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CHAPTER II THE GREAT MAIL ROBBERY
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"Great heavens!" cried the Doctor, springing up. "The pearls gone? And they were registered, too!"
 
"Yes," said Speedy, "here's the thrush himself. He'll tell you all about it."
 
And going to the door, he called in the bird who had carried the registered package.
 
"Doctor," said the thrush, who was also very upset and breathless, "it wasn't my fault. I never let those pearls out of my sight. I flew straight off for the Harmattan Rocks. But part of the trip I had to go over land, if I took the shortest cut. And on the way I saw a sister of mine whom I hadn't met in a long time, sitting in a tree in the jungle below me. And I thought it would be no harm if I went and talked to her a while. So I flew down and she was very glad to see me. I couldn't talk properly with the string of the package in my mouth, so I put the parcel down on the bough1 of the tree behind me—right near me, you understand—and went on talking to my sister. And when I turned around to pick it up again it was gone."
 
"Perhaps it slipped off the tree," said the Doctor, "and fell down into the underbrush."
 
"It couldn't have," said the thrush. "I put it into a little hollow in the bark of the bough. It just couldn't have slipped or rolled. Somebody must have taken it."
 
"Dear me," said John Dolittle. "Robbing the mails; that's a serious thing. I wonder who could have done it?"
 
"I'll bet it's Jack2 Wilkins, the cross-eyed pearl fisherman," whispered Dab-Dab. "A man with a face like that would steal anything. And he was the only one, besides us and Speedy, who knew the pearls were going through the mails. It's Wilkins, sure as you're alive."
 
"I wonder," said the Doctor. "They do say he is a most unscrupulous customer. Well, there's nothing for it, I suppose, but that I should paddle back to Fantippo right away and try to find him. The post office is responsible for the loss of registered mail, and if Mr. Wilkins took those pearls I'm going to get them back again. But after this we will make it a post office rule that carriers of registered mail may not talk to their sisters or anyone else while on duty."
 
And in spite of the lateness of the hour, John Dolittle said a hasty farewell to Chief Nyam-Nyam and started off by moonlight for Fantippo Harbor.
 
In the meantime, Speedy and the thrush flew over the land by the short cut to the post office.
 
"What are you going to say to Wilkins, Doctor?" asked Dab-Dab as the canoe glided3 along over the moonlit sea. "It's a pity you haven't got a pistol or something like that. He looks a desperate character and he isn't likely to give up the pearls without a fight."
 
"I don't know what I'll say to him. I'll see when I get there," said John Dolittle. "But we must be very careful how we approach, so that he doesn't see us coming. If he should pull up his anchor and sail away we would never be able to overtake him by canoe."
 
"I tell you what, Doctor," said Dab-Dab, "let me fly ahead and do a little spying on the enemy. Then I'll come back and tell you anything I can find out. Maybe he isn't on his schooner4 at all at present. And we ought to be hunting him somewhere else."
 
"All right," said the Doctor. "Do that. It will take me another four hours at least to reach Fantippo at this pace."
 
So Dab-Dab flew away over the sea and John Dolittle continued to paddle his canoe bravely forward.
 
After about an hour had passed he heard a gentle sort of whispered quacking5 high overhead and he knew that his faithful housekeeper6 was returning. Presently, with a swish of feathers, Dab-Dab settled down at his feet. And on her face was an expression which meant great news.
 
"He's there, Doctor—and he's got the pearls, all right!" said she. "I peeked7 through the window and I saw him counting them out from one little box into another by the light of a candle."
 
"The villain8!" grunted9 the Doctor, putting on all the speed he could. "Let's hope he doesn't get away before we reach Fantippo."
 
Dawn was beginning to show before they came in sight of the ship they sought. This made approaching the schooner without being seen extremely difficult. And the Doctor went all the way around the Island of No-Man's-Land, so as to come upon the ship from the other side, where he would not have to cross so large an open stretch of sea.
 
Paddling very, very softly, he managed to get the canoe right under the bow of the ship. Then, tying his own craft so it couldn't float away, he swarmed10 up the schooner's anchor chain and crept on to the boat on hands and knees.
 
Full daylight had not yet come and the light from a lamp could be seen palely shining up the stairs which led to the cabin. The Doctor slid forward like a shadow, tiptoed his way down the stairs and peered through the partly opened door.
 
The cross-eyed Wilkins was still seated at the table, as Dab-Dab had described, counting pearls. Two other men were asleep in bunks11 around the room. The Doctor swung open the door and jumped in. Instantly Wilkins sprang up from the table, snatched a pistol from his belt and leveled it at the Doctor's head.
 
 
 
"Move an inch and you're a dead man!" he snarled13.
 
The Doctor, taken aback for a moment, gazed at the pistol muzzle14, wondering what to do next. Wilkins, without moving his eyes from the Doctor for a second, closed the pearl box with his left hand and put it into his pocket.
 
While he was doing this, however, Dab-Dab sneaked15 in under the table, unseen by anyone. And suddenly she bit the pearl fisherman in the leg with her powerful beak16.
 
With a howl Wilkins bent17 down to knock her off.
 
"Now's your chance, Doctor!" yelled the duck.
 
And in the second while the pistol was lowered the Doctor sprang onto the man's back, gripped him around the neck, and with a crash the two of them went rolling on the floor of the cabin.
 
Then a tremendous fight began. Over and over and over they rolled around the floor, upsetting things in all directions, Wilkins fighting to get his pistol hand free, the Doctor struggling to keep it bound to his body, Dab-Dab hopping18 and flying and jumping and flapping to get a bite in on the enemy's nose whenever she saw a chance.
 
At last John Dolittle, who for his size, was a very powerful wrestler19, got the pearl fisherman in a grip of iron where he couldn't move at all. But just as the Doctor was forcing the pistol out of his enemy's hand, one of the other men, who had been aroused by the noise of the fight, woke up. And, leaning out of his bunk12 from behind the Doctor's back, he hit him a tremendous blow on the head with a bottle. Stunned20 and senseless, John Dolittle fell over in a heap and lay still upon the floor.
 
Then all three men sprang on him with ropes and in a minute his arms and legs were tied and the fight was over.
 
When he woke up the Doctor found himself lying at the bottom of his own canoe, with Dab-Dab tugging21 at the ropes which bound his wrists to get him free.
 
"Where is Wilkins?" he asked in a dazed, sleepy kind of way.
 
"Gone," said Dab-Dab; "and the pearls with him—the scoundrel! As soon as they had dumped you in the canoe they pulled up the anchor, hoisted22 sail and got away. They were in an awful hurry and kept looking out to sea with telescopes and talking about the revenue cutter. I guess they are wanted by the government for a good many bad deeds. I never saw a tougher-looking crowd of men in all my life. See, I've got the rope around your hands free now; you can do the rest better yourself. Does your head hurt much?"
 
"It's a bit dizzy still," said the Doctor, working at the rope about his ankles. "But I'll be all right in a little."
 
Presently when he had undone23 the cord that tied his feet, John Dolittle stood up and gazed over the ocean. And there, on the sky line, he could just see the sails of Wilkins' schooner disappearing eastward24.
 
"Villain!" was all he said between his clenched25 teeth.

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1 bough 4ReyO     
n.大树枝,主枝
参考例句:
  • I rested my fishing rod against a pine bough.我把钓鱼竿靠在一棵松树的大树枝上。
  • Every bough was swinging in the wind.每条树枝都在风里摇摆。
2 jack 53Hxp     
n.插座,千斤顶,男人;v.抬起,提醒,扛举;n.(Jake)杰克
参考例句:
  • I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
  • He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。
3 glided dc24e51e27cfc17f7f45752acf858ed1     
v.滑动( glide的过去式和过去分词 );掠过;(鸟或飞机 ) 滑翔
参考例句:
  • The President's motorcade glided by. 总统的车队一溜烟开了过去。
  • They glided along the wall until they were out of sight. 他们沿着墙壁溜得无影无踪。 来自《简明英汉词典》
4 schooner mDoyU     
n.纵帆船
参考例句:
  • The schooner was driven ashore.那条帆船被冲上了岸。
  • The current was bearing coracle and schooner southward at an equal rate.急流正以同样的速度将小筏子和帆船一起冲向南方。
5 quacking dee15a2fc3dfec34f556cfd89f93b434     
v.(鸭子)发出嘎嘎声( quack的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • For the rest it was just a noise, a quack-quack-quacking. 除此之外,便是一片噪声,一片嘎嘎嘎的叫嚣。 来自英汉文学
  • The eyeless creature with the quacking voice would never be vaporized. 那没眼睛的鸭子嗓也不会给蒸发。 来自英汉文学
6 housekeeper 6q2zxl     
n.管理家务的主妇,女管家
参考例句:
  • A spotless stove told us that his mother is a diligent housekeeper.炉子清洁无瑕就表明他母亲是个勤劳的主妇。
  • She is an economical housekeeper and feeds her family cheaply.她节约持家,一家人吃得很省。
7 peeked c7b2fdc08abef3a4f4992d9023ed9bb8     
v.很快地看( peek的过去式和过去分词 );偷看;窥视;微露出
参考例句:
  • She peeked over the top of her menu. 她从菜单上往外偷看。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • On two occasions she had peeked at him through a crack in the wall. 她曾两次透过墙缝窥视他。 来自辞典例句
8 villain ZL1zA     
n.反派演员,反面人物;恶棍;问题的起因
参考例句:
  • He was cast as the villain in the play.他在戏里扮演反面角色。
  • The man who played the villain acted very well.扮演恶棍的那个男演员演得很好。
9 grunted f18a3a8ced1d857427f2252db2abbeaf     
(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
参考例句:
  • She just grunted, not deigning to look up from the page. 她只咕哝了一声,继续看书,不屑抬起头来看一眼。
  • She grunted some incomprehensible reply. 她咕噜着回答了些令人费解的话。
10 swarmed 3f3ff8c8e0f4188f5aa0b8df54637368     
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
参考例句:
  • When the bell rang, the children swarmed out of the school. 铃声一响,孩子们蜂拥而出离开了学校。
  • When the rain started the crowd swarmed back into the hotel. 雨一开始下,人群就蜂拥回了旅社。
11 bunks dbe593502613fe679a9ecfd3d5d45f1f     
n.(车、船等倚壁而设的)铺位( bunk的名词复数 );空话,废话v.(车、船等倚壁而设的)铺位( bunk的第三人称单数 );空话,废话
参考例句:
  • These bunks can tip up and fold back into the wall. 这些铺位可以翻起来并折叠收入墙内。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • At last they turned into their little bunks in the cart. 最后他们都钻进车内的小卧铺里。 来自辞典例句
12 bunk zWyzS     
n.(车、船等倚壁而设的)铺位;废话
参考例句:
  • He left his bunk and went up on deck again.他离开自己的铺位再次走到甲板上。
  • Most economists think his theories are sheer bunk.大多数经济学家认为他的理论纯属胡说。
13 snarled ti3zMA     
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》
14 muzzle i11yN     
n.鼻口部;口套;枪(炮)口;vt.使缄默
参考例句:
  • He placed the muzzle of the pistol between his teeth.他把手枪的枪口放在牙齿中间。
  • The President wanted to muzzle the press.总统企图遏制新闻自由。
15 sneaked fcb2f62c486b1c2ed19664da4b5204be     
v.潜行( sneak的过去式和过去分词 );偷偷溜走;(儿童向成人)打小报告;告状
参考例句:
  • I sneaked up the stairs. 我蹑手蹑脚地上了楼。
  • She sneaked a surreptitious glance at her watch. 她偷偷看了一眼手表。
16 beak 8y1zGA     
n.鸟嘴,茶壶嘴,钩形鼻
参考例句:
  • The bird had a worm in its beak.鸟儿嘴里叼着一条虫。
  • This bird employs its beak as a weapon.这种鸟用嘴作武器。
17 bent QQ8yD     
n.爱好,癖好;adj.弯的;决心的,一心的
参考例句:
  • He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
  • We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。
18 hopping hopping     
n. 跳跃 动词hop的现在分词形式
参考例句:
  • The clubs in town are really hopping. 城里的俱乐部真够热闹的。
  • I'm hopping over to Paris for the weekend. 我要去巴黎度周末。
19 wrestler cfpwE     
n.摔角选手,扭
参考例句:
  • The wrestler tripped up his opponent.那个摔跤运动员把对手绊倒在地。
  • The stronger wrestler won the first throw.较壮的那个摔跤手第一跤就赢了。
20 stunned 735ec6d53723be15b1737edd89183ec2     
adj. 震惊的,惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词
参考例句:
  • The fall stunned me for a moment. 那一下摔得我昏迷了片刻。
  • The leaders of the Kopper Company were then stunned speechless. 科伯公司的领导们当时被惊得目瞪口呆。
21 tugging 1b03c4e07db34ec7462f2931af418753     
n.牵引感v.用力拉,使劲拉,猛扯( tug的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • Tom was tugging at a button-hole and looking sheepish. 汤姆捏住一个钮扣眼使劲地拉,样子显得很害羞。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险
  • She kicked him, tugging his thick hair. 她一边踢他,一边扯着他那浓密的头发。 来自辞典例句
22 hoisted d1dcc88c76ae7d9811db29181a2303df     
把…吊起,升起( hoist的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He hoisted himself onto a high stool. 他抬身坐上了一张高凳子。
  • The sailors hoisted the cargo onto the deck. 水手们把货物吊到甲板上。
23 undone JfJz6l     
a.未做完的,未完成的
参考例句:
  • He left nothing undone that needed attention.所有需要注意的事他都注意到了。
24 eastward CrjxP     
adv.向东;adj.向东的;n.东方,东部
参考例句:
  • The river here tends eastward.这条河从这里向东流。
  • The crowd is heading eastward,believing that they can find gold there.人群正在向东移去,他们认为在那里可以找到黄金。
25 clenched clenched     
v.紧握,抓紧,咬紧( clench的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He clenched his fists in anger. 他愤怒地攥紧了拳头。
  • She clenched her hands in her lap to hide their trembling. 她攥紧双手放在腿上,以掩饰其颤抖。 来自《简明英汉词典》


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