CHAPTER VI AT BAY WITH THE WOLF PACK

 Og trembled with the inborn¹ fear of the hairy men who knew that to be caught alone at night by the wolf pack was certain and horrible death. Despite the knowledge that he had a mighty² weapon in his fire Og felt this fear and he crouched³ lower and shuddered⁴ as he peered among the trees for the searching, gleaming eyes of the first of the pack hunters.

Yet with his fears he did not lose his new found interest in mental speculation⁵. He watched the wolf cubs⁶ with great curiosity. Here was coming a horde⁷ of their kind; would they listen to the pack call and desert him, or would they be urged on by the presence of a great number to turn and attack him? Og knew he could prevent this now with a blow of his stone hammer. Yet he forbore, for he had confidence in them and, for some reason he could not understand, he wanted his confidence tested out. So far he had been to them a master[56] and a companion helping⁸ them and sharing their hardships. Here was to be a test of their loyalty⁹. He wondered how it would work out.

On came the giant pack, their terrible chorus now echoing through the night. They were following a scent¹⁰ Og knew by the directness and swiftness of their coming. Og thought a moment and then he knew. They were headed for the Valley of the Stream. From afar they too had caught the odor of the dead horses and they were coming to the feast. Presently Og heard the soft pad-padding of many feet. Then in the blackness among the trees he caught the gleam of eyes, many of them, hundreds of them, thousands of them, as the big pack flowed among the giant sequoias. Og could see their sinister¹¹ shapes vaguely¹² as they loped along through the darkness, and as he watched them come he could hardly believe there were so many wolves in the world.

 

The pack stopped. Og and his fire arrested them

 

The pack stopped. Og and his fire arrested them. They stopped their calling too, and in the gloom among the trees they began encircling the campfire, drawing closer and closer. Og watched them fearfully and he knew that he would stand little chance in the face of that horde if they were to plunge¹⁴ in upon him. He knew that the fire held[57] them from an immediate¹⁵ attack. How long this would keep them off he could not guess. Eventually, he knew, he would have to fight for his life. How long he could stand up under the wolf pack was a question. Grimly he determined¹⁶ to sell his life dearly. He stood up, and grasped a fiery¹⁷ brand in either hand, and flattened¹⁸ himself against the big bowlder, alert and ready for the attack when it should come.

Closer and closer crept the wolves. Bold yet cautious with their boldness. Some came fully¹³ into the firelight and lay there and snarled¹⁹ and glared at him. Og shifted his fire brand and whipped stone upon stone at them. Some leaped back with snarls²¹. Others stood their ground. One hit fairly between the eyes, fell, kicked convulsively for a moment and lay still. Og knew that he had killed him, and despite his situation the hunting yell of triumph of the hairy men leapt to his lips and echoed through the night. It was an achievement for a hairy man to kill a wolf under any circumstances.

The call seemed to affect the wolf pack like a challenge, and one, a scarred and savage²² looking old warrior²³, the leader of the pack, stalked so close to the fire that Og could have reached over[58] and touched him with his fire brand. There he stood and snarled at the hairy boy, and Og read in that snarl²⁰ certain death. The hairy boy knew his time was at hand.

With a mighty leap the old wolf hurled²⁴ himself clear over the fire and with eyes blazing and fangs²⁵ opened and ready to set in the hairy boy’s throat he bore down upon the valiant²⁶ figure who leaned back against the rock.

Og saw him coming, saw him leap, saw the evil light in his eyes, the set of his powerful jaws²⁷, and the long yellow fangs. He was frightened; terribly frightened, and he shrieked²⁸ with terror as he lunged forward with one of his fire brands. But his fear did not affect his aim. The blazing stick was jammed squarely into the big wolf’s mouth and down his throat, and with a gurgling snarl of rage and fear the beast fell struggling at Og’s feet. Swiftly the hairy boy reached for his stone hammer. But quickly as he moved two other forms moved quicker. With snarls that were ugly the wolf cubs leaped upon the fallen leader of the pack and burying their teeth into his hairy throat held him struggling and kicking on the ground until Og with his stone hammer crushed in his skull²⁹.

[59]

Again the triumphant³⁰ hunting call of the hairy men echoed through the night, and this time the pack did not creep closer, for Og, elated at his victory, seized fiery brand after fiery brand and hurled them blazing at the slinking forms. The wolves leaped back snarling³¹. Og knew he had them cowed. He knew, too, he had them puzzled. They could not understand why two young wolves should be on the boy’s side of the fire and should help to pull down their leader. The pack snarled at the cubs and the young wolves hurled defiance³² back.

But the call of the cooked meat; the feast awaiting the pack in the valley of the stream was too strong for the wolf horde. True they had smelled cooked meat here,—a little of it, and here, too, was some food. But their leader was gone and there was small use in lingering facing a puny³³ human being made strong by some mysterious power in blazing sticks, when the air was heavy with the scent of much meat not far away. Gradually the pack began to melt into the blackness as group after group impatiently started up wind toward the feast. Soon only a few stragglers were left to snarl across the camp fire at the hairy boy and the, to them, renegade wolves. And before[60] long these, too, followed the big pack northward³⁴.

Og stood at bay until the last gleaming eye had disappeared from the blackness in front of him. Then he put his fire brands into the flames once more and crouching³⁵ down drew the body of the old wolf to him. Long he gazed at this and at the two wolf cubs and gradually he realized that the young wolves had stood the test. They had been loyal to him. They had repaid him for his care of them. Og began to have a feeling of gratitude³⁶ that he sought to express. And his method of expression took a strange form. As he had chanted “Og, Og, Og,” in The Valley of the Stream when he had conquered fire, now he began to chant, “Ru, Ru, Ru, Ru,” rocking eagerly back and forth³⁷ and pointing to the two wolf cubs who watched him curiously³⁸. He was giving them a name, the highest honor a hairy man could bestow³⁹. “Ru” was their name and to Og it meant, “the beast that repays loyalty with loyalty.” And thus did the wolves that renounced⁴⁰ the pack become “Ru” the dog, the enemy of the lawless and the companion of man.

[61]

1 inborn   

adj.天生的，生来的，先天的

参考例句：

• He is a man with an inborn love of joke.他是一个生来就喜欢开玩笑的人。
• He had an inborn talent for languages.他有语言天分。

2 mighty   

adj.强有力的；巨大的

参考例句：

• A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
• The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。

3 crouched   

v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He crouched down beside her. 他在她的旁边蹲了下来。
• The lion crouched ready to pounce. 狮子蹲下身，准备猛扑。

4 shuddered   

v.战栗( shudder的过去式和过去分词 )；发抖；（机器、车辆等）突然震动；颤动

参考例句：

• He slammed on the brakes and the car shuddered to a halt. 他猛踩刹车，车颤抖着停住了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I shuddered at the sight of the dead body. 我一看见那尸体就战栗。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

6 cubs   

n.幼小的兽，不懂规矩的年轻人( cub的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a lioness guarding her cubs 守护幼崽的母狮
• Lion cubs depend on their mother to feed them. 狮子的幼仔依靠母狮喂养。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 horde   

n.群众，一大群

参考例句：

• A horde of children ran over the office building.一大群孩子在办公大楼里到处奔跑。
• Two women were quarrelling on the street,surrounded by horde of people.有两个妇人在街上争吵，被一大群人围住了。

8 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

9 loyalty   

n.忠诚，忠心

参考例句：

• She told him the truth from a sense of loyalty.她告诉他真相是出于忠诚。
• His loyalty to his friends was never in doubt.他对朋友的一片忠心从来没受到怀疑。

10 scent   

n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉

参考例句：

• The air was filled with the scent of lilac.空气中弥漫着丁香花的芬芳。
• The flowers give off a heady scent at night.这些花晚上散发出醉人的芳香。

11 sinister   

adj.不吉利的，凶恶的，左边的

参考例句：

• There is something sinister at the back of that series of crimes.在这一系列罪行背后有险恶的阴谋。
• Their proposals are all worthless and designed out of sinister motives.他们的建议不仅一钱不值，而且包藏祸心。

12 vaguely   

adv.含糊地，暖昧地

参考例句：

• He had talked vaguely of going to work abroad.他含糊其词地说了到国外工作的事。
• He looked vaguely before him with unseeing eyes.他迷迷糊糊的望着前面，对一切都视而不见。

13 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

14 plunge   

v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲

参考例句：

• Test pool's water temperature before you plunge in.在你跳入之前你应该测试水温。
• That would plunge them in the broil of the two countries.那将会使他们陷入这两国的争斗之中。

15 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

16 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

17 fiery   

adj.燃烧着的，火红的；暴躁的；激烈的

参考例句：

• She has fiery red hair.她有一头火红的头发。
• His fiery speech agitated the crowd.他热情洋溢的讲话激动了群众。

18 flattened   

[医]（水）平扁的，弄平的

参考例句：

• She flattened her nose and lips against the window. 她把鼻子和嘴唇紧贴着窗户。
• I flattened myself against the wall to let them pass. 我身体紧靠着墙让他们通过。

19 snarled   

v.（指狗）吠，嗥叫， （人）咆哮( snarl的过去式和过去分词 )；咆哮着说，厉声地说

参考例句：

• The dog snarled at us. 狗朝我们低声吼叫。
• As I advanced towards the dog, It'snarled and struck at me. 我朝那条狗走去时，它狂吠着向我扑来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 snarl   

v.吼叫，怒骂，纠缠，混乱；n.混乱，缠结，咆哮

参考例句：

• At the seaside we could hear the snarl of the waves.在海边我们可以听见波涛的咆哮。
• The traffic was all in a snarl near the accident.事故发生处附近交通一片混乱。

21 snarls   

n.（动物的）龇牙低吼( snarl的名词复数 )；愤怒叫嚷（声）；咆哮（声）；疼痛叫声v.（指狗）吠，嗥叫， （人）咆哮( snarl的第三人称单数 )；咆哮着说，厉声地说

参考例句：

• I don't know why my hair snarls easily. 我不知道我的头发为什么容易缠结。 来自辞典例句
• She combed the snarls out of her hair. 她把头发的乱结梳理通。 来自辞典例句

22 savage   

adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人

参考例句：

• The poor man received a savage beating from the thugs.那可怜的人遭到暴徒的痛打。
• He has a savage temper.他脾气粗暴。

23 warrior   

n.勇士，武士，斗士

参考例句：

• The young man is a bold warrior.这个年轻人是个很英勇的武士。
• A true warrior values glory and honor above life.一个真正的勇士珍视荣誉胜过生命。

24 hurled   

v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂

参考例句：

• He hurled a brick through the window. 他往窗户里扔了块砖。
• The strong wind hurled down bits of the roof. 大风把屋顶的瓦片刮了下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

25 fangs   

n.（尤指狗和狼的）长而尖的牙( fang的名词复数 )；（蛇的）毒牙；罐座

参考例句：

• The dog fleshed his fangs in the deer's leg. 狗用尖牙咬住了鹿腿。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Dogs came lunging forward with their fangs bared. 狗龇牙咧嘴地扑过来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

26 valiant   

adj.勇敢的，英勇的；n.勇士，勇敢的人

参考例句：

• He had the fame of being very valiant.他的勇敢是出名的。
• Despite valiant efforts by the finance minister,inflation rose to 36%.尽管财政部部长采取了一系列果决措施，通货膨胀率还是涨到了36%。

27 jaws   

n.口部；嘴

参考例句：

• The antelope could not escape the crocodile's gaping jaws. 那只羚羊无法从鱷鱼张开的大口中逃脱。
• The scored jaws of a vise help it bite the work. 台钳上有刻痕的虎钳牙帮助它紧咬住工件。

28 shrieked   

v.尖叫( shriek的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She shrieked in fright. 她吓得尖叫起来。
• Li Mei-t'ing gave a shout, and Lu Tzu-hsiao shrieked, "Tell what? 李梅亭大声叫，陆子潇尖声叫：“告诉什么？ 来自汉英文学 - 围城

29 skull   

n.头骨；颅骨

参考例句：

• The skull bones fuse between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five.头骨在15至25岁之间长合。
• He fell out of the window and cracked his skull.他从窗子摔了出去，跌裂了颅骨。

30 triumphant   

adj.胜利的，成功的；狂欢的，喜悦的

参考例句：

• The army made a triumphant entry into the enemy's capital.部队胜利地进入了敌方首都。
• There was a positively triumphant note in her voice.她的声音里带有一种极为得意的语气。

31 snarling   

v.（指狗）吠，嗥叫， （人）咆哮( snarl的现在分词 )；咆哮着说，厉声地说

参考例句：

• "I didn't marry you," he said, in a snarling tone. “我没有娶你，"他咆哮着说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• So he got into the shoes snarling. 于是，汤姆一边大喊大叫，一边穿上了那双鞋。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险

32 defiance   

n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗

参考例句：

• He climbed the ladder in defiance of the warning.他无视警告爬上了那架梯子。
• He slammed the door in a spirit of defiance.他以挑衅性的态度把门砰地一下关上。

33 puny   

adj.微不足道的，弱小的

参考例句：

• The resources at the central banks' disposal are simply too puny.中央银行掌握的资金实在太少了。
• Antonio was a puny lad,and not strong enough to work.安东尼奥是个瘦小的小家伙，身体还不壮，还不能干活。

34 northward   

adv.向北；n.北方的地区

参考例句：

• He pointed his boat northward.他将船驶向北方。
• I would have a chance to head northward quickly.我就很快有机会去北方了。

35 crouching   

v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• a hulking figure crouching in the darkness 黑暗中蹲伏着的一个庞大身影
• A young man was crouching by the table, busily searching for something. 一个年轻人正蹲在桌边翻看什么。 来自汉英文学 - 散文英译

36 gratitude   

adj.感激，感谢

参考例句：

• I have expressed the depth of my gratitude to him.我向他表示了深切的谢意。
• She could not help her tears of gratitude rolling down her face.她感激的泪珠禁不住沿着面颊流了下来。

37 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

38 curiously   

adv.有求知欲地；好问地；奇特地

参考例句：

• He looked curiously at the people.他好奇地看着那些人。
• He took long stealthy strides. His hands were curiously cold.他迈着悄没声息的大步。他的双手出奇地冷。

39 bestow   

v.把…赠与，把…授予；花费

参考例句：

• He wished to bestow great honors upon the hero.他希望将那些伟大的荣誉授予这位英雄。
• What great inspiration wiII you bestow on me?你有什么伟大的灵感能馈赠给我？

40 renounced   

v.声明放弃( renounce的过去式和过去分词 )；宣布放弃；宣布与…决裂；宣布摒弃

参考例句：

• We have renounced the use of force to settle our disputes. 我们已再次宣布放弃使用武力来解决争端。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Andrew renounced his claim to the property. 安德鲁放弃了财产的所有权。 来自《简明英汉词典》