The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle | Page 6

reads aloud to his pets. He's wrote
history-books in monkey-talk, poetry in canary language and comic
songs for magpies to sing. It's a fact. He's now busy learning the
language of the shellfish. But he says it's hard work--and he has caught
some terrible colds, holding his head under water so much. He's a great
man."

"He certainly must be," I said. "I do wish he were home so I could meet
him."
"Well, there's his house, look," said the cat's, meat-man--"that little one
at the bend in the road there--the one high up--like it was sitting on the
wall above the street."
We were now come beyond the edge of the town. And the house that
Matthew pointed out was quite a small one standing by itself. There
seemed to be a big garden around it; and this garden was much higher
than the road, so you had to go up a flight of steps in the wall before
you reached the front gate at the top. I could see that there were many
fine fruit trees in the garden, for their branches hung down over the
wall in places. But the wall was so high I could not see anything else.
When we reached the house Matthew went up the steps to the front gate
and I followed him. I thought he was going to go into the garden; but
the gate was locked. A dog came running down from the house; and he
took several pieces of meat which the cat's-meat-man pushed through
the bars of the gate, and some paper bags full of corn and bran, I
noticed that this dog did not stop to eat the meat, as any ordinary dog
would have done, but he took all the things back to the house and
disappeared. He had a curious wide collar round his neck which looked
as though it were made of brass or something. Then we came away.
"The Doctor isn't back yet," said Matthew, "or the gate wouldn't be
locked."
"What were all those things in paper-bags you gave the dog?" I asked.
"Oh, those were provisions," said Matthew--"things for the animals to
eat. The Doctor's house is simply full of pets. I give the things to the
dog, while the Doctor's away, and the dog gives them to the other
animals."
"And what was that curious collar he was wearing round his neck?"
"That's a solid gold dog-collar," said Matthew. "It was given to him

when he was with the Doctor on one of his voyages long ago. He saved
a man's life."
"How long has the Doctor had him?" I asked.
"Oh, a long time. Jip's getting pretty old now. That's why the Doctor
doesn't take him on his voyages any more. He leaves him behind to
take care of the house. Every Monday and Thursday I bring the food to
the gate here and give it him through the bars. He never lets any one
come inside the garden while the Doctor's away--not even me, though
he knows me well. But you'll always be able to tell if the Doctor's back
or not--because if he is, the gate will surely be open."
So I went off home to my father's house and put my squirrel to bed in
an old wooden box full of straw. And there I nursed him myself and
took care of him as best I could till the time should come when the
Doctor would return. And every day I went to the little house with the
big garden on the edge of the town and tried the gate to see if it were
locked. Sometimes the dog, Jip, would come down to the gate to meet
me. But though he always wagged his tail and seemed glad to see me,
he never let me come inside the garden.

THE THIRD CHAPTER
THE DOCTOR'S HOME
ONE Monday afternoon towards the end of April my father asked me
to take some shoes which he had mended to a house on the other side
of the town. They were for a Colonel Bellowes who was very
particular.
I found the house and rang the bell at the front door. The Colonel
opened it, stuck out a very red face and said, "Go round to the
tradesmen's entrance--go to the back door." Then he slammed the door
shut.
I felt inclined to throw the shoes into the middle of his flower-bed. But

I thought my father might be angry, so I didn't. I went round to the back
door, and there the Colonel's wife met me and took the shoes from me.
She looked a timid little woman and had her hands all over flour as
though she were making bread. She seemed to be terribly afraid of her
husband