Latest / Classic Science Fiction Books / 26 - Baron Trump's Marvellous Underground Journey - Ingersoll Lockwood

Transcript

26 - Baron Trump's Marvellous Underground Journey - Ingersoll Lockwood · Classic Science Fiction Books

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Chapter twenty six, how the quarrymen of King Gelidus cleft
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: asunder the crystal prison of the little man with a
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: frozen smile my bitter disappointment, and how I bore it
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: wonderful happenings of the night that followed. Bulgar again proves
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: himself to be an animal of extraordinary sagacity. Bulgar and
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: I had little appetite for the dainty breakfast of stewed
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: sweetbreads which the Colti corpse set before us next morning,
• 0:29
  Speaker 1: for I knew and he half suspected, that something important
• 0:32
  Speaker 1: was going to happen, being nothing less than the cleavness
• 0:36
  Speaker 1: under of the crystal cell which had held the little
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: Chimpanzee a prisoner for so many centuries. Walking beside the
• 0:42
  Speaker 1: merry Princess Schnibulet, who was delighted to know that his
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: frigid majesty her father had at last yielded to my wishes,
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: Bulgar and I set out for the beautiful ice grotto.
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: Behind us walked Frosty Fizz and Glacier Boy, with instructions
• 0:58
  Speaker 1: from the King to supervise the cleavingess under of the
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: block of ice. And after them came four of King
• 1:03
  Speaker 1: Yeladas's quarrymen, two bearing flint axes with helves of polished bone,
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: and two carrying the flint wedges to be used in
• 1:11
  Speaker 1: the work. We soon entered Schneebula's grotto, and the task
• 1:14
  Speaker 1: was at once entered upon. It seemed to me I
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: could almost see the little man with the frozen smile
• 1:20
  Speaker 1: wink as eyelids as the quarrymen set their wedges in
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: place and began to mark the line of fracture. But
• 1:26
  Speaker 1: of course, dear friends, you know what imagination I have,
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: especially when I get worked up over anything. So you
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: must take what I say sometimes with a grain of salt,
• 1:36
  Speaker 1: although as a rule you may accept my statements with
• 1:39
  Speaker 1: childlike confidence. With such wonderful skill did the Cultiquorpian quarrymen
• 1:44
  Speaker 1: use their axes and wedges that in a few moments,
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: to my great delight, the huge block of ice fell
• 1:49
  Speaker 1: asunder in perfect halves, in one of which the little
• 1:52
  Speaker 1: manlike creature lay on his side, like a casting in
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: a mold. I made haste to lift him out and
• 1:58
  Speaker 1: wrap him in a soft pelt, which I had brought
• 2:01
  Speaker 1: along for that purpose, And then I turned to retrace
• 2:03
  Speaker 1: my steps to my chamber, where I intended to begin
• 2:06
  Speaker 1: at once my study of whatever inscription should be found
• 2:09
  Speaker 1: upon his curious caller. Remember, little Baron, said glacier boy,
• 2:13
  Speaker 1: by express command of his frigid majesty, the little man
• 2:16
  Speaker 1: with a frozen smile, must be returned to his crystal
• 2:19
  Speaker 1: cell to morrow morning. At this very hour I bowed assent,
• 2:22
  Speaker 1: and then, having accompanied Princess Schnebulet as far as the
• 2:25
  Speaker 1: bottom of the grand staircase leading to the Ice Palace,
• 2:29
  Speaker 1: I turned away, and was soon in the privacy of
• 2:31
  Speaker 1: my own apartment. Now came for me one of the
• 2:33
  Speaker 1: bitterest disappointments of my life. But I submitted with a
• 2:37
  Speaker 1: good grace, for it was fit punishment visit upon me
• 2:40
  Speaker 1: for my foolish vanity in striving to unearth some older
• 2:44
  Speaker 1: record of the human race than had yet been done
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: by any of the great searchers and philosophers, not even
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: excepting that master of masters don Strefalo fijiquinarius foon. No, then,
• 2:55
  Speaker 1: dear friends, that the quaint collar, made up of gold
• 2:59
  Speaker 1: and silver, or disks cunningly linked together, which encircled the
• 3:03
  Speaker 1: animal's neck, contained not a single word or letter of
• 3:07
  Speaker 1: any language. The undersides being quite blank, and the upper
• 3:11
  Speaker 1: merely having rough carved outlines of an object which might
• 3:15
  Speaker 1: possibly have been intended for the sun. Wrapping the animal
• 3:19
  Speaker 1: up in the soft pelt, I laid him away in
• 3:21
  Speaker 1: the corner of my divan and betook myself to the
• 3:24
  Speaker 1: palace of his frigid Majesty, where I frankly informed King
• 3:27
  Speaker 1: Gelidus of my great disappointment in not finding some few words,
• 3:31
  Speaker 1: or even a single word of a language unknown to
• 3:34
  Speaker 1: the wisest heads of the upper world. Schnebole was so
• 3:38
  Speaker 1: touched by my sadness that had I not skillfully kept
• 3:41
  Speaker 1: out of her way, I verily believed she would have
• 3:44
  Speaker 1: thrown her arms around my neck and imprinted upon my
• 3:47
  Speaker 1: cheek the kiss which would have made me the king
• 3:49
  Speaker 1: of the Colti Corpse. But I had no longing to
• 3:52
  Speaker 1: spend the rest of my life in the icy domains
• 3:54
  Speaker 1: of his frigid Majesty, even though my brow would be
• 3:57
  Speaker 1: crowned with the cold crown of the Colti corpse. If
• 4:01
  Speaker 1: I had been an old man with slow and feeble pulse,
• 4:04
  Speaker 1: it would have been very different. But my heart was
• 4:07
  Speaker 1: too warm and my blood too hot to fill such
• 4:09
  Speaker 1: a position with agreeableness to myself or satisfaction to the
• 4:13
  Speaker 1: people of this icy underworld. So I kept the little
• 4:16
  Speaker 1: princess busy enough I can assure you, first with songs,
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: then with dance, and then with story telling. That night,
• 4:23
  Speaker 1: King Gilidus ordered a magnificent fete to be held in
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: my honor. Five hundred more alabaster lamps were lighted, and
• 4:31
  Speaker 1: the royal divans were laid with the richest pelts in
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: the palace. And after the dancing and singing had ended,
• 4:37
  Speaker 1: frozen tidbits from the royal kitchen were passed around on
• 4:39
  Speaker 1: alabaster salvers, and Bulgar and I ate until our teeth ached.
• 4:45
  Speaker 1: It was late when we reached our own apartment, and
• 4:47
  Speaker 1: so full were my thoughts of the beautiful sights which
• 4:50
  Speaker 1: we had gazed upon in the throne room that I
• 4:53
  Speaker 1: had quite forgotten about the poor little man with a
• 4:55
  Speaker 1: frozen smile, whom I had covered up and tucked away
• 4:58
  Speaker 1: on my divan. But Bulgar had not been so hard hearted.
• 5:02
  Speaker 1: Twenty times during the evening he had given me a
• 5:05
  Speaker 1: sly tug at my sleeve, as much as to say, well,
• 5:08
  Speaker 1: little master, let's hurry back. Does not remember that we
• 5:11
  Speaker 1: left my poor little frozen brother, tucked away in that
• 5:14
  Speaker 1: icy chamber, all alone by himself. I was very weary,
• 5:17
  Speaker 1: and I fell off to sleep almost immediately. And yet
• 5:21
  Speaker 1: I had an indistinct recollection that Bulgar was not in
• 5:23
  Speaker 1: his place against my breast. I remembered feeling for him,
• 5:27
  Speaker 1: but that's all never flashed upon me that he had
• 5:30
  Speaker 1: gone and laying down beside the poor little stranger whom
• 5:32
  Speaker 1: I had so unfeelingly lifted from his last resting place.
• 5:36
  Speaker 1: And yet such must have been the case. For about midnight,
• 5:39
  Speaker 1: it seemed to me I was awakened by a gentle
• 5:41
  Speaker 1: tugging at my sleeve. It was my faithful Bulgar, but
• 5:45
  Speaker 1: half awake and half asleep as I was, I merely
• 5:48
  Speaker 1: thought that he was only asking for a caress, as
• 5:50
  Speaker 1: was often his wont when he fell a thinking about home.
• 5:53
  Speaker 1: So I reached out and stroked his head several times,
• 5:56
  Speaker 1: and dropped off again. But the tugging began anew, and
• 5:59
  Speaker 1: this time twas more vigorous, and with it came an
• 6:01
  Speaker 1: impatient whine, which meant, come cut my little master us.
• 6:05
  Speaker 1: Thee dost suppose I would break they rest unless I
• 6:07
  Speaker 1: was good reason for it. I didn't need a third reminder,
• 6:11
  Speaker 1: But with a single bound landed on my feet, and
• 6:14
  Speaker 1: reaching out for one of the tiny tapers which the
• 6:16
  Speaker 1: Coltiquips make use of as lighters, I carried the flames
• 6:20
  Speaker 1: from the single lamp burning on the wall to the
• 6:22
  Speaker 1: three others hanging here and there. The icy walls of
• 6:25
  Speaker 1: my chamber were now ablaze with light. There sat Bulgar
• 6:28
  Speaker 1: on the fur covered divan, beside the place where the
• 6:31
  Speaker 1: little man with a frozen smile lay hidden under the pelt.
• 6:35
  Speaker 1: His tail was wagging nervously, and his large, lustrous eyes
• 6:38
  Speaker 1: were fixed first upon me and then upon the covering
• 6:41
  Speaker 1: of his dead brother, with an expression I never remembered
• 6:44
  Speaker 1: having seen in them before. And then, with a sudden movement,
• 6:47
  Speaker 1: he laid hold of the pelt, and, drawing it aside,
• 6:50
  Speaker 1: showed me what think you, dear friends? What I ask,
• 6:54
  Speaker 1: in a tone of half whisper, half gasp. For now,
• 6:57
  Speaker 1: years after, I still can feel that one thrill which
• 7:00
  Speaker 1: I felt then. Why it was alive, that ape like
• 7:05
  Speaker 1: creature had come to life after his sleep of thousands
• 7:08
  Speaker 1: of years. In that narrow crystal cell. Bulgar had lain
• 7:11
  Speaker 1: down beside his frozen brother and warmed him back to
• 7:15
  Speaker 1: life again. Oh, it was wondrously wonderful to see that
• 7:19
  Speaker 1: pair of little eyes, bead like in brightness, look up
• 7:22
  Speaker 1: and blink at me. And then to hear that low
• 7:25
  Speaker 1: moaning voice, so human like as if it whimpered with
• 7:29
  Speaker 1: a shake and a shiver. Oh, how cold it is,
• 7:32
  Speaker 1: How very cold it is. Where's the sun? Where's a
• 7:35
  Speaker 1: soft warm wind? And where are the cloudless skies? So blue, oh,
• 7:39
  Speaker 1: so beautifully blue that used to hang over my head.
• 7:42
  Speaker 1: Bidding Bulgar to lie down again beside him and snuggle
• 7:45
  Speaker 1: up as close as possible, I made haste to cover
• 7:47
  Speaker 1: them both with the softest skins I could find. In
• 7:51
  Speaker 1: a few moments, there came from underneath the pile a
• 7:53
  Speaker 1: low contented cry of hoosia, hoozia, hoosia, followed by a cureus.
• 8:00
  Speaker 1: Additions sounded like fuff fuf fuff. So I put them
• 8:04
  Speaker 1: all together and name the strange newcomer to the icy
• 8:07
  Speaker 1: domain of King Galadas fuff cuja sleep any more? That night,
• 8:12
  Speaker 1: not a wink. The same joy came over me that
• 8:15
  Speaker 1: I used to feel on Christmas morning long ago, when
• 8:19
  Speaker 1: Chris Kringle brought me some wonderful bit of mechanism, moved
• 8:22
  Speaker 1: by a secret spring. For I always scorned to accept
• 8:26
  Speaker 1: ordinary toys like ordinary children. And oh how I longed
• 8:29
  Speaker 1: for the morning when it would be time for me
• 8:31
  Speaker 1: to bundle up the little man no longer him with
• 8:34
  Speaker 1: a frozen smile, but fuff Guja, the live boy from
• 8:38
  Speaker 1: far away, with his curious little face screwed up into
• 8:41
  Speaker 1: such a funny look, and carry him to the palace.
• 8:44
  Speaker 1: How delighted Schneeboo I will be, thought I, and King
• 8:48
  Speaker 1: Galadhus too, How he will unbend from his frigid majesty
• 8:52
  Speaker 1: as he watches the antics of fuff Guja. And how
• 8:55
  Speaker 1: pleased all the dignified cold ecorpions, including Frosty Fizz and
• 8:59
  Speaker 1: Glacier Boy, will be when I tell them that the
• 9:01
  Speaker 1: little man with a frozen smile has come to life again.
• 9:04
  Speaker 1: What crowds of coldi corps men, women and children will
• 9:08
  Speaker 1: rush up the long flights of steps leading to the
• 9:10
  Speaker 1: Ice Palace, begging, entreating King Gelidas to let them have
• 9:14
  Speaker 1: just a little look at Fuffcuja, the little man set
• 9:18
  Speaker 1: free from his icy cell by the famous traveler Baron
• 9:21
  Speaker 1: Sebastian von Trump. End of chapter twenty six