Free The Story of Doctor Dolittle: Being the History of His Peculiar Life at Home and Astonishing Adventures in Foreign Parts Never Before Printed by Hugh Lofting

doctor?"
    "Yes," said Doctor Dolittle. "That is my
name."
    "Well," said the shark, "we know these
pirates to be a bad lot—especially Ben Ali. If they
are annoying you, we will gladly eat them up
for you—and then you won't be troubled any
more."
    "Thank you," said the Doctor. "This is
really most attentive. But I don't think it will
be necessary to eat them. Don't let any of them
reach the shore until I tell you—just keep them
swimming about, will you? And please make
Ben Ali swim over here that I may talk to
him."
    So the shark went off and chased Ben Ali over
to the Doctor.
    "Listen, Ben Ali," said John Dolittle,
leaning over the side. "You have been a very bad
man; and I understand that you have killed
many people. These good sharks here have just
offered to eat you up for me—and 'twould
indeed be a good thing if the seas were rid of you.
But if you will promise to do as I tell you, I
well let you go in safety."
    "What must I do?" asked the pirate, looking
down sideways at the big shark who was smelling
his leg under the water.
    "You must kill no more people," said the
Doctor; "you must stop stealing; you must
never sink another ship; you must give up being
a pirate altogether."
    "But what shall I do then?" asked Ben Ali.
"How shall I live?"
    "You and all your men must go on to this
island and be bird-seed-farmers," the Doctor
answered. "You must grow bird-seed for the
canaries."
    The Barbary Dragon turned pale with anger.
"GROW BIRD-SEED!" he groaned in disgust.
"Can't I be a sailor?"
    "No," said the Doctor, "you cannot. You
have been a sailor long enough—and sent many
stout ships and good men to the bottom of the
sea. For the rest of your life you must be la
peaceful farmer. The shark is waiting. Do
not waste any more of his time. Make up your
mind."
    "Thunder and Lightning!" Ben Ali
muttered—"BIRD-SEED!" Then he looked down
into the water again and saw the great fish
smelling his other leg.
    "Very well," he said sadly. "We'll be
farmers."
    "And remember," said the Doctor, "that if
you do not keep your promise—if you start
killing and stealing again, I shall hear of it,
because the canaries will come and tell me.
And be very sure that I will find a way to punish
you. For though I may not be able to sail
a ship as well as you, so long as the birds and
the beasts and the fishes are my friends, I do not
have to be afraid of a pirate chief—even though
he call himself 'The Dragon of Barbary.' Now
go and be a good farmer and live in peace."
    Then the Doctor turned to the big shark, and
waving his hand he said,
    "All right. Let them swim safely to the land."

The Sixteenth Chapter
— Too-Too, the Listener
*
    HAVING thanked the sharks again for their kindness,
the Doctor and his pets set off once more on their
journey home in the swift ship with the three red sails.
    As they moved out into the open sea, the
animals all went downstairs to see what their new
boat was like inside; while the Doctor leant on
the rail at the back of the ship with a pipe in his
mouth, watching the Canary Islands fade away
in the blue dusk of the evening.
    While he was standing there, wondering how
the monkeys were getting on—and what his
garden would look like when he got back to
Puddleby, Dab-Dab came tumbling up the
stairs, all smiles and full of news.
    "Doctor!" she cried. "This ship of the pi-
rates is simply beautiful—absolutely. The beds
downstairs are made of primrose silk—with
hundreds of big pillows and cushions; there are
thick, soft carpets on the floors; the dishes are
made of silver; and there are all sorts of good
things to eat and drink—special things; the
larder—well, it's just like a shop, that's all.
You never saw anything like it in your life—
Just think—they kept five different kinds of
sardines, those men! Come and look.... Oh,
and we found a little room down there with the
door locked; and we are all crazy to get in and
see what's inside. Jip says it must be where the
pirates kept their treasure. But