Anthem Read online

  PART FOUR

  Many days passed before we could speak to the Golden One again. Butthen came the day when the sky turned white, as if the sun had burst andspread its flame in the air, and the fields lay still without breath,and the dust of the road was white in the glow. So the women of thefield were weary, and they tarried over their work, and they were farfrom the road when we came. But the Golden One stood alone at the hedge,waiting. We stopped and we saw that their eyes, so hard and scornful tothe world, were looking at us as if they would obey any word we mightspeak.

  And we said:

  "We have given you a name in our thoughts, Liberty 5-3000."

  "What is our name?" they asked.

  "The Golden One."

  "Nor do we call you Equality 7-2521 when we think of you."

  "What name have you given us?" They looked straight into our eyes andthey held their head high and they answered:

  "The Unconquered."

  For a long time we could not speak. Then we said:

  "Such thoughts as these are forbidden, Golden One."

  "But you think such thoughts as these and you wish us to think them."

  We looked into their eyes and we could not lie.

  "Yes," we whispered, and they smiled, and then we said: "Our dearestone, do not obey us."

  They stepped back, and their eyes were wide and still.

  "Speak these words again," they whispered.

  "Which words?" we asked. But they did not answer, and we knew it.

  "Our dearest one," we whispered.

  Never have men said this to women.

  The head of the Golden One bowed slowly, and they stood still before us,their arms at their sides, the palms of their hands turned to us, as iftheir body were delivered in submission to our eyes. And we could notspeak.

  Then they raised their head, and they spoke simply and gently, as ifthey wished us to forget some anxiety of their own.

  "The day is hot," they said, "and you have worked for many hours and youmust be weary."

  "No," we answered.

  "It is cooler in the fields," they said, "and there is water to drink.Are you thirsty?"

  "Yes," we answered, "but we cannot cross the hedge."

  "We shall bring the water to you," they said.

  Then they knelt by the moat, they gathered water in their two hands,they rose and they held the water out to our lips.

  We do not know if we drank that water. We only knew suddenly that theirhands were empty, but we were still holding our lips to their hands, andthat they knew it, but did not move.

  We raised our head and stepped back. For we did not understand what hadmade us do this, and we were afraid to understand it.

  And the Golden One stepped back, and stood looking upon their handsin wonder. Then the Golden One moved away, even though no others werecoming, and they moved, stepping back, as if they could not turn fromus, their arms bent before them, as if they could not lower their hands.