“The middle of the sixties was a stirring time out in Japan. That was just after the Simonosaki bombardment, and before the Daimio affair. There was a Tory party and there was a Liberal party among the natives, and the question that they were wrangling2 over was whether the throats of the foreigners should be cut or not. I tell you all, politics have been tame to me since then. If you lived in a treaty port, you were bound to wake up and take an interest in them. And to make it better, the outsider had no way of knowing how the game was going. If the opposition3 won it would not be a newspaper paragraph that would tell him of it, but a good old Tory in a suit of chain mail, with a sword in each hand, would drop in and let him know all about it in a single upper cut.
“Of course it makes men reckless when they are 341living on the edge of a volcano like that. Just at first they are very jumpy, and then there comes a time when they learn to enjoy life while they have it. I tell you, there’s nothing makes life so beautiful as when the shadow of death begins to fall across it. Time is too precious to be dawdled4 away then, and a man lives every minute of it. That was the way with us in Yokohama. There were many European places of business which had to go on running, and the men who worked them made the place lively for seven nights in the week.
“One of the heads of the European colony was Randolph Moore, the big export merchant. His offices were in Yokohama, but he spent a good deal of his time at his house up in Jeddo, which had only just been opened to the trade. In his absence he used to leave his affairs in the hands of his head clerk, Jelland, whom he knew to be a man of great energy and resolution. But energy and resolution are two-edged things, you know, and when they are used against you you don’t appreciate them so much.
“It was gambling5 that set Jelland wrong. He was a little dark-eyed fellow with black curly hair—more than three-quarters Celt, I should imagine. Every night in the week you would see him in the same place, on the left-hand side of the croupier at Matheson’s rouge6 et noir table. For a long time he won, and lived in better style than his employer. And then came a turn of luck, and he began to lose so that at the end of a single week his partner and he were stone broke, without a dollar to their names.
342“This partner was a clerk in the employ of the same firm—a tall, straw-haired young Englishman called McEvoy. He was a good boy enough at the start, but he was clay in the hands of Jelland, who fashioned him into a kind of weak model of himself. They were for ever on the prowl together, but it was Jelland who led and McEvoy who followed. Lynch and I and one or two others tried to show the youngster that he could come to no good along that line, and when we were talking to him we could win him round easily enough, but five minutes of Jelland would swing him back again. It may have been animal magnetism7 or what you like, but the little man could pull the big one along like a sixty-foot tug8 in front of a full-rigged ship. Even when they had lost all their money they would still take their places at the table and look on with shining eyes when any one else was raking in the stamps.
“But one evening they could keep out of it no longer. Red had turned up sixteen times running, and it was more than Jelland could bear. He whispered to McEvoy, and then said a word to the croupier.
“‘Certainly, Mr. Jelland; your cheque is as good as notes,’ said he.
“Jelland scribbled9 a cheque and threw it on the black. The card was the king of hearts, and the croupier raked in the little bit of paper. Jelland grew angry, and McEvoy white. Another and a heavier cheque was written and thrown on the table. The card was the nine of diamonds. McEvoy leaned his head upon his hands and looked as if he would 343faint. ‘By God!’ growled10 Jelland, ‘I won’t be beat,’ and he threw on a cheque that covered the other two. The card was the deuce of hearts. A few minutes later they were walking down the Bund, with the cool night-air playing upon their fevered faces.
“‘Of course you know what this means,’ said Jelland, lighting11 a cheroot; ‘we’ll have to transfer some of the office money to our current account. There’s no occasion to make a fuss over it. Old Moore won’t look over the books before Easter. If we have any luck, we can easily replace it before then.’
“‘But if we have no luck?’ faltered12 McEvoy.
“‘Tut, man, we must take things as they come. You stick to me, and I’ll stick to you, and we’ll pull through together. You shall sign the cheques to-morrow night, and we shall see if your luck is better than mine.’
“But if anything it was worse. When the pair rose from the table on the following evening, they had spent over ￡5,000 of their employer’s money. But the resolute13 Jelland was as sanguine14 as ever.
“‘We have a good nine weeks before us before the books will be examined,’ said he. ‘We must play the game out, and it will all come straight.’
“McEvoy returned to his rooms that night in an agony of shame and remorse15. When he was with Jelland he borrowed strength from him; but alone he recognized the full danger of his position, and the vision of his old white-capped mother in England, who had been so proud when he had received his appointment, rose up before him to fill him with 344loathing and madness. He was still tossing upon his sleepless16 couch when his Japanese servant entered the bedroom. For an instant McEvoy thought that the long-expected outbreak had come, and plunged17 for his revolver. Then, with his heart in his mouth, he listened to the message which the servant had brought.
“Jelland was downstairs, and wanted to see him.
“What on earth could he want at that hour of night? McEvoy dressed hurriedly and rushed downstairs. His companion, with a set smile upon his lips, which was belied18 by the ghastly pallor of his face, was sitting in the dim light of a solitary19 candle, with a slip of paper in his hands.
“‘Sorry to knock you up, Willy,’ said he. ‘No eavesdroppers, I suppose?’
“McEvoy shook his head. He could not trust himself to speak.
“‘Well, then, our little game is played out. This note was waiting for me at home. It is from Moore, and says that he will be down on Monday morning for an examination of the books. It leaves us in a tight place.’
“‘Monday!’ gasped20 McEvoy; ‘to-day is Friday.’
“‘Saturday, my son, and 3 a.m. We have not much time to turn round in.’
“‘We are lost!’ screamed McEvoy.
“‘We soon will be, if you make such an infernal row,’ said Jelland harshly. ‘Now do what I tell you, Willy, and we’ll pull through yet.’
“‘I will do anything—anything.’
“‘That’s better. Where’s your whisky? It’s a 345beastly time of the day to have to get your back stiff, but there must be no softness with us, or we are gone. First of all, I think there is something due to our relations, don’t you?’
“McEvoy stared.
“‘We must stand or fall together, you know. Now I, for one, don’t intend to set my foot inside a felon’s dock under any circumstances. D’ye see? I’m ready to swear to that. Are you?’
“‘What d’you mean?’ asked McEvoy, shrinking back.
“‘Why, man, we all have to die, and it’s only the pressing of a trigger. I swear that I shall never be taken alive. Will you? If you don’t, I leave you to your fate.’
“‘All right. I’ll do whatever you think best.’
“‘You swear it?’
“‘Yes.’
“‘Well, mind, you must be as good as your word. Now we have two clear days to get off in. The yawl Matilda is on sale, and she has all her fixings and plenty of tinned stuff aboard. We’ll buy the lot to-morrow morning, and whatever we want, and get away in her. But, first, we’ll clear all that is left in the office. There are 5,000 sovereigns in the safe. After dark we’ll get them aboard the yawl, and take our chance of reaching California. There’s no use hesitating, my son, for we have no ghost of a look-in in any other direction. It’s that or nothing.’
“‘I’ll do what you advise.’
“‘All right; and mind you get a bright face on you to-morrow, for if Moore gets the tip and comes 346before Monday, then——’ He tapped the side-pocket of his coat and looked across at his partner with eyes that were full of a sinister21 meaning.
“All went well with their plans next day. The Matilda was bought without difficulty; and, though she was a tiny craft for so long a voyage, had she been larger two men could not have hoped to manage her. She was stocked with water during the day, and after dark the two clerks brought down the money from the office and stowed it in the hold. Before midnight they had collected all their own possessions without exciting suspicion, and at two in the morning they left their moorings and stole quietly out from among the shipping22. They were seen, of course, and were set down as keen yachtsmen who were on for a good long Sunday cruise; but there was no one who dreamed that that cruise would only end either on the American coast or at the bottom of the North Pacific Ocean. Straining and hauling, they got their mainsail up and set their foresail and jib. There was a slight breeze from the south-east, and the little craft went dipping along upon her way. Seven miles from land, however, the wind fell away and they lay becalmed, rising and falling on the long swell23 of a glassy sea. All Sunday they did not make a mile, and in the evening Yokohama still lay along the horizon.
“On Monday morning down came Randolph Moore from Jeddo, and made straight for the offices. He had had the tip from some one that his clerks had been spreading themselves a bit, and that had made him come down out of his usual routine; but when he reached his place and found the three juniors waiting 347in the street with their hands in their pockets he knew that the matter was serious.
“‘What’s this?’ he asked. He was a man of action, and a nasty chap to deal with when he had his topmasts lowered.
“‘We can’t get in,’ said the clerks.
“‘Where is Mr. Jelland?’
“‘He has not come to-day.’
“‘And Mr. McEvoy?’
“‘He has not come either.’
“Randolph Moore looked serious. ‘We must have the door down,’ said he.
“They don’t build houses very solid in that land of earthquakes, and in a brace24 of shakes they were all in the office. Of course the thing told its own story. The safe was open, the money gone, and the clerks fled. Their employer lost no time in talk.
“‘Where were they seen last?’
“‘On Saturday they bought the Matilda and started for a cruise.’
“Saturday! The matter seemed hopeless if they had got two days’ start. But there was still the shadow of a chance. He rushed to the beach and swept the ocean with his glasses.
“‘My God!’ he cried. ‘There’s the Matilda out yonder. I know her by the rake of her mast. I have my hand upon the villains25 after all!’
“But there was a hitch26 even then. No boat had steam up, and the eager merchant had not patience to wait. Clouds were banking27 up along the haunch of the hills, and there was every sign of an approaching change of weather. A police boat was ready with 348ten armed men in her, and Randolph Moore himself took the tiller as she shot out in pursuit of the becalmed yawl.
“Jelland and McEvoy, waiting wearily for the breeze which never came, saw the dark speck28 which sprang out from the shadow of the land and grew larger with every swish of the oars29. As she drew nearer, they could see also that she was packed with men, and the gleam of weapons told what manner of men they were. Jelland stood leaning against the tiller, and he looked at the threatening sky, the limp sails, and the approaching boat.
“‘It’s a case with us, Willy,’ said he. ‘By the Lord, we are two most unlucky devils, for there’s wind in that sky, and another hour would have brought it to us.’
“McEvoy groaned30.
“‘There’s no good softening31 over it, my lad,’ said Jelland. ‘It’s the police boat right enough, and there’s old Moore driving them to row like hell. It’ll be a ten-dollar job for every man of them.’
“Willy McEvoy crouched32 against the side with his knees on the deck. ‘My mother! my poor old mother!’ he sobbed33.
“‘She’ll never hear that you have been in the dock anyway,’ said Jelland. ‘My people never did much for me, but I will do that much for them. It’s no good, Mac. We can chuck our hands. God bless you, old man! Here’s the pistol!’
“He cocked the revolver, and held the butt34 towards the youngster. But the other shrunk away from it with little gasps35 and cries. Jelland glanced at the 349approaching boat. It was not more than a few hundred yards away.
“‘There’s no time for nonsense,’ said he. ‘Damn it! man, what’s the use of flinching36? You swore it!’
“‘No, no, Jelland!’
“‘Well, anyhow, I swore that neither of us should be taken. Will you do it?’
“‘I can’t! I can’t!’
“‘Then I will for you.’
“The rowers in the boat saw him lean forwards, they heard two pistol shots, they saw him double himself across the tiller, and then, before the smoke had lifted, they found that they had something else to think of.
“For at that instant the storm broke—one of those short sudden squalls which are common in these seas. The Matilda heeled over, her sails bellied37 out, she plunged her lee-rail into a wave, and was off like a frightened deer. Jelland’s body had jammed the helm, and she kept a course right before the wind, and fluttered away over the rising sea like a blown piece of paper. The rowers worked frantically38, but the yawl still drew ahead, and in five minutes it had plunged into the storm wrack39 never to be seen again by mortal eye. The boat put back, and reached Yokohama with the water washing half-way up to the thwarts40.
“And that was how it came that the yawl Matilda, with a cargo41 of five thousand pounds and a crew of two dead young men, set sail across the Pacific Ocean. What the end of Jelland’s voyage may have been no man knows. He may have foundered42 in that gale43, or 350he may have been picked up by some canny44 merchantman, who stuck to the bullion45 and kept his mouth shut, or he may still be cruising in that vast waste of waters, blown north to the Behring Sea, or south to the Malay Islands. It’s better to leave it unfinished than to spoil a true story by inventing a tag to it.”
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1
chestnut
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| n.栗树，栗子 | |
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2
wrangling
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| v.争吵，争论，口角( wrangle的现在分词 ) | |
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3
opposition
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| n.反对，敌对 | |
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4
dawdled
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| v.混（时间）( dawdle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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5
gambling
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| n.赌博；投机 | |
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6
rouge
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| n.胭脂，口红唇膏；v.(在…上)擦口红 | |
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7
magnetism
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| n.磁性，吸引力，磁学 | |
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8
tug
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| v.用力拖(或拉)；苦干；n.拖；苦干；拖船 | |
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9
scribbled
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| v.潦草的书写( scribble的过去式和过去分词 )；乱画；草草地写；匆匆记下 | |
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10
growled
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| v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说 | |
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11
lighting
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| n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光 | |
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12
faltered
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| （嗓音）颤抖( falter的过去式和过去分词 )； 支吾其词； 蹒跚； 摇晃 | |
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13
resolute
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| adj.坚决的，果敢的 | |
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14
sanguine
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| adj.充满希望的，乐观的，血红色的 | |
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15
remorse
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| n.痛恨，悔恨，自责 | |
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16
sleepless
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| adj.不睡眠的，睡不著的，不休息的 | |
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17
plunged
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| v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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18
belied
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| v.掩饰( belie的过去式和过去分词 )；证明（或显示）…为虚假；辜负；就…扯谎 | |
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19
solitary
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| adj.孤独的，独立的，荒凉的；n.隐士 | |
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20
gasped
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| v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要 | |
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21
sinister
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| adj.不吉利的，凶恶的，左边的 | |
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shipping
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| n.船运（发货，运输，乘船） | |
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swell
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| vi.膨胀，肿胀；增长，增强 | |
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24
brace
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| n. 支柱,曲柄,大括号; v. 绷紧,顶住,(为困难或坏事)做准备 | |
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25
villains
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| n.恶棍( villain的名词复数 )；罪犯；（小说、戏剧等中的）反面人物；淘气鬼 | |
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26
hitch
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| v.免费搭(车旅行)；系住；急提；n.故障；急拉 | |
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27
banking
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| n.银行业，银行学，金融业 | |
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28
speck
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| n.微粒，小污点，小斑点 | |
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29
oars
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| n.桨，橹( oar的名词复数 )；划手v.划（行）( oar的第三人称单数 ) | |
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30
groaned
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| v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦 | |
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31
softening
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| 变软，软化 | |
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32
crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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sobbed
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| 哭泣，啜泣( sob的过去式和过去分词 )； 哭诉，呜咽地说 | |
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butt
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| n.笑柄；烟蒂；枪托；臀部；v.用头撞或顶 | |
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35
gasps
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| v.喘气( gasp的第三人称单数 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要 | |
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36
flinching
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| v.（因危险和痛苦）退缩，畏惧( flinch的现在分词 ) | |
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bellied
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| adj.有腹的，大肚子的 | |
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38
frantically
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| ad.发狂地, 发疯地 | |
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39
wrack
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| v.折磨；n.海草 | |
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40
thwarts
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| 阻挠( thwart的第三人称单数 )； 使受挫折； 挫败； 横过 | |
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41
cargo
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| n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物 | |
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42
foundered
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| v.创始人( founder的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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43
gale
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| n.大风，强风，一阵闹声（尤指笑声等） | |
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44
canny
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| adj.谨慎的，节俭的 | |
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45
bullion
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| n.金条，银条 | |
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