12 The Museum

CHAPTER 12 The Museum When we reached the green building, we found that it was empty and run down. There was broken glass in many of the windows, and the walls were cracked and in need of repair. On one of the walls, I saw what looked like writing. I asked Weena if she could read it, but the symbols meant nothing to her. Along with so

many other things, the Eloi had forgotten how to read and write. At the top of the tall staircase that led into the building, I turned and looked out over the countryside. I could still see the River Thames, but I was surprised to see another large river where there isn't one today. As my eyes followed the rivers in the direction of the ocean, I wondered what had happened to all the living things in the sea. I turned and walked through the gaping front doors. Inside, we found ourselves in a very large, long room. It reminded me of a gallery in a museum. The floor was covered in a thick layer of dust that softened the sound of our footsteps. There was an odd collection of objects in the room and they, too, were covered in dust. In the center of the hall was part of an enormous skeleton about the size of an elephant. It looked like the remains of a giant sloth. The skull and upper bones were scattered on the floor. Other

bones were worn away where rainwater had leaked through a hole in the roof.

At the other end of the gallery was the huge skeleton of a brontosaurus. The bones of the great dinosaur's long tail and neck stretched across the entire room. As we walked through the gallery, it was clear that this was a museum. Ancient objects filled dust-covered glass cases around us. The room was brimming with a wonderful collection of fossils that had survived all these years. The museum was huge, and I realized there must be many more rooms. It occurred to me that there might be displays that explained the history of the last eight hundred thousand years. There might even be a library! Those rooms would tell me so much more than a roomful of dinosaur bones. And so I took Weena's hand and went in search of more galleries. We came to a room filled with displays that had been destroyed by the passage of time. It looked like the cases had once contained stuffed

animals, but now there was nothing inside except dust and small pieces of fur or skin. I was sad to see the empty cases. Seeing an animal that I recognized would have been like seeing a friendly face. The next gallery was the largest yet. It was long, and the floor sloped down away from us. Large white globes hung from the ceiling. They looked like lamps, but many of them were broken and there was no electricity. There were very few windows, too, so the room was quite dark. The gallery was filled with large machines. They were rusted and falling apart. But being an inventor, I was excited to see them. I walked eagerly from one to the next. What did they do, I wondered? Perhaps one of them still worked. Perhaps one of them would help me overcome the Morlocks. Suddenly, Weena clutched my arm and pulled herself close to me. I looked around and noticed

we were now at the end of the hall. There were no windows in this part of the gallery, and the shadows were pitch black. Weena was afraid and hid her face in my chest. My small friend's fear reminded me of my real reason for visiting the green building. I was supposed to be looking for shelter. Instead, I'd been wandering from gallery to gallery as if I were on vacation. I was so eager to explore the museum that I had forgotten everything else. It was late afternoon, and I was no closer to finding a safe place to sleep or tools to help me get my machine back. So I turned to leave the darkened gallery. Just then, a soft, scuffling sound came from a shadowy corner of the room. I stopped and peered into the blackness. The dusty floor was covered with small footprints. I glanced around at the machines near me. A number of metal levers stuck out from one. The machine was rusted and falling apart. I grabbed a