The next day Frank went out into the yard and looked at the flagpole for a long time. Then without a word, he went down into the cellar.
第二天，弗兰克来到院子里，久久地望着旗杆。然后一句话也没说就去了地窖。
All the rest of the afternoon Elise heard the sound of Frank's hammer and the rip, rip of his saw. She guessed that he was making something to earn a little money; perhaps it was a dog house for his uncle's new puppy.
一下午的时间，伊莉斯只听到弗兰克的锤子声和锯割东西的声音。她猜他在做赚钱的东西，或许是为叔叔的小狗做得狗窝。
Several days later Elise happened to be out in the yard. As she stood looking at the hard concrete, she thought to herself, "It seems pretty lonesome." Then something made her look up at the flagpole. Two little wrens were fluttering around the ball at the top!
几天后，伊莉斯碰巧到了院子里。她站着看那坚硬的混凝土，想着“它似乎很寂寞”。随后，有东西经过，她抬头看向了旗杆。两个小鹪鹩在杆顶的圆球边上飞来飞去！
"Well", cried the surprised girl. "I do believe birds would come here to live if they had only half a chance!"
小女孩惊讶地叫道：“嗯，我相信，就算有一点儿机会，鸟儿也会来这里生活的。”
She walked over to the corner of the yard and stood looking down at the foot of the pole. There she saw a low place in the concrete that looked like a huge saucer. All at once a happy thought came to her and she began to smile. "I know what I'll do," she said. "And won't Frank be surprised!"
她走到院子的角落，站在那里，低头看着旗杆底部。她看到混凝土里有块洼地，看起来像个巨大的托盘。突然，一个美妙的想法出现在她的脑海，她开始笑起来。“我知道我要做什么了，”她说，“绝对会让弗兰克惊讶的！”
That evening she borrowed Frank's blue pencil, and went to her room. When her father came home, she met him at the door; and Frank heard them talking in low voices.
那天晚上，她借了弗兰克的蓝铅笔去了卧室。当她爸爸回家时，她到门口迎接他，弗兰克听到他们低声说话。
After supper Elise and her mother went for a walk. As soon as they were out of sight, Frank went down to the cellar. When he came back, he was carrying a little wooden house, which he showed to his father proudly.
晚饭后，伊莉斯和她妈妈出去散步。看不见她们后，弗兰克下楼到地下室去了。他回来的时候带着一个小木屋，得意地向爸爸炫耀。
"Tomorrow will be Elise's birthday, you know," he said. "I must get up in time to surprise her." Frank wondered why his father smiled as though he knew something funny.
“你知道的，明天是伊莉斯的生日，”他说，“我必须及时起床给她惊喜。”弗兰克想知道他爸爸为什么笑，就像他知道什么趣事似的。
"I'll tell you what I'll do," said Mr.Gilbert.
“我告诉你我将做什么，”吉尔伯特先生说。
"If you leave the bird house with me, I'll put it up on the pole late this evening. Then the surprise will be all ready for her the first thing tomorrow morning."
“如果你把小鸟屋留给我，我今晚晚点儿就把它挂到旗杆上。那么明天早上给她的第一个惊喜就准备好了。”
Frank went down the street to see a boy, and did not come back until it was too dark to take a look at the bird house. Elise heard him come in, and she smiled to herself as she thought how surprised he would be in the morning.
弗兰克走到街上见了一个男孩，直到天黑才回来看鸟屋。伊莉斯听见他进来了，暗自发笑，因为她觉得他明天早上会很惊讶。
While Frank was dressing the next morning, he heard Elise calling him from the foot of the stairs. "Frank," she cried, "I have something to show you."
第二天早上，弗兰克正穿衣服时，听见伊莉斯在楼梯底下叫他。“弗兰克，”她叫道，“我有东西要给你看。”
