DISOBEDIENT JIMMY CROW

 Professor Jim Crow and his family lived in the Tall Pine Tree.

"Now, Mrs. Crow," he said to his wife one morning, "as I shall be away almost all day teaching the Little People of the Shady Forest and the Sunny Meadow to read and write, you will have your hands full with the children. Be very careful, my dear, for they haven't yet learned to fly!"

 

"Don't worry," answered Mrs. Crow, "you have troubles enough with the schoolhouse full of children. I'll take good care that ours come to no harm."

 

Professor Jim Crow had been gone only a few minutes when who should call but Grandmother Magpie¹.

 

"Good morning," she said, perching on a branch near at hand so as to look into the nestful of little crows.

 

"I'm dreadfully busy," answered Mrs. Crow. "Now that the Professor is teaching school, I have all the care of the children. It's no easy matter, for each little crow thinks he knows how to fly."

 

"Well, perhaps he does!" said Grandmother Magpie. "If you don't let them try how are they ever going to learn?"

 

"They are not old enough," replied Mrs. Crow.

 

"Not old enough?" repeated that meddlesome² old lady bird. "Stuff and nonsense! Of course they are!" Then off she flew, leaving Mrs. Crow dreadfully upset and the little crows very discontented.

 

After making sure that Grandmother Magpie was out of sight, Mrs. Crow flew over to the Sunny Meadow for worms for her hungry children, but first she told them to be careful not to fall out of the nest while she was gone.

 

"Botheration!" said little Jimmy Crow after a few minutes. "Every word Grandmother Magpie says is true. We are kept like prisoners in this old nest. I'm going to fly!"

 

"Oh, don't!" cried all his brothers and sisters. "You can't fly even across the Shady Forest Path."

 

"Well, then, I can walk," said the naughty little crow, and he hopped³ out of the nest and fluttered down to the ground.

 

But, Oh dear me! Just then along came the Farmer's Boy. In a twinkling, he caught poor Jimmy Crow and cut off the tips of his wing feathers with a big jack-knife.

 

"Now, my little black beauty, you won't fly far," he laughed, and turned his steps toward the Old Farm.

 

"So, you're caught, Jimmy Crow!"

Sang gay Billy Breeze,

Playing hide-and-go-seek

'Mid⁴ the tall forest trees.

 

"Don't you wish you'd obeyed

What your kind mother said?

But, no, you were stubborn,

And had a swelled⁵ head."

1 magpie   

n.喜欢收藏物品的人，喜鹊，饶舌者

参考例句：

• Now and then a magpie would call.不时有喜鹊的叫声。
• This young man is really a magpie.这个年轻人真是饶舌。

2 meddlesome   

adj.爱管闲事的

参考例句：

• By this means the meddlesome woman cast in a bone between the wife and the husband.这爱管闲事的女人就用这种手段挑起他们夫妻这间的不和。
• Get rid of that meddlesome fool!让那个爱管闲事的家伙走开！

3 hopped   

跳上[下]( hop的过去式和过去分词 )； 单足蹦跳； 齐足（或双足）跳行； 摘葎草花

参考例句：

• He hopped onto a car and wanted to drive to town. 他跳上汽车想开向市区。
• He hopped into a car and drove to town. 他跳进汽车，向市区开去。

4 mid   

adj.中央的，中间的

参考例句：

• Our mid-term exam is pending.我们就要期中考试了。
• He switched over to teaching in mid-career.他在而立之年转入教学工作。

5 swelled   

增强( swell的过去式和过去分词 )； 肿胀； （使）凸出； 充满（激情）

参考例句：

• The infection swelled his hand. 由于感染，他的手肿了起来。
• After the heavy rain the river swelled. 大雨过后，河水猛涨。