"James E. Gunn - Station In Space" - читать интересную книгу автора (Gunn James E)

humanity, and all humanity can glory for it.

"From this moment, let this be his shrine, sacred to all the generations of spacemen, inviolate. And let it
be a symbol that Man's dreams can be realized, but sometimes the price is steep.

"I am going to leave now. My feet will be the last to touch this deck. The oxygen I released is almost
used up. Lieutenant McMillen is in his control chair, staring out toward the stars. I will leave the airlock
doors open behind me. Let the airless, frigid arms of space protect and preserve for all eternity the man
they would not let go."

Good-by, Rev! Farewell! Good night!

Rev was not long alone. He was the first, but not the last to receive a space burial and a hero's farewell.

This, as I said, is no history of the conquest of space. Every child knows the story as well as I and can
identify the make of a spaceship more swiftly.

The story of the combined efforts that built the orbital platform irreverently called theDoughnut has been
told by others. We have learned at length the political triumph that placed it under United Nations
control.

Its contribution to our daily lives has received the accolade of the commonplace. It is an observatory, a
laboratory, and a guardian. Startling discoveries have come out of that weightless, airless, heatless place.
It has learned how weather is made and predicted it with incredible accuracy. It has observed the stars
clear of the veil of the atmosphere. And it has insured our peace. . .

It has paid its way. No one can question that. It and its smaller relay stations made possible today's
worldwide television and radio network. There is no place on Earth where a free voice cannot be heard
or the face of freedom be seen. Sometimes we find ourselves wondering how it would have been any
other way.

And we have had adventure. We have traveled to the dead gypsum seas of the Moon with the first
exploration party. This year, we will solve the mysteries of Mars. From our armchairs, we will thrill to the
discoveries of our pioneersтАФour stand-ins, so to speak. It has given us a common heritage, a common
goal, and for the first time we are united.
This I mention only for background; no one will argue that the conquest of space was not of incalculable
benefit to all mankind.

The whole thing came back to me recently, an overpowering flood of memory. I was skirting Times
Square, where every face is a stranger's, and suddenly I stopped, incredulous.

"Rev!" I shouted.

The man kept on walking. He passed me without a glance. I turned around and stared after him. I started
to run. I grabbed him by the arm. "Rev!" I said huskily, swinging him around. "Is it really you?"

The man smiled politely. "You must have mistaken me for someone else." He unclamped my fingers easily
and moved away. I realized then that there were two men with him, one on each side. I felt their eyes on
my face, memorizing it.