[CHAPTER IX.]
THE MORROW—AND WHAT CAME OF IT!
Never did four human beings await the coming of daylight with such feelings as ours. Not one of us slept for a moment, the livelong night; our excitement was too intense, and the result of our doings on the morrow too momentous. We were up and out of the Sirius by sunrise, looking westwards across the undulating expanse of country, to obtain a glimpse of the fair city we saw yesterday; but vain were our endeavours; a group of low hills hid all from view. On a hill about twenty miles to the north of where we stood, however, we saw three mighty domes, the central one being more than twice the size of the others. From the way in which they glistened in the sunlight, we concluded that they were roofed with gold, or some metal unknown to us of the same colour and brilliancy. A large wood that surrounded them hid the remainder of the buildings from sight, but their size appeared to be enormous, dwarfing all earthly structures into utter insignificance.
We started off in the yet early morning, fully armed and equipped for our walk across country to the distant city, to make the acquaintance of its yet unknown inhabitants. That they were beings of noble stature we had not the slightest doubt; for only a race of giants could have reared such a colossal city; besides, the very physical conditions of Mars point to the existence of larger types of life than any now prevailing on earth.
We had not walked more than four miles on our way before we reached country evidently in a high state of cultivation. We passed large enclosures of red "grass," divided by hedges of a cactus-like plant, similar to the one we noticed growing in the swamp. These fields were evidently crops, the herbage being finer and longer than that growing wild on the mountain slopes. There were other enclosures full of a creeping plant, something like convolvulus, but bearing a long narrow pod, full of small bean-like seeds; and in others were bushes laden with fruit as big as melons, and very similar in appearance.
We were walking steadily along a broad kind of pathway between these enclosures, when an exclamation from Sandy caused us to halt, and immediately confine our attention to something which the cautious Scot was looking at on the ground before him.
It was the imprint of feet in the soft, bare ground, and evidently the impressions of a being shod with moccasins, and of mighty stature. As we were all stooping down, intently examining the first absolute traces of the intellectual inhabitants of Mars, we did not notice the approach of the being who had doubtless left these tracks behind. He came slowly along the path we were following—a being—shall we say a human being? for in all his outward frame he resembled ourselves, save that in stature he was a giant, quite nine feet in height. His features were noble-looking, almost like the Egyptians of old, and his skin was wonderfully fair and beautiful. His black beard swept downwards to his breast, and his long bushy hair, of the same tint, was confined simply by a ring of some metal which just encircled the crown of his shapely head. He was clothed in a loosely flowing robe of some soft material, almost like silk, which draped from his neck to his knees, girded at the waist with a broad strap, from which dangled several curious articles of which we knew not the use. His legs and feet were covered with the skins of some beast, curiously ornamented. Slowly but without a sign of fear he advanced towards us, carrying in his hands a long rod made of some metal. His expression was warlike; we had evidently to deal with no coward; but we could plainly see that his curiosity was most intense.
With the exception, perhaps, of the Doctor, all of us were visibly alarmed at this strange bold and haughty man, and had we not been assured by the calm confidence of our friend we should most certainly have felt inclined either to fight our visitor at once, or make the best of our way out of his presence. There was something uncanny about him. Had he even spoken, the awe and mystery surrounding him would not have been so terrible. But he came towards us in absolute silence; and when about a dozen paces away from where we stood, he paused and watched us intently.
Doctor Hermann, foolishly we thought, hailed him successively in German, in English, and in Latin, but he made no sound in reply. He was examining us minutely, evidently full of confidence in the superiority of his size and strength. He must have looked upon us with much the same contemptuous wonder as the old travellers viewed the race of dwarfs that they assure us inhabit the vast forests of Central Africa. Sandy at last hurled at him a perfect torrent of honest Gaelic, which only seemed to rouse his anger, and he uttered several sounds which were evidently meant for words of warning, in a loud, imperious, but not unpleasant voice. His arm was raised as if in threat towards us, and all of us felt thoroughly alarmed, except the Doctor, who advanced a step towards him with both hands held out as if in greeting. At this he pointed the long rod he was carrying towards one of the curious animals we had previously met with near the lake, which happened to be grazing quietly half-a-mile away, and within a second of time we saw the poor creature leap into the air and drop dead! We heard no report, we saw no flash! This was too much for Sandy, and before we could prevent him his revolver was drawn, pointed at the unknown stranger, and fired once, twice, three times into his stalwart body! At the first shot he screamed with pain, and tried to level his rod at us; at the second he fell to the ground; the result of the third we never learned, for we all turned and fled as if for our lives towards the friendly cover which sheltered the Sirius. As we ran behind the welcome shelter of the low hills we noticed several more of these strange beings, hastening from various directions to their fallen comrade; and as we had every reason to dread the deadly weapons with which they were most probably armed, we were glad to reach the wooded country and seek our refuge under the cover of the trees.