X. WHY JOHNNY CHUCK DIDN'T FIGHT

      Anger is an awful thing;

     It never stops to reason.

     It boils right over all at once,

     No matter what the season.

 

It was so with Johnny Chuck. The minute he caught sight of the strange Chuck over by the lone¹ elm-tree, anger filled his heart and fairly boiled over, until he was in a terrible rage. Of course it was foolish, very foolish indeed. The strange Chuck hadn't said or done anything to make Johnny Chuck angry, not the least thing in the world, excepting to come down on to the Green Meadows². Now the Green Meadows are very broad, and there is room for many Chucks. It was pure selfishness on the part of Johnny Chuck to want to drive away every other Chuck.

 

But anger never stops to reason. It didn't now. Johnny Chuck hurried as fast as his short legs could take him towards the lone elm-tree, and in his mind was just one thought—to drive that strange Chuck off the Green Meadows and to punish him so that he never, never would dare even think of coming back. So great was Johnny's anger that every hair stood on end, and as he ran he chattered³ and scolded.

 

“I'll fix him! These are my Green Meadows, and no one else has any business here unless I say so! I'll fix him! I'll fix him!”

 

Then Johnny would grind⁴ his teeth, and in his eyes was the ugliest look. He wasn't nice to see, not a bit nice. The Merry Little Breezes of Old Mother West Wind didn't know what to make of him. Could this be the Johnny Chuck they had known so long, the good-natured, happy Johnny Chuck whom everybody loved? They drew away from him, for they didn't want anything to do with any one in such a frightful⁵ temper. But Johnny Chuck didn't even notice, and if he had he wouldn't have cared. That is the trouble with anger. It crowds out everything else, when it once fills the heart.

 

When Johnny had first seen the stranger, he had thought right away that it was the old gray Chuck with whom he had had such a terrible fight the day before and whom he whipped. Perhaps that was one reason for Johnny Chuck's terrible anger now, for the old gray Chuck had tried to drive Johnny Chuck off the Green Meadows.

 

But when he had to stop for breath and sat up to look again, he saw that it wasn't the old gray Chuck at all. It was a younger Chuck and much smaller than the old gray Chuck. It was smaller than Johnny himself.

 

“He'll be all the easier to whip,” muttered⁶ Johnny, as he started on again, never once thinking of how unfair it would be to fight with one smaller than himself. That was because he was so angry. Anger never is fair.

 

Pretty soon he reached the lone elm-tree. The stranger wasn't to be seen! No, Sir, the stranger wasn't anywhere in sight. Johnny Chuck sat up and looked this way and looked that way, but the stranger was nowhere in sight.

 

“Pooh!” said Johnny Chuck, “He's afraid to fight! He's a coward⁷. But he can't get away from me so easily. He's hiding, and I'll find him and then—-” Johnny didn't finish, but he ground his teeth, and it wasn't a pleasant sound to hear.

 

So Johnny Chuck hunted for the stranger, and the longer he hunted the angrier he grew. Somehow the stranger managed to keep out of his sight. He was almost ready to give up, when he almost stumbled⁸ over the stranger, hiding in a little clump⁹ of bushes. And then a funny thing happened. What do you think it was?

 

Why, all the anger left Johnny Chuck. His hair no longer stood on end. He didn't know why, but all of a sudden he felt foolish, very foolish indeed.

 

“Who are you?” he demanded gruffly.

 

“I—I'm Polly Chuck,” replied the stranger, in a small, timid¹⁰ voice.

1 lone   

adj.孤寂的，单独的；唯一的

参考例句：

• A lone sea gull flew across the sky.一只孤独的海鸥在空中飞过。
• She could see a lone figure on the deserted beach.她在空旷的海滩上能看到一个孤独的身影。

2 meadows   

草地，牧场， （河边的）低洼地( meadow的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The trail wends its way through leafy woodland and sunny meadows. 这条小径穿过葱郁的林区和洒满阳光的草地。
• They have railed the meadows off from the new railway cutting. 他们已用栏杆把草地和新铁道的路堑隔离开来。

3 chattered   

（人）喋喋不休( chatter的过去式 )； 唠叨； （牙齿）打战； （机器）震颤

参考例句：

• They chattered away happily for a while. 他们高兴地闲扯了一会儿。
• We chattered like two teenagers. 我们聊着天，像两个十多岁的孩子。

4 grind   

n.（常贬义）用功的学生，书呆子；vt.磨，磨碎

参考例句：

• Would you please grind a pound of coffee for me? 请给我磨一磅咖啡好吗？
• Do you find learning English a grind?你觉得学英语是一件苦差事吗？

5 frightful   

adj.可怕的；讨厌的

参考例句：

• How frightful to have a husband who snores!有一个发鼾声的丈夫多讨厌啊！
• We're having frightful weather these days.这几天天气坏极了。

6 muttered   

轻声低语，咕哝地抱怨( mutter的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He muttered a curse at the other driver. 他低声咒骂另一位开车的人。
• She turned away and muttered something unintelligible. 她转向一旁，嘴里不知咕哝些什么。

7 coward   

n.懦夫，胆小鬼

参考例句：

• The newspapers had unjustly labelled him as a coward.那家报纸不公正地称他为懦夫。
• I was basically a dreadful coward.从根本上说，我非常胆小怕事。

8 stumbled   

v.（不顺畅地）说( stumble的过去式和过去分词 )；跌跌撞撞地走；绊脚；（说话、演奏等）出错

参考例句：

• I stumbled and sprained my ankle. 我摔了一跤，把脚脖子扭了。
• The child stumbled and fell. 孩子绊了一下，摔倒了。

9 clump   

n.树丛，草丛；vi.用沉重的脚步行走

参考例句：

• A stream meandered gently through a clump of trees.一条小溪从树丛中蜿蜒穿过。
• It was as if he had hacked with his thick boots at a clump of bluebells.仿佛他用自己的厚靴子无情地践踏了一丛野风信子。

10 timid   

adj.胆怯的，害羞的

参考例句：

• The rabbit is timid and suspicious.兔子胆小而多疑。
• He was timid about investing money.他不敢投资。