Lesson 4 The Droving
Bernadine Beatie
Geoffrey Law rence sat on the veranda of the big house on his grandfather’s cattle station. He could see the great herd of cattle that had been rounded up ready to be taken to the nearest railhead. The droving① would take five days of riding through some of Australia’s most exciting grassland and desert. But Geoff couldn’t go.
“Next year,” grandfather had said.
“Burke Blair’s not much older than I am, and he’s going,” Geoff begged.
“Burk knows a lot about cattle for his age,” said grandfather. “He’s done a lot of work here lately.”
Geoff wanted to tell grandfather that he had been doing Burke’s chores② for him. All Burke ever wanted to do was train his new pony. But Geoff said nothing. He couldn’t very well tell on his best friend.
“It still isn’t fair,” he muttered③, kicking the veranda railing. Yesterday Burke had asked him to feed the horses that were penned up for the droving. And Geoff had done it.
When Burke came to say goodbye, Geoff couldn’t think of a thing to say.
“I w ish you could come,” Burke said.
“So do I,” Geoff said glum ly④, looking past Burke. Then his eyes widened. His grandfather and Burke’s father were riding toward the house. “What’s the matter?”Geoff called.
“Plenty,” grandfather said. “The horses for the droving are scattered⑤ all over the south paddock.”
“How did they get out?”
Mr. Blair frowned at his son. “No one’s been in the pen since you fed them. You forgot to fasten the chain on the gate.”
“I—I thought there was a latch⑥ on that gate,” Geoff stammered⑦.
“There is,” Mr. Blair said. “But it doesn’t hold. That’s why we use the chain. Burke know s that.”
Geoff thought back. He remembered undoing the chain. When he came out, he had latched the gate. But he had forgotten the chain.
“What do you have to say for yourself, Burke?” Mr. Blair asked.
Burke said nothing. Geoff’s mouth closed in a thin line. Why not let Burke take the blame? He had taken the credit for a lot of work he hadn’t done.
“Burke’s not com ing on the droving, Mr. Law rence,” Burke’s father said. “It’s the best way I know to punish him.”
“That w ill leave us shorthanded.” Grandfather looked at Geoff. “Do you think you could take Burke’s place?”
“Yes, sir. I’ll work hard,” Geoff said. But he felt ashamed.
“Then get your gear⑧. We’ll leave as soon as we round up the horses.”
Geoff saw the sad look on Burke’s face. He sighed. He couldn’t go on the droving—not this way. “Wait, grandfather,” he said. “It’s not Burke’s fault. I am the one who fed the horses yesterday.”
“Why didn’t you say so?” grandfather asked sternly.
“I—I want to go on the droving.”
“Don’t blame Geoff,” Burke said. “It was my job. I should have told you Geoff’s been doing a lot of my work lately. He deserves to go on the droving more than I do.”
Geoff shook his head. “I am still the one who left the chain off the gate.”
“Seems to me,” said grandfather, “that both of you are at fault, but I am glad you both admit. It’s a case now of leaving you home, or taking you both and giving you extra work as punishment.”
“Take us along, grandfather!” said Geoff. “We’ll work hard.”
Mr. Blair grinned⑨. “I can certainly find lots of work for them. Saddle up. Boys, let’s round up those horses.”
(594 words)
Notes
① drove [drəʊv] v. 赶牲口(从一个地方到另一个地方)
② chore [tʃɔ:] n. 杂活,琐事
③ mutter [ˑmʌtə] vi. 低语,咕哝
④ glumly [ˑɡlʌm lɪ] adv. 忧郁地,闷闷不乐地
⑤ scatter [ˑskætə] vi.& vt. (使)散开;散布
⑥ latch [lætʃ] n. 门闩;撞锁
vt. 用门闩拴牢;用弹簧锁锁住
⑦ stammer [ˑstæmə] vi. 口吃,结巴着说话
⑧ gear [ɡɪə] n. (远征、运动等所需的)设备、装备、衣物等
⑨ grin [ɡrɪn] vi. 露齿而笑,咧着嘴笑, 呲着牙笑
Exercises
Ⅰ. How well did you read?
1. [Note the place] This story takes place in___.
A. the United States B. New Zealand C. Australia
2. [Grasp the meaning] At first, Geoff’s grandfather probably thought___.
A. Geoff was too young to go along on the droving
B. Burke was a better worker than Geoff
C. both A and B
3. [Judge from details] Paragraph 5 shows that Geoff___.
A. didn’t like Burke
B. did more work than Burke
C. was not honest
4. [Follow the order] Which happened last?
A. Grandfather and Mr. Blair rode toward the house.
B. Geoff left the chain undone on the horse’s pen.
C. Burke came to say goodbye to Geoff.
5. [See a probable result] If Geoff hadn’t told the truth about the gate,___.
A. Burke would have been left with the blame
B. the men would have been shorthanded on the trip
C. Burke would have told on him
6. [Understand the reason] Grandfather decided to take both boys on droving because___.
A. neither boy was really at fault
B. both boys admitted they had done w rong
C. Mr. Blair wanted both boys to go
7. [Draw a conclusion] At the end of the story, Geoff probably felt___.
A. angry at grandfather for punishing him
B. pleased to be riding Burke’s pony
C. glad that he had told the truth
Ⅱ. Read for words and exp ressions
1. Choose one best paraphrase or Chinese meaning for the underlined words.
(1) No one’s been in the pen since you fed them. You forgot to fasten the chain on the gate. (Para. 12)
A. 钢笔 B. 围栏,圈 C. 牧场
(2) He had taken the credit for a lot of work he hadn’t done. (Para. 17)
A. praise B. confidence C. attention
(3) “That will leave us shorthanded.” Grandfather looked at Geoff. “Do you think you could take Burke’s place?” (Para. 19)
A. having small hands
B. not having enough workers
C. having too short fingers
(4) “Why didn’t you say so?” grandfather asked sternly. (Para. 23)
A. excitedly B. severely C. carelessly
2. Choose one best paraphrase for the underlined expressions.
(1) He could see the great herd of cattle that had been rounded up ready to be taken to the nearest railhead. (Para. 1)
A. checked B. gathered C. counted
(2) All Burke ever wanted to do was train his new pony. But Geoff said nothing. He couldn’t very well tell on his best friend. (Para. 5)
A. cheat his best friend
B. play tricks on his best friend
C. tell his best friend’s secret to others
Ⅲ. Writing practice
In not more than 200 words retell the story. Do not include anything that is not in the passage.
Answer these questions in note form to get your points:
1. What was Geoff longing to do?
2. Why didn’t his grandpa agree?
3. Actually, who did the chores like feeding the horses? And why?
4. Was Geoff going to tell on Burke? Why?
5. What happened to the horses for the droving?
6. Whose fault did Grandpa and Mr. Blair think it was?
7. What did they decide to do to punish Burke?
8. What was the true reason?
9. What did Geoff and Burke do?
10. What was the result?
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