Read Online The Story of Doctor Dolittle: Being the History of His Peculiar Life at Home and Astonishing Adventures in Foreign Parts Never Before Printed by Hugh Lofting - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Hugh Lofting
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a sneer—as though it were something dis-
graceful. But you can't blame us, can you?
After all, who WOULD stay on a sinking ship, if
he could get off it?"
"It's very natural," said the Doctor—"very
natural. I quite understand.... Was there—
Was there anything else you wished to say?"
"Yes," said the rat. "I've come to tell you
that we are leaving this one. But we wanted to
warn you before we go. This is a bad ship
you have here. It isn't safe. The sides aren't
strong enough. Its boards are rotten. Before
to-morrow night it will sink to the bottom of
the sea."
"But how do you know?" asked the Doctor.
"We always know," answered the rat. "The
tips of our tails get that tingly feeling—like
when your foot's asleep. This morning, at six
o'clock, while I was getting breakfast, my tail
suddenly began to tingle. At first I thought it
was my rheumatism coming back. So I went
and asked my aunt how she felt—you remember
her?—the long, piebald rat, rather skinny, who
came to see you in Puddleby last Spring with
jaundice? Well—and she said HER tail was
tingling like everything! Then we knew, for
sure, that this boat was going to sink in less than
two days; and we all made up our minds to
leave it as soon as we got near enough to any
land. It's a bad ship, Doctor. Don't sail in
it any more, or you'll be surely drowned....
Good-by! We are now going to look for a good
place to live on this island."
"Good-by!" said the Doctor. "And thank
you very much for coming to tell me. Very
considerate of you—very! Give my regards to
your aunt. I remember her perfectly....
Leave that rat alone, Jip! Come here! Lie down!"
So then the Doctor and all his animals went
off, carrying pails and saucepans, to look for
water on the island, while the swallows took
their rest.
"I wonder what is the name of this island,"
said the Doctor, as he was climbing up the
mountainside. "It seems a pleasant place.
What a lot of birds there are!"
"Why, these are the Canary Islands," said
Dab-Dab. "Don't you hear the canaries singing?"
The Doctor stopped and listened.
"Why, to be sure—of course!" he said.
"How stupid of me! I wonder if they can tell
us where to find water."
And presently the canaries, who had heard all
about Doctor Dolittle from birds of passage,
came and led him to a beautiful spring of cool,
clear water where the canaries used to take their
bath; and they showed him lovely meadows
where the bird-seed grew and all the other
sights of their island.
And the pushmi-pullyu was glad they had
come; because he liked the green grass so much
better than the dried apples he had been eating
on the ship. And Gub-Gub squeaked for joy
when he found a whole valley full of wild
sugarcane.
A little later, when they had all had plenty
to eat and drink, and were lying on their backs
while the canaries sang for them, two of the swallows
came hurrying up, very flustered and excited.
"Doctor!" they cried, "the pirates have come
into the bay; and they've all got on to your ship.
They are downstairs looking for things to steal.
They have left their own ship with nobody on
it. If you hurry and come down to the shore,
you can get on to their ship—which is very fast
—and escape. But you'll have to hurry."
"That's a good idea," said the Doctor—"splendid!"
And he called his animals together at once,
said Good-by to the canaries and ran down to the beach.
When they reached the shore they saw the
pirate-ship, with the three red sails, standing in
the water; and—just as the swallows had said
—there was nobody on it; all the pirates were
downstairs in the Doctor's ship, looking for
things to steal.
So John Dolittle told his animals to walk very
softly and they all crept on to the pirate-ship.
The Fifteenth Chapter
— The Barbary Dragon
*
EVERYTHING would have gone all right if the pig had not caught
a cold in his head while eating the damp sugar-cane on the
island. This is what happened:
After they had pulled up the anchor without a sound,
and
graceful. But you can't blame us, can you?
After all, who WOULD stay on a sinking ship, if
he could get off it?"
"It's very natural," said the Doctor—"very
natural. I quite understand.... Was there—
Was there anything else you wished to say?"
"Yes," said the rat. "I've come to tell you
that we are leaving this one. But we wanted to
warn you before we go. This is a bad ship
you have here. It isn't safe. The sides aren't
strong enough. Its boards are rotten. Before
to-morrow night it will sink to the bottom of
the sea."
"But how do you know?" asked the Doctor.
"We always know," answered the rat. "The
tips of our tails get that tingly feeling—like
when your foot's asleep. This morning, at six
o'clock, while I was getting breakfast, my tail
suddenly began to tingle. At first I thought it
was my rheumatism coming back. So I went
and asked my aunt how she felt—you remember
her?—the long, piebald rat, rather skinny, who
came to see you in Puddleby last Spring with
jaundice? Well—and she said HER tail was
tingling like everything! Then we knew, for
sure, that this boat was going to sink in less than
two days; and we all made up our minds to
leave it as soon as we got near enough to any
land. It's a bad ship, Doctor. Don't sail in
it any more, or you'll be surely drowned....
Good-by! We are now going to look for a good
place to live on this island."
"Good-by!" said the Doctor. "And thank
you very much for coming to tell me. Very
considerate of you—very! Give my regards to
your aunt. I remember her perfectly....
Leave that rat alone, Jip! Come here! Lie down!"
So then the Doctor and all his animals went
off, carrying pails and saucepans, to look for
water on the island, while the swallows took
their rest.
"I wonder what is the name of this island,"
said the Doctor, as he was climbing up the
mountainside. "It seems a pleasant place.
What a lot of birds there are!"
"Why, these are the Canary Islands," said
Dab-Dab. "Don't you hear the canaries singing?"
The Doctor stopped and listened.
"Why, to be sure—of course!" he said.
"How stupid of me! I wonder if they can tell
us where to find water."
And presently the canaries, who had heard all
about Doctor Dolittle from birds of passage,
came and led him to a beautiful spring of cool,
clear water where the canaries used to take their
bath; and they showed him lovely meadows
where the bird-seed grew and all the other
sights of their island.
And the pushmi-pullyu was glad they had
come; because he liked the green grass so much
better than the dried apples he had been eating
on the ship. And Gub-Gub squeaked for joy
when he found a whole valley full of wild
sugarcane.
A little later, when they had all had plenty
to eat and drink, and were lying on their backs
while the canaries sang for them, two of the swallows
came hurrying up, very flustered and excited.
"Doctor!" they cried, "the pirates have come
into the bay; and they've all got on to your ship.
They are downstairs looking for things to steal.
They have left their own ship with nobody on
it. If you hurry and come down to the shore,
you can get on to their ship—which is very fast
—and escape. But you'll have to hurry."
"That's a good idea," said the Doctor—"splendid!"
And he called his animals together at once,
said Good-by to the canaries and ran down to the beach.
When they reached the shore they saw the
pirate-ship, with the three red sails, standing in
the water; and—just as the swallows had said
—there was nobody on it; all the pirates were
downstairs in the Doctor's ship, looking for
things to steal.
So John Dolittle told his animals to walk very
softly and they all crept on to the pirate-ship.
The Fifteenth Chapter
— The Barbary Dragon
*
EVERYTHING would have gone all right if the pig had not caught
a cold in his head while eating the damp sugar-cane on the
island. This is what happened:
After they had pulled up the anchor without a sound,
and
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