The Call of the Wild: Selected Short Stories by Jack London

Chapter 5 The Call of the Wild (1)
This novel describes a dog, which has gone through hardships and transformed into a wolf king step by step in the wilderness.The novel is not only about dogs, but also about people, which confirms the iron law of "survival of the fittest" and "survival of the strongest".

The Call of the Wild - Selected Novellas and Short Stories by Jack London The Call of the Wild 00
(Chapter 1) Fell from Heaven

(Section [-]) Trafficking
It is a great pity that Booker never reads a newspaper, even once.That way, it won't be in trouble.

In recent years, someone has discovered a precious metal in the Arctic region, that is gold.The first discoverers were explorers.The discovery of gold is exciting.The people of the shipping and freight companies had no scruples, and the news was widely published in the newspapers.For a time, the whole of Europe was boiling.

There are countless people with dreams of getting rich.As soon as they heard the news, they set off to the Arctic region one after another, and batch after batch came.

The Arctic is so icy that the only means of transportation there is a sled.But pulling sleds requires dogs, and dogs with a strong body, because only a strong body can withstand heavy physical labor and at the same time not be tired by the cold.

This time, the dog will suffer.All along the Pacific Coast, from Buget Sound to the Port of San Diego.All dogs, as long as they are strong and have long, hardy coats, are at risk.And this danger is something they have never experienced before.

Booker is a wolfhound who lives in Judge Miller's home.Judge Miller's home was a beautiful estate in the Santa Clara Valley.

The manor is next to the main road, and there are green trees planted inside.These trees are tall and lush, and even the shade is like clouds and mist.Under their cover, the mansion of Judge Miller's family loomed.The corridors are surrounded by walls and are not only spacious but also cool.On the wide lawn, several small stone-paved driveways meandered, and then passed through the shade of the trees.

Compared with the front house, the back of the house is wider, beyond the range of sight.

On the right is the stables, which are not only large in size, but also numerous in number.The horses in the stables are extremely strong and are looked after by full-time staff.There are more than a dozen grooms alone, and they are all very busy.On the left are the servants' rooms and warehouses.The servants' rooms are neatly arranged in rows, and the outside of the house is covered with wisteria.The warehouse is invisible at a glance, and the arrangement is very neat.And in the middle are pastures and grape sheds and strawberry fields.The pasture is lush green with no end in sight.In the corner of the back house, there is a deep well and sprinkler, and the swimming pool is next to it.The big swimming pool is paved with cement, and the water inside is always as clear as ever.It is a children's paradise, where Judge Miller's children can dive and enjoy the shade.

The leader of this place is Booker. Booker has lived here for four years. These four years are all good memories for him.

Undoubtedly, other dogs lived here, and Booker was just one of them.Then again, those dogs were no match for Booker.Because they are all day and night, they do nothing.Either huddling together in the kennel, or hiding in small corners.

There is also a group of fox dogs here, named because they specialize in catching foxes, and there are as many as twenty of them.

Totsu is a Japanese dog and Isabel is a Mexican dog, and they hide in the house every day.But sometimes, they would lie on the window and look around secretly. Behind them, there were many maids holding brooms and mops to provide them with cover.As soon as they saw their heads showing, the group of fox dogs would run over and roar at them fiercely.In this regard, the two of them were very frightened and barked.Until then, the group of fox dogs left with arrogance.

Booker is a mixed breed, his father is a strong St. Bernard dog, and his mother is a Scottish collie.Booker's body has two characteristics at the same time.He weighed just 140 pounds, which he got from his mother, and his good looks, which he inherited from his father.

It is deeply aristocratic, not only because of its good blood and quick response, but also because of its majesty.This majesty is born of respect.In the manor, respect for it has been unanimously recognized.

In addition, it also has a lofty ideal, that is, the son inherits the father's career.It hopes that one day, it can be like its father, always ready by the judge's side and become his partner.

During the four years in the judge's house, Booker was born and raised.For Booker, these four years of life were aristocratic, not only calm and content, but also comfortable in food and clothing.

Although the living environment is very good, Booker is not lazy, on the contrary, he is busy all the time.Sports is its biggest hobby, especially some outdoor sports, such as hunting and games.These exercises are very fun. They not only keep the fat on Booker's body saturated, but also exercise his muscles and bones.In this way, Booker's spirit is always at its best.When he ran, he was not only as agile as a cat, but also as fast as a leopard.

Physically strong and responsive, these have become Booker's proud capital.In this manor, it proclaims itself the leader and holds the right to rule the entire manor.From time to time, it will patrol around, look here, smell there, very proud.

Although those fox dogs often relied on their numbers to make troubles without reason, none of them dared to be presumptuous in front of Booker.As for Tuts and Isabel, it is even less worth mentioning.In front of Booker, they didn't dare to take a breath even if they were atmospheric.

Even the daily life of the judge's family is indispensable to Booker's participation, and it plays an extremely important role in it.

With the judge's sons, Booker treats them as companions.Because many times, Booker either swims with them or goes hunting with them.

To the judge's daughter, Booker is like Prince Charming.Day or night, when they go for a walk, he is sure to be by their side.

Booker and Judge are like old friends.In winter, the fire is raised at night, and the fire is strong.If the judge reads a book, it will lie down at his feet and accompany him.

To the judge's grandsons, Booker is the faithful caregiver.On summer afternoons, he would let the judge's little grandson ride himself as a horse, and crawl around with them on his back.When they are playing with the ball on the grass, it will watch from the side and never leave.If they want to do something impractical near the fountain next to the stable, Booker will stop it in time to prevent any accidents from happening.

Booker's life continued until the autumn of [-].

At this time, the gold mine was discovered by Kele Dake, and the gold panning attracted a lot of attention, and countless people were crazy about it.The North Pole immediately became a place that people yearn for, even though it is a world of ice and snow.

Delivering newspapers to judges is something Booker often does.Even so, it never saw it once, and even if it wanted to, it couldn't understand it.

Although Monuel, the gardener's assistant, also works in the judge's manor, he has no credibility, which Booker could not have imagined even in his dreams.So when Monuel teased it and said, "Come, let's go for a walk," it wagged its tail and went away, very happy, not to mention any doubts.

Gambling is not a good thing, but Monuel is not only deeply involved in it, but also firmly believes in a rule-gambling for a long time will win.Then his bad gambling luck is inevitable.As a result, he lost again and again and owed a lot of debt.As a gardener's assistant, his salary was pitifully small.He has a wife and several children. With his salary, it is not easy to support his family, let alone pay off his debts.Evil comes from the guts, he thought of Booker, and was going to exchange it for money.

Everyone was very busy that night when it happened.There was a meeting of the viticultural association, the judges were there, and the kids were starting their own sports club.

Monuel is cunning, and he thinks his chance has come.In order to avoid being noticed, he took Booker from the ranch to the campus park train station.No one noticed when they went out.

As soon as they got to the station, a man came up to meet them, as if waiting for them specially.Booker never met him, though.Then Monuel and the stranger began talking in low voices, and now and then there was the clinking and clinking of copper plates between them.

"Why didn't you tie it?" the man said to Monuel, his face tensed and his voice hoarse.

Monuel did not answer after hearing this, but took out a thick rope, and then put it around Buck's neck. Wrapped around twice. "As long as you hold this rope, if you want it to go west, it will not dare to go east." Monuel said while pulling the rope.

For Monuel's approach, that person dismissed it, and gave a cold snort as an answer.Still, he took the rope.

It was the first time for Booker to be wrapped around his neck by a thick rope.Therefore, it felt very fresh at first, without any struggle, but a little stiff when accepting it.

Booker's moral standards are aristocratic, and this standard makes him not to doubt people casually, especially those he knows well.Not only that, it must obey human wisdom absolutely, because it is beyond its reach.

But why had Monuel given that rope to the stranger?Booker was puzzled and unhappy about this.That face was not only unfamiliar to Booker, but also very fierce.At this moment, that face actually smiled at him, the smile was extremely terrifying.The rope held in his hand was suddenly tightened, and Buck's neck could hardly breathe under this pull.

Booker was astonished, and at the same time, furious.So, it jumped straight at the strange man.But in response to it, the rope became tighter, showing no mercy at all.

Booker struggled like crazy.Its long tongue hangs out, and its broad chest is heaving up and down.It can barely breathe properly.

The stranger's behavior was so cruel and disrespectful. It was the first time Booker encountered such a situation, and even the judge never beat or scolded him once.For Booker, this was a shame, although it was the first encounter, but it couldn't bear it, so it was angry all its life.But, slowly, its strength disappeared, darkness came, and it lost consciousness.

Just when consciousness was lost, it was thrown by Monuel and the stranger into the luggage compartment of the oncoming train.

There was a clanging sound as the train moved forward.Time passed slowly, and Booker's consciousness recovered bit by bit.What exactly happened?It's unclear.His whole body was sore and weak, and his throat was the worst. He felt that if he couldn't drink any more water, he would die of thirst.

Only then did it realize that it was lying on the plank, and the plank was bouncing back and forth, once to the left and then to the right.At this time, the whistle of the locomotive sounded, and the hoarse sound made it determine where it was-this was in the luggage compartment.He had often traveled with judges in the past, so he was no stranger to this feeling of sitting in the luggage compartment.

But what makes it wonder is why is he on the train?In my memory, I was not with the judge.

It opened its eyes, and the fierce face came into view.At this moment, everything appeared in front of its eyes.So it roared angrily.

Seeing Booker's performance, the man jumped up immediately, trying to strangle Booker's neck again.

What he didn't expect was that Booker had rushed up and bit his hand tightly.They stalemate until Booker passes out again.

Under Booker's bite, the man's hand was already bloody.As soon as the conductor heard the shout, he ran over immediately.Wrapping his bleeding hand with a handkerchief, the man said to the conductor: "This dog is crazy! My boss sent me to San Francisco. There is a dog doctor there. I heard that the medicine is very good and can cure this disease." sick."

(Second quarter) Encountered a stick

In a small restaurant on the beach in San Francisco, the stranger was talking to the owner of the restaurant, looking very embarrassed.

Even under the wrapping of the handkerchief, the blood from his hands was still oozing, staining the outer handkerchief with blood stains.The right pant leg was shattered below the knee under Booker's bite.

"Fifty bucks, that's all I got!"

He was resentful, and kept complaining to the hotel owner: "If I have the same job again, even if you give me 1000 yuan in cash, I will not do it. This time, I am really unlucky!"

"Where's that guy? How much did he get?" asked the restaurant owner.

"100 yuan is not a lot. I swear to God!" the man replied.

"That's 150 yuan." After some calculation, the hotel owner continued, "It seems that the money was not wasted. This dog is worth the price!"

The man who abducted Booker untied his handkerchief, pointed to his finger and said, "But I might be infected with rabies!" His finger was really horrible.

"You did it to yourself." The restaurant owner said to him with a big laugh, "Come on, do me another favor."

After speaking, the two of them worked together to pull Buck into the cage.

Under the tight pull of the rope, Buck could hardly breathe, and his throat and tongue were sore.Although Booker was not very conscious, he resisted fiercely under the burning of anger.However, after the resistance, the result was the same.Resist, stun, resist again, be stunned again.In the end, both sides ran out of energy.After Booker passed out again, they fumbled the copper collar around his neck, untied the rope tied to it, and took the opportunity to stuff him into a cage.The cage is made of wood and the windows are small.

So, Booker had to lie in the cage, under the double torment of hunger and thirst, it was very pitiful.For a whole night, it was tortured in the cage.what's going on?Why are you locked up here?These questions, Booker can't figure out what to say.In its heart, nothing but shame is anger.Although it didn't understand the whole story, it still had an ominous premonition in its heart, as if it was about to face a catastrophe.

At night, it slept very restlessly, and heard the sound of the door opening several times.At first it thought it was the judge who pushed open the door to save itself, so it jumped up.At this time, its greatest wish is to see the judge.But to its disappointment, every time it appeared in front of its eyes was the face of the hotel owner—that fat and swollen face, without exception.Every time the restaurant owner came, he held a small candle, and secretly observed Booker's actions.Booker was originally full of excitement, and just wanted to shout out for joy, but when he saw him, the shout of joy was stuck in his throat abruptly, and turned into a wild growl, with a look of wanting to eat changed his appearance.

And so the night passed.After dawn, four more men came.However, at first glance, they are not good people.Not only are they dressed in rags, but they also look sneaky and speak in rough voices without any manners.Booker was still locked in the wooden cage at this time, but when he saw them approaching, he kept barking wildly.

Regarding Booker's performance, the four men were not afraid at all.Not only were they not afraid, they laughed and poked Booker with sticks.Booker was very angry, so he bit the stick, and he didn't relax.But soon, it discovered that they were just teasing themselves.Furious, he lay down and ignored them.Even when they carried the wooden cage with him into a truck, Buck didn't care.

In the next few days, the wooden cage kept switching positions among different people.Finally, the wooden cage was carried onto an express train and placed in one of the carriages.During this process, Booker could only watch himself being carried around, but could do nothing.After all this ups and downs, Booker can no longer discern the right direction, but his heart is sober, he knows that he has left his hometown, and is going further and further away.

The whistle of the express train made a high-pitched whistle, and the sound stretched out in a long way.Two days and two nights passed, and the train never stopped.During this period, Booker could not get any food or drink a drop of water.It was so angry that it yelled loudly at all the deliverers.In retaliation for Booker's yelling, those people made fun of each other.Some people imitate the barking of wild dogs, and bark lowly, which is very hateful.Some people are like cats, meowing loudly.Others were like roosters, thumping with their arms outstretched, and screaming wildly.There is no point in his own yelling, Booker knows this very well.But what makes it angry and sad is the teasing of those people, because they have seriously hurt its self-esteem.

Booker kept yelling, but after the yelling, Booker's throat became more and more dry, and even his tongue swelled up, causing unbearable pain.Thirst is more unbearable than hunger.It feels like it's going crazy.However, the thick rope that was tied around his neck was gone, which made him feel much better.

So, it thought to itself, that rope is a tool used by those people to control itself, since it is no longer there, I must make them suffer.It's impossible to wrap a rope around its neck again, and I won't give them this chance.For the past two days and two nights, Booker has endured torture, and his heart is full of anger. These anger and hatred are gathered together, and it is just waiting for an explosive point.Booker was waiting, ready to move.

Its current appearance has completely changed, its eyes are full of bloodshot eyes, and every thread of bloodshotness reveals its anger.It is like a devil, extremely ferocious.At this time, even if the judge really came to it, he probably wouldn't be able to recognize it.It felt dangerous, and after the men lifted it off the train at the Seattle station, a hanging heart was finally relieved that they didn't have to deal with it anymore.

(End of this chapter)