Time for Part Seven of my serialization of The Time Machine by H G Wells. In this episode our Time Traveler begins to understand just how dramatically humanity has bifurcated - into the soft, passive Eloi and the ravenous, predatory Morlocks:
The Upper-world people might once have been the favoured aristocracy, and the Morlocks their mechanical servants: but that had long since passed away. The two species that had resulted from the evolution of man were sliding down towards, or had already arrived at, an altogether new relationship. The Eloi, like the Carolingian kings, had decayed to a mere beautiful futility. They still possessed the earth on sufferance... But, clearly, the old order was already in part reversed. The Nemesis of the delicate ones was creeping on apace... Already the Eloi had begun to learn one old lesson anew. They were becoming reacquainted with Fear...
The Earth in the year 802,701? Or something closer to our own time?
Members of The Mark Steyn Club can hear Part Seven of our adventure simply by clicking here and logging-in. Earlier episodes can be found here, down the page and in reverse order.
~Thank you for all those who signed up as Founding Members of our new club. Tim writes from Columbus, Ohio:
Mark,
I'm thrilled to be a Founding Member of the club that bears your name but am left wondering what the breakdown of the Founders looks like. Where do we come from? How many of us are there? Do we all like cat-themed music? Are we on a DNC/NSA/LGBTQWERTYISIS watch-list somewhere? Do tell!
Well, we'll try to have our data guys run the analytics and get you the answers to all those questions, especially the cat-music one. But, taking them in order, where do members come from? All over the map. Of our commenters, for example, right now the Top Five nations are pretty much those you'd expect, but, as I write, the sixth most popular source of Mark Steyn Club comments is somewhat improbably Her Majesty's far-flung Pacific realm, the Solomon Islands. If you're one of our apparently zillions of Solomon readers, I'm planning a big nationwide tour - Auki, Buala, Tigoa - wrapping up with a full week in Honiara. Book early for VIP seating!
Founder Membership is now closed, but we do have Premium Membership - and see you tomorrow for Part Eight of The Time Machine.
