儿童英语读物 The Mystery of the Lost Mine CHAPTER 7 Lost!

“Tacos,” declared Benny, “are the very best part of Arizona.” He crunched¹ his fourth beef taco happily.

“They are good,” agreed Jessie, adding shredded² lettuce³ to her chicken taco. “Mr. McCrae, it was really nice of you to take us out to dinner.”

Across the table, Gerald McCrae chomped⁴ chips and salsa. “I couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate finishing work on my cabin. James deserves a real Tex-Mex meal.”

Grandfather refilled Violet’s iced tea glass from the frosty pitcher⁵. “It felt good to work in the open air. And I’m so glad my grandchildren had a chance to see the West.”

“Are we leaving?” Benny asked, concerned. They hadn’t found Jake yet. Or really looked for the Lost Dutchman’s mine.

“Not until the end of the week,” Grandfather replied. “There are still a few things to be done on the cabin. Then Gerald will drive us to Phoenix⁶ and we’ll fly home.”

“And you’ll take your RV to the cabin,” Henry said to Mr. McCrae. “We’ve sure enjoyed it.”

“I’ll come visit you in Greenfield,” said Mr. McCrae. “And you can borrow the RV again sometime.”

Benny would miss the New Boxcar. It was neat living in that miniature house on wheels.

“How about fried ice cream for dessert?” Mr. McCrae suggested.

“How can they fry ice cream?” Benny wanted to know. “Wouldn’t it melt?”

But when the toasted, coconut-covered ball was set in front of him, he didn’t speak until the glass dish was scraped clean.

“Are you going on the evening hike with us?” Violet asked Grandfather as they drove back to RV Haven⁷.

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Grandfather replied. “The desert at night is beautiful.”

The Aldens piled out of Mr. McCrae’s Jeep in front of the Chuck Wagon⁸.

“See you tomorrow morning,” Gerald McCrae said to Grandfather, pulling away.

Grandfather went ahead to unlock the RV. “Since we’re hiking in the desert, we’ll all need warmer clothing,” he told them.

Janine Crawford was closing the restaurant. The dinner shift was over.

“Did Jake come in today?” Jessie anxiously asked the waitress.

Janine jingled⁹ the large bunch of keys she carried. “I don’t think so. To tell you the truth, I was too busy to notice.”

“Wasn’t Tom around to help?” Violet asked.

Janine made a snorting sound. “Is that man ever around when there’s work to be done?”

“He’s guiding the hike tonight, isn’t he?” Benny said. He didn’t want to miss seeing the desert at night.

Janine got into her car. “Don’t worry. If it’s something fun, Tom will be there.”

“She doesn’t like him very much, does she?” Henry observed as Janine’s car pulled away, crunching¹⁰ gravel¹¹.

Violet noticed something about the waitress. “Janine is tall,” she said. “As tall as any man. Do you suppose she was the person we saw on the rocks today?”

Henry nodded. “Good point, Violet. We can’t say for sure if the prowler or the stranger in the hills was a man.”

“All I know,” Benny said, “is that Jake hasn’t shown up in two whole days.”

“Sounds to me like the threat in Jake’s note came true. I think Jake’s in trouble,” Jessie said.

Back in the RV, the children got ready for the hike. Jessie and Violet tied sweaters around their waists. Henry and Benny changed into long-sleeved shirts. Since Benny’s shirt didn’t have a pocket on the front, he tucked his lucky rock into his jeans pocket.

They all gathered at the recreation center. The Clarks and the Garcias were already waiting, along with several other people from the campground. Luis joined the Aldens.

Tom Parker strode into the lounge area. He wore soft, knee-high boots and a long, suede¹² duster with fringed sleeves. His silver belt buckle¹³ sported a large turquoise¹⁴ stone that matched the stone in his string tie. His cowboy hat was black, with a jaunty¹⁵ white feather.

“Wow,” breathed Benny. He gazed longingly¹⁶ at Tom’s boots. More than ever, he wished he were a cowboy.

“Don’t you look handsome,” Mrs. Clark teased. “Like a real guide from the Old West.”

Tom tipped his hat gallantly¹⁷. “Thank you, ma’am. All right, pardners! Let’s hit the trail!”

The group moved outside to the western end of the campground. From the pavement they struck off on a path bordered with white pebbles¹⁸.

Violet held Grandfather’s hand. “Look at the sunset,” she said. “I count five shades of purple.”

“It is spectacular,” Grandfather agreed.

She looked back once, at the trailers and RVs bathed in lavender light. She saw a pale, ghostly face in the window of the silver Airstream.

It was Mr. Tobias. He wouldn’t even leave his trailer to go on a hike. He didn’t seem to like people at all. Why was he so unsociable?

As the sun disappeared over the horizon, Tom talked about the desert.

“As soon as the sun goes down,” he said in a lecturing tone, “small animals come out to feed. It’s too hot during the day, so kangaroo rats and mice sleep. But when they come out, so do their enemies.”

Jessie slipped her arms into her sweater. “What kind of enemies?” she asked him.

“Foxes,” he replied. “Coyotes. Scorpions¹⁹ and gila monsters.”

“Monsters? There are monsters out here?” Benny reached into his pocket and touched his lucky rock.

Luis reassured²⁰ him. “A gila monster is a large lizard²¹. Don’t worry. It moves very slowly. And it eats insects.”

Mr. Clark asked Tom a question about the various cacti²² growing beside the trail.

“The saguaro cactus²³ lives to be hundreds of years old,” Tom said knowledgeably²⁴. “It grows a branch every twenty years.”

“Twenty years!” Mrs. Clark was impressed.

Henry exchanged a look with Luis. “Didn’t you tell us the saguaro grows an arm every fifty years?”

Luis nodded. “I hate to say it, but Tom is wrong.”

Jessie was wondering why Tom sounded as if he was reading from a textbook. He had dropped his easygoing speech and his tone was stiff.

It was nearly dark when the group stopped at a circle of large, flat stones. In the center was a small, charred²⁵ pit.

“Gather brush,” Tom ordered everyone. “Soon we’ll have a roaring fire. Then I’ll tell you some tall tales.”

Benny was proud to gather the most brush. “Are you going to start a fire with two sticks?” he asked Tom eagerly.

Tom knelt over the pit. “Takes too long, Benny,” he said. “Besides, there’s no sun to create a spark.” With a lighter²⁶, he nervously²⁷ flicked²⁸ at the brushpile again and again.

The fire would not catch.

“Can I try?” offered Mr. Garcia. “I’ve had a lot of experience with balky campfires.”

“So have I!” Tom barked. “I’ve lived in Arizona all my life—I know how to start a fire.”

Mr. Garcia backed away, taking a seat next to his wife.

Finally a flame licked over the brush. “Sorry,” Tom said to Mr. Garcia. “I guess the wind wasn’t right.”

“There is no wind,” Violet whispered to Henry as they all found a seat around the fire.

“I know,” Henry said. “It’s perfectly²⁹ still tonight.”

Tom was definitely acting³⁰ strangely.

“How about a story?” asked one of the other campers.

“Do you know one?” Tom joked. But he seemed distracted, as if he couldn’t think of a story of tell.

Benny raised his hand and waved it. “Tom, tell us about the Lost Dutchman’s mine.” That was a story they would all enjoy.

In the leaping firelight, Tom’s face twisted. “I don’t know that story, Benny. Maybe you could share it with us.”

Jessie’s jaw³¹ dropped. A native Arizonan like Tom didn’t know the legend of the Lost Dutchman’s mine?

Grandfather came to the rescue. He told a long, funny tale that made everyone laugh.

Benny was tired from that morning’s long ride in the hills. He leaned against Jessie’s shoulder and dozed³² off.

Henry, who was sitting next to Violet, gently nudged her.

“Look out there,” he whispered. “Do you see anything strange?”

Violet stared beyond the fire. The last light of the day silhouetted³³ cacti and rocks on the ridge³⁴. Then she saw it, an armless saguaro. Or was it a man?

“That cactus,” she whispered back. “It looks like a person!”

“I wonder if it’s the prowler,” Henry said. “Watching us. Two of our suspects are right here, Mr. Clark and Tom. That leaves Mr. Tobias.”

“And Janine,” Violet said, reminding him the mysterious stranger could be a woman. “Maybe it’s just a person-shaped cactus.”

“You could be right. The night plays tricks on our eyes.” But the more Henry stared at the “cactus,” the more he was certain it was human.

Across the circle, Mr. Clark let out a big yawn. “Well, I think it’s about time to head on back to the bunkhouse.”

“I agree,” said Grandfather. “We all have another busy day tomorrow.”

Very busy, thought Jessie. Time was running out. They would have to find Jake.

Mrs. Clark came over. “Oh, your little brother fell asleep. He’s so cute. Here, let me help you with him.”

“That’s okay,” Jessie said, shaking Benny awake. “We’re fine.”

But Mrs. Clark insisted on taking Benny’s arm and helping³⁵ him to his feet.

After a while, the cool desert air woke Benny up completely. He reached into his pocket to touch his lucky rock.

The pocket was empty.

“My rock!” he exclaimed. “I can’t find it!”

“Not your lucky rock?” Jessie cried. “Oh, Benny!”

Benny turned all his pockets inside out. “It’s missing!”

“You mean that shiny rock?” said Mrs. Clark. “Oh, it’s probably back at the trailer. Or the restaurant. You could have left it anywhere.”

“No, I didn’t,” Benny insisted. “I put it in my pocket before we left for the hike. And now it’s gone!”

It was too dark to search the area. Grandfather and the others were waiting for him.

Benny slipped his hand nervously into Jessie’s. He didn’t trust Mrs. Clark.

When he first showed her his gold rock, she had eyed it enviously³⁶. It was obvious she liked pretty things from all the shiny jewelry³⁷ she wore.

Could Mrs. Clark have stolen his lucky rock?

1 crunched   

v.嘎吱嘎吱地咬嚼( crunch的过去式和过去分词 )；嘎吱作响；（快速大量地）处理信息；数字捣弄

参考例句：

• Our feet crunched on the frozen snow. 我们的脚嘎吱嘎吱地踩在冻雪上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He closed his jaws on the bones and crunched. 他咬紧骨头，使劲地嚼。 来自英汉文学 - 热爱生命

2 shredded   

shred的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• Serve the fish on a bed of shredded lettuce. 先铺一层碎生菜叶，再把鱼放上，就可以上桌了。
• I think Mapo beancurd and shredded meat in chilli sauce are quite special. 我觉得麻婆豆腐和鱼香肉丝味道不错。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 lettuce   

n.莴苣；生菜

参考例句：

• Get some lettuce and tomatoes so I can make a salad.买些莴苣和西红柿，我好做色拉。
• The lettuce is crisp and cold.莴苣松脆爽口。

4 chomped   

v.切齿，格格地咬牙，咬响牙齿( chomp的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He chomped his way through two hot dogs. 他呼哧呼哧地吃掉了两个热狗。
• The boy chomped his sandwich. 这个男孩大口嚼着三明治。 来自互联网

5 pitcher   

n.(有嘴和柄的)大水罐；(棒球)投手

参考例句：

• He poured the milk out of the pitcher.他从大罐中倒出牛奶。
• Any pitcher is liable to crack during a tight game.任何投手在紧张的比赛中都可能会失常。

6 phoenix   

n.凤凰，长生(不死)鸟；引申为重生

参考例句：

• The airline rose like a phoenix from the ashes.这家航空公司又起死回生了。
• The phoenix worship of China is fetish worship not totem adoration.中国凤崇拜是灵物崇拜而非图腾崇拜。

7 haven   

n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所

参考例句：

• It's a real haven at the end of a busy working day.忙碌了一整天后，这真是一个安乐窝。
• The school library is a little haven of peace and quiet.学校的图书馆是一个和平且安静的小避风港。

8 wagon   

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。

9 jingled   

喝醉的

参考例句：

• The bells jingled all the way. 一路上铃儿叮当响。
• Coins in his pocket jingled as he walked. 走路时，他衣袋里的钱币丁当作响。

10 crunching   

v.嘎吱嘎吱地咬嚼( crunch的现在分词 )；嘎吱作响；（快速大量地）处理信息；数字捣弄

参考例句：

• The horses were crunching their straw at their manger. 这些马在嘎吱嘎吱地吃槽里的草。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The dog was crunching a bone. 狗正嘎吱嘎吱地嚼骨头。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 gravel   

n.砂跞；砂砾层；结石

参考例句：

• We bought six bags of gravel for the garden path.我们购买了六袋碎石用来铺花园的小路。
• More gravel is needed to fill the hollow in the drive.需要更多的砾石来填平车道上的坑洼。

12 suede   

n.表面粗糙的软皮革

参考例句：

• I'm looking for a suede jacket.我想买一件皮制茄克。
• Her newly bought suede shoes look very fashionable.她新买的翻毛皮鞋看上去非常时尚。

13 buckle   

n.扣子，带扣；v.把...扣住，由于压力而弯曲

参考例句：

• The two ends buckle at the back.带子两端在背后扣起来。
• She found it hard to buckle down.她很难专心做一件事情。

14 turquoise   

n.绿宝石；adj.蓝绿色的

参考例句：

• She wore a string of turquoise round her neck.她脖子上戴着一串绿宝石。
• The women have elaborate necklaces of turquoise.那些女人戴着由绿松石制成的精美项链。

15 jaunty   

adj．愉快的，满足的；adv.心满意足地，洋洋得意地；n.心满意足；洋洋得意

参考例句：

• She cocked her hat at a jaunty angle.她把帽子歪戴成俏皮的样子。
• The happy boy walked with jaunty steps.这个快乐的孩子以轻快活泼的步子走着。

16 longingly   

adv. 渴望地 热望地

参考例句：

• He looked longingly at the food on the table. 他眼巴巴地盯着桌上的食物。
• Over drinks,he speaks longingly of his trip to Latin America. 他带着留恋的心情，一边喝酒一边叙述他的拉丁美洲之行。

17 gallantly   

adv. 漂亮地，勇敢地，献殷勤地

参考例句：

• He gallantly offered to carry her cases to the car. 他殷勤地要帮她把箱子拎到车子里去。
• The new fighters behave gallantly under fire. 新战士在炮火下表现得很勇敢。

18 pebbles   

[复数]鹅卵石； 沙砾； 卵石，小圆石( pebble的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The pebbles of the drive crunched under his feet. 汽车道上的小石子在他脚底下喀嚓作响。
• Line the pots with pebbles to ensure good drainage. 在罐子里铺一层鹅卵石，以确保排水良好。

19 scorpions   

n.蝎子( scorpion的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• You promise me that Black Scorpions will never come back to Lanzhou. 你保证黑蝎子永远不再踏上兰州的土地。 来自电影对白
• You Scorpions are rather secretive about your likes and dislikes. 天蝎：蝎子是如此的神秘，你的喜好很难被别人洞悉。 来自互联网

20 reassured   

adj.使消除疑虑的；使放心的v.再保证，恢复信心( reassure的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• The captain's confidence during the storm reassured the passengers. 在风暴中船长的信念使旅客们恢复了信心。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• The doctor reassured the old lady. 医生叫那位老妇人放心。 来自《简明英汉词典》

21 lizard   

n.蜥蜴，壁虎

参考例句：

• A chameleon is a kind of lizard.变色龙是一种蜥蜴。
• The lizard darted out its tongue at the insect.蜥蜴伸出舌头去吃小昆虫。

22 cacti   

n.（复）仙人掌

参考例句：

• There we could see nothing but cacti.那里除了仙人掌我们什么也看不到。
• Cacti can survive the lack of rainfall in the desert.仙人掌在降水稀少的沙漠中也能生存下去。

23 cactus   

n.仙人掌

参考例句：

• It was the first year that the cactus had produced flowers.这是这棵仙人掌第一年开花。
• The giant cactus is the vegetable skycraper.高大的仙人掌是植物界巨人。

24 knowledgeably   

adj.知识渊博地，有见识地

参考例句：

• You should be prepared to talk knowledgeably about the requirements of the position for which you are applying in relation to your own professional experiences and interests. 你应该准备有见地地去谈论你所求职位对求职者的要求，与你自身的职业经历和个人兴趣之间的联系。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The speaker discoursed knowledgeably on a variety of subjects. 演讲者头头是道地论述了一系列问题。 来自辞典例句

25 charred   

v.把…烧成炭( char的过去式)；烧焦

参考例句：

• the charred remains of a burnt-out car 被烧焦的轿车残骸
• The intensity of the explosion is recorded on the charred tree trunks. 那些烧焦的树干表明爆炸的强烈。 来自《简明英汉词典》

26 lighter   

n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级

参考例句：

• The portrait was touched up so as to make it lighter.这张画经过润色，色调明朗了一些。
• The lighter works off the car battery.引燃器利用汽车蓄电池打火。

27 nervously   

adv.神情激动地，不安地

参考例句：

• He bit his lip nervously,trying not to cry.他紧张地咬着唇，努力忍着不哭出来。
• He paced nervously up and down on the platform.他在站台上情绪不安地走来走去。

28 flicked   

（尤指用手指或手快速地）轻击( flick的过去式和过去分词 )； （用…）轻挥； （快速地）按开关； 向…笑了一下（或瞥了一眼等）

参考例句：

• She flicked the dust off her collar. 她轻轻弹掉了衣领上的灰尘。
• I idly picked up a magazine and flicked through it. 我漫不经心地拿起一本杂志翻看着。

29 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

30 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

31 jaw   

n.颚，颌，说教，流言蜚语；v.喋喋不休，教训

参考例句：

• He delivered a right hook to his opponent's jaw.他给了对方下巴一记右钩拳。
• A strong square jaw is a sign of firm character.强健的方下巴是刚毅性格的标志。

32 dozed   

v.打盹儿，打瞌睡( doze的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He boozed till daylight and dozed into the afternoon. 他喝了个通霄，昏沉沉地一直睡到下午。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• I dozed off during the soporific music. 我听到这催人入睡的音乐，便不知不觉打起盹儿来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

33 silhouetted   

显出轮廓的，显示影像的

参考例句：

• We could see a church silhouetted against the skyline. 我们可以看到一座教堂凸现在天际。
• The stark jagged rocks were silhouetted against the sky. 光秃嶙峋的岩石衬托着天空的背景矗立在那里。

34 ridge   

n.山脊；鼻梁；分水岭

参考例句：

• We clambered up the hillside to the ridge above.我们沿着山坡费力地爬上了山脊。
• The infantry were advancing to attack the ridge.步兵部队正在向前挺进攻打山脊。

35 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

36 enviously   

adv.满怀嫉妒地

参考例句：

• Yet again, they were looking for their way home blindly, enviously. 然而，它们又一次盲目地、忌妒地寻找着归途。 来自辞典例句
• Tanya thought enviously, he must go a long way south. 坦妮亚歆羡不置，心里在想，他准是去那遥远的南方的。 来自辞典例句

37 jewelry   

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。