MASTER SPARROW'S BREAKFAST

 "Oh, my! what a snowstorm!" Little Dorothy looked out of the window at the fast falling flakes¹, which covered up so quietly and softly the shivering brown grass on the lawn and the trembling rose bushes in the garden. "How warm they'll be," said Dorothy to herself, "with their eiderdown covers."

 

Just then a little sparrow flew down on the walk and looked up at the window. "Hello!" said Dorothy, "what do you want?" The little bird turned his head first to one side and then the other, as if he didn't quite hear what Dorothy was saying behind the pane² of glass. "Don't you hear me?" she called out, but he turned his head, as if to say, "No!" Dorothy pushed up the window and called out, "What do you want, birdie?" but he flew away just across the walk to the maple³ tree, where he sat looking at her with his queer little eyes. Every now and then he would turn his head this way and that way, as if, so Dorothy thought, trying to hear what she was saying. But Dorothy wasn't saying anything now. She was so disappointed that her little friend had flown off and that he should be afraid of her, just because she had opened the window, that she turned to Mother, who came into the room at that moment, and said: "Mother, just look at that cute little bird; only just a minute ago he was hopping⁴ on the walk right down here, but when I opened the window to say 'How-de-doo!' he flew over to the maple tree. See him over there?"

 

"I think he is waiting for you to give him some crumbs⁵ for breakfast," Mother answered with a smile. "Run into the dining-room and ask Mary for a piece of bread and we will see if Master Sparrow won't come back again."

 

"Oh, goody!" cried the little girl, and in a few minutes she was back at the window with enough crumbs for an army of sparrows.

 

"Open the window gently," said Mother, "and throw out the crumbs, and we will see what Master Sparrow will do."

 

Mr. Sparrow did exactly what Mother thought, and Dorothy hoped he would do. He looked at them with his little bright eyes and turned his head first this way and then that way, and after that, to Dorothy's delight, flew over to the crumbs and ate them up as if he had a great, big, healthy appetite. And when all the crumbs were gone he turned his head this way and that way (and I think he winked⁶ one of his little black eyes at Dorothy, only I'm not quite sure about this) and flew away.

 

"Oh, Mother!" cried Dorothy, "I think that's his way of talking—wagging his little head—something like the way Bijou wags his stubby tail!" And Mother said she thought so, too.

 

1 flakes   

小薄片( flake的名词复数 )； （尤指）碎片； 雪花； 古怪的人

参考例句：

• It's snowing in great flakes. 天下着鹅毛大雪。
• It is snowing in great flakes. 正值大雪纷飞。

2 pane   

n.窗格玻璃，长方块

参考例句：

• He broke this pane of glass.他打破了这块窗玻璃。
• Their breath bloomed the frosty pane.他们呼出的水气，在冰冷的窗玻璃上形成一层雾。

3 maple   

n.槭树，枫树，槭木

参考例句：

• Maple sugar is made from the sap of maple trees.枫糖是由枫树的树液制成的。
• The maple leaves are tinge with autumn red.枫叶染上了秋天的红色。

4 hopping   

n. 跳跃 动词hop的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• The clubs in town are really hopping. 城里的俱乐部真够热闹的。
• I'm hopping over to Paris for the weekend. 我要去巴黎度周末。

5 crumbs   

int. (表示惊讶)哎呀 n. 碎屑 名词crumb的复数形式

参考例句：

• She stood up and brushed the crumbs from her sweater. 她站起身掸掉了毛衣上的面包屑。
• Oh crumbs! Is that the time? 啊，天哪！都这会儿啦？

6 winked   

v.使眼色( wink的过去式和过去分词 )；递眼色（表示友好或高兴等）；（指光）闪烁；闪亮

参考例句：

• He winked at her and she knew he was thinking the same thing that she was. 他冲她眨了眨眼，她便知道他的想法和她一样。
• He winked his eyes at her and left the classroom. 他向她眨巴一下眼睛走出了教室。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》