英语 英语 日语 日语 韩语 韩语 法语 法语 德语 德语 西班牙语 西班牙语 意大利语 意大利语 阿拉伯语 阿拉伯语 葡萄牙语 葡萄牙语 越南语 越南语 俄语 俄语 芬兰语 芬兰语 泰语 泰语 泰语 丹麦语 泰语 对外汉语

儿童英语读物 The Mystery of the Stolen Sword CHAPTER 5 Veronica

时间:2017-09-13 05:59来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
特别声明:本栏目内容均从网络收集或者网友提供,供仅参考试用,我们无法保证内容完整和正确。如果资料损害了您的权益,请与站长联系,我们将及时删除并致以歉意。
    (单词翻译:双击或拖选)

That evening, after an early dinner, the four Alden children met in Jessie and Violet’s room.

“We just have to help Seymour and Rose solve this mystery,” Violet was saying as she leaned back against two of the lacy white pillows piled on the bed.

“All this is very upsetting for them,” Henry agreed, “especially since they think the burglar may be someone who works for them.”

“I hope it’s not,” Violet said.

“I hope not, too,” said Henry. “But a burglar who works here would be easier to catch.”

“True,” Jessie agreed. She pulled a notebook and pencil out of her blue duffel bag. “We should make a list of all the people who work on this farm and who know about the entrances to the passageway.”

“Well, there’s Jeff and Mike,” Violet said, “the ones we met at lunch.”

“The ones who’ve been working on the farm since they were in high school.” Jessie was busy scribbling1 in her notebook.

“Mike seemed awfully2 quiet once the robberies were mentioned,” Violet remarked.

“I don’t think Mike and Jeff are really suspects,” Henry said.

“What makes you so sure?” Jessie said, holding her pencil poised3 over her notebook.

“Seymour has known them too long, and nothing has ever been taken from the farm before,” Henry answered.

“That’s true.” Jessie tapped her pencil on her notepad.

“Well, that leaves Veronica and Martin, the two high school kids who just started working on the farm this year,” Violet said.

“The ones we haven’t seen yet,” Jessie said, looking up from her notebook.

“We should ask Seymour if we can meet them tomorrow,” Henry said.

“And we should also try to find Benny’s ghost. Right, Benny?” Jessie looked over at her brother, only to find that Benny had fallen sound asleep and was snoring gently.

“It’s been a long day,” Jessie whispered.

Henry nodded as he carefully picked up Benny to carry him off to bed.

The next morning the Aldens woke up just before sunrise. “It was the rooster,” Benny told Grandfather at breakfast. “It was the rooster that got me up so early.”

“That’s his job,” Grandfather said, laughing.

As soon as breakfast was over, Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny hurried to the barn to help Seymour feed the animals.

They watched carefully as Seymour milked the cows. “I do it the old-fashioned way,” he said as he sat on a pail beside one of his cows and began pulling at her teats. Milk squirted into another pail under the cow.

“Many farmers use milking machines now,” Seymour explained. “But I don’t have enough cows for a machine. It’s easier for me to milk them this way.”

“I’d like to try to milk a cow before I leave,” Henry said.

“Oh, I trust you’ll have the chance,” said Seymour, chuckling4. “But right now, if you like, you can brush down the horses.”

“Sure,” said Henry, grabbing a brush.

“Hey, that’s my job.” A tall, thin girl with shiny brown hair tied back in a ponytail strode into the barn. “I always brush the horses,” she said haughtily5. “They’re used to me.” The girl wore blue jeans, a red-and-black-plaid wool jacket, riding boots, and a red bandanna6 around her neck. Her blue eyes flashed as she glared at Henry.

“Now, Veronica,” Seymour said gently. “It’s good for the horses to have other folks brushing them down once in a while. They need to get used to other people.”

Veronica continued to glare at the Aldens as Seymour introduced them to her.

“Are you used to horses?” she asked Henry, who was still holding the brush. “Do you know how to groom7 them properly?”

“Well, not really,” Henry was forced to admit.

Veronica rolled her eyes.

“That’s all right, son,” said Seymour. “Veronica or I can teach you all you need to know. Isn’t that right, Veronica?”

Veronica sighed heavily. “How long will you be staying here?” she asked.

“About a week or two,” Jessie answered for all of them.

“Well, that’s hardly worth taking the time to teach you,” Veronica remarked.

“Now, Veronica,” Seymour spoke8 sharply, “the Aldens are my guests. They’ve already been a big help to me, and I will thank you to treat them politely. If you don’t feel like showing them what needs to be done, then I’ll teach them myself.”

Veronica scowled9. “I’ll show them,” she said sullenly10.

Veronica and the Aldens spent the next hour together feeding, grooming11, and brushing the horses, while Seymour mended some fences outside. Veronica showed the Aldens what had to be done by doing most of the work herself, while they watched.

“Now, I don’t want you riding Hazel or Mister Mist without my permission,” Veronica was saying as she brushed Mister Mist. “They’re not used to strangers. They only like it when I handle them. Seymour says I’m the best rider on this farm — the best rider in this whole town, in fact.”

“We wouldn’t ride them without asking anyone,” Jessie said.

“Good.”

Henry cleared his throat. “It’s a shame about those robberies, isn’t it?”

Veronica stiffened12. “What robberies are you talking about?”

“You know, the robberies on this farm,” Jessie said. “Someone stole Seymour’s stamp collection and some old letters written more than a hundred years ago.”

Veronica frowned. “No one told me,” she said. “When did this happen?”

“A few days ago,” Henry answered. “At least that’s when Seymour noticed that the stamp collection and letters were missing.”

“He’s missing a sword, too. A sword from the Civil War,” Benny added before he noticed Jessie’s face warning him to keep quiet.

Veronica looked puzzled. “You mean someone stole a sword out of that musty old passageway?”

Henry nodded.

“I don’t like to hear that there were burglars near the barn because that means the horses could be in danger,” Veronica said as she fluffed up Mister Mist’s mane.

“From what Seymour said, these burglars are after antiques, not animals,” Henry pointed13 out.

“Well, still, I worry. If anything happened to these horses, I don’t know what I’d do.”

“You seem to care for these horses very much,” Violet said, softening14 a little toward Veronica.

“Well, of course. Who wouldn’t?” Veronica exclaimed. Then she frowned suddenly and turned away from the Aldens to hang the grooming brushes back on the wall. “I have to go home now. I mostly just help with the horses now that the picking season is over.”

“Have you been working here long?” Henry wanted to know.

“Have you been here long enough to see the ghost?” Benny asked.

“No and no.” Veronica actually smiled for the first time that morning. “I began working for Seymour this fall because he needed the extra help, but I’ve known Rose and Seymour all my life, practically. I live just down the road.”

“Why have you never seen the ghost if you live near here?” Benny asked.

“Well, to tell you the truth,” Veronica began in a superior tone of voice, “I don’t believe in ghosts. Maybe that’s why I’ve never seen it.” With that, Veronica spun15 around and walked out of the barn before the Aldens could say anything more.

“Boy, is she rude,” Jessie muttered.

“She wasn’t so bad, once we got her to talk more,” Violet remarked.

“But she’s such a show-off.” Jessie was almost sputtering16. “She hardly let us touch her precious horses, and they’re not even her horses, really. And did you see the way she acted when we mentioned those robberies?”

“Yeah, she looked kind of uncomfortable. And then she told us she’d never heard about them,” Henry said.

“We’ll have to watch her,” Jessie said.

“We should watch everybody,” Henry advised.

“Now, don’t you mind Veronica too much,” Seymour told the Aldens when he walked back into the barn. “She acts all high and mighty17, especially when it comes to the horses, but she’s all right.”

Jessie was not convinced.

“Seymour?” Benny began. “You believe in the ghost, don’t you?”

“Benny, to tell you the truth, I’ve never actually seen it. But people have noticed signs.”

“What kind of signs?” Benny sounded eager.

Seymour chose his words carefully. “Well, Benny, some of the farm workers say they’ve heard things.”

Benny nodded. “Grandfather told us about that,” he said.

“And some say they’ve actually seen markings on the trunks of the apple trees. Markings carved by a knife of some sort,” Seymour continued. “They think those markings are the work of the ghost because no one else would mark those trees up.”

Benny’s eyes were very round.

“Do you believe a ghost made those markings?” Violet asked.

Seymour’s eyes twinkled. “Well, now that you mention it, there is another explanation for these markings,” he answered.

“There is?” Benny couldn’t believe it.

Seymour nodded. “When my children were little, they used to make carvings18 in those trees with their penknives. But when I caught them doing that, I made them stop.”

“So, those markings are pretty old, then,” Henry remarked.

“Yes, most of them are, but Jeff told me he’s been seeing some new ones. He thinks it’s the work of kids in the neighborhood.”

“It could be the work of the ghost,” Benny said firmly.

“Could be,” Seymour said. “That’s what a lot of people think.”

“This we have to see!” Henry exclaimed.
 


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 scribbling 82fe3d42f37de6f101db3de98fc9e23d     
n.乱涂[写]胡[乱]写的文章[作品]v.潦草的书写( scribble的现在分词 );乱画;草草地写;匆匆记下
参考例句:
  • Once the money got into the book, all that remained were some scribbling. 折子上的钱只是几个字! 来自汉英文学 - 骆驼祥子
  • McMug loves scribbling. Mama then sent him to the Kindergarten. 麦唛很喜欢写字,妈妈看在眼里,就替他报读了幼稚园。 来自互联网
2 awfully MPkym     
adv.可怕地,非常地,极端地
参考例句:
  • Agriculture was awfully neglected in the past.过去农业遭到严重忽视。
  • I've been feeling awfully bad about it.对这我一直感到很难受。
3 poised SlhzBU     
a.摆好姿势不动的
参考例句:
  • The hawk poised in mid-air ready to swoop. 老鹰在半空中盘旋,准备俯冲。
  • Tina was tense, her hand poised over the telephone. 蒂娜心情紧张,手悬在电话机上。
4 chuckling e8dcb29f754603afc12d2f97771139ab     
轻声地笑( chuckle的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • I could hear him chuckling to himself as he read his book. 他看书时,我能听见他的轻声发笑。
  • He couldn't help chuckling aloud. 他忍不住的笑了出来。 来自汉英文学 - 骆驼祥子
5 haughtily haughtily     
adv. 傲慢地, 高傲地
参考例句:
  • She carries herself haughtily. 她举止傲慢。
  • Haughtily, he stalked out onto the second floor where I was standing. 他傲然跨出电梯,走到二楼,我刚好站在那儿。
6 bandanna BPQyF     
n.大手帕
参考例句:
  • He knotted the bandanna around his neck.他在脖子上系了一条印花大围巾。
  • He wiped his forehead with a blue bandanna and smiled again.他用一条蓝色的大手帕擦擦前额,又笑了笑。
7 groom 0fHxW     
vt.给(马、狗等)梳毛,照料,使...整洁
参考例句:
  • His father was a groom.他父亲曾是个马夫。
  • George was already being groomed for the top job.为承担这份高级工作,乔治已在接受专门的培训。
8 spoke XryyC     
n.(车轮的)辐条;轮辐;破坏某人的计划;阻挠某人的行动 v.讲,谈(speak的过去式);说;演说;从某种观点来说
参考例句:
  • They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
  • The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
9 scowled b83aa6db95e414d3ef876bc7fd16d80d     
怒视,生气地皱眉( scowl的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He scowled his displeasure. 他满脸嗔色。
  • The teacher scowled at his noisy class. 老师对他那喧闹的课堂板着脸。
10 sullenly f65ccb557a7ca62164b31df638a88a71     
不高兴地,绷着脸,忧郁地
参考例句:
  • 'so what?" Tom said sullenly. “那又怎么样呢?”汤姆绷着脸说。
  • Emptiness after the paper, I sIt'sullenly in front of the stove. 报看完,想不出能找点什么事做,只好一人坐在火炉旁生气。
11 grooming grooming     
n. 修饰, 美容,(动物)梳理毛发
参考例句:
  • You should always pay attention to personal grooming. 你应随时注意个人仪容。
  • We watched two apes grooming each other. 我们看两只猩猩在互相理毛。
12 stiffened de9de455736b69d3f33bb134bba74f63     
加强的
参考例句:
  • He leaned towards her and she stiffened at this invasion of her personal space. 他向她俯过身去,这种侵犯她个人空间的举动让她绷紧了身子。
  • She stiffened with fear. 她吓呆了。
13 pointed Il8zB4     
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。
14 softening f4d358268f6bd0b278eabb29f2ee5845     
变软,软化
参考例句:
  • Her eyes, softening, caressed his face. 她的眼光变得很温柔了。它们不住地爱抚他的脸。 来自汉英文学 - 家(1-26) - 家(1-26)
  • He might think my brain was softening or something of the kind. 他也许会觉得我婆婆妈妈的,已经成了个软心肠的人了。
15 spun kvjwT     
v.纺,杜撰,急转身
参考例句:
  • His grandmother spun him a yarn at the fire.他奶奶在火炉边给他讲故事。
  • Her skilful fingers spun the wool out to a fine thread.她那灵巧的手指把羊毛纺成了细毛线。
16 sputtering 60baa9a92850944a75456c0cb7ae5c34     
n.反应溅射法;飞溅;阴极真空喷镀;喷射v.唾沫飞溅( sputter的现在分词 );发劈啪声;喷出;飞溅出
参考例句:
  • A wick was sputtering feebly in a dish of oil. 瓦油灯上结了一个大灯花,使微弱的灯光变得更加阴暗。 来自汉英文学 - 家(1-26) - 家(1-26)
  • Jack ran up to the referee, sputtering protest. 贾克跑到裁判跟前,唾沫飞溅地提出抗议。 来自辞典例句
17 mighty YDWxl     
adj.强有力的;巨大的
参考例句:
  • A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
  • The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。
18 carvings 3ccde9120da2aaa238c9785046cb8f86     
n.雕刻( carving的名词复数 );雕刻术;雕刻品;雕刻物
参考例句:
  • The desk was ornamented with many carvings. 这桌子装饰有很多雕刻物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Shell carvings are a specialty of the town. 贝雕是该城的特产。 来自《简明英汉词典》
本文本内容来源于互联网抓取和网友提交,仅供参考,部分栏目没有内容,如果您有更合适的内容,欢迎点击提交分享给大家。
------分隔线----------------------------
顶一下
(0)
0%
踩一下
(0)
0%
最新评论 查看所有评论
发表评论 查看所有评论
请自觉遵守互联网相关的政策法规,严禁发布色情、暴力、反动的言论。
评价:
表情:
验证码:
听力搜索
推荐频道
论坛新贴