CHAPTER XIX THE WHITE BROTHER.

 The heat continued to increase; to Alicia it seemed to be terrific. The accommodation in the two bungalows¹ was small. Mr. Hartley and his daughter-in-law had repeated attacks of fever, though not of an alarming nature. Miranda was the most gentle and loving of nurses, and became increasingly dear in the mission circle. “If Gilbert send for his sister, I know not how we shall bear to part with her,” said Alicia. “Miranda is opening out like a flower, and such a lovely sweet one!”

 

Robin² Hartley was by far the merriest of the circle, and during the trying season helped to keep every one’s spirits alive. He was naturally of a joyous³ nature, and he had now found a new fountain of pleasure. Little cared Robin for the heat, even when it shut him up in his little room in semi-darkness with the musquitoes, for he had his pen and paper with him. Robin had taken to composing, and found great delight in the occupation. No one knew whether he was writing a Panjabi vocabulary, a journal, or an epic⁴ poem; Robin kept his own secret, like a child bent⁵ on giving some one a surprise. He himself carried a thick roll of paper to the post, and he watched as eagerly for a reply as did Alicia for an answer to her letter to her cousin Gilbert.

 

The looked-for mail-day arrived. Harold brought in to his wife three letters bearing the English post-mark. Alicia singled out the one which was not in a familiar hand; these sprawling⁶ characters she guessed to be traced by her cousin, from whom she had never before had a letter. Miranda—seated on the ground, her favourite position still, though she had always a chair at meals—watched with anxiety in her fine dark eyes the face of her cousin. She seemed to know, as by instinct, that the letter which Alicia was perusing⁷ related to her own fate. The letter, which was read aloud, ran as follows:—

 

“My dear Coz,—I am sure that you have shown wonderful ingenuity⁸ in ferreting out this sister of mine. I was never so astonished in my life as when I found that I had one. The whole story is like a sensation novel or a transformation⁹ scene in a pantomime. But when the novel is closed, or the curtain falls on Columbine, the whole thing is over, and nothing remains¹⁰ to be done. This affair of Miranda is a different and much more difficult matter. You ask me if I wish to have my sister home to be educated in England; you give me to understand that she is a kind of raw material (silk in the cocoon¹¹, I suppose) which her friends are to work up into satin. The girl can’t read, write, or spell, cannot yet use a knife and fork, does not know a word of English, and prefers squatting¹² on the floor to lolling on a sofa like a lady! What on earth could I do with such a heathenish sister?”

“I should like to punch that fellows head!” exclaimed Robin, his eyes flashing with indignation. “He may have a head to be punched, but he certainly has not a heart.”

 

Miranda looked at her angry bhai with alarm. “There must be something very dreadful indeed in that letter,” thought the poor girl. “I am afraid that I have a cruel white brother in England.”

 

“Let’s hear the rest of the letter,” said Harold; and Alicia resumed her reading:—

 

“I could not introduce to my wife and her acquaintance a girl—a widow, you say—who might startle us by plunging¹³ her hand into a fricassee, or whooping¹⁴ like a Red Indian.”

 

“What does the fellow mean by that?” fiercely interrupted Robin.

 

“Oh, I suppose that Gilbert classes all sorts of Indians together,” laughed Alicia: “he was always a thoughtless boy. I daresay that he thinks that our Premi wears a coronet of feathers, and perhaps a chaplet of human teeth.” Again the lady read on,—

 

“Then if any respectable school would admit this wild widow, there are no funds to support her there. Government has agreed to do something in consideration of what was lost in the Mutiny; but what is fifteen pounds per annum in England? hardly enough to pay a dancing-master’s fees. No, no; the wild widow had far better keep where she is. Perhaps you could find another black husband to suit her.”

 

Robin struck his clenched¹⁵ fist on the table with such violence that he threw over a tumbler, and smashed a plate, and filled Miranda’s young heart with vague apprehensions¹⁶.

 

“Oh, have pity on my crockery, Robin!” exclaimed Alicia; “I cannot replace it here.”

 

“I am very sorry that I have done mischief,” said Robin, as he picked up the broken pieces. “It is not your fault that you have such a cousin, nor Miranda’s that she has such a brother.”

 

The sound of the name which she had been taught to recognize as her own increased the uneasiness of poor Premi. The letter which had made her bhai so very angry certainly related to herself. A vague fear that suttees might be thought the correct thing in England, and that her white brother might wish to burn her alive, flitted across the poor girl’s mind; however, she was somewhat reassured¹⁷ by the smile on the lips of Alicia.

 

“It seems as if we should never get to the end of this letter,” said Harold, taking the paper from the hand of his wife. “Where were we—oh, here;” and he went on with the reading aloud:—

 

“Or you might make a missionary¹⁸ of her, perhaps. I leave all arrangements to you; I am sure that the best will be made for the poor little waif by you and your husband.”

 

“He wants to wash his hands of the care of his own, his only sister,” muttered Robin. “This Gilbert is unworthy of the name of a brother!”

 

Alicia caught sight of the look of anxious, almost agonizing¹⁹ inquiry²⁰ in the eyes of Miranda, and hastened to relieve her at once.

 

“We have heard from your brother in England,” she said in reply to the mute appeal.

 

Miranda flushed and visibly trembled; her lips moved, but uttered no sound.

 

“Your white brother wishes you to remain with us in India.”

 

Miranda sprang to her feet with a cry of delight, then sank sobbing²¹ into the arms of Alicia, clinging to her as a frightened child might have done. “Then He did hear me!” was her almost inaudible exclamation²².

 

“Who heard you, dear Miranda?” asked Alicia.

 

“God,” was the reverently²³ murmured reply. “I did ask Him, I did beseech²⁴ Him to save me from being sent away from Talwandi.”

 

This was the first indication which Miranda had given of understanding the nature of prayer.

 

“Then you are willing to stay with us, dear one?” said Alicia.

 

Miranda’s reply was a fervent²⁵, passionate²⁶ embrace; then, ashamed of having given such outward expression to her joy in the presence of men, Miranda retreated hastily into the adjoining dwelling²⁷.

1 bungalows   

n.平房( bungalow的名词复数 )；单层小屋，多于一层的小屋

参考例句：

• It was a town filled with white bungalows. 这个小镇里都是白色平房。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• We also seduced by the reasonable price of the bungalows. 我们也确实被这里单层间的合理价格所吸引。 来自互联网

2 robin   

n.知更鸟，红襟鸟

参考例句：

• The robin is the messenger of spring.知更鸟是报春的使者。
• We knew spring was coming as we had seen a robin.我们看见了一只知更鸟，知道春天要到了。

3 joyous   

adj.充满快乐的；令人高兴的

参考例句：

• The lively dance heightened the joyous atmosphere of the scene.轻快的舞蹈给这场戏渲染了欢乐气氛。
• They conveyed the joyous news to us soon.他们把这一佳音很快地传递给我们。

4 epic   

n.史诗，叙事诗；adj.史诗般的，壮丽的

参考例句：

• I gave up my epic and wrote this little tale instead.我放弃了写叙事诗，而写了这个小故事。
• They held a banquet of epic proportions.他们举行了盛大的宴会。

5 bent   

n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的

参考例句：

• He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
• We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。

6 sprawling   

adj.蔓生的，不规则地伸展的v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的现在分词 )；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着）

参考例句：

• He was sprawling in an armchair in front of the TV. 他伸开手脚坐在电视机前的一张扶手椅上。
• a modern sprawling town 一座杂乱无序拓展的现代城镇

7 perusing   

v.读（某篇文字）( peruse的现在分词 )；（尤指）细阅；审阅；匆匆读或心不在焉地浏览（某篇文字）

参考例句：

• She found the information while she was perusing a copy of Life magazine. 她在读《生活》杂志的时候看到了这个消息。 来自辞典例句
• Hence people who began by beholding him ended by perusing him. 所以人们从随便看一看他开始的，都要以仔细捉摸他而终结。 来自辞典例句

8 ingenuity   

n.别出心裁；善于发明创造

参考例句：

• The boy showed ingenuity in making toys.那个小男孩做玩具很有创造力。
• I admire your ingenuity and perseverance.我钦佩你的别出心裁和毅力。

9 transformation   

n.变化；改造；转变

参考例句：

• Going to college brought about a dramatic transformation in her outlook.上大学使她的观念发生了巨大的变化。
• He was struggling to make the transformation from single man to responsible husband.他正在努力使自己由单身汉变为可靠的丈夫。

10 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

11 cocoon   

n.茧

参考例句：

• A cocoon is a kind of silk covering made by an insect.蚕茧是由昆虫制造的一种由丝组成的外包层。
• The beautiful butterfly emerged from the cocoon.美丽的蝴蝶自茧中出现。

12 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：

• They ended up squatting in the empty houses on Oxford Road. 他们落得在牛津路偷住空房的境地。
• They've been squatting in an apartment for the past two years. 他们过去两年来一直擅自占用一套公寓。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 plunging   

adj.跳进的，突进的v.颠簸( plunge的现在分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降

参考例句：

• War broke out again, plunging the people into misery and suffering. 战祸复发，生灵涂炭。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• He is plunging into an abyss of despair. 他陷入了绝望的深渊。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 whooping   

发嗬嗬声的，发咳声的

参考例句：

• Whooping cough is very prevalent just now. 百日咳正在广泛流行。
• Have you had your child vaccinated against whooping cough? 你给你的孩子打过百日咳疫苗了吗？

15 clenched   

v.紧握，抓紧，咬紧( clench的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He clenched his fists in anger. 他愤怒地攥紧了拳头。
• She clenched her hands in her lap to hide their trembling. 她攥紧双手放在腿上，以掩饰其颤抖。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 apprehensions   

疑惧

参考例句：

• He stood in a mixture of desire and apprehensions. 他怀着渴望和恐惧交加的心情伫立着。
• But subsequent cases have removed many of these apprehensions. 然而，随后的案例又消除了许多类似的忧虑。

17 reassured   

adj.使消除疑虑的；使放心的v.再保证，恢复信心( reassure的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• The captain's confidence during the storm reassured the passengers. 在风暴中船长的信念使旅客们恢复了信心。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• The doctor reassured the old lady. 医生叫那位老妇人放心。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 missionary   

adj.教会的，传教(士)的；n.传教士

参考例句：

• She taught in a missionary school for a couple of years.她在一所教会学校教了两年书。
• I hope every member understands the value of missionary work. 我希望教友都了解传教工作的价值。

19 agonizing   

adj.痛苦难忍的；使人苦恼的v.使极度痛苦；折磨(agonize的ing形式)

参考例句：

• I spent days agonizing over whether to take the job or not. 我用了好些天苦苦思考是否接受这个工作。
• his father's agonizing death 他父亲极度痛苦的死

20 inquiry   

n.打听，询问，调查，查问

参考例句：

• Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
• The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。

21 sobbing   

<主方>Ⅰ adj.湿透的

参考例句：

• I heard a child sobbing loudly. 我听见有个孩子在呜呜地哭。
• Her eyes were red with recent sobbing. 她的眼睛因刚哭过而发红。

22 exclamation   

n.感叹号，惊呼，惊叹词

参考例句：

• He could not restrain an exclamation of approval.他禁不住喝一声采。
• The author used three exclamation marks at the end of the last sentence to wake up the readers.作者在文章的最后一句连用了三个惊叹号，以引起读者的注意。

23 reverently   

adv.虔诚地

参考例句：

• He gazed reverently at the handiwork. 他满怀敬意地凝视着这件手工艺品。
• Pork gazed at it reverently and slowly delight spread over his face. 波克怀着愉快的心情看着这只表，脸上慢慢显出十分崇敬的神色。

24 beseech   

v.祈求，恳求

参考例句：

• I beseech you to do this before it is too late.我恳求你做做这件事吧，趁现在还来得及。
• I beseech your favor.我恳求您帮忙。

25 fervent   

adj.热的，热烈的，热情的

参考例句：

• It was a debate which aroused fervent ethical arguments.那是一场引发强烈的伦理道德争论的辩论。
• Austria was among the most fervent supporters of adolf hitler.奥地利是阿道夫希特勒最狂热的支持者之一。

26 passionate   

adj.热情的，热烈的，激昂的，易动情的，易怒的，性情暴躁的

参考例句：

• He is said to be the most passionate man.据说他是最有激情的人。
• He is very passionate about the project.他对那个项目非常热心。

27 dwelling   

n.住宅，住所，寓所

参考例句：

• Those two men are dwelling with us.那两个人跟我们住在一起。
• He occupies a three-story dwelling place on the Park Street.他在派克街上有一幢3层楼的寓所。