It must be set down to Loring’s credit that none of these meetings were of his planning, for as his love for her deepened, as it did day by day, he felt more and more keenly the barriers[101] which he himself had raised between them. He felt how far wrong he had been in assuming that his life had been wholly his own and that his failures could touch no one but himself. He did not dare to construct the future, but clung to the present with realization9 of its blessings10. He felt a glow of pride in Jean’s friendship for him, and a steady reliance on her faith in him. Week after week went by and the fiber11 within him strengthened. The belief in the worthwhileness of life came to him with a splendid rush of conviction that was not to be denied.
The depth of happiness is, unfortunately, however, no criterion of its duration. One evening the stage, after depositing at the office its load of mail and newcomers, lurched jerkily up the incline that led to Mr. Cameron’s house, instead of being driven to the corral as usual. Loring watched it and his spirits dropped like a barometer12. An incident may easily depress high spirits, though it takes an event to raise low ones. The event which had raised his spirits to-day was a meeting with Jean Cameron while Mr. Cameron was inspecting Number Three shaft13. Jean had accompanied her father to the hoist and Loring had been able to talk with her[102] for a longer time than usual. The incident that had depressed14 was merely a slight break in the routine. He did not usually notice the stage. Why should he do so now? What was more natural than that Mr. Cameron should have some visitor?
“Probably one of the directors of the company, or some official,” Stephen reflected. “Perhaps that was why that new saddle was sent down to the corral.”
Loring shortened his day by dividing it into periods. A period consisted of the time required to raise ten buckets of ore. At the end of each period he permitted himself to glance over his shoulder, where just beyond the corner of the ore cribs he could see the porch of Mr. Cameron’s house. Now and then he was rewarded by a glimpse of Jean reading or talking to her father. Loring was very honest with himself and never before the requisite15 amount of work was accomplished16 did he give himself his reward. This morning he had gone through the usual routine, lowered the day’s shift and patiently waited to hoist the first result of their labor17. It had been a severe strain on his subjective18 integrity, when, after he had raised nine buckets of ore, the expected[103] tenth turned out to be merely a load of dulled drills sent up to be sharpened. Exasperated19, he watched while the “nipper” boys unloaded the drills and put in the newly sharpened sets which they had brought from the blacksmith’s. One little fellow either unduly20 conscientious21, or with a wholesome22 dread23 of the wrath24 of the mine foreman, laboriously25 counted the new drills from the short “starters” to the six- and seven-foot drills that complete the set.
“Oh, they’re all right, Ignacio,” called Stephen. “Chuck them in! ’Sta ’ueno.”
The next time his hopes were fulfilled, and bucket number ten appeared on the surface. As soon as it was clear of the shaft and swung onto the waiting ore car, Stephen turned for his long-desired glance. Tied to the fence in front of Mr. Cameron’s house was another horse beside Jean’s pony26, which he knew so well. As he looked, the door opened and Jean appeared. She was too far away for him to distinguish her features and yet she seemed to him to have an air of buoyancy which he had not before remarked. A man stepped out of the doorway27 behind her. His tan riding-boots were brilliant with a gloss28 that is unknown in[104] a world where men shine their own shoes. The sunlight positively29 quivered upon them. Jean and the stranger mounted, and as they rode nearer to the hoist Stephen observed that the man was singularly good-looking, but “too sleek30 by half,” he growled31 vindictively32, as he turned to his work again.
The stranger turned out to be a young cousin of Mr. Cameron’s, ostensibly in camp to see “western life”; but Stephen had his own opinion as to that. In a week Loring disliked the cousin, in a fortnight he loathed33 him, and all without ever having exchanged a word with the dapper youth. A man who by necessity is compelled to wear a flannel34 shirt and trousers frayed35 by tucking within high boots, is always prone36 to consider a better dressed man as dapper. For a week Stephen had not had a chance to speak with Miss Cameron. The cousin, “Archibald Iverach,” as the letters which Loring saw at the post-office indicated to be his name, may not have been intentionally37 responsible; but to his shadow-like attendance on Jean, Loring attributed the result and accordingly prayed for his departure. “To be sure he is her guest; but that is no reason why he should have too[105] good a time,” he reflected gloomily. “She must be enjoying his visit or she would not keep him so long.”
Had Loring overheard a conversation which took place at Mr. Cameron’s table the day before Iverach’s return to the East, he would have felt his affection for that gentleman still more increased. The conversation had turned upon the types of men in camp. Iverach’s estimate of them had been as disparaging38 as theirs of him. The only men with whom he had come in contact had annoyed him as having no place in his neatly39 constructed world. “Cheap independence” was the phrase that he had used to describe their manner. He had good cause to know this independence for one day he had addressed McKay in a rather lofty fashion, and what McKay had said in return could only be constructed from a careful and diligent40 reading of the unexpurgated parts of all the most lurid41 books in the world combined. The retort had been worthy42 of a territory where the championship swearing belt is held by one who can swear between syllables43. His remarks had reflected on Iverach’s parentage on the male and female sides, it had enlarged on his past,[106] expatiated44 on his probable future, dilated45 upon his present. The pleasantest of the places that awaited him, according to McKay, was hotter than Tombstone in August. His looks and character had been described in a way that had surpassed even McKay’s fertile imagination. Iverach had always imagined that he would fight a man for using such language to him; yet for some reason he had not hastened to express offense46. He was not a coward; but he was not adventurous47 nor easily aroused to anger when it might have unpleasant results. Consequently to-day, when he finished his remarks about the men whom he had seen by observing that they were “the scum of the earth,” he was guilty of no conscious exaggeration.
Mr. Cameron paid no attention to his cousin’s remarks. He had rarely found them rewarding and therefore with his usual Scotch48 economy he declined to waste interest upon them. Jean, however, for some reason took the trouble to continue the discussion.
“Have you met a man named Loring, one of the hoist engineers?” she asked quietly.
Iverach looked up suddenly. “Loring? What is his first name?”
[107]
“Stephen.”
“I have not met him here; but if he is the man I think he is, I happen to have heard something of him in the East. A friend of his asked me to keep an eye out for him if I came to any of the camps in Arizona. In fact, he told me to keep two eyes open for him, one to find him with, and the other to look out for him after I had found him. He intimated that Loring was not a reliable character, to say the least.”
“A friend of his, did you say?”
“I judged that he had been at one time, but from the trend of his conversation his friendship must have been a thing of the dim past. Among other pleasant things about Loring he told me that—”
“Did he say anything about his ability as a hoist engineer? That, I think, is the only thing with which we are concerned here,” interrupted Jean. “You know, Archie, there is a proverb to the effect that ‘a man’s past is his own.’”
“Then all I can say is that Loring is not to be envied his ownership,” Iverach went on, ignoring the danger signal of Jean’s slightly contemptuous manner. “And as for discussing[108] his past, I cannot see any harm in repeating what every one knows about a man.”
Ordinarily Mr. Cameron was the most fair-minded of men, and judged people by what he knew of them, not by what he heard; but he had a particular antipathy49 to Loring, caused by dislike of his type, and also he was not sorry to have Jean hear a few truths about the man whose companionship he dreaded50 for her as much as he resented her championship of him.
“What was it you were going to say about Loring?” he asked of Iverach, as he handed him a cigar.
Iverach paused to clip it carefully with a gold cigar-cutter that hung from his watch-chain. “Of course it is only hearsay51 that I am repeating—” Archibald began hesitatingly.
“Then why repeat it?” asked Jean ironically.
“Oh, the most interesting things in the world are those that you accept on hearsay,” he laughed. “I forget the details of Loring’s history, but this friend intimated that Loring, when engaged to his guardian52’s daughter, borrowed large sums of money from the guardian, and—well, neither the engagement nor the money ever materialized and Stephen Loring[109] is not much sought after in that neighborhood. I met the girl once,” he went on, “and I don’t blame Loring. She was the kind of young woman whose eyes light up only over causes; but the money part of the story, if true, is rather an ugly fact. Dexterity53 with other people’s money is not an agreeable form of deftness54.”
“Utterly contemptible,” snapped Mr. Cameron, flicking55 the ashes from his cigar onto the table with a prodigal56 gesture, only to brush them onto an envelope with the afterthought of an exact nature.
Jean rose and walked toward the door.
“At what time do you ride this afternoon?” her cousin called after her.
“Thanks,” replied Jean, without turning, “but I shall not be able to ride this afternoon, I am intending to spend the time in making a pair of curtains for this window. I do not like the view of the hoist.”
Iverach’s face fell, for he was leaving Quentin the next day, and he had counted much upon this last interview. “Can’t the curtains wait until to-morrow?” he remonstrated57.
“No, they must be finished at once,” replied Jean with decision.
[110]
“Why this burst of domestic energy?” queried58 Mr. Cameron. “You know that you have not taken a needle in your hand since you have been in the camp.”
“I intend to change my habits in many ways,” Jean responded, pressing her lips together firmly.
“I beg of you not to change at all,” said Iverach. “It is impossible to improve a perfect person. However, since you are in the domestic mood, I wonder if you would take pity on a helpless bachelor and take a stitch in my riding-gloves for me?”
“Riding-gloves are a luxury, while curtains are a necessity,” replied Jean firmly. “However, if you will give the gloves to me, I will see that our Chinaman mends them. There is nothing that he cannot do.”
For some minutes after Jean had left the room, her cousin contemplated59 the end of his cigar. It was hard for him to twist her expressions into denoting a mood favorable to his complacency, so he spent an unpleasant half hour. At last, giving up all hope of her reappearance, he moodily60 set forth61 alone on his ride. He realized that in the Western setting he did[111] not appeal to Jean Cameron, and only hoped that when she should return to the East, his deficiencies would be less apparent, while his advantages would show more clearly. He therefore concluded to defer62 putting his fate to the touch until circumstances should prove more propitious63.
The curtains took some time in the making. Jean sewed them with a preoccupied64 elaboration such as she was not accustomed to bestow65 upon such tasks. She had been startled by the effect of her cousin’s words upon her, and now stared at the hem6 of the curtains with a slight frown. She had thought her interest in Stephen to be purely66 abstract and impersonal67, and yet it was not pleasant to think of the person in whom she was even abstractly interested as having been concerned in a dubious68 financial transaction. It certainly added interest to the problem of his regeneration; but nevertheless it abated69 the zeal70 for solving that problem, by making it seem not worth while.
Stephen rejoiced when the day came for Iverach to leave Quentin. He hoped that now his relations with Miss Cameron would be resumed. He was amazed to see how much he[112] had come to rely on his glimpses of her as the inspiration of his existence. The first time that he saw her, however, she passed him with a cool nod in which it would have been hard for any one to find encouragement or inspiration. When this coolness was repeated on several occasions he was puzzled. Then he made up his mind that the underlying71 reason was the cousin, and in this he was certainly correct, though not in the way he supposed. For the first time he began to realize that the work at the hoist was monotonous72.
The Devil has three great allies, natural depravity, aimless activity, and ennui73, and this last is his most trusted, subtle, and reliable agent, especially when coupled with depression.
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1
opposition
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| n.反对，敌对 | |
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stimulus
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| n.刺激，刺激物，促进因素，引起兴奋的事物 | |
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obstinacy
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| n.顽固；（病痛等）难治 | |
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loyalty
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| n.忠诚，忠心 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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hem
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| n.贴边，镶边；vt.缝贴边；(in)包围，限制 | |
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disapproval
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| n.反对，不赞成 | |
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hoist
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| n.升高，起重机，推动；v.升起，升高，举起 | |
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realization
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| n.实现；认识到，深刻了解 | |
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blessings
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| n.（上帝的）祝福( blessing的名词复数 )；好事；福分；因祸得福 | |
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fiber
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| n.纤维，纤维质 | |
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barometer
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| n.气压表，睛雨表，反应指标 | |
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shaft
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| n.(工具的)柄，杆状物 | |
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depressed
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| adj.沮丧的，抑郁的，不景气的，萧条的 | |
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requisite
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| adj.需要的，必不可少的；n.必需品 | |
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accomplished
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| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
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labor
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| n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦 | |
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subjective
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| a.主观(上)的，个人的 | |
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exasperated
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| adj.恼怒的 | |
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unduly
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| adv.过度地，不适当地 | |
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conscientious
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| adj.审慎正直的，认真的，本着良心的 | |
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wholesome
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| adj.适合；卫生的；有益健康的；显示身心健康的 | |
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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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wrath
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| n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒 | |
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laboriously
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| adv.艰苦地；费力地；辛勤地；（文体等）佶屈聱牙地 | |
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pony
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| adj.小型的；n.小马 | |
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doorway
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| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
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gloss
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| n.光泽，光滑；虚饰；注释；vt.加光泽于；掩饰 | |
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positively
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| adv.明确地，断然，坚决地；实在，确实 | |
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sleek
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| adj.光滑的，井然有序的；v.使光滑，梳拢 | |
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growled
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| 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 | |
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vindictively
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| adv.恶毒地；报复地 | |
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loathed
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| v.憎恨，厌恶( loathe的过去式和过去分词 )；极不喜欢 | |
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flannel
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| n.法兰绒；法兰绒衣服 | |
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frayed
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| adj.磨损的v.（使布、绳等）磨损，磨破( fray的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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prone
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| adj.(to)易于…的，很可能…的；俯卧的 | |
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intentionally
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| ad.故意地，有意地 | |
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disparaging
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| adj.轻蔑的，毁谤的v.轻视( disparage的现在分词 )；贬低；批评；非难 | |
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neatly
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| adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地 | |
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diligent
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| adj.勤勉的，勤奋的 | |
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lurid
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| adj.可怕的；血红的；苍白的 | |
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worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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syllables
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| n.音节( syllable的名词复数 ) | |
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expatiated
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| v.详述，细说( expatiate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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45
dilated
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| adj.加宽的，扩大的v.（使某物）扩大，膨胀，张大( dilate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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offense
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| n.犯规，违法行为；冒犯，得罪 | |
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adventurous
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| adj.爱冒险的；惊心动魄的，惊险的，刺激的 | |
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scotch
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| n.伤口，刻痕；苏格兰威士忌酒；v.粉碎，消灭，阻止；adj.苏格兰(人)的 | |
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49
antipathy
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| n.憎恶；反感，引起反感的人或事物 | |
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dreaded
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| adj.令人畏惧的；害怕的v.害怕，恐惧，担心( dread的过去式和过去分词) | |
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51
hearsay
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| n.谣传，风闻 | |
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52
guardian
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| n.监护人；守卫者，保护者 | |
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53
dexterity
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| n.(手的)灵巧，灵活 | |
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54
deftness
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55
flicking
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| （尤指用手指或手快速地）轻击( flick的现在分词 )； （用…）轻挥； （快速地）按开关； 向…笑了一下（或瞥了一眼等） | |
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56
prodigal
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| adj.浪费的，挥霍的，放荡的 | |
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remonstrated
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| v.抗议( remonstrate的过去式和过去分词 )；告诫 | |
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queried
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| v.质疑，对…表示疑问( query的过去式和过去分词 )；询问 | |
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contemplated
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| adj. 预期的 动词contemplate的过去分词形式 | |
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moodily
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| adv.喜怒无常地；情绪多变地；心情不稳地；易生气地 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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defer
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| vt.推迟，拖延；vi.(to)遵从，听从，服从 | |
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propitious
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| adj.吉利的；顺利的 | |
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preoccupied
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| adj.全神贯注的，入神的；被抢先占有的；心事重重的v.占据（某人）思想，使对…全神贯注，使专心于( preoccupy的过去式) | |
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bestow
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| v.把…赠与，把…授予；花费 | |
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purely
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| adv.纯粹地，完全地 | |
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impersonal
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| adj.无个人感情的，与个人无关的，非人称的 | |
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dubious
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| adj.怀疑的，无把握的；有问题的，靠不住的 | |
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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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zeal
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| n.热心，热情，热忱 | |
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underlying
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| adj.在下面的，含蓄的，潜在的 | |
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monotonous
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| adj.单调的，一成不变的，使人厌倦的 | |
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ennui
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| n.怠倦，无聊 | |
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