Chapter Eleven GEORGE MAKES A HARD CHOICE

　　Chapter Eleven GEORGE MAKES A HARD CHOICE
　　THERE was a horrified¹ silence. George stared at her father in complete dismay. Everyone waitedto see what she would say.
　　'But Father Timmy and I have never been separated once,' she said at last, in a pleading voice. 'Ido see you want him to guard you and you can have him but I'll have to stay here too!'
　　'Oh no!' said her father at once. 'You can't possibly stay, George. That's out of the question. Asfor never being separated from Timmy, well surely you wouldn't mind that for once? If it was toensure my safety?'
　　George swallowed hard. This was the most difficult decision she had ever had to make in herlife. Leave Timmy behind on the island where there was some unknown hidden enemy, likely toharm him if he possibly could! And yet there was Father too he might be in danger if there wasno one to guard him.
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　　'I shall just have to stay here, Father,' she said. 'I can't leave Timmy behind unless I stay too. It'sno good.'
　　Her father began to lose his temper. He was like George he wanted his own way, and if he didn'thave it he was going to make a fuss!
　　'If I'd asked Julian or Dick or Anne this same thing, and they'd had a dog, they would all havesaid yes, at once!' he raged. 'But you, George, you must always make things difficult if you can!
　　You and that dog anyone would think he was worth a thousand pounds!'
　　'He's worth much more than that to me,' said George, in a trembling voice. Timmy crept nearer toher and pushed his nose into her hand. She held his collar as if she would not let him go for amoment.
　　'Yes. That dog's worth more to you than your father or mother or anyone,' said her father, indisgust.
　　'No, Quentin, I can't have you saying things like that,' said his wife, firmly. 'That's just silly. Amother and father are quite different from a dog - they're loved in different ways. But you areperfectly right, of course -Timmy must stay behind with you and I shall certainly not allowGeorge to stay with him. I'm not going to have both of you exposed to danger. It's bad enough toworry about you, as it is.'
　　George looked at her mother in dismay. 'Mother! Do tell Father I must stay here with Timmy.'
　　'Certainly not,' said her mother. 'Now George, be unselfish. If it were left to Tim to decide, youknow perfectly² well that he would stay here - and stay without you. He would say to himself,"I'm needed here my eyes are needed to spy out enemies, my ears to hear a quiet footfall andmaybe my teeth to protect my master. I shall be parted from George for a few days - but she, likeme, is big enough to put up with that!" That's what Timmy would say, George, if it were left tohim.'
　　Everyone had been listening to this unexpected speech with great attention. It was about the onlyone that could persuade George to give in willingly! She looked at Timmy. He looked back ather, wagging his tail. Then he did an extraordinary thing - he got up, walked over to George'sfather, and lay down beside him, looking at George as if to say 'There you are! Now you knowwhat I think is right!'
　　'You see?' said her mother. 'He agrees with me. You've always said that Timmy was a good dog,and this proves it. He knows what his duty is. You ought to be proud of him.'
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　　'I am,' said George, in a choky voice. She got up and walked off. 'All right,' she said over hershoulder. 'I'll leave him on the island with Father. I'll come back in a minute.'
　　Anne got up to go after poor George, but Julian pulled her down again. 'Leave her alone! She'llbe all right. Good old Timmy you know what's right and what's wrong, don't you? Good dog,splendid dog!'
　　Timmy wagged his tail. He did not attempt to follow George. No - he meant to stay by her fathernow, even though he would much rather be with his mistress. He was sorry that George wasunhappy - but sometimes it was better to do a hard thing and be unhappy about it, than try to behappy without doing it.
　　'Oh Quentin dear, I don't like this business of you being here and somebody else, spying on you,'
　　said his wife. 'I really don't. How long will you be before you've finished your work?'
　　'A few days more,' said her husband. He looked at Timmy admiringly. 'That dog might almosthave known what you were saying, Fanny, just now. It was remarkable³ the way he walkedstraight over to me.'
　　'He's a very clever dog,' said Anne, warmly. 'Aren't you, Tim? You'll be quite safe with him,Uncle Quentin. He's terribly fierce when he wants to be!'
　　'Yes. I shouldn't care to have him leaping at my throat,' said her uncle. 'He's so big and powerful.
　　Are there any more pieces of cake?'
　　'Quentin, it's really too bad of you to go without your meals,' said his wife. 'It's no good tellingme you haven't, because you wouldn't be as ravenous⁴ as this if you had had your food regularly.'
　　Her husband took no notice of what she was saying. He was looking up at his tower. 'Do youever see those wires at the top blaze out?' he asked. 'Wonderful sight, isn't it?'
　　'Uncle, you're not inventing a new atom bomb, or anything, are you?' asked Anne.
　　Her uncle looked at her scornfully. 'I wouldn't waste my time inventing things that will be usedto kill and maim⁵ people! No - I'm inventing something that will be of the greatest use tomankind. You wait and see!'
　　George came back. 'Father,' she said, 'I'm leaving Timmy behind for you - but please will you dosomething for me?'
　　'What?' asked her father. 'No silly conditions now! I shall feed Timmy regularly, and look afterhim, if that's what you want to ask me. I may forget my own meals, but you ought to know mewell enough to know I shouldn't neglect any animal dependent on me.'
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　　'Yes I know, Father,' said George, looking a bit doubtful all the same. 'What I wanted to ask youwas this when you go up in the tower to signal each morning, will you please take Timmy withyou? I shall be up at the coastguard cottage, looking through his telescope at the glass room inthe tower and I shall be able to see Timmy then. If I can catch just a glimpse of him each day andknow he's all right, I shan't worry so much.'
　　'Very well,' said her father. 'But I don't suppose for a moment that Timmy will be able to climbup the spiral stairway.'
　　'Oh, he can, Father he's been up it once already,' said George.
　　'Good heavens!' said her father. 'Has the dog been up there too? -All right, George I promise I'lltake him up with me each morning that I signal, and get him to wag his tail at you. There! Willthat satisfy you?'
　　'Yes. Thank you,' said George. 'And you'll give him a few kind words and a pat occasionally,Father,' won't you...and...?'
　　'And put his bib on for him at meal-times, I suppose, and clean his teeth for him at night!' saidher father, looking cross again. 'I shall treat Timmy like a proper grown-up dog, a friend of mine,George - and believe me, that's the way he wants me to treat him. Isn't it, Timmy? You like allthose frills to be kept for your mistress, don't you, not for me?'
　　'Woof,' said Timmy, and thumped⁶ his tail. The children looked at him admiringly. He really wasa very sensible clever dog. He seemed somehow much more grown-up than George.
　　'Uncle, if anything goes wrong, or you want help or anything, flash eighteen times again,' saidJulian. 'You ought to be all right with Timmy. He's better than a dozen policemen but you neverknow.'
　　'Right. Eighteen flashes if I want you over here for anything,' said his uncle. 'I'll remember. Nowyou'd better all go. It's time I got on with my work.'
　　'You'll pour that soup away, won't you, Quentin?' said his wife, anxiously. 'You don't want tomake yourself ill by eating bad soup. It must he green by now! It would be so like you to forgetall about it while it was fresh and good and only remember it when it was bad!'
　　'What a thing to say!' said her husband, getting up. 'Anyone would think I was five years old,without a brain in my head, the way you talk to me!'
　　'You've plenty of brains, dear, we all know that,' said his wife. 'But you don't seem very oldsometimes! Now look after yourself and keep Timmy by you all the time.'
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　　'Father won't need to bother about that,' said George. 'Timmy will keep by him! You're on guard,Timmy, aren't you? And you know what that means!'
　　'Woof,' said Timmy, solemnly. He went with them all to the boat, but he did not attempt to getin. He stood by George's father and watched the boat bob away over the water.
　　'Good-bye, Timmy!' shouted George, in a funny, fierce voice. 'Look after yourself!'
　　Her father waved, and Timmy wagged his tail. George took one of the pairs of oars⁷ from Dickand began to row furiously, her face red with the hard work.
　　Julian looked at her in amusement. It was hard work for him, too, to keep up with the furiousrowing, but he didn't say anything. He knew all this fury in rowing was George's way of hidingher grief at parting with Timmy. Funny old George! She was always so intense about thingsfuriously happy or furiously unhappy, in the seventh heaven of delight or down in the verydepths of despair or anger.
　　Everyone talked hard so that George would think they were not noticing her feelings at partingwith Timmy. The talk, of course, was mostly about the unknown man on the island. It seemedvery mysterious indeed that he should suddenly have arrived.
　　'How did he get there? I'm sure not one of the fishermen would have taken him,' said Dick. 'Hemust have gone at night, of course, and I doubt if there is anyone but George who would knowthe way in the dark or even dare to try and find it. These rocks are so close together, and so nearthe surface; one yard out of the right course and any boat would have a hole in the bottom!'
　　'No one could reach the island by swimming from the shore,' said Anne. 'It's too far, and the seais too rough over these rocks. I honestly do wonder if there is anyone on the island after all.
　　Perhaps that cigarette end was an old one.'
　　'It didn't look it,' said Julian. 'Well, it just beats me how anyone got there!' He fell into thought,puzzling out all the possible and impossible ways. Then he gave an exclamation⁸. The otherslooked at him.
　　'I've just thought - would it be possible for an aeroplane to parachute anyone down on the island?
　　I did hear a throbbing⁹ noise one night - was it last night? It must have been a plane's engine, ofcourse! Could anyone be dropped on the island?'
　　'Easily,' said Dick. 'I believe you've hit on the explanation, Ju! Good for you! But I say whoeverit is must be in deadly earnest, to risk being dropped on a small island like that in the dark ofnight!'
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　　In deadly earnest! That didn't sound at all nice. A little shiver went down Anne's back.
　　'I am glad Timmy's there,' she said. And everyone felt the same yes, even George!

1 horrified   

a.(表现出)恐惧的

参考例句：

• The whole country was horrified by the killings. 全国都对这些凶杀案感到大为震惊。
• We were horrified at the conditions prevailing in local prisons. 地方监狱的普遍状况让我们震惊。

2 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。

3 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

4 ravenous   

adj.极饿的，贪婪的

参考例句：

• The ravenous children ate everything on the table.饿极了的孩子把桌上所有东西吃掉了。
• Most infants have a ravenous appetite.大多数婴儿胃口极好。

5 maim   

v.使残废，使不能工作，使伤残

参考例句：

• Automobile accidents maim many people each year. 汽车车祸每年使许多人残废。
• These people kill and maim innocent civilians.这些人杀死和残害无辜平民。

6 thumped   

v.重击， （指心脏）急速跳动( thump的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Dave thumped the table in frustration . 戴夫懊恼得捶打桌子。
• He thumped the table angrily. 他愤怒地用拳捶击桌子。

7 oars   

n.桨，橹( oar的名词复数 )；划手v.划（行）( oar的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• He pulled as hard as he could on the oars. 他拼命地划桨。
• The sailors are bending to the oars. 水手们在拼命地划桨。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 exclamation   

n.感叹号，惊呼，惊叹词

参考例句：

• He could not restrain an exclamation of approval.他禁不住喝一声采。
• The author used three exclamation marks at the end of the last sentence to wake up the readers.作者在文章的最后一句连用了三个惊叹号，以引起读者的注意。

9 throbbing   

a. 跳动的,悸动的

参考例句：

• My heart is throbbing and I'm shaking. 我的心在猛烈跳动，身子在不住颤抖。
• There was a throbbing in her temples. 她的太阳穴直跳。