She was so grateful that she told the story again and again to her people, and they seemed as greatly impressed as Fuzzy Wuzz at Bumper’s shrewdness. But Spotted6 Tail was not pleased. Perhaps he was still suspicious, and thought it was more luck than knowledge that had saved Bumper’s reputation. He still believed that Bumper had never seen a hornet’s nest until that day he innocently mistook Mr. Yellow Jacket’s home for a big, harmless ball.
This fact, coupled with several other little things that he had observed, Bumper’s avoidance of certain plants, for instance, that he seemed to think might be poisonous until the others ate 31them, convinced him that Bumper was not fit to be the leader of his people.
“If Old Blind Rabbit could see with his eyes,” he reasoned, “he’d know, too. But some day I’ll catch him, and show him up. He’s no king, for a king should know everything.”
By letting such things dwell upon his mind, Spotted Tail worked himself up into a pitch of excitement that was not pleasant. He fancied himself wronged by Bumper. If the white rabbit hadn’t come into the woods, Spotted Tail would have been chosen the natural leader.
Jealousy7 and spite are enough to sour any disposition8, and Spotted Tail was in a fair way of showing that he was not really fitted to be a leader. A good leader never grows sullen9 and discontented because somebody else happens to get more favors than he. Fuzzy Wuzz’s attachment10 to Bumper further increased Spotted Tail’s displeasure. In time he came almost to hating Bumper, and tried to think of ways and means to disgrace him before the others.
Bumper was only partly conscious of this feeling toward him. He knew that Spotted Tail was suspicious of his knowledge of wood lore11, and he was on his guard all the time to prevent any mistake that would give him away. But he never dreamed that the big rabbit was beginning to dislike 32him. He seldom hunted with him, and had few words with him, but there had been no open enmity between them.
Then one day in the woods Bumper found himself unexpectedly separated from the others, with only Spotted Tail in view. Fuzzy Wuzz and the rest had crossed the brook12 on a natural rustic13 bridge of logs, and were feeding on the opposite side when Bumper discovered them.
“Hello!” he exclaimed. “How’d they get across there? Surely, they didn’t jump that distance.”
Spotted Tail, to whom this was addressed, replied:
“You should know by this time that a rabbit never jumps a stream that he can get across any other way.”
Bumper nodded and smiled. “Still, I don’t see how else they got across.”
Spotted Tail said indifferently:
“Oh, I suppose they crossed on Mr. Beaver14’s house.”
This remark caused Bumper to reflect. He had heard of Mr. Beaver, but he wasn’t sure just what kind of an animal he was. And his house was more of a mystery to him than anything else.
“On Mr. Beaver’s house?” he asked, before thinking. “Oh, you mean—”
33He stopped in confusion, and Spotted Tail smiled gleefully.
“You mean what?” he asked, his eyes twinkling wickedly. “Don’t you know what kind of a house Mr. Beaver builds?”
“Why, what a question?” laughed Bumper, trying to evade15 a direct answer.
“I think it’s a very natural question,” added Spotted Tail. “I don’t believe you ever saw Mr. Beaver or his house.”
Bumper laughed heartily16 at this, but it was a laugh to conceal17 his embarrassment18 and not an expression of his enjoyment19.
“Ho! Ho! You can be very comical if you want to!” he said. “Now maybe you can describe what sort of a house Mr. Beaver builds. Let me see if you can.”
But Spotted Tail felt he had Bumper in a corner, and he wasn’t to be bluffed20. “I could describe it,” he said, leering, “but I don’t have to. If you have any eyes in your head you can see for yourself what it is like.”
“How’s that?” asked Bumper, growing more uncomfortable.
“Just what I said,” was the quick rejoinder. “We’ve been standing21 near it for some time, and you can see it with your own eyes—if you know where to look for it.”
34“Oh! Ho!” laughed Bumper, less joyously22 than before. “Mr. Beaver’s house is in plain sight, is it? Well, then, neither one of us will have to describe it.”
“No, but where is it?” pursued Spotted Tail relentlessly23.
Now Bumper was in a terrible quandary24. There was nothing in view that looked like a house. So he cast a glance up at the trees, hoping to find it among the branches, and then back through the thick, tangled25 bushes. There was nothing in sight that suggested the home of any animal.
All the time his eyes were searching around for some evidence of Mr. Beaver’s house, Spotted Tail was watching him with an exultant26 grin on his face.
“Ah! I thought so,” he said finally, with a triumphant27 grin on his face. “You don’t know what kind of a house Mr. Beaver builds. You don’t even know where he builds it. You’ve been looking for it up among the trees, and back in the woods. Ho! Ho! And you call yourself a leader—the king of the rabbits! Why, you don’t know anything about the woods.”
Bumper felt he was cornered, and he was mighty28 glad the others were not present to witness his discomfit29.
35“Now, if you’re king, show me where Mr. Beaver’s house is, and where he builds it!” continued Spotted Tail. “If you can’t I’ll go back and tell all the others you’re an ignorant impostor. You’re no king! You don’t know anything about the woods or its people. A king indeed!”
There was such scorn and contempt in the voice that Bumper winced30. He realized for the first time that he had an enemy in Spotted Tail. There was no other excuse for his words and actions.
“Spotted Tail,” Bumper began in an injured voice, “why do you dislike me, and try to offend me?”
“Don’t give me any such talk,” rudely interrupted the other. “I see through it all. You’re trying to avoid the question. Answer me! Where’s Mr. Beaver’s house? If you don’t know, confess your ignorance.”
Bumper’s wits failed him for the first time. He saw no way out of the corner. Spotted Tail had him, and the disgrace of confession31 was horribly mortifying32.
A sudden splash in the water attracted his attention. A big rat-like animal was swimming toward the shore, with only his head and muzzle33 above the surface. Bumper watched him in fascination34. 36When he reached the shore, he crawled upon it, and said quite angrily:
“I wish, Mr. Spotted Tail, your people would stop crawling across the roof of my house. It annoys me very much. I was fast asleep when they thumped35 over it.”
Spotted Tail was deeply upset by this interruption, and Bumper’s wits, coming to his rescue, made him smile. Speaking at a venture, he addressed the rat-like animal.
“I’ll ask them not to do it again, Mr. Beaver. Of course, it is very annoying to be disturbed when asleep by people climbing over the roof of your house.”
“Thank you!” replied Mr. Beaver, dipping into the water and swimming back to his dam. Bumper pointed36 to the dam across the stream, and said to Spotted Tail: “There’s Mr. Beaver’s house.”
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收听单词发音
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1
bumper
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| n.(汽车上的)保险杠；adj.特大的，丰盛的 | |
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killer
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| n.杀人者，杀人犯，杀手，屠杀者 | |
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mightily
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| ad.强烈地；非常地 | |
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gnawing
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| a.痛苦的，折磨人的 | |
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butt
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| n.笑柄；烟蒂；枪托；臀部；v.用头撞或顶 | |
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6
spotted
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| adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的 | |
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jealousy
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| n.妒忌，嫉妒，猜忌 | |
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disposition
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| n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署 | |
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sullen
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| adj.愠怒的，闷闷不乐的，(天气等)阴沉的 | |
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attachment
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| n.附属物，附件；依恋；依附 | |
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lore
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| n.传说；学问，经验，知识 | |
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brook
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| n.小河，溪；v.忍受，容让 | |
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rustic
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| adj.乡村的，有乡村特色的；n.乡下人，乡巴佬 | |
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14
beaver
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| n.海狸，河狸 | |
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15
evade
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| vt.逃避，回避；避开，躲避 | |
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16
heartily
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| adv.衷心地，诚恳地，十分，很 | |
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17
conceal
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽 | |
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embarrassment
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| n.尴尬；使人为难的人(事物)；障碍；窘迫 | |
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enjoyment
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| n.乐趣；享有；享用 | |
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20
bluffed
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| 以假象欺骗，吹牛( bluff的过去式和过去分词 )； 以虚张声势找出或达成 | |
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21
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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22
joyously
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| ad.快乐地, 高兴地 | |
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23
relentlessly
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| adv.不屈不挠地；残酷地；不间断 | |
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24
quandary
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| n.困惑，进迟两难之境 | |
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25
tangled
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| adj. 纠缠的，紊乱的 动词tangle的过去式和过去分词 | |
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exultant
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| adj.欢腾的，狂欢的，大喜的 | |
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triumphant
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| adj.胜利的，成功的；狂欢的，喜悦的 | |
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28
mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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29
discomfit
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| v.使困惑，使尴尬 | |
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30
winced
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| 赶紧避开，畏缩( wince的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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31
confession
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| n.自白，供认，承认 | |
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32
mortifying
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| adj.抑制的，苦修的v.使受辱( mortify的现在分词 )；伤害（人的感情）；克制；抑制（肉体、情感等） | |
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33
muzzle
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| n.鼻口部；口套；枪(炮)口；vt.使缄默 | |
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34
fascination
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| n.令人着迷的事物，魅力，迷恋 | |
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35
thumped
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| v.重击， （指心脏）急速跳动( thump的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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36
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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