"You dog!" exclaimed Mr Apjohn, spurning9 Cousin Henry away from him. "You wretched, thieving miscreant10!" Then he got up on to his legs and began to adjust himself, setting his cravat11 right, and smoothing his hair with his hands. "The brute12 has knocked the breath out of me," he said. "But only to think that we should catch him after such a fashion as this!" There was a note of triumph in his voice which he found it impossible to repress. He was thoroughly13 proud of his achievement. It was a grand thing to him that Isabel Brodrick should at last get the property which he had so long been anxious to secure for her; but at the present moment it was a grander thing to have hit the exact spot in which the document had been hidden by sheer force of intelligence.
What little power of fighting there had ever been in Cousin Henry had now been altogether knocked out of him. He attempted no further struggle, uttered no denial, nor did he make any answer to the words of abuse which Mr Apjohn had heaped on his head. He too raised himself from the floor, slowly collecting his limbs together, and seated himself in the chair nearest at hand, hiding his face with his hand.
"That is the most wonderful thing that ever came within my experience," said Mr Brodrick.
"That the man should have hidden the will?" asked Mr Apjohn.
"Why do you say I hid it?" moaned Cousin Henry.
"You reptile14!" exclaimed Mr Apjohn.
"Not that he should have hidden it," said the Hereford attorney, "but that you should have found it, and found it without any search;—that you should have traced it down to the very book in which the old man must have left it!"
"Yes," said Cousin Henry. "He left it there. I did not hide it."
"Do you mean," said Mr Apjohn, turning upon him with all the severity of which he was capable, "do you mean to say that during all this time you have not known that the will was there?" The wretched man opened his mouth and essayed to speak, but not a word came. "Do you mean to tell us that when you refused us just now permission to search this room, though you were willing enough that we should search elsewhere, you were not acquainted with the hiding-place? When I asked you in my office the other day whether you knew where the will was hidden, and you wouldn't answer me for very fear, though you were glib15 enough in swearing that you had not hidden it yourself, then you knew nothing about the book and its enclosure? When you told Mr Griffith down at Coed that you had something to divulge16, were you not then almost driven to tell the truth by your dastardly cowardice17 as to this threatened trial? And did you not fail again because you were afraid? You mean poltroon18! Will you dare to say before us, now, that when we entered the room this morning you did not know what the book contained?" Cousin Henry once more opened his mouth, but no word came. "Answer me, sir, if you wish to escape any part of the punishment which you have deserved."
"You should not ask him to criminate himself," said Mr Brodrick.
"No!" shrieked19 Cousin Henry; "no! he shouldn't ask a fellow to tell against himself. It isn't fair; is it, Uncle Brodrick?"
"If I hadn't made you tell against yourself one way or another," said Mr Apjohn, "the will would have been there still, and we should all have been in the dark. There are occasions in which the truth must be screwed out of a man. We have screwed it out of you, you miserable20 creature! Brodrick, let us look at the paper. I suppose it is all right." He was so elated by the ecstasy21 of his success that he hardly knew how to contain himself. There was no prospect22 to him of any profit in all this. It might, indeed, well be that all the expenses incurred23, including the handsome honorarium24 which would still have to be paid to Mr Cheekey, must come out of his own pocket. But the glory of the thing was too great to admit of any considerations such as those. For the last month his mind had been exercised with the question of this will, whether there was such a will or not, and, if so, where was its hiding-place? Now he had brought his month's labour, his month's speculation25, and his month's anxiety to a supreme26 success. In his present frame of mind it was nothing to him who might pay the bill. "As far as I can see," said Mr Brodrick, "it is altogether in order."
"Let us look at it." Then Mr Apjohn, stretching out his hand, took the document, and, seating himself in Cousin Henry's own chair at the breakfast-table, read it through carefully from beginning to end. It was wonderful,—the exactness with which the old Squire27 had copied, not only every word, but every stop and every want of a stop in the preceding will. "It is my own work, every morsel28 of it," said Mr Apjohn, with thorough satisfaction. "Why on earth did he not burn the intermediate one which he made in this rascal29's favour,"—then he indicated the rascal by a motion of his head—"and make it all straight in that way?"
"There are men who think that a will once made should never be destroyed," suggested Mr Brodrick.
"I suppose it was something of that kind. He was a fine old fellow, but as obstinate30 as a mule31. Well, what are we to do now?"
"My nephew will have to consult his lawyer whether he will wish to dispute this document or not."
"I do not want to dispute anything," said Cousin Henry, whining32.
"Of course he will be allowed time to think of it," said Mr Apjohn. "He is in possession now, and will have plenty of time. He will have to answer some rather difficult questions from Mr Cheekey on Friday."
"Oh, no!" shouted the victim.
"I am afraid it must be 'oh, yes,' Mr Jones! How are you to get out of it; eh? You are bound over to prosecute33 Mr Evans, of the Herald34, for defamation35 of character. Of course it will come out at the trial that we have found this document. Indeed, I shall be at no trouble to conceal36 that fact,—nor, I suppose, will be Mr Brodrick. Why should we?"
"I thought you were acting37 as my lawyer."
"So I was,—and so I am,—and so I will. While you were supposed to be an honest man,—or, rather, while it was possible that it might be so supposed,—I told you what, as an honest man, you were bound to do. The Carmarthen Herald knew that you were not honest,—and said so. If you are prepared to go into the court and swear that you knew nothing of the existence of this document, that you were not aware that it was concealed38 in that book, that you did nothing to prevent us from looking for it this morning, I will carry on the case for you. If I am called into the witness-box against you, of course I must give my evidence for what it is worth;—and Mr Brodrick must do the same."
"But it won't go on?" he asked.
"Not if you are prepared to admit that there was no libel in all that the newspaper said. If you agree that it was all true, then you will have to pay the costs on both sides, and the indictment39 can be quashed. It will be a serious admission to make, but perhaps that won't signify, seeing what your position as to character will be."
"I think you are almost too hard upon him," said Mr Brodrick.
"Am I? Can one be too hard on a man who has acted as he has done?"
"He is hard,—isn't he, Mr Brodrick?"
"Hard! Why, yes;—I should think I am. I mean to be hard. I mean to go on trampling40 you to pieces till I see your cousin, Miss Brodrick, put into full possession of this estate. I don't mean to leave you a loop-hole of escape by any mercy. At the present moment you are Henry Jones, Esq., of Llanfeare, and will be so till you are put out by the hard hand of the law. You may turn round for anything I know, and say that this document is a forgery41."
"No, no!"
"That Mr Brodrick and I brought it here with us and put it in the book."
"I sha'n't say anything of the kind."
"Who did put it there?" Cousin Henry sobbed42 and groaned43, but said nothing. "Who did put it there? If you want to soften44 our hearts to you in any degree, if you wish us to contrive45 some mode of escape for you, tell the truth. Who put the will into that book?"
"How am I to know?"
"You do know! Who put it there?"
"I suppose it was Uncle Indefer."
"And you had seen it there?" Again Cousin Henry sobbed and groaned.
"You should hardly ask him that," said Mr Brodrick.
"Yes! If any good can be done for him, it must be by making him feel that he must help us by making our case easy for us. You had seen it there? Speak the word, and we will do all we can to let you off easily."
"Just by an accident," said he.
"You did see it, then?"
"Yes;—I chanced to see it."
"Yes; of course you did. And then the Devil went to work with you and prompted you to destroy it?" He paused as though asking a question, but to this question Cousin Henry found it impossible to make any answer. "But the Devil had not quite hold enough over you to make you do that? It was so;—was it not? There was a conscience with you?"
"Oh, yes."
"But the conscience was not strong enough to force you to give it up when you found it?" Cousin Henry now burst out into open tears. "That was about it, I suppose? If you can bring yourself to make a clean breast of it, it will be easier for you."
"May I go back to London at once?" he asked.
"Well; as to that, I think we had better take some little time for consideration. But I think I may say that, if you will make our way easy for us, we will endeavour to make yours easy for you. You acknowledge this to be your uncle's will as far as you know?"
"Oh, yes."
"You acknowledge that Mr Brodrick found it in this book which I now hold in my hand?"
"I acknowledge that."
"This is all that I ask you to sign your name to. As for the rest, it is sufficient that you have confessed the truth to your uncle and to me. I will just write a few lines that you shall sign, and then we will go back to Carmarthen and do the best we can to prevent the trial for next Friday." Thereupon Mr Apjohn rang the bell, and asked Mrs Griffith to bring him paper and ink. With these he wrote a letter addressed to himself, which he invited Cousin Henry to sign as soon as he had read it aloud to him and to Mr Brodrick. The letter contained simply the two admissions above stated, and then went on to authorise Mr Apjohn, as the writer's attorney, to withdraw the indictment against the proprietor46 of the Carmarthen Herald, "in consequence," as the letter said, "of the question as to the possession of Llanfeare having been settled now in an unexpected manner."
When the letter was completed, the two lawyers went away, and Cousin Henry was left to his own meditation47. He sat there for a while, so astounded48 by the transaction of the morning as to be unable to collect his thoughts. All this that had agitated49 him so profoundly for the last month had been set at rest by the finding of the will. There was no longer any question as to what must be done. Everything had been done. He was again a London clerk, with a small sum of money besides his clerkship, and the security of lowliness into which to fall back! If only they would be silent;—if only it might be thought by his fellow-clerks in London that the will had been found by them without any knowledge on his part,—then he would be satisfied. A terrible catastrophe50 had fallen upon him, but one which would not be without consolation51 if with the estate might be made to pass away from him all responsibilities and all accusations52 as to the estate. That terrible man had almost promised him that a way of retreat should be made easy to him. At any rate, he would not be cross-examined by Mr Cheekey. At any rate, he would not be brought to trial. There was almost a promise, too, that as little should be said as possible. There must, he supposed, be some legal form of abdication53 on his part, but he was willing to execute that as quickly as possible on the simple condition that he should be allowed to depart without being forced to speak further on the matter to any one in Wales. Not to have to see the tenants54, not to have to say even a word of farewell to the servants, not to be carried into Carmarthen,—above all, not to face Mr Cheekey and the Court,—this was all he asked now from a kind Fate.
At about two Mrs Griffith came into the room, ostensibly to take away the breakfast things. She had seen the triumphant55 face of Mr Apjohn, and knew that some victory had been gained. But when she saw that the breakfast had not been touched, her heart became soft. The way to melt the heart of a Mrs Griffith is to eat nothing. "Laws, Mr Jones, you have not had a mouthful. Shall I do you a broil56?" He assented57 to the broil, and ate it, when it was cooked, with a better appetite than he had enjoyed since his uncle's death. Gradually he came to feel that a great load had been taken from off his shoulders. The will was no longer hidden in the book. Nothing had been done of which he could not repent58. There was no prospect of a life before him made horrid59 by one great sin. He could not be Squire of Llanfeare; nor would he be a felon60,—a felon always in his own esteem61. Upon the whole, though he hardly admitted as much to himself, the man's condition had been improved by the transactions of the morning.
"You don't quite agree with all that I have done this morning," said Mr Apjohn, as soon as the two lawyers were in the fly together.
"I am lost in admiration62 at the clearness of your insight."
"Ah! that comes of giving one's undivided thoughts to a matter. I have been turning it over in my mind till I have been able to see it all. It was odd, wasn't it, that I should have foretold63 to you all that happened, almost to the volume?"
"Quite to the volume!"
"Well, yes; to the volume of sermons. Your brother-in-law read nothing but sermons. But you thought I shouldn't have asked those questions."
"I don't like making a man criminate himself," said Mr Brodrick.
"Nor do I,—if I mean to criminate him too. My object is to let him off. But to enable us to do that we must know exactly what he knew and what he had done. Shall I tell you what occurred to me when you shook the will out of the book? How would it be if he declared that we had brought it with us? If he had been sharp enough for that, the very fact of our having gone to the book at once would have been evidence against us."
"He was not up to it."
"No, poor devil! I am inclined to think that he has got as bad as he deserves. He might have been so much worse. We owe him ever so much for not destroying the will. His cousin will have to give him the ￡4000 which he was to have given her."
"Certainly, certainly."
"He has been hardly used, you know, by his uncle; and, upon my word, he has had a bad time of it for the last month. I wouldn't have been hated and insulted as he has been by those people up there,—not for all Llanfeare twice over. I think we've quenched64 him now, so that he'll run smooth. If so, we'll let him off easily. If I had treated him less hardly just now, he might have gathered courage and turned upon us. Then it would have been necessary to crush him altogether. I was thinking all through how we might let him off easiest."
点击
收听单词发音
收听单词发音 |
1
frantic
|
|
| adj.狂乱的，错乱的，激昂的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
2
retrieve
|
|
| vt.重新得到，收回；挽回，补救；检索 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
3
determined
|
|
| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
4
pugnacity
|
|
| n.好斗，好战 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
5
prey
|
|
| n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
6
enjoyment
|
|
| n.乐趣；享有；享用 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
7
undoubtedly
|
|
| adv.确实地，无疑地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
8
testament
|
|
| n.遗嘱；证明 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
9
spurning
|
|
| v.一脚踢开，拒绝接受( spurn的现在分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
10
miscreant
|
|
| n.恶棍 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
11
cravat
|
|
| n.领巾，领结；v.使穿有领结的服装，使结领结 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
12
brute
|
|
| n.野兽，兽性 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
13
thoroughly
|
|
| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
14
reptile
|
|
| n.爬行动物；两栖动物 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
15
glib
|
|
| adj.圆滑的，油嘴滑舌的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
16
divulge
|
|
| v.泄漏(秘密等)；宣布，公布 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
17
cowardice
|
|
| n.胆小，怯懦 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
18
poltroon
|
|
| n.胆怯者；懦夫 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
19
shrieked
|
|
| v.尖叫( shriek的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
20
miserable
|
|
| adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
21
ecstasy
|
|
| n.狂喜，心醉神怡，入迷 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
22
prospect
|
|
| n.前景，前途；景色，视野 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
23
incurred
|
|
| [医]招致的，遭受的； incur的过去式 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
24
honorarium
|
|
| n.酬金，谢礼 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
25
speculation
|
|
| n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
26
supreme
|
|
| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
27
squire
|
|
| n.护卫, 侍从, 乡绅 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
28
morsel
|
|
| n.一口，一点点 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
29
rascal
|
|
| n.流氓；不诚实的人 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
30
obstinate
|
|
| adj.顽固的，倔强的，不易屈服的，较难治愈的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
31
mule
|
|
| n.骡子，杂种，执拗的人 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
32
whining
|
|
| n. 抱怨，牢骚 v. 哭诉，发牢骚 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
33
prosecute
|
|
| vt.告发；进行；vi.告发，起诉，作检察官 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
34
herald
|
|
| vt.预示...的来临，预告，宣布，欢迎 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
35
defamation
|
|
| n.诽谤；中伤 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
36
conceal
|
|
| v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
37
acting
|
|
| n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
38
concealed
|
|
| a.隐藏的，隐蔽的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
39
indictment
|
|
| n.起诉；诉状 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
40
trampling
|
|
| 踩( trample的现在分词 )； 践踏； 无视； 侵犯 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
41
forgery
|
|
| n.伪造的文件等，赝品，伪造（行为） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
42
sobbed
|
|
| 哭泣，啜泣( sob的过去式和过去分词 )； 哭诉，呜咽地说 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
43
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： |
|
|
|
|
44
soften
|
|
| v.(使)变柔软；(使)变柔和 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
45
contrive
|
|
| vt.谋划，策划；设法做到；设计，想出 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
46
proprietor
|
|
| n.所有人；业主；经营者 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
47
meditation
|
|
| n.熟虑，（尤指宗教的）默想，沉思，（pl.）冥想录 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
48
astounded
|
|
| v.使震惊(astound的过去式和过去分词)；愕然；愕；惊讶 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
49
agitated
|
|
| adj.被鼓动的，不安的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
50
catastrophe
|
|
| n.大灾难，大祸 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
51
consolation
|
|
| n.安慰，慰问 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
52
accusations
|
|
| n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
53
abdication
|
|
| n.辞职；退位 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
54
tenants
|
|
| n.房客( tenant的名词复数 )；佃户；占用者；占有者 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
55
triumphant
|
|
| adj.胜利的，成功的；狂欢的，喜悦的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
56
broil
|
|
| v.烤，烧，争吵，怒骂；n.烤，烧，争吵，怒骂 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
57
assented
|
|
| 同意，赞成( assent的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
58
repent
|
|
| v.悔悟，悔改，忏悔，后悔 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
59
horrid
|
|
| adj.可怕的；令人惊恐的；恐怖的；极讨厌的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
60
felon
|
|
| n.重罪犯；adj.残忍的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
61
esteem
|
|
| n.尊敬，尊重；vt.尊重，敬重；把…看作 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
62
admiration
|
|
| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
63
foretold
|
|
| v.预言，预示( foretell的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
64
quenched
|
|
| 解（渴）( quench的过去式和过去分词 )； 终止（某事物）； （用水）扑灭（火焰等）； 将（热物体）放入水中急速冷却 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
| 欢迎访问英文小说网 |