“I’m frank to say that I’m for it. It’s two thousand miles from here to the foothills of the Andes on a rough calculation. You kin8 fly fifty miles an hour, kain’t you?”
“Easily,” was Jack9’s reply, “but we can do better if the wind is with us and we develop full power,—say sixty-five.”
“Good enough. Then flying day and night, that brings us to the region we want to go to in about thirty-five hours.”
“That’s right,” nodded Mr. Chadwick, “but there are other things to be considered,—Indians, for instance.”
“Vee vouldt nodt vant to go vere human beings existed,” said the professor. “Der Megatherium, if he exists, vill be foundt far from any place vere peoples of any kindt lif.”
Mr. Chadwick interposed one or two more objections and then was silent for a minute. Finally he turned to the boys.
“Well,” he said, “what do you lads think of it?”
“I think that we could make the trip, sir,” rejoined Jack. “We are well armed. We have some trinkets that we could trade off to any hostile tribe we encountered and gain their good will, and then, too, the very sight of our flying-ship would overawe them if we managed things right. But from what the professor says, we are not likely even to encounter that danger. All we are required to do, as I understand it, is to fly our ship to a region he selects, and from that point organize a search for the Mega—mega——”
“Megaphone,” suggested Dick.
“Well, for the giant sloth10. If you ask me, I say—yes!”
“Same here,” declared Tom, promptly11, who had been waiting eagerly for a chance to announce himself.
“Yes,” thundered Captain Sprowl, “and we’ll bring that Meggy-meggy-fear-none home again, lashed12 to the mast.”
“Well, as I would only be in the minority, I suppose I may as well vote in the affirmative,” said Mr. Chadwick.
“I’m only an outsider,” piped Dick, “and as I’ve got no business here anyhow, I don’t suppose you’ll take me. But I say, yes; because if we do get this Mega-what-you-may-call-um and the professor lets me take pictures and write a story, it’ll be the biggest newspaper stunt13 pulled off for a long time.”
“You’re appointed special correspondent of the expedition, then,” laughed Jack.
“I don’t know how to dank you,” declared the professor fervently15. “You haf done a service to science dot cannot be paidt in money, even if ve don’t get der Megatherium. Budt now ve gedt down to business. If vee gedt der Megatherium or proof dot he exists, I agree to pay you fifteen thousand dollars for der use of der Vundership. If ve don’t gedt him, I pay you half dot sum undt five tousandt additional for your services. Does dot suit you?”
“Suits me,” said Jack, almost at once, after a glance had passed between himself and Tom.
“Very vell, den14. Dot is arranged mitout fuss or fedders. I gif you an agreement.”
“Oh, that’s all right,” said the elder of the two owners of the Wondership, but the professor tore out of his pocket-book a leaf of paper and with his fountain pen rapidly scribbled16 and signed a contract.
“If I die, der people for whom I am doing dis vurk vill see dot you gedt der sum agreed upon,” he said, as he handed the paper to Jack, who took it under protest.
The preparations for the trip into the unknown regions to the west of them occupied most of the rest of that day. It was decided to leave Judkins in the camp with a supply of provisions, as no more weight than was necessary was wanted in the air craft,—for that they would have to make much of their voyage by the “air route” there was no question. The engineer appeared quite agreeable to this plan and apprehended17 no danger. In a week at the outside they were to fly back and see how he was faring.
They decided to make the start the next morning, which would bring them into the region the professor wished to reach about daybreak of the day following. This would give them an opportunity to scour18 the country and fix a permanent camp.
That evening while the supper was cooking, with the addition of some turtle steaks and fish which had been caught during the afternoon by Dick, they were startled at a crashing and scrambling19 in one of the tree tops not far off.
Grasping their rifles, the boys started off in pursuit of the animal that was causing the disturbance20. They soon arrived under the tree in which it was concealed21, but owing to the dense22 foliage23 could see nothing but the shaking of leaves and branches as some heavy body moved about.
“Maybe it’s a leopard24!” exclaimed Dick. “The captain says there are lots of ‘em about here and we heard some howling last night.”
“No, it’s making too much noise for a leopard,” declared Jack; “besides, I don’t believe that they ever go so high up.”
“Maybe it’s a monkey of some kind,” suggested Tom.
“That’s a heap more likely,” agreed Jack.
“Hullo! It’s moving again!” cried Tom.
“It’s swinging into the next tree. Look!” cried Dick excitedly.
“If you saw it, why didn’t you shoot?” demanded Tom.
“Got buck25 fever, I guess. Say, fellows, by the meandering26 monkeys of Moravia, that was the funniest looking thing I ever saw.”
“Why, what did it look like?” asked Jack.
Dick thought earnestly for a minute. Then he looked up brightly as if he had hit on a clever definition.
“Like nothing that I can think of,” he remarked with a grin. Tom aimed a swinging blow at the jester, which Dick dodged27 easily.
While they were thus engaged, Jack’s rifle spoke28 sharply. He had caught sight of the odd animal swinging to the tree beyond that to which it had already transferred itself.
There was a great threshing among the branches and an odd sort of squealing29 cry.
“You hit it, all right,” declared Tom.
“Yes; but I’m afraid it’s got entangled30 in the branches and we’ll lose it after all.”
“I’ll climb up and get it,” volunteered Dick.
But there was no necessity for this. After a minute’s interval31 a hairy body came crashing and toppling down, landing with a thud at their feet. As Dick had said, the animal was certainly unlike anything the boys had seen up to that time.
It was a hairy creature, about the size of a large monkey. Its nose was snub, its eyes large and round, and it apparently32 had no ears. But strangest of all, in among its coarse hairs grew a sort of moss33 of almost the exact hue34 of the vegetation adhering to the tree trunks.
The legs were long and powerful, and each foot bore three strong, curved claws, like meat-hooks. It was not until the professor saw the creature that they knew what it was.
The animal was the three-toed sloth, which travels upside down among the tree tops of tropical Brazil like a fly hanging to the ceiling. The moss-like growth amidst its coarse hair was real moss, declared the professor, and was one of those inscrutable devices of nature for protection purposes, rendering35 the animal almost invisible when swinging against a tree trunk.
“And the Meggy-thing-um-a-jig is the big cousin of this fellow?” asked Tom.
“He is radder de greadt, greadt, greadt gross fader,” responded the German with a smile.
“But surely the giant sloth doesn’t swing from trees?” asked Jack.
“Nein. Idt is peliefed dot he lifs in swampy36 places undt has a foodt broadt undt flat. Idt is only his grandchildren dot took to der trees.”
“Well, boys,” declared Captain Sprowl, when they exhibited Jack’s trophy37 to him, “that’s a sign of good luck. We’ve only got to find a critter like that, only forty times as big, and resemblin’ him ‘cos he’s so different, and you get fifteen thousand dollars. It’s jes’ as easy as rollin’ off’n a log—I don’t think.”
With which profound speech the captain continued his culinary tasks with vehemence38.
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1
inoculated
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| v.给…做预防注射( inoculate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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feverish
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| adj.发烧的，狂热的，兴奋的 | |
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3
plunge
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| v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲 | |
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adventurous
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| adj.爱冒险的；惊心动魄的，惊险的，刺激的 | |
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narrative
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| n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的 | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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7
pretense
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| n.矫饰，做作，借口 | |
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8
kin
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| n.家族，亲属，血缘关系；adj.亲属关系的，同类的 | |
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9
jack
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| n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克 | |
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sloth
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| n.[动]树懒；懒惰，懒散 | |
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promptly
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| adv.及时地，敏捷地 | |
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12
lashed
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| adj.具睫毛的v.鞭打( lash的过去式和过去分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥 | |
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13
stunt
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| n.惊人表演，绝技，特技；vt.阻碍...发育，妨碍...生长 | |
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14
den
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| n.兽穴；秘密地方；安静的小房间，私室 | |
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15
fervently
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| adv.热烈地，热情地，强烈地 | |
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16
scribbled
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| v.潦草的书写( scribble的过去式和过去分词 )；乱画；草草地写；匆匆记下 | |
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17
apprehended
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| 逮捕，拘押( apprehend的过去式和过去分词 )； 理解 | |
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18
scour
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| v.搜索；擦，洗，腹泻，冲刷 | |
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19
scrambling
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| v.快速爬行( scramble的现在分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞 | |
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20
disturbance
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| n.动乱，骚动；打扰，干扰；(身心)失调 | |
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concealed
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| a.隐藏的，隐蔽的 | |
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dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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foliage
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| n.叶子，树叶，簇叶 | |
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leopard
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| n.豹 | |
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buck
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| n.雄鹿，雄兔；v.马离地跳跃 | |
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26
meandering
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| 蜿蜒的河流，漫步，聊天 | |
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27
dodged
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| v.闪躲( dodge的过去式和过去分词 )；回避 | |
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28
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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29
squealing
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| v.长声尖叫，用长而尖锐的声音说( squeal的现在分词 ) | |
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30
entangled
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| adj.卷入的；陷入的；被缠住的；缠在一起的v.使某人（某物/自己）缠绕，纠缠于（某物中），使某人（自己）陷入（困难或复杂的环境中）( entangle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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31
interval
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| n.间隔，间距；幕间休息，中场休息 | |
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32
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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33
moss
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| n.苔，藓，地衣 | |
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34
hue
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| n.色度；色调；样子 | |
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35
rendering
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| n.表现，描写 | |
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36
swampy
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| adj.沼泽的，湿地的 | |
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37
trophy
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| n.优胜旗，奖品，奖杯，战胜品，纪念品 | |
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38
vehemence
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| n.热切；激烈；愤怒 | |
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