The problem now confronting them was to coax8 this redoubtable9 savage10 to relinquish11 his position on the rudder frames where he was jamming the steering12 wires. Captain Sprowl undertook this task. Taking Tom’s place he put on as winsome13 an expression of countenance14 as his grim features were capable of assuming.
“Now see here, you benighted15 son of a sea cook,” he premised, “ain’t you got sense enough to come in out of the rain?”
Although of course the Indian had no idea of what the valiant16 skipper was saying, he regarded him with some interest. Much encouraged, the captain resumed: “There ain’t no manner of sense in your sitting out there, my man. In the fust place, you’ve got a long way to drop if you get chucked off, and in the next you’re jamming our rudder wires. Savvy17?”
The Indian, crouching18 among the wires and braces19, merely stared, not without awe20, at the redoubtable Yankee, who, for his part, was glad to see that the Amazonian carried no weapons. The spear he had fired at Tom had apparently21 exhausted22 his arsenal23.
“That’s my bucko,” went on the skipper coaxingly24, “you look almost human already. Now come home to tea like a good lad. Do you hear me, you wooden-faced effigy25 of a cigar store Injun?” he went on in stern tones. “Come in off that jib-boom, or whatever in thunder it’s called, or by the piper that played afore Moses, I’ll yank you in.”
The Indian didn’t utter a word.
“Better hurry up!” warned Jack26. “We’re going down and I can’t do a thing with the machine till that rudder wire is free.”
“There, d’ye hear that, you rubber-snouted kanaka?” roared the skipper, growing purple with rage, his fringe of gray whisker actually appearing to bristle27 as he spoke28. “D’ye hear that, you tree-climbing lubber you? We’re going down! down! down! The next stop’ll be the main floor,—the earth,—and you’ll get a bump that’ll jar the grin off your ugly mug.”
Still the Indian crouched29 stolidly30 amidst his “squirrel-cage” of wires and braces. The captain was exasperated31 beyond measure.
“You putty mugged Yahoo!” he bawled32 out in a quarter-deck voice. “For the third and last time of askin’:—air you a-comin’ aboard? Speak now or remain forever silent.”
Not a word uttered the quiet, copper-colored figure amid the stern rigging.
“Ve-ry well, then,” growled33 the captain, and a muscular arm shot out and grabbed the astonished Indian by the scruff of the neck, “I’ll have to get you, my lad.”
With a strength which none of them had guessed the peppery little New Englander possessed34, the captain fairly hove the uninvited passenger into the machine. The Indian offered no resistance. He appeared to think that he was irrevocably doomed35 to death, and that nothing he could do would save him from his fate.
When the captain had hauled him on board, he lay flat on his face in the bottom of the tonneau and uttered not a word.
“Get up thar, and act like a Christian,” exclaimed the captain angrily. “We ain’t goin’ to hurt you, you benighted monkey.”
“I’ll go down,” said Jack presently. “There’s a patch of swamp land yonder that will make a good landing place. We’ll put him ‘ashore’ there. I guess he can find his way home.”
“The only thing to do with him,” declared the captain. “Of all the ongrateful scaramouches ever I seed, he’s the wustest.”
Jack set the craft on a downward glide36 and came to earth on the edge of a patch of swampy37 land of some extent. The spot that he had selected for a landing was slightly higher than the rest and was comparatively dry. The big craft came down without a bump, and the pumps began sucking gas from the bag to render the machine less buoyant.
“Now then, you imp1 of the woods, git up on your hind38 legs and skeedaddle,” advised the captain, yanking the Indian to his feet.
The fellow uttered a cry of amazement39 as he saw that he was once more on the earth. He looked wildly around him for an instant.
“Go on. Be off with you!” admonished40 the captain. “You’ve made us trouble enough.”
Without a word the Indian made a rush for the side of the machine. With one bound he was over it and in another minute the forest had swallowed up his rapidly retreating form. Naturally this incident, which had its serious as well as its ludicrous side, came in for a good deal of discussion by the adventurers, while the bag was being refilled.
In the midst of their talk, Tom noticed some odd-looking holes which were distributed at fairly regular intervals42 all over the swamp. Motioning to Dick, he slipped out of the machine and proceeded to investigate. The holes were all about seven or eight feet in diameter and filled almost to the top with muddy water. They had every appearance of having been made by man.
Considerably43 puzzled, the boys examined several of the holes carefully, and by the motion of the water in one of them judged that they might contain fish.
They hastened back to the ship and told the professor the result of their investigations44. The little man at once became interested.
“Maybe dey vos spezimens of some kindt,” he declared eagerly. “Ve catch some, hein?”
“Don’t be too long,” warned Jack; “we’re ready to start now, but we can wait a while if you don’t take too much time.”
The professor assured him that they would hurry their investigations, and in company with Tom and Dick he moved off, armed with a big landing net which formed a part of his paraphernalia45. He commenced dabbling46 with this in the hole where the boys had noticed the commotion47. Suddenly he gave a shout.
“I godt idt! I godt idt! Himmel! Idt vos a big vun, too. Ach! mein leiber, I got you, ain’d idt?”
As he uttered the last words, the professor, with an adroit48 twist of his net, drew it out of the water, and the boys saw that it was filled with struggling, snake-like looking creatures of a steely blue hue49.
“Eels50!” yelled Tom. “We’ll help you, professor.”
As the net was hauled in both boys rushed forward and seized it. Through the interstices of the netting their fingers encountered writhing51, slimy bodies.
“Ow! Ouch!” screeched52 Dick, dropping the net with a yell.
“Wow! They bit me!” howled Tom, shaking his fingers vigorously.
“Nonsense!” exclaimed the professor, cautiously approaching the net and poking53 it with his fingers. Suddenly he gave a bound backward and gave vent41 to a yell.
“Himmel! Dey gif me a shock!” he exclaimed dancing about, while his spectacles bobbed up and down on his nose.
“A shock!” exclaimed Tom incredulously. “They bit me.”
“No, idt vos a shock you godt. I ought to haf known bedder. Dese must be electric eels!” cried the professor.
“Electric eels!” cried Dick. “What, really electric?”
“By all means,” was the professor’s reply. “Dey is fulled mit electricidy. Nobody hass ever explained chust how idt is, budt such is der fact. Try dem again undt maype you get annuder shock.”
But Tom wouldn’t. Dick, however, was game, and touched the wriggling54 mass in the net gingerly with his finger tips.
“Wow! I got another shock!” he yelled. “Say, by the arc-lights of antique Arabia, these eels ought to organize an electric railroad through the jungle.”
He broke out into rhyme at the thought:
“Some electric eels feeling quite jolly,
Said, ‘Let’s run a tropical trolley55;
With a motorman monkey,
A sloth56 for his bunkie,
The eel-lectric trolley is jolly,
By golly!”
“Say, if you do that again, I’ll chuck you into one of these holes,” declared Tom, laughing in spite of himself.
“It’s a wonder that you inventive young geniuses wouldn’t hitch57 a tank full of electric eels on to your ship,” continued the irrepressible Dick, dancing about at a safe distance. “You would be able to carry food and power then in the same box. When the batteries, or whatever the eels make their current with gave out, you could fry ‘em.”
The professor insisted on taking his electric eels back to the ship, where all on board took turns at “getting shocks.” But it was found that after a few shocks had been delivered the power of the electricity died out. Finally the professor threw the eels back into one of the odd pools that they had made, as it was impossible to carry them with them.
“I had an eel-lusive idea that we might have some for dinner,” said Dick, who was fond of fried eels.
“Shucks,” declared Tom, “I’d just as soon swallow a dynamo as tackle those fellows. You would just about get a dish of them down when you’d start a storage battery in your tummy. Not for me, thanks!”
After the episode of the electric eels Jack lost no time in rising once more. Again they found themselves winging their way above the mighty58 forest. From time to time silvery streams could be seen flashing among the trees, and here and there were patches of open swamp where tail jungle brush grew rankly, above which they could catch the hot breath of miasmatic59 vapors60. In some of the swamps were big pools, and as the shadow of the flying ship swept over them they could see big alligators61 flopping62 off logs in alarm.
At noon, being over an open spot which appeared to be dry and fairly free from brush or obstructions63, they decided64 to descend65 for lunch. Of course, cooking was out of the question in the air, the boys not daring to risk having a lighted stove under such a volume of inflammable gas as was contained in the big lifting bag.
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1
imp
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| n.顽童 | |
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fortress
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| n.堡垒，防御工事 | |
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literally
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| adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实 | |
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hoisted
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| 把…吊起，升起( hoist的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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tenacity
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| n.坚韧 | |
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demons
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| n.恶人( demon的名词复数 )；恶魔；精力过人的人；邪念 | |
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hurl
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| vt.猛投，力掷，声叫骂 | |
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coax
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| v.哄诱，劝诱，用诱哄得到，诱取 | |
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redoubtable
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| adj.可敬的；可怕的 | |
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savage
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| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
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relinquish
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| v.放弃，撤回，让与，放手 | |
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steering
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| n.操舵装置 | |
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winsome
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| n.迷人的，漂亮的 | |
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14
countenance
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| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
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15
benighted
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| adj.蒙昧的 | |
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valiant
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| adj.勇敢的，英勇的；n.勇士，勇敢的人 | |
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savvy
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| v.知道，了解；n.理解能力，机智，悟性；adj.有见识的，懂实际知识的，通情达理的 | |
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18
crouching
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的现在分词 ) | |
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braces
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| n.吊带，背带；托架( brace的名词复数 )；箍子；括弧；（儿童）牙箍v.支住( brace的第三人称单数 )；撑牢；使自己站稳；振作起来 | |
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20
awe
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| n.敬畏，惊惧；vt.使敬畏，使惊惧 | |
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21
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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22
exhausted
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| adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的 | |
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arsenal
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| n.兵工厂，军械库 | |
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coaxingly
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| adv. 以巧言诱哄，以甘言哄骗 | |
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effigy
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| n.肖像 | |
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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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27
bristle
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| v.（毛发）直立，气势汹汹，发怒；n.硬毛发 | |
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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
crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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30
stolidly
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| adv.迟钝地，神经麻木地 | |
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31
exasperated
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| adj.恼怒的 | |
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32
bawled
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| v.大叫，大喊( bawl的过去式和过去分词 )；放声大哭；大声叫出；叫卖（货物） | |
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33
growled
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| v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说 | |
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34
possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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doomed
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| 命定的 | |
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36
glide
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| n./v.溜，滑行；(时间)消逝 | |
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swampy
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| adj.沼泽的，湿地的 | |
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38
hind
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| adj.后面的，后部的 | |
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39
amazement
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| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
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40
admonished
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| v.劝告( admonish的过去式和过去分词 )；训诫；（温和地）责备；轻责 | |
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41
vent
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| n.通风口，排放口；开衩；vt.表达，发泄 | |
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42
intervals
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| n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 )；间隔时间；[数学]区间；（戏剧、电影或音乐会的）幕间休息 | |
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considerably
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| adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上 | |
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44
investigations
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| （正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究 | |
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45
paraphernalia
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| n.装备；随身用品 | |
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46
dabbling
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| v.涉猎( dabble的现在分词 )；涉足；浅尝；少量投资 | |
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47
commotion
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| n.骚动，动乱 | |
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48
adroit
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| adj.熟练的，灵巧的 | |
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49
hue
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| n.色度；色调；样子 | |
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50
eels
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| abbr. 电子发射器定位系统（=electronic emitter location system） | |
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51
writhing
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| （因极度痛苦而）扭动或翻滚( writhe的现在分词 ) | |
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52
screeched
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| v.发出尖叫声( screech的过去式和过去分词 )；发出粗而刺耳的声音；高叫 | |
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53
poking
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| n. 刺，戳，袋 vt. 拨开，刺，戳 vi. 戳，刺，捅，搜索，伸出，行动散慢 | |
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54
wriggling
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| v.扭动，蠕动，蜿蜒行进( wriggle的现在分词 )；（使身体某一部位）扭动；耍滑不做，逃避（应做的事等）；蠕蠕 | |
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55
trolley
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| n.手推车，台车；无轨电车；有轨电车 | |
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56
sloth
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| n.[动]树懒；懒惰，懒散 | |
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57
hitch
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| v.免费搭(车旅行)；系住；急提；n.故障；急拉 | |
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mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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miasmatic
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| adj.毒气的，沼气的 | |
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60
vapors
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| n.水汽，水蒸气，无实质之物( vapor的名词复数 )；自夸者；幻想 [药]吸入剂 [古]忧郁（症）v.自夸，（使）蒸发( vapor的第三人称单数 ) | |
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61
alligators
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| n.短吻鳄( alligator的名词复数 ) | |
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62
flopping
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| n.贬调v.（指书、戏剧等）彻底失败( flop的现在分词 )；（因疲惫而）猛然坐下；（笨拙地、不由自主地或松弛地）移动或落下；砸锅 | |
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63
obstructions
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| n.障碍物( obstruction的名词复数 )；阻碍物；阻碍；阻挠 | |
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64
decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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descend
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| vt./vi.传下来，下来，下降 | |
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