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儿童英语读物 Benny Uncovers a Mystery CHAPTER 5 The Hidden House

时间:2017-07-04 08:46来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
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It was Wednesday morning, and Benny was busy unpacking1 notebooks and writing paper. Mr. Fogg came over to him.

“I have a delivery2 for Miss Douglas. It’s a special order, and she’s in a hurry for it. You know where Woodland Path is, don’t you? I don’t want you to waste time.”

Toni had given Benny directions. He started out on his bike, sure that he would have no trouble. But it seemed that Woodland Path was almost impossible to find.

Benny reached the woods quickly, but finding3 the Path was a different matter.

“This looks like a path,” Benny said out loud to himself. He took the box from his bike carrier4. He left his bike out of sight, but close to the path. He started to push tree branches and blackberry vines5 away from his face.

Several times Benny thought he must be on the wrong path. How could a small woman like Miss Douglas come through such a tangle6?

Just as he was thinking of turning back, he saw a house. It was not at all the kind of house he had expected to see. Could Miss Douglas live here?

Benny found that the path had taken him to the back door of the house. He followed a walk around to the front of the house. There he read the words “Woodland Path” carved on a small signboard hanging from a post. He saw a lane7 leading through the trees. The way he had come was probably a shortcut8, Benny thought.

Benny went to the front door. He had to make his delivery and get back to the store. He knocked at the screen door. He could see inside because the front door itself was open. In fact, he couldn’t help seeing inside.

What he saw amazed9 him. The living room was square, with a soft green carpet. Sun shining through a window lighted gold-and-white wallpaper. How could Miss Douglas dress so plainly when she lived in such a beautiful place?

Benny knocked again. He stepped back because he felt someone was watching him from behind a curtain. But no one came to the door.

“This is strange,” thought Benny. Then he was surprised to see a boy come around the corner of the house.

“She isn’t home,” the boy said, as if he knew what Benny was thinking. “Nobody’s home. You can leave the package by the door. It’ll be safe. I’ll tell her you left it. You’re from Furman’s Department Store, aren’t you?”

“Yes, but how did you know?” asked Benny. He felt taken by surprise, and he didn’t like it.

“Easy,” laughed the boy. “First, the box says ‘Furman’s’ in big letters. And second, she’s always getting things delivered here. Only the deliveryman usually comes down the lane.”

“I’ve got to get back,” Benny said, and looked at his watch. “I’m working. Thank you for helping10 me.”

“It’s OK,” the boy said. “Don’t worry about the box.” He sat down on the front step.

Benny walked around the house. When he was out of the boy’s sight, he ran down the path. As he picked up his bicycle he wondered if Toni knew what kind of house Miss Douglas had. And who was the boy? Benny wished he knew.

By the time Benny got back to the store, it was almost half past eleven.

“I thought we were going to close without you,” said Toni. “The store is only open half a day on Wednesdays. That makes up for the evening hours we have.”

Benny said, “I had forgotten all about that.”

“Your sisters are here,” Toni told him. “I think they’re shopping until you and Henry can go. Mr. Fogg has something he wants you to do. You’d better see him right away.”

Violet11 was on the second floor of the department store, looking at blouses. She was trying to find a blouse to wear with her new skirt.

She took a blouse off the rack12 and put it back. She was looking at a peach-colored one when she heard someone say, “No, no, my child, that style won’t do! And the color is all wrong.”

Violet turned around and faced a tiny woman. At first Violet wasn’t sure the woman was talking to her. But there was no one else in sight.

A salesclerk came over to help Violet. “This one should fit you, and it’s a good match for your skirt,” she said.

“No, don’t buy that blouse either,” said the small woman, who stepped between Violet and the salesclerk. “Not that blouse,” she repeated. “Look at those seams—that blouse won’t last more than a few washings.”

Violet didn’t know what to say. She could now see that the blouse was not well made. But why should anyone stop her from buying a blouse? And to look at this woman, no one would think she knew anything about clothes.

“Well, Miss Douglas, what should I get?” Violet asked, for by now she was sure who this was.

Maggie Douglas did not seem surprised that Violet knew her name. She just began talking, “You had the right idea in the first place. Get a pale lavender blouse to go with the darker lavender skirt. I’m surprised that Furman’s has been selling blouses that are so poor. I will have to talk to the manager about this.”

Just as suddenly as the woman had appeared, she was gone.

Violet looked at the salesclerk and they both laughed. Jessie heard the whole story when she joined her sister a few minutes later.

Jessie laughed, too. “I can see that the boys were telling the truth about Maggie Douglas. Let’s go downstairs and get the steam iron13. It will be a surprise for Mrs. McGregor when she comes back from vacation.”

Just as they reached the counter14 with the irons15, Violet tugged16 Jessie’s arm. “Look! There’s Miss Douglas. She’s the one talking to that man.”

The conversation grew louder. Miss Douglas was saying, “... but I want the Perfect toaster that does two slices, not this model that does four.”

“I’m sorry, it’s this or nothing,” said the man.

“You needn’t be rude with me, Mr. Fogg! If you really wanted to make a sale, you’d show me the catalog17. It has several kinds of two-slice toasters. But never mind. I’ll see if you’re in a better mood when I come to the store tomorrow.”

Jessie was going to ask about the steam irons when Benny came up the stairs with a package. “This is for your department, Mr. Fogg,” he said politely.

“No, Alden, you’ve made a mistake,” said Mr. Fogg impatiently18. “These are skillets, but they’re not electric ones. I wouldn’t have thought anyone with your family name would make a mistake like that. Take the box to the end of the next aisle19. You’ll see the right place.”

Benny didn’t say a word, but his cheeks were red.

The two sisters looked at each other.

A buzzer20 made a loud sound. The girls heard a nearby clerk say, “Ten minutes until closing time.”

“Let’s buy this iron,” said Violet, pointing to one on the counter.

“I’m not sure,” Jessie answered. “We’ll have to talk to Mr. Fogg.” She quickly ran to where Mr. Fogg was standing21. She did not let his cross look stop her from asking, “Can you help us choose an iron?”

“No, young lady. It’s closing time. I have to close out my sales book, and you should be leaving the store.” And with that, Mr. Fogg walked away.

Jessie turned around helplessly22 and started to walk back toward23 Violet. Mr. Furman came up to her and asked, “Do you need some help?”

“I guess it is pretty late to be shopping, but I do want to get a new steam iron today,” Jessie explained.

“That’s no problem,” said Mr. Furman. “Here’s your brother Henry. I’ll send him down for a new iron that just came this morning. You’d do me a favor24 to test it.”

Benny was waiting near the front of the store.

Mr. Furman laughed. “It takes the whole Alden family to make a purchase.”

Jessie paid for the steam iron and the Aldens were on their way home.

“I must say your Mr. Fogg is difficult,” said Jessie. “But I can see that Miss Douglas is even more of a character. Things can’t be dull at the store.”

“That’s for sure,” said Benny. “I like the work. I never know what will happen next. Most of the people have been pleasant, even when I make mistakes. They know I haven’t worked at the store very long and it’s easy to forget things. But you know, I never knew there were any problems in a department store. I thought the manager just ordered things and the customers came in to buy them.”

Jessie nodded. “I guess you have to work at a job before you know how much there is to it.”

“You can see Mr. Fogg is always grumpy,” Benny added25. “I’m not going to let him get me down, though. That might ruin my appetite26, and it’s lunchtime.”

The other Aldens laughed. They knew that it would take much more than Mr. Fogg to stop Benny from being hungry.

While he ate lunch, Benny thought about Miss Douglas and her house in the woods and about the boy he had met. Were these all pieces in a puzzle? Benny couldn’t make up his mind. He decided27 to keep his eyes and ears open, but nothing happened during the rest of the week—nothing except that Benny and Henry got their first pay envelopes.

“Now this makes it a real job,” Benny said with a smile.


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 unpacking 4cd1f3e1b7db9c6a932889b5839cdd25     
n.取出货物,拆包[箱]v.从(包裹等)中取出(所装的东西),打开行李取出( unpack的现在分词 );拆包;解除…的负担;吐露(心事等)
参考例句:
  • Joe sat on the bed while Martin was unpacking. 马丁打开箱子取东西的时候,乔坐在床上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • They are unpacking a trunk. 他们正在打开衣箱。 来自《简明英汉词典》
2 delivery QxhxY     
n.交付;投递;分娩;解救者;演讲的风格
参考例句:
  • The strike caused a great delay in the delivery of the mail.这次罢工严重地延误了邮件的投递。
  • He was employed at the local grocery store as a delivery boy.他受雇于当地杂货店当送货员。
3 finding 5tAzVe     
n.发现,发现物;调查的结果
参考例句:
  • The finding makes some sense.该发现具有一定的意义。
  • That's an encouraging finding.这是一个鼓舞人心的发现。
4 carrier RTcyJ     
n.运货人;带菌者;运输军队的交通工具
参考例句:
  • The airplane lifted from the aircraft carrier.飞机从航空母舰上起飞。
  • I applied for the job as a mail carrier.我申请邮差的工作。
5 vines 54c9d645462eec110cb822b9be6a9056     
n.藤本植物,藤( vine的名词复数 );葡萄树
参考例句:
  • Melons grow on vines. 瓜长在藤上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Grape vines overarched the garden path. 葡萄藤在花园小路上方形成了拱形。 来自《简明英汉词典》
6 tangle yIQzn     
n.纠缠;缠结;混乱;v.(使)缠绕;变乱
参考例句:
  • I shouldn't tangle with Peter.He is bigger than me.我不应该与彼特吵架。他的块头比我大。
  • If I were you, I wouldn't tangle with them.我要是你,我就不跟他们争吵。
7 lane i2kxH     
n.(乡间)小路(巷);车(跑,泳)道;航道
参考例句:
  • There is a shop at the end of this lane.这条胡同的顶头有一家商店。
  • The champion is running in lane five.冠军跑在第五跑道上。
8 shortcut Cyswg     
n.近路,捷径
参考例句:
  • He was always looking for a shortcut to fame and fortune.他总是在找成名发财的捷径。
  • If you take the shortcut,it will be two li closer.走抄道去要近2里路。
9 amazed 9zYzBk     
adj.吃惊的,惊奇的v.使大为吃惊,使惊奇( amaze的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • Just the size of the place amazed her. 仅仅地方之大就使她十分惊奇。
  • I was amazed at her knowledge of French literature. 她的法国文学知识之丰富使我大为惊奇。
10 helping 2rGzDc     
n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的,辅助的
参考例句:
  • The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
  • By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。
11 violet 8h3wm     
adj.紫色的;n.紫罗兰
参考例句:
  • 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。
12 rack cAfzx     
n.挂架,搁架;vt.折磨;使紧张,使努力
参考例句:
  • He went over and took his jacket from the coat rack.到衣架上取外套。
  • The old house soon went to rack and ruin.这所旧房子很快就毁坏了。
13 iron raHzm     
n.铁,熨斗,坚强,烙铁,镣铐;vt.烫平,熨,用铁包;vi. 烫衣服
参考例句:
  • The iron has lost its magnetic force.这块铁已失去了磁力。
  • We need an electrician to mend the iron.我们要请电工修理熨斗。
14 counter Iznxc     
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
参考例句:
  • 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。
15 irons 102becf5fb0b651e48a4d766760e6809     
n.镣铐;铁( iron的名词复数 );坚强;铁器;铁制的工具v.熨平( iron的第三人称单数 );用鱼叉叉(鱼);用铁铸成;给…加铁具(以使牢固)
参考例句:
  • Some thieves have eaten off their irons with mercury water. 有些窃贼用汞水腐蚀他们的镣铐。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • What caused the price of irons to slump? 钢铁价格暴跌是什么原因? 来自《简明英汉词典》
16 tugged 8a37eb349f3c6615c56706726966d38e     
v.用力拉,使劲拉,猛扯( tug的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She tugged at his sleeve to get his attention. 她拽了拽他的袖子引起他的注意。
  • A wry smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. 他的嘴角带一丝苦笑。 来自《简明英汉词典》
17 catalog ATwyT     
n.目录(册)vt.将…编入目录,将…编目
参考例句:
  • Can you catalog all these books?你能给所有这些书编目录吗?
  • You can look for the book in the library catalog.你可以在图书馆的图书目录上查找这本书。
18 impatiently gqnzdI     
adv.不耐烦地
参考例句:
  • Impatiently he cut short what I was telling him. 他不耐烦地打断了我的话。
  • The children wait impatiently for the vacation.孩子们焦急地等待着假期的来临。
19 aisle qxPz3     
n.(教堂、教室、戏院等里的)过道,通道
参考例句:
  • The aisle was crammed with people.过道上挤满了人。
  • The girl ushered me along the aisle to my seat.引座小姐带领我沿着通道到我的座位上去。
20 buzzer 2x7zGi     
n.蜂鸣器;汽笛
参考例句:
  • The buzzer went off at eight o'clock.蜂鸣器在8点钟时响了。
  • Press the buzzer when you want to talk.你想讲话的时候就按蜂鸣器。
21 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
参考例句:
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
22 helplessly 0rwzDn     
adv.无力地,无助地;无可奈何地;眼睁睁
参考例句:
  • His abrupt change of subject left her floundering helplessly. 他突然改变话题,使她茫然不知所措。
  • She watched helplessly as her husband was dragged away. 她眼睁睁地看着丈夫被拉走了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
23 toward on6we     
prep.对于,关于,接近,将近,向,朝
参考例句:
  • Suddenly I saw a tall figure approaching toward the policeman.突然间我看到一个高大的身影朝警察靠近。
  • Upon seeing her,I smiled and ran toward her. 看到她我笑了,并跑了过去。
24 favor ukXxv     
n.好感;赞同;好事;vt.赞同,喜爱;有利于
参考例句:
  • She is out of favor with her employer.她失去了雇主的欢心。
  • The new teacher finds favor in the eyes of the parents.那位新老师很受家长的欢迎。
25 added mzJzm0     
adj.更多的,附加的,额外的
参考例句:
  • They have added a new scene at the beginning.在开头他们又增加了一场戏。
  • The pop music added to our enjoyment of the film.片中的流行音乐使我们对这部电影更加喜爱。
26 appetite LvUzv     
n.食欲,胃口;欲望,性欲;爱好,趣味
参考例句:
  • The baby has a good appetite.这个婴儿食欲很好。
  • She feels pretty well,but she hasn't much of an appetite.她精神还不错,不过胃口不太好。
27 decided lvqzZd     
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。
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