Chapter 11 Forming The Patrol

"Don't you think," began Pepper.

"Why not, Pepper?" asked Rand.

"What objection is there to our thinking?"

The four boys were, a couple of days later, on their way back to the town from the river, where they had been for an early morning swim.

"None whatever," retorted Pepper, "if you were capable of doing it."

"Now listen to that!" cried Rand. "Pepper thinks he's the only one that can think. If you have got any thinks in your think-tank open the valve and let some of them escape."

"One at a time, Pepper," added Donald; "make it easy for us."

"All through your interruptions?" asked Pepper; "because, if you are, I'll elucidate¹."

"Ah, what's that?" cried Rand, "you'll do what? How do you spell it?"

"Elucidate--explain--make dear," replied Pepper. "Do I make myself comprehensible?"

"Another one," groaned² Rand. "Say, Pepper, skip the hard ones, and tell us what's troubling you."

"What I was going to say," went on Pepper, "was, don't you think--now don't interrupt--that it would be a good idea to have Gerald Moore and Dick Wilson meet with us to have a talk about the Scout³ business?"

"Seems as if it might be," admitted Donald.

"What made you think of having Gerald join us, Jack⁴?" asked Rand. "I suppose you had some good reason."

"Well, I hardly know," responded Jack. "It just came into my head while the colonel was talking the other day. He's an all-around good fellow, you know, even if he does not have much money. Full of fun, and you can depend upon him every time."

"That's reason enough," agreed Rand. "I don't know much about him, except that he was in our class at school, and I'm afraid I have had a little grudge⁵ against him."

"What for?" cried Pepper.

"I guess it was because he made me work so hard to keep up with him in the class," responded Rand laughingly. "It was all I could do, too."

"Dick's a jolly good fellow, too," put in Pepper.

"For he's a jolly good fellow, for he's a jolly good fellow, for he's a jolly good fellow," sang Jack, whereupon they ail⁶ joined in the refrain.

"Said anything to them about it?" asked Don, when they had sung it over and over until they were tired.

"Well, hardly," replied Jack, "considering it was only the day before yesterday that we thought of it, though I suppose if we are going to do anything it is time we were getting about it."

"Ah reckon dat am so," drawled Rand, then changing his tone he went on: "What do you say to having a meeting to-night and talking it over? We can have Gerald and Dick come and make a start if we like."

"That's the way, Rand," approved Pepper, "if you are going to do things, do them!"

"I see no objection," concluded Donald.

"Of course you don't," returned Pepper. "Do you know why?"

"Why, Pepper?" asked Donald.

"Because there isn't any," retorted Pepper.

"Where will we meet?" asked Jack.

"I will ask Uncle Floyd if we can have the room in the attic⁷ for a club room," went on Rand. "I know he will be interested in what we are doing."

"Then we are all fixed," cried Jack.

"What shall we call it?" asked Pepper.

"Call the room?"

"Of course not," returned Pepper; "I mean the patrol."

"Better wait until it is started," advised Donald, "it's no sure yet."

"All right, Solomon," conceded Pepper, "but if Randolph says so it's as good as done."

"Then we will consider that settled," concluded Rand, who, as a matter of course, assumed the leadership, as he usually did in most things the boys undertook. "Wait a minute," he went on as they were about to separate when they came to his house, "I will ask uncle now."

Then a few minutes later he called from the house: "It's all right, uncle says that we can have it."

"Hurrah⁸!" cried Pepper.

"Three cheers for Mr. Scott!" after which the three went off, singing "For he's a jolly good fellow."

"What is the first thing to do?" asked Pepper when they met that evening in the room which Mr. Scott had allowed them to use.

"Well, if we are all agreed," replied Rand, "I suppose the way to organize is to organize."

"Then I move that we form a patrol of the Boy Scouts," proposed Pepper.

"Second the motion," added Jack.

"In my opinion--" began Donald deliberately⁹, as usual.

"Now for a solid chunk¹⁰ of wisdom," volunteered Pepper.

"The first thing to do is to select a chairman."

"Anything to please," assented¹¹ Jack. "I move that Randolph Peyton be chosen as chairman of the meeting. All in favor, say aye!"

"Aye!" shouted the boys in a chorus that made the room ring again.

"Now then, Mr. Chairman," said Jack, "get busy."

"I nominate Donald Graeme for secretary," cried Pepper.

"All in favor--" began Rand.

"Aye!" shouted the boys again.

"Then," announced Rand, "I think we are ready for business. Now, Pepper, your motion would be in order."

"In my opinion--" interrupted Donald.

"Now for another chunk," sighed Pepper.

"Order!" called Rand.

"It would no be a bad idea," went on Donald, "to read over the requirements again, so we will know what we are about."

"Oh," protested Pepper, "this is too much. Say, fellows, wake me up when he gets through."

"Now," said Rand, when Donald had finished the reading, "shall we go ahead?"

"How is it, Don?" asked Pepper; "any more objections?"

"I don't see any," returned Donald.

"All right, then, Mr. Chairman," cried Pepper; "let her go!"

"I move that we form a patrol of the Boy Scouts," said Jack.

"Second it," cried Gerald.

"Aye!" shouted the boys before Rand had time to put the motion.

"Carried," decided¹² Rand. "Now," he went on, "I wonder how many of you can pass the examination."

1 elucidate   

v.阐明，说明

参考例句：

• The note help to elucidate the most difficult parts of the text.这些注释有助于弄清文中最难懂的部分。
• This guide will elucidate these differences and how to exploit them.这篇指导将会阐述这些不同点以及如何正确利用它们。

2 groaned   

v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦

参考例句：

• He groaned in anguish. 他痛苦地呻吟。
• The cart groaned under the weight of the piano. 大车在钢琴的重压下嘎吱作响。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 scout   

n.童子军，侦察员；v.侦察，搜索

参考例句：

• He was mistaken for an enemy scout and badly wounded.他被误认为是敌人的侦察兵，受了重伤。
• The scout made a stealthy approach to the enemy position.侦察兵偷偷地靠近敌军阵地。

4 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

5 grudge   

n.不满，怨恨，妒嫉；vt.勉强给，不情愿做

参考例句：

• I grudge paying so much for such inferior goods.我不愿花这么多钱买次品。
• I do not grudge him his success.我不嫉妒他的成功。

6 ail   

v.生病，折磨，苦恼

参考例句：

• It may provide answers to some of the problems that ail America.这一点可能解答困扰美国的某些问题。
• Seek your sauce where you get your ail.心痛还须心药治。

7 attic   

n.顶楼，屋顶室

参考例句：

• Leakiness in the roof caused a damp attic.屋漏使顶楼潮湿。
• What's to be done with all this stuff in the attic?顶楼上的材料怎么处理？

8 hurrah   

int.好哇，万岁，乌拉

参考例句：

• We hurrah when we see the soldiers go by.我们看到士兵经过时向他们欢呼。
• The assistants raised a formidable hurrah.助手们发出了一片震天的欢呼声。

9 deliberately   

adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地

参考例句：

• The girl gave the show away deliberately.女孩故意泄露秘密。
• They deliberately shifted off the argument.他们故意回避这个论点。

10 chunk   

n.厚片，大块，相当大的部分（数量）

参考例句：

• They had to be careful of floating chunks of ice.他们必须当心大块浮冰。
• The company owns a chunk of farmland near Gatwick Airport.该公司拥有盖特威克机场周边的大片农田。

11 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！

12 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。