《銀椅》第6章:北方的荒原
AT about nine o'clock next morning three lonely figures might have been seen picking their way across the Shribble by the shoals and stepping-stones. It was a shallow, noisy stream, and even Jill was not wet above her knees when they reached the northern bank. About fifty yards ahead, the land rose up to the beginning of the moor, everywhere steeply, and often in cliffs.
"I suppose that's our way!" said Scrubb, pointing left and west to where a stream flowed down from the moor through a shallow gorge. But the Marsh-wiggle shook his head.
"The giants mainly live along the side of that gorge," he said. "You might say the gorge was like a street to them. We'll do better straight ahead, even though it's a bit steep."
They found a place where they could scramble up, and in about ten minutes stood panting at the top. They cast a longing look back at the valley-land of Narnia and then turned their faces to the North. The vast, lonely moor stretched on and up as far as they could see. On their left was rockier ground. Jill thought that must be the edge of the giants' gorge and did not much care about looking in that direction. They set out.
It was good, springy ground for walking, and a day of pale winter sunlight. As they got deeper into the moor, the loneliness increased: one could hear peewits and see an occasional hawk. When they halted in the middle of the morning for a rest and a drink in a little hollow by a stream, Jill was beginning to feel that she might enjoy adventures after all, and said so.
"We haven't had any yet," said the Marsh-wiggle.
Walks after the first halt - like school mornings after break or railway journeys after changing trains - never go on as they were before. When they set out again, Jill noticed that the rocky edge of the gorge had drawn nearer. And the rocks were less flat, more upright, than they had been. In fact they were like little towers of rock. And what funny shapes they were!
"I do believe," thought Jill, "that all the stories about giants might have come from those funny rocks. If you were coming along here when it was half dark, you could easily think those piles of rock were giants. Look at that one, now! You could almost imagine that the lump on top was a head. It would be rather too big for the body, but it would do well enough for an ugly giant. And all that bushy stuff - I suppose it's heather and birds' nests, really - would do quite well for hair and beard. And the things sticking out on each side are quite like ears. They'd be horribly big, but then I dare say giants would have big ears, like elephants. And - o-o-o-h! -"
Her blood froze. The thing moved. It was a real giant. There was no mistaking it; she had seen it turn its head. She had caught a glimpse of the great, stupid, puffcheeked face. All the things were giants, not rocks. There were forty or fifty of them, all in a row; obviously standing with their feet on the bottom of the gorge and their elbows resting on the edge of the gorge, just as men might stand leaning on a wall - lazy men, on a fine morning after breakfast.
"Keep straight on," whispered Puddleglum, who had noticed them too. "Don't look at them. And whatever you do, don't run. They'd be after us in a moment."
So they kept on, pretending not to have seen the giants. It was like walking past the gate of a house where there is a fierce dog, only far worse. There were dozens and dozens of these giants. They didn't look angry - or kind or interested at all. There was no sign that they had seen the travellers.
Then - whizz-whizz-whizz - some heavy object came hurtling through the air, and with a crash a big boulder fell about twenty paces ahead of them. And then - thud! - another fell twenty feet behind.
"Are they aiming at us?" asked Scrubb.
"No," said Puddleglum. "We'd be a good deal safer if they were. They're trying to hit that - that cairn over there to the right. They won't hit it, you know. It's safe enough; they're such very bad shots. They play cock-shies most fine mornings. About the only game they're clever enough to understand."
It was a horrible time. There seemed no end to the line of giants, and they never ceased hurling stones, some of which fell extremely close. Quite apart from the real danger, the very sight and sound of their faces and voices were enough to scare anyone. Jill tried not to look at them.
After about twenty-five minutes the giants apparently had a quarrel. This put an end to the cock-shies, but it is not pleasant to be within a mile of quarrelling giants. They stormed and jeered at one another in long, meaningless words of about twenty syllables each. They foamed and gibbered and jumped in their rage, and each jump shook the earth like a bomb. They lammed each other on the head with great, clumsy stone hammers; but their skulls were so hard that the hammers bounced off again, and then the monster who had given the blow would drop his hammer and howl with pain because it had stung his fingers. But he was so stupid that he would do exactly the same thing a minute later. This was a good thing in the long run, for by the end of an hour all the giants were so hurt that they sat down and began to cry. When they sat down, their heads were below the edge of the gorge, so that you saw them no more; but Jill could hear them howling and blubbering and boo-booing like great babies even after the place was a mile behind.
That night they bivouacked on the bare moor, and Puddleglum showed the children how to make the best of their blankets by sleeping back to back. (The backs keep each other warm and you can then have both blankets on top.) But it was chilly even so, and the ground was hard and lumpy. The Marsh-wiggle told them they would feel more comfortable if only they thought how very much colder it would be later on and farther north; but this didn't cheer them up at all.
They travelled across Ettinsmoor for many days, saving the bacon and living chiefly on the moor-fowl (they were not, of course, talking birds) which Eustace and the wiggle shot. Jill rather envied Eustace for being able to shoot; he had learned it on his voyage with King Caspian. As there were countless streams on the moor, they were never short of water. Jill thought that when, in books, people live on what they shoot, it never tells you what a long, smelly, messy job it is plucking and cleaning dead birds, and how cold it makes your fingers. But the great thing was that they met hardly any giants. One giant saw them, but he only roared with laughter and stumped away about his own business.
About the tenth day, they reached a place where the country changed. They came to the northern edge of the moor and looked down a long, steep slope into a different, and grimmer, land. At the bottom of the slope were cliffs: beyond these, a country of high mountains, dark precipices, stony valleys, ravines so deep and narrow that one could not see far into them, and rivers that poured out of echoing gorges to plunge sullenly into black depths. Needless to say, it was Puddleglum who pointed out a sprinkling of snow on the more distant slopes.
"But there'll be more on the north side of them, I shouldn't wonder," he added.
It took them some time to reach the foot of the slope and, when they did, they looked down from the top of the cliffs at a river running below them from west to east. It was walled in by precipices on the far side as well as on their own, and it was green and sunless, full of rapids and waterfalls. The roar of it shook the earth even where they stood.
"The bright side of it is," said Puddleglum, "that if we break our necks getting down the cliff, then we're safe from being drowned in the river."
"What about that?" said Scrubb suddenly, pointing upstream to their left. Then they all looked and saw the last thing they were expecting - a bridge. And what a bridge, too! It was a huge, single arch that spanned the gorge from cliff-top to cliff-top; and the crown of that arch was as high above the cliff-tops as the dome of St Paul's is above the street.
"Why, it must be a giants' bridge!" said Jill.
"Or a sorcerer's, more likely," said Puddleglum. "We've got to look out for enchantments in a place like this. I think it's a trap. I think it'll turn into mist and melt away just when we're out on the middle of it."
"Oh, for goodness' sake, don't be such a wet blanket," said Scrubb. "Why on earth shouldn't it be a proper bridge?"
"Do you think any of the giants we've seen would have sense to build a thing like that?" said Puddleglum.
"But mightn't it have been built by other giants?" said Jill. "I mean, by giants who lived hundreds of years ago, and were far cleverer than the modern kind. It might have been built by the same ones who built the giant city we're looking for. And that would mean we were on the right track - the old bridge leading to the old city!"
"That's a real brain-wave, Pole," said Scrubb. "It must be that. Come on."
So they turned and went to the bridge. And when they reached it, it certainly seemed solid enough. The single stones were as big as those at Stonehenge and must have been squared by good masons once, though now they were cracked and crumbled. The balustrade had apparently been covered with rich carvings, of which some traces remained; mouldering faces and forms of giants, minotaurs, squids, centipedes, and dreadful gods. Puddleglum still didn't trust it, but he consented to cross it with the children.
The climb up to the crown of the arch was long and heavy. In many places the great stones had dropped out, leaving horrible gaps through which you looked down on the river foaming thousands of feet below. They saw an eagle fly through under their feet. And the higher they went, the colder it grew, and the wind blew so that they could hardly keep their footing. It seemed to shake the bridge.
When they reached the top and could look down the farther slope of the bridge, they saw what looked like the remains of an ancient giant road stretching away before them into the heart of the mountains. Many stones of its pavement were missing and there were wide patches of grass between those that remained. And riding towards them on that ancient road were two people of normal grown-up human size.
"Keep on. Move towards them," said Puddleglum. "Anyone you meet in a place like this is as likely as not to be an enemy, but we mustn't let them think we're afraid."
By the time they had stepped off the end of the bridge on to the grass, the two strangers were quite close. One was a knight in complete armour with his visor down. His armour and his horse were black; there was no device on his shield and no banneret on his spear. The other was a lady on a white horse, a horse so lovely that you wanted to kiss its nose and give it a lump of sugar at once. But the lady, who rode side-saddle and wore a long, fluttering dress of dazzling green, was lovelier still.
"Good day, t-r-r-avellers," she cried out in a voice as sweet as the sweetest bird's song, trilling her R's delightfully. "Some of you are young pilgrims to walk this rough waste."
"That's as may be, Ma'am," said Puddleglum very stiffly and on his guard.
"We're looking for the ruined city of the giants," said Jill.
"The r-r-ruined city?" said the Lady. "That is a strange place to be seeking. What will you do if you find it?"
"We've got to -" began Jill, but Puddleglum interrupted.
"Begging your pardon, Ma'am. But we don't know you or your friend - a silent chap, isn't he? - and you don't know us. And we'd as soon not talk to strangers about our business, if you don't mind. Shall we have a little rain soon, do you think?"
The Lady laughed: the richest, most musical laugh you can imagine. "Well, children," she said, "you have a wise, solemn old guide with you. I think none the worse of him for keeping his own counsel, but I'll be free with mine. I have often heard the name of the giantish City Ruinous, but never met any who would tell me the way thither. This road leads to the burgh and castle of Harfang, where dwell the gentle giants. They are as mild, civil, prudent, and courteous as those of Ettinsmoor are foolish, fierce, savage, and given to all beastliness. And in Harfang you may or may not hear tidings of the City Ruinous, but certainly you shall find good lodgings and merry hosts. You would be wise to winter there, or, at the least, to tarry certain days for your ease and refreshment. There you shall have steaming baths, soft beds, and bright hearths; and the roast and the baked and the sweet and the strong will be on the table four times in a day."
"I say!" exclaimed Scrubb. "That's something like! Think of sleeping in a bed again."
"Yes, and having a hot bath," said Jill. "Do you think they'll ask us to stay? We don't know them, you see."
"Only tell them," answered the Lady, "that She of the Green Kirtle salutes them by you, and has sent them two fair Southern children for the Autumn Feast."
"Oh, thank you, thank you ever so much," said Jill and Scrubb.
"But have a care," said the Lady. "On whatever day you reach Harfang, that you come not to the door too late. For they shut their gates a few hours after noon, and it is the custom of the castle that they open to none when once they have drawn bolt, how hard so ever he knock."
The children thanked her again, with shining eyes, and the Lady waved to them. The Marsh-wiggle took off his steeple-hat and bowed very stiffly. Then the silent Knight and the Lady started walking their horses up the slope of the bridge with a great clatter of hoofs.
"Well!" said Puddleglum. "I'd give a good deal to know where she's coming from and where she's going. Not the sort you expect to meet in the wilds of Giantland, is she? Up to no good, I'll be bound."
"Oh rot!" said Scrubb. "I thought she was simply super. And think of hot meals and warm rooms. I do hope Harfang isn't a long way off."
"Same here," said Jill. "And hadn't she a scrumptious dress. And the horse!"
"All the same," said Puddleglum, "I wish we knew a bit more about her."
"I was going to ask her all about herself," said Jill. "But how could I when you wouldn't tell her anything about us?"
"Yes," said Scrubb. "And why were you so stiff and unpleasant. Didn't you like them?"
"Them?" said the wiggle. "Who's them? I only saw one."
"Didn't you see the Knight?" asked Jill.
"I saw a suit of armour," said Puddleglum. "Why didn't he speak?"
"I expect he was shy," said Jill. "Or perhaps he just wants to look at her and listen to her lovely voice. I'm sure I would if I was him."
"I was wondering," remarked Puddleglum, "what you'd really see if you lifted up the visor of that helmet and looked inside."
"Hang it all," said Scrubb. "Think of the shape of the armour! What could be inside it except a man?"
"How about a skeleton?" asked the Marsh-wiggle with ghastly cheerfulness. "Or perhaps," he added as an afterthought, "nothing at all. I mean, nothing you could see. Someone invisible."
"Really, Puddleglum," said Jill with a shudder, "you do have the most horrible ideas. How do you think of them all?"
"Oh, bother his ideas!" said Scrubb. "He's always expecting the worst, and he's always wrong. Let's think about those Gentle Giants and get on to Harfang as quickly as we can. I wish I knew how far it is."
And now they nearly had the first of those quarrels which Puddleglum had foretold: not that Jill and Scrubb hadn't been sparring and snapping at each other a good deal before, but this was the first really serious disagreement. Puddleglum didn't want them to go to Harfang at all. He said that he didn't know what a giant's idea of being "gentle" might be, and that, anyway, Aslan's signs had said nothing about staying with giants, gentle or otherwise. The children, on the other hand, who were sick of wind and rain, and skinny fowl roasted over campfires, and hard, cold earth to sleep on, were absolutely dead set to visit the Gentle Giants. In the end, Puddleglum agreed to do so, but only on one condition. The others must give an absolute promise that, unless he gave them leave, they would not tell the Gentle Giants that they came from Narnia or that they were looking for Prince Rilian. And they gave him this promise, and went on.
After that talk with the Lady things got worse in two different ways. In the first place the country was much harder. The road led through endless, narrow valleys down which a cruel north wind was always blowing in their faces. There was nothing that could be used for firewood, and there were no nice little hollows to camp in, as there had been on the moor. And the ground was all stony, and made your feet sore by day and every bit of you sore by night.
In the second place, whatever the Lady had intended by telling them about Harfang, the actual effect on the children was a bad one. They could think about nothing but beds and baths and hot meals and how lovely it would be to get indoors. They never talked about Aslan, or even about the lost prince, now. And Jill gave up her habit of repeating the signs over to herself every night and morning. She said to herself, at first, that she was too tired, but she soon forgot all about it. And though you might have expected that the idea of having a good time at Harfang would have made them more cheerful, it really made them more sorry for themselves and more grumpy and snappy with each other and with Puddleglum.
At last they came one afternoon to a place where the gorge in which they were travelling widened out and dark fir woods rose on either side. They looked ahead and saw that they had come through the mountains. Before them lay a desolate, rocky plain: beyond it, further mountains capped with snow. But between them and those further mountains rose a low hill with an irregular flattish top.
"Look! Look!" cried Jill, and pointed across the plain; and there, through the gathering dusk, from beyond the flat hill, everyone saw lights. Lights! Not moonlight, nor fires, but a homely cheering row of lighted windows. If you have never been in the wild wilderness, day and night, for weeks, you will hardly understand how they felt.
"Harfang!" cried Scrubb and Jill in glad, excited voices; and "Harfang," repeated Puddleglum in a dull, gloomy voice. But he added, "Hullo! Wild geese!" and had the bow off his shoulder in a second. He brought down a good fat goose. It was far too late to think of reaching Harfang that day. But they had a hot meal and a fire, and started the night warmer than they had been for over a week. After the fire had gone out, the night grew bitterly cold, and when they woke next morning, their blankets were stiff with frost.
"Never mind!" said Jill, stamping her feet. "Hot baths tonight!"
“我看我們該走那條道?”斯克羅布說着指指左面朝西的地方，那兒有一條小河從荒原穿過一座淺淺的峽谷順流而下。但沼澤怪搖搖頭。
“巨人們主要就住在沿着那峽谷邊上一帶，”它說，”你可以說峽谷就像是他們的一條街。我們最好是一直往前走，即使這地方比較陡一點也沒辦法。”
他們找到一個可以爬上去的地方，大約十分鐘以後，大家就站在山坡頂上喘氣了。他們回頭向納尼亞的谷地懷念地瞧了一眼，就轉身面向北方。放眼望去，只見渺無人跡的廣闊荒原綿延不絕。他們左邊的地面岩石重疊。吉爾想那一定是巨人的峽谷邊上，她不大想往那邊看。他們就此出發了。
這兒的土地走起路來很舒服，又鬆又軟，整天都有淡淡的冬天的陽光。他們越深入荒原，那份荒涼感越厲害：聽得見紅嘴鷗鳴叫，偶爾也看得見一隻鷹。中午前他們停下來休息，在一條小河邊的一個小水坑裏喝了點水。吉爾開始覺得她終究還是喜歡探險的，就這樣說了出來。
“我們還沒有經歷什麼險情呢。”沼澤怪說。
第一次休息以後——就像學校裏早上休息過後，或是鐵路旅行中換車後那樣——走起路來跟以前就大不一樣了。他們重新上路時，吉爾注意到峽谷的巖邊越來越近。而且比起剛纔那些岩石，這些岩石高高低低，更加垂直。事實上，這些岩石就像一座座小小的巖塔。這些形狀多有趣啊。
“我確信，”吉爾想道，”凡是寫巨人的故事都可能來源於那些有趣的岩石。要是你在天快黑的時候上這兒來，很容易把那些一堆堆的石頭當做巨人。瞧瞧那一塊，嗨!你幾乎可以想像那頂上的一塊就是一個腦袋。雖然這腦袋太大了些，跟身體不相稱，但是對醜陋的巨人來說就夠好的了。還有那些濃密的東西——我猜實際上那些是石南和鳥窩吧——就當成頭髮和鬍子也不錯。還有一邊高出一塊的很像是耳朵。這耳朵大得嚇人，不過我敢說巨人和象一樣都會有大耳朵。還有——哦——哦I”
她的血凍結了。那東西動起來了。原來是個真正的巨人。一點沒錯;她已經看見他扭過頭來了。她看見那張又大又蠢、鼓起腮幫子的臉。所有這些東西都是巨人，不是岩石。他們大約有四五十個，排成一排，顯然是站在峽谷底層，手拐兒擱在峽谷邊上，就像人們靠牆站着一樣——像懶洋洋的男人早晨吃完早飯時那副模樣。
“一直往前走。”普德格倫悄聲說。它也注意到他們了。
“別朝他們看。不管你做什麼，別跑。他們馬上會來追我們的。”
他們就這樣繼續往前走，裝作沒看見那些巨人。正像走過一幢有惡狗的屋子的大門那樣，只是更嚇人。那兒有好幾十個這種巨人。他們看來既不生氣也不和氣，也不對什麼流露出一點興趣。沒有跡象表明他們看見了這些行人。
接着——颼——颼——颼——有什麼沉甸甸的東西投向空中，一聲巨響，一塊大石頭掉在他們前面大約二十步的地方。再接着——咚！——第二塊掉在他們身後二十英尺的地方。
“他們是對準我們扔的嗎?”斯克羅布問。
“不，要是他們對準我們，我們反而安全多了。他們是想擲那個——右邊那個石堆。他們擲不中的，你們知道嗎?那兒夠安全的，因爲他們個個都是其糟無比的投手。天好時他們大多玩擲石頭打靶，憑他們那點聰明只懂這種遊戲。”
那段時間真可怕，那排巨人似乎長得沒完沒了，他們一直不停地擲石頭，有幾塊落在很近的地方。除了真正的危險，看看他們的臉，聽聽他們的聲音也夠嚇人的。吉爾儘量不去看他們。
過了大約二十五分鐘，巨人們顯然吵起來了。擲石頭這才結束，但吵架的巨人離他們還不到一英里，這件事可不愉快。他們大發雷霆，互相嘲笑，用的都是沒意思的字眼，一個字足足有二十來個音節。他們發脾氣時唾沫四濺，嘰裏咕嚕，一跳八丈高，跳一跳就像扔炸彈似的震撼着大地。他們彼此用笨重的大石槌敲打對方的頭，但因爲他們的腦殼實在太硬，石槌敲下去就再彈開，這時那敲槌子的怪物會扔下槌子，痛得大吼大叫，因爲槌子弄痛了他的手指。不過他實在太笨，一分鐘以後他又幹起同樣的事了。這最終倒是件好事，因爲玩了一小時，所有的巨人都痛得坐下哭了起來。等他們坐下後，他們的腦袋就在峽谷邊緣以下，就看不見他們了。但吉爾還聽得見他們像大娃娃似的哇啦哇啦，大哭大叫，即使那地方已在他們後面一英里以外，也還是聽得見。
那天晚上，他們就在光禿禿的荒原上露營，普德格倫做給兩個孩子看，怎樣背靠背睡，充分利用毯子(背靠背睡，彼此都暖和，而且那樣身子上面就可以有兩條毯子蓋着)。但即使如此仍然是寒氣逼人，而且地面硬邦邦，粗糙不平。沼澤怪告訴他們只要他們想想今後再往北走還要冷得多，他們就會感到舒服一點，不過這話一點也沒讓他們振作起來。
他們在艾丁斯荒原走了好多天，省下燻肉，主要以荒原上野禽爲生(當然不是會說話的鳥禽)，那都是尤斯塔斯和沼澤怪打來的。吉爾挺妒忌尤斯塔斯會射箭，他當初跟凱斯賓國王航行途中學到了這一手。因爲荒原上有數不清的小溪，他們倒一點也不缺水喝。吉爾心想，書裏寫人們靠打野物爲生，從來就沒告訴你，把那些死鳥拔毛，洗淨是件多臭多髒，多耗時費力的活兒，而且弄得你手指冰冷。但值得慶幸的是他們不大碰見巨人。有一個巨人看見他們了，但他只是大笑了一陣，就噔噔噔地走開，去忙自己的事了。
大約第十天，他們到了一個地形變化的地方。他們來到荒原北部邊緣，俯臨一片陡峭的長坡，一直通向一片不同的、更可怕的土地。山坡底下就是懸崖，只見那邊高山重疊，茫茫一片，黑沉沉的峭壁，亂石叢生的山谷，幽谷又深又狹，看不見底。幾條河從回聲隆隆的峽谷裏傾瀉而出，衝入漆黑的深淵。不用說，還是普德格倫，指出更遠的山坡上有點兒雪。
“不過山坡北面的雪會更多，這我不會奇怪。”它又加了一句。
他們費了好長時間纔到達山坡腳下，他們到了那裏就從懸崖上往下看，只見有條河從西向東奔流而過。河流兩岸遠近都是峭壁，河水碧綠，沒有太陽，到處是險灘、瀑布。咆哮的河水震撼着大地，連他們站的地方也在震動。
“值得高興的是，”普德格倫說，”要是我們下懸崖摔斷了脖子，那我們就不至於淹死在河裏。”
“那個怎麼樣？”斯克羅布突然說，一面指着他們左面河的上流。於是大家都往那邊看，瞧見了他們決沒有料想到的東西——一座橋。這座橋真是鬼斧神工！是一座其大無比的單拱橋，橫跨峽谷，從那邊懸崖頂上通往這邊的懸崖頂上，而且橋拱頂端聳立在兩邊懸崖頂部上空，就像聖保羅教堂的圓屋頂聳立在街道上空一樣。
“咦，這一定是座巨人橋吧!”吉爾說。
“或者說八成是座巫師橋，”普德格倫說，”我們在這種地方得留神有沒有魔法。我認爲這是個陷阱。等我們走到橋當中，橋就會成爲霧，化掉。”
“啊呀，看在老天分上，別那麼煞風景了。”斯克羅布說。”這橋幹嗎不該是一座正兒八經的橋呢?”
“你想想，我們見到的那些巨人有頭腦造這麼個東西嗎?”普德格倫說。
“但這橋會不會是別種巨人造的呢?”吉爾說，”我意思是說，生活在幾百年前的巨人們造的，那些巨人比現代這種聰明得多。可能就是建造我們正在尋找的巨人城的那種巨人造的。而那樣一來就說明我們這一路走對了——老橋通往老城嘛。”
“你倒真是神機妙算，波爾，”斯克羅布說，”一定是那麼回事。來吧。”
於是他們轉身向橋走去。他們走到橋邊，只見那座橋的確夠結實的。那一塊塊石頭都有史前巨石羣①的石頭那麼大，而且當初一定是由能工巧匠切割成方塊的，然而現在都已裂痕累累了。橋欄上以前顯然滿是富麗的雕刻，如今還留有一些痕跡，殘破的臉部和形態，有巨人，有牛頭怪，有大烏賊魚，有娛蛤，還有一些可怕的神像。普德格倫雖然對這座橋還不放心，但他答應跟兩個孩子一起過橋。
爬上橋頂的路又長又難走。好多地方的大石塊都掉了，留下一道道嚇人的裂口，從裂口往下看，只見幾千英尺以下的河裏浪花四濺。他們看見一隻鷹從他們腳下飛過。而且他們越往上走就越冷，風吹得他們幾乎站也站不穩，似乎橋都在搖晃。
他們到了橋頂，才能往下看遠處的橋坡，只見有條看上去像是古代巨人的大路的遺蹟從他們面前伸展開去，直至羣山腹地。路面好多石頭都沒有了，殘留的石頭之間是大片大片的野草。在這條古道上有兩個正常身材的成人正騎馬向他們馳來。
“走啊。往他們那兒走，”普德格倫說，”凡是在這種地方遇到的人都可能不是敵人，但我們千萬不能讓他們認爲我們害怕了。”
①英國索爾茲伯里平原上。
他們剛下橋，踏在草地上，那兩個陌生人已經近在眼前。一個是騎士，穿着全副盔甲，面罩也拉下來。他的盔甲和馬都是黑色的。他的盾上沒有紋章，矛上也沒有小旗①另一個是位夫人，騎着匹白馬，那馬真可愛，你恨不得馬上就去親親它鼻子，給它一塊糖吃。而那位夫人騎的是女鞍，側坐在馬上，穿了一件綠得耀眼的長衣服，就更可愛了。
“你們好，旅——旅——客們。”她說話的聲音就像最可愛的鳥兒在唱歌，拖長的顫音聽了讓人高興，”你們當中有人是特地來這片荒原的小旅客吧。”
“那倒不一定，夫人。”普德格倫生硬地說，留神提防着。
①英國古代騎士盾牌上應有貴族家庭的紋章，矛上有小旗也是一種爵位的象徵。
“我們在找巨人城的廢墟。”吉爾說。
“城的廢——廢墟?”那夫人說，”你們要找的倒是一個古怪的地方。找到了又怎麼樣呢?”
“我們得…”吉爾開口說，但普德格倫打斷了她。
“請原諒，夫人。但我們不認識你和你這位朋友——他是個不愛說話的傢伙吧?——而你也不認識我們。要是你不介意的話，我們寧可在陌生人前面不談自己的事情。你看很快就要下雨了吧?”
夫人笑了，笑聲要多圓潤有多圓潤，要多動聽有多動聽。”好了，孩子們，”她說，”你們有一個聰明、莊重的老向導陪着，雖然他守口如瓶，我還是不怪他，但我倒願意隨便談談我的看法。我經常聽到巨人城廢墟這個名字，但從來沒遇見過任何人告訴我上那兒去的路。這條路是通往哈方鎮和城堡的，那兒住着斯文的巨人。他們性格溫和，舉止文明，處世謹慎，待人有禮，而艾丁斯荒原那些巨人卻是愚蠢、兇殘、野蠻，而且獸性十足。雖然你們在哈方能不能打聽到城市廢墟的消息還不一定，但你們肯定會找到舒服的住處和好客的主人。你們聰明的話可以在那兒過冬，要不然，至少住上一段日子，放鬆一下，恢復體力。那兒可以洗蒸汽澡，可以睡軟和的牀，過得心情愉快;還有烘的烤的，甜的辣的，一天供應四頓。”
“哇I”斯克羅布叫道，”那太棒了。想想看，又有牀睡了!”
“是啊，而且還可以洗熱水澡，”吉爾說，”你想他們會留我們住下嗎？你瞧，我們可不認識他們。”
“只要對他們說，”那夫人回答說，”綠衣夫人派你們代爲向他們致敬，而且給秋季盛宴送來兩個白嫩的南方孩子。”
“哦，謝謝你，多謝了。”吉爾和斯克羅布說。
“但得留心，”夫人說，”無論你們哪天到達哈方，上門可別太晚。因爲他們中午過後幾小時就關大門。那是城堡的風俗，一旦他們上了門問，別人怎麼敲門他們也不開的。，，兩個孩子眼睛發亮，再次謝了她，那夫人向他們揮揮手。沼澤怪脫下尖帽子，姿勢僵硬地鞠了個躬。於是那一聲不吭的騎士和夫人就騎着馬走上橋坡，揚起一陣嘚嘚蹄聲。
“好吧，”普德格倫說，”我真想知道她從哪兒來，上哪兒去。巨人國荒原上決不會遇到她這種人吧?我敢肯定，她不懷好意。”
“哎，胡說，”斯克羅布說，”我認爲她這人好極了。一想起熱飯熱菜，還有暖和的房間。我真希望到哈方這條路不遠。”
“我也這麼想，”吉爾說，”而且她還穿了件極美的衣服。還有那匹馬!”
“雖然這樣，”普德格倫說，”可我還是希望對她瞭解得多一點。”
“我正打算問問她自己的事，”吉爾說，”但你不肯告訴她我們的事，我又怎麼能問她呢?”
“是啊，”斯克羅布說，”還有你幹嗎那麼生硬，大煞風景，難道你不喜歡他們?”
“他們?”沼澤怪說，”他們是誰?我可只看見一個。”
“你沒看見那騎士?”吉爾問。
“我看見一套盔甲，”普德格倫說，”他幹嗎不說話?”
“我想他是害羞吧，”吉爾說，”或許他只想看着她，聽着她可愛的聲音。我敢說我要是他，也會那樣的。”
“我真想知道，”普德格倫說，”你們擡起那頭盔的面罩會真正看到什麼。”
“見鬼，”斯克羅布說，”想想那盔甲的形狀!除了人以外還能有什麼呀?”
“是骨骷髏該怎麼說呢?”沼澤怪裝出一副幸災樂禍的討厭相問。”要不然，”它又加了一句說，”什麼都沒有。我意思是你們什麼也看不見。是個隱身人。”
“說真的，普德格倫，”吉爾說着打了個哆嗦，”你心裏真有這麼可怕的想法。你對他們怎麼想的啊?”
“啊呀，去他的想法吧!”斯克羅布說，”它老是往壞裏想，結果總是錯的。我們還是想想那些斯文的巨人，趕快去哈方吧。我要知道那條路有多遠就好了。”
這下子普德格倫預見到的爭吵幾乎頭一回鬧開了。倒不是說吉爾和斯克羅布之間以前沒有吵鬧、鬥嘴什麼的，但這回可是頭一回當真談不到一塊兒了。普德格倫根本不願意大家上哈方去。它說它不知道巨人所謂的舉止斯文是怎麼回事，不管怎麼說，阿斯蘭的指示裏也沒提起到巨人那兒去，斯文不斯文都沒提。另一方面，兩個孩子已經厭倦了鳳裏來，雨裏去，在篝火上烤皮包骨的野禽，睡在又冷又硬的地上這種生活，下定決心要去尋找斯文的巨人。最後，普德格倫只好同意去了，但有一個條件。他們必須絕對保證，沒有它的准許，不得告訴斯文的巨人，他們是從納尼亞來的，也不能說他們在找尋瑞廉王子。他們向它做出保證後，才繼續往前走。
跟那位夫人談過話後，有兩個方面的情況變得更糟糕了。第一，走的地方更難走，那條路直通望不見盡頭的峽谷，山谷下面老有凜冽的北風颳在他們臉上。不像以前在荒原時那樣，沒有木柴可以用來燒火，也沒有好好的小洞穴可以宿營，而且地上全是石頭，白天走路使你腳痛，晚上睡覺使你全身都痛。
第二，不管那夫人告訴兩個孩子哈方的事出於什麼用意，實際上對他們反而起了壞作用。他們一心只想到牀鋪、洗澡和熱飯熱菜，想到屋裏該有多舒服，別的什麼都不想。如今，他們從來不談起阿斯蘭，甚至對失蹤的王子也絕口不提。吉爾也放棄了她每天早晚暗自背誦指示的習慣。開頭，她對自己說，我太累了，可是她很快就把這事完全拋在腦後。你可能以爲他們想到在哈方可以過得愉快，心裏就會高興一點，其實這反而使他們更爲自己難過，他們彼此之間也好，對普德格倫也好，都變得更暴躁，容易上火。
最後，有一天下午，他們一路走過的峽谷到了一個地方豁然開闊，兩邊還出現了暗沉沉的擬樹林。他們往前看，只見自己已經穿過了羣山。前面是一片滿目荒涼、岩石叢生的平原，平原外，遠處的羣山山頂上都有積雪。但就在他們和遠處的羣山之間有一座小山頭，山頂雖然參差不齊，地勢還比較平坦。
“看哪!看哪I”吉爾叫道，指着平原對面。暮色蒼茫中，在那座平坦的小山的另一邊，大家看見了燈光。燈光!不是月光，不是火光，而是一排亮着燈光的窗戶，普普通通，令人寬慰。如果你從來沒去過荒野，不曾幾個星期日日夜夜待在荒野裏，你就難以瞭解他們的心情。
“哈方I”斯克羅布和吉爾叫了起來，聲音又高興又激動。”哈方!”普德格倫也說了一遍，聲音單調，陰鬱。但它又說，”嗨!野鵝!”並立刻拿起了弓。它打中了二隻大肥鵝。當天想要到達哈方，已經太晚了。但他們吃了一頓熱的，還生了一堆火。這天晚上開頭倒比以往這一個多星期都暖和得多。火滅了以後，夜裏變得寒意刺骨，等他們第二天早上醒來，毯子全都是霜，凍得硬邦邦的。
“沒關係I”吉爾一面說着一面頓腳，”今晚就洗上熱水澡啦!”
