"Woods, Laurence - The Colossus Of Maia" - читать интересную книгу автора (Woods Laurence)

BOYER COUGHED slightly, ruffled the leaves of the Diary. "Much of this," he
began, "is repetitive. I have, however, selected a series of annotations which
give a complete story without going into too many unimportant details. There are
no dates mentioned here--naturally, the writer would have little or no way of
reckoning Earth-time on Maia. I now quote from the diary of Richard Lyman."
My name is Richard Lyman. I was a passenger on the small space-ship Astrodart,
en route to Ganymede, third moon of Jupiter, along with my wife and
seven-year-old son. We were passing the meteor belt when the ship was struck and
thrown out of control. We finally crashed here on this planetoid; only my son
and I survived. The air here is very thin, and breathing is difficult. Also,
there is difficulty in walking because our weight is so slight as to be
negligible. I have salvaged enough food from the wreck to keep us going for an
indefinite period, and there is a small, two-foot stream nearby where we can get
fresh water.
--I have managed to build a hut, making bricks out of clay mixed with water,
thus making quite a credible little home. It is furnisheed with things salvaged
from the wreck and we are living comfortably enough. David used to cry often, as
he missed his mother. But I have taught him not to give way to tears; he must
learn to aid me. He eats heartily, however.
--I have planted some corn and wheat recovered from the wreck, putting them
along the banks of the stream. As yet, there has not been time to explore this
world thoroughly, simple a matter as it should be due to the ease of moving
about.
--The crops are growing amazingly fast. It is only a few weeks since they were
planted and already they are full size. This little planet revolves on its axis
every thirty hours by my watch, but I cannot tell how accurate the watch is in
relation to Earth-time. The days and nights are warm enough--the days even hot;
that will be good for the corn. It must be the thin atmosphere.
--I have just finished walking all the way around this world. It is only 59 1/2
miles in circumference, and, due to the light gravity, it was no trouble at all.
A strange world, this: there are continents and oceans just as on Earth, but all
are so very small. I was able to sit on mountain tops and let my feet rest on
valley floors. And they are real mountains, too--that is what is most difficult
to grasp. When you see them and note the rock strata and geologic markings,
exactly of the same type as on Terrestrial mountains, it is really breath-taking
to realize that they are not the boulders that their size might indicate. I have
actually waded across oceans, the deepest of which came up to my neck. And,
strangest of all, is the life on this world. There are tiny, almost microscopic,
fish in the water. The land is green with mosses and growths that bear a great
resemblance to trees a few inches high. There are tiny animals as small as, and,
for the most part, smaller than insects. I am afraid that I must have
slaughtered thousands of them by accidently stepping on them. A bridge on this
world would be a tiny twig set across a trickle. I wouldn't recognize it. It is
like having a world all your own; I am actually growing to like it here.
--Dave is nine today. I brought a strange thing to account now. During all the
time we have been here, he has been growing at a prodigious rate. He eats a
terrific amount to keep up with it. I have to skimp quite often on my own meals.
I measured his height; he is actually eight feet tall. It is unbelievable,
especially since he is perfectly proportioned. He has grown over four feet in
the two years we have been here, seems to be trying to overtake the wheat which