17 "It Is the Child!"

 The next afternoon three members of the Large Family sat in the Indian gentleman's library, doing their best to cheer him up. They had been allowed to come in to perform this office because he had specially¹ invited them. He had been living in a state of suspense² for some time, and today he was waiting for a certain event very anxiously. This event was the return of Mr. Carmichael from Moscow. His stay there had been prolonged from week to week. On his first arrival there, he had not been able satisfactorily to trace the family he had gone in search of. When he felt at last sure that he had found them and had gone to their house, he had been told that they were absent on a journey. His efforts to reach them had been unavailing, so he had decided³ to remain in Moscow until their return. Mr. Carrisford sat in his reclining chair, and Janet sat on the floor beside him. He was very fond of Janet. Nora had found a footstool, and Donald was astride the tiger's head which ornamented⁴ the rug made of the animal's skin. It must be owned that he was riding it rather violently.

 

"Don't chirrup so loud, Donald," Janet said. "When you come to cheer an ill person up you don't cheer him up at the top of your voice. Perhaps cheering up is too loud, Mr. Carrisford?" turning to the Indian gentleman.

 

But he only patted her shoulder.

 

"No, it isn't," he answered. "And it keeps me from thinking too much."

 

"I'm going to be quiet," Donald shouted. "We'll all be as quiet as mice."

 

"Mice don't make a noise like that," said Janet.

 

Donald made a bridle⁵ of his handkerchief and bounced up and down on the tiger's head.

 

"A whole lot of mice might," he said cheerfully. "A thousand mice might."

 

"I don't believe fifty thousand mice would," said Janet, severely⁶; "and we have to be as quiet as one mouse."

 

Mr. Carrisford laughed and patted her shoulder again.

 

"Papa won't be very long now," she said. "May we talk about the lost little girl?"

 

"I don't think I could talk much about anything else just now," the Indian gentleman answered, knitting his forehead with a tired look.

 

"We like her so much," said Nora. "We call her the little un-fairy princess."

 

"Why?" the Indian gentleman inquired, because the fancies of the Large Family always made him forget things a little.

 

It was Janet who answered.

 

"It is because, though she is not exactly a fairy, she will be so rich when she is found that she will be like a princess in a fairy tale. We called her the fairy princess at first, but it didn't quite suit."

 

"Is it true," said Nora, "that her papa gave all his money to a friend to put in a mine that had diamonds in it, and then the friend thought he had lost it all and ran away because he felt as if he was a robber?"

 

"But he wasn't really, you know," put in Janet, hastily.

 

The Indian gentleman took hold of her hand quickly.

 

"No, he wasn't really," he said.

 

"I am sorry for the friend," Janet said; "I can't help it. He didn't mean to do it, and it would break his heart. I am sure it would break his heart."

 

"You are an understanding little woman, Janet," the Indian gentleman said, and he held her hand close.

 

"Did you tell Mr. Carrisford," Donald shouted again, "about the little-girl-who-isn't-a-beggar? Did you tell him she has new nice clothes? P'r'aps she's been found by somebody when she was lost."

 

"There's a cab!" exclaimed Janet. "It's stopping before the door. It is papa!"

 

They all ran to the windows to look out.

 

"Yes, it's papa," Donald proclaimed. "But there is no little girl."

 

All three of them incontinently fled from the room and tumbled into the hall. It was in this way they always welcomed their father. They were to be heard jumping up and down, clapping their hands, and being caught up and kissed.

 

Mr. Carrisford made an effort to rise and sank back again.

 

"It is no use," he said. "What a wreck⁷ I am!"

 

Mr. Carmichael's voice approached the door.

 

"No, children," he was saying; "you may come in after I have talked to Mr. Carrisford. Go and play with Ram⁸ Dass."

 

Then the door opened and he came in. He looked rosier⁹ than ever, and brought an atmosphere of freshness and health with him; but his eyes were disappointed and anxious as they met the invalid¹⁰'s look of eager question even as they grasped each other's hands.

 

"What news?" Mr. Carrisford asked. "The child the Russian people adopted?"

 

"She is not the child we are looking for," was Mr. Carmichael's answer. "She is much younger than Captain Crewe's little girl. Her name is Emily Carew. I have seen and talked to her. The Russians were able to give me every detail."

 

How wearied and miserable¹¹ the Indian gentleman looked! His hand dropped from Mr. Carmichael's.

 

"Then the search has to be begun over again," he said. "That is all. Please sit down."

 

Mr. Carmichael took a seat. Somehow, he had gradually grown fond of this unhappy man. He was himself so well and happy, and so surrounded by cheerfulness and love, that desolation and broken health seemed pitifully unbearable¹² things. If there had been the sound of just one gay little high-pitched voice in the house, it would have been so much less forlorn. And that a man should be compelled to carry about in his breast the thought that he had seemed to wrong and desert a child was not a thing one could face.

 

"Come, come," he said in his cheery voice; "we'll find her yet."

 

"We must begin at once. No time must be lost," Mr. Carrisford fretted¹³. "Have you any new suggestion to make—any whatsoever¹⁴?"

 

Mr. Carmichael felt rather restless, and he rose and began to pace the room with a thoughtful, though uncertain face.

 

"Well, perhaps," he said. "I don't know what it may be worth. The fact is, an idea occurred to me as I was thinking the thing over in the train on the journey from Dover."

 

"What was it? If she is alive, she is somewhere."

 

"Yes; she is SOMEWHERE. We have searched the schools in Paris. Let us give up Paris and begin in London. That was my idea—to search London."

 

"There are schools enough in London," said Mr. Carrisford. Then he slightly started, roused by a recollection. "By the way, there is one next door."

 

"Then we will begin there. We cannot begin nearer than next door."

 

"No," said Carrisford. "There is a child there who interests me; but she is not a pupil. And she is a little dark, forlorn creature, as unlike poor Crewe as a child could be."

 

Perhaps the Magic was at work again at that very moment—the beautiful Magic. It really seemed as if it might be so. What was it that brought Ram Dass into the room—even as his master spoke¹⁵—salaaming respectfully, but with a scarcely concealed¹⁶ touch of excitement in his dark, flashing eyes?

 

"Sahib," he said, "the child herself has come—the child the sahib felt pity for. She brings back the monkey who had again run away to her attic¹⁷ under the roof. I have asked that she remain. It was my thought that it would please the sahib to see and speak with her."

 

"Who is she?" inquired Mr. Carmichael.

 

"God knows," Mr. Carrrisford answered. "She is the child I spoke of. A little drudge¹⁸ at the school." He waved his hand to Ram Dass, and addressed him. "Yes, I should like to see her. Go and bring her in." Then he turned to Mr. Carmichael. "While you have been away," he explained, "I have been desperate. The days were so dark and long. Ram Dass told me of this child's miseries¹⁹, and together we invented a romantic plan to help her. I suppose it was a childish thing to do; but it gave me something to plan and think of. Without the help of an agile²⁰, soft-footed Oriental like Ram Dass, however, it could not have been done."

 

Then Sara came into the room. She carried the monkey in her arms, and he evidently did not intend to part from her, if it could be helped. He was clinging to her and chattering²¹, and the interesting excitement of finding herself in the Indian gentleman's room had brought a flush to Sara's cheeks.

 

"Your monkey ran away again," she said, in her pretty voice. "He came to my garret window last night, and I took him in because it was so cold. I would have brought him back if it had not been so late. I knew you were ill and might not like to be disturbed."

 

The Indian gentleman's hollow eyes dwelt on her with curious interest.

 

"That was very thoughtful of you," he said.

 

Sara looked toward Ram Dass, who stood near the door.

 

"Shall I give him to the Lascar?" she asked.

 

"How do you know he is a Lascar?" said the Indian gentleman, smiling a little.

 

"Oh, I know Lascars," Sara said, handing over the reluctant monkey. "I was born in India."

 

The Indian gentleman sat upright so suddenly, and with such a change of expression, that she was for a moment quite startled.

 

"You were born in India," he exclaimed, "were you? Come here." And he held out his hand.

 

Sara went to him and laid her hand in his, as he seemed to want to take it. She stood still, and her green-gray eyes met his wonderingly. Something seemed to be the matter with him.

 

"You live next door?" he demanded.

 

"Yes; I live at Miss Minchin's seminary."

 

"But you are not one of her pupils?"

 

A strange little smile hovered²² about Sara's mouth. She hesitated a moment.

 

"I don't think I know exactly WHAT I am," she replied.

 

"Why not?"

 

"At first I was a pupil, and a parlor²³ boarder; but now—"

 

"You were a pupil! What are you now?"

 

The queer little sad smile was on Sara's lips again.

 

"I sleep in the attic, next to the scullery maid," she said. "I run errands for the cook—I do anything she tells me; and I teach the little ones their lessons."

 

"Question her, Carmichael," said Mr. Carrisford, sinking back as if he had lost his strength. "Question her; I cannot."

 

The big, kind father of the Large Family knew how to question little girls. Sara realized how much practice he had had when he spoke to her in his nice, encouraging voice.

 

"What do you mean by 'At first,' my child?" he inquired.

 

"When I was first taken there by my papa."

 

"Where is your papa?"

 

"He died," said Sara, very quietly. "He lost all his money and there was none left for me. There was no one to take care of me or to pay Miss Minchin."

 

"Carmichael!" the Indian gentleman cried out loudly. "Carmichael!"

 

"We must not frighten her," Mr. Carmichael said aside to him in a quick, low voice. And he added aloud to Sara, "So you were sent up into the attic, and made into a little drudge. That was about it, wasn't it?"

 

"There was no one to take care of me," said Sara. "There was no money; I belong to nobody."

 

"How did your father lose his money?" the Indian gentleman broke in breathlessly.

 

"He did not lose it himself," Sara answered, wondering still more each moment. "He had a friend he was very fond of—he was very fond of him. It was his friend who took his money. He trusted his friend too much."

 

The Indian gentleman's breath came more quickly.

 

"The friend might have MEANT to do no harm," he said. "It might have happened through a mistake."

 

Sara did not know how unrelenting her quiet young voice sounded as she answered. If she had known, she would surely have tried to soften²⁴ it for the Indian gentleman's sake.

 

"The suffering was just as bad for my papa," she said. "It killed him."

 

"What was your father's name?" the Indian gentleman said. "Tell me."

 

"His name was Ralph Crewe," Sara answered, feeling startled. "Captain Crewe. He died in India."

 

The haggard face contracted, and Ram Dass sprang to his master's side.

 

"Carmichael," the invalid gasped²⁵, "it is the child—the child!"

 

For a moment Sara thought he was going to die. Ram Dass poured out drops from a bottle, and held them to his lips. Sara stood near, trembling a little. She looked in a bewildered way at Mr. Carmichael.

 

"What child am I?" she faltered²⁶.

 

"He was your father's friend," Mr. Carmichael answered her. "Don't be frightened. We have been looking for you for two years."

 

Sara put her hand up to her forehead, and her mouth trembled. She spoke as if she were in a dream.

 

"And I was at Miss Minchin's all the while," she half whispered. "Just on the other side of the wall."

1 specially   

adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地

参考例句：

• They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。
• The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。

2 suspense   

n.（对可能发生的事）紧张感，担心，挂虑

参考例句：

• The suspense was unbearable.这样提心吊胆的状况实在叫人受不了。
• The director used ingenious devices to keep the audience in suspense.导演用巧妙手法引起观众的悬念。

3 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。

4 ornamented   

adj.花式字体的v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The desk was ornamented with many carvings. 这桌子装饰有很多雕刻物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She ornamented her dress with lace. 她用花边装饰衣服。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 bridle   

n.笼头，束缚；vt.抑制，约束；动怒

参考例句：

• He learned to bridle his temper.他学会了控制脾气。
• I told my wife to put a bridle on her tongue.我告诉妻子说话要谨慎。

6 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

7 wreck   

n.失事，遇难；沉船；vt.(船等)失事，遇难

参考例句：

• Weather may have been a factor in the wreck.天气可能是造成这次失事的原因之一。
• No one can wreck the friendship between us.没有人能够破坏我们之间的友谊。

8 ram   

(random access memory)随机存取存储器

参考例句：

• 512k RAM is recommended and 640k RAM is preferred.推荐配置为512K内存，640K内存则更佳。

9 rosier   

Rosieresite

参考例句：

• Rosier for an instant forgot the delicacy of his position. 罗齐尔一时间忘记了他的微妙处境。
• A meeting had immediately taken place between the Countess and Mr. Rosier. 伯爵夫人和罗齐尔先生已经搭讪上了。

10 invalid   

n.病人，伤残人；adj.有病的，伤残的；无效的

参考例句：

• He will visit an invalid.他将要去看望一个病人。
• A passport that is out of date is invalid.护照过期是无效的。

11 miserable   

adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的

参考例句：

• It was miserable of you to make fun of him.你取笑他，这是可耻的。
• Her past life was miserable.她过去的生活很苦。

12 unbearable   

adj.不能容忍的；忍受不住的

参考例句：

• It is unbearable to be always on thorns.老是处于焦虑不安的情况中是受不了的。
• The more he thought of it the more unbearable it became.他越想越觉得无法忍受。

13 fretted   

焦躁的，附有弦马的，腐蚀的

参考例句：

• The wind whistled through the twigs and fretted the occasional, dirty-looking crocuses. 寒风穿过枯枝，有时把发脏的藏红花吹刮跑了。 来自英汉文学
• The lady's fame for hitting the mark fretted him. 这位太太看问题深刻的名声在折磨着他。

14 whatsoever   

adv.（用于否定句中以加强语气）任何；pron.无论什么

参考例句：

• There's no reason whatsoever to turn down this suggestion.没有任何理由拒绝这个建议。
• All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you,do ye even so to them.你想别人对你怎样，你就怎样对人。

15 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

16 concealed   

a.隐藏的，隐蔽的

参考例句：

• The paintings were concealed beneath a thick layer of plaster. 那些画被隐藏在厚厚的灰泥层下面。
• I think he had a gun concealed about his person. 我认为他当时身上藏有一支枪。

17 attic   

n.顶楼，屋顶室

参考例句：

• Leakiness in the roof caused a damp attic.屋漏使顶楼潮湿。
• What's to be done with all this stuff in the attic?顶楼上的材料怎么处理？

18 drudge   

n.劳碌的人；v.做苦工，操劳

参考例句：

• I feel like a real drudge--I've done nothing but clean all day!我觉得自己像个做苦工的--整天都在做清洁工作！
• I'm a poor,miserable,forlorn drudge;I shall only drag you down with me.我是一个贫穷，倒运，走投无路的苦力，只会拖累你。

19 miseries   

n.痛苦( misery的名词复数 )；痛苦的事；穷困；常发牢骚的人

参考例句：

• They forgot all their fears and all their miseries in an instant. 他们马上忘记了一切恐惧和痛苦。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• I'm suffering the miseries of unemployment. 我正为失业而痛苦。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 agile   

adj.敏捷的，灵活的

参考例句：

• She is such an agile dancer!她跳起舞来是那么灵巧！
• An acrobat has to be agile.杂技演员必须身手敏捷。

21 chattering   

n. （机器振动发出的）咔嗒声，(鸟等)鸣，啁啾 adj. 喋喋不休的，啾啾声的 动词chatter的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• The teacher told the children to stop chattering in class. 老师叫孩子们在课堂上不要叽叽喳喳讲话。
• I was so cold that my teeth were chattering. 我冷得牙齿直打战。

22 hovered   

鸟( hover的过去式和过去分词 )； 靠近（某事物）； （人）徘徊； 犹豫

参考例句：

• A hawk hovered over the hill. 一只鹰在小山的上空翱翔。
• A hawk hovered in the blue sky. 一只老鹰在蓝色的天空中翱翔。

23 parlor   

n.店铺，营业室；会客室，客厅

参考例句：

• She was lying on a small settee in the parlor.她躺在客厅的一张小长椅上。
• Is there a pizza parlor in the neighborhood?附近有没有比萨店？

24 soften   

v.(使)变柔软；(使)变柔和

参考例句：

• Plastics will soften when exposed to heat.塑料适当加热就可以软化。
• This special cream will help to soften up our skin.这种特殊的护肤霜有助于使皮肤变得柔软。

25 gasped   

v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要

参考例句：

• She gasped at the wonderful view. 如此美景使她惊讶得屏住了呼吸。
• People gasped with admiration at the superb skill of the gymnasts. 体操运动员的高超技艺令人赞叹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

26 faltered   

（嗓音）颤抖( falter的过去式和过去分词 )； 支吾其词； 蹒跚； 摇晃

参考例句：

• He faltered out a few words. 他支吾地说出了几句。
• "Er - but he has such a longhead!" the man faltered. 他不好意思似的嚅嗫着：“这孩子脑袋真长。”