Vocabulary+Lessons+10+-+12

=Lesson 10 - "Pan"=

Pan was a lonely and moody god. When he was sad, he went off by himself and hid in a cool cave. If a wanderer happened to come upon him and disturb him in his retreat, he would let out a scream so bone-chilling that whoever heard it took to his heels and fled in a fear that they called panic.

But when Pan was in a good mood, and that was mostly on moonlit nights, he cavorted through glades and forests, and up steep mountain slopes playing on his shepherd's pipe, and nymphs and satyrs followed dancing behind him. Sweet and unearthly were the tunes that floated over the hills.

The satyrs much resembled their master, Pan, but they were mischievous and food for nothing except for chasing nymphs. Old satyrs, or silent, were fat and too lazy to walk. They rode about on asses, but they often fell off, since they were fond of drinking wine.

The lightfooted nymphs always looked young, though some of them were very old in years. Their life span was so long that they were almost immortal; they lived ten thousand times longer than man. There were water nymphs and nymphs of mountains and glens. There were nymphs who lived in trees and nymphs who lived in springs.

When a tree grew old and rotted, the nymph who lived in it moved to another tree of the same kind. A wood chopper, about to fell a healthy tree, must remember first to ask permission of the tree nymph. If he did not, she might send out a swarm of bees to sting him, or she might turn the ax in his hands so he would cut his own leg instead of the tree trunk.

A thirsty hunter must never drink from a spring without asking the water nymph's permission. If he ignored the nymph, she might send a venomous water snake to bite him, or she might poison the water and make him sick.

River-gods, too, had to be asked before anyone took water from their rivers. They were usually helpful and friendly to men and willingly shared their water, but woe to the one who tried to carry off their water-nymph daughters. They would rush out of their river beds and charge him in full river-god rage. They were dangerous opponents, for they grew oxhorns on their heads and could change their shapes at will. Zeus himself feared their rage, and Pan and the satyrs kept well out of their way, though Pan liked all nymphs and fell in love with many of them.

cavort moody opponent panic permission rage retreat unearthly venomous woe
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=Lesson 11 - __My Life With the Chimpanzees__=

In October the dry season ended and it began to rain. Soon the golden mountain slopes were covered with lush green grass. Flowers appeared, and the air smelled lovely. Most days it rained just a little. Sometimes there was a downpour. I loved being out in the forest in the rain. And I loved the cool evenings when I could lace the tent shut and make it cozy inside with a storm lantern. The only trouble was that everything got damp and grew mold. Scorpions and giant poisonous centipedes sometimes appeared in the tent - even, a few times, a snake. But I was lucky - I never got stung or bitten.

The chimpanzees often seemed miserable in the rain. They looked cold, and they shivered. Since they were clever enough to use tools, I was surprised that they had not learned to make shelters. Many of them got coughs and colds. Often, during heavy rain, they seemed irritable and bad tempered.

Once, as I walked through thick forest in a downpour, I suddenly saw a chimp hunched in front of me. Quickly I stopped. Then I heard a sound from above. I looked up and there was a big chimp there, too. When he saw me he gave a loud, clear wailing //wraaaah// - spine-chilling call that is used to threaten a dangerous animal. To my right I saw a large black hand shaking a branch and bright eyes glaring threateningly through the foliage. Then came another savage //wraaaah// from behind. Up above, the big male began to sway the vegetation. I was surrounded. I crouched down, trying to appear as nonthreatening as possible.

Suddenly a chimp charged straight toward me. His hair bristled with rage. At the last minute he swerved and ran off. I stayed still. Two more chimps charged nearby. The, suddenly I realized I was alone again. All the chimps had gone.

Only then did I realize how frightened I had been. When I stood up my legs were trembling. Male chimps, although they are only four f eet tall when upright, are at least three times stronger than a grown man. And I weighed only about ninety pounds. I had become very thin with so much climbing in the mountains and only one meal a day. That incident took place soon after the chimps had lost their initial terror of me but before they had leaned to accept me calmly as part of their forest world. If David Greybeard had been among the, they probably would not have behaved like that, I thought.

bristle foliage hunch initial lace lush swerve thre atening upright vegetation
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=Lesson 12 - Review of Lessons 1 - 11=