第4章

类别:其他 作者:Beatrix Potter字数:8093更新时间:18/12/17 14:13:32
Tiggy-winklewiththebundlesofclothes! Allthewaydownthepathlittleanimalscameoutoftheferntomeetthem;theveryfirstthattheymetwerePeterRabbitandBenjaminBunny! ANDshegavethemtheirnicecleanclothes;andallthelittleanimalsandbirdsweresoverymuchobligedtodearMrs。Tiggy-winkle。 SOthatatthebottomofthehillwhentheycametothestile,therewasnothinglefttocarryexceptLucie\'sonelittlebundle。 LUCIEscrambledupthestilewiththebundleinherhand;andthensheturnedtosay\"Good-night,\"andtothankthewasher-woman—— ButwhataVERYoddthing! Mrs。Tiggy-winklehadnotwaitedeitherforthanksorforthewashingbill! Shewasrunningrunningrunningupthehill——andwherewasherwhitefrilledcap?andhershawl?andhergown——andherpetticoat? ANDhowsmallshehadgrown——andhowbrown——andcoveredwithPRICKLES! Why!Mrs。Tiggy-winklewasnothingbutaHEDGEHOG。 **** (NowsomepeoplesaythatlittleLuciehadbeenasleepuponthestile—— butthenhowcouldshehavefoundthreecleanpocket-handkinsandapinny,pinnedwithasilversafety-pin? Andbesides——_I_haveseenthatdoorintothebackofthehillcalledCatBells——andbesides_I_amverywellacquaintedwithdearMrs。Tiggy-winkle!) THETALEOF GINGER&PICKLES ONCEuponatimetherewasavillageshop。Thenameoverthewindowwas\"GingerandPickles。\" ItwasalittlesmallshopjusttherightsizeforDolls——LucindaandJaneDoll-cookalwaysboughttheirgroceriesatGingerandPickles。 Thecounterinsidewasaconvenientheightforrabbits。GingerandPicklessoldredspottypocket- handkerchiefsatapennythreefarthings。 Theyalsosoldsugar,andsnuffandgaloshes。 Infact,althoughitwassuchasmallshopitsoldnearlyeverything——exceptafewthingsthatyouwantinahurry——likebootlaces,hair-pinsandmuttonchops。 GingerandPickleswerethepeoplewhokepttheshop。Gingerwasayellowtom-cat,andPickleswasaterrier。 TherabbitswerealwaysalittlebitafraidofPickles。 Theshopwasalsopatronizedbymice——onlythemicewereratherafraidofGinger。 GingerusuallyrequestedPicklestoservethem,becausehesaiditmadehismouthwater。 \"Icannotbear,\"saidhe,\"toseethemgoingoutatthedoorcarryingtheirlittleparcels。\" \"Ihavethesamefeelingaboutrats,\"repliedPickles,\"butitwouldneverdotoeatourowncustomers;theywouldleaveusandgotoTabithaTwitchit\'s。\" \"Onthecontrary,theywouldgonowhere,\"repliedGingergloomily。 (TabithaTwitchitkepttheonlyothershopinthevillage。Shedidnotgivecredit。) GingerandPicklesgaveunlimitedcredit。 Nowthemeaningof\"credit\"isthis——whenacustomerbuysabarofsoap,insteadofthecustomerpullingoutapurseandpayingforit——shesaysshewillpayanothertime。 AndPicklesmakesalowbowandsays,\"Withpleasure,madam,\" anditiswrittendowninabook。 Thecustomerscomeagainandagain,andbuyquantities,inspiteofbeingafraidofGingerandPickles。 Butthereisnomoneyinwhatiscalledthe\"till。\" Thecustomerscameincrowdseverydayandboughtquantities,especiallythetoffeecustomers。 Buttherewasalwaysnomoney; theyneverpaidforasmuchasapennyworthofpeppermints。 Butthesaleswereenormous,tentimesaslargeasTabithaTwitchit\'s。 Astherewasalwaysnomoney,GingerandPickleswereobligedtoeattheirowngoods。 PicklesatebiscuitsandGingerateadriedhaddock。 Theyatethembycandle-lightaftertheshopwasclosed。 WhenitcametoJan。1sttherewasstillnomoney,andPickleswasunabletobuyadoglicence。 \"Itisveryunpleasant,Iamafraidofthepolice,\"saidPickles。 \"Itisyourownfaultforbeingaterrier;_I_donotrequirealicence,andneitherdoesKep,theColliedog。\" \"Itisveryuncomfortable,IamafraidIshallbesummoned。I havetriedinvaintogetalicenceuponcreditatthePostOffice;\" saidPickles。\"Theplaceisfullofpoliceman。ImetoneasIwascominghome。\" \"LetussendinthebillagaintoSamuelWhiskers,Ginger,heowes22/9forbacon。\" \"Idonotbelievethatheintendstopayatall,\"repliedGinger。 \"AndIfeelsurethatAnnaMariapocketsthings——Whereareallthecreamcrackers?\" \"Youhaveeatenthemyourself,\" repliedGinger。 GingerandPicklesretiredintothebackparlour。 Theydidaccounts。Theyaddedupsumsandsums,andsums。 \"SamuelWhiskershasrunupabillaslongashistail;hehashadanounceandthree-quartersofsnuffsinceOctober。\" \"Whatissevenpoundsofbutterat1/3,andastickofsealingwaxandfourmatches?\" \"Sendinallthebillsagaintoeverybody\'withcompts\'\"repliedGinger。 Afteratimetheyheardanoiseintheshop,asifsomethinghadbeenpushedinatthedoor。Theycameoutofthebackparlour。Therewasanenvelopelyingonthecounter,andapolicemanwritinginanote-book! Picklesnearlyhadafit,hebarkedandhebarkedandmadelittlerushes。 \"Bitehim,Pickles!bitehim!\" splutteredGingerbehindasugar- barrel,\"he\'sonlyaGermandoll!\" Thepolicemanwentonwritinginhisnotebook;twiceheputhispencilinhismouth,andoncehedippeditinthetreacle。 Picklesbarkedtillhewashoarse。 Butstillthepolicemantooknonotice。Hehadbeadeyes,andhishelmetwassewedonwithstitches。 Atlengthonhislastlittlerush——Picklesfoundthattheshopwasempty。Thepolicemanhaddisappeared。 Buttheenveloperemained。 \"Doyouthinkthathehasgonetofetchareallivepoliceman?I amafraiditisasummons,\"saidPickles。 \"No,\"repliedGinger,whohadopenedtheenvelope,\"itistheratesandtaxes,L319113/4。\" \"Thisisthelaststraw,\"saidPickles,\"letusclosetheshop。\" Theyputuptheshutters,andleft。Buttheyhavenotremovedfromtheneighbourhood。Infactsomepeoplewishtheyhadgonefurther。 Gingerislivinginthewarren。I donotknowwhatoccupationhepursues;helooksstoutandcomfortable。 Picklesisatpresentagamekeeper。 Theclosingoftheshopcausedgreatinconvenience。TabithaTwitchitimmediatelyraisedthepriceofeverythingahalf-penny; andshecontinuedtorefusetogivecredit。 Ofcoursetherearethetrades- men\'scarts——thebutcher,thefishmanandTimothyBaker。 Butapersoncannotliveon\"seedwigs\"andsponge-cakeandbutter- buns——notevenwhenthesponge- cakeisasgoodasTimothy\'s! AfteratimeMr。JohnDormouseandhisdaughterbegantosellpeppermintsandcandles。 Buttheydidnotkeep\"self-fittingsixes\";andittakesfivemicetocarryoneseveninchcandle。 Besides——thecandleswhichtheysellbehaveverystrangelyinwarmweather。 AndMissDormouserefusedtotakebacktheendswhentheywerebroughtbacktoherwithcomplaints。 AndwhenMrJohnDormousewascomplainedto,hestayedinbed,andwouldsaynothingbut\"verysnug;\"whichisnotthewaytocarryonaretailbusinessSoeverybodywaspleasedwhenSallyHennyPennysentoutaprintedpostertosaythatshewasgoingtore-opentheshop—— \"Henny\'sOpeningSale!Grandco-operativeJumble!Penny\'spennyprices!Comebuy,cometry,comebuy!\" Theposterreallywasmost\'ticing。 Therewasarushupontheopeningday。Theshopwascrammedwithcustomers,andtherewerecrowdsofmiceuponthebiscuitcanisters。 SallyHennyPennygetsratherflusteredwhenshetriestocountoutchange,andsheinsistsonbeingpaidcash;butsheisquiteharmless。 Andshehaslaidinaremarkableassortmentofbargains。 Thereissomethingtopleaseeverybody。 THEEND THESTORYOF MISSMOPPET THISisaPussycalledMissMoppet,shethinksshehasheardamouse! THISistheMousepeepingoutbehindthecupboard,andmakingfunofMissMoppet。Heisnotafraidofakitten。 THISisMissMoppetjumpingjusttoolate; shemissestheMouseandhitsherownhead。 SHEthinksitisaveryhardcupboard! THEMousewatchesMissMoppetfromthetopofthecupboard。 MISSMOPPETtiesupherheadinaduster,andsitsbeforethefire。 THEMousethinkssheislookingveryill。Hecomesslidingdownthebell- pull。 MISSMOPPETlooksworseandworse。TheMousecomesalittlenearer。 MISSMOPPETholdsherpoorheadinherpaws,andlooksathimthroughaholeintheduster。 TheMousecomesVERYclose。 ANDthenallofasudden——MissMoppetjumpsupontheMouse! ANDbecausetheMousehasteasedMissMoppet——MissMoppetthinksshewillteasetheMouse;whichisnotatallniceofMissMoppet。 SHEtieshimupintheduster,andtossesitaboutlikeaball。 BUTsheforgotaboutthatholeintheduster;andwhensheuntiedit——therewasnoMouse! HEhaswriggledoutandrunaway;andheisdancingajigonthetopofthecupboard! THEEND THETALEOF MR。JEREMYFISHER FOR STEPHANIE FROM COUSINB。 ONCEuponatimetherewasafrogcalledMr。 JeremyFisher;helivedinalittledamphouseamongstthebuttercupsattheedgeofapond。 THEwaterwasallslippy- sloppyinthelarderandinthebackpassage。 ButMr。Jeremylikedgettinghisfeetwet;nobodyeverscoldedhim,andhenevercaughtacold! HEwasquitepleasedwhenhelookedoutandsawlargedropsofrain,splashinginthepond—— \"IWILLgetsomewormsandgofishingandcatchadishofminnowsformydinner,\"saidMr。JeremyFisher。\"IfIcatchmorethanfivefish,IwillinvitemyfriendsMr。AldermanPtolemyTortoiseandSirIsaacNewton。 TheAlderman,however,eatssalad。\" MR。JEREMYputonamacintosh,andapairofshinygoloshes;hetookhisrodandbasket,andsetoffwithenormoushopstotheplacewherehekepthisboat。 THEboatwasroundandgreen,andveryliketheotherlily-leaves。Itwastiedtoawater-plantinthemiddleofthepond。 MR。JEREMYtookareedpole,andpushedtheboatoutintoopenwater。\"I knowagoodplaceforminnows,\" saidMr。JeremyFisher。 MR。JEREMYstuckhispoleintothemudandfastenedhisboattoit。 Thenhesettledhimselfcross-leggedandarrangedhisfishingtackle。Hehadthedearestlittleredfloat。Hisrodwasatoughstalkofgrass,hislinewasafinelongwhitehorse-hair,andhetiedalittlewrigglingwormattheend。 THEraintrickleddownhisback,andfornearlyanhourhestaredatthefloat。 \"Thisisgettingtiresome,IthinkIshouldlikesomelunch,\"saidMr。JeremyFisher。 HEpuntedbackagainamongstthewater- plants,andtooksomelunchoutofhisbasket。 \"Iwilleatabutterflysandwich,andwaittilltheshowerisover,\"saidMr。 JeremyFisher。 AGREATbigwater-beetlecameupunderneaththelilyleafandtweakedthetoeofoneofhisgoloshes。 Mr。Jeremycrossedhislegsupshorter,outofreach,andwentoneatinghissandwich。 ONCEortwicesomethingmovedaboutwitharustleandasplashamongsttherushesatthesideofthepond。 \"Itrustthatisnotarat,\" saidMr。JeremyFisher;\"I thinkIhadbettergetawayfromhere。\" MR。JEREMYshovedtheboatoutagainalittleway,anddroppedinthebait。 Therewasabitealmostdirectly;thefloatgaveatremendousbobbit! \"Aminnow!aminnow!I havehimbythenose!\"criedMr。JeremyFisher,jerkinguphisrod。 BUTwhatahorriblesurprise!Insteadofasmoothfatminnow,Mr。 JeremylandedlittleJackSharpthestickleback,coveredwithspines! THEsticklebackflounderedabouttheboat,prickingandsnappinguntilhewasquiteoutofbreath。Thenhejumpedbackintothewater。 ANDashoalofotherlittlefishesputtheirheadsout,andlaughedatMr。 JeremyFisher。 ANDwhileMr。Jeremysatdisconsolatelyontheedgeofhisboat——suckinghissorefingersandpeeringdownintothewater——aMUCHworsethinghappened;areallyFRIGHTFULthingitwouldhavebeen,ifMr。Jeremyhadnotbeenwearingamacintosh! AGREATbigenormoustroutcameup——ker- pflop-p-p-p!withasplash—— anditseizedMr。Jeremywithasnap,\"Ow!Ow!Ow!\"—— andthenitturnedanddiveddowntothebottomofthepond! BUTthetroutwassodispleasedwiththetasteofthemacintosh,thatinlessthanhalfaminuteitspathimoutagain;andtheonlythingitswallowedwasMr。Jeremy\'sgoloshes。 MR。JEREMYbounceduptothesurfaceofthewater,likeacorkandthebubblesoutofasodawaterbottle;andheswamwithallhismighttotheedgeofthepond。 HEscrambledoutonthefirstbankhecameto,andhehoppedhomeacrossthemeadowwithhismacintoshallintatters。 \"WHATamercythatwasnotapike!\"saidMr。JeremyFisher。\"Ihavelostmyrodandbasket;butitdoesnotmuchmatter,forI amsureIshouldneverhavedaredtogofishingagain!\" HEputsomestickingplasteronhisfingers,andhisfriendsbothcametodinner。Hecouldnotofferthemfish,buthehadsomethingelseinhislarder。 SIRISAACNEWTON worehisblackandgoldwaistcoat,ANDMr。AldermanPtolemyTortoisebroughtasaladwithhiminastringbag。 ANDinsteadofanicedishofminnows——theyhadaroastedgrasshopperwithlady-birdsauce;whichfrogsconsiderabeautifultreat;but_I_thinkitmusthavebeennasty! THEEND THETALEOF TIMMYTIPTOES FOR MANYUNKNOWNLITTLEFRIENDS,INCLUDINGMONICA ONCEuponatimetherewasalittlefatcomfortablegreysquirrel,calledTimmyTiptoes。Hehadanestthatchedwithleavesinthetopofatalltree;andhehadalittlesquirrelwifecalledGoody。 TIMMYTIPTOESsatout,enjoyingthebreeze;hewhiskedhistailandchuckled——\"LittlewifeGoody,thenutsareripe;wemustlayupastoreforwinterandspring。\" GoodyTiptoeswasbusypushingmossunderthethatch——\"Thenestissosnug,weshallbesoundasleepallwinter。\"\"Thenweshallwakeupallthethinner,whenthereisnothingtoeatinspring-time,\"repliedprudentTimothy。 WHENTimmyandGoodyTiptoescametothenutthicket,theyfoundothersquirrelsweretherealready。 Timmytookoffhisjacketandhungitonatwig;theyworkedawayquietlybythemselves。 EVERYdaytheymadeseveraljourneysandpickedquantitiesofnuts。 Theycarriedthemawayinbags,andstoredtheminseveralhollowstumpsnearthetreewheretheyhadbuilttheirnest。 WHENthesestumpswerefull,theybegantoemptythebagsintoaholehighupatree,thathadbelongedtoawood-pecker;thenutsrattleddown——down—— downinside。 \"Howshallyouevergetthemoutagain?Itislikeamoney-box!\"saidGoody。 \"Ishallbemuchthinnerbeforespring-time,mylove,\" saidTimmyTiptoes,peepingintothehole。 THEYdidcollectquantities——becausetheydidnotlosethem!Squirrelswhoburytheirnutsinthegroundlosemorethanhalf,becausetheycannotremembertheplace。 ThemostforgetfulsquirrelinthewoodwascalledSilvertail。 Hebegantodig,andhecouldnotremember。Andthenhedugagainandfoundsomenutsthatdidnotbelongtohim;andtherewasafight。 Andothersquirrelsbegantodig,——thewholewoodwasincommotion! UNFORTUNATELY,justatthistimeaflockoflittlebirdsflewby,frombushtobush,searchingforgreencaterpillarsandspiders。 Therewereseveralsortsoflittlebirds,twitteringdifferentsongs。 Thefirstonesang—— \"Who\'sbindigging-upMY nuts?Who\'s-been-digging- upMYnuts?\" Andanothersang——\"Littlebitabreadand-NO-cheese! Littlebit-a-breadan\'-NO- cheese!\" THEsquirrelsfollowedandlistened。ThefirstlittlebirdflewintothebushwhereTimmyandGoodyTiptoeswerequietlytyinguptheirbags,anditsang——\"Who\'s- bindigging-upMYnuts? Who\'sbeendigging-upMY- nuts?\" TimmyTiptoeswentonwithhisworkwithoutreplying;indeed,thelittlebirddidnotexpectananswer。Itwasonlysingingitsnaturalsong,anditmeantnothingatall。 BUTwhentheothersquirrelsheardthatsong,theyrusheduponTimmyTiptoesandcuffedandscratchedhim,andupsethisbagofnuts。 Theinnocentlittlebirdwhichhadcausedallthemischief,flewawayinafright! Timmyrolledoverandover,andthenturnedtailandfledtowardshisnest,followedbyacrowdofsquirrelsshouting——\"Who\'s-beendigging-upMY-nuts?\" THEYcaughthimanddraggedhimuptheverysametree,wheretherewasthelittleroundhole,andtheypushedhimin。TheholewasmuchtoosmallforTimmyTiptoes\'figure。Theysqueezedhimdreadfully,itwasawondertheydidnotbreakhisribs。\"Wewillleavehimheretillheconfesses,\"saidSilvertailSquirrel,andheshoutedintothehole—— \"Who\'s-been-digging-upMY-nuts?\" TIMMYTIPTOESmadenoreply;hehadtumbleddowninsidethetree,uponhalfapeckofnutsbelongingtohimself。Helayquitestunnedandstill。 GOODYTIPTOESpickedupthenutbagsandwenthome。ShemadeacupofteaforTimmy;buthedidn\'tcomeanddidn\'tcome。 GoodyTiptoespassedalonelyandunhappynight。 Nextmorningsheventuredbacktothenut-bushestolookforhim;buttheotherunkindsquirrelsdroveheraway。 Shewanderedalloverthewood,calling—— \"TimmyTiptoes!TimmyTiptoes!Oh,whereisTimmyTiptoes?\" INthemeantimeTimmyTiptoescametohissenses。 Hefoundhimselftuckedupinalittlemossbed,verymuchinthedark,feelingsore;itseemedtobeunderground。 Timmycoughedandgroaned,becausehisribshurtedhim。 Therewasachirpynoise,andasmallstripedChipmunkappearedwithanightlight,andhopedhefeltbetter? ItwasmostkindtoTimmyTiptoes;itlenthimitsnightcap; andthehousewasfullofprovisions。 THEChipmunkexplainedthatithadrainednutsthroughthetopofthetree——\"Besides,Ifoundafewburied!\"ItlaughedandchuckledwhenitheardTimmy\'sstory。WhileTimmywasconfinedtobed,it\'ticedhimtoeatquantities——\"ButhowshallIevergetoutthroughthatholeunlessI thinmyself?Mywifewillbeanxious!\"\"Justanothernut——ortwonuts;letmecrackthemforyou,\"saidtheChipmunk。 TimmyTiptoesgrewfatterandfatter! NOWGoodyTiptoeshadsettoworkagainbyherself。Shedidnotputanymorenutsintothewoodpecker\'shole,becauseshehadalwaysdoubtedhowtheycouldbegotoutagain。Shehidthemunderatreeroot; theyrattleddown,down,down。OncewhenGoodyemptiedanextrabigbagful,therewasadecidedsqueak; andnexttimeGoodybroughtanotherbagful,alittlestripedChipmunkscrambledoutinahurry。 \"ITisgettingperfectlyfull- updown-stairs;thesitting-roomisfull,andtheyarerollingalongthepassage;andmyhusband,ChippyHackee,hasrunawayandleftme。 Whatistheexplanationoftheseshowersofnuts?\" \"IamsureIbegyourpardon;Ididnotnotknowthatanybodylivedhere,\"saidMrs。 GoodyTiptoes;\"butwhereisChippyHackee?Myhusband,TimmyTiptoes,hasrunawaytoo。\"\"IknowwhereChippyis;alittlebirdtoldme,\"saidMrs。ChippyHackee。 SHEledthewaytothewoodpecker\'stree,andtheylistenedatthehole。 Downbelowtherewasanoiseofnutcrackers,andafatsquirrelvoiceandathinsquirrelvoiceweresingingtogether—— \"MylittleoldmanandIfellout,Howshallwebringthismatterabout? Bringitaboutaswellasyoucan,Andgetyougone,youlittleoldman!\" \"Youcouldsqueezein,throughthatlittleroundhole,\"saidGoodyTiptoes。\"Yes,Icould,\"saidtheChipmunk,\"butmyhusband,ChippyHackee,bites!\" Downbelowtherewasanoiseofcrackingnutsandnibbling;andthenthefatsquirrelvoiceandthethinsquirrelvoicesang—— \"ForthediddlumdayDaydiddledumdi! Daydiddlediddledumday!\" THENGoodypeepedinatthehole,andcalleddown——\"TimmyTiptoes!Ohfie,TimmyTiptoes!\"AndTimmyreplied,\"Isthatyou,GoodyTiptoes?Why,certainly!\" HecameupandkissedGoodythroughthehole;buthewassofatthathecouldnotgetout。