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The War of the Worlds, The War of the Worlds: Chapter 6

The War of the Worlds: Chapter 6

Chapter Six The Heat-Ray in the Chobham Road

It is still a matter of wonder how the Martians are able to slay men so swiftly and so silently. Many think that in some way they are able to generate an intense heat in a chamber of practically absolute non-conductivity. This intense heat they project in a parallel beam against any object they choose, by means of a polished parabolic mirror of unknown composition, much as the parabolic mirror of a lighthouse projects a beam of light. But no one has absolutely proved these details. However it is done, it is certain that a beam of heat is the essence of the matter. Heat, and invisible, instead of visible, light. Whatever is combustible flashes into flame at its touch, lead runs like water, it softens iron, cracks and melts glass, and when it falls upon water, incontinently that explodes into steam.

That night nearly forty people lay under the starlight about the pit, charred and distorted beyond recognition, and all night long the common from Horsell to Maybury was deserted and brightly ablaze.

The news of the massacre probably reached Chobham, Woking, and Ottershaw about the same time. In Woking the shops had closed when the tragedy happened, and a number of people, shop people and so forth, attracted by the stories they had heard, were walking over the Horsell Bridge and along the road between the hedges that runs out at last upon the common. You may imagine the young people brushed up after the labours of the day, and making this novelty, as they would make any novelty, the excuse for walking together and enjoying a trivial flirtation. You may figure to yourself the hum of voices along the road in the gloaming….

As yet, of course, few people in Woking even knew that the cylinder had opened, though poor Henderson had sent a messenger on a bicycle to the post office with a special wire to an evening paper.

As these folks came out by twos and threes upon the open, they found little knots of people talking excitedly and peering at the spinning mirror over the sand pits, and the new-comers were, no doubt, soon infected by the excitement of the occasion.

By half past eight, when the Deputation was destroyed, there may have been a crowd of three hundred people or more at this place, besides those who had left the road to approach the Martians nearer. There were three policemen too, one of whom was mounted, doing their best, under instructions from Stent, to keep the people back and deter them from approaching the cylinder. There was some booing from those more thoughtless and excitable souls to whom a crowd is always an occasion for noise and horse-play.

Stent and Ogilvy, anticipating some possibilities of a collision, had telegraphed from Horsell to the barracks as soon as the Martians emerged, for the help of a company of soldiers to protect these strange creatures from violence. After that they returned to lead that ill-fated advance. The description of their death, as it was seen by the crowd, tallies very closely with my own impressions: the three puffs of green smoke, the deep humming note, and the flashes of flame.

But that crowd of people had a far narrower escape than mine. Only the fact that a hummock of heathery sand intercepted the lower part of the Heat-Ray saved them. Had the elevation of the parabolic mirror been a few yards higher, none could have lived to tell the tale. They saw the flashes and the men falling and an invisible hand, as it were, lit the bushes as it hurried towards them through the twilight. Then, with a whistling note that rose above the droning of the pit, the beam swung close over their heads, lighting the tops of the beech trees that line the road, and splitting the bricks, smashing the windows, firing the window frames, and bringing down in crumbling ruin a portion of the gable of the house nearest the corner.

In the sudden thud, hiss, and glare of the igniting trees, the panic-stricken crowd seems to have swayed hesitatingly for some moments. Sparks and burning twigs began to fall into the road, and single leaves like puffs of flame. Hats and dresses caught fire. Then came a crying from the common. There were shrieks and shouts, and suddenly a mounted policeman came galloping through the confusion with his hands clasped over his head, screaming.

“They're coming!” a woman shrieked, and incontinently everyone was turning and pushing at those behind, in order to clear their way to Woking again. They must have bolted as blindly as a flock of sheep. Where the road grows narrow and black between the high banks the crowd jammed, and a desperate struggle occurred. All that crowd did not escape; three persons at least, two women and a little boy, were crushed and trampled there, and left to die amid the terror and the darkness.

The War of the Worlds: Chapter 6 Der Krieg der Welten: Kapitel 6 La guerra de los mundos: capítulo 6 La guerra dei mondi: capitolo 6 A Guerra dos Mundos: Capítulo 6 Війна світів: Глава 6

Chapter Six The Heat-Ray in the Chobham Road Розділ шостий Промінь тепла на дорозі Чобем

It is still a matter of wonder how the Martians are able to slay men so swiftly and so silently. Many think that in some way they are able to generate an intense heat in a chamber of practically absolute non-conductivity. This intense heat they project in a parallel beam against any object they choose, by means of a polished parabolic mirror of unknown composition, much as the parabolic mirror of a lighthouse projects a beam of light. But no one has absolutely proved these details. However it is done, it is certain that a beam of heat is the essence of the matter. Seja como for, é certo que um feixe de calor é a essência da questão. Heat, and invisible, instead of visible, light. Calor e luz invisível, em vez de visível. Тепло и невидимый, вместо видимого, свет. Whatever is combustible flashes into flame at its touch, lead runs like water, it softens iron, cracks and melts glass, and when it falls upon water, incontinently that explodes into steam. O que quer que seja combustível se incendeia ao seu toque, o chumbo corre como água, amolece o ferro, racha e derrete o vidro e, quando cai sobre a água, incontinentemente explode em vapor.

That night nearly forty people lay under the starlight about the pit, charred and distorted beyond recognition, and all night long the common from Horsell to Maybury was deserted and brightly ablaze. Naquela noite, quase quarenta pessoas jaziam sob a luz das estrelas ao redor do poço, carbonizadas e distorcidas além do reconhecimento, e durante toda a noite a praça de Horsell a Maybury ficou deserta e em chamas. Той ночью около сорока человек лежали в свете звезд вокруг ямы, обугленные и искаженные до неузнаваемости, и всю ночь равнина от Хорселла до Мейбери была пуста и ярко пылала.

The news of the massacre probably reached Chobham, Woking, and Ottershaw about the same time. A notícia do massacre provavelmente chegou a Chobham, Woking e Ottershaw quase ao mesmo tempo. Новость о резне, вероятно, достигла Чобэма, Уокинга и Оттершоу примерно в одно и то же время. In Woking the shops had closed when the tragedy happened, and a number of people, shop people and so forth, attracted by the stories they had heard, were walking over the Horsell Bridge and along the road between the hedges that runs out at last upon the common. Em Woking, as lojas haviam fechado quando a tragédia aconteceu, e várias pessoas, vendedores e assim por diante, atraídas pelas histórias que ouviram, estavam caminhando sobre a ponte Horsell e ao longo da estrada entre as sebes que finalmente termina sobre o comum. В Уокинге магазины были закрыты, когда произошла трагедия, и несколько человек, продавцов и так далее, привлеченные рассказами, которые они слышали, шли по мосту Хорселл и по дороге между живыми изгородями, которая, наконец, заканчивается на общее. You may imagine the young people brushed up after the labours of the day, and making this novelty, as they would make any novelty, the excuse for walking together and enjoying a trivial flirtation. Você pode imaginar os jovens retocados depois do trabalho do dia, e fazendo dessa novidade, como fariam qualquer novidade, a desculpa para caminhar juntos e desfrutar de um flerte trivial. Вы можете себе представить молодых людей, освеженных после дневных трудов и делающих это новшество, как они сделали бы любое новшество, предлогом для совместной прогулки и наслаждения тривиальным флиртом. You may figure to yourself the hum of voices along the road in the gloaming…. Você pode imaginar o zumbido das vozes ao longo da estrada ao crepúsculo….

As yet, of course, few people in Woking even knew that the cylinder had opened, though poor Henderson had sent a messenger on a bicycle to the post office with a special wire to an evening paper. Пока, конечно, мало кто в Уокинге даже знал, что цилиндр открылся, хотя бедняга Хендерсон послал посыльного на велосипеде на почту со специальной телеграммой в вечернюю газету.

As these folks came out by twos and threes upon the open, they found little knots of people talking excitedly and peering at the spinning mirror over the sand pits, and the new-comers were, no doubt, soon infected by the excitement of the occasion. Когда эти люди выходили по двое и по трое на открытое пространство, они обнаруживали, что маленькие группы людей возбужденно разговаривают и смотрят в вращающееся зеркало над песчаными ямами, и новоприбывшие, без сомнения, вскоре были заражены волнением этого события. .

By half past eight, when the Deputation was destroyed, there may have been a crowd of three hundred people or more at this place, besides those who had left the road to approach the Martians nearer. К половине девятого, когда Депутация была уничтожена, в этом месте могла быть толпа в триста или более человек, не считая тех, кто сошёл с дороги, чтобы приблизиться к марсианам. There were three policemen too, one of whom was mounted, doing their best, under instructions from Stent, to keep the people back and deter them from approaching the cylinder. There was some booing from those more thoughtless and excitable souls to whom a crowd is always an occasion for noise and horse-play. Раздалось освистывание со стороны тех легкомысленных и легковозбудимых душ, для которых толпа всегда повод для шума и возни.

Stent and Ogilvy, anticipating some possibilities of a collision, had telegraphed from Horsell to the barracks as soon as the Martians emerged, for the help of a company of soldiers to protect these strange creatures from violence. After that they returned to lead that ill-fated advance. После этого они вернулись, чтобы возглавить злополучное наступление. The description of their death, as it was seen by the crowd, tallies very closely with my own impressions: the three puffs of green smoke, the deep humming note, and the flashes of flame.

But that crowd of people had a far narrower escape than mine. Но у этой толпы людей был гораздо более узкий выход, чем у меня. Only the fact that a hummock of heathery sand intercepted the lower part of the Heat-Ray saved them. Их спасло только то, что куча верескового песка перехватила нижнюю часть Теплового Луча. Had the elevation of the parabolic mirror been a few yards higher, none could have lived to tell the tale. Se a elevação do espelho parabólico fosse alguns metros mais alta, ninguém teria sobrevivido para contar a história. They saw the flashes and the men falling and an invisible hand, as it were, lit the bushes as it hurried towards them through the twilight. Eles viram os flashes e os homens caindo e uma mão invisível, por assim dizer, iluminou os arbustos enquanto corria em direção a eles no crepúsculo. Они видели вспышки и падение людей, и невидимая рука как бы освещала кусты, спеша к ним сквозь сумерки. Then, with a whistling note that rose above the droning of the pit, the beam swung close over their heads, lighting the tops of the beech trees that line the road, and splitting the bricks, smashing the windows, firing the window frames, and bringing down in crumbling ruin a portion of the gable of the house nearest the corner. Затем со свистящим звуком, перекрывавшим гул ямы, луч пронесся прямо над их головами, осветив верхушки буков вдоль дороги, расколол кирпичи, разбил окна, поджег оконные рамы и обрушив в руины часть фронтона ближайшего к углу дома.

In the sudden thud, hiss, and glare of the igniting trees, the panic-stricken crowd seems to have swayed hesitatingly for some moments. Sparks and burning twigs began to fall into the road, and single leaves like puffs of flame. Faíscas e galhos em chamas começaram a cair na estrada, e folhas soltas como nuvens de fogo. Hats and dresses caught fire. Then came a crying from the common. There were shrieks and shouts, and suddenly a mounted policeman came galloping through the confusion with his hands clasped over his head, screaming. Houve gritos e gritos, e de repente um policial montado veio galopando em meio à confusão com as mãos cruzadas sobre a cabeça, gritando. Раздались вопли и крики, и вдруг сквозь суматоху проскакал конный полицейский, сцепив руки над головой и крича.

“They’re coming!” a woman shrieked, and incontinently everyone was turning and pushing at those behind, in order to clear their way to Woking again. They must have bolted as blindly as a flock of sheep. Where the road grows narrow and black between the high banks the crowd jammed, and a desperate struggle occurred. Onde a estrada fica estreita e escura entre as margens altas, a multidão se aglomerou e uma luta desesperada ocorreu. All that crowd did not escape; three persons at least, two women and a little boy, were crushed and trampled there, and left to die amid the terror and the darkness. Toda aquela multidão não escapou; três pessoas pelo menos, duas mulheres e um menino, foram esmagados e pisoteados ali, e deixados para morrer em meio ao terror e à escuridão.