野性的呼唤十（The Call of the Wild ）

People helped to catch the dogs and to pick up all the things from the street． They also told the men that if they wanted to reach Dawson，they needed twice as many dogs and half as much luggage．Hal and Charles went back to the camp and started to look at the luggage and throw things away．Tent，blankets and plates were taken out．Mercedes cried when most of her clothes went．When they had finished，Mercedes was still crying，there was a lot of luggage on the road，and there was still a lot to go on the sledge．

Then Charles and Hal went out and bought six more dogs，so they now had fourteen． But the new dogs were not real sledge－dogs and they knew nothing about the work．Charles and Hal put them into harness， but Buck could not teach them how to pull a sledge．So now there were six dogs who couldn't pull at all， and eight who were tired after pulling for four thousand kilometres．But Charles and Hal were happy．They had more dogs than any sledge that they had seen at Skagway．They didn’ t know that no sledge could carry enough food for fourteen dogs．

The next morning Buck led the team up the street．They moved slowly， because they were tired before they started．Buck had pulled to Dawson and back twice，and he didn't want to do it again．He had watched Hal and Charles and Mercedes and he saw that they didn't know how to do any thing．And，as the days passed，he saw that they could not learn．It took them half the evening to get everything ready for the night；and it took them half the morning to get ready to leave． And when they did start， they often had to stop because something had fallen off the sledge．On some days they travelled twenty kilometres and on some days only ten．

They didn't have enough dog food when they started，and they used what they had much too quickly．Hal gave the dogs extra food because he wanted them to pull harder．Mercedes gave them extra food because she was sorry for them．But it was not food that they wanted，but rest．

Soon Hal saw that they had travelled only a quarter of the way to Dawson，but had eaten half their food．He had to give the dogs less food． It was easy to give them less food，but it was impossible to make them travel faster．

Dub had pulled hard and well all the way from Skagway，but he had hurt his leg．It got worse and worse until finally Hal had to shoot him．The six new dogs，now weak and ill from hunger and hard work，died next．

Hal，Charles，and Mercedes had started the journey happily；but now they were tired，cross and miserable．Charles and Hal argued about everything，because each thought that he was working harder than the other．And Mer cedes was unhappy because she thought that she shouldn't have to work．She was tired，so she rode on the sledge，mak ing the work even harder for the dogs．She rode for days，until the dogs could not move the sledge．The men asked her to walk，but she would not leave the sledge．One day they lifted her off．She sat in the snow and did not move．They went off with the sledge and travelled five kilometres．Then they turned，went back，and lifted her on again．

Buck and the other dogs were now just skin and bone．They pulled when they could，and when they couldn't they lay down in the snow．When they were whipped，they stood up and tried to pull again．

One day Billee fell and could not stand up．Hal killed him and threw him into the snow． Buck and the other dogs knew that soon they were going to die，too．On the next day Koona died，and there were only five dogs left：Joe，Pike，Sol－leks the one－eyed，Teek，and Buck．

It was beautiful spring weather．The snow and ice were melting，the plants were growing，and the forest animals were waking from their winter sleep．It was a lovely morning when the two men， and the five dogs pulling Mercedes on the sledge，came into John Thornton's camp at White River．They stopped，and the dogs dropped down immediately to rest．

John Thornton was mending an axe，and he went on working as he talked to Hal．

‘Is it safe to cross the river here？’asked Hal．

‘No，the ice is too thin．It's much too dangerous，answered Thornton．

‘People have told us that before，’laughed Hal，‘but we got here with no problems．’

‘Only somebody very stupid would cross the White River here，’said Thornton．

‘That's what you think，’said Hal．‘But we've got to get to Dawson．’He pickd up his whip．‘Come on，Buck！Get up now！Let's go！’

Thornton went on working．He had warned them，but he knew he couldn't stop these stupid men from going on．

But Buck didn't get up．Sol-leks stood up slowly，then Teek and Joe，and finally Pike．But Buck stayed where he was．The whip came down on him again and again．Thornton started to speak，then stopped，and began to walk up and down．

Hal now put down his whip and started to hit Buck with a club．But Buck had decided not to get up．He had felt thin ice under his feet all day and he saw thin ice in front of him．The club hit him again and again，but Buck felt almost nothing．

Then suddenly， with a wild cry，John Thornton jumped on Hal，throwing him backwards．Mercedes screamed．

‘If you hit that dog again，I’11 kill you，’Thornton shouted．

‘He's my dog，’Hal replied．There was blood on his face．‘Get out of my way，or I’11 hit you，too．I'm going to Dawson．’

Thornton stood between Hal and Buck and did not move．Hal took out his long knife，but Thornton knocked it out of his hand．Mercedes screamed again．Then Thornton picked up Hal's knife and cut Buck out of the harness．

Hal didn't want to fight，and Buck was not worth fighting for；he was nearly dead． Hal started the sledge and went down towards the river．Buck lifted his head and watched the sledge move away．Pike was leading，and Joe，Teek and Sol－leks were behind him．Hal was walking in front of the sledge and Mercedes was riding on it；Charles was walking behind．

As Buck watched，Thornton felt his body with gentle hands，searching for broken bones．Buck was very thin，very tired and very weak，but Thornton didn't think he was going to die．Then both dog and man watched the sledge as it went slowly out on to the ice in the middle of the river．Suddenly the back of the sledge went down and the front went up into the air． Mercedes screamed，and Charles turned and took one step back． Then a big piece of ice broke off，and dogs，sledge and people disappeared；there was only a big hole in the ice．

John Thornton and Buck looked at one another．

‘You poor thing，’said John Thornton，and Buck licked his hand．