Puppies for Sale

A farmer had some puppies he needed to sell．He painted a sign advertising the pups and set about nailing it to a post on the edge of his yard．As he was driving the last nail into the post，he felt a tug on his overalls．He looked down into the eyes of a little boy．

“Mister，”he said，“I want to buy one of your puppies．”

“Well，”said the farmer，as he rubbed the sweat off the back of his neck，“these puppies come from fine parents and cost a good deal of money．”

The boy dropped his head for a moment．Then reaching deep into his pocket，he pulled out a handful of change and held it up to the farmer．“I've got thirty-nine cents．Is that enough to take a look？”

“Sure，”said the farmer．

And with that he let out a whistle，“Here，Dolly！”he called．

Out from the doghouse and down the ramp ran Dolly followed by four little balls of fur．The little boy pressed his face against the chain link fence．His eyes danced with delight．

As the dogs made their way to the fence，the little boy noticed something else stirring inside the doghouse．Slowly another little ball appeared；this one noticeably smaller．Down the ramp it slid．Then in a somewhat awkward manner the little pup began hobbling toward the others，doing its best to catch up…

“I want that one，”the little boy said，pointing to the runt ．

The farmer knelt down at the boy's side and said，“Son，you don't want that puppy．He will never be able to run and play with you like these other dogs would．”

With that the little boy stepped back from the fence，reached down，and began rolling up one leg of his trousers．In doing so he revealed a steel brace running down both sides of his leg attaching itself to a specially made shoe．Looking back up at the farmer，he said，“You see sir，I don't run too well myself，and he will need someone who understands．”

The world is full of people who need someone who understands．

Words and Expressions

set about开始，着手

- tug n．（用力）拉，扯

- ramp n．斜坡，斜道

- hobble v．跛行；蹒跚；一瘸一拐地走

- runt n．发育不全的矮小动物，矮子

Read and recite the following sentences：

（1）As he was driving the last nail into the post，he felt a tug on his overalls．

（2）The boy dropped his head for a moment．Then reaching deep into his pocket，he pulled out a handful of change and held it up to the farmer．

（3）The little boy pressed his face against the chain link fence．His eyes danced with delight．

（4）The world is full of people who need someone who understands．

Now write the sentences out here：

（1）As he was __________，he felt __________．

（2）The boy __________ for a moment．Then __________，he pulled out __________ and __________．

（3）The little boy __________ the chain link fence．His eyes __________．

（4）The world is full of people who __________．

参考译文

待售的小狗

一位农夫有几只小狗要出售。他画了一个广告牌子，并把它钉在院子边的一根柱子上。正当他在钉最后一颗钉子的时候，他觉得有人在扯他的工装裤。他低下头，看见一个小男孩。

“先生，”小男孩说，“我想买一只小狗。”

“呃，”农夫一边擦拭着脖子后面的汗水，一边说，“这些小狗都是纯种的，所以贵得很啊。”

小男孩低下了头。过了一会，他伸手摸进口袋，掏出了一把零钱，高高地递到了农夫的眼前说：“我有39分。这样可以让我看一眼小狗吗？”

“当然可以，”农夫说。

话音刚落，他吹了一声口哨，喊道：“多利，过来！”

只见多利从狗屋里跑了出来，奔下了斜坡，身后还跟着四个毛茸茸的小家伙。小男孩把脸紧紧贴在了铁丝网上，眼里跳动着喜悦的神采。

这五只小狗跑过来的时候，小男孩发现狗屋里还有些动静。慢慢地，又一只小狗出现了。这只小狗明显弱小得多，它从斜坡上滑了下来，步履蹒跚，努力想赶上同伴们……

“我想要那一只，”小男孩指着那只弱小的狗崽说。

农夫在小男孩的身旁蹲了下来说：“孩子，那只不好。他跑不了，不比其余几只可以陪你玩。”

听完这番话，小男孩往后退了一步，坐下来，卷起一只裤脚。只见一只钢制的支架护着他小腿的两侧，底部连接着一只特制的鞋子。小男孩转过头，抬头看着农夫说：“先生，你看，我自己也不太能跑，那只小狗需要一个理解它的人。”

同样，我们的世界也有许许多多需要理解的人。