Since I bade adieu to Mrs. Hartmann much had occurred to rouse the sleeping tigers in the country. Riots had been reported from many great towns, while handbills of the most violent sort were being thrust on the workers of London. Revolutionary counsels had been long scattered1 by a thousand demagogues, and it appeared now that the ingathering of the harvest was nigh. A renewal2 of anarchist3 outrages4 had terrorized the well-to-do and fanned the extremists into vehemence5. A terrible explosion was reported from Kensington, three houses, including that of the Home Secretary, Mr. Baynton, having been completely wrecked6, while ten of their inmates7 had been killed and some fourteen more or less severely8 injured. A disastrous9 catastrophe10 had been 47narrowly averted11 from the Mansion12 House. It may be imagined, therefore, that it was with a grave face that I ascended13 the platform that evening; my course being rendered so difficult by reason of the extremists—on the one hand by the Conservatives, who, to my thinking, were perpetuating14 the conditions whence anarchy15 drew its breath, namely, a wretched proletariat exploited by capital; on the other by the extreme socialists16, who despaired of effective advance by way of ordinary parliamentary reforms. Both parties were strongly represented that night, and, political feeling running so high, the prospect17 of an orderly meeting seemed shadowy. I had some unpleasant truths to press home, and was not to be deterred18 from this duty.
Before rising to speak I glanced anxiously around the hall, and imagine my feelings when I found that Burnett was missing. This breach19 of his engagement was ominous20. That he had a hand in the outrages was possible—his tone had of late been most threatening, and the influence of Schwartz was malefic—though the supposition was one I did not like to entertain. At any rate he might well have been suspected of complicity, and forced to seek refuge in flight. It was with a heavy heart that I obeyed 48the behest of the chairman and rose to address the meeting.
What I said matters little. Severe condemnation21 of the outrages, a sharp critique of the individualist—Conservative groups, an appeal for unity22 and order in our agitation23, were the points upon which I laid emphasis. I had spoken for about half-an-hour when my audience refused to let me proceed. Previously24 to this, interruptions had been frequent, but now a violent uproar25 arose, the uproar led to a fight, and a rush was made for the platform, which, albeit26 gallantly27 defended, was speedily enough stormed. I had the pleasure of knocking over one ruffian who leapt at me brandishing28 a chair, but a brutal29 kick from behind sent me spinning into the crush by the steps. Severely cuffed30 and pommelled, I was using my fists freely when the gas was suddenly turned off, and the struggle being summarily damped, I managed somehow to get into the street.
And now came the exciting business of the night. In the mass of shouting enthusiasts31 outside it was useless to look for Burnett. I determined32, therefore, to track him down to his own quarters. Passing back into the committee-room I hastily scribbled33 some rather indignant lines to my chairman, and 49then pulling my hat over my eyes elbowed my way through the press.
By the time I got clear of the street I was considerably34 flushed and heated, and the rate at which I was going by no means conduced to refresh me. After ten minutes’ sharp walk I plunged36 down the narrow street where Burnett’s house lay, and a few seconds later had kicked back the gate and marched up to the door. I was startled to find it ajar. Burnett was so habitually37 cautious that I knew something must be amiss. Pushing it slowly open I stole noiselessly into the passage and glanced through the keyhole of the door which led into the little parlour. It was well I had not tramped in. Two policemen and a man in plain clothes were standing38 round a hole in the floor, and the whole apartment was strewn with prized-up planks39. On a chair close by was a heap of retorts, bottles, and canisters, while three ugly-looking bombs lay on the hearthstone.
Burnett, then, had really been mixed up in these outrages, and the police were on his trail, if indeed they had not already arrested him. And what about my own position? The best thing for me was to make off in a trice, for the entanglements40, troubles, and disgrace in which capture there would plunge35 me were too appalling41 to contemplate42. 50Instantly I glided43 to the door, and gently—this time—revolving the gate, slipped out hurriedly into the street. Fortunately there was no one on watch, or my arrest would have been speedy. As it was I rapidly gained the main street and was soon lost in the broad stream of pedestrians44.
Having still three hours before me, I turned into a confectioner’s, and over a substantial tea endeavoured to think the matter out. That I was furious with Burnett goes without saying. Only his fanatical theories separated him to my mind from the common murderer. But that he should be caught was a thought utterly45 revolting, for I had liked the man warmly, and had owed my life to his pluck. No; our friendship must cease henceforth, but it was at least my duty to warn him, if still at large, of the discovery. But how? There was only one course open to me. Outrages or no outrages, police or no police, I must be present at the meeting in the park that night. It was quite possible that Burnett, ignorant of the search made at his house, might be still strolling about London, a prize for the first aspiring46 police-officer who should meet him. Yes, I would go and chance meeting the group, for I should mention that the exact spot for the rendezvous47 was unknown to me. All I knew was that it was somewhere near 51the pond to the left as you enter from the Queen’s Road. The best thing I could think of was to idle outside the park, until I could climb the palings unnoticed.
The sky was overcast48 with clouds, and so far the project was favoured. Hazardous49 as was the affair, my resolution was speedily made and fortified50. Leaving the shop I sallied out for a stroll and passed the remaining interval51 as best I could. Then I called for a hansom, and, leaping in, ordered the driver to take me to the Marble Arch. He demurred52 at first, saying the journey was too much for his horse at that time of night, but his scruples53 were silenced by the offer of a half-sovereign for his pains. The mute objections of his steed were quashed with a sharp cut of the whip, and I was whirled swiftly on to an adventure which was to beggar the wildest creations of romance.
At the Marble Arch I dismissed the cab and walked briskly along the Hyde Park side in the direction of Notting Hill. I had gone some few hundred yards when a hansom sped by me rapidly, and a well-known face within it flashed on my vision like a meteor. It was Burnett, of all persons! Shouting and waving my stick I rushed wildly in chase of the vehicle, and, by dint54 of desperate efforts, 52succeeded at last in stopping it. As I approached the window, the trap flew up. “Drive on, man, drive on, never mind,” growled55 a hoarse56 voice, and I heard the click of a revolver. “Here I am,” I said, getting on the step and rapping the window just as the man was about to whip up. Burnett stared. “What, you here!” he said, flinging apart the leaves. “Come in quick. I don’t know who may be behind.” I mounted in a trice, and the cab flew on faster than ever.
“Look here,” I said, breathlessly, “I have come to warn you. The police are on your track.”
“I know it, my boy,” he rejoined, “but I think they have some way to run yet. No fear. I leave London in an hour.”
What was the man talking of—was he raving57, or boasting, or what?
“Hi, stop!” We got out, and the cab rolled away complacently58.
“Now over the palings,” cried Burnett. “You will see Hartmann?”
“Yes, for an instant.” The demon59 of curiosity was urgent, and the coast seemed clear.
“All right. Come, sharp.”
It was no easy task for me, tired as I was, but with the help of my companion I got through it somehow.
53
A SALVO OF CRACKS OF REVOLVERS.
55“Hallo! Look!” A second cab (probably informed by ours) was bearing down rapidly with two occupants, one of whom stood excitedly on the steps. “Detectives! We’re spotted60!” I leapt to the ground desperately61. Heavens! where had my curiosity landed me?
“Put your best leg foremost and follow me,” yelled Burnett, and his revolver flashed in the gas-light.
In my foolish excitement I obeyed him. As we rushed along I heard the men leap out and their boots clink on the iron of the palings. I felt like the quarry62 of the wild huntsman of German legend. If arrested in such a plight63, and in such company, a deluge64 of disgrace, if not worse, awaited me. I ran like a deer from a leopard65, but I felt I could not hold out very long at so break-neck a speed.
“Keep—your—pecker—up,” shouted Burnett brokenly. “Hartmann—is—waiting.”
“To be arrested with us,” was my thought, or was more murder imminent66? God! how I cursed my foolhardiness and useless sacrifice!
“Here—we are—at last!” cried my companion, looking back over his shoulder. “One—effort—more.”
Half dizzy with fear and fatigue67 I made a despairing sprint68, when, my foot striking a root, I was hurled69 56violently to the ground. All I remember is seeing two dusky forms rushing up, and Burnett hurriedly wheeling round. Then from some unknown spot broke a salvo of cracks of revolvers. A heavy body fell bleeding across my face, and almost at once consciousness left me.
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1
scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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2
renewal
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| adj.(契约)延期，续订，更新，复活，重来 | |
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3
anarchist
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| n.无政府主义者 | |
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4
outrages
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| 引起…的义愤，激怒( outrage的第三人称单数 ) | |
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5
vehemence
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| n.热切；激烈；愤怒 | |
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6
wrecked
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| adj.失事的，遇难的 | |
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7
inmates
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| n.囚犯( inmate的名词复数 ) | |
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8
severely
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| adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地 | |
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9
disastrous
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| adj.灾难性的，造成灾害的；极坏的，很糟的 | |
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10
catastrophe
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| n.大灾难，大祸 | |
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11
averted
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| 防止，避免( avert的过去式和过去分词 )； 转移 | |
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12
mansion
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| n.大厦，大楼；宅第 | |
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13
ascended
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| v.上升，攀登( ascend的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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14
perpetuating
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| perpetuate的现在进行式 | |
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15
anarchy
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| n.无政府状态；社会秩序混乱，无秩序 | |
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16
socialists
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| 社会主义者( socialist的名词复数 ) | |
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17
prospect
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| n.前景，前途；景色，视野 | |
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18
deterred
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| v.阻止，制止( deter的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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19
breach
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| n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破 | |
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20
ominous
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| adj.不祥的，不吉的，预兆的，预示的 | |
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21
condemnation
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| n.谴责; 定罪 | |
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22
unity
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| n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调 | |
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23
agitation
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| n.搅动；搅拌；鼓动，煽动 | |
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24
previously
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| adv.以前，先前（地） | |
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25
uproar
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| n.骚动，喧嚣，鼎沸 | |
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26
albeit
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| conj.即使；纵使；虽然 | |
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27
gallantly
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| adv. 漂亮地，勇敢地，献殷勤地 | |
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28
brandishing
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| v.挥舞( brandish的现在分词 )；炫耀 | |
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29
brutal
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| adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的 | |
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30
cuffed
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| v.掌打，拳打( cuff的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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31
enthusiasts
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| n.热心人，热衷者( enthusiast的名词复数 ) | |
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32
determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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33
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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34
considerably
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| adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上 | |
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35
plunge
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| v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲 | |
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36
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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37
habitually
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| ad.习惯地，通常地 | |
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38
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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39
planks
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| （厚）木板( plank的名词复数 )； 政纲条目，政策要点 | |
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40
entanglements
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| n.瓜葛( entanglement的名词复数 )；牵连；纠缠；缠住 | |
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41
appalling
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| adj.骇人听闻的，令人震惊的，可怕的 | |
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42
contemplate
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| vt.盘算，计议；周密考虑；注视，凝视 | |
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43
glided
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| v.滑动( glide的过去式和过去分词 )；掠过；（鸟或飞机 ） 滑翔 | |
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44
pedestrians
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| n.步行者( pedestrian的名词复数 ) | |
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45
utterly
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| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
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46
aspiring
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| adj.有志气的；有抱负的；高耸的v.渴望；追求 | |
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47
rendezvous
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| n.约会，约会地点，汇合点；vi.汇合，集合；vt.使汇合，使在汇合地点相遇 | |
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48
overcast
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| adj.阴天的，阴暗的，愁闷的；v.遮盖，（使）变暗，包边缝；n.覆盖，阴天 | |
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49
hazardous
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| adj.(有)危险的，冒险的；碰运气的 | |
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50
fortified
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| adj. 加强的 | |
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51
interval
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| n.间隔，间距；幕间休息，中场休息 | |
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52
demurred
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| v.表示异议，反对( demur的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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53
scruples
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| n.良心上的不安( scruple的名词复数 )；顾虑，顾忌v.感到于心不安，有顾忌( scruple的第三人称单数 ) | |
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54
dint
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| n.由于，靠；凹坑 | |
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55
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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56
hoarse
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| adj.嘶哑的，沙哑的 | |
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57
raving
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| adj.说胡话的；疯狂的，怒吼的；非常漂亮的；令人醉心[痴心]的v.胡言乱语(rave的现在分词)n.胡话；疯话adv.胡言乱语地；疯狂地 | |
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58
complacently
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| adv. 满足地, 自满地, 沾沾自喜地 | |
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59
demon
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| n.魔鬼，恶魔 | |
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60
spotted
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| adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的 | |
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61
desperately
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| adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地 | |
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62
quarry
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| n.采石场；v.采石；费力地找 | |
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63
plight
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| n.困境，境况，誓约，艰难；vt.宣誓，保证，约定 | |
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64
deluge
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| n./vt.洪水，暴雨，使泛滥 | |
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65
leopard
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| n.豹 | |
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66
imminent
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| adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的 | |
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67
fatigue
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| n.疲劳，劳累 | |
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68
sprint
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| n.短距离赛跑；vi. 奋力而跑，冲刺；vt.全速跑过 | |
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69
hurled
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| v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂 | |
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