STORY XXIX UNCLE WIGGILY AND NURSE JANE

“Well, are you all ready?” asked Uncle Wiggily Longears, the rabbit gentleman, of Nurse Jane Fuzzy Wuzzy, the muskrat¹ lady housekeeper², as he came hurrying into the hollow stump³ bungalow⁴ one afternoon. “Are you all ready, Nurse Jane?”

 

“Ready? Ready for what?” she cried, as she sat down backwards⁵ in the dishpan full of soap bubbles, she was so excited.

 

“Why, ready to go to the country, of course,” replied the old gentleman rabbit. “We are going to spend a few days in the woods, and amid the green fields. I thought I told you about it. But perhaps I forgot it. However, no matter. Come, pack your trunk, and we will go off to the country in my airship.”

 

“My goodness me sakes alive, and some molasses lollypops!” cried Nurse Jane. “This is a great surprise to me!”

 

“Is it?” asked Uncle Wiggily. “Well, I am[Pg 181] sorry I forgot to tell you about it. But never mind. Pack your trunk and mine, and we will start in the morning.”

 

Then such goings-on as there were in the hollow stump bungalow! Nurse Jane had so much to do to get ready that all Uncle Wiggily had for his supper was some of the hollow rings from the inside of the crullers, and a few of the holes in Swiss cheese, fried in marshmallow sauce.

 

“But I don’t mind,” the rabbit gentleman said. “We will have plenty to eat when we get to the country, Nurse Jane.”

 

“I hope so,” answered the muskrat lady, as she tied her tail up in curl papers to make it nice and frizzy for morning.

 

As soon as the sun had gotten up out of bed next day, and washed its face, Uncle Wiggily and Miss Fuzzy Wuzzy started off for the country in the clothes basket airship, with the red, white and blue toy circus balloons lifting it high above the tree tops.

 

They took with them a trunk and a satchel⁷, containing their clothes, for they were to stay, perhaps, a week or more. And they also had their toothbrushes, for Uncle Wiggily was very particular about cleaning his teeth.

 

“Ah, there is the bungalow where we are to stay,” said the rabbit gentleman, as he sailed[Pg 182] above a pretty place in the woods. “See it down there, Nurse Jane.”

 

He pointed⁸ to a little house made of bark. It was close to the edge of a little brook⁹, and all about it grew ferns and bluebell¹⁰ flowers.

 

“Oh, what a lovely place!” cried Nurse Jane. “I know I shall like it there!”

 

Down went the airship as gently as a feather, and out jumped the muskrat lady and Uncle Wiggily.

 

“Now,” said Uncle Wiggily, as he tied his airship fast to a willow-whistle tree, so that it would not run away and play tag with the clouds; “now, Nurse Jane, I’ll cut you some wood to make a fire, and you can get dinner. Then we’ll take a walk in the forest.”

 

“Very well,” said the muskrat lady, and while Uncle Wiggily was gnawing¹¹ the firewood into little sticks with his strong teeth, Miss Fuzzy Wuzzy opened the box of good things to eat, which they had brought with them in the airship.

 

“I guess I’ll just take a little hop⁶ through the woods, while you are getting dinner ready,” said Uncle Wiggily, after a bit. “I may find an adventure.”

 

“Very well,” spoke¹² Nurse Jane, as she put on a pocket handkerchief apron¹³ so she would not spatter carrot juice on her shirtwaist.

 

[Pg 183]

 

Well, Uncle Wiggily had not gone very far before, all of a sudden, he heard Nurse Jane crying out:

 

“Help! Help! Help! Oh, Uncle Wiggily, come here quickly!”

 

“My goodness me, sakes alive and some cinnamon ice cream!” cried the rabbit gentleman. “Nurse Jane must be in trouble.”

 

He gave three hops¹⁴ and a skip through the woods, and soon he was at the birch-bark bungalow, near the brook.

 

“What is the matter, Nurse Jane?” he asked, breathless like.

 

“Oh, I heard the most dreadful noise!” she said. “Listen!”

 

Then Uncle Wiggily heard:

 

“Baa! Baa! Baa!”

 

“Ha! Ha!” laughed the rabbit gentleman. “That is only a sheep singing. You will find plenty of them in the country, Nurse Jane.”

 

“Oh! Only a sheep,” said the muskrat lady. “I thought maybe it was an alligator¹⁵. I am not afraid of a sheep.”

 

Then she went on getting dinner, and Uncle Wiggily went back in the woods, looking for an adventure, and, pretty soon he heard Nurse Jane cry again:

 

[Pg 184]

 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily! Help! Help! Help! Come quickly!”

 

With three hops, and part of another one, the old rabbit gentleman was back at the birch-bark bungalow.

 

“What is the matter now?” he asked.

 

“Listen,” spoke Nurse Jane, just like a telephone girl.

 

Then Uncle Wiggily heard a noise that went:

 

“Gobble-obble-obble! Gobble-obble-obble!”

 

“What terrible creature is that?” asked Nurse Jane, shivering.

 

“Only a Thanksgiving turkey gobbler,” laughed the old gentleman rabbit. “They are always in the country. Don’t be afraid.”

 

He went back in the woods again, but pretty soon Nurse Jane cried once more.

 

“Oh, Uncle Wiggily! Come here quickly.”

 

“I wonder what can be the matter this time?” thought the old rabbit gentleman, as he gave a hop, skip and a jump back. “What is it, Miss Fuzzy Wuzzy?” he asked, as he came to the birch-bark bungalow.

 

“Oh, we have no milk for dinner,” she said sorrowfully.

 

And, before Uncle Wiggily could answer, there echoed through the woods a sound like:

 

“Moo! Moo! Moo!”

 

[Pg 185]

 

“Oh, what dreadful creature is that?” asked Nurse Jane, wiggling her whiskers. “I am sure it must be a bear.”

 

“Ha!” cried Uncle Wiggily. “That is not a bear! It is our milk for dinner. That is the moo-cow. You will find lots of them in the country. You must not be so nervous, Nurse Jane.”

 

“I’ll try not to be,” she answered, “but it is some time since I have lived in the country. Where is the cow?”

 

Then along came a nice moo-cow with milk for Uncle Wiggily’s dinner, and the rabbit and Nurse Jane had a fine time in the country-woods bungalow, and they thanked the kind cow and Nurse Fuzzy Wuzzy said she would not be afraid of any more funny noises. But you just wait!

 

Now, in the next story, if the circus lemonade doesn’t jump over the elephant’s back, and color the clown’s white suit all over with pink stripes, like a stick of peppermint¹⁶ candy, I’ll tell you about Uncle Wiggily and the moo-cow.

 

1 muskrat   

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 housekeeper   

n.管理家务的主妇，女管家

参考例句：

• A spotless stove told us that his mother is a diligent housekeeper.炉子清洁无瑕就表明他母亲是个勤劳的主妇。
• She is an economical housekeeper and feeds her family cheaply.她节约持家，一家人吃得很省。

3 stump   

n.残株，烟蒂，讲演台；v.砍断，蹒跚而走

参考例句：

• He went on the stump in his home state.他到故乡所在的州去发表演说。
• He used the stump as a table.他把树桩用作桌子。

4 bungalow   

n.平房，周围有阳台的木造小平房

参考例句：

• A bungalow does not have an upstairs.平房没有上层。
• The old couple sold that large house and moved into a small bungalow.老两口卖掉了那幢大房子，搬进了小平房。

5 backwards   

adv.往回地，向原处，倒，相反，前后倒置地

参考例句：

• He turned on the light and began to pace backwards and forwards.他打开电灯并开始走来走去。
• All the girls fell over backwards to get the party ready.姑娘们迫不及待地为聚会做准备。

6 hop   

n.单脚跳，跳跃；vi.单脚跳，跳跃；着手做某事；vt.跳跃，跃过

参考例句：

• The children had a competition to see who could hop the fastest.孩子们举行比赛，看谁单足跳跃最快。
• How long can you hop on your right foot?你用右脚能跳多远？

7 satchel   

n.(皮或帆布的)书包

参考例句：

• The school boy opened the door and flung his satchel in.那个男学生打开门，把他的书包甩了进去。
• She opened her satchel and took out her father's gloves.打开书箱，取出了她父亲的手套来。

8 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

9 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。

10 bluebell   

n.风铃草

参考例句：

• The girl picked herself up and pulled a bluebell out of her hair.姑娘坐起身来，从头发里摘出一枝风铃草。
• There is a branch of bluebell in the vase.花瓶里有一束风铃草。

11 gnawing   

a.痛苦的，折磨人的

参考例句：

• The dog was gnawing a bone. 那狗在啃骨头。
• These doubts had been gnawing at him for some time. 这些疑虑已经折磨他一段时间了。

12 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。

13 apron   

n.围裙；工作裙

参考例句：

• We were waited on by a pretty girl in a pink apron.招待我们的是一位穿粉红色围裙的漂亮姑娘。
• She stitched a pocket on the new apron.她在新围裙上缝上一只口袋。

14 hops   

跳上[下]( hop的第三人称单数 )； 单足蹦跳； 齐足（或双足）跳行； 摘葎草花

参考例句：

• The sparrow crossed the lawn in a series of hops. 那麻雀一蹦一跳地穿过草坪。
• It is brewed from malt and hops. 它用麦精和蛇麻草酿成。

15 alligator   

n.短吻鳄(一种鳄鱼)

参考例句：

• She wandered off to play with her toy alligator.她开始玩鳄鱼玩具。
• Alligator skin is five times more costlier than leather.鳄鱼皮比通常的皮革要贵5倍。

16 peppermint   

n.薄荷，薄荷油，薄荷糖

参考例句：

• Peppermint oil is very good for regulating digestive disorders.薄荷油能很有效地调节消化系统失调。
• He sat down,popped in a peppermint and promptly choked to death.他坐下来，突然往嘴里放了一颗薄荷糖，当即被噎死。