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儿童英语读物 The Clue in the Corn Maze CHAPTER 4 Open for Business

时间:2017-11-15 05:58来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
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The Aldens got cleaned up and changed clothes. Then Jessie and Violet made sandwiches for lunch.

“Could I watch the people in the maze1 from the lookout2 tower?” Benny asked as he set the table.

“Sure, Benny,” Ken3 answered. “If anybody gets lost, you can direct them out.”

“Oh, boy!” Benny clapped his hands.

“In fact, the rest of you can help, too, if you want,” Ken said. “I could use a couple of ticket-takers. And sometimes people want to buy vegetables. It can get pretty busy if a lot of customers come at the same time.”

“We’d love to help,” Violet said as she carried a plate of sandwiches to the table. Jessie carried a pitcher4 of lemonade. Then everyone sat down to eat.

“Oh, before I forget,” Ken reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out an envelope. “The mail carrier delivered this to the wrong house. This letter should go to Peggy Rodman, my neighbor down the street. You would have passed her place on your way here.”

“Is that the house with all the vegetables out front?” Henry asked.

“Yes,” Ken answered. He handed the letter to Henry. “Would you kids mind delivering this letter to her after lunch? I can take care of the visitors until you get back.”

Henry took the letter. “Sure, Ken. We’d be happy to.”

The Aldens walked along the side of the road to get to Peggy Rodman’s place. Corn grew tall in the field beside them.

As soon as the Aldens started up the gravel5 drive that led to Peggy Rodman’s house, a black dog leaped against the kennel6 beside the garage and barked.

“Quiet, Rosie!” a woman said from her chair on the porch. The dog immediately quieted down.

The woman stood up when she noticed the children. She was around David’s age, with chin-length blond hair. She wore a plaid shirt, faded jeans, and tennis shoes.

“Can I help you?” the woman asked cheerfully as the Aldens approached. “Are you here to buy some vegetables?”

There were bins7 of carrots, onions, cucumbers, beans, corn, and several kinds of squash spread out on the grassy8 front lawn. The vegetables took up most of her yard. Up close, some of them didn’t look very good. Several had rotten spots. They must have been sitting out for a long time.

“No,” Henry said. “We’re looking for Ms. Peggy Rodman.”

“I’m Peggy,” the woman said.

Henry handed Peggy the letter. “We’re staying with Ken Johnson. This letter was delivered to him by mistake, so he asked us to bring it to you.”

“Oh.” Peggy’s smile disappeared when Henry mentioned Ken’s name. “Well, thank you for bringing it down here,” she said stiffly.

“It was no trouble,” Jessie said.

Peggy turned to walk away, but Benny called after her. “Have you seen Ken’s corn maze yet?”

Peggy stopped. She looked a little surprised by Benny’s question. “No,” she said slowly. “And I probably never will see it.”

“Why not?” Violet asked.

Peggy seemed a little embarrassed. “Well, I’m afraid Mr. Johnson and I don’t get along very well,” she said.

The Aldens looked at each other. Ken was so nice. Why wouldn’t he and Peggy get along?

“Did you know there’s been trouble with Ken’s maze this week?” Jessie asked.

“Yes, I heard he had to close yesterday. One of my customers said there had been some vandalism the night before.”

“That’s right,” Jessie said. “Somebody toilet-papered the whole maze.”

“What a shame,” Peggy said.

“And last night someone dumped a whole bunch of manure9 in it,” Benny said, holding his nose.

“Well, I didn’t hear anything about that,” Peggy said.

“You’re Ken’s closest neighbor,” Henry said. “Did you happen to wake up at all during the night either last night or the night before? Did you hear or see anything suspicious?”

“I slept like a baby both nights,” Peggy said. “Now, if you don’t mind, I have work to do.” She turned and headed back to her house.

“Before we go,” Benny said, “Do you think I could use your bathroom?” He seemed a little uncomfortable.

Peggy looked sympathetic. “Sure,” she said, motioning for the children to follow her. “Come on. I’ll show you where it is.”

The other children waited on the front porch for Benny. He didn’t take very long.

“Thanks,” he called to Peggy when he was finished. Then they all headed back toward Ken’s house.

Along the way, Benny pulled a scrap10 of toilet paper out of his pocket and handed it to Henry.

“Where did you get that?” Henry asked.

“From Peggy’s bathroom,” Benny replied. “I was wondering if it was the same as the toilet paper we found in the maze.”

The other children examined the scrap. “It’s got the same swirly11 pattern of raised dots,” Violet pointed12 out.

“Just because Peggy uses the same kind of toilet paper we found in the maze doesn’t mean she’s the one who toilet-papered it,” Henry said. “We have no reason to suspect her.”

“She said she and Ken don’t get along,” Benny said.

“That still doesn’t prove she’s the vandal,” Jessie said.

Benny’s face fell.

“But it was good thinking to try to match up the toilet paper,” Jessie said quickly.

“That’s right,” Henry put in. “We just need more evidence before we can figure out who vandalized Ken’s maze.”

For the rest of the afternoon, the Aldens helped with the maze. Jessie helped Ken run the cash register. Violet and Henry took tickets. And Benny and Grandfather watched from the lookout.

“It’s just as much fun watching people go through the maze as it is going through ourselves,” Benny said, resting his elbows on the ledge13.

There were a lot of visitors. Many of them said they had tried to come yesterday and were disappointed the maze was closed.

“I’m glad you’re open today,” one lady said as she followed a curly-haired little boy over to the goats. “A couple hours out here and Daniel will be ready for a nap.”

“Are these vegetables for sale?” another lady called from the front yard.

“Yes, they are,” Ken called back.

“I see you took my advice this year,” a third lady said to Ken as she plopped two bags of beans down on the table in front of Jessie.

“What advice was that?” Ken asked.

“I’m the one who suggested you join up with that lady down the street,” the woman said. “It’s nice to be able to go through your maze and then buy our fresh vegetables right here without having to stop at her place, too.”

“Oh, I remember you now,” Ken grinned. “Yes, I did take your advice. Or, at least I tried to. Unfortunately, my neighbor wasn’t interested in going into business together, so I just planted a small vegetable patch myself.”

“Well, I’m glad you did,” the woman said as she took some money out of her billfold and handed it to Jessie.

“So am I,” said the next woman in line. “Your vegetables look wonderful! And they’re cheaper than your neighbor’s.”

When all the customers were busy feeding the animals or working their way through the maze, Henry asked, “Why wouldn’t Peggy want to go into business with you, Ken? It seems like it would be a good arrangement for both of you. You’ve got the maze and she’s got the vegetables.”

“That’s what I thought, too, Henry,” Ken said. “But she didn’t want to haul all her vegetables up here. And I think she believed she could make more money selling her vegetables herself.”

“I wonder if she really is making more money,” Jessie said. “A lot of people are buying your vegetables. But when we were down at her place earlier, she didn’t have any customers.”

“Well, she’s got more vegetables for sale than I do,” Ken said. “Selling vegetables was just an experiment for me this year. I didn’t plant a very large patch. When I run out, people will have to buy from her again.”

“Hey, Ken,” Jack14 Sweeney called as he lumbered15 toward them. He did not look happy. “We’ve got to get a lock on that storage shed. I’ve been shooing people out of there all afternoon.” He put his hands on his hips16 and glared at the people who were entering the maze.

“Oh, I don’t think there’s anything in the storage shed that we need worry about,” Ken said, unconcerned.

“There are tools in there. And animal feed,” Mr. Sweeney said. “I just caught a bunch of kids climbing all over the bags of feed. Their parents weren’t paying any attention to what their children were doing!” He sounded pretty angry.

“All right, Jack. Calm down,” Ken said. “We’ll get a lock the next time either of us goes into town.”

Mr. Sweeney didn’t look satisfied. “You know, I didn’t take this job to be a babysitter,” he said as he took his hat off and rubbed his forehead. “I’m a farmhand. That’s what I do.”

“I know, Jack,” Ken said sympathetically. “And you’re very good at what you do. You’ve been with me almost twenty years, and I’ve never been unhappy with your work.”

Mr. Sweeney looked away as though he were embarrassed by the compliment.

“I know you wish I’d never started the King Corn Days Festival,” Ken continued. “I know you don’t like having all these strangers milling around. But I love the festival! I love planning a new maze each year. I love building it and caring for it and sharing my love of farming with all the people who come to see it.”

Mr. Sweeney didn’t say anything.

Ken took a slow, deep breath. “I won’t give up the festival, but I’ll see that these people don’t interfere17 with your work anymore. Okay, Jack?”

Mr. Sweeney nodded. He put his hat back on his head. “I’d appreciate that,” he said as he walked away.
 


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 maze F76ze     
n.迷宫,八阵图,混乱,迷惑
参考例句:
  • He found his way through the complex maze of corridors.他穿过了迷宮一样的走廊。
  • She was lost in the maze for several hours.一连几小时,她的头脑处于一片糊涂状态。
2 lookout w0sxT     
n.注意,前途,瞭望台
参考例句:
  • You can see everything around from the lookout.从了望台上你可以看清周围的一切。
  • It's a bad lookout for the company if interest rates don't come down.如果利率降不下来,公司的前景可就不妙了。
3 ken k3WxV     
n.视野,知识领域
参考例句:
  • Such things are beyond my ken.我可不懂这些事。
  • Abstract words are beyond the ken of children.抽象的言辞超出小孩所理解的范围.
4 pitcher S2Gz7     
n.(有嘴和柄的)大水罐;(棒球)投手
参考例句:
  • He poured the milk out of the pitcher.他从大罐中倒出牛奶。
  • Any pitcher is liable to crack during a tight game.任何投手在紧张的比赛中都可能会失常。
5 gravel s6hyT     
n.砂跞;砂砾层;结石
参考例句:
  • We bought six bags of gravel for the garden path.我们购买了六袋碎石用来铺花园的小路。
  • More gravel is needed to fill the hollow in the drive.需要更多的砾石来填平车道上的坑洼。
6 kennel axay6     
n.狗舍,狗窝
参考例句:
  • Sporting dogs should be kept out of doors in a kennel.猎狗应该养在户外的狗窝中。
  • Rescued dogs are housed in a standard kennel block.获救的狗被装在一个标准的犬舍里。
7 bins f61657e8b1aa35d4af30522a25c4df3a     
n.大储藏箱( bin的名词复数 );宽口箱(如面包箱,垃圾箱等)v.扔掉,丢弃( bin的第三人称单数 )
参考例句:
  • Garbage from all sources was deposited in bins on trolleys. 来自各方的垃圾是装在手推车上的垃圾箱里的。 来自辞典例句
  • Would you be pleased at the prospect of its being on sale in dump bins? 对于它将被陈列在倾销箱中抛售这件事,你能欣然接受吗? 来自辞典例句
8 grassy DfBxH     
adj.盖满草的;长满草的
参考例句:
  • They sat and had their lunch on a grassy hillside.他们坐在长满草的山坡上吃午饭。
  • Cattle move freely across the grassy plain.牛群自由自在地走过草原。
9 manure R7Yzr     
n.粪,肥,肥粒;vt.施肥
参考例句:
  • The farmers were distributing manure over the field.农民们正在田间施肥。
  • The farmers used manure to keep up the fertility of their land.农夫们用粪保持其土质的肥沃。
10 scrap JDFzf     
n.碎片;废料;v.废弃,报废
参考例句:
  • A man comes round regularly collecting scrap.有个男人定时来收废品。
  • Sell that car for scrap.把那辆汽车当残品卖了吧。
11 swirly 09cf7119578491851a2520568ece5a5a     
成涡旋形的
参考例句:
  • There is now a black swirly animation when a spell is resisted. 当法术被抵抗的时候有一个黑色旋涡形的效果。 来自互联网
12 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。
13 ledge o1Mxk     
n.壁架,架状突出物;岩架,岩礁
参考例句:
  • They paid out the line to lower him to the ledge.他们放出绳子使他降到那块岩石的突出部分。
  • Suddenly he struck his toe on a rocky ledge and fell.突然他的脚趾绊在一块突出的岩石上,摔倒了。
14 jack 53Hxp     
n.插座,千斤顶,男人;v.抬起,提醒,扛举;n.(Jake)杰克
参考例句:
  • I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
  • He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。
15 lumbered 2580a96db1b1c043397df2b46a4d3891     
砍伐(lumber的过去式与过去分词形式)
参考例句:
  • A rhinoceros lumbered towards them. 一头犀牛笨重地向他们走来。
  • A heavy truck lumbered by. 一辆重型卡车隆隆驶过。
16 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》
17 interfere b5lx0     
v.(in)干涉,干预;(with)妨碍,打扰
参考例句:
  • If we interfere, it may do more harm than good.如果我们干预的话,可能弊多利少。
  • When others interfere in the affair,it always makes troubles. 别人一卷入这一事件,棘手的事情就来了。
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