Читать книгу The Shaping of Middle-earth онлайн | страница 34
Thorndor King of Eagles removes his eyries to the Northern heights of the encircling mountains and guards them against Orc-spies.2 On the rocky hill, Amon Gwareth, the hill of watching, whose sides they polish to the smoothness of glass, and whose top they level, the great city of Gondolin with gates of steel is built. The plain all about is levelled as flat and smooth as a lawn of clipped grass to the feet of the hills, so that nothing can creep over it unawares. The people of Gondolin grows mighty, and their armouries are filled with weapons. But Turgon does not march to the aid of Nargothrond, or Doriath, and after the slaying of Dior he has no more to do with the son of Fëanor (Maglor).3 Finally he closes the vale to all fugitives, and forbids the folk of Gondolin to leave the valley. Gondolin is the only stronghold of the Elves left. Morgoth has not forgotten Turgon, but his search is in vain. Nargothrond is destroyed; Doriath desolate; Húrin’s children dead; and only scattered and fugitive Elves, Gnomes and Ilkorins, left, except such as work in the smithies and mines in great numbers. His triumph is nearly complete.
1 Added here roughly in pencil: The hill nearest to Angband was guarded by Fingolfin’s cairn (cf. note 2).
2 Added here at the same time as the addition given in note 1: sitting upon Fingolfin’s cairn.
3 the son of Fëanor (Maglor) > the sons of Fëanor (this goes with the change at the end of §14, note 4).
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Meglin son of Eöl and Isfin sister of Turgon was sent by his mother to Gondolin, and there received,1 although half of Ilkorin blood, and treated as a prince.
Húrin of Hithlum had a brother Huor. The son of Huor was Tuor, younger than Túrin2 son of Húrin. Rían, Huor’s wife, sought her husband’s body among the slain on the field of Unnumbered Tears, and died there. Her son remaining in Hithlum fell into the hands of the faithless men whom Morgoth drove into Hithlum after that battle, and he was made a thrall. Growing wild and rough he fled into the woods, and became an outlaw, and a solitary, living alone and communing with none save rarely with wandering and hidden Elves. On a time Ylmir contrived that he should be led to a subterranean river-course leading out of Mithrim into a chasmed river that flowed at last into the Western Sea. In this way his going was unmarked by Man, Orc, or spy, and unknown of Morgoth. After long wanderings down the western shores he came to the mouths of Sirion, and there fell in with the Gnome Bronweg, who had once been in Gondolin. They journey secretly up Sirion together. Tuor lingers long in the sweet land Nan Tathrin ‘Valley of Willows’; but there Ylmir himself comes up the river to visit him, and tells him of his mission. He is to bid Turgon prepare for battle against Morgoth; for Ylmir will turn the hearts of the Valar to forgive the Gnomes and send them succour. If Turgon will do this, the battle will be terrible, but the race of Orcs will perish and will not in after ages trouble Elves and Men. If not, the people of Gondolin are to prepare for flight to Sirion’s mouth, where Ylmir will aid them to build a fleet and guide them back to Valinor. If Turgon does Ylmir’s will Tuor is to abide a while in Gondolin and then go back to Hithlum with a force of Gnomes and draw Men once more into alliance with the Elves, for ‘without Men the Elves shall not prevail against the Orcs and Balrogs’. This Ylmir does because he knows that ere seven3 full years are passed the doom of Gondolin will come through Meglin.4