II No 'Possum

 At first old Mr. Crow could scarcely believe his eyes. He stared and stared. Certainly it was no 'possum that he saw. And yet the stranger was hanging by his tail.

 

There could be no doubt about that. Even as Mr. Crow watched him he waved both hands at Mr. Crow, and swung by his tail alone.

 

The old gentleman was terribly upset. During all the summers he had spent in Pleasant Valley he had never seen any such person there before.

 

For a moment Mr. Crow was worried about himself. He wondered if he was not ill. He knew he had eaten a good deal of corn that day. And he half hoped that that was the trouble—that perhaps he saw something that wasn't really in the tree at all.

 

Then he remembered the blow on his back. Had the queer person in the tree-top struck him?... Mr. Crow grew angry.

 

"Did you hit me?" he called.

 

"I'm not sure," said the stranger. "But I think I did, for I saw you jump."

 

"Then you threw something at me!" Mr. Crow screamed.

 

"Oh, no!" the other replied. "I didn't throw anything at you, sir. I merely dropped something on your back."

 

Mr. Crow choked. Perhaps it was as well that he could not speak just then. He coughed and spluttered and swallowed and swayed back and forth¹, trying to get his breath. And he had begun, at last to feel better, when—biff!—something struck him again and all but knocked him over.

 

The stranger gave a shrill² whistle.

 

"I threw something that time!" he jeered³.

 

Old Mr. Crow felt that he had been terribly insulted. He looked as dignified⁴ as he could. And he would have turned his back on the stranger—had he dared.

 

While he was wondering whether he had better fly away, or stay and quarrel with the rude person who had pelted⁵ him, the boorish⁶ stranger leaped from the tall tree into the smaller one where Mr. Crow was sitting. Then, dropping nimbly from limb to limb, with the help of his hands and his feet and his tail, he stopped at last when he had reached Mr. Crow's level.

 

One thing was certain. The stranger was bold as brass⁷. He looked Mr. Crow up and down. And then he said:

 

"You're a gay old bird! What's your name?"

 

Now, no doubt some people would have been angry. But Mr. Crow rather liked to be called gay, because he couldn't help looking solemn. And most people knew he was very old. And everybody was aware he was a bird. So he said hoarsely⁸:

 

"My name is Mister Crow—and please don't forget the Mister."

 

The stranger put on his flat-topped red cap and touched the visor smartly with his right hand, in a military manner.

 

Old Mr. Crow couldn't help admiring the newcomer's clothes. He wore a red coat trimmed with gold braid, and bright blue trousers.

 

"That's a handsome suit that you have on," Mr. Crow observed. "I shouldn't mind having one like it myself."

 

The stranger seemed pleased. And he touched his cap again.

 

"I'm afraid you can't have a suit like this," he said. "It's a uniform—that's what it is. And, of course, a plain Mister like you can't wear a uniform. But I wear one because I'm a soldier."

 

Old Mr. Crow was disappointed. But he soon brightened up. Though he wasn't a soldier himself, at least it was pleasant to know one. So he decided⁹ to forget that he had been angry with the stranger.

 

"What's your name?" he asked.

 

"Major Monkey," said the newcomer, knocking off his cap with one hand and catching¹⁰ it with the other as it fell. "When you speak to me, please don't forget the Major," he added.

1 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

2 shrill   

adj.尖声的；刺耳的；v尖叫

参考例句：

• Whistles began to shrill outside the barn.哨声开始在谷仓外面尖叫。
• The shrill ringing of a bell broke up the card game on the cutter.刺耳的铃声打散了小汽艇的牌局。

3 jeered   

v.嘲笑( jeer的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The police were jeered at by the waiting crowd. 警察受到在等待的人群的嘲弄。
• The crowd jeered when the boxer was knocked down. 当那个拳击手被打倒时，人们开始嘲笑他。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 dignified   

a.可敬的，高贵的

参考例句：

• Throughout his trial he maintained a dignified silence. 在整个审讯过程中，他始终沉默以保持尊严。
• He always strikes such a dignified pose before his girlfriend. 他总是在女友面前摆出这种庄严的姿态。

5 pelted   

（连续地）投掷( pelt的过去式和过去分词 )； 连续抨击； 攻击； 剥去…的皮

参考例句：

• The children pelted him with snowballs. 孩子们向他投掷雪球。
• The rain pelted down. 天下着大雨。

6 boorish   

adj.粗野的，乡巴佬的

参考例句：

• His manner seemed rather boorish.他的举止看上去很俗气。
• He disgusted many with his boorish behaviour.他的粗野行为让很多人都讨厌他。

7 brass   

n.黄铜；黄铜器，铜管乐器

参考例句：

• Many of the workers play in the factory's brass band.许多工人都在工厂铜管乐队中演奏。
• Brass is formed by the fusion of copper and zinc.黄铜是通过铜和锌的熔合而成的。

8 hoarsely   

adv.嘶哑地

参考例句：

• "Excuse me," he said hoarsely. “对不起。”他用嘶哑的嗓子说。
• Jerry hoarsely professed himself at Miss Pross's service. 杰瑞嘶声嘶气地表示愿为普洛丝小姐效劳。 来自英汉文学 - 双城记

9 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

10 catching   

adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住

参考例句：

• There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。
• Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。