CHAPTER IV.

 The days grew hotter, the green corn waved on the hill-side, the wheat was ripening¹, but the deep mystery of death was over it all. The boy goes about his play, he shouts and has his daily contentions², his quarrels and fights, but darkness comes, and as he goes to his bed, his mind reverts³ to a soul that has recently taken its flight. Older people have the consoling prop⁴ of religion or the forceful brace⁵ of philosophy, but in the boy's nostrils⁶ lives the scent⁷ of the roses that lay upon the breast of mystic death; a fear possesses him as he peeps in at the parlor⁸ door. Ah, many days must fall upon a sad memory before it is sweetened. They told me that my young mistress was in Heaven. I asked Aunt Mag if she would be my mistress there, and she said no, that there was no mistresses in Heaven, no slaves, but all white and the angels of God. And with the flash of iconoclastic⁹ reason that comes to youth, I asked her why God made black people belong to white people on the earth and afterward¹⁰ made them all equal in Heaven. The old woman turned from her spinning[Pg 26] wheel and held up her hands in fright. "Chile," she said, "you musn't talk like dat. Whut de Lawd do it ain't fur us ter question, an' ef you wan't so young you mout git struck wid lightenin' fur sayin' dem words. Run off ober yander in de yard an' play. I'se er feered de lightenin' mought strike at you anyhow."

 

That night as Bob and I lay in our room, he in his high canopied¹¹ bed, and I on my low lounge, I asked him if he knew that all the black people would be white in Heaven. "Yes, of course," he answered. "It would be a funny Heaven with a lot of niggers standing¹² about, grinning."

 

"But they wouldn't have to grin."

 

"No, but they would."

 

"And you won't own me there, will you?" I said, after a moment's silence.

 

"No, you'll belong to God."

 

"But don't I belong to God now?"

 

I heard him turn over. "Yes, but you belong to me, too. And when I get through with you God may have you. Get over in my bed and I'll bet I can throw you out."

 

"No, Old Miss might hear us. But do you think," I asked after musing¹³ for a time, "that we'll know each[Pg 27] other up there and talk about the time when we were down here?"

 

"Yes; why not?"

 

"But you'd tell me that I used to belong to you and God wouldn't like that."

 

"Well, then, we won't say anything about it, but we'll think about it all the same."

 

"Yes, we'd keep it to ourselves. But if a nigger angel beats a white angel flying, there'll be trouble, won't there?"

 

"There won't be anything of that. God won't let the nigger angels out-fly the white ones."

 

There came a tap at the door—a house-maid come to tell us that if we did not stop talking Old Miss would come in and whip us. We whispered and giggled¹⁴ a long time, and then Bob fell asleep, and I lay there thinking of the white roses that had scented¹⁵ the parlor. It must have been very late for the lights were out everywhere, when I heard voices on the walk just below my window. I looked out cautiously and in the moonlight I saw Old Master and Dr. George Bates. Master was walking up and down, but the doctor stood still.

 

"I want you to understand this," said the old man. "You are at perfect liberty to stay here as long as you[Pg 28] choose—and I will feed you and clothe you, but you must have nothing whatever to say about the running of my affairs. You are constantly meddling¹⁶ with things that don't concern you."

 

"General, it is not my intention to interfere¹⁷, I assure you."

 

"But you do," said Old Master, making an emphatic¹⁸ motion. "You seem to think that I ought to divide my property with you. Get that out of your head as soon as you can."

 

"It has never been in my head, General. I merely suggested that if you would give me Dan I would take him and go South."

 

"Give you Dan! Confound it, haven't I told you that he belongs to Bob?"

 

"Yes, but I didn't know but you gave him away just as a man sometimes gives a colt to a boy—merely to claim."

 

"I don't give things that way, sir."

 

"I know, but your wife—"

 

"There, that will do."

 

"She said that she thought that you might be induced—"

 

"Didn't I say that would do?"

 

"Yes, sir, but let me finish, if you please. Of course[Pg 29] you know that my wife's share, whatever it may amount to, will fall to me?"

 

"Yes, if I so desire it, sir."

 

"But I know you well enough to feel that you won't refuse me."

 

"Now you are presuming upon my kindness, sir."

 

"No, sir; I am paying a tribute to your sense of justice. And now this is what I have agreed to do: to take Dan and wait until you are ready—"

 

"You have agreed with whom, sir?" Old Master broke in.

 

"Oh, I don't know that it was exactly an agreement. I had a talk with your wife, and—"

 

"Infamous¹⁹ puppy!" Old Master cried, shaking his fist in the doctor's face. "Didn't I tell you that you'd gone far enough in that direction?"

 

"General," said the doctor, stepping back, "you have insulted me."

 

Old Master snorted. "Oh, I have insulted you, have I? Then I have done something that I thought must be impossible. Listen to me. You came here a beggar, with a doctor's sheep-skin under your arm; you are of a good family—that I will not deny. But I say you came a beggar, and you won my child—how, God only knows. You told me that you would [Pg 30]practice medicine on the plantation²⁰ after you were married, but did you?"

 

"Why, yes, sir; I have attended many a case. You know one very well."

 

"Oh, you have? Did you get out of bed when they sent for you one night to see old Aunt Mag? Didn't you complain that you were too sick to get up? And that very night, sir, didn't you slip away and play poker²¹ over the creek²²?"

 

"Somebody has lied about me," the doctor declared.

 

"I admit, sir, that lying has been done, but you did it."

 

"General, I insist that you must not talk to me this way. I'm no dog."

 

"If you were, sir, I would be more considerate of you."

 

"Keep on and you'll say something that you may regret."

 

Just at that moment Old Master had turned to walk down the path, but he wheeled about. "What's that? Say something that I may regret? I don't know about that, sir, but I may say something that you'll regret. I may tell you to get off this place, and I won't regret it, but you will."

 

"That would be a scandal, General."

 

[Pg 31]

 

"Yes, a disgrace—to you." The old man walked down the path, tall and gaunt in the moon-light. He turned, and coming back, stepping slowly, he said: "But it is our duty to avoid anything in the nature of a rupture²³. So now, I'll tell you what I'll agree to do. I will give you Sam and money enough to go South, and when the time comes to divide the estate, you shall have your share. Now, I ask you if that is not fair?"

 

"Yes, General, it is perfectly²⁴ fair, but—"

 

"But what, sir?" Master snapped impatiently.

 

"But I don't want Sam. I want Dan—want to make a race rider of him."

 

"What good will a race rider do you? You've got no horses."

 

"I can get the horses."

 

"But you can't get Dan, sir, so let the matter rest. Bates, I don't want to get mad, and I should think, sir, that in the light of our recent affliction—"

 

"I understand, General, and we'll let the subject drop, but if Bob should agree—"

 

"Stop, there, sir. Bob is not old enough to entertain a business proposition." For a time the old man walked up and down, with his hands behind him and then turned upon the doctor. "I believe, sir, that you are an evil-minded man. For a long time I thought[Pg 32] that your laziness was an indication of good nature—the lazy dog is rarely vicious—but now I am of the opinion that you have an active quality, that of rascality²⁵, sir."

 

"General," said the doctor, "I can't stand everything. You forget, sir, that I am a gentleman."

 

"Oh, do I forget it?" the old man spoke²⁶ up. "There is a difference between forgetting a thing and never having known it. Bates, I have endeavored to like you, I have striven to crush what I hoped was merely a prejudice, but I can't. I don't think that we have ever held an agreeable conversation. There is something about you that antagonizes me. When you are away I am determined²⁷ to like you, but when you come back, I find that my resolve is weak. I don't want to drive you off—I would stand most anything rather than face a neighborhood scandal, but don't you think that it would be a good idea for you to go away and stay away for a long time? I say, don't you?"

 

"You can drive me off, sir."

 

"Ah, the very thing you want me to do—you want to put my name into the mouths of the gossipers."

 

"General, you have called me a scoundrel and now you are trying to prove it. I can stand a great deal, but I can't put up with everything—even from you. I[Pg 33] have told you that I am a gentleman, and while a gentleman respects age, he cannot permit age to humiliate²⁸ him. I know that you've got nerve enough to shoot a man who rides into your room—"

 

"Another word of that, Bates, and I will knock you down."

 

"You have gone too far," Bates replied in a tone that made me shiver. The moon shone upon his half upturned face and I fancied that I saw the glitter of his evil eyes. Master, who was now standing some distance from him said something which I did not catch and Bates, with his hand upraised, made a stride toward him. At my elbow, on a stand near the window, was a heavy glass tumbler. Indeed, I had long held it in my hand, and when Bates strode forward, I threw the tumbler with all my might. I heard it strike, and leaning out, I saw the doctor lying on the ground. I heard Old Master shout for a light, and now thoroughly²⁹ frightened. I ran to my lounge and lay there with the cover drawn³⁰ over my head.

1 ripening   

v.成熟，使熟( ripen的现在分词 )；熟化；熟成

参考例句：

• The corn is blossoming [ripening]. 玉米正在开花[成熟]。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• When the summer crop is ripening, the autumn crop has to be sowed. 夏季作物成熟时，就得播种秋季作物。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 contentions   

n.竞争( contention的名词复数 )；争夺；争论；论点

参考例句：

• Direct tests on individual particles do not support these contentions. 对单个粒子所作的直接试验并不支持这些论点。 来自辞典例句
• His contentions cannot be laughed out of court. 对他的争辩不能一笑置之。 来自辞典例句

3 reverts   

恢复( revert的第三人称单数 )； 重提； 回到…上； 归还

参考例句：

• The mind reverts to the earliest days of colonial history. 我们回想到早期的殖民地历史。
• Macau reverts to Chinese sovereignty at midnight on December19. 澳门主权于十二月十九日零时回归中国。

4 prop   

vt.支撑；n.支柱，支撑物；支持者，靠山

参考例句：

• A worker put a prop against the wall of the tunnel to keep it from falling.一名工人用东西支撑住隧道壁好使它不会倒塌。
• The government does not intend to prop up declining industries.政府无意扶持不景气的企业。

5 brace   

n. 支柱,曲柄,大括号; v. 绷紧,顶住,(为困难或坏事)做准备

参考例句：

• My daughter has to wear a brace on her teeth. 我的女儿得戴牙套以矫正牙齿。
• You had better brace yourself for some bad news. 有些坏消息,你最好做好准备。

6 nostrils   

鼻孔( nostril的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Her nostrils flared with anger. 她气得两个鼻孔都鼓了起来。
• The horse dilated its nostrils. 马张大鼻孔。

7 scent   

n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉

参考例句：

• The air was filled with the scent of lilac.空气中弥漫着丁香花的芬芳。
• The flowers give off a heady scent at night.这些花晚上散发出醉人的芳香。

8 parlor   

n.店铺，营业室；会客室，客厅

参考例句：

• She was lying on a small settee in the parlor.她躺在客厅的一张小长椅上。
• Is there a pizza parlor in the neighborhood?附近有没有比萨店？

9 iconoclastic   

adj.偶像破坏的，打破旧习的

参考例句：

• His iconoclastic tendencies can get him into trouble. 他与传统信仰相悖的思想倾向可能会给他带来麻烦。 来自辞典例句
• The film is an iconoclastic allegory. 电影是一个关于破坏的寓言。 来自互联网

10 afterward   

adv.后来；以后

参考例句：

• Let's go to the theatre first and eat afterward. 让我们先去看戏，然后吃饭。
• Afterward,the boy became a very famous artist.后来，这男孩成为一个很有名的艺术家。

11 canopied   

adj. 遮有天篷的

参考例句：

• Mist canopied the city. 薄雾笼罩着城市。
• The centrepiece was a magnificent canopied bed belonged to Talleyrand, the great 19th-century French diplomat. 展位中心是一架华丽的四柱床，它的故主是19世纪法国著名外交家塔列郎。

12 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

13 musing   

n. 沉思，冥想 adj. 沉思的, 冥想的 动词muse的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• "At Tellson's banking-house at nine," he said, with a musing face. “九点在台尔森银行大厦见面，”他想道。 来自英汉文学 - 双城记
• She put the jacket away, and stood by musing a minute. 她把那件上衣放到一边，站着沉思了一会儿。

14 giggled   

v.咯咯地笑( giggle的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The girls giggled at the joke. 女孩子们让这笑话逗得咯咯笑。
• The children giggled hysterically. 孩子们歇斯底里地傻笑。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 scented   

adj.有香味的；洒香水的；有气味的v.嗅到(scent的过去分词)

参考例句：

• I let my lungs fill with the scented air. 我呼吸着芬芳的空气。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The police dog scented about till he found the trail. 警犬嗅来嗅去，终于找到了踪迹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

16 meddling   

v.干涉，干预（他人事务）( meddle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He denounced all "meddling" attempts to promote a negotiation. 他斥责了一切“干预”促成谈判的企图。 来自辞典例句
• They liked this field because it was never visited by meddling strangers. 她们喜欢这块田野，因为好事的陌生人从来不到那里去。 来自辞典例句

17 interfere   

v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰

参考例句：

• If we interfere, it may do more harm than good.如果我们干预的话，可能弊多利少。
• When others interfere in the affair,it always makes troubles. 别人一卷入这一事件，棘手的事情就来了。

18 emphatic   

adj.强调的，着重的；无可置疑的，明显的

参考例句：

• Their reply was too emphatic for anyone to doubt them.他们的回答很坚决，不容有任何人怀疑。
• He was emphatic about the importance of being punctual.他强调严守时间的重要性。

19 infamous   

adj.声名狼藉的，臭名昭著的，邪恶的

参考例句：

• He was infamous for his anti-feminist attitudes.他因反对女性主义而声名狼藉。
• I was shocked by her infamous behaviour.她的无耻行径令我震惊。

20 plantation   

n.种植园，大农场

参考例句：

• His father-in-law is a plantation manager.他岳父是个种植园经营者。
• The plantation owner has possessed himself of a vast piece of land.这个种植园主把大片土地占为己有。

21 poker   

n.扑克；vt.烙制

参考例句：

• He was cleared out in the poker game.他打扑克牌，把钱都输光了。
• I'm old enough to play poker and do something with it.我打扑克是老手了，可以玩些花样。

22 creek   

n.小溪，小河，小湾

参考例句：

• He sprang through the creek.他跳过小河。
• People sunbathe in the nude on the rocks above the creek.人们在露出小溪的岩石上裸体晒日光浴。

23 rupture   

n.破裂；(关系的)决裂；v.(使)破裂

参考例句：

• I can rupture a rule for a friend.我可以为朋友破一次例。
• The rupture of a blood vessel usually cause the mark of a bruise.血管的突然破裂往往会造成外伤的痕迹。

24 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

25 rascality   

流氓性，流氓集团

参考例句：

26 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：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

27 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

28 humiliate   

v.使羞辱，使丢脸[同]disgrace

参考例句：

• What right had they to bully and humiliate people like this?凭什么把人欺侮到这个地步呢？
• They pay me empty compliments which only humiliate me.他们虚情假意地恭维我，这只能使我感到羞辱。

29 thoroughly   

adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地

参考例句：

• The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
• The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。

30 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。