Page 92 - Viva Real English 4 : Ebook

broom made of hawk’s feathers. He was just about to put on the tea when ‘suzz,

suzz,’ sang the shiny tea-kettle spout; and then ‘pattari – pattari!’ said the lid, as it
flapped up and down, and the kettle swung backwards and forwards.

‘What does this mean?’ said the old priest with a start. Wonder of wonders, the
spout of the kettle had turned into a badger’s nose with its big whiskers, while
from the other side sprouted out a long bushy tail!

‘Ho, ho!’ cried the priest, and in terror he dropped the tea-caddy, spilling the green
tea all over the matting. Now four hairy legs appeared under the kettle. The strange

thing, half badger and half kettle, jumped off the fire, and began running around
the room. To the priest’s horror it leapt on a shelf, puffed out its burning belly
and began to beat a tune with its fore-paws as if it were a drum. The old priest’s
pupils, hearing the racket, rushed in. After a lively chase, upsetting piles of books
and breaking some of the teacups, they caught the badger, and squeezed him into
a keg used for storing pickled radishes. They fastened down the lid with a heavy
stone, and felt sure that the strong odour of the radishes would kill the beast. No

man could survive such a smell, and a badger certainly couldn’t.

The next morning the tinker of the village called in, and the priest told him about
his strange visitor. Wishing to show him the animal, he cautiously lifted the lid
of the cask. After all, the badger might be still alive, in spite of the strong vinegar
pickles. And lo! There was nothing but the shiny brass tea-kettle!

Fearing that the utensil might play the same prank again, the priest was glad to
sell it to the tinker. On his part the tinker secretly thought the priest had been

dreaming, and he gave another kettle in exchange for it, and some cash too. He
carried it proudly to his junk shop, though he thought it felt unusually heavy.

The tinker went to bed as usual that night with his tiny paper-shaded lamp just
behind his head. About midnight, hearing a strange noise like the flapping up and

badger : an animal with grey fur and odour : an unpleasant smell
wide black-and-white lines on tinker : a person who travels from

its head place to place to repair things
horror : great shock cautiously : with great care
puff ed out : stopped something from cask : a wooden barrel
burning by blowing utensil : any container or tool used in

racket : loud noise the house
keg : a round wooden container prank : a trick played on somebody as

a joke
82