XVII Major Monkey Confesses

 Major Monkey seemed surprised when Jasper Jay told him that there wasn't a bird family in the whole valley that felt it could spare a single egg.

 

"Of course," said Jasper, "nobody cares how many Cowbirds' eggs you eat. The Cowbirds are pests. They are too lazy to build nests of their own. And no respectable bird family likes to have a loutish¹ young Cowbird to bring up with their own children. But you have gone too far. You have been stealing eggs right and left. And the time has come for us to put a stop to your thieving."

 

A number of Jasper Jay's bird neighbors had gathered around him and Major Monkey while they talked. And they all spoke² up and said in good, loud tones that Major Monkey was a villain—and worse.

 

Anyone might think that for once the Major would have acted the least bit ashamed. But he did not. He had not even the grace to say that he was sorry for making a few "mistakes."

 

Instead, he stuck his red cap on one side of his head and began dancing something that might have been a jig³ if it had been faster.

 

His actions made all the birds very angry. And some of them exclaimed that there was no reason to make merry, so far as they could see.

 

Major Monkey promptly⁴ stopped dancing and looked grieved.

 

"Perhaps you would dance, too, if you had just had a good meal of eggs," he remarked.

 

A shriek⁵ went up from his listeners. And old Mr. Crow exclaimed loudly: "Put him out! Put Major Monkey out!"

 

But nobody made a move. And Major Monkey turned to Mr. Crow and said:

 

"What's wrong? Have I said something I shouldn't?"

 

"Said!" the old gentleman echoed. "You've not only said a terrible thing; you've done a still worse one! For you've just been stealing eggs again—and you can't deny it."

 

A great clamor arose all at once.

 

"Hear! Hear!" Mr. Crow's friends cried.

 

And Major Monkey had hard work to make himself heard.

 

"Whose eggs do you think I've been eating?" he asked Mr. Crow.

 

Not knowing the exact answer to the question, Mr. Crow pretended not to hear it at all. But he looked so slyly at the Major that the Major himself was not deceived. He winked⁶ at Mr. Crow and shied a pebble⁷ at him.

 

"I'll tell you, old boy!" the Major cried. "I've been eating hens' eggs."

 

"Hens' eggs!" everybody repeated after him. "Hens' eggs! Where do you get 'em?"

 

"At Farmer Green's henhouse, of course," the Major answered. "I've been going there regularly for some time. I find that the eggs are bigger than any I can find in the woods."

 

"It's no wonder he's getting fat," Jasper Jay murmured as he gazed at Major Monkey.

 

"You'll have to stop eating so much," Mr. Crow told the Major solemnly. "Aunt Polly Woodchuck says that the reason you throw so many stones is because you overeat and feel in too high spirits."

 

Major Monkey looked disgusted when he heard that speech.

 

"Aunt Polly Fiddlesticks!" he jeered⁸. "She doesn't know what she's talking about. Why, the more eggs I eat, the more time I must spend at the henhouse. And while I'm there I can't throw stones here, can I?"

 

Everybody had to agree with the Major. At least, everybody but Mr. Crow remarked that what he said seemed true.

 

"Now, friends," said Major Monkey at last, "if there have been any eggs missing from your nests lately you can't blame me."

 

"Then whom can we blame?" somebody cried.

 

"I'd hate to say," was Major Monkey's answer. But since he looked straight at Mr. Crow as he spoke, most of the company could not help thinking that the old gentleman was the thief, after all. And when he flew into a rage they felt quite sure he was guilty.

 

"We always knew Mr. Crow was an old rascal⁹!" they exclaimed.

 

And so Mr. Crow took himself off. But he soon recovered his good spirits. He was used to being called names. And to tell the truth, he had taken a few eggs now and then—when he thought no one was watching.

 

1 loutish   

adj.粗鲁的

参考例句：

• He was not as loutish as his manner suggested.他举止粗野，但人不是那样的。
• I was appalled by the loutish behaviour.这种粗野行为令我大为震惊。

2 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

3 jig   

n.快步舞（曲）；v.上下晃动；用夹具辅助加工；蹦蹦跳跳

参考例句：

• I went mad with joy and danced a little jig.我欣喜若狂，跳了几步吉格舞。
• He piped a jig so that we could dance.他用笛子吹奏格舞曲好让我们跳舞。

4 promptly   

adv.及时地，敏捷地

参考例句：

• He paid the money back promptly.他立即还了钱。
• She promptly seized the opportunity his absence gave her.她立即抓住了因他不在场给她创造的机会。

5 shriek   

v./n.尖叫，叫喊

参考例句：

• Suddenly he began to shriek loudly.突然他开始大声尖叫起来。
• People sometimes shriek because of terror,anger,or pain.人们有时会因为恐惧，气愤或疼痛而尖叫。

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》

7 pebble   

n.卵石，小圆石

参考例句：

• The bird mistook the pebble for egg and tried to hatch it.这只鸟错把卵石当蛋，想去孵它。
• The pebble made a ripple on the surface of the lake.石子在湖面上激起一个涟漪。

8 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》

9 rascal   

n.流氓；不诚实的人

参考例句：

• If he had done otherwise,I should have thought him a rascal.如果他不这样做，我就认为他是个恶棍。
• The rascal was frightened into holding his tongue.这坏蛋吓得不敢往下说了。