4．
阅读理解
A
Faithful Dog
More than seven hundred years ago, the Prince
of Wales had a very big and brave dog called Gelert.
One
day the Prince wanted to go hunting(打猎) with his
men. He told his dog to stay at home and look after his baby son. The baby was
in a wooden cradle(摇篮), which was like a small bed.
When the Prince came back from hunting, Gelert
ran out to meet his master. He wagged his tail and jumped up to put his paws(爪子) on the Prince's chest. Then the Prince saw the blood(血) on Gelert's jaws(下巴) and head.
"What have you done?" the Prince
said. He rushed into his house and looked for his baby son. The cradle was
lying on its side on the floor. The clothes were torn and there was blood on
them.
"So you have killed my son?" the
Prince said angrily. "You unfaithful dog!" He took out his sword(剑) and killed the dog. Just as Gelert was dying, he managed ( 设法 ) to bark. Then the Prince heard a baby call to the dog. The Prince
ran out of the house and saw his son lying on the ground unhurt (没受伤). Near him was a dead wolf. Then the Prince knew that Gelert had defended(保卫) the baby and killed the wolf.
The Prince ran back into the house but it
was too late. Gelert was dead. The Prince was very sad indeed. Tears ran down
his face when he realized he had killed his faithful friend. The Prince carried
the body of his brave dog to the top of a mountain and buried(埋葬) him there. After this, the Prince never smiled again. Every morning
at dawn, he walked up the mountain and stood by the dog's grave for a few
minutes.
If you go to Mount Snowdon in Wales, people
will show you where Gelert is buried. There is a sign by his grave. It reminds
people of a brave and faithful dog.
