Part IV Chapter 5 Doctor Dolittle's Garden by Hugh Lofting
THE DOCTOR'S RECEPTION
"It is I, Doctor,—Stubbins," I said. "I couldn't let you go alone. I got on at the last minute."
"Stubbins!" said he, lowering his telescope. "Stubbins! why, I thought you were in Oxenthorpe."
"I didn't go, Doctor," I said shamefacedly. "I—well, I wanted to come for myself and I did feel that you shouldn't be allowed to make the trip all alone."
For a moment there was silence broken only by the steady hum of the moth's wings. I wondered what was coming, what he would say or do. Would he ask the moth to go back and land me on the Earth? I noticed Chee-Chee's head turn and in the pale moonlight a sickly grin of pleasure spread over his scared face as he realized there was more company on this perilous trip.
"Well," said John Dolittle at length, and my heart sank at the cold almost stern ring in his voice which he had never so far used to me, "I don't quite see why you should begin now, Stubbins, to take it on yourself to worry about my safety and—er—disobey me."
"I'm sorry," I said. "But—"
I stopped silent. After all there wasn't anything more to be said. For a minute or two I sat wondering gloomily if this was the end of our relationship. It was, I had to admit, an enormously cheeky thing that I had done. I suppose as a matter of fact I might not have embarked on it without Too-Too's support.
But my anxious thoughts were agreeably interrupted. Suddenly in the gloom the Doctor's strong big hand gripped my arm in a friendly comforting grasp.
"Just the same, Stubbins," I heard him say (and in the dark, without being able to see it, I could imagine the typical smile that accompanied his words), "I can't tell you how glad I am to have you with me. At the very moment when you touched me I was thinking how nice it would be if you were here. Heaven send us luck, Stubbins! Did you tell your parents you were coming?"
"No," said I. "I didn't have a chance. There was no time. Besides I was so afraid that if I left the premises, you'd slip away without me."
"Oh, well," said John Dolittle, "let's not borrow trouble. No doubt we'll worry through all right."
"You usually do, Doctor," said I. "I'm not afraid so long as you're with me."
He laughed.
"That's a pretty good reputation to have," said he. "I hope I deserve it. Look, you see that big patch of lights down there?"
"Yes."
"Well, that's London," he said. "And the white streak running away from it to the eastward is the River Thames. This bunch of lights over to the northwest is Oxford, I imagine. Look, you can see the moonlight reflected on the river all the way up from London. And that big white area is the sea, the Channel."
The map of the British Isles was indeed at this height almost completely revealed to us. It was a cloudless windless night. And the moth's flight was steady, smooth and undisturbed as his great wings purred their way upward, putting goodness only knows how many miles between us and Puddleby every minute.
Suddenly I realized that from being scared to death with the newness of this situation I was, as usual with the Doctor's comfortable company, accepting the adventure with a calm enjoyable interest. I found myself looking down on the world we had left behind and picking out geographical details as though I were merely gazing from a coach window.
He himself was like a child in his delight at the new experience. And he kept pointing to this and that and telling me what it was, as our great living flying machine lifted us further and further and made more and more of the globe visible.
But presently he panted and coughed.
"Air's getting thin, Stubbins," he said. "We are approaching the dead belt. Must be close on twenty thousand feet altitude up here. Let's get those flowers out and fasten them on. We've got one for all of us, luckily—five. Hulloa there, Polynesia!-And Chee-Chee! The flowers! Remember what I told you. Keep your noses well into them. Come, Stubbins: we'll get them unstrapped."
As I moved in answer to the Doctor's summons I became conscious myself of how thin the air was. The least effort made me breathe heavily.
Somewhere amidships on the moth's body the flowers had been fastened down to a long belt that went about his middle. I joined the Doctor and Chee-Chee in their efforts to get the blossoms loose. The rush of wind made this difficult; and in the dim moonlight I realized that John Dolittle was asking the moth to slow his pace down till we had the work done. As far as I could make out, he did this by means of the creature's antennæ. Those long whisker-like arrangements were laid down flat along the back in flight and within easy reach.
It gave me a much greater feeling of security as I saw that the Doctor thus had his ship in control. It only took him a second to communicate his wishes to the insect. And then we hovered. The great wings still beat the air with giant strokes. But the ceasing of the rush of wind past one's ears told me that he was merely holding his position and, as it were, treading air.
"All right, Stubbins," said the Doctor, handing me one of the great blooms, "here's yours. Chee-Chee, you take this one. And we'll put this further up towards the shoulders for Polynesia. Now remember, everybody, life itself may depend on our keeping these within reach. If you have the least difficulty in breathing take a deep sniff of the perfume. Later we'll probably have to keep our heads inside them altogether, when we reach the levels where there is no air at all. Is everybody ready? Get the flowers well down into the fur so they are not blown away when I give the order to go ahead."
In a moment or two Captain Dolittle was satisfied that his crew were prepared for the rest of the journey. And reaching for the antennæ communication-cord, he gave the order for full steam ahead.
Instantly the wings above us redoubled their speed and the whistle of rushing air recommenced.
I found it not so easy now to look over the side, because I was afraid to leave my moon flower lest it be blown away. I gave up studying the map of the disappearing world and fell to watching the Moon above and ahead of us.