章节正文
cheered her considerably and she hurried to scrape
together a heap of seaweed, while Cap'n Bill cut up the
fish with his jackknife and got it ready for cooking.
They had cooked fish with seaweed before. Cap'n Bill
wrapped his fish in some of the weed and dipped it in
the water to dampen it. Then he lighted a match and set
fire to Trot's heap, which speedily burned down to a
glowing bed of ashes. Then they laid the wrapped fish
on the ashes, covered it with more seaweed, and allowed
this to catch fire and burn to embers. After feeding
the fire with seaweed for some time, the sailor finally
decided that their supper was ready, so he scattered
the ashes and drew out the bits of fish, still encased
in their smoking wrappings.
When these wrappings were removed, the fish was found
thoroughly cooked and both Trot and Cap'n Bill ate of
it freely. It had a slight flavor of seaweed and would
have been better with a sprinkling of salt.
The soft glow which until now had lighted the cavern,
began to grow dim, but there was a great quantity of
seaweed in the place, so after they had eaten their
fish they kept the fire alive for a time by giving it a
handful of fuel now and then.
From an inner pocket the sailor drew a small flask of
battered metal and unscrewing the cap handed it to
Trot. She took but one swallow of the water although
she wanted more, and she noticed that Cap'n Bill merely
wet his lips with it.
"S'pose," said she, staring at the glowing seaweed
fire and speaking slowly, "that we can catch all the
fish we need; how 'bout the drinking-water, Cap'n?"
He moved uneasily but did not reply. Both of them
were thinking about the dark hole, but while Trot had
little fear of it the old man could not overcome his
dislike to enter the place. He knew that Trot was
right, though. To remain in the cavern, where they now
were, could only result in slow but sure death.
It was nighttime up on the earth's surface, so the
little girl became drowsy and soon fell asleep. After a
time the old sailor slumbered on the sands beside her.
It was very still and nothing disturbed them for hours.
When at last they awoke the cavern was light again.
They had divided one of the biscuits and were
munching it for breakfast when they were startled by a
sudden splash in the pool. Looking toward it they saw
emerging from the water the most curious creature
either of them had ever beheld. It wasn't a fish, Trot
decided, nor was it a beast. It had wings, though, and
queer wings they were: shaped like an inverted
chopping-bowl and covered with tough skin instead of
feathers. It had four legs -- much like the legs of a
stork, only double the number -- and its head was
shaped a good deal like that of a poll parrot, with a
beak that curved downward in front and upward at the
edges, and was half bill and half mouth. But to call it
a bird was out of the question, because it had no
feathers whatever except a crest of wavy plumes of a
scarlet color on the very top of its head. The strange
creature must have weighed as much as Cap'n Bill, and
as it floundered and struggled to get out of the water
to the sandy beach it was so big and unusual that both
Trot and her companion stared at it in wonder -- in
wonder that was not unmixed with fear.
Chapter Three
The Ork
The eyes that regarded them, as the creature stood
dripping before them, were bright and mild in
expression, and the queer addition to their party made
no attempt to attack them and seemed quite as surprised
by the meeting as they were.
"I wonder," whispered Trot, "what it is."
"Who, me?" exclaimed the creature in a shrill, high-
pitched voice. "Why, I'm an Ork."
"Oh!" said the girl. "But what is an Ork?"
"I am," he repeated, a little proudly, as he shook
the water from his funny wings; "and if ever an Ork was
glad to be out of the water and on dry land again, you
can be mighty sure that I'm that especial, individual
Ork!"
"Have you been in the water long?" inquired Cap'n
Bill, thinking it only polite to show an interest in
the strange creature.
"why, this last ducking was about ten minutes, I
believe, and that's about nine minutes and sixty
seconds too long for comfort," was the reply. "But last
night I was in an awful pickle, I assure you. The
whirlpool caught me, and --"
"Oh, were you in the whirlpool, too?" asked Trot
eagerly
He gave her a glance that was somewhat reproachful.
"I believe I was mentioning the fact, young lady,
when your desire to talk interrupted me," said the Ork.
"I am not usually careless in my actions, but that
whirlpool was so busy yesterday that I thought I'd see
what mischief it was up to. So I flew a little too near
it and the suction of the air drew me down into the
depths of the ocean. Water and I are natural enemies,
and it would have conquered me this time had not a bevy
of pretty mermaids come to my assistance and dragged me
away from the whirling water and far up into a cavern,
where they deserted me."
"Why, that's about the same thing that happened to
us," cried Trot. "Was your cavern like this one?"
"I haven't examined this one yet," answered the Ork;
"but if they happen to be alike I shudder at our fate,
for the other one was a prison, with no outlet except
by means of the water. I stayed there all night,
however, and this morning I plunged into the pool, as
far down as I could go, and then swam as hard and as
far as I could. The rocks scraped my back, now and
then, and I barely escaped the clutches of an ugly sea-
monster; but by and by I came to the surface to catch
my breath, and found myself here. That's the whole
story, and as I see you have something to eat I entreat
you to give me a share of it. The truth is, I'm half
starved."
With these words the Ork squatted down beside them.
Very reluctantly Cap'n Bill drew another biscuit from
his pocket and held it out. The Ork promptly seized it
in one of its front claws and began to nibble the
biscuit in much the same manner a parrot might have
done.
"We haven't much grub," said the sailor-man, "but
we're willin' to share it with a comrade in distress."
"That's right," returned the Ork, cocking its head
sidewise in a cheerful manner, and then for a few
minutes there was silence while they all ate of the
biscuits. After a while Trot said:
"I've never seen or heard of an Ork before. Are there
many of you?"
"We are rather few and exclusive, I believe," was the
reply. "In the country where I was born we are the
absolute rulers of all living things, from ants to
elephants."
"What country is that?" asked Cap'n Bill.
"Orkland."
"Where does it lie?"
"I don't know, exactly. You see, I have a restless
nature, for some reason, while all the rest of my race
are quiet and contented Orks and seldom stray far from
home. From childhood days I loved to fly long distances
away, although father often warned me that I would get
into trouble by so doing.
"'It's a big world, Flipper, my son,' he would say,
'and I've heard that in parts of it live queer two-
legged creatures called Men, who war upon all other
living things and would have little respect for even an
Ork.'
"This naturally aroused my curiosity and after I had
completed my education and left school I decided to fly
out into the world and try to get a glimpse of the
creatures called Men. So I left home without saying
good-bye, an act I shall always regret. Adventures were
many, I found. I sighted men several times, but have
never before been so close to them as now. Also I had
to fight my way through the air, for I met gigantic
birds, with fluffy feathers all over them, which
attacked me fiercely. Besides, it kept me busy escaping
from floating airships. In my rambling I had lost all
track of distance or direction, so that when I wanted
to go home I had no idea where my country was located.
I've now been trying to find it for several months and
it was during one of my flights over the ocean that I
met the whirlpool and became its victim."
Trot and Cap'n Bill listened to this recital with
much interest, and from the friendly tone and harmless
appearance of the Ork they judged he was not likely to
prove so disagreeable a companion as at first they had
feared he might be.
The Ork sat upon its haunches much as a cat does, but
used the finger-like claws of its front legs almost as
cleverly as if they were hands. Perhaps the most
curious thing about the creature was its tail, or what
ought to have been its tail. This queer arrangement of
skin, bones and muscle was shaped like the propellers
used on boats and airships, having fan-like surfaces
and being pivoted to its body. Cap'n Bill knew
something of mechanics, and observing the propeller-
like tail of the Ork he said:
"I s'pose you're a pretty swift flyer?"
"Yes, indeed; the Orks are admitted to be Kings of
the Air."
"Your wings don't seem to amount to much," remarked
Trot.
"Well, they are not very big," admitted the Ork,
waving the four hollow skins gently to and fro, "but
they serve to support my body in the air while I speed
along by means of my tail. Still, taken altogether, I'm
very handsomely formed, don't you think?"
Trot did not like to reply, but Cap'n Bill nodded
gravely. "For an Ork," said he, "you're a wonder.
I've never seen one afore, but I can imagine you're
as good as any."
That seemed to please the creature and it began
walking around the cavern, making its way easily
up the slope. while it was gone, Trot and Cap'n Bill
each took another sip from the water-flask, to wash
down their breakfast.
"Why, here's a hole -- an exit -- an outlet!"
exclaimed the Ork from above.
"We know," said Trot. "We found it last night."
together a heap of seaweed, while Cap'n Bill cut up the
fish with his jackknife and got it ready for cooking.
They had cooked fish with seaweed before. Cap'n Bill
wrapped his fish in some of the weed and dipped it in
the water to dampen it. Then he lighted a match and set
fire to Trot's heap, which speedily burned down to a
glowing bed of ashes. Then they laid the wrapped fish
on the ashes, covered it with more seaweed, and allowed
this to catch fire and burn to embers. After feeding
the fire with seaweed for some time, the sailor finally
decided that their supper was ready, so he scattered
the ashes and drew out the bits of fish, still encased
in their smoking wrappings.
When these wrappings were removed, the fish was found
thoroughly cooked and both Trot and Cap'n Bill ate of
it freely. It had a slight flavor of seaweed and would
have been better with a sprinkling of salt.
The soft glow which until now had lighted the cavern,
began to grow dim, but there was a great quantity of
seaweed in the place, so after they had eaten their
fish they kept the fire alive for a time by giving it a
handful of fuel now and then.
From an inner pocket the sailor drew a small flask of
battered metal and unscrewing the cap handed it to
Trot. She took but one swallow of the water although
she wanted more, and she noticed that Cap'n Bill merely
wet his lips with it.
"S'pose," said she, staring at the glowing seaweed
fire and speaking slowly, "that we can catch all the
fish we need; how 'bout the drinking-water, Cap'n?"
He moved uneasily but did not reply. Both of them
were thinking about the dark hole, but while Trot had
little fear of it the old man could not overcome his
dislike to enter the place. He knew that Trot was
right, though. To remain in the cavern, where they now
were, could only result in slow but sure death.
It was nighttime up on the earth's surface, so the
little girl became drowsy and soon fell asleep. After a
time the old sailor slumbered on the sands beside her.
It was very still and nothing disturbed them for hours.
When at last they awoke the cavern was light again.
They had divided one of the biscuits and were
munching it for breakfast when they were startled by a
sudden splash in the pool. Looking toward it they saw
emerging from the water the most curious creature
either of them had ever beheld. It wasn't a fish, Trot
decided, nor was it a beast. It had wings, though, and
queer wings they were: shaped like an inverted
chopping-bowl and covered with tough skin instead of
feathers. It had four legs -- much like the legs of a
stork, only double the number -- and its head was
shaped a good deal like that of a poll parrot, with a
beak that curved downward in front and upward at the
edges, and was half bill and half mouth. But to call it
a bird was out of the question, because it had no
feathers whatever except a crest of wavy plumes of a
scarlet color on the very top of its head. The strange
creature must have weighed as much as Cap'n Bill, and
as it floundered and struggled to get out of the water
to the sandy beach it was so big and unusual that both
Trot and her companion stared at it in wonder -- in
wonder that was not unmixed with fear.
Chapter Three
The Ork
The eyes that regarded them, as the creature stood
dripping before them, were bright and mild in
expression, and the queer addition to their party made
no attempt to attack them and seemed quite as surprised
by the meeting as they were.
"I wonder," whispered Trot, "what it is."
"Who, me?" exclaimed the creature in a shrill, high-
pitched voice. "Why, I'm an Ork."
"Oh!" said the girl. "But what is an Ork?"
"I am," he repeated, a little proudly, as he shook
the water from his funny wings; "and if ever an Ork was
glad to be out of the water and on dry land again, you
can be mighty sure that I'm that especial, individual
Ork!"
"Have you been in the water long?" inquired Cap'n
Bill, thinking it only polite to show an interest in
the strange creature.
"why, this last ducking was about ten minutes, I
believe, and that's about nine minutes and sixty
seconds too long for comfort," was the reply. "But last
night I was in an awful pickle, I assure you. The
whirlpool caught me, and --"
"Oh, were you in the whirlpool, too?" asked Trot
eagerly
He gave her a glance that was somewhat reproachful.
"I believe I was mentioning the fact, young lady,
when your desire to talk interrupted me," said the Ork.
"I am not usually careless in my actions, but that
whirlpool was so busy yesterday that I thought I'd see
what mischief it was up to. So I flew a little too near
it and the suction of the air drew me down into the
depths of the ocean. Water and I are natural enemies,
and it would have conquered me this time had not a bevy
of pretty mermaids come to my assistance and dragged me
away from the whirling water and far up into a cavern,
where they deserted me."
"Why, that's about the same thing that happened to
us," cried Trot. "Was your cavern like this one?"
"I haven't examined this one yet," answered the Ork;
"but if they happen to be alike I shudder at our fate,
for the other one was a prison, with no outlet except
by means of the water. I stayed there all night,
however, and this morning I plunged into the pool, as
far down as I could go, and then swam as hard and as
far as I could. The rocks scraped my back, now and
then, and I barely escaped the clutches of an ugly sea-
monster; but by and by I came to the surface to catch
my breath, and found myself here. That's the whole
story, and as I see you have something to eat I entreat
you to give me a share of it. The truth is, I'm half
starved."
With these words the Ork squatted down beside them.
Very reluctantly Cap'n Bill drew another biscuit from
his pocket and held it out. The Ork promptly seized it
in one of its front claws and began to nibble the
biscuit in much the same manner a parrot might have
done.
"We haven't much grub," said the sailor-man, "but
we're willin' to share it with a comrade in distress."
"That's right," returned the Ork, cocking its head
sidewise in a cheerful manner, and then for a few
minutes there was silence while they all ate of the
biscuits. After a while Trot said:
"I've never seen or heard of an Ork before. Are there
many of you?"
"We are rather few and exclusive, I believe," was the
reply. "In the country where I was born we are the
absolute rulers of all living things, from ants to
elephants."
"What country is that?" asked Cap'n Bill.
"Orkland."
"Where does it lie?"
"I don't know, exactly. You see, I have a restless
nature, for some reason, while all the rest of my race
are quiet and contented Orks and seldom stray far from
home. From childhood days I loved to fly long distances
away, although father often warned me that I would get
into trouble by so doing.
"'It's a big world, Flipper, my son,' he would say,
'and I've heard that in parts of it live queer two-
legged creatures called Men, who war upon all other
living things and would have little respect for even an
Ork.'
"This naturally aroused my curiosity and after I had
completed my education and left school I decided to fly
out into the world and try to get a glimpse of the
creatures called Men. So I left home without saying
good-bye, an act I shall always regret. Adventures were
many, I found. I sighted men several times, but have
never before been so close to them as now. Also I had
to fight my way through the air, for I met gigantic
birds, with fluffy feathers all over them, which
attacked me fiercely. Besides, it kept me busy escaping
from floating airships. In my rambling I had lost all
track of distance or direction, so that when I wanted
to go home I had no idea where my country was located.
I've now been trying to find it for several months and
it was during one of my flights over the ocean that I
met the whirlpool and became its victim."
Trot and Cap'n Bill listened to this recital with
much interest, and from the friendly tone and harmless
appearance of the Ork they judged he was not likely to
prove so disagreeable a companion as at first they had
feared he might be.
The Ork sat upon its haunches much as a cat does, but
used the finger-like claws of its front legs almost as
cleverly as if they were hands. Perhaps the most
curious thing about the creature was its tail, or what
ought to have been its tail. This queer arrangement of
skin, bones and muscle was shaped like the propellers
used on boats and airships, having fan-like surfaces
and being pivoted to its body. Cap'n Bill knew
something of mechanics, and observing the propeller-
like tail of the Ork he said:
"I s'pose you're a pretty swift flyer?"
"Yes, indeed; the Orks are admitted to be Kings of
the Air."
"Your wings don't seem to amount to much," remarked
Trot.
"Well, they are not very big," admitted the Ork,
waving the four hollow skins gently to and fro, "but
they serve to support my body in the air while I speed
along by means of my tail. Still, taken altogether, I'm
very handsomely formed, don't you think?"
Trot did not like to reply, but Cap'n Bill nodded
gravely. "For an Ork," said he, "you're a wonder.
I've never seen one afore, but I can imagine you're
as good as any."
That seemed to please the creature and it began
walking around the cavern, making its way easily
up the slope. while it was gone, Trot and Cap'n Bill
each took another sip from the water-flask, to wash
down their breakfast.
"Why, here's a hole -- an exit -- an outlet!"
exclaimed the Ork from above.
"We know," said Trot. "We found it last night."
- freely [´fri:li]
ad.自由地；慷慨地 (初中英语单词) - flavor [´fleivə] n.滋味 vt.给....调味 (初中英语单词)
- swallow [swɔləu] n.燕子 v.吞，咽；淹没 (初中英语单词)
- overcome [,əuvə´kʌm] vt.战胜，克服 (初中英语单词)
- splash [splæʃ] v.&n.溅水声；涉水而进 (初中英语单词)
- beheld [bi´held] behold的过去式(分词) (初中英语单词)
- upward [´ʌpwəd] a.&ad.向上(的)；以上 (初中英语单词)
- whatever [wɔt´evə] pron.&a.无论什么 (初中英语单词)
- unusual [ʌn´ju:ʒuəl] a.不平常的；异常的 (初中英语单词)
- companion [kəm´pæniən] n.同伴；同事；伴侣 (初中英语单词)
- addition [ə´diʃən] n.加；加法；附加物 (初中英语单词)
- proudly [´praudli] ad.骄傲地；傲慢地 (初中英语单词)
- polite [pə´lait] a.有礼貌的；温和的 (初中英语单词)
- careless [´keəlis] a.粗心的；草率的 (初中英语单词)
- yesterday [´jestədi] n.&ad.昨天；前不久 (初中英语单词)
- mischief [´mistʃif] n.伤害；故障；调皮 (初中英语单词)
- assistance [ə´sistəns] n.协作；援助；帮助 (初中英语单词)
- barely [´beəli] ad.公开地；仅仅 (初中英语单词)
- breath [breθ] n.呼吸；气息 (初中英语单词)
- promptly [´prɔmptli] ad.敏捷地；即时地 (初中英语单词)
- cheerful [´tʃiəful] a.快乐的；高兴的 (初中英语单词)
- childhood [´tʃaildhud] n.幼年(时代)；早期 (初中英语单词)
- curiosity [,kjuəri´ɔsiti] n.好奇；奇事；珍品 (初中英语单词)
- glimpse [glimps] n.&v.瞥见 (初中英语单词)
- fiercely [´fiəsli] ad.凶猛地，残忍地 (初中英语单词)
- arrangement [ə´reindʒmənt] n.整理；排列；筹备 (初中英语单词)
- muscle [´mʌsəl] n.肌肉；体力；力量 (初中英语单词)
- amount [ə´maunt] n.总数；数量 v.合计 (初中英语单词)
- gently [´dʒentli] ad.温和地；静静地 (初中英语单词)
- altogether [,ɔ:ltə´geðə] ad.完全；总而言之 (初中英语单词)
- considerably [kən´sidərəbli] ad.显著地；十分 (高中英语单词)
- hurried [´hʌrid] a.仓促的，慌忙的 (高中英语单词)
- cavern [´kævən] n.大山洞；大岩洞 (高中英语单词)
- drowsy [´drauzi] a.困倦的；催眠的 (高中英语单词)
- downward [´daunwəd] a.下降的，向下的 (高中英语单词)
- shrill [ʃril] a.(声音)尖锐的 (高中英语单词)
- repeated [ri´pi:tid] a.反复的；重复的 (高中英语单词)
- mighty [´maiti] a.强有力的 ad.很 (高中英语单词)
- pickle [´pikəl] n.盐汁；腌菜 v.腌渍 (高中英语单词)
- shudder [´ʃʌdə] n.&vi.震颤；发抖 (高中英语单词)
- outlet [´autlet] n.出口；出路；通风口 (高中英语单词)
- biscuit [´biskit] n.饼干 (高中英语单词)
- exclusive [ik´sklu:siv] a.独有的；集中的 (高中英语单词)
- contented [kən´tentid] a.满足的；心满意足的 (高中英语单词)
- decided [di´saidid] a.明显的；决定的 (高中英语单词)
- disagreeable [,disə´gri:əbl] a.令人不悦的 (高中英语单词)
- mechanics [mi´kæniks] n.力学；构成法；技巧 (高中英语单词)
- speedily [´spi:dili] ad.迅速地 (英语四级单词)
- parrot [´pærət] n.鹦鹉；应声虫 (英语四级单词)
- reluctantly [ri´lʌktəntli] a.不情愿地；勉强地 (英语四级单词)
- nibble [´nibəl] v.啃 n.轻咬，啃 (英语四级单词)
- trying [´traiiŋ] a.难堪的；费劲的 (英语四级单词)
- seaweed [´si:wi:d] n.海草，海藻 (英语六级单词)
- speaking [´spi:kiŋ] n.说话 a.发言的 (英语六级单词)
- uneasily [ʌn´i:zili] ad.不安地；局促地 (英语六级单词)
- especial [i´speʃəl] a.特别的，特殊的 (英语六级单词)
- fluffy [´flʌfi] a.绒毛似的 (英语六级单词)
- recital [ri´saitl] n.背诵；叙述；音乐会 (英语六级单词)
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章节正文
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