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  "they couldnt in our days," said edmund.

  "then," said reepicheep, "it is after the lone islands that the adventure really begins.”

  caspian now suggested that they might like to be shown over the ship before supper, but lucys conscience 【创建和谐家园】ote her and she said, "i think i really must go and see eustace.

  seasickness is horrid, you know. if i had my old cordial with me i could cure him.”

  "but you have," said caspian. "id quite forgotten about it. as you left it behind i thought it might be regarded as one of the royal treasures and so i brought it - if you think it ought to be wasted on a thing like seasickness.”

  "itll only take a drop," said lucy.

  caspian opened one of the lockers beneath the bench and brought out the beautiful little diamond flask which lucy remembered so well. "take back your own, queen," he said.

  they then left the cabin and went out into the sunshine.

  in the deck there were two large, long hatches, fore and aft of the mast, and both open, as they always were in fair weather, to let light and air into the belly of the ship. caspian led them down a ladder into the after hatch. here they found themselves in a place where benches for rowing ran from side to side and the light came in through the oarholes and danced on the roof. of course caspians ship was not that horrible thing, a galley rowed by slaves. oars were used only when wind failed or for getting in and out of harbour and everyone (except reepicheep whose legs were too short) had often taken a turn. at each side of the ship the space under the benches was left clear for the rowers feet, but all down the centre there was a kind of pit which went down to the very keel and this was filled with all kinds of things - sacks of flour, casks of water and beer, barrels of pork, jars of honey, skin bottles of wine, apples, nuts, cheeses, biscuits, turnips, sides of bacon.

  from the roof - that is, from the under side of the deck - hung hams and strings of onions, and also the men of the watch offduty in their hammocks. caspian led them aft, stepping from bench to bench; at least, it was stepping for him, and something between a step and a jump for lucy, and a real long jump for reepicheep. in this way they came to a partition with a door in it. caspian opened the door and led them into a cabin which filled the stern underneath the deck cabins in the poop. it was of course not so nice. it was very low and the sides sloped together as they went down so that there was hardly any floor; and though it had windows of thick glass, they were not made to open because they were under water. in fact at this very moment, as the ship pitched they were alternately golden with sunlight and dim green with the sea.

  "you and i must lodge here, edmund," said caspian. "well leave your kin【创建和谐家园】an the bunk and sling hammocks for ourselves.”

  "i beseech your majesty-" said drinian.

  "no, no shipmate," said caspian, "we have argued all that out already. you and rhince”

  (rhince was the mate) "are sailing the ship and will have cares and labours many a night when we are singing catches or telling stories, so you and he must have the port cabin above. king edmund and i can lie very snug here below. but how is the stranger?”

  eustace, very green in the face, scowled and asked whether there was any sign of the storm getting less. but caspian said, "what storm?" and drinian burst out laughing.

  "storm, young master!" he roared. "this is as fair weather as a man could ask for.”

  "whos that?" said eustace irritably. "send him away. his voice goes through my head.”

  "ive brought you something that will make you feel better, eustace," said lucy.

  "oh, go away and leave me alone," growled eustace. but he took a drop from her flask, and though he said it was beastly stuff (the 【创建和谐家园】ell in the cabin when she opened it was delicious) it is certain that his face came the right colour a few moments after he had swallowed it, and he must have felt better because, instead of wailing about the storm and

  his head, he began demanding to be put ashore and said that at the first port he would "lodge a disposition" against them all with the british consul. but when reepicheep asked what a disposition was and how you lodged it (reepicheep thought it was some new way of arranging a single combat) eustace could only reply, "fancy not knowing that." in the end they succeeded in convincing eustace that they were already sailing as fast as they could towards the nearest land they knew, and that they had no more power of sending him back to cambridge - which was where uncle harold lived - than of sending him to the moon. after that he sulkily agreed to put on the fresh clothes which had been put out for him and come on deck.

  caspian now showed them over the ship, though indeed they had seen most it already.

  they went up on the forecastle and saw the look-out man standing on a little shelf inside the gilded dragons neck and peering through its open mouth. inside the forecastle was the galley (or ships kitchen) and quarters for such people as the boatswain, the carpenter, the cook and the master-archer. if you think it odd to have the galley in the bows and imagine the 【创建和谐家园】oke from its chimney streaming back over the ship, that is because you are thinking of steamships where there is always a headwind. on a sailing ship the wind is coming from behind, and anything 【创建和谐家园】elly is put as far forward as possible. they were taken up to the fighting top, and at first it was rather alarming to rock to and fro there and see the deck looking 【创建和谐家园】all and far away beneath. you realized that if you fell there was no particular reason why you should fall on board rather than in the sea. then they were taken to the poop, where rhince was on duty with another man at the great tiller, and behind that the dragons tail rose up, covered with gilding, and round inside it ran a little bench. the name of the ship was dawn treader. she was only a little bit of a thing compared with one of our i ships, or even with the cogs, dromonds, carracks and galleons which narnia had owned when lucy and edmund had reigned there under peter as the high king, for nearly all navigation had died out in the reigns of caspians ancestors.

  when his uncle, miraz the usurper, had sent the seven lords to sea, they had had to buy a galmian ship and man it with hired galmian sailors. but now caspian had begun to teach the narnians to be sea-faring folk once more, and the dawn treader was the finest ship he had built yet. she was so 【创建和谐家园】all that, forward of the mast, there was hardly any deck room between the central hatch and the ships boat on one side and the hen -coop (lucy fed the hens) on the other. but she was a beauty of her kind, a "lady" as sailors say, her lines perfect, her colours pure, and every spar and rope and pin lovingly made. eustace of course would be pleased with nothing, and kept on boasting about liners and motor-boats and aeroplanes and submarines ("as if he knew anything about them," muttered edmund), but the other two were delighted with the dawn treader, and when they returned aft to the cabin and supper, and saw the whole western sky lit up with an immense crimson sunset, and felt the quiver of the ship, and tasted the salt on their lips, and thought of unknown lands on the eastern rim of the world, lucy felt that she was almost too happy to speak.

  what eustace thought had best be told in his own words, for when they all got their clothes back, dried, next morning, he at once got out a little black notebook and a pencil and started to keep a diary. he always had this notebook with him and kept a record of his marks in it, for though he didnt care much about any subject for its own sake, he

  cared a great deal about marks and would even go to people and say, "i got so much.

  what did you get?" but as he didnt seem likely to get many marks on the dawn treader he now started a diary. this was the first entry.

  "7 august. have now been twenty-four hours on this ghastly boat if it isnt a dream. all the time a frightful storm has been raging (its a good thing im not seasick). huge waves keep coming in over the front and i have seen the boat nearly go under any number of times. all the others pretend to take no notice of this, either from swank or because harold says one of the most cowardly things ordinary people do is to shut their eyes to facts. its madness to come out into the sea in a rotten little thing like this. not much bigger than a lifeboat. and, of course, absolutely primitive indoors. no proper saloon, no radio, no bathrooms, no deck-chairs. i was dragged all over it yesterday evening and it would make anyone sick to hear caspian showing off his funny little toy boat as if it was the queen mary. i tried to tell him what real ships are like, but hes too dense. e. and l., o f course, didnt back me up. i suppose a kid like l. doesnt realize the danger and e. is buttering up c. as everyone does here. they call him a king. i said i was a republican but he had to ask me what that meant! he doesnt seem to know anything at all. needless to say ive been put in the worst cabin of the boat, a perfect dungeon, and lucy has been given a whole room on deck to herself, almost a nice room compared with the rest of this place. c. says thats because shes a girl. i tried to make him see what alberta says, that all that sort of thing is really lowering girls but he was too dense. still, he might see that i shall be ill if im kept in that hole any longer. e. says we mustnt grumble because c. is sharing it with us himself to make room for l. as if that didnt make it more crowded and far worse. nearly forgot to say that there is also a kind of mouse thing that gives everyone the most frightful cheek. the others can put up with it if they like but i shall twist his tail pretty soon if he tries it on me. the food is frightful too.”

  the trouble between eustace and reepicheep arrived even sooner than might have been expected. before dinner next day, when the others were sitting round the table , waiting (being at sea gives one a magnificent appetite), eustace came rushing in, wringing his hand and shouting out: "that little brute has half killed me. i insist on it being kept under control. i could bring an action against you, caspian. i could order you to have it destroyed.”

  at the same moment reepicheep appeared. his sword was drawn and his whiskers looked very fierce but he was as polite as ever.

  "i ask your pardons all," he said, "and especially her majestys. if i had known that he would take refuge here i would have awaited a more reasonable time for his correction.”

  "what on earths up?" asked edmund.

  what had really happened was this. reepicheep, who never felt that the ship was getting on fast enough, loved to sit on the bulwarks far forward just beside the dragons head, gazing out at the eastern horizon and singing softly in his little chirruping voice the song

  the dryad had made for him. he never held on to anything, however the ship pitched, and kept his balance with perfect ease; perhaps his long tail, hanging down to the deck inside the bulwarks, made this easier. everyone on board was familiar with this habit, and the sailors liked it because when one was on look-out duty it gave one somebody to talk to.

  why exactly eustace had slipped and reeled and stumbled all the way forward to the forecastle (he had not yet got his sea-legs) i never heard. perhaps he hoped he would see land, or perhaps he wanted to hang about the galley and scrounge something. anyway, as soon as he saw that long tail hanging down - and perhaps it was rather tempting - he thought it would be delightful to catch hold of it, swing reepicheep round by it once or twice upside-down, then run away and laugh, at first the plan seemed to work beautifully. the mouse was not much heavier than a very large cat. eustace had him off the rail in a trice and very silly he looked (thought eustace) with his little limbs all splayed out and his mouth open. but unfortunately reepicheep, who had fought for his life many a time, never lost his head even for a moment. nor his skill. it is not very easy to draw ones sword when one is swinging round in the air by ones tail, but he did. and the next thing eustace knew was two agonizing jabs in his hand which made him let go of the tail; and the next thing after that was that the mouse had picked itself up again as if it were a ball bouncing off the deck, and there it was facing him, and a horrid long, bright, sharp thing like a skewer was waving to and fro within an inch of his stomach.

  (this doesnt count as below the belt for mice in narnia because they can hardly be expected to reach higher.)

  "stop it," spluttered eustace, "go away. put that thing away. its not safe. stop it, i say. ill tell caspian.

  ill have you muzzled and tied up.”

  "why do you not draw your own sword, poltroon!" cheeped the mouse. "draw and fight or ill beat you black and blue with the flat.”

  "i havent got one," said eustace. "im a pacifist. i dont believe in fighting.”

  "do i understand," said reepicheep, withdrawing his sword for a moment and speaking very sternly, "that you do not intend to give me satisfaction?”

  "i dont know what you mean," said eustace, nursing his hand. "if you dont know how to take a joke i shant bother my head about you.”

  "then take that," said reepicheep, "and that - to teach you manners - and the respect due to a knight - and a mouse - and a mouses tail -" and at each word he gave eustace a blow with the side of his rapier, which was thin, fine dwarf-tempered steel and as supple and effective as a birch rod. eustace (of course) was at a school where they didnt have corporal punishment, so the sensation was quite new to him. that was why, in spite of having no sealegs, it took him less than a minute to get off that forecastle and cover the whole length of the deck and burst in at the cabin door - still hotly pursued by

  reepicheep. indeed it seemed to eustace that the rapier as well as the pursuit was hot. it might have been red-hot by the feel.

  there was not much difficulty in settling the matter once eustace realized that everyone took the idea of a duel seriously and heard caspian offering to lend him a sword, and drinian and edmund discussing whether he ought to be handicapped in some way to make up for his being so much bigger than reepicheep. he apologized sulkily and went off with lucy to have his hand bathed and bandaged and then went to his bunk. he was careful to lie on his side.

  www.xiaoshuotxt.,com

  CHAPTER THREE

  　小＿说t-x-t＿天/堂

  the lone islands "land in sight," shouted the man in the bows.

  lucy, who had been talking to rhince on the poop, came pattering down the ladder and raced forward. as she went she was joined by edmund, and they found caspian, drinian and reepicheep already on the forecastle. it was a coldish morning, the sky very pale and the sea very dark blue with little white caps of foam, and there, a little way off on the starboard bow, was the nearest of the lone islands, felimath, like a low green hill in the sea, and behind it, further off, the grey slopes of its sister doorn.

  "same old felimath! same old doorn," said lucy, clapping her hands. "oh - edmund, how long it is since you and i saw them last!”

  "ive never understood why they belong to narnia," said caspian. "did peter the high king conquer them?”

  "oh no," said edmund. "they were narnian before our time - in the days of the white witch.”

  (by the way, i have never yet heard how these remote islands became attached to the crown of narnia; if i ever do, and if the story is at all interesting, i may put it in some other book.)

  "are we to put in here, sire?" asked drinian.

  "1 shouldnt think it would be much good landing on felimath," said edmund. "it was almost uninhabited in our days and it looks as if it was the same still. the people lived mostly on doorn and a little on avra - thats the third one; you cant see it yet. they only kept sheep on felimath.”

  "then well have to double that cape, i suppose," said drinian, "and land on doorn.

  thatll mean rowing.”

  "im sorry were not landing on felimath," said lucy. "id like to walk there again. it was so lonely - a nice kind of loneliness, and all grass and clover and soft sea air.”

  "id love to stretch my legs now too," said caspian. "i tell you what. why shouldnt we go ashore in the boat and send it back, and then we could walk across felimath and let the dawn treader pick us up on the other side?”

  if caspian had been as experienced then as he became later on in this voyage he would not have made this suggestion; but at the moment it seemed an excellent one. "oh do lets," said lucy.

  "youll come, will you?" said caspian to eustace, who had come on deck with his hand bandaged.

  "anything to get off this blasted boat," said eustace.

  "blasted?" said drinian. "how do you mean?”

  "in a civilized country like where i come from," said eustace, "the ships are so big that when youre inside you wouldnt know you were at sea at all.”

  "in that case you might just as well stay ashore," said caspian. "will you tell them to lower the boat, drinian.”

  the king, the mouse, the two pevensies, and eustace all got into the boat and were pulled to the beach of felimath. when the boat had left them and was being rowed back they all turned and looked round. they were surprised at how 【创建和谐家园】all the dawn treader looked.

  lucy was of course barefoot, having kicked off her shoes while swimming, but that is no hardship if one is going to walk on downy turf. it was delightful to be ashore again and to 【创建和谐家园】ell the earth and grass, even if at first the ground seemed to be pitching up and down like a ship, as it usually does for a while if one has been at sea. it was much warmer here than it had been on board and lucy found the sand pleasant to her feet as they crossed it.

  there was a lark singing.

  they struck inland and up a fairly steep, though low, hill. at the top of course they looked back, and there was the dawn treader shining like a great bright insect and crawling slowly north-westward with her oars. then they went over the ridge and could see her no longer.

  doom now lay before them, divided from felimath by a channel about a mile wide; behind it and to the left lay avra. the little white town of narrowhaven on doorn was easily seen.

  "hullo! whats this?" said edmund suddenly.

  in the green valley to which they were descending six or seven rough- looking men, all armed, were sitting by a tree.

  "dont tell them who we are," said caspian.

  "and pray, your majesty, why not?" said reepicheep who had consented to ride on lucys shoulder.

  "it just occurred to me," replied caspian, "that no one here can have heard from narnia for a long time. its just possible they may not still acknowledge our over-lordship. in which case it might not be quite safe to be known as the king.”

  "we have our swords, sire," said reepicheep.

  "yes, reep, i know we have," said caspian. "but if it is a question of re- conquering the three islands, id prefer to come back with a rather larger army.”

  by this time they were quite close to the strangers, one of whom - a big black-haired fellow - shouted out, "a good morning to you.”

  "and a good morning to you," said caspian. "is there still a governor of the lone islands?”

  "to be sure there is," said the man, "governor gumpas. his sufficiency is at narrowhaven. but youll stay and drink with us.”

  caspian thanked him, though neither he nor the others much liked the look of their new acquaintance, and all of them sat down. but hardly had they raised their cups to their lips when the black-haired man nodded to his companions and, as quick as lightning, all the five visitors found themselves wrapped in strong arms. there was a moments struggle but all the advantages were on one side, and soon everyone was disarmed and had their hands tied behind their backs except reepicheep, writhing in his captors grip and biting furiously.

  "careful with that beast, tacks," said the leader. "dont damage him. hell fetch the best price of the lot, i shouldnt wonder.”

  "coward! poltroon!" squeaked reepicheep. "give me my sword and free my paws if you dare.”

  "whew!" whistled the slave merchant (for that is what he was). "it can talk! well i never did. blowed if i take less than two hundred crescents for him." the calormen crescent, which is the chief coin in those parts, is worth about a third of a pound.

  "so thats what you are," said caspian. "a kidnapper and slaver. i hope youre proud of it.”

  "now, now, now, now," said the slaver. "dont you start any jaw. the easier you take it, the pleasanter all round, see? i dont do this for fun. ive got my living to make same as anyone else.”

  "where will you take us?" asked lucy, getting the words out with some difficulty.

  "over to narrowhaven," said the slaver. "for market day tomorrow.”

  "is there a british consul there?" asked eustace.

  "is there a which?" said the man.

  but long before eustace was tired of trying to explain, the slaver simply said, "well, ive had enough of this jabber. the mouse is a fair treat but this one would talk the hind leg off a donkey. off we go, mates.”

  then the four human prisoners were roped together, not cruelly but securely, and made to march down to the shore. reepicheep was carried. he had stopped biting on a threat of having his mouth tied up, but he had a great deal to say, and lucy really wondered how any man could bear to have the things said to him which were said to the slave dealer by the mouse. but the slave dealer, far from objecting, only said "go on" whenever reepicheep paused for breath, occasionally adding, "its as good as a play," or, "blimey, you cant help almost thinking it knows what its saying!" or "was it one of you what trained it?" this so infuriated reepicheep that in the end the number of things he thought of saying all at once nearly suffocated him and he became silent.

  when they got down to the shore that looked towards doorn they found a little village and a long-boat on the beach and, lying a little further out, a dirty bedraggled looking ship.

  "now, youngsters," said the slave dealer, "lets have no fuss and then youll have nothing to cry about. all aboard.”

  at that moment a fine-looking bearded man came out of one of the houses (an inn, i think) and said: "well, pug. more of your usual wares?”

  the slaver, whose name seemed to be pug, bowed very low, and said in a wheedling kind of voice, "yes, please your lordship.”

  "how much do you want for that boy?" asked the other, pointing to caspian.

  "ah," said pug, "i knew your lordship would pick on the best. no deceiving your lordship with anything second rate. that boy, now, ive taken a fancy to him myself. got kind of fond of him, i have. im that tender-hearted i didnt ever ought to have taken up this job. still, to a customer like your lordship-”

  "tell me your price, carrion," said the lord sternly. "do you think i want to listen to the rigmarole of your filthy trade?”

  "three hundred crescents, my lord to your honourable lordship, but to anyone else -”

  "ill give you a hundred and fifty.”