st--that's it!"

And then they all looked up. And there, streaming across the face of
the moon, like a huge swarm of tiny ants, they could see thousands and
thousands of little birds. Soon the whole sky seemed full of them, and
still more kept coming--more and more. There were so many that for a
little they covered the whole moon so it could not shine, and the sea
grew dark and black--like when a storm-cloud passes over the sun.

And presently all these birds came down close, skimming over the water
and the land; and the night-sky was left clear above, and the moon
shone as before. Still never a call nor a cry nor a song they made--no
sound but this great rustling of feathers which grew greater now than
ever. When they began to settle on the sands, along the ropes of the
ship--anywhere and everywhere except the trees--the Doctor could see
that they had blue wings and white breasts and very short, feathered
legs. As soon as they had all found a place to sit, suddenly, there
was no noise left anywhere--all was quiet; all was still.

And in the silent moonlight John Dolittle spoke:

"I had no idea that we had been in Africa so long. It will be nearly
Summer when we get home. For these are the swallows going back.
Swallows, I thank you for waiting for us. It is very thoughtful of
you. Now we need not be afraid that we will lose our way upon the
sea.... Pull up the anchor and set the sail!"

When the ship moved out upon the water, those who stayed behind,
Chee-Chee, Polynesia and the crocodile, grew terribly sad. For never
in their lives had they known any one they liked so well as Doctor John
Dolittle of Puddleby-on-the-Marsh.

And after they had called Good-by to him again and again and again,
they still stood there upon the rocks, crying bitterly and waving till
the ship was out of sight.

THE THIRTEENTH CHAPTER

RED SAILS AND BLUE WINGS

SAILING homeward, the Doctor's ship had to pass the coast of Barbary.
This coast is the seashore of the Great Desert. It is a wild, lonely
place--all sand and stones. And it was here that the Barbary pirates
lived.

These pirates, a bad lot of men, used to wait for sailors to be
shipwrecked on their shores. And often, if they saw a boat passing,
they would come out in their fast sailing-ships and chase it. When they
caught a boat like this at sea, they would steal everything on it; and
after they had taken the people off they would sink the ship and sail
bac