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首页 » 儿童英文小说 » The Tale of Master Meadow Mouse24章节 » CHAPTER XXIV Master or Mister?
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CHAPTER XXIV Master or Mister?
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 Living, as he did, near the mill pond, Master Meadow Mouse saw a great deal of Paddy Muskrat1. They had a number of tastes in common. They both liked lily bulbs. They both enjoyed swimming. They both disliked Peter Mink2. They were bound to become great cronies—if for no other reason than the last.
By spring Paddy Muskrat knew Master Meadow Mouse well enough to ask him a very intimate question.
 
"Why does everybody call you 'Master'?" he inquired one day.
 
Master Meadow Mouse looked at him in a puzzled fashion for a moment or two.
 
"I don't know," he answered. "I don't know why, unless it's because they always have called me that. Don't you think it's a good name?" he asked Paddy Muskrat a bit anxiously.
 
"Oh, yes!" Paddy assured him. "There's no doubt that it's a good enough name. But it's one that's given to a youngster—to a mere3 child."
 
"I'm not a youngster!" Master Meadow Mouse cried. "Nobody can call me young. I'm almost a year old!"
 
"I thought so," said Paddy Muskrat, as if he knew he couldn't have been mistaken. "You're grown up. And yet they still call you 'Master' Meadow Mouse. If I were you I'd get folks to change that."
 
It was plain that Master Meadow Mouse agreed with him in every way. He had already made up his mind that he wouldn't answer to the name of 'Master' Meadow Mouse any longer. And he told Paddy Muskrat as much.
 
"If they want me to answer after this, they'll have to call me something else," he declared. "Now, what would you suggest?"
 
Paddy Muskrat said he needed time to think the matter over. And he thought that he'd like to consult his wife, who always had an opinion.
 
"Wait here till I come back!" he told Master Meadow Mouse. And, diving into the water, he swam home. He was back in a few minutes, with a broad smile upon his face. "I've thought of the very thing!" he exclaimed. "Or, at least, my wife has. She says, 'Call him "Mister," of course'!"
 
"That's fine!" cried Master Meadow Mouse. "I'm sure I couldn't have thought of that if I'd tried all summer. And now," he added, "I must go and tell everybody about this sudden change."
 
So he hurried home. And, calling everybody around him, he explained that he was a year old, and that he had successfully dodged4 Miss Kitty Cat, Tommy Fox, Solomon Owl5, Ferdinand Frog, Peter Mink, Old Mr. Crow and goodness only knew how many other dangerous folk.
 
"I'm grown up now," he told his hearers. "From this time on I expect everybody to call me Mister Meadow Mouse."
 
And everybody said that a new name was no more than he deserved. They all approved his choice.
 
No! There was just one among all the company that was opposed to the change. He snorted and started to say something disagreeable. And for once everybody told Uncle Billy (for it was he!) to be quiet.
 
And that was the end of Master Meadow Mouse.

The Tale of Grunty Pig

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1 muskrat G6CzQ     
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。
2 mink ZoXzYR     
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。
3 mere rC1xE     
adj.纯粹的;仅仅,只不过
参考例句:
  • That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
  • It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。
4 dodged ae7efa6756c9d8f3b24f8e00db5e28ee     
v.闪躲( dodge的过去式和过去分词 );回避
参考例句:
  • He dodged cleverly when she threw her sabot at him. 她用木底鞋砸向他时,他机敏地闪开了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He dodged the book that I threw at him. 他躲开了我扔向他的书。 来自《简明英汉词典》
5 owl 7KFxk     
n.猫头鹰,枭
参考例句:
  • Her new glasses make her look like an owl.她的新眼镜让她看上去像只猫头鹰。
  • I'm a night owl and seldom go to bed until after midnight.我睡得很晚,经常半夜后才睡觉。


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