During this very first night at fire guarding the hairy boy learned a lesson that has been carried down through thousands of generations of camp fire watchers ever since. About the fifth or sixth time he had aroused himself and searched[42] about for wood he got an idea. Forthwith he squatted6 down and started thinking again. The result was that he did not stop in his wood gathering7 when he had enough to replenish8 the flame. Instead, he kept on gathering wood which he piled up on the shelf of rock. After that each time he awoke he had only to reach over and take a few sticks from the pile, replenish the fire and fall off to sleep again. His wood pile lasted him until morning.
With the coming of dawn Og began preparation for his search for the colony of hairy men and women who had fled the valley at the first signs of eruption9. First of all he made certain of his fire. His original fire stick had long since burned, so he gathered together a bundle of fagots of the hardest and most knotted and pitchy sticks he could find. These he bound round with bark, and lighted from the fire. Thus he purposed carrying his new found treasure, determined10 to guard it with his life, for he knew full well if the flames went out he could never replenish them again.
This done, he squatted down to think. First he would need a stone hammer; the first and only implement11 the hairy men had invented. He searched up and down the shelf and scrambled[43] over the cliffs and hillside until he found a stone of the proper shape, round and smooth and water worn, yet rough enough to permit a grip for the lashings of bark that would bind12 it to the haft. Several times Og found stones that would almost do, and each time he squatted down and examined them. In the back of his brain he felt that he could make them satisfactory if he only knew how, yet his brain was not developed enough to invent the simple method of chipping them into the proper shape. The hairy folk had not yet progressed so far that they could with their own handicraft make things to serve them. They must needs find the stones ready to be tied into war hammers else they went without or used clubs instead.
Og was particular. Half the morning he searched until he found what he wanted. Then taking it back to the ledge13, he selected a tough stick for the haft and with bark lashed14 the two together. When he had finished it he surveyed it with pride. Crude though it was, it was far better than any he had ever seen, even better than the one his father took so much pride in, and that was the best hammer among the hairy men.
This done Og sat and thought longer. He would[44] need throwing stones; five round ones that his long sinewy15 arms could snap out with deadly speed and accuracy. Some of the hairy folk had learned to be expert at throwing stones. Og was among the best of them.
Several good stones he piled up with his fagots and his stone hammer. Then he spent more time in thinking. Gradually he worked out the idea that it would be a good thing if he could carry some provisions with him. This was an entirely16 new thought for a hairy man; never before had one of the race ever had intelligence enough to think ahead to the extent of providing for the future. They lived from day to day, feasting while food was before them and hunting only when they grew hungry again. With watering mouth Og thought of his feast of the day before; of the abundance of roast horse meat down in the valley of steam, traces of which were still wafted17 to his sensitive nostrils18. But he dared not go back into the valley again. The presence of the Mountain That Walked and Sabre Tooth forbade this.
Og’s eyes brightened as he saw the wolf cubs19 still sprawled20 beside the fire. But as he looked at them they looked up at him and their tails wagged[45] with pleasure. Og could not understand the strange feeling that swept over him, but he knew then that he could never bring himself to kill them. He would go hungry rather than slay21 them and cheat himself of their companionship. Og’s sense of loyalty22 had grown out of all proportion to anything of the sort that had ever been possessed23 by a hairy man before. And so he gave up the idea of carrying food with him, but he stored the thought away in his brain for future use.
Although Og had been out hunting when the hairy folk had fled the valley at the first rumble24 of the volcano he knew well which way they had traveled. No hairy man of late years ever journeyed north. Always there was a cold, ominous25 spirit in the Northland who killed with icy breath and numbing26 pain and left his victims stark27 and stone-like; at least, that is the story that a hairy man had brought to the tribe years ago when he staggered among the cave dwellers28 and besought29 some to take him into their cave and wrap their arms around him and draw him close to their bodies as the hairy folk did to keep each other warm. He was the last of as many men as he had fingers who had traveled into the Northland. The rest, he said, were dead and turned to stone.
[46]
So Og knew that the hairy folk had not gone north. Nor had they gone east, for that was where night came from. Hairy men feared the hours of night for it was then that Sabre Tooth and the Stalking Death hunted. The volcano was in the west, so the only road that lay open was southward. Og knew the tribe had gone southward. He knew it because of his crude reasoning as well as by a pack instinct fully30 developed in him.
And so Og faced southward, and as he picked his way up the cliff and along the face of the rugged31, rock strewn and partially32 wooded hillside he was indeed a strange sight, one big hand clutching his stone hammer and the other carrying his flaming fagots and his supply of throwing stones, while the two wolf cubs romped33 ahead and in front of him. The crest34 of the hill finally gained Og found that his way lay in a deep forest, a forest of such tremendous trees that Og looked like a dwarf35 among them. They were the giant sequoia36, the ancestors of the few remaining big trees still left, and in Og’s day they clothed a greater part of the entire earth. They were so tall that their tops were brushed by low hanging clouds, and so big at the base that Og knew that every man, woman and child in his colony, by[47] joining hands, could not encircle them and Og’s tribe was a big tribe composed of almost a hundred people. Og had seen the trees before and did not stand in awe37 of them.
For hours he swung along among the big trees, his eyes, ears and nose alert as always. Once the wolf cubs started two rabbit-like animals from their cover. Og saw them as quickly as the wolf cubs and as they whisked across an open space he dropped his hammer, shifted a throwing stone to his right hand and whipped it after one of the scurrying38 beasts with the speed of a bullet. Og heard with satisfaction the thump39 as it thudded against the rabbit’s ribs40. Then, as the animal leaped into the air, and fell to the ground kicking, Og gave voice to a hunting yell of triumph. He was about to rush forward and seize his kill when he noticed the wolf cubs. Both had given chase to the other rabbit, and so close had they been to that animal when they started it that it had to take to another cover immediately, which it did by dodging41 into a hollow under some rocks. The wolf cubs were working frantically42 to dig it out when Og caught sight of them. He watched them with interest for a moment. Then his eyes brightened with a new thought. Hastily he secured his own[48] prize, then hurried over to where the wolf cubs were digging, throwing a veritable shower of earth between their legs as they dug their way deeper and deeper under the rocks. Og squatted down close at hand and watched them. Soon they had dug a hole deep enough for one cub to squeeze into. The more active of the two shouldered his companion out of the way and wriggled43 in. Deeper and deeper he went until just the tip of his tail showed. Then Og heard a growl44, a shrill45 frightened squeak46 that was cut short by the crunching47 of breaking bones.
Og squatted down close at hand and watched them
Presently the wolf cub began backing out. Og watched his progress and as his head came to view with the limp form of the rabbit dangling48 from his jaws49 Og seized him by the scruff of the neck and wrenched50 the rabbit from his mouth. With a growl the wolf cub sprang at him. But Og was waiting for just this and as he leaped Og’s hand shot out and cuffed51 him so hard that he was knocked heels over head and sent sprawling52 into the rock pile. Og looked at him and smiled. Then as he came whimpering back toward him, Og tore off a leg of the rabbit and tossed it to him. He did likewise for the other cub. Then he squatted down and tearing the rest of the animal to pieces[49] he ate the choicest parts and tossed the scraps53 to the wolf cubs. And as he crouched54 there eating the raw flesh of the rabbit his brain was still very busy (as the brightness of his eyes attested) with the discovery that the wolf cubs could be made capital hunting companions. He reasoned that he could teach them to hunt and give over their kill to him if he went about it properly and once trained they would be invaluable55, for they were swifter of foot and keener of eye and of nose than he was.
Just how he was to go about this work of making them understand that he was their master and that they must do as he willed, Og was not sure. Being primitive56, as they were, Og and the cubs were closer to a common ground of understanding than are humans and animals to-day. Og could read a great deal from their attitude and demeanor57 and he could see that already he had impressed upon them that he was wiser and stronger than they were, and thus their master. He realized that this was the first step in their training. He had a vague feeling, too, that the next step was the development of a spirit of camaraderie58; a friendly sharing of everything, food, hardships and troubles. In that way he could help them and they[50] would not get discontented and run away. He looked back to the occurrence of the day before when he had rescued the one cub from death in the crack in the earth, and he realized that already this spirit had begun to develop, and he marveled that these things could come about.
So interested was he with his thoughts that he had consumed the rabbit and was licking the blood from his fingers when he thought of his fire, and of the miracle that fire worked with food. He experienced a sense of disappointment that he had not thought of this sooner and tried to cook the rabbit. But he realized that he had still another left and he decided59 to experiment with that.
All eagerness and enthusiasm, he began to gather great armfuls of wood until he had a huge pile stacked up in front of a towering bowlder that had a sheltering overhang, which Og, wise woodsman that he was, recognized as a capital place for a night’s camp. With his back to this he began to build his fire, lighting60 it from his still flaming bundle of fagots.
After he had a scorching61 blaze well under way, Og took the remaining rabbit, which he had slung62 over his shoulder by a bark sling63, and with the[51] dangling form in his hands crouched before the fire and studied the situation for a long time, while the wolf cubs sat and looked on expectantly. Truly he was at a loss to know just how to proceed with what was to be the first meal ever cooked by a human being. Finally the obvious and most simple method seemed to appeal to him and he dropped the rabbit into the flames and watched it eagerly. He crouched as close to the fire as he dared to watch the transformation64 of the rabbit into cooked food. But presently he began to cough and spit, and hold his sensitive nose with his fingers. The odor of burning fur was nauseating65 and for a moment discouraging. Og could not understand it. He hauled the blackened animal from the fire and held it at arm’s length, while with his fingers still on his nose he looked at it ruefully. Then his eyes brightened with a new thought. It was the hair that caused the stench; the fur. Then why not take it off? He never ate the skin and fur of animals anyway.
With his fingers and sharp sticks (the hairy men had not yet discovered the use of flint knives) he began skinning the rabbit, until presently he held in his hand a tempting66 chunk67 of raw meat. Og was of a mind to forego the cooking of it and[52] eat it as it was, as he had always eaten rabbit. Yet the memory of the savory68 odor and flavor of the cooked horse remained with him and he put the rabbit again in the fire. Forthwith a most delightful69 odor began to assail70 his nostrils, and the wolf cubs began to get uneasy and crowd forward, their mouths dripping saliva71.
So tempting and insistent72 was the odor that long before the rabbit was properly cooked Og dragged it from the fire to eat it. But when he tried to break the tender steaming flesh apart he grunted73 with irritation74. It was so hot it burned. He laid it on a cool stone and waited impatiently for he knew now that things cooled off and lost heat when no flame showed.
What a feast that was. Og tore the flesh from the bones and ate with great gusto, making a loud smacking75 sound. But he did not feast without sharing with the wolf cubs. Many a savory lump went to them and all the bones that Og’s strong teeth could not crack were theirs also. And as Og ate, his fast developing brain made note of the fact that wherever the flames had touched the rabbit it was blackened and burned. This meat did not taste as good as the meat that had laid on the coals and was cooked to a rich brown. Og[53] decided that he would lay his meat on the coals after the flame had burned out thereafter.
So intent was the hairy boy at his feast that for a time he forgot to be alert. Indeed the need for caution was only recalled to him by a growl of one of the wolf cubs, as both of them got up and came around to his side of the fire, the hair on their backs bristling76. Og, startled, looked up inquiringly. He neither saw, smelled nor heard any real reasons for fear, yet he sensed from the wolf cubs that something ill was in the wind.
While they were feasting twilight77 had come on. The sun had gone down and a blue half light of evening overcast78 the sky save in the west where great crimson79 and orange streaks80 were splashed across the horizon. But there among the giant trees where Og and the wolf cubs were, a really heavy darkness had settled down; a darkness that was thick and ominous to Og as night always was. Instinctively81 the hairy boy crept nearer the fire and moved his stone hammer closer to him as he peered with anxious eyes among the giant tree trunks any one of which he knew was big enough to hide the slinking form of Sabre Tooth the tiger, or the big cave leopard82, or any other of the many evil monsters of the forest.
[54]
Suddenly Og knew the danger that threatened him and he grew cold. From far down the night came a weird83 blood chilling call, that grew and grew in intensity84 until it seemed as if a thousand voices were howling in the dark. It was the pack call of the wolves and Og knew that this was the great pack, the pack of a thousand fanged85 jaws and sinister86 gleaming eyes. And they were coming in his direction.
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1
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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lurking
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| 潜在 | |
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cub
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| n.幼兽，年轻无经验的人 | |
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cramped
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| a.狭窄的 | |
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huddled
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| 挤在一起（huddle的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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squatted
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| v.像动物一样蹲下( squat的过去式和过去分词 )；非法擅自占用（土地或房屋）；为获得其所有权；而占用某片公共用地。 | |
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gathering
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| n.集会，聚会，聚集 | |
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replenish
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| vt.补充；(把…)装满；(再)填满 | |
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eruption
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| n.火山爆发；（战争等）爆发；（疾病等）发作 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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implement
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| n.(pl.)工具，器具；vt.实行，实施，执行 | |
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bind
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| vt.捆，包扎；装订；约束；使凝固；vi.变硬 | |
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13
ledge
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| n.壁架，架状突出物；岩架，岩礁 | |
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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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sinewy
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| adj.多腱的，强壮有力的 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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wafted
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| v.吹送，飘送，（使）浮动( waft的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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nostrils
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| 鼻孔( nostril的名词复数 ) | |
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cubs
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| n.幼小的兽，不懂规矩的年轻人( cub的名词复数 ) | |
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20
sprawled
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| v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的过去式和过去分词)；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着） | |
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21
slay
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| v.杀死，宰杀，杀戮 | |
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loyalty
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| n.忠诚，忠心 | |
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possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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rumble
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| n.隆隆声；吵嚷；v.隆隆响；低沉地说 | |
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ominous
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| adj.不祥的，不吉的，预兆的，预示的 | |
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numbing
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| adj.使麻木的，使失去感觉的v.使麻木，使麻痹( numb的现在分词 ) | |
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stark
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| adj.荒凉的；严酷的；完全的；adv.完全地 | |
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dwellers
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| n.居民，居住者( dweller的名词复数 ) | |
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29
besought
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| v.恳求，乞求（某事物）( beseech的过去式和过去分词 )；(beseech的过去式与过去分词) | |
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fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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rugged
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| adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的 | |
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partially
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| adv.部分地，从某些方面讲 | |
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romped
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| v.嬉笑玩闹( romp的过去式和过去分词 )；（尤指在赛跑或竞选等中）轻易获胜 | |
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crest
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| n.顶点；饰章；羽冠；vt.达到顶点；vi.形成浪尖 | |
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35
dwarf
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| n.矮子，侏儒，矮小的动植物；vt.使…矮小 | |
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sequoia
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| n.红杉 | |
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awe
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| n.敬畏，惊惧；vt.使敬畏，使惊惧 | |
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38
scurrying
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| v.急匆匆地走( scurry的现在分词 ) | |
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39
thump
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| v.重击，砰然地响；n.重击，重击声 | |
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40
ribs
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| n.肋骨( rib的名词复数 )；（船或屋顶等的）肋拱；肋骨状的东西；（织物的）凸条花纹 | |
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41
dodging
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| n.避开，闪过，音调改变v.闪躲( dodge的现在分词 )；回避 | |
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42
frantically
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| ad.发狂地, 发疯地 | |
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43
wriggled
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| v.扭动，蠕动，蜿蜒行进( wriggle的过去式和过去分词 )；（使身体某一部位）扭动；耍滑不做，逃避（应做的事等） | |
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44
growl
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| v.（狗等）嗥叫，（炮等）轰鸣；n.嗥叫，轰鸣 | |
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45
shrill
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| adj.尖声的；刺耳的；v尖叫 | |
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46
squeak
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| n.吱吱声，逃脱；v.（发出）吱吱叫，侥幸通过；（俚）告密 | |
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47
crunching
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| v.嘎吱嘎吱地咬嚼( crunch的现在分词 )；嘎吱作响；（快速大量地）处理信息；数字捣弄 | |
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48
dangling
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| 悬吊着( dangle的现在分词 )； 摆动不定； 用某事物诱惑…； 吊胃口 | |
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49
jaws
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| n.口部；嘴 | |
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50
wrenched
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| v.（猛力地）扭( wrench的过去式和过去分词 )；扭伤；使感到痛苦；使悲痛 | |
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51
cuffed
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| v.掌打，拳打( cuff的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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52
sprawling
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| adj.蔓生的，不规则地伸展的v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的现在分词 )；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着） | |
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53
scraps
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| 油渣 | |
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54
crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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invaluable
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| adj.无价的，非常宝贵的，极为贵重的 | |
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56
primitive
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| adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物 | |
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demeanor
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| n.行为；风度 | |
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58
camaraderie
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| n.同志之爱，友情 | |
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59
decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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60
lighting
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| n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光 | |
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61
scorching
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| adj. 灼热的 | |
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62
slung
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| 抛( sling的过去式和过去分词 )； 吊挂； 遣送； 押往 | |
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63
sling
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| vt.扔；悬挂；n.挂带；吊索，吊兜；弹弓 | |
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64
transformation
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| n.变化；改造；转变 | |
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nauseating
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| adj.令人恶心的，使人厌恶的v.使恶心，作呕( nauseate的现在分词 ) | |
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tempting
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| a.诱人的, 吸引人的 | |
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67
chunk
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| n.厚片，大块，相当大的部分（数量） | |
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68
savory
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| adj.风味极佳的，可口的，味香的 | |
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delightful
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| adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的 | |
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assail
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| v.猛烈攻击，抨击，痛斥 | |
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saliva
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| n.唾液，口水 | |
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insistent
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| adj.迫切的，坚持的 | |
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grunted
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| （猪等）作呼噜声( grunt的过去式和过去分词 )； （指人）发出类似的哼声； 咕哝着说 | |
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irritation
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| n.激怒，恼怒，生气 | |
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smacking
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| 活泼的，发出响声的，精力充沛的 | |
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bristling
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| a.竖立的 | |
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twilight
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| n.暮光，黄昏；暮年，晚期，衰落时期 | |
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overcast
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| adj.阴天的，阴暗的，愁闷的；v.遮盖，（使）变暗，包边缝；n.覆盖，阴天 | |
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crimson
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| n./adj.深(绯)红色(的)；vi.脸变绯红色 | |
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streaks
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| n.（与周围有所不同的）条纹( streak的名词复数 )；（通常指不好的）特征（倾向）；（不断经历成功或失败的）一段时期v.快速移动( streak的第三人称单数 )；使布满条纹 | |
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instinctively
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| adv.本能地 | |
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leopard
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| n.豹 | |
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weird
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| adj.古怪的，离奇的；怪诞的，神秘而可怕的 | |
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intensity
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| n.强烈，剧烈；强度；烈度 | |
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fanged
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| adj.有尖牙的，有牙根的，有毒牙的 | |
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sinister
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| adj.不吉利的，凶恶的，左边的 | |
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