VERY early in our experience of Popsipetel kindness we saw that if we
were to get anything done at all, we would almost always have to do it
secretly. The Doctor was so popular and loved by all that as soon as he
showed his face at his door in the morning crowds of admirers, waiting
patiently outside, flocked about him and followed him wherever he went.
After his fire-making feat, this childlike people expected him, I
think, to be continually doing magic; and they were determined not to
miss a trick.
It was only with great difficulty that we escaped from the crowd the
first morning and set out with Long Arrow to explore the island at our
leisure.
In the interior we found that not only the plants and trees were
suffering from the cold: the animal life was in even worse straits.
Everywhere shivering birds were to be seen, their feathers all fluffed
out, gathering together for flight to summer lands. And many lay dead
upon the ground. Going down to the shore, we watched land-crabs in
large numbers taking to the sea to find some better home. While away to
the Southeast we could see many icebergs floating—a sign that we were
now not far from the terrible region of the Antarctic.
As we were looking out to sea, we noticed our friends the porpoises
jumping through the waves. The Doctor hailed them and they came inshore.
He asked them how far we were from the South Polar Continent.
About a hundred miles, they told him. And then they asked why he wanted
to know.
“Because this floating island we are on,” said he, “is drifting
southward all the time in a current. It’s an island that ordinarily
belongs somewhere in the tropic zone—real sultry weather, sunstrokes
and all that. If it doesn’t stop going southward pretty soon everything
on it is going to perish.”
“Well,” said the porpoises, “then the thing to do is to get it back
into a warmer climate, isn’t it?”
“Yes, but how?” said the Doctor. “We can’t _row_ it back.”
“No,” said they, “but whales could push it—if you only got enough of
them.”
“What a splendid idea!—Whales, the very thing!” said the Doctor. “Do
you think you could get me some?”
“Why, certainly,” said the porpoises, “we passed one herd of them out
there, sporting about among the icebergs. We’ll ask them to come over.
And if they aren’t enough, we’ll try and hunt up some more. Better have
plenty.”
“Thank you,” said the Doctor. “You are very kind—By the way, do you
happen to know how this island came to be a floating island? At least
half of it, I notice, is made of stone. It is very odd that it floats
at all, isn’t it?”
“It is unusual,” they said. “But the explanation is quite simple. It
used to be a mountainous part of South America—an overhanging part—sort
of an awkward corner, you might say. Way back in the glacial days,
thousands of years ago, it broke off from the mainland; and by some
curious accident the inside of it, which is hollow, got filled with
air as it fell into the ocean. You can only see less than half of
the island: the bigger half is under water. And in the middle of it,
underneath, is a huge rock air-chamber, running right up inside the
mountains. And that’s what keeps it floating.”
“What a pecurious phenometer!” said Bumpo.
“It is indeed,” said the Doctor. “I must make a note of that.” And out
came the everlasting note-book.
The porpoises went bounding off towards the icebergs. And not long
after, we saw the sea heaving and frothing as a big herd of whales came
towards us at full speed.
They certainly were enormous creatures; and there must have been a good
two hundred of them.
“Here they are,” said the porpoises, poking their heads out of the
water.
“Good!” said the Doctor. “Now just explain to them, will you please?
that this is a very serious matter for all the living creatures in this
land. And ask them if they will be so good as to go down to the far end
of the island, put their noses against it and push it back near the
coast of Southern Brazil.”
The porpoises evidently succeeded in persuading the whales to do as the
Doctor asked; for presently we saw them thrashing through the seas,
going off towards the south end of the island.
Then we lay down upon the beach and waited.
After about an hour the Doctor got up and threw a stick into the water.
For a while this floated motionless. But soon we saw it begin to move
gently down the coast.
“Ah!” said the Doctor, “see that?—The island is going North at last.
Thank goodness!”
Faster and faster we left the stick behind; and smaller and dimmer grew
the icebergs on the skyline.
The Doctor took out his watch, threw more sticks into the water and
made a rapid calculation.
“Humph!—Fourteen and a half knots an hour,” he murmured—“A very nice
speed. It should take us about five days to get back near Brazil. Well,
that’s that—Quite a load off my mind. I declare I feel warmer already.
Let’s go and get something to eat.”
_THE FIFTH CHAPTER_