Chapter 7 The Bridge of Apes The king was so angry, he could not sleep a wink all night.
He stormed around his room, shaking his fists in the air.
How dare they trick me like that, he said.
No one treats me like that.
I am the king.
He called everyone a fool.
He threw his toothbrush at the palace cat.
The queen had never seen her husband so angry.
She knew that he felt embarrassed.
It was hard to admit that a parrot tricked him.
He sent all his guards into the jungle to catch Dr. Doolittle.
Then he sent all the palace staff out, the cooks, the maids, and the housekeepers.
Even the queen was sent out in a search party.
In the meantime, Dr. Doolittle and his animal friends were rushing through the jungle.
They knew they had to reach the sick monkeys as quickly as possible.
They suspected the king would eventually discover the trick and send guards after them.
Unfortunately, they did not realize how quickly they had been found out.
Gub-Gub the pig had short legs.
He tired out very quickly, so the doctor carried him.
This made their travels more difficult.
They had to pull the trunk full of medicine with them, too.
The king thought it would be easy to find Dr. Doolittle and his friends.
He thought they would easily get lost in the jungle.
He was wrong, though.
Chi Chi the monkey knew the land.
He helped them rush through the jungle.
He knew the shortcuts to the land of the monkeys.
Chi Chi and Polynesia knew all the fruit and vegetables that grew in the jungle.
This was very helpful.
The group had to travel for several days.
The monkey and parrot knew where to find water.
They found figs and dates and nuts.
They knew how to make a delicious drink from oranges and honey.
At night they all slept in tents made of palm leaves.
They made thick, soft beds out of dried grass.
It was quite comfortable and they all slept well.
It was good to rest after so much walking.
The doctor made a fire out of sticks and leaves.
After supper, they would sit in a circle around the fire, singing songs.
Sometimes Chi-Chi told a story about the jungle.
The monkey knew many, many stories.
Monkeys, you see, have no history books.
There is nothing written down to remember all the tales, so they keep their stories alive by telling them over and over.
Chi-Chi learned all his stories from his mother and father.
They had learned the stories from their own parents.
In this way the stories and history of the monkeys were not lost.
Some of these stories were very, very old.
Chi Chi had tales from the time when man still lived in caves and wore animal skins.
This was the time before man knew about fire.
He told the animals about the great mammoths that nibbled on treetops, and lizards with tails as long as trains.
Sometimes Chi Chi talked for so long that the fire burned down to nothing but ashes.
Then they all had to scurry around to find more sticks to build a new one.
After the first night in the jungle, the king's guards and staff returned to the palace.
The king was angry that they had returned without the prisoners.
Go back into the jungle, he ordered.
Do not return until you have the doctor.
So while Dr Dolittle's party made their way through the jungle thinking they were out of danger, they were being followed.
If Chi-Chi had known this, he would have been more careful to hide them.
One day, Chi-Chi climbed to the top of a tree.
He looked out over the land in front of them.
He climbed back down, excited.
We are close to the land of monkeys, he said.
We should be there very soon.
An hour or two later, they were surprised by a group of monkeys.
One of them was Chi-Chi's cousin.
The monkeys were sitting in trees near the edge of a swamp, waiting for them.
When they saw Dr. Doolittle approach, the monkeys started to shout and thump on the trees.
They cheered and waved leaves.
They jumped up and down.
Several of the monkeys surrounded the travelers.
They grabbed Dr. Doolittle's bag and trump.
They even helped carry Gub-Gub.
Some of the monkeys ran ahead to tell the others that the great Dr. Doolittle had arrived.
The king's men were still following the doctor and the animals.
They heard the monkeys cheer and knew they were close.
They hurried toward the noise.
They wanted to catch the group so they could all go home.
The monkey who volunteered to carry Gub-Gub was moving slowly.
He was trailing behind the others as they made their way toward the village.
He heard a noise behind them, so he turned around.
That's when he noticed the captain of the king's guard sneaking through the trees.
The monkey walked quickly to catch up with the doctor.
The captain saw the monkey speed up, so he started to run too.
Then all the guards followed him.
The men ran fast.
They ran harder than they ever had before, with no stopping.
They knew they were so close to catching Dr. Doolittle and his friends.
Everyone was running now.
Dr. Doolittle, his animals, the monkeys, and the king's guards.
The poor doctor was not used to so much activity.
He slipped and fell down in the mud.
The captain of the guard saw him fall.
He was certain he would catch the doctor at last.
It was at that moment that the captain fell down too.
He did not notice that a pair of monkeys was waiting for him.
They had placed a stick across the path to trip the captain.
As soon as he fell down, the monkeys raced away.
This gave Dr. Doolittle time to stand up.
He raced along the road after the monkeys.
Don't worry, Chi-Chi called to everyone behind him.
We're almost there.
However, they had one more obstacle to face.
The king's land ended at a steep cliff.
There was a river far below.
On the other side, on top of another steep cliff, was the land of the monkeys.
Jip the dog looked at the land of the monkeys across the gap.
"'Golly,' he said, "'how will we get across?
The king's guards will be here at any minute.'
The big monkey, who was carrying Gup-Gup, dropped the pig to the ground.
Quick, he shouted to the other monkeys.
A bridge!
We need to make a bridge!
The doctor looked around him.
He wondered what they would use to make a bridge.
There were a few pieces of loose wood, but not enough for a bridge.
He turned to look back into the jungle, wondering if there was something he missed.
When he turned back to look over the gap, he saw that the monkeys had already built the bridge.
They were using their own bodies.
By holding hands and feet, they stretched themselves across the gap from the king's land to the land of the monkeys.
They shouted to the doctor that he should start across.
Walk over, they called.
Hurry, walk over, all of you.
Dr. Doolittle was the last to cross.
Just as he was getting to the other side, the king's men arrived at the cliff.
They shook their fists and yelled with rage.
They knew they were too late.
The doctor and his animals were safe in the land of the monkeys.
The monkeys pulled one another across to the other side.
You should know, Dr. Doolittle, Chi-Chi said.
Many explorers and scientists have waited quietly in the bushes, hoping to see that bridge.
We never let men see that trick.
You were the first to see the Bridge of the Apes.
The doctor said that he felt very pleased.
It would have been nice to relax now that everyone was safe in the Land of the Monkeys, but there was no time.
Dr. Doolittle got to work right away, helping the sick monkeys.
