The Story of Dr Dolittle / История доктора Дулиттла. 5 класс Лофтинг Хью Джон

© Загородняя И. Б., адаптация, словарь, 2014

© ООО «Антология», 2014

The First Chapter

Puddleby

Once upon a time there was a doctor; and his name was Dolittle – John Dolittle, M.D. “M.D.” means that he was a good doctor and knew everything. He lived in a little town. The name of the town was Puddleby. All the people, young and old, knew him well. And when he walked down the street, everyone said, “There goes the Doctor! – He’s a clever man.” And the dogs and the children all ran up and followed behind him.

The house where he lived was quite small; but his garden was very large. His sister, Sarah Dolittle, was a housekeeper for him; but the Doctor looked after the garden himself. He loved animals and kept many kinds of pets. Besides the gold-fish in the pond, he had rabbits in the cupboard, white mice in his piano, a squirrel in the linen closet and a hedgehog in the cellar. He had a cow with a calf too, and an old horse who was twenty-five years old, and chickens, and pigeons, and two lambs, and many other animals. But his favorite pets were Dab-Dab the duck, Jip the dog, Gub-Gub the baby pig, Polynesia the parrot, and the owl Too-Too.

His sister often grumbled about all these animals and said that they made the house untidy. And one day when an old sick lady came to see the Doctor, she sat on the hedgehog who was on the sofa and so she never came to see the Doctor any more, but drove every Saturday to another town to see a different doctor.

Then his sister, Sarah Dolittle, came to him and said,

“John, how can sick people come and see you when you keep all these animals in the house? We are getting poorer every day. If you go on like this, none of the best people will come to visit you.”

“But I like the animals better than the ‘best people’,” said the Doctor.

“You are foolish,” said his sister, and walked out of the room.

So, as time went on, the Doctor got more and more animals; and at last he had no patients at all. He got even more pets; and of course it cost a lot to feed them. Then he sold his piano and let the mice live in a bureau-drawer. But the money he got for the piano began to go, so he sold his good brown suit and went on becoming poorer and poorer. And now, when he walked down the street, people said to one another, “There goes John Dolittle, M.D.! There was a time when he was the best known doctor in the West Country – Look at him now – He hasn’t any money!” But the dogs and the cats and the children still ran up and followed him through the town.

The Second Chapter

Animal Language

It happened one day that the parrot, Polynesia, flew onto the Doctor’s table and said,

“Be an animal-doctor. Don’t treat the silly people – if they haven’t brains enough to see that you’re the best doctor in the world. Take care of animals instead.”

“Oh, there are plenty of animal-doctors,” said John Dolittle.

“Yes, there ARE plenty,” said Polynesia. “But none of them are any good at all. Now listen, Doctor, and I’ll tell you something. Did you know that animals can talk?”

“I knew that parrots can talk,” said the Doctor.

“Oh, we parrots can talk in two languages – people’s language and bird-language,” said Polynesia proudly. “If I say, ‘Polly wants a cracker,’ you understand me. But hear this: Ka-ka oi-ee, fee-fee?”

“Oh!” cried the Doctor. “What does that mean?”

“That means, ‘Is the porridge hot yet?’ – in bird-language.”

“Really!” said the Doctor. “You never talked that way to me before. Tell me some more!” And he rushed to the desk and came back with the note book and a pencil. “Now don’t speak too fast – and I’ll write it down. This is interesting – very interesting – something quite new. Give me the Birds’ ABC first – slowly now.”

So all that afternoon Polynesia sat on the table and gave him bird words to put down in the book. After a while, with the parrot’s help, the Doctor learnt the language of the animals so well that he could talk to them and understand everything they said. Then old ladies began to bring him their pets; and farmers came many miles to show him sick cows and sheep. One day a farmer with a horse came to him; and the poor animal was really glad to find a man who could talk in horse-language.

“You know, Doctor,” said the horse, “that vet over the hill knows nothing at all. He thinks that I have a problem knee. But I just need GLASSES. I am going blind in one eye. Why can’t horses wear glasses? That stupid man over the hill never even looked at my eyes. He gave me big pills. I tried to tell him; but he couldn’t understand a word of horse-language. What I need is glasses.”

“Of course – of course,” said the Doctor, “I’ll get you some at once.”

“I would like a pair like yours,” said the horse – “only green. They’ll keep the sun out of my eyes while I’m plowing the field.”

“Certainly,” said the Doctor, “I’ll have the glasses for you next week. Come in again on Tuesday!” Then John Dolittle got a fine, big pair of green glasses; and the horse could see very well. And soon many farm-animals wore glasses in the country round Puddleby; and there were no blind horses.

Sick animals told the Doctor where the pain was and how they felt, and of course it was easy for him to cure them. Now all these animals went back and told their brothers and friends that there was a doctor in the little house with the big garden who really WAS a doctor. And all the sick animals wanted to see John Dolittle. So his big garden was always crowded and he had special doors for the different kinds. He wrote “HORSES” over the front door, “COWS” over the side door and “SHEEP” over the kitchen door. Each kind of animal had a separate door – even the mice had a tiny tunnel made for them into the cellar. And so, in a few years’ time, every living thing for miles and miles knew about John Dolittle, M.D. And the birds who flew to other countries in the winter told the animals in foreign lands of the wonderful doctor, who could understand their talk and help them in their troubles. In this way[1] he became famous among the animals – all over the world. And he was happy and liked his life very much.

The Third Chapter

More Money Troubles

And soon now the Doctor began to make money again; and his sister, Sarah, bought a new dress and was happy. Some of the animals who came to see him were so sick that they stayed at the Doctor’s house for a week. And often even after they got well, they did not want to go away – they liked the Doctor and his house so much. And he never refused them. So in this way he got more pets.

Once an Italian organ-grinder came with a monkey on a string. The Doctor saw that the monkey’s collar was too tight and that he was dirty and unhappy. So he took the monkey away from the Italian, gave the man some money and told him to go. The organ-grinder got angry and said that he wanted to keep the monkey. But the Doctor didn’t let him. John Dolittle was a strong man, though he wasn’t very tall. So the Italian didn’t want to fight with the Doctor, he went away and the monkey stayed with Doctor Dolittle and had a good home. The other animals in the house called him “Chee-Chee” – which is a common word in monkey-language, meaning “ginger.”

Another time, when the circus came to Puddleby, the crocodile who had a bad toothache escaped at night and came into the Doctor’s garden. The Doctor talked to him in crocodile-language, took him into the house and made his tooth better. But when the crocodile saw what a nice house it was, he wanted to live with the Doctor. He asked to let him sleep in the fish-pond, and promised not to eat the fish. And the Doctor agreed. But now the old ladies were afraid to send their lap-dogs to Doctor Dolittle because of the crocodile; and the farmers were also afraid of the crocodile. So the Doctor went to the crocodile and told him he must go back to his circus. But he wept such big tears, and begged so hard to stay, that the Doctor felt sorry for him and let him stay.

So then the Doctor’s sister came to him and said,

“John, you must send that creature away. Now the farmers and the old ladies are afraid to send their animals to you. We will lose all the money! I will no longer be housekeeper for you if you don’t send away that alligator.”

“It isn’t an alligator,” said the Doctor – “it’s a crocodile.”

“I don’t care what you call it,[2]” said his sister. “It’s a nasty thing. I won’t have it in the house.”

“But he has promised me,” the Doctor answered, “that he will not bite any one. He doesn’t like the circus; and I haven’t the money to send him back to Africa where he comes from. Don’t be so fussy.”

“I tell you I WILL NOT have him around,” said Sarah. “He eats the linoleum. If you don’t send him away this minute I’ll – I’ll go and get married!”

“All right,” said the Doctor, “go and get married. It can’t be helped.[3]”

So Sarah Dolittle packed up her things and went off; and the Doctor was left all alone with his animal family. And very soon he became very poor. But the Doctor didn’t worry at all.

“Money is a nuisance,” he said.

Soon the animals began to worry. And one evening when the Doctor was asleep in his chair before the kitchen-fire they began talking. And the owl, Too-Too, who was good at arithmetic, figured it out that there was only money enough left to live one week – if they each had one meal a day and no more. Then the parrot said, “I think we all should do the housework ourselves.” So the monkey, Chee-Chee cooked; the dog swept the floors; the duck made the beds; the owl, Too-Too, kept the accounts, and the pig worked in the garden. They made Polynesia, the parrot, housekeeper because she was the oldest. And the house was very tidy and clean. But still they needed money. So the animals made a vegetable and flower stall outside the garden-gate and sold radishes and roses to the people that passed by along the road.

But the snow came earlier than usual that year; and although the old lame horse brought a lot of wood from the forest outside the town, so they could have a big fire in the kitchen, most of the vegetables in the garden were gone, and the rest under snow; and many of the animals were really hungry.

The Fourth Chapter

A Message From Africa

That winter was a very cold one. And one night in December, when they were all round the warm fire in the kitchen, and the Doctor was reading aloud to them, the owl, Too-Too, suddenly said, “Sh! What’s that noise outside?” They all listened; and they heard the sound of someone running. Then the door opened and the monkey, Chee-Chee, ran in.

“Doctor!” he cried, “I’ve just had a message from my cousin in Africa. There is a terrible sickness among the monkeys out there. They are all catching it – and they are dying. They have heard of you, and beg you to come to Africa to stop the sickness.”

“Who brought the message?” asked the Doctor. He took off his glasses and laid down his book.

“A swallow,” said Chee-Chee. “She is outside.”

“Bring her in by the fire,” said the Doctor.

So the swallow arrived, she was cold; and although she was a little afraid at first, she soon got warmed up[4] and began to talk. Then the Doctor said, “I need to go to Africa. But we haven’t enough money to buy the tickets. Perhaps if I go down to the seaside I will borrow a boat that will take us to Africa. I knew a seaman once who brought his baby to me with measles. Maybe he’ll lend us his boat – the baby got well.[5]”

So early the next morning the Doctor went down to the seashore. And when he came back, he told the animals that the sailor was going to lend them the boat. Then the crocodile and the monkey and the parrot were very glad and began to sing, because they were going to see Africa, their real home. And the Doctor said, “I will only be able to take you three – with Jip the dog, Dab-Dab the duck, Gub-Gub the pig and the owl, Too-Too. The rest of the animals will go back and live in the fields where they were born until we come home again.”

The Doctor and the animals needed some food for the voyage, so the sailor went to see the grocer and came back with all the things they wanted. Then the animals packed up, closed the house and gave the key to the old horse who lived in the stable. There was plenty of hay for the horse, so the animals didn’t worry and carried their baggage down to the seashore and got onto the boat.

They were just going to start on their journey, when the Doctor said that he didn’t know the way to Africa. But the swallow promised to show them the way because she knew it very well. So the Doctor told Chee-Chee to pull up the anchor and the voyage began.

The Fifth Chapter

The Great Journey

Now for six whole weeks they sailed on and on,[6] over the sea. They followed the swallow who flew before the ship to show them the way. They sailed further and further into the South, and it got warmer and warmer. Polynesia, Chee-Chee and the crocodile enjoyed the hot sun very much. But the pig and the dog and the owl, Too-Too, could do nothing in such weather, but sat at the end of the ship in the shade of a big barrel, drinking lemonade. Dab-Dab, the duck, jumped into the sea and swam behind the ship, so she kept herself cool. In this way, too, she caught herrings on Tuesdays and Fridays – when everybody on the boat ate fish.

One evening, at sunset, the Doctor said, “Bring me the telescope, Chee-Chee. Our journey is nearly ended. Very soon we will see the shores of Africa.” And about half an hour later they thought they could see land. But it began to get darker and darker and they couldn’t be sure.

Then a great storm came up, with thunder and lightning. The wind howled; the rain came down in torrents; and the waves got so high they splashed over the boat. Soon there was a big BANG! The ship stopped and rolled over on its side.

“What’s happened?” asked the Doctor.

“I’m not sure,” said the parrot; “but I think we’re ship-wrecked.[7] Tell the duck to get out and see.”

So Dab-Dab dived down under the waves. And when she came up she said they had struck a rock; there was a big hole in the bottom of the ship; the water was coming in; and they were sinking fast. “Dear me, dear me!” said the Doctor. “Well – we must all swim to land.” But Chee-Chee and Gub-Gub did not know how to swim. “Take the rope!” said Polynesia. “Come here, Dab-Dab. Take this end of the rope, fly to the shore and tie it to a palm-tree; and we’ll hold the other end on the ship here. Then those that can’t swim must climb along the rope until they reach the land.”

So they all got safely to the shore – some swimming, some flying; and those that climbed along the rope brought the Doctor’s trunk and handbag with them. Then they all took shelter in a nice dry cave that they found, high up in the cliffs, till the storm was over.

When the sun came out next morning they went down to the sandy beach to dry themselves. “Dear old Africa!” said Polynesia and sighed. “It’s good to get back. Just think – it’ll be a hundred and sixty-nine years tomorrow since I was here! And it hasn’t changed a bit! Same old palm-trees; same old red earth; same old black ants! There’s no place like home!”

Then the Doctor missed his hat. So Dab-Dab went out to look for it. And she saw it, in the distance, floating on the water like a toy-boat. When she flew down to get it, she found one of the white mice, very frightened, sitting inside it.

“What are you doing here?” asked the duck. “You were told to stay behind in Puddleby.”

“I didn’t want to stay there,” said the mouse. “I wanted to see what Africa was like – I have relatives there. So I hid in the baggage and was brought onto the ship.”

So the duck took the hat with the mouse in it and brought it to the Doctor on the shore.

When they were looking for a place in the trunk where the white mouse could travel comfortably, the monkey, Chee-Chee, suddenly said, “Sh! I hear footsteps in the jungle! “They all stopped talking and listened. And soon a black man came down out of the woods and asked them who they were.

“My name is John Dolittle – M. D.,” said the Doctor. “I have come to Africa to cure the monkeys who are sick.”

“You must all come before the King,” said the black man.

“What king?” asked the Doctor, who didn’t want to waste any time.

“The King of the Jolliginki,” the man answered. “All these lands belong to him; and all strangers must be brought before him. Follow me.”

So they gathered up their baggage and followed the man through the jungle.

The Sixth Chapter

Polynesia and The King

When they had gone a little way through the thick forest, they saw the King’s palace which was made of mud. The King lived there with his Queen, Ermintrude, and their son, Prince Bumpo. The Prince went fishing. But the King and Queen were under an umbrella before the palace door. And Queen Ermintrude was asleep.

When the Doctor came up to the palace, he told the King why he had come to Africa.

“You may not travel through my lands,” said the King. “Many years ago a white man came to these shores; and I was very kind to him. But he dug holes in the ground to get the gold, and killed all the elephants to get their ivory tusks. Then he went away secretly in his ship and he didn’t say ‘Thank you.’ So I will not let a white man travel through the lands of Jolliginki.” Then the King turned to some of the black men and said, “Take away this medicine-man – with all his animals, and lock them up in my prison.”

So the black men shut up the Doctor and all his pets in a stone prison. The prison had only one little window, high up in the wall, with bars in it. Then they all became very sad.

“Now listen,” said Polynesia, “tonight, as soon as it gets dark, I am going to creep through the bars of that window and fly to the palace. And then – you’ll see – I’ll soon find a way to make the King let us all out of prison.”

“Oh, what can YOU do?” said Gub-Gub, “You’re only a bird!”

“Quite true,” said the parrot. “But do not forget that although I am only a bird, I CAN TALK LIKE A MAN – and I know these people.”

So that night the parrot flew to the palace. She came to the King’s bedroom, opened the door quietly and peeped in. The Queen was away at a dance that night at her cousin’s; but the King was in bed fast asleep. Polynesia crept in, very softly, and got under the bed. Then she coughed. The King opened his eyes and said sleepily, “Is that you, Ermintrude?” Then the parrot coughed again – loudly, like a man. And the King sat up, wide awake, and said,

“Who’s that?”

“I am Doctor Dolittle,” said the parrot in the Doctor’s voice.[8]

“What are you doing in my bedroom?” cried the King. “Where are you? – I can’t see you.”

But the parrot just laughed.

“Stop laughing and come here at once. I want to see you,” said the King.

“Foolish King!” answered Polynesia. “Have you forgotten that you are talking to John Dolittle, M.D. – the most wonderful man on earth? Of course you cannot see me. I am invisible now. There is nothing I cannot do.[9] And if you don’t let me and my animals travel through your kingdom, I will make you and all your people sick like the monkeys. Send your soldiers at once to open the prison door, or you will have mumps.”

Then the King began to tremble and was very much afraid. “Doctor,” he cried, “I will do as you say!” And he jumped out of bed and ran to tell the soldiers to open the prison door.

As soon as he went away, Polynesia left the palace by the window. But the Queen, who returned from the dance, saw the parrot getting out through the window. And when the King came back to bed she told him about it. Then the King understood everything, and he was very angry. The parrot tricked him! So he ran back to the prison at once. But he was too late. The door stood open. The prison was empty. The Doctor and all his animals were gone.

The Seventh Chapter

The Bridge of Apes

Queen Ermintrude was shocked because her husband behaved so terrible. He called everybody a fool. He threw his tooth-brush at the palace cat. He rushed round in his night-shirt and woke up all his army and sent them into the jungle to catch the Doctor. Then all his servants, his cooks, his gardeners, his barber and even the Queen went to help the soldiers in their search.

The Doctor and his animals ran through the forest to the Land of the Monkeys as fast as they could go. The King of the Jolliginki thought that his army could easily find them, because the Doctor was in a strange land and did not know his way. But he was wrong; because the monkey, Chee-Chee, knew all the paths through the jungle. And he led the Doctor and his pets to the thickest part of the forest and hid them all in a big hollow tree between high rocks.

“We will wait here,” said Chee-Chee, “until the soldiers go back to bed. Then we can go on into the Land of the Monkeys.” So there they stayed the whole night through. At last, when daylight began to come through the thick leaves overhead, they heard Queen Ermintrude. She said in a very tired voice, “We can’t find them! Let’s go back and get some sleep.”

And then Chee-Chee brought the Doctor and his animals out of the hiding-place and they went to the Land of the Monkeys. It was a long, long way; and they often got very tired. They always had plenty to eat and drink because Chee-Chee and Polynesia knew all the different kinds of fruits and vegetables that grow in the jungle, and where to find them. They made their lemonade out of the juice of wild oranges, sweetened with honey which they got from the bees’ nests. At night they slept in tents made of palm leaves, on thick, soft beds of dried grass.

When the night came and they stopped for their resting-time, the Doctor made a little fire of sticks; and they sat round it in a ring. Polynesia started singing songs about the sea, and then Chee-Chee told stories of the jungle.

Now when the King’s army told the King that they couldn’t find the Doctor, the King sent them out again and told them they must stay in the jungle until they caught him. So all this time, while the Doctor and his animals were on the way to the Land of the Monkeys, the King’s men were after them.

One day Chee-Chee climbed up a high rock and looked out over the tree-tops. And when he came down he said they were now quite close to the Land of the Monkeys. And that evening they saw Chee-Chee’s cousin and a lot of other monkeys who were in the trees by a swamp, looking and waiting for them. And when they saw the famous doctor, these monkeys felt happy, made a tremendous noise and started waving leaves to greet him.

But the King’s men, who were still after them, heard the noise and they at last knew where the Doctor was, and wanted to catch him. A big monkey saw the Captain of the army among the trees. So he hurried after the Doctor and told him to run.

Then they all ran; and the King’s men began to run too; and the Captain ran hardest of all. Soon Chee-Chee shouted, “It’s all right! We are close to the Land of the Monkeys!” But before they could get into the Land of the Monkeys, they came to a steep cliff with a river below. This was the end of the Kingdom of Jolliginki; and the Land of the Monkeys was on the other side – across the river. And Jip, the dog, looked down over the edge of the steep, steep cliff and said,

“How can we get across?”

“Oh, dear!”[10] said Gub-Gub. “The King’s men are quite close now – Look at them! I am afraid they will take us back to prison again.” And he began to weep. But one of the monkeys cried out to the other monkeys, “Boys – a bridge! Quick! – Make a bridge!”

And very soon there was a bridge made of living monkeys across the river! And a big monkey shouted to the Doctor, “Walk over! Walk over – all of you – hurry!” So all of them crossed the river. The King’s men came to the edge of the cliff and saw they were too late. The Doctor and all his animals were safe in the Land of the Monkeys.

Then Chee-Chee turned to the Doctor and said, “Many great explorers wanted to see how the monkeys make a bridge. But we never let a white man look at it before. You are the first to see the famous ‘Bridge of Apes.’” And the Doctor felt very pleased.

The Eighth Chapter

The Leader of The Lions

John Dolittle now became very busy. He found a lot of sick monkeys – gorillas, orangutans, chimpanzees, gray monkeys, red ones – all kinds. And many died. The first thing he did was to separate the sick monkeys from the well ones. Then he asked Chee-Chee and his cousin to build him a little house of grass. The next thing: he told all the monkeys who were still well to come and be vaccinated.[11] Then he asked to build another house – a big one, with a lot of beds in it; and he put all the sick monkeys in this house. But there were not enough well monkeys to look after the sick ones. So he asked the other animals, like the lions and the leopards and the antelopes, to come and help.

But the Leader of the Lions was a very proud creature. And when he came to the Doctor’s big house full of beds he looked angry.

“Do you dare to ask me, Sir?” he said and glared at the Doctor. “Do you dare to ask me – ME, THE KING OF BEASTS, to look after a lot of dirty monkeys?”

Although the lion looked very terrible, the Doctor was not afraid of him.

“They’re not dirty,” he said quietly. “They’ve all had a bath this morning. Now listen, and I’ll tell you something: the day may come[12] when the lions get sick. And if you don’t help the other animals now, the lions will be all alone when THEY are in trouble. That often happens to proud people.”

“The lions are never IN trouble – they only MAKE trouble,” said the Leader, turning up his nose. And he walked away into the jungle.

Then the leopards became proud too and said they didn’t want to help. And then of course the antelopes said so. And now the poor Doctor was really worried because he didn’t know how to help poor sick monkeys.

But when the Leader of the Lions came back to his den, he saw his wife, the Queen Lioness, who said, “One of the cubs doesn’t want to eat. I don’t know WHAT to do with him. He hasn’t taken a thing since last night.” And she began to cry because she was a good mother, even though she was a lioness. So the Leader went into his den and looked at his children – two very little cubs, lying on the floor. And one of them seemed quite poor. Then the lion told his wife, quite proudly, about his talk with the Doctor. And she got so angry that she nearly drove him out of the den.

“You are foolish!” she screamed. “All the animals from here to the Indian Ocean are talking about this wonderful man, and how he can cure any kind of sickness, and how kind he is! And now, NOW – when we have a sick baby on our hands, you offended him! Go back to that white man at once,” she yelled, “and tell him you’re sorry. And take all the other stupid leopards and antelopes with you. Then do everything that the Doctor tells you. Work hard! And perhaps he will be kind enough to come and see the cub later. HURRY, I tell you! You’re not a good father!” And she went into the den next door, where another mother-lion lived, and told her all about it.

So the Leader of the Lions went back to the Doctor and said, “I was near your house and decided to look in. Have you got any help yet?”

“No,” said the Doctor. “I haven’t. And I’m really worried.”

“It’s very hard to get help these days,” said the lion. “Animals don’t want to work any more…Well, I see you’re in difficulties[13] so I am ready to help you but only if I don’t have to[14] wash the creatures. And I have told all the other animals to come and help. The leopards will be here soon…. Oh, and by the way,[15] we’ve got a sick cub at home. I don’t think that the problem is serious. But my wife is anxious. So will you take a look at him?”

Then the Doctor was very happy because all the lions and the leopards and the antelopes and the giraffes and the zebras – all the animals came to help him in his work. And now very soon the monkeys began to get better. And two weeks later all the monkeys got well. Then the Doctor’s work was done; and he was so tired that he went to bed and slept for three days.

The Ninth Chapter

The Monkeys’ Council

Chee-Chee stood outside the Doctor’s door and didn’t let anyone in until he woke up. Then John Dolittle told the monkeys that he must now go back to Puddleby. They were very surprised at this; they wanted the Doctor to stay with them forever.[16] And that night all the monkeys got together in the jungle to talk about it.

And the Chief Chimpanzee stood up and said, “Why is the good man going away? Is he not happy here with us?” But nobody could answer him.

Then the Grand Gorilla got up and said, “I think we all should go to him and ask him to stay. Perhaps if we make him a new house and a bigger bed, and promise him a lot of monkey-servants to work for him – perhaps then he will not wish to go.”

Then Chee-Chee got up and said to the other monkeys, “My friends, I am afraid it is useless to ask the Doctor to stay. He owes money in Puddleby; and he says that he must go back and pay it.” And the monkeys asked him, “What is MONEY?” Then Chee-Chee told them that in the Land of the White Men you could get nothing without money; you could DO nothing without money and it was almost impossible to LIVE without money. And some of them asked, “But can you not even eat and drink without money?” And the Chief Chimpanzee turned to the Oldest Orangutan and said, “Cousin, surely these Men are strange creatures! Who would like to live in such a land?!”

Then Chee-Chee said, “When we wanted to come to you, we had no boat to cross the sea and no money to buy food to eat on our journey. So a man lent us some biscuits; and we promised to pay him when we came back. And we borrowed a boat from a sailor; but it was broken on the rocks when we reached Africa. Now the Doctor says he must go back and get the sailor another boat – because the man was poor and his ship was all that he had.” And the monkeys were all silent for a while.

At last the Biggest Baboon got up and said, “We should give this good man a fine present because we are grateful for all that he has done for us.” And a little, tiny red monkey shouted, “I think that too!”

And then they all cried out, “Yes, yes. Let us give him the best present that a White Man ever had!” Now they began to ask one another what to give him. And one said, “Fifty bags of coconuts!” And another – “A hundred bunches of bananas! – At least he will not have to buy his fruit in the Land Where You Pay to Eat!”

But Chee-Chee told them that all these things are too heavy to carry so far. “If you want to please him,” he said, “give him an animal. Give him some rare animal.” So then they asked Chee-Chee what rare animal they could give the Doctor. And a monkey asked, “Has a White Man ever seen a pushmi-pullyu?” Then Chee-Chee said, “No. No White Man has ever seen a pushmi-pullyu. Let us give him that.”

The Tenth Chapter

The Rarest Animal of All

Pushmi-Pullyus are now extinct. That means that there aren’t any more. But long ago, when Doctor Dolittle was alive, there were some of them in the deepest jungles of Africa. They had no tail, but a head at each end, and sharp horns on each head. They were very shy and very hard to catch.[17] Only one half of a pushmi-pullyu slept at a time. The other head was always awake – and watching. This was why[18] it was hard to catch it and people never saw it in a Zoo. Well, the monkeys started hunting for this animal through the forest. Then they went along the bank of the river and saw a place where the grass was high and thick; and they guessed that a pushmi-pullyu was in there. The pushmi-pullyu heard them coming; and he tried to escape. But he couldn’t do it. So he sat down and waited to see what they wanted.

They asked him to go with Doctor Dolittle. But he shook both his heads and said, “I don’t want to go!” Then they explained to him that the Doctor was a very kind man but didn’t have any money. They said, “People will pay to see an animal with two heads and the Doctor will get rich and will pay for the boat which he needed to borrow to come to Africa.” But he answered, “No. You know how shy I am – I hate it when somebody stares at me.” And he almost began to cry. Then for three days they tried to persuade him. And at the end of the third day he agreed to come with them and look at the Doctor.

So the monkeys traveled back with the pushmi-pullyu. And when they came to the Doctor’s little house of grass, they knocked on the door. The duck said, “Come in!” And Chee-Chee very proudly took the animal inside and showed him to the Doctor.

“What in the world is it?”[19] asked John Dolittle.

“This, Doctor,” said Chee-Chee, “is the pushmi-pullyu – the rarest animal of the African jungles, the only two-headed beast in the world! Take him home with you and you will be rich. People will pay any money to see him.”

“But I don’t want any money,” said the Doctor.

“Yes, you do,” said Dab-Dab, the duck. “How are you going to get the sailor the new boat if we haven’t the money to buy it? And besides, what are we going to live on? Chee-Chee’s absolutely right: take the funny-looking thing with us!”

“Well, perhaps you are right,” said the Doctor. “He will be a nice new kind of pet. But do you really want to go abroad?”

“Yes, I’ll go,” said the pushmi-pullyu who saw at once, from the Doctor’s face, that he was a good man. “But you must promise me that if I do not like it in the Land of the White Men, you will send me back.”

“Of course, of course,” said the Doctor.

“I notice,” said the duck, “that you only talk with one of your mouths. Can’t the other head talk as well?”

“Oh, yes,” said the pushmi-pullyu. “But I keep the other mouth for eating – mostly. So I can talk while I am eating and be polite.”

When the packing was finished, the monkeys gave a grand party for the Doctor, and all the animals of the jungle came. And they had pineapples and mangoes and honey and all sorts of good things to eat and drink. After the meal, the Doctor got up and said,

“My friends, I wish to tell you that I am very sad because I don’t want to leave your beautiful country. But I must go. I hope you will all live happily ever after.”

When the Doctor stopped speaking and sat down, all the monkeys clapped their hands a long time and said to one another, “He is the Greatest of Men!”

Then, when the party was over, the Doctor and his pets went back to the seashore.

The Eleventh Chapter

The Black Prince

The doctor and his pets went through the jungle and talked, and Polynesia said, “We must tread softly and talk low because we are going through the land of the Jolliginki. If the King hears us, he will send his soldiers to catch us again; I am sure he is still very angry.”

One day, when they were in a very thick part of the forest, Chee-Chee went ahead of them to look for coconuts. And while he was away, the Doctor and the rest of the animals got lost in the deep woods. They could not find their way to the seashore. Chee-Chee, when he could not see them anywhere, was really upset. He climbed high trees and looked out from the top branches to see the Doctor’s high hat; he waved and shouted; he called to all the animals by name. But it was no use.

Indeed they lost their way very badly. The jungle was so thick with bushes and vines that sometimes they could hardly move at all, and then the Doctor used his pocket-knife and cut the way along. They scratched themselves on thorns, and twice they nearly lost the medicine-bag in the forest. At last, after many days, they walked right into the King’s back-garden by mistake. The King’s men caught them at once. But Polynesia flew into a tree in the garden and hid herself.

The King’s men brought The Doctor and the animals to the King. “Ha, ha!” cried the King. “So you are here again! This time you will not escape. Take them all back to prison and put double locks on the door. This White Man will scrub my kitchen-floor for the rest of his life!” So the Doctor and his pets were back in prison. They were all very unhappy.

Then Polynesia saw Chee-Chee who still looked for the Doctor. When Chee-Chee saw her, he came into her tree and asked her about the Doctor and his friends. “The Doctor and all the animals are in prison again,” whispered Polynesia. “We lost our way in the jungle and came into the palace-garden by mistake… Sh! – Look! There’s Prince Bumpo in the garden! He must not see us. – Don’t move!”

And there was Prince Bumpo, the King’s son. He opened the garden-gate. He carried a book of fairy-tales under his arm. He reached a stone seat right under the tree where the parrot and the monkey were. Then he lay down on the seat and began reading the fairy-stories to himself. Chee-Chee and Polynesia watched him, and they were very quiet and still. After a while the King’s son laid the book down and sighed.

“I want to be a WHITE prince so much!” said he, with a dreamy look in his eyes.

Then the parrot, talking in a small, high voice like a little girl, said aloud, “Bumpo, someone can turn you into a white prince.”

The King’s son started up off the seat[20] and looked all around.

“What is this I hear?” he cried. “How strange!”

“Worthy Prince,” said Polynesia, “I am Tripsitinka, the Queen of the Fairies. I am hiding in a rose-bud.”

“Oh tell me, Fairy-Queen,” cried Bumpo, “who can make me white?”

“In your father’s prison,” said the parrot, “there lies a famous wizard, John Dolittle. Many things he knows of medicine and magic. Go to him, brave Bumpo, secretly, after the sunset; and he will make you the whitest prince! I must now go back to Fairyland. Farewell![21]”

“Farewell!” cried the Prince. “A thousand thanks, good Tripsitinka!” And he sat down on the seat again with a smile upon his face and started waiting for the sunset.

The Twelfth Chapter

Medicine and Magic

Very, very quietly Polynesia then slipped out at the back of the tree and flew to the prison to talk to the Doctor.

“Listen,” said the parrot to the Doctor, “Prince Bumpo is coming here tonight to see you. And you have to find some way to turn him white. But make him promise you first that he will open the prison-door and find a ship for you so that you could cross the sea.”

“This is all very well,” said the Doctor. “But it isn’t so easy to turn a black man white.

“I don’t know anything about that,” said Polynesia impatiently. “But you MUST turn this man white. Think of a way – think hard. You’ve got a lot of medicines in the bag. He’ll do anything for you if you change his color. It is your only chance to get out of prison.”

“Well, I think it MIGHT be possible,[22]” said the Doctor. “Let me see —,” and he took his medicine-bag…

That night Prince Bumpo came secretly to the Doctor in prison and said to him, “White Man, I am an unhappy prince. Years ago I went in search of The Sleeping Beauty.[23] I read about her in a book. And I traveled through the world many days and at last I found her and kissed the lady very gently to awaken her – as the book said I should. It is true indeed that she awoke. But when she saw my face she cried out, ‘Oh, he’s black!’ And she ran away and didn’t marry me – but went to sleep again somewhere else. So I came back to my father’s kingdom. Now I know that you are a wonderful magician. So please help me. If you turn me white, so that I may go back to The Sleeping Beauty, I will give you half my kingdom and anything you ask.”

“Prince Bumpo,” said the Doctor and looked thoughtfully at the bottles in his medicine-bag, “I could make your hair a nice blonde color – will you be happy then?”

“No,” said Bumpo. “Nothing else will satisfy me. I must be a white prince.”

“You know it is very hard to change the color of a prince,” said the Doctor – “one of the hardest things that a magician can do. You only want your face white, don’t you?”

“Yes, that is all,” said Bumpo. “Because I will wear shining armor, like the other white princes, and ride on a horse.”

“Must your face be white all over?” asked the Doctor.

“Yes, all over,” said Bumpo, “and I would like my eyes blue too, but I think that will be very hard to do.”

“Yes, it will,” said the Doctor quickly. “Well, I will do what I can for you. You must be very patient. Maybe I will try two or three times. Now come over here by the light – Oh, but before I do anything, you must first go to the beach and get a ship ready, with food in it, to take me across the sea. Do not speak a word about this to any one. And when I make your face white, you must let me and all my animals out of prison. Promise!”

So the Prince promised and went away to get a ship ready at the seashore. When he came back and said that it was ready, the Doctor asked Dab-Dab to bring a basin. Then he mixed a lot of medicines in the basin and told Bumpo to dip his face in it. The Prince leaned down and put his face in the basin. He held it there a long time. At last the Prince lifted his face up out of the basin. It was difficult for him to breathe. And all the animals cried out in surprise because the Prince’s face was as white as snow, and his eyes were gray, not mud-colored! When John Dolittle gave him a little looking-glass, he began dancing around the prison. But the Doctor asked him not to make so much noise about it; and then he told him to open the prison-door. So the Prince unlocked the door. And the Doctor with all his animals ran as fast as they could down to the seashore.

When they came to the beach they saw Polynesia and Chee-Chee – they were on the rocks near the ship.

“I feel sorry about Bumpo,” said the Doctor. “I am afraid that medicine which I used will never last. I think he will be black again when he wakes up in the morning. But he MIGHT stay white – that was a new mixture. Poor Bumpo! I think I will send him some candy when I get to Puddleby. And who knows? – he may stay white after all.”

Then the pushmi-pullyu, the white mouse, Gub-Gub, Dab-Dab, Jip and the owl, Too-Too, went onto the ship with the Doctor. But Chee-Chee, Polynesia and the crocodile stayed behind, because Africa was their home, the land where they were born. And when the Doctor stood upon the boat, he remembered that they had no one with them to guide them back to Puddleby. But then they heard a strange noise, high in the air. The noise became louder and bigger. And Jip said, “Birds! – millions of them!” And then they all looked up. And there they could see thousands and thousands of little birds. And soon all these birds came down. The Doctor could see that they had blue wings and white breasts. And then John Dolittle said, “These are the swallows. They are going back because it will be summer when we get home. Swallows, I thank you! Now we will not lose our way. Pull up the anchor and set the sail!”

The Thirteenth Chapter

Red Sails and Blue Wings

The Doctor’s ship had to pass the coast of Barbary. This coast is the seashore of the Great Desert. It is a wild, lonely place – all sand and stones. And the Barbary pirates lived there. And if they saw a boat, they came out in their fast ships and chased it. When they caught a boat like this at sea, they stole everything on it, took the people off, sank the boat and sailed back to Barbary. Then they made the people from the boat write home to their friends for money. And if the friends didn’t send any money, the pirates often threw the people into the sea.

Now one sunny day the Doctor and Dab-Dab were on the ship, walking up and down for exercise; there was a nice fresh wind, and everybody was happy. Soon Dab-Dab saw the sail of another ship a long way behind them. It was a red sail. “I don’t like that sail. I have a feeling it isn’t a friendly ship,” said Dab-Dab. Jip, who was near, began to growl. “I smell bad men,” he growled – “I smell trouble. I smell a fight – six bad men are fighting against one brave man. I want to help him. Woof – oo – WOOF!” Then he barked loudly.

“See!” cried Dab-Dab. “That boat is nearer now. You can count its three big sails – all red. They are coming after us…. Who are they?”

“They are bad sailors,” said Jip; “and their ship is very swift. They are the pirates of Barbary.”

Then the Doctor asked Dab-Dab to fly up and tell the swallows that pirates were after them in a swift ship. When the swallows heard this, they all came down onto the Doctor’s ship. They told him to separate a long thick rope into a lot of thin strings as quickly as he could. Then the Doctor and the animals tied the ends of these strings to the front of the ship; and the swallows took the strings with their feet and flew off, pulling the boat along. Altogether there were two thousand swallows. And then the Doctor’s ship traveled really fast. And all the animals on the ship began to laugh and dance, because the pirates’ ship was now far, far behind.

The Fourteenth Chapter

The Rats’ War

After two or three hours the swallows began to get tired. And they needed to take a rest soon; so they pulled the boat to an island and hid it in a deep bay till they could continue the flight. The island had a very beautiful, high, green mountain in the middle of it. The Doctor decided to look for water. And he told all the animals to walk on the grass.

Then the Doctor noticed a lot of rats leaving the ship. Jip started to run after them, but the Doctor told him to stop. And one big black rat said,

“Do you know, Doctor, that all ships have rats in them?”

“Yes,” said the Doctor.