sentence in half. LEAVE THE OCEAN! See, I took off
the AND RIGHT AWAY. That settles it. That leaves a
nice short simple sentence. Not at all complicated. How
do you like it?”
“I liked the full sentence better,” said Henry.
“Why?” asked Pale That-Settles-It the Whale.
“I’d like to go
right away
!”
“That would be overdoing it!” said the whale. “The
punishment has to fit the crime. Right away would be
too great a punishment. You aren’t that guilty. You can
stay in the ocean a while longer.”
“What was the crime?” asked Henry.
“Being where you shouldn’t be.”
“But I couldn’t help it,” said Henry.
That’s what they all say,” said the whale. “Anyway,
time is up now. Go away now. Now! Now! That settles it.
NowNowNow
!
!
!”
“How?” said Henry. “
How
?
How
?
How
?”
“Look,” said the whale firmly. “I’m not running a
travel service. I just dispense justice. Go away! Please go
away, It’s for your
own good
.”
Henry was silent.
“All right!” said the whale. “That does it. I told you
what would happen! I hate to do this, but just as I told
you right at the very beginning, if
you
don’t go away,
then
I
will. That settles it. It’s the law!
I’m
going away!”
The whale snorted and dived deep in the water.
He came up again. “Besides,” he said, “I have to try
a
big
case up north. You’re just a
little
case, anyway.”
“I am?” said Henry.
HENRY
THE
PICKLE
68
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