I said, "Sure. I'll read it." I had the notion he was trying to get something over without actually coming out with it flat, so I listened carefully.
He paused for a while, wiping his glasses and pursing his lips.
"That island's not right for fulmars and gannets. Wrong environment. Never have multiplied as they should. Whole thing should be concentrated north. Plenty of cliff sites north. None here. Won't do. Terns, yes. Fulmars and gannets, no. Trouble is, WFI is tenacious1. Stupidly so. It works, they say. I tell them it works badly. It's going to take a lot to move them: total failure of a colony or two.
"You're intelligent, George. Put two and two together. Wish you luck."
He shook my hand quickly and jumped into the helicopter. Bill and Joy had to call me twice before I could come out of a trance of bewildered speculation2. In a daze3 I helped the boys load our last piece of equipment: a huge barrel of salt they had pilfered4 from the local Food Plant.
The island is big, about five by fifteen miles, and it must have been a fine piece of land. It still was, even though mucked everywhere with white-to-greenish bird dung. There were steep hills on the mainland side, marshes5 to seaward, and in the middle natural meadowland broken by woods containing pine, and some beech6 and maple7. We moored8 in a small but fairly deep harbor at a wharf9 for loading foods. Our barracks stood just off the wharf. In addition to all the necessities, there was a two-way radio, marked "Use in emergency only", and a handbook with information on approximate numbers of birds to be taken, locations of nesting sites, and so on. Equipment, including snares10 and nets, was stored in an equipment room. And there was a storeroom containing packaged foods, no freezing or cooling necessary for preservation11.
Behind the barracks stood a warehouse12 for storing processed birds, and a shop with the processors themselves. Everything looked orderly and efficient. A small plant supplied us with light and heat and power for the machines.
We arrived in November. By December, the first sea birds began to return to their nesting sites, a few at a time. Soon we were so busy snagging them as they came to land that we had little time for anything but work and sleep. Even so, Bill took the time to salt several dozens of gannets and fulmars for future eating, and he was looking forward to the eggs.
Spring and early summer soon rolled around, and we were collecting young birds, the nestlings. So it went.
I can't say any of us liked the work. For one thing we all sickened of the endless slaughter13. For another, the stench and dirt were overwhelming. The island should have been a fine place for living. There were sheltered spots for houses, a small harbor, woodlots, meadows for cattle and pigs, some bottom land for food crops, the sea for fish—a fine location; but it was ruined by birds. It was a slimy, stinking14 hell.
The birds flew everywhere in huge flocks, especially in the morning when the gannets and fulmars came back from fishing at sea. Excrement16 fell from the sky like a stinking sleet17. We couldn't get away from the smell or the smell away from us. It was in our clothing, hair, under our fingernails. No watermen ever washed so often or so thoroughly18 as we did, but the stink15 remained. We lost weight and appetite steadily19, for the packaged food tasted of excrement soon after it was opened, or seemed to, which is just as bad.
However, by the end of June most of the birds had left, and we had our helicopter inspection20. The same man who was fascinated by the cold remains21 of a couple of eggs in my kitchen was on this route, and we cooked three or four of our chickens. His enormous appetite sharpened ours, and we had a feast. He was almost tearfully grateful. By July, the freighter had put in, loaded, and left. For the first time in many months, we were unoccupied.
Bill and Joy immediately set about knitting a large drift net. They were happily excited at the prospect24 of gilling large numbers of government fish. As for me, I sat down to read a book on small animal ecology.
I read that book through three times. I kept at it night and day, and it was the hardest work I've ever done, because I wasn't reading just to pass the time. There was a message in that book, I was sure of it, a message from Carter, a man I liked and trusted.
By the time I began to get a glimmering25 of an idea as to what Carter's message was, the boys had their net knitted and hung. I went back to the book to find out what to do about this idea, and the boys sailed out to drift the net. I waited for them in a sweat of impatience26. They came back at dawn the next day with a boat load of food fish. I met them at the wharf.
"Bill," I said, "what are you going to do with that load of fish?"
Bill looked at the fish. He said with slow and tremendous satisfaction, "I aim to eat them fish, George Henry."
"Bill," I said, "not even you can eat all those fish. I've got a scheme. Save back some of the fish, sure. Let Joy smoke a few even. But take the rest into Murdock tonight and sell them to Hornsby. He used to buy my oysters27. He'll buy your fish."
"What for?" Bill asked.
"Get some bootleg gin," I said.
"That makes sense. What else?"
"Rats," I said. "I want rats. Buy some traps or get Pete Younger to make some. Not muskrats28. Barn rats. As many as you can catch."
"Fish," Bill said. "Fish for rats. Boy, the birds has got you."
He gave in after a while, more to keep me good natured than for any other reason, that and the gin. He came back with two dozen live, healthy specimens29, and watched with an open mouth as I let them loose.
The months passed, and I was worried. To drive the problem from my head, I took the boat out and surveyed the shallow waters off the island. I found something. I found a bed of oysters in broken rock, a bed not marked on WFI charts, because you could see it hadn't been worked for a long time. Later, I located clam30 beds on the marshy31 side of the island. The damn place was a paradise, or might be, once those birds were cut down, but I couldn't eliminate them by sheer slaughter because of the WFI.
There didn't seem to be many rats around. December came and all the filthy32, stinking work with it, and still no rats. Once in a while, eggs would be missing from occupied nests, and that was all. Gulls34 could have gotten those. We toiled35 through stinking February, foul36 March, odiferous April, and evil-smelling May. Still no rats.
I sent Bill back to the mainland for more; and by September, rats were everywhere. Bill looked at me from his bunk37 one night and said, "I hope you're satisfied."
I was more than that. I was terrified. They absolutely swarmed38. It was impossible to walk from the barracks to the boat at mid-day without having to kick rats off the path. They consumed most of the non-metallic gear in the boat, including the sail. So far, they hadn't gnawed39 a way into our barracks store room, or we'd have literally40 starved to death.
"Boys," I said, "just sit tight. Wait till December. These rats are the best friends you ever had. They're going to make this island livable. No more stink and stench."
"What," said Bill, "are you going to do with the rats when the birds are gone?"
Joy merely moaned.
"We'll kill them."
"If they don't get us first," Bill said.
It was an awesome41 and bloody42 slaughter. The fulmars and gannets, most of the gulls, some of the terns, were either wiped out or harried43 off the island in a single season. And the island became a heaving, moving, revolting mass of rats, and nothing but rats. They attacked us on sight, from sheer hunger. Not a blade of grass grew anywhere on the island, and rats are not grass eaters as an ordinary thing. There was one hopeful sign. They were beginning to eat each other.
Day after day we were caged in our barracks. The constant squealing44 and scratching under the barracks was bad enough. What made us desperate was the fact that they had gnawed a way into the store room and most of the packaged food was gone. We still had some smoked fish hung on the rafters, and a few salted fulmars in the barrel, but that was all. It was then that we remembered the two-way radio, marked "Use in emergency only". Bill said, after weighing all the evidence coolly and carefully, that this here, in his opinion, was an emergency.
I got WFI mainland and finally persuaded them to put me in touch with Carter, Bird Stations Ecologist. I told him we were having a little trouble with the genus Rattus, and would he, for God's sake, do something about it, quick. I can still near him laughing. It was a while before he could speak at all.
"Keep them at bay, general. I'll be over early tomorrow morning."
I don't believe any men have ever been so happy to see Carter as we were.
"They'll balance," he said. "Starvation will do its work. I've brought along a couple of pairs of barn owls45. They'll help a lot. I see you read that ecology book. Good job. Station virtually wiped out. I'm sending supplies over in a week's time. Anybody wants to know, you're supposed to be helping46 extend and restore the tern and gull33 colonies. Wouldn't be a bad idea to try a few other animal experiments. Milder, though. Smaller scale. Send canvas for a sail too."
He was gone before we could answer. The small freighter put in July fifteenth. She had no cargo47 of processed birds to take back, of course. The captain detailed48 a few men to unload our supplies, and we helped them eagerly. There were six calves49 and heifers, two cows and a bull, five pigs, one boar and two sows, several dozen hens and a rooster. Best of all, there was a big case containing seeds: corn, barley50, oats, seed potatoes, melons, beets51, kale, dozens of others. A plow52 and two draught53 horses, mare54 and stallion. Several pounds of rat poison. A hand forge and several tons of coke. Iron. A hundred pounds of linen55 twine56 for nets, as well as ropes of all sizes. Canvas. Tools of all kinds. A big medical kit22.
In a year's time, we had prospered57. No richer land, due to the bird droppings, was ever farmed. And the sandier areas could be depended upon for melons and other crops demanding a lighter58, drier, and not so rich soil. Not only that, but we were five, now, instead of three. The Jackson boys had lured59 a couple of husky girls to the island in the boat. The boys claimed the women fell in love with them. I think they fell in love with the island.
This fast work on the part of the Jacksons seemed a little rash to me. I was still not at all sure we'd be allowed to remain and enjoy the work we had done. Several times, I was tempted60 to use the radio again, but decided61 to wait. I'm glad now I did.
In August, a little more than a year after his last visit, Carter set his helicopter down at the wharf again.
After lunch in the barracks of baked fish, fresh milk, potatoes, salad, and melons, he pushed back his chair and said, "I suppose you've been wondering."
"We'd like to know," I said.
He nodded. "The mainland's going to pieces. So is the whole world. It isn't just food. We can still produce that. Remember what you said about the bad roads, bad telephones? You put your finger on it. So much manpower, machinery62, energy, material is used up in getting food and processing it and distributing it, there isn't enough for other things. A tenth of the world's population and a quarter of its total power resources go into processing plankton63 alone. We are literally eating ourselves to death. Utilities and services are breaking down rapidly. No new dwellings64 of any kind have been built for ten years or more. Oil is short, cement, iron, steel, coal, plastics, wiring, radios, telephones, everything is in short supply and getting shorter. Transport is staggering to a halt."
He paused, took off his glasses, and twirled them by one side piece.
"Many of us saw it coming. A few decided to do something. We thought there should be undisturbed nuclei65, a few able people with ample food supplies. You are one such center. There are others at various bird stations along the coast. You'll be joined shortly by a few more people, young men and women, among them a trained nurse, a doctor, a skilled carpenter, so on."
Bill cleared his throat.
"What you said, I guess it was all around me, only I never seen it, not to put together. Just one thing. The manager at the Food Plant, he used to stop and kid me about all the fish I'd stole from the government in my time. He was abraggin' about how WFI had newer and better ways of gettin' things done, always newer and better every year. How come they couldn't keep caught up?"
"Bill, those new techniques that manager talked about were old stuff a hundred, two hundred years ago. The applications are new, some of them, but the basic ideas are old.
"The World Food Institute drew off all the scientific, inventive brains of the world, and put them to chasing food. No time for basic research, basic development; just time for tinkering and retinkering old ideas. Been no new basic idea for a couple of centuries. Too much need for immediate23, practical results. The well is dry, and it won't be filled again with a reservoir of new, big ideas, not in our time. Been living off the past; and the present has caught up with us."
Before Carter left the island to visit the other stations, I had a chance to have a talk with him.
"Was that sociologist66, Ranson, in on this?"
"No. We had to be careful. Still have to be. Just a few of us. That's why the loss of the bird colonies here had to seem natural, or at least a natural accident. And I had to keep clear of it. You can see that."
"Carter, what happens on the mainland when things break up?"
"Won't be pretty. Bad. Very bad."
"For example?"
"You read the ecology book. What happens when a species multiplies beyond its ability to feed itself?"
A dozen new Rollins Islanders showed up a few at a time in Carter's helicopter. We've been working and waiting a long time now, waiting for Carter to come back. For over a year now, our boat has made no crossing to the mainland. Last night, over twenty-five miles of sea in clear weather, we saw the sky lit by a great fire.
The End
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1
tenacious
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| adj.顽强的，固执的，记忆力强的，粘的 | |
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speculation
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| n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机 | |
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daze
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| v.(使)茫然，(使)发昏 | |
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pilfered
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| v.偷窃（小东西），小偷( pilfer的过去式和过去分词 )；偷窃（一般指小偷小摸） | |
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marshes
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| n.沼泽，湿地( marsh的名词复数 ) | |
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beech
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| n.山毛榉；adj.山毛榉的 | |
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maple
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| n.槭树，枫树，槭木 | |
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moored
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| adj. 系泊的 动词moor的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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wharf
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| n.码头，停泊处 | |
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snares
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| n.陷阱( snare的名词复数 )；圈套；诱人遭受失败（丢脸、损失等）的东西；诱惑物v.用罗网捕捉，诱陷，陷害( snare的第三人称单数 ) | |
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preservation
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| n.保护，维护，保存，保留，保持 | |
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warehouse
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| n.仓库；vt.存入仓库 | |
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slaughter
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| n.屠杀，屠宰；vt.屠杀，宰杀 | |
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stinking
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| adj.臭的，烂醉的，讨厌的v.散发出恶臭( stink的现在分词 )；发臭味；名声臭；糟透 | |
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stink
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| vi.发出恶臭；糟透，招人厌恶；n.恶臭 | |
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excrement
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| n.排泄物，粪便 | |
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sleet
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| n.雨雪；v.下雨雪，下冰雹 | |
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thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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inspection
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| n.检查，审查，检阅 | |
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remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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kit
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| n.用具包，成套工具；随身携带物 | |
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immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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prospect
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| n.前景，前途；景色，视野 | |
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25
glimmering
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| n.微光，隐约的一瞥adj.薄弱地发光的v.发闪光，发微光( glimmer的现在分词 ) | |
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impatience
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| n.不耐烦，急躁 | |
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oysters
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| 牡蛎( oyster的名词复数 ) | |
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muskrats
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| n.麝鼠（产于北美，毛皮珍贵）( muskrat的名词复数 ) | |
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specimens
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| n.样品( specimen的名词复数 )；范例；（化验的）抽样；某种类型的人 | |
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clam
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| n.蛤，蛤肉 | |
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marshy
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| adj.沼泽的 | |
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filthy
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| adj.卑劣的；恶劣的，肮脏的 | |
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gull
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| n.鸥；受骗的人；v.欺诈 | |
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gulls
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| n.鸥( gull的名词复数 )v.欺骗某人( gull的第三人称单数 ) | |
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toiled
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| 长时间或辛苦地工作( toil的过去式和过去分词 )； 艰难缓慢地移动，跋涉 | |
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foul
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| adj.污秽的；邪恶的；v.弄脏；妨害；犯规；n.犯规 | |
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bunk
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| n.(车、船等倚壁而设的)铺位；废话 | |
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swarmed
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| 密集( swarm的过去式和过去分词 )； 云集； 成群地移动； 蜜蜂或其他飞行昆虫成群地飞来飞去 | |
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gnawed
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| 咬( gnaw的过去式和过去分词 )； （长时间） 折磨某人； （使）苦恼； （长时间）危害某事物 | |
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literally
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| adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实 | |
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awesome
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| adj.令人惊叹的，难得吓人的，很好的 | |
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bloody
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| adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染 | |
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harried
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| v.使苦恼( harry的过去式和过去分词 )；不断烦扰；一再袭击；侵扰 | |
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44
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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45
owls
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| n.猫头鹰( owl的名词复数 ) | |
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helping
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| n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的 | |
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cargo
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| n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物 | |
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detailed
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| adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的 | |
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49
calves
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| n.(calf的复数)笨拙的男子，腓；腿肚子( calf的名词复数 )；牛犊；腓；小腿肚v.生小牛( calve的第三人称单数 )；（冰川）崩解；生（小牛等），产（犊）；使（冰川）崩解 | |
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50
barley
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| n.大麦，大麦粒 | |
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51
beets
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| 甜菜( beet的名词复数 )； 甜菜根； （因愤怒、难堪或觉得热而）脸红 | |
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52
plow
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| n.犁，耕地，犁过的地；v.犁，费力地前进[英]plough | |
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53
draught
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| n.拉，牵引，拖；一网（饮，吸，阵)；顿服药量，通风；v.起草，设计 | |
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mare
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| n.母马，母驴 | |
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linen
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| n.亚麻布，亚麻线，亚麻制品；adj.亚麻布制的，亚麻的 | |
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56
twine
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| v.搓，织，编饰；（使）缠绕 | |
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prospered
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| 成功，兴旺( prosper的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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58
lighter
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| n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级 | |
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59
lured
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| 吸引，引诱（lure的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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tempted
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| v.怂恿（某人）干不正当的事；冒…的险（tempt的过去分词） | |
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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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62
machinery
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| n.(总称)机械，机器；机构 | |
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63
plankton
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| n.浮游生物 | |
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64
dwellings
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| n.住处，处所( dwelling的名词复数 ) | |
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65
nuclei
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| n.核 | |
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66
sociologist
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| n.研究社会学的人，社会学家 | |
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67
fangs
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| n.（尤指狗和狼的）长而尖的牙( fang的名词复数 )；（蛇的）毒牙；罐座 | |
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