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CHAPTER VI
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 The cliff and the little harbour beneath looked as beautiful as ever; but there was an element of sadness about the place whenever Lance went down to see Hezz, for he was pretty sure to encounter one or other of the sad-faced women busy in some way or another.
 
There was no playtime for Hezz, whose big, open, boyish face had grown old and anxious-looking; but he always had a smile and a look of welcome for Lance whenever he went down, and rushed off to get the boat ready for a fishing trip somewhere or another.
 
But these were not pleasure excursions, for as soon as the boat was pushed off the two lads tugged1 at the oars2 or set the sail to run off to some well-known fishing ground, where they worked away in a grim earnest way to get together a good maund of fish, a part of which was always sold up at the "big house," and at a good price too.
 
As for the women, they worked hard in their patches of garden, or went out in couples to bait and lay the lobster3 pots, or set the trammel nets, sometimes successfully, more often to come back empty; but somehow they managed to live and toil4 on patiently with a kind of hopeful feeling that one day things would mend.
 
"Ever see any of the French smugglers now, Hezz?" said Lance to him one day.
 
The boy's eyes flashed, and he knit his brows.
 
"No," he said, in a deep growl5, for there had been no squeak6 in his voice since the night of the fight; the last boyish sound broke right away in that struggle, and he seemed to have suddenly developed into a man. "No," he said, "nor don't want to. If it hadn't been for them the old man and Billy and t'others would ha' been at home, 'stead o' wandering the wide world over."
 
"Have you any idea where they are, Hezz?"
 
The lad looked at him fiercely.
 
"Want to get 'em took?" he growled7.
 
"Of course," said Lance, smiling. "Just the sort of thing I should do."
 
"Well, I didn't know," said Hezz.
 
"Yes, you did," cried Lance. "Want me to kick you for telling a lie?"
 
"Well, you're a young gent, and young gents do such things. Look at your cousin."
 
"Now, just you apologise for what you said, or I'll pitch into you, Hezz," cried Lance. "Now then: is that the sort of thing I should do if I knew where the old man and the rest were?"
 
"No," said Hezz, grinning, "not you."
 
"Then just you apologise at once."
 
"Beg your pardon, grant your grace, wish I may die if I do so any more. That do?"
 
"Yes, that'll do. Now tell me where they are, just to show me you do trust me."
 
"Tell you in a minute, Master Lance," cried the lad earnestly, "but I don't know a bit. We did hear from a Falmouth boat as some un' had sin 'em up Middlesbro' way after the herrin'; but that's all, and p'raps they're all drownded. I say, I'll tell you something, though. What d'yer think my old woman said about your mother?"
 
"I don't know. What did she say?"
 
"Said she was just a hangel, and she didn't know what she should ha' done all through the stormy time if it hadn't been for her."
 
"Oh, bother! I didn't want to hear about that," said Lance hurriedly.
 
"But you ought to hear, and so I telled you. I say, what's gone of your cousin?"
 
"Never you mind. What is it to you?" said Lance roughly. "You don't want to see him again."
 
"Nay8, I don't want to see him, Master Lance, 'cause I might feel tempted9 like; and I don't want to run again' him, it might make me feel mad."
 
"Ah, well, you won't feel mad, Hezz, for he is never likely to come back here again. He's at a big school place, and going to college soon."
 
"Well, I'm glad he isn't likely to come; not as I should fly out at him, but Billy's wife right down hates him, and there's the other women do too, for getting their lads sent away. You see they've the little uns to keep; and Billy's wife says to me, on'y las' Sunday as we come back along the cliffs from church with the little gal10, 'Hezz,' she says, and she burst out crying, 'it's like being a lone11 widow with her man drowned in a storm, and it's cruel, cruel hard to bear.'"
 
"And what did you say, Hezz?"
 
"Nothin', Master Lance. Couldn't say nothing. Made me feel choky and as if my voice was goin' to break agen; so I give her luttle gal a pigaback home, and that seemed to do Billy's wife good. Hah, I should like to see our old man home agen, for it's hard work to comfort mother sometimes when I come back without my fish, and she shakes her head at me and says, 'Ah, if your father had been here!'"
 
"Poor old lady!" said Lance.
 
"You see, it's when she's hungry, Master Lance. She don't mean it, 'cause she knows well enough there was times and times when the old man come back with an empty maund; but then you see she'd got him, and now it's no fish and no him nayther.—No, I won't, Master Lance. I didn't say all that for you to be givin' me money agen."
 
"Well, I know that, stupid. It's my money, and I shall spend it how I like. It isn't to buy anything for you, but for you to give to the old woman."
 
"Nay, I won't take it. If you want to give it her, give it yourself. I arn't a beggar.—Yes, I am, Master Lance—about the hungriest beggar I ever see."
 
"You take that half-crown and give it to Mother Poltree, or I'll never speak to you again."
 
"No, I won't. You give it her."
 
"I can't, Hezz; she makes so much fuss about it, and kisses me, and then cries. Seems to do more harm than good."
 
"I won't take it," growled Hezz, "but you may shove the gashly thing in my pocket if you like.—Thankye for her, Master Lance; it arn't for me. And look here, mind, I've got it all chalked down in strokes behind my bedroom door, and me and Billy and the old man'll pay it all back agen some day."
 
"All right, Hezz," said Lance merrily. "You shall; so it's all so much saved up, and when you do pay it we'll buy a new boat, regular clinker-built, copper-fastened, and sail and mast."
 
"That we will, Master Lance," cried the lad eagerly. "One as can sail too, so's we can hold a rope astern and offer to give t'others a tow. I say, think the old man will ever come back?"
 
"I hope so, Hezz."
 
"Ay, that's what I do—hopes. Sent over the sea, I s'pose, if they did."
 
"Oh, don't talk about it, Hezz!" cried Lance bitterly. "Why didn't they be content with getting a living with the fish?"
 
Hezz made no reply, but trudged12 off to the long whitewashed13 cottage on the cliff, where as Lance watched he saw Mother Poltree come out and Hezz hand her the big silver coin with King George's head on one side.
 
The result was that the brawny14 old woman threw her apron15 over her face, tore it down again and looked down below, caught sight of the giver, and began to descend16.
 
But Lance was too quick for her: he took flight and ran below the cliff, scrambling17 over the rocks, for it was low tide, and had a toilsome climb up a dangerous part so as to get back home.

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1 tugged 8a37eb349f3c6615c56706726966d38e     
v.用力拉,使劲拉,猛扯( tug的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She tugged at his sleeve to get his attention. 她拽了拽他的袖子引起他的注意。
  • A wry smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. 他的嘴角带一丝苦笑。 来自《简明英汉词典》
2 oars c589a112a1b341db7277ea65b5ec7bf7     
n.桨,橹( oar的名词复数 );划手v.划(行)( oar的第三人称单数 )
参考例句:
  • He pulled as hard as he could on the oars. 他拼命地划桨。
  • The sailors are bending to the oars. 水手们在拼命地划桨。 来自《简明英汉词典》
3 lobster w8Yzm     
n.龙虾,龙虾肉
参考例句:
  • The lobster is a shellfish.龙虾是水生贝壳动物。
  • I like lobster but it does not like me.我喜欢吃龙虾,但它不适宜于我的健康。
4 toil WJezp     
vi.辛劳工作,艰难地行动;n.苦工,难事
参考例句:
  • The wealth comes from the toil of the masses.财富来自大众的辛勤劳动。
  • Every single grain is the result of toil.每一粒粮食都来之不易。
5 growl VeHzE     
v.(狗等)嗥叫,(炮等)轰鸣;n.嗥叫,轰鸣
参考例句:
  • The dog was biting,growling and wagging its tail.那条狗在一边撕咬一边低声吼叫,尾巴也跟着摇摆。
  • The car growls along rutted streets.汽车在车辙纵横的街上一路轰鸣。
6 squeak 4Gtzo     
n.吱吱声,逃脱;v.(发出)吱吱叫,侥幸通过;(俚)告密
参考例句:
  • I don't want to hear another squeak out of you!我不想再听到你出声!
  • We won the game,but it was a narrow squeak.我们打赢了这场球赛,不过是侥幸取胜。
7 growled 65a0c9cac661e85023a63631d6dab8a3     
v.(动物)发狺狺声, (雷)作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 );低声咆哮着说
参考例句:
  • \"They ought to be birched, \" growled the old man. 老人咆哮道:“他们应受到鞭打。” 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He growled out an answer. 他低声威胁着回答。 来自《简明英汉词典》
8 nay unjzAQ     
adv.不;n.反对票,投反对票者
参考例句:
  • He was grateful for and proud of his son's remarkable,nay,unique performance.他为儿子出色的,不,应该是独一无二的表演心怀感激和骄傲。
  • Long essays,nay,whole books have been written on this.许多长篇大论的文章,不,应该说是整部整部的书都是关于这件事的。
9 tempted b0182e969d369add1b9ce2353d3c6ad6     
v.怂恿(某人)干不正当的事;冒…的险(tempt的过去分词)
参考例句:
  • I was sorely tempted to complain, but I didn't. 我极想发牢骚,但还是没开口。
  • I was tempted by the dessert menu. 甜食菜单馋得我垂涎欲滴。
10 gal 56Zy9     
n.姑娘,少女
参考例句:
  • We decided to go with the gal from Merrill.我们决定和那个从梅里尔来的女孩合作。
  • What's the name of the gal? 这个妞叫什么?
11 lone Q0cxL     
adj.孤寂的,单独的;唯一的
参考例句:
  • A lone sea gull flew across the sky.一只孤独的海鸥在空中飞过。
  • She could see a lone figure on the deserted beach.她在空旷的海滩上能看到一个孤独的身影。
12 trudged e830eb9ac9fd5a70bf67387e070a9616     
vt.& vi.跋涉,吃力地走(trudge的过去式与过去分词形式)
参考例句:
  • He trudged the last two miles to the town. 他步履艰难地走完最后两英里到了城里。
  • He trudged wearily along the path. 他沿着小路疲惫地走去。 来自《简明英汉词典》
13 whitewashed 38aadbb2fa5df4fec513e682140bac04     
粉饰,美化,掩饰( whitewash的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • The wall had been whitewashed. 墙已粉过。
  • The towers are in the shape of bottle gourds and whitewashed. 塔呈圆形,状近葫芦,外敷白色。 来自汉英文学 - 现代散文
14 brawny id7yY     
adj.强壮的
参考例句:
  • The blacksmith has a brawny arm.铁匠有强壮的胳膊。
  • That same afternoon the marshal appeared with two brawny assistants.当天下午,警长带着两名身强力壮的助手来了。
15 apron Lvzzo     
n.围裙;工作裙
参考例句:
  • We were waited on by a pretty girl in a pink apron.招待我们的是一位穿粉红色围裙的漂亮姑娘。
  • She stitched a pocket on the new apron.她在新围裙上缝上一只口袋。
16 descend descend     
vt./vi.传下来,下来,下降
参考例句:
  • I hope the grace of God would descend on me.我期望上帝的恩惠。
  • We're not going to descend to such methods.我们不会沦落到使用这种手段。
17 scrambling cfea7454c3a8813b07de2178a1025138     
v.快速爬行( scramble的现在分词 );攀登;争夺;(军事飞机)紧急起飞
参考例句:
  • Scrambling up her hair, she darted out of the house. 她匆忙扎起头发,冲出房去。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • She is scrambling eggs. 她正在炒蛋。 来自《简明英汉词典》


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