian unicycles-be could take it apart andput it together and shine it all day long. But even that is too expensive, whatwith the taxes. Mike dear, a present ought not to be very expensive-unlessyou are trying to get a girl to marry you, or something. Especially .something.’
But a present should show that you thought about it and considered thatperson’s tastes. Something he would enjoy but probably would not buy forhimself.“.How?“.That’s always the problem. Wait a minute. I just remembered something inthis morning’s mail-I hope Larry hasn’t carted it oft’ yet.“ She was backquickly. .Found it! Listen to this: .Living Aphrodite: A de-luxe Album ofFeminine Beauty in Gorgeous Stereo-Color by the World’s Greatest Artists ofthe Camera. Notice: this item will not be sent by mail. It will be forwarded atpurchaser’s risk by prepaid express only. Orders cannot be accepted fromaddresses in the following states-. Um, Pennsylvania is on the verboten listbutdon’t let that worry you; if it is addressed to you, it will be delivered-and ifI know Duke’s vulgar tastes, this is just what he would like.“Duke did like it. It was delivered, not by express, but via the S.S. patrol carcapping the house-and the next ad for the same item to arrive in the houseboasted: .-exactly as supplied to the Man from Mars, by specialappointment,“ which pleased Mike and annoyed Jill.
Other presents were just as difficult, but picking a present for Jubal wassupremely difficult. Jill was stumped64. What does one buy for a man who haseverything-everything~ that is to say, that be wants which money can buy?
The Sphinx? Three Wishes? The fountain that Ponce de Leon failed to find?
Oil for his ancient bones, or one golden day of youth? Jubal had long agoeven foresworn pets, because he outlived them, or (worse yet) it was nowpossible that a pet would outlive him, be orphaned65.
Privately they consulted the others. .Shucks,“ Duke told them, .didn’t youknow? The boss likes statues.“.Really?“ Jill answered. .I don’t see any sculpture around.“.That’s because most of the stuff he likes isn’t for sale. He says that the crudthey’re making nowdays looks like disaster in a junk yard and any idiot with ablow torch and astigmatism66 can set himself up as a sculptor67.“Anne nodded thoughtfully. .I think Duke is right. You can tell what Jubal’stastes in sculpture are by looking at the books in his study. But I doubt if it willhelp much.“Nevertheless they looked, Anne and Jill and Mike, and Anne picked out threebooks as bearing evidence (to her eyes) of having been looked at most often.
.Hmm ..“ she said. .It’s clear that the Boss would like anything by Rodin.
Mike, if you could buy one of these for Jubal, which one would you pick? Oh,here’s a pretty one-.Eternal Springtime.’“Mike barely glanced at it and turned the page. .This one.“.What?“ Jill looked at it and shuddered68. .Mike, that one is perfectly69 dreadful! Ihope I die long before I look like that.“.That is beauty,“ Mike said firmly.
.Mike!“ Jill protested. .You’ve got a depraved taste-you’re worse than Duke.
Or else you just don’t know any better.“Ordinarily such a rebuke70 from a water brother, most especially from Jill,would have shut Mike up, forced him to spend the following night in trying tounderstand his fault. But this was art in which he was sure of himself. Theportrayed statue was the first thing he had seen on Earth which felt like abreath of home to him. Although it was clearly a picture of a human woman itgave him a feeling that a Martian Old One should be somewhere around,responsible for its creation. .It is beauty,“ he insisted stubbornly. .She has herown face. I grok.“.Jill,“ Anne said slowly, .Mike is right.“.Huh? Anne! Surely you don’t like that?“.It frightens me. But Mike knows what Jubal likes. Look at the book itself. Itfalls open naturally to any one of three places. Now look at the pages-thispage has been handled more than the other two. Mike has picked the Boss’sfavorite. This other one-.The Caryatid Who has Fallen under the Weight ofHer Stone’-he likes almost as well. But Mike’s choice is Jubal’s pet.“.I buy it,“ Mike said decisively.
But it was not for sale. Anne telephoned the Rodin Museum in Paris onMike’s behalf and only Gallic gallantry and her beauty kept them fromlaughing in her face. Sell one of the Master’s works? My dear lady, they arenot only not for sale but they may not be reproduced. Non, non, non! Quelleidét!
But for the Man from Mars some things are possible which are not possiblefor others. Anne called Bradley; a couple of days later he called her back. Asa compliment from the French government-no fee, but a strongly couchedrequest that the present never be publicly exhibited- Mike would receive, notthe original, but a full-size, microscopically-exact replica71, a bronzephotopantogram of .She Who Used to Be the Beautiful Heaulmiêre.“Jill helped Mike select presents for the girls, here she knew her ground. Butwhen he asked her what he should buy for her; she not only did not help butinsisted that he must not buy her anything.
Mike was beginning to realize that, while a water brother always spokerightly, sometimes they spoke more rightly than others, i.e., that the Englishlanguage had depths to it and it was sometimes necessary to probe to reachthe right depth. So he consulted Anne.
.Go ahead and buy her a present, dear. She has to tell you that but you giveher a present anyhow. Hmm...Anne vetoed clothes and jewelry72, finallyselected for him a present which puzzled hint-Jill already smelled exactly theway Jill should smell.
The small size and apparent unimportance of the present, when it arrived,added to his misgivings-and when Anne let him whiff it before having himgive it to Jill, Mike was more in doubt than ever; the odor was very strong andsmelled not at all like Jill.
Nevertheless, Anne was right; Jill was delighted with the perfume andinsisted on kissing him at once. In kissing her he grokked fully6 that this giftwas what she wanted and that it made them grow closer.
When she wore it at dinner that night, he discovered that the fragrance73 trulydid not differ from that of Jill herself; in some unclear fashion it simply madeJill smell more deliciously like Jill than ever. Still stranger, it caused Dorcas tokiss him and whisper, .Mike hon ... the negligee is lovely and just what Iwanted-but perhaps someday you’ll give me perfume?“Mike could not grok why Dorcas would want it, since Dorcas did not smell atall like Jill and therefore perfume would not be proper for her nor, he realized,would he want Dorcas to smell like Jill; he wanted Dorcas to smell likeDorcas.
Jubal interrupted with: .Quit nuzzling the lad and let him eat his dinnedDorcas, you already reek74 like a Marseilles cat house; don’t wheedle75 Mike formore stinkum.“.Doss, you mind your own business.“It was all very puzzling-both that Jill could smell still more like Jill and thatDorcas should wish to smell like Jill when she already smelled like herself . . .
and that Jubal would say that Dorcas smelled like a cat when she did not.
There was a cat who lived on the place (not as a pet, but as co-owner); onrare occasion it came to the house and deigned76 to accept a handout77. The catand Mike had grokked each other at once, and Mike had found itscarniverous thoughts most pleasing and quite Martian. He had discovered,too, that the cat’s name (Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche) was not the cat’s nameat all, but he had not told anyone this because he could not pronounce thecat’s real name; he could only hear it in his head.
The cat did not smell like Dorcas.
Giving presents was a great goodness and the buying thereof taught Mikemuch about the true value of money. But he had not forgotten evenmomentarily that there were other things he was eager to grok. Jubal had putoff Senator Boone’s invitation to Mike twice without mentioning it to Mike andMike had not noticed, since his quite different grasp of time made .nextSunday“ no particular date.
But the next repetition of the invitation came by mall and was addressed toMike; Senator Boone was under pressure from Supreme Bishop Digby toproduce the Man from Mars and Boone had sensed that Harshaw wasstalling him and might stall indefinitely.
Mike took it to Jubal, stood waiting. .Well?“ Jubal growled78. .Do you want togo, or don’t you? You don’t have to attend a Fosterite service. We can tell.em to go to hell.“So a Checker Cab with a human driver (Harshaw refused to trust his life toan autocab) picked them up the next Sunday morning and delivered Mike,Jill, and Jubal to a public landing fiat79 just outside the sacred grounds ofArchangel Foster Tabernacle of the Church of the New Revelation.
收听单词发音 |
1
gal
|
|
| n.姑娘，少女 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
2
galaxy
|
|
| n.星系；银河系；一群(杰出或著名的人物) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
3
noted
|
|
| adj.著名的，知名的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
4
esthetic
|
|
| adj.美学的，审美的；悦目的，雅致的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
5
epic
|
|
| n.史诗，叙事诗；adj.史诗般的，壮丽的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
6
fully
|
|
| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
7
lethal
|
|
| adj.致死的；毁灭性的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
8
briefly
|
|
| adv.简单地，简短地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
9
federation
|
|
| n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
10
malnutrition
|
|
| n.营养不良 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
11
supervisors
|
|
| n.监督者，管理者( supervisor的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
12
stationary
|
|
| adj.固定的，静止不动的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
13
inversion
|
|
| n.反向，倒转，倒置 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
14
donor
|
|
| n.捐献者；赠送人；(组织、器官等的)供体 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
15
hormonal
|
|
| adj.激素的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
16
physically
|
|
| adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
17
publicity
|
|
| n.众所周知，闻名；宣传，广告 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
18
decided
|
|
| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
19
supreme
|
|
| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
20
bishop
|
|
| n.主教，（国际象棋）象 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
21
chuckled
|
|
| 轻声地笑( chuckle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
22
chuckle
|
|
| vi.／n.轻声笑，咯咯笑 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
23
chuckles
|
|
| 轻声地笑( chuckle的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
24
trickle
|
|
| vi.淌，滴，流出，慢慢移动，逐渐消散 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
25
trickled
|
|
| v.滴( trickle的过去式和过去分词 )；淌；使)慢慢走；缓慢移动 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
26
conclusively
|
|
| adv.令人信服地，确凿地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
27
chattels
|
|
| n.动产，奴隶( chattel的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
28
pointed
|
|
| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
29
offense
|
|
| n.犯规，违法行为；冒犯，得罪 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
30
flattened
|
|
| [医]（水）平扁的，弄平的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
31
stimulating
|
|
| adj.有启发性的，能激发人思考的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
32
agility
|
|
| n.敏捷，活泼 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
33
guardian
|
|
| n.监护人；守卫者，保护者 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
34
filth
|
|
| n.肮脏，污物，污秽；淫猥 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
35
killing
|
|
| n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
36
conspicuous
|
|
| adj.明眼的，惹人注目的；炫耀的，摆阔气的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
37
sterile
|
|
| adj.不毛的，不孕的，无菌的，枯燥的，贫瘠的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
38
dame
|
|
| n.女士 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
39
monotonous
|
|
| adj.单调的，一成不变的，使人厌倦的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
40
intercept
|
|
| vt.拦截，截住，截击 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
41
vaccinate
|
|
| vt.给…接种疫苗；种牛痘 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
42
gulf
|
|
| n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
43
knight
|
|
| n.骑士，武士；爵士 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
44
endorse
|
|
| vt.(支票、汇票等)背书，背署；批注；同意 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
45
royalty
|
|
| n.皇家，皇族 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
46
enchanting
|
|
| a.讨人喜欢的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
47
timing
|
|
| n.时间安排，时间选择 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
48
accomplished
|
|
| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
49
efficiently
|
|
| adv.高效率地，有能力地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
50
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： |
|
|
|
|
51
assented
|
|
| 同意，赞成( assent的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
52
thereby
|
|
| adv.因此，从而 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
53
incipient
|
|
| adj.起初的，发端的，初期的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
54
meditation
|
|
| n.熟虑，（尤指宗教的）默想，沉思，（pl.）冥想录 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
55
distinguished
|
|
| adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
56
annoyance
|
|
| n.恼怒，生气，烦恼 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
57
avalanche
|
|
| n.雪崩，大量涌来 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
58
eternity
|
|
| n.不朽，来世；永恒，无穷 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
59
encyclopedia
|
|
| n.百科全书 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
60
utterly
|
|
| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
61
symbolic
|
|
| adj.象征性的，符号的，象征主义的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
62
humbly
|
|
| adv. 恭顺地，谦卑地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
63
smothered
|
|
| （使）窒息， （使）透不过气( smother的过去式和过去分词 )； 覆盖； 忍住； 抑制 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
64
stumped
|
|
| 僵直地行走，跺步行走( stump的过去式和过去分词 )； 把（某人）难住； 使为难； （选举前）在某一地区作政治性巡回演说 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
65
orphaned
|
|
| [计][修]孤立 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
66
astigmatism
|
|
| n.散光，乱视眼 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
67
sculptor
|
|
| n.雕刻家，雕刻家 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
68
shuddered
|
|
| v.战栗( shudder的过去式和过去分词 )；发抖；（机器、车辆等）突然震动；颤动 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
69
perfectly
|
|
| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
70
rebuke
|
|
| v.指责，非难，斥责 [反]praise | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
71
replica
|
|
| n.复制品 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
72
jewelry
|
|
| n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
73
fragrance
|
|
| n.芬芳，香味，香气 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
74
reek
|
|
| v.发出臭气；n.恶臭 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
75
wheedle
|
|
| v.劝诱，哄骗 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
76
deigned
|
|
| v.屈尊，俯就( deign的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
77
handout
|
|
| n.散发的文字材料；救济品 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
78
growled
|
|
| v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
79
fiat
|
|
| n.命令，法令，批准；vt.批准，颁布 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
| 欢迎访问英文小说网 |