Moston, certainly, could not be visited at any time without permission, nor were the boys allowed to roam the rocky and dangerous seashore at their own sweet will; but to the north-west of the school there were great stretches of kindly1 moorland over which they could wander without coming to any harm, and they were given every chance to imbibe2 the ozone3 of the hills at week-ends and on holidays.
Shrove Tuesday, with its generous supply of pancakes, usually tended towards languor4, and most of the Squirms remained indoors to sleep off their too-liberal helpings5. The sound of their snoring, as they sprawled6 about on the furniture of the common-room, disgusted Robin7 Arkness.
"It's like being in a farm-yard," remarked Flenton.
"Shall we stir the porkers up with our trusty cross-bows—yclept, these pea-shooters—and then engage them in mortal combat? Nay9, in this sottish state they are not worthy10 foemen. Right about turn, boys. We will hie us up yonder hills for an afternoon's ramble11."
"Ay, ay, good Robin," the Merry Men readily agreed.
It was a clear, frosty day, and even the bright sun shine did little to neutralize12 the sharp nip in the air. It meant moving briskly to keep the blood in circulation; the higher they climbed, the keener blew the breeze.
"Ripping way to get warm, doing the 'Excelsior' stunt13 up this hillside," said Robin enthusiastically. "See that cottage in front of the fir trees, Men? That's where Forge found Old Man Wykeham's valuables."
"Softly, my faithful henchman! Dost thou not know that this self-same cottage is guarded, night and day, by the myrmidons of the law?"
"But the coppers15 won't interfere16 with us. They know we're all from Foxenby, and mean no harm. Come on!"
"Nay hold! Thou art my right-hand man, Little John, and many a time and oft have I had cause to be thankful for the doughty17 assistance of thy strong right arm. But methinks thou art far from possessing the wisdom of a Socrates."
"No offence, my trusty bowman. Canst thou not see, however, that to enter the cottage boldly will be to bring down on our helpless heads the wrath19 of the police? They are not in the cottage itself, but hidden amongst the gorse-bushes, ready to pounce20 on the thieves if they venture inside."
"Oh, pot it, must we go back then?"
"Perish the thought! Never let it be said that Robin Hood21 and his Merry Men turned their backs on any peril22, however dire23. We will creep round them with stealthy, noiseless tread, and see if the varlets are doing their duty as nobly as they should, or, like the greedy Squirms, merely sleeping off the effects of pancakes."
The suggestion, though not so much to the Merry Men's liking24 as Flenton's projected exploration of the cottage, nevertheless held promise of a little mild adventure, and they acted on it. Creeping from bush to bush with scarcely a sound, they came at last in sight of two plain-clothes policemen, dressed as builder's labourers, sitting on some dried bracken-leaves, and looking anything but gay.
Probably they had been forbidden to speak, for they were conversing25 rather guiltily in low tones, the burden of their complaint being that though they had pipes and tobacco in their pockets they dared not light them.
"This is a daft and perishin' job," said one of them. "I'd like to wring26 the neck of Fluffy27 Jim for stumbling across them pewter pots and coins."
"Nay, that's ungrateful," retorted his mate. "We each got a quid of Old Wykeham's money out of the job."
"Bah! It'll cost me more than any quid to sweat this cold out of my bones. My teeth chatter28 like a baboon's. Got a drop or two left in your flask30, Sam?"
"Drained it dry half-an-hour since, Bill."
"And it'll be two more floggin' hours afore we're relieved from duty. I'm fed up. I'll resign from the Force, pension or no pension, and take to navvyin'."
"No use, Bill. Once a policeman, always a policeman. It's in the blood."
"There's nowt i' my blood just now but icicles, Sam. Where's the use of this night-and-day vigil, anyhow? Although the recovery of the treasure was kept out of the newspapers, it's quite likely the cracksmen will have got wind of it by this, and won't come near."
"Won't they! I reckon they will. What troubles me is how they're goin' to be nabbed when they do. It'll be two policemen against four thieves, mebbe, and they're sure to have the latest thing in quick-firing revolvers."
"Oh, drop that! You make me creepy, Sam, all up t'spine. I've got a wife and childer, and don't want to die just yet."
"Might be better to be shot dead than to peg31 out o' frost-bite, anyhow. Here, I say, Bill, have a glance down the hill—careful, now! Who's this queer-looking image crawling up towards us?"
"Why, only one o' them tourist cranks that walks round here in all weathers. Got half-a-vanful of tin mugs and spare socks strapped32 on his back, you'll notice. Loads himself up like a pack-horse and calls it sport."
"He's waddlin' this way. What shall we do if he stops to talk?"
"Talk back, of course; anything for a change."
The perspiring33 tourist dropped his stick at the sight of the two men and started back nervously34.
"Hallo!" he exclaimed. "Pardon me—I didn't notice you. Like me, you are lovers of Nature, and are drinking the sweet nectar of this gorgeous hill-air into your lungs."
Both the plain-clothes men looked as if they'd much prefer to be drinking beer, but they grunted35 by way of reply. Unabashed, the tourist unstrapped his knapsack, and sat upon it. Then he wiped his brow on a dingy36 red handkerchief, and stroked an iron-grey beard as he gazed dreamily towards the sea.
"I was told that I must on no account miss the view from the top of the hill—the grandest aspect on the East Coast," he said. "It is, indeed, a joy to look upon it.
This precious stone set in the silver sea',
as Shakespeare truly says. Ah, what a rich and rare delight it is to be alive on such a day as this!"
Sam touched his forehead significantly as he looked at Bill.
"Barmy!" Bill's answering glance seemed to say.
"Ah! New life courses through my all-too-sluggish veins38 to-day. For ever have I done with the softening39 influence of the fireside.
"'Better to hunt in fields for health unbought
What do you say, friends? Surely you realize the great boon29 that is yours in being able to spend so much of your lives in such an enchanted41 spot?"
"You can cart the bloomin' landscape away with you, if you like, sir," he said. "We're dead sick of bein' anchored to it."
"God bless my soul! Just think of that!" cried the tourist.
"'Breathes there a man with soul so dead
Who never to himself hath said,
This is my own, my native land?'
Good fellows, you take my breath away. You have made me feel the need of refreshment43. With your indulgence, I will consume a sandwich."
He produced a packet of sandwiches, extracted one and demolished44 it with evident relish45, quoting poetry all the time about the beauties of meat and drink. Two more sandwiches followed the first, and then, unscrewing the top of a flask, he set it to his lips and drank.
And what a thirst he had. What ample accommodation for liquor! Not once did he remove the flask from his mouth until the contents had gurgled down his throat. Even then he seemed reluctant to admit that he had drained the last drop, for he glanced into the recesses46 of the flask with a wistful and still-thirsty eye.
"Greedy beggar!" muttered Bill to Sam. "Never even offered us a 'wet', and us half-frozen to death!"
Whether the tourist heard this whispered comment or not was problematical, but he seemed suddenly to become aware that two pairs of eyes were fixed47 upon him yearningly48. He jumped up with an apologetic air.
"Please forgive me," he said. "Really, you will think me most impolite. Permit me to offer you a sandwich each. Nay, take two apiece. Don't be afraid of them; they won't bite you."
"Then we'll bite them, thankee, sir," said Sam, proceeding49 to find the sandwiches a good home within his hungry anatomy50.
Between them, the plain-clothes men, urged to do so by the tourist, polished off the sandwiches. Then they drew the backs of their hands across their mouths and sighed.
"Never enjoyed a bit o' grub so much in my life," said Bill.
"Ditto," said Sam. "If any fault could be found, there was a bit too much salt in 'em. Conducive52 to thirst rather."
"Now, isn't that vexing53?" said the tourist. "If only I had thought of you before emptying the flask! There isn't a house of refreshment within miles."
"We couldn't go to it if there was," Bill began, and then bit his lip as Sam violently nudged him to be silent.
"Ah, I have it!" the tourist cried. "Wait a moment till I unstrap my knapsack. I have a little flask in there which I keep in reserve. It contains some rather fine old cognac—an excellent pick-me-up. If I might offer you a draught of that—but perhaps you are teetotal?"
"Not on your dreamy eyes," said Bill, with unconcealed eagerness.
"We'll be glad of a wee reviver, thankee, sir," said the more tactful Sam. "It's a cold job waiting here for the—for the boss."
"You're very truly welcome, gentlemen." So saying, the tourist half-filled the top of the empty flask with some of the contents of the smaller one. "Which of you drinks first?"
Bill's impoliter hand stretched farthest, and it was he who first had the delight of smacking54 his lips over the spirit. Excellent it must have been, for his countenance55 glowed.
"Fit for a king, guv'nor," he pronounced it. "It's gingered up every nook and cranny of me."
"Powerful stuff, certainly," the tourist agreed. "I only touch it now and again, when feeling rather fagged. Your turn now, my friend."
"Better stuff than that never warmed the cockles of a man's heart, sir," he said. "I'm main obliged to you, for sure."
The tourist gazed into his flask with a measuring eye.
"I think I might safely spare another wee drappie," he said. "Feel like another drain, either of you?"
They both declared they did—Bill with emphasis, Sam with faint reluctance57.
The tourist obliged them. Then, conveniently blind to the doglike pleading of Bill's enamoured eye, he screwed up the flask and returned it to his knapsack.
"Gives me a Good Samaritan-like feeling to see you both so refreshed," he said. "I must be getting farther on now, though I could stay till sunset in the enraptured58 contemplation of this ideal view. How sweetly the moon and stars will rise o'er yonder sea.
"'Silently, one by one, in the infinite meadows of Heaven
Blossomed the lovely stars,'"
he quoted, with many theatrical59 gestures.
"You seem to know a wonderful lot of poetry, sir," said Sam, with the inward reservation that this generous stranger was certainly something of a harmless lunatic.
"I could speak verse to you for hours, friend—beautiful stuff from all the greatest poets, living and dead. Will it interest you at all if I recite a page or two from Homer's Iliad or from Byron's Childe Harold?"
Both Sam and Bill would have preferred a page or two from a sporting paper, but the rich spirit, so unfamiliar60 to their palates, had made them amiably61 disposed towards the eccentric tourist, and quite ready to humour his whims62.
"Give it mouth, guv'nor," said Bill, settling himself down in the dried bracken again.
"Fire away, sir," said Sam.
And "fire away" the stranger did, spouting63 yards of rigmarole which the two plain-clothes men tried in vain to follow. To them, it was duller even than the prosiest magisterial64 speeches they had ever heard in Court. It made them sleepy; they could scarcely refrain from yawning in his face.
Bill kept closing his eyes, and each time he remembered himself it took a still greater effort to open them again. Sam, too, grew drowsier65 and drowsier. The sound of the reciter's voice appeared to become muffled66 and distant; was he wound up for the day—would he never stop?
"That'll do, guv'nor," Bill protested at last. "Had—'bout 'nuff of it. Can't keep awake—if you go on—much—longer."
"'Ear, 'ear, Bill," murmured Sam, forgetting to be polite. "Them's my—sentiments—'xactly."
"Old gasbag, I—calls—him," grunted Bill.
Those were the last words either of them spoke67 that afternoon. Rolling over, almost simultaneously68, on the bracken, they lay there in a stupor69, breathing heavily, lost to all about them, deaf at last to the droning tones of the reciter.
"Hallo! They've dropped off," said the tourist. His voice held no hint of wounded pride—rather did it seem eloquent70 of satisfaction. He leaned over the sleepers71 and shook them violently in turn. Their heads waggled to and fro, but neither took any heed72.
"Absolutely doped," the stranger muttered. "Given them an over-dose, perhaps, but that can't be helped. Now for the rest of the performance."
Moving now with remarkable73 speed for so elderly-looking a man, he drew from his knapsack a couple of flags, one red, one white, and ran with them to the very crest74 of the hill. Then he made some rapid signals, waited half-a-minute as though for an answer, and semaphored again. Apparently75 satisfied, he returned to the spot where the two plain-clothes policemen snored, and stood over them, watch in hand.
"The car will be up in two minutes," he said, softly. "Bravo, Cyrus the Poet! Thou hast done thy work well."
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收听单词发音
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1
kindly
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| adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地 | |
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imbibe
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| v.喝，饮；吸入，吸收 | |
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ozone
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| n.臭氧，新鲜空气 | |
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4
languor
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| n.无精力，倦怠 | |
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5
helpings
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| n.（食物）的一份( helping的名词复数 )；帮助，支持 | |
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6
sprawled
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| v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的过去式和过去分词)；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着） | |
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7
robin
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| n.知更鸟，红襟鸟 | |
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8
grunt
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| v.嘟哝；作呼噜声；n.呼噜声，嘟哝 | |
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9
nay
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| adv.不；n.反对票，投反对票者 | |
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10
worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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11
ramble
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| v.漫步，漫谈，漫游；n.漫步，闲谈，蔓延 | |
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12
neutralize
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| v.使失效、抵消，使中和 | |
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13
stunt
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| n.惊人表演，绝技，特技；vt.阻碍...发育，妨碍...生长 | |
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14
squint
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| v. 使变斜视眼, 斜视, 眯眼看, 偏移, 窥视; n. 斜视, 斜孔小窗; adj. 斜视的, 斜的 | |
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15
coppers
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| 铜( copper的名词复数 )； 铜币 | |
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16
interfere
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| v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰 | |
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17
doughty
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| adj.勇猛的，坚强的 | |
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18
ass
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| n.驴；傻瓜，蠢笨的人 | |
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19
wrath
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| n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒 | |
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20
pounce
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| n.猛扑；v.猛扑，突然袭击，欣然同意 | |
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21
hood
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| n.头巾，兜帽，覆盖；v.罩上，以头巾覆盖 | |
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22
peril
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| n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物 | |
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23
dire
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| adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的 | |
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24
liking
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| n.爱好；嗜好；喜欢 | |
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25
conversing
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| v.交谈，谈话( converse的现在分词 ) | |
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26
wring
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| n.扭绞；v.拧，绞出，扭 | |
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27
fluffy
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| adj.有绒毛的，空洞的 | |
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28
chatter
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| vi.／n.喋喋不休；短促尖叫；(牙齿)打战 | |
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29
boon
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| n.恩赐，恩物，恩惠 | |
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30
flask
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| n.瓶，火药筒，砂箱 | |
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31
peg
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| n.木栓，木钉；vt.用木钉钉，用短桩固定 | |
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32
strapped
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| adj.用皮带捆住的，用皮带装饰的；身无分文的；缺钱；手头紧v.用皮带捆扎(strap的过去式和过去分词)；用皮带抽打；包扎；给…打绷带 | |
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33
perspiring
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| v.出汗，流汗( perspire的现在分词 ) | |
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34
nervously
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| adv.神情激动地，不安地 | |
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35
grunted
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| （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 | |
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36
dingy
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| adj.昏暗的，肮脏的 | |
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37
isle
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| n.小岛，岛 | |
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38
veins
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| n.纹理；矿脉( vein的名词复数 )；静脉；叶脉；纹理 | |
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39
softening
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| 变软，软化 | |
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40
draught
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| n.拉，牵引，拖；一网（饮，吸，阵)；顿服药量，通风；v.起草，设计 | |
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41
enchanted
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| adj. 被施魔法的，陶醉的，入迷的 动词enchant的过去式和过去分词 | |
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42
vengeance
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| n.报复，报仇，复仇 | |
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43
refreshment
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| n.恢复，精神爽快，提神之事物；（复数）refreshments:点心，茶点 | |
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44
demolished
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| v.摧毁( demolish的过去式和过去分词 )；推翻；拆毁（尤指大建筑物）；吃光 | |
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45
relish
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| n.滋味，享受，爱好，调味品；vt.加调味料，享受，品味；vi.有滋味 | |
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46
recesses
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| n.壁凹( recess的名词复数 )；（工作或业务活动的）中止或暂停期间；学校的课间休息；某物内部的凹形空间v.把某物放在墙壁的凹处( recess的第三人称单数 )；将（墙）做成凹形，在（墙）上做壁龛；休息，休会，休庭 | |
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47
fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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48
yearningly
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| 怀念地，思慕地，同情地； 渴 | |
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49
proceeding
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| n.行动，进行，(pl.)会议录，学报 | |
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50
anatomy
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| n.解剖学，解剖；功能，结构，组织 | |
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51
queried
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| v.质疑，对…表示疑问( query的过去式和过去分词 )；询问 | |
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52
conducive
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| adj.有益的，有助的 | |
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53
vexing
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| adj.使人烦恼的，使人恼火的v.使烦恼( vex的现在分词 )；使苦恼；使生气；详细讨论 | |
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54
smacking
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| 活泼的，发出响声的，精力充沛的 | |
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55
countenance
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| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
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56
sipped
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| v.小口喝，呷，抿( sip的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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57
reluctance
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| n.厌恶，讨厌，勉强，不情愿 | |
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58
enraptured
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| v.使狂喜( enrapture的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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59
theatrical
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| adj.剧场的，演戏的；做戏似的，做作的 | |
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60
unfamiliar
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| adj.陌生的，不熟悉的 | |
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61
amiably
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| adv.和蔼可亲地，亲切地 | |
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62
WHIMS
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| 虚妄，禅病 | |
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63
spouting
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| n.水落管系统v.（指液体）喷出( spout的现在分词 )；滔滔不绝地讲；喋喋不休地说；喷水 | |
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64
magisterial
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| adj.威风的，有权威的；adv.威严地 | |
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65
drowsier
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| adj.欲睡的，半睡的，使人昏昏欲睡的( drowsy的比较级 ) | |
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66
muffled
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| adj.（声音）被隔的；听不太清的；（衣服）裹严的；蒙住的v.压抑，捂住( muffle的过去式和过去分词 )；用厚厚的衣帽包着（自己） | |
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67
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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68
simultaneously
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| adv.同时发生地，同时进行地 | |
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69
stupor
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| v.昏迷；不省人事 | |
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70
eloquent
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| adj.雄辩的，口才流利的；明白显示出的 | |
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71
sleepers
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| n.卧铺（通常以复数形式出现）；卧车( sleeper的名词复数 )；轨枕；睡觉（呈某种状态）的人；小耳环 | |
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72
heed
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| v.注意，留意；n.注意，留心 | |
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73
remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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74
crest
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| n.顶点；饰章；羽冠；vt.达到顶点；vi.形成浪尖 | |
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75
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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