Babel Itself by Youd Sam

Author:Youd, Sam [Youd, Sam]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-911410-09-6
Publisher: The SYLE Press
Published: 2018-07-08T00:00:00+00:00

BOOK III

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Autumn brought little or no relief from the general buffeting of wetness and wind that had characterized the summer. Day after day was sunk in the salt ocean of nature’s unquenchable misery; the edges were damp and the heart of things was soaked in tears. The waters falling endlessly from the heavens made me think of the waters that rose to cover a sinful earth. That myth’s symbolism was not inapposite now, when every hour saw another inch of our forefathers’ laborious artefacts whittled away by the surging tide of human guilt and misery and despair. Occasionally the sun would catch the jewelled spire of some great relic so that its beauty echoed and re-echoed against the lowering horizon in brief and concentrated glory, before the lapping waves devoured it. Occasionally the flood appeared to recede, but the moment’s illusion was lost almost at once as the hollow curved up to a new crest of destruction.

But in this deluge most of us had, if not arks, at least rafts. We bobbed high enough, and even gained some exhilaration from the view of toppling spires and domes. We were dry; we were – for the moment – safe. It occurred to me once that this, too, might have its relevance in fable. Had others before found boards and lashed them together? Were there even some who survived, perhaps, for thirty-nine days before the grey waste of water at last overpowered them? It was an idle thought. We knew now that, whether the Flood were real or not, the Ark, undeniably, was an illusion. And thirty-nine days gone by would leave no hope on the fortieth morning. These waters would not drain away.

My own raft, at any rate, had gained several inches’ buoyancy. I ran fifty thousand of Smoking Guns and was able to wire Dublin within a fortnight for another hundred thousand. Its successors did not quite succeed in repeating that success – I had to find another author and although competent he lacked Rupert’s assurance – but they did more than satisfactorily. I found myself able to indulge again in small luxuries. A decent suit, a Britannica , a case of Scotch obtained at under three pounds a bottle through Piers’s discreet agencies. I even toyed with the idea of getting a new car.

I thought very seriously of getting a new flat. Since giving up my rooms in the Albany my wanderings around the environs of South Kensington had been capricious and frequently resumed. My stay of over eighteen months in Regency Gardens was more than twice as long as any in the preceding four years. I had thought this accidental – caprice decreeing exceptions even to its own sway – but now, considering, I realized that unwittingly I had put down roots. Man’s attitude to the groups in which he finds himself varies with his nature; between the extremes of locking (or trying to lock) the door, and banging desperately on it for admission. But there is

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.