Lesson 13 The Boy Who Cried Dinosaur

Little Johnny Lauderbinn was just like the other little boys in his town. The only thing really different about little Johnny was his imagination. He used to make up all kinds of stories and tell them as the truth. So of course after a while nobody believed a word little Johnny said.

This was a pity. It also became dangerous, as we shall see when we go with little Johnny to his favorite playground, the Big Swamp^①. And a big swamp it was. Big and dark and, to Johnny, very interesting.

One dismal spring day, while little Johnny was talking to his little friends, the frogs, he felt something breathing very heavily and very high behind him. A fter he turned around, he w ished he hadn’t. There, in the mud of the swamp, wallowed^② a brontosaurus^③, the largest of the dinosaurs. At first, even little Johnny’s imagination refused to believe it. But it was true. Little Johnny’s first clear thought was to speak to it, as he’d done with the little frogs. “But what,” thought little Johnny, “do you say to a brontosaurus? How is the weather up there?” Suddenly the monster heaved itself free of swamp and crunched^④ its way to a bit of high ground.

“Mother! Mother! Mother!” Screamed little Johnny as he stumbled^⑤ into the kitchen. “I saw a dinosaur in the swamp!”

“I hope you weren’t playing with it, dear,” his mother replied. “Doctor Mosby says they carry germs.”

That’s the way it was. For the first time in his life, little Johnny had told the truth. He told everybody about the dinosaur. But nobody believed him. This made little Johnny angry. OK, he thought, if that’s the way they want it.

Bright and early the next day little Johnny was back in the Big Swamp with a bag of peanuts. He went to the spot where he had seen the brontosaurus. And there it was, looking, if possible, even larger and more terrifying in the bright morning sun. Johnny whistled, as you would to a dog. Instantly the monster’s huge body tensed and its head snaked from side to side. Little Johnny whistled again and held out the bag of peanuts. The brontosaurus froze.

“Peanuts,” explained little Johnny.

The brontosaurus didn’t move.

“Don’t you like peanuts?” asked Little Johnny.

The brontosaurus didn’t answer.

“OK,” said little Johnny. “If you don’t want ’em, I’ll eat all myself !”

Immediately, the brontosaurus wanted one.

As the day passed, the brontosaurus became very fond of little Johnny and his peanuts. This huge creature, little Johnny quickly learned, would do anything for a peanut. Still, little Johnny was careful to treat the monster with respect. It was only sensible to be careful of anybody with fourteen-ton feet. And little Johnny had his big plans for this monstrous pet of his. Because little Johnny hadn’t forgotten the jeering laughter when he had told people about the brontosaurus in the Big Swamp. Even his very own family has laughed at him.

By late August little Johnny felt he was ready to put his plan into action. His peanut-trained brontosaurus did everything Johnny asked it to do.

One warm evening little Johnny and his mother, father, and his elder brother and sister were sitting on the front porch^⑥. Little Johnny said softly, “I saw a dinosaur in the swamp today.”

“What kind of dinosaur?” asked his brother. “There are many kinds, you know.”

“I know,” replied little Johnny. “This one happens to be a brontosaurus.”

“I hope you weren’t playing with it, dear,” his mother said, as little Johnny knew she would. “Doctor Mosby says they carry germs.”

The whole Lauderbinn family laughed except little Johnny.

“Doctor Mosby shouldn’t go round making jokes of a brontosaurus,” little Johnny said. “It w ill make the brontosaurus very angry. It’s not a very good thing to get a dinosaur angry.”

“Are you gonna tell that brontosaurus what Doctor Mosby said about it?” asked his elder sister, joining the fun.

“I sure am.” answered little Johnny, getting up. “See you later.”

And that very evening Doctor Mosby, his lovely cottage, his garage, his roses, his w illow tree and his green lawn vanished from the surface of the earth.

On another warm evening, little Johnny and his mother, father and his elder brother and sister gathered again on the front porch. Little Johnny broke the silence: “I saw a dinosaur in a swamp today.” Then he held his breath. He knew what was com ing.

“I hope you weren’t playing with it, dear. Doctor Mosby says they carry germs.”

Little Jonny hesitated, but only for a moment. Then he whistled three times. The earth trembled. Then it jarred^⑦ mightily, as the 12-ton brontosaurus made its way to the Lauderbinns’ front lawn. Little Johnny handed it a peanut.

“Step on mother,” he said.

And that was only the beginning—

Notes

① swamp [swɒmp] n. 沼泽（地）；湿地

② wallow [ˑwɒləʊ] vi. 打滚；〈喻〉沉迷

③ brontosaurus [ˌbrɒntəˑsɔ:rəs] n. 雷龙

④ crunch [krʌntʃ] vi. 嘎吱嘎吱地动；发嘎吱嘎吱声

⑤ stumble [ˑstʌmbl] vi. 跌跌撞撞地走，蹒跚；结巴；弄错，失足

⑥ porch [pɔ:tʃ] n. 门廊；游廊，走廊

⑦ jar [dʒɑ:(r)] v. 发出刺耳声音；不和谐；使震动

Exercises

Ⅰ. How well did you read?

1. [Note the fact] When little Johnny first met the brontosaurus, he___.

A. thought he was dreaming

B. could hardly believe his eyes

C. asked it a question

2. [See the result] When little Johnny told people about the brontosaurus, they___

A. thought he was imaging it

B. said he had been dreaming

C. went to the swamp

3. [Give the reason] Johnny went looking for the brontosaurus because he___.

A. wanted his fam ily to see it

B. thought he should check his facts

C. had secret plans for the creature

4. [Draw a conclusion] The brontosaurus became very tame because little Johnny___.

A. was clever with w ild animals

B. treated it like a dog

C. gave it peanuts

5. [Note the fact] The second time little Johnny mentioned the dinosaur, his mother___.

A. asked him which kind it was

B. replied as she had the first time

C. said Dr. Mosby should exam ine it

6. [Draw a conclusion] After little Johnny’s first talk with all of his family,___.

A. the brontosaurus stamped out Dr. Mosby

B. Dr. Mosby left town

C. they all visited the Big Swamp

Ⅱ. Read for words

Choose one best paraphrase for the underlined words.

(1) Doctor Mosby says they carry germs. (Para. 5)

A. small organisms that causes disease

B. the original idea of Dr. Mosby

C. the dirty mud in the swamp

(2) He went to the spot where he had seen the brontosaurus. (Para. 7)

A. dirty mark 　B. place 　C. a small amount of

(3) Instantly the monster’s huge body tensed and its head snaked from side to side. (Para. 7)

A. craw led 　B. tw isted 　C. moved in a curved way

(4) The brontosaurus froze. (Para. 7)

A. turned to ice 　B. became quite still

C. became blocked or stiff with ice or frozen

(5) And little Johnny had his big plans for this monstrous pet of his. (Para. 14)

A. extremely shocking or unfair

B. unpleasantly huge in size or extent

C. extremely frightening and ugly

(6) And that very evening Doctor Mosby, his lovely cottage, his garage, his roses, his w illow tree and his green lawn vanished from the surface of the earth. (Para. 24)

A. passed away rapidly 　B. disappeared suddenly 　C. turned into a big hole

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