For all the outrage2 of my imprisonment3, Mr. Bradbury would have me keep a secret from old Sir Gavin Masters my detention4 in the Stone House. Let it remain a secret, and let the scandal be hushed, he insisted, until we had had our interview with my grandfather. I had an uneasy suspicion that he believed the old man himself implicated5 in the plot against me, or at least feared his resentment6 at interference with a crew of smugglers, with whom he and his son were associated. Committing my cause to Mr. Bradbury, I pleaded exhaustion7; left him to p. 120tell what tale he would to Sir Gavin, and kept my room until the hour of our departure from the inn. I contented8 myself with insistence9 that Roger Galt should have due credit for returning me to safety, and should not be held guilty of the sins of Charles Craike and his rogues11. What tale Mr. Bradbury told, I knew not; as we drove away, he gave me to understand that Sir Gavin had relinquished12 the search after Roger; I assumed that the justice himself would not welcome an open breach13 with the smuggling14 fraternity—with whom, indeed, I took it from furtive15 whisperings and black looks at me, the folk at the inn—as, no doubt, the fisher-folk at the village—were in league.
But what was my grandfather’s share in the plot of my kin16 against me I conjectured17 bitterly. Mr. Bradbury observed that my uncle had established great influence over the old man; that, indeed, the one thought and acted habitually18 as the other. But he was bent19 still on my presentation to my grandfather, as if he hoped that Mr. Craike might take a liking20 to me, and my favour with him counteract21 the influence of my Uncle Charles. So, cleanly-clad, well-dressed once more, I sat by Mr. Bradbury in his coach, and proceeded with him to Craike House, as if none of the events of the Stone House had p. 121happened; indeed, my curiosity to learn what manner of man was my grandfather prevailed for the time over perplexity and dread22.
We drove always within sound of the sea, though it was hid from our sight for the most; our way taking us over an old stone road; but at times, where the cliffs were broken, we saw the waters grey and leaden still for hanging clouds; the violence of the wind had abated23, yet it blew keenly; always the tang of the sea was in my nostrils24. Our road struck at last from the sea inland; we were driving soon through a deep wood; this was unbroken, ere we came to iron gates in an old brick wall. A woman, coming out of the gate-keeper’s cottage at the sound of coach and riders, stared at us through the bars, but at the sight of Mr. Bradbury’s head poking25 out of the window, and at his curt26 order, “Open the gates, woman. Mr. Bradbury to see Mr. Craike!” she unlocked and opened the gates, staring at us as we passed by. I saw her for a big woman, as nut-brown as a gipsy, and as vivid in her red shawl and green kirtle; a swath of orange-coloured stuff was about her black hair. We drove on, and the runners clattered27 after us. Looking back, I saw the woman run into the cottage, and reappear presently with a bearded fellow, rubbing his eyes sleepily; I saw the glint p. 122of big rings in his ears, his rig of wide blue breeches and red-striped shirt,—both remained staring after us, till the trees hid them from us. The coach rolled on through a park, ill-tended, overgrown, a very wilderness28; green darkness dropped about us till we came in sight of Craike House.
It stood amid tall pine and fir trees—a sombre, dreary29 house; the ivy30 holding it in a green net, webbed across shuttered windows, climbing to the very leads, and gripping the chimney stacks. An ancient, crumbling31 house,—I had a notion that but for the ivy it must fall in ruins to the ground; a house of gloom from the dark ivy—the evil green ivy, with the black pines and fir trees all about it, with weeds and tangle32 of flowers before it, where once had been rose gardens; with nettles33 and lank34 green grass upon its lawns. We drove up, seeing no one; we pulled up before the flight of stone steps leading up to its door,—steps worn by rains of centuries, and by the feet of generations; steps guarded by stone dragons, wingless and earless from their years, their eyes blinded and their jaws35 stopped with green moss36. Sombre and secret stood the house amid the black cloud of pine and fir trees; I saw the black clouds lower above it; I heard the winds cry out about it; the old trees strain and sigh, and toss p. 123their boughs37 like arms, in lamentation38 or in terror for the house,—the doomed39 house, where my kinsmen40 dwelt. Afar I heard the drumming of the sea against the rock-bound coast. I had a curious shapeless notion—prescience—that even as all the evil of the house—the ill-gotten fortunes of the house—came from the sea, out of the sea should retribution—vengeance—come.
Mr. Bradbury bade the runners and the coach-boy wait for us. Taking my arm, he climbed the steps with me to the door; its oak was bound with iron in fantastic pattern, and studded with copper41 nails; the knocker was of copper in the form of a satyr’s grinning face,—and all this copper was corroded42, and the green stained the door as the evil green of the ivy stained the front of the house. Mr. Bradbury raised the knocker with difficulty; though it clashed heavily, it failed to bring response from the house; whispering to me, “I’d have thought Charles would have been keeping a sharper look out for our arrival than this,” he knocked double knocks, until the clank of a chain and the screech43 of bolts sounded within. The door opened, and an old man stood blinking out at us—an old man, his clean-shaven face shrivelled and brown, and his eyes palely blue; his white hair was powdered, p. 124and his suit of black on his bent and withered44 body as neat and precise as his linen45.
“Mr. Bradbury, sir,” he quavered.
“Your ears are not as sharp as they might be, Thrale,” said Mr. Bradbury, drily. “Pray, open the door to Mr. Craike and me, and tell your master that we have the honour to wait upon him in obedience46 to his wish.”
Thrale answered in that shaking voice of his—though his eyes looked keenly and wickedly at me, “To be sure, gentlemen, to be sure! Pray step inside!”—and opened the door slowly into the hall. It was a dark and gloomy vault47; ere old Thrale closed the door, I caught a glimpse of a hall panelled all in oak, of canvases mouldering48 in mildewed49 frames, and of a wide black stairway opposite the door, leading up into darkness. If fanlight above the door or windows at the head of the stair should have lit the hall, all light was kept out by curtains, shutters50, or netted ivy; the darkness of night fell with the closing of the door.
Mr. Bradbury, grasping my arm hurriedly, cried out, “Gad, how dark and cold this house is, Thrale! I’m not prepared to take my death of a chill waiting here till you announce us to your master. Go ahead of us, man, and show us into his room immediately—d’ye hear me?” He p. 125adopted a tone of brusque good humour, though well I understood his apprehension51 of what might yet befall me, if we were left standing52 in the dark. The dark hung mysterious all about us; I could feel cold draughts53 of air; I believed that I could hear furtive whisperings and footsteps, doors softly opening and closing, hangings waving; all this might have been the wind without. Certainly I heard Thrale chuckle54 behind me, as he locked the door and fixed55 the chain; he answered Mr. Bradbury, “As you wish, sir.”
“Strike a light, Thrale,—d’ye hear me?—a light. I’ve no mind to break a leg or my neck in the dark! A light, Thrale!”
“Certainly, sir,” Thrale’s answer floated back to us, as he flitted away in the dark.
“Why, damn the fellow, he’s leaving us after all,” gasped56 Mr. Bradbury. “Thrale, you hear me? Thrale! Come back, man!”
But there came no sound save of the whisperings, gliding57 footsteps, rustlings of hangings waving in the dark, or of the ghostly wind that seemed to haunt the House of Craike. Mr. Bradbury’s left hand grasped my arm; I understood that his right groped in his coat pocket for his pistol. The impress of the blackness and gloom of the house was upon me, p. 126while I had good cause to dread my uncle’s plotting; I stood straining my eyes and ears in the darkness, imagining that figures advanced upon us in the dark. Mr. Bradbury drew me back against the door, muttering, “By the Lord, if the old rogue10’s not back presently, I’ll take upon me to make a dash for the stair and force my way into the master’s room.”
But he was silent, as a glimmer58 of light showed through the darkness. Thrale was returning, carrying a silver candlestick; his face was villainous and livid in the pale light.
“Where the deuce have you been, Thrale?” cried Mr. Bradbury. “Didn’t you hear me call after you?”
Thrale answered quietly, “I asks pardon, Mr. Bradbury, sir. As you said, I don’t hear as well as I might. I’d flint and steel to find,”—and stood blinking at us, with the candlestick lifted high in his bone-white hands.
A skeleton’s hands—mere bone—they seemed to me, as the old rogue, at Mr. Bradbury’s peremptory59 order, lit us up the stairs. The glimmer of pale light, the lime-white head, the bone-white hands, the silver candlestick, seemed from his noiseless movement to glide60 before us. From the head of the stair wide galleries led off to right and left and before us,—galleries shrouded61 p. 127with dark tapestries62. I saw rusty63 armour64 standing against the walls. I kicked against a pile of tumbled mail as the old man flitted before us by many fast-shut doors down the corridor to the left. He paused at a high black door, the glimmer of the candle showed me grotesque65 carvings66 and tarnished67 gilding68 upon it; he rapped smartly on this door with his bony fingers. No one answering, he opened the door, and swept aside the thick green curtains hanging before it.
The room revealed was high and wide; only a pale green light crept through the diamond panes69 of its two windows stained by the mosses70 of the years and netted with the ivy. For the time I had no eye for its furnishings, but only for the figure in the carved black chair by the fire. He was an old man; he had been of great stature71 and strength, his bulk was supported now by faded purple cushions. He seemed to prop72 himself upon the arms of his chair; his wide, brown hands were stained with red jewels; I had an uneasy fancy of blood-smeared hands. His clean-shaven face was very broad, bronzed and congested, his brows were framed in white hair tumbling about his immense shoulders; his eyes were coal-black beneath ash-grey brows. His whole aspect suggested decaying will, as his body decaying strength. A quilted gown of green and p. 128gold-brocaded silk was corded about his middle; his bent legs were cased in black silken breeches and hose; his shoe buckles73 were set with smoke-blue jewels; an ebony stick rested by his chair.
“Mr. Craike,” said Mr. Bradbury, stepping swiftly forward and bowing politely, “I have the honour at last to present your grandson—Mr. John Craike!”
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1
dwelling
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| n.住宅，住所，寓所 | |
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outrage
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| n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒 | |
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imprisonment
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| n.关押，监禁，坐牢 | |
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detention
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| n.滞留，停留；拘留，扣留；(教育)留下 | |
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implicated
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| adj.密切关联的；牵涉其中的 | |
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resentment
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| n.怨愤，忿恨 | |
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exhaustion
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| n.耗尽枯竭，疲惫，筋疲力尽，竭尽，详尽无遗的论述 | |
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8
contented
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| adj.满意的，安心的，知足的 | |
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insistence
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| n.坚持；强调；坚决主张 | |
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10
rogue
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| n.流氓；v.游手好闲 | |
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11
rogues
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| n.流氓( rogue的名词复数 )；无赖；调皮捣蛋的人；离群的野兽 | |
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12
relinquished
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| 交出，让给( relinquish的过去式和过去分词 )； 放弃 | |
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13
breach
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| n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破 | |
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14
smuggling
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| n.走私 | |
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15
furtive
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| adj.鬼鬼崇崇的，偷偷摸摸的 | |
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16
kin
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| n.家族，亲属，血缘关系；adj.亲属关系的，同类的 | |
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17
conjectured
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| 推测，猜测，猜想( conjecture的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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18
habitually
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| ad.习惯地，通常地 | |
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bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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20
liking
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| n.爱好；嗜好；喜欢 | |
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21
counteract
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| vt.对…起反作用，对抗，抵消 | |
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dread
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| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
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23
abated
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| 减少( abate的过去式和过去分词 )； 减去； 降价； 撤消（诉讼） | |
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24
nostrils
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| 鼻孔( nostril的名词复数 ) | |
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poking
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| n. 刺，戳，袋 vt. 拨开，刺，戳 vi. 戳，刺，捅，搜索，伸出，行动散慢 | |
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curt
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| adj.简短的，草率的 | |
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clattered
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| 发出咔哒声（clatter的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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28
wilderness
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| n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等，荒漠 | |
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dreary
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| adj.令人沮丧的，沉闷的，单调乏味的 | |
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ivy
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| n.常青藤，常春藤 | |
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crumbling
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| adj.摇摇欲坠的 | |
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32
tangle
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| n.纠缠；缠结；混乱；v.(使)缠绕；变乱 | |
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nettles
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| n.荨麻( nettle的名词复数 ) | |
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lank
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| adj.瘦削的；稀疏的 | |
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35
jaws
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| n.口部；嘴 | |
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moss
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| n.苔，藓，地衣 | |
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boughs
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| 大树枝( bough的名词复数 ) | |
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lamentation
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| n.悲叹，哀悼 | |
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doomed
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| 命定的 | |
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40
kinsmen
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| n.家属，亲属( kinsman的名词复数 ) | |
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41
copper
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| n.铜；铜币；铜器；adj.铜(制)的；(紫)铜色的 | |
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42
corroded
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| 已被腐蚀的 | |
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43
screech
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| n./v.尖叫；(发出)刺耳的声音 | |
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44
withered
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| adj. 枯萎的，干瘪的，（人身体的部分器官）因病萎缩的或未发育良好的 动词wither的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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45
linen
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| n.亚麻布，亚麻线，亚麻制品；adj.亚麻布制的，亚麻的 | |
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46
obedience
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| n.服从，顺从 | |
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47
vault
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| n.拱形圆顶，地窖，地下室 | |
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48
mouldering
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| v.腐朽( moulder的现在分词 )；腐烂，崩塌 | |
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49
mildewed
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| adj.发了霉的，陈腐的，长了霉花的v.（使）发霉，（使）长霉( mildew的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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50
shutters
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| 百叶窗( shutter的名词复数 )； （照相机的）快门 | |
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51
apprehension
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| n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑 | |
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52
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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53
draughts
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| n. <英>国际跳棋 | |
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54
chuckle
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| vi.／n.轻声笑，咯咯笑 | |
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55
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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56
gasped
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| v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要 | |
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57
gliding
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| v. 滑翔 adj. 滑动的 | |
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58
glimmer
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| v.发出闪烁的微光；n.微光，微弱的闪光 | |
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peremptory
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| adj.紧急的，专横的，断然的 | |
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60
glide
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| n./v.溜，滑行；(时间)消逝 | |
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61
shrouded
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| v.隐瞒( shroud的过去式和过去分词 )；保密 | |
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62
tapestries
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| n.挂毯( tapestry的名词复数 )；绣帷，织锦v.用挂毯（或绣帷）装饰( tapestry的第三人称单数 ) | |
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63
rusty
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| adj.生锈的；锈色的；荒废了的 | |
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64
armour
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| （=armor）n.盔甲；装甲部队 | |
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grotesque
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| adj.怪诞的，丑陋的；n.怪诞的图案，怪人（物） | |
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66
carvings
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| n.雕刻( carving的名词复数 )；雕刻术；雕刻品；雕刻物 | |
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67
tarnished
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| （通常指金属）（使）失去光泽，（使）变灰暗( tarnish的过去式和过去分词 )； 玷污，败坏 | |
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68
gilding
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| n.贴金箔，镀金 | |
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69
panes
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| 窗玻璃( pane的名词复数 ) | |
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70
mosses
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| n. 藓类, 苔藓植物 名词moss的复数形式 | |
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71
stature
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| n.（高度）水平，（高度）境界，身高，身材 | |
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72
prop
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| vt.支撑；n.支柱，支撑物；支持者，靠山 | |
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buckles
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| 搭扣，扣环( buckle的名词复数 ) | |
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