VIII A Secret

 When Major Monkey awoke the following morning his pain had left him. Creeping from the haystack where he had slept, he cast longing¹ eyes at the red apples in the tree near-by. But he remembered his trouble of the evening before. And he remembered likewise what Mr. Crow had said about "finding" something to eat at the farmhouse².

 

But for some reason the Major wanted to avoid Farmer Green's house. To be sure, he would have enjoyed sitting down with the family at the breakfast table. But he was afraid something might prevent his leaving after he had eaten.

 

Luckily Major Monkey was a person who could usually find a way out of any difficulty. And now he made up his mind that a light meal of eggs was the very thing he needed in order to begin the day right. So he went straight to the woods and climbed the first tree he came to—a pine tree just beyond the fence.

 

There Major Monkey found exactly what he was looking for. In a warbler's nest, a dozen feet from the ground, he beheld³ five speckled eggs.

 

The owners of the nest were not at home. But knowing that one or the other would soon return, the Major did not care to linger long over their treasures.

 

He noticed that one of the eggs was bigger than the others.

 

"Really there are too many eggs here for this small nest," the Major said tohimself. "If I take the big one I'll be doing the owners a favor."

 

So he picked up the big egg, and holding it carefully in one hand he hurried away.

 

When he had put some distance between himself and the nest, Major Monkey stopped to enjoy his breakfast. He was just on the point of opening the egg, when who should come up but old Mr. Crow.

 

The Major quickly hid his breakfast behind his back.

 

"Good morning!" said Mr. Crow. "I hope you are feeling better to-day."

 

"Oh, yes—thank you!" said Major Monkey. "I'm quite well again."

 

Mr. Crow's sharp eyes pierced him through and through.

 

"What are you holding behind you?" he asked bluntly.

 

The Major saw that he was caught.

 

"It's my breakfast," he confessed, giving Mr. Crow a quick glance at what was in his hand. "I—I found it," he said. "Wasn't I lucky?"

 

"A bird's egg!" Mr. Crow exclaimed disapprovingly⁴. "What kind is it?"

 

"It's nothing but a Warbler's egg," Major Monkey replied.

 

The old gentleman smiled knowingly. And feeling more comfortable, Major Monkey opened his hand and gave Mr. Crow a good look at his prize.

 

"That's too big for a Warbler's egg!" Mr. Crow cried.

 

"I found it in a Warbler's nest," Major Monkey insisted.

 

"Were there any more like this one in the nest?" Mr. Crow asked.

 

"Oh, yes!" the Major answered.

 

"Were they as big as this egg?" Mr. Crow inquired.

 

Major Monkey explained that they were not.

 

"Just as I supposed!" the old gentleman exclaimed. "This isn't a Warbler's egg. It's a Cowbird's egg. And you've done that Warbler family a good turn by taking it out of their nest.

 

"I know Mrs. Cowbird," he went on. "She's too lazy to bring up her own children. So she sneaks⁵ through the woods and lays her eggs in other folk's nests.... I must tell of this," Mr. Crow added. "People will think very kindly⁶ of you when they hear what you have done."

 

But Major Monkey begged him not to mention the matter to anyone.

 

He pleaded so hard that at last Mr. Crow consented to keep the affair a secret between them. And Mr. Crow couldn't help thinking that Major Monkey was one of the most modest people he had ever met.

 

Then the Major opened the egg with great skill, and ate its contents without spilling a drop.

 

"Now," he said, "now I'm ready for business."

 

1 longing   

n.（for）渴望

参考例句：

• Hearing the tune again sent waves of longing through her.再次听到那首曲子使她胸中充满了渴望。
• His heart burned with longing for revenge.他心中燃烧着急欲复仇的怒火。

2 farmhouse   

n.农场住宅（尤指主要住房）

参考例句：

• We fell for the farmhouse as soon as we saw it.我们对那所农舍一见倾心。
• We put up for the night at a farmhouse.我们在一间农舍投宿了一夜。

3 beheld   

v.看，注视( behold的过去式和过去分词 )；瞧；看呀；（叙述中用于引出某人意外的出现）哎哟

参考例句：

• His eyes had never beheld such opulence. 他从未见过这样的财富。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The soul beheld its features in the mirror of the passing moment. 灵魂在逝去的瞬间的镜子中看到了自己的模样。 来自英汉文学 - 红字

4 disapprovingly   

adv.不以为然地，不赞成地，非难地

参考例句：

• When I suggested a drink, she coughed disapprovingly. 我提议喝一杯时，她咳了一下表示反对。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He shook his head disapprovingly. 他摇了摇头，表示不赞成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 sneaks   

abbr.sneakers (tennis shoes) 胶底运动鞋（网球鞋）v.潜行( sneak的第三人称单数 )；偷偷溜走；（儿童向成人）打小报告；告状

参考例句：

• Typhoid fever sneaks in when sanitation fails. 环境卫生搞不好，伤寒就会乘虚而入。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Honest boys scorn sneaks and liars. 诚实的人看不起狡诈和撒谎的人。 来自辞典例句

6 kindly   

adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地

参考例句：

• Her neighbours spoke of her as kindly and hospitable.她的邻居都说她和蔼可亲、热情好客。
• A shadow passed over the kindly face of the old woman.一道阴影掠过老太太慈祥的面孔。