--- title: The Wind in the Willows, chapter XI, part 4: «Like Summer Tempests Came His Tears» (the secret passage, the birthday banquet and «learn 'em») — a lesson of Mova's school · trees and pragmatics description: «The Wind in the Willows, chapter XI, part 4: «Like Summer Tempests Came His Tears» (the secret passage, the birthday banquet and «learn 'em»)», a lesson of the books course of Mova's primary school, sentence by sentence with dependency trees and pragmatics. It begins: Badger's great secret: there i --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/) [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 XI, p… # The Wind in the Willows, chapter XI, part 4: «Like Summer Tempests Came His Tears» (the secret passage, the birthday banquet and «learn 'em») Lesson 68 of the books course of Mova's primary school: 25 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/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/). - [0](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/0/) — Badger's great secret: there is an underground passage from the river-bank right up into the middle of Toad Hall. - [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/1/) — Toad says that's nonsense, he knows every inch of his house. - [2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/2/) — But Toad's father found the old passage, cleaned it out and showed it to Badger — with orders not to tell his son, who «simply cannot hold his tongue», unless he was ever in a real fix. - [3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/3/) — Toad sulks for a moment, then admits he is «a bit of a talker». - [4](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/4/) — Badger has also sent Otter, disguised as a chimney-sweep, to the back door. - [6](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/6/) — And the passage comes up under the butler's pantry, right next to the dining-hall! - [7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/7/) — «Aha! that squeaky board!» cries Toad. - [8](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/8/) — Off to bed. - [9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/9/) — Toad dreams of roads running away from him, canals chasing him, a barge sailing into his dinner-party with his washing, and the secret passage twisting and sitting up on its end — but at last he is home and safe, and everybody tells him he is clever. - [10](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/10/) — Next morning Toad comes down late. - [11](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/11/) — The Mole has slipped off somewhere by himself without telling anyone; the Rat is busily making four little heaps of weapons — «Here's-a-sword-for-the-Rat, here's-a-sword-for-the-Mole...» — while Badger reads the paper and says that, once past the guns, four sticks will clear the hall in five minutes. - [13](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/13/) — Secrets attracted Toad «because he never could keep one», and he enjoyed the thrill of telling one after promising not to. - [15](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/15/) — Toad: «You've been listening to some of the yarns they spin in the public-houses about here. - [17](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/17/) — Toad's father «discovered that passage—he didn't make it, of course; that was done hundreds of years before» — and «repaired it and cleaned it out». - [18](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/18/) — The father's words: «He's a good boy, but very light and volatile in character, and simply cannot hold his tongue. - [20](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/20/) — Toad brightens: «perhaps I am a bit of a talker... - [21](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/21/) — I have the gift of conversation. - [22](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/22/) — I've been told I ought to have a salon, whatever that may be.» (a salon = a gathering of clever people for conversation) - [23](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/23/) — Otter dressed up as a sweep (a chimney-sweep) with brushes over his shoulder and asked at the back door for a job — and so found out the news. - [26](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/26/) — Now I understand it!» - [28](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/28/) — After «plain straw... spread on the stone floor of a draughty cell», the sheets and blankets felt «very friendly and comforting things». - [29](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/29/) — The Rat runs round with weapons for «four little heaps»: «Here's-a-sword-for-the-Rat, here's-a-sword-for-the-Mole, here's-a-sword-for-the-Toad, here's-a-sword-for-the-Badger!», then the same with pistols. - [30](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/30/) — Badger: «just let us once get past the stoats, with those detestable guns of theirs, and I assure you we shan't want any swords or pistols. - [31](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/31/) — We four, with our sticks... shall clear the floor of all the lot of them in five minutes.» - [33](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/68-willows-ch11-part4-the-secret-passage/33/) — Badger: «It's the same what I use myself». - ← previous: [The Wind in the Willows, chapter XI, part 3: «Like Summer Tempests Came His Tears» (loyal friends, cold pie and «Be quiet at once!»)](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/67-willows-ch11-part3-badger-and-mole-come-home/) - next →: [The Wind in the Willows, chapter XI, part 5: «Like Summer Tempests Came His Tears» (Mole the washerwoman and the badgers that never were)](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/69-willows-ch11-part5-clever-mole/) - ↑ back to [Books](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/books/)