THE BOY AND SNAKE XI

 

Henry was every morning fed

With a full mess of milk and bread.

One day the boy his breakfast took,

And ate it by a purling brook¹.

His mother lets him have his way.

With free leave Henry every day

Thither² repairs, until she heard

Him talking of a fine grey bird.

This pretty bird, he said, indeed,

Came every day with him to feed;

And it loved him and loved his milk,

And it was smooth and soft like silk.

On the next morn she follows Harry³,

And carefully she sees him carry

Through the long grass his heap’d-up mess.

What was her terror and distress⁴

When she saw the infant take

His bread and milk close to a snake!

Upon the grass he spreads his feast

And sits down by his frightful⁵ guest.

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Who had waited for the treat;

And now they both began to eat.

Fond mother! shriek⁶ not, O beware

The least small noise, O have a care—

The least small noise that may be made

The wily snake will be afraid—

If he hear the slightest sound,

He will inflict⁷ th’ envenom’d wound.

—She speaks not, moves not, scarce does breathe,

As she stands the trees beneath.

No sound she utters; and she soon

Sees the child lift up his spoon,

And tap the snake upon the head,

Fearless of harm; and then he said,

As speaking to familiar mate,

“Keep on your own side, do, Grey Pate⁸;”

The snake then to the other side,

As one rebuked⁹, seems to glide¹⁰;

And now again advancing nigh,

Again she hears the infant cry,

Tapping the snake, “Keep further, do;

Mind, Grey Pate, what I say to you.”

The danger’s o’er! she sees the boy

(O what a change from fear to joy!)

Rise and bid the snake “good-bye;”

Says he, “Our breakfast’s done, and I

Will come again to-morrow day;”

Then lightly tripping, ran away.

 

1 brook   

n.小河，溪；v.忍受，容让

参考例句：

• In our room we could hear the murmur of a distant brook.在我们房间能听到远处小溪汩汩的流水声。
• The brook trickled through the valley.小溪涓涓流过峡谷。

2 thither   

adv.向那里；adj.在那边的，对岸的

参考例句：

• He wandered hither and thither looking for a playmate.他逛来逛去找玩伴。
• He tramped hither and thither.他到处流浪。

3 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

4 distress   

n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛

参考例句：

• Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。
• Please don't distress yourself.请你不要忧愁了。

5 frightful   

adj.可怕的；讨厌的

参考例句：

• How frightful to have a husband who snores!有一个发鼾声的丈夫多讨厌啊！
• We're having frightful weather these days.这几天天气坏极了。

6 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。

7 inflict   

vt.(on)把…强加给，使遭受，使承担

参考例句：

• Don't inflict your ideas on me.不要把你的想法强加于我。
• Don't inflict damage on any person.不要伤害任何人。

8 pate   

n.头顶；光顶

参考例句：

• The few strands of white hair at the back of his gourd-like pate also quivered.他那长在半个葫芦样的头上的白发，也随着笑声一齐抖动着。
• He removed his hat to reveal a glowing bald pate.他脱下帽子，露出了发亮的光头。

9 rebuked   

责难或指责( rebuke的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The company was publicly rebuked for having neglected safety procedures. 公司因忽略了安全规程而受到公开批评。
• The teacher rebuked the boy for throwing paper on the floor. 老师指责这个男孩将纸丢在地板上。

10 glide   

n./v.溜，滑行；(时间)消逝

参考例句：

• We stood in silence watching the snake glide effortlessly.我们噤若寒蝉地站着，眼看那条蛇逍遥自在地游来游去。
• So graceful was the ballerina that she just seemed to glide.那芭蕾舞女演员翩跹起舞，宛如滑翔。