CHAPTER VI THE SURPRISE OF BLACKY THE CROW

 The harder it is to follow a trail

The greater the reason you should not fail.

Bowser the Hound¹.

At all seasons of the year Blacky the Crow is something of a traveler. But in winter he is much more of a traveler than in summer. You see, in winter it is not nearly so easy to pick up a living. Food is quite as scarce² for Blacky the Crow in winter as for any of the other little people who neither sleep the winter away nor go south. All of the feathered folks have to work and work hard to find food enough to keep them warm. You know it is food that makes heat in the body.

 

So in the winter Blacky is in the habit of flying long distances in search of food. He often goes some miles from the thick hemlock-tree in the Green Forest where he spends his nights. You may see him starting out early in the morning and returning late in the afternoon.

 

Now Blacky knew all about that river into which Bowser the Hound had fallen. There was a certain place on that river where Jack³ Frost never did succeed in making ice. Sometimes things good to eat would be washed up along the edge of this open place. Blacky visited it regularly. He was on the way there now, flying low over the tree-tops.

 

Presently⁴ he came to a little opening among the trees. In the middle of it was a little house, a rough little house. Blacky knew all about it. It was a sugar camp. He knew that only in the spring of the year was he likely to find anybody about there. All the rest of the year it was shut up. Every time he passed that way Blacky flew over it. Blacky's eyes are very sharp indeed, as everybody knows. Now, as he drew near, he noticed right away that the door was partly open. It hadn't been that way the last time he passed.

 

"Ho!" exclaimed⁵ Blacky. "I wonder if the wind blew that open, or if there is some one inside. I think I'll watch a while."

 

So Blacky flew to the top of a tall tree from which he could look all over the little clearing and could watch the door of the little house.

 

For a long time he sat there as silent as the trees themselves. Nothing happened. He began to grow tired. Rather, he began to grow so hungry that he became impatient⁶. "If there is anybody in there he must be asleep," muttered⁷ Blacky to himself. "I'll see if I can wake him up. Caw, caw, ca-a-w, caw, caw!"

 

Blacky waited a few minutes, then repeated his cry. He did this three times and had just made up his mind that there was nobody inside that little house when a head appeared in the doorway⁸. Blacky was so surprised that he nearly fell from his perch⁹.

 

"As I live," he muttered, "that is Bowser the Hound! It certainly is. Now what is he doing way over here? I've never known him to go so far from home before."

1 hound   

n.猎狗，卑鄙的人；vt.用猎狗追，追逐

参考例句：

• The hound found the trail of the rabbit.猎狗发现了兔子的踪迹。
• The police have promised to hound down those responsible for the explosion.警方已保证要追查此次爆炸事件有责任的人员。

2 scarce   

adj.缺乏的，不足的；稀少的，罕见的

参考例句：

• The food was scarce during the war.战争期间食物短缺。
• This kind of material is rather scarce.这种原料较缺。

3 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。

4 presently   

adv.不久，一会儿；现在，目前

参考例句：

• I'll go to see your uncle presently.我一会儿就去看望你叔叔。
• He is presently living in New York.他目前住在纽约。

5 exclaimed   

vt.exclaim的过去式v.呼喊，惊叫，大声说( exclaim的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "We have a good chance of winning," he exclaimed optimistically. “我们很可能获胜。”他乐观地喊道。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She exclaimed in delight when she saw the presents. 她见到礼品高兴得叫了起来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 impatient   

adj.不耐烦的，急躁的；热切的，急切的

参考例句：

• He was so impatient that I could hardly hold him back.他是那样急躁，我简直拉不住他。
• With an impatient gesture he thrust the food away from him.他不耐烦地把吃的东西猛地推开。

7 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。

8 doorway   

n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径

参考例句：

• They huddled in the shop doorway to shelter from the rain.他们挤在商店门口躲雨。
• Mary suddenly appeared in the doorway.玛丽突然出现在门口。

9 perch   

n.栖木，高位，杆；v.栖息，就位，位于

参考例句：

• The bird took its perch.鸟停歇在栖木上。
• Little birds perch themselves on the branches.小鸟儿栖歇在树枝上。