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第9章

before adam-第9章

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For some time old Saber…Tooth continued dashing in and

out of first the one cave and then the other。  But the

two Folk merely slipped back and forth through the

connecting crevice and eluded him。  In the meantime the

rest of us up the bluff had proceeded to action。  Every

time he appeared outside we pelted him with rocks。 At

first we merely dropped them on him; but we soon began

to whiz them down with the added force of our muscles。



This bombardment drew Saber…Tooth's attention to us and

made him angrier than ever。  He abandoned his pursuit

of the two Folk and sprang up the bluff toward the rest

of us; clawing at the crumbling rock and snarling as he

clawed his upward way。  At this awful sight; the last

one of us sought refuge inside our caves。  I know this;

because I peeped out and saw the whole bluff…side

deserted; save for Saber…Tooth; who had lost his

footing and was sliding and falling down。



I called out the cry of encouragement; and again the

bluff was covered by the screaming horde and the stones

were falling faster than ever。  Saber…Tooth was frantic

with rage。  Time and again he assaulted the bluff。

Once he even gained the first crevice…entrances before

he fell back; but was unable to force his way inside。

With each upward rush he made; waves of fear surged

over us。  At first; at such times; most of us dashed

inside; but some remained outside to hammer him with

stones; and soon all of us remained outside and kept up

the fusillade。



Never was so masterly a creature so completely baffled。

It hurt his pride terribly; thus to be outwitted by the

small and tender Folk。  He stood on the ground and

looked up at us; snarling; lashing his tail; snapping

at the stones that fell near to him。 Once I whizzed

down a stone; and just at the right moment he looked

up。  It caught him full on the end of his nose; and he

went straight up in the air; all four feet of him;

roaring and caterwauling; what of the hurt and

surprise。



He was beaten and he knew it。  Recovering his dignity;

he stalked out solemnly from under the rain of stones。

He stopped in the middle of the open space and looked

wistfully and hungrily back at us。  He hated to forego

the meal; and we were just so much meat; cornered but

inaccessible。  This sight of him started us to

laughing。  We laughed derisively and uproariously; all

of us。  Now animals do not like mockery。  To be laughed

at makes them angry。 And in such fashion our laughter

affected Saber…Tooth。  He turned with a roar and

charged the bluff again。  This was what we wanted。 The

fight had become a game; and we took huge delight in

pelting him。



But this attack did not last long。  He quickly

recovered his common sense; and besides; our missiles

were shrewd to hurt。 Vividly do I recollect the vision

of one bulging eye of his; swollen almost shut by one

of the stones we had thrown。  And vividly do I retain

the picture of him as he stood on the edge of the

forest whither he had finally retreated。  He was

looking back at us; his writhing lips lifted clear of

the very roots of his huge fangs; his hair bristling

and his tail lashing。  He gave one last snarl and slid

from view among the trees。



And then such a chattering as went up。  We swarmed out

of our holes; examining the marks his claws had made on

the crumbling rock of the bluff; all of us talking at

once。  One of the two Folk who had been caught in the

double cave was part…grown; half child and half youth。

They had come out proudly from their refuge; and we

surrounded them in an admiring crowd。  Then the young

fellow's mother broke through and fell upon him in a

tremendous rage; boxing his ears; pulling his hair; and

shrieking like a demon。 She was a strapping big woman;

very hairy; and the thrashing she gave him was a

delight to the horde。  We roared with laughter; holding

on to one another or rolling on the ground in our glee。



In spite of the reign of fear under which we lived; the

Folk were always great laughers。  We had the sense of

humor。  Our merriment was Gargantuan。  It was never

restrained。  There was nothing half way about it。  When

a thing was funny we were convulsed with appreciation

of it; and the simplest; crudest things were funny to

us。  Oh; we were great laughers; I can tell you。



The way we had treated Saber…Tooth was the way we

treated all animals that invaded the village。  We kept

our run…ways and drinking…places to ourselves by making

life miserable for the animals that trespassed or

strayed upon our immediate territory。 Even the fiercest

hunting animals we so bedevilled that they learned to

leave our places alone。  We were not fighters like

them; we were cunning and cowardly; and it was because

of our cunning and cowardice; and our inordinate

capacity for fear; that we survived in that frightfully

hostile environment of the Younger World。



Lop…Ear; I figure; was a year older than I。  What his

past history was he had no way of telling me; but as I

never saw anything of his mother I believed him to be

an orphan。  After all; fathers did not count in our

horde。  Marriage was as yet in a rude state; and

couples had a way of quarrelling and separating。

Modern man; what of his divorce institution; does the

same thing legally。  But we had no laws。  Custom was

all we went by; and our custom in this particular

matter was rather promiscuous 。



Nevertheless; as this narrative will show later on; we

betrayed glimmering adumbrations of the monogamy that

was later to give power to; and make mighty; such

tribes as embraced it。 Furthermore; even at the time I

was born; there were several faithful couples that

lived in the trees in the neighborhood of my mother。

Living in the thick of the horde did not conduce to

monogamy。  It was for this reason; undoubtedly; that

the faithful couples went away and lived by themselves。

Through many years these couples stayed together;

though when the man or woman died or was eaten the

survivor invariably found a new mate。



There was one thing that greatly puzzled me during the

first days of my residence in the horde。  There was a

nameless and incommunicable fear that rested upon all。

At first it appeared to be connected wholly with

direction。  The horde feared the northeast。  It lived

in perpetual apprehension of that quarter of the

compass。  And every individual gazed more frequently

and with greater alarm in that direction than in any

other。



When Lop…Ear and I went toward the north…east to eat

the stringy…rooted carrots that at that season were at

their best; he became unusually timid。  He was content

to eat the leavings; the big tough carrots and the

little ropy ones; rather than to venture a short

distance farther on to where the carrots were as yet

untouched。  When I so ventured; he scolded me and

quarrelled with me。  He gave me to understand that in

that direction was some horrible danger; but just what

the horrible danger was his paucity of language would

not permit him to say。



Many a good meal I got in this fashion; while he

scolded and chattered vainly at me。  I could not

understand。  I kept very alert; but I could see no

danger。  I calculated always the distance between

myself and the nearest tree; and knew that to that

haven of refuge I could out…foot the Tawny One; or old

Saber…Tooth; did one or the other suddenly appear。



One late afternoon; in the village; a great uproar

arose。  The horde was animated with a single emotion;

that of fear。  The bluff…side swarmed with the Folk;

all gazing and pointing into the northeast。  I did not

know what it was; but I scrambled all the way up to the

safety of my own high little cave before ever I turned

around to see。



And then; across the river; away into the northeast; I

saw for the first time the mystery of smoke。  It was

the biggest animal I had ever seen。  I thought it was a

monste

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