Melanie Sequiera

Marco Puss， the famous cat explorer，arrived at the docks2 one day. It was allnew to him—the noise， the interestingsmells， the ship.

“A house on water，”he thought.“Howexciting！ ”Tail in the air， he stalked3 upthe gangway4. When he was halfway up heheard a shout.

“Whose cat is that？ Get it off theship！ ”

Marco was booted5 off the ship. Hisdignity6 was hurt.

“Ill get on that ship somehow or myname is not Marco Puss！ ”he vowed7.

A big basket lay nearby along withother baggage8. Marco hid in it. Soon aman came along and picked up the basket.Marco was carried up the gangway anddown a companionway9 till they reachedthe ships galley10. There the basket wasset down.

“Here you are， Cook，”said a voice.“The food you ordered.”

The cover was lifted. Marco jumpedout and ran through the doorway. Behindhim came shouts as others joined the cookin the chase11. The noise brought Captainon the scene.

“Whats all this hullabaloo12 about？”he asked angrily. “Cook！ Why are yourunning about with a rolling pin13？”

Cook explained，“It was in the basket，sir！ A dirty black cat！ ”

“We cant wait for it to be found，”said Captain. “All hands to their posts. Ifyou come across the cat， just throw it intothe sea.”

Cook， kind at heart， now felt sorry thathe had made a fuss14. “Let it be， Captain，”he said.“Cats are good mousers， and if thereis one thing Im afraid of， its mice！ ”

And a sailor15 put in timidly16，“Itsgood to have a cat on board， sir. They bringgood luck.”

“Pah！ ”said Captain.“Not a black cat.Black cats always bring bad luck and I wonthave one on my ship. When you find it，drown17 it！ ”

How afraid Marco was when he heardthe words！ He hardly dared to breathe！“What am I to do？”he thought. “Im safeenough here for the moment， but sooner orlater Ill have to go out for food. Thankheavens！ I had a good feed in the basket.”

There was a slight sound behind him.Turning around quickly， he pounced18. “Ah， arat！ ”he said in surprise. “I dont eat rats as arule， but I guess youll come in handy19 on areallyhungryday.”

“Please， sir，”the mouse cried. Suddenlya wonderful idea struck Marco. His blue eyesbegan to shine.

Setting the mouse comfortably betweenhis paws， Marco explained，“Im going to letyou go， Mousie—but first youll have topromise to do me a little favour.

“Anything， sir， anything！ ” promisedthe mouse.

“All right then， listen carefully...”

Just before supper-time that evening， Cookwas taking a huge pie from the oven20 whensuddenly something ran between his feet.

“A mouse！ ”he screamed21， droppingthe pie all over the floor. “A mouse in mykitchen！ Help！ Help！ ”

Captain hurried into the galley. Hefound Cook standing on top of the table，screaming over and over again.“Mouse！Help！ I knew that cat should have beenallowed to run free. It would have caught themouse.”

“Nonsense22！ ”said Captain. “We donot need a cat to catch a mouse. Set thetraps！ ”

In their hiding place， Marco shook withlaughter.“Well done， little mouse！”he said.“Tomorrow at lunchtime， Ill send you outagain. Now listen. They are going to setcheese traps for you. You are not to go nearthe cheese， do you hear？”

The mouse looked unhappy. “I likecheese，”she said.

“Very well， then. I will eat you，”saidMarco. “For if you go near the trap theyllget you and youll be killed anyway！ ”

The mouse backed away hurriedly.“Iwont go near the trap. I promise！ ”

The next morning， Cook was mixing acake when suddenly the mouse ran across thetable. Cook had dropped the bowl.

The passengers were so angry that theyshouted at Captain，“Never again will wetravel on your ship！ ”

Captain was angry and worried.

“This wont do， Cook，”he said.“Fortwo days running， the meals have beenspoilt23.”

The day of the great ship dinner arrivedand still the traps remained empty.

“I will not cook dinner！ ”cried Cook.‘Iknow that mouse will come！ ”

“Dont be silly， Cook，” Captain saidseriously. ‘You have to prepare something tocalm the passengers down. But Ill tell youwhat... Ill bring along some sailors whollkeep a watch here and catch that mouse if itappears. You go ahead with your cooking.”

“You heard that？”said the mouseworriedly.“Theyll be waiting for me！ ”

“Then， now is the time to go，”decided Marco.“Lets go a little earlier.”

The mouse rushed through the doorlike lightning24， climbed up a table andgrabbed25 a piece of cake. BeforeCaptain arrived in the doorway the mousehad left safely.

Poor Cook jumped up with a scream.What a mess！

The news went around quickly.

“Its no ordinary26 mouse，”whis -pered27 the sailors fearfully.

“Get me off the ship，”cried Cook.“Put out a lifeboat！ Im not staying amoment longer. The mouse is out to getme， I know！ ”

It was at that moment that Marcodecided to make his entrance. Everyonestared in amazement as the cat stalkedin， tail waving gently in the air， proudand unafraid.

“Its the stowaway！”went up a whisper.

Marco sniffed28 at the ground with theair of a great detective. “Just like SherlockHolmes，”whispered someone in admiration.

Nose to the ground， Marco followedthe route29 that mouse had taken. Tenminutes later he returned and laid a pieceof cake at Cooks feet. Then， sitting down，he began to wash his face as though he hadjust had a most satisfying meal.

“It has caught it！ It has caught themouse！ ”cried Cook， hugging Marco.

“Caught it and ate it， looks like，”saida sailor.

“Well， Captain，”said another sailor.“Shall I take it now and throw itoverboard？”

Captain looked ashamed. “Let itstay，”he said， bending down and pettingMarco. “And see that its well lookedafter for the rest of the journey！ ”

“Never fear， Captain，” said Cook.“Three good meals a day itll get， cookedand served by my own hands！ ”

Later that night， Marco visited thehiding place he no longer needed. A smallanimal came out of the shadows andaccepted the piece of cake Marco hadbrought for her. Then she rubbed herselfagainst his leg.

“So youre no longer afraid of me， areyou？”said Marco.

The mouse looked at him cheekily30.“No， if you please， Mr. Puss. For if you fallout with Cook or Captain， youll be needingme again！ ”

有一天，著名的貓?zhí)诫U(xiǎn)家馬爾科·普斯抵達(dá)了碼頭。喧鬧聲、有趣的氣味、大船———對(duì)他來(lái)說(shuō)，這一切都很新鮮。

“水上的房子?！彼?，“多么令人興奮??！”他高高地翹著尾巴，趾高氣昂地走上舷梯。當(dāng)爬到一半時(shí)，他聽到一聲喊叫。

“那是誰(shuí)的貓？ 把它弄下船！”

馬爾科被踢下了船。他的尊嚴(yán)受到了傷害。

“我會(huì)設(shè)法登上那艘船，否則我就不叫馬爾科·普斯！”他發(fā)誓說(shuō)。

一個(gè)大籃子和其他行李一起放在附近。馬爾科躲在籃子里。不久，一個(gè)人走過(guò)來(lái)，提起籃子。馬爾科被提上舷梯，又提下一條艙梯，直到他們到達(dá)船上的廚房。在那里，籃子被放了下來(lái)。

“給你，廚師?！币粋€(gè)聲音說(shuō)，“你點(diǎn)的食物?！?/p>

蓋子被揭開。馬爾科跳出來(lái)，從門口逃走了。他身后傳來(lái)呼喊聲，是其他人和廚師在一起追趕他。嘈雜聲把船長(zhǎng)引到了現(xiàn)場(chǎng)。

“吵吵鬧鬧的是怎么回事？”

他生氣地問(wèn)道，“廚師！你為什么拿著搟面杖到處跑？”

廚師解釋道：“它在籃子里，先生！一只臟黑貓！”

“我們等不及想找到它了。”

船長(zhǎng)說(shuō)，“所有人都回到各自的崗位上。如果你碰到那只貓，就把它進(jìn)海里。”

廚師心地善良，現(xiàn)在為自己的大驚小怪感到抱歉?！半S它去吧，船長(zhǎng)?！彼f(shuō)，“貓是很好的捕鼠動(dòng)物。如果我有一樣害怕的東西的話，那就是老鼠！”

一名水手怯生生地說(shuō)：“有只貓?jiān)诖险婧?，先生。它們帶?lái)好運(yùn)?！?/p>

“呸！”船長(zhǎng)說(shuō)，“那可不是指黑貓。黑貓總是帶來(lái)厄運(yùn)，我的船上不允許有黑貓。當(dāng)你找到它時(shí)，把它淹死！”

當(dāng)聽到這些話，馬爾科多么害怕呀！他幾乎不敢呼吸！

“我該怎么辦？”他想著，“我在這里暫時(shí)足夠安全，但遲早我得出去找東西吃。謝天謝地！我在籃子里飽餐了一頓?！?/p>

他身后傳來(lái)一陣輕微的聲響。他迅速轉(zhuǎn)過(guò)身來(lái)，猛撲過(guò)去?！鞍?，一只老鼠！”他驚訝地說(shuō)，“我通常不吃老鼠，但我想在一個(gè)非常饑餓的日子里，你會(huì)派上用場(chǎng)的?！?/p>

“求你了，先生。”老鼠哭著說(shuō)。馬爾科突然想到一個(gè)好主意。他的藍(lán)眼睛一亮。

把老鼠舒服地放在爪子之間后，馬爾科解釋道：“我會(huì)讓你走的，小老鼠———但首先你必須答應(yīng)幫我一個(gè)小忙?！?/p>

“什么都行，先生，什么都行！”老鼠連連答應(yīng)道。

“那好吧，仔細(xì)聽好了……”

就在那天晚上的晚飯之前，廚師正從烤箱里取出一個(gè)巨大的餡餅，突然有什么東西從他的腳下跑過(guò)。

“一只老鼠！”他尖叫著，把餡餅掉到了地上?！拔覐N房里有只老鼠！救命?。【让?！”

船長(zhǎng)匆匆走進(jìn)廚房。他發(fā)現(xiàn)廚師站在桌子上，一遍遍地尖叫著?！袄鲜螅【让?！我就知道應(yīng)該允許那只貓自由奔跑。它本來(lái)會(huì)抓住那只老鼠?！?/p>

“胡說(shuō)！”船長(zhǎng)說(shuō)，“我們不需要貓來(lái)抓老鼠。設(shè)置陷阱！”

在他們的藏身處，馬爾科笑得直顫?！案傻煤?，小老鼠！”他說(shuō)，“明天午餐時(shí)間，我會(huì)再次送你出去?，F(xiàn)在聽著。他們會(huì)為你設(shè)置奶酪陷阱。你不能靠近奶酪，聽到了嗎？”

老鼠看起來(lái)不太開心?！拔蚁矚g奶酪?！彼f(shuō)。

“ 那么好吧。我會(huì)吃掉你的?！瘪R爾科說(shuō)，“因?yàn)槿绻憧拷葳?，他們?huì)抓住你，你無(wú)論如何都會(huì)被殺掉！”

老鼠急忙后退。“我不會(huì)靠近陷阱。我保證！”

第二天早上，廚師正在攪拌蛋糕，突然老鼠從桌子上跑了過(guò)去。廚師把碗摔了。

乘客們非常憤怒，他們對(duì)船長(zhǎng)喊道：“我們?cè)僖膊粫?huì)乘坐你的船了！”

船長(zhǎng)又氣又急。

“這樣不行，廚師?！彼f(shuō)，“連續(xù)兩天，飯菜都被糟蹋了?！?/p>

大船晚宴的日子到了，陷阱仍然空空如也。

“我不會(huì)去做飯！”廚師哭喊道，“我知道那只老鼠會(huì)來(lái)的！”

“別傻了，廚師?！贝L(zhǎng)嚴(yán)肅地說(shuō)，“你必須準(zhǔn)備一些東西來(lái)安撫乘客。但我要告訴你……我會(huì)帶一些水手來(lái)，他們會(huì)在這里守著。如果那只老鼠出現(xiàn)，他們會(huì)抓住它。你繼續(xù)做你的飯吧?！?/p>

“你聽到了嗎？”老鼠擔(dān)心地說(shuō)，“他們會(huì)等著我！”

“那么，現(xiàn)在該走了?！瘪R爾科決定說(shuō)，“我們?cè)缫稽c(diǎn)點(diǎn)去。”

老鼠像閃電一樣迅速穿過(guò)門，爬上一張桌子，抓起一塊蛋糕。在船長(zhǎng)趕到門口前，老鼠已經(jīng)安全離開。

可憐的廚師尖叫著跳了起來(lái)。

真是一片混亂！

消息很快傳開了。

“這不是普通的老鼠?！彼謧凅@恐地低聲說(shuō)。

“讓我下船?！睆N師哭喊著說(shuō)，“放出一艘救生艇！我一刻也不想多待了。我知道，老鼠出來(lái)整我了！

正是在那一刻，馬爾科決定登場(chǎng)。每個(gè)人都驚訝地盯著這只貓。他大搖大擺走進(jìn)來(lái)，尾巴在空中輕輕擺動(dòng)，驕傲而無(wú)畏。

“是偷乘者！”有人小聲說(shuō)。

馬爾科帶著一副大偵探的神氣嗅著地面。“就像夏洛克·福爾摩斯?！庇腥说吐曎潎@道。

馬爾科鼻子貼地，沿著那只老鼠走過(guò)的路線走。十分鐘后，他回來(lái)了，并把一塊蛋糕放在廚師的腳邊。然后，他坐下來(lái)，開始洗臉，就好像剛吃了一頓最滿意的飯。

“它抓住了它！它抓住了老鼠！”廚師抱著馬爾科喊道。

“ 看起來(lái)像是抓住并吃了它?！币幻终f(shuō)。

“好吧，船長(zhǎng)?！绷硪粋€(gè)水手說(shuō)，“我要現(xiàn)在把它抓起來(lái)扔到海里嗎？”

船長(zhǎng)看起來(lái)很羞愧?！白屗粝聛?lái)?！彼f(shuō)著，彎下身子撫摸著馬爾科?！霸诮酉聛?lái)的旅程中，請(qǐng)確保它得到妥善照顧！”

“別擔(dān)心，船長(zhǎng)?！睆N師說(shuō)，“它會(huì)一天吃三頓美餐，我親自做，親自端給它！”

當(dāng)天晚些時(shí)候，馬爾科造訪了他不再需要的藏身之處。一只小動(dòng)物從陰影中跑出來(lái)，接住了馬爾科給她帶來(lái)的那塊蛋糕，然后在他的腿上蹭了蹭。

“所以你不再怕我了，是嗎？”

馬爾科說(shuō)。

老鼠嬉皮笑臉地看著他?！笆堑?，普斯先生。因?yàn)槿绻愫蛷N師或船長(zhǎng)鬧翻了，你會(huì)再次需要我的！”

Notes

1. stowaway 偷乘者

2. dock 碼頭；船埠

3. stalk 高視闊步地走

4. gangway 舷梯

5. boot 猛踢；解雇

6. dignity 尊嚴(yán)；自尊

7. vow 立誓；發(fā)誓

8. baggage 行李

9. companionway 艙梯

10. galley? 船上的廚房

11. chase 追趕；追逐

12. hullabaloo 喧囂；吵鬧聲

13. rolling pin 搟面杖

14. fuss 大驚小怪

15. sailor 水手；船員

16. timidly? 羞怯地；膽小地

17. drown 使……淹死

18. pounce 猛撲；撲過(guò)去抓住

19. come in handy 派得上用場(chǎng)

20. oven 烤爐；烤箱

21. scream 尖叫

22. nonsense 胡說(shuō)；廢話

23. spoil 破壞；糟蹋

24. lightning 閃電

25. grab 攫?。蛔プ?/p>

26. ordinary 普通的；平常的

27. whisper 低語(yǔ)；小聲說(shuō)

28. sniff 嗅；聞

29. route? 路線

30. cheekily 厚臉皮地