CHAPTER XIX

 With the Russian's wild death cry still echoing in her senses Emily awoke a half-hour later to a vivid consciousness. She found herself lying in the protecting shade of the boat sail tent which Lavelle had erected¹ for her habitation near the eastern side of the hill on the day after the landing. The scene upon which her eyes had closed flashed again across her vision and she sat up with a shudder².

 

The movement brought to her senses for the first time a realization³ of physical pain. Remembering the strength of spirit which had been given to her to stand upon fire she throttled⁴ the cry which sprang to her lips. Her suffering became precious to her even as the agony of travail⁵ is dear to a woman. Her eyes welled with hot tears.

 

Putting out a hand blindly she found the little canvas sandals. She picked them up and pressed them to her bosom⁷. The charred⁸ heels and soles crumbled⁹ away at her touch. She kissed them with the impulse which would carry a warrior's lips to his colors. To her these pieces of canvas were the symbols of a faith which had sustained her in a trial which passed her understanding.

 

Looking downward at her feet, she found both of them bandaged. She had been dimly conscious of Lavelle doing this service for her. She recognized the bindings as pieces of the hem⁶ of her night robe with which she had bound his brow in the boat. A mysterious thrill went through her; her eyes overflowed¹⁰.

 

The breeze lifted the edge of the tent and disclosed Lavelle to her view. She caught the canvas and held it back. He was just finishing the restepping of the signal mast. His back was toward her.

 

Straightening from his task to his full height and with one of his strong bare arms extended to the mast and the other hanging loosely at his side, he looked out over the sea to the southward. His tattered¹¹ shirt and trousers still wet with sea water clung tightly to his lithe¹², powerful form. There was a challenge in the set of his head and in the grim line of his jaw¹³. His attitude breathed of a man indomitable—one who, indeed, was master of his fate; the intrepid¹⁴ captain of his soul. His destiny would find him thus.

 

The woman in the tent watched this man in wondrous¹⁵ awe¹⁶, nor could she know that his thoughts were alone of her at that moment—of a woman sanctified in his sight not alone by living fire, but also by the passion of a love unutterable. She saw the breeze toss the forelock of his dark brown hair. He started. She dropped the edge of the tent, realizing, without any amazement¹⁷, that they two were alone in an empty, far-flung waste of the world. She laid her head down on her long coat which he had rolled into a pillow. She dared not speak.

 

During what seemed an interminable time, the woman in the tent heard Lavelle moving about outside, and, of a sudden, the singleness of his footfall brought Chang surging into her thoughts. A moment later Lavelle stood in the tent entrance, carrying food and drink. She sat up to behold¹⁸ in his face an expression which stabbed her with its pain.

 

"You are suffering, little woman," he said tenderly.

 

All she could do was shake her head that she was not. Discovering what it was she was holding tightly to her bosom he turned away. He understood.

 

Presently he pressed her to eat the meal he had prepared. Although it nearly choked her to swallow she ate and drank because he wished her to do so.

 

"What of Chang? Has he gone—gone away?" she dared to ask finally.

 

The man sitting in the tent entrance had his gaze fixed¹⁹ far away upon the relentless²⁰ ocean's breast. He nodded his head sadly.

 

"God's benison²¹ be with him—the truest, the best friend it has ever been given to any man to know," Lavelle said, facing Emily. After a second's pause he went on in a tense voice:

 

"This treacherous²² earth—treacherous with the sea's treachery—opened at our feet down there like the snapping jaws²³ of a monster. Chang went first. I put out a hand to save him. The jaws got me.

 

"It seemed very hard that the end should come like that—without even a moment to say good-by." Lavelle paused again. "You can have no idea," he resumed, "what a torment²⁴ of waters is down there—waters filled with reeds and roots which catch at one's limbs and cling to them—like serpents.

 

"As we came up to—to snatch at the crust of shore—it crumbled at our touch. I could see the hill. You—you had just turned away. As I looked your head passed out of my sight. Then, we saw that—that fiend climb up here. We saw him stop and—and look back. I shouted—that is, I tried to shout, but I had no breath. I never was so weak in all—all my days. But whether he heard me or didn't he must have seen what had happened to us. He would never have dared come near you—if he hadn't.

 

"The earth broke under our hands again and again. The sea tore at us. There is a tremendous current under this island. I heard you cry for—for us to come to you. Chang heard you. But we were caught—struggling like two foolish animals in a trap. When the signal staff went down——Why, I think—I could not think. We saw you come to the edge of the hill there—heard you cry again, but the sea——"

 

Lavelle became silent. His eyes sought the great blue deeps below. Emily could not speak. Her soul was crying to comfort this man. The yearning²⁵ of an unknown motherhood was in her heart.

 

"Like most sailor men—deep-water men——" he went on, "Chang could not swim. I imagine he must have found a foothold in one of the roots in the water. He caught me—suddenly—lifted me bodily, it seemed, up out of the sea—on to the shore. He was very powerful. I turned to help him. All was quiet up here. He shook his head and—and let go.

 

"'Go, master. Quick—go! Good-by, flen'. Good-by flor you!'

 

"A second only he floated. Then the sea sucked him—down. He went with a smile—unafraid. And I came to—to you—on the hill. You don't——"

 

His voice broke. He leaped to his feet and walked away. It is not a good thing that a man's tears shall be seen by a strange woman.

 

1 ERECTED   

adj. 直立的，竖立的，笔直的 vt. 使 ... 直立，建立

参考例句：

• A monument to him was erected in St Paul's Cathedral. 在圣保罗大教堂为他修了一座纪念碑。
• A monument was erected to the memory of that great scientist. 树立了一块纪念碑纪念那位伟大的科学家。

2 shudder   

v.战粟，震动，剧烈地摇晃；n.战粟，抖动

参考例句：

• The sight of the coffin sent a shudder through him.看到那副棺材，他浑身一阵战栗。
• We all shudder at the thought of the dreadful dirty place.我们一想到那可怕的肮脏地方就浑身战惊。

3 realization   

n.实现；认识到，深刻了解

参考例句：

• We shall gladly lend every effort in our power toward its realization.我们将乐意为它的实现而竭尽全力。
• He came to the realization that he would never make a good teacher.他逐渐认识到自己永远不会成为好老师。

4 throttled   

v.扼杀( throttle的过去式和过去分词 )；勒死；使窒息；压制

参考例句：

• He throttled the guard with his bare hands. 他徒手掐死了卫兵。
• The pilot got very low before he throttled back. 飞行员减速之前下降得很低。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 travail   

n.阵痛；努力

参考例句：

• Mothers know the travail of giving birth to a child.母亲们了解分娩时的痛苦。
• He gained the medal through his painful travail.他通过艰辛的努力获得了奖牌。

6 hem   

n.贴边，镶边；vt.缝贴边；(in)包围，限制

参考例句：

• The hem on her skirt needs sewing.她裙子上的褶边需要缝一缝。
• The hem of your dress needs to be let down an inch.你衣服的折边有必要放长1英寸。

7 bosom   

n.胸，胸部；胸怀；内心；adj.亲密的

参考例句：

• She drew a little book from her bosom.她从怀里取出一本小册子。
• A dark jealousy stirred in his bosom.他内心生出一阵恶毒的嫉妒。

8 charred   

v.把…烧成炭( char的过去式)；烧焦

参考例句：

• the charred remains of a burnt-out car 被烧焦的轿车残骸
• The intensity of the explosion is recorded on the charred tree trunks. 那些烧焦的树干表明爆炸的强烈。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 crumbled   

（把…）弄碎， （使）碎成细屑( crumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 衰落； 坍塌； 损坏

参考例句：

• He crumbled the bread in his fingers. 他用手指把面包捻碎。
• Our hopes crumbled when the business went bankrupt. 商行破产了，我们的希望也破灭了。

10 overflowed   

溢出的

参考例句：

• Plates overflowed with party food. 聚会上的食物碟满盘盈。
• A great throng packed out the theater and overflowed into the corridors. 一大群人坐满剧院并且还有人涌到了走廊上。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 tattered   

adj.破旧的，衣衫破的

参考例句：

• Her tattered clothes in no way detracted from her beauty.她的破衣烂衫丝毫没有影响她的美貌。
• Their tattered clothing and broken furniture indicated their poverty.他们褴褛的衣服和破烂的家具显出他们的贫穷。

12 lithe   

adj.(指人、身体)柔软的，易弯的

参考例句：

• His lithe athlete's body had been his pride through most of the fifty - six years.他那轻巧自如的运动员体格，五十六年来几乎一直使他感到自豪。
• His walk was lithe and graceful.他走路轻盈而优雅。

13 jaw   

n.颚，颌，说教，流言蜚语；v.喋喋不休，教训

参考例句：

• He delivered a right hook to his opponent's jaw.他给了对方下巴一记右钩拳。
• A strong square jaw is a sign of firm character.强健的方下巴是刚毅性格的标志。

14 intrepid   

adj.无畏的，刚毅的

参考例句：

• He is not really satisfied with his intrepid action.他没有真正满意他的无畏行动。
• John's intrepid personality made him a good choice for team leader.约翰勇敢的个性适合作领导工作。

15 wondrous   

adj.令人惊奇的，奇妙的；adv.惊人地；异乎寻常地；令人惊叹地

参考例句：

• The internal structure of the Department is wondrous to behold.看一下国务院的内部结构是很有意思的。
• We were driven across this wondrous vast land of lakes and forests.我们乘车穿越这片有着湖泊及森林的广袤而神奇的土地。

16 awe   

n.敬畏，惊惧；vt.使敬畏，使惊惧

参考例句：

• The sight filled us with awe.这景色使我们大为惊叹。
• The approaching tornado struck awe in our hearts.正在逼近的龙卷风使我们惊恐万分。

17 amazement   

n.惊奇，惊讶

参考例句：

• All those around him looked at him with amazement.周围的人都对他投射出惊异的眼光。
• He looked at me in blank amazement.他带着迷茫惊诧的神情望着我。

18 behold   

v.看，注视，看到

参考例句：

• The industry of these little ants is wonderful to behold.这些小蚂蚁辛勤劳动的样子看上去真令人惊叹。
• The sunrise at the seaside was quite a sight to behold.海滨日出真是个奇景。

19 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

20 relentless   

adj.残酷的，不留情的，无怜悯心的

参考例句：

• The traffic noise is relentless.交通车辆的噪音一刻也不停止。
• Their training has to be relentless.他们的训练必须是无情的。

21 benison   

n.祝福

参考例句：

• Here,I,on behalf of our manager,express our sincere benison.在此，我仅代表我们总经理，表达我们诚挚的祝福。
• You hurt me a lot,so forget to get my benison for your marriage.你伤我太深，所以休想得到我对你的婚姻的祝福。

22 treacherous   

adj.不可靠的，有暗藏的危险的；adj.背叛的，背信弃义的

参考例句：

• The surface water made the road treacherous for drivers.路面的积水对驾车者构成危险。
• The frozen snow was treacherous to walk on.在冻雪上行走有潜在危险。

23 jaws   

n.口部；嘴

参考例句：

• The antelope could not escape the crocodile's gaping jaws. 那只羚羊无法从鱷鱼张开的大口中逃脱。
• The scored jaws of a vise help it bite the work. 台钳上有刻痕的虎钳牙帮助它紧咬住工件。

24 torment   

n.折磨；令人痛苦的东西(人)；vt.折磨；纠缠

参考例句：

• He has never suffered the torment of rejection.他从未经受过遭人拒绝的痛苦。
• Now nothing aggravates me more than when people torment each other.没有什么东西比人们的互相折磨更使我愤怒。

25 yearning   

a.渴望的；向往的；怀念的

参考例句：

• a yearning for a quiet life 对宁静生活的向往
• He felt a great yearning after his old job. 他对过去的工作有一种强烈的渴想。