7 Return to Toad Hall 
　  
　　The Rat got hold of Toad's neck, pulled him out of the water, and took him into his hall.  
　　'Oh Ratty! ' cried Toad. 'I've done so many wonderful things since I last saw you! The dangers that I've been in! I was put in prison-escaped, of course! Pushed into a canal-swam safely away! Stole a horse- sold it for a lot of money! Oh, I am a clever Toad, and—' 
　　'Toad, ' said the Water Rat, very seriously, 'stop boasting! Go, upstairs at once, wash yourself, and put on some of my clothes. I've never seen anything as wet and dirty as you are. ' 
　　Toad went upstairs a little crossly, but he was pleased to get out of the washerwoman's dress. He came down very clean and tidy, and ready to tell the Rat all about his adventures- how clever, how brave, how successful he had been . The Rat gave him lunch, and listened, unsmiling, while Toad talked and talked and talked. When at last he finished, the Rat looked up .  
　　'I have to tell you, Toad, ' he said slowly, 'that I feel ashamed— yes, ashamed, to have a criminal, an escaped prisoner, for my friend . Can' t you see that none of this is exciting or amusing? ' 
　　There was a little silence. Then Toad said sadly, 'You' re right, Ratty. Of course you are. How silly and boastful I have been! I shall become a quiet, sensible Toad from now on. In a while I'll walk down to Toad Hall and—'  
　　‘Walk down to Toad Hall?' cried the Rat. 'What are you talking about? Haven't you heard ?' 
　　'Heard what?' said Toad, looking frightened. 'Quick, Ratty, tell me! What haven't I heard?' 
　　'About the Wild Wooders! ' cried the Rat. 'The Stoats and the Weasels and the Ferrets- they've taken Toad Hall! When you were sent to prison, they came out of the Wild Wood one dark night and broke into the Hall. They've been living there ever since— eating your food, drinking your drink, giving wild parties. They've got guns and knives and sticks, and they keep guards round the house night and day. They say they' re going to stay there for ever. ' 
　　At first Toad couldn't believe it. But he had gone up to Toad Hall, and two ferrets in the garden had laughed at him, and the stoats who were guarding the walls had shot at him. Toad dropped flat in the road and the bullet passed over his head. He went back, very unhappy, to the Water Rat.  
　　That night there was a meeting in the Rat's house. The Mole and the Badger came, to talk about plans to take back Toad Hall from the Wild Wooders.  
　　When they came in and saw Toad, the Badger shook his head sadly. ' Poor Toad! This is not a happy home-coming for you.  
　　But the Mole was very pleased to see him. 'Here's old Toad! ' he cried. 'How did you manage to escape from prison?It was very clever of you to do that. ' 
　　' Clever?' said Toad. 'Well, I don't want to boast, Mole. I'll tell you all about it and you can decide if一 ‘Toad, do he quiet, please! ' said the Rat. 'We need to discuss plans. I think I know the best way for Toad to—' 
　　'No, you don't! ' said the Mole. 'I know what Toad should do. He should—' 
　　'Well, I'm not going to! ' cried Toad, getting excited. 'I'm not taking orders from you fellows! It's my house that we're talking about and—' 
　　By now they were almost shouting at each other, when suddenly a deep low voice came from an armchair.  
　　'Be quiet at once, all of you! ' said the Badger. 'And listen. The Mole and I have been watching Toad Hall. The stoats, with their guns, are on guard all round the walls, and they're very good guards too. We can't attack the place from outside. They're too strong for us. ' 
　　' Then there's no hope, ' cried Toad miserably. 'I shall go and join the army or something, and never see my dear Toad Hall again! ' 
　　'Cheer up, Toady, ' said the Badger, 'because now I'm going to tell you a very great secret. ' 
　　Toad sat up, interested. He loved secrets, although he could never keep them.  
　　'There- is- an -underground- tunnel, ' said the Badger slowly, 'which goes from the river bank near here, right up into the middle of Toad Hall. ' 
　　' Don't be silly, Badger! cried Toad. ' Of course there isn't! I know Toad Hall, inside and outside, and—' 
　　' My young friend, ' said the Badger calmly, ' your father—who was a great friend of mine— told me many things that he didn't tell you. “ Don't tell my son about this tunnel, ” he said to me. “ He's a good boy, but he talks far too much. ”' 
　　Toad opened his mouth to argue, and then decided not to .  
　　'I asked Otter, ' continued the Badger, ' to do some spy work for us. He pretended to be a gardener and went to the back door of the Hall, asking for work. During the conversation he learnt that tomorrow night there will be a big birthday par-ty— the Chief Weasel's, I think— in the dining-hall. All the weasels will be there, eating and drinking and laughing, and making a lot of noise. ' 
　　' But the stoats will still be on guard on the walls, ' said the Rat.  
　　'True, 'agreed the Badger. 'But the weasels, you see, know that, so they won't have any guns or sticks with them at the party. And the tunnel comes up into that little room right next to the dining-hall. We only have to—' 
　　'—run into the dining-hall—' cried the Mole.  
　　'—with our guns and sticks and knives —'shouted the Rat.  
　　'—and chase them and beat them and hit them! 'cried the Toad, greatly excited. He ran round and round the room, jumping over the chairs.  
　　‘ Very well, then, ' said the Badger, sitting back comfortably and opening his newspaper. 'That is the plan, and there's nothing more for you to argue about. ' 
　　All the next day the Rat hurried about, getting the guns and the knives and the sticks ready. Once the Badger lifted his head from the newspaper.  
　　'We shan't need guns or knives, Ratty, 'he said. 'We four, with our sticks, will clear the dining-hall in five minutes. I could do it by myself. ' 
　　'Better to be safe than sorry, ' said the Rat.  
　　At last the evening came, and the four friends went quietly along the river bank to find the entrance to the secret tunnel. Toad, of course, managed to fall in the river and his friends had to pull him out. The tunnel was cold, and wet, and dark, and narrow. Poor Toad got frightened and ran into the Rat by mistake, who then nearly knocked the Mole over. All this made a lot of noise, and the Badger, who was in front with the lantern, turned round.  
　　' If Toad can't keep quiet, ' he whispered angrily, 'I'll leave him here alone in the dark! ' 
　　After that, the Toad kept very quiet.  
　　They could hear the noise of the party while they were still underground. Silently, they pushed open the door in the roof of the tunnel, and climbed up into the small room next to the dining-hall. Now they could hear one of the weasels singing a very rude song about Toad the car-thief.  
　　'Just wait until I get my hands on him! ' Toad whispered angrily, showing his teeth.  
　　' Right, boys! ' said the Badger, looking round at his friends. ' The hour has come! Follow me! ' 
　　And they crashed through the door into the dining-hall.  
　　What a battle it was! How the four friends roared as they ran through the hall! What screams of fear came from the surprised weasels and ferrets! Tables and chairs were knocked over, plates and glasses went crashing to the floor. Up and down went the four friends, shouting and roaring, and their sticks whistled through the air. There were only four of them, but they seemed enormous to the weasels and the ferrets. The Wild Wooders ran in terror, escaping through the doors and windows , and even up the chimneys—anywhere to get away from those terrible sticks.  
　　In five minutes the room was cleared. The stoats outside, the four friends discovered later, had gone too. They were already frightened by the noise of battle from the hall, so when the weasels and the ferrets started running out in terror, the stoats dropped their guns and ran back to the Wild Wood. In fact, after that night there was no more trouble from the Wild Wooders for a long time. And when any of them met the Badger and his friends out for a walk, they were very polite indeed.  
　　Back in Toad Hall, there was a lot of tidying up to do after the battle. At last it was all done, and the four friends, tired but happy, went upstairs to bed.  
　　'And now, ' said the Badger, after breakfast the next morning, 'we must have a Victory Party. Toad, you must write and invite all our friends for tonight. ' 
　　'What—me do all the work?' said Toad crossly, 'Why…'He suddenly stopped, then said, ' Yes, of course. I'll do every-thing. I'll plan the party, and the singing and—' 
　　'Oh no, ' said the Rat, 'You're not going to sing any of your songs. ' 
　　'Not just one little song?' asked Toad miserably.  
　　' No, Toady. You know very well that your songs are all about you and how clever you are. They're just one long boast! ' 
　　' Come on now, Toad, ' said the Badger kindly. 'You know that you have to change your ways and become a sensible animal. Why not begin now? What better moment could there be, on your return to Toad Hall?' 
　　Toad looked at his three friends' serious faces. For a long while he seemed to be thinking deeply. At last he spoke. 'My friends, you are right, ' he said sadly. 'And I am wrong. From today, I will be a very different Toad. You will never be ashamed of me again. ' 
　　The party was a great success. Everyone wanted to hear about the battle, and there was a lot of noisy talking and laughing. But Toad was not at all noisy. He moved quietly round the room, making sure that everyone had enough to eat and drink. He said very little about the battle, only, 'Oh, it was Badger's clever plan. And the Mole and the Rat did all the hard fighting.  
　　His three friends watched him with their mouths open in surprise-which pleased Toad very much. Towards the end of the evening, some of the younger animals started banging on the table and shouting, ' Toad! Song! Mr Toad' s Song! ' But Toad only shook his head gently, and immediately began a quiet conversation with Otter, asking in an interested voice about his children.  
He was indeed a different Toad! 
7．重返蛤蟆宅第 
　  
　　水鼠抓住癞蛤蟆的脖子将他拉出水面，然后把他带回客厅。 
　　“噢，阿鼠！”癞蛤蟆叫道，“最后那次见你之后，我做了好多了不起的事！险情层出不穷！我被投入监狱——逃出来了，当然！被推进了运河——安全游上了岸！偷了一匹马——卖了好多钱！噢，我真是聪明的癞蛤蟆，而且——” 
　　“癞蛤蟆，”水鼠很严肃地打断道，“不要再吹牛了！快上楼，洗洗干净换上我的衣服。我从来没见过谁像你这样又湿又脏的。” 
　　癞蛤蟆有点温怒地上楼了，但是他还是很乐意脱掉这身洗衣婆的装扮。他一身整洁干净地下楼了，准备告诉水鼠他的冒险经历——他是多么聪明，多么勇敢，多么成功。水鼠给他取来午餐，不苟言笑地听癞蛤蟆在那儿滔滔不绝。最后癞蛤蟆结束了，水鼠抬头看着他。 
　　“我得告诉你，癞蛤蟆，”他慢慢地说着，“我感到羞耻——是的，羞耻有一位朋友是犯人，一位逃出来的犯人。难道你看不出这一切一点也不有趣，一点也不令人兴奋吗？” 
　　一阵沉默，然后癞蛤蟆难过地说：“你是对的，阿鼠。当然，你对。我太愚蠢，太好吹牛了！从现在起，我应该做一个安静，理智的癞蛤蟆。过一会我就回蛤蟆宅第，然后——” 
　　“回蛤蟆宅第？”水鼠叫道，“你在说什么呀？难道你没听说？” 
　　“听说什么？”癞蛤蟆问道，一副惊恐的样子，“快，阿鼠，告诉我！什么我没听说？” 
　　“关于野树林的动物！”水鼠叫道。“大白鼬，黄鼠狼和雪貂——他们占据了蛤蟆宅第！当你被送进监狱，他们在一个漆黑的晚上走出野树林，闯进了你的宅第。从此他们就住在那儿了——吃你的，喝你的，开狂欢晚会。他们有刀，有枪，有棍棒，日夜都有卫士把守在房子周围。他们说他们将永远住下去。” 
　　刚开始癞蛤蟆怎么也不能相信这件事。他还是去了蛤蟆宅第，只见两只雪貂站在花园里嘲笑着他，守卫在墙头上的大白鼬向他开枪射击。癞蛤蟆急忙趴在地上，子弹从他头上飞过。他非常沮丧地回到了水鼠家。 
　　那天晚上在水鼠家里有个会。鼹鼠和獾要来一起商量怎么从野树林动物手中夺回蛤蟆宅第。 
　　当他们走进房子看见癞蛤蟆时，獾很遗憾地摇着头说：“可怜的蛤蟆！对你来说，这不是一次愉快的回家之行。” 
　　当鼹鼠见到他显得非常高兴。“你这个老蛤蟆！”他叫道，“你是怎么设法从监狱里逃出来的？你真是聪明。” 
　　“聪明？”癞蛤蟆说，“得了，我不想吹牛了，鼹鼠。我将告诉你所有的一切，然后你会决定我是否——” 
　　“癞蛤蟆，请你务必保持安静！”水鼠说道，“我们必须研究些方案。我想我知道癞蛤蟆应采取的最好方法——” 
　　“不，你不知道！”鼹鼠打断道。“我知道癞蛤蟆应怎么做，他应该——” 
　　“够了，我什么都不想做！”癞蛤蟆叫道，他有些激动。“我不会听从你们这帮家伙的命令！我们现在谈论的是我的房子，而且 
　　这时，他们几乎是在互相大叫大嚷了，突然从手扶椅那儿传来一个低沉的声音。 
　　“你们全给我马上安静下来！”獾说道。“听着，鼹鼠和我一直在注意着蛤蟆宅第的动向。持枪的大白鼬把守在围墙周围，他们还都是很不赖的卫兵。我们是不能从外面攻打进去的。对于我们来说，他们太厉害了。” 
　　“那么没有希望了，”癞蛤蟆痛苦地叫道。“我将离开这儿去参军或干别的什么，我将再也见不到我心爱的宅第了！” 
　　“振作起来，阿癞，”獾说，“因为我将告诉你一个非常重大的秘密。” 
　　蛤蟆很有兴趣地坐直了身。他喜欢秘密，尽管他从来不能保守秘密。 
　　“有-个-地-下-通-道，”獾缓缓地说，“从附近的河岸刚好通到蛤蟆宅第的中部。” 
　　“别荒唐了，獾！”癞蛤蟆叫了起来。“当然没有！我熟悉蛤蟆宅第的里里外外，而且——” 
　　“我的年轻朋友，”獾平静地说，“你父亲——我最好的朋友——告诉过我许多没对你提过的事情。‘不要把这个通道告诉我儿子，’他对我说，‘他是好孩子，但他话太多。’” 
　　癞蛤蟆张大嘴巴准备争辩，马上又决定放弃了。 
　　“我让水獭，”獾继续道。“为我们作了些侦察。他扮成园丁去宅子后门找活干。在交谈中，他了解到明天晚上那儿将举行大型的生日晚会——我想是黄鼠狼头头的——在餐厅里。所有的黄鼠狼将在那儿吃喝玩乐，并制造出许多噪声。” 
　　“但是大白鼬肯定还会在墙头上巡逻，”水鼠说道。 
　　“是的，”獾赞同道，“但是你要明白，正是因为黄鼠狼知道有人放哨，他们在舞会上就不会随身带枪棍之类的。而地道刚好通到餐厅隔壁的那所小房间，我们只要——” 
　　“——冲进厅——”鼹鼠叫道。 
　　“——带着我们的枪、棍和刀——”水鼠喊道。 
　　“——然后赶他们，揍他们，砍他们！”蛤蟆也叫了起来，他异常激动，跨过椅子，在房间里跑圈儿。 
　　“很好，那么，”獾舒服地向后靠坐着，打开报纸。“这就是计划，你们没有什么再争吵了吧。” 
　　第二天一整天，水鼠忙上忙下，准备着枪、刀和棍棒。一次，獾从报纸上抬起头，说：“我们不需要刀枪，阿鼠。我们四个带着棍棒在五分钟内就可以清理好餐厅，其实我一个就能解决。” 
　　“最好能万无一失，免得有遗憾，”水鼠答道。 
　　夜幕终于降临了，这四个朋友悄悄地沿着河岸找到了秘密通道的入口。癞蛤蟆竟然掉到了河里，这也是情理中的事，他的朋友不得不将他拉了上来。地道里又冷又湿，既黑也窄。可怜的癞蛤蟆害怕极了，不小心撞倒了水鼠，水鼠又差点碰倒了鼹鼠。这不免弄出了很多响声，獾提着灯笼走在前面，这时转过头。 
　　“如果蛤蟆不能保持镇定，”他压低声音生气地说，“我就把他独个儿留在黑暗里！” 
　　此后，癞蛤蟆就一直特别安静。 
　　他们在宅第的地下就能听到晚会的喧闹声。悄悄地，他们推开了地道顶上的门，然后爬进餐厅隔壁的那间小房子。现在他们可以听见一只黄鼠狼正唱着一首相当粗俗的歌，什么癞蛤蟆这个盗车贼如何如何。 
　　“待会儿我要掐住他的脖子！”癞蛤蟆吡牙咧嘴，愤愤地低声说道。 
　　“好了，小伙子们！”獾看着他的朋友们说。“时候到了！跟我来！” 
　　紧接着，他们撞开门冲进饭厅。 
　　那是一场怎样的战斗啊！这四个朋友是怎样地怒吼着冲进了大厅！吃惊的黄鼠狼和雪貂发出了怎样的尖叫声！桌子和椅子给撞倒了，杯子和盘子摔碎在地板上。这四个朋友横冲直闯，怒吼狂叫着，他们的棍棒在空中发出嘶嘶挥舞声。他们仅有四位，但在黄鼠狼，雪貂眼里他们似乎非常强大。这些野树林动物吓得到处跑，从门那儿，从窗户那儿，有的甚至从烟囱那儿——任何能躲开那些可怕的棍子的地方。 
　　五分钟内房间就被清除干净。这四个伙伴后来才发现外面的大白鼬也不见了。其实，大厅里的战斗声把他们给吓倒了，于是当黄鼠狼和雪貂在惊恐中乱窜时，他们也扔下枪逃回野树林。事实上，自那晚后的很长时间里，野树林的动物没再来找过麻烦。而且当他们中的任何一位遇见獾和他的朋友在外面散步，他们显得的确非常有礼貌。 
　　会战后的蛤蟆宅第有许多清扫工作要做。最后收拾妥当，这四个伙伴虽累但很开心地上楼睡觉了。 
　　“现在，”第二天早餐后，獾开口道，“我们应该举行一个庆功宴会。癞蛤蟆，你应该写些请柬邀请我们所有的朋友今晚来这儿。” 
　　“什么——我干这所有的活？”癞蛤蟆生气地说，“为什么……”他突然停下来，然后说道：“是的，当然。我将照办，安排一个派对，又唱又——” 
　　“噢，不，”水鼠打断道，“你不要再唱你的那些歌了。” 
　　“一首都不行吗？”癞蛤蟆伤心地问道。 
　　“不行，阿癞。你很了解你的歌全是关于你自己，还有你是多么聪明之类的。那仅仅是些冗长的吹牛皮罢了！” 
　　“好了，蛤蟆，”獾和善地说。“你知道你得改变你的行事方式，成为一只理智的动物。为什么不从现在开始呢？如今你重新返回蛤蟆宅第，还有比现在更好的时刻吗？” 
　　癞蛤蟆看着三位朋友严肃的表情，很长时间，他似乎沉浸在思考中。最后他开口了。“我的朋友，你们是对的，”他难过地说道，“我错了，从今天开始，我将洗心革面，你们将不再会为我感到羞耻了。” 
　　晚会非常成功。每个人都想听听那次袭击，大家在那儿说着，笑着，吵吵嚷嚷的。但是癞蛤蟆一点也不吵。他在房间里静静地转悠着，保证大家都有足够的食品和饮料。关于那次战斗，他只谈了一点点：“哦，那是獾的妙计，鼹鼠和水鼠的英勇作战。” 
　　他的三位朋友张大嘴巴吃惊地看着他——这让癞蛤蟆非常开心。晚宴临近尾声时，一些年轻的动物开始敲着桌子叫着：“蛤蟆！唱歌！唱首蛤蟆先生的歌！”但是癞蛤蟆只是轻轻地摇了摇头，很快又转过去静静地和水獭聊天，还很感兴趣地问着他孩子们的情况。 
　　他确实是改变了！ 
　　　    


 