介绍:
CHAPTER15 The Crickets
The crickets sang in the grasses. They sang the song of summer’s ending, a sad,monotonous song.
"Summer is over and gone," they sang. "Over and gone, over andgone. Summer is dying, dying."
Thecrickets felt it was their duty to warn everybody that summertime cannot lastforever. Even
on the most beautiful days in the whole year - the days when summer is changinginto fall the crickets
spread the rumor of sadness and change.
Everybodyheard the song of the crickets. Avery and Fern Arable heard it as the walkedthe dusty
road. They knew that school would soon begin again. The young geese heard itand knew that they
would never be little goslings again. Charlotte heard it and knew that shehadn’t much time left. Mrs.
Zuckerman, at work in the kitchen, heard the crickets, and a sadness came overher, too. "Another
summer gone," she sighed. Lurvy, at work building a crate for Wilbur,heard the song and knew it
was time to dig potatoes.
"Summeris over and gone," repeated the crickets. "How many nights tillfrost?" sang the crickets.
"Good-bye, summer, good-bye, good-bye!"
Thesheep heard the crickets, and they felt so uneasy they broke a hole in thepasture fence and
wandered up into the field across the road. The gander discovered the hole andled his family
through, and they walked to the orchard and ate the apples that were lying onthe ground. A little
maple tree in the swamp heard the cricket song and turned bright red withanxiety.
Wilburwas now the center of attraction on the farm. Good food and regular hours wereshowing
results: Wilbur was a pig any man would be proud of. One day more than ahundred people came to
stand at his yard and admire him. Charlotte had written the word RADIANT, andWilbur really
looked radiant as he stood in the golden sunlight. Ever since the spider hadbefriended him, he had
done his best to live up to his reputation. When Charlotte’s web said SOME PIG,Wilbur had tried
hard to look like some pig. When Charlotte’s web said TERRIFIC, Wilbur hadtried to look terrific.
And now that the web said RADIANT, he did everything possible to make himselfglow.
It isnot easy to look radiant, but Wilbur threw himself into it with a will. Hewould turn his head
slightly and blink his long eye-lashes. Then he would breathe deeply. And whenhis audience grew
bored, he would spring into the air and do a back flip with a half twist. Atthis the crowd would yell
and cheer. "How’s that for a pig? " Mr. Zuckerman would ask, wellpleased with himself. "That pig
is radiant."
Someof Wilbur’s friends in the barn worried for fear all this attention would go tohis head and
make him stuck up. But it never did. Wilbur was modest; fame did not spoil him.He still worried
some about the future, as he could hardly believe that a mere spider would beable to save his life.
Sometimes at night he would have a bad dream. He would dream that men werecoming to get him
with knives and guns. But that was only a dream. In the daytime, Wilbur usuallyfelt happy and
confident. No pig ever had truer friends, and he realized that friendship isone of the most satisfying
things in the world. Even the song of the crickets did not make Wilbur too sad.He knew it was
almost time for the County Fair, and he was looking forward to the trip.
If hecould distinguish himself at the Fair, and maybe win some prize money, he wassure
Zuckermanwould let him live.
Charlottehad worries of her own, but she kept quiet about them. One morning Wilbur askedher
about the Fair.
"You’regoing with me, aren’t you,, Charlotte?" he said
"Well, I don’t know," replied Charlotte. "The Fair comes at abad time for me. I shall find it
inconvenient to leave home, even for a few days."
"Why?"asked Wilbur.
"Oh, I just don’t feel like leaving my web. Too much going on aroundhere."
"Please come with me!" begged Wilbur. "I need you, Charlotte. Ican’t stand going to the Fair
without you. You’ve just got to come."
"No,"said Charlotte, "I believe I’d better stay home and see if I can’t getsome work done."
"What kind of work?" asked Wilbur.
"Egg laying. It’s time I made an egg sac and filled it with eggs."
"I didn’t know you could lay eggs," said Wilbur in amazement.
"Oh, sure," said the spider. "I’m versatile."
"What does ’versatile’ mean - full of eggs?" asked Wilbur.
"Certainly not," said Charlotte. "’Versatile’ means I can turnwith ease from one thing to another.
It means I don’t have to limit my activities to spinning and trapping andstunts like that."
"Whydon’t you come with me to the Fair Grounds and lay your eggs there?"pleaded Wilbur. "It
would be wonderful fun."
Charlottegave her web a twitch and moodily watched it sway.
"I’m afraid not," she said. "You don’t know the first thingabout egg laying, Wilbur. I can’t
arrange my family duties to suit the management of the County Fair. When I getready to lay eggs, I
have to lay eggs, Fair or no Fair. However, I don’t want you to worry about it- you might lose
weight. We’ll leave it this way: I’ll come to the Fair if I possibly can."
"Oh,good! " said Wilbur. "I knew you wouldn’t forsake me just when I needyou most."
All that day Wilbur stayed inside, taking life easy in the straw. Charlotterested and ate a
grasshopper. She knew that she couldn’t help Wilbur much longer. In a few daysshe would have to
drop everything and build the beautiful little sac that would hold her eggs.
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