How The Whale Got His Throat

Tonight, I am reading How the Whale Got His Throat. This tall tale is taken from the Just So Stories by Rudyard Kipling. Allow this reading to help you relax and fall into a deep, restorative sleep. Enjoy!

Transcript

How the Whale Got His Throat by Rudyard Kipling In the sea, Once upon a time, O my best beloved, There was a whale, And he ate fishes. He ate the starfish, And the garfish, And the crab, And the dab, And the place, And the dace, And the skate, And his mate, And the mackerel, And the pickerel, And the really, Truly, Twirly, Whirly eel. All the fishes he could find in all the sea, He ate with his mouth. So, Till at last, There was only one small fish left in all the sea, And he was a small stewfish, And he swam a little behind the whale's right ear, So as to be out of harm's way. Then the whale stood up on his tail and said, I'm hungry. And the small stewfish said in his small stew voice, Noble and generous cetacean, Have you ever tried man? No, Said the whale, What is it like? Nice, Said the small stewfish, Nice but nubbly. Then fetch me some, Said the whale, And he made the sea froth up with his tail. One at a time is enough, Said the stewfish, If you swim to latitude 50 north, Longitude 40 west, That is magic. You will find, Sitting on a raft, In the middle of the sea, With nothing on but a pair of blue canvas breechers, A pair of suspenders, You must not forget the suspenders, Best beloved, And a jackknife, One shipwrecked mariner, Who, It is only fair to tell you, Is a man of infinite resource and sagacity. So the whale swam and swam, To latitude 50 north, Longitude 40 west, As fast as he could swim. And on the raft, In the middle of the sea, With nothing to wear except a pair of blue canvas breechers, A pair of suspenders, You must particularly remember the suspenders, Best beloved, And a jackknife. He found one single, Solitary, Shipwrecked mariner, Trailing his toes in the water. He had his mummy's leave to paddle, Or else he would never have done it, Because he was a man of infinite resource and sagacity. Then the whale opened his mouth, Back and back and back, Till it nearly touched its tail, And he swallowed the shipwrecked mariner, And the raft he was sitting on, And his blue canvas breechers, And the suspenders, Which you must not forget, And the jackknife. He swallowed them all down into his warm, Dark, Inside cupboards, And then he smacked his lips, So, And turned round three times on his tail. But as soon as the mariner, Who was a man of infinite resource and sagacity, Found himself truly inside the whale's Warm, Dark, Inside cupboards, He stumped, And he jumped, And he thumped, And he bumped, And he pranced and he danced, And he banged and he clanged, And he hit and he bit, And he leaped and he creeped, And he prowled and he howled, And he hopped and he dropped, And he cried and he sighed, And he crawled and he bawled, And he stepped and he leapt, And he danced hornpipes where he shouldn't, And the whale felt most unhappy indeed. Have you forgotten the suspenders? So he said to the stoop-fish, This man is very nubbly, And besides, He is making me hiccup. What shall I do? Tell him to come out, Said the stoop-fish. So the whale called down his own throat To the shipwrecked mariner. Come out and behave yourself. I've got the hiccups. Nay, Nay, Said the mariner, Not so, But far otherwise. Take me to my needle shore And the white cliffs of Albion, And I'll think about it. And he began to dance more than ever. You had better take him home, Said the stoop-fish to the whale. I ought to have warned you that he is a man Of infinite resource and sagacity. So the whale swam and swam and swam, With both flippers and his tail, As hard as he could for the hiccups. And at last he saw the mariner's needle shore And the white cliffs of Albion. And he rushed halfway up the beach And opened his mouth wide and wide and wide And said, Change here for Winchester And stations on the Fitchburg Road. And just as he said Fitch, The mariner walked out of his mouth. But while the whale had been swimming, The mariner, Who was indeed a person Of infinite resource and sagacity, Had taken his jackknife and cut up the raft Into a little square grating All running crisscross. And he had tied it firm with his suspenders. Now you know why you are not to forget the suspenders. And he dragged the grating good and tight Into the whale's throat. And there it stuck. Then he recited the following, By means of a grating I have stopped your aiding. For the mariner was also a Hibernian. And he stepped out on the shingle And went home to his mother Who had given him leave to trail his toes in the water. And he married and lived happily ever afterward. So did the whale. But from that day on, The grating in his throat, Which he could neither cough up nor swallow down, Prevented him eating anything except Very, Very small fish. The small stoop fish went and hid himself In the mud under the dorsals of the equator. He was afraid that the whale might be angry with him. The sailor took the jackknife home. He was wearing the blue canvas breechers When he walked out on the shingle. The suspenders were left behind, You see, To tie the grating with. And that is the end of that tale. When the cabin portholes are dark and green Because of the seas outside. When the ship goes whop with a wiggle between And the steward falls into the soup taurine. And the trunks begin to slide. When nursery lies on the floor in a heap And mummy tells you to let her sleep And you weren't waked or washed or dressed Why, Then you will know If you haven't guessed You're fifty north and forty west. And that is the end of our story this evening. Until next time, Sweet dreams.