第15章

Withthefirsthefoundthewreckageofanaeronauttoo。

Themachinehadevidentlydroppedverticallyandwasbadlyknockedaboutamidstalotofsmashedbranchesinaclumpoftrees。Itsbentandbrokenwingsandshatteredstayssprawledamidstnewsplinteredwood，anditsforepeakstuckintotheground。Theaeronautdangledweirdlyheaddownwardamongtheleavesandbranchessomeyardsaway，andBertonlydiscoveredhimasheturnedfromtheaeroplane。Intheduskyeveninglightandstillness——forthesunhadgonenowandthewindhadaltogetherfallen—thisinvertedyellowfacewasanythingbutatranquilisingobjecttodiscoversuddenlyacoupleofyardsaway。Abrokenbranchhadruncleanthroughtheman’sthorax，andhehung，sostabbed，lookinglimpandabsurd。Inhishandhestillclutched，withthegripofdeath，ashortlightrifle。

ForsometimeBertstoodverystill，inspectingthisthing。

Thenhebegantowalkawayfromit，lookingconstantlybackatit。

Presentlyinanopengladehecametoastop。

"Gaw！"hewhispered，"Idon’likedeadbodiessome’ow！I’dalmostratherthatchapwasalive。"

HewouldnotgoalongthepathathwartwhichtheChinamanhung。

Hefelthewouldrathernothavetreesroundhimanymore，andthatitwouldbemorecomfortabletobequiteclosetothesociablesplashanduproaroftherapids。

Hecameuponthesecondaeroplaneinacleargrassyspacebythesideofthestreamingwater，anditseemedscarcelydamagedatall。Itlookedasthoughithadfloateddownintoapositionofrest。Itlayonitssidewithonewingintheair。Therewasnoaeronautnearit，deadoralive。Thereitlayabandoned，withthewaterlappingaboutitslongtail。

Bertremainedalittlealooffromitforalongtime，lookingintothegatheringshadowsamongthetrees，intheexpectationofanotherChinamanaliveordead。Thenverycautiouslyheapproachedthemachineandstoodregardingitswidespreadvans，itsbigsteeringwheelandemptysaddle。Hedidnotventuretotouchit。

"Iwishthatotherchapwasn’tthere，"hesaid。"Idowish’ewasn’tthere！"

Hesawafewyardsaway，somethingbobbingaboutinaneddythatspunwithinaprojectingheadofrock。Asitwentrounditseemedtodrawhimunwillinglytowardsit……

Whatcoulditbe？

"Blow！"saidBert。"It’sanotherof’em。"

Itheldhim。Hetoldhimselfthatitwastheotheraeronautthathadbeenshotinthefightandfallenoutofthesaddleashestrovetoland。Hetriedtogoaway，andthenitoccurredtohimthathemightgetabranchorsomethingandpushthisrotatingobjectoutintothestream。Thatwouldleavehimwithonlyonedeadbodytoworryabout。Perhapshemightgetalongwithone。

Hehesitatedandthenwithacertainemotionforcedhimselftodothis。Hewenttowardsthebushesandcuthimselfawandandreturnedtotherocksandclamberedouttoacornerbetweentheeddyandthestream，Bythattimethesunsetwasoverandthebatswereabroad——andhewaswetwithperspiration。

Heproddedthefloatingblue—cladthingwithhiswand，failed，triedagainsuccessfullyasitcameround，andasitwentoutintothestreamitturnedover，thelightgleamedongoldenhairand——itwasKurt！

ItwasKurt，whiteanddeadandverycalm。Therewasnomistakinghim。Therewasstillplentyoflightforthat。Thestreamtookhimandheseemedtocomposehimselfinitsswiftgripasonewhostretcheshimselftorest。White—facedhewasnow，andallthecolourgoneoutofhim。

AfeelingofinfinitedistresssweptoverBertasthebodysweptoutofsighttowardsthefall。"Kurt！"hecried，"Kurt！I

didn’tmeanto！Kurt！don’leaveme’ere！Don’leaveme！"

Lonelinessanddesolationoverwhelmedhim。Hegaveway。Hestoodontherockintheeveninglight，weepingandwailingpassionatelylikeachild。Itwasasthoughsomelinkthathadheldhimtoallthesethingshadbrokenandgone。Hewasafraidlikeachildinalonelyroom，shamelesslyafraid。

Thetwilightwasclosingabouthim。Thetreeswerefullnowofstrangeshadows。Allthethingsabouthimbecamestrangeandunfamiliarwiththatsubtlequeernessonefeelsoftenestindreams。"OGod！Icarn’stand，this，"hesaid，andcreptbackfromtherockstothegrassandcroucheddown，andsuddenlywildsorrowforthedeathofKurt，Kurtthebrave，Kurtthekindly，cametohishelpandhebrokefromwhimperingtoweeping。Heceasedtocrouch;hesprawleduponthegrassandclenchedanimpotentfist。

"Thiswar，"hecried，"thisblarstedfooleryofawar。

"OKurt！LieutenantKurt！

"Idone，"hesaid，"Idone。I’ve’adallIwant，andmorethanI

want。Theworld’sallrot，andthereain’tnosenseinit。Thenight’scoming……If’Ecomesafterme——’Ecan’tcomeafterme——’Ecan’t！……

"If’Ecomesafterme，I’llfro’myselfintothewater。"……

Presentlyhewastalkingagaininalowundertone。

"Thereain’tnothingtobeafraidofreely。It’sjestimagination。PooroldKurt——hethoughtitwouldhappen。

Previsionlike。’Enevergavemethatletterortolemewhotheladywas。It’slikewhat’esaid——peopletoreawayfromeverythingtheybelongedto——everywhere。Exactlylikewhat’esaid……’EreIamcastaway——thousandsofmilesfromEdnaorGrubboranyofmylot——likeaplanttoreupbytheroots……Andeverywar’sbeenlikethis，onlyI’adn’tthesensetounderstandit。Always。Allsortsof’olesandcornerschaps’avediedin。

Andpeople’adn’tthesensetounderstand，’adn’tthesensetofeelitandstopit。Thoughtwarwasfine。MyGawd！……

"DearoldEdna。Shewasafairbitofallright——shewas。Thattimewe’adaboatatKingston……

"Ibet——I’llsee’eragainyet。Won’tbemyfaultifIdon’t。"……

4

Suddenly，ontheveryvergeofthisheroicresolution，Bertbecamerigidwithterror。Somethingwascreepingtowardshimthroughthegrass。Somethingwascreepingandhaltingandcreepingagaintowardshimthroughthedimdarkgrass。Thenightwaselectricalwithhorror。Foratimeeverythingwasstill。

Bertceasedtobreathe。Itcouldnotbe。No，itwastoosmall！

Itadvancedsuddenlyuponhimwitharush，withalittlemeawlingcryandtailerect。Itrubbeditsheadagainsthimandpurred。

Itwasatiny，skinnylittlekitten。

"Gaw，Pussy！’owyoufrightenedme！"saidBert，withdropsofperspirationonhisbrow。

5

Hesatwithhisbacktoatreestumpallthatnight，holdingthekitteninhisarms。Hismindwastired，andhetalkedorthoughtcoherentlynolonger。Towardsdawnhedozed。

Whenheawoke，hewasstiffbutinbetterheart，andthekittensleptwarmlyandreassuringlyinsidehisjacket。Andfear，hefound，hadgonefromamidstthetrees。

Hestrokedthekitten，andthelittlecreaturewokeuptoexcessivefondnessandpurring。"Youwantsomemilk，"saidBert。

"That’swhatyouwant。AndIcoulddowithabitofbrekkertoo。"

Heyawnedandstoodup，withthekittenonhisshoulder，andstaredabouthim，recallingthecircumstancesofthepreviousday，thegrey，immensehappenings。

"Mus’dosomething，"hesaid。

Heturnedtowardsthetrees，andwaspresentlycontemplatingthedeadaeronautagain。Thekittenheheldcompanionablyagainsthisneck。Thebodywashorrible，butnotnearlysohorribleasithadbeenattwilight，andnowthelimbswerelimperandthegunhadslippedtothegroundandlayhalfhiddeninthegrass。

"Isupposeweoughttobury’im，Kitty，"saidBert，andlookedhelplesslyattherockysoilabouthim。"Wegottostayontheislandwith’im。"

Itwassometimebeforehecouldturnawayandgoontowardsthatprovisionshed。"Brekkerfirst，"hesaid，"anyhow，"strokingthekittenonhisshoulder。Sherubbedhischeekaffectionatelywithherfurrylittlefaceandpresentlynibbledathisear。"Wan’

somemilk，eh？"hesaid，andturnedhisbackonthedeadmanasthoughhematterednothing。

Hewaspuzzledtofindthedooroftheshedopen，thoughhehadclosedandlatcheditverycarefullyovernight，andhefoundalsosomedirtyplateshehadnotnoticedbeforeonthebench。Hediscoveredthatthehingesofthetinlockerwereunscrewedandthatitcouldbeopened。Hehadnotobservedthisovernight。

"Sillyofme！"saidBert。"’EreIwaspuzzlin’andwhackin’awayatthepadlock，nevernoticing。"Ithadbeenusedapparentlyasanice—chest，butitcontainednothingnowbuttheremainsofhalf—dozenboiledchickens，someambiguoussubstancethatmightoncehavebeenbutter，andasingularlyunappetisingsmell。Heclosedthelidagaincarefully。

Hegavethekittensomemilkinadirtyplateandsatwatchingitsbusylittletongueforatime。Thenhewasmovedtomakeaninventoryoftheprovisions。Thereweresixbottlesofmilkunopenedandoneopened，sixtybottlesofmineralwaterandalargestockofsyrups，abouttwothousandcigarettesandupwardsofahundredcigars，nineoranges，twounopenedtinsofcornedbeefandoneopened，andfivelargetinsCaliforniapeaches。Hejotteditdownonapieceofpaper"’Ain’tmuchsolidfood，"hesaid。"Still——Afortnight，say！

"Anythingmighthappeninafortnight。"

Hegavethekittenasmallsecondhelpingandascrapofbeefandthenwentdownwiththelittlecreaturerunningafterhim，tailerectandinhighspirits，tolookattheremainsoftheHohenzollern。

IthadshiftedinthenightandseemedonthewholemorefirmlygroundedonGreenIslandthanbefore。FromithiseyewenttotheshatteredbridgeandthenacrosstothestilldesolationofNiagaracity。Nothingmovedovertherebutanumberofcrows。

Theywerebusywiththeengineerhehadseencutdownonthepreviousday。Hesawnodogs，butheheardonehowling。

"Wegottogetoutofthissome’ow，Kitty，"hesaid。"Thatmilkwon’tlastforever——notattherateyoulapit。"

Heregardedthesluice—likefloodbeforehim。

"Plentyofwater，"hesaid。"Wontbedrinkweshallwant。"

Hedecidedtomakeacarefulexplorationoftheisland。

Presentlyhecametoalockedgatelabelled"BiddleStairs，"andclamberedovertodiscoverasteepoldwoodenstaircaseleadingdownthefaceofthecliffamidstavastandincreasinguproarofwaters。Heleftthekittenaboveanddescendedthese，anddiscoveredwithathrillofhopeapathleadingamongtherocksatthefootoftheroaringdownrushoftheCentreFall。Perhapsthiswasasortofway！

ItledhimonlytothechokinganddeafeningexperienceoftheCaveoftheWinds，andafterhehadspentaquarterofanhourinapartiallystupefiedconditionflattenedbetweensolidrockandnearlyassolidwaterfall，hedecidedthatthiswasafterallnopracticableroutetoCanadaandretracedhissteps。AshereascendedtheBiddleStairs，heheardwhathedecidedatlastmustbeasortofecho，asoundofsomeonewalkingaboutonthegravelpathsabove。Whenhegottothetop，theplacewasassolitaryasbefore。

Thencehemadehisway，withthekittenskirmishingalongbesidehiminthegrass，toastaircasethatledtoalumpofprojectingrockthatenfiladedthehugegreenmajestyoftheHorseshoeFall。

Hestoodthereforsometimeinsilence。

"Youwouldn’tthink，"hesaidatlast，"therewassomuchwater……Thisroarin’andsplashin’，itgetsonone’snervesatlast……Soundslikepeopletalking……Soundslikepeoplegoingabout……Soundslikeanythingyoufancy。"

Heretiredupthestaircaseagain。"Is’poseIshallkeepongoin’roundthisblessedisland，"hesaiddrearily。"Roundandroundandround。"

HefoundhimselfpresentlybesidethelessdamagedAsiaticaeroplaneagain。Hestaredatitandthekittensmeltit。

"Broke！"hesaid。

Helookedupwithaconvulsivestart。

Advancingslowlytowardshimoutfromamongthetreesweretwotallgauntfigures。Theywereblackenedandtatteredandbandaged;thehind—mostonelimpedandhadhisheadswathedinwhite，buttheforemostonestillcarriedhimselfasaPrinceshoulddo，forallthathisleftarmwasinaslingandonesideofhisfacescaldedalividcrimson。HewasthePrinceKarlAlbert，theWarLord，the"GermanAlexander，"andthemanbehindhimwasthebird—facedmanwhosecabinhadoncebeentakenfromhimandgiventoBert。

6

WiththatapparitionbegananewphaseofGoatIslandinBert’sexperience。Heceasedtobeasolitaryrepresentativeofhumanityinavastandviolentandincomprehensibleuniverse，andbecameoncemoreasocialcreature，amaninaworldofothermen。Foraninstantthesetwowereterrible，thentheyseemedsweetanddesirableasbrothers。Theytoowereinthisscrapewithhim，maroonedandpuzzled。Hewantedextremelytohearexactlywhathadhappenedtothem。WhatmattereditifonewasaPrinceandbothwereforeignsoldiers，ifneitherperhapshadadequateEnglish？HisnativeCockneyfreedomflowedtoogenerouslyforhimtothinkofthat，andsurelytheAsiaticfleetshadpurgedallsuchtrivialdifferences。"Ul—LO！"hesaid;"’owdidyouget’ere？"

"ItistheEnglishmanwhobroughtustheButteridgemachine，"

saidthebird—facedofficerinGerman，andtheninatoneofhorror，asBertadvanced，"Salute！"andagainlouder，"SALUTE！"

"Gaw！"saidBert，andstoppedwithasecondcommentunderhisbreath。Hestaredandsalutedawkwardlyandbecameatonceamaskeddefensivethingwithwhomco—operationwasimpossible。

ForatimethesetwoperfectedmodernaristocratsstoodregardingthedifficultproblemoftheAnglo—Saxoncitizen，thatambiguouscitizenwho，obeyingsomemysteriouslawinhisblood，wouldneitherdrillnorbeademocrat。Bertwasbynomeansabeautifulobject，butinsomeinexplicablewayhelookedresistant。Heworehischeapsuitofserge，nowshowingmanysignsofwear，anditsloosefitmadehimseemsturdierthanhewas;abovehisdisengagingfacewasawhiteGermancapthatwasaltogethertoobigforhim，andhistrouserswerecrumpleduphislegsandtheirendstuckedintotherubberhighlowsofadeceasedGermanaeronaut。Helookedaninferior，thoughbynomeansaneasyinferior，andinstinctivelytheyhatedhim。

ThePrincepointedtotheflying—machineandsaidsomethinginbrokenEnglishthatBerttookforGermanandfailedtounderstand。Heintimatedasmuch。

"DummerKerl！"saidthebird—facedofficerfromamonghisbandages。

ThePrincepointedagainwithhisundamagedhand。"Youverstehendisdrachenflieger？"

Bertbegantocomprehendthesituation。HeregardedtheAsiaticmachine。ThehabitsofBunHillreturnedtohim。"It’saforeignmake，"hesaidambiguously。

ThetwoGermansconsulted。"Youareanexpert？"saidthePrince。

"Wereckontorepair，"saidBert，intheexactmannerofGrubb。

ThePrincesoughtinhisvocabulary。"Isdat，"hesaid，"goottofly？"

Bertreflectedandscratchedhischeekslowly。"Igottolookatit，"hereplied……"It’s’adroughusage！"

HemadeasoundwithhisteethhehadalsoacquiredfromGrubb，puthishandsinhistrouserpockets，andstrolledbacktothemachine。TypicallyGrubbchewedsomething，butBertcouldchewonlyimaginatively。"Threedays’workinthis，"hesaid，teething。Forthefirsttimeitdawnedonhimthattherewerepossibilitiesinthismachine。Itwasevidentthatthewingthatlayonthegroundwasbadlydamaged。Thethreestaysthathelditrigidhadsnappedacrossaridgeofrockandtherewasalsoastrongpossibilityoftheenginebeingbadlydamaged。Thewinghookonthatsidewasalsoaskew，butprobablythatwouldnotaffecttheflight。Beyondthatthereprobablywasn’tmuchthematter。BertscratchedhischeekagainandcontemplatedthebroadsunlitwasteoftheUpperRapids。"Wemightmakeajobofthis……Youleaveittome。"

Hesurveyeditintentlyagain，andthePrinceandhisofficerwatchedhim。InBunHillBertandGrubbhaddevelopedtoaveryhighpitchamongthehiringstockamethodofrepairbysubstituting;theysubstitutedbitsofothermachines。Amachinethatwastooutterlyandobviouslydoneforeventoprofferforhire，hadneverthelessstillcapitalvalue。Itbecameasortofquarryfornutsandscrewsandwheels，barsandspokes，chain—linksandthelike;amineofill—fitting"parts"toreplacethedefectsofmachinesstillcurrent。AndbackamongthetreeswasasecondAsiaticaeroplane……

ThekittencaressedBert’sairshipbootsunheeded。

"Menddatdrachenflieger，"saidthePrince。

"IfIdomendit，"saidBert，struckbyanewthought，"noneofusain’ttobetrustedtoflyit。"

"_I_villflyit，"saidthePrince。

"Verylikelybreakyourneck，"saidBert，afterapause。

ThePrincedidnotunderstandhimanddisregardedwhathesaid。

Hepointedhisglovedfingertothemachineandturnedtothebird—facedofficerwithsomeremarkinGerman。TheofficeransweredandthePrincerespondedwithasweepinggesturetowardsthesky。Thenhespoke——itseemedeloquently。Bertwatchedhimandguessedhismeaning。"Muchmorelikelytobreakyour，neck，"

hesaid。"’Owever。’Eregoes。"

Hebegantopryaboutthesaddleandengineofthedrachenfliegerinsearchfortools。Alsohewantedsomeblackoilystuffforhishandsandface。Forthefirstruleintheartofrepairing，asitwasknowntothefirmofGrubbandSmallways，wastogetyourhandsandfacethoroughlyandconclusivelyblackened。Alsohetookoffhisjacketandwaistcoatandputhiscapcarefullytothebackofhisheadinordertofacilitatescratching。

ThePrinceandtheofficerseemeddisposedtowatchhim，buthesucceededinmakingitcleartothemthatthiswouldinconveniencehimandthathehadto"puzzleoutabit"beforehecouldgettowork。Theythoughthimover，buthisshopexperiencehadgivenhimsomethingoftheauthoritativewayoftheexpertwithcommonmen。Andatlasttheywentaway。

Thereuponhewentstraighttothesecondaeroplane，gottheaeronaut’sgunandammunitionandhidtheminaclumpofnettlescloseathand。"That’sallright，"saidBert，andthenproceededtoacarefulinspectionofthedebrisofthewingsinthetrees。

Thenhewentbacktothefirstaeroplanetocomparethetwo。TheBunHillmethodwasquitepossiblypracticableiftherewasnothinghopelessorincomprehensibleintheengine。

TheGermansreturnedpresentlytofindhimalreadygenerouslysmuttyandtouchingandtestingknobsandscrewsandleverswithanexpressionofprofoundsagacity。Whenthebird—facedofficeraddressedaremarktohim，hewavedhimasidewith，"Nongcomprong。Shutit！It’snogood。"

Thenhehadanidea。"Deadchapbacktherewantsburying，"hesaid，jerkingathumboverhisshoulder。

7

WiththeappearanceofthesetwomenBert’swholeuniversehadchangedagain。Acurtainfellbeforetheimmenseandterribledesolationthathadoverwhelmedhim。Hewasinaworldofthreepeople，aminutehumanworldthatneverthelessfilledhisbrainwitheagerspeculationsandschemesandcunningideas。Whatweretheythinkingof？Whatdidtheythinkofhim？Whatdidtheymeantodo？AhundredbusythreadsinterlacedinhismindashepotteredstudiouslyovertheAsiaticaeroplane。Newideascameuplikebubblesinsodawater。

"Gaw！"hesaidsuddenly。HehadjustappreciatedasaspecialaspectofthisirrationalinjusticeoffatethatthesetwomenwerealiveandthatKurtwasdead。AllthecrewoftheHohenzollernwereshotorburntorsmashedordrowned，andthesetwolurkinginthepaddedforwardcabinhadescaped。

"Isuppose’ethinksit’s’isbloomin’Star，"hemuttered，andfoundhimselfuncontrollablyexasperated。

Hestoodup，facingroundtothetwomen。Theywerestandingsidebysideregardinghim。

"’It’snogood，"hesaid，"starin’atme。Youonlyputmeout。"

Andthenseeingtheydidnotunderstand，headvancedtowardsthem，wrenchinhand。ItoccurredtohimashedidsothatthePrincewasreallyaverybigandpowerfulandserene—lookingperson。Buthesaid，nevertheless，pointingthroughthetrees，"deadman！"

Thebird—facedmanintervenedwithareplyinGerman。

"Deadman！"saidBerttohim。"There。"

HehadgreatdifficultyininducingthemtoinspectthedeadChinaman，andatlastledthemtohim。Thentheymadeitevidentthattheyproposedthathe，asacommonpersonbelowtherankofofficershouldhavethesoleandundividedprivilegeofdisposingofthebodybydraggingittothewater’sedge。Therewassomeheatedgesticulation，andatlastthebird—facedofficerabasedhimselftohelp。TogethertheydraggedthelimpandnowswollenAsiaticthroughthetrees，andafterarestorso——forhetrailedveryheavily——dumpedhimintothewestwardrapid。Bertreturnedtohisexpertinvestigationoftheflying—machineatlastwithachingarmsandinastateofgloomyrebellion。"Brastedcheek！"

hesaid。"One’dthinkIwasoneof’isbeastlyGermanslaves！

"Prancingbeggar！"

Andthenhefellspeculatingwhatwouldhappenwhentheflying—machine，wasrepaired——ifitcouldberepaired。

ThetwoGermanswentawayagain，andaftersomereflectionBertremovedseveralnuts，resumedhisjacketandvest，pocketedthosenutsandhistoolsandhidthesetoftoolsfromthesecondaeroplaneintheforkofatree。"RightO，"hesaid，ashejumpeddownafterthelastoftheseprecautions。ThePrinceandhiscompanionreappearedashereturnedtothemachinebythewater’sedge。ThePrincesurveyedhisprogressforatime，andthenwenttowardsthePartingoftheWatersandstoodwithfoldedarmsgazingupstreaminprofoundthought。Thebird—facedofficercameuptoBert，heavywithasentenceinEnglish。

"Go，"hesaidwithahelpinggesture，"undeat。"

WhenBertgottotherefreshmentshed，hefoundallthefoodhadvanishedexceptonemeasuredrationofcornedbeefandthreebiscuits。

Heregardedthiswithopeneyesandmouth。

Thekittenappearedfromunderthevendor’sseatwithaningratiatingpurr。"Ofcourse！"saidBert。"Why！where’syourmilk？"

Heaccumulatedwrathforamomentorso，thenseizedtheplateinonehand，andthebiscuitsinanother，andwentinsearchofthePrince，breathingvilewordsanent"grub"andhisintimateinterior。Heapproachedwithoutsaluting。

"’Ere！"hesaidfiercely。"Whadthedevil’sthis？"

Anentirelyunsatisfactoryaltercationfollowed。BertexpoundedtheBunHilltheoryoftherelationsofgrubtoefficiencyinEnglish，thebird—facedmanrepliedwithpointsaboutnationsanddisciplineinGerman。ThePrince，havingmadeanestimateofBert’squalityandphysique，suddenlyhectored。HegrippedBertbytheshoulderandshookhim，makinghispocketsrattle，shoutedsomethingtohim，andflunghimstrugglingback。HehithimasthoughhewasaGermanprivate。Bertwentback，whiteandscared，butresolvedbyallhisCockneystandardsupononething。

Hewasboundinhonourto"gofor"thePrince。"Gaw！"hegasped，buttoninghisjacket。

"Now，"criedthePrince，"Vilyougo？"andthencatchingtheheroicgleaminBert’seye，drewhissword。

Thebird—facedofficerintervened，sayingsomethinginGermanandpointingskyward。

FarawayinthesouthwestappearedaJapaneseairshipcomingfasttowardthem。Theirconflictendedatthat。ThePrincewasfirsttograspthesituationandleadtheretreat。Allthreescuttledlikerabbitsforthetrees，andrantoandforcoveruntiltheyfoundahollowinwhichthegrassgrewrank。Theretheyallsquattedwithinsixyardsofoneanother。Theysatinthisplaceforalongtime，uptotheirnecksinthegrassandwatchingthroughthebranchesfortheairship。Berthaddroppedsomeofhiscornedbeef，buthefoundthebiscuitsinhishandandatethemquietly。ThemonstercamenearlyoverheadandthenwentawaytoNiagaraanddroppedbeyondthepower—works。Whenitwasnear，theyallkeptsilence，andthenpresentlytheyfellintoanargumentthatwasrobbedperhapsofimmediateexplosiveeffectonlybytheirfailuretounderstandoneanother。

ItwasBertbeganthetalkingandhetalkedonregardlessofwhattheyunderstoodorfailedtounderstand。Buthisvoicemusthaveconveyedhiscantankerousintentions。

"Youwantthatmachinedone，hesaidfirst，"youbetterkeepyour’andsoffme！"

Theydisregardedthatandherepeatedit。

Thenheexpandedhisideaandthespiritofspeechtookholdofhim。"Youthinkyougot’oldofachapyoucankickand’itlikeyoudoyourprivatesoldiers——you’rejollywellmistaken。See？

I’ve’adaboutenoughofyouandyourantics。Ibeenthinkingyouover，youandyourwarandyourEmpireandalltherotofit。

Rotitis！It’syouGermansmadeallthetroubleinEuropefirstandlast。Andallfornothin’。Jestsillyprancing！Jestbecauseyou’vegottheuniformsandflags！’EreIwas——Ididn’twantto’aveanythingtodowithyou。Ijestdidn’tcarea’engatallaboutyou。Thenyouget’oldofme——stealmepractically——and’ereIam，thousandsofmilesawayfrom’omeandeverything，andallyoursillyfleetsmasheduptorags。Andyouwanttogoonprancin’NOW！Notif’Iknowit！

"Lookatthemischiefyoudone！LookatthewayyousmashedupNewYork——thepeopleyoukilled，thestuffyouwasted。Can’tyoulearn？"

"DummerKerl！"saidthebird—facedmansuddenlyinatoneofconcentratedmalignancy，glaringunderhisbandages。"Esel！"

"That’sGermanforsillyass！——Iknow。Butwho’sthesillyass——

’imorme？WhenIwasakid，Iusedtoreadpennydreadfulsabout’avinadventuresandbein’agreatc’manderandallthatrot。Istowedit。Butwhat’s’egotin’ishead？RotaboutNapoleon，rotaboutAlexander，rotabout’isblessedfamilyand’imandGordandDavidandallthat。Anyonewhowasn’tadressed—upsillyfoolofaPrincecould’avetoldallthiswasgoin’to’appen。TherewasusinEuropeallatsixesandsevenswithoursillyflagsandoursillynewspapersraggin’usupagainsteachotherandkeepin’usapart，andtherewasChina，solidasacheese，withmillionsandmillionsofmenonlywantin’

abitofscienceandabitofenterprisetobeasgoodasallofus。Youthoughttheycouldn’tgetatyou。Andthentheygotflying—machines。Andbif！——’ereweare。Why，whentheydidn’tgoonmakinggunsandarmiesinChina，wewentandpoked’emupuntiltheydid。They’ADtogiveusthislickin’they’vegiveus。