CHAPTER III MYSTERY DEER

 Teddy Benson ducked just in time. Warned by Dick’s cry, the young lad stooped down so quickly that he sprawled¹ on the pine needles that covered the hard earth.

 

A moment later a lithe², tawny³ body sprang over Teddy, rushed between Joe and Dick and was lost to sight in the darkness of the small forest.

 

For a moment after this strange happening, neither of the chums did or said anything. Then Teddy, who scrambled⁴ to his feet, asked his friends:

 

“Did you see what I saw?”

 

“I saw something—some animal,” replied Joe. “But it went past me so fast—like your airplane, Teddy—that I don’t know whether it was a dog or a calf⁵.”

 

22 “It wasn’t a dog,” declared Dick.

 

“How do you know?” asked Joe.

 

“Because if it was a dog it would have barked. And it wasn’t a calf.”

 

“How do you know that?” Teddy asked.

 

“If it was a calf,” reasoned Dick, “it would have bleated⁶. Besides, what would a farmer’s calf be doing in these woods?”

 

“I guess you’re right there,” Teddy agreed. “Of course, a farmer’s calf could have strayed into these woods. But it ran too fast for a calf.”

 

“And it jumped better than any calf I ever saw,” reported Dick. “Why, it jumped right over you, Teddy.”

 

“Yes, I saw that. I also saw something else.”

 

“What?” his two chums wanted to know.

 

Teddy Benson arose and brushed the dry, brown pine-needles off his clothes. Then he looked back into the gully and made sure his white-winged airplane was still in sight. It was so Teddy went on:

 

23 “I saw some horns and they weren’t the kind of horns a calf wears. They were quite different—branching horns, you know.”

 

“Like what?” asked Joe.

 

“Like the horns of a deer,” Teddy answered. “Fellows, I think what scared us was a deer.”

 

“Scared? Who’s scared?” asked Dick.

 

“Weren’t you?” asked Teddy. “I was. And from the way you and Joe ducked, I’ll say you were scared, too.”

 

“Well, I was for a second, I guess,” admitted Dick. “At first, I thought it was a bobcat.”

 

“What would a lynx be doing in Mason’s woods?” asked Joe. “No one ever saw a wild animal in here.”

 

“Then what does Teddy mean by talking about a deer?” asked Dick. “Now I come to think of it, that animal did look something like a deer. It ran and jumped fast enough to be a deer, anyhow. But what would a deer be doing in Mason’s woods?”

 

24 “That’s what we have to find out,” Teddy said.

 

“You mean it might be another of those—those mysteries?” asked Joe.

 

“It might,” admitted Teddy. “Anyhow, isn’t it queer that we should meet a deer here.”

 

“I guess that deer—if it was a deer,” said Dick, “was as scared as we were. It ran like a streak⁷ of light. Must have been lying down back of that big rock where Teddy’s airplane is. And when we started down it caught our scent⁸, got scared and leaped up to run away.”

 

“The question is, where did it run?” asked Joe, looking off through the dark woods. “It isn’t in sight.”

 

“Maybe we can trail it,” suggested Teddy. “But first I’m going to get my plane. Then we can look for the deer. If we don’t find it, so much the more mystery.”

 

“And if we find it the mystery will be solved,” said Joe.

 

25 “Maybe not,” spoke⁹ Teddy. “I don’t see how a deer got in these woods. It might have escaped from a circus. But, as a rule, they don’t carry deer in a circus. They aren’t strange enough animals. And nobody around here keeps deer that I know of.”

 

The other boys admitted they knew of no deer paddock in Oakdale whence the deer might have escaped. The appearance of the deer was a complete mystery.

 

“But it comes at just the right time,” Teddy remarked. “We haven’t any school. We can spend the whole summer solving the deer mystery.”

 

“Unless your folks go away,” said Joe.

 

“I don’t believe we’re going away this year,” Teddy said. “My father has to make a business trip and my mother doesn’t feel like going to the country or seashore. So we may stay home. Or maybe we might go away in August.”

 

“That’s what our folks are planning to do,” said Joe.

 

26 “And my mother says she can’t afford to go away,” spoke Dick. “So we’re going to stay home.” Dick’s mother was a widow.

 

“Well, this is just fine and dandy then,” declared Teddy. “We are all going to be around Oakdale most of the summer. So we can have plenty of time to solve the mystery.”

 

“If there is one,” commented Joe.

 

“Don’t you call meeting a leaping deer, with horns, in a wood where no deer has been seen since Indian days—don’t you call that a mystery?” asked Dick.

 

“Yes, I guess I do,” admitted Joe.

 

“It sure is,” agreed Teddy. “And as soon as I get my plane we’ll have a start at solving the mystery.”

 

He left his chums to walk a short distance down the first slope of the gully to where the toy model lay at the foot of a great rock.

 

“Good thing it didn’t smash into the rock,” commented Joe.

 

27 “Sure is,” assented¹⁰ Dick.

 

The two watched Teddy reach his toy and stoop to pick it up. The tall lad examined his model carefully and Joe called:

 

“Is it damaged any?”

 

“One propeller¹¹ blade is chipped a bit,” Teddy answered. “Otherwise it’s all right. I’m lucky.”

 

“As usual,” chuckled¹² Joe. “Just like now, when the mystery deer jumped over you instead of through you. Well, come on. Let’s get back and pick up our planes. We can have another race tomorrow. I’m going to put a bigger propeller on my model.”

 

“I’m going to use more rubber bands,” declared Dick. “See any more deer or other wild animals back of that rock, Teddy?”

 

“No, there are no more here. But that deer was resting here. He had a bed in the leaves. I’d like to know more about him.”

 

As Teddy walked up the little incline from the edge of the gully, carrying his plane,28 there came to his ears and those of his chums the shrill¹³ screams of girls.

 

“Help! Help!” cried the voices which Teddy and his chums knew to be those of Lucy Benson and Margie Kelly.

1 sprawled   

v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的过去式和过去分词)；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着）

参考例句：

• He was sprawled full-length across the bed. 他手脚摊开横躺在床上。
• He was lying sprawled in an armchair, watching TV. 他四肢伸开正懒散地靠在扶手椅上看电视。

2 lithe   

adj.(指人、身体)柔软的，易弯的

参考例句：

• His lithe athlete's body had been his pride through most of the fifty - six years.他那轻巧自如的运动员体格，五十六年来几乎一直使他感到自豪。
• His walk was lithe and graceful.他走路轻盈而优雅。

3 tawny   

adj.茶色的，黄褐色的；n.黄褐色

参考例句：

• Her black hair springs in fine strands across her tawny,ruddy cheek.她的一头乌发分披在健康红润的脸颊旁。
• None of them noticed a large,tawny owl flutter past the window.他们谁也没注意到一只大的、褐色的猫头鹰飞过了窗户。

4 scrambled   

v.快速爬行( scramble的过去式和过去分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞

参考例句：

• Each scrambled for the football at the football ground. 足球场上你争我夺。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• He scrambled awkwardly to his feet. 他笨拙地爬起身来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 calf   

n.小牛，犊，幼仔，小牛皮

参考例句：

• The cow slinked its calf.那头母牛早产了一头小牛犊。
• The calf blared for its mother.牛犊哞哞地高声叫喊找妈妈。

6 bleated   

v.（羊，小牛）叫( bleat的过去式和过去分词 )；哭诉；发出羊叫似的声音；轻声诉说

参考例句：

• The lost lamb bleated. 迷路的小羊咩咩的叫。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She bleated her disapproval of her son's marriage to Amy. 她用颤抖的声音表示不赞成儿子与艾米的婚事。 来自辞典例句

7 streak   

n.条理，斑纹，倾向，少许，痕迹；v.加条纹，变成条纹，奔驰，快速移动

参考例句：

• The Indians used to streak their faces with paint.印第安人过去常用颜料在脸上涂条纹。
• Why did you streak the tree?你为什么在树上刻条纹？

8 scent   

n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉

参考例句：

• The air was filled with the scent of lilac.空气中弥漫着丁香花的芬芳。
• The flowers give off a heady scent at night.这些花晚上散发出醉人的芳香。

9 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

10 assented   

同意，赞成( assent的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The judge assented to allow the prisoner to speak. 法官同意允许犯人申辩。
• "No," assented Tom, "they don't kill the women -- they're too noble. “对，”汤姆表示赞同地说，“他们不杀女人——真伟大！

11 propeller   

n.螺旋桨，推进器

参考例句：

• The propeller started to spin around.螺旋桨开始飞快地旋转起来。
• A rope jammed the boat's propeller.一根绳子卡住了船的螺旋桨。

12 chuckled   

轻声地笑( chuckle的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She chuckled at the memory. 想起这件事她就暗自发笑。
• She chuckled softly to herself as she remembered his astonished look. 想起他那惊讶的表情，她就轻轻地暗自发笑。

13 shrill   

adj.尖声的；刺耳的；v尖叫

参考例句：

• Whistles began to shrill outside the barn.哨声开始在谷仓外面尖叫。
• The shrill ringing of a bell broke up the card game on the cutter.刺耳的铃声打散了小汽艇的牌局。