Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Read Online Free PDF

of relief and excitement and piled out of the magical car on to the warm sand.
    Then, even before they got into their swimming things and began exploring, all the family, of one accord, went up and patted CHITTY-CHITTY-BANG-BANG'S warm green hood just as if she'd been alive, and they all said, "Thank you, dear CHITTY-CHITTY-BANG-BANG, you're a real marvel!"
    And, do you know, CHITTY-CHITTY-BANG-BANG seemed to let out a long sort of metallic sigh of contentment, which I expect was really only a little steam escaping from the hot radiator, and her big gleaming headlights seemed to dip slightly in modesty and shyness, just as Jemima's eyes do when she's complimented on doing particularly well at her lessons, or her dancing class, or at singing a song, or Jeremy's when he wins a prize for lessons or games.
    Then the whole family made a dash to change into their swimming things. And after they had all swum about like dolphins and clambered about among the wrecks, where Jeremy found some quite interesting bits of machinery, and Jemima discovered an old compass that Commander Pott said he could easily clean up and repair, they sat down round Mimsie's basket in the middle of the sands and between them they ate up every single hard-boiled egg, every single cold sausage, and every single strawberry jam puff. Then, happy and contented, they all lay down in the sunshine and, drowsy and full of good things, and really quite exhausted with all the excitements of the day, one by one they dozed off for a little rest before doing some more swimming and hunting for treasures.

    BUT—

    BUT—

    BUT—
     
    No one noticed that the tide was creeping in over the sands.
    No one noticed that the masts of the wrecks were getting lower in the water.
    No one heard the glug-glug-glug as the sea quietly, softly flowed into the half-sunken hulls of the wrecked ships.
    And no one—not one of the dozing family—noticed that the wheels of CHITTY-CHITTY-BANG-BANG were slowly, inch by inch, being submerged by the incoming tide. And no one realized that soon, very, very soon, the whole family, Commander Pott, Mimsie, Jeremy, and Jemima and CHITTY-CHITTY-BANG-BANG, who by now was really a member of the family, too—would be marooned out in the middle of the sea—THREATENED WITH MORTAL DANGER! ! !

Chapter Two
     
    TO MAKE MATTERS WORSE, one of those summer mists came creeping across the sea, hiding the family and their magical car from the Goodwin Lightship which lies anchored some way to the south of the Goodwins. To warn them and all shipping of the terrible danger of the sands, the lightship began sounding its great foghorn, which is one of the loudest in the world and blinking its dazzling white danger light.
    It was CHITTY-CHITTY-BANG-BANG who first woke up to the danger. You see, she had got very hot flying out to the sands and sitting in the sunshine, and as the sea came creeping up, glug-glugging in the hulls of the wrecks and whispering softly over the flat sand, the water gradually submerged the wheels of CHITTY-CHITTY-BANG-BANG. When it reached the bottom of her radiator, she let out a loud warning hiss from the hot metal.
    The family opened dozy eyes and then at once they were all on their feet and Commander Pott was running to the car. He jumped in and pressed the self-starter and, with a quick CHITTY! CHITTY! BANG! BANG! of relief, the big car, spinning her wheels in the wet sand so that the spray flew, crept up out of the incoming tide and was steered by Commander Pott up on to the dry center of the rapicily diminishing sandbank where the rest of the family was waiting.
    "Quick! Jump in!" he shouted. "We've just got room to take off." But, as Jeremy and Jemima piled into the back seat and Mimsie got in front, already the first little waves had run up the flat sands after them and the bottoms of the tires were awash again.
    "My goodness, said Commander Pott anxiously. "Now we've had it! CHITTY-CHITTY-BANG-BANG can never get up enough speed to