Маленькие мужчины / Little men. Уровень 4

“At her again, Tom; she’s angry, she will fight capitally!” called Dan, coming up behind with another rod, while Jack and Ned followed his example.

Buttercup trotted round the field, getting more and more bewildered and excited every moment, for whichever way she turned, there was a dreadful boy, yelling and brandishing a new and very disagreeable sort of whip. It was great fun for them, but real misery for her, till she lost patience. All at once she turned round, and rushed at Toby. Poor Toby tripped over a stone, and down went horse, matadore, and all, in one ignominious heap, while distracted Buttercup jumped over the wall, and galloped wildly out of sight down the road.

“Catch her, stop her! Run, boys, run!” shouted Dan.

Finally she was caught. The fish-poles were left behind; and every boy was red, breathless, and scared. They found poor Buttercup at last in a flower garden, worn out with the long run. Dan led her home, followed by a party of young gentlemen, for the cow was in a sad state.

She had strained her shoulder, so that she limped, her eyes looked wild, and she was wet and muddy.

“Old Bhaer will send me off, I guess. Don’t care if he does,” muttered Dan.

“We’ll ask him not to, all of us,” said Demi, and the others assented.

Dan only said, “Don’t bother about me.”

When Mr. Bhaer saw the animal, and heard the story, he said very little. Buttercup was made comfortable in her stall, and the boys sent to their rooms till supper-time.

Dan whistled briskly in his room. He knew they tried to help him, and at the bottom of his heart he was grateful, but his rough life had made him hard and careless, suspicious and wilful. He hated restraint of any sort, and fought against it like an untamed creature.

Mr. Bhaer came in, and said,

“I have heard all about it, Dan, and though you have broken the rules again, I am going to give you one more trial, to please Mother Bhaer.”

“I didn’t know there was any rule about bull-fighting.

”

“As I never expected to have any at Plumfield, I never did make such a rule,” answered Mr. Bhaer. Then he added gravely, “But one of the first and most important of our few laws is the law of kindness to every dumb creature on the place. I want everybody and everything to be happy here, to love and trust, and serve us, as we try to love and trust and serve them faithfully and willingly.