章节正文
all his strength.
"'Tain't comin' closer to us, Trot," he gasped; "it's
we that are comin' closer to the whirlpool. The thing
is drawin' us to it like a magnet!"
Trot's sun-bronzed face was a little paler as she
grasped the tiller firmly and tried to steer the boat
away; but she said not a word to indicate fear.
The swirl of the water as they came nearer made a
roaring sound that was fearful to listen to. So fierce
and powerful was the whirlpool that it drew the surface
of the sea into the form of a great basin, slanting
downward toward the center, where a big hole had been
made in the ocean -- a hole with walls of water that
were kept in place by the rapid whirling of the air.
The boat in which Trot and Cap'n Bill were riding was
just on the outer edge of this saucer-like slant, and
the old sailor knew very well that unless he could
quickly force the little craft away from the rushing
current they would soon be drawn into the great black
hole that yawned in the middle. So he exerted all his
might and pulled as he had never pulled before. He
pulled so hard that the left oar snapped in two and
sent Cap'n Bill sprawling upon the bottom of the boat.
He scrambled up quickly enough and glanced over the
side. Then he looked at Trot, who sat quite still, with
a serious, far-away look in her sweet eyes. The boat
was now speeding swiftly of its own accord, following
the line of the circular basin round and round and
gradually drawing nearer to the great hole in the
center. Any further effort to escape the whirlpool was
useless, and realizing this fact Cap'n Bill turned
toward Trot and put an arm around her, as if to shield
her from the awful fate before them. He did not try to
speak, because the roar of the waters would have
drowned the sound of his voice.
These two faithful comrades had faced dangers before,
but nothing to equal that which now faced them. Yet
Cap'n Bill, noting the look in Trot's eyes and
remembering how often she had been protected by unseen
powers, did not quite give way to despair.
The great hole in the dark water -- now growing
nearer and nearer -- looked very terrifying; but they
were both brave enough to face it and await the result
of the adventure.
Chapter Two
The Cavern Under the Sea
The circles were so much smaller at the bottom of the
basin, and the boat moved so much more swiftly, that
Trot was beginning to get dizzy with the motion, when
suddenly the boat made a leap and dived headlong into
the murky depths of the hole. Whirling like tops, but
still clinging together, the sailor and the girl were
separated from their boat and plunged down -- down --
down -- into the farthermost recesses of the great
ocean.
At first their fall was swift as an arrow, but
presently they seemed to be going more moderately and
Trot was almost sure that unseen arms were about her,
supporting her and protecting her. She could see
nothing, because the water filled her eyes and blurred
her vision, but she clung fast to Cap'n Bill's
sou'wester, while other arms clung fast to her, and so
they gradually sank down and down until a full stop was
made, when they began to ascend again.
But it seemed to Trot that they were not rising
straight to the surface from where they had come. The
water was no longer whirling them and they seemed to be
drawn in a slanting direction through still, cool ocean
depths. And then -- in much quicker time than I have
told it -- up they popped to the surface and were cast
at full length upon a sandy beach, where they lay
choking and gasping for breath and wondering what had
happened to them.
Trot was the first to recover. Disengaging herself
from Cap'n Bill's wet embrace and sitting up, she
rubbed the water from her eyes and then looked around
her. A soft, bluish-green glow lighted the place,
which seemed to be a sort of cavern, for above and on
either side of her were rugged rocks. They had been
cast upon a beach of clear sand, which slanted upward
from the pool of water at their feet -- a pool which
doubtless led into the big ocean that fed it. Above the
reach of the waves of the pool were more rocks, and
still more and more, into the dim windings and recesses
of which the glowing light from the water did not
penetrate.
The place looked grim and lonely, but Trot was
thankful that she was still alive and had suffered no
severe injury during her trying adventure under water.
At her side Cap'n Bill was sputtering and coughing,
trying to get rid of the water he had swallowed. Both
of them were soaked through, yet the cavern was warm
and comfortable and a wetting did not dismay the little
girl in the least.
She crawled up the slant of sand and gathered in her
hand a bunch of dried seaweed, with which she mopped
the face of Cap'n Bill and cleared the water from his
eyes and ears. Presently the old man sat up and stared
at her intently. Then he nodded his bald head three
times and said in a gurgling voice:
"Mighty good, Trot; mighty good! We didn't reach Davy
Jones's locker that time, did we? Though why we didn't,
an' why we're here, is more'n I kin make out."
"Take it easy, Cap'n," she replied. "We're safe
enough, I guess, at least for the time being."
He squeezed the water out of the bottoms of his loose
trousers and felt of his wooden leg and arms and head,
and finding he had brought all of his person with him
he gathered courage to examine closely their
surroundings.
"Where d'ye think we are, Trot?." he presently asked.
"Can't say, Cap'n. P'r'aps in one of our caves."
He shook his head. "No," said he, "I don't think
that, at all. The distance we came up didn't seem half
as far as the distance we went down; an' you'll notice
there ain't any outside entrance to this cavern
whatever. It's a reg'lar dome over this pool o' water,
and unless there's some passage at the back, up yonder,
we're fast pris'ners."
Trot looked thoughtfully over her shoulder.
"When we're rested," she said, "we will crawl up
there and see if there's a way to get out."
Cap'n Bill reached in the pocket of his oilskin coat
and took out his pipe. It was still dry, for he kept it
in an oilskin pouch with his tobacco. His matches were
in a tight tin box, so in a few moments the old sailor
was smoking contentedly. Trot knew it helped him to
think when he was in any difficulty. Also, the pipe did
much to restore the old sailor's composure, after his
long ducking and his terrible fright -- a fright that
was more on Trot's account than his own.
The sand was dry where they sat, and soaked up the
water that dripped from their clothing. When Trot had
squeezed the wet out of her hair she began to feel much
like her old self again. By and by they got upon their
feet and crept up the incline to the scattered boulders
above. Some of these were of huge size, but by passing
between some and around others, they were able to reach
the extreme rear of the cavern.
"Yes," said Trot, with interest, "here's a round
hole."
"And it's black as night inside it," remarked Cap'n
Bill.
Just the same," answered the girl, "we ought to
explore it, and see where it goes, 'cause it's the only
poss'ble way we can get out of this place."
Cap'n Bill eyed the hole doubtfully
"It may be a way out o' here, Trot," he said, "but it
may be a way into a far worse place than this. I'm not
sure but our best plan is to stay right here."
Trot wasn't sure, either, when she thought of it in
that light. After awhile she made her way back to the
sands again, and Cap'n Bill followed her. As they sat
down, the child looked thoughtfully at the sailor's
bulging pockets.
"How much food have we got, Cap'n?" she asked.
"Half a dozen ship's biscuits an' a hunk o' cheese,"
he replied. "Want some now, Trot?"
She shook her head, saying:
"That ought to keep us alive 'bout three days if
we're careful of it."
"Longer'n that, Trot," said Cap'n Bill, but his voice
was a little troubled and unsteady.
"But if we stay here we're bound to starve in time,"
continued the girl, "while if we go into the dark hole
--"
"Some things are more hard to face than starvation,"
said the sailor-man, gravely. "We don't know what's
inside that dark hole: Trot, nor where it might lead us
to."
"There's a way to find that out," she persisted.
Instead of replying, Cap'n Bill began searching in
his pockets. He soon drew out a little package of fish-
hooks and a long line. Trot watched him join them
together. Then he crept a little way up the slope and
turned over a big rock. Two or three small crabs began
scurrying away over the sands and the old sailor caught
them and put one on his hook and the others in his
pocket. Coming back to the pool he swung the hook over
his shoulder and circled it around his head and cast it
nearly into the center of the water, where he allowed
it to sink gradually, paying out the line as far as it
would go. When the end was reached, he began drawing it
in again, until the crab bait was floating on the
surface.
Trot watched him cast the line a second time, and a
third. She decided that either there were no fishes in
the pool or they would not bite the crab bait. But
Cap'n Bill was an old fisherman and not easily
discouraged. When the crab got away he put another on
the hook. When the crabs were all gone he climbed up
the rocks and found some more.
Meantime Trot tired of watching him and lay down upon
the sands, where she fell fast asleep. During the next
two hours her clothing dried completely, as did that of
the old sailor. They were both so used to salt water
that there was no danger of taking cold.
Finally the little girl was wakened by a splash
beside her and a grunt of satisfaction from Cap'n Bill.
She opened her eyes to find that the Cap'n had landed a
silver-scaled fish weighing about two pounds. This
"'Tain't comin' closer to us, Trot," he gasped; "it's
we that are comin' closer to the whirlpool. The thing
is drawin' us to it like a magnet!"
Trot's sun-bronzed face was a little paler as she
grasped the tiller firmly and tried to steer the boat
away; but she said not a word to indicate fear.
The swirl of the water as they came nearer made a
roaring sound that was fearful to listen to. So fierce
and powerful was the whirlpool that it drew the surface
of the sea into the form of a great basin, slanting
downward toward the center, where a big hole had been
made in the ocean -- a hole with walls of water that
were kept in place by the rapid whirling of the air.
The boat in which Trot and Cap'n Bill were riding was
just on the outer edge of this saucer-like slant, and
the old sailor knew very well that unless he could
quickly force the little craft away from the rushing
current they would soon be drawn into the great black
hole that yawned in the middle. So he exerted all his
might and pulled as he had never pulled before. He
pulled so hard that the left oar snapped in two and
sent Cap'n Bill sprawling upon the bottom of the boat.
He scrambled up quickly enough and glanced over the
side. Then he looked at Trot, who sat quite still, with
a serious, far-away look in her sweet eyes. The boat
was now speeding swiftly of its own accord, following
the line of the circular basin round and round and
gradually drawing nearer to the great hole in the
center. Any further effort to escape the whirlpool was
useless, and realizing this fact Cap'n Bill turned
toward Trot and put an arm around her, as if to shield
her from the awful fate before them. He did not try to
speak, because the roar of the waters would have
drowned the sound of his voice.
These two faithful comrades had faced dangers before,
but nothing to equal that which now faced them. Yet
Cap'n Bill, noting the look in Trot's eyes and
remembering how often she had been protected by unseen
powers, did not quite give way to despair.
The great hole in the dark water -- now growing
nearer and nearer -- looked very terrifying; but they
were both brave enough to face it and await the result
of the adventure.
Chapter Two
The Cavern Under the Sea
The circles were so much smaller at the bottom of the
basin, and the boat moved so much more swiftly, that
Trot was beginning to get dizzy with the motion, when
suddenly the boat made a leap and dived headlong into
the murky depths of the hole. Whirling like tops, but
still clinging together, the sailor and the girl were
separated from their boat and plunged down -- down --
down -- into the farthermost recesses of the great
ocean.
At first their fall was swift as an arrow, but
presently they seemed to be going more moderately and
Trot was almost sure that unseen arms were about her,
supporting her and protecting her. She could see
nothing, because the water filled her eyes and blurred
her vision, but she clung fast to Cap'n Bill's
sou'wester, while other arms clung fast to her, and so
they gradually sank down and down until a full stop was
made, when they began to ascend again.
But it seemed to Trot that they were not rising
straight to the surface from where they had come. The
water was no longer whirling them and they seemed to be
drawn in a slanting direction through still, cool ocean
depths. And then -- in much quicker time than I have
told it -- up they popped to the surface and were cast
at full length upon a sandy beach, where they lay
choking and gasping for breath and wondering what had
happened to them.
Trot was the first to recover. Disengaging herself
from Cap'n Bill's wet embrace and sitting up, she
rubbed the water from her eyes and then looked around
her. A soft, bluish-green glow lighted the place,
which seemed to be a sort of cavern, for above and on
either side of her were rugged rocks. They had been
cast upon a beach of clear sand, which slanted upward
from the pool of water at their feet -- a pool which
doubtless led into the big ocean that fed it. Above the
reach of the waves of the pool were more rocks, and
still more and more, into the dim windings and recesses
of which the glowing light from the water did not
penetrate.
The place looked grim and lonely, but Trot was
thankful that she was still alive and had suffered no
severe injury during her trying adventure under water.
At her side Cap'n Bill was sputtering and coughing,
trying to get rid of the water he had swallowed. Both
of them were soaked through, yet the cavern was warm
and comfortable and a wetting did not dismay the little
girl in the least.
She crawled up the slant of sand and gathered in her
hand a bunch of dried seaweed, with which she mopped
the face of Cap'n Bill and cleared the water from his
eyes and ears. Presently the old man sat up and stared
at her intently. Then he nodded his bald head three
times and said in a gurgling voice:
"Mighty good, Trot; mighty good! We didn't reach Davy
Jones's locker that time, did we? Though why we didn't,
an' why we're here, is more'n I kin make out."
"Take it easy, Cap'n," she replied. "We're safe
enough, I guess, at least for the time being."
He squeezed the water out of the bottoms of his loose
trousers and felt of his wooden leg and arms and head,
and finding he had brought all of his person with him
he gathered courage to examine closely their
surroundings.
"Where d'ye think we are, Trot?." he presently asked.
"Can't say, Cap'n. P'r'aps in one of our caves."
He shook his head. "No," said he, "I don't think
that, at all. The distance we came up didn't seem half
as far as the distance we went down; an' you'll notice
there ain't any outside entrance to this cavern
whatever. It's a reg'lar dome over this pool o' water,
and unless there's some passage at the back, up yonder,
we're fast pris'ners."
Trot looked thoughtfully over her shoulder.
"When we're rested," she said, "we will crawl up
there and see if there's a way to get out."
Cap'n Bill reached in the pocket of his oilskin coat
and took out his pipe. It was still dry, for he kept it
in an oilskin pouch with his tobacco. His matches were
in a tight tin box, so in a few moments the old sailor
was smoking contentedly. Trot knew it helped him to
think when he was in any difficulty. Also, the pipe did
much to restore the old sailor's composure, after his
long ducking and his terrible fright -- a fright that
was more on Trot's account than his own.
The sand was dry where they sat, and soaked up the
water that dripped from their clothing. When Trot had
squeezed the wet out of her hair she began to feel much
like her old self again. By and by they got upon their
feet and crept up the incline to the scattered boulders
above. Some of these were of huge size, but by passing
between some and around others, they were able to reach
the extreme rear of the cavern.
"Yes," said Trot, with interest, "here's a round
hole."
"And it's black as night inside it," remarked Cap'n
Bill.
Just the same," answered the girl, "we ought to
explore it, and see where it goes, 'cause it's the only
poss'ble way we can get out of this place."
Cap'n Bill eyed the hole doubtfully
"It may be a way out o' here, Trot," he said, "but it
may be a way into a far worse place than this. I'm not
sure but our best plan is to stay right here."
Trot wasn't sure, either, when she thought of it in
that light. After awhile she made her way back to the
sands again, and Cap'n Bill followed her. As they sat
down, the child looked thoughtfully at the sailor's
bulging pockets.
"How much food have we got, Cap'n?" she asked.
"Half a dozen ship's biscuits an' a hunk o' cheese,"
he replied. "Want some now, Trot?"
She shook her head, saying:
"That ought to keep us alive 'bout three days if
we're careful of it."
"Longer'n that, Trot," said Cap'n Bill, but his voice
was a little troubled and unsteady.
"But if we stay here we're bound to starve in time,"
continued the girl, "while if we go into the dark hole
--"
"Some things are more hard to face than starvation,"
said the sailor-man, gravely. "We don't know what's
inside that dark hole: Trot, nor where it might lead us
to."
"There's a way to find that out," she persisted.
Instead of replying, Cap'n Bill began searching in
his pockets. He soon drew out a little package of fish-
hooks and a long line. Trot watched him join them
together. Then he crept a little way up the slope and
turned over a big rock. Two or three small crabs began
scurrying away over the sands and the old sailor caught
them and put one on his hook and the others in his
pocket. Coming back to the pool he swung the hook over
his shoulder and circled it around his head and cast it
nearly into the center of the water, where he allowed
it to sink gradually, paying out the line as far as it
would go. When the end was reached, he began drawing it
in again, until the crab bait was floating on the
surface.
Trot watched him cast the line a second time, and a
third. She decided that either there were no fishes in
the pool or they would not bite the crab bait. But
Cap'n Bill was an old fisherman and not easily
discouraged. When the crab got away he put another on
the hook. When the crabs were all gone he climbed up
the rocks and found some more.
Meantime Trot tired of watching him and lay down upon
the sands, where she fell fast asleep. During the next
two hours her clothing dried completely, as did that of
the old sailor. They were both so used to salt water
that there was no danger of taking cold.
Finally the little girl was wakened by a splash
beside her and a grunt of satisfaction from Cap'n Bill.
She opened her eyes to find that the Cap'n had landed a
silver-scaled fish weighing about two pounds. This
- firmly [´fə:mli]
ad.坚固地，稳定地 (初中英语单词) - fearful [´fiəfəl] a.可怕的；担心的 (初中英语单词)
- swiftly [´swiftli] ad.迅速地，敏捷地 (初中英语单词)
- accord [ə´kɔ:d] n.&vi.符合 vt.给与 (初中英语单词)
- circular [´sə:kjulə] a.圆形的 n.通知 (初中英语单词)
- faithful [´feiθfəl] a.忠实的；可靠的 (初中英语单词)
- beginning [bi´giniŋ] n.开始，开端；起源 (初中英语单词)
- vision [´viʒən] n.视觉；想象力；幻影 (初中英语单词)
- ascend [ə´send] v.登；上升；追溯 (初中英语单词)
- breath [breθ] n.呼吸；气息 (初中英语单词)
- embrace [im´breis] vt.&n.拥抱；采纳；信奉 (初中英语单词)
- lonely [´ləunli] a.孤独的；无人烟的 (初中英语单词)
- injury [´indʒəri] n.伤害；毁坏；侮辱 (初中英语单词)
- dismay [dis´mei] n.惊慌 vt.使惊慌 (初中英语单词)
- presently [´prezəntli] ad.不久；目前 (初中英语单词)
- wooden [´wudn] a.木制的；呆板的 (初中英语单词)
- tobacco [tə´bækəu] n.烟草(叶)；卷烟 (初中英语单词)
- restore [ri´stɔ:] vt.(使)恢复；修复 (初中英语单词)
- fright [frait] n.惊吓；恐怖；怪人 (初中英语单词)
- account [ə´kaunt] vi.说明 vt.认为 n.帐目 (初中英语单词)
- incline [in´klain] v.(使)倾斜 n.斜坡 (初中英语单词)
- extreme [ik´stri:m] a.尽头的 n.极端 (初中英语单词)
- awhile [ə´wail] ad.少顷；片刻 (初中英语单词)
- starve [stɑ:v] v.(使)饥饿 (初中英语单词)
- gravely [´greivli] ad.庄重地，严肃地 (初中英语单词)
- package [´pækidʒ] n.包(裹) vt.组装 (初中英语单词)
- fisherman [´fiʃəmən] n.渔民，渔夫，打鱼人 (初中英语单词)
- satisfaction [,sætis´fækʃən] n.满意；满足 (初中英语单词)
- cavern [´kævən] n.大山洞；大岩洞 (高中英语单词)
- motion [´məuʃən] n.手势 vt.打手势 (高中英语单词)
- headlong [´hedlɔŋ] ad.&a.轻率地(的) (高中英语单词)
- unseen [,ʌn´si:n] a.未看见的 (高中英语单词)
- rugged [´rʌgid] a.不平的；粗犷的 (高中英语单词)
- mighty [´maiti] a.强有力的 ad.很 (高中英语单词)
- finding [´faindiŋ] n.发现物；判断；结果 (高中英语单词)
- thoughtfully [´θɔ:tfuli] ad.深思地；体贴地 (高中英语单词)
- decided [di´saidid] a.明显的；决定的 (高中英语单词)
- drawing [´drɔ:iŋ] n.画图；制图；图样 (英语四级单词)
- moderately [´mɔdəritli] ad.适度；适中；普通 (英语四级单词)
- trying [´traiiŋ] a.难堪的；费劲的 (英语四级单词)
- intently [in´tentli] ad.专心地 (英语四级单词)
- composure [kəm´pəuʒə] n.镇静，沉着 (英语四级单词)
- seaweed [´si:wi:d] n.海草，海藻 (英语六级单词)
- taking [´teikiŋ] a.迷人的 n.捕获物 (英语六级单词)
文章标签:名著
章节正文
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