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儿童英语读物 The Mystery of the Singing Ghost CHAPTER 10 Where Is Celia?

时间:2017-07-24 09:09来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
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After dinner that night, the family gathered in the den1. Henry said, “How can we go about trying to find out more about Celia? Even Mr. Farley doesn’t know — and he was her neighbor.”

“Well, in her letter to her father she said she was going to Bromley to stay with George’s parents. Maybe she’s still there,” Jessie said.

“But she got married. Her name wouldn’t be Roth,” Henry added.

Aunt Jane was thoughtful2. “It doesn’t seem likely that she would still be in Bromley after all these years.”

“Wait a minute!” Jessie said. She ran over to the bookcase and took Celia’s diary from a shelf. She ruffled3 through it until she came to the page she was looking for. “Celia says here: I told Father last night that I was in love with George Collins. So Collins would have been her last name if she married George.”

“You could try asking information if there’s someone by the name of Celia or George Collins living in Bromley,” Grandfather suggested. “People in this part of the state often stay in the same town for a lifetime.”

Jessie went to the telephone and got information for Bromley. She asked, “Is there a listing for George Collins?”

The operator4 answered, “I’m sorry we have no one by that name.”

“What about the name Celia Collins?” Jessie asked.

There was silence and then the operator returned. “Yes, I have a listing for a Celia Collins. The number is 555-3111.”

“I can’t believe it,” Jessie said. “There is a Celia Collins in Bromley.”

“Well, why don’t you call her?” Benny asked.

Grandfather looked thoughtful. “We must all remember that Mrs. Collins is an old lady. You can’t just tell her about her letter on the phone. If you want to call her, Jessie, you have to be careful how you tell the story of what has happened.”

“I know, Grandfather,” Jessie said. “But I have to call her.”

Jessie went to the phone and dialed the number she had been given. She waited with her heart beating rapidly as the number rang. Then a voice answered and Jessie said, “I’d like to speak to Mrs. George Collins, please.”

A sweet, strong voice said clearly, “This is she.”

Jessie quickly told Celia about how they had become connected with the old Roth house. “Well,” Celia Collins said, “I lived there a long time ago.”

“We know,” Jessie said. “Mrs. Collins, could we come to see you? We have some things we found in the house that I think you would want. I’m sure that my grandfather would drive me and my sister and brothers over to see you. I know that Bromley is not too far from Greenfield. We wouldn’t stay too long.”

“What kind of things did you find?” Celia asked. Her voice sounded sad.

“I think we should bring them to you,” Jessie said.

Mrs. Collins hesitated. Then she said, “All right. Can you come at eleven tomorrow morning?”

The next morning at eleven on the dot the Aldens were seated in Celia Collins’s living room. Mrs. Collins was a beautiful woman with short white hair. Her eyes sparkled5 and her voice was firm.

“Now, you must tell me why you came here,” she said.

Violet6 held out the diary. “We found this in an old box of books.”

Mrs. Collins gasped7. “My goodness8! That diary goes back a long time. It was filled with all the thoughts of a seventeen-year-old. Some not very happy, I recall9.”

Henry cleared his throat and said, “We found something else. We found this letter jammed in the back of a drawer in a big old desk. The envelope had never been opened because it had gotten stuck in the back of the desk drawer.”

Celia Collins’s eyes opened wide. “My father never found the letter. Is that what you mean?”

“That’s right,” Jessie said. “We opened the letter. I hope you don’t mind. So, you see, your father never knew where you went.”

Tears came to the old lady’s eyes. “I never heard from him, so I just thought he didn’t want to talk to me. That he was so angry that he was disowning me. It never occurred to me that he hadn’t read the letter. I waited and waited to hear from him. Then, after a number of months, I called him. But he had sold the house, and no one knew where he had gone. He was just lost to me.”

“You married your George, didn’t you?” Violet asked softly10.

Celia Collins laughed. “Oh, yes. We married before he went overseas. When he came back, we settled here in Bromley and had three children. He died about ten years ago. My daughter lives just down the block, and I have a housekeeper11 who lives in this house with me. I was always sad about father, but George and I had a good life together.”

Benny said, “Now you know your father wasn’t mad at you. He just didn’t know where you were.”

“That makes me feel much better,” Mrs. Collins said. She smiled at the children. “You have made me very happy, and I am delighted to have my diary back.”

Grandfather stood up. “We have taken enough of your time. We should leave now.”

Mrs. Collins took Violet’s hand. “Will all you children come and visit and tell me more about the house?”

“If you’d like,” Jessie said. “Someday maybe Grandfather will bring you to your old home so you can see it again.”

“That would be my pleasure,” Grandfather said.

Mrs. Collins stood and walked to the door with the Aldens. “Someday I will call you, and my housekeeper can drive me to the old house. I would like to see it again and to meet your cousins.”

She kissed each of the children and shook Grandfather’s hand. “I can’t thank you enough for giving me back my father.”

The Aldens got into Grandfather’s car and rode in silence for a while. Then Jessie said, “I’m so glad we found Celia.”

One month later, on a warm Sunday afternoon, there was a party going on at the old Roth house. Joe and Alice were having a housewarming party. There were platters of food and cookies and cakes on the dining room table. The living room was filled with flowers, and the house was filled with people.

All the Aldens were there and Aunt Jane and Uncle Andy. Joe and Alice had also invited Mr. Farley, Ms. Evans, Thomas Yeats, and even the Carters. The Carters, who felt so sorry that they had tried to keep Joe and Alice from moving in, had become perfect neighbors. They were helpful and welcoming. But the person whom everyone was waiting for was Celia Roth Collins. She had been invited and had said that her housekeeper would drive her over.

The moment came, and Celia Collins walked into the house she had not been in for decades. Alice ran to the door to welcome her and led her into the living room. As Mrs. Collins looked around, tears came to her eyes. “The house looks beautiful,” she said to Alice.

Alice said, “Let me introduce you to everyone. You know the Aldens. And this is the children’s aunt and uncle.” Then she reached Mr. Farley. He looked at Celia and asked, “Do you remember me at all?”

Celia Collins stared at him. “Well, it’s been a long, long time but you do look a little like a boy who lived next door to me. He was a real imp12. His name was Charlie Farley.”

Mr. Farley smiled broadly. “That was me! You know, Mrs. Collins, I had a real crush13 on you when I was a boy.”

Mrs. Collins smiled, too. “I knew that, Charlie.”

Mr. Farley looked thoughtful. “I think that was why I wanted to believe your ghost was still in the house. Just so I could pretend you were still here.”

Alice took Celia over to Mr. Yeats. “Mr. Yeats is painting a picture of the house,” she said.

“Yes, I wanted the house not to change so I could finish the painting. When the children started fixing the place up, I was so angry. I was afraid all my work would be wasted. I even asked Mr. Farley to keep an eye on the children for me — let me know what they were up to. He refused, and rightly so. Anyway, I did finish the painting.”

“Perhaps,” Mrs. Collins said, “you would sell it to me.”

Mr. Yeats bowed slightly. “Madam, it would be a pleasure if you would let me give the painting to you as a gift.”

“I would love that,” Mrs. Collins replied.

The last one Alice introduced Celia to was Terry Evans. “Ms. Evans is writing a history of Greenfield.”

“Yes,” Ms. Evans said, “and this house will have a chapter all to itself. I wanted it to become a landmark14 but Joe and Alice have fixed15 it up so beautifully. It is as well cared for as if it were a landmark.”

Everybody sat down and Celia Collins sighed. “Everything would be perfect if I just knew what happened to my father.”

Ms. Evans jumped up. “I know that. I have been doing research on the families that lived in this house.”

Mrs. Collins looked startled16. “What happened to him?”

Ms. Evans walked over to Celia and sat down on the sofa next to her. “What I discovered is that he moved to Boston a few months after you disappeared. He tried in many ways to find you. He finally put an ad in a Boston paper, hoping you might see it. I wrote it out and brought a copy of it for you.”

Celia’s hand trembled as she reached for it. Then she dropped her hand and said to Ms. Evans, “I think you had better read it to me.”

Ms. Evans cleared her throat and read: “For Celia Roth, my daughter: I know that you must have married George Collins and that is why you left home. I was wrong to try to stop you from marrying George. He is a nice young man and you deserve17 to be happy with him. Please write to me at the box number below if you see this ad. If I don’t hear from you I will know you never read this paper. I know that you love me, as I love you, and would reply if you could. Your loving father, Robert Roth.”

There was a silence in the room after Ms. Evans stopped reading. Then Mr. Alden said, “So now you know, Mrs. Collins, that your father forgave you and knew that you loved him.”

“I am so glad,” Mrs. Collins said, wiping the tears from her eyes. “I will always be grateful to all of you,” she said, looking around the room.

“Can we eat now?” Benny asked.

Everyone laughed and Alice said, “There’s a lot of food in the dining room. Benny is right. It’s time to eat.”

Everyone walked into the dining room and filled their plates. Mrs. Collins’s housekeeper fixed a plate for the old woman, who remained seated in the living room. The housekeeper looked at the Alden children and said, “I don’t think you can know how happy you have made Mrs. Collins. Now she can stop worrying about what happened between her and her father.”

Back in the living room, they all ate the wonderful food Alice and Joe had prepared. Benny sat on the floor next to Mrs. Collins and said, “Would you come and visit us sometime? I’d like to show you our boxcar. You know we ran away once, too.”

Mrs. Collins smiled. “Benny, I would love to visit you and to hear about your adventures.”

“We’ve had lots of them,” Violet said. “But you know, I think this one was the best.”


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 den 5w9xk     
n.兽穴;秘密地方;安静的小房间,私室
参考例句:
  • There is a big fox den on the back hill.后山有一个很大的狐狸窝。
  • The only way to catch tiger cubs is to go into tiger's den.不入虎穴焉得虎子。
2 thoughtful Wo4wg     
adj.思考的,沉思的,体贴的,关心的
参考例句:
  • She is thoughtful for her friends.她很体贴她的朋友们。
  • This is a thoughtful essay.这是一篇具有思想性的随笔。
3 ruffled e4a3deb720feef0786be7d86b0004e86     
adj. 有褶饰边的, 起皱的 动词ruffle的过去式和过去分词
参考例句:
  • She ruffled his hair affectionately. 她情意绵绵地拨弄着他的头发。
  • All this talk of a strike has clearly ruffled the management's feathers. 所有这些关于罢工的闲言碎语显然让管理层很不高兴。
4 operator aItxO     
n.(机器、设备等的)操作员;电话接线员
参考例句:
  • He is a computer operator.他是个电脑操作员。
  • The telephone operator connected us.话务员给我们接通了电话。
5 sparkled 7169434428068e4cd834f66dafa60e1a     
v.发火花,闪耀( sparkle的过去式和过去分词 );(饮料)发泡;生气勃勃,热情奔放,神采飞扬
参考例句:
  • Her jewellery sparkled in the candlelight. 烛光下,她的首饰光彩熠熠。
  • Her eyes sparkled with excitement. 她的眼睛由于兴奋而发亮。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
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 gasped e6af294d8a7477229d6749fa9e8f5b80     
v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 );喘息;倒抽气;很想要
参考例句:
  • She gasped at the wonderful view. 如此美景使她惊讶得屏住了呼吸。
  • People gasped with admiration at the superb skill of the gymnasts. 体操运动员的高超技艺令人赞叹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
8 goodness xfgxm     
n.善良,善行,美德
参考例句:
  • Would you have the goodness to turn off the radio?劳驾,请你把收音机关上好不好?
  • Thank goodness,we've found a cure for the disease.好了,这病有救了!
9 recall mtByJ     
n.回忆,召回,取消;vt.回想起,召回,与...相似,恢复
参考例句:
  • As you may recall, he was in the army then.你可能记得当时他正在从军。
  • We demand that you recall your army from our border.我们要求你们撤回在我们边境的部队。
10 softly HiIzR4     
adv.柔和地,静静地,温柔地
参考例句:
  • He speaks too softly for her to hear.他讲话声音太轻,她听不见。
  • She breathed her advice softly.她低声劝告。
11 housekeeper 6q2zxl     
n.管理家务的主妇,女管家
参考例句:
  • A spotless stove told us that his mother is a diligent housekeeper.炉子清洁无瑕就表明他母亲是个勤劳的主妇。
  • She is an economical housekeeper and feeds her family cheaply.她节约持家,一家人吃得很省。
12 imp Qy3yY     
n.顽童
参考例句:
  • What a little imp you are!你这个淘气包!
  • There's a little imp always running with him.他总有一个小鬼跟着。
13 crush jy4xx     
v.压垮,压倒,压服,镇压;压碎,碾碎
参考例句:
  • This machine is made to crush the rock into powder.这台机器是用来把石头压成碎末的。
  • You can't crush so many people into the classroom.不能让这么多人挤进教室。
14 landmark j2DxG     
n.陆标,划时代的事,地界标
参考例句:
  • The Russian Revolution represents a landmark in world history.俄国革命是世界历史上的一个里程碑。
  • The tower was once a landmark for ships.这座塔曾是船只的陆标。
15 fixed JsKzzj     
adj.固定的,不变的,准备好的;(计算机)固定的
参考例句:
  • Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗?
  • Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定,我们就不应该随意改变。
16 startled 651a5bec8a61bb5867cc270c8ec3c20b     
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》
17 deserve owaxR     
vt.应受,值得;vi. 应受报答,值得受赏
参考例句:
  • You really deserve a good beating,you naughty boy.你这个调皮孩子真该打。
  • I do not deserve all the praises bestowed upon me.我不配得到这些赞扬。
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