--- title: The Wind in the Willows, chapter III, part 4: The Wild Wood (the door-scraper, the door-mat, and a green door) — a lesson of Mova's school · trees and pragmatics description: «The Wind in the Willows, chapter III, part 4: The Wild Wood (the door-scraper, the door-mat, and a green door)», a lesson of the books course of Mova's primary school, sentence by sentence with dependency trees and pragmatics. It begins: In the lumpy little valley the Mole trips and falls with a sq --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/) / [Books](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/) / The Wind in the Willows, chapter III,… # The Wind in the Willows, chapter III, part 4: The Wild Wood (the door-scraper, the door-mat, and a green door) Lesson 36 of the books course of Mova's primary school: 34 sentences, each with its syntax tree and pragmatics. The lessons are written for Mova, and their agreed trees are part of Mova corpus 0.4 (CC BY-SA 4.0). How Mova does on its tests: [the lesson at school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/). - [0](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/0/) — In the lumpy little valley the Mole trips and falls with a squeal — he's cut his shin. - [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/1/) — The Rat ties it up with his handkerchief and looks closely: a very clean cut, not from a branch — from the sharp edge of something metal. - [2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/2/) — «Funny!» Then he starts digging in the snow like mad. - [4](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/4/) — The Mole, hurt and grumpy, can't see why: someone careless has left a door-scraper lying about in the wood, that's all! - [5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/5/) — The Rat digs on and finds a shabby door-mat. - [6](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/6/) — «Can we EAT a doormat?» snaps the Mole. - [8](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/8/) — The Rat loses his temper: stop talking and dig, especially on the sides of the mounds — it's their last chance of a warm dry bed! - [9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/9/) — The Mole digs, mostly to humour his friend, who he thinks is going a bit mad. - [10](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/10/) — The Rat's stick hits something hollow. - [11](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/11/) — They dig — and there, in the side of a snow-bank, is a solid little dark-green door with an iron bell-pull and a brass plate: MR. - [12](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/12/) — The Mole falls over backwards in delight and praises the Rat's clever step-by-step thinking at great length. - [13](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/13/) — «But as you haven't» got my brains, snaps the Rat, «get up and ring that bell!» The Mole swings on the bell-pull, the Rat hammers with his stick, and far away a deep bell rings. - [14](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/14/) — The Mole tripped and cried «O my leg! ... - [15](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/15/) — O my poor shin!»; the Rat tied it up with his handkerchief. - [16](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/16/) — The Rat: «It's a very clean cut ... - [17](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/17/) — That was never done by a branch or a stump. - [18](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/18/) — Looks as if it was made by a sharp edge of something in metal. - [19](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/19/) — «"Well, never mind what done it," said the Mole, forgetting his grammar in his pain.» — correct English would be «what did it». - [20](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/20/) — The Rat cried «Hooray!» and then «Hooray-oo-ray-oo-ray-oo-ray!» and «fell to executing a feeble jig in the snow» (a jig = a lively hopping dance). - [21](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/21/) — The Mole: «A door-scraper! - [22](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/22/) — Well, what of it? - [23](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/23/) — Why dance jigs around a door-scraper?» — a door-scraper is a metal bar by a front door for scraping mud off your boots. - [24](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/24/) — The Mole thought it simply meant «some VERY careless and forgetful person has left his door-scraper lying about in the middle of the Wild Wood» and said he'd complain «to—to somebody or other». - [26](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/26/) — When the door-mat appeared — «There, what did I tell you?» — the Mole answered «Absolutely nothing whatever ... with perfect truthfulness»: the Rat really hadn't told him anything. - [27](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/27/) — The Mole: «Can we EAT a doormat? or sleep under a door-mat? - [29](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/29/) — The Rat had asked: «Do—you—mean—to—say ... that this door-mat doesn't TELL you anything?» Then, «really angry»: «Now look here, you—you thick-headed beast ... this must stop. - [30](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/30/) — Not another word, but scrape—scrape and scratch and dig and hunt round, especially on the sides of the hummocks, if you want to sleep dry and warm to-night, for it's our last chance!» - [32](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/32/) — «the point of the Rat's cudgel struck something that sounded hollow»; then they found «a solid-looking little door, painted a dark green. - [33](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/33/) — An iron bell-pull hung by the side, and below it, on a small brass plate ... - [34](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/34/) — The Mole: «You argued it out, step by step, in that wise head of yours, from the very moment that I fell and cut my shin, and you looked at the cut, and at once your majestic mind said to itself, "Door-scraper!"» and «If I only had your head, Ratty——». - [35](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/35/) — The Rat's chain: a clean metal cut → a door-scraper → a door-mat → a door. - [36](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/36/) — The Rat: «But as you haven't, I suppose you're going to sit on the snow all night and talk? - [37](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/37/) — Get up at once and hang on to that bell-pull». - [39](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/36-willows-ch3-part4-the-door-scraper/39/) — Old words: «pettishly» = sulkily; «folly» = silliness; «hitherto incredulous» = until now not believing; «penitence» = being sorry; «appreciated» = valued; «domestic litter» = household rubbish. - ← previous: [The Wind in the Willows, chapter III, part 3: The Wild Wood (the Rat finds the Mole, and the snow comes)](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/35-willows-ch3-part3-snow-in-the-wild-wood/) - next →: [The Wind in the Willows, chapter IV, part 1: Mr. Badger (the door in the snow and the fire-lit kitchen)](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/37-willows-ch4-part1-mr-badger/) - ↑ back to [Books](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/)