And as inch by inch I slowly and
persistently worked my way upward and outward, so inch by inch did it
slowly, but surely, work its way downward. Passing my feet and legs
beyond the brink of the opening, I doubled myself up in such a way that
the lower half of my body rested upon a sort of a level platform, and,
with head downward, I pushed my way up until I found myself kneeling
upon the crust I had previously broken through, and which I subsequently
decided must have been a great pane of glass, covered by the coagulated
settlings of the air, which for centuries had been forming a solid
coating. I remained in a kneeling position for several moments, catching
my breath and regaining strength. I feared to move, lest the thin layer
upon which I rested would once more give way beneath me. It appeared to
waver, as did everything else around me. After a short rest, I carefully
arose to a standing position, and then observed that I was located in a
sort of a pit, surrounded by rocks of various shapes and sizes. As I
cautiously climbed upward, each one of them appeared to tremble at my
very touch, until just as I reached the topmost point the whole mass
apparently gave way at once, I lost my balance and fell forward, there
was a terrible crash, and after that I became dizzy and confused.
The most peculiar and disconnected sensations then passed through my
mind. First I thought there was a great hole in the side of my head,
which I tried to fill with small stones.
Pages:
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129