CHAPTER XVII. A NIGHT ATTACK.

 “There’s nothing like being square, fellows. You can’t beat it, I don’t care what any one says. It’s not so much whether you win or lose, it’s simply that you feel square inside. That’s what Davy Crockett meant when he said: ‘Be sure you’re right, then go ahead!’ Davy didn’t care a snap about dying—he knew he was right, and he won out!”

“Lecture on history by Frank Merriwell, senior,” laughed Chip. His father smiled as he watched the lights of the train flashing up the valley.

“It’s a fact,” he went on, turning to Chip and Billy McQuade and Clancy, who had accompanied him to the train. “I’m not preaching, and you know it.”

“But Davy Crockett died in the Alamo,” interjected Clancy doubtfully.

“Sure,” flashed back Frank Merriwell, senior. “That’s why he won, that’s why he’ll live forever, Clancy. He knew he was right—get that? Defeat is no sign of failure, not a bit of it. This Colonel Carson, of Carsonville, has been winning consistently until you fellows turned the trick on him. Now he’s started in to reap the whirlwind.”

[140]

“He reaped it, all right, when Chip pitched to-day,” said Billy Mac. “He reaped a few double shoots he didn’t expect—or, rather, the Clippers did.”

“You’ve got the idea,” said Merriwell, as the train pulled in. “Well, so long for the present, everybody. Good luck to you on Monday, Frank! I’ll try to run down from Bloomfield to see that game, but I can’t promise. I’ve got some important affairs on with Dick—you’ll learn about them later.”

He handed his grip to the porter and sprang up the steps. The eleven-o’clock express was already late, and there was only time for a last wave of the hand before the train began to move, then drew away into the night.

“I wish you fellows wouldn’t go to the hotel,” said Billy, as the three friends started toward town. “We’ve all kinds of room at home.”

Chip flung his arm over the other’s shoulder, smiling.

“Cheer up, Billy! Clan¹ and I haven’t had much chance to get together since he came home from the West, you know. We’ll have an old-time gabfest, and will get acquainted again before we come up to the house to-morrow. By gracious, these streets are dark!”

“I’m sorry now we didn’t come down in the Hornet,” said Clancy regretfully. “We could have piled into her somehow.”

[141]

Late Saturday night in Carsonville was, indeed, a dark time, especially for the Carsonville Clippers!

Quite naturally, Colonel Carson and his son had not taken their beating with a good grace. Bully² Carson was an excellent pitcher³, but so far did Chip outclass him, that he and his father were furious over the disgrace of being beaten by a pick-up nine from their own home town.

No sooner was the game over, than they put their heads together in order to concoct⁴ a plan which would assist them both in humiliating the Merriwells and in winning a few side bets upon the Franklin game. Colonel Carson was fond of gambling⁵, but he usually liked to know beforehand which way the game was going to come out.

As a result of their conference, the astute⁶ colonel hurriedly caught the late afternoon train for Fardale, determined⁷ to gain revenge on Chip and his father, and recoup his losses at the same time.

He needed only a lever in order to get his machinations into working order, and this lever he found in the person of Bob Randall. Having discovered that his nephew was not cut on his own pattern and merely disliked Chip Merriwell with an open and manly⁸ fervor⁹, he had changed his tactics. Obtaining the information he was after, he caught the late train back to Carsonville,[142] passing that which bore Frank Merriwell, senior, on the way. Things were shaping themselves very nicely, indeed, he reflected.

Meantime, Bully Carson had been busy trying to obtain his own revenge. During the evening his team met at the town pool room, which they frequented the greater part of the time, and Bully set to work.

Squint¹⁰ Fletcher, his catcher, could barely walk. Bully passed him up with a scowl¹¹, and turned to the rest of the assembled Clippers.

“We hadn’t ought to let them fellers get away with it,” he declared cunningly. “They put the spurs to us right, then they beat up Squint here.”

“If you hadn’t blown up they wouldn’t have beaten us,” growled¹² Ironton, the Clippers’ shortstop.

This criticism was quite true. But Bully Carson was loath¹³ to admit it, so he merely frowned the more.

“If we’d had a little decent support from you guys,” he snapped, “I wouldn’t have gone up. How can a pitcher do anything when he don’t get any support?”

“How can he get support when his balls get knocked a mile outside the grounds?” snapped back Ironton.

A general grin went up at Carson’s expense. It was quite true that when he had started to[143] lose his head, Chip’s men had fallen on him and pounded the ball unmercifully, and Bully knew it.

“Well,” he insisted surlily, “we oughtn’t to let ’em get away with it, just the same. They’d ought to go back home so’s they’d know what they’d been up against.”

A general mutter of assent¹⁴ went up. On this point, at least, it was evident that the Clippers thoroughly¹⁵ agreed with their captain.

“Well, what’s the process?” inquired Murray, the second baseman.

Bully gathered them around him, with a wary¹⁶ glance at the other occupants of the pool room. He lit a cigarette, got it drooping¹⁷ in approved fashion from one corner of his mouth, then explained himself.

“I happen to know that Merriwell’s old man is goin’ off by the express. I heard ’em say somethin’ about it. More’n likely, the kid and that carrot top who played first will come down to see the old man off. It’s gettin’ along toward train time, and if we went down we’d be liable to meet them two comin’ back. If the whole crowd’s with ’em, so much the better.”

“Count me out,” growled Squint Fletcher. “I got both eyes shut.”

“It ain’t so bad, Bully,” said Ironton. “We can beat ’em up proper, eh? Guess there’s enough of us without Squint.”

Bully Carson’s proposal was accepted without[144] any great enthusiasm, but it was decided¹⁸ that Merriwell and his friends needed a lesson, consequently they must be given it without delay.

So, after rolling fresh cigarettes, the party decamped toward the railroad station. There were six of them, all told, for two had remained to help Squint Fletcher home, but it was conceded that six Clippers would be enough to handle Merriwell and as many of his “gang” as might be with him.

While nearing the station, which was situated¹⁹ at some little distance from the center of town, the train was heard pulling out. Ironton had hastened ahead, and a moment later he returned with word that Merriwell and two others were coming. The Clippers hastily disposed themselves in a dark doorway²⁰.

1 clan   

n.氏族，部落，宗族，家族，宗派

参考例句：

• She ranks as my junior in the clan.她的辈分比我小。
• The Chinese Christians,therefore,practically excommunicate themselves from their own clan.所以，中国的基督徒简直是被逐出了自己的家族了。

2 bully   

n.恃强欺弱者，小流氓；vt.威胁，欺侮

参考例句：

• A bully is always a coward.暴汉常是懦夫。
• The boy gave the bully a pelt on the back with a pebble.那男孩用石子掷击小流氓的背脊。

3 pitcher   

n.(有嘴和柄的)大水罐；(棒球)投手

参考例句：

• He poured the milk out of the pitcher.他从大罐中倒出牛奶。
• Any pitcher is liable to crack during a tight game.任何投手在紧张的比赛中都可能会失常。

4 concoct   

v.调合，制造

参考例句：

• I gave her a tip on how to concoct a new kind of soup.我教她配制一种新汤的诀窍。
• I began to concoct explanations of my own.我开始思考自己的解释。

5 gambling   

n.赌博；投机

参考例句：

• They have won a lot of money through gambling.他们赌博赢了很多钱。
• The men have been gambling away all night.那些人赌了整整一夜。

6 astute   

adj.机敏的，精明的

参考例句：

• A good leader must be an astute judge of ability.一个优秀的领导人必须善于识别人的能力。
• The criminal was very astute and well matched the detective in intelligence.这个罪犯非常狡猾，足以对付侦探的机智。

7 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。

8 manly   

adj.有男子气概的；adv.男子般地，果断地

参考例句：

• The boy walked with a confident manly stride.这男孩以自信的男人步伐行走。
• He set himself manly tasks and expected others to follow his example.他给自己定下了男子汉的任务，并希望别人效之。

9 fervor   

n.热诚；热心；炽热

参考例句：

• They were concerned only with their own religious fervor.他们只关心自己的宗教热诚。
• The speech aroused nationalist fervor.这个演讲喚起了民族主义热情。

10 squint   

v. 使变斜视眼, 斜视, 眯眼看, 偏移, 窥视; n. 斜视, 斜孔小窗; adj. 斜视的, 斜的

参考例句：

• A squint can sometimes be corrected by an eyepatch. 斜视有时候可以通过戴眼罩来纠正。
• The sun was shinning straight in her eyes which made her squint. 太阳直射着她的眼睛,使她眯起了眼睛。

11 scowl   

vi.(at)生气地皱眉，沉下脸，怒视；n.怒容

参考例句：

• I wonder why he is wearing an angry scowl.我不知道他为何面带怒容。
• The boss manifested his disgust with a scowl.老板面带怒色，清楚表示出他的厌恶之感。

12 growled   

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》

13 loath   

adj.不愿意的；勉强的

参考例句：

• The little girl was loath to leave her mother.那小女孩不愿离开她的母亲。
• They react on this one problem very slow and very loath.他们在这一问题上反应很慢，很不情愿。

14 assent   

v.批准，认可；n.批准，认可

参考例句：

• I cannot assent to what you ask.我不能应允你的要求。
• The new bill passed by Parliament has received Royal Assent.议会所通过的新方案已获国王批准。

15 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。

16 wary   

adj.谨慎的，机警的，小心的

参考例句：

• He is wary of telling secrets to others.他谨防向他人泄露秘密。
• Paula frowned,suddenly wary.宝拉皱了皱眉头，突然警惕起来。

17 drooping   

adj. 下垂的，无力的 动词droop的现在分词

参考例句：

• The drooping willows are waving gently in the morning breeze. 晨风中垂柳袅袅。
• The branches of the drooping willows were swaying lightly. 垂柳轻飘飘地摆动。

18 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

19 situated   

adj.坐落在...的，处于某种境地的

参考例句：

• The village is situated at the margin of a forest.村子位于森林的边缘。
• She is awkwardly situated.她的处境困难。

20 doorway   

n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径

参考例句：

• They huddled in the shop doorway to shelter from the rain.他们挤在商店门口躲雨。
• Mary suddenly appeared in the doorway.玛丽突然出现在门口。