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儿童英语读物 The Mystery of the Hot Air Balloon CHAPTER 5 More Trouble

时间:2017-08-15 08:19来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
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An older man approached. His glasses were perched on the top of his head. Under his arm was a large brown envelope.

“Is he a reporter?” Jessie asked.

“That’s Hollis McKnight,” Sky answered. “He’s the owner and editor of The Landing Times, the local newspaper.” She started toward him. “Oh, Mr. McKnight, I have the money for the ad,” she told him.

Mr. McKnight said, “I’ll get the money later. Right now I have to speak with Mary.” He took Mary England’s arm and led her away.

“Did you tell McKnight what’s been going on around here?” Don Fister said.

Matt ignored him.

Sky touched Matt’s arm. “Come on, Matt,” she said. “Don will cool off. In the meantime, let’s show the Aldens what this balloon business is all about.” She started toward a small shed at one corner of the field.

The Aldens followed.

“One of these days, we’re going to enlarge this storage shed,” Sky told them.

“We’re going to make it into a lounge,” Matt added. “With tables and chairs.”

“And a big window so people can see the balloons ascend,” Sky said.

“Will there be anything to eat?” Benny asked.

“A well-equipped snack bar,” Matt answered.

Benny was glad to hear that.

At the shed, Sky said, “Tomorrow you’ll be part of our chase crew.”

“And you’ll help with the launch,” Matt added.

“Wait here,” Sky instructed. “We want to show you some of our equipment.” She and Matt unlocked the shed and went inside.

Not far away, Hollis McKnight and Mary England were in a heated conversation.

“What do you suppose that’s all about?” Henry wondered aloud.

“Why is Mary’s hair all messed up?” Benny asked. “She looks like she’d always be combed. Not like me.”

“Probably the wind,” Violet suggested.

Soo Lee looked around. She studied a nearby tree. Not a single leaf was moving. “There is no wind,” she said.

“She probably had her car windows open,” Jessie decided1.

“What’s Mr. McKnight doing?” Henry said.

The man pulled a stack of something — letters? — from the brown envelope. He waved them in Mary’s face. She turned away.

Mr. McKnight kept talking. Suddenly, Mary turned around to face him. She said something and dug in her purse. Whatever she pulled out flashed in the sunlight.

“It’s a mirror,” Henry said.

“And a comb,” Violet added as Mary began smoothing her hair.

Sky came out of the shed. Matt followed, carrying a metal box.

“This is the instrument package,” Sky told the Aldens.

They crowded around as Matt lifted the flight instruments out of the box.

Sky pointed2 to a round dial. “This is the variometer,” she said. “It tells us our vertical3 speed.”

Matt pointed to another gauge4. “Altimeter,” he identified. “It tells us our altitude — how high up in the sky we are. And that last dial measures the temperature inside the balloon.”

“Why do you have to know the temperature inside the balloon?” Soo Lee asked.

“The air in the balloon has to be kept at just the right temperature or the balloon will not do what the pilot wants it to,” Matt answered.

 

“How do you heat the air?” Violet asked.

“Propane gas,” Sky answered. “You’ll see the tanks later.”

Benny studied the instruments. Even Grandfather’s station wagon5 had more dials. “Are these all the instruments you need?”

“A compass helps,” Sky said.

“And a map,” Matt added.

“I’m good at map reading,” Benny said proudly. “I even made a map of our neighborhood.”

Sky smiled. “Good. Tomorrow, when you’re part of the chase crew, those skills will come in handy.”

Hollis McKnight joined the group. “I’ll take that money now, Ms. Blair,” he said.

Sky dug her wallet from her back pocket. “I’ve made a couple of changes in the ad copy,” she said. She handed Mr. McKnight a check and a folded piece of paper. “Do you want to go over them?”

Mr. McKnight shook his head. “I’m sure I’ll be able to figure out the changes.” Then he walked away.

Don Fister ran up beside him. “Mr. McKnight,” he said, “let me tell you what’s been going on here.”

McKnight waved him away, saying, “Not now. Not now.”

“What kind of newspaper editor are you?!” Don Fister shouted after him. Then, he stomped6 off.

Matt shook his head. “That Don is nothing but trouble,” he said.

Sky didn’t respond. Instead, she went on talking about ballooning. “Teamwork is the most important aspect of ballooning,” she said. “Everyone has a job. And they must do it well.”

The Aldens became so interested in their ballooning lessons they didn’t hear Pete Moran pull in.

“Lunch!” Pete announced as he opened the back of the station wagon.

Benny heard that. So did everyone else. Balloonists quickly gathered near the station wagon. Using the back of the station wagon as a table, Pete spread out an assortment7 of cold salads and breads.

Henry stepped forward. “Do you need help?” he asked Pete.

Pete nodded. “You could hand out the plates.”

Henry took the paper plates and stood beside the station wagon. Jessie took the plastic utensils8.

A line formed. The first person was about to eat when Brad Golder shouted at Pete, “You’re the one who launched my balloon!”


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 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。
2 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。
3 vertical ZiywU     
adj.垂直的,顶点的,纵向的;n.垂直物,垂直的位置
参考例句:
  • The northern side of the mountain is almost vertical.这座山的北坡几乎是垂直的。
  • Vertical air motions are not measured by this system.垂直气流的运动不用这种系统来测量。
4 gauge 2gMxz     
v.精确计量;估计;n.标准度量;计量器
参考例句:
  • Can you gauge what her reaction is likely to be?你能揣测她的反应可能是什么吗?
  • It's difficult to gauge one's character.要判断一个人的品格是很困难的。
5 wagon XhUwP     
n.四轮马车,手推车,面包车;无盖运货列车
参考例句:
  • We have to fork the hay into the wagon.我们得把干草用叉子挑进马车里去。
  • The muddy road bemired the wagon.马车陷入了泥泞的道路。
6 stomped 0884b29fb612cae5a9e4eb0d1a257b4a     
v.跺脚,践踏,重踏( stomp的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She stomped angrily out of the office. 她怒气冲冲,重步走出办公室。
  • She slammed the door and stomped (off) out of the house. 她砰的一声关上了门,暮暮地走出了屋了。 来自辞典例句
7 assortment FVDzT     
n.分类,各色俱备之物,聚集
参考例句:
  • This shop has a good assortment of goods to choose from.该店各色货物俱全,任君选择。
  • She was wearing an odd assortment of clothes.她穿着奇装异服。
8 utensils 69f125dfb1fef9b418c96d1986e7b484     
器具,用具,器皿( utensil的名词复数 ); 器物
参考例句:
  • Formerly most of our household utensils were made of brass. 以前我们家庭用的器皿多数是用黄铜做的。
  • Some utensils were in a state of decay when they were unearthed. 有些器皿在出土时已经残破。
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