with a will. Even the Fauns made themselves useful by carting away the earth in little barrows， and the Squirrels danced and leaped to and fro in great excitement， though Jill never found out exactly what they thought they were doing. The Bears and Owls contented themselves with giving advice， and kept on asking the children if they wouldn‘t like to come into the cave （that was where Jill had seen the firelight） and get warm and have supper. But the children couldn’t bear to go without seeing their friends set free.
No one in our world can work at a job of that sort as Dwarfs and Talking Moles work in Narnia； but then， of course， Moles and Dwarfs don‘t look on it as work. They like digging. It was therefore not really long before they had opened a great black chasm in the hillside. And out from the blackness into the moonlight-this would have been rather dreadful if one hadn’t known who they were-came， first， the long， leggy， steeple-hatted figure of the Marsh-wiggle， and then， leading two great horses， Rilian the Prince himself.
As Puddleglum appeared shouts broke out on every side： “Why， it‘s a Wiggle-why， it’s old Puddleglum-old Puddleglum from the Eastern Marshes-what ever have you been doing， Puddleglum？ -there‘ve been search parties out for you-the Lord Trumpkin has been putting up notices-there’s a reward offered！” But all this died away， all in one moment， into dead silence， as quickly as the noise dies away in a rowdy dormitory if the Headmaster opens the door. For now they saw the Prince.
No one doubted for a moment who he was. There were plenty of Beasts and Dryads and Dwarfs and Fauns who remembered him from the days before his enchanting. There were some old ones who could just remember how his father， King Caspian， had looked when he was a young man， and saw the likeness. But I think they would have known him anyway. Pale though he was from long imprisonment in the Deep Lands， dressed in black， dusty， dishevelled， and weary， there was something in his face and air which no one could mistake. That look is in the face of all true kings of Narnia， who rule by the will of Aslan and sit at Cair Paravel on the throne of Peter the High King. Instantly every head was bared and every knee was bent： a moment later such cheeringand shouting， such jumps and reels of joy， such hand-shakings and kissings and embracings of everybody by everybody else broke out that the tears came into Jill‘s eyes. Their quest had been worth all the pains it cost.
“Please it your Highness，” said the oldest of the Dwarfs， “there is some attempt at a supper in the cave yonder， prepared against the ending of the snow-dance-”
“With a good will， Father，” said the Prince. “For never had anyPrince， Knight， Gentleman， or Bear so good a stomach to his victuals as we four wanderers have tonight.”
The whole crowd began to move away through the trees towards the cave. Jill heard Puddleglum saying to those who pressed round him. “No， no， my story can wait. Nothing worth talking about has happened to me. I want to hear the news. Don’t try breaking it to me gently， for I‘d rather have it all at once. Has the King been shipwrecked？ Any forest fires？ No wars on the Calormen border？ Or a few dragons， I shouldn’t wonder？” And all the creatures laughed aloud and said， “Isn‘t that just like a Marsh-wiggle？”
The two children were nearly dropping with tiredness and hunger，but the warmth of the cave， and the very sight of it， with the firelight dancing on the walls and dressers and cups and saucers and plates and on the smooth stone floor， just as it does in a farmhouse kitchen， revived them a little. All the same they went fast asleep while supper was being got ready. And while they slept Prince Rilian was talking over the whole adventure with the older and wiser Beasts and Dwarfs. And now they all saw what it meant； how a wicked Witch （doubtless the same kind as that White Witch who had brought the Great Winter on Narnia long ago） had contrived the whole thing， first killing Rilian’s mother and enchanting Rilian himself. And they saw how she had dug right under Narnia and was going to break out and rule it through Rilian； and how he had never dreamed that the country of which she would make him king （king in name， but really her slave） was his own country. And from the children‘s part of the story they saw how she was in league and friendship with the dangerous giants of Harfang.
“And the lesson of it all is， your Highness，” said the oldest Dwarf， “that those Northern Witches always mean the same thing， but in every age they have a different plan for getting it.”
中文阅读
那片光并没有显露出黑暗中的任何事物。其他人只能听见，却看不到吉尔是如何奋力爬到了沼泽人的背上。也就是说，他们只听到他在说：“你没有必要把手指伸到我的眼里。”“你不该把脚伸到我的嘴里。”“这才像话。”以及，“好了，我来抓住你的腿。你可以腾出手臂来，靠在泥墙上。”
他们抬头望去，很快就看见那片光被吉尔黑乎乎的脑袋给遮挡住了。“怎么样？”他们焦虑地齐声叫道。“这是一个洞，”吉尔的声音答道，“要是能再高一点儿，我就可以钻出去了。”
“透过那里，你能看见什么？”尤斯塔斯问道。“什么都看不见，”吉尔说，“喂，浦都格伦，放开我的腿，让我站在你的肩上，而不是骑在肩上。我能扶着洞口站稳。”
他们听到她在挪动，随后看到她的一部分身体，其实是她的整个上半身，挡住了洞口灰蒙蒙的光线。
“听着--”吉尔开口说道，但随着一声喊叫，她的声音中断了。那喊声并不是尖叫，听起来更像是她的嘴巴被堵住了，或者是塞进了什么东西。很快，她又发出了声音，似乎是在拼命喊叫。但他们听不清楚她在说些什么。接着，有两件事同时发生了。刹那之间，那片光被完全遮住，他们还听到扭打声，挣扎声，以及沼泽人喘着粗气的声音：“快！帮帮忙！抓住她的腿。有人在拉她。在那儿！不，在这里。太迟了！”
洞口，还有从洞口倾泻下来的冷光，现在又清晰可见。吉尔则消失得无影无踪。
“吉尔！吉尔！”他们拼命地喊道，可是却没有人回答。“真见鬼，你怎么不抓住她的脚呢？”尤斯塔斯说。
