--- title: The Wind in the Willows, chapter VIII, part 2: Toad's Adventures (the washerwoman's dress) — a lesson of Mova's school · trees and pragmatics description: «The Wind in the Willows, chapter VIII, part 2: Toad's Adventures (the washerwoman's dress)», a lesson of the books course of Mova's primary school, sentence by sentence with dependency trees and pragmatics. It begins: One morning the gaoler's daughter is thoughtful: «I have an aunt who is a washerw --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/) [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 VIII,… # The Wind in the Willows, chapter VIII, part 2: Toad's Adventures (the washerwoman's dress) Lesson 53 of the books course of Mova's primary school: 20 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/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/). - [0](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/0/) — One morning the gaoler's daughter is thoughtful: «I have an aunt who is a washerwoman.» Toad, not really listening, jokes rudely that he has several aunts who ought to be washerwomen, and she tells him he talks too much. - [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/1/) — Her plan: the aunt does the prisoners' washing, taking it out on Monday morning and bringing it back on Friday evening; if Toad pays her well, she will give him her dress and bonnet, and he can walk out of the castle as the washerwoman. - [2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/2/) — Toad is offended — Mr. - [3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/3/) — Toad of Toad Hall, dressed as a washerwoman! — but when the girl snaps that he can stay in prison as a Toad, he admits he has been proud and stupid. - [4](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/4/) — Next evening the aunt comes; for some gold sovereigns she hands over a cotton print gown, an apron, a shawl and a rusty black bonnet, and asks to be tied up and gagged, so it will look as if she was attacked. - [5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/5/) — Dressed up and giggled at, Toad walks out past gate after gate, the warders joking with the «washerwoman» all the way, until the little gate clicks behind him and he feels the fresh air: he is free! - [7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/7/) — She tells him: «You talk too much, that's your chief fault, and I'm trying to think, and you hurt my head.» - [9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/9/) — The girl says: «This is a Thursday.» - [11](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/11/) — «You're very alike in many respects — particularly about the figure.» Toad, huffy: «I have a very elegant figure — for what I am.» She answers: «So has my aunt, for what she is.» - [12](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/12/) — Toad protests: «you wouldn't surely have Mr. - [13](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/13/) — Toad of Toad Hall, going about the country disguised as a washerwoman!» - [14](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/14/) — She snaps: «Then you can stop here as a Toad ... - [15](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/15/) — I suppose you want to go off in a coach-and-four!» (a grand carriage pulled by four horses). - [16](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/16/) — «Honest Toad was always ready to admit himself in the wrong»: «You are a good, kind, clever girl ... and I am indeed a proud and a stupid toad.» - [17](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/17/) — Next evening the aunt comes; «certain gold sovereigns» (gold coins worth a pound each), placed where she can see them, «practically completed the matter». - [18](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/18/) — For his money Toad gets «a cotton print gown, an apron, a shawl, and a rusty black bonnet». - [19](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/19/) — The aunt asks to be «gagged and bound and dumped down in a corner», so she can say she was attacked and keep her job; the book calls this a «not very convincing artifice» (artifice = trick). - [21](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/21/) — The girl «hook-and-eyes» him into the gown (fastens it with little hooks), laughing: «You're the very image of her ... only I'm sure you never looked half so respectable in all your life before.» - [22](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/22/) — On the way out the warders «chaff» him (tease him) with jokes; the book's jokes about men and a «widow woman» come from old ideas about men and women. - [23](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/53-willows-ch8-part2-the-washerwoman/23/) — Toad keeps his temper, though he finds their jokes «poor and clumsy». - ← previous: [The Wind in the Willows, chapter VIII, part 1: Toad's Adventures (the gaoler's daughter and the buttered toast)](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/52-willows-ch8-part1-the-gaolers-daughter/) - next →: [The Wind in the Willows, chapter VIII, part 3: Toad's Adventures (no money, no pocket, and the engine-driver)](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/54-willows-ch8-part3-no-money-no-pocket/) - ↑ back to [Books](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/)