Gaius Holds Forth

Francine, Gaius and Sweezus met Camus and the children at the bottom of the steps.

Why have you all come back down? asked Camus.

Albert! said Francine. It's a disaster! We humans have driven the penguins away.

I thought Gaius said they'd gone fishing, said Camus.

But there are very few left, said Francine. There are only one hundred and fifty. Most of them have moved to that island over there!

Let's go there! cried the twins.

We don't have a boat, said Francine. And besides, it wouldn't be right to harass them. Let's go to the kiosk and have something to eat.

Yay! said Catherine.

Yay! said Jean.

Yay, muttered Gaius, under his breath.

Gaius can tell us more about penguins, said Francine. He knows so much about them.

They ordered coffee, juices and snacks, and sat at a table in the sun, sheltered from the wind.

Adult penguins, said Gaius, have about ten thousand feathers, a density three to four times greater than that found in most other birds. They have hooked beaks with sharp edges and stiff backward pointing spines on their tongues to aid them in swallowing their prey. They have an extra set of eyelids to protect their eyes from water while swimming and to act as a windscreen wiper to get rid of sand....

He stopped talking, and looked around expecting a sea of interested faces.

Bur Francine had gone off with the children to look at the interpretive centre. Sweezus and Camus were talking about Camus' underground wartime experiences.

His coffee was cold, and the children had snaffled his snacks.