After that he mounted the fastest horse on his plantation and rode to town, sweeping3 down upon his wife like a cyclone4 of wrath5 and fear and consternation6.
“He’s a good ole stealer,” Mustard howled. “He knows how to rob de hen-roost an’ hide de feathers. Lawd, when I think how heavy he sets in de amen cornder of de Shoofly meetin’-house, singin’ religion toons an’ foolin’ de people all de time—I tell you dat nigger ought to be churched!”
“But I don’t see what he wanted to take dat rabbit-foot fer,” Hopey declared. “He’s tole me plenty times dat he didn’t b’lieve in foots; he b’lieves in faith.”
“It’s wuth a thousan’ dollars—dat how come he took it!” Mustard bawled9. “Mebbe it’s wuth a millyum; how does I know? Marse Tom, he’s got it all fixed10 up wid silver trimmin’s an’ in a plush box. Dat ain’t no cheap, common, nigger rabbit-foot. Dat’s a royal rabbit-foot, an’ it fotch Marse Tom all de luck he ever had. He tole me dat his own self.”
“Why don’t you go to Popsy an’ ax him fer it?”
“Dat ole lyin’ thief will say he ain’t got it, an’ ain’t never had it, an’ don’t know nothin’ about it,” Mustard wailed11. “Atter dat, whar is I at?”
“Tell him dat it b’longs to Marse Tom, an’ you want it back,” Hopey urged.
“Yep. An’ dat ole gizzard will swell12 up an’ sw’ar he ain’t got nothin’ of Marse Tom’s an’ offer to go down to de bank an’ prove it befo’ Marse Tom’s own face. I don’t dast let Marse Tom know I done loss dat rabbit-foot. De kunnel would kill me dead!”
“I never thought of dat,” Hopey sighed.
“You don’t think about nothin’,” Mustard wailed. “Here I is in de wuss mess I’m ever got into, an’ you ain’t think about nothin’. Look at dis here jam. If Marse Tom finds out I loss de rabbit-foot, he’ll kill me; ef I ax dat ole Popsy-sneak13 to gib it back, mebbe he’ll blab dat it’s lost, an’ Marse Tom will hear about it, an’ I’ll git kilt jes’ de same. Anyhow, dat foot is plum’ gone an’——”
“Why don’t you git somebody to git it back fer you?” Hopey asked. “Ef Popsy stole it, it ’pears to me like somebody oughter be able to steal it back.”
“Suttinly, ef dey kin14 find it,” Mustard said, the light of new hope shining in his eyes. “I’d gib somebody one hundred dollars to steal it back fer me agin.”
“Dat’s plenty lib’ral,” Hopey said. “Mebbe ef you’ll hunt aroun’ you kin find somebody.”
Mustard quieted down and gave himself to deep meditation15, trying to think of someone sufficiently16 bold to hold up Popsy and extract the treasure from his pocket.
Hopey took this opportunity to leave the room. She had heard a great deal from Mustard, and she did not care to be around when he began to mourn and lament17 again. She was a fat woman, and desired calm environments, and sought the ways of peace. Moreover, she did not attribute the same value to the rabbit-foot that Mustard did. It seemed to her that Gaitskill had given it to Mustard to keep for his own, and that he cared nothing for it, had forgotten all about it; he could not attach much importance to its possession when he had never made inquiry18 about it in all the time that Mustard had guarded it so zealously19.
But Mustard was the best negro overseer in Louisiana for this reason as much as any other: he took care of things, regarded his employer’s property as more valuable even than his own, and everything belonging to Marse Tom was to be kept in order for the day when he should give an account of his stewardship20.
After a while, Hopey thought of her friend, Dazzle Zenor. Dazzle had good sense, possessed21 the wisdom which comes from many varied22 experiences, and she would be able to help her now. She heard certain noises in the next room, which indicated that Mustard was getting ready to explode again, so she hastily left the house and went to town.
Dazzle lived in Ginny Babe Chew’s boardinghouse in Dirty-Six. So Hopey climbed pantingly to the second floor of this house and knocked on her door.
“Who’s dat?”
“Hopey Prophet is done come on bizzness. Open dis door!”
Dazzle was a woman who met all the exactions of Ethiopian beauty. Her skin as black as jet, her teeth like milk, her eyes so dark that they had a bluish tinge24, slim and strong and graceful25, an actress, a dancer, a singer, she was the dusky belle26 of Tickfall. Every negro man who had married anybody in the past four years had first proposed to and been rejected by Dazzle.
Many of Dazzle’s enterprises were highly adventurous27, and she was always fearful and suspicious. So when Hopey hesitated to begin, Dazzle’s tone became sharp with anxiety:
“Whut you come to see me fur?” she repeated.
“I come to consult wid you about a little scrape our fambly is got into, Dazzle,” Hopey began. “Us is liable to hab plenty trouble onless somebody kin he’p us.”
“Whut’s done busted28 loose now?” Dazzle asked easily. Her mind was now at rest, for nothing that could happen to Hopey’s family could impinge on any of Dazzle’s previous escapades.
Dazzle laughed.
“I’ll gib Mustard a hatful of dem things. I’m got about twenty.”
“But dis here is a royal rabbit-foot,” Hopey said with emphasis.
“I never heerd of dat kind, but ’tain’t no ’count whutever it is,” Dazzle smiled. “I done tried all kinds, an’ I knows.”
“But dis rabbit-foot b’longed to Marse Tom Gaitskill,” Hopey informed her, “an’ Mustard lost it, an’ Marse Tom will kill Mustard ef he don’t git it back.”
“No doubts,” Dazzle chuckled30. “White folks ain’t got no real good sense, an’ nobody cain’t tell whut dey will do.”
Then Dazzle listened while Hopey told the tale of the disappearance31 of the rabbit-foot. Dazzle was not much impressed with this story of another’s misfortune, but at the last one sentence stimulated32 her interest:
“Mustard says he will pay one hundred dollars to whoever gits his foot back.”
That was speaking in language which Dazzle could understand. She sprang to her feet.
“I’ll earn dat hundred dollars right now,” Dazzle proclaimed. “I’ll go out to Popsy’s cabin an’ pull his nose till he gibs up dat foot.”
“’Tain’t possible, Dazzle,” Hopey said. “We don’t want Marse Tom to know dat de foot is lost. Ef you go to pullin’ noses an’ skinnin’ shins, Popsy will beller, an’ Marse Tom will hear about dat.”
“He’d shore howl,” Dazzle agreed, reluctantly abandoning that plan. “Well, I’ll go out and make love to dat ole man, an’ sneak de rabbit-foot outen his pocket.”
“Any way will do dat will git de foot back ’thout makin’ too much of a rookus, Dazzle,” Hopey said. “We don’t want no row, no nigger scrape, no loud noise, and no white folks mixin’ in.”
“White folks is shore good mixers,” Dazzle said, wincing33 at the recollection of several plans of hers which had been rudely frustrated34 by the interference of the whites. “I’ll see whut I kin do.”
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1
plantation
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| n.种植园，大农场 | |
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2
capers
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| n.开玩笑( caper的名词复数 )；刺山柑v.跳跃，雀跃( caper的第三人称单数 ) | |
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3
sweeping
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| adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的 | |
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4
cyclone
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| n.旋风，龙卷风 | |
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wrath
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| n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒 | |
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6
consternation
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| n.大为吃惊，惊骇 | |
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7
bellowed
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| v.发出吼叫声，咆哮（尤指因痛苦）( bellow的过去式和过去分词 )；（愤怒地）说出（某事），大叫 | |
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8
soothe
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| v.安慰；使平静；使减轻；缓和；奉承 | |
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9
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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10
fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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11
wailed
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| v.哭叫，哀号( wail的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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12
swell
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| vi.膨胀，肿胀；增长，增强 | |
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13
sneak
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| vt.潜行(隐藏,填石缝)；偷偷摸摸做；n.潜行；adj.暗中进行 | |
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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
meditation
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| n.熟虑，（尤指宗教的）默想，沉思，（pl.）冥想录 | |
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16
sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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17
lament
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| n.悲叹，悔恨，恸哭；v.哀悼，悔恨，悲叹 | |
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18
inquiry
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| n.打听，询问，调查，查问 | |
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19
zealously
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| adv.热心地；热情地；积极地；狂热地 | |
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20
stewardship
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| n. n. 管理工作；管事人的职位及职责 | |
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21
possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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22
varied
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| adj.多样的，多变化的 | |
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promptly
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| adv.及时地，敏捷地 | |
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24
tinge
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| vt.(较淡)着色于，染色；使带有…气息；n.淡淡色彩，些微的气息 | |
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25
graceful
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| adj.优美的，优雅的；得体的 | |
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belle
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| n.靓女 | |
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27
adventurous
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| adj.爱冒险的；惊心动魄的，惊险的，刺激的 | |
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28
busted
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| adj. 破产了的，失败了的，被降级的，被逮捕的，被抓到的 动词bust的过去式和过去分词 | |
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29
tragic
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| adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的 | |
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30
chuckled
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| 轻声地笑( chuckle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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31
disappearance
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| n.消失，消散，失踪 | |
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32
stimulated
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| a.刺激的 | |
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33
wincing
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| 赶紧避开，畏缩( wince的现在分词 ) | |
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34
frustrated
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| adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧 | |
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