Unit 1

When you tell a friend about something that happened to you at lunch, you are giving the plot of a story. Your friend may keep asking, “And then what happened?” If so, you are being asked to give more of the plot. The plot is the plan of the story, the action, or the events that happened in the story. The plot in most stories has a beginning, a middle and ending.

The first story that you will read is called “Broken Voyage”. As you read it, take a close look at the plot. Notice the order of the events of the story. What happened at the beginning? In the middle? In the ending?

Have you ever dreamed of going around the world? You would be free to stop when you wished and to sail where you wanted. The Robertson family had this dream and decided to make it real. This true story is about their trip. They set sail from England in search of adventure and made their way halfway around the world into the Pacific Ocean. There they found more adventures than they had dreamed of. As you read this story, think about how you would feel and act if you faced the same problems as the Robertsons.

Broken Voyage____________________________________

Glenn Munson

The first two days of sailing on the Pacific were stormy. The Robertson family was happy to see the sun rise through the clouds. They had bravely battled the wind and waves of the Pacific in their small sailboat and they needed a rest.

Their 43-foot sailboat was named the Lucette. It had carried the Robertsons from their home in England across the Atlantic and into the Pacific on their journey around the world. They had been sailing for six months. During that time, they had sailed the Lucette through many storms and into many peaceful ports, but they agreed that the last two days were the worst that they had seen. As the Robertsons ate breakfast, they talked happily about the day of quiet sailing ahead.

"But now we have work to do," said Mr. Robertson.

It was thirteen-year-old Neil's turn to wash dishes and clean up after breakfast. His twin, Sandy, gathered the broken fishing gear for repair. Douglas, their older brother, was already at the wheel in the cockpit keeping the Lucette on course.

On deck, Mrs. Robertson picked up the rubbish left by the storm. Below Mr. Robertson checked the Lucette's movement on the map. They were 3000 miles from the islands where they planned to stop next.

In the galley, Neil washed the last pan and put the towel out to dry. He had finished his work for the morning and now he planned to read his book. As he headed for the cabin, he could hear the water gently slapping against the sides of the boat. It was a comfortable sound. Neil, who had lived all his life on a farm in England, had come to love this sailboat as his home. He climbed into his bunk and leaned back to enjoy his book. He had just started to read when three heavy blows hit the side of the boat. Neil was thrown across the cabin and against the far wall. The Lucette was rolling wildly from side to side. He was on the floor. His ears were ringing and his shoulder hurt.

As he tried to stand up, he heard his family shouting outside. Then he heard his mother cry, "Whales!" A moment later she ran into the cabin. “It's all right, Neil. Just put on your life jacket and get on deck."

The whales had punched a huge hole in the Lucette's side and water was rushing in. As Neil left the cabin, the water already covered the floor boards. He heard his brother Douglas call. "Are we sinking, Dad?"

"Yes! Get ready to abandon ship!" shouted Mr. Robertson as he dashed out of the galley with a knife in his hand.

While cutting the ropes which held a small rowboat to the mast, Mr. Robert son pointed to the rubber life raft. "Get the raft ready. We'll need that too," he cried.

The boys pulled down the raft and Douglas pressed the button to fill it with air. Then he and his brothers turned to help their father free the rowboat. The sea was nearly up to the Lucette's deck. She was sinking fast. The rubber life raft swiftly filled with air. Douglas looked at his father. "When do we lower the raft, Dad?"

Now!" called Mr. Robertson as he ran into the galley.

Water was rolling over the sailboat's deck as Mr. Robertson returned with a bag of food. He gave it to Neil. "Put this in the raft and tell everyone to get in. Hurry, she's going under."

Mr. Robertson made one last trip into the galley. He returned with a bag of oranges and a bag of lemons. He tossed them into the rowboat tied to the raft. Then he took a last look around. His family waited in the raft. Behind it the sea stretched as far as he could see. They were alone. Then he jumped into the water and began swimming for the raft. A moment later the Lucette began drifting down into the dark, deep heart of the Pacific.

That afternoon. Neil wrote on a piece of sail: June 15. Neil's log in the lifeboat. Lucette sunk by killer whales. Vary sad. It went down in 2 minutes.

The Robertsons were lucky to be alive. But now as the sun went down, they wondered about their chances of staying alive. They had no radio. They were hundreds of miles away from a shipping lane and 3,000 miles from the next port. They would not be missed for at least five weeks.

That night, each person had a piece of biscuit, a sip of water, and small piece of candy. They divided one orange among them.

A week passed on the lonely Pacific. The rubber life raft could not last much longer. Air leaked out of tiny pinholes in the sides. Soon it had to be blown up every hour. High waves forced the crew to bail the raft regularly. After almost three weeks, the Robertson family knew that the raft would soon sink. They moved to the tiny rowboat.

The five members of the family crowded together in the little boat. Each one knew that a sudden movement might cause the boat to tip over. So no one moved without warning the others.

Their two greatest problems were thirst and hunger. Their mouths always tasted like cotton. During storms they caught fresh water with a rubber sheet. But each person took only a few sips a day. They did not know when another rain might come. Since most of the food from the Lucette was gone, they were always hungry. Their skin was scorched from the burning sun and the stinging salt water.

But as long as the rowboat could carry them, they could stay alive on the dangerous sea. By the time their food was gone, they had learned to catch fish with hooks of wire. Sometimes big turtles poked their heads up next to the boat. Mr. Robertson and Douglas pulled them aboard, and quickly slit them open with a knife. The turtle eggs and meat would keep them all alive for another day.

The tiny rowboat, with its handmade sail, crept along the course the Robertsons had set for South America. Five weeks had passed since they had abandoned the Lucette. "With luck we should make the coast in about three weeks," said Mr. Robertson, "but I'm afraid the wind's changing. So we may have to start rowing."

Suddenly he stopped talking and stared straight ahead. The others looked at him. "A ship," he said. "There's a ship and it's coming toward us!"

"Where?" they cried and everyone started turning to look.

"Keep still!" shouted Mr. Robertson. "We don't want to tip over now. I must signal the ship. Neil, hand me a flare from that box."

Carefully standing up, he lit the flare and held it high overhead until it burner his fingers. Then he threw it into the air. The family watched him, hardly breathing. Mr. Robertson stood frozen, eyes fixed on the distant ship. Moments passed. Then he looked at them and quietly said, "She's seen us. She's changed course. We're saved."

_______________________________________________________

Lucette – the name of the sailboat in “Broken Voyage”

galley –a ship’s kitchen

Activity 1

Fact Questions

In reading a story it is important that you understand the information that is given to you. You need to know who the people in the story are, what they did, and what happened to them. See how well you understood the facts in this story. Write your answers to these questions on a separate sheet of paper.

1. In what country was the Robertson family's home?

2. How long had the Robertsons been sailing the Lucette?

3. What did Neil plan to do after finishing the dishes?

4. What hit the side of the Lucette?

5. Name three things that Mr. Robert­son got from the galley.

6. Why did the Robertsons move from the rubber life raft to the rowboat?

7. What food did the family get from the sea?

8. Where did the Robertson family hope to land in their rowboat?

9. Why did Mr. Robertson tell the family to keep still when he saw a ship?

10. How did Mr. Robertson signal the ship?

Activity 2

Thought Questions

To get the most enjoyment out of a story, you need to think about what is said. Not all the meanings in a story are stated directly in words. To answer these questions, you will have to figure out meanings not stated directly in the story. Write your answers on your paper.

1. If you had to leave a sinking boat, name three things you would take with you.

2. How old is Sandy?

3. Why did the Robertsons decide to use the rubber life raft instead of the rowboat when they left the Lucette?

4. Which of the following reasons was the most important one in helping the Robertsons to be saved?

   1. They were lucky.

   2. They fought hard to stay alive.

   3. They had both a raft and a row- boat.

   4. Why did you decide on that answer?

5. Write a sentence telling what kind of boy Neil is.

6. Mr. Robertson had been a sailor for twelve years before he became a farmer in England. In what ways does his background as a sailor help the family in this story?

7. At what time of day did the Lucette sink? How do you know?

8. Why would it be five weeks before anyone would miss the Robertsons?

9. Do you think that the Robertsons would finish their journey around the world after they were saved?

10. Why is the story called "Broken Voyage"?

Activity 3

What Was the Plot?

The plot tells what happened in the story. These are some of the events in "Broken Voyage." Which things hap­pened at the beginning of the story? At the middle? At the end? On your paper, write the events in the order in which they happened in the story. Mark which ones happened at the beginning, at the middle, at the end.

1. The Lucette was hit by killer whales.

2. The Robertsons saw a ship and lit a flare.

3. The Lucette sank and the Robertsons got into the lifeboat.

4. The Robertsons were doing their jobs on the Lucette.

5. The ship changed course and went toward the Robertsons.

6. Neil was reading in his bunk cabin

UNIT 2

In Unit One, you learned how to follow the plot of a short story. Plot is the story line, the action, or the events that happen in the story.

In order to have a plot, a story must have characters. These characters either cause the events that happen in a story or they have things happen to them.

As you know, a character in a story may be a person, an animal, or a thing. A sports story might have a football hero. A story about the future might have a machine as the hero. Both can be called characters in a story. Of course, characters are usually people.

Some stories have many characters. Others have only one or two. If a story has many characters, you find that some are not too important to the plot. They just fill out the background of the story. In the story that you will read in this unit, Stubby is one of these background characters. He is not too important, but he adds to the color of the story.

As readers, we are more interested in the most important person in the story. We want to know what happens to this character. This person is called the main character. The main character usually has a problem or wants to be able to do something. It is important to understand the main character and his or her actions. When you read a story, keep these questions in mind:

1. Who is the main character in the story?

2. What is the main character's problem?

3. Is the problem solved?

4. How is it solved?

By thinking about these questions, you can dig deeper into the meaning of the story. You will be asked to answer these questions after you have read "Trail Drive," the story in this unit.

The trail was one of the big events of the cowhands’ year. After the months of raising and feeding their cattle on the ranch, the cowhands headed for the market to sell their herd. The journey often took weeks and covered hundreds of miles. It was a hard job to keep thousands of steers and cows together and to escape the dangers on the trail. It called for a special kind of person. In this story you will find out why Johnny Bones and Frank were special trail drivers.

The Trail Drive_______________________________

Glean Munson

He came riding into camp one day with a string of ponies behind him, snaking through 3500 head of cattle on the move for Wichita. He called himself Johnny Bones.

He sat tall and tight in the saddle. He was about as thin as a broom handle. He was young. “But” he said, “I can ride, rope and wrestle with the best”.

“Talks cheap, kid” said Ab Blocker, the trail boss. But he took the kid on for a week’s look. “By then we’ll know” he said.

It didn’t even take a week. The kid was as good as his word, and no one worked harder. He knew horses and how to drive cattle like an old hand. None of us could wrestle him down. He handled a rope like a hungry rider working a fork at chow.

The kid was good and he was smart. But we didn’t know how smart until we got to the Red River.

We were driving a herd of steers and cows up out of Texas. Blocker had started the drive early in spring. He aimed to get the herd to Wichita before the other herds came in and cut the price buyers would pay.

But Blocker didn’t figure on what the spring rains did to the Red River. When we got to the place where we always crossed, the river was running high, cold, and fast. Then Blocker took a look, he was madder than a steer with a new brand. We can’t stop now, he yelled.

He called his roper, Frank. “Get some ropes on the lead steers, “Blocker said. “If we can’t drive them, we’ll pull them across with horses.

Frank shook his head. “That’s fast water, Ab,” he said. “Cows will drag us downstream if we try to pull them across.”

“Don’t have to,” said Johnny Bones, riding up to the two men. “There’s a bridge a few miles up river. Army put it up last winter. Why not drive the herd up there and walk them across?”

“Because cattle don’t like bridges,” Frank snapped. “These cattle have never seen a bridge. They’ll jump into the water before they’ll cross one”.

“Not if we lead them across,” said the kid, and spelled out his plan. When he was finished, Blocker shrugged. “It’s worth a try. Head them up river for the bridge, boys,” he said.

So we drove the cows up river a piece, wondering why we were wasting time.

They key to Johnny’s plan was Bully. He was one of the oxen used to pull the chuck wagon. Bully loved the chuck wagon, and he never left it. When he wasn’t pulling that wagon, he walked behind it, nose right up next to the tailboard. You could take him to the best grazing grass in all Texas, but as soon as the wagon started to leave, Bully would forget al about eating. It’s a wonder he didn’t get slivers in his nose from rubbing up to the tailboard.

At last we got to the bridge. The kid held Bully with the lead steers. Stubby started the chuck wagon out onto the bridge. When it was halfway across Johnny cut Bully loose. He headed straight for the wagon, the lead steers crowding right behind him. Soon the herd stretched out along the bridge as neat as Johnny Bones’ string of horses.

It was some trick.

Blocker had been plenty pleased with the kid before. Now, heading into Oklahoma Territory, he went crazy. He began praising Johnny Bones like he was a water hole in the desert. And pretty soon, Johnny Bones got the idea he might take over Frank’s job as Blocker’s roper.

The roper’s job was special. He didn’t just watch the herd at night like the rest of the hands. He did only the roping. When we rounded up cattle to start on the trail, there was always a number of young calves. They were too young to travel, but their mothers wouldn’t leave them. So Frank shot the calves and with the help of the other men, drove the mothers off. At night he roped and tied the cows to keep them from going back to look for their young ones. When his job was done, he got his blanket roll out and bedded down for the night. Most nights, Frank got a good night’s sleep unless there was a problem. Then he went into action. Frank did a good job, but Johnny was sure he could do better.

The kid practiced with his rope every chance ho got. He did tricks around the campfire at night. He dared everyone to contests, and sometimes even drew Frank to a tie. Some thoughts he was about as good as Frank.

We were nooning on the trail. The chuck wagon was stopped and the coffee was hot. A few steers drifted past. The kid galloped into camp, hitting a steer with his spur.

The steer reared and began to charge. A moment later it was thundering after Ab Blocker, who had walked away from the camp. Ab heard the pounding hoofs.

Blockers started running. He was yelling for help. The kid hadn’t noticed where the steer was going. He just jumped down from his horse and headed for the coffee pot. But Frank saw Blocker. He threw down his cup, run to his horse, and jumped in the saddle. He turned his horse toward the steer, stuck spurs to him and began doing his rope. He made a loop not much bigger than the steer’s horns were wide.

The steer had lowered its head to hook Blocker when Frank rode up behind it. He whirled the rope around his head one time, and shouted, “Don’t go no further, boss.”

Frank threw the rope over the steer’s horns, his horse sat down and the steer changed ends. His tail whipped around, its tip slapping Blocker’s chain.

It was the quickest, prettiest thing I ever saw.

All of us gave a big cheer, and I glanced at the kid. He was staring at Frank and slowly shaking his head from side to side.

That night, I was inside the chunk wagon, getting things all put away, when I heard voices outside. It was the kid talking to Frank.

“I never saw anything like it,” the kid was saying.

Frank said something quiet and I didn’t get it.

“I don’t care,” answered the kid. “I might be as good, but I’ll never be better. So I’m heading out.”

“Where to?”

“Don’t know,” said the kid. “Someplace where they need someone as good as you – where I can be the best.”

There was quiet a moment. Then I heard the sound of horse’s hoofs in the dirt. Johnny Bones was leaving the same way he came. No one but me and Frank would know it until he turned up missing next morning.

Maybe we were the only ones who knew why the kid left.

_______________________________________________

wrestle – to fight with someone hand to hand

chow – food

chuck wagon – a wagon used to serve food to cowhands

sliver- a small pointed piece of wood

nooning – stopping at midday for rest or food

spur – a pointed piece of metal on a rider’s boot used to make the horse go forward

Activity 1

Fact Questions

See how well you understood the facts in this story. On a separate sheet of paper, write your answers to these questions.

1. How many head of cattle were on the move for Wichita?

2. What did Johnny Bones say he could do when he asked for a job?

3. When did the trail drivers find out how smart Johnny was?

4. From where were the cowhands driving the herd of steers and cows?

5. What had the spring rains done to the Red River?

6. Who was Ab Blocker's roper?

7. What was the key to Johnny's plan to lead the cattle across the bridge?

8. Why did Frank shoot the young calves?

9. What did Frank do when he saw Blocker running and yelling for help?

10. Where was Johnny going when he headed out from camp?

Activity 2

Thought Questions

See how much your own thinking can add to this story. On your paper, write your answers to these questions.

1. Why does Johnny Bones' name seem to match the way he looks?

2. What does Ab Blocker mean when he says, "Talk's cheap, kid"?

3. Why does Johnny use Bully as the first animal at the bridge?

4. Why might Bully get slivers in his nose?

5. Why does Ab praise Johnny Bones as if he were a water hole in the desert? Why would anyone praise a water hole in the desert?

6. What makes Johnny think he should take Frank's job as roper?

7. Did Frank have a harder or easier job at night than the rest of the cowhands?

8. Was Ab Blocker a coward because he ran from the steer and yelled for help?

9. Why did Johnny shake his head from side to side after Frank saved Ab Blocker?

10. Why did Johnny Bones leave camp in the middle of the night?

Activity 3

Thinking about Characters

1. On your paper, write answers to the four questions you were asked to think about before you read the story:

1. Who was the main character in the story?

2. What was the main character's problem?

3. Was the problem solved?

4. How was it solved?

2. Choose a second title for the story from the list below.

1. "Ab Blocker's Narrow Escape"

2. "The Roping Contest"

3. "A Rope Isn't All That's Needed"

4. "Cattle Can Be Dangerous"