i. Peaceful Growth
I HAVE TOLD how, after the victory of the will for the light, there followed a period of explosive progress which gradually gave place to a much longer phase of Utopian stability. This phase, in which material civilization changed only in minor1 ways, must have lasted for many centuries. In the cultural life of the race also, though minor experiments and advances were constantly being made, no revolutionary changes occurred. The best minds of the race were busy exploring the new vistas2 which had been opened up for intellect and feeling by the founding of the new order. Of these cultural achievements naturally I can say no more than that achievement did occur. In the earlier part of this phase the new cultural ventures were not, I think, beyond the range of our contemporary human intelligence, but we have not the necessary background of experience to comprehend them. As well might a resuscitated3 ancient Egyptian understand modern science. Suffice it that throughout this period the growing point of culture kept shifting from one field to another. At one time it lay in pure science, at another in the application of science to industry or eugenics, at another in one or other of the arts, or in philosophy, or in the minutiae4 of concrete personal relations, or in religious feeling. Cultural leadership would pass now to one people or one social class, now to another.
As the centuries passed, the various new vistas became more and more fully5 explored and exploited. The golden age gave place to a silver age devoted6 to minute intensive cultivation7 of the heavily cropped ground of human experience. Only the steady though slow rise in average and superior intelligence prevented stagnation8 by making it possible to dig more thoroughly9 into the familiar soil.
Occasionally some outstanding mind in peculiarly stimulating11 circumstances would cause a minor revolution in some branch of culture, the consequences of which might afford to less original workers decades of minuter exploration. But in the main, since social circumstances remained stable, culture became more and more traditional.
Throughout this period the main purport12 of cultural development was grasped by every member of the race. And though all kinds of strains and conflicts occurred between peoples, between classes, vocations13, political parties, these conflicts were subordinated to the universal acceptance of world-community. Wars and revolutions were never contemplated15. Similarly in the sphere of personal contacts, though rivalries17 and conflicts were no less common than with us, they were seldom permitted to interfere18 seriously with co-operation in the public cause. Vindictive19 persecution20 was almost unknown.
It is difficult for us, who live in an exceptionally tumultuous age, to conceive of the bland21 happiness and leisurely22 progress of this future world. All men were assured of personal expression, and all were blessed with a sense of responsibility within the great common enterprise, the development of the capacity of man, the perfecting of the human race to become an ever finer vessel23 of the spirit.
ii. Behind the Veil
But this age of peaceful development and confidence was not to last for ever. The first symptom was a crisis among the forwards. This crisis was at first kept secret, but in time it became clear that something grave was afoot. The forwards were evidently deeply disturbed. Those that were in the hostels24 and houses of contemplation came pouring out into the world. They travelled and took up work, but they lived in a state of anxious abstraction. There were endless private discussions during casual encounters, and many prearranged conferences, the subject of which was never disclosed. At last a world conference was arranged at Lhasa. For many months hosts of forwards from every city crowded the sacred city, and camped in the surrounding country. Several months were spent by the assembled forwards in discussing their secret problem and performing severe spiritual exercises in order to fit themselves for right judgment25. During this period the rest of the world showed little curiosity. Life was far too full of more interesting matters. When at last the conference had ended and the forwards had returned to their home countries, a manifesto26 was issued to the peoples of the world. Its content was greeted by ordinary world-citizens with astonishment27, varying from dismay among the friends of the forwards to hilarious28 incredulity among the sceptics.
It was not possible to me, a creature of an earlier age and a less developed culture, to understand save in the most superficial way the immense expansion of experience which the forwards had achieved, and the terrible choice which was now to be forced upon the human race. But the effect on the life of the race was far-reaching. Although the statement of the forwards was at first treated as merely remote sensationalism, their presence in every village, bearing witness to its truth and constantly directing men’s attention to its dreadful significance for the human race, gradually turned incredulity into heavy-hearted acceptance.
The new discovery, if such it was, carried human consciousness beyond the familiar physical actuality, and opened up in one stride a sphere of existence which was of an entirely31 different order.
Man’s knowledge both of the physical cosmos32 and of mentality33 within the physical cosmos had for long been very far-reaching. It was known, for instance, that there were other intelligent races on planets belonging to other solar systems. Already the scientists of the earth had turned their attention to exploring our own sun’s other planets, believing that in the exploitation of these globes lay the next great field of human enterprise. Some day, they said, it would be possible even to attempt the immense journey to the sun’s nearest stellar neighbour, which was now known to have attendant planets. Indeed there was already a dispute between the romantic enthusiasts34 for ‘human advancement35’ in the form of extraterrestrial ventures and the ‘classicists’ who insisted that any such enterprise would distract man from his proper task, since here on earth there was far more than enough to occupy the race. The endless refinement36 of sensibility and intelligence, they affirmed, offered a task far more worthy37 of the human spirit than the schoolboy’s excitement of interplanetary travel, and the unnecessary attempt to tap the resources of remote worlds. By all means let telepathic communication be improved, if possible, so that man could communicate easily and profitably with remote intelligences, but the childish dream of interstellar travel must be abandoned.
Another great dispute was also coming to the fore38, namely between the classical humanists and the eugenists, who urged that the time had come for man to ‘take charge of his own evolution’ and create a new and more highly developed human type. They believed that by genetic39 control the range of intelligence and sensibility could be immensely increased. To this the classicists replied that any such rash adventure might undermine the constitution of the race and bring chaos40 into the well-tried order of the world. By all means let minor eugenical researches be carried out for increased health, longevity41, and the prolongation of mental maturity42, but the hope of transforming human nature into something superhuman must not be entertained.
At the time when these two great disputes were ceasing to be merely academic, and were actually appearing over the horizon of practical politics, the forwards stumbled upon the discovery, or seeming discovery, which, if true, must force the abandonment, not only of interstellar adventure and of eugenical improvement, but also of classical humanism itself. The announcement which they made, so far as I could comprehend it, was to this effect.
They had discovered, they said, that the universe of familiar space and time, though no mere29 illusion or dream, was but the surface of a deeper reality. The familiar natural laws, both physical and psychological, were not fundamental laws at all, but superficial descriptions of the ‘local’ incidence of deeper and hitherto unguessed laws. Plato’s parable43 of the shadow figures cast by unseen persons and an unseen source of light was to this extent profoundly true. The whole universe of stars, of galaxies44, though fully actual and no mere figment of man’s mind, was but spindrift caught up by occult winds and driven along the surface of an occult ocean of existence. The laws of this spindrift universe, which science had so thoroughly explored, were up to a point coherent; but certain things could never be adequately described in terms of these laws alone, for instance mind, and good and evil. It was in the hope of gaining insight into these matters, but above all in order to have access to the occult reality, that the forwards had been working during the preceding centuries.
At last, they said, they had momentarily penetrated46 to the deeper truth. They had for the first time come face to face with the vaster real.
But the experience, far from being beatific47, had been terrible. They had recoiled48 in horror from the unspeakable facts. Servants of the light, children of the light, they had discovered that the light itself in their own eyes was but a subjective49 figment, like the retinal lights that a man sees in the dark, or when his eyes are closed. For a moment they had succeeded in opening their eyes, but only to discover a deeper and more formidable darkness. Or was it something worse than darkness?
They had pressed forward thus far without any doubt that their venture would lead to a fortifying50 of the struggling human spirit by intercourse51 with a vaster but essentially52 kindred spiritual reality. Over a period of many generations many great saints and thousands of devoted followers53, spurred by this hope, had passed through the testing fires of discipline, had ventured into strange and icy spheres of spiritual experience, had gathered signs and intimations of a glory still to be revealed, had borne witness to their fellow men. And now at last the heirs to all this great treasure and greater promise, having gathered all their strength for the final assault on the locked door of mystery, had prized it open only to glimpse an incomprehensible horror, and to fall back in dismay.
During the long conference in Lhasa the whole population of forwards, assembled under their spiritual leaders, dared once more to face the terrible truth, lest there should have been some mistake. But once more they encountered the seemingly ultimate horror. After long contemplation and discussion they came to a decision, and then dispersed54 to tell the little human race the truth, and to suggest a course of action.
Their discovery, they insisted, transcended55 the Powers of human language. It was ineffable56. It could be described only in metaphor57. They had been seeking, they said, evidence that man’s struggle for the light was in harmony with the essential spirit of the universe They had found instead a vast and obscure confusion of powers, careless not only of man’s fate but of all that he had so painfully learned to hold sacred. To communicate their discovery they conceived a myth which, though fantastic and petty, did, they affirmed, convey the essence of the strange and desolate58 truth. This universe, they said, of galaxies and atoms, of loves and hates and strifes, is no more than a melting snowflake which at any moment may be trampled59 into the slush by indifferent and brawling61 titans. Not otherwise than in this far-fetched image, they said, could they express the truth that they had seen. It was an inadequate62 image; for these snowflakes, descending64 from the formless and impenetrable blackness of the night sky, were indeed not frozen but warm with the potentiality of life and of spirit, and their thawing65 was in truth a dying, a dissipation of their vital energy. Myriad66 upon myriad of these snowflakes, each one a great physical cosmos, faltered67 downwards68 and rested on the field of snow. The footmarks of the ‘titans’, the forwards affirmed, developing the strange myth, were areas where thousands of these universes had been crushed together into a muddy chaos. Every moment, as the meaningless brawl60 continued, new devastations were inflicted69. The snowfield of. universes was more and more closely trampled, like a city more and more bombed, month by month. At any moment the fundamental physical structure and substance of our own many-galaxied cosmos might be reduced to chaos, so that in a flash all its frail70 intelligent worlds would vanish. At any moment, they insisted, this might happen. Indeed, that it had not already happened, seemed to be a miracle.
The forwards affirmed that they had peered and peered upwards71 (so to speak) between the rioting titanic72 limbs in search of the celestial73 light; but the only luminosity was on the ground. It was all though the flakes63 themselves, congested into a thawing snowfield, created in their constant dying a dim phosphorescence. Pursuing this strange metaphor, which (they reiterated) was almost wholly inadequate to the unspeakable facts, they declared that the faint, diffused74 glow emitted by each separate snowflake universe, resolved itself in closer, microscopic75 inspection76, into a myriad instantaneous scintillations, each one a short-lived world’s bright climax77 of spiritual lucidity79. Overhead there was nothing but the blinding darkness, whence the flakes vacillated groundwards.
Such was the bleak80 image by which the forwards tried to express their new and dreadful vision. They also discussed the implications of the repugnant truth, and the policy which the human race should adopt towards it. One and all, they affirmed their continued loyalty81 to the spirit. ‘Every man,’ they said, ‘knows in his own experience that the life of love and of intelligence is good absolutely, is the only satisfying life for awakened82 beings. No devastating83 discovery about the nature of the ultimate reality can shake that immediate84 perception. Therefore, whatever the prospect85, the human race will continue the struggle for love and intelligence here on earth. But it would be foolish to pretend that our metaphysical discovery makes no difference. Formerly86 it seemed that man would soon make contact with the life-giving and enheartening source of all spirit. We have found only desolation.’
But the forwards did not leave matters thus. They suggested also a hope and a policy. The hope lay in the fact that, after all, the snowstorm of physical and potentially spiritual universes must come from somewhere. The ‘titans’ were not the whole ultimate reality. And so it might after all be that further discipline and contemplation might enable man to penetrate45 the utter blackness of the sky and come at last face to face with the true light.
Hope, they said, might even permit itself a higher though a precarious87 flight. For some of the most adept88 forwards had claimed that in their most lucid78 moments they had seen something more. They had seen that in spite of the precarious existence of the snowflake universes and of the conscious beings within them, these beings themselves, when they attained89 mature spiritual stature91, acquired very formidable powers. The pioneering forwards claimed that, in terms of the inadequate image, they had sometimes seen a brief but dazzling effulgence92 blaze up within some snowflake, like the brilliance93 of a new star. So brilliant might this conflagration94 be that it illuminated95 the whole wide snowfield. When this happened, the ‘titans’, seemingly terrified by the sudden light, fled in all directions, away from its source. Some of them were even annihilated96 by the radiance, like the shades of night at sunrise. Clearly, then, the right course for every intelligent world was to strive for that brilliance of the spirit. Clearly this alone could overcome the ‘titans’. Clearly what was most lovely and precious, though commonly so frail, was also, in the fullness of its growth, the mightiest97 power of all. But this power, intensified98 to such a pitch that it could destroy the ‘titans’, was not the power of a few individuals exploring in isolation99; it was the power of a whole race, of a whole conscious world, perhaps of a whole cosmos, united in most intimate spiritual communion. And such power was not to be attained without the utmost racial dedication100.
Hence arose the challenge which the forwards laid before mankind. It was a call to action. It was a call to all individuals throughout the world to live wholly for the common task, to give up everything but the spirit, to discard not only mundane101 ends but also the vanity of science and art and intellectual exploration, to detach themselves absolutely even from the gentle bondage102 of personal love, to refrain from procreation, to drain the whole energy of the race to the last drop for the supreme103 spiritual task.
Hitherto there had been two possible ventures open to the human race. One was the romantic scientist’s ideal of developing communication between the planetary systems, so as to create a galaxy-wide community of intelligent worlds. The other, which assumed that man’s proper business must always be with man, was the classical aim of the intensive development of man’s present home and culture.
A third and more revolutionary policy was now open. For the inhabitants of a snowflake among brawling ‘titans’, it was the sole reasonable policy. This was the heroic venture of sacrificing everything in the attempt to destroy the ‘titans’ with the lucidity of the human spirit.
iii. A Phase of Confusion
When the peoples of the earth first heard all this they were indeed incredulous. But little by little the new knowledge invaded their peace. There was endless discussion between the romantic scientists, the classical humanists, and the forwards. It was not claimed by the forwards that if their advice were not taken the universe would be annihilated certainly and soon. Possibly it would last for thousands of millions of years. Possibly, if the human race were to choose to remain in its present course of social and cultural advancement, it would be able to prosper104 for a very long age. But at any time it might be annihilated, and the whole cosmos with it. And, anyhow, it would always be haunted by the knowledge that its supreme test had been refused. In such a condition there could be no health.
The decision was postponed105. Little by little, under the weight of the new knowledge and the continual indecision and uncertainty106 about the future, there appeared signs of mental strain. The texture107 of community throughout the world began to deteriorate108. Men became rather less conscientious109, rather less considerate. Personal intercourse, formerly so bland and genial110, showed symptoms of resentfulness and bitterness. Sadistic111 crime, formerly unknown in the new world, once more troubled society. A new note of perversion112 and diabolism appeared in the arts and in public affairs. Clearly the race had fallen into a gravely neurotic113 condition. Children suffered in a special manner. Their minds were poisoned by a suspicion of the insincerity of their elders. Unless something could be done to stop the rot, this glorious society, the achievements of age-long bitter experience, would be corrupted115 beyond hope of recovery.
As the plight116 of the race grew worse, feeling on both sides became more violent. The fundamental accord on which the world-community had for so long been founded began to fail. Matters reached such a pitch that civil war seemed once more possible. The scientific romantics and the classical humanists had settled their differences, but only to combine against the supporters of the forwards and their policy of ascetic117 dedication. Every village, every family was divided against itself, but in some countries one side was on the whole stronger, in some the other. Preparations were actually made for a war which would have had all the bitterness of the old wars of religion, but would have been waged with more formidable weapons than man had ever used before. For sub-atomic power could be easily directed to mass murder.
In this situation the forwards themselves were divided. One party single-mindedly preached the new policy. The other, dismayed at the prospect of war, realized that a race which could contemplate16 the use of violence to settle such a dispute could not yet be fit to undertake the destruction of the ‘titans’ by the power of the spirit. They therefore suggested a compromise. Let the life of the world be carried on much as before, but with a slowly increasing emphasis on the spirit and the great task which lay ahead. When the race had outgrown119 its present adolescent state, it would face that task with singleness of purpose. Perhaps it would be destroyed before maturity was reached. No matter! Some other race in some other cosmos would perhaps accomplish the task.
This policy was in the end accepted by all the peoples of the world, expressing themselves through a special plebiscite.
iv. Preparation for a Great Task
From this time forward my contact with the human race in the far future became more and more uncertain. It was of course something of a miracle that I had been able to keep in touch even thus far. Without the constant influence of the superhuman beings who were my fellow spectators even this would have been utterly120 impossible. But now even their presence could not sufficiently121 aid me. This was due, I think, to the fact that the mentality of human animals was beginning to outreach my mental range in a new manner. I had always been grievously hampered122 by the fact that I had not the cultural background of these future men, but the actual calibre of their minds had not hitherto been greatly superior to that of my own generation. Now, however, human affairs began to include themes which were wholly meaningless to me. And as events became less intelligible123 I was less able to maintain contact.
I did, nevertheless, receive certain general impressions of the course of history and of a few outstanding events. After the settlement of the great dispute mankind recovered its fundamental unity14 of purpose. The villages carried on their busy and varied124 lives and their worldwide intercourse. The scientists continued their patient explorations and inventions. The classicists pursued the development of human culture into endless exfoliation. The forwards persisted in their spiritual exploration. As the general level of thought and feeling was raised, new spheres of experience were constantly explored. Generation succeeded generation with ever increasing capacity and opportunity. But also each generation came more surely into the knowledge that all this continuous Utopianism was in fact but a preparation for a great ordeal125, and that before the race was ready to face that ordeal the very foundations of existence might crumble126. The stars might suddenly be swept away like dust. Man’s dear and beautiful home might be shattered, and man himself annihilated.
This knowledge did not seem to weigh heavily on men. Each generation faced it and accommodated themselves to it. But its presence in the background of every mind changed the temper of the race into something very different from that of the age before the forwards had made their strange discovery. Then, the prospect of limitless human advancement had bred a certain complacency; now, the expectation of endless progress was succeeded by the possibility of sudden destruction, and by the frail hope of utterly new horizons. The mental climate of the race therefore changed to an intenser appreciation127 of its ordinary mundane life, compact of personal joys and sorrows, and at the same time a more constant loyalty to the spirit. No doubt the ordinary man, intent on his private affairs, gave little conscious thought to the prospect of the race, which, he felt, would probably last out his time anyhow. But in his phases of contemplation the sense of fleetingness would enter deeply into his mind, so that at all times the physical features of the planet, the woods, the hills, the sea, affected128 him with an added poignancy129. The customs of daily life, such as dressing130 and eating, the technique of his work, the little common acts of friendliness131, the intonations132 of familiar voices, all these became more dear because more precarious, because balanced from day to day on the brink133 of the unknown. At the same time the standard of personal conduct was seemingly raised by the sense that the species as a whole had accepted the challenge to live beyond its normal nature.
I was able to realize that there was a gradual shift, so to speak, of the centre of gravity of culture. Metaphysics was absorbing more and more of human attention. The natural sciences tended to fall into a second place. Spiritual discipline was undertaken by every member of the race. The numbers of the forwards greatly increased, and their influence became more far-reaching.
All this I could realize, though vaguely134 and externally. What passed my comprehension was the changing detail of social and cultural life. It was natural in the circumstances that living should be greatly simplified. Luxuries were less and less in demand. The arts were shorn of their luxurious135 detail. On the other hand art of a stripped and purposeful kind played an increasing though an altered part in life. In words, in music, in colour and plastic form, men created a ceaseless flood of symbolic136 aids to the spirit, mostly in styles which I could not at all appreciate. Surprisingly, also, though living under the threat of annihilation, men were addicted137 to erecting138 great and durable139 temples, upon which they lavished140 all the skill and care which was ceasing to find an outlet141 in ordinary life. Sub-atomic technique, by its wealth of new materials, had made possible a far more daring, soaring, and colourful architecture than is known to us. Along with the new materials came new architectural canons, strange to me. The architecture of mundane life was simple and impermanent. The temples alone were built to last; yet they were often demolished142 to make room for finer structures.
One striking aspect of culture was a vast development of the technique of personal intercourse. Language blossomed into a great forest of terms for all the new subtleties143 of emotion and intuition, and all the types and shades of personality. The citizen of the new world could by the use of this rich linguistic144 symbolism become intimately aware of a stranger’s personality in an hour. There was also a subtle ideography of psychological and spiritual phenomena145. By the careful drawing of a number of Chinese-looking symbols an artist who was something between a novelist and an abstract painter could present the essential form of the intercourse of several human beings from birth to death. In comparison with these ideograms, verbal language, though so greatly improved, was a cumbersome146 medium. A single meticulously147 inscribed148 page could convey a whole biography. Thus arose a new visual art, which, by means of highly abstract signs charged with the emotional and intellectual experience of the race, obtained the far-reaching effect of great poetry.
This ideographic art I could at least comprehend sufficiently to grasp its general nature, but it must also have symbolized149 ranges of experience beyond my reach. It played a great part in the decoration of the temples; and certain ideograms, which remained meaningless to me, seemed to have a mystical power over anyone that earnestly contemplated them.
My contact with future mankind became more and more vague and intermittent150, until I received but random151 intimations of a few outstanding and often very strange events. Sometimes, for instance, I seemed to see that great companies of men and women had chosen to destroy themselves because they felt that they could no longer play a useful part. Sometimes the concord152 of the race was broken by a keen but never a vindictive dispute about some matter which lay beyond my understanding. It would then be found necessary to restore harmony by a world-wide penance153.
At last, after how many centuries or millennia154 I know not, there arose a generation which felt itself fully equipped for the great task. A Sacred Year was appointed for the supreme effort, a quarter of a century ahead. Meanwhile procreation was to cease, and all forward-looking social and economic activity. Enough food must still be produced to keep the ascetic population alive, and the temples must be kept in good order. Apart from this necessary work, the energy of the race must be concentrated wholly on the great task.
It was a strange and austere155 world in this period. No babies were anywhere, then no children, then no adolescents; only young men and women and their elders. Population, of course, rapidly declined. Life was wholly dominated by the spiritual enterprise, which inevitably156 lay beyond my comprehension. It was not uncommon157 for people to be so abstracted from the physical world that they forgot to feed, and so would have starved to death, had not some neighbour recalled them. Most individuals, however, still carried on a normal life, though in a state of remote detachment.
A date was appointed, towards the end of the twenty-fifth year, after which no more food was to be eaten. Meanwhile feeding was to be progressively reduced throughout the world so as to leave the spirit unhampered by bodily vigour158. When the time came for the complete cessation of feeding, all private houses were to be deserted159. The population was to gather into the poobs and temples, to fast and contemplate, and create in themselves that extreme spiritual lucidity which, it was now confidently believed, would destroy the ‘titans’ and attain90 a clearer, brighter, truer view of all existence. Under the stress of this adventure the exhausted160 race would die. The earth would be given over once more to sub-human nature. Visitors from some other world might some day discover the ruins of the great temples, not suspecting, perhaps, that those who had built them and died in them had conquered the ‘titans’, and had thereby161 secured the salvation162 of all beings in all the snowflake universes; the salvation, it was surmised163, not of external life for individuals, but of escape from premature164 racial extinction165 before the potentiality of the race was fulfilled by the attainment166 of spiritual maturity and the supreme beatific vision.
v. Despair and New Hope
Such was the great plan, but an unforeseen event frustrated167 it. About a year before the appointed climax and the complete cessation of eating there appeared among the frail and ageing population a new and strange disease. I was never able to determine whether its source was wholly natural, wholly intrinsic to our physical cosmos, to our snowflake, or whether in some manner beyond my comprehension some obscure powers of darkness had somehow made incursion into our cosmos to stimulate168 or create this hideous169 epidemic170. Its form and the time of its onset171 seemed nicely calculated to undermine the impending172 victory of the light.
The first symptom of the disease was violent vomiting173 and diarrhoea. So formidable were the spasms174 that the gullet and rectum might be torn and even forced outwards175. Many patients succumbed176 in this initial phase. Those that recovered were left with terrible glandular177 disturbances178 which might result in any or several of a number of frightful180 symptoms. A very common trouble was galloping181 senescence, which turned the young man into a maundering and toothless gaffer in a few weeks. But infantilism of body and mind was almost as common. Another effect was an extravagant182 growth of the skeleton, such that the overstrained flesh and skin would split on every limb, revealing the bare bone. But a softening183 of the bony structure was also a frequent symptom, causing the limbs to bend in unnatural184 places and the head to turn as soft as an over-ripe orange. Or the skin might grow till it became a loose voluminous garment. Sufferers were often in danger of tripping on the folds of skin trailing from their own legs. Another frequent result was rapid confusion of sex. Men would visibly acquire female characters, women would turn mannish. Most distressing185 of all, perhaps, was the frequent and fantastic exaggeration of sexuality. The organs became grossly distended187. The secondary sexual characters, such as the female breasts, were repulsively188 enlarged. The mind became so enslaved to the pressure of the body’s superabundant sexuality that every physical object and every concept became charged with sexual meaning, and even the most self-disciplined found themselves swept away in a continuous orgy of fornication and all kinds of perversion. Other consequences of glandular disorder189 were purely190 emotional. Some sufferers were obsessed191 by recurrent fits of objectless and frantic192 rage, others by irrational193 terror or equally irrational bravado194. Sometimes a sudden access of hate would force the patient to kill or torture whoever was at hand. Sometimes a permanent and icy hatred195 would be concentrated on a wholly innocent victim. The disease might take the form of maudlin196 sentimentality, directed either on human persons or animals, or the human race as a whole, or some fictitious197 deity198 invented to suit the patient’s peculiar10 needs. One common effect was a crazy dread30 of isolation. Another was such panic fear of the presence of other human beings that, when the patient was surprised by a visitor, he might leap out of an upper window or dash himself against the wall like a terrified bird. Yet another effect was a reduction of sensibility. Blind and deaf, without taste and smell, almost without touch, the wretched creature would snatch a morbid199 pleasure from the only sense that remained to rouse him to some faint interest, namely pain. With fumbling200 eagerness he would tear back his finger-nails, crush his eyes, bite his tongue to bloody201 pulp202.
Some of these symptoms were permanent, some passed off in a few weeks. But in every case the final emotional state was identical and permanent. The patient emerged into profound apathy203. In extreme cases he cared for nothing but the satisfaction of bodily needs of nutrition and excretion. Even these might cease to interest him, so that, if left to himself, he might lie inert204 from morning till night. Such extreme cases were uncommon, but on the average the damage caused by the disease, though less obvious, was scarcely less disastrous205. Most people recovered so far as to behave in a normal manner in respect of all simple animal impulses, but they no longer found any satisfaction whatever in the activities which are distinctively206 human. Thus an impulsive207 animal affection might be within their reach, but persistent208 and genuinely other-conscious human love was beyond them. Impossible also were all the other, less intimate forms of true community. Old habits of community-behaviour would persist and might at first carry the sufferers through the familiar social situations without any manifest change; but the fire was quenched209. Little by little even the forms of decent social behaviour were abandoned. Abstract thought, even when their intelligence was still capable of it, they found unutterably boring. Art had no longer any meaning for them. Or rather, though intellectually they might still understand its technique, it could no longer stir them. The life of the spirit was wholly fatuous210 to them. The great common discipline and adventure, which they formerly accepted with enthusiasm, now stimulated211 them only to yawn and shrug212 their shoulders. Intellectually they understood it, but they had no feeling for it.
Different types of mind reacted differently to this deep change in themselves. All suffered from a severe conflict between their established mental habit and their new disposition213. Many put up a half-hearted struggle to feel in the old way, and were bewildered and oppressed by their failure. Some, though the inner light was extinguished, listlessly carried on all the old forms of behaviour, but with increasing slovenliness214. Others became well-bred cynics. Others gradually conceived a cold and spiteful hatred of all that was once so precious to them and now escaped them, and a relentless215 vindictiveness216 against those who had not been affected by the disease. Hate sometimes seemed even to provide them with a new intensity217 of feeling, and become the dominant218 motive219 of their lives, leading them to do all in their power to distress186 and defeat those who were still faithful to the light.
One serious aspect of the disease was not at first realized. It emerged into view as data accumulated. On the whole the emotionally most developed individuals, though rather less susceptible220, were also, when the microbe secured a hold on them, far more gravely damaged. Their initial resistance was greater, but once it had been broken down, they were specially221 liable to die in the early phase. At the other end of the scale the lowest emotional types, though very liable to contract the disease, recovered easily and suffered only mild after-effects. The young were specially susceptible, though if they succeeded in surmounting222 the first phase of the disease, they tended to make a good recovery, escaping serious after-effects, and sometimes even the final apathy.
In preparation for the sacred year the medical services had been greatly reduced. Both cure and research into the causes of the plague were seriously hampered. It seems to have begun in Malaya during the wet season. Thence it soon spread into Asia, and into every continent. Within a few months millions had died and more millions had recovered only to live on as helpless invalids224 or cripples. Whole populations, though their bodily health was restored, were emotionally reduced to apathy or cynicism. Research proved that the disease was caused by a micro-organism which infested225 rain-drops, rivers, lakes. A cloudy atmosphere and a heavy rainfall were peculiarly favourable226 to the spread of the plague. The microbe entered the human body by the mouth, multiplied in the digestive organs, and spread thence by way of the blood into the glands227. If it was detected early enough it could be destroyed, and the patient cured by a very simple method, namely the drinking of large quantities of alcohol. Thus it came about that a generation which had consecrated228 itself to the most exalted229 life was forced to drown its troubles in drink.
The sacred year had to be postponed. This was a very grave step, for the population was ageing, and there were no children. But no other course was possible. The ban on procreation was removed, and the peoples were urged to have as many children as possible. The apathetic230 populations made little response to this appeal.
Meanwhile the disease continued to spread, though less rapidly, and with decreasing virulence231. One strange aspect of the scourge232 suggested that the real enemy was not the micro-organism itself but some devilish intelligence which was directing its attack. It was noticed, for instance, that when a district had been cleared of the disease, a spell of bad weather was apt to occur. Contaminated rain drenched233 the ground and filled the reservoirs. Moreover, maps plotting the incidence of the disease from month to month had revealed a startlingly purposive movement in the advance of the microbe. Not only was the plague mysteriously attracted to populous234 districts, but in order to reach a great centre of population it might extend a vast pseudopodium of wet weather and infection, even across an arid235 desert. This was particularly striking in its advance from Asia to South Africa. While Iran was in the throes, a great tongue of drenching236 weather was protruded237 across the Arabian Desert and Abyssinia into moist Central Africa. Thence the bad weather extended southwards till it reached the crowded areas in South Africa. In order to reach America it appeared to make several attempts to bridge the Atlantic from Britain, but its ‘artificial’ east winds were overcome by the prevailing238 westerlies. Finally, however, it stretched out an arm of cloud from West Mica239 to the Amazon, whence it spread throughout the Americas. Australia it invaded from its original foothold in the East Indies. New Zealand it failed to discover.
This seeming purposiveness may have been illusory. Some natural cause may very well have produced it. But when it is taken in conjunction with the fact that the disease attacked the human race just when its physical resistance was weakest owing to universal under-nourishment, and when its spiritual power was not yet fully developed, some occult evil purpose seems plausible240.
The plague was not finally stamped out until a majority of the world population had been reduced to apathy. In most countries not more than about three in a hundred persons retained their full human calibre, and these became generally so disheartened by their neighbours apathy that they too sank into lethargy. Two regions alone were unaffected, namely Tibet, through the fortunate combination of its exceptionally dry climate, its altitude, and the high development of its population and New Zealand, which the plague had not ‘discovered’.
Lhasa wisely abandoned all hope of restoring the sacred year, and called upon mankind to devote itself for the present mainly to reproduction and the re-establishment of material civilization. New Zealand responded eagerly. Elsewhere small groups and isolated241 individuals answered the call in full sincerity114. The rest either professed242 agreement and did nothing, or ignored the appeal.
Owing to the prevailing lethargy, village life in most countries gravely deteriorated243. Sub-atomic agriculture and handicrafts were still carried on, but in a slipshod manner. The life of the poobs degenerated244 into something like the life of the pubs in our own day, often into something far less wholesome245. Many persons who had been cured by alcohol had contracted an addiction246 to this habit-forming drug, and made no effort to restrain themselves. Fornication of a lazy, unenterprising sort, was general, but procreation was prevented by birth-control. The surviving forwards indolently carried on the outward forms of their old life, but its spirit was lost. Sluggishness247 inevitably produced a rapid deterioration248 in all social behaviour and institutions. The old vices223 of self-seeking and mob mentality reappeared, but without the old vigour and passion. Population steadily249 declined, for very few children were born; save in Tibet and New Zealand, where every woman of child-bearing age was devotedly250 producing a child every year. Presently research discovered a method of securing triplets, and the birth-rate was promptly251 trebled. Under the strain, and in spite of all the care and skill and honour that was lavished on them, the mothers were heavily overstrained. They clung to their task, however, and though maternal252 mortality was high, population increased rapidly. The children were of course given every possible advantage, under state supervision253. The whole social organization of the two peoples was arranged for their benefit.
There came a time when emigrants254 from Tibet and New Zealand were flooding into other countries to intermarry with the remnants of the native populations, and to reorganize their moribund255 society. Gradually village life was revitalized. All the familiar activities of the civilized256 world were once more afoot. The forwards once more explored; though for the present there was no question of reviving the abandoned spiritual venture. The main task of the race was to recover its strength and to find out how to prevent any recurrence257 of the plague. For there were occasional incipient258 epidemics259. They occurred whenever and wherever the work of the forwards was most active. It was as though the pioneers of spiritual activity contracted the disease through the very success of their adventure. Even if they happened to be individuals of so developed a type that they were immune, they apparently260 became carriers (or actual generators261?) of the microbe, infecting the atmosphere through their breath.
vi. Man Passes on
From this time forward my intimations of humanity’s future became too vague to be worth reporting at length. I have a fairly clear impression of the recovery of material and cultural civilization, and the re-peopling of the planet. Dimly I saw, or I vaguely sensed, the world-wide preparation for a fresh attack on the occult ‘titanic’ forces. But dimly also I felt that with the advance of knowledge and spiritual insight the problem must have taken on an entirely new form; for there seems to have come a time, remotely future to us, when, after earnest debate, the main energy of the race was diverted from the occult back to the scientific, and particularly to the eugenical problem of producing a superior human type. But whether this new type was to be specially equipped for spiritual activities or for natural life on the earth or perhaps for migration262 to another planet I cannot determine.
All I know is that the enterprise was cut short, almost before it had begun, by the need to concentrate all human energy upon a purely terrestrial problem. For at this time the surface of the planet began to suffer from immense upheavals263 and subsidences, buckling264 and cracking like the skin of a roasting apple. Prodigious265 volcanic266 eruptions267 calcined whole countries. The seas poured torrentially into new depressions, drowning the populations; or retreated from newly upheaved continents; or was sucked down, in gigantic maelstroms through fissures268 in the ocean bed, to issue again with explosive and devastating effect as spouts269 of superheated water and steam, tearing apart the solid crust of the earth, boiling the cities, and soaring to the stratosphere. Whether this disastrous activity was due to the accumulation of radioactivity in the planet’s core or merely to the cooling and shrinking of the core, and the consequent collapse270 of the crust, or to some occult cause, I do not know.
The disturbance179 was brief. Within a few centuries it was over. There emerged a world the geography of which was largely unfamiliar271 and its climate temporarily moister; for much of the ocean had been boiled into the sky, and immense tracts272 of hot lava273 had appreciably274 raised the average temperature, so that the moisture in the air did not at all quickly condense. Mankind was reduced to a remnant living in the less devastated275 corners of the lands. Material civilization was destroyed, and men were forced to resort once more to primitive276 agriculture. The factories for the making of sub-atomic machinery277 were all destroyed, and most of the generators themselves. Experts of all kinds were decimated. Precious skills were lost. Laboratories, libraries, the records of human culture, were nearly all burnt or submerged under the new seas or the floods, of lava.
But throughout the disaster the will for the light remained alive in men. Each generation handed onto its successor the essential wisdom of the developed mind, the essential loyalty to the spirit. When the earth’s crust had settled down to its new form, recovery was carefully planned, and rapid. The main centre of henceforth was not China, which had been largely submerged, but the great new island of Atlantis, thrust up between America and Europe. At first a continent of mud, it soon became fertile beyond other lands, and in time was invaded by colonists278 from Europe and America, who crossed the narrow oceans in their sailing ships, and settled down to farm and rediscover the lost arts of civilization. Within a few centuries the planet was once more a well-ordered, flourishing, diversified279, populous, human world.
Obscurely it seems to me that the dominant concern of that world was to produce a new human type, capable of greater powers of intelligence and sensibility, and also of spiritual insight. Obscurely I see that the new type was indeed produced; for I have a darkling vision of a prolonged and tense yet temperate280 divergence281 of will between the primary human race and the secondary, more developed race which the primaries had so lovingly conceived and patiently actualized. The disagreement was about the goal of human co-operative endeavour. The secondaries advocated some re-orientation of world policy which to the primaries was repugnant. The nature of this re-orientation I could not determine. I suspect that the whole primary population were incapable282 of comprehending it, and that they resisted it simply because it conflicted with their own world-policy. But it seemed to me that in the end they were persuaded to accept this re-orientation, humbly283 acknowledging that if the secondaries willed it, it must be the way of the light. Thenceforth the primary human race gradually withdrew from active control of human destiny. For a while it continued to reproduce itself, though at a steadily decreasing rate, and continued to perform minor functions within the new world economy; but its status was something between that of the aged118 parent, the pensioned family-nurse, and the conquered ‘aboriginals’. Its young people found themselves unable to keep pace with the young of the new type. They came into a world which could never be their own world, though they obscurely recognized it as a world ruled by the very same light that ruled in their own hearts. In these conditions the primary population inevitably dwindled284 into extinction. The secondaries possessed285 the earth and proceeded in the way that seemed good to them.
Beyond this point I see nothing. The life of those future men is wholly beyond my range. I emerged from my vision in weariness but also in peace and joy, for it seemed that those new men, though I could not keep pace with the movement of their minds, were loyal to the light and well equipped to serve it, loyal to that same light which my own generation so vaguely sees and falteringly286 serves.
The End
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minor
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| adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修 | |
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vistas
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| 长条形景色( vista的名词复数 )； 回顾； 展望； （未来可能发生的）一系列情景 | |
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resuscitated
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| v.使（某人或某物）恢复知觉，苏醒( resuscitate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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minutiae
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| n.微小的细节，细枝末节；（常复数）细节，小事( minutia的名词复数 ) | |
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fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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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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cultivation
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| n.耕作，培养，栽培（法），养成 | |
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stagnation
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| n. 停滞 | |
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thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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stimulating
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| adj.有启发性的，能激发人思考的 | |
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purport
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| n.意义，要旨，大要；v.意味著，做为...要旨，要领是... | |
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vocations
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| n.（认为特别适合自己的）职业( vocation的名词复数 )；使命；神召；（认为某种工作或生活方式特别适合自己的）信心 | |
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unity
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| n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调 | |
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contemplated
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| adj. 预期的 动词contemplate的过去分词形式 | |
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contemplate
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| vt.盘算，计议；周密考虑；注视，凝视 | |
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rivalries
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| n.敌对，竞争，对抗( rivalry的名词复数 ) | |
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interfere
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| v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰 | |
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vindictive
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| adj.有报仇心的，怀恨的，惩罚的 | |
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persecution
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| n. 迫害,烦扰 | |
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bland
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| adj.淡而无味的，温和的，无刺激性的 | |
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leisurely
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| adj.悠闲的；从容的，慢慢的 | |
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vessel
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| n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管 | |
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hostels
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| n.旅舍，招待所( hostel的名词复数 )；青年宿舍 | |
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judgment
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| n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见 | |
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manifesto
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| n.宣言，声明 | |
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astonishment
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| n.惊奇，惊异 | |
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hilarious
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| adj.充满笑声的，欢闹的；[反]depressed | |
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mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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dread
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| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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cosmos
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| n.宇宙；秩序，和谐 | |
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mentality
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| n.心理，思想，脑力 | |
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enthusiasts
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| n.热心人，热衷者( enthusiast的名词复数 ) | |
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advancement
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| n.前进，促进，提升 | |
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refinement
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| n.文雅；高尚；精美；精制；精炼 | |
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worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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fore
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| adv.在前面；adj.先前的；在前部的；n.前部 | |
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genetic
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| adj.遗传的，遗传学的 | |
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chaos
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| n.混乱，无秩序 | |
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longevity
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| n.长命；长寿 | |
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maturity
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| n.成熟；完成；(支票、债券等)到期 | |
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parable
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| n.寓言，比喻 | |
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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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penetrate
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| v.透(渗)入；刺入，刺穿；洞察，了解 | |
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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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beatific
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| adj.快乐的，有福的 | |
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recoiled
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| v.畏缩( recoil的过去式和过去分词 )；退缩；报应；返回 | |
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subjective
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| a.主观(上)的，个人的 | |
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fortifying
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| 筑防御工事于( fortify的现在分词 )； 筑堡于； 增强； 强化（食品） | |
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intercourse
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| n.性交；交流，交往，交际 | |
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essentially
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| adv.本质上，实质上，基本上 | |
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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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dispersed
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| adj. 被驱散的, 被分散的, 散布的 | |
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transcended
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| 超出或超越（经验、信念、描写能力等）的范围( transcend的过去式和过去分词 )； 优于或胜过… | |
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ineffable
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| adj.无法表达的，不可言喻的 | |
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metaphor
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| n.隐喻，暗喻 | |
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desolate
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| adj.荒凉的，荒芜的；孤独的，凄凉的；v.使荒芜，使孤寂 | |
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trampled
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| 踩( trample的过去式和过去分词 )； 践踏； 无视； 侵犯 | |
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brawl
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| n.大声争吵，喧嚷；v.吵架，对骂 | |
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brawling
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| n.争吵，喧嚷 | |
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inadequate
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| adj.(for,to)不充足的，不适当的 | |
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flakes
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| 小薄片( flake的名词复数 )； （尤指）碎片； 雪花； 古怪的人 | |
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descending
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| n. 下行 adj. 下降的 | |
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thawing
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| n.熔化，融化v.（气候）解冻( thaw的现在分词 )；（态度、感情等）缓和；（冰、雪及冷冻食物）溶化；软化 | |
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myriad
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| adj.无数的；n.无数，极大数量 | |
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faltered
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| （嗓音）颤抖( falter的过去式和过去分词 )； 支吾其词； 蹒跚； 摇晃 | |
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downwards
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| adj./adv.向下的（地），下行的（地） | |
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inflicted
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| 把…强加给，使承受，遭受( inflict的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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frail
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| adj.身体虚弱的；易损坏的 | |
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upwards
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| adv.向上，在更高处...以上 | |
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titanic
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| adj.巨人的，庞大的，强大的 | |
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celestial
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| adj.天体的；天上的 | |
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diffused
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| 散布的，普及的，扩散的 | |
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microscopic
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| adj.微小的，细微的，极小的，显微的 | |
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inspection
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| n.检查，审查，检阅 | |
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climax
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| n.顶点；高潮；v.(使)达到顶点 | |
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lucid
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| adj.明白易懂的，清晰的，头脑清楚的 | |
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lucidity
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| n.明朗，清晰，透明 | |
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bleak
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| adj.(天气)阴冷的；凄凉的；暗淡的 | |
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loyalty
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| n.忠诚，忠心 | |
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awakened
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| v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到 | |
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devastating
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| adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的 | |
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immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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prospect
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| n.前景，前途；景色，视野 | |
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formerly
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| adv.从前，以前 | |
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precarious
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| adj.不安定的，靠不住的；根据不足的 | |
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88
adept
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| adj.老练的，精通的 | |
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89
attained
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| （通常经过努力）实现( attain的过去式和过去分词 )； 达到； 获得； 达到（某年龄、水平、状况） | |
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90
attain
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| vt.达到，获得，完成 | |
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91
stature
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| n.（高度）水平，（高度）境界，身高，身材 | |
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92
effulgence
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| n.光辉 | |
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93
brilliance
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| n.光辉，辉煌，壮丽，（卓越的）才华，才智 | |
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94
conflagration
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| n.建筑物或森林大火 | |
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95
illuminated
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| adj.被照明的；受启迪的 | |
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96
annihilated
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| v.（彻底）消灭( annihilate的过去式和过去分词 )；使无效；废止；彻底击溃 | |
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97
mightiest
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| adj.趾高气扬( mighty的最高级 )；巨大的；强有力的；浩瀚的 | |
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98
intensified
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| v.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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99
isolation
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| n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离 | |
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100
dedication
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| n.奉献，献身，致力，题献，献辞 | |
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101
mundane
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| adj.平凡的；尘世的；宇宙的 | |
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102
bondage
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| n.奴役，束缚 | |
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103
supreme
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| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
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104
prosper
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| v.成功，兴隆，昌盛；使成功，使昌隆，繁荣 | |
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105
postponed
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| vt.& vi.延期，缓办，（使）延迟vt.把…放在次要地位；[语]把…放在后面（或句尾）vi.（疟疾等）延缓发作（或复发） | |
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106
uncertainty
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| n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物 | |
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107
texture
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| n.(织物)质地；(材料)构造；结构；肌理 | |
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108
deteriorate
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| v.变坏；恶化；退化 | |
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109
conscientious
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| adj.审慎正直的，认真的，本着良心的 | |
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110
genial
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| adj.亲切的，和蔼的，愉快的，脾气好的 | |
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111
sadistic
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| adj.虐待狂的 | |
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112
perversion
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| n.曲解；堕落；反常 | |
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113
neurotic
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| adj.神经病的，神经过敏的；n.神经过敏者，神经病患者 | |
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114
sincerity
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| n.真诚，诚意；真实 | |
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115
corrupted
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| （使）败坏( corrupt的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）腐化； 引起（计算机文件等的）错误； 破坏 | |
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116
plight
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| n.困境，境况，誓约，艰难；vt.宣誓，保证，约定 | |
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117
ascetic
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| adj.禁欲的；严肃的 | |
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118
aged
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| adj.年老的，陈年的 | |
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119
outgrown
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| 长[发展] 得超过（某物）的范围( outgrow的过去分词 )； 长[发展]得不能再要（某物）； 长得比…快； 生长速度超过 | |
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120
utterly
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| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
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121
sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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122
hampered
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| 妨碍，束缚，限制( hamper的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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123
intelligible
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| adj.可理解的，明白易懂的，清楚的 | |
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124
varied
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| adj.多样的，多变化的 | |
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125
ordeal
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| n.苦难经历，（尤指对品格、耐力的）严峻考验 | |
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126
crumble
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| vi.碎裂，崩溃；vt.弄碎，摧毁 | |
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127
appreciation
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| n.评价；欣赏；感谢；领会，理解；价格上涨 | |
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128
affected
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| adj.不自然的，假装的 | |
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129
poignancy
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| n.辛酸事，尖锐 | |
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130
dressing
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| n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料 | |
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131
friendliness
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| n.友谊，亲切，亲密 | |
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132
intonations
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| n.语调，说话的抑扬顿挫( intonation的名词复数 )；（演奏或唱歌中的）音准 | |
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133
brink
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| n.(悬崖、河流等的)边缘，边沿 | |
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134
vaguely
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| adv.含糊地，暖昧地 | |
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135
luxurious
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| adj.精美而昂贵的；豪华的 | |
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136
symbolic
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|
| adj.象征性的，符号的，象征主义的 | |
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137
addicted
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|
| adj.沉溺于....的，对...上瘾的 | |
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138
erecting
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| v.使直立，竖起( erect的现在分词 )；建立 | |
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139
durable
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| adj.持久的，耐久的 | |
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140
lavished
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| v.过分给予，滥施( lavish的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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141
outlet
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| n.出口/路；销路；批发商店；通风口；发泄 | |
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142
demolished
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|
| v.摧毁( demolish的过去式和过去分词 )；推翻；拆毁（尤指大建筑物）；吃光 | |
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143
subtleties
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|
| 细微( subtlety的名词复数 )； 精细； 巧妙； 细微的差别等 | |
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144
linguistic
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| adj.语言的，语言学的 | |
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145
phenomena
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| n.现象 | |
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146
cumbersome
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| adj.笨重的，不便携带的 | |
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147
meticulously
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| adv.过细地，异常细致地；无微不至；精心 | |
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148
inscribed
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| v.写，刻( inscribe的过去式和过去分词 )；内接 | |
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149
symbolized
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|
| v.象征，作为…的象征( symbolize的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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150
intermittent
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| adj.间歇的，断断续续的 | |
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151
random
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| adj.随机的；任意的；n.偶然的(或随便的)行动 | |
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152
concord
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| n.和谐；协调 | |
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153
penance
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| n.（赎罪的）惩罪 | |
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154
millennia
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| n.一千年，千禧年 | |
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155
austere
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| adj.艰苦的；朴素的，朴实无华的；严峻的 | |
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156
inevitably
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| adv.不可避免地；必然发生地 | |
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157
uncommon
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| adj.罕见的，非凡的，不平常的 | |
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158
vigour
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| （=vigor）n.智力，体力，精力 | |
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159
deserted
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| adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的 | |
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160
exhausted
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|
| adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的 | |
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161
thereby
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| adv.因此，从而 | |
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162
salvation
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| n.（尤指基督）救世，超度，拯救，解困 | |
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163
surmised
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| v.臆测，推断( surmise的过去式和过去分词 )；揣测；猜想 | |
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164
premature
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| adj.比预期时间早的；不成熟的，仓促的 | |
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165
extinction
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| n.熄灭，消亡，消灭，灭绝，绝种 | |
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166
attainment
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| n.达到，到达；［常pl.］成就，造诣 | |
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167
frustrated
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|
| adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧 | |
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168
stimulate
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| vt.刺激，使兴奋；激励，使…振奋 | |
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169
hideous
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|
| adj.丑陋的，可憎的，可怕的，恐怖的 | |
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170
epidemic
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| n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的 | |
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171
onset
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| n.进攻，袭击，开始，突然开始 | |
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172
impending
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| a.imminent, about to come or happen | |
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173
vomiting
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| 吐 | |
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174
spasms
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| n.痉挛( spasm的名词复数 )；抽搐；（能量、行为等的）突发；发作 | |
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175
outwards
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| adj.外面的，公开的，向外的；adv.向外；n.外形 | |
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176
succumbed
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|
| 不再抵抗（诱惑、疾病、攻击等）( succumb的过去式和过去分词 )； 屈从； 被压垮； 死 | |
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177
glandular
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| adj.腺体的 | |
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178
disturbances
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| n.骚乱( disturbance的名词复数 )；打扰；困扰；障碍 | |
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179
disturbance
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| n.动乱，骚动；打扰，干扰；(身心)失调 | |
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180
frightful
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| adj.可怕的；讨厌的 | |
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181
galloping
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| adj. 飞驰的, 急性的 动词gallop的现在分词形式 | |
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182
extravagant
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| adj.奢侈的；过分的；(言行等)放肆的 | |
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183
softening
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| 变软，软化 | |
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184
unnatural
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| adj.不自然的；反常的 | |
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185
distressing
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| a.使人痛苦的 | |
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186
distress
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| n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛 | |
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187
distended
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| v.（使）膨胀，肿胀( distend的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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188
repulsively
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| adv.冷淡地 | |
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189
disorder
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| n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调 | |
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190
purely
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| adv.纯粹地，完全地 | |
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191
obsessed
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| adj.心神不宁的,鬼迷心窍的,沉迷的 | |
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192
frantic
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| adj.狂乱的，错乱的，激昂的 | |
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193
irrational
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| adj.无理性的，失去理性的 | |
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194
bravado
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| n.虚张声势，故作勇敢，逞能 | |
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195
hatred
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| n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨 | |
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196
maudlin
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| adj.感情脆弱的，爱哭的 | |
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197
fictitious
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| adj.虚构的，假设的；空头的 | |
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198
deity
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| n.神，神性；被奉若神明的人(或物) | |
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199
morbid
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|
| adj.病的；致病的；病态的；可怕的 | |
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200
fumbling
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| n. 摸索,漏接 v. 摸索,摸弄,笨拙的处理 | |
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201
bloody
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| adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染 | |
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202
pulp
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| n.果肉，纸浆；v.化成纸浆，除去...果肉，制成纸浆 | |
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203
apathy
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| n.漠不关心，无动于衷；冷淡 | |
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204
inert
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| adj.无活动能力的，惰性的；迟钝的 | |
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205
disastrous
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| adj.灾难性的，造成灾害的；极坏的，很糟的 | |
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206
distinctively
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| adv.特殊地，区别地 | |
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207
impulsive
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| adj.冲动的，刺激的；有推动力的 | |
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208
persistent
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| adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的 | |
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209
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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210
fatuous
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| adj.愚昧的；昏庸的 | |
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211
stimulated
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| a.刺激的 | |
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212
shrug
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| v.耸肩(表示怀疑、冷漠、不知等) | |
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213
disposition
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| n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署 | |
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214
slovenliness
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215
relentless
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| adj.残酷的，不留情的，无怜悯心的 | |
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216
vindictiveness
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| 恶毒；怀恨在心 | |
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intensity
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| n.强烈，剧烈；强度；烈度 | |
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dominant
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| adj.支配的，统治的；占优势的；显性的；n.主因，要素，主要的人(或物)；显性基因 | |
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motive
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| n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的 | |
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susceptible
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| adj.过敏的，敏感的；易动感情的，易受感动的 | |
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specially
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| adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地 | |
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222
surmounting
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| 战胜( surmount的现在分词 )； 克服（困难）； 居于…之上； 在…顶上 | |
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vices
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| 缺陷( vice的名词复数 )； 恶习； 不道德行为； 台钳 | |
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invalids
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| 病人，残疾者( invalid的名词复数 ) | |
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infested
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| adj.为患的，大批滋生的（常与with搭配）v.害虫、野兽大批出没于( infest的过去式和过去分词 )；遍布于 | |
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favourable
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| adj.赞成的，称赞的，有利的，良好的，顺利的 | |
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glands
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| n.腺( gland的名词复数 ) | |
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228
consecrated
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| adj.神圣的，被视为神圣的v.把…奉为神圣，给…祝圣( consecrate的过去式和过去分词 )；奉献 | |
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exalted
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| adj.(地位等)高的，崇高的；尊贵的，高尚的 | |
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apathetic
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| adj.冷漠的，无动于衷的 | |
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231
virulence
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| n.毒力，毒性；病毒性；致病力 | |
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232
scourge
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| n.灾难，祸害；v.蹂躏 | |
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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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populous
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| adj.人口稠密的，人口众多的 | |
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arid
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| adj.干旱的；(土地)贫瘠的 | |
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drenching
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| n.湿透v.使湿透( drench的现在分词 )；在某人（某物）上大量使用（某液体） | |
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237
protruded
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| v.（使某物）伸出，（使某物）突出( protrude的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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prevailing
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| adj.盛行的；占优势的；主要的 | |
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239
mica
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| n.云母 | |
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240
plausible
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| adj.似真实的，似乎有理的，似乎可信的 | |
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241
isolated
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| adj.与世隔绝的 | |
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242
professed
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| 公开声称的，伪称的，已立誓信教的 | |
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deteriorated
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| 恶化，变坏( deteriorate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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degenerated
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| 衰退，堕落，退化( degenerate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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wholesome
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| adj.适合；卫生的；有益健康的；显示身心健康的 | |
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246
addiction
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| n.上瘾入迷，嗜好 | |
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247
sluggishness
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| 不振，萧条，呆滞；惰性；滞性；惯性 | |
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deterioration
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| n.退化；恶化；变坏 | |
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249
steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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devotedly
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| 专心地； 恩爱地； 忠实地； 一心一意地 | |
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promptly
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| adv.及时地，敏捷地 | |
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252
maternal
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| adj.母亲的，母亲般的，母系的，母方的 | |
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253
supervision
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| n.监督，管理 | |
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254
emigrants
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| n.（从本国移往他国的）移民( emigrant的名词复数 ) | |
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moribund
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| adj.即将结束的，垂死的 | |
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256
civilized
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| a.有教养的，文雅的 | |
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257
recurrence
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| n.复发，反复，重现 | |
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258
incipient
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| adj.起初的，发端的，初期的 | |
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259
epidemics
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| n．流行病 | |
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apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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261
generators
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| n.发电机，发生器( generator的名词复数 )；电力公司 | |
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262
migration
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| n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙 | |
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263
upheavals
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| 突然的巨变( upheaval的名词复数 )； 大动荡； 大变动； 胀起 | |
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264
buckling
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| 扣住 | |
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prodigious
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| adj.惊人的，奇妙的；异常的；巨大的；庞大的 | |
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266
volcanic
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| adj.火山的；象火山的；由火山引起的 | |
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267
eruptions
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| n.喷发，爆发( eruption的名词复数 ) | |
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268
fissures
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| n.狭长裂缝或裂隙( fissure的名词复数 )；裂伤；分歧；分裂v.裂开( fissure的第三人称单数 ) | |
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269
spouts
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| n.管口( spout的名词复数 )；（喷出的）水柱；（容器的）嘴；在困难中v.（指液体）喷出( spout的第三人称单数 )；滔滔不绝地讲；喋喋不休地说；喷水 | |
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270
collapse
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| vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷 | |
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271
unfamiliar
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| adj.陌生的，不熟悉的 | |
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272
tracts
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| 大片土地( tract的名词复数 )； 地带； （体内的）道； （尤指宣扬宗教、伦理或政治的）短文 | |
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273
lava
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| n.熔岩，火山岩 | |
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274
appreciably
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| adv.相当大地 | |
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275
devastated
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| v.彻底破坏( devastate的过去式和过去分词)；摧毁；毁灭；在感情上（精神上、财务上等）压垮adj.毁坏的；极为震惊的 | |
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276
primitive
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| adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物 | |
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277
machinery
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| n.(总称)机械，机器；机构 | |
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278
colonists
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| n.殖民地开拓者，移民，殖民地居民( colonist的名词复数 ) | |
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279
diversified
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| adj.多样化的，多种经营的v.使多样化，多样化( diversify的过去式和过去分词 )；进入新的商业领域 | |
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280
temperate
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| adj.温和的，温带的，自我克制的，不过分的 | |
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281
divergence
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| n.分歧，岔开 | |
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282
incapable
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| adj.无能力的，不能做某事的 | |
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283
humbly
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| adv. 恭顺地，谦卑地 | |
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284
dwindled
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| v.逐渐变少或变小( dwindle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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285
possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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286
falteringly
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| 口吃地，支吾地 | |
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