登陆注册
5391200000020

第20章

The next day was very wet - too wet to go out, and far too wet to think of disturbing a Sand-fairy so sensitive to water that he still, after thousands of years, felt the pain of once having had his left whisker wetted. It was a long day, and it was not till the afternoon that all the children suddenly decided to write letters to their mother. It was Robert who had the misfortune to upset the ink-pot - an unusually deep and full one - straight into that part of Anthea's desk where she had long pretended that an arrangement of gum and cardboard painted with Indian ink was a secret drawer. It was not exactly Robert's fault; it was only his misfortune that he chanced to be lifting the ink across the desk just at the moment when Anthea had got it open, and that that same moment should have been the one chosen by the Lamb to get under the table and break his squeaking bird. There was a sharp convenient wire inside the bird, and of course the Lamb ran the wire into Robert's leg at once; and so, without anyone's meaning to, the secret drawer was flooded with ink. At the same time a stream was poured over Anthea's half-finished letter. So that her letter was something like this:

DARLING MOTHER, I hope you are quite well, and I hope Granny is better. The other day we ...

Then came a flood of ink, and at the bottom these words in pencil -It was not me upset the ink, but it took such a time clearing up, so no more as it is post-time. - From your loving daughter, ANTHEA.

Robert's letter had not even been begun. He had been drawing a ship on the blotting-paper while he was trying to think of what to say. And of course after the ink was upset he had to help Anthea to clean out her desk, and he promised to make her another secret drawer, better than the other. And she said, 'Well, make it now.'

So it was post-time and his letter wasn't done. And the secret drawer wasn't done either.

Cyril wrote a long letter, very fast, and then went to set a trap for slugs that he had read about in the Home-made Gardener, and when it was post-time the letter could not be found, and it never was found. Perhaps the slugs ate it. jane's letter was the only one that went. She meant to tell her mother all about the Psammead - in fact -they had all meant to do this - but she spent so long thinking how to spell the word that there was no time to tell the story properly, and it is useless to tell a story unless you do tell it properly, so she had to be contented with this -MY DEAR MOTHER DEAR, We are all as as good as we can, like you told us to, and the Lamb has a little cold, but Martha says it is nothing, only he upset the goldfish into himself yesterday morning. When we were up at the sand-pit the other day we went round by the safe way where carts go, and we found a --Half an hour went by before Jane felt quite sure that they could none of them spell Psammead. And they could not find it in the dictionary either, though they looked. Then Jane hastily finished her letter.

We found a strange thing, but it is nearly post-time, so no more at present from your little girl, JANE.

Ps. - If you could have a wish come true, what would you have?

Then the postman was heard blowing his horn, and Robert rushed out in the rain to stop his cart and give him the letter. And that was how it happened that, though all the children meant to tell their mother about the Sand-fairy, somehow or other she never got to know. There were other reasons why she never got to know, but these come later.

The next day Uncle Richard came and took them all to Maidstone in a wagonette - all except the Lamb. Uncle Richard was the very best kind of uncle. He bought them toys at Maidstone. He took them into a shop and let them choose exactly what they wanted, without any restrictions about price, and no nonsense about things being instructive. It is very wise to let children choose exactly what they like, because they are very foolish and inexperienced, and sometimes they will choose a really instructive thing without meaning to. This happened to Robert, who chose, at the last moment, and in a great hurry, a box with pictures on it of winged bulls with men's heads and winged men with eagles' heads. He thought there would be animals inside, the same as on the box.

When he got it home it was a Sunday puzzle about ancient Nineveh!

The others chose in haste, and were happy at leisure. Cyril had a model engine, and the girls had two dolls, as well as a china tea-set with forget-me-nots on it, to be 'between them'. The boys'

'between them' was bow and arrows.

Then Uncle Richard took them on the beautiful Medway in a boat, and then they all had tea at a beautiful pastrycook's, and when they reached home it was far too late to have any wishes that day.

They did not tell Uncle Richard anything about the Psammead. I do not know why. And they do not know why. But I daresay you can guess.

The day after Uncle Richard had behaved so handsomely was a very hot day indeed. The people who decide what the weather is to be, and put its orders down for it in the newspapers every morning, said afterwards that it was the hottest day there had been for years. They had ordered it to be 'warmer - some showers', and warmer it certainly was. In fact it was so busy being warmer that it had no time to attend to the order about showers, so there weren't any.

Have you ever been up at five o'clock on a fine summer morning? It is very beautiful. The sunlight is pinky and yellowy, and all the grass and trees are covered with dew-diamonds. And all the shadows go the opposite way to the way they do in the evening, which is very interesting and makes you feel as though you were in a new other world.

Anthea awoke at five. She had made herself wake, and I must tell you how it is done, even if it keeps you waiting for the story to go on.

同类推荐
热门推荐
  • 分别善恶报应经

    分别善恶报应经

    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。
  • 要谈恋爱吗

    要谈恋爱吗

    两人是通过程琳的闺蜜安弥认识的而南陌城对她一见钟情一次,南陌城骗程琳来到他的家,不胜酒力的他喝瓶啤酒,借着酒劲,把她抵在了墙上“……”程琳睁大了眼睛,紧张的看着他南陌城靠近她的脸,彼此的呼吸都能感受得到“程琳啊,我喜欢你呢,安弥告诉我,你也喜欢我,所以……”南陌城用另一只手把玩着她耳边的一缕头发,然后看着她的眼睛,笑了笑,“要谈恋爱吗?”本书的结构是甜甜的恋爱,请一起来谈恋爱吧?
  • 爱的金牌魔术团

    爱的金牌魔术团

    有谁会比米蓝更倒霉?大清早被好友诅咒,而后,又邂逅了毒舌的神秘少年言唯熙,不仅一分钱打工费没拿到,还成为了一场幼稚阴谋中的棋子,而那场奇幻的魔术盛宴,仿佛一个魔咒,将她与那些形形色色的魔术师们紧紧纠缠在一起。蹦极塔的意外事件,让米蓝看到言唯熙勇敢的一面,与此同时,她也凭着满腔热血,打入Zero内部,以助理的身份,开始接触神秘的魔术世界。那么,在那些形形色色的魔术师中,谁又将成为她最终的恋人?
  • 风雨沧桑闯关东

    风雨沧桑闯关东

    在我还小的时候,我二伯父就一直叮嘱我:你一定要把咱们家的家史写出来,那可是非常精彩的故事啊,不写出来可惜了。因此,二伯父就陆陆续续向我讲述了我们家的一些事情。这些七零八落的碎片经过我多年来的沉淀和完善,形成了一个连贯的具有传奇色彩的故事。正像我二伯父说的那样,不写出来真是可惜了。当我费尽周折废寝忘食地不知伏案笔耕了多少个日日夜夜之后,总算是写完了。撂下笔的时候,我的心头很轻松,一向不喝酒的我,喝了半斤老白干。醉了。当我醒来的时候,我就走进了小说的情节里。
  • 人生要淡定,生活要从容

    人生要淡定,生活要从容

    哲学家周国平说:一个人对人性有了足够的理解,他看人包括看自己的眼光就会变得既深刻又宽容,在这样的眼光下,一切隐私都可以还原成普遍的人性现象,一切个人经历都可以转化成心灵的财富。淡定是一种心态,从容是一种境界,笑容背后是无奈,繁华过后是灰烬,常葆一颗从容的心,看云起云落;生活从容的人一定是最成功、最友善、最幸福的人。珍惜当下,把握自好自我的心灵,当下不在他方净土,而是内心一念。
  • 趣谈外国著名文学家

    趣谈外国著名文学家

    他们都是世界文学史上的先驱,是他们创造了一个神奇的文学世界。也是他们让我们能读到那么美的文章,他们也是平凡的人,可是他们却有着不平凡的人生。
  • 经典里的中国(全集)

    经典里的中国(全集)

    华文世界独一无二的经典领读者杨照,带你重回朝气蓬勃的先民时代,走进经典里的中国。本系是杨照结合“历史式读法”和“文学式读法”对中国传统文化经典(《尚书》《诗经》《左传》《论语》《墨子》《庄子》《孟子》《老子》《荀子》《战国策》)的选读和导读。通过对这十部经典的部分章节的逐字逐句解读,还原经典于具体的历史情境和历史脉络,展现出先秦时代诸子百家面对现实变化提出的因应之道,勾勒学派代表人物有血有肉的个人形象和个性及其现实活动;同时,通过还原,让今天的读者领略到经典所展现的思想和时代精神独特魅力,既因为古今时代境况差异而激发个人的思考,又因为古今相同而感同身受,汲取古人先贤应对生活的伟大智慧。
  • 宝持总禅师语录

    宝持总禅师语录

    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。
  • 帝君绝

    帝君绝

    她是认定的太子妃,却在大婚前夕被废除,不仅如此,还惹来了满门抄斩。一场算计,她从尊贵的凤位跌落。凤星涅槃,强势归来。昔日害过她的人都不会有好下场。
  • 经典:著名古典小说

    经典:著名古典小说

    《封神演义》是明代长篇小说,共100回,作者许仲琳。全书以宋元时期讲史话本《武王伐纣平话》为基础,博采民间传说演绎而成长篇神魔小说。《封神演义》表现了称扬王道、仁政,反对暴君、暴政的思想倾向,说明了人心向背的重要性。同时,《封神演义》通过神魔斗法的描写,宣扬了宿命论和儒释道三教合一的思想。《封神演义》以内容篇幅巨大、幻想奇特而闻名于世。它发挥神话传说善于想象夸张的特长,给读者以较深印象,被誉为仅次于《西游记》的神魔小说巨著。