Chapter 12 GEORGE LOSES HER TEMPER

　　Chapter 12 GEORGE LOSES HER TEMPER
　　Jock made a face at Cecil and got up. He went slowly off round the haystack, and the otherslistened in silence for whacks¹ and yells. But none came.
　　'He frightened me,' said Cecil, sitting down by the others.
　　'Poor icle ting,' said Dick at once.
　　'Darling baby,' said George.
　　'Mother's pet,' said Julian. Cecil glared at them all. He got up again, very red.
　　'If I didn't know my manners, I'd smack³ your faces,' he said, and marched off hurriedly, beforehis own could be smacked⁴.
　　The four sat in silence. They were sorry for Jock. George was angry and sulky because she knewthe others had gone off without her the night before. Anne was worried.
　　They all sat there for about ten minutes. Then round the haystack came Jock's mother, lookingdistressed. She carried a big basket of food.
　　The children all stood up politely. 'Good morning, Mrs. Andrews,' said Julian.
　　'I'm sorry I can't ask you to stop today,' said Mrs. Andrews. 'But Jock has really behaved veryfoolishly. I wouldn't let Mr. Andrews give him a hiding because it would only make Jock hatehis stepfather, and that would never do. So I've sent him up to bed for the day. You won't be ableto see him, I'm afraid. Here is some food for you to take. Oh, dear - I'm really very sorry aboutall this. I can't think what came over Jock to behave in such a way. It's not a bit like him.'
　　Cecil's face appeared round the haystack, looking rather smug. Julian grinned to himself.
　　60
　　'Would you like us to take Cecil for a nice long walk over the moors⁵?' he said. 'We can climbhills and jump over streams and scramble⁶ through the heather. It would make such a nice day forhim.'
　　Cecil's face immediately disappeared.
　　'Well,' said Mrs. Andrews, 'that really would be very kind of you. Now that Jock's been sentupstairs for the day there's no one for Cecil to play with. But I'm afraid he's a bit of a mother'sboy, you know. You'll have to go carefully with him. Cecil! Cecil! Where are you? Come andmake friends with these children.'
　　But Cecil had gone. There was no answer at all. He didn't want to make friends with 'thesechildren'. He knew better than that! Mrs. Andrews went in search of him, but he had completelydisappeared.
　　The four children were not at all surprised. Julian, Dick and Anne grinned at one another. Georgestood with her back to them, still sulky.
　　Mrs. Andrews came back again, out of breath. 'I can't find him,' she said. 'Never mind. I'll findsomething for him to do when he appears again.'
　　'Yes. Perhaps you've got some beads⁷ for him to thread? Or a nice easy jigsaw⁸ puzzle to do?' saidJulian, very politely. The others giggled⁹. A smile appeared on Mrs. Andrews's face.
　　'Bad boy!' she said. 'Oh dear - poor Jock. Well it's his own fault. Now good-bye, I must get onwith my work.'
　　She ran off to the dairy. The children looked round the haystack. Mr. Andrews was getting intohis car. He would soon be gone. They waited a few minutes till they heard the car set off downthe rough cart-track.
　　That's Jock's bedroom - where the pear-tree is,' said Julian. 'Let's just have a word with himbefore we go. It's a shame.'
　　They went across the farmyard and stood under the pear-tree - all except George, who stayedbehind the haystack with the food, frowning. Julian called up to the window above: 'Jock!'
　　A head came out, the face still painted terrifyingly in streaks¹⁰ and circles. 'Hallo! He didn't whackme. Mum wouldn't let him. All the same, I'd rather he had - it's awful being stuck up here thissunny day. Where's dear Cecil?'
　　'I don't know. Probably in the darkest corner of one of the barns,' said Julian. 'Jock, if things aredifficult in the daytime, come up at night. We've got to see you somehow.'
　　61
　　'Right,' said Jock. 'How do I look? Like a real Red Indian?'
　　'You look frightful¹¹,' grinned Julian. 'I wonder old Timmy knew you.'
　　'Where's George?' asked Jock.
　　'Sulking behind the haystack,' said Dick. 'We shall have an awful day with her now. You let thecat properly out of the bag, you idjit!'
　　'Yes. I'm a ninny and an idjit,' said Jock, and Anne giggled. 'Look - there's Cecil. You might tellhim to beware of the bull, will you?'
　　'Is there a bull?' said Anne, looking alarmed.
　　'No. But that's no reason why he shouldn't beware of one,' grinned Jock. 'So long! Have a niceday!'
　　The three left him, and strolled over to Cecil, who had just appeared out of a dark little shed. Hemade a face at them, and stood ready to run to the dairy where Mrs. Andrews was busy.
　　Julian suddenly clutched Dick and pointed¹² behind Cecil. The bull! Beware of the bull!' he yelledsuddenly.
　　Dick entered into the joke. The bull's loose! Look out! Beware of the bull!' he shouted.
　　Anne gave a shriek¹³. It all sounded so real that, although she knew it was a joke, she felt half-scared. The bull!' she cried.
　　Cecil turned green. His legs shook. 'W-w-w-where is it?' he stammered¹⁴.
　　'Look out behind you!' yelled Julian, pointing. Poor Cecil, convinced that a large bull was aboutto pounce¹⁵ on him from behind, gave an anguished¹⁶ cry and tore on tottering¹⁷ legs to the dairy. Hethrew himself against Mrs. Andrews.
　　'Save me, save me! The bull's chasing me.'
　　'But there's no bull here,' said Mrs. Andrews, in surprise. 'Really, Cecil! Was it a pig after you, orsomething?'
　　Helpless with laughter, the three children made their way back to George. They tried to tell herabout the make-believe bull, but she turned away and wouldn't listen. Julian shrugged¹⁸ hisshoulders. Best to leave George to herself when she was in one of her rages! She didn't lose hertemper as often as she used to, but when she did she was very trying indeed.
　　They went back to the camp with the basket of food. Timmy followed soberly. He knewsomething was wrong with George and he was unhappy. His tail was down, and he lookedmiserable. George wouldn't even pat him.
　　62
　　When they got back to the camp, George flared²⁰ up.
　　'How dare you go off without me when I told you I meant to come? Fancy taking Jock and notletting me go! I think you're absolute beasts. I never really thought you'd do a thing like that, youand Dick.'
　　'Don't be silly, George,' said Julian. 'I told you we didn't mean to let you and Anne go. I'll tellyou all that happened - and it's pretty thrilling!'
　　'What? Tell me quickly!' begged Anne, but George obstinately²¹ turned away her head as if shewas not interested.
　　Julian began to relate all the curious happenings of the night. Anne listened breathlessly. Georgewas listening too, though she pretended not to. She was very angry and very hurt.
　　'Well, there you are,' said Julian, when he had finished. 'If that's what people mean by spook-trains, there was one puffing²³ in and out of that tunnel all right! I felt pretty scared, I can tell you.
　　Sorry you weren't there too, George - but I didn't want to leave Anne alone.'
　　George was not accepting any apologies. She still looked furious.
　　'I suppose Timmy went with you,' she said. 'I think that was horrid²⁴ of him - to go without wakingme, when he knew I'd like to be with you on the adventure.'
　　'Oh, don't be so silly,' said Dick, in disgust. 'Fancy being angry with old Tim, too! You're makinghim miserable¹⁹. And anyway, he didn't come with us. He just came to meet us when we got back,and then went off to keep Jock company on his way back to the farm.'
　　'Oh,' said George, and she reached out her hand to pat Timmy, who was filled with delight. 'Atleast Timmy was loyal to me then. That's something.'
　　There was a silence. Nobody ever knew quite how to treat George when she was in one of hermoods. It was really best to leave her to herself, but they couldn't very well go off and leave thecamp just because George was there, cross and sulky.
　　Anne took hold of George's arm. She was miserable when George behaved like this. 'George,'
　　she began, 'there's no need to be cross with me, too. I haven't done anything!'
　　'If you weren't such a little coward, too afraid to go with us, I'd have been able to go too,' saidGeorge unkindly, dragging her arm away.
　　Julian was disgusted. He saw Anne's hurt face and was angry with George.
　　'Shut up, George,' he said. 'You're being horrid, saying catty things like that! I'm astonished atyou.'
　　63
　　George was ashamed of herself, but she was too proud to say so. She glared at Julian.
　　'And I'm astonished at you,' she said. 'After all the adventures we've had together, you try to keepme out of this one. But you will let me come next time, won't you, Julian?'
　　'What! After your frightful behaviour today?' said Julian, who could be just as obstinate²² asGeorge when he wanted to. 'Certainly not. This is my adventure and Dick's - and perhaps Jock's.
　　Not yours or Anne's.'
　　He got up and stalked down the hill with Dick. George sat pulling bits of heather off the stems,looking mutinous²⁵ and angry. Anne blinked back tears. She hated this sort of thing. She got up toget dinner ready. Perhaps after a good meal they would all feel better.
　　Mr. Luffy was sitting outside his tent, reading. He had already seen the children that morning. Helooked up, smiling.
　　'Hallo! Come to talk to me?'
　　'Yes,' said Julian, an idea uncurling itself in his mind. 'Could I have a look at that map of yours,Mr. Luffy? The big one you've got showing every mile of these moorlands?'
　　'Of course. It's in the tent somewhere,' said Mr. Luffy.
　　The boys found it and opened it. Dick at once guessed why Julian wanted it. Mr. Luffy went onreading.
　　'It shows the railways that run under the moorlands too, doesn't it?' said Julian. Mr. Luffynodded.
　　'Yes. There are quite a few lines. I suppose it was easier to tunnel under the moors from valley tovalley rather than make a permanent way over the top of them. In any case, a railway over themoors would probably be completely snowed up in the wintertime.'
　　The boys bent²⁶ their heads over the big map; it showed the railways as dotted lines when theywent underground, but by long black lines when they appeared in the open air, in the variousvalleys.
　　They found exactly where they were. Then Julian's finger ran down the map a little and came towhere a small line showed itself at the end of a dotted line.
　　He looked at Dick, who nodded. Yes - that showed where the tunnel was, out of which the'spook-train' had come, and the lines to the deserted²⁷ yard. Julian's finger went back from the yardto the tunnel, where the dotted lines began. His finger traced the dotted lines a little way till theybecame whole lines again. That was where the train came out into another valley!
　　64
　　Then his finger showed where the tunnel that led from the yard appeared to join up with anotherone, that also ran for some distance before coming out into yet another valley. The boys lookedat one another in silence.
　　Mr. Luffy suddenly spotted²⁸ a day-flying moth² and got up to follow it. The boys took the chanceof talking to one another.
　　'The spook-train either runs through its own tunnel to the valley beyond - or it turns off into thisfork and runs along to the other valley,' said Julian, in a low voice. 'I tell you what we'll do, Dick.
　　We'll get Mr. Luffy to run us down to the nearest town to buy something - and we'll slip along tothe station there and see if we can't make a few inquiries²⁹ about these two tunnels. We may findout something.'
　　'Good idea,' said Dick, as Mr. Luffy came back. 'I say, sir, are you very busy today? Could youpossibly run us down to the nearest town after dinner?'
　　'Certainly, certainly,' said Mr. Luffy, amiably³⁰. The boys looked at one another in delight. Nowthey might find out something! But they wouldn't take George with them. No - they wouldpunish her for her bad temper by leaving her behind!

1 whacks   

n.重击声( whack的名词复数 )；不正常；有毛病v.重击，使劲打( whack的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Lizzie Borden took an axe, Hit her father forty whacks. 丽兹玻顿拿起斧头，砍了爸爸四十下。 来自互联网
• Grizzly bear paw whacks camera out of position and jettisons it downstream. 大灰熊的爪子把摄像机移出了固定的位置并且把它扔到了下游。 来自互联网

2 moth   

n.蛾，蛀虫

参考例句：

• A moth was fluttering round the lamp.有一只蛾子扑打着翅膀绕着灯飞。
• The sweater is moth-eaten.毛衣让蛀虫咬坏了。

3 smack   

vt.拍，打，掴；咂嘴；vi.含有…意味；n.拍

参考例句：

• She gave him a smack on the face.她打了他一个嘴巴。
• I gave the fly a smack with the magazine.我用杂志拍了一下苍蝇。

4 smacked   

拍，打，掴( smack的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He smacked his lips but did not utter a word. 他吧嗒两下嘴，一声也不言语。
• She smacked a child's bottom. 她打孩子的屁股。

5 moors   

v.停泊，系泊（船只）( moor的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• the North York moors 北约克郡的漠泽
• They're shooting grouse up on the moors. 他们在荒野射猎松鸡。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 scramble   

v.爬行，攀爬，杂乱蔓延，碎片，片段，废料

参考例句：

• He broke his leg in his scramble down the wall.他爬墙摔断了腿。
• It was a long scramble to the top of the hill.到山顶须要爬登一段长路。

7 beads   

n.（空心）小珠子( bead的名词复数 )；水珠；珠子项链

参考例句：

• a necklace of wooden beads 一条木珠项链
• Beads of perspiration stood out on his forehead. 他的前额上挂着汗珠。

8 jigsaw   

n.缕花锯，竖锯，拼图游戏；vt.用竖锯锯，使互相交错搭接

参考例句：

• A jigsaw puzzle can keep me absorbed for hours.一副拼图就能让我沉醉几个小时。
• Tom likes to work on jigsaw puzzles,too.汤姆也喜欢玩拼图游戏。

9 giggled   

v.咯咯地笑( giggle的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The girls giggled at the joke. 女孩子们让这笑话逗得咯咯笑。
• The children giggled hysterically. 孩子们歇斯底里地傻笑。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 streaks   

n.（与周围有所不同的）条纹( streak的名词复数 )；（通常指不好的）特征（倾向）；（不断经历成功或失败的）一段时期v.快速移动( streak的第三人称单数 )；使布满条纹

参考例句：

• streaks of grey in her hair 她头上的绺绺白发
• Bacon has streaks of fat and streaks of lean. 咸肉中有几层肥的和几层瘦的。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

11 frightful   

adj.可怕的；讨厌的

参考例句：

• How frightful to have a husband who snores!有一个发鼾声的丈夫多讨厌啊！
• We're having frightful weather these days.这几天天气坏极了。

12 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

13 shriek   

v./n.尖叫，叫喊

参考例句：

• Suddenly he began to shriek loudly.突然他开始大声尖叫起来。
• People sometimes shriek because of terror,anger,or pain.人们有时会因为恐惧，气愤或疼痛而尖叫。

14 stammered   

v.结巴地说出( stammer的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He stammered most when he was nervous. 他一紧张往往口吃。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Barsad leaned back in his chair, and stammered, \"What do you mean?\" 巴萨往椅背上一靠，结结巴巴地说，“你是什么意思？” 来自英汉文学 - 双城记

15 pounce   

n.猛扑；v.猛扑，突然袭击，欣然同意

参考例句：

• Why do you pounce on every single thing I say?干吗我说的每句话你都要找麻烦？
• We saw the tiger about to pounce on the goat.我们看见老虎要向那只山羊扑过去。

16 anguished   

adj.极其痛苦的v.使极度痛苦(anguish的过去式)

参考例句：

• Desmond eyed her anguished face with sympathy. 看着她痛苦的脸，德斯蒙德觉得理解。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The loss of her husband anguished her deeply. 她丈夫的死亡使她悲痛万分。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

17 tottering   

adj.蹒跚的，动摇的v.走得或动得不稳( totter的现在分词 )；踉跄；蹒跚；摇摇欲坠

参考例句：

• the tottering walls of the castle 古城堡摇摇欲坠的墙壁
• With power and to spare we must pursue the tottering foe. 宜将剩勇追穷寇。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

18 shrugged   

vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• Sam shrugged and said nothing. 萨姆耸耸肩膀，什么也没说。
• She shrugged, feigning nonchalance. 她耸耸肩，装出一副无所谓的样子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

19 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。

20 Flared   

adj. 端部张开的, 爆发的, 加宽的, 漏斗式的 动词flare的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The match flared and went out. 火柴闪亮了一下就熄了。
• The fire flared up when we thought it was out. 我们以为火已经熄灭，但它突然又燃烧起来。

21 obstinately   

ad.固执地，顽固地

参考例句：

• He obstinately asserted that he had done the right thing. 他硬说他做得对。
• Unemployment figures are remaining obstinately high. 失业数字仍然顽固地居高不下。

22 obstinate   

adj.顽固的，倔强的，不易屈服的，较难治愈的

参考例句：

• She's too obstinate to let anyone help her.她太倔强了，不会让任何人帮她的。
• The trader was obstinate in the negotiation.这个商人在谈判中拗强固执。

23 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》

24 horrid   

adj.可怕的；令人惊恐的；恐怖的；极讨厌的

参考例句：

• I'm not going to the horrid dinner party.我不打算去参加这次讨厌的宴会。
• The medicine is horrid and she couldn't get it down.这种药很难吃，她咽不下去。

25 mutinous   

adj.叛变的，反抗的；adv.反抗地，叛变地；n.反抗，叛变

参考例句：

• The mutinous sailors took control of the ship.反叛的水手们接管了那艘船。
• His own army,stung by defeats,is mutinous.经历失败的痛楚后，他所率军队出现反叛情绪。

26 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。

27 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。

28 spotted   

adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的

参考例句：

• The milkman selected the spotted cows,from among a herd of two hundred.牛奶商从一群200头牛中选出有斑点的牛。
• Sam's shop stocks short spotted socks.山姆的商店屯积了有斑点的短袜。

29 inquiries   

n.调查( inquiry的名词复数 )；疑问；探究；打听

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending further inquiries. 他获得保释，等候进一步调查。
• I have failed to reach them by postal inquiries. 我未能通过邮政查询与他们取得联系。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

30 amiably   

adv.和蔼可亲地，亲切地

参考例句：

• She grinned amiably at us. 她咧着嘴向我们亲切地微笑。
• Atheists and theists live together peacefully and amiably in this country. 无神论者和有神论者在该国和睦相处。 来自《简明英汉词典》