-
(单词翻译:双击或拖选)
Benny was the first to glimpse the flatbed truck.
“It’s here!” he cried.
All the people who worked around the town square were on hand for the return of the stolen statue. Dawn Wellington and Mrs. Turner waited with the Aldens. Even Mr. Kirby came out for the event.
A cheer went up as the truck bumped over the curb1 and on into the square. Grandfather and Henry directed the truck to park next to the statue’s granite2 block base.
Rick Bass3 hopped4 out of the passenger side of the truck. “We’ll set the statue on the pavement,” he told Grandfather. “We’re going to fix Josiah’s base eventually. But at least he’s here for the festival.”
“And just in time,” Benny added. “The festival is tomorrow!”
Jessie hugged her notebook. So much had happened in the last few hours! Sylvia Pepper had confessed to stealing the Minuteman statue. Then the police took Miss Pepper away for questioning.
Rick Bass had spotted5 the statue when a policeman stopped Sylvia’s accomplice6 after he’d run a red light. Rick had called for a truck to bring the statue to the square.
Now Josiah Wade7 was back in his rightful place.
Jessie watched as Mr. Kirby and Henry helped Rick and the driver unload the statue off the truck bed. She wondered if the town would vote to move the statue or keep it in the center of the square. The Alden children would find out later, when they helped Grandfather count the votes.
When the men were about to hoist8 the statue upright, Benny scooted forward.
“Can you tip it up?” he asked. “I want to look for something.”
“Good thinking!” Rick said. “No better time to check for Franklin’s surprise.”
The driver braced9 his end of the statue. “We can hold it for a few seconds.”
Benny knelt down. The statue was hollow inside, like a giant chocolate bunny. Grandfather handed him a small flashlight. Benny shined the light inside the statue.
“See anything?” Violet asked.
“No,” Benny replied, disappointed.
“Oh, well,” Rick said consolingly. “We were never really certain Franklin Bond put his gift inside the statue. We were just guessing.”
“Franklin Bond liked to play jokes,” Henry said. “Maybe he just pretended to put a secret compartment10 in the statue.”
But Benny had been so sure. The statue was the perfect place to hide something.
The men lowered the statue and stood it upright beside the granite base. Grandfather gave the driver a generous tip before he drove the truck out of the town square.
“Now the square looks normal again.” Dawn sighed. “It just wasn’t the same without Josiah standing11 there.”
“Let’s hope Greenfield feels the same way you do,” said Grandfather. “I have the ballot12 box in my car. Why don’t you and Rick come home with us and help count votes?”
“Great idea!” Violet said. She was so glad Dawn hadn’t turned out to be the Greenfield phantom13.
Rick glanced at Dawn. “I’d like to, but we hate to impose.”
“Mrs. McGregor loves company,” Jessie assured them.
The Aldens got into Grandfather’s car. Rick and Dawn followed in Rick’s battered14 station wagon15.
The housekeeper16 was delighted to set two extra places at the dining room table. “It’s pot roast night,” said Mrs. McGregor to the guests. “There’s more than enough.”
While they ate pot roast, mashed17 potatoes, and carrots, they discussed Sylvia Pepper’s theft.
“I don’t see how she thought she could get away with it,” said Dawn. “What was she going to do with the statue after she stole it?”
“She probably never thought that far ahead,” said Grandfather. “People behave strangely when they need money.”
“I guess she was desperate to keep her shop,” Rick added, helping18 himself to another biscuit. “The florist19 shop will close now, for sure.”
Jessie passed Rick the butter. “Do you think Franklin Bond really put a secret compartment in his statue?”
“It sure seemed that way on the drawing,” Rick allowed. “I guess Franklin changed his mind. Maybe he lost Josiah’s gift or sold it.”
Benny admired the young man’s appetite. Rick had eaten five biscuits, breaking Benny’s record of four!
After dinner, they gathered in the living room to count the ballots20. Grandfather built a cozy21 fire. Mrs. McGregor brought in a tray of hot chocolate.
“I’ll help, too,” the housekeeper offered. “Many hands make light work, as my mother used to say.”
Benny emptied the ballot box on the floor. They all grabbed handfuls of ballots.
“We’ll make two piles,” said Grandfather. “One pile of votes to keep the statue in the square. And the other for votes to move it.”
With eight of them sorting ballots, the work went quickly.
When Grandfather tallied22 the last vote, he smiled. “The town voted by a wide margin23 to keep the statue in the square!”
“Yay!” Benny tossed ballots into the air like confetti.
Jessie giggled24 at her brother, then began picking up the slips of paper.
Violet remembered that Rick wanted the statue in his museum. “I hope you don’t feel bad,” she said to him.
“I’m glad,” Rick said. “Dawn’s right. Greenfield wouldn’t be Greenfield without Josiah in the square.”
“All of our problems are solved,” said Grandfather. “Except one.”
Jessie knew what he meant. “We still need a clown.”
Dawn grinned at Rick. “I bet that suit will fit you!”
“I’ve always wanted to wear a rubber nose,” Rick said. “We’d better go. Clowns need lots of beauty sleep.”
Grandfather showed them to the door. “See you at the festival!”
When their guests had left, the Alden children went upstairs to get ready for bed.
Benny dragged his fingers slowly along the handrail. He was glad the statue would stay in the square where it belonged. But he wondered about Franklin Bond’s secret compartment.
Did the sculptor25 have the last laugh on Greenfield after all?
“Smile!” Violet adjusted the focus on her camera, then snapped the picture.
The young father and his two children stepped away from the statue.
“Next!” called Benny. A couple of teenagers posed by Josiah Wade. Benny made sure they stood in the right spot, then signaled to Violet.
Crowds jammed the square. People had driven in from neighboring towns to buy cookies and pies from the bakery booth, play games, and listen to the high school marching band.
The Aldens’ souvenir photo booth was very busy. Henry collected the fee. Jessie filled out the order forms, so they would know where to send each photo after it was developed. Benny positioned people next to the statue, and Violet took the pictures.
Benny was glad they were busy. But he wished he had time to play one of the games. He wanted to win a prize.
Grandfather had already given his speech and announced the results of the vote. Everyone seemed happy that the statue would remain in the square.
Dawn ran up. “Mr. Kirby is watching my booth for a second. I just wanted to tell you that I’ve sold over seventy souvenir booklets!”
“That’s great!” Jessie said. “Violet’s sold a lot of pictures, too.”
Grandfather strolled over to the children’s booth. “Thanks to your help, the festival is a great success. We should have plenty of money to fix Josiah’s base.”
“So he can rule Greenfield Square for many more years,” Henry added.
Just then Rick Bass bounded over. All morning, he had danced around the square in the purple and green clown suit, entertaining little children.
“My feet are killing26 me,” he said, tugging27 off one of his huge, floppy28 clown shoes and handing it to Jessie.
Jessie laughed. With his big round nose and orange hair, Rick made a terrific clown.
“Will you take my picture?” Rick teased Violet. “How do I look?” He performed a wobbly handstand in front of Josiah Wade’s statue.
Violet was giggling29 so hard, she could barely push the shutter30. “This will be a terrific picture!”
“Watch out!” Benny cried, just as Rick’s legs toppled over.
Rick had landed upside down against the granite base of the statue. Henry and Jessie ran over and helped him up.
“Ow.” Rick winced31. “Uh-oh. Looks like I knocked off a few more stones.”
“It’s okay,” James Alden reassured32 him. “Just as long as you aren’t hurt.”
Benny was staring at a hole just beneath the brass33 plaque34. Rick’s fall had caused the stones to cave in, revealing a dark space.
“Hey!” he cried. “The statue has a secret after all!”
Rick gave a long, low whistle. “What do you know? We never thought of looking in the base!Benny, since you found it, you should do the honors.”
With everyone watching intently, Benny reached into the compartment. His fingers closed around a small metal box.
“Should I open it?” he asked.
Grandfather nodded.
Holding his breath, Benny unlatched the box and lifted the lid. Inside was a ball of wrinkled yellow paper.
“That’s parchment,” Rick said. “It’s very old.”
Benny unfolded the paper. A small object rolled into his palm.
“A button,” he said, puzzled. “Franklin Bond put a button in his secret compartment?”
“Let me see that.” Rick rubbed the button on the sleeve of his clown costume. Black streaks35 marked the purple satin. “It’s genuine silver.”
“There’s something engraved36 on it,” Jessie said. “ ‘G. W.’ ”
“I wonder what that could stand for,” Violet said.
But Henry knew. He had read about the Revolutionary War. “George Washington!” he exclaimed.
“Good guess!” Rick said. “General George Washington was head of the Colonial army.”
Dawn frowned. “But why would the sculptor hide one of George Washington’s buttons inside the base of his statue?”
“We know that Josiah Wade carried secret messages in his jacket buttons during the war,” Rick said. “Maybe General Washington gave Josiah one of his own buttons. Maybe as a reward.”
“And Josiah gave the button to Franklin Bond,” Jessie concluded. “Who hid it in the base of his statue of Josiah Wade. It all makes sense!”
Grandfather inspected the button. “This will be a nice addition to the Greenfield museum.”
“A new artifact!” Benny declared.
He was thrilled he had discovered the statue’s secret. That was better than a prize any day.
Violet was happy, too. The Winter Festival was a success and the Aldens had solved another mystery.
“Smile!” she said, snapping a photo of the Alden family. She knew the picture would turn out just great.
收听单词发音 |
1
curb
|
|
| n.场外证券市场，场外交易；vt.制止，抑制 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
2
granite
|
|
| adj.花岗岩，花岗石 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
3
bass
|
|
| n.男低音(歌手)；低音乐器；低音大提琴 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
4
hopped
|
|
| 跳上[下]( hop的过去式和过去分词 )； 单足蹦跳； 齐足（或双足）跳行； 摘葎草花 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
5
spotted
|
|
| adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
6
accomplice
|
|
| n.从犯，帮凶，同谋 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
7
wade
|
|
| v.跋涉，涉水；n.跋涉 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
8
hoist
|
|
| n.升高，起重机，推动；v.升起，升高，举起 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
9
braced
|
|
| adj.拉牢的v.支住( brace的过去式和过去分词 )；撑牢；使自己站稳；振作起来 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
10
compartment
|
|
| n.卧车包房，隔间；分隔的空间 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
11
standing
|
|
| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
12
ballot
|
|
| n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
13
phantom
|
|
| n.幻影，虚位，幽灵；adj.错觉的，幻影的，幽灵的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
14
battered
|
|
| adj.磨损的；v.连续猛击；磨损 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
15
wagon
|
|
| n.四轮马车，手推车，面包车；无盖运货列车 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
16
housekeeper
|
|
| n.管理家务的主妇，女管家 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
17
mashed
|
|
| a.捣烂的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
18
helping
|
|
| n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
19
florist
|
|
| n.花商；种花者 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
20
ballots
|
|
| n.投票表决( ballot的名词复数 )；选举；选票；投票总数v.（使）投票表决( ballot的第三人称单数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
21
cozy
|
|
| adj.亲如手足的，密切的，暖和舒服的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
22
tallied
|
|
| v.计算，清点( tally的过去式和过去分词 )；加标签（或标记）于；（使）符合；（使）吻合 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
23
margin
|
|
| n.页边空白；差额；余地，余裕；边，边缘 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
24
giggled
|
|
| v.咯咯地笑( giggle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
25
sculptor
|
|
| n.雕刻家，雕刻家 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
26
killing
|
|
| n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
27
tugging
|
|
| n.牵引感v.用力拉，使劲拉，猛扯( tug的现在分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
28
floppy
|
|
| adj.松软的，衰弱的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
29
giggling
|
|
| v.咯咯地笑( giggle的现在分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
30
shutter
|
|
| n.百叶窗；(照相机)快门；关闭装置 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
31
winced
|
|
| 赶紧避开，畏缩( wince的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
32
reassured
|
|
| adj.使消除疑虑的；使放心的v.再保证，恢复信心( reassure的过去式和过去分词) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
33
brass
|
|
| n.黄铜；黄铜器，铜管乐器 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
34
plaque
|
|
| n.饰板，匾，(医)血小板 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
35
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： |
|
|
|
|
36
engraved
|
|
| v.在（硬物）上雕刻（字，画等）( engrave的过去式和过去分词 )；将某事物深深印在（记忆或头脑中） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
购买
在百度中搜索