II YELLOW LION AND HEDGEHOG’S SCRIBBLING

Hedgehog was always scribbling¹. He sat at his desk in his house in the woods and wrote so much that he hardly stopped to eat his meals. He had quills² stuck behind his ears, and whenever he thought of anything which would make any of the beasts angry, especially Yellow Lion, he wrote it down on a piece of birch bark. For ink he used pokeberry juice.

 

Yellow Lion awoke one morning and found a sign tacked⁴ to the door of his house with one of Hedgehog’s quills. On the sign was written:

 

“Lion, you are a big, yellow animal.”

 

“Who wrote that?” roared Yellow Lion. “I am no more of an animal than he is.”

 

Everybody knows that Yellow Lion is very proud, for he is the king of beasts. So Yellow Lion went out and sharpened his claws on the trunk of a tree and started to get revenge for the name that he had been called. He had not gone very far before he saw another piece of bark tacked up to a tree with one of Hedgehog’s quills. On it was written:

 

“Lions, take notice. The quill³ is mightier⁵ than the claw.”

 

Yellow Lion picked off the sign and shook it between his paws.

 

“The idea,” he said. “This is an insult. Just let me find out who wrote that and there will be an awful time in this jungle.”

 

He had only gone half a mile before he met Big Elephant.

 

“Elephant,” he roared; “whose writing is this?”

 

Big Elephant put on his glasses and picked up the piece of bark and looked at it very carefully.

 

“Sometimes,” he said, “I write in my sleep. You know, I used to write visiting cards with my feet, and since I stand up when I am asleep maybe I write a little without knowing it. I don’t remember this.”

 

“You are a foolish, old elephant,” roared Yellow Lion, and he bounded away so angrily that he could hardly see. He almost ran into Striped Tiger.

 

“Pardon me,” said Yellow Lion, for he had a great respect for Striped Tiger.

 

“Don’t mention it,” answered Striped Tiger, showing his white teeth. “What is this I hear about your mane?”

 

“Name,” replied Yellow Lion.

 

“O, well, it’s much the same,” purred Striped Tiger. “The same letters. You come with me and I’ll show you something that will make you feel very glad.”

 

Striped Tiger winked⁶ at Big Elephant, who had just come up, and all three walked through the jungle. Striped Tiger led Yellow Lion to a large rock, on which was written:

 

“He has a mane which is rusty⁷. He needs a haircut.”

 

“This is too much,” roared Yellow Lion.

 

“Ha! ha!” laughed somebody way up in the trees.

 

Yellow Lion looked up and saw Little Monkey swinging along the tree tops by his tail. Little Monkey had a cap on his head and a piece of birch bark and a quill under his arm.

 

“Come down!” roared Yellow Lion.

 

He talked so loud that Little Monkey was scared, and let go his tail and fell to the ground. Yellow Lion picked him up and shook him. On the piece of bark which Little Monkey had was written, “A poor, innocent goat was killed. Ask Yellow Lion.”

 

“Now I have you!” snarled⁸ Yellow Lion. “I’ll teach you to write such things and put them up on trees.”

 

“Please, I’m only a messenger boy,” whimpered Little Monkey. “Hedgehog wrote it.”

 

“I’ll not eat you up!” roared Yellow Lion, “if you will take me to your master.”

 

So Little Monkey led Yellow Lion to Hedgehog’s house. Yellow Lion went right into the room where Hedgehog was writing at his desk.

 

“Hedgehog,” said Yellow Lion, “you have been calling me names. You wrote that I had a mane—”

 

I thought that you had,” answered Hedgehog, in a meek⁹, little voice.

 

He was sitting on a barrel before his desk, and kept on writing as hard as he could. He had sheets of bark all around him, and his hands and face were all over pokeberry ink.

 

“That was all rusty. It is false,” continued Yellow Lion.

 

“Your mane looks as though it were real,” replied Hedgehog.

 

“You said I ought to have a haircut,” added Yellow Lion.

 

“Which one of your hairs,” sighed Hedgehog.

 

“Hedgehog,” roared Yellow Lion, “your time has come. You miserable¹⁰, little—”

 

“What did you say?” asked Hedgehog. “I am hard of hearing.”

 

“Quill driver,” thundered Yellow Lion.

 

With that Hedgehog moved the back of his neck in such a way that all the quills which were sticking behind his ears came out like arrows shot from the bow. They stuck in the face of Yellow Lion and made him jump and squeal¹¹ and beg for mercy. Yellow Lion ran out of the place with his paws all over his face and the tears running down his cheeks.

 

“I may be a quill driver,” said Hedgehog, as he dipped a quill in pokeberry juice, “but when I am writing I cannot afford to be annoyed by big, yellow animals.”

1 scribbling   

n.乱涂[写]胡[乱]写的文章[作品]v.潦草的书写( scribble的现在分词 )；乱画；草草地写；匆匆记下

参考例句：

• Once the money got into the book, all that remained were some scribbling. 折子上的钱只是几个字！ 来自汉英文学 - 骆驼祥子
• McMug loves scribbling. Mama then sent him to the Kindergarten. 麦唛很喜欢写字，妈妈看在眼里，就替他报读了幼稚园。 来自互联网

2 quills   

n.（刺猬或豪猪的）刺( quill的名词复数 )；羽毛管；翮；纡管

参考例句：

• Quills were the chief writing implement from the 6th century AD until the advent of steel pens in the mid 19th century. 从公元6世纪到19世纪中期钢笔出现以前，羽毛笔是主要的书写工具。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Defensive quills dot the backs of these troublesome creatures. 防御性的刺长在这些讨人厌的生物背上。 来自互联网

3 quill   

n.羽毛管；v.给（织物或衣服）作皱褶

参考例句：

• He wrote with a quill.他用羽毛笔写字。
• She dipped a quill in ink,and then began to write.她将羽毛笔在墨水里蘸了一下，随后开始书写。

4 tacked   

用平头钉钉( tack的过去式和过去分词 )； 附加，增补； 帆船抢风行驶，用粗线脚缝

参考例句：

• He tacked the sheets of paper on as carefully as possible. 他尽量小心地把纸张钉上去。
• The seamstress tacked the two pieces of cloth. 女裁缝把那两块布粗缝了起来。

5 mightier   

adj. 强有力的，强大的，巨大的 adv. 很，极其

参考例句：

• But it ever rises up again, stronger, firmer, mightier. 但是，这种组织总是重新产生，并且一次比一次更强大，更坚固，更有力。 来自英汉非文学 - 共产党宣言
• Do you believe that the pen is mightier than the sword? 你相信笔杆的威力大于武力吗？

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 rusty   

adj.生锈的；锈色的；荒废了的

参考例句：

• The lock on the door is rusty and won't open.门上的锁锈住了。
• I haven't practiced my French for months and it's getting rusty.几个月不用，我的法语又荒疏了。

8 snarled   

v.（指狗）吠，嗥叫， （人）咆哮( snarl的过去式和过去分词 )；咆哮着说，厉声地说

参考例句：

• The dog snarled at us. 狗朝我们低声吼叫。
• As I advanced towards the dog, It'snarled and struck at me. 我朝那条狗走去时，它狂吠着向我扑来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 meek   

adj.温顺的，逆来顺受的

参考例句：

• He expects his wife to be meek and submissive.他期望妻子温顺而且听他摆布。
• The little girl is as meek as a lamb.那个小姑娘像羔羊一般温顺。

10 miserable   

adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的

参考例句：

• It was miserable of you to make fun of him.你取笑他，这是可耻的。
• Her past life was miserable.她过去的生活很苦。

11 squeal   

v.发出长而尖的声音；n.长而尖的声音

参考例句：

• The children gave a squeal of fright.孩子们发出惊吓的尖叫声。
• There was a squeal of brakes as the car suddenly stopped.小汽车突然停下来时，车闸发出尖叫声。