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A BIRD HOUSE FOR RENT
鳥屋出租
By Russell Gordon Carter
拉塞爾·戈登.卡特
Suppose that you love grass and flowers and trees very much, and that you have always lived where you could enjoy them in your own yard. Then suppose you had to move to a place where there were none of these pleasures. What would you do? You may be greatly surprised to read what the girl and boy in this story did.
假如你非常喜歡花草樹木，并且總是住在在院子里就能夠欣賞它們的地方。那么，假設你不得不搬到一個沒有這些樂趣的地方，你會怎么辦？知道這個故事中男孩和女孩的做法后，你可能會感到非常驚訝。
When the Gilberts first moved to the city, they took rooms in a boarding-house, and began to look for a new home. "I hope it will have a big back yard with grass and flowers," said Elise.
當吉爾伯特一家剛搬到城市的時候，他們住在寄宿公寓里，并開始尋找新家。“我希望新家帶一個有花有草的大后院。”伊莉斯說。
"Yes," said her brother Frank, "and I hope it will have a tree where the birds can play."
“是的。”她的哥哥弗蘭克說，“而且我希望院子里有一棵大樹，鳥兒能在上面玩耍。”
But it was not easy to find a house that pleased them. For six weeks the Gilberts hunted and hunted. Then at last one afternoon, when Frank and Elise came home from school, their mother said, "Well, we have found a house."
但讓他們滿意的房子并不好找。吉爾伯特一家一直找了六周。最終在一個下午，弗蘭克和伊莉斯從學校回到家的時候，媽媽說：“我們找到房子了。”
"Has it a back yard with flowers?" asked Elise.
“它有帶花的后院嗎？”伊莉斯問道。
"And a tree?" said Frank.
“有樹嗎？”弗蘭克說道。
"Well, not exactly," replied Mrs. Gilbert, slowly.
“嗯，不全有。”吉爾伯特太太慢吞吞地回答說。
On the first of the next month the Gilberts moved into the new home. At once Frank and Elise hurried out to the back yard. What they found was just smooth concrete. There was not a blade of grass anywhere, or even a small bush. In one corner stood a tall white flagpole.
下個月月初，吉爾伯特一家搬進了新家。弗蘭克和伊莉斯馬上奔到后院。他們看到的只是光滑的水泥地。那里沒有一片草，甚至連一株小灌木也沒有。只在一個角落里豎著一根高高的白色旗桿。
"Well,'' said Frank. "Concrete instead of grass, and a pole instead of a tree!"
“哎。”弗蘭克說，“是水泥地，不是草地，有一根桿子，而不是一棵樹！”
"I don't see what we can do about it," answered Elise. "Nothing will grow here, and I don't suppose that we shall be able to make friends with the birds. But we can't help it."
“我不知道我們能干什么。”伊莉斯回答說，“這里什么都不會長，我想我們不能與鳥兒交朋友了。我們什么都做不了。”
