John Bunyan, The Pilgrim's ProgressAfter some time, Hazel woke Buckhorn. Then he scratched a shallow nest inthe earth and slept. One watch succeeded another through the day, though howthe rabbits judged the passing of the time is something that civilized2 humanbeings have lost the power to feel. Creatures that have neither clocks nor booksare alive to all manner of knowledge about time and the weather; and aboutdirection, too, as we know from their extraordinary migratory4 and homingjourneys. The changes in the warmth and dampness of the soil, the falling of thesunlight patches, the altering movement of the beans in the light wind, thedirection and strength of the air currents along the ground -- all these wereperceived by the rabbit awake.
The sun was beginning to set when Hazel woke to see Acorn5 listening andsniffing in the silence, between two white-skinned flints. The light was thicker,the breeze had dropped and the beans were still. Pipkin was stretched out a littleway away. A yellow-and-black burying beetle8, crawling across the white fur of hisbelly, stopped, waved its short, curved antennae9 and then moved on again. Hazelgrew tense with sudden misgiving10. He knew that these beetles11 come to deadbodies, on which they feed and lay their eggs. They will dig away the earth fromunder the bodies of small creatures, such as shrew mice and fallen fledglings, andthen lay their eggs on them before covering them with soil. Surely Pipkin couldnot have died in his sleep? Hazel sat up quickly. Acorn started and turned towardhim and the beetle scurried13 away over the pebbles15 as Pipkin moved and woke.
"How's the paw?" said Hazel.
Pipkin put it to the ground. Then he stood on it.
"It feels much better," he said. "I think I shall be able to go as well as the othersnow. They won't leave me behind, will they?"Hazel rubbed his nose behind Pipkin's ear. "No one's going to leave anyoneelse behind," he said. "If you had to stay, I'd stay with you. But don't pick up anymore thorns, Hlao-roo, because we may have to go a long way."The next moment all the rabbits leaped up in panic. From close at hand thesound of a shot tore across the fields. A peewit rose screaming. The echoes cameback in waves, like a pebble14 rolling round a box, and from the wood across theriver came the clattering16 of wood pigeons' wings among the branches. In aninstant the rabbits were running in all directions through the bean rows, each onetearing by instinct toward holes that were not there.
Hazel stopped short on the edge of the beans. Looking about him, he could seenone of the others. He waited, trembling, for the next shot: but there was silence.
Then he felt, vibrating along the ground, the steady tread of a man going awaybeyond the crest17 over which they had come that morning. At that moment Silverappeared, pushing his way through the plants close by.
"I hope it's the crow, don't you?" said Silver.
"I hope no one's been silly enough to bolt out of this field," answered Hazel.
"They're all scattered18. How can we find them?""I don't think we can," said Silver. "We'd better go back to where we were.
They'll come in time."It was in fact a long time before all the rabbits had come back to the hollow inthe middle of the field. As he waited, Hazel realized more fully19 than ever howdangerous was their position, without holes, wandering in country they did notknow. The lendri, the dog, the crow, the marksman -- they had been lucky toescape them. How long would their luck hold? Would they really be able to travelon as far as Fiver's high place -- wherever it might be?
"I'd settle for any decent, dry bank, myself," he thought, "as long as there wassome grass and no men with guns. And the sooner we can find one the better."Hawkbit was the last to return and as he came up Hazel set off at once. Helooked cautiously out from among the beans and then darted20 into the hedgerow.
The wind, as he stopped to sniff6 it, was reassuring21, carrying only the scents22 ofevening dew, may and cow dung. He led the way into the next field, a pasture, andhere they all fell to feeding, nibbling23 their way over the grass as easily as thoughtheir warren were close by.
When he was halfway24 across the field, Hazel became aware of a hrududuapproaching very fast on the other side of the further hedge. It was small and lessnoisy than the farm tractor which he had sometimes watched from the edge of theprimrose wood at home. It passed in a flash of man-made, unnatural25 color,glittering here and there and brighter than a winter holly26 tree. A few momentslater came the smells of petrol and exhaust. Hazel stared, twitching27 his nose. Hecould not understand how the hrududu could move so quickly and smoothlythrough the fields. Would it return? Would it come through the fields faster thanthey could run, and hunt them down?
As he paused, wondering what was best to be done, Bigwig came up.
"There's a road there, then," he said. "That'll give some of them a surprise,won't it?""A road?" said Hazel, thinking of the lane by the notice board. "How do youknow?""Well, how do you suppose a hrududu can go that fast? Besides, can't you smellit?"The smell of warm tar12 was now plain on the evening air.
"I've never smelled that in my life," said Hazel with a touch of irritation28.
"Ah," said Bigwig, "but then you were never sent out stealing lettuces29 for theThrearah, were you? If you had been, you'd have learned about roads. There'snothing to them, really, as long as you let them alone by night. They're elil then,all right.""You'd better teach me, I think," said Hazel. "I'll go up with you and we'll letthe others follow."They ran on and crept through the hedge. Hazel looked down at the road inastonishment. For a moment he thought that he was looking at another river --black, smooth and straight between its banks. Then he saw the gravel30 embeddedin the tar and watched a spider running over the surface.
"But that's not natural," he said, sniffing7 the strange, strong smells of tar andoil. "What is it? How did it come there?""It's a man thing," said Bigwig. "They put that stuff there and then the hrududilrun on it -- faster than we can; and what else can run faster than we?""It's dangerous, then? They can catch us?""No, that's what's so odd. They don't take any notice of us at all. I'll show you,if you like."The other rabbits were beginning to reach the hedge as Bigwig hopped31 downthe bank and crouched32 on the verge33 of the road. From beyond the bend came thesound of another approaching car. Hazel and Silver watched tensely. The carappeared, flashing green and white, and raced down toward Bigwig. For aninstant it filled the whole world with noise and fear. Then it was gone andBigwig's fur was blowing in the whack34 of wind that followed it down the hedges.
He jumped back up the bank among the staring rabbits.
"See? They don't hurt you," said Bigwig. "As a matter of fact, I don't thinkthey're alive at all. But I must admit I can't altogether make it out."As on the riverbank, Blackberry had moved away and was already down on theroad on his own account, sniffing out toward the middle, halfway between Hazeland the bend. They saw him start and jump back to the shelter of the bank.
"What is it?" said Hazel.
Blackberry did not answer, and Hazel and Bigwig hopped toward him alongthe verge. He was opening and shutting his mouth and licking his lips, much as acat does when something disgusts it.
"You say they're not dangerous, Bigwig," he said quietly. "But I think they mustbe, for all that."In the middle of the road was a flattened35, bloody36 mass of brown prickles andwhite fur, with small black feet and snout crushed round the edges. The fliescrawled upon it, and here and there the sharp points of gravel pressed up throughthe flesh.
"A yona," said Blackberry. "What harm does a yona do to anything but slugsand beetles? And what can eat a yona?""It must have come at night," said Bigwig.
"Yes, of course. The yonil always hunt by night. If you see them by day, they'redying.""I know. But what I'm trying to explain is that at night the hrududil have greatlights, brighter than Frith himself. They draw creatures toward them, and if theyshine on you, you can't see or think which way to go. Then the hrududu is quitelikely to crush you. At least, that's what we were taught in the Owsla. I don'tintend to try it.""Well, it will be dark soon," said Hazel. "Come on, let's get across. As far as Ican see, this road's no good to us at all. Now that I've learned about it, I want toget away from it as soon as I can."By moonrise they had made their way through Newtown churchyard, where alittle brook37 runs between the lawns and under the path. Wandering on, theyclimbed a hill and came to Newtown Common -- a country of peat, gorse andsilver birch. After the meadows they had left, this was a strange, forbidding land.
Trees, herbage, even the soil -- all were unfamiliar38. They hesitated among thethick heather, unable to see more than a few feet ahead. Their fur became soakedwith the dew. The ground was broken by rifts39 and pits of naked black peat, wherewater lay and sharp white stones, some as big as a pigeon's, some as a rabbit'sskull, glimmered40 in the moonlight. Whenever they reached one of these rifts therabbits huddled41 together, waiting for Hazel or Bigwig to climb the further sideand find a way forward. Everywhere they came upon beetles, spiders and smalllizards which scurried away as they pushed through the fibrous, resistant42 heather.
Once Buckthorn disturbed a snake, and leaped into the air as it whipped betweenhis paws to vanish down a hole at the foot of a birch.
The very plants were unknown to them -- pink lousewort with its sprays ofhooked flowers, bog43 asphodel and the thin-stemmed blooms of the sundews,rising above their hairy, fly-catching mouths, all shut fast by night. In this closejungle all was silence. They went more and more slowly, and made long halts inthe peat cuts. But if the heather itself was silent, the breeze brought distant nightsounds across the open common. A cock crowed. A dog ran barking and a manshouted at it. A little owl3 called "Kee-wik, kee-wik" and something -- a vole or ashrew -- gave a sudden squeal44. There was not a noise but seemed to tell of danger.
Late in the night, toward moonset, Hazel was looking up from a cut where theywere crouching45 to a little bank above. As he was wondering whether to climb upto it, to see whether he could get a clear view ahead, he heard a movement behindhim and turned to find Hawkbit at his shoulder. There was something furtive46 andhesitant about him and Hazel glanced at him sharply, wondering for a momentwhether he could have sickness or poison on him. "Er -- Hazel," said Hawkbit,looking past him into the face of the dreary47 black cliff. "I -- er -- that is to say we-- er -- feel that we -- well, that we can't go on like this. We've had enough of it."He stopped. Hazel now saw that Speedwell and Acorn were behind him,listening expectantly. There was a pause.
"Go on, Hawkbit," said Speedwell, "or shall I?""More than enough," said Hawkbit, with a kind of foolish importance.
"Well, so have I," answered Hazel, "and I hope there won't be much more.
Then we can all have a rest.""We want to stop now," said Speedwell. "We think it was stupid to come sofar.""It gets worse and worse the further we go," said Acorn. "Where are we goingand how long will it be before some of us stop running for good and all?""It's the place that worries you," said Hazel. "I don't like it myself, but it won'tgo on forever."Hawkbit looked sly and shifty. "We don't believe you know where we aregoing," he said. "You didn't know about the road, did you? And you don't knowwhat there is in front of us.""Look here," said Hazel, "suppose you tell me what you want to do and I'll tellyou what I think about it.""We want to go back," said Acorn. "We think Fiver was wrong.""How can you go back through all we've come through?" replied Hazel. "Andprobably get killed for wounding an Owsla officer, if you ever do get back? Talksense, for Frith's sake.""It wasn't we who wounded Holly," said Speedwell.
"You were there and Blackberry brought you there. Do you think they won'tremember that? Besides--"Hazel stopped as Fiver approached, followed by Bigwig.
"Hazel," said Fiver, "could you come up on the bank with me for a fewmoments? It's important.""And while you're there," said Bigwig, scowling48 round at the others from underthe great sheaf of fur on his head, "I'll just have a few words with these three.
Why don't you get washed, Hawkbit? You look like the end of a rat's tail left in atrap. And as for you, Speedwell--"Hazel did not wait to hear what Speedwell looked like. Following Fiver, hescrambled up the lumps and shelves of peat to the overhang of gravelly earth andthin grass that topped them. As soon as Fiver had found a place to clamber out,he led the way along the edge to the bank which Hazel had been looking at beforeHawkbit spoke49 to him. It stood a few feet above the nodding, windy heather andwas open and grassy50 at the top. They climbed it and squatted51 down. To their rightthe moon, smoky and yellow in thin night cloud, stood over a clump52 of distantpine trees. They looked southward across the dismal53 waste. Hazel waited for Fiverto speak, but he remained silent.
"What was it you wanted to say to me?" asked Hazel at last.
Fiver made no reply and Hazel paused in perplexity. From below, Bigwig wasjust audible.
"And you, Acorn, you dog-eared, dung-faced disgrace to a gamekeeper's gibbet,if I only had time to tell you--"The moon sailed free of the cloud and lit the heather more brightly, but neitherHazel nor Fiver moved from the top of the bank. Fiver was looking far out beyondthe edge of the common. Four miles away, along the southern skyline, rose theseven-hundred-and-fifty-foot ridge54 of the downs. On the highest point, the beechtrees of Cottington's Clump were moving in a stronger wind than that which blewacross the heather.
"Look!" said Fiver suddenly. "That's the place for us, Hazel. High, lonely hills,where the wind and the sound carry and the ground's as dry as straw in a barn.
That's where we ought to be. That's where we have to get to."Hazel looked at the dim, far-off hills. Obviously, the idea of trying to reachthem was out of the question. It might well prove to be all they could do to findtheir way across the heather to some quiet field or copse bank like those they hadbeen used to. It was lucky that Fiver had not come out with this foolish notion infront of any of the others, especially as there was trouble enough already. If onlyhe could be persuaded to drop it here and now, there would be no harm done --unless, indeed, he had already said anything to Pipkin.
"I don't think we could get the others to go as far as that, Fiver," he said.
"They're frightened and tired as it is, you know. What we need is to find a safeplace soon, and I'd rather succeed in doing what we can than fail to do what wecan't."Fiver gave no sign of having heard him. He seemed to be lost in his ownthoughts. When he spoke again, it was as though he were talking to himself.
"There's a thick mist between the hills and us. I can't see through it, but throughit we shall have to go. Or into it, anyway.""A mist?" said Hazel. "What do you mean?""We're in for some mysterious trouble," whispered Fiver, "and it's not elil. Itfeels more like -- like mist. Like being deceived and losing our way."There was no mist around them. The May night was clear and fresh. Hazelwaited in silence and after a time Fiver said, slowly and expressionlessly, "But wemust go on, until we reach the hills." His voice sank and became that of a sleep-talker. "Until we reach the hills. The rabbit that goes back through the gap willrun his head into trouble. That running -- not wise. That running -- not safe.
Running -- not--" He trembled violently, kicked once or twice and became quiet.
In the hollow below, Bigwig seemed to be drawing to a close. "And now, youbunch of mole-snouted, muck-raking, hutch-hearted sheep ticks, get out of mysight sharp. Otherwise I'll--" He became inaudible again.
Hazel looked once more at the faint line of the hills. Then, as Fiver stirred andmuttered beside him, he pushed him gently with one forepaw and nuzzled hisshoulder.
Fiver started. "What was I saying, Hazel?" he asked. "I'm afraid I can'tremember. I meant to tell you--""Never mind," answered Hazel. "We'll go down now. It's time we were gettingthem on again. If you have any more queer feelings like that, keep close to me. I'lllook after you."
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1
timorous
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| adj.胆怯的，胆小的 | |
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civilized
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| a.有教养的，文雅的 | |
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owl
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| n.猫头鹰，枭 | |
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migratory
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| n.候鸟，迁移 | |
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acorn
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| n.橡实，橡子 | |
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sniff
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| vi.嗅…味道；抽鼻涕；对嗤之以鼻，蔑视 | |
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sniffing
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| n.探查法v.以鼻吸气，嗅，闻( sniff的现在分词 )；抽鼻子（尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气）；抱怨，不以为然地说 | |
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beetle
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| n.甲虫，近视眼的人 | |
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antennae
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| n.天线；触角 | |
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misgiving
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| n.疑虑，担忧，害怕 | |
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beetles
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| n.甲虫( beetle的名词复数 ) | |
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tar
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| n.柏油，焦油；vt.涂或浇柏油/焦油于 | |
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13
scurried
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| v.急匆匆地走( scurry的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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pebble
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| n.卵石，小圆石 | |
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pebbles
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| [复数]鹅卵石； 沙砾； 卵石，小圆石( pebble的名词复数 ) | |
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clattering
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| 发出咔哒声（clatter的现在分词形式） | |
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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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scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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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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darted
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| v.投掷，投射( dart的过去式和过去分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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reassuring
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| a.使人消除恐惧和疑虑的，使人放心的 | |
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scents
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| n.香水( scent的名词复数 )；气味；（动物的）臭迹；（尤指狗的）嗅觉 | |
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23
nibbling
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| v.啃，一点一点地咬（吃）( nibble的现在分词 )；啃出（洞），一点一点咬出（洞）；慢慢减少；小口咬 | |
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halfway
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| adj.中途的，不彻底的，部分的；adv.半路地，在中途，在半途 | |
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unnatural
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| adj.不自然的；反常的 | |
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holly
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| n.[植]冬青属灌木 | |
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twitching
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| n.颤搐 | |
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irritation
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| n.激怒，恼怒，生气 | |
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lettuces
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| n.莴苣，生菜（ lettuce的名词复数 ）；生菜叶 | |
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gravel
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| n.砂跞；砂砾层；结石 | |
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hopped
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| 跳上[下]( hop的过去式和过去分词 )； 单足蹦跳； 齐足（或双足）跳行； 摘葎草花 | |
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crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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verge
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| n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临 | |
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whack
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| v.敲击，重打，瓜分；n.重击，重打，尝试，一份 | |
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flattened
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| [医]（水）平扁的，弄平的 | |
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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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brook
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| n.小河，溪；v.忍受，容让 | |
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unfamiliar
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| adj.陌生的，不熟悉的 | |
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rifts
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| n.裂缝( rift的名词复数 )；裂隙；分裂；不和 | |
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glimmered
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| v.发闪光，发微光( glimmer的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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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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resistant
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| adj.(to)抵抗的，有抵抗力的 | |
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bog
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| n.沼泽；室...陷入泥淖 | |
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44
squeal
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| v.发出长而尖的声音；n.长而尖的声音 | |
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45
crouching
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的现在分词 ) | |
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46
furtive
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| adj.鬼鬼崇崇的，偷偷摸摸的 | |
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47
dreary
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| adj.令人沮丧的，沉闷的，单调乏味的 | |
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48
scowling
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| 怒视，生气地皱眉( scowl的现在分词 ) | |
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49
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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50
grassy
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| adj.盖满草的；长满草的 | |
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51
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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52
clump
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| n.树丛，草丛；vi.用沉重的脚步行走 | |
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53
dismal
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| adj.阴沉的，凄凉的，令人忧郁的，差劲的 | |
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54
ridge
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| n.山脊；鼻梁；分水岭 | |
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