The Bat and the Two Weasels

   A blundering Bat once stuck her head

  Into a wakeful Weasel's bed;

  Whereat the mistress of the house,

    A deadly foe¹ of rats and mice,

    Was making ready in a trice

  To eat the stranger as a mouse.

  "What! do you dare," she said, "to creep in

  The very bed I sometimes sleep in,

  Now, after all the provocation²

  I've suffered from your thievish nation?

  It's plain to see you are a mouse,

  That gnawing³ pest of every house,

  Your special aim to do the cheese ill.

  Ay, that you are, or I'm no Weasel."

    "I beg your pardon," said the Bat;

    "My kind is very far from that.

  What! I a mouse! Who told you such a lie?

    Why, ma'am, I am a bird;

    And, if you doubt my word,

  Just see the wings with which I fly.

  Long live the mice that cleave⁴ the sky!"

    These reasons had so fair a show,

    The Weasel let the creature go.

 

  By some strange fancy led,

  The same wise blunderhead,

  But two or three days later,

    Had chosen for her rest

    Another Weasel's nest,

  This last, of birds a special hater.

  New peril⁵ brought this step absurd:

    Without a moment's thought or puzzle,

    Dame⁶ Weasel, oped her peaked muzzle⁷

  To eat th' intruder as a bird.

    "Hold! do not wrong me," cried the Bat;

    "I'm truly no such thing as that.

  Your eyesight strange conclusions gathers.

  What makes a bird, I pray? Its feathers.

    I'm cousin of the mice and rats.

    Great Jupiter confound the cats!"

  The Bat, by such adroit⁸ replying,

  Twice saved herself from dying.

 

  And many a human stranger

  Thus turns his coat in danger;

  And sings, as suits, where'er he goes,

  "God save the king!"—or "save his foes⁹!"

 

1 foe   

n.敌人，仇敌

参考例句：

• He knew that Karl could be an implacable foe.他明白卡尔可能会成为他的死敌。
• A friend is a friend;a foe is a foe;one must be clearly distinguished from the other.敌是敌，友是友，必须分清界限。

2 provocation   

n.激怒，刺激，挑拨，挑衅的事物，激怒的原因

参考例句：

• He's got a fiery temper and flares up at the slightest provocation.他是火爆性子，一点就着。
• They did not react to this provocation.他们对这一挑衅未作反应。

3 gnawing   

a.痛苦的，折磨人的

参考例句：

• The dog was gnawing a bone. 那狗在啃骨头。
• These doubts had been gnawing at him for some time. 这些疑虑已经折磨他一段时间了。

4 cleave   

v．(clave；cleaved)粘着，粘住；坚持；依恋

参考例句：

• It examines how the decision to quit gold or to cleave to it affected trade policies.论文分析了放弃或坚持金本位是如何影响贸易政策的。
• Those who cleave to the latter view include many conservative American politicians.坚持后一种观点的大多是美国的保守派政客。

5 peril   

n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物

参考例句：

• The refugees were in peril of death from hunger.难民有饿死的危险。
• The embankment is in great peril.河堤岌岌可危。

6 dame   

n.女士

参考例句：

• The dame tell of her experience as a wife and mother.这位年长妇女讲了她作妻子和母亲的经验。
• If you stick around,you'll have to marry that dame.如果再逗留多一会，你就要跟那个夫人结婚。

7 muzzle   

n.鼻口部；口套；枪(炮)口；vt.使缄默

参考例句：

• He placed the muzzle of the pistol between his teeth.他把手枪的枪口放在牙齿中间。
• The President wanted to muzzle the press.总统企图遏制新闻自由。

8 adroit   

adj.熟练的，灵巧的

参考例句：

• Jamie was adroit at flattering others.杰米很会拍马屁。
• His adroit replies to hecklers won him many followers.他对质问者的机敏应答使他赢得了很多追随者。

9 foes   

敌人，仇敌( foe的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They steadily pushed their foes before them. 他们不停地追击敌人。
• She had fought many battles, vanquished many foes. 她身经百战，挫败过很多对手。