Amy grumbled3 all the way back, but Jessie would hardly speak at all. She could not get the vision of Darry and that girl out of her mind. She wondered why it should hurt her so much to see his friendliness4 to some one else.
“You dragged me away before the last act,” Amy complained. “Don’t you know the best part was still to come—when we confronted the guilty man and maiden5?”
“I didn’t want to confront any one,” Jessie returned, wearily. “And, besides, I don’t believe Darry is guilty of anything.”
“Well, we at least know he is guilty of friendship with a girl whose past, to say the least of it, is a trifle queer,” retorted Amy. “Darry will certainly hear my idea of his actions when he gets back.”
It was almost dark when Darry did finally return, and all that afternoon Jessie had been feverishly6 restless. She was unable to give her mind to anything. Even her beloved radio had lost much of its fascination7 for her, and she listened apathetically8 to a really fine concert from New York.
The other girls did not notice her mood, for the reason that they were considerably9 stirred up over the mystery of Darry’s actions. Then, too, though they would not for the world have acknowledged this to each other, they were rather dreading10 the approach of dark. They could not, however much they tried, put from their minds the memory of that dreadful wailing11 lament12 which had reached their ears from the direction of the swamp. Constantly before them was the mental vision of those ghostly figures, flitting among the trees.
“Looks a good deal like having a ghost hunt this afternoon, I must say,” Nell remarked once, as they scanned the mountain road for a sign of Darry’s roadster. “I can’t say that I relish13 spending another night here with those spooks wandering loose around the place.”
“We can go now if you want to,” Burd suggested. “There is still time to get to the swamp and back before dark, and perhaps you would rest easier to-night if you could see that there was nothing alarming there.”
“Ghosts aren’t supposed to walk till after dark, anyway; so I don’t see any use going down there just to look at the place,” was Amy’s ungracious response.
After that Burd and Fol left the girls to their own devices and went off to enjoy a little quiet fishing.
Later Amy declared she was tired after having slept so little the night before and went to lie down. Miss Alling was listening in to a concert, completely absorbed in her new fancy.
Jessie and Nell wandered down to the dock, embarked14 in their favorite green canoe, and drifted out upon the water.
It was there that Amy found them some time later when she came running down to the water’s edge, waving something in her hand.
“You will never guess what I’ve got,” she shouted, as the girls paddled nearer to the dock. “Darry is back and he brought me a present.”
As Nell and Jessie clambered out of the canoe, they saw that Amy held in her hand something green that fluttered in the breeze.
“A bill!” exclaimed Jessie. “Where did you get that from, Amy Drew?”
“You needn’t look as if I had robbed a bank or something,” chuckled16 Amy. “I came by it honestly, I assure you. Didn’t you hear me say Darry gave me a present?”
“Well, you can tell Darry for me that if he is distributing five-dollar bills as recklessly as all that he can throw some in this direction,” Nell remarked.
Jessie looked from the bill to Amy’s mischievous17 face and presently light dawned upon her.
“Why did he give you that, Amy Drew?” she demanded, excitedly. “Tell me quickly before I go to Darry and ask him.”
“That girl gave it to him,” Amy confessed, lowering her tone to a mysterious whisper. “She told him to give it to me in exchange for the bad five-dollar bill.”
“So Darry has turned into a reformer!” remarked Nell, in huge enjoyment18. “Imagine inducing that girl to give good money for bad.”
“Darry says she did not know the bill was bad,” said Amy. But she added, with a giggle19: “I think he is a poor simpleton, myself—allowing that girl to pull the wool over his eyes. Nobody can ever tell me again that I have a bright brother.”
“Then he admits having seen the girl,” said Jessie, thoughtfully. “Did you tell him about our trip to Gibbonsville?”
“No. He got in his innings first. When he handed me the bill and told me where it came from I was so surprised I couldn’t speak. When I had recovered Darry had disappeared.”
“I think we had better not say anything about following him, then,” suggested Jessie, as they neared the lodge. “It would only make him angry.”
“I couldn’t get him to tell me anything about the girl, not even her name,” said Amy, regretfully. “I never saw such an annoying person! He is as close-mouthed as a clam15!”
They found Aunt Emma, who hated to cook, in the lodge struggling with supper, and immediately set about helping20 her. It was fun to get the fire started and brown the ham to a golden crispness and fry the eggs till they looked like little white islands with a mound21 of gold in the center. In this pleasant occupation the girls forgot to miss Phrosy and forgot, for the moment, even to think of Phrosy’s ghosts.
Burd and Fol, coming in a few moments later, cheerful and ravenous22 and triumphantly23 displaying a nice catch of fish, declared that they had never tasted so fine a dinner.
Afterward24 they listened in to a splendid radio concert and about nine o’clock realized with relief that the “ghosts” had not chosen to make themselves manifest on that night at least.
On the afternoon of the second day after the girls had trailed Darry to Gibbonsville, they were tuning25 in to the wave length of the forest ranger26 station when there came suddenly to them, ringing along the airways27, the words: “More men on the northeast section, sir. The fire is sweeping28 in a semicircle toward the north.”
“A fire!” cried Jessie. “Oh, I wonder if it is anywhere near us.”
“Listen, did you hear that?” cried Fol, excitedly. “The fire is a long way off——”
“Down at the other end of Lake Towako probably,” agreed Darry. “They will have it in hand in no time, I bet. Watch and see.”
“Listen and see, you mean,” giggled29 Amy.
“Listen and hear would be still better,” put in Nell, with a jolly laugh.
“Oh, listen to them,” Jessie implored30. “Isn’t it wonderful how they can send messages to each other right out of the air?”
It was wonderful, and for the better part of two hours the young folks sat without stirring, thrilled to the depths of them by this battle between the greatest enemy of the forest, fire, and the ingenuity31 of man.
It was evidently quite a serious fire, and as it was coming steadily32 in their direction they were all much relieved when the success of the fire-fighters was announced over the radio.
“What heroes they must be, these forest rangers,” said Jessie, when the air waves were mute again. “Think what they have done in this last two hours—the property they have saved, and lives, too, maybe.”
“I would have liked to see them at work,” remarked Fol, musingly33. “And, gee34! wouldn’t it be great to be in one of those airplanes?”
“I’m not so sure I’d like that,” replied Darry, soberly.
“I think I will have to write a book about seeing a forest fire by radio,” chuckled Amy. “It is almost as thrilling as being on the spot.”
“And quite a good deal safer,” laughed Burd.
点击
收听单词发音
收听单词发音 |
1
grumblingly
|
|
| 喃喃报怨着，发牢骚着 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
|
2
lodge
|
|
| v.临时住宿，寄宿，寄存，容纳；n.传达室，小旅馆 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
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： |
|
|
|
|
4
friendliness
|
|
| n.友谊，亲切，亲密 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
5
maiden
|
|
| n.少女，处女；adj.未婚的，纯洁的，无经验的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
6
feverishly
|
|
| adv. 兴奋地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
7
fascination
|
|
| n.令人着迷的事物，魅力，迷恋 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
8
apathetically
|
|
| adv.不露感情地；无动于衷地；不感兴趣地；冷淡地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
9
considerably
|
|
| adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
10
dreading
|
|
| v.害怕，恐惧，担心( dread的现在分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
11
wailing
|
|
| v.哭叫，哀号( wail的现在分词 )；沱 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
12
lament
|
|
| n.悲叹，悔恨，恸哭；v.哀悼，悔恨，悲叹 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
13
relish
|
|
| n.滋味，享受，爱好，调味品；vt.加调味料，享受，品味；vi.有滋味 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
14
embarked
|
|
| 乘船( embark的过去式和过去分词 )； 装载； 从事 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
15
clam
|
|
| n.蛤，蛤肉 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
16
chuckled
|
|
| 轻声地笑( chuckle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
17
mischievous
|
|
| adj.调皮的，恶作剧的，有害的，伤人的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
18
enjoyment
|
|
| n.乐趣；享有；享用 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
19
giggle
|
|
| n.痴笑，咯咯地笑；v.咯咯地笑着说 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
20
helping
|
|
| n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
21
mound
|
|
| n.土墩，堤，小山；v.筑堤，用土堆防卫 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
22
ravenous
|
|
| adj.极饿的，贪婪的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
23
triumphantly
|
|
| ad.得意洋洋地；得胜地；成功地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
24
afterward
|
|
| adv.后来；以后 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
25
tuning
|
|
| n.调谐，调整，调音v.调音( tune的现在分词 )；调整；（给收音机、电视等）调谐；使协调 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
26
ranger
|
|
| n.国家公园管理员，护林员；骑兵巡逻队员 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
27
AIRWAYS
|
|
| 航空公司 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
28
sweeping
|
|
| adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
29
giggled
|
|
| v.咯咯地笑( giggle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
30
implored
|
|
| 恳求或乞求（某人）( implore的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
31
ingenuity
|
|
| n.别出心裁；善于发明创造 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
32
steadily
|
|
| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
33
musingly
|
|
| adv.沉思地，冥想地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
|
34
gee
|
|
| n.马；int.向右！前进！，惊讶时所发声音；v.向右转 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
| 欢迎访问英文小说网 |