--- title: The Wind in the Willows, chapter IX, part 2: Wayfarers All (the swallows and the call of the South) — a lesson of Mova's school · trees and pragmatics description: «The Wind in the Willows, chapter IX, part 2: Wayfarers All (the swallows and the call of the South)», a lesson of the books course of Mova's primary school, sentence by sentence with dependency trees and pragmatics. It begins: The Rat begs them to stay just this year; one swallow tells how she once --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/) [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 IX, p… # The Wind in the Willows, chapter IX, part 2: Wayfarers All (the swallows and the call of the South) Lesson 57 of the books course of Mova's primary school: 23 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/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/). - [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/1/) — The Rat begs them to stay just this year; one swallow tells how she once tried staying, and the long sunless nights and the cold with «not an insect in an acre of it» nearly finished her, until she flew south through snowy mountain passes to the hot sun. - [2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/2/) — As the swallows chatter about the South, something new wakes up in the Rat: a longing to go too. - [3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/3/) — When he opens his eyes, his own river looks grey and chilly, and his loyal heart scolds him for being a traitor. - [5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/5/) — Restless, the Rat climbs a slope and stares at the line of hills to the south, which used to be the edge of his world; now he dreams of seas, sunny coasts and ships beyond them, and lies by the dusty lane thinking of all the travellers who have walked it. - [7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/7/) — The Rat: «What, already ... - [8](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/8/) — I call it simply ridiculous.» The first swallow: «we're not off yet ... - [9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/9/) — We're only making plans ... - [10](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/10/) — That's half the fun!» - [11](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/11/) — The second swallow: «First, we feel it stirring within us, a sweet unrest; then back come the recollections one by one, like homing pigeons.» - [12](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/12/) — The Rat asks: «Couldn't you stop on for just this year?» - [13](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/13/) — The third swallow tried «stopping on» one year: «O the weary length of the nights! - [14](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/14/) — The shivering, sunless days! - [15](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/15/) — The air so clammy and chill, and not an insect in an acre of it!» - [16](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/16/) — True science: swallows feed on flying insects, and in a British winter there are almost none, so swallows migrate to warm Africa every autumn and come back in spring. - [17](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/17/) — That swallow flew off one stormy night; «It was snowing hard as I beat through the passes of the great mountains», and then she felt «the hot sun again on my back» and tasted «my first fat insect!» — «never again did I think of disobedience». - [20](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/20/) — Why do swallows come back? - [21](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/21/) — «The call of lush meadow-grass, wet orchards, warm, insect-haunted ponds ... the House of the perfect Eaves» (eaves = the edge of a roof, where swallows nest), «the cuckoo's note», and «quiet water-lilies swaying on the surface of an English stream». - [22](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/22/) — «But to-day all that seems pale and thin and very far away. - [23](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/23/) — Just now our blood dances to other music.» - [24](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/24/) — Then they chatter of «violet seas, tawny sands, and lizard-haunted walls» (tawny = golden brown). - [25](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/25/) — The Rat looks at «the great ring of Downs» (rounded chalky hills) to the south, «his simple horizon hitherto, his Mountains of the Moon, his limit»; the Mountains of the Moon is an old name for faraway mountains at the edge of the known world. - [27](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/27/) — He lies in the hedge by the dusty lane, thinking of the road «and all the wondrous world that it led to», and of all the wayfarers on it, «out there, beyond — beyond!» - [28](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/57-willows-ch9-part2-the-swallows/28/) — Talk in this lesson: «nesh» (North England, Midlands) = feeling the cold easily; «arvo» (Australia) = afternoon; «chur» (New Zealand) = thanks, cool; «slay» = do brilliantly; «I'm dead» = that's so funny. - ← previous: [The Wind in the Willows, chapter IX, part 1: Wayfarers All (change in the air)](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/56-willows-ch9-part1-change-in-the-air/) - next →: [The Wind in the Willows, chapter IX, part 3: Wayfarers All (the Sea Rat from Constantinople)](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/58-willows-ch9-part3-the-sea-rat/) - ↑ back to [Books](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/)