# The First Men in the Moon (1901)

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THE FIRST MEN IN THE MOON
"I was progressing in great leaps and bounds"
Frontispiece.
The First Men in the Moon
By
H. G. Wells
Author of "Tales of Space and Time," "Love and Mr. Lewisham," and "Anticipations"
"Three thousand stadia from the earth to the moon. . . . Marvel not, my comrade, if I appear talking to you on super-terrestrial and aerial topics. The long and the short of the matter is that I am running over the order of a Journey I have lately made."—Lucian's Icaromenippus
London George Newnes, Limited Southampton Street, Strand 1901
CONTENTS
* PAGE
* I.MR. BEDFORD MEETS MR. CAVOR AT LYMPNE................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................1
* II.THE FIRST MAKING OF CAVORITE................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................28
* III.THE BUILDING OF THE SPHERE................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................41
* IV.INSIDE THE SPHERE................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................54
* V.THE JOURNEY TO THE MOON................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................61
* VI.THE LANDING ON THE MOON................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................70
* VII.SUNRISE ON THE MOON................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................77
* VIII.A LUNAR MORNING................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................85
* IX.PROSPECTING BEGINS................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................92
* X.LOST MEN IN THE MOON................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................107
* XI.THE MOONCALF PASTURES................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................115
* XII.THE SELENITE'S FACE................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................132
* XIII.MR. CAVOR MAKES SOME SUGGESTIONS................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................140
* XIV.EXPERIMENTS IN INTERCOURSE................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................152
* XV.THE GIDDY BRIDGE................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................161
* XVI.POINTS OF VIEW................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................178
* XVII.THE FIGHT IN THE CAVE OF THE MOON BUTCHERS................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................191
* XVIII.IN THE SUNLIGHT................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................207
* XIX.MR. BEDFORD ALONE................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................221
* XX.MR. BEDFORD IN INFINITE SPACE................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................238
* XXI.MR. BEDFORD AT LITTLESTONE................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................249
* XXII.THE ASTONISHING COMMUNICATION OF MR. JULIUS WENDIGEE................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................271
* XXIII.AN ABSTRACT OF THE SIX MESSAGES FIRST RECEIVED FROM MR. CAVOR................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................277
* XXIV.THE NATURAL HISTORY OF THE SELENITES................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................289
* XXV.THE GRAND LUNAR................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................316
* XXVI.THE LAST MESSAGE CAVOR SENT TO THE EARTH................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................340
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
| "I was progressing in great Leaps and Bounds" | Frontispiece | Frontispiece | Frontispiece |
| "He gesticulated with his Hands and Arms" . | To face page | To face page | 6 |
| "I looked back at his receding Figure" | „ | „ | 11 |
| "I sat across the Edge of the Manhole and looked down into the Black Interior" | „ | „ | 54 |
| "We watched intensely" | „ | „ | 87 |
| "I realised my Leap had been too Violent" | „ | „ | 101 |
| "Insects," murmured Cavor, "Insects" | „ | „ | 130 |
| "There the Thing was, looking at Us" | „ | „ | 137 |
| "Bedford," he whispered, "there's a sort of Light in front of Us" | „ | „ | 177 |
| "The nearer I struggled, the more awfully remote it seemed" | „ | „ | 236 |
| "They carried Him into Darkness" | „ | „ | 292 |
| The Grand Lunar | „ | „ | 322 |
This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published before January 1, 1929.
The longest-living author of this work died in 1946, so this work is in the public domain in countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 77 years or less. This work may be in the public domain in countries and areas with longer native copyright terms that apply the rule of the shorter term to foreign works.
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