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儿童英语读物 The Copycat Mystery CHAPTER 9 What’s Wrong with This Picture?

时间:2017-10-12 05:44来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
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    (单词翻译:双击或拖选)

Miss Pennink breathed a sigh of relief when Henry and Benny came out of the changing room the next morning. “Looks like Horace decided1 not to shorten those pants again,” she said. “Thank goodness for that!” Then, after a moment’s thought, she added, “But we must be on our guard. Horace might have left his mark somewhere else.”

Jessie was hurrying off with Violet to get the farmhouse2 ready for the day. “Don’t worry, Miss Pennink,” she said. “We’ll keep an eye out for any more practical jokes.”

Jessie and Violet did just that as they went from one room to another, lifting shades and opening windows. “So far, so good,” said Violet, coming out of the study.

Jessie nodded. “The last thing Gwen needs today is another practical joke.”

“I was hoping my snapshots would cheer her up a bit,” remarked Violet. “But . . .” Her words trailed away in a sigh.

Stepping into the parlor3, Violet stopped so suddenly that her older sister almost bumped into her. Then Jessie realized what was wrong—all the family portraits were facing the wrong way. Somebody had hung them up backward!

Jessie and Violet stood frozen to the spot. They couldn’t believe their eyes! Finally, they ran to the office and told everyone of their discovery.

“The pictures really are backward,” said Benny as he peered into the shadowy parlor.

Sharon turned to Miss Pennink in surprise. “Horace did leave his mark again.”

“I wish there were some other explanation.” Miss Pennink sat down on the front staircase in the entrance hall. “But there’s no doubt in my mind. This has Horace’s name all over it.”

“Unless I miss my guess,” said Gwen, “Horace once played a practical joke just like this one. Am I right, Miss Pennink?”

The elderly woman nodded slowly as she began to tell them about her great-great-grandfather’s practical joke with the backward pictures. “Horace had a good friend named Tom Brankin,” she said. “When Tom was turned down for membership in a fancy Elmford club, Horace was so angry he decided to give this club a taste of its own medicine.”

Benny’s eyes were huge. “What did Horace do?”

“He applied4 for membership himself,” Miss Pennink went on. “Of course the club was delighted. Horace, you see, was highly regarded in the community. When the membership committee paid a visit to the Wagner home, they discovered the portraits on the walls and the pictures on the piano were facing the wrong way. I believe,” Miss Pennink added, “the pictures on the piano are probably facing the wrong way now, too.”

They all crowded around the parlor doorway5 to check it out. Sure enough, the pictures in fancy frames on the piano had indeed been turned around.

Miss Pennink continued. “They say Horace enjoyed the look of surprise on the faces of that membership committee. They had no idea what the backward pictures meant, of course. At least not until the next day. That’s when Horace sent them a note.”

“What did it say?” Sharon asked in a hushed voice. “The note, I mean.”

Miss Pennink smiled a little. “It said that Horace was turning his back on their little club, the same way they had turned their backs on his good friend Tom Brankin.”

“Oh, I get it!” said Benny. “That’s why the pictures were turned away from everyone.”

“Exactly,” said Miss Pennink. “And now the entire Wagner family have turned their backs on those who have ignored Horace. Carl Mason, for one.”

When Gwen noticed Draper trimming the hedge out front, she asked him to step inside. He looked into the parlor and shook his head.

“How could such a thing happen?” he asked.

“I wish I knew,” said Gwen. “Did you see anything suspicious last night, Draper?”

Draper Mills gave his head a firm shake. “Not a thing.”

At that moment, the door opened again. It was Carl Mason, and he had a rolled-up newspaper in his hand. “Miss Corkum, if you thought I’d approve of this publicity6 stunt,” he said, holding up the paper, “then you’re in for a surprise!”

Jessie and Henry exchanged glances. Carl Mason seemed to think the practical jokes were Gwen’s idea.

“I can assure you, Mr. Mason, this is not a publicity stunt,” Gwen said quietly. “And you might as well know, the practical jokes haven’t ended yet.”

As Gwen showed the museum curator into the parlor, Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny went off to check the house for any sign of forced entry. But once again, it was clear the copycat must have had a key to get inside. Finally they went upstairs to make sure the copycat hadn’t pulled any more pranks7.

After a careful search, Violet said, “Nothing looks out of place up here.” And the others agreed.

Just before heading downstairs again, Jessie glanced through a bedroom window and caught sight of a red sports car coming up the driveway. “How strange,” she said.

“What’s strange?” asked Henry.

“Have you noticed how Jake North always arrives at just the right time?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, at the right time to take a photograph of the latest practical joke.”

Henry glanced out the window. When he spotted8 Jake, he said, “Now that you mention it . . .”

“Do you think it’s more than a coincidence?” asked Violet as she joined her older brother and sister at the window. Benny was close behind.

“A lot more!” replied Jessie.

“It does seem odd,” agreed Benny.

Violet watched for a moment as Jake North strolled across the front lawn, his camera hanging from a strap9 around his neck. When he removed his sunglasses and tucked them into his shirt pocket, Violet’s eyes got very large.

Henry said, “What’s the matter, Violet?”

Violet didn’t answer. Instead, she snapped her fingers and went racing10 away. She returned a few moments later with a photograph. It was the one Gwen had taken of the Aldens in their Victorian costumes. “I knew there was something funny about this picture,” she said softly. “But I couldn’t put my finger on it until now.”

Jessie glanced at the photo. “I don’t understand. It’s just a picture of the four of us standing11 in the office.”

“Yes,” said Violet. “But it was taken the day Jake said he left his sunglasses here.”

“He did leave them.” Henry looked puzzled. “They were on the—” Suddenly catching12 on, Henry drew in his breath. “Jake’s sunglasses!”

“How come they’re not on the windowsill in this picture?” asked Benny, trying to keep his voice low.

“That’s exactly what I’m wondering,” said Violet. “Jake was gone before this picture was taken.”

“Which means he left his sunglasses on the windowsill after the farmhouse had closed for the day!” concluded Jessie.

“You think Jake North is the copycat?” asked Benny in surprise.

Violet nodded. “I’m sure of it.”

Henry took a deep breath. “Jake North has some explaining to do.” And he led the way downstairs.

“I thought I’d made myself quite clear, Mr. North.” Mr. Mason was pointing to the front page of the newspaper. He sounded upset. “This type of article isn’t what I had in mind when I invited you out here.”

“It’s my job to report the facts, Mr. Mason,” argued Jake. “And the facts point to this farmhouse being haunted.”

“What are you doing here, Jake?” demanded Henry, who was edging his way past Miss Pennink on the staircase. “Why now, I mean?”

Jake looked startled by the question. “Well . . . uh . . . Miss Pennink was a bit under the weather yesterday. I thought I’d find out how she was feeling today. Is there anything wrong with that?”

“Are you sure you aren’t here to take a picture?” asked Jessie.

“A picture?” echoed Jake. “A picture of what?”

“Of the latest practical joke.”

“What do you mean?” Jake inquired. “Has something else happened?”

“You should know,” Benny blurted13 out, his hands on his hips14. “After all, you set it up. Didn’t you?”

Jake laughed. “You’re kidding. Right?”

Even Mr. Mason looked puzzled. “What’s going on? Surely you’re not hinting that Jake North had anything to do with these practical jokes?”

Benny nodded vigorously “Jake had plenty to do with them!”

“He sure did,” added Jessie, watching Jake closely.

Violet started to say, “And we can prove—”

But Jake interrupted. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” His eyes shifted. “You kids are getting all worked up about nothing.”

Violet stepped forward. “You said you left your sunglasses at the farmhouse the day of the laundry demonstration15. Remember?”

“Of course I remember. They were on the windowsill. What’s that got to do with anything?”

“If that’s true,” finished Violet, “then why aren’t they on the windowsill in this snapshot?” And she held the photograph up for Jake to see. “This was taken just before the farmhouse closed that day.”

Jake shrugged16. “That doesn’t mean a thing. The photo was probably taken some other time.”

“I remember this snapshot.” Gwen was studying it closely. “I took it myself, and it was the day of the laundry demonstration. You’d left hours before this picture was taken, Jake. And yet . . . your sunglasses were on the windowsill the next morning. How do you explain that?”

Draper Mills looked at his nephew. “Jake, what’s this all about?”

Carl Mason examined the photograph, then passed it on to Jake. “I would certainly like to hear what you have to say, Mr. North. And remember, a picture’s worth a thousand words.”

Jake stared at the photo for what seemed like ages. He opened his mouth several times, then closed it again. Finally his shoulders slumped17. “Yes, I admit it,” he said. “I copied Horace Wagner’s practical jokes. I . . . I wanted everyone to think the farmhouse was haunted.”

Miss Pennink’s mouth dropped open. Gwen and Sharon both stared wide-eyed.

“But why?” Draper Mills demanded, looking completely bewildered. “Why would you do such a thing, Jake?”

Henry knew the answer to that one. “You wanted something interesting to write about, didn’t you?”

Jake nodded. “We’re supposed to submit a few newspaper articles when we go back to college. I knew what I’d written so far would put my teachers to sleep. I just wanted a scoop18, and there certainly wasn’t much chance of getting that in Elmford.” Jake paused. “I got the idea for a haunted house story when the farmhouse sign disappeared. In fact, I was planning to write a whole series of articles on the ghostly practical jokes. I asked my uncle about Horace Wagner, and he told me everything I needed to know.”

“You said it was for background information,” protested Draper. “I had no idea. . . .”

Jessie looked accusingly at Jake. “The truth is, you wanted to find out about the practical jokes so you could copy them.”

Jake didn’t deny it. “I knew there was going to be a laundry demonstration, and when I heard about Horace hiding a gift in the laundry tub, I couldn’t resist. I drove out of town, bought a canary, then came back to the farm to have dinner with Uncle Draper.” Jake avoided looking his uncle in the eye. “I knew my uncle was in the habit of nodding off for a while after supper. I just waited for my chance and—”

“You took the keys,” finished Violet. “Then you slipped into the farmhouse, put the canary in the antique birdcage, and hid the cage in the empty laundry tub.”

“The next night, you shortened our pants,” concluded Henry.

“I’m not handy with a needle and thread,” admitted Jake, “but I figured Horace probably wasn’t, either.”

“Only you made a mistake,” offered Violet. “You left your sunglasses behind.”

Jake corrected her. “No, I did that on purpose. My sunglasses gave me an excuse to come back the next morning. That way, I could get a snapshot of Henry and Benny wearing those pants.” Jake sighed. “I can’t believe the sunglasses were the one thing that did me in. I didn’t count on you Aldens being such good detectives.”

“And you did this, too?” asked Miss Pennink, gesturing toward the parlor.

Jake nodded sheepishly.

“You did it all, then,” stated Gwen. “The sign, the canary, the—”

Jake broke in, “Everything except the sign. I had nothing to do with that.”

“Then who . . .?” asked Gwen.

“It was me.” Sharon’s face turned red. “I was the one who moved the sign. I had no idea it would cause so many problems.” She sat down on the staircase next to Miss Pennink. “I knew a photographer was coming out from the Elmford newspaper that day, and I figured it would be good for my modeling career to get my picture in the paper.”

“So you moved the sign hoping that Jake would have trouble finding the farmhouse,” Henry guessed.

Sharon nodded. “I just wanted to delay things until I got back from the dentist.”

She turned to her sister. “I was planning to put the sign right back.”

“That’s how you got burrs on your socks, isn’t it?” said Violet.

Sharon looked over at Violet in surprise. “You really are good detectives,” she said. “That is how I got the burrs. Everything’s overgrown behind the old barn.”

Gwen let out a sigh. “I can’t believe you’d do something like that.”

“I’m really sorry, Gwen.” Sharon hung her head.

Miss Pennink spoke19 up next. “I should have known it wasn’t my great-great-grandfather. Horace Wagner’s jokes were never meant to hurt anyone.”

“I never meant to hurt anyone, either,” Jake said, almost as if he were trying to convince himself. “After all, it was good publicity for the farmhouse. Wasn’t it?”

Jessie frowned. “Gwen almost lost her job.”

Jake looked at the ground. “I’m sorry, Gwen,” he apologized. “I had no idea your job was at risk.”

“There’s no danger of Miss Corkum losing her job,” Mr. Mason told Jake. “I was the one who invited you out here in the first place. I’m afraid that was my mistake.”

Jake looked over at his uncle. “I know I betrayed your trust, Uncle Draper. But I give you my word, I’ll make things right.”

Looking sad and disappointed, Draper Mills headed for the door. With a hand on the doorknob, he turned to his nephew. “Right now your word doesn’t mean much to me,” he said, and then he was gone.

When Jake finally spoke again, he sounded truly sorry. “I will fix things. I’ll write another article for the newspaper. Everyone will know that the Wagner farmhouse isn’t haunted.”

“That’s a good start, young man,” Mr. Mason told him. “A very good start.”
 


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 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。
2 farmhouse kt1zIk     
n.农场住宅(尤指主要住房)
参考例句:
  • We fell for the farmhouse as soon as we saw it.我们对那所农舍一见倾心。
  • We put up for the night at a farmhouse.我们在一间农舍投宿了一夜。
3 parlor v4MzU     
n.店铺,营业室;会客室,客厅
参考例句:
  • She was lying on a small settee in the parlor.她躺在客厅的一张小长椅上。
  • Is there a pizza parlor in the neighborhood?附近有没有比萨店?
4 applied Tz2zXA     
adj.应用的;v.应用,适用
参考例句:
  • She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
  • This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。
5 doorway 2s0xK     
n.门口,(喻)入门;门路,途径
参考例句:
  • They huddled in the shop doorway to shelter from the rain.他们挤在商店门口躲雨。
  • Mary suddenly appeared in the doorway.玛丽突然出现在门口。
6 publicity ASmxx     
n.众所周知,闻名;宣传,广告
参考例句:
  • The singer star's marriage got a lot of publicity.这位歌星的婚事引起了公众的关注。
  • He dismissed the event as just a publicity gimmick.他不理会这件事,只当它是一种宣传手法。
7 pranks cba7670310bdd53033e32d6c01506817     
n.玩笑,恶作剧( prank的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Frank's errancy consisted mostly of pranks. 法兰克错在老喜欢恶作剧。 来自辞典例句
  • He always leads in pranks and capers. 他老是带头胡闹和开玩笑。 来自辞典例句
8 spotted 7FEyj     
adj.有斑点的,斑纹的,弄污了的
参考例句:
  • The milkman selected the spotted cows,from among a herd of two hundred.牛奶商从一群200头牛中选出有斑点的牛。
  • Sam's shop stocks short spotted socks.山姆的商店屯积了有斑点的短袜。
9 strap 5GhzK     
n.皮带,带子;v.用带扣住,束牢;用绷带包扎
参考例句:
  • She held onto a strap to steady herself.她抓住拉手吊带以便站稳。
  • The nurse will strap up your wound.护士会绑扎你的伤口。
10 racing 1ksz3w     
n.竞赛,赛马;adj.竞赛用的,赛马用的
参考例句:
  • I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
  • The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。
11 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。
12 catching cwVztY     
adj.易传染的,有魅力的,迷人的,接住
参考例句:
  • There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。
  • Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。
13 blurted fa8352b3313c0b88e537aab1fcd30988     
v.突然说出,脱口而出( blurt的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She blurted it out before I could stop her. 我还没来得及制止,她已脱口而出。
  • He blurted out the truth, that he committed the crime. 他不慎说出了真相,说是他犯了那个罪。 来自《简明英汉词典》
14 hips f8c80f9a170ee6ab52ed1e87054f32d4     
abbr.high impact polystyrene 高冲击强度聚苯乙烯,耐冲性聚苯乙烯n.臀部( hip的名词复数 );[建筑学]屋脊;臀围(尺寸);臀部…的
参考例句:
  • She stood with her hands on her hips. 她双手叉腰站着。
  • They wiggled their hips to the sound of pop music. 他们随着流行音乐的声音摇晃着臀部。 来自《简明英汉词典》
15 demonstration 9waxo     
n.表明,示范,论证,示威
参考例句:
  • His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
  • He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。
16 shrugged 497904474a48f991a3d1961b0476ebce     
vt.耸肩(shrug的过去式与过去分词形式)
参考例句:
  • Sam shrugged and said nothing. 萨姆耸耸肩膀,什么也没说。
  • She shrugged, feigning nonchalance. 她耸耸肩,装出一副无所谓的样子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
17 slumped b010f9799fb8ebd413389b9083180d8d     
大幅度下降,暴跌( slump的过去式和过去分词 ); 沉重或突然地落下[倒下]
参考例句:
  • Sales have slumped this year. 今年销售量锐减。
  • The driver was slumped exhausted over the wheel. 司机伏在方向盘上,疲惫得睡着了。
18 scoop QD1zn     
n.铲子,舀取,独家新闻;v.汲取,舀取,抢先登出
参考例句:
  • In the morning he must get his boy to scoop it out.早上一定得叫佣人把它剜出来。
  • Uh,one scoop of coffee and one scoop of chocolate for me.我要一勺咖啡的和一勺巧克力的。
19 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。
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