Fifty-One Tales by Lord Dunsany 1915

After the Fire

When that happened which had been so long in happening and

the world hit a black, uncharted star, certain tremendous

creatures out of some other world came peering among the

cinders to see if there were anything there that it were

worth while to remember.  They spoke of the great things

that the world was known to have had; they mentioned the

mammoth.  And presently they saw man's temples, silent and

windowless, staring like empty skulls.

   "Some great thing has been here," one said, "in these

huge places."  "It was the mammoth," said one.  "Something

greater than he," said another.

   And then they found that the greatest thing in the world

had been the dreams of man.