One morning, as soon as he had drawn1 the curtain, he came running to his mother's room with the news:—
"Oh, mother, come and look. There's a pretty little ship in the bay."
So, to please him, Mrs. Breakspear stepped from her lit clos, or cupboard bed, and stole, even as she was, in her night-robe, to take a view of the vessel2.
"See, there it is," cried Idris, excitedly pointing it out. "Is it a Viking ship, mother?"
"There are no Vikings nowadays," was the reply, a reply which Idris took as a proof of the degeneracy of the times. "It is a yacht."
As this term conveyed no more enlightenment to Idris' mind than if she had said that it was a quinquereme, he naturally asked, "What is a yacht?"
The explanation was deferred4 till breakfast-time, when his mother entered into the meaning of the term. Idris made a somewhat hasty meal, being eager to run off to the quay5 for the purpose of taking a nearer view of the newly-arrived vessel.
Dancing down the stairs of the old house into the street he made for the end of the stone pier6, and sitting down at the head of the steps he took a long survey of the yacht, wondering whether it equalled in point[Pg 19] of swiftness and beauty the famous Long Serpent of Olaf, built by that master-shipwright, Thorberg.
A boat was rapidly making its way from the vessel to the harbour. Idris recognized it as the revenue-cutter, at the tiller of which sat Old Pol himself.
"Ha! Master Idris," he said, as soon as he had mounted the stairs, "what a pity you were not out an hour earlier! You could then have gone with us to yon vessel." And then, turning to those who had accompanied him, he remarked: "So Captain Rochefort is the owner of that yacht. Well, everybody has heard of him: one of the bravest in the Emperor's service, and an officer of the Legion of Honour. Nothing wrong with that craft, eh, Baptiste?"
"Humph!" growled7 the man addressed, a grizzled old coastguard with a saturnine8 cast of countenance9. "So they have put Captain Rochefort ashore10 at Port St. Remé, and he is coming on foot to Quilaix. But if the Captain wants to visit Quilaix, why does he not come with the yacht, instead of walking over the moorland?"
"Why, Baptiste, you talk like one who is suspicious," remarked Pol in surprise.
"And I am suspicious. There's something wrong in the wind. Harbour-master, listen to me. As everybody in Quilaix is going to the Pardon to-day the town will be deserted11 until a late hour. The night will be dark, as this is the time of no moon. Captain Rochefort has been put ashore in order to signal the favourable12 moment. They are going to run a cargo13."
This statement was received by Pol with a burst of laughter.
"Baptiste, you talk like a fool. What cargo can such a small craft carry? Besides, they have no cargo. Did we not overhaul14 her thoroughly15? Captain Rochefort a contrabandist16! A military officer hazard his reputation[Pg 20] in a smuggling17 venture! Impossible! He would have everything to lose and nothing to gain by such a course."
Baptiste, by a shake of his head, implied that he was not to be moved from his opinion.
"Very well, Baptiste, since you are so suspicious, we had better put you on the watch for the next twenty-four hours."
"I intend to watch, whether put on or not. And by the key of Saint Tugean I shall have discovered something before to-morrow morning comes."
"Undoubtedly18. You will discover that you would have acted more wisely by going with us to the Pardon to-day. That's the ticket for me. Life is sad: then let us not miss any of its gaieties. And in all Finistère there are no pancakes and cider like those of St. Remé."
The rest of the coastguard, murmuring their approval of these sentiments, dispersed19 in order to prepare for the Pardon, or church-festival, to be held that day in a distant village; of which festival the harbour-master's wife had, on the previous evening, drawn so pleasant a forecast in the hearing of Idris, that the little fellow had felt great disappointment on learning that his mother intended to take no part in the celebration.
Madame Marais had been somewhat troubled by the question as to how her tenant's meals were to be prepared during her absence, but Mrs. Breakspear had solved this difficulty by offering to arrange for herself.
Meantime Idris, still at the head of the pier-steps, continued his survey of the vessel.
A piece of canvas hanging over the taffrail was suddenly drawn up by a sailor on board, an act that enabled Idris to see the name of the yacht painted in big black letters.
N-E-M-E-S-I-S.
[Pg 21]
Nemesis20! This was a word new to him. He had known sailors call their boats Marie, Isabelle, Jeanne, and the like, with various epithets22 prefixed, as jolie, belle21, and petite, but never Nemesis. He could not tell whether it was the name of man or woman: so, on returning home, he sought enlightenment of his mother.
"It's a curious name to give to a ship," commented the little fellow thoughtfully, after Mrs. Breakspear had tried to explain the meaning of the term. "Why do they call it that? Are they going to take vengeance23 on somebody?"
Shortly afterwards Madame Marais came out of her house, wearing the wonderful lace cap that had descended24 to her through several generations. Leaning upon the arm of Old Pol, who was likewise gorgeously arrayed, she moved off in great state to take her place in the line of the procession which, under the direction of Monsieur le Curé, was slowly forming before the porch of La Chapelle des Pêcheurs.
When all preliminaries had been satisfactorily completed, the simple-hearted peasants, with flags flying and pipes playing, set off on their pilgrimage, walking at a somewhat leisurely25 pace, for your true Breton is seldom in a hurry.
Idris, regretting that he could not accompany them, clambered to an eminence27 on the moorland, where, aided by his mother's opera-glasses, he watched the course of the procession till it faded from view.
Nearly everybody in Quilaix had gone off to this Pardon. All the shops were closed, and the town was as silent as on a Sunday morning during the time of high mass. A few of the fishermen and of the coastguard had indeed remained behind, but these were slumbering28 in the shadow of the sardine-boats drawn high up on the beach. From these slumberers must be[Pg 22] excepted old Baptiste Malet, who throughout the day glided29 to and fro along the shore, now and then dropping behind a rock to take a scrutiny30 of the yacht by the aid of a telescope nearly as long as himself.
The Nemesis still remained at the point where the anchor had first been cast. She was certainly a mysterious vessel; none of her occupants had come ashore: none could be seen on deck. It was quite clear that for some reason or other the crew shrank from the observation of those on land.
A gala-day it may have been for others, but for Idris it proved a somewhat dull time. His mother seemed too much preoccupied31 to set him his regular lessons: or perhaps she did not deem it fair to put him to study while others were festively32 engaged. She sat during the greater part of the day turning over the leaves of a large scrapbook filled with newspaper cuttings—a book which Idris was never permitted to see, Mrs. Breakspear being accustomed, as soon as her readings were ended, to lock the volume within a drawer of the old oak press. She had read these extracts so often as to be able to recite the greater part of them by heart: nevertheless, she continued to con3 them daily, as if they were quite new to her, though their perusal33 must have given her pain.
The first of these newspaper extracts was a long article from the journal L'étoile de la Bretagne, worded as follows:—
"Let us review the facts of this remarkable34 case.
"Eric Marville is a gentleman of English birth who settled at Nantes in the spring of 1866. Of handsome person and polished manners, speaking our language with the ease of a native, and recently married to a rich and beautiful wife, M. Marville soon became a favourite in the higher circles of Nantes society. The Armorique[Pg 23] Club, the most fashionable of its kind, admitted him to membership. It would have been well had M. Marville never entered the salons35 of this establishment, since it was here that he first met Henri Duchesne. The latter by all accounts was a professional gamester, though up to the present time nothing dishonourable has been proved in connection with his play.
"From the very first these two men, Eric Marville and Henri Duchesne, for some unknown reason, appear to have been in a state of secret hostility36 to each other, hostility which finally developed into open rupture37. A remark uttered by Marville one evening, and doubtless uttered with no ill intent, on the wonderful luck attending M. Duchesne at cards, was interpreted by the latter as a reflection upon his mode of playing, and he immediately challenged the other to a duel38. M. Marville merely shrugged39 his shoulders with the words:—'It is not the fashion of my countrymen, monsieur, to fight a duel over trifles.' 'Do you call the honour of my name a trifle?' exclaimed Duchesne, at the same time contemptuously flinging a glass of wine in Marville's face.
"In a moment the club was in an uproar40, the friends of each striving to keep the two men apart, an object successfully accomplished41. All efforts, however, to effect a reconciliation42 failed, and the two men left the club avowedly43 enemies.
"The next evening M. Marville was again present at the Amorique Club, but, confining himself to the newspapers and political gossip, took no part in the play that went on. M. Duchesne was likewise present, and entered the lists against M. Montagne, a young lieutenant44 of Chasseurs. The usual good fortune attended Duchesne, and his opponent having lost all the money upon his person, said:—'I have one more stake, if M. Duchesne does not object to play against it.' And with these[Pg 24] words Montagne drew forth45 a large silver circlet having every appearance, according to an antiquary who was present, of being an altar-ring, such as was used in the religious rites46 of ancient Scandinavia.
"M. Marville, happening to set eyes upon this circlet, became singularly agitated47; and, stepping up to the table where the two men were at play, he said, addressing Montagne: 'How came you by that ring?' M. Montagne, absorbed in the play, or perhaps deeming the question an impertinent one, made no reply. The play resulted in the transference of the ring to the pockets of M. Duchesne, who shortly afterwards took his departure. Five minutes later M. Marville likewise quitted the club, and, on being asked by a friend why he left earlier than usual, replied:—'To recover my ring.'
"Two hours afterwards, a sergent-de-ville, going his accustomed round, heard cries for help coming from the Place Graslin, and on running to the spot found M. Duchesne lying on the pavement with blood flowing from a wound in the breast. M. Marville was kneeling beside him and calling for help.
"The injured man was at once removed to the adjacent surgery of M. Rosaire, who, upon examination, found that life had fled.
"The body was conveyed to the Préfecture, accompanied by M. Marville, who gave evidence as to the finding of it. His statement amounted to no more than that in walking homewards he had come by accident upon the body of the fallen man.
"The high position held by M. Marville, and his plausible48 explanation of the situation in which he had been found by the sergent-de-ville, prevented the authorities from attaching suspicion to him, and on giving his recognizances to appear when required, M. Marville was allowed to depart.
[Pg 25]
"But the investigations49 carried on next day gave a different turn to the affair. The quarrel at the Armorique Club and the threatening language of the two men were recalled. Marville's remark on leaving the club in the wake of M. Duchesne to the effect that he was going to recover the ring seemed to supply an additional motive50 for the deed, especially when taken in conjunction with the fact that though M. Duchesne's money and jewellery were untouched the ring itself was missing.
"But the most significant circumstance of all was the finding of the dagger51 with which the murder had been effected. Shown to M. Lenoir, the well-known dealer52 in antiquities53, whose establishment is in the Rue26 Crébillon, he identified it as one that had been purchased from him by M. Marville on the morning of the day on which the crime took place. The weapon is an Italian stiletto, one warranted to have belonged originally to the famous bravo, Michele Pezza, better known to frequenters of the opera as Fra Diavolo. M. Lenoir mentioned this circumstance as he handed the weapon to the purchaser, adding:—'It is a dagger that has shed the blood of Frenchmen.'—'And may do so again,' was the singular reply of M. Marville.
"These circumstances seem to justify54 the arrest of M. Marville, who now stands charged with the murder of M. Duchesne.
"A peculiar55 feature of the case is the vanishing of the altar-ring. The prisoner declines to make any statement respecting it, and though his house has been searched no trace of it can be discovered."
* * * * * *
Mrs. Breakspear put away the book with a heavy sigh.
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1
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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2
vessel
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| n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管 | |
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3
con
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| n.反对的观点，反对者，反对票，肺病；vt.精读，学习，默记；adv.反对地，从反面；adj.欺诈的 | |
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4
deferred
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| adj.延期的，缓召的v.拖延，延缓，推迟( defer的过去式和过去分词 )；服从某人的意愿，遵从 | |
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quay
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| n.码头，靠岸处 | |
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pier
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| n.码头；桥墩，桥柱；[建]窗间壁，支柱 | |
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7
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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8
saturnine
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| adj.忧郁的，沉默寡言的，阴沉的，感染铅毒的 | |
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9
countenance
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| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
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10
ashore
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| adv.在(向)岸上，上岸 | |
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11
deserted
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| adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的 | |
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12
favourable
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| adj.赞成的，称赞的，有利的，良好的，顺利的 | |
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13
cargo
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| n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物 | |
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14
overhaul
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| v./n.大修，仔细检查 | |
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15
thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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16
contrabandist
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| n.走私者 | |
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17
smuggling
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| n.走私 | |
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undoubtedly
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| adv.确实地，无疑地 | |
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19
dispersed
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| adj. 被驱散的, 被分散的, 散布的 | |
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nemesis
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| n.给以报应者，复仇者，难以对付的敌手 | |
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21
belle
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| n.靓女 | |
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epithets
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| n.（表示性质、特征等的）词语( epithet的名词复数 ) | |
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vengeance
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| n.报复，报仇，复仇 | |
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24
descended
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| a.为...后裔的，出身于...的 | |
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leisurely
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| adj.悠闲的；从容的，慢慢的 | |
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rue
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| n.懊悔，芸香，后悔；v.后悔，悲伤，懊悔 | |
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eminence
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| n.卓越，显赫；高地，高处；名家 | |
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28
slumbering
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| 微睡，睡眠（slumber的现在分词形式） | |
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29
glided
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| v.滑动( glide的过去式和过去分词 )；掠过；（鸟或飞机 ） 滑翔 | |
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30
scrutiny
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| n.详细检查，仔细观察 | |
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31
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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32
festively
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| adv.节日地，适合于节日地 | |
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33
perusal
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| n.细读，熟读；目测 | |
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remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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35
salons
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| n.（营业性质的）店( salon的名词复数 )；厅；沙龙（旧时在上流社会女主人家的例行聚会或聚会场所）；（大宅中的）客厅 | |
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36
hostility
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| n.敌对，敌意；抵制［pl.］交战，战争 | |
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rupture
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| n.破裂；(关系的)决裂；v.(使)破裂 | |
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38
duel
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| n./v.决斗；(双方的)斗争 | |
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39
shrugged
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| vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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40
uproar
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| n.骚动，喧嚣，鼎沸 | |
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41
accomplished
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| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
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42
reconciliation
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| n.和解，和谐，一致 | |
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43
avowedly
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| adv.公然地 | |
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44
lieutenant
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| n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员 | |
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45
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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46
rites
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| 仪式，典礼( rite的名词复数 ) | |
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47
agitated
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| adj.被鼓动的，不安的 | |
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48
plausible
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| adj.似真实的，似乎有理的，似乎可信的 | |
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49
investigations
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| （正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究 | |
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50
motive
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| n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的 | |
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51
dagger
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| n.匕首，短剑，剑号 | |
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52
dealer
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| n.商人，贩子 | |
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53
antiquities
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| n.古老( antiquity的名词复数 )；古迹；古人们；古代的风俗习惯 | |
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54
justify
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| vt.证明…正当(或有理)，为…辩护 | |
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55
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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56
innocence
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| n.无罪；天真；无害 | |
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