CHAPTER IX
THE COMPANY OF THE REPRIEVED
How did it happen that Cosmo Versal was able to inform the mob when itassailed the ark that he had no room left?
Who composed his ship's company, whence had they come, and how had theymanaged to embark without the knowledge of the public?
The explanation is quite simple. It was all due to the tremendousexcitement that had prevailed ever since the seas began to overflow. Inthe universal confusion people had to think of other things nearer theirdoors than the operations of Cosmo Versal. Since the embarkation of theanimals the crowds had ceased to visit the field at Mineola, and it wasonly occasionally that even a reporter was sent there. Accordingly,there were many hours every day when no curiosity-seekers were in sightof the ark, and at night the neighborhood was deserted; and this stateof affairs continued until the sudden panic which led to the attack thathas been described.
Cosmo Versal, of course, had every reason to conceal the fact that hewas carefully selecting his company. It was a dangerous game to play,and he knew it. The consequence was that he enjoined secrecy upon hisinvited guests, and conducted them, a few at a time, into the ark,assuring them that their lives might be in peril if they wererecognized. And once under the domain of the fear which led them toaccept his invitation, they were no less anxious than he to avoidpublicity. Some of them probably desired to avoid recognition throughdread of ridicule; for, after all, the flood might not turn out to be sobad as Cosmo had predicted.
So it happened that the ark was filled, little by little, and the publicknew nothing about it.
And who composed the throng which, while the awful downpour roared onthe ellipsoidal cover of the ark, and shook it to its center and whileNew York, a few miles away, saw story after story buried under thewaters, crowded Cosmo's brilliantly lighted saloon, and raised theirvoices to a high pitch in order to be heard?
Had all the invitations which he dictated to Joseph Smith after theirmemorable discussion, and which were sent forth in the utmost haste,flying to every point of the compass, been accepted, and was it thefamous leaders of science, the rulers and crowned heads who had passedhis critical inspection that were now knocking elbows under the greatdome of levium? Had kings and queens stolen incognito under the shelterof the ark, and magnates of the financial world hidden themselves there?
It would have been well for them all if they had been there. But, infact, many of those to whom the invitations had gone did not even takethe trouble to thank their would-be savior. A few, however, who did notcome in person, sent responses. Among these was the President of theUnited States. Mr. Samson's letter was brief but characteristic. Itread:
To COSMO VERSAL, ESQ.
Sir:
The President directs me to say that he is grateful for your invitation,and regrets that he cannot accept it. He is informed by those to whoseofficial advice he feels bound to listen, that the recent extraordinaryevents possess no such significance as you attach to them.
Respectfully, FOR THE PRESIDENT,
JAMES JENKS, Secretary.
It must be remembered that this letter was written before the oceanicoverflow began. After that, possibly, the President and his adviserschanged their opinion. But then communication by rail was cut off, andas soon as the downpour from the sky commenced the aero express lineswere abandoned. The airships would have been deluged, and blown todestruction by the tremendous gusts which, at intervals, packed therain-choked air itself into solid billows of water.
None of the rulers of the old world responded, but about half the men ofscience, and representatives of the other classes that Cosmo had setdown on his list, were wise enough to accept, and they hurried to NewYork before the means of transit by land and sea were destroyed.
Among these were Englishmen, Frenchmen, Italians, Spaniards, Germans,Austrians, Poles, people from the Balkan states, Swedes, Danes,Russians, and a few from India, China, and Japan. The clatter of theirvarious tongues made a very Babel inside the ark, when they talked toone another in groups, but nearly all of them were able to speakEnglish, which, after many years of experiment, had been adopted as thecommon language for transacting the world's affairs.
There was another letter, which Cosmo read with real regret, althoughhardly with surprise. It was from Professor Pludder. Instead ofexpressing gratitude for the invitation, as the President, trained inpolitical blandiloquence, had done, Professor Pludder indulged indenunciation.
"You are insane," he said. "You do not know what you are talking about.Your letter is an insult to science. These inundations" (this, too, waswritten before the sky had opened its flood-gates) "are perfectlyexplicable by the ordinary laws of nature. Your talk of a nebula is soridiculous that it deserves no reply. If any lunatic accepts your absurdinvitation, and goes into your 'ark,' he will find himself in Bedlam,where he ought to be."
"I guess you were right," Cosmo remarked to Joseph Smith, after readingthis outburst. "Pludder would not contribute to the regeneration ofmankind. We are better off without him."
But Cosmo Versal was mistaken in thinking he had heard the last of AbielPludder. The latter was destined to show that he was hardly a lessremarkable specimen of _homo sapiens_ than the big-headed prophetof the second deluge himself.
As soon as it became evident that there would be room to spare in theark, Cosmo set at work to fill up the list. He went over his categoriesonce more, but now, owing to the pressure of time, he was obliged toconfine his selections to persons within easy reach. They came, nearlyall, from New York, or its vicinity; and since these last invitationswent out just on the eve of the events described in the last twochapters, there was no delay in the acceptances, and the inviteespromptly presented themselves in person.
Cosmo's warning to them of the necessity of secrecy was superfluous, forthe selfishness of human nature never had a better illustration thanthey afforded. The lucky recipients of the invitations stole awaywithout a word of farewell, circumspectly disappearing, generally atnight, and often in disguise; and when the attack occurred on the ark,there were, behind the portholes, many anxious eyes cautiously staringout and recognizing familiar faces in the mob, while the owners of thoseeyes trembled in their shoes lest their friends might succeed in forcingan entrance. After all, it was to be doubted if Cosmo Versal, with allhis vigilance, had succeeded in collecting a company representinganything above the average quality of the race.
But there was one thing that did great credit to his heart. When hefound that he had room unoccupied, before adding to his lists heconsented to take more than two children in a family. It was an immenserelief, for--it must be recorded--there were some who, in order toqualify themselves, had actually abandoned members of their ownfamilies! Let it also be said, however, that many, when they found thatthe conditions imposed were inexorable, and that they could only savethemselves by leaving behind others as dear to them as their own lives,indignantly refused, and most of these did not even reply to theinvitations.
It was another indication of Cosmo's real humanity, as well as of hisshrewdness, that, as far as they were known, and could be reached, thepersons who had thus remained true to the best instincts of nature werethe first to receive a second invitation, with an injunction to bringtheir entire families. So it happened that, after all, there were agedmen and women, as well as children in arms, mingled in that remarkableassemblage.
It will be recalled that thirteen places had been specially reserved, tobe filled by Cosmo Versal's personal friends. His choice of theserevealed another pleasing side of his mind. He took thirteen men andwomen who had been, in one capacity or another, employed for many yearsin his service. Some of them were old family servants that had been inhis father's house.
"Every one of these persons," he said to Joseph Smith, "is worth hisweight in gold. Their disinterested fidelity to duty is a type ofcharacter that almost became extinct generations ago, and no morevaluable leaven could be introduced into the society of the future.Rather than leave them, I would
stay behind myself."
Finally there was the crew. This comprised one hundred and fiftymembers, all of them chosen from the body of engineers, mechanics, andworkmen who had been employed in the construction of the ark. Cosmohimself was, of course, the commander, but he had for his lieutenantsskilled mariners, electrical and mechanical engineers, and men whom hehimself had instructed in the peculiar duties that would fall to them inthe navigation and management of the ark, every detail of which he hadlaboriously worked out with a foresight that seemed all but superhuman.
All of the passengers and crew were aboard when the baffled mobretreated from Mineola, and some, when that danger was past, wished todescend to the ground, and go and look at the rising waters, which hadnot yet invaded the neighborhood. But Cosmo absolutely forbade anydepartures from the ark. The condensation of the nebula, he declared,was likely to begin any minute, and the downpour would be so fierce thata person might be drowned in the open field.
It came even sooner than he had anticipated, with the results that wehave already noted in New York. At first many thought that the arkitself would be destroyed, so dreadful was the impact of the fallingwater. The women and children, and some of the men, were seized withpanic, and Cosmo had great difficulty in reassuring them.
"The flood will not reach us for several hours yet," he said. "The levelof the water must rise at least a hundred feet more before we shall beafloat. Inside here we are perfectly safe. The ark is exceedingly strongand absolutely tight. You have nothing to fear."
Then he ordered an ingenious sound-absorbing screen, which he hadprepared, to be drawn over the great ceiling of the saloon, the effectof which was to shut out the awful noise of the water roaring upon theroof of the ark. A silence that was at first startling by contrast tothe preceding din prevailed as soon as the screen was in place.
Amid a hush of expectancy, Cosmo now mounted a dais at one end of theroom. Never before had the intellectual superiority of the man seemed soevident. His huge "dome of thought," surmounting his slight body,dominated the assembly like the front of Jove. Chairs near him wereoccupied by Professor Jeremiah Moses, Professor Abel Able, ProfessorAlexander Jones, and the two "speculative geniuses" whom he had named toJoseph Smith. These were Costake Theriade, of Rumania, a tall, dark,high-browed thinker, who was engaged in devising ways to extract andrecover interatomic energy; and Sir Wilfred Athelstone, whose specialtywas bio-chemistry, and who was said to have produced amazing results inartificial parthenogenesis and the production of new species.
As soon as attention was concentrated upon him, Cosmo Versal began tospeak.
"My friends," he said, "the world around us is now sinking beneath aflood that will not be arrested until America, Europe, Africa, Asia, andAustralia have disappeared. We stand at the opening of a new age. Youalone who are here assembled, and your descendants, will constitute thepopulation of the new world that is to be.
"In this ark, which owes its existence to the foreseeing eye of science,you will be borne in safety upon the bosom of the battling waters, andwe will disembark upon the first promising land that reappears, andbegin the plantation and development of a new society of men and women,which, I trust, will afford a practical demonstration of the principlesof eugenics.
"I have, as far as possible, and as far as the pitiful blindness ofmankind permitted me to go, selected and assembled here representativesof the best tendencies of humanity. You are a chosen remnant, and thefuture of this planet depends upon you.
"I have been fortunate in securing the companionship of men of sciencewho will be able to lead and direct. The ark is fully provisioned for aperiod which must exceed the probable duration of the flood. I havetaken pains not to overcrowd it, and every preparation has been made forany contingencies which may arise.
"It is inexpressibly sad to part thus with the millions of ourfellow-beings who would not heed the warnings that were lavished uponthem; but, while our hearts may be rent with the thought, it is our dutyto cast off the burden of vain regrets and concentrate all our energiesupon the great work before us.
"I salute," he continued, raising his voice and lifting a glass of winefrom the little table before him, "the world of the past--may its faultsbe forgotten--and the world of the future--may it rise on the wings ofscience to nobler prospects!"
He poured out the wine like a libation; and as his voice ceased to echo,and he sank into his seat, an uncontrollable wave of emotion ran overthe assembly. Many of the women wept, and the men conversed in whispers.After a considerable interval, during which no one spoke above hisbreath, Professor Able Abel arose and said:
"The gratitude which we owe to this man"--indicating Cosmo Versal--"canbest be expressed, not in words, but by acts. He has led us thus far; hemust continue to lead us to the end. We were blind, while he was full oflight. It will become us hereafter to heed well whatever he may say. Inow wish to ask if he can foresee where upon the re-emerging planet afoothold is first likely to be obtained. Where lies our land ofpromise?"
"I can answer that question," Cosmo replied, "only in general terms. Youare all aware that the vast table-land of Tibet is the loftiest regionupon the globe. In its western part it lies from fourteen to seventeenor eighteen thousand feet above the ordinary level of the sea. Above itrise the greatest mountain peaks in existence. Here the firstconsiderable area is likely to be uncovered. It is upon the Pamirs, the'Roof of the World,' that we shall probably make our landing."
"May I ask," said Professor Abel Able, "in what manner you expect thewaters of the flood to be withdrawn, after the earth is completelydrowned?"
"That," was the reply, "was one of the fundamental questions that Iexamined, but I do not care to enter into a discussion of it now. I maysimply say that it is not only upon the disappearance of the waters thatour hopes depend, but upon circumstances that I shall endeavor to makeclear hereafter. The new cradle of mankind will be located near the oldone, and the roses of the Vale of Cashmere will canopy it."
Cosmo Versal's words made a profound impression upon his hearers, andawoke thoughts that carried their minds off into strange reveries. Nomore questions were asked, and gradually the assemblage broke up intogroups of interested talkers.
It was now near midnight. Cosmo, beckoning Professor Abel Able,Professor Alexander Jones, and Professor Jeremiah Moses to accompanyhim, made his way out of the saloon, and, secretly opening one of thegangway doors, they presently stood, sheltering themselves from thepouring rain, in a position which enabled them to look toward New York.
Nothing, of course, was visible through the downpour; but they werestartled at hearing fearful cries issuing out of the darkness. The ruralparts of the city, filled with gardens and villas, lay round within aquarter of a mile of the ark, and the sound, accelerated by thewater-charged atmosphere, struck upon their ears with terribledistinctness. Sometimes, when a gust of wind blew the rain into theirfaces, the sound deepened into a long, despairing wail, which seemed tobe borne from afar off, mingled with the roar of the descendingtorrent--the death-cry of the vast metropolis!
"Merciful Heaven, I cannot endure this!" cried Professor Moses.
"Go to my cabin," Cosmo yelled in his ear, "and take the others withyou. I will join you there in a little while. I wish to measure the rateof rise of the water."
They gladly left him, and fled into the interior of the ark. Cosmoprocured an electric lamp; and the moment its light streamed out heperceived that the water had already submerged the great cradle in whichthe ark rested, and was beginning to creep up the metallic sides. Helowered a graduated tape into it, provided with an automatic register.In a few minutes he had completed his task, and then he went to rejoinhis late companions in his cabin.
"In about an hour," he said to them, "we shall be afloat. The water isrising at the rate of one-thirtieth of an inch per second."
"No more than that?" asked Professor Jones with an accent of surprise.
"That is quite enough," Cosmo replied. "One-thirtieth of an inch persecond means tw
o inches in a minute, and ten feet in an hour. Intwenty-four hours from now the water will stand two hundred and fortyfeet above its present level, and then only the tallest structures inNew York will lift their tops above it, if, indeed, they are not longbefore overturned by undermining or the force of the waves."
"But it will be a long time before the hills and highlands aresubmerged," suggested Professor Jones. "Are you perfectly sure that theflood will cover them?"
Cosmo Versal looked at his interlocutor, and slowly shook his head.
"It is truly a disappointment to me," he said at length, "to find that,even now, remnants of doubt cling to your minds. I tell you that thenebula is condensing at its maximum rate. It is likely to continue to doso for at least four months. In four months, at the rate of two inchesper minute, the level of the water will rise 28,800 feet. There is onlyone peak in the world which is surely known to attain a slightly greaterheight than that--Mount Everest, in the Himalayas. Even in a singlemonth the rise will amount to 7,200 feet. That is 511 feet higher thanthe loftiest mountain in the Appalachians. In one month, then, therewill be nothing visible of North America east of the Rockies. And inanother month they will have gone under."
Not another word was said. The three professors sat, wide-eyed andopen-mouthed, staring at Cosmo Versal, whose bald head was crowned withan aureole by the electric light that beamed from the ceiling, while,with a gold pocket pencil, he fell to figuring upon a sheet of paper.