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儿童英语读物 The Mystery of the Stolen Boxcar CHAPTER 2 A Strange Visitor

时间:2017-08-17 07:04来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
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He can’t have our boxcar, can he?” asked Benny.

“No, Benny,” said Jessie. “It’s our boxcar and we’re going to keep it!”

Henry clapped his hand to his forehead. “Oh, no! I almost forgot. We’re supposed to go to the grocery store for Mrs. McGregor.”

Putting the rather strange Mr. Chessy out of their thoughts for the moment, the children hurried into the house.

“You didn’t forget, did you?” Mrs. McGregor teased1.

Henry’s cheeks turned red. “Well, not exactly,” he said. He was glad when Benny spoke2 up.

“What are we going to get at the grocery store?” Benny asked. “Is it for dessert tonight?” He looked hopeful. Benny was always hungry.

“No, I’ve already made dessert for tonight, Benny,” answered Mrs. McGregor. Her merry eyes twinkled3. “But if you don’t like apple pie, I might be able to make something else.”

“Oh, no!” exclaimed4 Benny. “I love apple pie.

His brother and sisters laughed. Mrs. McGregor laughed, too. Then she bent5 over the kitchen table and wrote something else on her grocery list. She picked up the list and handed it to Henry.

Henry folded it and carefully put it in his pocket. He checked to make sure he had enough money for groceries.

Violet6 asked, “Are we shopping for our Founders’ Day dinner already?”

Mrs. McGregor nodded. “That you are,” she said. “I may not have to begin cooking it yet, but I want to start getting ready.”

“It’ll be like Thanksgiving,” said Benny. “I’m going to get all my favorite foods at one time!”

The four children got their bicycles and rode to town with Watch trotting7 beside them on his leash8. When they got there, the sidewalks and streets were very crowded. So they decided9 to walk their bicycles along the sidewalk and look in the windows until they got to the grocery store.

Suddenly, Jessie stopped. “Look,” she said. “A parade!”

Henry stopped behind Jessie and read aloud from the sign posted in the window of the hardware10 store: “‘The Founders’ Day Parade: A Parade to Celebrate the Founding of Greenfield. Come see the parade — or be in it.’”

“Wow,” said Jessie. “That would be great, to be in a parade!”

“I don’t know,” said Violet. “Parades are fun to watch, too.” Violet looked a little worried at the idea of being in a parade. She was very shy.

“Let’s at least find out about it,” said Henry. “Then we can decide.”

“How will we find out?” asked Benny.

“Let’s ask inside the hardware store,” suggested Jessie. They all went inside.

“Could you tell us more about the parade?” Henry asked the owner of the store.

“It’s on the sign in your window,” added Jessie.

The hardware store owner said, “Of course. In fact, I can tell you everything you need to know.” She reached over to the counter and picked up a colorful folded piece of paper. “This flyer will tell you all about the parade and how to join it.”

“Thanks!” Henry said.

“You’re welcome,” said the hardware store owner. “See you at the parade.”

“Or in it!” said Benny.

The Aldens walked outside. Henry read from the flyer as they walked. He read about how to enter the parade by filling out the form on the back of the flyer and mailing it to the Greenfield Parade Committee. “We have to tell them our names and what we are going to do in the parade,” Henry said. “They’ll let us know when to meet and where. Anybody can be in the parade, but listen to this: ‘Parade members are encouraged to choose a costume or build a float that reflects some part of the history of Greenfield,’” he read aloud.

The children were quiet for a moment. Then Violet said, “Costumes would be fun. I could make a beautiful purple costume.” Purple was Violet’s favorite color.

“But what kind of costume?” Jessie asked. “Greenfield is very old. We have to think of something that goes with the history of our town.”

The children thought and thought all the way to the grocery store. But they couldn’t come up with an idea. After they finished shopping and were headed home, Henry said, “I know! Before we decide on a costume, let’s ask Grandfather what he thinks.”

“That’s a good idea,” said Jessie.

Violet said, “We can ask him at dinner tonight. But you know what else I think we should do? We should learn more about the history of Greenfield, too.”

“That’s right,” said Jessie. “We’ll have an idea for the parade before you know it!”

“Do you hear that, Watch?” Benny said. “We’re going to be in a parade!”

“This apple pie is the best pie I ever ate,” said Benny that night at dinner.

“You say that every time Mrs. McGregor makes apple pie,” said Grandfather Alden to his youngest grandchild.

“It’s true every time,” said Benny.

“Mrs. McGregor said that the apples came from an old apple orchard11 right here in Greenfield,” said Violet. “She said they’ve been growing apples there for years and years.”

“Farmers have been growing apples in and around Greenfield ever since I was a boy,” said Grandfather.

“Will you tell us more about Greenfield?” asked Henry. He reached in his pocket and pulled out the flyer. “We got this at the hardware store today.”

Mr. Alden read it, then looked up. “I don’t suppose you want to be in the parade, do you?”

“Yes!” answered Jessie. “That’s exactly what we want to do. But we have to think of the perfect costumes. Something historic12.”

“If you tell us more about Greenfield,” explained Henry, “then maybe it will help us think of an idea for the parade.”

So Grandfather Alden told his grandchildren all he knew about the history of Greenfield. He told them that when his own father was growing up, there was no electricity, and no running water in any of the houses. “When your great-grandmother was a girl about your age, Jessie, her job was to bring in water from the well. She knew how to make candles so the family would have light. And she knew how to drive a horse and carriage, because back then they didn’t have cars.”

“Did they have bicycles?” asked Benny.

“No bicycles either,” said Grandfather. “Not until she was older. But they did have trains. The Greenfield Train Station is closed now. But in the old days it was the center of activity. I remember going there when I was a boy to watch the trains.”

“What happened to the trains?” Jessie asked.

“There aren’t as many as there used to be. Now people use trucks and cars,” said Grandfather. “The trains only stop in the big towns. They still go through Greenfield, on the tracks by the old station at the edge of town, but they don’t stop here anymore.”

Jessie frowned13. She was thinking hard. Suddenly she said, “Trains are a part of the history of Greenfield, aren’t they? Just like it said in the newspaper about our boxcar?”

“They sure are,” said Grandfather.

Jessie looked around the table. “I have an idea for the parade. Can you guess what it is?”

Everyone shook their heads. Jessie said, “I’ll give you a hint14. Once upon a time, four orphans15 and a little lost dog who didn’t have any place to live went to live in a special place. And then their grandfather, who had been looking and looking for them, found them . . .”

“In an old, abandoned boxcar in the woods,” said Violet. She slipped her hand into her grandfather’s and continued the story. “So the four children went to live with their grandfather in a big, white house in Greenfield. And as a surprise . . .”

Henry finished, “Their grandfather brought the boxcar to the backyard of the house for his grandchildren. And their names were . . .

“Benny, Jessie, Violet, Henry, and Watch Alden,” Benny burst out.

It was all true. That was how the Boxcar Children had come to live with their grandfather, James Alden.

Benny looked puzzled. “What does our boxcar have to do with the parade?”

“I think I know,” said Henry. “Our boxcar is an old boxcar. Boxcars were probably part of the trains that once went through Greenfield. That means it’s a part of Greenfield’s history.”

“That’s right,” said Jessie. “So, we should take our boxcar to be in the parade!”

“That’s a great idea, Jessie,” said Violet. She frowned. “But how will we get the boxcar in the parade? It doesn’t have a motor!”

“I think I can help you with that,” said Grandfather. “My old truck can pull the boxcar. I can hitch16 the boxcar to it and drive the truck in the parade.”

“I can wear my engineer’s costume with the red bandanna17!” Benny said excitedly.

“Yes,” said Henry. “And we can paint the boxcar and polish it and make it look extra special.”

“We’ll start first thing tomorrow,” said Jessie.

For the rest of the night, the Aldens made plans to decorate the boxcar and to make costumes for the parade. Then they went to bed so they could get up early to mail their entry into the Founders’ Day Parade and start getting their boxcar ready for the big day.
 


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 teased 7db750760b25c2517c6d13ae84c5ffb9     
v.取笑,戏弄( tease的过去式和过去分词 );梳理(羊毛等)
参考例句:
  • He took a screwdriver and teased out the remaining screws. 他拿出螺丝刀把其余的螺丝卸了下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • I felt annoyance at being teased. 我恼恨别人取笑我。 来自《简明英汉词典》
2 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。
3 twinkled af61c998b6e8371d7837913e59362662     
v.闪烁( twinkle的过去式和过去分词 );(眼睛)闪亮;(经光照耀而)闪闪发光;(舞蹈者的双脚)轻快地移动
参考例句:
  • Stars twinkled in the sky. 星星在天空中闪烁。
  • The diamond on her finger twinkled in the fire-light. 她手指上戴的钻石在火光下闪闪发亮。 来自《简明英汉词典》
4 exclaimed 68e477dcdab3965d2189fb7276ee5041     
vt.exclaim的过去式v.呼喊,惊叫,大声说( exclaim的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • "We have a good chance of winning," he exclaimed optimistically. “我们很可能获胜。”他乐观地喊道。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • She exclaimed in delight when she saw the presents. 她见到礼品高兴得叫了起来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
5 bent QQ8yD     
n.爱好,癖好;adj.弯的;决心的,一心的
参考例句:
  • He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
  • We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。
6 violet 8h3wm     
adj.紫色的;n.紫罗兰
参考例句:
  • She likes to wear violet dresses.他喜欢穿紫色的衣服。
  • Violet is the color of wisdom,peace and strength.紫色是智慧的,和平的和力量的颜色。
7 trotting cbfe4f2086fbf0d567ffdf135320f26a     
小跑,急走( trot的现在分词 ); 匆匆忙忙地走
参考例句:
  • The riders came trotting down the lane. 这骑手骑着马在小路上慢跑。
  • Alan took the reins and the small horse started trotting. 艾伦抓住缰绳,小马开始慢跑起来。
8 leash M9rz1     
n.牵狗的皮带,束缚;v.用皮带系住
参考例句:
  • I reached for the leash,but the dog got in between.我伸手去拿系狗绳,但被狗挡住了路。
  • The dog strains at the leash,eager to be off.狗拼命地扯拉皮带,想挣脱开去。
9 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。
10 hardware oe9xM     
n.重型武器;五金器具;硬件
参考例句:
  • He bought a pot and other hardware at the store. 他从商店买了一个壶和其他金属制品。
  • That family has carried on a hardware business for five generations.那家已经经营五金生意五代了。
11 orchard UJzxu     
n.果园,果园里的全部果树,(美俚)棒球场
参考例句:
  • My orchard is bearing well this year.今年我的果园果实累累。
  • Each bamboo house was surrounded by a thriving orchard.每座竹楼周围都是茂密的果园。
12 historic AcNxw     
adj.历史上著名的,具有历史意义的
参考例句:
  • This is a historic occasion.这是具有重大历史意义的时刻。
  • We are living in a great historic era.我们正处在一个伟大的历史时代。
13 frowned fdfd04918425477a66e031069e013e79     
皱眉( frown的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She frowned in puzzlement. 她迷惑地蹙着眉。
  • The mother frowned when her son failed in his exam. 儿子考试不及格时,母亲皱着眉。
14 hint IdgxW     
n.暗示,示意;[pl]建议;线索,迹象;v.暗示
参考例句:
  • He gave me a hint that I was being cheated.他暗示我在受人欺骗。
  • He quickly took the hint.一点他就明白了。
15 orphans edf841312acedba480123c467e505b2a     
孤儿( orphan的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • The poor orphans were kept on short commons. 贫苦的孤儿们吃不饱饭。
  • Their uncle was declared guardian to the orphans. 这些孤儿的叔父成为他们的监护人。
16 hitch UcGxu     
v.免费搭(车旅行);系住;急提;n.故障;急拉
参考例句:
  • They had an eighty-mile journey and decided to hitch hike.他们要走80英里的路程,最后决定搭便车。
  • All the candidates are able to answer the questions without any hitch.所有报考者都能对答如流。
17 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。
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