登陆注册
5211900000056

第56章

Masonwork He had all at once remembered the resolution of the goblins to carry out their second plan upon the failure of the first.No doubt they were already busy, and the mine was therefore in the greatest danger of being flooded and rendered useless - not to speak of the lives of the miners.

When he reached the mouth of the mine, after rousing all the miners within reach, he found his father and a good many more just entering.They all hurried to the gang by which he had found a way into the goblin country.There the foresight of Peter had already collected a great many blocks of stone, with cement, ready for building up the weak place - well enough known to the goblins.

Although there was not room for more than two to be actually building at once, they managed, by setting all the rest to work in preparing the cement and passing the stones, to finish in the course of the day a huge buttress filling the whole gang, and supported everywhere by the live rock.Before the hour when they usually dropped work, they were satisfied the mine was secure.

They had heard goblin hammers and pickaxes busy all the time, and at length fancied they heard sounds of water they had never heard before.But that was otherwise accounted for when they left the mine, for they stepped out into a tremendous storm which was raging all over the mountain.The thunder was bellowing, and the lightning lancing out of a huge black cloud which lay above it and hung down its edges of thick mist over its sides.The lightning was breaking out of the mountain, too, and flashing up into the cloud.From the state of the brooks, now swollen into raging torrents, it was evident that the storm had been storming all day.

The wind was blowing as if it would blow him off the mountain, but, anxious about his mother and the princess, Curdie darted up through the thick of the tempest.Even if they had not set out before the storm came on, he did not judge them safe, for in such a storm even their poor little house was in danger.Indeed he soon found that but for a huge rock against which it was built, and which protected it both from the blasts and the waters, it must have been swept if it was not blown away; for the two torrents into which this rock parted the rush of water behind it united again in front of the cottage - two roaring and dangerous streams, which his mother and the princess could not possibly have passed.It was with great difficulty that he forced his way through one of them, and up to the door.

The moment his hand fell on the latch, through all the uproar of winds and Waters came the joyous cry of the princess:

'There's Curdie! Curdie! Curdie!'

She was sitting wrapped in blankets on the bed, his mother trying for the hundredth time to light the fire which had been drowned by the rain that came down the chimney.The clay floor was one mass of mud, and the whole place looked wretched.But the faces of the mother and the princess shone as if their troubles only made them the merrier.Curdie burst out laughing at the sight of them.

'I never had such fun!' said the princess, her eyes twinkling and her pretty teeth shining.'How nice it must be to live in a cottage on the mountain!'

'It all depends on what kind your inside house is,' said the mother.

'I know what you mean,' said Irene.'That's the kind of thing my grandmother says.'

By the time Peter returned the storm was nearly over, but the streams were so fierce and so swollen that it was not only out of the question for the princess to go down the mountain, but most dangerous for Peter even or Curdie to make the attempt in the gathering darkness.

'They will be dreadfully frightened about you,' said Peter to the princess, 'but we cannot help it.We must wait till the morning.'

With Curdie's help, the fire was lighted at last, and the mother set about making their supper; and after supper they all told the princess stories till she grew sleepy.Then Curdie's mother laid her in Curdie's bed, which was in a tiny little garret-room.As soon as she was in bed, through a little window low down in the roof she caught sight of her grandmother's lamp shining far away beneath, and she gazed at the beautiful silvery globe until she fell asleep.

同类推荐
  • 明伦汇编交谊典世谊部

    明伦汇编交谊典世谊部

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 明伦汇编皇极典君臣部

    明伦汇编皇极典君臣部

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 太上内丹守一真定经

    太上内丹守一真定经

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • A Bundle of Ballads

    A Bundle of Ballads

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 俱舍论疏

    俱舍论疏

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
热门推荐
  • 护法战神

    护法战神

    虬龙出洞旋风起,银钩铁画乱星芒。破灭千军铁山盾,奔雷化作疾影伤。雷龙入世锁喉兵,横扫八荒游龙枪。擎天之名传天下,战神无敌守四方。
  • 黄金台

    黄金台

    门铃声大作,我透过猫眼儿朝外观望,外面一片晃动的模糊,混沌得如在雾里。当我最终搞清那模糊是一只人的眼睛,在猫眼儿的另一端正朝里窥望时,吓得我倒退几步,吸了一口冷气。退休后我一个人在北京住着,属于空巢老人系列,治安的问题不可不重视,虽然无财又无色,终归是件让人揪心的事情。从猫眼儿外头朝里望,肯定看不出什么所以然,这个人趴着往里看,企图弄清屋里的一二三,不是别有用心就是脑子进水了。我在猫眼儿的这头等待大眼睛的离开,那只眼睛偏偏就忽闪忽闪,执着地不肯离去。我问了一声谁,外头没有回应,眼睛也没有离开,我再一次追问是谁,门外发出吱吱的声音,像是耗子。
  • 创世记之生肖崛起

    创世记之生肖崛起

    十二生肖一直都是神一般的存在,冥冥中护佑着我们,而今一个激活他们的金手指出现,那就是十二生肖天命珠,它将在凡人中选择融合对象,与之融合,释放神奇的力量,让融合者成为超人般的存在,开启新的修真时代。十二生肖非传说,择天选命金珠合。一时天地风云起,生肖崛起唱战歌。捍卫星球成宿命,血战沙场斩妖魔。
  • 箫声咽

    箫声咽

    深夜,两名道士不请自来,他们自称来自江湖第一善帮的红筹寺,此行无非两个目的,一是送回文总镖头文玮峰的尸首,二是索回红筹寺的圣物。文夫人悲愤交加,百口莫辩,想要寻找帮手,却发现无论是女儿还是其他镖师都在转眼之间没了踪影……文玮峰的女婿,云台山庄的庄主徐士清觉得岳父死得蹊跷,便请来号称“江南府门三绝”之一的仵作白志远协助破案,谁知,白志远刚找到关键线索便死于非命。若干年后,仵作之女白箫被许配给徐家大少爷,不料新婚之夜,新郎却离奇失踪。所有这些都似乎与当年的文镖师命案有关联,而武功高强的蓬莱四子更是个个有嫌疑,究竟谁是凶手?
  • 人间寻梦

    人间寻梦

    人道海水深,不抵相思半。海水尚有涯,相思渺无盼。
  • 梧桐交魂

    梧桐交魂

    一百年前,我是一颗存在千年的人参,因为自己的执念,天界追杀,我结束了自己的生命。一百年后,生死轮回,我的灵魂被分割在了两个时空。意外的发生,现代的我重新回到了这个未知的时空。梧桐树下我们的约定变成了他的诅咒,一场阴谋的发生,我失去了亲情,失去了友谊,也结束了我们之间的誓言。成长,职责,我必须放下,未知的空间,我学会了责任,学会了爱,一场场重逢,一次次相遇,我终于找到了真实的自己,找回了曾经的感觉。人参山,一百年的前的诅咒,一百年前的约定,我还是我,那个守护人参山的小人参。
  • 最强王者红包群

    最强王者红包群

    高中生吴非,因一次修手机途中。意外发现了一个惊天红包群!这个群变幻多样,从来不发一分钱!里面的个个人物,可都是屌炸天!都是活生生的王者英雄啊!叮~恭喜你获得杨戬的二郎神眼…叮~恭喜你获得亚瑟的护体铠甲…叮~恭喜你获得阿轲的隐身术…从今以后,吴非的生活发生了翻天覆地的变化。书友群:682309070!
  • 自信赢得未来

    自信赢得未来

    许多人会这样想:世界上最美好的东西,不是我这一辈子所应享有的。他们认为,生活中的一切快乐,都是留给命运的宠儿来享受的。有了这种自卑的心理后,当然就不会有出人头地的观念。好多人本来可以做成大事、立大业,但实际上竟只做小事,过着平庸的生活,原因就在于他们自暴自弃,没有远大的理想,不具备坚定的自信。
  • 道途神说

    道途神说

    古的神话,到底仅仅是人们蒙昧无知的幻想,又或本就是一个波澜壮阔的盛世?浩瀚的宇宙无穷无极,可这方宇宙之外又是什么?作为万物之灵的人,究竟是因何得以存在,漫长的岁月又隐没了多少事实,当有一天,历史的尘埃被吹散,呈现在众生面前的究竟是欣喜还是悲哀?
  • 散户操盘实战:低买高卖的赚钱法则

    散户操盘实战:低买高卖的赚钱法则

    在股市中,股民的最终目标并不是盈利,而是盈利的最大化,而要想实现盈利最大化,就需要实现在最低价买入、最高价卖出这一目标,但其实现起来并非易事。本书介绍了K线分析法,走势图形分析方法,趋势线买入卖出的方法,成交量买卖信号的预测,MACD、KDJ等常见的技术分析方法。全书对每一种技术方法应用的条件和它们自身的局限性都加以详细的解释。