I
The union club at Matodi was in marked contrast to the hillside, bungalow1 dwellings2 of the majority of its members. It stood in the centre of the town, on the waterfront; a seventeenth-century Arab mansion3 built of massive whitewashed4 walls round a small court; latticed windows overhung the street from which, in former times, the womenfolk of a great merchant had watched the passing traffic; a heavy door, studded with brass5 bosses gave entrance to the dark shade of the court, where a little fountain sprayed from the roots of an enormous mango; and an open staircase of inlaid cedar-wood led to the cool interior.
An Arab porter, clothed in a white gown scoured6 and starched7 like a Bishop’s surplice, crimson8 sash and tarboosh, sat drowsily9 at the gate. He rose in reverence10 as Mr. Reppington, the magistrate11, and Mr. Bretherton, the sanitary-inspector, proceeded splendidly to the bar.
In token of the cordiality of the Condominium, French officials were honorary members of the Club, and a photograph of a former French President (“We can’t keep changing it,” said Major Lepperidge, “every time the frogs care to have a shim-ozzle”) hung in the smoking room opposite the portrait of the Prince of Wales; except on Gala nights, however, they rarely availed themselves of their privilege. The single French journal to which the Club subscribed12 was La Vie Parisienne, which, on this particular evening, was in the hands of a small man of plebeian13 appearance, sitting alone in a basket chair.
Reppington and Bretherton nodded their way forward. “Evening, Granger.” “Evening, Barker.” “Evening, Jagger,” and then in an audible undertone Bretherton inquired, “Who’s the chap in the corner with La Vie?”
“Name of Brooks14. Petrol or something.”
“Ah.”
“Pink gin?”
“Ah.”
“What sort of day?”
“Bad show, rather. Trouble about draining the cricket field. No subsoil.”
“Ah. Bad show.”
The Goan barman put their drinks before them. Bretherton signed the chit.
“Well, cheerio.”
“Cheerio.”
Mr. Brooks remained riveted15 upon La Vie Parisienne.
Presently Major Lepperidge came in, and the atmosphere stiffened16 a little. (He was O.C. of the native levy17, seconded from India.)
“Evening, Major,” from civilians18. “Good evening, sir,” from the military.
“Evening. Evening. Evening. Phew. Just had a very fast set of lawner with young Kentish. Hot service. Gin and lime. By the way, Bretherton, the cricket field is looking pretty seedy.”
“I know. No subsoil.”
“I say, that’s a bad show. No subsoil. Well, do what you can, there’s a good fellow. It looks terrible. Quite bare and a great lake in the middle.”
The Major took his gin and lime and moved towards a chair; suddenly he saw Mr. Brooks, and his authoritative19 air softened20 to unaccustomed amiability21. “Why, hallo, Brooks,” he said. “How are you? Fine to see you back. Just had the pleasure of seeing your daughter at the tennis club. My missus wondered if you and she would care to come up and dine one evening. How about Thursday? Grand. She’ll be delighted. Good-night you fellows. Got to get a shower.”
The occurrence was sensational22. Bretherton and Reppington looked at one another in shocked surprise.
Major Lepperidge, both in rank and personality, was the leading man in Matodi—in the whole of Azania indeed, with the single exception of the Chief Commissioner23 at Debra Dowa. It was inconceivable that Brooks should dine with Lepperidge. Bretherton himself had only dined there once and he was Government.
“Hullo, Brooks,” said Reppington “Didn’t see you there behind your paper. Come and have one.”
“Yes, Brooks,” said Bretherton. “Didn’t know you were back. Have a jolly leave? See any shows?”
“It’s very kind of you, but I must be going. We arrived on Tuesday in the Ngoma. No, I didn’t see any shows. You see, I was down at Bournemouth most of the time.”
“One before you go.”
“No really, thanks, I must get back. My daughter will be waiting. Thanks all the same. See you both later.”
Daughter.....?
II
There were eight Englishwomen in Matodi, counting Mrs. Bretherton’s two-year-old daughter; nine if you included Mrs. Macdonald (but no one did include Mrs. Macdonald who came from Bombay and betrayed symptoms of Asiatic blood. Besides, no one knew who Mr. Macdonald had been. Mrs. Macdonald kept an ill-frequented pension on the outskirts24 of the town named “The Bougainvillea”). All who were of marriageable age were married; they led lives under a mutual25 scrutiny26 too close and unremitting for romance. There were, however, seven unmarried Englishmen, three in Government service, three in commerce and one unemployed27, who had fled to Matodi from his creditors28 in Kenya. (He sometimes spoke29 vaguely30 of “planting” or “prospecting,” but in the meantime drew a small remittance32 each month and hung amiably33 about the Club and the tennis courts.)
Most of these bachelors were understood to have some girl at home; they kept photographs in their rooms, wrote long letters regularly, and took their leave with hints that when they returned they might not be alone. But they invariably were. Perhaps in precipitous eagerness for sympathy they painted too dark a picture of Azanian life; perhaps the Tropics made them a little addle-pated.....
Anyway, the arrival of Prunella Brooks sent a wave of excitement through English society. Normally, as the daughter of Mr. Brooks, oil company agent, her choice would have been properly confined to the three commercial men—Mr. James, of the Eastern Exchange Telegraph Company, and Messrs. Watson and Jagger, of the Bank—but Prunella was a girl of such evident personal superiority, that in her first afternoon at the tennis courts, as has been shown above, she transgressed34 the shadow line offortlessly and indeed unconsciously, and stepped straight into the inmost sanctuary35, the Lepperidge bungalow.
She was small and unaffected, an iridescent36 blonde, with a fresh skin, doubly intoxicating37 in contrast with the tanned and desiccated tropical complexions38 around her; with rubbery, puppyish limbs and a face which lit up with amusement at the most barren pleasantries; an air of earnest interest in the opinions and experiences of all she met; a natural confidante, with no disposition39 to make herself the centre of a group, but rather to tackle her friends one by one, in their own time, when they needed her; deferential40 and charming to the married women; tender, friendly, and mildly flirtatious41 with the men; keen on games but not so good as to shake masculine superiority; a devoted42 daughter denying herself any pleasure that might impair43 the smooth working of Mr. Brooks’s home—“No, I must go now. I couldn’t let father come home from the Club and not find me there to greet him”—in fact, just such a girl as would be a light and blessing44 in any outpost of the Empire. It was very few days before all at Matodi were eloquent45 of their good fortune.
Of course, she had first of all to be examined and instructed by the matrons of the colony, but she submitted to her initiation46 with so pretty a grace that she might not have been aware of the dangers of the ordeal47. Mrs. Lepperidge and Mrs. Reppington put her through it. Far away in the interior, in the sunless secret places, where a twisted stem across the jungle track, a rag fluttering to the bough48 of a tree, a fowl49 headless and full spread by an old stump50 marked the taboo51 where no man might cross, the Sakuya women chanted their primeval litany of initiation; here on the hillside the no less terrible ceremony was held over Mrs. Lepperidge’s tea table. First the questions; disguised and delicate over the tea cake but quickening their pace as the tribal52 rhythm waxed high and the table was cleared of tray and kettle, falling faster and faster like ecstatic hands on the taut53 cowhide, mounting and swelling54 with the first cigarette; a series of urgent, peremptory55 interrogations. To all this Prunella responded with docile56 simplicity57. The whole of her life, upbringing and education were exposed, examined and found to be exemplary; her mother’s death, the care of an aunt, a convent school in the suburbs which had left her with charming manners, a readiness to find the right man and to settle down with him whenever the Service should require it; her belief in a limited family and European education, the value of sport, kindness to animals, affectionate patronage58 of men.
Then, when she had proved herself worthy59 of it, came the instruction. Intimate details of health and hygiene60, things every young girl should know, the general dangers of sex and its particular dangers in the Tropics; the proper treatment of the other inhabitants of Matodi, etiquette61 towards ladies of higher rank, the leaving of cards..... “Never shake hands with natives, however well educated they think themselves. Arabs are quite different, many of them very like gentlemen ... no worse than a great many Italians, really ... Indians, luckily, you won’t have to meet ... never allow native servants to see you in your dressing62 gown ... and be very careful about curtains in the bathroom—natives peep ... never walk in the side streets alone—in fact you have no business in them at all ... never ride outside the compound alone. There have been several cases of bandits ... an American missionary63 only last year, but he was some kind of non-Conformist ... We owe it to our menfolk to take no unnecessary risks ... a band of brigands64 commanded by a Sakuya called Joab ... the Major will soon clean him up when he gets the levy into better shape ... they find their boots very uncomfortable at present ... meanwhile it is a very safe rule to take a man with you everywhere.....”
III
And Prunella was never short of male escort. As the weeks passed it became clear to the watching colony that her choice had narrowed down to two—Mr. Kentish, assistant native commissioner, and Mr. Benson, second lieutenant65 in the native levy; not that she was not consistently charming to everyone else—even to the shady remittance man and the repulsive66 Mr. Jagger—but by various little acts of preference she made it known that Kentish and Benson were her favourites. And the study of their innocent romances gave a sudden new interest to the social life of the town. Until now there had been plenty of entertaining certainly—gymkhanas and tennis tournaments, dances and dinner parties, calling and gossiping, amateur opera and church bazaars—but it had been a joyless and dutiful affair. They knew what was expected of Englishmen abroad; they had to keep up appearances before the natives and their co-protectionists; they had to have something to write home about; so they sturdily went through the recurring67 recreations due to their station. But with Prunella’s coming a new lightness was in the air; there were more parties and more dances and a point to everything. Mr. Brooks, who had never dined out before, found himself suddenly popular, and as his former exclusion68 had not worried him, he took his present vogue69 as a natural result of his daughter’s charm, was pleased by it and mildly embarrassed. He realized that she would soon want to get married and faced with equanimity70 the prospect31 of his inevitable71 return to solitude72.
Meanwhile Benson and Kentish ran neck and neck through the crowded Azanian spring and no one could say with confidence which was leading—betting was slightly in favour of Benson, who had supper dances with her at the Caledonian and the Polo Club Balls—when there occurred the incident which shocked Azanian feeling to its core. Prunella Brooks was kidnapped.
The circumstances were obscure and a little shady. Prunella, who had never been known to infringe73 one jot74 or tittle of the local code, had been out riding alone in the hills. That was apparent from the first, and later, under cross-examination, her syce revealed that this had for some time been her practice, two or three times a week. The shock of her infidelity to rule was almost as great as the shock of her disappearance75.
But worse was to follow. One evening at the Club, since Mr. Brooks was absent (his popularity had waned76 in the last few days and his presence made a painful restraint) the question of Prunella’s secret rides was being freely debated, when a slightly fuddled voice broke into the conversation.
“It’s bound to come out,” said the remittance man from Kenya, “so I may as well tell you right away. Prunella used to ride with me. She didn’t want us to get talked about, so we met on the Debra Dowa road by the Moslem77 Tombs. I shall miss those afternoons very much indeed,” said the remittance man, a slight, alcoholic78 quaver in his voice, “and I blame myself to a great extent for all that has happened. You see, I must have had a little more to drink than was good for me that morning and it was very hot, so with one thing and another, when I went to change into riding breeches I fell asleep and did not wake up until after dinnertime. And perhaps that is the last we shall ever see of her ...” and two vast tears rolled down his cheeks.
This unmanly spectacle preserved the peace, for Benson and Kentish had already begun to advance upon the remittance man with a menacing air. But there is little satisfaction in castigating79 one who is already in the profound depths of self-pity and the stern tones of Major Lepperidge called them sharply to order. “Benson, Kentish, I don’t say I don’t sympathize with you boys and I know exactly what I’d do myself under the circumstances. The story we have just heard may or may not be the truth. In either case I think I know what we all feel about the teller80. But that can wait. You’ll have plenty of time to settle up when we’ve got Miss Brooks safe. That is our first duty.”
Thus exhorted81, public opinion again rallied to Prunella, and the urgency of her case was dramatically emphasized two days later by the arrival at the American Consulate82 of the Baptist missionary’s right ear loosely done up in newspaper and string. The men of the colony—excluding, of course, the remittance man—got together in the Lepperidge bungalow and formed a committee of defence, first to protect the women who were still left to them and then to rescue Miss Brooks at whatever personal inconvenience or risk.
IV
The first demand for ransom83 came through the agency of Mr. Youkoumian. The little Armenian was already well known and, on the whole, well liked by the English community; it did them good to find a foreigner who so completely fulfilled their ideal of all that a foreigner should be. Two days after the foundation of the British Womanhood Protection Committee, he appeared at the Major’s orderly room asking for a private audience, a cheerful, rotund, self-abasing figure, in a shiny alpaca suit, skull84 cap and yellow, elastic-sided boots.
“Major Lepperidge,” he said, “you know me; all the gentlemen in Matodi know me. The English are my favourite gentlemen and the natural protectors of the under races all same as the League of Nations. Listen, Major Lepperidge, I ear things. Everyone trusts me. It is a no good thing for these black men to abduct85 English ladies. I fix it O.K.”
To the Major’s questions, with infinite evasions86 and circumlocutions, Youkoumian explained that by the agency of various cousins of his wife he had formed contact with an Arab, one of whose wives was the sister of a Sakuya in Joab’s band; that Miss Brooks was at present safe and that Joab was disposed to talk business. “Joab make very stiff price,” he said. “He want one undred thousand dollars, an armoured car, two machine guns, a undred rifles, five thousand rounds of ammunition87, fifty orses, fifty gold wrist watches, a wireless88 set, fifty cases of whisky, free pardon and the rank of honorary colonel in the Azanian levy.”
“That, of course, is out of the question.”
The little Armenian shrugged89 his shoulders. “Oh, well, then he cut off Miss Brooks’s ears all same as the American clergyman. Listen, Major, this is one damn awful no good country. I live ere forty years, I know. I been little man and I been big man in this country, all same rule for big and little. If native want anything you give it im quick, then work ell out of im and get it back later. Natives all damn fool men but very savage90 all same as animals. Listen, Major, I make best whisky in Matodi—Scotch, Irish, all brands I make im; I got very fine watches in my shop all same as gold, I got wireless set—armoured car, orses, machine guns is for you to do. Then we clean up tidy bit fifty-fifty, no?”
V
Two days later Mr. Youkoumian appeared at Mr. Brooks’s bungalow. “A letter from Miss Brooks,” he said. “A Sakuya fellow brought it in. I give im a rupee.”
It was an untidy scrawl91 on the back of an envelope.
Dearest Dad,
I am safe at present and fairly well. On no account attempt to follow the messenger. Joab and the bandits would torture me to death. Please send gramophone and records. Do come to terms or I don’t know what will happen.
Prunella.
It was the first of a series of notes which, from now on, arrived every two or three days through the agency of Mr. Youkoumian. They mostly contained requests for small personal possessions ...
Dearest Dad,
Not those records. The dance ones..... Please send face cream in pot in bathroom, also illustrated92 papers ... the green silk pajamas93 ... Lucky Strike cigarettes ... two light drill skirts and the sleeveless silk shirts ...
The letters were all brought to the Club and read aloud, and as the days passed the sense of tension became less acute, giving way to a general feeling that the drama had become prosaic94.
“They are bound to reduce their price. Meanwhile the girl is safe enough,” pronounced Major Lepperidge, voicing authoritatively95 what had long been unspoken in the minds of the community.
The life of the town began to resume its normal aspect—administration, athletics96, gossip; the American missionary’s second ear arrived and attracted little notice, except from Mr. Youkoumian, who produced an ear trumpet97 which he attempted to sell to the mission headquarters. The ladies of the colony abandoned the cloistered98 life which they had adopted during the first scare; the men became less protective and stayed out late at the Club as heretofore.
Then something happened to revive interest in the captive. Sam Stebbing discovered the cypher.
He was a delicate young man of high academic distinction, lately arrived from Cambridge to work with Grainger in the immigration office. From the first he had shown a keener interest than most of his colleagues in the situation. For a fortnight of oppressive heat he had sat up late studying the texts of Prunella’s messages; then he emerged with the startling assertion that there was a cypher. The system by which he had solved it was far from simple. He was ready enough to explain it, but his hearers invariably lost hold of the argument and contented99 themselves with the solution.
“... you see you translate it into Latin, you make an anagram of the first and last words of the first message, the second and last but one of the third when you start counting from the centre onwards. I bet that puzzled the bandits ...”
“Yes, old boy. Besides, none of them can read anyway ...”
“Then in the fourth message you go back to the original system, taking the fourth word and the last but three ...”
“Yes, yes, I see. Don’t bother to explain any more. Just tell us what the message really says.”
“It says, ‘DAILY THREATENED WORSE THAN BREATH.’
“Her system’s at fault there, must mean ‘death’; then there’s a word I can’t understand—PLZGF, no doubt the poor child was in great agitation100 when she wrote it, and after that TRUST IN MY KING.”
This was generally voted a triumph. The husbands brought back the news to their wives.
“... Jolly ingenious the way old Stebbing worked it out. I won’t bother to explain it to you. You wouldn’t understand. Anyway, the result is clear enough. Miss Brooks is in terrible danger. We must all do something.”
“But who would have thought of little Prunella being so clever ...”
“Ah, I always said that girl had brains.”
VI
News of the discovery was circulated by the Press agencies throughout the civilized101 world. At first the affair had received wide attention. It had been front page, with portrait, for two days, then middle page with portrait, then middle page halfway102 down without portrait, and finally page three of the Excess as the story became daily less alarming. The cypher gave the story a new lease on life. Stebbing, with portrait, appeared on the front page. Ten thousand pounds was offered by the paper towards the ransom, and a star journalist appeared from the skies in an aeroplane to conduct and report the negotiations103.
He was a tough young man of Australian origin and from the moment of his arrival everything went with a swing. The colony sunk its habitual104 hostility105 to the Press, elected him to the Club, and filled his leisure with cocktail106 parties and tennis tournaments. He even usurped107 Lepperidge’s position as authority on world topics.
But his stay was brief. On the first day he interviewed Mr. Brooks and everyone of importance in the town, and cabled back a moving “human” story of Prunella’s position in the heart of the colony. From now onwards to three millions or so of readers Miss Brooks became Prunella. (There was only one local celebrity108 whom he was unable to meet. Poor Mr. Stebbing had “gone under” with the heat and had been shipped back to England on sick leave in a highly deranged109 condition of nerves and mind.)
On the second day he interviewed Mr. Youkoumian. They sat down together with a bottle of mastika at a little round table behind Mr. Youkoumian’s counter at ten in the morning. It was three in the afternoon before the reporter stepped out into the white-dust heat, but he had won his way. Mr. Youkoumian had promised to conduct him to the bandits’ camp. Both of them were pledged to secrecy110. By sundown the whole of Matodi was discussing the coming expedition, but the journalist was not embarrassed by any inquiries111; he was alone that evening, typing out an account of what he expected would happen next day.
He described the start at dawn ... “grey light breaking over the bereaved112 township of Matodi ... the camels snorting and straining at their reins113 ... the many sorrowing Englishmen to whom the sun meant only the termination of one more night of hopeless watching ... silver dawn breaking in the little room where Prunella’s bed stood, the coverlet turned down as she had left it on the fatal afternoon ...” He described the ascent114 into the hills—“... luxuriant tropical vegetation giving place to barren scrub and bare rock ...” He described how the bandits’ messenger blindfolded115 him and how he rode, swaying on his camel through darkness, into the unknown. Then, after what seemed an eternity116, the halt; the bandage removed from his eyes ... the bandits’ camp. “... twenty pairs of remorseless eastern eyes glinting behind ugly-looking rifles ...” here he took the paper from his machine and made a correction; the bandits’ lair117 was to be in a cave “... littered with bone and skins.” ... Joab, the bandit chief, squatting118 in barbaric splendour, a jewelled sword across his knees. Then the climax119 of the story; Prunella bound. For some time he toyed with the idea of stripping her, and began to hammer out a vivid word-picture of her girlish frame shrinking in the shadows, Andromeda-like. But caution restrained him and he contented himself with “... her lovely, slim body marked by the hempen120 ropes that cut into her young limbs ...” The concluding paragraphs related how despair suddenly melted to hope in her eyes as he stepped forward, handing over the ransom to the bandit chief and “in the name of the Daily Excess and the People of Great Britain restored her to her heritage of freedom.”
It was late before he had finished, but he retired121 to bed with a sense of high accomplishment122, and next morning deposited his manuscript with the Eastern Exchange Telegraph Company before setting out with Mr. Youkoumian for the hills.
The journey was in all respects totally unlike his narrative123. They started, after a comfortable breakfast, surrounded by the well wishes of most of the British and many of the French colony, and instead of riding on camels they drove in Mr. Kentish’s baby Austin. Nor did they even reach Joab’s lair. They had not gone more than ten miles before a girl appeared walking alone on the track towards them. She was not very tidy, particularly about the hair, but, apart from this, showed every sign of robust124 well-being125.
“Miss Brooks, I presume,” said the journalist, unconsciously following a famous precedent126. “But where are the bandits?”
Prunella looked inquiringly towards Mr. Youkoumian who, a few steps in the rear, was shaking his head with vigour127. “This British newspaper writing gentleman,” he explained, “e know all same Matodi gentlemen. E got the thousand pounds for Joab.”
“Well, he’d better take care,” said Miss Brooks, “the bandits are all round you. Oh you wouldn’t see them, of course, but I don’t mind betting that there are fifty rifles covering us at this moment from behind the boulders128 and bush and so on.” She waved a bare, suntanned arm expansively towards the innocent-looking landscape. “I hope you’ve brought the money in gold.”
“It’s all here, in the back of the car, Miss Brooks.”
“Splendid. Well, I’m afraid Joab won’t allow you into his lair, so you and I will wait here, and Youkoumian shall drive into the hills and deliver it.”
“But listen, Miss Brooks, my paper has put a lot of money into this story. I got to see that lair.”
“I’ll tell you all about it,” said Prunella, and she did.
“There were three huts,” she began, her eyes downcast, her hands folded, her voice precise and gentle as though she were repeating a lesson, “the smallest and the darkest was used as my dungeon129.”
The journalist shifted uncomfortably. “Huts,” he said. “I had formed the impression that they were caves.”
“So they were,” said Prunella. “Hut is a local word for cave. Two lions were chained beside me night and day. Their eyes glared and I felt their foetid breath. The chains were of a length so that if I lay perfectly130 still I was out of their reach. If I had moved hand or foot ...” She broke off with a little shudder131 ...
By the time that Youkoumian returned, the journalist had material for another magnificent front-page splash.
“Joab has given orders to withdraw the snipers,” Prunella announced, after a whispered consultation132 with the Armenian. “It is safe for us to go.”
So they climbed into the little car and drove unadventurously back to Matodi.
VII
Little remains133 of the story to be told. There was keen enthusiasm in the town when Prunella returned, and an official welcome was organized for her on the subsequent Tuesday. The journalist took many photographs, wrote up a scene of homecoming that stirred the British public to the depths of its heart, and soon flew away in his aeroplane to receive congratulation and promotion134 at the Excess office.
It was expected that Prunella would now make her final choice between Kentish and Benson, but this excitement was denied to the colony. Instead, came the distressing135 intelligence that she was returning to England. A light seemed to have been extinguished in Azanian life, and in spite of avowed136 good wishes there was a certain restraint on the eve of her departure—almost of resentment137, as though Prunella were guilty of disloyalty in leaving. The Excess inserted a paragraph announcing her arrival, headed ECHO OF KIDNAPPING CASE, but otherwise she seemed to have slipped unobtrusively from public attention. Stebbing, poor fellow, was obliged to retire from the service. His mind seemed permanently138 disordered and from now on he passed his time, harmlessly but unprofitably, in a private nursing home, working out hidden messages in Bradshaw’s Railway Guide. Even in Matodi the kidnapping was seldom discussed.
One day six months later Lepperidge and Bretherton were sitting in the Club drinking their evening glass of pink gin. Banditry was in the air at the moment for that morning the now memberless trunk of the American missionary had been found at the gates of the Baptist compound.
“It’s one of the problems we shall have to tackle,” said Lepperidge. “A case for action. I am going to make a report of the entire matter.”
Mr. Brooks passed them on his way out to his lonely dinner table; he was a rare visitor to the Club now; the petrol agency was uniformly prosperous and kept him late at his desk. He neither remembered nor regretted his brief popularity, but Lepperidge maintained a guilty cordiality towards him whenever they met.
“Evening, Brooks. Any news of Miss Prunella?”
“Yes, as a matter of fact I heard from her today. She’s just been married.”
“Well I’m blessed ... I hope you’re glad. Anyone we know?”
“Yes, I am glad in a way, though of course I shall miss her. It’s that fellow from Kenya who stayed here once; remember him?”
“Ah, yes, him? Well, well ... Give her my salaams139 when you write.”
Mr. Brooks went downstairs into the still and odorous evening. Lepperidge and Bretherton were completely alone. The Major leant forward and spoke in husky, confidential140 tones.
“I say, Bretherton,” he said. “Look here, there’s something I’ve often wondered, strictly141 between ourselves, I mean. Did you ever think there was anything fishy142 about that kidnapping?”
“Fishy, sir?”
“Fishy.”
“I think I know what you mean, sir. Well some of us have been thinking, lately ...”
“Exactly.”
“Not of course anything definite. Just what you said yourself, sir, fishy.”
“Exactly ... Look here, Bretherton, I think you might pass the word round that it’s not a thing to be spoken about, see what I mean? The missus is putting it round to the women too ...”
“Quite, sir. It’s not a thing one wants talked about ... Arabs, I mean, and frogs.”
“Exactly.”
There was another long pause. At last Lepperidge rose to go. “I blame myself,” he said. “We made a great mistake over that girl. I ought to have known better. After all, first and last when all’s said and done, Brooks is a commercial wallah.”
收听单词发音 |
1
bungalow
|
|
| n.平房，周围有阳台的木造小平房 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
2
dwellings
|
|
| n.住处，处所( dwelling的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
3
mansion
|
|
| n.大厦，大楼；宅第 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
4
whitewashed
|
|
| 粉饰，美化，掩饰( whitewash的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
5
brass
|
|
| n.黄铜；黄铜器，铜管乐器 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
6
scoured
|
|
| 走遍（某地）搜寻（人或物）( scour的过去式和过去分词 )； （用力）刷； 擦净； 擦亮 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
7
starched
|
|
| adj.浆硬的，硬挺的，拘泥刻板的v.把（衣服、床单等）浆一浆( starch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
8
crimson
|
|
| n./adj.深(绯)红色(的)；vi.脸变绯红色 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
9
drowsily
|
|
| adv.睡地，懒洋洋地，昏昏欲睡地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
10
reverence
|
|
| n.敬畏，尊敬，尊严；Reverence:对某些基督教神职人员的尊称；v.尊敬，敬畏，崇敬 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
11
magistrate
|
|
| n.地方行政官，地方法官，治安官 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
12
subscribed
|
|
| v.捐助( subscribe的过去式和过去分词 )；签署，题词；订阅；同意 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
13
plebeian
|
|
| adj.粗俗的；平民的；n.平民；庶民 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
14
brooks
|
|
| n.小溪( brook的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
15
riveted
|
|
| 铆接( rivet的过去式和过去分词 )； 把…固定住； 吸引； 引起某人的注意 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
16
stiffened
|
|
| 加强的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
17
levy
|
|
| n.征收税或其他款项，征收额 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
18
civilians
|
|
| 平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
19
authoritative
|
|
| adj.有权威的，可相信的；命令式的；官方的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
20
softened
|
|
| （使）变软( soften的过去式和过去分词 )； 缓解打击； 缓和； 安慰 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
21
amiability
|
|
| n.和蔼可亲的，亲切的，友善的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
22
sensational
|
|
| adj.使人感动的，非常好的，轰动的，耸人听闻的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
23
commissioner
|
|
| n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
24
outskirts
|
|
| n.郊外，郊区 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
25
mutual
|
|
| adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
26
scrutiny
|
|
| n.详细检查，仔细观察 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
27
unemployed
|
|
| adj.失业的，没有工作的；未动用的，闲置的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
28
creditors
|
|
| n.债权人，债主( creditor的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
29
spoke
|
|
| 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 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
30
vaguely
|
|
| adv.含糊地，暖昧地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
31
prospect
|
|
| n.前景，前途；景色，视野 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
32
remittance
|
|
| n.汇款，寄款，汇兑 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
33
amiably
|
|
| adv.和蔼可亲地，亲切地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
34
transgressed
|
|
| v.超越( transgress的过去式和过去分词 )；越过；违反；违背 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
35
sanctuary
|
|
| n.圣所，圣堂，寺庙；禁猎区，保护区 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
36
iridescent
|
|
| adj.彩虹色的，闪色的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
37
intoxicating
|
|
| a. 醉人的,使人兴奋的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
38
complexions
|
|
| 肤色( complexion的名词复数 )； 面色； 局面； 性质 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
39
disposition
|
|
| n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
40
deferential
|
|
| adj. 敬意的，恭敬的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
41
flirtatious
|
|
| adj.爱调情的，调情的，卖俏的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
42
devoted
|
|
| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
43
impair
|
|
| v.损害，损伤；削弱，减少 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
44
blessing
|
|
| n.祈神赐福；祷告；祝福，祝愿 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
45
eloquent
|
|
| adj.雄辩的，口才流利的；明白显示出的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
46
initiation
|
|
| n.开始 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
47
ordeal
|
|
| n.苦难经历，（尤指对品格、耐力的）严峻考验 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
48
bough
|
|
| n.大树枝，主枝 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
49
fowl
|
|
| n.家禽，鸡，禽肉 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
50
stump
|
|
| n.残株，烟蒂，讲演台；v.砍断，蹒跚而走 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
51
taboo
|
|
| n.禁忌，禁止接近，禁止使用；adj.禁忌的；v.禁忌，禁制，禁止 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
52
tribal
|
|
| adj.部族的，种族的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
53
taut
|
|
| adj.拉紧的，绷紧的，紧张的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
54
swelling
|
|
| n.肿胀 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
55
peremptory
|
|
| adj.紧急的，专横的，断然的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
56
docile
|
|
| adj.驯服的，易控制的，容易教的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
57
simplicity
|
|
| n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
58
patronage
|
|
| n.赞助，支援，援助；光顾，捧场 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
59
worthy
|
|
| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
60
hygiene
|
|
| n.健康法，卫生学 （a.hygienic） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
61
etiquette
|
|
| n.礼仪，礼节；规矩 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
62
dressing
|
|
| n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
63
missionary
|
|
| adj.教会的，传教(士)的；n.传教士 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
64
brigands
|
|
| n.土匪，强盗( brigand的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
65
lieutenant
|
|
| n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
66
repulsive
|
|
| adj.排斥的，使人反感的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
67
recurring
|
|
| adj.往复的，再次发生的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
68
exclusion
|
|
| n.拒绝，排除，排斥，远足，远途旅行 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
69
Vogue
|
|
| n.时髦，时尚；adj.流行的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
70
equanimity
|
|
| n.沉着，镇定 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
71
inevitable
|
|
| adj.不可避免的，必然发生的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
72
solitude
|
|
| n. 孤独; 独居,荒僻之地,幽静的地方 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
73
infringe
|
|
| v.违反，触犯，侵害 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
74
jot
|
|
| n.少量；vi.草草记下；vt.匆匆写下 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
75
disappearance
|
|
| n.消失，消散，失踪 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
76
waned
|
|
| v.衰落( wane的过去式和过去分词 )；（月）亏；变小；变暗淡 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
77
Moslem
|
|
| n.回教徒，穆罕默德信徒；adj.回教徒的，回教的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
78
alcoholic
|
|
| adj.（含）酒精的，由酒精引起的；n.酗酒者 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
79
castigating
|
|
| v.严厉责骂、批评或惩罚（某人）( castigate的现在分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
80
teller
|
|
| n.银行出纳员；(选举)计票员 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
81
exhorted
|
|
| v.劝告，劝说( exhort的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
82
consulate
|
|
| n.领事馆 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
83
ransom
|
|
| n.赎金，赎身；v.赎回，解救 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
84
skull
|
|
| n.头骨；颅骨 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
85
abduct
|
|
| vt.诱拐，拐带，绑架 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
86
evasions
|
|
| 逃避( evasion的名词复数 )； 回避； 遁辞； 借口 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
87
ammunition
|
|
| n.军火，弹药 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
88
wireless
|
|
| adj.无线的；n.无线电 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
89
shrugged
|
|
| vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
90
savage
|
|
| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
91
scrawl
|
|
| vt.潦草地书写；n.潦草的笔记，涂写 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
92
illustrated
|
|
| adj. 有插图的，列举的 动词illustrate的过去式和过去分词 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
93
pajamas
|
|
| n.睡衣裤 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
94
prosaic
|
|
| adj.单调的，无趣的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
95
authoritatively
|
|
| 命令式地，有权威地，可信地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
96
athletics
|
|
| n.运动，体育，田径运动 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
97
trumpet
|
|
| n.喇叭，喇叭声；v.吹喇叭，吹嘘 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
98
cloistered
|
|
| adj.隐居的，躲开尘世纷争的v.隐退，使与世隔绝( cloister的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
99
contented
|
|
| adj.满意的，安心的，知足的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
100
agitation
|
|
| n.搅动；搅拌；鼓动，煽动 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
101
civilized
|
|
| a.有教养的，文雅的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
102
halfway
|
|
| adj.中途的，不彻底的，部分的；adv.半路地，在中途，在半途 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
103
negotiations
|
|
| 协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
104
habitual
|
|
| adj.习惯性的；通常的，惯常的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
105
hostility
|
|
| n.敌对，敌意；抵制［pl.］交战，战争 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
106
cocktail
|
|
| n.鸡尾酒；餐前开胃小吃；混合物 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
107
usurped
|
|
| 篡夺，霸占( usurp的过去式和过去分词 )； 盗用； 篡夺，篡权 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
108
celebrity
|
|
| n.名人，名流；著名，名声，名望 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
109
deranged
|
|
| adj.疯狂的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
110
secrecy
|
|
| n.秘密，保密，隐蔽 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
111
inquiries
|
|
| n.调查( inquiry的名词复数 )；疑问；探究；打听 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
112
bereaved
|
|
| adj.刚刚丧失亲人的v.使失去（希望、生命等）( bereave的过去式和过去分词)；（尤指死亡）使丧失（亲人、朋友等）；使孤寂；抢走（财物） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
113
reins
|
|
| 感情，激情； 缰( rein的名词复数 )； 控制手段； 掌管； （成人带着幼儿走路以防其走失时用的）保护带 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
114
ascent
|
|
| n.(声望或地位)提高；上升，升高；登高 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
115
blindfolded
|
|
| v.（尤指用布）挡住（某人）的视线( blindfold的过去式 )；蒙住（某人）的眼睛；使不理解；蒙骗 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
116
eternity
|
|
| n.不朽，来世；永恒，无穷 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
117
lair
|
|
| n.野兽的巢穴；躲藏处 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
118
squatting
|
|
| v.像动物一样蹲下( squat的现在分词 )；非法擅自占用（土地或房屋）；为获得其所有权；而占用某片公共用地。 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
119
climax
|
|
| n.顶点；高潮；v.(使)达到顶点 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
120
hempen
|
|
| adj. 大麻制的, 大麻的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
121
retired
|
|
| adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
122
accomplishment
|
|
| n.完成，成就，（pl.）造诣，技能 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
123
narrative
|
|
| n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
124
robust
|
|
| adj.强壮的，强健的，粗野的，需要体力的，浓的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
125
well-being
|
|
| n.安康，安乐，幸福 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
126
precedent
|
|
| n.先例，前例；惯例；adj.在前的，在先的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
127
vigour
|
|
| （=vigor）n.智力，体力，精力 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
128
boulders
|
|
| n.卵石( boulder的名词复数 )；巨砾；（受水或天气侵蚀而成的）巨石；漂砾 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
129
dungeon
|
|
| n.地牢，土牢 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
130
perfectly
|
|
| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
131
shudder
|
|
| v.战粟，震动，剧烈地摇晃；n.战粟，抖动 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
132
consultation
|
|
| n.咨询；商量；商议；会议 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
133
remains
|
|
| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
134
promotion
|
|
| n.提升，晋级；促销，宣传 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
135
distressing
|
|
| a.使人痛苦的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
136
avowed
|
|
| adj.公开声明的，承认的v.公开声明，承认( avow的过去式和过去分词) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
137
resentment
|
|
| n.怨愤，忿恨 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
138
permanently
|
|
| adv.永恒地，永久地，固定不变地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
139
salaams
|
|
| （穆斯林的）额手礼，问安，敬礼( salaam的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
|
140
confidential
|
|
| adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
141
strictly
|
|
| adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
142
fishy
|
|
| adj. 值得怀疑的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
| 欢迎访问英文小说网 |