10 An urgent call

　　10
　　An urgent call
　　Jack¹ slipped out to make sure that the couple went back to the farm. He came back to report thatthey had and Bill held a conference at once. Gussy had been hauled with difficulty out of thewardrobe.
　　He had recognized the woman but not the man. ‘She is Madame Tatiosa,’ he said. ‘The wife ofthe Prime Minister. I hate her! She is clever and sharp and cruel.’
　　‘What – that pretty young woman?!’ said Mrs Cunningham in astonishment².
　　‘Yes,’ said Gussy, nodding his head vigorously. ‘Once she was a spy for our country. My uncletold me. A very clever spy. And she married the Prime Minister, and tells him what to do.’
　　‘Hm,’ said Bill. ‘And you didn’t know the man, Gussy? Not that that matters. You’verecognized one of them and so we know for certain that they’re after you. I almost think we’dbetter clear out. I really don’t know what to do for the best! I think I’d better take you and handyou over to the keepers in the Tower of London! You’d at least be safe there!’
　　‘But you said, Bill, that if there were only two of them, the man and the woman, they couldn’tvery well do anything to Gussy,’ said Jack. ‘Why not let one of us keep watch each day to makesure no other car comes down to the farm – or no other visitor? I can easily go and spend the dayat the farm, and watch – and Philip can watch the next day.’
　　‘I think perhaps you’re right,’ said Bill, puffing³ at his pipe. ‘Anyway – we’ll stay put for thenext two days, and wait for the enemy to make the next move. There’s no doubt that they thinkGussy’s the boy they want. I expect Mrs Ellis has described him carefully to them – and he’seasily described!’
　　‘Yes – long hair, for one thing,’ grinned Jack. ‘Shall I nip along to the farm now, Bill, and keepwatch for the rest of the day? I can go and ask for some butter or something, and then hang round,helping with a few jobs. I’d like that, anyway.’
　　‘Right. You go,’ said Bill, and Jack sped off with Kiki on his shoulder. The others got up to gofor a walk, well away from the farm! ‘Take your tea,’ said Mrs Cunningham. ‘Nobody will knowwhere you are, if you go off for a walk, so nobody will be able to find you! You should be quitesafe, Gussy!’
　　So Gussy, Philip and the two girls went off with a picnic basket. They walked for about twomiles and then found a glade⁴ that was golden with polished celandines. They sat down, hot withtheir walk.
　　‘This is heavenly,’ said Lucy-Ann. ‘I do love celandines. They look as if someone polishedthem every single morning. Jolly good workman he must be – he never misses a petal⁵!’
　　Dinah gave a scream. ‘Oh – what’s that on your shoulder, Philip! Oh, it’s a mouse!’
　　Philip’s dormouse had decided⁶ that the pocket he lived in was getting too hot for his liking⁷. Sohe had squeezed his way out, run up Philip’s vest, and appeared through the opening of his collar.
　　There he was now, sitting up on the boy’s shoulder.
　　‘Oh – a dormouse!’ cried Lucy-Ann in delight. ‘What’s his name, Philip? Will he let me holdhim?’
　　‘His name is Snoozy and it suits him,’ said Philip. He felt in a pocket and brought out a nut. Hegave it to Lucy-Ann. ‘Here, take this, offer it to him on the palm of your hand and he’ll run over toyou.’
　　Lucy-Ann balanced the nut on her palm and held it out to the tiny mouse, being careful not tomove too quickly. The dormouse watched her hand coming close to Philip’s shoulder, and hiswhiskers quivered as his nose twitched⁸.
　　‘He can smell the nut,’ said Philip. ‘Keep quite still, Lucy-Ann. There he goes! How do you likethe feel of his tiny feet?’
　　‘Oh, lovely!’ said Lucy-Ann. ‘Isn’t he a dear, Philip. I wish I had one too.’
　　‘I’ll try and get you one,’ said Philip.
　　But Dinah gave a squeal⁹ at once. ‘No! She sleeps with me, and I’m not having mice in thebedroom.’
　　‘But this is a dormouse, not a housemouse,’ said Lucy-Ann. ‘It doesn’t smell, or anything. It’sjust perfectly¹⁰ sweet.’
　　Snoozy nibbled¹¹ daintily at the nut. A bit broke off and he took it into his front paws, sitting upjust like a squirrel. He looked at Lucy-Ann out of his bright eyes.
　　‘He’s got such big black eyes that they really are like mirrors,’ she said. ‘I can see my own face,very tiny, in each of them.’
　　‘Can you?’ said Gussy, in surprise and put his face close to Lucy-Ann’s to look into the bigeyes of the dormouse. It fled at once, disappearing down Philip’s neck at top speed.
　　‘You moved too fast, Gussy,’ said Lucy-Ann crossly. ‘You would manage to startle him.’
　　‘Excuse, pliss. I pollygize,’ said Gussy. ‘I beg your pardon, Lucy-Ann.’
　　‘All right. But I do hope Snoozy will come back,’ said Lucy-Ann, rather cross.
　　He peered out of Philip’s neck once or twice, but he wouldn’t come right out. ‘He’s notabsolutely tame yet,’ explained Philip. ‘I’ve not had him long enough. But he soon will be. He’llbe coming out at meal times soon and nibbling¹² his little nut on my bread-plate.’
　　‘Not if I can help it,’ said Dinah.
　　‘Don’t be silly,’ said Philip. ‘You simply don’t try to like dormice. You . . .’
　　‘Someone coming,’ said Lucy-Ann, suddenly. Her sharp ears had caught the sound of voices.
　　‘Get under the bush, Gussy,’ ordered Philip. ‘Go on, quick!’
　　Gussy vanished at once, and the bush closed over him. It was a pity it was a gorse bush, butGussy didn’t have time to think of prickles.
　　Two men came by, talking in the broad accent of the countryside. One was the man who hadtold Philip so much about badgers¹³. He waved to him.
　　‘It’ll be a good night for badgers tonight!’ he called. ‘Moonlight – and that’s what they like.’
　　‘Come out, Gus,’ said Philip, when the men had passed. ‘False alarm.’
　　Gussy crawled out, scratched on face, hands and knees by the gorse prickles. He was veryfrightened.
　　‘He blids,’ said Dinah unkindly. ‘Gus, you are blidding all over.’
　　‘It’s nothing much,’ said Philip, taking out his handkerchief and scrubbing the drops of bloodaway here and there. ‘Everyone gets pricked¹⁴ by gorse sooner or later. Cheer up, Gus. And forgoodness’ sake don’t complain.’
　　‘I don’t like blidding,’ said poor Gussy, in a woebegone voice. ‘It makes me feel sick.’
　　‘Well, be sick then,’ said hard-hearted Dinah. ‘But don’t make a FUSS .’
　　Gussy made a valiant¹⁵ effort and swallowed hard. He didn’t fuss after all. What a victory!
　　After they had eaten every crumb¹⁶ of their tea, they decided to go back. Philip wanted to have alook at the quarry¹⁷ on the way to see if he thought that badgers might really make that their haunt.
　　He wandered round the big deserted¹⁸ place, examining the hedges round for signs of a badger’ssett. The girls and Gussy ran the few hundred yards that lay between the quarry and the cottage.
　　Lucy-Ann thought they ought to, in case any enemy was lying in wait!
　　‘Any news?’ she asked, as they went indoors, panting. ‘Has Jack come back from the farm yet?’
　　He hadn’t. Nobody had any news at all, it seemed. Jack had none either, when he came.
　　‘Not a soul came to the farm,’ he said. ‘And I didn’t even see the man and the woman. Theymust have been in their room all the time. Once I heard a “ting” – as if somebody was using thetelephone. It might have been them.’
　　‘Can’t tell,’ said Bill. ‘Well – I seem to have had a lazy day. I’ve got some papers to read andthen I suppose it will be supper time. There’s going to be a fine moon tonight!’
　　‘Just right for badgers,’ Philip whispered to Jack. ‘Like to come out and see if we can find any?’
　　‘Rather,’ said Jack. ‘We can slip out when the others are in bed. Gussy always sleeps sosoundly, he’ll never hear!’
　　Supper time came. Cold ham, a salad, junket and cream. ‘Just the right kind of meal,’ saidPhilip. ‘Why can’t we have this kind of food at school?’
　　‘Don’t let’s start up the subject of school meals again, Philip,’ said his mother. ‘You’reyawning. Go to bed!’
　　‘I think I will,’ said Philip. ‘Coming, Jack?’
　　Jack remembered that they had planned an outing in the moonlight, and he nodded. They mightas well get a little sleep first. Gussy went up with them. The girls stayed down to finish their booksand then went up too.
　　‘I’ll set my little alarm clock for eleven,’ said Philip to Jack, in a low voice, not wanting Gussyto hear. ‘I’ll put it under my pillow and it won’t wake anyone but me. Gosh, I’m sleepy.’
　　In ten minutes all the five children were fast asleep. Downstairs Bill and his wife sat listening tothe radio. ‘We’ll hear the ten o’clock news and then go to bed,’ said Bill.
　　But, just as the ten o’clock news was about to come on, there came a cautious tapping at thefront door. Bill stiffened¹⁹. Who was that? He looked at his wife, and she raised her eyebrows²⁰. Whocould that be at this time of night?
　　Bill went quietly to the door. He didn’t open it, but spoke²¹ with his mouth close to the crack.
　　‘Who’s there?’
　　‘Oh, sir, Mrs Ellis has sent me down to beg you to come up to the farm,’ said an anxious voice.
　　‘It’s her old aunt. She’s fallen down and broken her hip²². Can you come? Mrs Ellis is in such away! She sent me to ask you, because the doctor’s away.’
　　Bill opened the door. He saw a bent²³ figure, wrapped round in a shawl. It must be Alice, the oldwoman who helped Mrs Ellis in the kitchen. ‘Come in,’ he said.
　　‘No, sir, I’ll be getting back,’ said the old woman. ‘You’ll come, won’t you?’
　　‘Yes, we’ll come,’ said Bill. He shut the door and went back to tell his wife.
　　‘It’s a message from Mrs Ellis about the old aunt. Apparently²⁴ she has fallen and broken herhip,’ he said. ‘Will you go, Allie? I’ll take you there, of course, and then I must leave you andcome back here, because of Gussy. But Mr Ellis will bring you back, unless you stay for thenight.’
　　‘Yes, I’d better go at once,’ said Mrs Cunningham. ‘Poor Mrs Ellis! Just what she was afraidmight happen!’
　　She got her things on, and Bill and she went out of the door. ‘It’s not worth waking up thechildren and telling them,’ he said. ‘They’re sound asleep. Anyway, I’ll be back here in a fewminutes’ time.’
　　He shut the door quietly, made sure he had the key with him to open it when he came back, andthen set off with his wife. What a wonderful moonlight night! Really, he would quite enjoy thewalk!

1 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

2 astonishment   

n.惊奇，惊异

参考例句：

• They heard him give a loud shout of astonishment.他们听见他惊奇地大叫一声。
• I was filled with astonishment at her strange action.我对她的奇怪举动不胜惊异。

3 puffing   

v.使喷出( puff的现在分词 )；喷着汽（或烟）移动；吹嘘；吹捧

参考例句：

• He was puffing hard when he jumped on to the bus. 他跳上公共汽车时喘息不已。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• My father sat puffing contentedly on his pipe. 父亲坐着心满意足地抽着烟斗。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 glade   

n.林间空地，一片表面有草的沼泽低地

参考例句：

• In the midst of a glade were several huts.林中的空地中间有几间小木屋。
• The family had their lunch in the glade.全家在林中的空地上吃了午饭。

5 petal   

n.花瓣

参考例句：

• Each white petal had a stripe of red.每一片白色的花瓣上都有一条红色的条纹。
• A petal fluttered to the ground.一片花瓣飘落到地上。

6 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

7 liking   

n.爱好；嗜好；喜欢

参考例句：

• The word palate also means taste or liking.Palate这个词也有“口味”或“嗜好”的意思。
• I must admit I have no liking for exaggeration.我必须承认我不喜欢夸大其词。

8 twitched   

vt.& vi.（使）抽动，（使）颤动（twitch的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• Her lips twitched with amusement. 她忍俊不禁地颤动着嘴唇。
• The child's mouth twitched as if she were about to cry. 这小孩的嘴抽动着，像是要哭。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 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。

10 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

11 nibbled   

v.啃，一点一点地咬（吃）( nibble的过去式和过去分词 )；啃出（洞），一点一点咬出（洞）；慢慢减少；小口咬

参考例句：

• She nibbled daintily at her cake. 她优雅地一点一点地吃着自己的蛋糕。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Several companies have nibbled at our offer. 若干公司表示对我们的出价有兴趣。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 nibbling   

v.啃，一点一点地咬（吃）( nibble的现在分词 )；啃出（洞），一点一点咬出（洞）；慢慢减少；小口咬

参考例句：

• We sat drinking wine and nibbling olives. 我们坐在那儿，喝着葡萄酒嚼着橄榄。
• He was nibbling on the apple. 他在啃苹果。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

13 badgers   

n.獾( badger的名词复数 )；獾皮；（大写）獾州人（美国威斯康星州人的别称）；毛鼻袋熊

参考例句：

• Badgers had undermined the foundations of the church. 獾在这座教堂的地基处打了洞。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• And rams ' skins dyed red, and badgers' skins, and shittim wood. 5染红的公羊皮，海狗皮，皂荚木。 来自互联网

14 pricked   

刺，扎，戳( prick的过去式和过去分词 )； 刺伤； 刺痛； 使剧痛

参考例句：

• The cook pricked a few holes in the pastry. 厨师在馅饼上戳了几个洞。
• He was pricked by his conscience. 他受到良心的谴责。

15 valiant   

adj.勇敢的，英勇的；n.勇士，勇敢的人

参考例句：

• He had the fame of being very valiant.他的勇敢是出名的。
• Despite valiant efforts by the finance minister,inflation rose to 36%.尽管财政部部长采取了一系列果决措施，通货膨胀率还是涨到了36%。

16 crumb   

n.饼屑，面包屑，小量

参考例句：

• It was the only crumb of comfort he could salvage from the ordeal.这是他从这场磨难里能找到的唯一的少许安慰。
• Ruth nearly choked on the last crumb of her pastry.鲁斯几乎被糕点的最后一块碎屑所噎住。

17 quarry   

n.采石场；v.采石；费力地找

参考例句：

• Michelangelo obtained his marble from a quarry.米开朗基罗从采石场获得他的大理石。
• This mountain was the site for a quarry.这座山曾经有一个采石场。

18 deserted   

adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的

参考例句：

• The deserted village was filled with a deathly silence.这个荒废的村庄死一般的寂静。
• The enemy chieftain was opposed and deserted by his followers.敌人头目众叛亲离。

19 stiffened   

加强的

参考例句：

• He leaned towards her and she stiffened at this invasion of her personal space. 他向她俯过身去，这种侵犯她个人空间的举动让她绷紧了身子。
• She stiffened with fear. 她吓呆了。

20 eyebrows   

眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Eyebrows stop sweat from coming down into the eyes. 眉毛挡住汗水使其不能流进眼睛。
• His eyebrows project noticeably. 他的眉毛特别突出。

21 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。

22 hip   

n.臀部，髋；屋脊

参考例句：

• The thigh bone is connected to the hip bone.股骨连着髋骨。
• The new coats blouse gracefully above the hip line.新外套在臀围线上优美地打着褶皱。

23 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。

24 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。