LESSON 51 A STRANGE SHOWER

A STRANGE SHOWER

dai-ry tem-pered laughed

plagued hap-pened ex-claimed

fright-en luck-i-ly sin-cere-ly

di-rect-ly un-der-stood cloak

1. There lived once in a dairy

　A maid called Miss Clary,

　Whose blunders 〔1〕 were laughed at by many

　Though she all the while

　Wore a good-tempered smile,

　And often laughed louder than any.

2. She was plagued 〔2〕 so with mice,

　Eating everything nice—

　Her cheese and her butter and creams—

　That to drive them away

　Was her thought all the day,

　And by night came again in her dreams.

3. She happened one day

　To hear someone say

　They thought it would rain cats and dogs:

　Now, she wanted a cat,

　So she ran for her hat,

　And put on her cloak and her clogs 〔3〕 .

4. It rained, it is true,

　Yet no cat could she view,

　But she saw a nice dog in the street;

　"Oh, that," she exclaimed 〔4〕 ,

　"Shall be mine when 'tis tamed,

　And I surely can tame it with meat.

5. "I never remarked 〔5〕 ,

　But I think, if he barked,

　It would frighten the mice and the rats.

　I'll take what's in my power,

　And perhaps the next shower

　May luckily bring us some cats."

6. She held the dog fast

　Till a person came past,

　And begged her to let Rover loose.

　"It rains dogs," said Miss Clary.

　"Rains dogs for a dairy!

　Whoever beheld such a goose?"

7. But the kind-hearted man

　Directly 〔6〕 began

　The silly old words to explain.

　She thanked him sincerely,

　And understood clearly

　It meant nothing more than hard rain.

注释

〔1〕 blunders: Foolish mistakes.

〔2〕 plagued: Worried; annoyed.

〔3〕 clogs: Wooden shoes.

〔4〕 exclaimed: Cried out.

〔5〕 remarked: Noticed.

〔6〕 directly: At once.