9. Pal Is Pretty Smart, Too

Chapter 9 Pal Is Pretty Smart, Too "Guys, come and see what Pal dug up!" Bradley said. Brian, Nate, and Lucy joined Bradley. They all peered into the hole Pal had dug. "It's a turtle!" Nate said. The turtle pulled its head and legs inside its shell. Bradley lifted the turtle out of the hole. He set it on the ground.

第九章帕尔也很聪明“伙计们，快来看帕尔挖出了什么！”布拉德利说。 布莱恩、内特和露西加入了布拉德利。 他们都往帕尔挖的洞里看。 “是一只乌龟！”内特说。 乌龟把它的头和腿缩进壳里。 布拉德利把乌龟从洞里捞了出来。 他把它放在地上。

The turtle was round on top and about eight inches long. Its shell was dark brown with bright yellow markings. Pal was quivering and whimpering. "Where's the head?" Brian asked. "Inside the shell," Lucy said. "This is a box turtle. Part of the stomach shell can open and close, with a hinge like on a door. It pulls its head inside to hide." "Did it eat our strawberries?" Bradley asked. "I think so," Lucy said. "We had one in school back home. We fed it berries all the time. They have very long necks!" "And they live underground sometimes," Nate said. "I saw a movie about them on TV." "Why is he hiding his head?" Brian asked. "He's scared," Lucy said. "If we leave him alone, he'll stick his head out and start to walk." The kids sat silently and watched the box turtle. Bradley put his arm around Pal. After a few minutes the front of the turtle's chest shell began to open. First the nose peeked out. The shell opened more, and the head came out. "That is so cool!" Brian whispered.

这只乌龟的顶部是圆的，大约有八英寸长。 它的外壳是深棕色的，上面有亮黄色的斑纹。 帕尔颤抖着，呜咽着。 “脑袋在哪儿？”布莱恩问。 “在壳里。”露茜说。 “这是一只箱龟。胃壳的一部分可以打开和关闭，像门上的铰链一样。 它把头缩回来躲起来。” “它吃了我们的草莓吗？”布拉德利问。 “我想是的。”露茜说。“我们在家乡的学校有一个。 我们一直喂它浆果。 它们的脖子很长！”“他们有时住在地下，”内特说。 “我在电视上看过一部关于他们的电影。” “他为什么把头藏起来？”布莱恩问。 “他害怕了。”露茜说。“如果我们不打扰他，他会把头伸出来，开始走路的。” 孩子们静静地坐着，看着盒子龟。 布拉德利搂着帕尔。 几分钟后，海龟的胸壳开始打开。 首先，鼻子露出来了。 壳开得更大了，头露出来了。 “太酷了！”布莱恩低声说。

"Look what he has in his mouth," Lucy said. The kids scooted closer to the turtle, causing it to hide its head again. "I saw a piece of strawberry," Bradley said. "This guy is our mystery berry biter!" "What should we do with him?" Nate asked. "We can't leave him here!" Brian said. "He'll eat everything!" "And if it's a mama turtle, she'll have babies and they'll eat everything, too!" Nate said. "Box turtles like to be near wet places like bogs or swamps," Lucy said. "Let's take it to the river," Bradley suggested.

“看它嘴里叼着什么。”露茜说。 孩子们向乌龟靠近，使它又把头藏了起来。 “我看到了一片草莓，”布拉德利说。 “这家伙就是我们的神秘咬莓者！”“我们该拿他怎么办？”内特问道。 “我们不能把他留在这儿！”布莱恩说。 “他会把所有东西都吃掉的！”“如果是龟妈妈，她会生下孩子，他们也会吃掉所有的东西！”内特说。 “箱龟喜欢靠近沼泽或沼泽等潮湿的地方，”露西说。 “我们把它带到河边吧，”布拉德利建议道。

Bradley, Brian, Nate, and Lucy left the garden. They headed across the field behind the Pintos' property. Lucy carried the box turtle. Pal trotted in front of them, sniffing the ground. Five minutes later they came to the river. Sunlight reflected off the surface, making the water look like golden coins. "Should we put him in the water?" Bradley asked. "Let's let the turtle decide," Lucy said. "We'll just leave him and see where he goes."

布拉德利、布莱恩、内特和露西离开了花园。 他们穿过平托家房子后面的田地。 露西抱着箱龟。 帕尔在他们前面小跑着，嗅着地面。 五分钟后，他们来到河边。 阳光从水面反射，使水面看起来像金币。 “我们应该把他放到水里吗？”布拉德利问。 “让乌龟来决定吧。”露茜说。 “我们就丢下他，看他去哪儿。”

Lucy set the turtle on the muddy riverbank. After a moment, the turtle's head and legs appeared. It slowly walked away from the water and disappeared into a pile of leaves under an oak tree. "I hope he doesn't come back to eat more strawberries," Bradley said. "If he does, at least we'll know where to look for him," his brother said. "Now you can tell your father you saved his garden!" Lucy said. "I still want to make him strawberry jam," Bradley said. He sighed. "I guess we'll have to think of something else, though." The kids went back to the garden. They filled in the hole they had dug for the trap. They did the same with the one Pal had dug. Just then Bradley's dad pulled into the driveway. He came over to see what they were doing. Bradley told him about the box turtle that had been eating the strawberries. "We took him down by the river," he added. "I'm proud of you kids," Mr. Pinto said. "You did a great job on the weeding, too. How about

露西把乌龟放在泥泞的河岸上。 过了一会儿，乌龟的头和腿出现了。 它慢慢地离开水面，消失在一棵橡树下的树叶堆里。 布拉德利说：“我希望他不要再回来吃草莓了。” “如果他来了，至少我们知道到哪里去找他，”他哥哥说。 “现在你可以告诉你父亲，你拯救了他的花园！”露西说。 “我还是想给他做草莓酱，”布拉德利说。 他叹了口气。“不过，我想我们得想别的办法了。” 孩子们回到了花园。 他们把为陷阱挖的洞填上了。 他们对帕尔挖的那个也做了同样的事。 就在这时，布拉德利的爸爸把车开进了车道。 他过来看看他们在做什么。 布拉德利告诉他有只盒子龟一直在吃草莓。 “我们把他带到了河边，”他补充说。 “我为你们感到骄傲，”平托说。 “你在婚礼上也做得很好。 如何

some ice cream?" "Yay!" Nate yelled. "My stomach loves you, Mr. Pinto."

来点冰淇淋？”“耶!”内特喊道。 “我的胃爱你，平托先生。”