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CHAPTER II
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 The long winter came to an end. Spring days followed, then the warm summer time. The sun streamed through the window and door which stood all the day opened, and the children could sit out in the fresh, sweet air. The goats were driven into the upper pasture and gave much more milk. But the mother could never rest from toil1; there was wood to gather for the coming winter, and the grass on the high slopes was cut [13]by her and spread out to dry by the children. Then it was bound into bundles, which the mother carried on her head, and the sturdy Barty also carried his little bundle.
 
This was put into the loft2 over the goat-house.
 
The days grew very hot and dry, and the goats gave less milk, the mother spent the days and part of the nights knitting and spinning, but there was little time for indoor work while the haymaking lasted, and it was after a day spent in the heat that she returned to find a tiny bit of bread which she divided between the children.
 
“I am so sorry I have no more to give you,” she said; [14]“I must knit very fast to-night.”
 
“But where is your piece, Mother?” asked the boy.
 
“I do not wish any; I am not hungry.”
 
Barty and Franzelie eagerly tried to divide their small portion.
 
“No,” she said, “there is no use; perhaps if I could see the doctor when I go to Altdorf, he would help me.”
 
She sank back on the little cot on which she was sitting and her eyes closed. She had fainted from weakness, but the children thought her sleeping.
 
“Come,” said Barty, “don’t wake Mother up. I will tell you what we will do. We will go down to Altdorf and sing our song again, and if we can get some bread or nuts we will bring them all home to mother. I think she will[15] sleep a long time. She is so tired and her face is so white.”
 
Barty held his sister fast by the hand and drew her as far away as possible from the rushing brook3. They sang their carol as they went through the meadows to be sure that they remembered it all, and hurried eagerly on. They reached Altdorf, not pausing till they came to the great inn with the sign of the Golden Eagle.
 
The western sun threw golden rays on the little grass plot before the house, and there under the trees was a long table surrounded by a large company of strange young men. They wore red caps on their heads, and their clothing was unlike what the children had seen in their own land. It was a company of[16] students who were on a walking tour through the Alps, and they had made a long march that day.
 
They were eating and drinking in great glee, and the children shrank back at first startled by the loud voices, merry laughter, and wild songs.
 
The children stood awhile by the old tower, but when there was a short pause they began the New Year’s Song.
 
“Listen! Be quiet!” cried the powerful voice of the large man at the end of the table. “I hear music.”
 
The young men looked around, and when they saw the children cried, “Nearer; come over here.”
 
The children came, Franzelie timidly holding fast her brother’s hand. The large man with ruddy face and heavy[17] beard stretched out his long arm and drew Barty to his side.
 
“Now let them sing, Barbarossa,” cried the others.
 
“Sing on,” he said; “don’t be afraid.”
 
Barty sang with clear tones, and his sister joined with voice like a little silver bell, and this was the song:
 
“With joy we hail the glad New Year:
The old one has departed.
May blessed health and happy cheer
E’er keep you merry-hearted.”
“Gracious goodness! We are on the other side of the globe,” cried Barbarossa, “and here it is the New Year”; and howls of laughter rang out.
 
“Don’t make such a row,” cried the young man with black locks who sat[18] near Barbarossa; “see the little Madonna, she is trembling with fright.”
 
“Count Maximilian,” replied Barbarossa, “you must take the little Madonna under your special protection.”
 
Maximilian held out his hand. “Come to me, little one,” he said; “now go on with the song.”
 
The child trustfully held fast to her new friend and sang:
 
“Now bitter cold, and chilling blast,
O’er ice-bound earth is creeping,
But the dear Father holds us fast
Within his tender keeping.”
“I have been wonderfully protected from cold this day,” said the merry Barbarossa, and another noisy laugh rang out.
 
[19]
 
“Go on, go on!” cried the students.
 
“The feathered songsters seek in vain,
Their food on hill and heather,
And hungry children toil with pain,
Their daily food to gather.”
“They must have it, they must have it!” cried one and all, and many plates piled up with good things were set before the children, but Barty would not be tempted4, and the children sang on.
 
“We wish you health and pleasures rare,
And may you, peace possessing,
Learn that who trusts the good God’s care
Will ever find a blessing5.”
Cheers followed and they cried: “That is a beautiful wish. That will bring us good luck on our journey.”
 
Then Barbarossa placed before Barty[20] a plate piled up with good things. He had never seen the like in all his life, and there was a beautiful piece of snow-white bread upon it, such a rare treat!
 
“Now, my son,” said the young man, “go bravely to work; let nothing be left”; and others cried, “Here is more, he shall have this.”
 
Barty gazed upon the treasures, his eyes growing larger and larger with delight. Another well-filled plate stood before Franzelie, who still held fast to her protector.
 
She was very hungry, and was about to put a morsel6 into her mouth when she saw that Barty was not eating, so she laid it back again upon the plate.
 
“Well, what is the matter, my brave[21] grandson! What is your name?” said Barbarossa.
 
“Sebastian. They call me Barty.”
 
“Good Barty, my son, what deep thoughts make your eyes so large, and your appetite so small?”
 
“If I only had a sack or basket!”
 
“And what then?”
 
“I would carry it all home to my mother. She had no bread to-day; nothing but a little goat’s milk.”
 
The hearts of the student party were filled with compassion7. He should have what he wished, and where did his mother live; was it near by?
 
When Barty explained it was high up in the mountain, they exclaimed with astonishment8, and Barbarossa said, [22]“If you have come so far, you are surely hungry. Is it not so, Barty?”
 
“Yes, and we had only a little bit of bread, but when Mother can finish some knitting, we can have more.”
 
Now all were interested and various plans were suggested, but Barbarossa said, “First I will see that these two children have enough to eat, then we will attend to the rest. Here, Barty, eat all that is on your plate, and then your mother shall have what is on the table.”
 
“Eat all of this?” said the boy with beaming eyes.
 
“Yes, every bit of it; now begin.”
 
Barty needed no more asking, and Maximilian saw to it that his little charge had all she could eat.
 
“Did your mother send you here to sing your song?” asked Barbarossa.
 
“No; she did not know it. She fell[23] back on the cot and went fast asleep because she was so hungry, and she looked so white, and she had said she wished she could see a doctor, and so I told Franzelie to come with me and perhaps we could get bread just as we did on New Year’s Day.”
 
Then all understood how the children came to sing the New Year’s Carol.
 
Barbarossa rose and said: “I move that we take our little runaway9 friends back to their mother. To-morrow we must visit the places made famous by the brave William Tell, so let us have a moonlight party to the mountains to-night; the moon is full.”
 
[24]
 
“And you, old Mediciner, shall have your first patient. You shall go as Dr. Barbarossa and give good advice.”
 
“And take my medicine with me, Maximilian?” he said, putting a flask10 of wine into his pocket. “Some of you fellows bring another one.”
 
All agreed to the moonlight party, but as they were gathering11 up their alpenstocks, Maximilian said, “Do you think this small bit of humanity with her tiny bare feet can keep up with your long strides? I propose that our landlord give us a horse and chaise, and we can also take in it the large provision basket our landlady12 has so nicely packed.”
 
“Good,” said Barbarossa; “you shall go in it with the Queen Titania, and we will walk with Barty for our guide.”
 
So the party set out while the skies were all aglow13 with the sunset hues14 and[25] the snow-white peaks growing rosy15 with the reflected light.
 
Franzelie was supremely16 happy, and her kind friend so won her childish heart that she told him all about their mountain life, the goats, the haymaking, and what they did in the long winter.

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 toil WJezp     
vi.辛劳工作,艰难地行动;n.苦工,难事
参考例句:
  • The wealth comes from the toil of the masses.财富来自大众的辛勤劳动。
  • Every single grain is the result of toil.每一粒粮食都来之不易。
2 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。
3 brook PSIyg     
n.小河,溪;v.忍受,容让
参考例句:
  • In our room we could hear the murmur of a distant brook.在我们房间能听到远处小溪汩汩的流水声。
  • The brook trickled through the valley.小溪涓涓流过峡谷。
4 tempted b0182e969d369add1b9ce2353d3c6ad6     
v.怂恿(某人)干不正当的事;冒…的险(tempt的过去分词)
参考例句:
  • I was sorely tempted to complain, but I didn't. 我极想发牢骚,但还是没开口。
  • I was tempted by the dessert menu. 甜食菜单馋得我垂涎欲滴。
5 blessing UxDztJ     
n.祈神赐福;祷告;祝福,祝愿
参考例句:
  • The blessing was said in Hebrew.祷告用了希伯来语。
  • A double blessing has descended upon the house.双喜临门。
6 morsel Q14y4     
n.一口,一点点
参考例句:
  • He refused to touch a morsel of the food they had brought.他们拿来的东西他一口也不吃。
  • The patient has not had a morsel of food since the morning.从早上起病人一直没有进食。
7 compassion 3q2zZ     
n.同情,怜悯
参考例句:
  • He could not help having compassion for the poor creature.他情不自禁地怜悯起那个可怜的人来。
  • Her heart was filled with compassion for the motherless children.她对于没有母亲的孩子们充满了怜悯心。
8 astonishment VvjzR     
n.惊奇,惊异
参考例句:
  • They heard him give a loud shout of astonishment.他们听见他惊奇地大叫一声。
  • I was filled with astonishment at her strange action.我对她的奇怪举动不胜惊异。
9 runaway jD4y5     
n.逃走的人,逃亡,亡命者;adj.逃亡的,逃走的
参考例句:
  • The police have not found the runaway to date.警察迄今没抓到逃犯。
  • He was praised for bringing up the runaway horse.他勒住了脱缰之马受到了表扬。
10 flask Egxz8     
n.瓶,火药筒,砂箱
参考例句:
  • There is some deposit in the bottom of the flask.这只烧杯的底部有些沉淀物。
  • He took out a metal flask from a canvas bag.他从帆布包里拿出一个金属瓶子。
11 gathering ChmxZ     
n.集会,聚会,聚集
参考例句:
  • He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
  • He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。
12 landlady t2ZxE     
n.女房东,女地主
参考例句:
  • I heard my landlady creeping stealthily up to my door.我听到我的女房东偷偷地来到我的门前。
  • The landlady came over to serve me.女店主过来接待我。
13 aglow CVqzh     
adj.发亮的;发红的;adv.发亮地
参考例句:
  • The garden is aglow with many flowers.园中百花盛开。
  • The sky was aglow with the setting sun.天空因夕阳映照而发红光。
14 hues adb36550095392fec301ed06c82f8920     
色彩( hue的名词复数 ); 色调; 信仰; 观点
参考例句:
  • When the sun rose a hundred prismatic hues were reflected from it. 太阳一出,更把它映得千变万化、异彩缤纷。
  • Where maple trees grow, the leaves are often several brilliant hues of red. 在枫树生长的地方,枫叶常常呈现出数种光彩夺目的红色。
15 rosy kDAy9     
adj.美好的,乐观的,玫瑰色的
参考例句:
  • She got a new job and her life looks rosy.她找到一份新工作,生活看上去很美好。
  • She always takes a rosy view of life.她总是对生活持乐观态度。
16 supremely MhpzUo     
adv.无上地,崇高地
参考例句:
  • They managed it all supremely well. 这件事他们干得极其出色。
  • I consider a supremely beautiful gesture. 我觉得这是非常优雅的姿态。


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