英语 英语 日语 日语 韩语 韩语 法语 法语 德语 德语 西班牙语 西班牙语 意大利语 意大利语 阿拉伯语 阿拉伯语 葡萄牙语 葡萄牙语 越南语 越南语 俄语 俄语 芬兰语 芬兰语 泰语 泰语 泰语 丹麦语 泰语 对外汉语

儿童英语读物 Benny Uncovers a Mystery CHAPTER 10 Answers at Last

时间:2017-07-04 08:48来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
特别声明:本栏目内容均从网络收集或者网友提供,供仅参考试用,我们无法保证内容完整和正确。如果资料损害了您的权益,请与站长联系,我们将及时删除并致以歉意。
    (单词翻译:双击或拖选)

There was a bulletin1 board in the store near the lockers2 where people kept their coats. On Friday morning all the store workers were crowded in front of the bulletin board.

“What’s going on?” asked Benny.

Toni said, “Plenty! Next Wednesday afternoon, when the store is closed, everyone is invited to a picnic lunch. You’ll never guess where.”

“Tell us,” Henry said. “We’ll never get close enough to the bulletin board to read what’s there.”

Doris laughed and said, “At Miss Douglas’s house! Can you imagine that? Why would she do anything like that?”

“And we’re all invited,” said one of the salespersons who worked upstairs. “Everyone.”

“What do you suppose she’ll serve?” somebody else asked. “I’ll bet we go home hungry. But I want to go just to see what it’s all about.”

Even Mr. Fogg read the notice. When Toni asked him if he was going he said he was thinking about it if his back didn’t bother him too much.

Henry and Benny told the story of the picnic to Jessie and Violet at dinnertime.

“It just happens we’ve already been invited,” Jessie said. “Grandfather and Violet and me—we’ve all been asked. We’ll be there, too.”

Benny turned to Grandfather and said, “Something is going on. And I just don’t understand it. I have an idea you know something about this.”

Grandfather looked at Benny and said with just a small smile. “I’m having lunch on Wednesday with some old friends. You remember I’ve known Mr. Furman for years. In fact, I remember when Mr. Furman’s father came to the store each day.”

“But what about Jessie and Violet?” Benny asked. He looked at his sisters. “I didn’t think you knew Miss Douglas that well.”

“We met Miss Douglas at Furman’s,” Jessie said.

“Yes, she helped me buy the blouse I like so much,” Violet added.

“There’s something else, too,” Jessie told her brothers. “Violet and I were at Woodland Path yesterday afternoon.”

“And you never told us?” Benny asked. “Jessie, that isn’t fair. You’ve heard us talk and talk about Miss Douglas and how she comes to Furman’s all the time.”

“Can’t we girls have a little mystery of our own?” asked Jessie. “You aren’t the only one who can uncover a mystery wherever you go, Benny.”

Then Violet looked at the boys’ faces and laughed. “I can’t be mean to you two,” she said. “You won’t be able to wait until Wednesday if we don’t explain some things.”

“We’re listening,” Henry said. “What’s been going on?”

Jessie said, “You know we’ve been working, too. At the park. You never even once came to swim while I was a life guard there. But it’s all right, I know you have been busy. I met some new kids, and one of them knew Benny. He told me how hard you work, Benny—you never have time to talk when you’re on the job.”

Benny said right away, “I know who that is! It has to be Ted3 Evans. Right?”

“Right,” said Jessie. “Ted likes to know what’s going on. He’s curious, just like you, Benny. He walked around to see what was happening at the different classes in the park. He stopped to watch Violet’s painting class.”

“We were painting flowers,” Violet explained. “Anybody can take a class in the park, you know. There were some children painting and a few older people, too.”

“Did Ted want to take painting?” Benny asked. He couldn’t imagine that.

“No,” laughed Violet. “But he said he knew some ladies who might like to paint. And the next day, guess who came? Miss Douglas and her neighbor, Mrs. Fields.”

“I remember Mrs. Fields,” Benny said. “Ted and I put up the bird feeder for her. She had sprained4 her ankle.”

“That’s why she said she wanted to try painting,” Violet said. “I was a little afraid to have the ladies in my class. I’m not that good a teacher. But Miss Douglas and Mrs. Fields were so nice that we all had a good time.”

“How did Miss Douglas act?” Benny asked. “Was she really pleasant to you?”

“Oh, yes,” Violet exclaimed. “She asked Jessie and me to come over to her house after we were through with our work at the park. We knew how to find Woodland Path because Benny had told us so much about getting there.”

Jessie said, “Miss Douglas is a lot different in her own home. She’s not at all like the woman who goes shopping at Furman’s. She told us she had just moved here. She likes Greenfield very much.”

“I remembered that Miss Douglas helped me buy my blouse,” Violet said. “I asked her how she had learned so much about clothing. She told us she likes to test different fabrics5. She washes samples to see if the color runs. She dries them in the sun to see if the colors fade.”

Benny said, “Miss Douglas told me she’s been testing the different coffeemakers, too.”

While the others talked, Henry had been quiet. Now he asked, “But why is Maggie Douglas asking everyone to come to a picnic next Wednesday? It seems like a lot of work just to be friendly.”

“You’ll have to wait and see,” was all Mr. Alden answered when Henry looked at him. And that ended the talk about Miss Douglas, at least for the day.

Benny and Henry were kept busy at the department store. There was a big back-to-school sale, and so Henry was working upstairs in the boys’ clothing department.

Benny carried up boxes of sweaters, T-shirts, and socks. He began to think every boy in town was going to have new clothes for school.

On the first floor Benny overheard6 Mr. Fogg talking to a customer. She had twin boys and wanted to buy them school outfits7.

“Try to get Henry Alden to help you,” Mr. Fogg said. “He’s just working for us this month. But he tries to please his customers.”

“Well!” Benny thought to himself. “That doesn’t sound like Mr. Fogg at all. Maybe Miss Douglas is right. He growls8 like a bear, but he isn’t so bad when you get to know him.”

But Mr. Fogg sounded more like his old self when Benny asked, “Are you coming to the picnic?”

“What makes you ask?” Mr. Fogg answered gruffly. “Who cares if I come? But I guess I’ll have to go.”

On Tuesday evening, Benny and Henry were talking together about working at the store. Benny was thinking about the picnic. “You know what?” he asked. “I think I know why the picnic is being given. I think the new owner wants to meet all the store people.”

“What makes you think that?” asked Henry. “The new owner is in New York. Why would the owner want to come to Greenfield to meet people?”

“The owner is supposed to be in New York,” Benny said. “Supposed to be. That’s the part to remember. But we’ll soon see.”

When the buzzer9 sounded for closing time at noon on Wednesday, everyone at Furman’s hurried. Soon the dust covers were in place over the counters. Toni closed out her cash register. Salespeople10 made sure their sales books were in order.

This was the last day of work for Henry and Benny. August was over. It made the boys feel good when some of their new friends said, “See you next summer. We hope you’ll be working with us again.”

“I hope so, too,” said Benny.

Most of the workers drove or rode with friends, but Benny and Henry rode their bikes to Woodland Path.

It was a beautiful summer afternoon. The first thing the guests saw on arriving was a long picnic table covered with a red-and-white paper cloth. There were paper plates stacked at one end. There were platters with sliced ham and roast beef. There was chicken, too, and cheese and salads. Baskets were filled with rolls and whole wheat bread. It was a feast11!

Standing12 behind the table, ready to help her guests, was Miss Douglas. But she was not the Miss Douglas most of the store people knew. Her hair was fluffy13 and no longer done up in a tight bun. She wore a red shirt and a denim14 skirt. Her new earrings15 looked fine.

“Help yourselves, everyone,” she called out happily. “I’m so pleased you could all come!”

Jessie and Violet served iced tea and coffee. They ran back and forth16 to the house to get more platters of meat and fresh salads. Ted Evans passed the baskets of rolls.

Mr. Furman and Mr. Alden found a shady17 place to sit. Doris and Toni sat nearby.

“Is Mr. Fogg coming?” Doris asked.

“There he is now,” Toni said. “But what’s he bringing with him?”

Mr. Fogg looked around at the guests and the food set out on the picnic table. He frowned, then a smile slowly spread over his face. “I thought this was a picnic where every guest brings something,” he said, holding out his paper bag.

“Oh, no,” laughed Miss Douglas. “I’m giving this picnic. But if you brought something, that’s fine.” She opened the bag and took out a huge jar of pickles19, the largest anyone had ever seen.

“They’re sweet pickles,” Mr. Fogg explained.

Miss Douglas laughed, and so did the others. Maybe Mr. Fogg wasn’t exactly sweet, but he was trying hard not to be the sour pickle18 he’d often been called behind his back.

People laughed and talked. Miss Douglas made everyone feel at home.

After cake and ice cream, Miss Douglas stood up. Someone rapped20 on a glass, and everyone became quiet.

“Friends,” she said, “you all know me as Maggie Douglas. Now it is time to tell you who I really am. I’m—”

“Maggie Douglas Squires21!” Benny exclaimed loud enough to be heard clearly. He clapped his hand over his mouth. He hadn’t meant to let anyone know he’d solved the mystery.

It didn’t make any difference. Maggie Squires laughed and said, “Benny’s right, that’s who I am. I’m the new owner of Furman’s Department Store. I want all of you to know that I’m pleased with the way the store is run.”

Some of the guests turned red. They remembered that they had not wanted to wait on this woman. They had found her questions hard to answer and had been rude.

Mr. Furman came over and shook Miss Squires by the hand. He said, “Until a few days ago, I only knew the name of the owner who had bought Furman’s Department Store. It was M. D. Squires of New York City. Mr. Alden had assured me this was a reliable person who had a lot of experience. He told me the new owner would be fair and not make sudden changes. I was afraid that might happen if someone new took over the store.”

“Benny, how did you know who I was?” Miss Maggie Squires asked.

“I just put a lot of clues together,” Benny said. “Those notes about the kind of work people were doing, you wrote those, didn’t you?”

“Yes,” nodded Miss Squires.

“And the lockets—you put them on the jewelry22 counter.”

“Yes, but I really should not have done that,” she said and laughed. “I never dreamed it would cause so much trouble. And Henry nearly caught me when I tried to get in the store at night and couldn’t use my key because the lock had been changed.”

Sam, the night watchman, was staring at Miss Squires. “Then I did hear someone in the store,” he said. “I just had a feeling I wasn’t by myself.”

“I was sure you were going to catch me,” Miss Squires said. “There wasn’t time for me to get out of the store. I didn’t know what to do. I stood very still and tried my best to look like a store dummy23. I was afraid I’d sneeze or something.”

“That was you?” Sam said. “Well, you fooled me!”

Mr. Fogg came up and shook Miss Squires by the hand. “You really do know all about merchandise,” he said. “Mr. Furman told us the new owner would know what would sell and what wouldn’t. And you really do.”

“Why, thank you,” said Miss Squires. “I moved to Greenfield a while ago, but I didn’t want to take over Furman’s Department Store suddenly. I wanted to learn to know Greenfield people and the workers in the store. It wasn’t easy to pretend I was cross, complaining, plain Miss Douglas. I want to thank Mr. Furman and all of you for being patient with me. Now we’ll all work together and have the best department store anywhere!”

Everyone clapped and one by one came up to greet Miss Squires.

“Benny and Henry, I hope you’ll work with us again,” Miss Squires said. “Maybe I’ll make Benny my store detective.”


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 bulletin xSWyB     
n.小报,会刊,简明新闻,新闻快报
参考例句:
  • We read the declaration posted on the bulletin board.我们读了贴在布告板上的声明。
  • The radio bulletin warned of the typhoon.收音机新闻快报发布了台风警报。
2 lockers ae9a7637cc6cf1061eb77c2c9199ae73     
n.寄物柜( locker的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • I care about more lockers for the teachers. 我关心教师要有更多的储物柜。 来自辞典例句
  • Passengers are requested to stow their hand-baggage in the lockers above the seats. 旅客须将随身携带的行李放入座位上方的贮藏柜里。 来自辞典例句
3 ted 9gazhs     
vt.翻晒,撒,撒开
参考例句:
  • The invaders gut ted the village.侵略者把村中财物洗劫一空。
  • She often teds the corn when it's sunny.天好的时候她就翻晒玉米。
4 sprained f314e68885bee024fbaac62a560ab7d4     
v.&n. 扭伤
参考例句:
  • I stumbled and sprained my ankle. 我摔了一跤,把脚脖子扭了。
  • When Mary sprained her ankles, John carried her piggyback to the doctors. 玛丽扭伤了足踝,约翰驮她去看医生。
5 fabrics 678996eb9c1fa810d3b0cecef6c792b4     
织物( fabric的名词复数 ); 布; 构造; (建筑物的)结构(如墙、地面、屋顶):质地
参考例句:
  • cotton fabrics and synthetics 棉织物与合成织物
  • The fabrics are merchandised through a network of dealers. 通过经销网点销售纺织品。
6 overheard overheard     
adj. 串音的, 偶而听到的 动词overhear的过去式和过去分词形式
参考例句:
  • We talked quietly so as not to be overheard. 我们低声交谈,以免别人听到。
  • I told Lucy the news under my breath, but Joyce overheard me. 我低声地把这个消息告诉露西,可还是被乔伊斯听到了。
7 outfits ed01b85fb10ede2eb7d337e0ea2d0bb3     
n.全套装备( outfit的名词复数 );一套服装;集体;组织v.装备,配置设备,供给服装( outfit的第三人称单数 )
参考例句:
  • He jobbed out the contract to a number of small outfits. 他把承包工程分包给许多小单位。 来自辞典例句
  • Some cyclists carry repair outfits because they may have a puncture. 有些骑自行车的人带修理工具,因为他们车胎可能小孔。 来自辞典例句
8 growls 6ffc5e073aa0722568674220be53a9ea     
v.(动物)发狺狺声, (雷)作隆隆声( growl的第三人称单数 );低声咆哮着说
参考例句:
  • The dog growls at me. 狗向我狂吠。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • The loudest growls have echoed around emerging markets and commodities. 熊嚎之声响彻新兴的市场与商品。 来自互联网
9 buzzer 2x7zGi     
n.蜂鸣器;汽笛
参考例句:
  • The buzzer went off at eight o'clock.蜂鸣器在8点钟时响了。
  • Press the buzzer when you want to talk.你想讲话的时候就按蜂鸣器。
10 salespeople xjuz25     
n.售货员,店员;售货员( salesperson的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • The shop usually employs additional salespeople for the Christmas toy trade. 这家商店通常雇一些临时售货员来做圣诞节玩具生意。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • Under our new system, salespeople sit down with each of our dealers. 根据新的制度,销售人员应逐个地同承销商洽商。 来自辞典例句
11 feast tkixp     
n.盛宴,筵席,节日
参考例句:
  • After the feast she spent a week dieting to salve her conscience.大吃了一顿之后,她花了一周时间节食以安慰自己。
  • You shouldn't have troubled yourself to prepare such a feast!你不该准备这样丰盛的饭菜,这样太麻烦你了!
12 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
参考例句:
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
13 fluffy CQjzv     
adj.有绒毛的,空洞的
参考例句:
  • Newly hatched chicks are like fluffy balls.刚孵出的小鸡像绒毛球。
  • The steamed bread is very fluffy.馒头很暄。
14 denim o9Lya     
n.斜纹棉布;斜纹棉布裤,牛仔裤
参考例句:
  • She wore pale blue denim shorts and a white denim work shirt.她穿着一条淡蓝色的斜纹粗棉布短裤,一件白粗布工作服上衣。
  • Dennis was dressed in denim jeans.丹尼斯穿了一条牛仔裤。
15 earrings 9ukzSs     
n.耳环( earring的名词复数 );耳坠子
参考例句:
  • a pair of earrings 一对耳环
  • These earrings snap on with special fastener. 这付耳环是用特制的按扣扣上去的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
16 forth Hzdz2     
adv.向前;向外,往外
参考例句:
  • The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
  • He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。
17 shady AEczp     
adj.成荫的,多荫的,可疑的,靠不住的
参考例句:
  • This is a shady avenue.这是条林阴大道。
  • He's a rather shady person.他是个相当靠不住的人。
18 pickle mSszf     
n.腌汁,泡菜;v.腌,泡
参考例句:
  • Mother used to pickle onions.妈妈过去常腌制洋葱。
  • Meat can be preserved in pickle.肉可以保存在卤水里。
19 pickles fd03204cfdc557b0f0d134773ae6fff5     
n.腌菜( pickle的名词复数 );处于困境;遇到麻烦;菜酱
参考例句:
  • Most people eat pickles at breakfast. 大多数人早餐吃腌菜。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • I want their pickles and wines, and that.' 我要他们的泡菜、美酒和所有其他东西。” 来自英汉文学 - 金银岛
20 rapped c554bddab0a4bec3b87b6af2a62a9983     
v.突然说出( rap的过去式和过去分词 );(公开地)严厉批评;突然大声说出;连续敲叩
参考例句:
  • He rapped sharply on the door. 他猛烈地敲门。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The king rapped on the table with his heavy metal ring, and the company fell silent. 国王用他重重的金属戒指敲打桌子,使客人安静下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
21 squires e1ac9927c38cb55b9bb45b8ea91f1ef1     
n.地主,乡绅( squire的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • The family history was typical of the Catholic squires of England. 这个家族的历史,在英格兰信天主教的乡绅中是很典型的。 来自辞典例句
  • By 1696, with Tory squires and Amsterdam burghers complaining about excessive taxes. 到1696年,托利党的乡绅们和阿姆斯特丹的市民都对苛捐杂税怨声载道。 来自辞典例句
22 jewelry 0auz1     
n.(jewllery)(总称)珠宝
参考例句:
  • The burglars walked off with all my jewelry.夜盗偷走了我的全部珠宝。
  • Jewelry and lace are mostly feminine belongings.珠宝和花边多数是女性用品。
23 dummy Jrgx7     
n.假的东西;(哄婴儿的)橡皮奶头
参考例句:
  • The police suspect that the device is not a real bomb but a dummy.警方怀疑那个装置不是真炸弹,只是一个假货。
  • The boys played soldier with dummy swords made of wood.男孩们用木头做的假木剑玩打仗游戏。
本文本内容来源于互联网抓取和网友提交,仅供参考,部分栏目没有内容,如果您有更合适的内容,欢迎点击提交分享给大家。
------分隔线----------------------------
顶一下
(0)
0%
踩一下
(0)
0%
最新评论 查看所有评论
发表评论 查看所有评论
请自觉遵守互联网相关的政策法规,严禁发布色情、暴力、反动的言论。
评价:
表情:
验证码:
听力搜索
推荐频道
论坛新贴