It was fun storing all the shopping away. Anne enjoyed it more than anyone, for she really was amost domesticated1 little person.
'A real home-maker!' said Dick, appreciatively, when he saw how neat and comfortable she had madethe loft2, where the three boys were to sleep. 'Just about room for the three of us, plus all the baggagein the corner! And how good the larder3 looks!'
Anne looked at her well-stored larder, and smiled. Now she could give her little 'family' really nicemeals. All those tins! She read the names on them. 'Fruit salad. Tinned pears. Tinned peaches.
Sardines4. Ham. Tongue.' A new cake in that round tin, big enough to last for at least three days.
Biscuits. Chocolate wafers - good old Julian - he knew how much she loved those -and George did, too!
Anne felt very happy, as she arranged all her goods. She no longer felt guilty at drenching5 poorWilfrid. Indeed she couldn't help feeling a little thrill when she remembered how she had suddenlyturned into a tiger for a minute or two! It was fun to be a tiger for once. 'I might even be one again, ifthe chance arose,' thought Anne. 'How surprised Wilfrid was - and Julian too. Oh dear - poor Wilfrid.
Still, he's much nicer now.'
24
And indeed he was! He was most polite to both the girls, and, as Dick said, he didn't - throw hisweight - about nearly so much. They all settled down very well together in the little cottage.
They had most of their meals out-of-doors, sitting on the warm grass. It was rather a squeeze indoors,for the cottage really was very small. Anne enjoyed herself preparing the meals, with sometimes alittle help from George - and the boys carried everything out. Wilfrid did his share, and was pleasedwhen he had a clap on the back from Julian.
It was glorious sitting out in the sun, high up on their hill. They could look down on the harbour,watch the yachts and the busy little boats, and enjoy the wonderful views all round.
George was very curious about the island that lay in the middle of the harbour. 'What's it called?'
she asked Wilfrid. But he didn't know. He did know, however, that there was a queer story about it.
'It belonged to a lonely old man,' he said. 'He lived in a big house in the very middle of the wood. Theisland was given to his family by a king - James the Second, I think. This old man was the very verylast one of his family. People kept wanting to buy his island, and he had some kind of watchmen tokeep people from landing on it. These watchmen were pretty fierce - they had guns.'
'Gosh - did they shoot people who tried to land, then?' asked Dick.
'Well - they shot just to frighten them off, not to hurt them, I suppose,' said Wilfrid. 'Anyway, a lot ofsightseers had an awful fright when they tried to land. BANG-BANG! Shooting all round them! Mygranny told me that someone she knew, who had a lot of money, wanted to buy part of the island -and he had his hat shot right off when his boat tried to land!'
'Is there anyone there now?' asked Julian. 'I suppose the old fellow is dead? Has he a son or anyone tofollow him?'
'I don't think so,' said Wilfrid. 'But I don't know an awful lot about it. I tell you who does, though- one of the groundsmen on the golf-course, called Lucas. He was once one of the watchmen whokept visitors away from the island.'
'It might be rather interesting to talk to him,' said Dick. 'I'd rather like to walk over the golf-course,too. My father plays a good game of golf, and I know something about it.'
'Well, let's go now,' said George. 'Timmy is longing6 for a good long walk, even though he ran all theway down to the village and back today! Walk, Timmy? Walk?'
'Woof-woof,' said Timmy, and leapt up at once.
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Walk? Of course he was ready for a walk! He leapt all round George, pretending to pounce7 at herfeet. Wilfrid tried to catch hold of him, but couldn't. 'I wish you were my dog,' he told Timmy.
'I'd never let you out of my sight.'
Timmy ran up to him then, and gave him a loving lick. It was astonishing how he seemed to likeWilfrid. Nobody could understand it. As George said, 'Timmy is usually so particular about makingfriends! Still, Wilfrid is nicer than he was!'
The Five, with Wilfrid too, went up the hill, crossed over the road that ran along the top, and climbedover a stile. They found themselves on one of the fairways of the golf-course, not far from a green, inwhich stood a pole with a bright red flag waving at the top.
Wilfrid knew very little about the game of golf, but the others had watched their parents play many atime. 'Look out - someone's going to pitch his ball on this green,' said Julian, and they stood by thehedge to watch the man play his ball. He struck it beautifully with his club, and the ball rose, and fellright on to the green. It rolled to within about a foot of the hole in which the flag-pole stood.
Timmy ran forward a few steps, as he always did when a ball rolled near him. Then he rememberedthat this was golf, and he must never, never touch a ball on the fairway or on the green.
The players passed by, and went on with their game. Then they disappeared, to play off another tee.
'Well, let's see if we can find Lucas now,' said Wilfrid, crossing the fairway to where he could get agood look over the course. 'You'll like him. There's not much he doesn't know about the animals andbirds here. I think he's a wonderful man!'
Wilfrid stood on the slope of a hill and looked all round. 'There he is!' he said, pointing to where aman was trimming up a ditch. 'See? Down there. He's using his bill-hook to make things tidy.'
They went down the hill towards the ditch at the bottom. 'I bet there's an awful lot of balls in thatditch,' said Wilfrid. 'Hey, Lucas! How are you?'
'Afternoon, young sir,' said the groundsman, turning towards them. His face was as brown as a well-ripened nut, and his arms and shoulders were even browner. He wore no shirt or vest, and his dark,deep-set eyes twinkled as they took in the five children and the dog.
He held out a brown hand to Timmy, who licked it gravely, wagging his tail. Then Timmy smeltLucas all over and finally lay down with his head on the man's feet.
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'Ha!' said Lucas to Timmy, and gave a loud, hearty8 laugh. 'Think I'm a-going to stand here allafternoon, do you? Well, I aren't. I got work to do, ole dog, so git up! You're a right good-un, you are,a-laying on my foot, so's I can't move a step! Want me to stop and have a rest, don't you?'
'Lucas, we came to ask you something,' said Wilfrid. 'About the island in the harbour. What's itsname - and does anyone live there now?'
'We can see it from that little cottage almost at the top of the hill on the other side of the road,'
said Dick. 'It looks awfully9 quiet and lonely.'
'And so it is,' said Lucas, sitting down on the bank of the ditch. Timmy at once sat up beside him,sniffing10 him with pleasure. He put his arm round the dog, and began to talk, his bright eyes goingfrom one to other of the children. He was so friendly, and so completely natural that the children felthe was an old, old friend. They sat down too, sniffing the smell of the gorse bushes nearby.
'They smell like coconut11,' thought Anne. 'Yes - just like coconut!'
'Well, now,' said Lucas, 'that island's always been a mystery-place. It's called Wailing12 Island by somefolks because the wind makes a right queer wailing noise round some of its high cliffs. And otherscall it Whispering Island because it's full of trees that whisper in the strong winds that always blowacross it. But most of us call it Keep-Away Island - and that's the best name of all, for there's neverbeen any welcome there, what with the dark cliffs, the cruel rocks, and the dense13 woods.'
Lucas paused, and looked at the listening faces around him. He was a born story-teller, and knew it.
How often Wilfrid had listened to his tales of the birds and animals he met during his work on thecourse! Lucas was one of the few people that the boy admired and loved.
'Do go on, Lucas!' said Wilfrid, touching14 the man's bare, warm arm. 'Tell us about the rich old manwho hated everyone, and bought the island years ago.'
'I'm telling the story my own way,' said Lucas, with great dignity. 'You sit patient now, or I'll start myditching again. Sit like this dog, see - he don't even twitch15 a muscle, good dog that he is.
Well now, about this rich old man. He was so afraid of being robbed that he bought that lonelyisland. He built himself a great castle right in the middle of the thick woods. Cut down about ahundred trees, to make room for it, so the story goes, and brought every single stick and stone fromthe mainland. Did you see the old quarry16 on this here golf-course, as you came along to me?'
27
'Yes, we did,' said Julian, remembering. 'I felt sorry for anyone who sent a golf-ball there!'
'Well, young sir, out of that quarry came the great stones that the old man used for his castle,'
said Lucas. ' 'Tis said that big, Hat-bottomed boats had to be made to ferry the stones across to theisland - and to this day the road through this golf-course is the one made by horses dragging the greatstones down to the water's-edge.'
'Were you alive then?' said Wilfrid.
'Bless you, boy, no, of course not,' said Lucas, with a great chuckle17 of a laugh. 'Long afore my time,that was. Well, the stone house - or castle - whatever you like to call it - was built. And the old manbrought to it all kinds of treasures - beautiful statues, some of gold, it was said, but that I disbelieve.
Ah, many's the queer tale I've heard of what that rich old man took over to Whispering Island - agreat bed made of pure gold, and set with precious stones - a necklace of rubies18 as big as pigeons'
eggs - a wonderful sword with a jewelled handle worth a king's fortune -and other things I disremember.'
He paused and looked round. Julian asked him a quick question. 'What happened to all these things?'
'Well now, he fell foul19 of the king of the land, and one morning what did he see landing on the shoresof his island but ships of all kinds,' said Lucas, enjoying the rapt attention of his audience.
'A lot of them were sunk by the wicked rocks but enough men were left to storm the queer stonecastle in the wood, and they killed the old man and all his servants.'
'Did they find the treasures the old fellow had collected?' asked Dick.
'Never a one!' said Lucas. 'Never a one. Some say it was all a tale - the old man never did bring anywonders there - and some say they're still there, on Whispering Island. Meself, I think it's all a yarn20 -but a good yarn at that!'
'Who owns the island now?' asked Dick.
'Well, an old fellow and his wife went to live there - maybe they paid rent to the Crown for it, maybethey bought it - but they didn't care for anything except for the birds and the animals there,' saidLucas, picking up his curved bill-hook again, and hacking21 lightly at some briars.
'They wouldn't allow nobody there, and it was they who kept the gamekeepers with guns to frightenaway sightseers. They wanted peace and quiet for themselves, and for all the wildlife on the island -and a fine idea too. Many a time when I was there with the other keepers - three of us 28there were - many a time I've had rabbits gambolling22 over my feet, and snakes gliding23 by me -and the birds as tame as canaries.'
'I'd love to go there,' said Wilfrid, his eyes shining. 'I'd have a good time with all the wild creatures!
Can anyone go there now?'
'No,' said Lucas, getting up. 'Not a soul has lived in the old stone castle since the old man and hiswife fell ill and died. The place is empty. The island belongs to a great-nephew of the old couplenow, but he never goes there. Just keeps a couple of men on the island to frighten off visitors -pretty fierce they are, so I've been told. Well, there you are, that's the story of Whispering Island- not very pleasant - a bit grim and ugly. It belongs to the birds and the beasts now, and good luck tothem!'
'Thank you for telling us the story,' said Anne, and the old countryman smiled down at her, his eyeswrinkling, and his brown hand patting her cheek.
'I'll be off to my hedging and ditching again,' he said, 'and I'll feel the sun warm on my bare back, andhear the birds a-singing to me from the bushes. That's happiness enough for anyone - and pity it isthat more folks don't know it!'
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1
domesticated
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| adj.喜欢家庭生活的；（指动物）被驯养了的v.驯化( domesticate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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2
loft
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| n.阁楼，顶楼 | |
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larder
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| n.食物贮藏室，食品橱 | |
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sardines
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| n. 沙丁鱼 | |
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5
drenching
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| n.湿透v.使湿透( drench的现在分词 )；在某人（某物）上大量使用（某液体） | |
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6
longing
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| n.（for）渴望 | |
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pounce
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| n.猛扑；v.猛扑，突然袭击，欣然同意 | |
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hearty
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| adj.热情友好的；衷心的；尽情的，纵情的 | |
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awfully
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| adv.可怕地，非常地，极端地 | |
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10
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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11
coconut
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| n.椰子 | |
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wailing
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| v.哭叫，哀号( wail的现在分词 )；沱 | |
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13
dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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touching
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| adj.动人的，使人感伤的 | |
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twitch
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| v.急拉，抽动，痉挛，抽搐；n.扯，阵痛，痉挛 | |
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16
quarry
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| n.采石场；v.采石；费力地找 | |
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17
chuckle
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| vi.／n.轻声笑，咯咯笑 | |
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rubies
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| 红宝石( ruby的名词复数 )； 红宝石色，深红色 | |
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19
foul
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| adj.污秽的；邪恶的；v.弄脏；妨害；犯规；n.犯规 | |
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yarn
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| n.纱，纱线，纺线；奇闻漫谈，旅行轶事 | |
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21
hacking
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| n.非法访问计算机系统和数据库的活动 | |
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gambolling
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| v.蹦跳，跳跃，嬉戏( gambol的现在分词 ) | |
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gliding
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| v. 滑翔 adj. 滑动的 | |
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