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Chapter 3
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 Maltham had come to a full stop in front of this absurd dwelling1, which was set a little back from the road in a dishevelled enclosure,[74] and as he stood examining in an amused way its various eccentricities2 he became aware that from one of the lower windows a man was watching him.
 
This was disconcerting, and he turned to walk on. But before he had gone a dozen steps the front door opened and the man came outside. He was dressed in shabby grey clothes with a certain suggestion of a military cut about them; but in spite of his shabbiness he had the look of a gentleman. He was sixty, or thereabouts, and seemed to have been well set up when he was younger—before the slouch had settled on his shoulders and before he had taken on a good many unnecessary inches about his waist. From where he stood on the veranda3 he hailed Maltham cordially:
 
"Won't yo' come in, suh? I have obsehved youah smiles at my old house heah— No, no, yo' owe me no apology, suh," he went on quickly, as Maltham attempted a confused disclaimer. "Yo' ah quite justified4 in laughing, suh, at my foolish fancy—that went wrong mainly because the Yankee ca'pentah whom I employed to realize it was a hopelessly damned fool. But it was a creditable sentiment, suh, which led me to desiah to reproduce heah in god[75]fo'saken Minnesotah my ancestral home in the grand old State of South Cahrolina—the house that my grandfatheh built theah and named Eutaw Castle, as I have named its pore successeh, because of the honorable paht he bo' in the battle of Eutaw Springs. The result, I admit, is a thing to laugh at, suh—but not the ideah. No, suh, not the ideah! But come in, suh, come in! The exterioh of Eutaw Castle may be a failuah; but within it, suh, yo' will find in this cold No'th'en region the genuine wahm hospitality of a true Southe'n home!"
 
Maltham perceived that the only apology which he could offer for laughing at this absurd house—the absurdity5 of which became rather pathetic, he thought, in view of its genesis—was to accept its owner's invitation to enter it. Acting6 on this conclusion, he turned into the enclosure—the gate, hanging loosely on a single hinge, was standing7 open—and mounted the veranda steps.
 
As he reached the top step his host advanced and shook hands with him warmly. "Yo'ah vehy welcome, suh," he said; and added, after putting his hand to a pocket in search of something that evidently was not there: "Ah, I find that I have not my cahd-case about me. Yo'[76] must pehmit me to introduce myself: Majoh Calhoun Ashley, of the Confedehrate sehvice, suh—and vehy much at youahs."
 
Maltham started a little as he heard this name, and the small shock so far threw him off his balance that as he handed his card to the Major he said: "Then it was your name that I saw just now in—" And stopped short, inwardly cursing himself for his awkwardness.
 
"That yo' saw in the little graveyahd, on the tomb of my eveh-beloved wife, suh," the Major replied—with a quaver in his voice which compelled Maltham mentally to reverse his recent generalizations8. The Major was silent for a moment, and then continued: "Heh grave is not yet mahked fitly, suh, as no doubt yo' obsehved. Cihcumstances oveh which I have had no control have prevented me from erecting9 as yet a suitable monument oveh heh sacred remains11. She was my queen, suh"—his voice broke again—"and of a line of queens: a descendant, suh, from a collateral12 branch of the ancient royal house of Sweden. I am hoping, I am hoping, suh, that I shall be able soon to erect10 oveh heh last resting-place a monument wo'thy of heh noble lineage and of hehself. I am hoping, suh, to do that vehy soon."
 
[77]
 
The Major again was silent for a moment; and then, pulling himself together, he looked at Maltham's card—holding it a long way off from his eyes. "Youah name is familiar to me, suh," he said, "though fo' the moment I do not place it, and I am most happy to make youah acquaintance. But come in, suh, come in. I am fo'getting myself—keeping you standing this way outside of my own doah."
 
He took Maltham cordially by the arm and led him through the doorway13 into a wide bare hall; and thence into a big room on the right, that was very scantily14 furnished but that was made cheerful by a rousing drift-wood fire. Over the high mantel-piece was hung an officer's sword with its belt. On the buckle15 of the belt were the letters C. S. A. Excepting this rather pregnant bit of decoration, the whitewashed16 walls were bare.
 
The Major bustled17 with hospitality—pulling the bigger and more comfortable of two arm-chairs to the fire and seating Maltham in it, and then bringing out glasses and a bottle from a queer structure of unpainted white pine that stood at one end of the room and had the look of a sideboard gone wrong.
 
"At the moment, suh," he said apologetically,[78] "my cellah is badly fuhnished and I am unable to offeh yo' wine. But if yo' have an appreciative18 taste fo' Bourbon," he went on with more assurance, "I am satisfied that yo' will find the ahticle in this bottle as sound as any that the noble State of Kentucky eveh has produced. Will yo' oblige me, suh, by saying when!"
 
Not knowing about the previous wet night, and its still lingering consequences, the promptness with which Maltham said "when" seemed to disconcert the Major a little—but not sufficiently19 to deter20 him from filling his own glass with a handsome liberality. Holding it at a level with his lips, he turned toward his guest with the obvious intention of drinking a toast.
 
"May I have a little water, please?" put in Maltham.
 
"I beg youah pahdon, suh. I humbly21 beg youah pahdon," the Major answered. "I am not accustomed to dilute22 my own liquoh, and I most thoughtlessly assumed that yo' would not desiah to dilute youahs. I trust that yo' will excuse my seeming rudeness, suh. Yo' shall have at once the bevehrage which yo' desiah."
 
While still apologizing, the Major placed[79] his glass on the table and went to the door. Opening it he called: "Ulrica, my child, bring a pitcheh of fresh wateh right away."
 
Again Maltham gave a little start—as he had done when the Major had introduced himself. In a vague sub-conscious way he felt that there was something uncanny in thus finding living owners of names which he had seen, within that very hour, scarcely legible above an uncared-for grave. But the Major, talking on volubly, did not give him much opportunity for these psychological reflections; and presently there was the sound of footsteps in the hall outside, and then the door opened and the owner of the grave-name appeared.
 

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 dwelling auzzQk     
n.住宅,住所,寓所
参考例句:
  • Those two men are dwelling with us.那两个人跟我们住在一起。
  • He occupies a three-story dwelling place on the Park Street.他在派克街上有一幢3层楼的寓所。
2 eccentricities 9d4f841e5aa6297cdc01f631723077d9     
n.古怪行为( eccentricity的名词复数 );反常;怪癖
参考例句:
  • My wife has many eccentricities. 我妻子有很多怪癖。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • His eccentricities had earned for him the nickname"The Madman". 他的怪癖已使他得到'疯子'的绰号。 来自辞典例句
3 veranda XfczWG     
n.走廊;阳台
参考例句:
  • She sat in the shade on the veranda.她坐在阳台上的遮荫处。
  • They were strolling up and down the veranda.他们在走廊上来回徜徉。
4 justified 7pSzrk     
a.正当的,有理的
参考例句:
  • She felt fully justified in asking for her money back. 她认为有充分的理由要求退款。
  • The prisoner has certainly justified his claims by his actions. 那个囚犯确实已用自己的行动表明他的要求是正当的。
5 absurdity dIQyU     
n.荒谬,愚蠢;谬论
参考例句:
  • The proposal borders upon the absurdity.这提议近乎荒谬。
  • The absurdity of the situation made everyone laugh.情况的荒谬可笑使每个人都笑了。
6 acting czRzoc     
n.演戏,行为,假装;adj.代理的,临时的,演出用的
参考例句:
  • Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她,她只是假装的。
  • During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代,她的表演生涯黯然失色。
7 standing 2hCzgo     
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。
8 generalizations 6a32b82d344d5f1487aee703a39bb639     
一般化( generalization的名词复数 ); 普通化; 归纳; 概论
参考例句:
  • But Pearlson cautions that the findings are simply generalizations. 但是波尔森提醒人们,这些发现是简单的综合资料。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 大脑与疾病
  • They were of great service in correcting my jejune generalizations. 他们纠正了我不成熟的泛泛之论,帮了我大忙。
9 erecting 57913eb4cb611f2f6ed8e369fcac137d     
v.使直立,竖起( erect的现在分词 );建立
参考例句:
  • Nations can restrict their foreign trade by erecting barriers to exports as well as imports. 象设置进口壁垒那样,各国可以通过设置出口壁垒来限制对外贸易。 来自辞典例句
  • Could you tell me the specific lift-slab procedure for erecting buildings? 能否告之用升板法安装楼房的具体程序? 来自互联网
10 erect 4iLzm     
n./v.树立,建立,使竖立;adj.直立的,垂直的
参考例句:
  • She held her head erect and her back straight.她昂着头,把背挺得笔直。
  • Soldiers are trained to stand erect.士兵们训练站得笔直。
11 remains 1kMzTy     
n.剩余物,残留物;遗体,遗迹
参考例句:
  • He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
  • The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。
12 collateral wqhzH     
adj.平行的;旁系的;n.担保品
参考例句:
  • Many people use personal assets as collateral for small business loans.很多人把个人财产用作小额商业贷款的抵押品。
  • Most people here cannot borrow from banks because they lack collateral.由于拿不出东西作为抵押,这里大部分人无法从银行贷款。
13 doorway 2s0xK     
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。
14 scantily be1ceda9654bd1b9c4ad03eace2aae48     
adv.缺乏地;不充足地;吝啬地;狭窄地
参考例句:
  • The bedroom was scantily furnished. 卧室里几乎没有什么家具。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • His room was scantily furnished. 他的房间陈设简陋。 来自互联网
15 buckle zsRzg     
n.扣子,带扣;v.把...扣住,由于压力而弯曲
参考例句:
  • The two ends buckle at the back.带子两端在背后扣起来。
  • She found it hard to buckle down.她很难专心做一件事情。
16 whitewashed 38aadbb2fa5df4fec513e682140bac04     
粉饰,美化,掩饰( whitewash的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • The wall had been whitewashed. 墙已粉过。
  • The towers are in the shape of bottle gourds and whitewashed. 塔呈圆形,状近葫芦,外敷白色。 来自汉英文学 - 现代散文
17 bustled 9467abd9ace0cff070d56f0196327c70     
闹哄哄地忙乱,奔忙( bustle的过去式和过去分词 ); 催促
参考例句:
  • She bustled around in the kitchen. 她在厨房里忙得团团转。
  • The hostress bustled about with an assumption of authority. 女主人摆出一副权威的样子忙来忙去。
18 appreciative 9vDzr     
adj.有鉴赏力的,有眼力的;感激的
参考例句:
  • She was deeply appreciative of your help.她对你的帮助深表感激。
  • We are very appreciative of their support in this respect.我们十分感谢他们在这方面的支持。
19 sufficiently 0htzMB     
adv.足够地,充分地
参考例句:
  • It turned out he had not insured the house sufficiently.原来他没有给房屋投足保险。
  • The new policy was sufficiently elastic to accommodate both views.新政策充分灵活地适用两种观点。
20 deter DmZzU     
vt.阻止,使不敢,吓住
参考例句:
  • Failure did not deter us from trying it again.失败并没有能阻挡我们再次进行试验。
  • Dogs can deter unwelcome intruders.狗能够阻拦不受欢迎的闯入者。
21 humbly humbly     
adv. 恭顺地,谦卑地
参考例句:
  • We humbly beg Your Majesty to show mercy. 我们恳请陛下发发慈悲。
  • "You must be right, Sir,'said John humbly. “你一定是对的,先生,”约翰恭顺地说道。
22 dilute FmBya     
vt.稀释,冲淡;adj.稀释的,冲淡的
参考例句:
  • The water will dilute the wine.水能使酒变淡。
  • Zinc displaces the hydrogen of dilute acids.锌置换了稀酸中的氢。


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