第1章

类别:其他 作者:Beatrix Potter字数:7905更新时间:18/12/17 14:13:32
SuchasPeterRabbit,etc。 TheOriginalPeterRabbitBooksByBEATRIXPOTTER ALISTOFTHETITLES [*indicatesincludedhere] *TheTaleofPeterRabbitTheTaleofSquirrelNutkinTheTailorofGloucester*TheTaleofBenjaminBunny*TheTaleofMrs。Tiggy-Winkle*TheTaleofMr。JeremyFisherTheTaleofJohnnyTown-Mouse*TheTaleofJemimaPuddle-Duck*TheTaleoftheFlopsyBunniesTheStoryofaFierceBadRabbit*TheTaleofTwoBadMiceTheTaleofTomKittenTheTaleofMrs。Tittlemouse*TheTaleofTimmyTiptoes*TheTaleofMr。Tod*TheTaleofPiglingBland*TheRolyPolyPudding*ThePieandthePatty-pan*GingerandPickles*TheStoryofMissMoppetAppleyDapply\'sNurseryRhymesTheTaleofLittlePigRobinson?? THETALEOF PETERRABBIT BY BEATRIXPOTTER ONCEuponatimetherewerefourlittleRabbits,andtheirnameswere—— Flopsy,Mopsy,Cotton-tail,andPeter。 TheylivedwiththeirMotherinasand-bank,underneaththerootofaverybigfirtree。 \"NOW,mydears,\"saidoldMrs。Rabbitonemorning,\"youmaygointothefieldsordownthelane,butdon\'tgointoMr。McGregor\'sgarden: yourFatherhadanaccidentthere;hewasputinapiebyMrs。McGregor。\" \"NOWrunalong,anddon\'tgetintomischief。Iamgoingout。\" THENoldMrs。Rabbittookabasketandherumbrella,tothebaker\'s。Sheboughtaloafofbrownbreadandfivecurrantbuns。 FLOPSY,Mopsy,andCottontail,whoweregoodlittlebunnies,wentdownthelanetogatherblackberries; BUTPeter,whowasverynaughty,ranstraightawaytoMr。McGregor\'sgardenandsqueezedunderthegate! FIRSTheatesomelettucesandsomeFrenchbeans; andthenheatesomeradishes; ANDthen,feelingrathersick,hewenttolookforsomeparsley。 BUTroundtheendofacucumberframe,whomshouldhemeetbutMr。 McGregor! MR。McGREGORwasonhishandsandkneesplantingoutyoungcabbages,buthejumpedupandranafterPeter,wavingarakeandcallingout,\"Stopthief!\" PETERwasmostdreadfullyfrightened;herushedalloverthegarden,forhehadforgottenthewaybacktothegate。 Helostoneofhisshoesamongthecabbages,andtheothershoeamongstthepotatoes。 AFTERlosingthem,heranonfourlegsandwentfaster,sothatIthinkhemighthavegotawayaltogetherifhehadnotunfortunatelyrunintoagooseberrynet,andgotcaughtbythelargebuttonsonhisjacket。Itwasabluejacketwithbrassbuttons,quitenew。 PETERgavehimselfupforlost,andshedbigtears; buthissobswereoverheardbysomefriendlysparrows,whoflewtohimingreatexcitement,andimploredhimtoexerthimself。 MR。McGREGORcameupwithasieve,whichheintendedtopopuponthetopofPeter;butPeterwriggledoutjustintime,leavinghisjacketbehindhim。 ANDrushedintothetoolshed,andjumpedintoacan。 Itwouldhavebeenabeautifulthingtohidein,ifithadnothadsomuchwaterinit。 MR。McGREGORwasquitesurethatPeterwassomewhereinthetoolshed,perhapshiddenunderneathaflower-pot。Hebegantoturnthemovercarefully,lookingundereach。 PresentlyPetersneezed—— \"Kertyschoo!\"Mr。McGregorwasafterhiminnotime,ANDtriedtoputhisfootuponPeter,whojumpedoutofawindow,upsettingthreeplants。ThewindowwastoosmallforMr。McGregor,andhewastiredofrunningafterPeter。Hewentbacktohiswork。 PETERsatdowntorest; hewasoutofbreathandtremblingwithfright,andhehadnottheleastideawhichwaytogo。Alsohewasverydampwithsittinginthatcan。 Afteratimehebegantowanderabout,goinglippity—— lippity——notveryfast,andlookingallaround。 HEfoundadoorinawall; butitwaslocked,andtherewasnoroomforafatlittlerabbittosqueezeunderneath。 Anoldmousewasrunninginandoutoverthestonedoorstep,carryingpeasandbeanstoherfamilyinthewood。 Peteraskedherthewaytothegate,butshehadsuchalargepeainhermouththatshecouldnotanswer。Sheonlyshookherheadathim。Peterbegantocry。 THENhetriedtofindhiswaystraightacrossthegarden,buthebecamemoreandmorepuzzled。Presently,hecametoapondwhereMr。 McGregorfilledhiswater-cans。 Awhitecatwasstaringatsomegold-fish;shesatvery,verystill,butnowandthenthetipofhertailtwitchedasifitwerealive。Peterthoughtitbesttogoawaywithoutspeakingtoher;hehadheardaboutcatsfromhiscousin,littleBenjaminBunny。 HEwentbacktowardsthetool-shed,butsuddenly,quiteclosetohim,heheardthenoiseofahoe——scr-r-ritch,scratch,scratch,scritch。Peterscutteredunderneaththebushes。Butpresently,asnothinghappened,hecameout,andclimbeduponawheelbarrow,andpeepedover。ThefirstthinghesawwasMr。 McGregorhoeingonions。HisbackwasturnedtowardsPeter,andbeyondhimwasthegate! PETERgotdownveryquietlyoffthewheelbarrow,andstartedrunningasfastashecouldgo,alongastraightwalkbehindsomeblack-currantbushes。 Mr。McGregorcaughtsightofhimatthecorner,butPeterdidnotcare。Heslippedunderneaththegate,andwassafeatlastinthewoodoutsidethegarden。 MR。McGREGORhungupthelittlejacketandtheshoesforascare-crowtofrightentheblackbirds。 PETERneverstoppedrunningorlookedbehindhimtillhegothometothebigfir-tree。 Hewassotiredthathefloppeddownuponthenicesoftsandontheflooroftherabbit-hole,andshuthiseyes。 Hismotherwasbusycooking; shewonderedwhathehaddonewithhisclothes。ItwasthesecondlittlejacketandpairofshoesthatPeterhadlostinafortnight! IAMsorrytosaythatPeterwasnotverywellduringtheevening。 Hismotherputhimtobed,andmadesomecamomiletea; andshegaveadoseofittoPeter! \"Onetable-spoonfultobetakenatbed-time。\" BUTFlopsy,Mopsy,andCotton-tailhadbreadandmilkandblackberries,forsupper。 THEEND THETALEOF BENJAMINBUNNY FORTHECHILDRENOFSAWREY FROM OLDMR。BUNNY ONEmorningalittlerabbitsatonabank。 Heprickedhisearsandlistenedtothetrit-trot,trit-trotofapony。 Agigwascomingalongtheroad;itwasdrivenbyMr。 McGregor,andbesidehimsatMrs。McGregorinherbestbonnet。 ASsoonastheyhadpassed,littleBenjaminBunnysliddownintotheroad,andsetoff——withahop,skipandajump——tocalluponhisrelations,wholivedinthewoodatthebackofMr。McGregor\'sgarden。 THATwoodwasfullofrabbitholes;andintheneatestsandiestholeofall,cousins——Flopsy,Mopsy,Cotton-tailandPeter。 OldMrs。Rabbitwasawidow;sheearnedherlivingbyknittingrabbit-woolmittensandmuffetees(Ionceboughtapairatabazaar)。Shealsosoldherbs,androsemarytea,andrabbit-tobacco(whichiswhatWEcalllavender)。 LITTLEBenjamindidnotverymuchwanttoseehisAunt。 Hecameroundthebackofthefir-tree,andnearlytumbleduponthetopofhisCousinPeter。 PETERwassittingbyhimself。 Helookedpoorly,andwasdressedinaredcottonpocket-handkerchief。 \"Peter,\"——saidlittleBenjamin,inawhisper——\"whohasgotyourclothes?\" PETERreplied——\"ThescarecrowinMr。McGregor\'sgarden,\"anddescribedhowhehadbeenchasedaboutthegarden,andhaddroppedhisshoesandcoat。 LittleBenjaminsatdownbesidehiscousin,andassuredhimthatMr。McGregorhadgoneoutinagig,andMrs。McGregoralso;andcertainlyfortheday,becauseshewaswearingherbestbonnet。 PETERsaidhehopedthatitwouldrain。 Atthispoint,oldMrs。 Rabbit\'svoicewasheardinsidetherabbitholecalling—— \"Cotton-tail!Cotton-tail! fetchsomemorecamomile!\" Petersaidhethoughthemightfeelbetterifhewentforawalk。 THEYwentawayhandinhand,andgotupontheflattopofthewallatthebottomofthewood。FromheretheylookeddownintoMr。McGregor\'sgarden。Peter\'scoatandshoeswereplainlytobeseenuponthescarecrow,toppedwithanoldtam-o- shanterofMr。McGregor\'s。 LITTLEBenjaminsaid,\"Itspoilspeople\'sclothestosqueezeunderagate;theproperwaytogetin,istoclimbdownapeartree。\" Peterfelldownheadfirst; butitwasofnoconsequence,asthebedbelowwasnewlyrakedandquitesoft。 IThadbeensownwithlettuces。 Theyleftagreatmanyoddlittlefoot-marksalloverthebed,especiallylittleBenjamin,whowaswearingclogs。 LITTLEBenjaminsaidthatthefirstthingtobedonewastogetbackPeter\'sclothes,inorderthattheymightbeabletousethepockethandkerchief。 Theytookthemoffthescarecrow。 Therehadbeenrainduringthenight;therewaswaterintheshoes,andthecoatwassomewhatshrunk。 Benjamintriedonthetam- o-shanter,butitwastoobigforhim。 THENhesuggestedthattheyshouldfillthepocket- handkerchiefwithonions,asalittlepresentforhisAunt。 Peterdidnotseemtobeenjoyinghimself;hekepthearingnoises。 BENJAMIN,onthecontrary,wasperfectlyathome,andatealettuceleaf。 HesaidthathewasinthehabitofcomingtothegardenwithhisfathertogetlettucesfortheirSundaydinner。 (ThenameoflittleBenjamin\'spapawasoldMr。BenjaminBunny。) Thelettucescertainlywereveryfine。 PETERdidnoteatanything; hesaidheshouldliketogohome。Presentlyhedroppedhalftheonions。 LITTLEBenjaminsaidthatitwasnotpossibletogetbackupthepear-tree,withaloadofvegetables。Heledthewayboldlytowardstheotherendofthegarden。Theywentalongalittlewalkonplanks,underasunnyred- brickwall。 Themicesatontheirdoor- stepscrackingcherry-stones,theywinkedatPeterRabbitandlittleBenjaminBunny。 PRESENTLYPeterletthepocket-handkerchiefgoagain。 THEYgotamongstflower- pots,andframesandtubs;Peterheardnoisesworsethanever,hiseyeswereasbigaslolly-pops! Hewasasteportwoinfrontofhiscousin,whenhesuddenlystopped。 THISiswhatthoselittlerabbitssawroundthatcorner! LittleBenjamintookonelook,andthen,inhalfaminutelessthannotime,hehidhimselfandPeterandtheonionsunderneathalargebasket…… THEcatgotupandstretchedherself,andcameandsniffedatthebasket。 Perhapsshelikedthesmellofonions! Anyway,shesatdownuponthetopofthebasket。 SHEsatthereforFIVEHOURS。 ***** IcannotdrawyouapictureofPeterandBenjaminunderneaththebasket,becauseitwasquitedark,andbecausethesmellofonionswasfearful; itmadePeterRabbitandlittleBenjamincry。 Thesungotroundbehindthewood,anditwasquitelateintheafternoon;butstillthecatsatuponthebasket。 ATlengththerewasapitter- patter,pitter-patter,andsomebitsofmortarfellfromthewallabove。 ThecatlookedupandsawoldMr。BenjaminBunnyprancingalongthetopofthewalloftheupperterrace。 Hewassmokingapipeofrabbit-tobacco,andhadalittleswitchinhishand。 Hewaslookingforhisson。 OLDMr。Bunnyhadnoopinionwhateverofcats。 Hetookatremendousjumpoffthetopofthewallontothetopofthecat,andcuffeditoffthebasket,andkickeditintothegarden-house,scratchingoffahandfuloffur。 Thecatwastoomuchsurprisedtoscratchback。 WHENoldMr。Bunnyhaddriventhecatintothegreen-house,helockedthedoor。 ThenhecamebacktothebasketandtookouthissonBenjaminbytheears,andwhippedhimwiththelittleswitch。 ThenhetookouthisnephewPeter。 THENhetookoutthehandkerchiefofonions,andmarchedoutofthegarden。 WhenMr。McGregorreturnedabouthalfanhourlater,heobservedseveralthingswhichperplexedhim。 Itlookedasthoughsomepersonhadbeenwalkingalloverthegardeninapairofclogs——onlythefoot-marksweretooridiculouslylittle! AlsohecouldnotunderstandhowthecatcouldhavemanagedtoshutherselfupINSIDEthegreen-house,lockingthedoorupontheOUTSIDE。 WHENPetergothome,hismotherforgavehim,becauseshewassogladtoseethathehadfoundhisshoesandcoat。Cotton-tailandPeterfoldedupthepocket- handkerchief,andoldMrs。 rabbitstrunguptheonionsandhungthemfromthekitchenceiling,withtherabbit-tobacco。 THEEND THETALEOF THEFLOPSYBUNNIES FORALLLITTLEFRIENDS OF MR。McGREGOR&PETER&BENJAMIN ITissaidthattheeffectofeatingtoomuchlettuceis\"soporific。\" _I_haveneverfeltsleepyaftereatinglettuces;butthen_I_amnotarabbit。 TheycertainlyhadaverysoporificeffectupontheFlopsyBunnies! WHENBenjaminBunnygrewup,hemarriedhisCousinFlopsy。Theyhadalargefamily,andtheywereveryimprovidentandcheerful。 Idonotremembertheseparatenamesoftheirchildren; theyweregenerallycalledthe\"FlopsyBunnies。\" AStherewasnotalwaysquiteenoughtoeat,—— BenjaminusedtoborrowcabbagesfromFlopsy\'sbrother,PeterRabbit,whokeptanurserygarden。 SOMETIMESPeterRabbithadnocabbagestospare。 WHENthishappened,theFlopsyBunnieswentacrossthefieldtoarubbishheap,intheditchoutsideMr。McGregor\'sgarden。 MR。McGREGOR\'Srubbishheapwasamixture。 Therewerejampotsandpaperbags,andmountainsofchoppedgrassfromthemowingmachine(whichalwaystastedoily),andsomerottenvegetablemarrowsandanoldbootortwo。Oneday——ohjoy!——therewereaquantityofovergrownlettuces,whichhad\"shot\"intoflower。 THEFlopsyBunniessimplystuffedlettuces。Bydegrees,oneafteranother,theywereovercomewithslumber,andlaydowninthemowngrass。 Benjaminwasnotsomuchovercomeashischildren。 Beforegoingtosleephewassufficientlywideawaketoputapaperbagoverhisheadtokeepofftheflies。 THElittleFlopsyBunniessleptdelightfullyinthewarmsun。Fromthelawnbeyondthegardencamethedistantclackettysoundofthemowingmachine。Theblue- bottlesbuzzedaboutthewall,andalittleoldmousepickedovertherubbishamongthejampots。 (Icantellyouhername,shewascalledThomasinaTittlemouse,awoodmousewithalongtail。) SHErustledacrossthepaperbag,andawakenedBenjaminBunny。 Themouseapologizedprofusely,andsaidthatsheknewPeterRabbit。 WHILEsheandBenjaminweretalking,closeunderthewall,theyheardaheavytreadabovetheirheads;andsuddenlyMr。McGregoremptiedoutasackfuloflawnmowingsrightuponthetopofthesleepingFlopsyBunnies! Benjaminshrankdownunderhispaperbag。Themousehidinajampot。 THElittlerabbitssmiledsweetlyintheirsleepundertheshowerofgrass; theydidnotawakebecausethelettuceshadbeensosoporific。 TheydreamtthattheirmotherFlopsywastuckingthemupinahaybed。 Mr。McGregorlookeddownafteremptyinghissack。Hesawsomefunnylittlebrowntipsofearsstickingupthroughthelawnmowings。Hestaredatthemforsometime。 PRESENTLYaflysettledononeofthemanditmoved。 Mr。McGregorclimbeddownontotherubbishheap—— \"One,two,three,four!five! sixleetlerabbits!\"saidheashedroppedthemintohissack。 TheFlopsyBunniesdreamtthattheirmotherwasturningthemoverinbed。Theystirredalittleintheirsleep,butstilltheydidnotwakeup。 MR。McGREGORtiedupthesackandleftitonthewall。 Hewenttoputawaythemowingmachine。 WHILEhewasgone,Mrs。 FlopsyBunny(whohadremainedathome)cameacrossthefield。 Shelookedsuspiciouslyatthesackandwonderedwhereeverybodywas? THENthemousecameoutofherjampot,andBenjamintookthepaperbagoffhishead,andtheytoldthedolefultale。 BenjaminandFlopsywereindespair,theycouldnotundothestring。 ButMrs。Tittlemousewasaresourcefulperson。Shenibbledaholeinthebottomcornerofthesack。 THElittlerabbitswerepulledoutandpinchedtowakethem。 Theirparentsstuffedtheemptysackwiththreerottenvegetablemarrows,anoldblacking-brushandtwodecayedturnips。 THENtheyallhidunderabushandwatchedforMr。McGregor。 MR。McGREGORcamebackandpickedupthesack,andcarrieditoff。 Hecarriedithangingdown,asifitwereratherheavy。 TheFlopsyBunniesfollowedatasafedistance。 THEYwatchedhimgointohishouse。 Andthentheycreptuptothewindowtolisten。 MR。McGREGORthrewdownthesackonthestonefloorinawaythatwouldhavebeenextremelypainfultotheFlopsyBunnies,iftheyhadhappenedtohavebeeninsideit。 Theycouldhearhimdraghischairontheflags,andchuckle—— \"One,two,three,four,five,sixleetlerabbits!\"saidMr。 McGregor。 \"EH?What\'sthat?Whathavetheybeenspoilingnow?\"enquiredMrs。 McGregor。 \"One,two,three,four,five,sixleetlefatrabbits!\"repeatedMr。McGregor,countingonhisfingers——\"one,two,three——\" \"Don\'tyoubesilly;whatdoyoumean,yousillyoldman?\" \"Inthesack!one,two,three,four,five,six!\"repliedMr。 McGregor。 (TheyoungestFlopsyBunnygotuponthewindow-sill。) MRS。McGREGORtookholdofthesackandfeltit。Shesaidshecouldfeelsix,buttheymustbeOLD rabbits,becausetheyweresohardandalldifferentshapes。 \"Notfittoeat;buttheskinswilldofinetolinemyoldcloak。\" \"Lineyouroldcloak?\" shoutedMr。McGregor——\"I shallsellthemandbuymyselfbaccy!\" \"Rabbittobacco!Ishallskinthemandcutofftheirheads。\" MRS。McGREGORuntiedthesackandputherhandinside。 Whenshefeltthevegetablesshebecameveryveryangry。 ShesaidthatMr。McGregorhad\"doneitapurpose。\" ANDMr。McGregorwasveryangrytoo。Oneoftherottenmarrowscameflyingthroughthekitchenwindow,andhittheyoungestFlopsyBunny。 Itwasratherhurt。 THENBenjaminandFlopsythoughtthatitwastimetogohome。 SOMr。McGregordidnotgethistobacco,andMrs。 McGregordidnotgetherrabbitskins。 ButnextChristmasThomasinaTittlemousegotapresentofenoughrabbit-wooltomakeherselfacloakandahood,andahandsomemuffandapairofwarmmittens。 THEEND INREMEMBRANCEOF \"SAMMY,\" THEINTELLIGENTPINK-EYEDREPRESENTATIVE OF APERSECUTED(BUTIRREPRESSIBLE)RACE。 ANAFFECTIONATELITTLEFRIEND。 ANDMOSTACCOMPLISHED THIEF! THEROLY-POLYPUDDING ONCEuponatimetherewasanoldcat,calledMrs。TabithaTwitchit,whowasananxiousparent。Sheusedtoloseherkittenscontinually,andwhenevertheywerelosttheywerealwaysinmischief! Onbakingdayshedeterminedtoshutthemupinacupboard。 ShecaughtMoppetandMittens,butshecouldnotfindTom。 Mrs。Tabithawentupanddownalloverthehouse,mewingforTomKitten。Shelookedinthepantryunderthestaircase,andshesearchedthebestsparebedroomthatwasallcoveredupwithdustsheets。 Shewentrightupstairsandlookedintotheattics,butshecouldnotfindhimanywhere。 Itwasanold,oldhouse,fullofcupboardsandpassages。Someofthewallswerefourfeetthick,andthereusedtobequeernoisesinsidethem,asiftheremightbealittlesecretstaircase。Certainlytherewereoddlittlejaggeddoorwaysinthewainscot,andthingsdisappearedatnight—— especiallycheeseandbacon。