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VIII WHY THE ROOSTER CROWED
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 Henrietta Hen had commanded the Rooster to wait until daylight before he began to crow.
 
He saw that she had made up her mind that he must obey her. But he knew he couldn't. And he always took great pains to be polite to the ladies.
 
It was a wonder the Rooster didn't turn red in the face. He had never found himself in such a corner before.
 
"You don't understand," he blurted1. "I'd be delighted to oblige you, but if I didn't crow until after the sun rose I'd never crow again."
 
"We could stand that," was Henrietta Hen's grim reply.
 
"Perhaps!" he admitted—for she made him feel strangely humble2. "But could you stand it if the night lasted forever?"
 
"You're talking nonsense now," she declared.
 
"You don't understand," he told her again. "And I must say I'm surprised, madam, that you didn't know it was I that waked the sun up every morning. That's why I crow so early."
 
Henrietta Hen was so astonished that she didn't know what to say. She thought deeply for a time—or as deeply as she could.
 
"Have you not noticed," the Rooster inquired, "that the sun never rises until I've crowed loudly a good many times?"
 
"No! No—I haven't," Henrietta murmured. "But now that you speak of it, I see that it's so."
 
"Exactly!" he said. "And often, madam, I have to crow a long time before he peeps over Blue Mountain. It's lucky I have a good, strong voice," the Rooster, added with a smirk3, for he was feeling more at his ease. "If I had a thin, squeaky crow such as those worthless cockerels have, Farmer Green would have had to do many a day's work in the dark."
 
"Goodness!" Henrietta Hen gasped4. "Do crow your loudest the moment you wake up, Mr. Rooster! Do make all the noise you can!" And he promised faithfully that he would.
 
Henrietta left him then. Somehow she couldn't get their talk out of her mind. And soon she had an unhappy thought. What if anything should happen to the Rooster's voice?
 
The moment that question popped into her head, Henrietta Hen hurried back to the Rooster.
 
"Do be careful!" she besought5 him. "Don't get your feet wet! For if you caught cold you might be so hoarse6 that you couldn't speak above a whisper."
 
The Rooster thanked her politely for thinking of his health.
 
"I always take good care of myself," he assured her.
 
"It looks like rain this minute," she said as she cast an anxious glance at the sky. "Hadn't you better run into the barn?"
 
He thought otherwise—and said as much.
 
"You ought to wear rubbers every day," she chided him, as she went away again.
 
Soon Henrietta returned once more to urge the Rooster to carry an umbrella.[Pg 40] And it wasn't long after that when she came bustling7 up to him and informed him that a warm muffler about his throat wouldn't be amiss.
 
There seemed to be no end to her suggestions. And though at first the Rooster had liked to hear them (without having any idea of following them) after a time Henrietta's attentions began to annoy him.
 
"Great cracked corn!" he exclaimed. "This Henrietta Hen is getting to be a pest."

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1 blurted fa8352b3313c0b88e537aab1fcd30988     
v.突然说出,脱口而出( blurt的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She blurted it out before I could stop her. 我还没来得及制止,她已脱口而出。
  • He blurted out the truth, that he committed the crime. 他不慎说出了真相,说是他犯了那个罪。 来自《简明英汉词典》
2 humble ddjzU     
adj.谦卑的,恭顺的;地位低下的;v.降低,贬低
参考例句:
  • In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见,他将在选举中获胜。
  • Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。
3 smirk GE8zY     
n.得意地笑;v.傻笑;假笑着说
参考例句:
  • He made no attempt to conceal his smirk.他毫不掩饰自鸣得意的笑容。
  • She had a selfsatisfied smirk on her face.她脸上带着自鸣得意的微笑。
4 gasped e6af294d8a7477229d6749fa9e8f5b80     
v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 );喘息;倒抽气;很想要
参考例句:
  • She gasped at the wonderful view. 如此美景使她惊讶得屏住了呼吸。
  • People gasped with admiration at the superb skill of the gymnasts. 体操运动员的高超技艺令人赞叹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
5 besought b61a343cc64721a83167d144c7c708de     
v.恳求,乞求(某事物)( beseech的过去式和过去分词 );(beseech的过去式与过去分词)
参考例句:
  • The prisoner besought the judge for mercy/to be merciful. 囚犯恳求法官宽恕[乞求宽大]。 来自辞典例句
  • They besought him to speak the truth. 他们恳求他说实话. 来自辞典例句
6 hoarse 5dqzA     
adj.嘶哑的,沙哑的
参考例句:
  • He asked me a question in a hoarse voice.他用嘶哑的声音问了我一个问题。
  • He was too excited and roared himself hoarse.他过于激动,嗓子都喊哑了。
7 bustling LxgzEl     
adj.喧闹的
参考例句:
  • The market was bustling with life. 市场上生机勃勃。
  • This district is getting more and more prosperous and bustling. 这一带越来越繁华了。


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