Chapter 29

Mr. Butson was perhaps a shade relieved when he returned home that night and found all quiet, and Johnny in bed.  He had half expected that his inopportune return might have caused trouble.  But the night after, as he came from the railway station, a little earlier than usual, Johnny stopped him in the street.

“I want to speak to you,” he said.  “Just come round by the dock wall.”

His manner was quiet and businesslike, but Mr. Butson wondered.  “Why?” he asked.  “Can’t you tell me here?”

“No, I can’t.  There are too many people about.  It’s money in your pocket if you come.”

Mr. Butson went.  What it meant he could not imagine, but Johnny usually told the truth, and he said it would be money in his pocket—a desirable disposition¹ of the article.  The dock wall was just round a corner.  A tall, raking wall at one side of a sparsely² lit road that was empty at night, and a lower wall at the other; the road reached by a flight of steps rising from the street, and a gateway³ in the low wall.

p. 245“Well, what is it now?” Mr. Butson asked, suspiciously, as Johnny stopped under a gas-lamp and looked right and left along the deserted⁴ road.

“Only just this,” Johnny replied, with simple distinctness.  “You wanted mother to give you my money every week, though in fact she’s been letting me keep it.  Well, here’s my last week’s money”—he shook it in his hand—“and I’ll give it you if you’ll stand up here and fight me.”

“What?  Fight you?  You?”  Mr. Butson laughed; but he felt a secret uneasiness.

“Yes, me.  You’d rather fight a woman, no doubt, or a lame⁵ girl.  But I’m going to give you a change, and make you fight me—here.”  Johnny flung his jacket on the ground and his hat on it.

“Don’t be such a young fool,” quoth Mr. Butson loftily.  “Put on your jacket an’ come home.”

“Yes—presently,” Johnny replied grimly.  “Presently I’ll go home, and take you with me.  Come, you’re ready enough to punch my mother, without being asked; or my sister.  Come and punch me, and take pay for it!”

Mr. Butson was a little uncomfortable.  “I suppose,” he sneered⁶, “you’ve got a knife or a poker⁷ or somethin’ about you like what you threatened me with before!”

“I haven’t even brought a stick.  You’re the sort o’ p. 246coward I expected, though you’re bigger than me and heavier.  Come—” he struck the man a heavy smack⁸ on the mouth.  “Now fight!”

Butson snarled⁹, and cut at the lad’s head with the handle of his walking stick.  But Johnny’s arm straightened like a flash, and Butson rolled over.

“What I thought you’d do,” remarked Johnny, seizing his wrist and twisting the stick away.  “Now get up.  Come on!”

Mr. Butson sat and gasped¹⁰.  He fingered his nose gently, and found it very tender, and bleeding.  He seemed to have met a thunderbolt in the dark.  He turned slowly over on his knees, and so got on his feet.

“Hit me—come, hit me!” called Johnny, sparring at him.  “Fancy I’m only my mother, you cur!  Come, I’m hitting you—see!  So!”  He seized the man by the ear, twisted it, and rapped him about the face.  The treatment would have roused a sheep.  Butson sprang at Johnny, grappled with him, and for a moment bore him back.  Johnny asked nothing better.  He broke ground, checked the rush with half-arm hits, and stopped it with a quick double left, flush in the face.

It was mere¹¹ slaughter¹²; Johnny was too hard, too scientific, too full of cool hatred¹³.  The wretched Butson, bigger and heavier as he might be, was flaccid from soft living, and science he had none.  But he fought like a p. 247rat in a corner—recking nothing of rule, but kicking, biting, striking, wrestling madly; though to small purpose: for his enemy, deadly calm and deadly quick, saw every movement ere it was made, and battered¹⁵ with savage¹⁶ precision.

“Whenever you’ve had enough,” said Johnny, as Butson staggered, and leaned against the wall, “you can stop it, you know, by calling the p’lice.  You like the p’lice.  There’s always one of ’em in the next street, an’ you’ve only to shout.  I shall hammer you till ye do!”

And he hammered.  A blow on the ear drove Butson’s head against the wall, and a swing from the other fist brought it away again.  He flung himself on the ground.

“Get up!” cried Johnny.  “Get up.  What, you won’t?  All right, you went down by yourself, you know—so’s to be let alone.  But I’m coming down too!” and with that he lay beside Butson and struck once more and struck again.

“Chuck it!” groaned¹⁷ Butson.  “I’m done!  Oh! leave me alone!”

“Leave you alone?” answered Johnny, rising and reaching for his jacket.  “Not I.  You didn’t leave my mother alone a soon as she asked you, did you?  I’ll never pass you again without clouting¹⁸ your head.  Come home!”

p. 248He hauled the bruised¹⁹ wretch¹⁴ up by the collar, crammed²⁰ his hat on his head and cut him across the calves²¹ with his own walking stick.  “Go on!  March!”

“Can’t you leave me alone now?” whined²² Butson.  “You done enough, ain’t ye?”

“No—not near enough.  An’ you’ll have a lot more if you don’t do as I tell you.  I said I’d take you home, an’ I will.  Go on!”

Two or three dark streets led to Harbour Lane, but they were short.  It was past closing time, and when they reached the shop the lights were turned down and the door shut.  Nan opened to Johnny’s knock, and he thrust Butson in before him.  “Here he is,” said Johnny, “not thrashed half enough!”

Dusty and bleeding, his face nigh unrecognisable under cuts and bruises²³, Butson sat on a box, a figure of shame.  Nan screamed and ran to him.

“I did it where the neighbours wouldn’t hear,” Johnny explained, “and if he’d been a man he’d have drowned himself rather than come here, after the way I’ve treated him.  He’s a poor cur, an’ I’ll buy a whip for him.  There’s the money I promised you” he went on, putting it on the box.  “It’s the first you’ve earned for years, and the last you’ll have here, if I can manage it!”

But Nan was crying over that dishonourable head, and wiping it with her handkerchief.

1 disposition   

n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署

参考例句：

• He has made a good disposition of his property.他已对财产作了妥善处理。
• He has a cheerful disposition.他性情开朗。

2 sparsely   

adv.稀疏地；稀少地；不足地；贫乏地

参考例句：

• Relative to the size, the city is sparsely populated. 与其面积相比，这个城市的人口是稀少的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The ground was sparsely covered with grass. 地面上稀疏地覆盖草丛。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 gateway   

n.大门口，出入口，途径，方法

参考例句：

• Hard work is the gateway to success.努力工作是通往成功之路。
• A man collected tolls at the gateway.一个人在大门口收通行费。

4 deserted   

adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的

参考例句：

• The deserted village was filled with a deathly silence.这个荒废的村庄死一般的寂静。
• The enemy chieftain was opposed and deserted by his followers.敌人头目众叛亲离。

5 lame   

adj.跛的，(辩解、论据等)无说服力的

参考例句：

• The lame man needs a stick when he walks.那跛脚男子走路时需借助拐棍。
• I don't believe his story.It'sounds a bit lame.我不信他讲的那一套。他的话听起来有些靠不住。

6 sneered   

讥笑，冷笑( sneer的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He sneered at people who liked pop music. 他嘲笑喜欢流行音乐的人。
• It's very discouraging to be sneered at all the time. 成天受嘲讽是很令人泄气的。

7 poker   

n.扑克；vt.烙制

参考例句：

• He was cleared out in the poker game.他打扑克牌，把钱都输光了。
• I'm old enough to play poker and do something with it.我打扑克是老手了，可以玩些花样。

8 smack   

vt.拍，打，掴；咂嘴；vi.含有…意味；n.拍

参考例句：

• She gave him a smack on the face.她打了他一个嘴巴。
• I gave the fly a smack with the magazine.我用杂志拍了一下苍蝇。

9 snarled   

v.（指狗）吠，嗥叫， （人）咆哮( snarl的过去式和过去分词 )；咆哮着说，厉声地说

参考例句：

• The dog snarled at us. 狗朝我们低声吼叫。
• As I advanced towards the dog, It'snarled and struck at me. 我朝那条狗走去时，它狂吠着向我扑来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 gasped   

v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要

参考例句：

• She gasped at the wonderful view. 如此美景使她惊讶得屏住了呼吸。
• People gasped with admiration at the superb skill of the gymnasts. 体操运动员的高超技艺令人赞叹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

11 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

12 slaughter   

n.屠杀，屠宰；vt.屠杀，宰杀

参考例句：

• I couldn't stand to watch them slaughter the cattle.我不忍看他们宰牛。
• Wholesale slaughter was carried out in the name of progress.大规模的屠杀在维护进步的名义下进行。

13 hatred   

n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨

参考例句：

• He looked at me with hatred in his eyes.他以憎恨的眼光望着我。
• The old man was seized with burning hatred for the fascists.老人对法西斯主义者充满了仇恨。

14 wretch   

n.可怜的人，不幸的人；卑鄙的人

参考例句：

• You are really an ungrateful wretch to complain instead of thanking him.你不但不谢他，还埋怨他，真不知好歹。
• The dead husband is not the dishonoured wretch they fancied him.死去的丈夫不是他们所想象的不光彩的坏蛋。

15 battered   

adj.磨损的；v.连续猛击；磨损

参考例句：

• He drove up in a battered old car.他开着一辆又老又破的旧车。
• The world was brutally battered but it survived.这个世界遭受了惨重的创伤,但它还是生存下来了。

16 savage   

adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人

参考例句：

• The poor man received a savage beating from the thugs.那可怜的人遭到暴徒的痛打。
• He has a savage temper.他脾气粗暴。

17 groaned   

v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦

参考例句：

• He groaned in anguish. 他痛苦地呻吟。
• The cart groaned under the weight of the piano. 大车在钢琴的重压下嘎吱作响。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 clouting   

v.（尤指用手）猛击，重打( clout的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The kangaroo's forearms seem undeveloped but the powerful five-fingered hands are skilled at feinting and clouting. 袋鼠的前肢看似未完全发育，但其有力的五趾前足非常善于佯装攻击和击打动作。 来自互联网

19 bruised   

[医]青肿的，瘀紫的

参考例句：

• his bruised and bloodied nose 他沾满血的青肿的鼻子
• She had slipped and badly bruised her face. 她滑了一跤，摔得鼻青脸肿。

20 crammed   

adj.塞满的，挤满的；大口地吃；快速贪婪地吃v.把…塞满；填入；临时抱佛脚( cram的过去式)

参考例句：

• He crammed eight people into his car. 他往他的车里硬塞进八个人。
• All the shelves were crammed with books. 所有的架子上都堆满了书。

21 calves   

n.(calf的复数)笨拙的男子，腓；腿肚子( calf的名词复数 )；牛犊；腓；小腿肚v.生小牛( calve的第三人称单数 )；（冰川）崩解；生（小牛等），产（犊）；使（冰川）崩解

参考例句：

• a cow suckling her calves 给小牛吃奶的母牛
• The calves are grazed intensively during their first season. 小牛在生长的第一季里集中喂养。 来自《简明英汉词典》

22 whined   

v.哀号( whine的过去式和过去分词 )；哀诉，诉怨

参考例句：

• The dog whined at the door, asking to be let out. 狗在门前嚎叫着要出去。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• He whined and pouted when he did not get what he wanted. 他要是没得到想要的东西就会发牢骚、撅嘴。 来自辞典例句

23 bruises   

n.瘀伤，伤痕，擦伤( bruise的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He was covered with bruises after falling off his bicycle. 他从自行车上摔了下来，摔得浑身伤痕。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The pear had bruises of dark spots. 这个梨子有碰伤的黑斑。 来自《简明英汉词典》