时间:2018-12-31 作者:英语课 分类:13 Snowbound Mystery


英语课

At last the Aldens saw the store. There were a few small houses on the other side of the store.



Jessie looked down the road. She said, “This looks like a small village.”



Benny read the sign:



NELSON’S STORE



He said, “I think the Nelsons must live upstairs over the store.”



“I think so, too,” said Jessie. “See the white curtains?”



“I suppose people shop here who live nearby and don’t want to drive into Greenfield,” Henry said.



The Aldens went in. When they opened the door, a bell rang. But the storeman did not need the bell to tell him someone was coming. He was right behind the counter 1.



The Aldens didn’t know what they had expected to see. But the Nelson family certainly surprised them.



Mr. Nelson was young, for one thing. Henry thought he looked almost as if he were still in college. He was handsome, with brown hair and brown eyes. Although he was tall and slender 2, he looked strong. Best of all was his smile.



“I’m glad to see visitors,” he said to the Aldens. “I’m Tom Nelson. It gets lonesome here when summer is over. Not many customers.”



“Our name is Alden,” said Henry.



“Oh, yes, I heard you were coming. I have met your grandfather,” the young man said. “He’s a fine gentleman.”



“Yes, he is,” said Benny. “I’m Benny, and this is Watch. Do you allow dogs in your store?”



“It all depends on the dog,” said Mr. Nelson, laughing. “Your dog seems to have good manners 3.”



Watch was sitting down just inside the door, because Jessie had trained him that way. Once in a while he wiggled his nose and sniffed 4 because a wonderful smell of baking filled the air.



“We are living in the hunters’ cabin 5,” said Jessie.



“Fine,” said the man. “I’ll be glad to help you out in any way I can.”



Just then a nice looking young woman with a little boy of about five appeared from behind a curtain.



“Puggsy!” cried Benny.



“How’d you know my name?” asked Puggsy, going right over to Benny. “I don’t know you.”



“We saw your name in the Visitors’ Book in the cabin,” explained Jessie. Then she was surprised to see Mrs. Nelson turn red and look at her husband.



The young man said, “Yes, we go up there once in a while. It’s a change and very quiet.”



“I should think you’d go to town instead,” said Benny, “if you want a change. The cabin is even lonesomer than the store.”



The young man didn’t seem to know what to say to this. He stood on one foot and then on the other. Then he turned around and took down a jar of pickles 6, and then he put it back on the shelf.



“We’d like to buy those pickles,” said Jessie. “We all like sweet pickles and we didn’t bring any.”



Puggsy reached up and took hold of Benny’s hand. “We look and look at the cabin. We look—”



His mother said, “Puggsy, come here and let me fix your shirt.”



Jessie said, as if nothing had happened, “We just used up a can of tuna fish and we ought to get another.” She looked at her list.



“Barbara,” said Mr. Nelson, “please get the tuna for Miss Alden. It’s on your side.”



Barbara Nelson seemed glad to do this. As she turned her back, she said, “You people look around the store. You may see something else you need.”



“I know what you need,” said Puggsy. “You need some buns 7.”



“Oh, yes!” said Mr. Nelson. “Puggsy’s right. They are very good. Very good indeed. But—”



“But what?” asked Benny.



“Well, nothing. I just could make them better than I do. My father and grandfather were both bakers 9. They made the best buns in the world.”



“You like to cook, don’t you?” asked Jessie. She liked it, too, and she noticed how Mr. Nelson smiled when he talked about it.



Mrs. Nelson answered for him. Mr. Nelson seemed to be dreaming about something. “Yes, Tom loves to cook. He’s a born baker 8. He is never so happy as when he is making bread, pies, cookies, and cake. Buns are what he most likes to bake.”



“I like to bake, too,” said Puggsy.



His mother laughed. “Yes, he really does. He can make nice round buns all by himself.”



Puggsy took Benny’s hand. “I like you, Benny,” he said. “You’re so nice. You ought to buy some of my mother’s beef stew 10. It goes good with buns.”



“Goes well with buns, Puggsy,” said his mother.



“Well, it means 11 just the same,” said Puggsy. “My father’s buns have raisins 12 in them. And my mother’s stew has onions in it.”



“Let’s try them both,” said Henry. “The stew and the buns. Jessie’s the cook, so she can decide.”



“Yes, let’s have some stew and buns,” agreed Jessie.



“I’m sure you will like the stew,” said Mrs. Nelson. “I put it up in glass jars. You’ll need a quart 13.”



When Benny saw the onions and tiny carrots, he said, “I think we need two quarts 14, Jessie.”



“Yes, maybe we do. The Aldens are all good eaters. We are going to make a fire tonight in the fireplace 15, and we’ll heat the stew on our oilstove.”



“Do you have plenty of wood for the fireplace?” asked Mr. Nelson. “When we were there the last time, we left quite a big pile.”



“Yes, we are grateful 16 for it,” said Henry. “When we do go home for good, we will leave some, too.”



“It’s a good cabin,” said Barbara. “We like it so much. Now, don’t you want a bag for these glass jars?”



“No, we have our knapsacks,” said Violet 17. “Oh, there’s the sunflower seed! We want a bag of that, too. And look at the big red apples, Jessie!”



Jessie said, “Apples are good for dessert. They don’t have to be cooked. We’ll take a dozen.”



“What a load you have,” said Mr. Nelson.



“Well, there are four of us,” said Henry.



“Please don’t go, Benny,” said Puggsy.



“I’m sorry. We have to go,” said Benny. “We have to make a bird feeder.”



Mrs. Nelson put her hand gently on her little boy’s head. She said, “Don’t tease 18 them. They have a long walk back to the cabin. Now, I have put the buns in this little basket with a handle. You don’t need to bring it back. I have several. The heavy things will hurt the soft buns.”



“You are so kind, Mrs. Nelson,” said Jessie. “We’ll come again soon.”



When the Aldens were out of sight of the store, Benny said suddenly, “Let’s stop here a minute and talk. The only thing I can think of is Mrs. Nelson stopping Puggsy when he said, ‘We look and look.’”



Henry nodded. “Right, Ben. There is some mystery here, I’m sure of it.”



“Me, too,” said Jessie. “It is strange, isn’t it? They are such friendly people. But I am sure they are hiding something.”



Violet said, “I think so, too.”



“Well,” said Benny, “if you all agree with me that something is wrong, we can go along to our cabin. Then we’ll have lots of time to talk. We have two and a half miles to walk.”



It was rather late when they reached the cabin.



“It seems to take longer to get home,” said Benny.



“It does seem like home,” Violet said, going in.



Jessie said, “We always feel at home in our new places, don’t we? Just think of the many places where we have lived! And we enjoyed them all.”



“That’s because we were all together,” said Benny. “Let’s have supper.”



“Oh, Benny! But I guess you’re right,” said Jessie. “We haven’t many dishes. I’ll have to find something for the bird feeder.”



“No,” said Benny. “Take the little basket with the handle. Hang it on the tree.”



“Of course!” replied Jessie. She filled it with the sunflower seed. Henry and Benny walked way around the house, because there was no back door. They hung the basket on a low branch of the tree where everyone could see it from the window.



Jessie and Violet were bending over looking at their cooking dishes. “Here’s a tin saucepan for the stew,” said Jessie. “But it’s the only one. There is no other cooking dish but the frying pan 19.”



Violet found one blue bowl, one large white cup, one vegetable dish, and one soup plate.



“That’s fine, Violet,” said Jessie, laughing. “It’s more fun. We each have a dish of some kind, anyway. We’ll give Benny the big vegetable dish and I’ll take the cup. But I’ll fill mine twice.”



Henry sat in a chair and rubbed the red apples until they shone. “We’ll have to hurry with supper,” he said. “It’s getting dark.”



“We’ve got lanterns, Henry,” said Benny.



“After supper we’ll build a fire in the fireplace,” said Henry. “Then we can sit around the fire and talk, and the fire will keep us warm all night.”



They sat down at the table and Jessie put a different dish before each one. Near the middle of the table were a dozen buns.



The stew was delicious. The Aldens talked while they ate.



“Look what’s on our bird feeder,” said Benny. It was a big gray squirrel 20.



“Oh, dear!” said Jessie. “I have heard that squirrels 21 scare 22 away birds.”



Violet said, “I have heard that squirrels are simply terrible if they get into a house. We’ll have to be careful to keep the door shut.”



Henry banged 23 on the window, but the squirrel just sat and looked at him.



“He’s clever, though,” said Benny. “See him sit still, just as if he’s frozen 24. He doesn’t move at all.”



Soon the supper was all gone. Only the apples were left. Henry started to build a fire in the fireplace. He used some pine cones 25, then some small wood, and last of all, two big sticks on top. The fire burned well at once with a fine blaze 26.



“Now, let’s talk about the Nelsons,” Henry said. “I think they come here often to hunt for something.”



“That’s what I think,” said Benny. “That’s what Puggsy said. Only he said ‘look’ instead of ‘hunt.’ It means the same to me.”



Jessie said, “And his mother tried to stop him. That’s really why we noticed it so much.”



The Aldens talked and talked as they ate the red apples. When it was really dark outside, Henry put a fire screen up in front of the fire, and they all crawled 27 into their sleeping bags, which were spread on their bunks 28.



“Nice and warm, Henry?” asked Benny. “I’m asleep already.”



Henry didn’t answer. He was already asleep.



They all slept soundly for a few hours. Then one by one they woke up. There was a funny scratching 29 noise on the roof over their heads. Watch began to bark. Then something ran overhead 30. Watch ran around wildly, barking and barking.



Benny said, “Now, what’s that?”



Henry called out, “Jessie! Violet! Are you girls all right? Don’t be afraid!”



“What’s the matter?” called Jessie.



“I don’t know yet,” said Henry. “But we’ll find out.”



n.柜台;计数器;adj.相反的;adv.与…相反地;vt.反对,反击;vi.反对,反击
  • This counter is closed now.这个柜台现在已停止营业。
  • Set the counter to zero and you'll know where the recording starts.把计数器拨到零,你就会知道录音从哪儿开始。
adj.苗条的,修长的;微薄的,微弱的
  • Everybody of us admired her slender figure.我们人人都羡慕她的苗条身材。
  • The girl was pretty and slender.那姑娘长得美丽苗条。
n.礼貌;规矩
  • You should mend your manners.你的态度应当纠正。
  • His manners are rough,but he is a kind man at heart.他虽然举止粗鲁,但心地善良。
v.以鼻吸气,嗅,闻( sniff的过去式和过去分词 );抽鼻子(尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气);抱怨,不以为然地说
  • When Jenney had stopped crying she sniffed and dried her eyes. 珍妮停止了哭泣,吸了吸鼻子,擦干了眼泪。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The dog sniffed suspiciously at the stranger. 狗疑惑地嗅着那个陌生人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
n.(结构简单的)小木屋;船舱,机舱
  • They threw up a new cabin in a couple of hours.在几小时之内他们就建起了一座新的小屋。
  • It's very hot in the cabin;let's go on deck.舱室内很热,我们到甲板上去吧。
n.腌菜( pickle的名词复数 );处于困境;遇到麻烦;菜酱
  • Most people eat pickles at breakfast. 大多数人早餐吃腌菜。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • I want their pickles and wines, and that.' 我要他们的泡菜、美酒和所有其他东西。” 来自英汉文学 - 金银岛
n.圆形的小面包或点心( bun的名词复数 );(女子的)圆发髻
  • The steamed buns fresh from the steamer were nice and warm. 刚出锅的馒头真热火。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • The steamed buns are cold; let's heat them up. 馒头凉了,縢一縢吧。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
n.面包师
  • The baker bakes his bread in the bakery.面包师在面包房内烤面包。
  • The baker frosted the cake with a mixture of sugar and whites of eggs.面包师在蛋糕上撒了一层白糖和蛋清的混合料。
n.面包师( baker的名词复数 );面包店;面包店店主;十三
  • The Bakers have invited us out for a meal tonight. 贝克一家今晚请我们到外面去吃饭。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The bakers specialize in catering for large parties. 那些面包师专门负责为大型宴会提供食品。 来自《简明英汉词典》
n.炖汤,焖,烦恼;v.炖汤,焖,忧虑
  • The stew must be boiled up before serving.炖肉必须煮熟才能上桌。
  • There's no need to get in a stew.没有必要烦恼。
n.方法,手段,折中点,物质财富
  • That man used artful means to find out secrets.那人使用狡猾的手段获取机密。
  • We must get it done by some means or other.我们总得想办法把它干完。
n.葡萄干( raisin的名词复数 )
  • These raisins come from Xinjiang,they taste delicious. 这些葡萄干产自新疆,味道很甜。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Mother put some raisins in the cake. 母亲在糕饼中放了一些葡萄干。 来自辞典例句
n.夸脱(液量、干量单位)
  • There is a quart of milk left in the pail.桶里还剩下一夸脱牛奶。
  • That glass will contain a quart of beer.那个杯子可容一夸脱啤酒。
夸脱(液体或固体的容积单位)( quart的名词复数 ); 金矿
  • A gallon contains four quarts. 一加仑相当于四夸脱。
  • Susie cried quarts, I know she did. 苏姗泪流满面,我知道她会这样的。
n.壁炉,炉灶
  • The fireplace smokes badly.这壁炉冒烟太多。
  • I think we should wall up the fireplace.我想应该封住壁炉。
adj.感谢的,感激的,受欢迎的,表示谢意的
  • If you will help us, we shall be very grateful.如果你愿意帮助我们,我们会很感激你。
  • He closed his letter with expression of grateful thanks.他在那封信的结尾表达了自己的感激之情。
adj.紫色的;n.紫罗兰
  • She likes to wear violet dresses.他喜欢穿紫色的衣服。
  • Violet is the color of wisdom,peace and strength.紫色是智慧的,和平的和力量的颜色。
vt.戏弄,取笑,挑逗,撩拨;n.戏弄人者
  • The other boys tease him because he is fat.因为他很胖,所以其他男生都取笑他。
  • His friends used to tease him about his tatty clothes.他的朋友过去常常笑话他破旧的衣服。
n.平底锅;v.严厉批评
  • The water had all boiled away and the pan was burned.水煮干了,锅也烧坏了。
  • The eggs were frying in the pan.鸡蛋正在锅里煎。
n.松鼠,松鼠的毛皮;vt.贮藏以备用
  • The squirrel makes a store of nuts for the winter.松鼠贮藏坚果以备过冬。
  • A squirrel hoards nuts for the winter.松鼠为过冬贮藏坚果。
n.松鼠( squirrel的名词复数 )
  • Squirrels are arboreal creatures. 松鼠是栖于树上的动物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Red squirrels are now very rare in Britain. 红色松鼠在英国已十分罕见了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
vt.恐吓;vi.受惊吓
  • I like reading scare stories.我喜欢读恐怖故事。
  • The sound of the explosion gave me quite a scare.爆炸声把我吓了一跳。
vt.猛击,猛撞(bang的过去式与过去分词形式)
  • Two days after the accident she still looked pretty banged up. 事故过去两天后她看上去伤势仍然很重。
  • I've banged into the doorpost and hurt my arm. 我撞着了门柱,把臂伤了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
adj.冻结的,冰冻的
  • He was frozen to death on a snowing night.在一个风雪的晚上,他被冻死了。
  • The weather is cold and the ground is frozen.天寒地冻。
n.(人眼)圆锥细胞;圆锥体( cone的名词复数 );球果;圆锥形东西;(盛冰淇淋的)锥形蛋卷筒
  • In the pines squirrels commonly chew off and drop entire cones. 松树上的松鼠通常咬掉和弄落整个球果。 来自辞典例句
  • Many children would rather eat ice cream from cones than from dishes. 许多小孩喜欢吃蛋卷冰淇淋胜过盘装冰淇淋。 来自辞典例句
n.火焰,火堆,火光,火灾;vi.燃烧,着火
  • In a blaze of anger he shouted at them.他怒火中烧,对着他们大吼起来。
  • Dry wood makes a good blaze.干木燃起夺目的光焰。
v.爬( crawl的过去式和过去分词 );(昆虫)爬行;缓慢行进;巴结
  • They crawled along on their bellies. 他们匍匐前进。
  • She crawled onto the river bank and lay there gulping in air. 她爬上河岸,躺在那里喘着粗气。 来自《简明英汉词典》
n.(车、船等倚壁而设的)铺位( bunk的名词复数 );空话,废话v.(车、船等倚壁而设的)铺位( bunk的第三人称单数 );空话,废话
  • These bunks can tip up and fold back into the wall. 这些铺位可以翻起来并折叠收入墙内。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • At last they turned into their little bunks in the cart. 最后他们都钻进车内的小卧铺里。 来自辞典例句
刮痕
  • It wasn't easy scratching out a living in those hard times. 在那段艰难的日子里,糊口真不容易。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He has this irritating mannerism of constantly scratching his nose. 他老是挠鼻子,这个习惯真让人不舒服。 来自《简明英汉词典》
adj.在头顶上的,悬空的;n.间接开支
  • A number of birds are circling overhead.很多鸟在头顶上空盘旋。
  • Many stars overhead are invisible to the naked eye.天上的许多星星是肉眼看不到的。
学英语单词
.ttf files
abreauvoir
affix a seal
arborine
autopilot engage and trim indicator
bad copy
battery terminal
block macromolecule
body hoop
bottom gradient electrode system
bulb nose
c-legs
calcaneocuboid articulation
carrier solvent
chinny reckon
Co-ferol
Cohengua, R.
control register instruction
core maximum heat flux (density)
Cortadren
cotton trousers
coupled valve
cursarary
differential earnings from land
diluent modifier
double out
drop-in commercial
ecological climatology
El Orégano
expense not allocated
fermented tea
fertility of soil
frustillatim
fuel refuse-derived
graviditas tuboabdominalis
heading (hdg)
heating systems
hierarchy model
His bark is worse than his bite.
hoglike
hold-over
I/O mode
Ilheus encephalitis
indian chocolates
invoicings
Johnson, Jack
Karvezide
keep one's eye on
khairulins
kick starter spring
krasorskii's method
Kronig's method
lane cake
leptospira tarassovi
lifeline pistol
literary youth
lulita
mean deviations
mediamax
microwave power module
nested sink
noninterchangeable
NSOC
Nupasal
oleostrut
on line service provider
order of reactor
patio doors
perecs
polyphase converter
pound the pavement
proceeding with
program clarity
proper energy
rate of strain tensor
reducing acid radical
regional unconformity
remote operated
rheostatic type automatic power factor regulator
Rosenmmuller's gland
Rzhevsky
sanitary napkin
sea damage for seller's account
self-balancing type
sepr.
servo
set a clock
simple proposition
slicklines
snip-snap
social density
sphero-cylindrical lenticular
St Anthony
staphyloma
telecommunication networks
territorial division of labor
Themistian
turn volume
water trumpet
Wedge Mountain
zizanin
Zyryanskoye