Chapter 9 8.family talk

Mr. and Mrs. Arable and Fern were sitting in the kitchen having breakfast on Saturday morning.Avery had finished his meal and went upstairs to find his slingshot. "Did you know Uncle Homer's gosling hatched?" asked Fern. "How many hatched?" asked Mr. Arable. "Seven," answered Fern. "There were eight eggs, but one didn't hatch. The goose told Templeton she didn't want the egg anymore, so he took it away." "What did the goose say?" asked Mrs. Arable, staring at her daughter in wonder and concern. "She told Templeton she didn't want that egg anymore," repeated Fern.

"Who's Templeton?" asked Mrs. Arable. "He's the mouse," Fern answered. "We don't like him very much." "Who are we"?asked Mr. Arable. "Oh, everyone who lives in the barn cellar. Wilbur, the sheep, the lambs, the goose, the gander, the goslings, Charlotte and me." "Charlotte?" said Mrs. Arable. "Who is Charlotte?" "She's Wilbur's best friend, and she's very smart." "What does she look like?" asked Mrs. Arable. "Well," said Fern, thinking it over, "she has eight legs. All spiders do, I suppose."

"Charlotte is a spider?" asked Fern's mother. Fern nodded. "A big gray spider. She spins a web over Wilbur's door. She catches flies and sucks their blood. Wilbur adores her." "He really adores her?" Mrs. Arable was almost bewildered.She stared into Fern's face with a worried expression. "Oh yes, Wilbur adores Charlotte," said Fern. "You know what Charlotte said when the gosling was born?" "I don't know anything," said Mr. Arable. "Tell us." "Okay. I was sitting on the stool next to me when the first gosling poked its little head out from under the mother goose, and Charlotte was on her web. She gave a speech. She said: "Every one of us in the barn cellar will be delighted to learn that after four weeks of tireless work and patient waiting, our friend the goose has finally achieved a great result. Don't you think she's saying something Is it a happy event?"

"Yes, I admit it," said Mrs. Arable. "Now, Fern, it's time for Sunday school. Tell Avery to get ready. You can tell us a little more about your Uncle Homer's barn this afternoon. You spent a lot of time there Time? You go almost every afternoon, don't you?" "I like it there," replied Fern.She wiped her mouth and ran upstairs.After she left the room, Mrs. Arable and her husband began talking in low tones. "I worry about Fern," she said. "Did you hear how she rambled about the animals as if they could talk?" Mr. Arable smiled. "Maybe they can talk," he said. "I think it's weird sometimes too. Anyway, don't worry about Fern—she just has a vivid imagination. Little kids think they can hear everything."

"Nevertheless, I worry about her," replied Mrs. Arable. "I think next time I see Dr. Dorian I'll talk to him about Fern. He's almost like us. I'm going to ask him. Fern thinks he can understand pigs and other animals." Is that weird. I don't think it's normal. You know perfectly well that animals don't talk at all." Mr. Arable grinned. "Maybe our ears aren't as sharp as Fern's," he said.