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.I never saw anything inthe least comparable to them.The women were vigorous,and had a most majestic gait, their heads being set upontheir shoulders with a grace beyond all power ofexpression.Each feature was finished, eyelids, eyelashes,and ears being almost invariably perfect.Their colour wasequal to that of the finest Italian paintings; being of theclearest olive, and yet ruddy with a glow of perfect health.Their expression was divine; and as they glanced at metimidly but with parted lips in great bewilderment, Iforgot all thoughts of their conversion in feelings that werefar more earthly.I was dazzled as I saw one after the other,of whom I could only feel that each was the loveliest I hadever seen.Even in middle age they were still comely, andthe old grey-haired women at their cottage doors had adignity, not to say majesty, of their own.The men were as handsome as the women beautiful.Ihave always delighted in and reverenced beauty; but I feltsimply abashed in the presence of such a splendid type acompound of all that is best in Egyptian, Greek andItalian.The children were infinite in number, and80 of 379 Erewhonexceedingly merry; I need hardly say that they came in fortheir full share of the prevailing beauty.I expressed bysigns my admiration and pleasure to my guides, and theywere greatly pleased.I should add that all seemed to take apride in their personal appearance, and that even thepoorest (and none seemed rich) were well kempt and tidy.I could fill many pages with a description of their dress andthe ornaments which they wore, and a hundred detailswhich struck me with all the force of novelty; but I mustnot stay to do so.When we had got past the village the fog rose, andrevealed magnificent views of the snowy mountains andtheir nearer abutments, while in front I could now andagain catch glimpses of the great plains which I hadsurveyed on the preceding evening.The country washighly cultivated, every ledge being planted withchestnuts, walnuts, and apple-trees from which the appleswere now gathering.Goats were abundant; also a kind ofsmall black cattle, in the marshes near the river, which wasnow fast widening, and running between larger flats fromwhich the hills receded more and more.I saw a few sheepwith rounded noses and enormous tails.Dogs were therein plenty, and very English; but I saw no cats, nor indeed81 of 379 Erewhonare these creatures known, their place being supplied by asort of small terrier.In about four hours of walking from the time westarted, and after passing two or three more villages, wecame upon a considerable town, and my guides mademany attempts to make me understand something, but Igathered no inkling of their meaning, except that I needbe under no apprehension of danger.I will spare thereader any description of the town, and would only bidhim think of Domodossola or Faido.Suffice it that I foundmyself taken before the chief magistrate, and by his orderswas placed in an apartment with two other people, whowere the first I had seen looking anything but well andhandsome.In fact, one of them was plainly very much outof health, and coughed violently from time to time in spiteof manifest efforts to suppress it.The other looked paleand ill but he was marvellously self-contained, and it wasimpossible to say what was the matter with him.Both ofthem appeared astonished at seeing one who was evidentlya stranger, but they were too ill to come up to me, andform conclusions concerning me.These two were firstcalled out; and in about a quarter of an hour I was madeto follow them, which I did in some fear, and with muchcuriosity.82 of 379 ErewhonThe chief magistrate was a venerable-looking man,with white hair and beard and a face of great sagacity.Helooked me all over for about five minutes, letting his eyeswander from the crown of my head to the soles of myfeet, up and down, and down and up; neither did his mindseem in the least clearer when he had done looking thanwhen he began.He at length asked me a single shortquestion, which I supposed meant Who are you? Ianswered in English quite composedly as though he wouldunderstand me, and endeavoured to be my very mostnatural self as well as I could.He appeared more and morepuzzled, and then retired, returning with two others muchlike himself.Then they took me into an inner room, andthe two fresh arrivals stripped me, while the chief lookedon.They felt my pulse, they looked at my tongue, theylistened at my chest, they felt all my muscles; and at theend of each operation they looked at the chief andnodded, and said something in a tone quite pleasant, asthough I were all right.They even pulled down myeyelids, and looked, I suppose, to see if they werebloodshot; but it was not so.At length they gave up; and Ithink that all were satisfied of my being in the most perfecthealth, and very robust to boot.At last the old magistratemade me a speech of about five minutes long, which the83 of 379 Erewhonother two appeared to think greatly to the point, but fromwhich I gathered nothing.As soon as it was ended, theyproceeded to overhaul my swag and the contents of mypockets.This gave me little uneasiness, for I had nomoney with me, nor anything which they were at alllikely to want, or which I cared about losing.At least Ifancied so, but I soon found my mistake.They got on comfortably at first, though they weremuch puzzled with my tobacco-pipe and insisted onseeing me use it.When I had shown them what I did withit, they were astonished but not displeased, and seemed tolike the smell.But by and by they came to my watch,which I had hidden away in the inmost pocket that I had,and had forgotten when they began their search.Theyseemed concerned and uneasy as soon as they got hold ofit.They then made me open it and show the works; andwhen I had done so they gave signs of very gravedispleasure, which disturbed me all the more because Icould not conceive wherein it could have offended them.I remember that when they first found it I had thoughtof Paley, and how he tells us that a savage on seeing awatch would at once conclude that it was designed.True,these people were not savages, but I none the less felt surethat this was the conclusion they would arrive at; and I84 of 379 Erewhonwas thinking what a wonderfully wise man ArchbishopPaley must have been, when I was aroused by a look ofhorror and dismay upon the face of the magistrate, a lookwhich conveyed to me the impression that he regardedmy watch not as having been designed, but rather as thedesigner of himself and of the universe; or as at any rateone of the great first causes of all things [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
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.I never saw anything inthe least comparable to them.The women were vigorous,and had a most majestic gait, their heads being set upontheir shoulders with a grace beyond all power ofexpression.Each feature was finished, eyelids, eyelashes,and ears being almost invariably perfect.Their colour wasequal to that of the finest Italian paintings; being of theclearest olive, and yet ruddy with a glow of perfect health.Their expression was divine; and as they glanced at metimidly but with parted lips in great bewilderment, Iforgot all thoughts of their conversion in feelings that werefar more earthly.I was dazzled as I saw one after the other,of whom I could only feel that each was the loveliest I hadever seen.Even in middle age they were still comely, andthe old grey-haired women at their cottage doors had adignity, not to say majesty, of their own.The men were as handsome as the women beautiful.Ihave always delighted in and reverenced beauty; but I feltsimply abashed in the presence of such a splendid type acompound of all that is best in Egyptian, Greek andItalian.The children were infinite in number, and80 of 379 Erewhonexceedingly merry; I need hardly say that they came in fortheir full share of the prevailing beauty.I expressed bysigns my admiration and pleasure to my guides, and theywere greatly pleased.I should add that all seemed to take apride in their personal appearance, and that even thepoorest (and none seemed rich) were well kempt and tidy.I could fill many pages with a description of their dress andthe ornaments which they wore, and a hundred detailswhich struck me with all the force of novelty; but I mustnot stay to do so.When we had got past the village the fog rose, andrevealed magnificent views of the snowy mountains andtheir nearer abutments, while in front I could now andagain catch glimpses of the great plains which I hadsurveyed on the preceding evening.The country washighly cultivated, every ledge being planted withchestnuts, walnuts, and apple-trees from which the appleswere now gathering.Goats were abundant; also a kind ofsmall black cattle, in the marshes near the river, which wasnow fast widening, and running between larger flats fromwhich the hills receded more and more.I saw a few sheepwith rounded noses and enormous tails.Dogs were therein plenty, and very English; but I saw no cats, nor indeed81 of 379 Erewhonare these creatures known, their place being supplied by asort of small terrier.In about four hours of walking from the time westarted, and after passing two or three more villages, wecame upon a considerable town, and my guides mademany attempts to make me understand something, but Igathered no inkling of their meaning, except that I needbe under no apprehension of danger.I will spare thereader any description of the town, and would only bidhim think of Domodossola or Faido.Suffice it that I foundmyself taken before the chief magistrate, and by his orderswas placed in an apartment with two other people, whowere the first I had seen looking anything but well andhandsome.In fact, one of them was plainly very much outof health, and coughed violently from time to time in spiteof manifest efforts to suppress it.The other looked paleand ill but he was marvellously self-contained, and it wasimpossible to say what was the matter with him.Both ofthem appeared astonished at seeing one who was evidentlya stranger, but they were too ill to come up to me, andform conclusions concerning me.These two were firstcalled out; and in about a quarter of an hour I was madeto follow them, which I did in some fear, and with muchcuriosity.82 of 379 ErewhonThe chief magistrate was a venerable-looking man,with white hair and beard and a face of great sagacity.Helooked me all over for about five minutes, letting his eyeswander from the crown of my head to the soles of myfeet, up and down, and down and up; neither did his mindseem in the least clearer when he had done looking thanwhen he began.He at length asked me a single shortquestion, which I supposed meant Who are you? Ianswered in English quite composedly as though he wouldunderstand me, and endeavoured to be my very mostnatural self as well as I could.He appeared more and morepuzzled, and then retired, returning with two others muchlike himself.Then they took me into an inner room, andthe two fresh arrivals stripped me, while the chief lookedon.They felt my pulse, they looked at my tongue, theylistened at my chest, they felt all my muscles; and at theend of each operation they looked at the chief andnodded, and said something in a tone quite pleasant, asthough I were all right.They even pulled down myeyelids, and looked, I suppose, to see if they werebloodshot; but it was not so.At length they gave up; and Ithink that all were satisfied of my being in the most perfecthealth, and very robust to boot.At last the old magistratemade me a speech of about five minutes long, which the83 of 379 Erewhonother two appeared to think greatly to the point, but fromwhich I gathered nothing.As soon as it was ended, theyproceeded to overhaul my swag and the contents of mypockets.This gave me little uneasiness, for I had nomoney with me, nor anything which they were at alllikely to want, or which I cared about losing.At least Ifancied so, but I soon found my mistake.They got on comfortably at first, though they weremuch puzzled with my tobacco-pipe and insisted onseeing me use it.When I had shown them what I did withit, they were astonished but not displeased, and seemed tolike the smell.But by and by they came to my watch,which I had hidden away in the inmost pocket that I had,and had forgotten when they began their search.Theyseemed concerned and uneasy as soon as they got hold ofit.They then made me open it and show the works; andwhen I had done so they gave signs of very gravedispleasure, which disturbed me all the more because Icould not conceive wherein it could have offended them.I remember that when they first found it I had thoughtof Paley, and how he tells us that a savage on seeing awatch would at once conclude that it was designed.True,these people were not savages, but I none the less felt surethat this was the conclusion they would arrive at; and I84 of 379 Erewhonwas thinking what a wonderfully wise man ArchbishopPaley must have been, when I was aroused by a look ofhorror and dismay upon the face of the magistrate, a lookwhich conveyed to me the impression that he regardedmy watch not as having been designed, but rather as thedesigner of himself and of the universe; or as at any rateone of the great first causes of all things [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]