1 00:00:00,280 --> 00:00:05,320 Speaker 1: The owl's ear by Erkman Katrian. On the twenty ninth 2 00:00:05,320 --> 00:00:09,400 of July eighteen thirty five, Kaspar Buck, a shepherd of 3 00:00:09,439 --> 00:00:12,519 the little village of Hirschveller, with his large felt hat 4 00:00:12,560 --> 00:00:16,120 tipped back, his wallet of stringy sackcloth hanging at his hip, 5 00:00:16,440 --> 00:00:19,719 and his great tawny dog at his heels, presented himself 6 00:00:19,760 --> 00:00:22,239 at about nine o'clock in the evening at the house 7 00:00:22,280 --> 00:00:26,399 of the burgomaster Petros Maher, who had just finished supper 8 00:00:26,640 --> 00:00:30,359 and was taking a little glass of Kirschwasser to facilitate digestion. 9 00:00:31,359 --> 00:00:34,960 This burgomaster was a tall, thin man and wore a 10 00:00:34,960 --> 00:00:38,679 bushy gray mustache. He had seen service in the armies 11 00:00:38,679 --> 00:00:42,399 of the Archduke Charles. He had a jovial disposition and 12 00:00:42,560 --> 00:00:45,359 ruled the village, it is said, with his finger and 13 00:00:45,399 --> 00:00:50,240 with a rod. Mister Burgomaster cried the shepherd in evident excitement. 14 00:00:50,920 --> 00:00:54,079 But Petros Mahuer, without awaiting the end of his speech, 15 00:00:54,439 --> 00:00:59,039 frowned and said, Kasparbuk, begin by taking off your hat, 16 00:00:59,399 --> 00:01:01,840 put your dog out of the room, and then speak 17 00:01:01,920 --> 00:01:06,519 distinctly intelligibly, without stammering, so that I may understand you. 18 00:01:07,719 --> 00:01:11,840 Hereupon the Burgomaster standing near the table Tranquility emptied his 19 00:01:11,879 --> 00:01:16,719 little glass and wiped his great gray mustaches indifferently. Cusper 20 00:01:16,959 --> 00:01:21,079 put his dog out and came back with his head off. Well, 21 00:01:21,359 --> 00:01:24,560 said Petrus, seeing that he was silent. What has happened? 22 00:01:25,719 --> 00:01:28,560 It happens that the spirit has appeared again in the 23 00:01:28,640 --> 00:01:33,200 ruins of Geyerstein. Ha I doubt it. You've seen it yourself, 24 00:01:34,480 --> 00:01:40,760 very clearly, mister Burgomaster, without closing your eyes. Yes, mister Burgomaster, 25 00:01:41,239 --> 00:01:44,400 my eyes were wide open. There was plenty of moonlight. 26 00:01:45,680 --> 00:01:50,760 What form did it have? The form of a small man? Good? 27 00:01:51,799 --> 00:01:55,159 And turning toward a glass door at the left, Carter 28 00:01:55,760 --> 00:02:00,560 cried the Burgomaster. An old serving woman opened the door, Sir, 29 00:02:01,640 --> 00:02:03,799 I am going out for a walk on the hillside. 30 00:02:04,200 --> 00:02:08,520 Sit up from me until ten o'clock. Here's the key, yes, sir. 31 00:02:09,599 --> 00:02:11,680 Then the old soldier took down his gun from the 32 00:02:11,680 --> 00:02:14,800 hook over the door, examined the priming, and slung it 33 00:02:14,800 --> 00:02:18,840 over his shoulder. Then he addressed Cuspar, book, go and 34 00:02:18,960 --> 00:02:20,919 tell the rural guard to meet me in the holy 35 00:02:21,080 --> 00:02:24,840 path and tell him behind the mill. Your spirit must 36 00:02:24,840 --> 00:02:27,960 be some marauder, But David's a fox I'll make a 37 00:02:28,000 --> 00:02:31,919 fine hood of it with long ear laps. Master Petros 38 00:02:31,919 --> 00:02:36,520 Mauer and humble Cusper then went out. The weather was superb, 39 00:02:36,840 --> 00:02:40,400 the stars innumerable. While the shepherd went to knock at 40 00:02:40,439 --> 00:02:43,560 the rural guard's door, the burgomaster plunged among the elder 41 00:02:43,560 --> 00:02:46,560 bushes in a little lane that wound around behind the 42 00:02:46,599 --> 00:02:51,240 old church. Two minutes later, Cusper and Hans Gerner Winger 43 00:02:51,280 --> 00:02:55,240 at his side. By running overtook Master Petrus in the 44 00:02:55,240 --> 00:02:58,719 holy path. All three made their way together toward the 45 00:02:58,840 --> 00:03:03,120 ruins of Geyerstein. These ruins, which are twenty minutes walk 46 00:03:03,199 --> 00:03:07,080 from the village, seem to be insignificant enough. They consist 47 00:03:07,159 --> 00:03:10,080 of the ridges of a few decrepit walls from four 48 00:03:10,120 --> 00:03:13,360 to six feet high, which extend among the briar bushes. 49 00:03:14,240 --> 00:03:18,439 Archeologists call them the aqueducts of Serranus, the Roman camp 50 00:03:18,479 --> 00:03:22,719 of Holderloch, or vestiges of Theodoric. According to their fantasy, 51 00:03:23,599 --> 00:03:26,240 the only thing about these ruins which could be considered 52 00:03:26,360 --> 00:03:29,960 remarkable is a stairway to a cistern cut in the rock. 53 00:03:30,680 --> 00:03:34,919 Inside of the spiral staircase. Instead of concentric circles which 54 00:03:34,960 --> 00:03:39,240 twist around with each complete turn. The involutions become wider 55 00:03:39,280 --> 00:03:41,919 as they proceed, in such a way that the bottom 56 00:03:41,960 --> 00:03:44,639 of the pit is three times as large as the opening. 57 00:03:45,599 --> 00:03:48,800 Is it an arch tactial freak, or did some reasonable 58 00:03:48,879 --> 00:03:53,199 cause determine such an odd construction? It matters little to us. 59 00:03:53,879 --> 00:03:57,120 The result was to cause in the cistern that vague 60 00:03:57,159 --> 00:04:00,479 reverberation which any one may hear upon placing a shell 61 00:04:00,520 --> 00:04:03,000 at his ear, and to make you aware of steps 62 00:04:03,039 --> 00:04:05,960 on the gravel path, murmurs of the air, rustling of 63 00:04:06,000 --> 00:04:09,919 the leaves, and even distant words spoken by people passing 64 00:04:09,960 --> 00:04:14,000 the foot of the hill. Our three personages then followed 65 00:04:14,000 --> 00:04:18,519 the pathway between the vineyards and gardens of Hirschville. I 66 00:04:18,639 --> 00:04:23,000 see nothing, the Burgomaster would say, turning up his nose derisively, 67 00:04:24,040 --> 00:04:27,680 Nor I either, the rural guard would repeat, imitating the 68 00:04:27,720 --> 00:04:31,879 other's tone. It's down in the hole, muttered the shepherd. 69 00:04:32,480 --> 00:04:36,480 We shall see, we shall see, returned the burgomaster. It 70 00:04:36,519 --> 00:04:38,879 was in this fashion, after a quarter of an hour, 71 00:04:39,160 --> 00:04:41,959 that they came upon the opening of the cistern. As 72 00:04:42,000 --> 00:04:45,720 I said, the night was clear, limpid, and perfectly still. 73 00:04:46,600 --> 00:04:49,040 The moon portrayed as far as the eye could reach 74 00:04:49,279 --> 00:04:52,879 one of those nocturnal landscapes in bluish lines, studded with 75 00:04:53,040 --> 00:04:56,079 slim trees, the shadows of which seemed to have been 76 00:04:56,160 --> 00:04:59,920 drawn with a black crayon. The blowing brier and broom 77 00:05:00,319 --> 00:05:03,319 perfumed the air with a rather sharp odor, and the 78 00:05:03,360 --> 00:05:07,800 frogs of a neighboring swamp sang their oily anthem interspersed 79 00:05:07,839 --> 00:05:11,720 with silences. But all these details escaped the notice of 80 00:05:11,720 --> 00:05:14,759 our good rustics. They thought of nothing but laying hands 81 00:05:14,759 --> 00:05:18,319 on the spirit. When they had reached the stairway, all 82 00:05:18,399 --> 00:05:21,720 three stopped and listened, then gazed into the dark shadows. 83 00:05:22,720 --> 00:05:28,639 Nothing appeared. Nothing stirred the devil, said the Burgomaster. We 84 00:05:28,759 --> 00:05:31,680 forgot to bring a bit of candle the scent Casper. 85 00:05:32,079 --> 00:05:34,600 You know the way better than I. I'll follow you 86 00:05:35,800 --> 00:05:39,800 at this proposition. The shepherd recoiled promptly. If he had 87 00:05:39,839 --> 00:05:43,160 consulted his inclinations, the poor man would have taken to flight. 88 00:05:43,680 --> 00:05:49,000 His pitiful expression made the Burgomaster burst out laughing, How well, Hans, 89 00:05:49,240 --> 00:05:51,879 since he doesn't want to go down, show me the way, 90 00:05:52,199 --> 00:05:56,399 he said to the game warden. But mister Burgomaster said 91 00:05:56,399 --> 00:05:59,319 the latter. You know very well that steps are missing. 92 00:05:59,560 --> 00:06:04,560 We should breaking our necks. Then what's to be done? Yes, 93 00:06:04,639 --> 00:06:09,279 what's to be done? Send your dog, replied petrilas the 94 00:06:09,319 --> 00:06:13,000 shepherd whistled to his dog, showed in the stairway urged him, 95 00:06:13,279 --> 00:06:15,600 but he did not wish to take the chances any 96 00:06:15,639 --> 00:06:19,000 more than the others. At this moment, a bright idea 97 00:06:19,120 --> 00:06:23,360 struck the rural guardsman. Ah mister burgomaster said he if 98 00:06:23,399 --> 00:06:27,560 you should fire your gun inside, faith, cried the other. 99 00:06:27,839 --> 00:06:31,079 You're right, we shall catch a glimpse at least, And 100 00:06:31,360 --> 00:06:35,160 without hesitating, the worthy man approached the stairway and leveled 101 00:06:35,199 --> 00:06:38,720 his gun. But by the acoustic effect which I have 102 00:06:38,839 --> 00:06:42,959 already pointed out, the spirit the marauder, the individual who 103 00:06:43,040 --> 00:06:46,040 chanced to be actually in the cistern, had heard everything. 104 00:06:46,720 --> 00:06:49,560 The idea of stopping a gunshot did not strike him 105 00:06:49,560 --> 00:06:54,199 as amusing, for in a shrill, piercing voice, he cried, stop, 106 00:06:54,519 --> 00:06:59,199 don't fire, I'm coming. Then the three functionaries looked at 107 00:06:59,199 --> 00:07:02,800 each other and laughed softly, and the burgomaster, leaning over 108 00:07:02,800 --> 00:07:06,079 the opening again, cried, rudely, be quick about it, you 109 00:07:06,199 --> 00:07:10,439 varlet or I'll shoot. Be quick about it. He cocked 110 00:07:10,480 --> 00:07:13,120 his gun, and the click seemed to hasten the ascent 111 00:07:13,199 --> 00:07:18,160 to the mysterious person. They heard him rolling down some stones. Nevertheless, 112 00:07:18,279 --> 00:07:21,800 it still took him another minute before he appeared the cistern, 113 00:07:21,879 --> 00:07:25,240 being at a death of sixty feet. What was this 114 00:07:25,319 --> 00:07:28,399 man doing in such deep darkness? He must be some 115 00:07:28,560 --> 00:07:33,000 great criminal, so at least, thought Petrus Maure and his acolytes. 116 00:07:33,839 --> 00:07:38,079 At last a vague form could be discerned in the dark. Then, slowly, 117 00:07:38,279 --> 00:07:41,120 by degrees, a little man four and a half feet 118 00:07:41,199 --> 00:07:45,199 high at the most frail, ragged, his face withered and yellow, 119 00:07:45,480 --> 00:07:48,600 his eye gleaming like a magpie's, and his hair tangled, 120 00:07:48,879 --> 00:07:52,560 came out shouting, by what right do you come to 121 00:07:52,600 --> 00:07:59,079 disturb my studies, wretched creatures? This grandiose apostrophe was scarcely 122 00:07:59,079 --> 00:08:03,160 in accord with his co and physiognomy. Accordingly, the burgomaster 123 00:08:03,240 --> 00:08:06,879 indignantly replied, try to show that your honest you knave, 124 00:08:07,199 --> 00:08:11,639 or I'll begin by administering our correction. A correction, said 125 00:08:11,639 --> 00:08:14,800 the little man, leaping with anger and drawing himself up 126 00:08:14,920 --> 00:08:18,680 under the nose of the burgomaster. Yes, replied the other, 127 00:08:19,000 --> 00:08:22,879 who nevertheless did not fail to admire the pigmy's courage. 128 00:08:23,360 --> 00:08:26,120 If you do not answer the questions satisfactorily, I am 129 00:08:26,160 --> 00:08:29,240 going to put to you I am the Burgomaster of Hirshville. 130 00:08:29,759 --> 00:08:32,279 Here are the rural guard, the shepherd and his dog. 131 00:08:32,799 --> 00:08:36,000 We are stronger than you. Be wise and tell me 132 00:08:36,080 --> 00:08:39,159 peaceably who you are, what you are doing here, and 133 00:08:39,279 --> 00:08:41,799 why you do not dare to appear in broad daylight. 134 00:08:42,440 --> 00:08:44,240 Then we shall see what's to be done with you. 135 00:08:45,679 --> 00:08:48,639 Oh that's none of your business, replied the little man 136 00:08:48,679 --> 00:08:53,080 in his cracked voice. I shall not answer in that case. 137 00:08:53,399 --> 00:08:57,639 Forward march, ordered the burgomaster, who grasped him firmly by 138 00:08:57,639 --> 00:08:59,720 the nape of the neck. You are going to sleep 139 00:08:59,759 --> 00:09:03,879 in present, the little man writhed, like a weasel. He 140 00:09:03,960 --> 00:09:06,480 even tried to bite, and the dog was sniffing at 141 00:09:06,480 --> 00:09:09,799 the calves of his legs. When quite exhausted, he said, 142 00:09:10,120 --> 00:09:14,320 not without a certain dignity, let go, sir. I surrendered 143 00:09:14,360 --> 00:09:18,960 the superior force. I'm yours. The burgomaster, who was not 144 00:09:19,200 --> 00:09:23,360 entirely lacking in good breeding, became calmer. Do you promise, 145 00:09:23,919 --> 00:09:29,240 said he. I promise very well. Walk in front, And 146 00:09:29,279 --> 00:09:31,440 that is how On the night of the twenty ninth 147 00:09:31,440 --> 00:09:35,320 of July eighteen thirty five, the burgomaster took captive a 148 00:09:35,360 --> 00:09:38,919 little red haired man issuing from the cavern of Geyerstein. 149 00:09:39,879 --> 00:09:43,200 Upon arriving at Hyershville, the rule guard ran to find 150 00:09:43,240 --> 00:09:45,679 the key of the prison, and the vagabond was locked 151 00:09:45,679 --> 00:09:49,279 in and double locked, not to forget the outside bowlden petlock. 152 00:09:50,240 --> 00:09:53,639 Every one then could repose after his fatigues, and Petros 153 00:09:53,679 --> 00:09:56,919 Mahor went to bed and dreamt till midnight of this 154 00:09:57,039 --> 00:10:01,799 singular adventure. On the morrow to, at nine o'clock, Hans Gerner, 155 00:10:01,879 --> 00:10:04,600 the rural guard, having been ordered to bring the prisoner 156 00:10:04,639 --> 00:10:07,679 to the town house for another examination, repaired to the 157 00:10:07,759 --> 00:10:11,759 cooler with four husky dar devils. They opened the door, 158 00:10:12,120 --> 00:10:14,000 all of them curious to look upon the will of 159 00:10:14,000 --> 00:10:18,200 the wisp. But imagine their astonishment upon seeing him hanging 160 00:10:18,240 --> 00:10:20,399 from the bars to the window by his neck tie. 161 00:10:21,000 --> 00:10:24,000 Some say that he was still writhing, others that he 162 00:10:24,080 --> 00:10:27,399 was already stiff, however that may be. They ran to 163 00:10:27,480 --> 00:10:30,480 Petrous Mauer's house to inform him of the fact. And 164 00:10:30,519 --> 00:10:32,919 what is certain is that upon the letter's arrival, the 165 00:10:32,960 --> 00:10:36,279 little man had breathed his last. The Justice of the 166 00:10:36,320 --> 00:10:39,279 peace and the doctor of Heirschville drew up a formal 167 00:10:39,320 --> 00:10:42,960 statement of the catastrophe. Then they buried the Unknown in 168 00:10:43,039 --> 00:10:48,200 a field of meadow grass, and it was all over. Now. 169 00:10:48,639 --> 00:10:51,919 About three weeks after these occurrences, I went to see 170 00:10:51,960 --> 00:10:55,679 my cousin Petrus Mauer, whose nearest relative I was, and 171 00:10:55,759 --> 00:11:01,440 consequently his heir. This circumstance sustained an acquaintance between us. 172 00:11:02,000 --> 00:11:05,000 We were at dinner, talking on indifferent matters, when the 173 00:11:05,000 --> 00:11:09,159 burgomaster recounted the foregoing little story. As I've just reported 174 00:11:09,159 --> 00:11:14,480 it tis strange, cousin said, I, truly strange. And you 175 00:11:14,559 --> 00:11:19,360 have no other information concerning the Unknown, none, And you 176 00:11:19,399 --> 00:11:21,600 have found nothing which could give you a clue as 177 00:11:21,639 --> 00:11:26,759 to his purpose, Absolutely nothing Christian. But as a matter 178 00:11:26,799 --> 00:11:30,200 of fact, what could he have been doing in the cistern? On? 179 00:11:30,320 --> 00:11:35,200 What did he live? The burgomaster shrugged his shoulders, refilled 180 00:11:35,200 --> 00:11:40,039 our glasses, and replied, with to your health, cousin, to yours. 181 00:11:41,039 --> 00:11:44,279 We remained silent a few minutes. It was impossible for 182 00:11:44,440 --> 00:11:47,480 me to accept the abrupt conclusion of the adventure, and 183 00:11:47,799 --> 00:11:51,000 in spite of myself, I mused with some melancholy on 184 00:11:51,120 --> 00:11:54,559 the sad fate of certain men who appear and disappear 185 00:11:54,600 --> 00:11:57,399 in this world like the grass of the field, without 186 00:11:57,480 --> 00:12:02,720 leaving the least memory or the least regret. Cousin, I resumed, 187 00:12:03,399 --> 00:12:05,720 how far may it be from here to the ruins 188 00:12:05,759 --> 00:12:10,840 of Geyerstein? Twenty minutes walk at the most? Why? Because 189 00:12:10,840 --> 00:12:14,039 I should like to see them. You know that we 190 00:12:14,120 --> 00:12:17,120 have a meeting of the municipal council, and that I 191 00:12:17,200 --> 00:12:22,000 can't accompany you. Oh, I can find them by myself. No, 192 00:12:22,559 --> 00:12:24,759 the rural guard will show you the way. He is 193 00:12:24,759 --> 00:12:28,399 nothing better to do. And my worthy cousin, having wrapped 194 00:12:28,440 --> 00:12:32,440 on his glass, called his servant Cartel, go and find 195 00:12:32,440 --> 00:12:34,879 Hans Gerner. Let him hurry and get here. By two 196 00:12:34,879 --> 00:12:38,840 o'clock I must be going. The servant went out, and 197 00:12:38,879 --> 00:12:41,559 the rural guard was not tardy in coming. He was 198 00:12:41,600 --> 00:12:44,879 directed to take me to the ruins, while the burgomaster 199 00:12:44,919 --> 00:12:48,440 proceeded gravely towards the hall of the municipal Council. We 200 00:12:48,440 --> 00:12:52,120 were already climbing the hill. Hans Gerner, with a wave 201 00:12:52,159 --> 00:12:55,320 of the hand, indicated the remains of the aqueduct. At 202 00:12:55,360 --> 00:12:58,039 the same moment, the rocky ribs of the plateau, the 203 00:12:58,039 --> 00:13:02,080 blue distances of Hunsruck the sad crumbling walls covered with 204 00:13:02,159 --> 00:13:05,840 somber ivy, the tolling of the Hirschwiller bell summoning the 205 00:13:05,919 --> 00:13:09,559 notables to the council, the rural guardsmen panting and catching 206 00:13:09,559 --> 00:13:13,080 at the brambles, assumed in my eyes a sad and 207 00:13:13,159 --> 00:13:16,519 severe tinge for which I could not account. It was 208 00:13:16,519 --> 00:13:18,879 the story of the hanged man which took the color 209 00:13:19,000 --> 00:13:23,279 out of the prospect. The cistern staircase struck me as 210 00:13:23,320 --> 00:13:28,200 being exceedingly curious, with its elegant spiral, the bushes bristling 211 00:13:28,200 --> 00:13:31,279 in the fissures at every step, the deserted aspect of 212 00:13:31,320 --> 00:13:36,159 its surroundings, all harmonized with my sadness. We descended, and 213 00:13:36,279 --> 00:13:38,919 soon the luminous point of the opening, which seemed to 214 00:13:38,919 --> 00:13:41,639 contract more and more and to take the shape of 215 00:13:41,679 --> 00:13:45,840 a star with curved rays, alone senterus its pale light. 216 00:13:46,799 --> 00:13:49,320 When we attained the very bottom of the cistern, we 217 00:13:49,440 --> 00:13:52,120 found a superb sight was to be had of all 218 00:13:52,159 --> 00:13:55,679 those steps, lighted from above and cutting off their shadows 219 00:13:55,720 --> 00:13:59,440 with marvelous precision. I then heard the hum of which 220 00:13:59,440 --> 00:14:03,320 I have already seen spoken. The immense granite conch had as 221 00:14:03,399 --> 00:14:07,600 many echoes as stones. Has nobody been down here since 222 00:14:07,639 --> 00:14:11,279 the little man, I asked the rural guardsman. No, sir, 223 00:14:11,600 --> 00:14:14,200 the peasants I are afraid. They imagine that the hanged 224 00:14:14,240 --> 00:14:19,519 man will return, can't you ai Ah, I'm not curious, 225 00:14:20,480 --> 00:14:23,399 but the justice of the peace his duty was to 226 00:14:24,200 --> 00:14:26,759 ha What could he have come to the owl's ear? 227 00:14:26,840 --> 00:14:33,120 For they call this the owl's ear. Yes, that's pretty 228 00:14:33,120 --> 00:14:37,080 near it, said I, raising my eyes. This reversed vault 229 00:14:37,279 --> 00:14:39,960 forms the pavilion well enough. The under side of the 230 00:14:40,000 --> 00:14:43,039 steps makes the covering of the tympanum, and the winding 231 00:14:43,080 --> 00:14:46,200 of the staircase, the cocklear, the labyrinth, and the vestibule 232 00:14:46,240 --> 00:14:48,799 of the ear. That is the cause of the murmur 233 00:14:48,799 --> 00:14:50,720 which we hear. We are at the back of a 234 00:14:50,759 --> 00:14:55,320 colossal ear. It's very likely, said Hans Goerner, who did 235 00:14:55,320 --> 00:14:59,120 not seem to have understood my observations. We started up again, 236 00:14:59,519 --> 00:15:01,759 and I had a sended the first steps when I 237 00:15:01,840 --> 00:15:05,080 felt something crush under my foot. I stopped to see 238 00:15:05,080 --> 00:15:08,080 what it could be, and at that moment perceived a 239 00:15:08,120 --> 00:15:11,440 wide object before me. It was a torn sheet of paper. 240 00:15:12,039 --> 00:15:14,440 As for the hard object which I had felt grinding up, 241 00:15:14,840 --> 00:15:18,000 I recognized it as a sort of glazed earthenware. Jug 242 00:15:19,240 --> 00:15:22,159 ah ha, I said to myself, this may clear up 243 00:15:22,159 --> 00:15:26,320 the Burgomas's story. I rejoined Hans Gerner, who was now 244 00:15:26,320 --> 00:15:28,879 waiting for me at the edge of the pit. Now, 245 00:15:29,000 --> 00:15:33,039 Sir cried he, where would you like to go? First, 246 00:15:33,200 --> 00:15:35,559 Let's sit down for a while. We shall see. Presently 247 00:15:36,480 --> 00:15:38,840 I sat down on a large stone, while the rural 248 00:15:38,879 --> 00:15:41,919 guard cast its falcon eyes over the village to see 249 00:15:41,960 --> 00:15:44,399 if there chanced to be any trespassers in the gardens. 250 00:15:45,039 --> 00:15:48,120 I carefully examined the glazed vase, of which nothing but 251 00:15:48,200 --> 00:15:52,399 splinters remained. These fragments presented the appearance of a funnel 252 00:15:52,720 --> 00:15:55,639 lined with wool. It was impossible for me to perceive 253 00:15:55,679 --> 00:15:58,840 its purpose. I then read the piece of a letter 254 00:15:59,240 --> 00:16:02,799 written in an easy running and firm hand. I transcribe 255 00:16:02,799 --> 00:16:06,120 it here below word for word. It seems to follow 256 00:16:06,159 --> 00:16:08,120 the other half of the sheet for which I looked 257 00:16:08,159 --> 00:16:13,559 vainly all about the ruins. My microcoustic ear trumpet thus 258 00:16:13,600 --> 00:16:17,720 has the double advantage of infinitely multiplying the intensity of sounds, 259 00:16:18,120 --> 00:16:21,200 and of introducing them into the air without causing the 260 00:16:21,240 --> 00:16:25,600 observer the least discomfort. You would never have imagined, Dear Master, 261 00:16:25,919 --> 00:16:28,879 the charm which one feels in perceiving these thousands of 262 00:16:28,919 --> 00:16:32,919 imperceptible sounds, which are confounded on a fine summer day 263 00:16:33,279 --> 00:16:36,600 in an immense murmuring. The bumble bee has his song 264 00:16:36,840 --> 00:16:39,240 as well as the nightingale. The honey bee is the 265 00:16:39,320 --> 00:16:42,039 warbler of the mosses, The cricket is the lark of 266 00:16:42,080 --> 00:16:45,200 the tall grass. The maggot is the wren. It is 267 00:16:45,240 --> 00:16:49,480 only a sigh, but the sigh is melodious. This discovery, 268 00:16:49,559 --> 00:16:52,000 from the point of view of sentiment, which makes us 269 00:16:52,039 --> 00:16:56,279 live in a universal life, surpasses in its importance all 270 00:16:56,320 --> 00:16:59,919 that I could say on the matter. After so much suffering, 271 00:17:00,240 --> 00:17:04,240 privations and weariness, How happy it makes one to reap 272 00:17:04,319 --> 00:17:07,880 the rewards of all its labors, how the sole source 273 00:17:07,960 --> 00:17:11,720 towards the divine author of all these microscopic worlds, the 274 00:17:11,759 --> 00:17:15,359 magnificence of which is revealed to us. Where now are 275 00:17:15,400 --> 00:17:22,200 the long hours of anguish, hunger, contempt which overwhelmed us before? Gone, Sir, Gone, 276 00:17:22,920 --> 00:17:26,599 tears of gratitude moisten our eyes. One is proud to 277 00:17:26,640 --> 00:17:30,640 have achieved through suffering, new joys for humanity, and to 278 00:17:30,680 --> 00:17:35,000 have contributed to its mental development. But how soever vast, 279 00:17:35,400 --> 00:17:39,000 howsoever admirable, may be he the first fruits of my 280 00:17:39,200 --> 00:17:44,519 microcustic ear trumpet, these do not delimit its advantages. There 281 00:17:44,559 --> 00:17:48,240 are more positive ones, more material and ones which may 282 00:17:48,279 --> 00:17:52,240 be expressed in figures. Just as the telescope brought the 283 00:17:52,319 --> 00:17:56,440 discovery of myriads of worlds performing their harmonious revolutions in 284 00:17:56,440 --> 00:18:01,599 infinite space, so also will my microcosmick ear trumpet extend 285 00:18:01,680 --> 00:18:06,359 the sense of the unbearable beyond all possible bounds. Thus, Sir, 286 00:18:06,720 --> 00:18:08,839 the circulation of the blood and the fluids of the 287 00:18:08,839 --> 00:18:12,039 body will not give me pause. You shall hear them 288 00:18:12,119 --> 00:18:15,920 flow with the impetuosity of cataracts, shall perceive them so 289 00:18:16,079 --> 00:18:20,240 distinctly as to startle you. The slightest irregularity of the pulse. 290 00:18:20,519 --> 00:18:24,440 The least obstacle is striking and produces the same effect 291 00:18:24,680 --> 00:18:27,240 as a rock against which the waves of a torrent 292 00:18:27,279 --> 00:18:31,240 are dashing. It is doubtless an immense conquest in the 293 00:18:31,279 --> 00:18:35,039 development of our knowledge of physiology and pathology. But this 294 00:18:35,200 --> 00:18:38,000 is not the point on which I would emphasize. Upon 295 00:18:38,039 --> 00:18:40,640 applying your ear to the ground, sir, you may hear 296 00:18:40,680 --> 00:18:44,640 the mineral waters springing up at immeasurable deaths. You may 297 00:18:44,720 --> 00:18:47,839 judge of their volume, their currents, and the obstacles which 298 00:18:47,839 --> 00:18:51,440 they meet. Do you wish to go further enter a 299 00:18:51,480 --> 00:18:54,640 subterranean vault which is so constructed as to gather a 300 00:18:54,720 --> 00:18:59,160 quantity of loud sounds. Then at night, when the world sleeps, 301 00:18:59,359 --> 00:19:02,160 when nothing will be confused with the interior noises of 302 00:19:02,160 --> 00:19:07,000 our globe. Listen, sir, all, that it is possible for 303 00:19:07,119 --> 00:19:09,400 me to tell you at the present moment, For in 304 00:19:09,440 --> 00:19:12,640 the midst of my profound misery, of my privations, and 305 00:19:12,759 --> 00:19:15,440 often of my despair, I am left only a few 306 00:19:15,559 --> 00:19:20,119 lucid instants to pursue my geological observations. All that I 307 00:19:20,160 --> 00:19:23,160 can affirm is that the seething of glow worms, the 308 00:19:23,240 --> 00:19:28,039 explosions of boiling fluids, is something terrifying and sublime, which 309 00:19:28,079 --> 00:19:30,960 can only be compared to the impression of the astronomer 310 00:19:31,160 --> 00:19:36,519 whose glass fathom's deaths of limitless extent. Nevertheless, I must 311 00:19:36,559 --> 00:19:40,559 avow that these impressions should be studied further and classified 312 00:19:40,720 --> 00:19:44,200 in a methodical manner, in order that definite conclusions may 313 00:19:44,200 --> 00:19:48,519 be derived. Therefrom Likewise, as soon as you shall have deainned, 314 00:19:48,799 --> 00:19:51,880 dear and noble Master, to transmit the little sum for 315 00:19:52,119 --> 00:19:55,640 use at noistud, as I asked to supply my first needs. 316 00:19:56,039 --> 00:19:58,759 We shall see our way to an understanding in regard 317 00:19:58,839 --> 00:20:03,759 to the establishment of three great subterranean observatories, one in 318 00:20:03,799 --> 00:20:07,759 the valley of Catania, another in Iceland, then a third 319 00:20:07,759 --> 00:20:12,039 in kabak Un Songai or kayembe Uren, the deepest of 320 00:20:12,039 --> 00:20:18,079 the cordilleries. And consequently here the letter stopped. I let 321 00:20:18,079 --> 00:20:21,839 my hands fall into perfection. Had I read the conceptions 322 00:20:21,839 --> 00:20:24,839 of an idiot or the inspirations of a genius which 323 00:20:24,880 --> 00:20:28,519 had been realized? What am I to say to think? 324 00:20:29,400 --> 00:20:33,119 So this man, this miserable creature, living at the bottom 325 00:20:33,119 --> 00:20:36,440 of a barrow like a fox dying of hunger, had 326 00:20:36,480 --> 00:20:39,839 had perhaps one of those inspirations which the Supreme Being 327 00:20:40,000 --> 00:20:44,759 sends on earth to enlighten future generations. And this man 328 00:20:45,079 --> 00:20:50,079 had hanged himself in disgust despair. No one had answered 329 00:20:50,079 --> 00:20:52,480 his prayer, though he asked only for a crust of 330 00:20:52,519 --> 00:20:58,720 bread in exchange for discovery. It was horrible, long long 331 00:20:58,799 --> 00:21:02,319 I sat there, dreaming, thanking Heaven for having limited my 332 00:21:02,359 --> 00:21:05,680 intelligence to the needs of ordinary life, for not having 333 00:21:05,720 --> 00:21:08,680 desired to make me a superior man in the community 334 00:21:08,680 --> 00:21:12,759 of martyrs. At length, the rural guardsman, seeing me with 335 00:21:12,880 --> 00:21:15,759 fixed gaze and mouth agape, made so bold as to 336 00:21:15,759 --> 00:21:19,880 touch me on the shoulder. Mister Christian said, he see 337 00:21:19,880 --> 00:21:22,480 it's getting late. The burgomaster must have come back from 338 00:21:22,519 --> 00:21:26,839 the council. Ah, that's a fact, cried I, crumpling up 339 00:21:26,880 --> 00:21:31,079 the paper. Come on we descended the hill. My worthy 340 00:21:31,119 --> 00:21:33,759 cousin met me with a smiling face at the threshold 341 00:21:33,759 --> 00:21:37,599 of his house. Well, well, Christian, so you've found no 342 00:21:37,759 --> 00:21:43,200 trace of the imbecile who hanged himself. No I thought 343 00:21:43,200 --> 00:21:46,680 as much. He was some lunatic who escaped from Stephensfeld 344 00:21:46,880 --> 00:21:50,359 or somewhere. Faith he did well to hang himself. When 345 00:21:50,359 --> 00:21:53,160 one is good for nothing, that's the simplest way for it. 346 00:21:54,880 --> 00:21:58,880 The following day I left Hirschveller. I shall never return.