Five On Kirrin Island Again Chapter Ten A SURPRISING SIGNAL

Chapter Ten A SURPRISING SIGNAL¹

'WHAT'S up with George?' demanded Julian, as soon as they were safely out of earshot. 'I know you kicked her at  tea-time, for talking too  much about  the island  -  that was  idiotic of her  -  but why has she gone home in a huff?'

Dick  told  them  how  he  had  trodden  on  poor  Timmy's  tail  to  make  him  whine,  so  that  George would turn her attention to him and stop talking. Julian laughed, but Anne was indignant².

'That was horrid³ of you, Dick.'

'Yes, it was,' said  Dick.  'But  I  couldn't  think of any other way to  head George off the island.  I really  honestly  thought  she  was  giving  away  to  that  fellow  all  the  things  he  badly  wanted  to know. But now I think he wanted to know them for quite another reason.'

'What do you mean?' said Julian, puzzled⁴.

'Well,  I thought  at  first  he must be after Uncle  Quentin's  secret,  whatever it is,' said  Dick, 'and that was why he wanted to know all the ins and outs of everything. But now that he's told me he's a journalist - that's a man who writes for the newspapers, Anne - I think after all he only wants the information so that he can use it for his paper, and make a splash⁵ when Uncle has finished his work.'

'Yes, I think that too,' said Julian, thoughtfully⁶; in fact, I'm pretty sure of it. Well, there's no harm in that, but I don't see why we should sit there and be pumped all the time. He could easily say,

"Look  here,  I'd  be  obliged  if  you'd  spill  the  beans  about  Kirrin  Island  --  I  want  to  use  it  in  a newspaper story." But he didn't say that.'

'No.  So  I  was  suspicious,'  said  Dick.  'But  I  see  now  he'd  want  all  sorts  of  tit-bits  about  Kirrin Island to put in his newspaper, whatever it is. Blow! Now I shall have to explain to George I was wrong - and she really is in a temper⁷!'

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'Let's take the road to Kirrin Village and go to get some bones for Timmy at the butcher's,' said Julian.

'A sort of apology to Tim!' This seemed a good idea. They bought two large meaty ones at the butcher's,  and  then  went  to  Kirrin  Cottage.  George  was  up  in  her  bedroom  with  Timmy.  The three went up to find her.

She was sitting on the floor with a book. She looked up sulkily as they came in.

'George, sorry I was such a beast,' said Dick. 'I did it for a good cause, if you only knew it. But I've discovered that Mr. Curton isn't a spy⁹, seeking out your father's secret - he's only a journalist, smelling out a story for a paper! Look - I've brought these for Timmy - 'I apologize to him too.'

George  was  in  a  very  bad  temper,  but  she  tried  to  pond  to  Dick's  friendliness.  She  gave  him  a small smile 'All right. Thanks for the bones. Don't talk to me right anybody. I feel mad, but I'll get over it.' They left her sitting on the floor. It was always best.

'How queer,' said Julian. 'Why twelve flashes? Hallo here we go again!' Another six flashes came from the tower, then no more at all. Julian wished he had a telescope¹⁰, then he could see right into the tower! He sat and thought for a moment, puzzled. Then he heard the others come pounding up the stairs. They burst¹¹ into the room.

'Julian! Father flashed eighteen times instead of six!' 'Did  you count them, Ju?' 'Why did he do that? Is he in danger of some sort?'

'No. If he was he'd flash the S.O.S. signal,' said Julian.

'He doesn't know Morse!' said George.

'Well, I expect he just wants to let us know that he needs something,' said Julian. 'We must go over today and find out  what it is. More food perhaps.' So, when Aunt Fanny came home they suggested they should all go over to the island. Aunt Fanny was pleased.

'Oh yes! That would be nice. I expect your uncle wants a message sent off somewhere. We'll go this morning.'

George  flew  off  to  tell  James  she  wanted  her  boat.  Aunt  Fanny  packed  up  plenty  of  food  with Joanna's help. Then they set off to Kirrin Island in George's boat. As they rounded the low wall of rocks and came into the little cove⁸, they saw Uncle Quentin waiting for them. He waved his hand, and helped to pull in the boat when it ran gently on to the sand.

'We saw your treble signal,' said Aunt Fanny. 'Did you want something, dear?'

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'Yes,  I  did,'  said  Uncle  Quentin.  'What's  in  your  basket,  Fanny?  More  of  those  delicious sandwiches. I'll have some!'

'Oh Quentin haven't you been having your meals properly again?' said Aunt Fanny. 'What about that lovely soup?'

'What soup?' said Uncle Quentin, looking surprised. I wish I'd known¹² about it. I could have done with some last night.'

'But Quentin! I told you about it before,' said Aunt Fanny. 'It will be bad by now. You must pour it away. Now don't forget pour it away! Where is it? Perhaps I had better pour it away myself.'

'No. I'll do it,' said Uncle Quentin. 'Let's sit down and have our lunch.'

It was much too early for lunch, but Aunt Fanny at once sat down and began to unpack¹³ the food.

The  children  were  always  ready  for  a  meal  at  any  time,  so  they  didn't  in  the  least  mind  lunch being so early.

'Well,  dear  -  how  is  your  work  getting  on?'  asked  Aunt  Fanny,  watching  her  husband  devour sandwich after sandwich. She began to wonder if he had had anything at all to eat since she had left him two days ago.

'Oh  very  well  indeed,'  said  her  husband.  'Couldn't  be  better.  Just  got  to  a  most  tricky  and interesting point. I'll have another sandwich, please.'

'Why did you signal eighteen times, Uncle Quentin?' asked Anne.

'Ah well it's  difficult  to  explain, really,' said  her  uncle.  'The fact  is  -  I can't  help  feeling there's somebody else on this island besides myself!'

'Quentin!  What  in  the  world  do  you  mean?'  cried  Aunt  Fanny,  in  alarm.  She  looked  over  her shoulder as if she half expected to see somebody there. All the children stared in amazement¹⁴ at Uncle Quentin.

He  took  another  sandwich.  'Yes,  I  know  it  sounds  mad.  Nobody  else  could  possibly  have  got here. But I know there is someone!'

'Oh don't Uncle!' said Anne, with a shiver¹⁵. 'It sounds horrid. And you're all alone at night too!'

'Ah, that's just it! I wouldn't mind a bit if I was all alone at night!' said her uncle. 'What worries me is that I don't think I shall be all alone.'

'Uncle, what makes you think there's somebody here?' asked Julian.

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'Well,  when  I  had  finished  the  experiment  I  was  doing  last  night  -  about  half  past  three  in  the early morning it would be - but pitch¹⁶ dark, of course,' said Uncle Quentin, 'I came into the open for a breath¹⁷ of fresh air. And I could swear I heard somebody cough - yes, cough twice!'

'Good gracious¹⁸!' said Aunt Fanny, startled¹⁹. 'But Quentin - you might have been mistaken. You do imagine things sometimes, you know, when you're tired.'

'Yes,  I know,' said  her husband. 'But  I couldn't  imagine this,  could  I?' He put  his  hand into  his pocket and took something out. He showed it to the others. It was a cigarette end, quite crisp²⁰ and fresh.

'Now,  I don't  smoke cigarettes.  Nor do any of  you! Well then who smoked that cigarette? And how did it come here? No one would bring him by boat and that's the only way here.'

There was a silence. Anne felt scared. George stared at her father, puzzled. Who could be here?

And why? And how had they got there?

'Well, Quentin - what are you going to do?' said his wife. 'What would be best?'

'I'll be all right if George will give her consent²¹ to something,' said Uncle Quentin. 'I want Timmy here, George! Will you leave him behind with me?' 

1 signal   

n.信号，暗号

参考例句：

• This is a signal failure.这是明显的失败。
• A train must not pass a signal that is at danger.火车切不可越过危险信号。

2 indignant   

adj.愤怒的，愤慨的，义愤的

参考例句：

• The indignant customer complained to the manager.那个愤怒的顾客向经理投诉。
• Even a written apology failed to placate the indignant hostess.甚至一纸书面道歉都没能安抚这个怒气冲冲的女主人。

3 horrid   

adj.可怕的；令人惊恐的；恐怖的；极讨厌的

参考例句：

• I'm not going to the horrid dinner party.我不打算去参加这次讨厌的宴会。
• The medicine is horrid and she couldn't get it down.这种药很难吃，她咽不下去。

4 puzzled   

adj.迷惑的；困惑的

参考例句：

• The student was puzzled about what to do next.这个学生对下一步做什么伤透了脑筋。
• I was somewhat puzzled at his unwillingness to help.他不愿意帮忙让我有点困惑。

5 splash   

v.溅，泼；n.溅泼声，溅出的水等，斑点

参考例句：

• I fell into the water with a splash.我跌入水中，激起水花四溅。
• There's a splash of paint on the white wall.白墙上溅上了一片油漆。

6 thoughtfully   

ad.考虑周到地

参考例句：

• She rubbed her chin thoughtfully. 她若有所思地抚摩着下巴。
• The man pulled thoughtfully at his pipe before commenting on our proposal. 那人若有所思地吸了口烟，然后就我们的建议发表自己的见解。

7 temper   

n.恶劣的心情，心绪焦躁；性情，脾气

参考例句：

• The man lost his temper and struck out wildly.那人因发怒而大打出手。
• One day the man flew at me in a temper.一天,那个人冲着我大发脾气。

8 cove   

n.小海湾，小峡谷

参考例句：

• The shore line is wooded,olive-green,a pristine cove.岸边一带林木蓊郁，嫩绿一片，好一个山外的小海湾。
• I saw two children were playing in a cove.我看到两个小孩正在一个小海湾里玩耍。

9 spy   

n.间谍，侦探，侦察；vt.侦察，找出，发现；vi.做密探，侦查

参考例句：

• I'm sure my neighbours spy on me.我肯定邻居暗中监视我。
• The spy never told his family about his underground activities.那个间谍从来不把他的地下活动告诉他的家人。

10 telescope   

n.望远镜

参考例句：

• I looked through a telescope.我用望远镜看东西。
• Many stars are invisible without a telescope.许多星辰不用望远镜便看不见。

11 burst   

vi.（burst，burst）爆炸；爆破；爆裂；爆发；vt.使…破裂；使…炸破；n.突然破裂；爆发

参考例句：

• We all held our breath till the bomb burst.我们屏住呼吸直到炸弹爆炸。
• She suddenly burst into song.她突然唱起歌来。

12 known   

adj.大家知道的；知名的，已知的

参考例句：

• He is a known artist.他是一个知名的艺术家。
• He is known both as a painter and as a statesman.他是知名的画家及政治家。

13 unpack   

vt.打开包裹（或行李），卸货

参考例句：

• I must unpack before dinner.我得在饭前把行李打开。
• She said she would unpack the items later.她说以后再把箱子里的东西拿出来。

14 amazement   

n.惊奇，惊讶

参考例句：

• All those around him looked at him with amazement.周围的人都对他投射出惊异的眼光。
• He looked at me in blank amazement.他带着迷茫惊诧的神情望着我。

15 shiver   

vi.战栗，发抖；n.战栗，发抖

参考例句：

• A sudden gust of cold wind made me shiver.一股突然刮来的冷风吹得我打哆嗦。
• It kept him in a cold shiver all the time.这些话让他不停地打寒噤。

16 pitch   

n.球场；声音的高低度；沥青；程度；v.投掷

参考例句：

• The pitch is too small to play football on.球场太小了，无法踢足球。
• People just pitch their rubbish over the wall.人们径直把垃圾扔过墙去。

17 breath   

n.呼吸，气息，微风，迹象，精神，一种说话的声音

参考例句：

• I'm just going out for a breath of fresh air.我正要出去呼吸新鲜空气。
• While climbing up the stairs the old man always loses his breath.那老人上楼时总是气喘吁吁的。

18 gracious   

adj.亲切的，客气的，宽厚的，仁慈的

参考例句：

• She was a very gracious lady.她是一位非常和蔼可亲的女士。
• She was gracious enough to show us round her home.她彬彬有礼地领我们参观了她的家。

19 startled   

adj.受惊吓的v.使惊跳，使大吃一惊( startle的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• A crowd of 2000 was startled near the end of the concert. 2000名观众在音乐会将近结束时大吃一惊。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Startled by the sudden whistle of the train, the horse broke away. 火车突然鸣笛，那匹马受惊脱逃。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 crisp   

adj.脆的；清新的；扼要的；n.[pl.]油炸土豆片

参考例句：

• What a crisp voice she has!听她的嗓音多脆！
• These pears are sweet and crisp.这种梨又甜又脆。

21 consent   

n.同意，准许；vi.同意，准许

参考例句：

• I agree with you, but yet I can't consent.我同意你的意见，但是我不能答应。
• My father would not consent to my leaving school.父亲不会答应我辍学。