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首页 » 英文短篇小说 » The Yellow Face » CHAPTER XXXIII. GEMS OR PASTE?
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CHAPTER XXXIII. GEMS OR PASTE?
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It was a dramatic moment, especially for Claire and Jack1, who fully2 appreciated the peril3 in which Carrington stood. The fact was not hidden to them that Carrington's excuse to Claire was but an ingenious way out of a terrible difficulty. On more than one occasion Claire had herself fetched her jewels from the bank, and no objections had been raised. Still, Carrington was clearly within his legal right, and Jack could not but admire the swiftness with which he had got himself out of the tangle4. His own face was a model of absolute indifference5; he just glanced at Claire to see if she expressed any suspicion. But Claire smiled in a way so natural and artless that Jack had no fears of her for the future.

With Lady Barmouth, however, it was quite a different matter. As yet, she knew nothing of the terrible straits in which Carrington found himself involved. She had come down for her jewels in the ordinary way, as she had done many times before, and expected to take them away with her. Carrington affected6 to be talking to somebody down the speaking tube, but in reality he was fighting to gain time and work out some ingenious excuse. Jack enjoyed his dismay with a feeling of grim satisfaction. But Carrington was not quite done with yet; evidently he had not sat at the feet of Anstruther for nothing. He looked up presently, and smiled with the air of a man who is only too willing to do anything for his client.

"Will you take a seat for a moment, Lady Barmouth?" he said politely. "I see that you know Miss Helmsley and Mr. Masefield. I must go and speak to our cashier for a moment."

"You cannot get the jewels yourself?" Lady Barmouth asked.

"No," Carrington explained. "Of course, we are bound to take precautions. I have no more power to open one of the safes by myself than one of my junior clerks."

"That would be awkward if you wanted anything out of bank hours," Jack suggested. "How do you manage then?"

"Well, we simply don't manage," Carrington said. He was quite himself again by this time. "I can no more get into the strong room that you could. I should have to get the manager and chief cashier before a safe could be opened."

All this sounded plausible7 enough, as Jack was bound to admit. Carrington went off with a jaunty8 step, as if he had all the millions of the Bank of England behind him. Jack wondered how he would get out of the mess. But the solution of the puzzle was quite easy. Carrington came back with a look of annoyance9 on his face.

"I am exceedingly sorry, Lady Barmouth," he apologized. "The fact is, Mr. Perkins has been called away on important business to our West-End branch. He cannot possibly get back in less than an hour. Do you want your jewels in such a hurry?"

Lady Barmouth was fain to confess that she didn't. She would not require them till the following evening; only some time must necessarily be spent in the cleaning of them.

"Plenty of time for that," Carrington smiled. "I will send a special messenger in a cab to bring the cases to your house by lunch time. I hope that will be convenient to you."

Lady Barmouth, innocent of the part which she was playing in the comedy, replied that that arrangement would suit her exceedingly well; indeed, she was sorry to give so much trouble. She swept out of the bank parlor10, followed by Jack and Claire. A well-appointed brougham stood outside, and she smilingly offered her companions a lift.

"I am going to take Claire back to lunch with me," she said. "Can I set you down anywhere, Mr. Masefield?"

"You can set me down, if you please, on you own door-step," Jack smiled. "As a matter of fact, I was just going to see Lord Barmouth, and now I have something serious to say to you. Were you satisfied just now? About the jewels, I mean?"

Lady Barmouth looked puzzled as Jack followed her into the brougham. She saw nothing, so she said, to arouse any suspicions, except that she thought a needless fuss had been made over her gems11. She was still discussing the matter, when the brougham reached Belgrave Square, and the three alighted. Once they were in the drawing-room, Lady Barmouth turned to Jack and asked him what he meant. He shook his head doubtfully.

"I am afraid I am going to upset you very much," he said. "But unless I am greatly mistaken, you are never likely to see your diamonds again."

Lady Barmouth stared open-mouthed at the speaker. She explained that her diamonds were of great value; indeed, some of the stones were historic. Those diamonds had often been mentioned in personal paragraphs, which are such a feature in the modern newspaper, and Jack recollected12 a description of them perfectly13 well. He proceeded to explain, at considerable length, the history of his last night's adventure. Lady Barmouth's face grew still more grave when at length the recital14 was finished.

"This is a very serious matter," she said . "Do you know this is likely to cost Lord Barmouth something like fifty thousand pounds? The City and Provincial15 Bank does a good deal of business with people well known in Society, and I am afraid many of us will be involved. What do you suppose has become of those diamonds, Mr. Masefield?"

"They have been pawned16, of course," Jack said. "Carrington has taken that dreadful risk in the desperate hope of retrieving17 his position. But the whole scandal is bound to become public property before eight and forty hours have passed."

There was nothing for it now but to wait and see what time would bring forth18. Lord Barmouth was not yet down; indeed, his man said that he would not appear till after luncheon19. But there was no lack of animated20 conversation in the drawing-room, and the discussion was continued till the gong rang for lunch.

"I tell you what I think the best thing to do," Lady Barmouth said, as Jack held the drawing-room door open for her. "You are a barrister, and accustomed to deal with legal matters. If those stones fail to arrive by half-past two, I will give you my written authority, and you shall take it to the bank and insist upon something definite being done."

Luncheon was a thing of the past, and it was getting on towards three o'clock, when a cab drove up to the door, and a footman announced the fact that a gentleman from the City and Provincial Bank desired to see Lady Barmouth. She returned presently, beaming with smiles, and announced that Jack had been mistaken; for the gems had not only been delivered, but had also been handed over to the speaker's maid.

Slightly taken aback, Jack expressed a natural curious desire to see the stones in question. Lady Barmouth rang the bell, and presently a smart French maid appeared, bearing four shabby-looking cases in her hand. They were laid on the table, and Jack suggested that Lady Barmouth should open one of them.

"I see you are still suspicious," she smiled. "Evidently things were not so desperate with Mr. Carrington as you appear to imagine. What do you think of those?"

With pardonable pride, Lady Barmouth lifted the cover of one of the cases and displayed the flashing contents to Claire's admiring eyes. A livid stream of flame dazzled and blinked in the sunshine. Claire's cry of delight was echoed by an exclamation21 of astonishment22 from Lady Barmouth.

"There is some extraordinary mistake here," she said . "I admit that these stones are exceedingly beautiful, but, unfortunately, they are not mine at all. They look to me much more like the property of the Duchess of Birmingham. I have no pearls or emeralds--my jewels are all diamonds and sapphires23. The cases must have been changed; a mistake easily accounted for, as they are both green wraps."

But Jack was not in the least convinced. This was some desperate expedient24 to lull25 Lady Barmouth's suspicions to sleep for the time. And doubtless Carrington had gone off hot foot to Anstruther, and implored26 him to find some way out of the terrible difficulty. Another idea occurred to Jack, but this he did not dare to mention for the present--it was too suggestive of a situation from some melodrama27.

"I think I can explain the whole thing," he said. "But, first of all, I should like to take Lord Barmouth's opinion on the matter. Probably he has finished his own lunch by this time. Will you see if he is ready to receive me?"

Lord Barmouth was glad enough to see Jack, and welcomed him quite cordially. Then Jack laid the jewel cases upon the table, and proceeded to relate once more the story of last night's happenings. He concluded with a description of his visit to Carrington, and epitomized the incident of the changed jewels.

"Certainly a most extraordinary thing," Barmouth said. "I rather gather from the expression of your face that you have some solution to offer."

"Indeed I have," Jack said eagerly. "This is merely a trick to gain time, and an exceedingly clever trick, too. Carrington had naturally assumed that we know nothing of his desperate position. If we were in the dark on that point, the mistake would look exceedingly natural. But, knowing what we do, the situation is entirely28 changed. I don't believe those are the Duchess of Birmingham's diamonds--I don't believe they are diamonds at all."

"By Jove! You have hit it exactly," Barmouth cried. "What a really magnificent idea! Carrington has no diamonds; therefore he lays out, say, a couple of hundred pounds in some showy-looking paste, and sends them round here as my wife's gems. She, absolutely innocent of any deception29, sends them back and asks to have the mistake rectified30. Back from the bank comes a polite note of regret apologizing for the mistake, and promising31 the proper stones for to-morrow, the cashier having left for the day."

"Exactly my idea," Jack cried. "But we can soon settle that, Lord Barmouth. You have only to telephone to your family jeweler, and ask him to step round here for a moment."

Barmouth fell in with the suggestion at once, and a telephone message was dispatched to the famous firm of Flint & Co., in Bond Street. Mr. Flint himself arrived a few minutes later, and the dubious32 gems were laid before him. He had not the slightest hesitation33 in giving his verdict.

"Paste, my lord," he said briefly34, "and pretty poor stuff at that. I can see that, even in this dim light. See how dull these stones are! Real gems, even in semi-gloom, shimmer35 and sparkle, but these don't show up at all. The whole lot did not cost more than two hundred pounds; in fact, these things are little better than stage jewels."

"Can you tell us where they come from?" Jack asked.

"Certainly I can, sir," Mr. Flint replied, promptly36. "There are occasions when clients of ours are compelled to exchange the real for the false. In cases like that we go to Osmond & Co., of Clerkenwell, where these came from. I hope there is nothing wrong."

Barmouth said politely that that matter could be discussed on a future occasion. He would not detain Mr. Flint any more for the present, and the latter bowed himself out of the room.

"What do you propose to do now?" Barmouth asked.

"Well, with your permission, I propose to strike while the iron is hot," Jack said. "It is quite evident that this rubbish has been purchased very recently from Osmond's. If you will allow me to do so, I will go at once with the cases to Clerkenwell, and ascertain37 the purchaser. If we can bring Carrington to book promptly, we may recover Lady Barmouth's jewels yet."

Barmouth had nothing to say except in praise of this suggestion. Accordingly, Jack set off in a cab for Clerkenwell, where he had no difficulty in finding the fine business premises38 of Osmond & Co. He lost no time in diplomacy39, but proceeded to lay the whole matter before the head of the firm.

"You will see there is something very wrong here," he said. "This manufacture of yours has been deliberately40 substituted for some valuable gems belonging to a lady whose name I am not at liberty to divulge41 for the present. Mr. Flint, of Bond Street, says that the paste has been purchased from you. We have absolute proof of the fact that the stuff was bought during the past two hours. I shall be glad if you will tell me the name of the purchaser. I don't suppose the stuff was booked.

"Mr. Osmond explained that theirs was practically a cash business. A few inquiries42 elicited43 the fact that the paste had been bought about two hours before by a tall, slim gentleman, who had driven up in a hansom cab. There was another gentleman in the cab, but he had not entered the shop.

"Were the jewels paid for in cash?" Jack asked.

They had not been paid for in hard cash, the cashier explained. The bill had come to two hundred pounds altogether, and had been made out to a Mr. Morrison. He had paid for them with twenty ten-pound notes in a most businesslike way, and gone away again--the whole thing not having taken more than five minutes. Jack suggested that he would like to see the notes. They were fresh and clean, but across the face of all of them was a circular blue mark bearing the words, "City and provincial Bank!"

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1 jack 53Hxp     
n.插座,千斤顶,男人;v.抬起,提醒,扛举;n.(Jake)杰克
参考例句:
  • I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
  • He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。
2 fully Gfuzd     
adv.完全地,全部地,彻底地;充分地
参考例句:
  • The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气,然后全部呼出。
  • They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。
3 peril l3Dz6     
n.(严重的)危险;危险的事物
参考例句:
  • The refugees were in peril of death from hunger.难民有饿死的危险。
  • The embankment is in great peril.河堤岌岌可危。
4 tangle yIQzn     
n.纠缠;缠结;混乱;v.(使)缠绕;变乱
参考例句:
  • I shouldn't tangle with Peter.He is bigger than me.我不应该与彼特吵架。他的块头比我大。
  • If I were you, I wouldn't tangle with them.我要是你,我就不跟他们争吵。
5 indifference k8DxO     
n.不感兴趣,不关心,冷淡,不在乎
参考例句:
  • I was disappointed by his indifference more than somewhat.他的漠不关心使我很失望。
  • He feigned indifference to criticism of his work.他假装毫不在意别人批评他的作品。
6 affected TzUzg0     
adj.不自然的,假装的
参考例句:
  • She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
  • His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。
7 plausible hBCyy     
adj.似真实的,似乎有理的,似乎可信的
参考例句:
  • His story sounded plausible.他说的那番话似乎是真实的。
  • Her story sounded perfectly plausible.她的说辞听起来言之有理。
8 jaunty x3kyn     
adj.愉快的,满足的;adv.心满意足地,洋洋得意地;n.心满意足;洋洋得意
参考例句:
  • She cocked her hat at a jaunty angle.她把帽子歪戴成俏皮的样子。
  • The happy boy walked with jaunty steps.这个快乐的孩子以轻快活泼的步子走着。
9 annoyance Bw4zE     
n.恼怒,生气,烦恼
参考例句:
  • Why do you always take your annoyance out on me?为什么你不高兴时总是对我出气?
  • I felt annoyance at being teased.我恼恨别人取笑我。
10 parlor v4MzU     
n.店铺,营业室;会客室,客厅
参考例句:
  • She was lying on a small settee in the parlor.她躺在客厅的一张小长椅上。
  • Is there a pizza parlor in the neighborhood?附近有没有比萨店?
11 gems 74ab5c34f71372016f1770a5a0bf4419     
growth; economy; management; and customer satisfaction 增长
参考例句:
  • a crown studded with gems 镶有宝石的皇冠
  • The apt citations and poetic gems have adorned his speeches. 贴切的引语和珠玑般的诗句为他的演说词增添文采。
12 recollected 38b448634cd20e21c8e5752d2b820002     
adj.冷静的;镇定的;被回忆起的;沉思默想的v.记起,想起( recollect的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • I recollected that she had red hair. 我记得她有一头红发。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • His efforts, the Duke recollected many years later, were distinctly half-hearted. 据公爵许多年之后的回忆,他当时明显只是敷衍了事。 来自辞典例句
13 perfectly 8Mzxb     
adv.完美地,无可非议地,彻底地
参考例句:
  • The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
  • Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。
14 recital kAjzI     
n.朗诵,独奏会,独唱会
参考例句:
  • She is going to give a piano recital.她即将举行钢琴独奏会。
  • I had their total attention during the thirty-five minutes that my recital took.在我叙述的35分钟内,他们完全被我吸引了。
15 provincial Nt8ye     
adj.省的,地方的;n.外省人,乡下人
参考例句:
  • City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes.城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。
  • Two leading cadres came down from the provincial capital yesterday.昨天从省里下来了两位领导干部。
16 pawned 4a07cbcf19a45badd623a582bf8ca213     
v.典当,抵押( pawn的过去式和过去分词 );以(某事物)担保
参考例句:
  • He pawned his gold watch to pay the rent. 他抵当了金表用以交租。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • She has redeemed her pawned jewellery. 她赎回了当掉的珠宝。 来自《简明英汉词典》
17 retrieving 4eccedb9b112cd8927306f44cb2dd257     
n.检索(过程),取还v.取回( retrieve的现在分词 );恢复;寻回;检索(储存的信息)
参考例句:
  • Ignoring all, he searches the ground carefully for any cigarette-end worth retrieving. 没管打锣的说了什么,他留神的在地上找,看有没有值得拾起来的烟头儿。 来自汉英文学 - 骆驼祥子
  • Retrieving the nodules from these great depths is no easy task. 从这样的海底深渊中取回结核可不是容易的事情。 来自辞典例句
18 forth Hzdz2     
adv.向前;向外,往外
参考例句:
  • The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
  • He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。
19 luncheon V8az4     
n.午宴,午餐,便宴
参考例句:
  • We have luncheon at twelve o'clock.我们十二点钟用午餐。
  • I have a luncheon engagement.我午饭有约。
20 animated Cz7zMa     
adj.生气勃勃的,活跃的,愉快的
参考例句:
  • His observations gave rise to an animated and lively discussion.他的言论引起了一场气氛热烈而活跃的讨论。
  • We had an animated discussion over current events last evening.昨天晚上我们热烈地讨论时事。
21 exclamation onBxZ     
n.感叹号,惊呼,惊叹词
参考例句:
  • He could not restrain an exclamation of approval.他禁不住喝一声采。
  • The author used three exclamation marks at the end of the last sentence to wake up the readers.作者在文章的最后一句连用了三个惊叹号,以引起读者的注意。
22 astonishment VvjzR     
n.惊奇,惊异
参考例句:
  • They heard him give a loud shout of astonishment.他们听见他惊奇地大叫一声。
  • I was filled with astonishment at her strange action.我对她的奇怪举动不胜惊异。
23 sapphires 1ef1ba0a30d3a449deb9835f6fd3c316     
n.蓝宝石,钢玉宝石( sapphire的名词复数 );蔚蓝色
参考例句:
  • Again there was that moment of splintered sapphires before the lids, dropping like scales, extinguished it. 她眼眶中又闪烁出蓝宝石的光彩,接着眼睑象鱼鳞般地垂落下来,双目又黯然失色了。 来自辞典例句
  • She also sported a somewhat gawdy gold watch set with diamonds and sapphires. 她还收到一块镶着钻石和蓝宝石的金表。 来自辞典例句
24 expedient 1hYzh     
adj.有用的,有利的;n.紧急的办法,权宜之计
参考例句:
  • The government found it expedient to relax censorship a little.政府发现略微放宽审查是可取的。
  • Every kind of expedient was devised by our friends.我们的朋友想出了各种各样的应急办法。
25 lull E8hz7     
v.使安静,使入睡,缓和,哄骗;n.暂停,间歇
参考例句:
  • The drug put Simpson in a lull for thirty minutes.药物使辛普森安静了30分钟。
  • Ground fighting flared up again after a two-week lull.经过两个星期的平静之后,地面战又突然爆发了。
26 implored 0b089ebf3591e554caa381773b194ff1     
恳求或乞求(某人)( implore的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She implored him to stay. 她恳求他留下。
  • She implored him with tears in her eyes to forgive her. 她含泪哀求他原谅她。
27 melodrama UCaxb     
n.音乐剧;情节剧
参考例句:
  • We really don't need all this ridiculous melodrama!别跟我们来这套荒唐的情节剧表演!
  • White Haired Woman was a melodrama,but in certain spots it was deliberately funny.《白毛女》是一出悲剧性的歌剧,但也有不少插科打诨。
28 entirely entirely     
ad.全部地,完整地;完全地,彻底地
参考例句:
  • The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
  • His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。
29 deception vnWzO     
n.欺骗,欺诈;骗局,诡计
参考例句:
  • He admitted conspiring to obtain property by deception.他承认曾与人合谋骗取财产。
  • He was jailed for two years for fraud and deception.他因为诈骗和欺诈入狱服刑两年。
30 rectified 8714cd0fa53a5376ba66b0406599eb20     
[医]矫正的,调整的
参考例句:
  • I am hopeful this misunderstanding will be rectified very quickly. 我相信这个误会将很快得到纠正。
  • That mistake could have been rectified within 28 days. 那个错误原本可以在28天内得以纠正。
31 promising BkQzsk     
adj.有希望的,有前途的
参考例句:
  • The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
  • We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。
32 dubious Akqz1     
adj.怀疑的,无把握的;有问题的,靠不住的
参考例句:
  • What he said yesterday was dubious.他昨天说的话很含糊。
  • He uses some dubious shifts to get money.他用一些可疑的手段去赚钱。
33 hesitation tdsz5     
n.犹豫,踌躇
参考例句:
  • After a long hesitation, he told the truth at last.踌躇了半天,他终于直说了。
  • There was a certain hesitation in her manner.她的态度有些犹豫不决。
34 briefly 9Styo     
adv.简单地,简短地
参考例句:
  • I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
  • He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。
35 shimmer 7T8z7     
v./n.发微光,发闪光;微光
参考例句:
  • The room was dark,but there was a shimmer of moonlight at the window.屋子里很黑,但靠近窗户的地方有点微光。
  • Nor is there anything more virginal than the shimmer of young foliage.没有什么比新叶的微光更纯洁无瑕了。
36 promptly LRMxm     
adv.及时地,敏捷地
参考例句:
  • He paid the money back promptly.他立即还了钱。
  • She promptly seized the opportunity his absence gave her.她立即抓住了因他不在场给她创造的机会。
37 ascertain WNVyN     
vt.发现,确定,查明,弄清
参考例句:
  • It's difficult to ascertain the coal deposits.煤储量很难探明。
  • We must ascertain the responsibility in light of different situtations.我们必须根据不同情况判定责任。
38 premises 6l1zWN     
n.建筑物,房屋
参考例句:
  • According to the rules,no alcohol can be consumed on the premises.按照规定,场内不准饮酒。
  • All repairs are done on the premises and not put out.全部修缮都在家里进行,不用送到外面去做。
39 diplomacy gu9xk     
n.外交;外交手腕,交际手腕
参考例句:
  • The talks have now gone into a stage of quiet diplomacy.会谈现在已经进入了“温和外交”阶段。
  • This was done through the skill in diplomacy. 这是通过外交手腕才做到的。
40 deliberately Gulzvq     
adv.审慎地;蓄意地;故意地
参考例句:
  • The girl gave the show away deliberately.女孩故意泄露秘密。
  • They deliberately shifted off the argument.他们故意回避这个论点。
41 divulge ImBy2     
v.泄漏(秘密等);宣布,公布
参考例句:
  • They refused to divulge where they had hidden the money.他们拒绝说出他们把钱藏在什么地方。
  • He swore never to divulge the secret.他立誓决不泄露秘密。
42 inquiries 86a54c7f2b27c02acf9fcb16a31c4b57     
n.调查( inquiry的名词复数 );疑问;探究;打听
参考例句:
  • He was released on bail pending further inquiries. 他获得保释,等候进一步调查。
  • I have failed to reach them by postal inquiries. 我未能通过邮政查询与他们取得联系。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
43 elicited 65993d006d16046aa01b07b96e6edfc2     
引出,探出( elicit的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • Threats to reinstate the tax elicited jeer from the Opposition. 恢复此项征税的威胁引起了反对党的嘲笑。
  • The comedian's joke elicited applause and laughter from the audience. 那位滑稽演员的笑话博得观众的掌声和笑声。


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