IX. LITTLE JOE OTTER HAS GREAT NEWS TO TELL

Little Joe Otter was fairly bursting with excitement. Micul Joe Otter era destul de plin de entuziasm. Маленький Джо Оттер не на жарт розривався від хвилювання. He could hardly contain himself. Cu greu se putea stăpâni. He felt that he had the greatest news to tell since Peter Rabbit had first found the tracks of Buster Bear in the Green Forest. Il sentit qu'il avait la plus grande nouvelle à annoncer depuis que Peter Rabbit avait découvert pour la première fois les traces de Buster Bear dans la forêt verte. He couldn't keep it to himself a minute longer than he had to. So he hurried to the Smiling Pool, where he was sure he would find Billy Mink and Jerry Muskrat and Grandfather Frog and Spotty the Turtle, and he hoped that perhaps some of the little people who live in the Green Forest might be there too. Sure enough, Peter Rabbit was there on one side of the Smiling Pool, making faces at Reddy Fox, who was on the other side, which, of course, was not at all nice of Peter. Effectivement, Peter Rabbit était là d'un côté de la piscine souriante, faisant des grimaces à Reddy Fox, qui était de l'autre côté, ce qui, bien sûr, n'était pas du tout gentil avec Peter. Mr. and Mrs. Redwing were there, and Blacky the Crow was sitting in the Big Hickory-tree. M. et Mme Redwing étaient là, et Blacky the Crow était assis dans le Big Hickory-tree. Там були містер і місіс Редвінг, а ворона Блеккі сиділа на великому гікорі.

Little Joe Otter swam straight to the Big Rock and climbed up to the very highest part. Little Joe Otter a nagé directement jusqu'au Big Rock et a grimpé jusqu'à la partie la plus haute. He looked so excited, and his eyes sparkled so, that every one knew right away that something had happened.

"Hi!" cried Billy Mink. "Look at Little Joe Otter! "Regardez Little Joe Otter ! "Подивіться на Маленького Джо Оттера! It must be that for once he has been smarter than Buster Bear." Ça doit être que pour une fois il a été plus intelligent que Buster Bear." Мабуть, цього разу він виявився розумнішим за Ведмедя Бастера". Little Joe made a good-natured face at Billy Mink and shook his head. Little Joe fit une grimace de bonne humeur à Billy Mink et secoua la tête. Маленький Джо добродушно подивився на Біллі Мінка і похитав головою. "No, Billy," said he, "you are wrong, altogether wrong. "Ні, Біллі, - сказав він, - ти помиляєшся, зовсім помиляєшся. I don't believe anybody can be smarter than Buster Bear." Я не вірю, що хтось може бути розумнішим за Ведмедика Бастера". Reddy Fox rolled his lips back in an unpleasant grin. Reddy Fox retroussa les lèvres dans un sourire désagréable. Редді Фокс скривив губи в неприємній посмішці. "Don't be too sure of that!" "Не будьте в цьому надто впевнені!" he snapped. "I'm not through with him yet." "Je n'en ai pas encore fini avec lui." — Încă nu am terminat cu el. "Boaster! Boaster!" cried Peter Rabbit.

Reddy glared across the Smiling Pool at Peter. "I'm not through with you either, Peter Rabbit!" he snarled. "You'll find it out one of these fine days!" « Vous le saurez un de ces beaux jours ! — O să afli într-una din zilele astea frumoase! "Reddy, Reddy, smart and sly, Couldn't catch a buzzing fly!" Impossible d'attraper une mouche qui bourdonne !" taunted Peter.

"Chug-a-rum!" "Chug-a-rhum !" „Chug-a-rum!” said Grandfather Frog in his deepest, gruffest voice. "We know all about that. What we want to know is what Little Joe Otter has got on his mind." Ce que nous voulons savoir, c'est ce que Little Joe Otter a en tête." "It's news—great news!" cried Little Joe.

"We can tell better how great it is when we hear what it is," replied Grandfather Frog testily. "Nous pouvons mieux dire à quel point c'est génial quand nous entendons ce que c'est", répondit Grand-père Grenouille avec humeur. "Ми зможемо краще сказати, наскільки це чудово, коли почуємо, що це таке", - щиросердно відповів Дідусь Жаба. "What is it?" Little Joe Otter looked around at all the eager faces watching him, and then in the slowest, most provoking way, he drawled: "Farmer Brown's boy is afraid of Buster Bear." Le petit Joe Otter a regardé autour de lui tous les visages impatients qui le regardaient, puis de la manière la plus lente et la plus provocante, il a dit d'une voix traînante: "Le garçon du fermier Brown a peur de Buster Bear." For a minute no one said a word. Then Blacky the Crow leaned down from his perch in the Big Hickory-tree and looked very hard at Little Joe as he said: Alors Blacky le Corbeau se pencha de son perchoir dans le grand caryer et regarda très attentivement Petit Joe en disant : Тоді ворон Чорний Ворон нахилився зі свого гнізда на Великому Гікорі і дуже пильно подивився на Маленького Джо, як він сказав:

"I don't believe it. „Nu cred. I don't believe a word of it. Farmer Brown's boy isn't afraid of any one who lives in the Green Forest or on the Green Meadows or in the Smiling Pool, and you know it. We are all afraid of him." Little Joe glared back at Blacky. "I don't care whether you believe it or not; it's true," he retorted. Then he told how early that very morning he and Buster Bear had been fishing together in the Laughing Brook, and how Farmer Brown's boy had been fishing there too, and hadn't caught a single trout because they had all been caught or frightened before he got there. Then he told how Farmer Brown's boy had found a footprint of Buster Bear in the soft mud, and how he had stopped fishing right away and started for home, looking behind him with fear in his eyes all the way. "Now tell me that he isn't afraid!" concluded Little Joe. "For once he knows just how we feel when he comes prowling around where we are. "Pour une fois, il sait ce que nous ressentons quand il vient rôder là où nous sommes. Isn't that great news? Now we'll get even with him!" Maintenant, nous allons nous venger de lui !" Тепер ми з ним поквитаємося!" "I'll believe it when I see it for myself!" "Je le croirai quand je le verrai par moi-même!" snapped Blacky the Crow.