第9章

类别:其他 作者:Herbert George Wells字数:10202更新时间:19/01/07 15:15:33
Grahamtoldhimbriefly。 Ostroglistenedinsilence。 Hesmiledfaintly。\"DoyouknowwhatIwasdoingwhentheycametotellmeyouhadcome?\" \"HowcanIguess?\" \"Preparingyourdouble。\" \"Mydouble?\" \"Amanaslikeyouaswecouldfind。Weweregoingtohypnotisehim,tosavehimthedifficultyofacting。Itwasimperative。Thewholeofthisrevoltdependsontheideathatyouareawake,alive,andwithus。Evennowagreatmultitudeofpeoplehasgatheredinthetheatreclamouringtoseeyou。Theydonottrust……Youknow,ofcourse——somethingofyourposition?\" \"Verylittle,\"saidGraham。 \"Itislikethis。\"Ostrogwalkedapaceortwointotheroomandturned。\"Youareabsoluteowner,\" hesaid,\"ofmorethanhalftheworld。AsaresultofthatyouarepracticallyKing。Yourpowersarelimitedinmanyintricateways,butyouarethefigurehead,thepopularsymbolofgovernment。ThisWhiteCouncil,theCouncilofTrusteesasitiscalled\" \"Ihaveheardthevagueoutlineofthesethings。\" \"Iwondered。\" \"Icameuponagarrulousoldman。\" \"Isee……Ourmasses——thewordcomesfromyourdays——youknowofcourse,thatwestillhavemasses——regardyouasouractualruler。JustasagreatnumberofpeopleinyourdaysregardedtheCrownastheruler。Theyarediscontented——themassesallovertheearth——withtheruleofyourTrustees。Forthemostpartitistheolddiscontent,theoldquarrelofthecommonmanwithhiscommonness——themiseryofworkanddisciplineandunfitness。 ButyourTrusteeshaveruledill。Incertainmatters,intheadministrationoftheLabourCompanies,forexample,theyhavebeenunwise。Theyhavegivenendlessopportunities。Alreadyweofthepopularpartywereagitatingforreforms——whenyourwakingcame。Came!Ifithadbeencontriveditcouldnothavecomemoreopportunity。\"Hesmiled。 \"Thepublicmind,makingnoallowanceforyouryearsofquiescence,hadalreadyhitonthethoughtofwakingyouandappealingtoyou,and——Flash!\" Heindicatedtheoutbreakbyagesture,andGrahammovedhisheadtoshowthatheunderstood。 \"TheCouncilmuddled——quarreled。Theyalwaysdo。Theycouldnotdecidewhattodowithyou。 Youknowhowtheyimprisonedyou?\" \"Isee。Isee。Andnow——wewin?\" \"Wewin。Indeedwewin。Tonight,infiveswifthours。Suddenlywestruckeverywhere。Thewindvanepeople,theLabourCompanyanditsmillions,burstthebonds。Wegotthepulloftheaeropiles。\" Hepaused。\"Yes,\"saidGraham,guessingthataeropilemeantflyingmachine。 \"Thatwas,ofcourse,essential。Ortheycouldhavegotaway。Allthecityrose,everythirdmanalmostwasinit!Alltheblue,allthepublicservices,saveonlyjustafewaeronautsandabouthalftheredpolice。Youwererescued,andtheirownpoliceoftheWays——nothalfofthemcouldbemassedattheCouncilHouse——havebeenbrokenup,disarmedorkilled。AllLondonisours——now。OnlytheCouncilHouseremains。 \"Halfofthosewhoremaintothemoftheredpolicewerelostinthatfoolishattempttorecaptureyou。Theylosttheirheadswhentheylostyou。Theyflungalltheyhadatthetheatre。WecutthemofffromtheCouncilHousethere。Trulytonighthasbeenanightofvictory。Everywhereyourstarhasblazed。Adayago——theWhiteCouncilruledasithasruledforagrossofyears,foracenturyandahalfofyears,andthen,withonlyalittlewhispering,acovertarminghereandthere,suddenly——So!\" \"Iamveryignorant,\"saidGraham。\"Isuppose——。 Idonotclearlyunderstandtheconditionsofthisfighting。Ifyoucouldexplain。WhereistheCouncil?Whereisthefight?\" Ostrogsteppedacrosstheroom,somethingclicked,andsuddenly,saveforanovalglow,theywereindarkness。ForamomentGrahamwaspuzzled。 Thenhesawthatthecloudygreydischadtakendepthandcolour,hadassumedtheappearanceofanovalwindowlookingoutuponastrangeunfamiliarscene。 Atthefirstglancehewasunabletoguesswhatthisscenemightbe。Itwasadaylightscene,thedaylightofawintryday,greyandclear。Acrossthepictureandhalfwayasitseemedbetweenhimandtheremoterview,astoutcableoftwistedwhitewirestretchedvertically。Thenheperceivedthattherowsofgreatwindwheelshesaw,thewideintervals,theoccasionalgulfsofdarkness,wereakintothosethroughwhichhehadfledfromtheCouncilHouse。Hedistinguishedanorderlyfileofredfiguresmarchingacrossanopenspacebetweenfilesofmeninblack,andrealisedbeforeOstrogspokethathewaslookingdownontheuppersurfaceoflatter—dayLondon。Theovernightsnowshadgone。Hejudgedthatthismirrorwassomemodernreplacementofthecameraobscura,butthatmatterwasnotexplainedtohim。Hesawthatthoughthefileofredfigureswastrottingfromlefttoright,yettheywerepassingoutofthepicturetotheleft。 Hewonderedmomentarily,andthensawthatthepicturewaspassingslowly,panoramafashion,acrosstheoval。 \"Inamomentyouwillseethefighting,\"saidOstrogathiselbow。\"Thosefellowsinredyounoticeareprisoners。ThisistheroofspaceofLondon——allthehousesarepracticallycontinuousnow。 Thestreetsandpublicsquaresarecoveredin。Thegapsandchasmsofyourtimehavedisappeared。\" Somethingoutoffocusobliteratedhalfthepicture。 Itsformsuggestedaman。Therewasagleamofmetal,aflash,somethingthatsweptacrosstheoval,astheeyelidofabirdsweepsacrossitseye,andthepicturewasclearagain。AndnowGrahambeheldmenrunningdownamongthewind—wheels,pointingweaponsfromwhichjettedoutlittlesmokyflashes。 Theyswarmedthickerandthickertotheright,gesticulating——itmightbetheywereshouting,butofthatthepicturetoldnothing。Theyandthewindwheelspassedslowlyandsteadilyacrossthefieldofthemirror。 \"Now,\"saidOstrog,\"comestheCouncilHouse,\" andslowlyablackedgecreptintoviewandgatheredGraham’sattention。Soonitwasnolongeranedgebutacavity,ahugeblackenedspaceamidsttheclusteringedifices,andfromitthinspiresofsmokeroseintothepallidwintersky。Gauntruinousmassesofthebuilding,mightytruncatedpiersandgirders,rosedismallyoutofthiscavernousdarkness。Andoverthesevestigesofsomesplendidplace,countlessminutemenwereclambering,leaping,swarming。 \"ThisistheCouncilHouse,\"saidOstrog。\"Theirlaststronghold。Andthefoolswastedenoughammunitiontoholdoutforamonthinblowingupthebuildingsallaboutthem——tostopourattack。Youheardthesmash?Itshatteredhalfthebrittleglassinthecity。\" Andwhilehespoke,Grahamsawthatbeyondthisseaofruins,overhangingitandrisingtoagreatheight,wasaraggedmassofwhitebuilding。Thismasshadbeenisolatedbytheruthlessdestructionofitssurroundings。Blackgapsmarkedthepassagesthedisasterhadtornapart;bighallshadbeenslashedopenandthedecorationoftheirinteriorsshoweddismallyinthewintrydawn,anddownthejaggedwallhungfestoonsofdividedcablesandtwistedendsoflinesandmetallicrods。Andamidstallthevastdetailsmovedlittleredspecks,thered—clotheddefendersoftheCouncil。Everynowandthenfaintflashesilluminatedthebleakshadows。AtthefirstsightitseemedtoGrahamthatanattackuponthisisolatedwhitebuildingwasinprogress,butthenheperceivedthatthepartyoftherevoltwasnotadvancing,butshelteredamidstthecolossalwreckagethatencircledthislastraggedstrongholdofthered—garbedmen,waskeepingupafitfulfiring。 Andnottenhoursagohehadstoodbeneaththeventilatingfansinalittlechamberwithinthatremotebuildingwonderingwhatwashappeningintheworld! Lookingmoreattentivelyasthiswarlikeepisodemovedsilentlyacrossthecentreofthemirror,Grahamsawthatthewhitebuildingwassurroundedoneverysidebyruins,andOstrogproceededtodescribeinconcisephraseshowitsdefendershadsoughtbysuchdestructiontoisolatethemselvesfromastorm。 Hespokeofthelossofmenthathugedownfallhadentailedinanindifferenttone。Heindicatedanimprovisedmortuaryamongthewreckageshowedambulancesswarminglikecheese—mitesalongaruinousgroovethathadoncebeenastreetofmovingways。 HewasmoreinterestedinpointingoutthepartsoftheCouncilHouse,thedistributionofthebesiegers。 InalittlewhilethecivilcontestthathadconvulsedLondonwasnolongeramysterytoGraham。Itwasnotumultuousrevolthadoccurredthatnight,noequalwarfare,butasplendidlyorganised__coupd’etat__。 Ostrog’sgraspofdetailswasastonishing;heseemedtoknowthebusinessofeventhesmallestknotofblackandredspecksthatcrawledamidsttheseplaces。 Hestretchedahugeblackarmacrosstheluminouspicture,andshowedtheroomwhenceGrahamhadescaped,andacrossthechasmofruinsthecourseofhisflight。Grahamrecognisedthegulfacrosswhichthegutterran,andthewind—wheelswherehehadcrouchedfromtheflyingmachine。Therestofhispathhadsuccumbedtotheexplosion。HelookedagainattheCouncilHouse,anditwasalreadyhalfhidden,andontherightahillsidewithaclusterofdomesandpinnacles,hazy,dimanddistant,wasglidingintoview。 \"AndtheCouncilisreallyoverthrown?\"hesaid。 \"Overthrown,\"saidOstrog。 \"AndI——。IsitindeedtruethatI?\" \"YouareMasteroftheWorld。\" \"Butthatwhiteflag——\" \"ThatistheflagoftheCouncil——theflagoftheRuleoftheWorld。Itwillfall。Thefightisover。 Theirattackonthetheatrewastheirlastfranticstruggle。Theyhaveonlyathousandmenorso,andsomeofthesemenwillbedisloyal。Theyhavelittleammunition。Andwearerevivingtheancientarts。Wearecastingguns。\" \"But——help。Isthiscitytheworld?\" \"Practicallythisisalltheyhavelefttothemoftheirempire。Abroadthecitieshaveeitherrevoltedwithusorwaittheissue。Yourawakeninghasperplexedthem,paralysedthem。\" \"Buthaven’ttheCouncilflyingmachines?Whyistherenofightingwiththem?\" \"Theyhad。Butthegreaterpartoftheaeronautswereintherevoltwithus。Theywouldn’ttaketheriskoffightingonourside,buttheywouldnotstiragainstus。Wehadtogetapullwiththeaeronauts。 Quitehalfwerewithus,andtheothersknewit。 Directlytheyknewyouhadgotaway,thoselookingforyoudropped。Wekilledthemanwhoshotatyou——anhourago。Andweoccupiedtheflyingstagesattheoutsetineverycitywecould,andsostoppedandcapturedtheairplanes,andasforthelittleflyingmachinesthatturnedout——forsomedid—— wekeptuptoostraightandsteadyafireforthemtogetneartheCouncilHouse。Iftheydroppedtheycouldn’triseagain,becausethere’snoclearspaceaboutthereforthemtogetup。Severalwehavesmashed,severalothershavedroppedandsurrendered,theresthavegoneofftotheContinenttofindafriendlycityiftheycanbeforetheirfuelrunsout。 Mostofthesemenwereonlytoogladtobetakenprisonerandkeptoutofharm’sway。Upsettinginaflyingmachineisn’taveryattractiveprospect。There’snochancefortheCouncilthatway。Itsdaysaredone。\" HelaughedandturnedtotheovalreflectionagaintoshowGrahamwhathemeantbyflyingstages。 Eventhefourneareroneswereremoteandobscuredbyathinmorninghaze。ButGrahamcouldperceivetheywereveryvaststructures,judgedevenbythestandardofthethingsaboutthem。 Andthenasthesedimshapespassedtothelefttherecameagainthesightoftheexpanseacrosswhichthedisarmedmeninredhadbeenmarching。Andthentheblackruins,andthenagainthebeleagueredwhitefastnessoftheCouncil。Itappearednolongeraghostlypile,butglowingamberinthesunlight,foracloudshadowhadpassed。Aboutitthepigmystrugglestillhunginsuspense,butnowthereddefenderswerenolongerfiring。 So,inaduskystillness,themanfromthenineteenthcenturysawtheclosingsceneofthegreatrevolt,theforcibleestablishmentofhisrule。Withaqualityofstartlingdiscoveryitcametohimthatthiswashisworld,andnotthatotherhehadleftbehind; thatthiswasnospectacletoculminateandcease;thatinthisworldlaywhateverlifewasstillbeforehim,layallhisdutiesanddangersandresponsibilities。Heturnedwithfreshquestions。Ostrogbegantoanswerthem,andthenbrokeoffabruptly。\"ButthesethingsImustexplainmorefullylater。Atpresentthereare——duties。Thepeoplearecomingbythemovingwaystowardsthiswardfromeverypartofthecity—— themarketsandtheatresaredenselycrowded。Youarejustintimeforthem。Theyareclamouringtoseeyou。Andabroadtheywanttoseeyou。Paris,NewYork,Chicago,Denver,Capri——thousandsofcitiesareupandinatumult,undecided,andclamouringtoseeyou。Theyhaveclamouredthatyoushouldbeawakenedforyears,andnowitisdonetheywillscarcelybelieve——\" Butsurely——Ican’tgo……\" Ostrogansweredfromtheothersideoftheroom,1。 andthepictureontheovaldiscpaledandvanished’ asthelightjerkedbackagain。\"Therearekinetotele—photographs,\"hesaid。\"Asyoubowtothepeoplehere——allovertheworldmyriadsofmyriadsofpeople,packedandstillindarkenedhalls,willseeyoualso。Inblackandwhite,ofcourse——notlikethis。 Andyouwillheartheirshoutsreinforcingtheshoutinginthehall。 \"Andthereisanopticalcontrivanceweshalluse,\" saidOstrog,\"usedbysomeoftheposturersandwomendancers。Itmaybenoveltoyou。Youstandinaverybrightlight,andtheyseenotyoubutamagnifiedimageofyouthrownonascreen——sothateventhefurtherestmanintheremotestgallerycan,ifhechooses,countyoureyelashes。\" Grahamclutcheddesperatelyatoneofthequestionsinhismind。\"WhatisthepopulationofLondon?\" \"Eightandtwaindymyriads。\" \"Eightandwhat?\" \"Morethanthirty—threemillions。\" ThesefigureswentbeyondGraham’simagination\"Youwillbeexpectedtosaysomething,\"saidOstrog。\"NotwhatyouusedtocallaSpeech,butwhatourpeoplecallaWord——justonesentence,sixorsevenwords。Somethingformal。IfImightsuggest——’Ihaveawakenedandmyheartiswithyou。’ Thatisthesortofthingtheywant。\" \"Whatwasthat?\"askedGraham。 \"’Iamawakenedandmyheartiswithyou。’Andbow——bowroyally。Butfirstwemustgetyoublackrobes——forblackisyourcolour。Doyoumind? Andthentheywilldispersetotheirhomes。\" Grahamhesitated。\"Iaminyourhands,\"hesaid。 Ostrogwasclearlyofthatopinion。Hethoughtforamoment,turnedtothecurtainandcalledbriefdirectionstosomeunseenattendants。Almostimmediatelyablackrobe,theveryfellowoftheblackrobeGrahamhadworninthetheatre,wasbrought。Andashethrewitabouthisshoulderstherecamefromtheroomwithouttheshrillingofahigh—pitchedbell。 Ostrogturnedininterrogationtotheattendant,thensuddenlyseemedtochangehismind,pulledthecurtainasideanddisappeared。 ForamomentGrahamstoodwiththedeferentialattendantlisteningtoOstrog’sretreatingsteps。 Therewasasoundofquickquestionandanswerandofmenrunning。ThecurtainwassnatchedbackandOstrogreappeared,hismassivefaceglowingwithexcitement。Hecrossedtheroominastride,clickedtheroomintodarkness,grippedGrahamsarmandpointedtothemirror。 \"Evenasweturnedaway,\"hesaid。 Grahamsawhisindexfinger,blackandcolossal,abovethemirroredCouncilHouse。Foramomenthedidnotunderstand。Andthenheperceivedthattheflagstaffthathadcarriedthewhitebannerwasbare。 \"Doyoumean——?\"hebegan。 \"TheCouncilhassurrendered。Itsruleisatanendforevermore。\" \"Look!\"andOstrogpointedtoacoilofblackthatcreptinlittlejerksupthevacantflagstaff,unfoldingasitrose。 TheovalpicturepaledasLincolnpulledthecurtainasideandentered。 \"Theyareclamourous,\"hesaid。 OstrogkepthisgripofGraham’sarm。 \"Wehaveraisedthepeople,\"hesaid。\"Wehavegiventhemarms。Fortodayatleasttheirwishesmustbelaw。\" LincolnheldtheCurtainopenforGrahamandOstrogtopassthrough。 OnhiswaytothemarketsGrahamhadatransitoryglanceofalongnarrowwhite—walledroominwhichmenintheuniversalbluecanvaswerecarryingcoveredthingslikebiers,andaboutwhichmeninmedicalpurplehurriedtoandfro。Fromthisroomcamegroansandwailing。Hehadanimpressionofanemptyblood—stainedcouch,ofmenonothercouches,bandagedandblood—stained。Itwasjustaglimpsefromarailedfootwayandthenabuttresshidtheplaceandtheyweregoingontowardsthemarkets。 Theroarofthemultitudewasnearnow:itleapttothunder。And,arrestinghisattention,aflutteringofblackbanners,thewavingofbluecanvasandbrownrags,andtheswarmingvastnessofthetheatrenearthepublicmarketscameintoviewdownalongpassage。Thepictureopenedout。Heperceivedtheywereenteringthegreattheatreofhisfirstappearance,theFreattheatrehehadlastseenasachequer—workofglareandblacknessinhisflightfromtheredpolice。 Thistimeheentereditalongagalleryatalevelhighabovethestage。Theplacewasnowbrilliantlylitagain。Hesoughtthegangwayupwhichhehadfled,buthecouldnottellitfromamongitsdozensoffellows;norcouldheseeanythingofthesmashedseats,deflatedcushions,andsuchliketracesofthefightbecauseofthedensityofthepeople。Exceptthestagethewholeplacewascloselypacked。Lookingdowntheeffectwasavastareaofstippledpink,eachdotastillupturnedfaceregardinghim。AthisappearancewithOstrogthecheeringdiedaway,thesingingdiedaway,acommonintereststilledandunifiedthedisorder。Itseemedasthougheveryindividualofthosemyriadswaswatchinghim。 CHAPTERXIII THEENDOFTHEOLDORDER SofarasGrahamwasabletojudge,itwasnearmiddaywhenthewhitebanneroftheCouncilfell。 Butsomehourshadtoelapsebeforeitwaspossibletoeffecttheformalcapitulation,andsoafterhehadspokenhis\"Word\"heretiredtohisnewapartmentsinthewind—vaneoffices。Thecontinuousexcitementofthelasttwelvehourshadlefthiminordinatelyfatigued,evenhiscuriositywasexhausted;foraspacehesatinertandpassivewithopeneyes,andforaspaceheslept。Hewasrousedbytwomedicalattendants,comepreparedwithstimulantstosustainhimthroughthenextoccasion。Afterhehadtakentheirdrugsandbathedbytheiradviceincoldwater,hefeltarapidreturnofinterestandenergy,andwaspresentlyableandwillingtoaccompanyOstrogthroughseveralmiles(asitseemed)ofpassages,lifts,andslidestotheclosingsceneoftheWhiteCouncil’srule。 Thewayrandeviouslythroughamazeofbuildings。 Theycameatlasttoapassagethatcurvedabout,andshowedbroadeningbeforehimanoblongopening,cloudshotwithsunset,andtheraggedskylineoftheruinousCouncilHouse。Atumultofshoutscamedriftinguptohim。Inanothermomenttheyhadcomeouthighuponthebrowofthecliffoftornbuildingsthatoverhungthewreckage。ThevastareaopenedtoGraham’seyes,nonethelessstrangeandwonderfulfortheremoteviewhehadhadofitintheovalmirror。 Thisrudelyamphitheatralspaceseemednowthebetterpartofamiletoitsouteredge。Itwasgoldlitonthelefthand,catchingthesunlight,andbelowandtotherightclearandcoldintheshadow。AbovetheshadowygreyCouncilHousethatstoodinthemidstofit,thegreatblackbannerofthesurrenderstillhunginsluggishfoldsagainsttheblazingsunset。 Severedrooms,hallsandpassagesgapedstrangely,brokenmassesofmetalprojecteddismallyfromthecomplexwreckage,vastmassesoftwistedcabledroppedliketangledseaweed,andfromitsbasecameatumultofinnumerablevoices,violentconcussions,andthesoundoftrumpets。Allaboutthisgreatwhitepilewasaringofdesolation;thesmashedandblackenedmasses,thegauntfoundationsandruinouslumberofthefabricthathadbeendestroyedbytheCouncil’sorders,skeletonsofgirders,Titanicmassesofwall,forestsofstoutpillars。Amongstthesombrewreckagebeneath,runningwaterflashedandglistened,andfarawayacrossthespace,outofthemidstofavaguevastmassofbuildings,therethrustthetwistedendofawater—main,twohundredfeetintheair,thunderouslyspoutingashiningcascade。Andeverywheregreatmultitudesofpeople。 Wherevertherewasspaceandfoothold,peopleswarmed,littlepeople,smallandminutelyclear,exceptwherethesunsettouchedthemtoindistinguishablegold。Theyclamberedupthetotteringwalls,theyclunginwreathsandgroupsaboutthehigh—standingpillars。Theyswarmedalongtheedgesofthecircleofruins。Theairwasfulloftheirshouting,andwerepressingandswayingtowardsthecentralspace。 TheupperstoreysoftheCouncilHouseseemeddeserted,notahumanbeingwasvisible。Onlythedroopingbannerofthesurrenderhungheavilyagainstthelight。ThedeadwerewithintheCouncilHouse,orhiddenbytheswarmingpeople,orcarriedaway。 Grahamcouldseeonlyafewneglectedbodiesingapsandcornersoftheruins,andamidsttheflowingwater。 \"Willyouletthemseeyou,Sire?\"saidOstrog。 \"Theyareveryanxioustoseeyou。\" Grahamhesitated,andthenwalkedforwardtowherethebrokenvergeofwalldroppedsheer。HeI stoodlookingdown,alonely,tall,blackfigureagainstthesky。 Veryslowlytheswarmingruinsbecameawareofhim。Andastheydidsolittlebandsofblack— uniformedmenappearedremotely,thrustingthroughthecrowdstowardstheCouncilHouse。Hesawlittleblackheadsbecomepink,lookingathim,sawbythatmeansawaveofrecognitionsweepacrossthespace。 Itoccurredtohimthatheshouldaccordthemsomerecognition。Hehelduphisarm,thenpointedtotheCouncilHouseanddroppedhishand。Thevoicesbelowbecameunanimous,gatheredvolume,cameuptohimasmultitudinouswaveletsofcheering。 Thewesternskywasapallidbluishgreen,andJupitershonehighinthesouth,beforethecapitulationwasaccomplished。Abovewasaslowinsensiblechange,theadvanceofnightsereneandbeautiful; belowwashurry,excitement,conflictingorders,pauses,spasmodicdevelopmentsoforganisation,avastascendingclamourandconfusion。BeforetheCouncilcameout,toilingperspiringmen,directedbyaconflictofshouts,carriedforthhundredsofthosewhohadperishedinthehand—to—handconflictwithinthoselongpassagesandchambers。 GuardsinblacklinedthewaythattheCouncilwouldcome,andasfarastheeyecouldreachintothehazybluetwilightoftheruins,andswarmingnowateverypossiblepointinthecapturedCouncilHouseandalongtheshatteredcliffofitscircumadjacentbuildings,wereinnumerablepeople,andtheirvoicesevenwhentheywerenotcheering,wereasthesoughingoftheseauponapebblebeach。Ostroghadchosenahugecommandingpileofcrushedandover— thrownmasonry,andonthisastageoftimbersandmetalgirderswasbeinghastilyconstructed。Itsessentialpartswerecomplete,buthummingandclangorousmachinerystillglaredfitfullyintheshadowsbeneaththistemporaryedifice。 ThestagehadasmallhigherportiononwhichGrahamstoodwithOstrogandLincolnclosebesidehim,alittleinadvanceofagroupofminorofficers。A broaderlowerstagesurroundedthisquarterdeck,andonthisweretheblack—uniformedguardsoftherevoltarmedwiththelittlegreenweaponswhoseverynamesGrahamstilldidnotknow。ThosestandingabouthimperceivedthathiseyeswanderedperpetuallyfromtheswarmingpeopleinthetwilightruinsabouthimtothedarklingmassoftheWhiteCouncilHouse,whencetheTrusteeswouldpresentlycome,andtothegauntcliffsofruinthatencircledhim,andsobacktothepeople。Thevoicesofthecrowdswelledtoadeafeningtumult。 HesawtheCouncillorsfirstafaroffintheglareofoneofthetemporarylightsthatmarkedtheirpath,alittlegroupofwhitefiguresblinkinginablackarchway。IntheCouncilHousetheyhadbeenindarkness。