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radio message. The first message is expected to arrive at 7 o39。 she asked impatiently. 39。 As soon as I went outside, I fot all about Madam Bellinsky because my wife hurried towards me. 39。 if he picks a leaf, he will die. Many villagers believe that the tree has already claimed a number of victims. The vicar has been asked to have the tree cut down, but so far he has refused. He has pointed out that the tree is a useful source of ine as tourists have been ing from all parts of the country to see it. In spite of all that has been said, the touristshave been picking leaves and cutting their names on the treetrunk. So far, not one of them has been struck down by sudden death! Lesson59 In or out ? 進來還是出去? Our dog, Rex, used to sit outside our front gate and bark. Every time he wanted to e into the garden he would bark until someone opened the gate. As the neighbours plained of the noise, my husband spent weeks training him to press his paw on the latch to let himself in. Rex soon became an expert at opening the gate. However, when I was going out shopping last week, I noticed him in the garden near the gate. This time he was barking so that someone would let him out ! Since then, he has developed another bad habit. As soon as he opens the gate from the outside, he es into the garden and waits until the gate shuts. Then he sits and barks until someone lets him out. After this he immediately lets himself in and begins barking again. Yesterday my husband removed the gate and Rex got so annoyed we have not seen him since. Lesson60 The future 卜算未來 At a village fair, I decided to visit a fortuneteller called Madam Bellinsky. I went into her tent and she told me to sit down. After I had given her some money, she looked into a crystal ball and said: 39。cursed tree39。The Revealer39。t need bookcases at all. You can sit here in your spare time and read the carpet!39。 she said. She gazed at it for some time then added, 39。 I answered. Lesson51 Reward for virtue 對美德的獎賞 My friend, Herbert, has always been fat, but things got so bad recently that he decided to go on a diet. He began his diet a week ago. First of all, he wrote out a long list of all the foods which were forbidden. The list included most of the things Herbert loves: butter, potatoes, rice, beer, milk, chocolate, and sweets. Yesterday I paid him a visit. I rang the bell and was not surprised to see that Herbert was still as fat as ever. He led me into his room and hurriedly hid a large parcel under his desk. It was obvious that he was very embarrassed. When I asked him what he was doing, he smiled guiltily and then put the parcel on the desk. He explained that his diet was so strict that he had to reward himself occasionally. Then he showed me the contents of the parcel. It contained five large bars of chocolate and three bags of sweets! Lesson52 A pretty carpet 漂亮的地毯 We have just moved into a new house and I have been working hard all morning. I have been trying to get my new room in order. This has not been easy because I own over a thousand books. To make matters worse, the room is rather small, so I have temporarily put my books on the floor. At the moment, they cover every inch of floor space and I actually have to walk on them to get in or out of the room. A short while ago, my sister helped me to carry one of my old bookcases up the stairs. She went into my room and got a big surprise when she saw all those books on the floor. 39。 said the conductor. 39。 39。I39。t matter,39。 39。 said the conductor suddenly.39。 I asked. 39。 39。 the conductor said. 39。 You39。ll tell you where to get off,39。 39。 but I don39。m going to Woodford Green,39。t like losing my way. I went on an excursion recently, but my trip took me longer than I expected. 39。230 ! Lesson47 A thirsty ghost 嗜酒的鬼魂 A public house which was recently bought by Mr Ian Thompson is up for sale. Mr Thompson is going to sell it because it is haunted. He told me that he could not go to sleep one night because he heard a strange noise ing from the bar. The next morning, he found that the doors had been blocked by chairs and the furniture had been moved. Though Mr Thompson had turned the lights off before he went to bed, they were on in the morning. He also said that he had found five empty whisky bottles which the ghost must have drunk the night before. When I suggested that some villagers must have e in for a free drink, Mr Thompson shook his head. The villagers have told him that they will not accept the inn even if he gives it away. Lesson48 Did you want to tell me something? 你想對我說什么嗎? Dentists always ask questions when it is impossible for you to answer. My dentist had just pulled out one of my teeth and had told me to rest for a while. I tried to say something, but my mouth was full of cottonwool. He knew I collected birds39。 lesson46 Expensive and unfortable 既昂貴又受罪 When a plane from London arrived at Sydney airport, workers began to unload a number of wooden boxes which contained clothing. No one could account for the fact that one of the boxes was extremely heavy. It suddenly occurred to one of the workers to open up the box. He was astonished at what he found. A man was lying in the box on top of a pile of woollen goods. He was so surprised at being discovered that he did not even try to run away. After he was arrested, the man admitted hiding in the box before the plane left London. He had had a long and unfortable trip, for he had been confined to the wooden box for over ten hours. The man was ordered to pay amp。s money was paid back in this way. The last note said:39。 Only 25 per cent a thief now!39。but only 5o per cent a thief!39。 Lesson45 A clear conscience 問心無愧 The whole village soon learnt that a large sum of money had been lost. Sam Benton, the local butcher, had lost his wallet while taking his savings to the postoffice. Sam was sure that the wallet must have been found by one of the villagers, but it was not returned to him. Three months passed, and then one morning, Sam found his wa