CHAPTER 18 THE SMALLEST OTTER IS WILFUL

 The wilful¹ and the heedless gain

 

Experience through fright and pain.

 

              Little Joe Otter².

 

Little Joe and Mrs. Otter are wise in the ways and the things of the Green Forest. So, as they journeyed towards the distant brook³ they had planned to visit, their keen ears caught every little sound, and without bothering to investigate they knew just what had made each little sound. But with the two young Otters⁴ it was a very different matter. Everything was new and strange and therefore interesting. They wanted to stop and examine everything. Every time they heard a little noise off at one side they wanted to go over and find out what had made it.

 

Now Mrs. Otter is a good mother, a watchful⁵ mother. She kept a keen eye on the two young Otters. And every time they started off she called them back. She warned them that there were dangers in the Green Forest. She did her best to frighten them.

 

The smallest Otter was headstrong and wilful and heedless. She wanted to have her own way. “Mother is just trying to scare us,” she whispered to her brother. “I don’t believe there is any danger. We haven’t seen a single thing to be afraid of. She wants us to tag along at her heels and not have any fun. I want to see all there is to see. She can’t scare me. I’m not afraid of any one.”

 

So the smallest Otter kept dropping behind to examine everything that interested her. At the same time she kept a watchful eye on Mrs. Otter, and every time the latter turned to see where the youngsters were, the smallest Otter would go bounding along the trail, hurrying to catch up.

 

Her brother was more obedient. He sometimes dropped behind, but never as far behind as his sister. Mother Otter, seeing the obedient young Otter not far behind, would take it for granted that his sister was not far behind him, and so after a while she became a little less watchful. The smallest Otter soon discovered this, and then she dropped farther back than ever.

 

“I can’t get lost,” said she to herself, “because all I have to do is to follow this trail through the snow. I don’t care if they do get way ahead. I can catch up any time by hurrying. Now I wonder what that is. I am sure I saw something move under that little tree over to the right.”

 

She stopped and looked very hard at the young tree. The branches were bent⁶ down with snow. She couldn’t see under them. There was nothing moving there now. She looked up the trail. Little Joe and Mrs. Otter were out of sight, and her brother was just disappearing over the top of a little ridge⁷.

 

“I’m sure I saw something move over there,” said the wilful young Otter, looking back at the little tree. “I’m sure I did. It won’t take but a minute to go over and find out. Mother always has said that we should learn all we can. How can we learn if we don’t try to find out about things? There certainly won’t be any harm in looking under that little tree.”

 

Once more she glanced along the trail. Her brother had disappeared. No one was in sight. Then she turned and bounded through the snow towards that little hemlock⁸ tree. She was going to satisfy her curiosity.

1 wilful   

adj.任性的，故意的

参考例句：

• A wilful fault has no excuse and deserves no pardon.不能宽恕故意犯下的错误。
• He later accused reporters of wilful distortion and bias.他后来指责记者有意歪曲事实并带有偏见。

2 otter   

n.水獭

参考例句：

• The economists say the competition otter to the brink of extinction.经济学家们说，竞争把海獭推到了灭绝的边缘。
• She collared my black wool coat with otter pelts.她把我的黑呢上衣镶上了水獭领。

3 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。

4 otters   

n.（水）獭( otter的名词复数 )；獭皮

参考例句：

• An attempt is being made to entice otters back to the river. 人们正试图把水獭引诱回河里去。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Otters are believed to have been on Earth for 90 million years. 水獭被认为存活在地球上已经9千多万年。 来自互联网

5 watchful   

adj.注意的，警惕的

参考例句：

• The children played under the watchful eye of their father.孩子们在父亲的小心照看下玩耍。
• It is important that health organizations remain watchful.卫生组织保持警惕是极为重要的。

6 bent   

n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的

参考例句：

• He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
• We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。

7 ridge   

n.山脊；鼻梁；分水岭

参考例句：

• We clambered up the hillside to the ridge above.我们沿着山坡费力地爬上了山脊。
• The infantry were advancing to attack the ridge.步兵部队正在向前挺进攻打山脊。

8 hemlock   

n.毒胡萝卜，铁杉

参考例句：

• He was condemned to drink a cup of hemlock.判处他喝一杯毒汁。
• Here is a beech by the side of a hemlock,with three pines at hand.这儿有株山毛榉和一株铁杉长在一起，旁边还有三株松树。