6. A NEW HOME.

 1. Poor Betty had plenty of time to think over all her troubles. But after two or three days she heard a sound which made her feel very happy.

 

2. It was the voice of her old friend the[Pg 125] coachman, who had come to fetch her away. She cackled to him in a most loving way; but, alas¹! the coachman had nothing to say to her.

 

3. He was cross and sulky because Betty had not won a prize.

 

"Poor thing!" said the cook when Betty[Pg 126] got home, "what an object she looks to be sure! She is as light as a feather.

 

4. "The mother that hatched her won't know her again. I declare that I don't believe this is our Betty at all, but some old rubbish of a bird they have sent us instead!"

 

5. "Oh yes," said her mistress, coming up to look, "it is our Betty. But I beg of you to get rid of her at once. I cannot bear the sight of her after thinking she would get a prize."

 

6. "Shall I step out and do it at once?" said the cook, calmly.

 

"No, no!" said the mistress. "Do not kill her. Give her away. She will be a useful hen to some one else, and is sure to lay plenty of eggs."

 

"Very good, ma'am," replied the cook.

 

7. There was no washing this time before Betty was sent away. That was one comfort. She was huddled², just as she was, into a hamper³, and sent as a present to a friend of the cook.

 

8. This friend was the wife of a farmer, and she was such a kind, good, rosy⁴, happy,[Pg 127] pleasant woman, that it was quite a treat to look at her. She lived about five miles from Betty's old home.

 

9. The large farm-yard into which Betty now stepped from her hamper, was like a new world to her. She began at once to dig with those of her sharp claws which were left.

 

10. And finding chalk like that which had been under the soil at home, she nodded her head and chuckled⁵, for she was pleased. No hen can be happy without chalk, after she is old enough to lay eggs.

 

11. She knew that the yard in which she now was, would be a fine place for her young brood. They would not be likely to get the cramp⁶ or catch colds.

 

12. The fowl-house was built on a gentle slope, and below, at some little distance, was a pond with two or three green islands in the middle of it. Here some water birds, such as Betty had never seen before, were paddling about.

 

13. She could not think how they did it. The yard had good shelter from rough,[Pg 128] cold winds, for a fir wood was at the back of it. And the houses for cattle and horses stood with their backs to it on two sides.

 

14. The houses where the hens were to sit on their eggs, were sprinkled with chalk laid over dry coal ashes. This was to keep the floor clean and wholesome⁷.

 

They were swept out often. The perches⁸ for roosting were not thin sticks, but nice stout⁹ boughs¹⁰ of trees, so that the feet could clasp them without slipping.

 

Write: The new home to which Betty was sent pleased her. She thought that she should soon forget her sorrows. The fowl-house was nice and clean.

 

Questions: 1. To whom was Betty sent? 2. What sort of woman was the farmer's wife? 3. When Betty stepped out of her hamper what did she begin to do? 4. What did she find? 5. What was the hen-house like?

1 alas   

int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等)

参考例句：

• Alas!The window is broken!哎呀！窗子破了！
• Alas,the truth is less romantic.然而，真理很少带有浪漫色彩。

2 huddled   

挤在一起（huddle的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• We huddled together for warmth. 我们挤在一块取暖。
• We huddled together to keep warm. 我们挤在一起来保暖。

3 hamper   

vt.妨碍，束缚，限制；n.(有盖的)大篮子

参考例句：

• There are some apples in a picnic hamper.在野餐用的大篮子里有许多苹果。
• The emergence of such problems seriously hamper the development of enterprises.这些问题的出现严重阻碍了企业的发展。

4 rosy   

adj.美好的，乐观的，玫瑰色的

参考例句：

• She got a new job and her life looks rosy.她找到一份新工作，生活看上去很美好。
• She always takes a rosy view of life.她总是对生活持乐观态度。

5 chuckled   

轻声地笑( chuckle的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She chuckled at the memory. 想起这件事她就暗自发笑。
• She chuckled softly to herself as she remembered his astonished look. 想起他那惊讶的表情，她就轻轻地暗自发笑。

6 cramp   

n.痉挛；[pl.](腹)绞痛；vt.限制，束缚

参考例句：

• Winston stopped writing,partly because he was suffering from cramp.温斯顿驻了笔，手指也写麻了。
• The swimmer was seized with a cramp and had to be helped out of the water.那个在游泳的人突然抽起筋来，让别人帮着上了岸。

7 wholesome   

adj.适合；卫生的；有益健康的；显示身心健康的

参考例句：

• In actual fact the things I like doing are mostly wholesome.实际上我喜欢做的事大都是有助于增进身体健康的。
• It is not wholesome to eat without washing your hands.不洗手吃饭是不卫生的。

8 perches   

栖息处( perch的名词复数 )； 栖枝； 高处； 鲈鱼

参考例句：

• Other protection can be obtained by providing wooden perches througout the orchards. 其它保护措施是可在种子园中到处设置木制的栖木。
• The birds were hopping about on their perches and twittering. 鸟儿在栖木上跳来跳去，吱吱地叫着。

9   

参考例句：

10 boughs   

大树枝( bough的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The green boughs glittered with all their pearls of dew. 绿枝上闪烁着露珠的光彩。
• A breeze sighed in the higher boughs. 微风在高高的树枝上叹息着。