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CHAPTER VII THE FIRM OF LEIGHTON & ANDERSON IS FORMED
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When the coming night fairly forced the enthusiastic boy from the shop, which he closed and made secure by driving the lock staple1 into the door jam again, Andy was a curious sight. With his coat on his arm, his shirt wet with perspiration2, his hat and trousers smeared3 with dust, oil, and rust4, his hands black and his knuckles5 bleeding from handling iron, wood, and tools—all of which he inspected, felt of, and stowed away again—he looked more like a helper in a machine shop than a newly-arrived Florida tourist.

By the time he reached the railroad on his way home, it was dark. The sight of an approaching lantern did not reassure6 him. When he saw that it was Captain Anderson, he broke out at once:

“It’s all settled! I don’t care about that gas accumulator or compressor, or whatever it is—we’ve got her tail!”

[76]

“Her tail?” queried7 the captain. “Whose tail?”

“Why, the airship,” sang out Andy. “We’re goin’ to have the best one ever made. We’ve got a tail for it—a guider. Did you read the book?”

“Never mind about that now,” admonished8 the captain. “You’d better be thinkin’ of some good reason why you stayed so long. Your mother’s a good deal put out.”

“I’ve been a lookin’ over things,” explained the boy. “My uncle must ’a been a wonder. That little model is the greatest invention of the age—”

“You’d better invent a model of an excuse for your mother.”

“What’s the matter?”

“Your mother had an idea that an alligator9 might have eaten you.”

But Andy’s look of disgust disappeared in the other things he had on his mind.

“How about it?” he persisted. “Are we goin’ to make the flyin’ machine?”

“That’s quite a job,” answered the captain. “But I’ve been reading your book.”

“Couldn’t you do it?” exclaimed Andy.

“I reckon I could,” conceded Captain Anderson.

[77]

“We won’t need the rudder that you see in the book,” broke in the boy. “The thing I’m tellin’ you about is goin’ to take its place. I’ll make it up there in my uncle’s shop.”

“If—?” said the captain, with a smile.

“If what?” asked Andy, alarmed.

“If your mother’ll let you,” was his friend’s reply.

Andy was silent a moment as the two hurried forward toward the house. Finally, with decision, he exclaimed:

“Well, she will. It’ll be a shame if she don’t.”

Captain Anderson seemed amused, but not wholly convinced.

“I kind o’ glanced through the book, and I was sort o’ plannin’ if I had the stuff—”

“And haven’t you?”

“Pretty much all, I guess.”

“Then you are goin’ to do it; you will, won’t you?” pleaded the lad.

“Are you certain that engine’s all right?”

“Sure,” shouted the boy; “why not? And I’ll make the tail rudder! Hurrah10!”

The captain laid his hand on Andy’s arm.

“Don’t get excited. I don’t want to do anything your mother might not like—”

[78]

“You leave that to me,” said the boy. “She’ll agree—in the end.”

But it looked as if Andy might have a pretty hard time placating11 his parent, judging by his reception. Mrs. Leighton was genuinely alarmed, but supper being ready and it being apparent to the eye that her son was uninjured by alligators12, her pent-up lecture gradually lessened13 into a mild criticism. When the boy, with clean face and plastered hair, joined the others at the table, Mrs. Leighton postponed14 further admonition.

Mrs. Anderson’s Indian River oysters15 baked in the shell were sufficient to put everyone in a good humor. To Andy’s great relief, his mother announced that she had devoted16 the afternoon to writing letters: one to Mr. Leighton; another to the bank in Melbourne, in relation to her late brother’s affairs; and a third to a man in the same town who, her host had informed her, was a possible purchaser.

“Until I hear from your father,” she informed her son, “we will do nothing.”

Andy nodded approvingly, but there was much secret joy that he did not have to return at once; that he was free, for a time, to get his great project under way. The next thing was[79] to acquaint his mother with the aeroplane idea and to work himself into the scheme without arousing his mother’s objection. As he ate, his brain was busy with a dozen ideas. They were rejected one after another, because each called for deception17.

Finally, with no definite idea in mind, he repeated the story of the rudder model. With a wealth of detail and a dramatic climax18, the boy worked his narrative19 up to the unmailed letter.

“And what makes me sorry,” he concluded, “is that there it is, the very thing all flyin’ machines need most. And nothin’ to come of it.”

“Why, that ought to be a patent,” suggested Mrs. Anderson.

“A patent?” repeated Mrs. Leighton. “Maybe there’s a fortune in it.”

“Yes,” remarked Andy. “But maybe it won’t do what uncle figured it will. A thing that won’t work ain’t much good if it is patented.”

“We ought to try it,” declared Captain Anderson earnestly. Then he added: “Let me have the model, Mrs. Leighton, and I’ll make a full-sized working copy.”

“I’m sure that would be putting you to a lot of trouble,” replied that lady.

[80]

“Besides,” interposed Mrs. Anderson, “how are you going to test it after you get it?”

“Well,” Captain Anderson answered at last, “it looks to me as if it might be worth the trouble of a real test, even if I had to make a machine to test it.”

“You don’t mean an aeroplane?” broke in Mrs. Leighton.

“They’re very simple,” answered the captain, shrugging his shoulders.

“All that work to test a little model!” ejaculated Andy’s mother. “All that trouble to see if an idea is worth anything!”

“It would be some trouble,” explained the captain, “but you don’t get anything without some trouble—”

“I can help him, mother,” interrupted Andy, trying to suppress his eagerness.

But Mrs. Leighton shook her head, and the boy’s hopes died. Then his mother turned to the captain with a suggestion.

“I couldn’t consent to that,” she began, “because Andy is too young to give much assistance. But, if you’ll let Mr. Leighton pay you—”

“I’ll tell you what we can do,” exclaimed the boy, with new hope. “Let’s go havers. If[81] Captain Anderson can make a thing out of that model that will guide an aeroplane, it’ll surely be worth something. Let’s all go partners: we’ll take half because it’s uncle’s idea, and Captain Anderson’ll take half because he works it out.”

Mrs. Leighton looked questioningly at her host.

“That’s fair enough,” answered the captain. “But there’s one objection. I don’t know much about engines. Andy knows all about ’em—”

“He knows a lot about one that won’t run,” recalled his mother with a smile.

“He knows enough,” observed Captain Anderson significantly. “If you can spare Andy for a week or so to help me, I’ll go partners, and we’ll see what we can do.”

“I’m sure that is awfully20 good of you,” exclaimed Mrs. Leighton, “and if you really think Andy can be of assistance, why, of course—”

“But who’s going to fly the thing?” broke in Mrs. Anderson. “Not you,” she added, nodding toward her husband.

Andy’s heart sank.

“It’ll be time enough to bother about that when we need an operator,” laughed her[82] husband. “What’s the matter with Ba? He’s afraid of nothing.”

“And sail away to the Bahamas, maybe,” replied Mrs. Anderson.

The possibility of Andy becoming the aviator21 seemed not to have occurred to Mrs. Leighton. At her silence, the boy could hardly restrain a yell of delight over the adroit22 way in which Captain Anderson had managed the thing. As he half rose from the table, Mrs. Anderson’s words fell on his ears.

“Sail away to the Bahamas!”

He dropped back into his chair, his mouth open.

“What’s the matter, Andy?” asked his mother.

“Matter?” repeated the boy absently.

“Yes. What is the matter with you? Are you ill?”

“Ill?” repeated Andy with a smile. “No. I was just thinkin’.”

“Thinking? About what?”

“Just thinkin’ how funny that’d be—old Ba asailin’ back to his home in the Bahamas in an aeroplane.”

Mrs. Leighton, with a curious look at Andy, at last turned to Captain Anderson and said:

[83]

“It will be awfully good of you to do that, and I’ll make Andy do all he can to help you. Only,” and she smiled, “I hope, if you make an aeroplane, you’ll promise you won’t try to sail it and that you won’t let Mr. Ba risk himself in it.”

“I’ll promise,” replied Captain Anderson with a laugh. “And now, if the ladies will excuse us, I think I’ll go over to the boathouse and have a pipe, and Andy can come along to talk over the project. You aren’t too sleepy, are you?” he added mischievously23.

“I am pretty tired,” answered Andy, with a yawn, “but I’d like to come for a little while.”

When the man and the boy had left the house, Andy, instead of shouting for joy, said to his companion very soberly:

“Captain Anderson, do you think I’ll ever get a chance to sail that aeroplane?”

“What else are we makin’ it for?” grunted24 the elder.

About half past ten, Mrs. Leighton and Mrs. Anderson appeared at the door of the boathouse. Captain Anderson and Andy, coatless, the former with his exhausted25 pipe in his mouth, were leaning over a drawing board and talking in low tones.

[84]

“I thought you only wanted a pipe,” began Mrs. Anderson.

“And I thought you were tired,” added Mrs. Leighton.

“Here she is,” exclaimed Captain Anderson, rising and exhibiting the drawing board on which Andy had roughly drawn26 the model of his uncle’s rudder, “the celebrated27 ‘Aeroplane bird-tail rudder, patent applied28 for, manufactured by Leighton & Anderson, Valkaria, Florida.’”

“I hope it isn’t another aero-catamaran,” commented Mrs. Anderson, with a smile.

As the ladies returned to the house and Andy prepared to close the boathouse, he paused a moment.

“Do you think he could, Captain Anderson?”

“Who could what?”

“Do you think Ba, or anyone else, could fly to the Bahamas in an aeroplane?”

“I don’t know whether they could or not,” answered the captain, blowing out the light, “but I do know that’d be my idea of a real fool trick.”

“Captain Anderson,” continued Andy, as they walked slowly toward the house, “I’ve just been tryin’ to figure out all that’s happened[85] since we saw your lantern comin’ to meet us last night. Our engine may not go, and the bird-tail rudder may not work, and the aeroplane we’re goin’ to make may not fly, but I reckon I’ve found one thing in the time we’ve been here that there ain’t agoin’ to be anything wrong about.”

“What’s that?” asked the good-natured boat builder.

“You,” answered Andy promptly29.

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 staple fGkze     
n.主要产物,常用品,主要要素,原料,订书钉,钩环;adj.主要的,重要的;vt.分类
参考例句:
  • Tea is the staple crop here.本地产品以茶叶为大宗。
  • Potatoes are the staple of their diet.土豆是他们的主要食品。
2 perspiration c3UzD     
n.汗水;出汗
参考例句:
  • It is so hot that my clothes are wet with perspiration.天太热了,我的衣服被汗水湿透了。
  • The perspiration was running down my back.汗从我背上淌下来。
3 smeared c767e97773b70cc726f08526efd20e83     
弄脏; 玷污; 涂抹; 擦上
参考例句:
  • The children had smeared mud on the walls. 那几个孩子往墙上抹了泥巴。
  • A few words were smeared. 有写字被涂模糊了。
4 rust XYIxu     
n.锈;v.生锈;(脑子)衰退
参考例句:
  • She scraped the rust off the kitchen knife.她擦掉了菜刀上的锈。
  • The rain will rust the iron roof.雨水会使铁皮屋顶生锈。
5 knuckles c726698620762d88f738be4a294fae79     
n.(指人)指关节( knuckle的名词复数 );(指动物)膝关节,踝v.(指人)指关节( knuckle的第三人称单数 );(指动物)膝关节,踝
参考例句:
  • He gripped the wheel until his knuckles whitened. 他紧紧握住方向盘,握得指关节都变白了。
  • Her thin hands were twisted by swollen knuckles. 她那双纤手因肿大的指关节而变了形。 来自《简明英汉词典》
6 reassure 9TgxW     
v.使放心,使消除疑虑
参考例句:
  • This seemed to reassure him and he continued more confidently.这似乎使他放心一点,于是他更有信心地继续说了下去。
  • The airline tried to reassure the customers that the planes were safe.航空公司尽力让乘客相信飞机是安全的。
7 queried 5c2c5662d89da782d75e74125d6f6932     
v.质疑,对…表示疑问( query的过去式和过去分词 );询问
参考例句:
  • She queried what he said. 她对他说的话表示怀疑。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • \"What does he have to do?\" queried Chin dubiously. “他有什么心事?”琴向觉民问道,她的脸上现出疑惑不解的神情。 来自汉英文学 - 家(1-26) - 家(1-26)
8 admonished b089a95ea05b3889a72a1d5e33963966     
v.劝告( admonish的过去式和过去分词 );训诫;(温和地)责备;轻责
参考例句:
  • She was admonished for chewing gum in class. 她在课堂上嚼口香糖,受到了告诫。
  • The teacher admonished the child for coming late to school. 那个孩子迟到,老师批评了他。 来自《简明英汉词典》
9 alligator XVgza     
n.短吻鳄(一种鳄鱼)
参考例句:
  • She wandered off to play with her toy alligator.她开始玩鳄鱼玩具。
  • Alligator skin is five times more costlier than leather.鳄鱼皮比通常的皮革要贵5倍。
10 hurrah Zcszx     
int.好哇,万岁,乌拉
参考例句:
  • We hurrah when we see the soldiers go by.我们看到士兵经过时向他们欢呼。
  • The assistants raised a formidable hurrah.助手们发出了一片震天的欢呼声。
11 placating 9105b064dea8efdf14de6a293f45c31d     
v.安抚,抚慰,使平静( placate的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • She pulled her face into a placating and childlike expression. 于是她装出一副稚气的想要和解的样子来。 来自飘(部分)
  • Uncle Peter's voice came as from a far distance, plaintive, placating. 彼得大叔这时说话了,他的声音犹如自一个遥远的地方起来,既带有哀愁又给人以安慰。 来自飘(部分)
12 alligators 0e8c11e4696c96583339d73b3f2d8a10     
n.短吻鳄( alligator的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Two alligators rest their snouts on the water's surface. 两只鳄鱼的大嘴栖息在水面上。 来自辞典例句
  • In the movement of logs by water the lumber industry was greatly helped by alligators. 木材工业过去在水上运输木料时所十分倚重的就是鳄鱼。 来自辞典例句
13 lessened 6351a909991322c8a53dc9baa69dda6f     
减少的,减弱的
参考例句:
  • Listening to the speech through an interpreter lessened its impact somewhat. 演讲辞通过翻译的嘴说出来,多少削弱了演讲的力量。
  • The flight to suburbia lessened the number of middle-class families living within the city. 随着迁往郊外的风行,住在城内的中产家庭减少了。
14 postponed 9dc016075e0da542aaa70e9f01bf4ab1     
vt.& vi.延期,缓办,(使)延迟vt.把…放在次要地位;[语]把…放在后面(或句尾)vi.(疟疾等)延缓发作(或复发)
参考例句:
  • The trial was postponed indefinitely. 审讯无限期延迟。
  • The game has already been postponed three times. 这场比赛已经三度延期了。
15 oysters 713202a391facaf27aab568d95bdc68f     
牡蛎( oyster的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • We don't have oysters tonight, but the crayfish are very good. 我们今晚没有牡蛎供应。但小龙虾是非常好。
  • She carried a piping hot grill of oysters and bacon. 她端出一盘滚烫的烤牡蛎和咸肉。
16 devoted xu9zka     
adj.忠诚的,忠实的,热心的,献身于...的
参考例句:
  • He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
  • We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。
17 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。
18 climax yqyzc     
n.顶点;高潮;v.(使)达到顶点
参考例句:
  • The fifth scene was the climax of the play.第五场是全剧的高潮。
  • His quarrel with his father brought matters to a climax.他与他父亲的争吵使得事态发展到了顶点。
19 narrative CFmxS     
n.叙述,故事;adj.叙事的,故事体的
参考例句:
  • He was a writer of great narrative power.他是一位颇有记述能力的作家。
  • Neither author was very strong on narrative.两个作者都不是很善于讲故事。
20 awfully MPkym     
adv.可怕地,非常地,极端地
参考例句:
  • Agriculture was awfully neglected in the past.过去农业遭到严重忽视。
  • I've been feeling awfully bad about it.对这我一直感到很难受。
21 aviator BPryq     
n.飞行家,飞行员
参考例句:
  • The young aviator bragged of his exploits in the sky.那名年轻的飞行员吹嘘他在空中飞行的英勇事迹。
  • Hundreds of admirers besieged the famous aviator.数百名爱慕者围困那个著名飞行员。
22 adroit zxszv     
adj.熟练的,灵巧的
参考例句:
  • Jamie was adroit at flattering others.杰米很会拍马屁。
  • His adroit replies to hecklers won him many followers.他对质问者的机敏应答使他赢得了很多追随者。
23 mischievously 23cd35e8c65a34bd7a6d7ecbff03b336     
adv.有害地;淘气地
参考例句:
  • He mischievously looked for a chance to embarrass his sister. 他淘气地寻找机会让他的姐姐难堪。 来自互联网
  • Also has many a dream kindheartedness, is loves mischievously small lovable. 又有着多啦a梦的好心肠,是爱调皮的小可爱。 来自互联网
24 grunted f18a3a8ced1d857427f2252db2abbeaf     
(猪等)作呼噜声( grunt的过去式和过去分词 ); (指人)发出类似的哼声; 咕哝着说
参考例句:
  • She just grunted, not deigning to look up from the page. 她只咕哝了一声,继续看书,不屑抬起头来看一眼。
  • She grunted some incomprehensible reply. 她咕噜着回答了些令人费解的话。
25 exhausted 7taz4r     
adj.极其疲惫的,精疲力尽的
参考例句:
  • It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长,到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
  • Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。
26 drawn MuXzIi     
v.拖,拉,拔出;adj.憔悴的,紧张的
参考例句:
  • All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
  • Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。
27 celebrated iwLzpz     
adj.有名的,声誉卓著的
参考例句:
  • He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
  • The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。
28 applied Tz2zXA     
adj.应用的;v.应用,适用
参考例句:
  • She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
  • This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。
29 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。


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