CHAPTER IV The God Who Lived in the Sun

By this time the sun was shining brightly. The boys held out their stiffened¹ hands and thought how good and warm the sunshine felt.

 

“It is like the Great Fire,” said Fisher.

 

“Perhaps the Fire-god lives in the sun,” whispered Bolo, looking toward it with an awed² expression on his dark face.

 

As they came near Flame’s cave they saw that she was there, sure enough. She was down on her knees in front of the entrance, making strange motions with her hands. They thought she was looking for something.

 

“Wait a minute.” Bolo caught Fisher by the arm and drew him back. “Let us see what she is doing.”

 

Just then she slowly rose to her feet. She turned her face toward the sun and stretched her lean arms up as far as she could. Her long gray hair streamed out behind her and her eyes were very bright. She looked as if she was seeing something a long way off. Her lips moved.

 

“She is talking to the sun,” said Fisher in a frightened whisper. “Perhaps she is calling the Fire-god.”

 

The boys came cautiously nearer. They were not afraid of Flame, but they were not sure what might happen next. And they were very curious to hear what she[19] was saying. By and by Flame turned and saw the boys. She beckoned³ them to come nearer.

 

“The Water-god is great,” she said in a solemn voice, “but greater is the Fire-god. He has spoken to me from his dwelling⁵ place, the sun. He has promised that we shall have the Great Fire again. But,” she added slowly, “I am old and my strength has grown small. I must have help. You must help me.”

 

How proud the boys were! Gladly they ran at her bidding to bring the driest sticks they could find. It was hard to discover many, for the long rain had soaked everything through and through. But they climbed into the trees and broke off dead limbs that had become partially⁶ dried out again, and they broke open rotten logs to get the dry, crumbly wood that lay at their hearts. It was not very long until they had brought together a nice supply of dry sticks and light, tindery wood.

 

Flame was on her knees again when they came back, and now they could see what she was doing. She had a long, pointed⁷, hardwood stick in her hands and was twirling it very fast in a little hollow in a flat block of soft, dry wood. While she worked she mumbled⁸ to herself, now and then looking up at the sun and speaking as if to the god that she said lived in it. The boys stood very still and watched her.

 

Flame worked a long time. Then she threw down the pointed stick and wrung⁹ her hands.

 

“I am too old,” she wailed¹⁰. “No more are my hands strong to bring the Fire-god to help my people. Oh, woe¹¹ is me! woe is me!”

 

[20]

 

Bolo came up timidly and touched her shoulder. He held out both hands, opening and shutting his wiry brown fingers.

 

“My hands are very strong,” he said. “Let them be as your hands and twirl the stick while you speak to the Fire-god.”

 

Then Fisher spoke⁴ up eagerly. “Do you not remember the game we play with the stick and the strap¹²? Do you remember how very fast we can make it go? Let us both twirl the stick with the strap while Flame speaks to the Fire-god.”

 

So Fisher brought a flat, strong strap made of reindeer¹³ hide and wrapped it around the stick. Then he and Bolo took hold of the ends and drew them back and forth¹⁴.

 

How fast the pointed stick did go! Flame showed them how to hold it in the hollowed block, then she rose and once more faced the sun, her arms held toward it and her lips mumbling¹⁵ a prayer to the Fire-god.

 

Faster and faster whirled the stick, and louder and louder prayed Flame. Pretty soon she began stamping her feet and waving her hands. She moved around the boys in a circle, her face always toward the sun.

 

For a long time nothing happened. Then at last Bolo saw a tiny thread of smoke rising from the hollow.

 

“The fire is coming,” he shouted. “Pray! pray!”

 

In another moment a very, very small spark glowed through the smoke. The eager boys sprinkled crumbs¹⁶ of dry tinder upon it and soon they had a small blaze. A few dry sticks made it leap up brightly, and then how Flame shouted and sang and flung her arms up toward the sun.

 

[21]

 

“I have heard the will of the Fire-god,” she said after a time. “I am old, and he has taken this way to show me that I must teach someone else to call him. I might have died in the water, and then who could have helped the cave people? They must all have died, too. And it is better that two should know than one, for then the secret of the Great Fire will not be so easily lost. You are faithful; you will be faithful. I will teach you. But first you must carry fire to the people.”

 

Bolo and Fisher each took a lighted torch and started back to where the discouraged cave people were huddled¹⁷ together. How everyone shouted for joy when they saw the fire coming. They knew that again they were safe in their homes in the Valley of Caves.

 

It was not many days until most of the people who were left were back at home again. Some had been swept away by the water, some had wandered away when they found there was no fire, and some had died from cold and hunger. All felt very sad when they saw how the water had laid waste their pretty valley.

 

They had lost all their weapons, too, and old Quickfinger, who had made most of the spears and harpoons¹⁹ for the Clan²⁰, was nowhere to be found. They thought he must have died, for they knew he would never have left them.

 

Then One Eye showed them what he had carried away in the great skin bag. He had gathered up all the arrows he could find, many spear and harpoon¹⁸ heads, and the flint flakers that Quickfinger and himself had used in making them.

 

[22]

 

“I can make better arrows than Quickfinger,” he said. “Arrows are better than spears or harpoons. I have taught Bolo, and he will help me make them. I will teach you, too. The women must make the bowstrings. Soon we will have plenty of weapons.”

 

“One Eye is wise and prudent,” cried the cave men joyfully²¹. “We will do whatever he says. He will take care of us.”

 

But they did not know that Flame had taught Bolo and Fisher a greater lesson than how to make arrows. She made the boys promise to keep secret what she taught them. She did not believe it was right for all the Clan to know how to make fire. She thought the Fire-god would be angry if she told them.

 

Years after, when Flame was dead, Bolo and Fisher thought the rest of the people ought to know, too. They did not believe the Fire-god would be angry if they taught them all. So one day, when they were both old men, they gathered the Clan together—but that is another story.

 

1 stiffened   

加强的

参考例句：

• He leaned towards her and she stiffened at this invasion of her personal space. 他向她俯过身去，这种侵犯她个人空间的举动让她绷紧了身子。
• She stiffened with fear. 她吓呆了。

2 awed   

adj.充满敬畏的，表示敬畏的v.使敬畏，使惊惧( awe的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The audience was awed into silence by her stunning performance. 观众席上鸦雀无声，人们对他出色的表演感到惊叹。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I was awed by the huge gorilla. 那只大猩猩使我惊惧。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 beckoned   

v.（用头或手的动作）示意，召唤( beckon的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He beckoned to the waiter to bring the bill. 他招手示意服务生把账单送过来。
• The seated figure in the corner beckoned me over. 那个坐在角落里的人向我招手让我过去。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 spoke   

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

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

5 dwelling   

n.住宅，住所，寓所

参考例句：

• Those two men are dwelling with us.那两个人跟我们住在一起。
• He occupies a three-story dwelling place on the Park Street.他在派克街上有一幢3层楼的寓所。

6 partially   

adv.部分地，从某些方面讲

参考例句：

• The door was partially concealed by the drapes.门有一部分被门帘遮住了。
• The police managed to restore calm and the curfew was partially lifted.警方设法恢复了平静，宵禁部分解除。

7 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

8 mumbled   

含糊地说某事，叽咕，咕哝( mumble的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He mumbled something to me which I did not quite catch. 他对我叽咕了几句话，可我没太听清楚。
• George mumbled incoherently to himself. 乔治语无伦次地喃喃自语。

9 wrung   

绞( wring的过去式和过去分词 )； 握紧（尤指别人的手）； 把（湿衣服）拧干； 绞掉（水）

参考例句：

• He has wrung the words from their true meaning. 他曲解这些字的真正意义。
• He wrung my hand warmly. 他热情地紧握我的手。

10 wailed   

v.哭叫，哀号( wail的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She wailed over her father's remains. 她对着父亲的遗体嚎啕大哭。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The women of the town wailed over the war victims. 城里的妇女为战争的死难者们痛哭。 来自辞典例句

11 woe   

n.悲哀，苦痛，不幸，困难；int.用来表达悲伤或惊慌

参考例句：

• Our two peoples are brothers sharing weal and woe.我们两国人民是患难与共的兄弟。
• A man is well or woe as he thinks himself so.自认祸是祸，自认福是福。

12 strap   

n.皮带，带子；v.用带扣住，束牢；用绷带包扎

参考例句：

• She held onto a strap to steady herself.她抓住拉手吊带以便站稳。
• The nurse will strap up your wound.护士会绑扎你的伤口。

13 reindeer   

n.驯鹿

参考例句：

• The herd of reindeer was being trailed by a pack of wolves.那群驯鹿被一只狼群寻踪追赶上来。
• The life of the Reindeer men was a frontier life.驯鹿时代人的生活是一种边区生活。

14 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。

15 mumbling   

含糊地说某事，叽咕，咕哝( mumble的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• I could hear him mumbling to himself. 我听到他在喃喃自语。
• He was still mumbling something about hospitals at the end of the party when he slipped on a piece of ice and broke his left leg. 宴会结束时，他仍在咕哝着医院里的事。说着说着，他在一块冰上滑倒，跌断了左腿。

16 crumbs   

int. (表示惊讶)哎呀 n. 碎屑 名词crumb的复数形式

参考例句：

• She stood up and brushed the crumbs from her sweater. 她站起身掸掉了毛衣上的面包屑。
• Oh crumbs! Is that the time? 啊，天哪！都这会儿啦？

17 huddled   

挤在一起（huddle的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• We huddled together for warmth. 我们挤在一块取暖。
• We huddled together to keep warm. 我们挤在一起来保暖。

18 harpoon   

n.鱼叉；vt.用鱼叉叉，用鱼叉捕获

参考例句：

• The harpoon drove deep into the body of the whale.渔叉深深地扎进鲸鱼体内。
• The fisherman transfixed the shark with a harpoon.渔夫用鱼叉刺住鲨鱼。

19 harpoons   

n.鱼镖，鱼叉( harpoon的名词复数 )v.鱼镖，鱼叉( harpoon的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Greenpeace hopes to position its boats between the harpoons and the whales. 绿色和平希望他们的船能开到港口与鲸鱼群之间的地方。 来自互联网
• NIV Can you fill his hide with harpoons or his head with fishing spears? 7[和合]你能用倒钩枪扎满它的皮，能用鱼叉叉满它的头吗？ 来自互联网

20 clan   

n.氏族，部落，宗族，家族，宗派

参考例句：

• She ranks as my junior in the clan.她的辈分比我小。
• The Chinese Christians,therefore,practically excommunicate themselves from their own clan.所以，中国的基督徒简直是被逐出了自己的家族了。

21 joyfully   

adv. 喜悦地, 高兴地

参考例句：

• She tripped along joyfully as if treading on air. 她高兴地走着，脚底下轻飘飘的。
• During these first weeks she slaved joyfully. 在最初的几周里，她干得很高兴。