XIX PLEASANT PRAISE

Not one of the prairie dogs knew what Benny Badger¹ meant when he cried that he "had saved the day."

Of course, they had heard that the rancher did not like their village, and that he wanted to get rid of it—and them. But they couldn't imagine how Benny Badger might be able to help them. Indeed, they rather liked the rancher better than Benny, anyhow. And as for thanking Benny, the only time they would ever feel like thanking him would be when he bade them good-by and left the neighborhood, to return no more.[91]

But Benny Badger was quite unaware² of all that. He complained that the prairie dogs weren't treating him well.

"They ought to send a committee to my house to thank me for what I've done for them," he grumbled³. "No one around here seems to understand me. But the rancher certainly will. You'll see before long that he'll be after me, to tell me what he thinks of me."

For several days afterward⁴ Benny lost a good deal of sleep by staying outside his house while watching for the rancher to appear. And little by little, from things he said now and then, his neighbors learned his secret.

They discovered that Benny Badger had been digging holes for the posts of the new fence that the rancher was going to build!

"When he finds those holes already[92] made, he won't be so foolish as to dig others," Benny explained.

"But you've gone and dug them on the wrong side of the Prairie Dog village!" somebody objected.

"Of course I have!" Benny retorted⁵. "I did that on purpose. Don't you understand that when the rancher finds the holes he'll use them where they are? You don't suppose—do you?—that he'll be so silly as to move the holes?"

The objector—a somewhat youthful coyote—slunk away with a foolish simper. He saw that Benny Badger knew what he was talking about.

"Since the Prairie Dogs' village will lie outside the new fence, the rancher won't pay any more attention to it," Benny Badger said stoutly⁶. "From this time on, the Prairie Dogs are quite safe—so far as the rancher is concerned....[93] And that's how I have saved the day."

Benny Badger's secret was out at last. And as fast as people learned it they stopped to tell him that they had known all the time that he had a fine plan of some sort, and that if there was anything they could do to help him they would be greatly obliged if he would "count on them."

Of course the work was all done. But perhaps Benny's neighbors hadn't stopped to think of that. Anyhow he had never known them to be so pleasant before. And he quite enjoyed their praise; for everyone told him that nobody had ever suspected that he was so clever.

It was lucky that Benny took the time when he did to listen to his neighbors' pleasant speeches. Unfortunately they soon came to a sudden end.

1 badger   

v.一再烦扰，一再要求，纠缠

参考例句：

• Now that our debts are squared.Don't badger me with them any more.我们的债务两清了。从此以后不要再纠缠我了。
• If you badger him long enough,I'm sure he'll agree.只要你天天纠缠他，我相信他会同意。

2 unaware   

a.不知道的，未意识到的

参考例句：

• They were unaware that war was near. 他们不知道战争即将爆发。
• I was unaware of the man's presence. 我没有察觉到那人在场。

3 grumbled   

抱怨( grumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 发牢骚； 咕哝； 发哼声

参考例句：

• He grumbled at the low pay offered to him. 他抱怨给他的工资低。
• The heat was sweltering, and the men grumbled fiercely over their work. 天热得让人发昏，水手们边干活边发着牢骚。

4 afterward   

adv.后来；以后

参考例句：

• Let's go to the theatre first and eat afterward. 让我们先去看戏，然后吃饭。
• Afterward,the boy became a very famous artist.后来，这男孩成为一个很有名的艺术家。

5 retorted   

反驳( retort的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She retorted upon me, saying I was to blame. 她反驳我，说我才应该受责备。
• She retorted upon him, saying he was to blame. 她反驳他，说他不好。

6 stoutly   

adv.牢固地，粗壮的

参考例句：

• He stoutly denied his guilt.他断然否认自己有罪。
• Burgess was taxed with this and stoutly denied it.伯杰斯为此受到了责难，但是他自己坚决否认有这回事。