--- title: The Wind in the Willows, chapter VII, part 1: The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (Portly is missing) — a lesson of Mova's school · trees and pragmatics description: «The Wind in the Willows, chapter VII, part 1: The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (Portly is missing)», a lesson of the books course of Mova's primary school, sentence by sentence with dependency trees and pragmatics. It begins: On a hot midsummer night, well past ten o'clock, the Mole lies on cool dock --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/) / [Books](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/) / The Wind in the Willows, chapter VII,… # The Wind in the Willows, chapter VII, part 1: The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (Portly is missing) Lesson 49 of the books course of Mova's primary school: 19 sentences, each with its syntax tree and pragmatics. The lessons are written for Mova, and their agreed trees are part of Mova corpus 0.4 (CC BY-SA 4.0). How Mova does on its tests: [the lesson at school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/). - [0](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/0/) — On a hot midsummer night, well past ten o'clock, the Mole lies on cool dock-leaves by the river and waits for the Rat, who has been having supper with the Otters. - [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/1/) — The Rat comes back quiet and worried: little Portly, Otter's young son, has been missing for days, and he cannot swim well yet, so everyone is secretly thinking of the weir and of traps. - [3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/3/) — The Mole cannot bear to go to bed and do nothing, so the two friends get the boat out and row upstream in the dark, through a night full of small rustles, gurgles and calls. - [4](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/4/) — Then the moon rises and the meadows, gardens and river appear again in silver, like old friends in new clothes; the two search hedges, hollow trees and ditches until the moon sinks and the mystery comes back. - [5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/5/) — The chapter is called «The Piper at the Gates of Dawn»: a piper is someone who plays a pipe, and «the gates of dawn» means the very beginning of the morning. - [6](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/6/) — It is midsummer, so the night is short and the sky still holds light «though it was past ten o'clock at night». - [7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/7/) — The Mole had spent the day on the river with some companions; the Rat had «a engagement of long standing» (a promise made long ago) to spend the evening with Otter. - [8](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/8/) — Portly is Otter's little son; he often strays and turns up again, because, says the Mole, «he's so adventurous». - [9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/9/) — This time it is serious: he has been missing «for some days now», the Otters have hunted everywhere, and «young Portly hasn't learnt to swim very well yet». - [10](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/10/) — A weir is a low wall built across a river; the water pours over it fast and foaming, which is dangerous for a small swimmer. - [12](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/12/) — At the ford Otter gave Portly his first swimming-lesson and taught him fishing, and there Portly caught his first fish, «of which he was so very proud». - [13](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/13/) — Otter watches there every night «on the chance, you know, just on the chance!» — that is, just in case Portly comes back. - [14](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/14/) — When Otter walked out with the Rat, he said he wanted some air and to stretch his legs — but the Rat could see he was really very nervous. - [15](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/15/) — «I drew him out and pumped him» means the Rat asked Otter gentle questions until he told the whole worry; «turn in» means go to bed. - [16](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/16/) — The Mole says: «I simply can't go and turn in, and go to sleep, and do nothing»; the Rat answers «Just what I was thinking myself»: it's no sort of night for bed anyhow, daybreak is not far off, and they may pick up news of Portly from early risers. - [17](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/17/) — The Rat rows and the Mole steers, carefully, because the shadows on the water look «as solid to all appearance as the banks themselves». - [18](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/18/) — In the dark they keep starting at what seems to be a sudden clear call from a real voice. - [20](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/20/) — They search «the hedges, the hollow trees, the runnels and their little culverts»: runnels are tiny streams, culverts are little tunnels carrying water under a path. - [21](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/49-willows-ch7-part1-portly-is-missing/21/) — Old words: «selvedge» = edge; «torrid» = burning hot; «keeping it up late» = staying up late having fun; «quest» = a search. - ← previous: [The Wind in the Willows, chapter VI, part 4: Mr. Toad (the car in the inn-yard, twenty years, and the deepest dungeon)](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/48-willows-ch6-part4-twenty-years-in-the-dungeon/) - next →: [The Wind in the Willows, chapter VII, part 2: The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (the music and the island)](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/50-willows-ch7-part2-the-piper/) - ↑ back to [Books](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/)