He was over six feet tall and as straight as an Indian. His face was as black as tar1, and was seamed with a thousand tiny wrinkles. His long hair was as white as milk, and his two wrinkled and withered4 hands rested like an eagle’s talons5 upon a patriarchal staff nearly as tall as himself.
On his head was a stove-pipe hat, bell-shaped, the nap long since worn off and the top of the hat stained a brick-red by exposure to the weather. An old, faded, threadbare and patched sack coat swathed his emaciated6 form like a bobtailed bath-robe.
The greatest blight7 which old age had left upon his dignified8 form was in his eyes: the vacant, age-dimmed stare of second childhood, denoting that reason no longer sat regnant upon the crystal throne of the intellect.
There were many tables in the eating-house, but Popsy could not command his mind and his judgment9 to the point of deciding which table he would choose or in which chair he would seat himself.
“Dar’s dat ole fool come back agin,” he growled11. “Ef you’d set him in one of dese here revolver chairs, he wouldn’t hab sense enough to turn around in it. I reckon I’ll hab to go an’ sell him a plate of soup.”
“Mawnin’, Popsy,” he said cordially, as he walked to the door where the old man stood. Shin reserved a private opinion of all his patrons, but outwardly he was very courteous12 to all of them, for very good business reasons.
“Mawnin’, Shinny,” Popsy said with a sighing respiration13. “I wus jes’ tryin’ to reckoleck whut I come in dis place fur an’ whar must I set down at.”
“I reckin you better set down up close to de kitchen, whar you kin14 smell de vittles. Dat’ll git you more fer yo’ money,” Shin snickered. “I reckin you is hankerin’ atter a bowl of soup, ain’t you?”
“I b’lieve dat wuz whut I come in dis place fer. I’s gittin’ powerful fergitful as de days goes by.”
“You comes in here mighty15 nigh eve’y day fer a bowl of soup,” Shin told him. “Is you fergot dat fack?”
“Is dat possible?” Popsy exclaimed. “I muss be spendin’ my money too free.”
“You needn’t let dat worry yo’ mind,” Shin replied, as he motioned to a negro waitress to bring the soup. “You ain’t got nobody to suppote but yo’ own self.”
“Figger Bush lives wid me,” Popsy growled. “He oughter he’p suppote me some, but he won’t do it. He wuz always a most onreliable pickaninny, an’ all de good I ever got out of him I had to beat out wid a stick.”
“Figger’s wife oughter git some wuck out of him,” Shin laughed.
“She cain’t do it! Excusin’ dat, she ain’t home right now. Dat’s how come I’s got to eat wid you,” Popsy grumbled16, digging the tine of his fork into the soft pine table to accentuate17 his remarks, and then flourishing the fork in the air for emphasis. “Figger is de lazies’ nigger in de worl’.”
Having uttered this remark, the old man leaned back in his chair and thrust the fork into his coat pocket while his aged18 eyes stared out of the window at nothing. Shin noted19 the disappearance20 of the fork, but did not mention it. The negro waitress appeared, placed the soup under the old man’s nose and went away. At last he glanced down.
“Fer de Lawd’s sake!” he exclaimed. “Whar did dis here soup come from?”
“You jes’ now ordered it,” Shin said sharply. “I had a cullud gal21 fotch it to you, an’ you got to pay fer it.”
“I won’t pay for it ontil atter I done et it,” Popsy growled.
He picked up a knife, started to dip it into the soup, found that this was the wrong tool, and thrust the knife into the pocket of his coat to keep company with the purloined22 fork.
Shin noted the disappearance of the knife, but said nothing. He handed Popsy a pewter spoon and remarked:
“You better lap it up quick, Popsy; she’ll be gittin’ cold in a minute.”
“Who’ll be gittin’ cold?” Popsy asked absently. “I didn’t hear tell of no she havin’ a cold. Is she got a rigger? Dese here spring days draws out all de p’ison in de blood.”
“Naw, suh. I says de soup will git cold.”
“Aw,” Popsy answered, as he dipped his spoon in the liquid and sipped23 it. “Dis soup am pretty tol’able good. Does you chaw yo’ vittles fawty times, Shinny?”
“Not de same vittles,” Shin said. “I chaws mo’ dan fawty times at a meal, I reckin.”
“Marse Tom Gaitskill says dat people oughter chaw deir vittles fawty times befo’ dey swallows it.”
Shin sat by and watched the old man as he consumed the remainder of his soup in silence. He also ate some crackers25, drank a cup of coffee, to all appearances unconscious that Shin sat beside him. Finally, he looked up with a slightly surprised manner and asked:
“Whut did you say to me, Shinny?”
“I said I’d hate to practise on oystyers.”
“Practise whut on oystyers?”
“Chawin’ one fawty times,” Shin explained.
“My gawsh!” Popsy snorted. “Who ever heard tell of anybody in his real good sense chawin’ a raw oystyer fawty times? Is you gone crippled in yo’ head?”
“Naw, suh, I——”
The old man did not wait for the reply, but interrupted by rising to his feet with the intention of going out. The spoon he was holding he did not lay down upon the table, but carried it toward the door with him.
“De price is fifteen cents, Popsy,” Shin reminded him, as he followed him toward the front. “Let me hold yo’ spoon while you feels fer yo’ money.”
“I didn’t fotch no spoon wid me,” the old man whined26, as he held it out to Shin. “Dis spoon is your’n.”
He paid the money to Shin, and started toward the door again, when he was once more intercepted27.
“Lemme fix de collar of yo’ coat, brudder,” Shin suggested.
He seized the old man by the shoulders, shook the loose coat on his thin shoulders, and pretended to fit it around his wrinkled neck; at the same time, he thrust his hand into the coat pocket and extracted the purloined knife and fork.
Popsy never missed them. In fact, he did not know that he had them. Shin handed him his patriarchal staff and gave him a slight push toward the door.
At that moment Mustard Prophet stood at the entrance, “Is you ready to go out, Popsy?” Mustard asked cordially, as he shook hands.
“Dar now!” Popsy snorted. “I knowed I come in dis place fer some puppus, but I couldn’t think whut it wus. I promised to meet Mustard here. He’s gwine take me out to his house to dinner, an’ I’m done went an’ et!”
“Dat’s no diffunce, Popsy,” Mustard chuckled28. “You’ll be hongry agin by de time you gits out to de Nigger-Heel.”
Popsy stopped beside the wagon and stared in pop-eyed amazement29 at the white boy who sat with his feet hanging out of the rear end.
“Befo’ Gawd!” the old man bawled30. “Dar’s little Jimmy Gaitskill dat I ain’t seed fer sixty year’!”
“You’s gwine back too fur, Popsy,” Mustard laughed. “Dat’s Marse Jimmy Gaitskill’s grandchile.”
“Huh,” the old man grunted31, as Mustard helped him to a seat in the wagon. “De Gaitskills look de same all over de worl’.”
“How does dey look, Popsy?” Mustard chuckled.
“Dey’s got de look of eagles,” Popsy replied.
Shin watched the wagon until it disappeared around a turn in the road. His eyes were on Popsy’s bent32 form as far as he could see it.
“Dat’s de biggest bat I ever knowed,” Shin remarked to the world as he turned back and entered his place of business.
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收听单词发音
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1
tar
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| n.柏油，焦油；vt.涂或浇柏油/焦油于 | |
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2
wagon
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| n.四轮马车，手推车，面包车；无盖运货列车 | |
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3
spout
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| v.喷出，涌出；滔滔不绝地讲；n.喷管；水柱 | |
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4
withered
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| adj. 枯萎的，干瘪的，（人身体的部分器官）因病萎缩的或未发育良好的 动词wither的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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5
talons
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| n.（尤指猛禽的）爪( talon的名词复数 )；（如爪般的）手指；爪状物；锁簧尖状突出部 | |
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6
emaciated
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| adj.衰弱的，消瘦的 | |
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blight
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| n.枯萎病；造成破坏的因素；vt.破坏，摧残 | |
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8
dignified
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| a.可敬的，高贵的 | |
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9
judgment
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| n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见 | |
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10
grunt
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| v.嘟哝；作呼噜声；n.呼噜声，嘟哝 | |
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11
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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12
courteous
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| adj.彬彬有礼的，客气的 | |
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13
respiration
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| n.呼吸作用；一次呼吸；植物光合作用 | |
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14
kin
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| n.家族，亲属，血缘关系；adj.亲属关系的，同类的 | |
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15
mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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16
grumbled
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| 抱怨( grumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 发牢骚； 咕哝； 发哼声 | |
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17
accentuate
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| v.着重，强调 | |
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aged
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| adj.年老的，陈年的 | |
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noted
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| adj.著名的，知名的 | |
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disappearance
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| n.消失，消散，失踪 | |
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21
gal
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| n.姑娘，少女 | |
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purloined
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| v.偷窃( purloin的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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23
sipped
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| v.小口喝，呷，抿( sip的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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24
giggled
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| v.咯咯地笑( giggle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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25
crackers
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| adj.精神错乱的，癫狂的n.爆竹( cracker的名词复数 )；薄脆饼干；（认为）十分愉快的事；迷人的姑娘 | |
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26
whined
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| v.哀号( whine的过去式和过去分词 )；哀诉，诉怨 | |
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27
intercepted
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| 拦截( intercept的过去式和过去分词 )； 截住； 截击； 拦阻 | |
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28
chuckled
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| 轻声地笑( chuckle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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29
amazement
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| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
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30
bawled
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| v.大叫，大喊( bawl的过去式和过去分词 )；放声大哭；大声叫出；叫卖（货物） | |
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31
grunted
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| （猪等）作呼噜声( grunt的过去式和过去分词 )； （指人）发出类似的哼声； 咕哝着说 | |
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32
bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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