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HOW A SNAKE CAME TO GRIEF.
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 THE bull snake, which is quite common on the Pacific coast, grows sometimes to be quite large, but it is entirely1 harmless to human beings.
 
 
A Californian, being something of a naturalist2, set himself to work to tame one of these snakes and was able to teach Slippery Dick—the name he gave his strange pet—many tricks. He taught him to come at call, to coil up, to wave his folds about in imitation of dancing, and many other tricks. He would coil up on the table, his head in the center of the coil, elevated about six inches in the air. The gentleman would place the handle of a small fan in his mouth, and then the snake would gently wave the fan to and fro, and thus keep the flies from his master’s face.
 
He was as good as a cat to keep the old log house free from mice. He often brought in ten or twelve in a day. His fondness for mice was his ruin. It happened in this way: One day the gentleman missed Slippery Dick, and though he hunted and called all day, he could not find any trace of his pet. About a week after his disappearance3, having occasion to explore the loft4 of the cabin in which he lived, he came across the remains5 of his old friend. Apparently6 he had been more mouse-hungry than usual, and in his haste to satisfy his appetite had swallowed a live mouse, which had gnawed7 its way through the snake’s body, thus causing his death.

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1 entirely entirely     
ad.全部地,完整地;完全地,彻底地
参考例句:
  • The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
  • His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。
2 naturalist QFKxZ     
n.博物学家(尤指直接观察动植物者)
参考例句:
  • He was a printer by trade and naturalist by avocation.他从事印刷业,同时是个博物学爱好者。
  • The naturalist told us many stories about birds.博物学家给我们讲述了许多有关鸟儿的故事。
3 disappearance ouEx5     
n.消失,消散,失踪
参考例句:
  • He was hard put to it to explain her disappearance.他难以说明她为什么不见了。
  • Her disappearance gave rise to the wildest rumours.她失踪一事引起了各种流言蜚语。
4 loft VkhyQ     
n.阁楼,顶楼
参考例句:
  • We could see up into the loft from bottom of the stairs.我们能从楼梯脚边望到阁楼的内部。
  • By converting the loft,they were able to have two extra bedrooms.把阁楼改造一下,他们就可以多出两间卧室。
5 remains 1kMzTy     
n.剩余物,残留物;遗体,遗迹
参考例句:
  • He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
  • The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。
6 apparently tMmyQ     
adv.显然地;表面上,似乎
参考例句:
  • An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽,豁然开朗。
  • He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。
7 gnawed 85643b5b73cc74a08138f4534f41cef1     
咬( gnaw的过去式和过去分词 ); (长时间) 折磨某人; (使)苦恼; (长时间)危害某事物
参考例句:
  • His attitude towards her gnawed away at her confidence. 他对她的态度一直在削弱她的自尊心。
  • The root of this dead tree has been gnawed away by ants. 这棵死树根被蚂蚁唼了。


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