CHAPTER VIII BILLY MINK'S SWIMMING PARTY

 Billy Mink¹ was coming down the bank of the Laughing Brook². Billy Mink was feeling very good indeed. He had had a good breakfast, the sun was warm, little white cloud ships were sailing across the blue sky and their shadows were sailing across the Green Meadows, the birds were singing and the bees were humming. Billy Mink felt like singing too, but Billy Mink's voice was not meant for singing.

 

By and by Billy Mink came to the Smiling Pool. Here the Laughing Brook stopped and rested on its way to join the Big River. It stopped its noisy laughing and singing and just lay smiling and smiling in the warm sunshine. The little flowers on the bank leaned over and nodded to it. The beech³ tree, which was very old, sometimes dropped a leaf into it. The cat-tails kept their feet cool in the edge of it.

 

Billy Mink jumped out on the Big Rock and looked down into the Smiling Pool. Over on a green lily pad he saw old Grandfather Frog.

 

“Hello, Grandfather Frog,” said Billy Mink.

 

“Hello, Billy Mink,” said Grandfather Frog. “What mischief⁴ are you up to this fine sunny morning?”

 

Just then Billy Mink saw a little brown head swimming along one edge of the Smiling Pool.

 

“Hello, Jerry Muskrat⁵!” shouted Billy Mink.

 

“Hello your own self, Billy Mink,” shouted Jerry Muskrat, “Come in and have a swim; the water's fine!”

 

“Good,” said Billy Mink. “We'll have a swimming party.”

 

So Billy Mink called all the Merry Little Breezes of Old Mother West Wind, who were playing with the flowers on the bank, and sent them to find Little Joe Otter⁶ and invite him to come to the swimming party. Pretty soon back came the Little Breezes and with them came Little Joe Otter.

 

“Hello, Billy Mink,” said Little Joe Otter. “Here I am!”

 

“Hello, Little Joe Otter,” said Billy Mink. “Come up here on the Big Rock and see who can dive the deepest into the Smiling Pool.”

 

So Little Joe Otter and Jerry Muskrat climbed up on the Big Rock side of Billy Mink and they all stood side by side in their little brown bathing suits looking down into the Smiling Pool.

 

“Now when I count three we'll all dive into the Smiling Pool together and see who can dive the deepest. One!” said Billy Mink. “Two!” said Billy Mink. “Three!” said Billy Mink.

 

And when he said “Three!” in they all went head first. My such a splash as they did make! They upset old Grandfather Frog so that he fell off his lily pad. They frightened Mr. and Mrs. Trout⁷ so that they jumped right out of the water. Tiny Tadpole⁸ had such a scare that he hid way, way down in the mud with only the tip of his funny little nose sticking out.

 

“Chug-a-rum,” said old Grandfather Frog, climbing out of his lily pad. “If I wasn't so old I would show you how to dive.”

 

“Come on, Grandfather Frog!” cried Billy Mink. “Show us how to dive.”

 

And what do you think? Why, old Grandfather Frog actually got so excited that he climbed up on the Big Rock to show them how to dive. Splash! Went Grandfather Frog into the Smiling Pool. Splash! Went Billy Mink right behind him. Splash! Splash! Went Little Joe Otter and Jerry Muskrat, right at Billy Mink's heels.

 

“Hurrah!” shouted Mr. Kingfisher, sitting on a branch of the old beech tree. And then just to show them that he could dive, too, splash! He went into the Smiling Pool.

 

Such a noise as they did make! All the Little Breezes of Old Mother West Wind danced for joy on the bank. Blacky the Crow and Sammy Jay flew over to see what was going on.

 

“Now let's see who can swim the farthest under water,” cried Billy Mink.

 

So they all stood side by side on one edge of the Smiling Pool.

 

“Go!” shouted Mr. Kingfisher, and in they all plunged¹⁰. Little ripples¹¹ ran across the Smiling Pool and then the water became as smooth and smiling as if nothing had gone into it with a plunge⁹.

 

Now old Grandfather Frog began to realize that he wasn't as young as he used to be, and he couldn't swim as fast as the others anyway. He began to get short of breath, so he swam up to the top and stuck just the tip of his nose out to get some more air. Sammy Jay's sharp eyes saw him.

 

“There's Grandfather Frog!” he shouted.

 

So then Grandfather Frog popped his head out and swam over to his green lily pad to rest.

 

Way over beyond the Big Rock little bubbles in three long rows kept coming up to the top of the Smiling Pool. They showed just where Billy Mink, Little Joe Otter and Jerry Muskrat were swimming way down out of sight. It was the air from their lungs making the bubbles. Straight across the Smiling Pool went the lines of little bubbles and then way out on the farther side two little heads bobbed out of water close together. They were Billy Mink and Little Joe Otter. A moment later Jerry Muskrat bobbed up beside them.

 

You see, they had swum clear across the Smiling Pool and of course they could swim no farther.

 

So Billy Mink's swimming party was a great success.

1 mink   

n.貂，貂皮

参考例句：

• She was wearing a blue dress and a mink coat.她穿着一身蓝色的套装和一件貂皮大衣。
• He started a mink ranch and made a fortune in five years. 他开了个水貂养殖场，五年之内就赚了不少钱。

2 brook   

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。

3 beech   

n.山毛榉；adj.山毛榉的

参考例句：

• Autumn is the time to see the beech woods in all their glory.秋天是观赏山毛榉林的最佳时期。
• Exasperated,he leaped the stream,and strode towards beech clump.他满腔恼怒，跳过小河，大踏步向毛榉林子走去。

4 mischief   

n.损害，伤害，危害；恶作剧，捣蛋，胡闹

参考例句：

• Nobody took notice of the mischief of the matter. 没有人注意到这件事情所带来的危害。
• He seems to intend mischief.看来他想捣蛋。

5 muskrat   

n.麝香鼠

参考例句：

• Muskrat fur almost equals beaver fur in quality.麝鼠皮在质量上几乎和海獭皮不相上下。
• I saw a muskrat come out of a hole in the ice.我看到一只麝鼠从冰里面钻出来。

6 otter   

n.水獭

参考例句：

• The economists say the competition otter to the brink of extinction.经济学家们说，竞争把海獭推到了灭绝的边缘。
• She collared my black wool coat with otter pelts.她把我的黑呢上衣镶上了水獭领。

7 trout   

n.鳟鱼；鲑鱼(属)

参考例句：

• Thousands of young salmon and trout have been killed by the pollution.成千上万的鲑鱼和鳟鱼的鱼苗因污染而死亡。
• We hooked a trout and had it for breakfast.我们钓了一条鳟鱼，早饭时吃了。

8 tadpole   

n.[动]蝌蚪

参考例句：

• As a tadpole changes into a frog,its tail is gradually absorbed.蝌蚪变成蛙，它的尾巴就逐渐被吸收掉。
• It was a tadpole.Now it is a frog.它过去是蝌蚪，现在是一只青蛙。

9 plunge   

v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲

参考例句：

• Test pool's water temperature before you plunge in.在你跳入之前你应该测试水温。
• That would plunge them in the broil of the two countries.那将会使他们陷入这两国的争斗之中。

10 plunged   

v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降

参考例句：

• The train derailed and plunged into the river. 火车脱轨栽进了河里。
• She lost her balance and plunged 100 feet to her death. 她没有站稳，从100英尺的高处跌下摔死了。

11 ripples   

逐渐扩散的感觉( ripple的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The moon danced on the ripples. 月亮在涟漪上舞动。
• The sea leaves ripples on the sand. 海水在沙滩上留下了波痕。