【明報專訊】A five-year-old girl in England wrote to the Queen asking for a pet swan. She got an unexpected reply.
Lyndsay Simpson is a wildlife lover. She asked her family if she could have a swan as her pet, and they told her the Queen owned all swans in Britain. The little girl decided to write her a letter. She told the Queen about her love of swans and promised she would like to keep one in the bath and take good care of it.
Lyndsay subsequently got a reply from Buckingham Palace (白金漢宮), which says the widespread belief that the Queen owns all swans in the UK is a misconception. It reveals, “Her Majesty owns mute swans(疣鼻天鵝)and only exercises her right of ownership over swans on certain parts of the River Thames (泰晤士河)."
The letter also says how the Queen was encouraged to hear of her interest in native wildlife. Its sender enclosed a booklet on Swan Upping (清點天鵝) to help Lyndsay to learn more. Swan Upping is an annual ceremony that takes place on the River Thames. Swan Uppers weigh and measure cygnets (幼天鵝) and check them for any signs of injury commonly caused by fishing lines and hooks.
(sources: Ming Pao, MetroUK, www.royal.uk)
■Photo Story
Lyndsay Simpson with her letter from Buckingham Palace.
■English highway﹕Bath
"Bath" as a noun also refers to a large long container that you fill with water and sit or lie in to wash yourself.
e.g. I bought toys for my baby brother to play in the bath.
■Quiz
Answer the following questions. (Answers on next text)
1. Is the following sentence true or false?
The Queen gave a pet swan to Lyndsay. True / False
2. What is the misconception about swans in the UK mentioned in the article?
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3. Find in paragraph 4 a word that is opposite in meaning to "foreign". ＿＿＿＿＿＿＿
4. "Swan Upping is an annual ceremony...". It means Swan Upping takes place ____ a year.
a. once
b. twice
c. three times
d. many times
■Glossary
widespread (adj) 普遍的
misconception (n) 誤解
enclose (v) 隨函附上
injury (n) 受傷
[Smarties' Power English 第191期]
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