英語讀物《神奇樹屋》 第十二冊 Polar Bears Past Bedtime 04 Snow House
The dogsled skimmed silently over the frozentundra. The seal hunter ran alongside it. Sometimeshe cracked his whip against the ice.
The snowdrifts looked like giant white sculptures asthe sun slipped behind the frozen hills. Then a fullorange moon rose in the sky.
The moonlight lit a small, rounded igloo in of them.
The dogs slowed, then stopped.
Jack stepped off the sled. Annie went to helpunhitch the dogs. Jack took his book out and readabout igloos:
The word "igloo" means "house" in the language ofnative Arctic people. The house is built with blocks ofsnow. Dry snow is good wall material because itkeeps in the heat. The temperature inside an igloo canbe 65 degrees warmer than the temperature outside.
Jack took out his notebook. He pulled off his mittenjust long enough to write:
Igloo means house"Come on, Jack!" said Annie.
She and the seal hunter were waiting for him infront of the igloo. The dogs were leashed togetheroutside.
Jack hurried to join them. The hunter pushed asideanimal skins covering the entrance. They steppedinside.
A fat candle burned brightly. Shadows danced onwalls of ice and snow.
Jack and Annie sat on a fur-covered plat-form.
They watched as the seal hunter moved about.
First he lit a small stove. Then he slipped outside.
He came back with a snowball and chunks of frozenmeat.
He put the snowball in a pot over the stove. Thenhe added the meat.
"What's he making?" asked Annie. Jack pulled outhis book and found a picture of the hunter cooking.
He and Annie read the words silently:
There was a time when nearly all of the Arcticpeople's food and clothing and tools came from Arcticanimals, especially the seal. Nearly every part of theseal could be eaten. Lamps were fueled with seal fat.
Clothing was made from sealskin. And knives andneedles were carved from seal bones.
"He must be boiling seal meat," said Jack. "The poorseals," said Annie.
The seal hunter looked up.
"They are not poor," he said. "They help us becausethey know we would die without them.""Oh " said Annie.
"In return, we always thank the animal spirits," saidthe seal hunter.
"How do you do that?" said Jack.
"We have many special ceremonies," said the sealhunter.
He reached under the fur-covered plat-form andtook out two wooden masks.
"Soon there will be a ceremony to honor the spiritof the polar bear," he said. "I carved these masks forthe ceremony.""Polar bears?" said Annie.
"Yes," said the hunter. "Just as the seal has given usmany gifts, so has the polar bear.""Like what?" said Jack.
"Long ago the polar bear taught us how to live inthe ice and snow," said the seal hunter.
"Taught you?" said Jack. "I mean, can you give ussome facts?"The seal hunter smiled.
"Yes," he said. "A polar bear catches a seal when theseal comes up to breathe through a hole in the ice.
The oldest seal hunters watched the polar bear andlearned. This is how my father taught me to huntseal, as his father taught him.""That's a good fact," said Jack.
"The very first of my people learned to make igloosfrom polar bears," said the hunter. "Polar bears buildsnow houses by digging caves in the drifts.""Another good fact," said Jack.
"Sometimes the polar bear can even teach people tofly," said the seal hunter.
"That's an amazing fact," said Annie.
Jack smiled. "The rest sounded like true facts," hesaid. "But I know that's pretend."The hunter just laughed, then turned back to hiscooking.
That's why he wasn't surprised to hear about thetree house, Jack thought. If he believes polar bears canfly, he probably would believe anything.
The seal hunter lifted the chunks of boiled seal outof his pot. He dropped them into a wooden bucketand gave it to Annie.
"Let's feed the dogs," he said.
"Oh, boy!" said Annie. She followed the hunteroutside, swinging the bucket.
Jack quickly threw his notebook and the Arcticbook into his pack. He started to follow them. Thenhis gaze fell on the two bear masks.
He picked them up to get a better look.
Each was carved in the shape of a polar bear's facewith a blunt nose and roundish ears. There were twoholes for eyes and a strap to hold it on your head.
Suddenly howls split the air. The dogs were barkingand growling. Annie squealed.
Are the dogs attacking her? Jack wondered.
"Annie!"Still holding the bear masks, Jack charged out of theigloo.
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