chapter 10

 The Suite¹-Cossacks dashed up to Platoff and said: "Here they are themselves!"

 

Platoff immediately addressed the artisans: "Ready?"

 

"Quite ready," they replied.

 

"Hand it over."

 

[Pg 45]

 

They gave it to him.

 

The carriage was already harnessed, and the coachman and the postillion were in their places. The Cossacks immediately seated themselves beside the coachman, and raised their whips over him, and, after executing a flourish, held them so.

 

Platoff tore off the green case, opened the casket, drew the golden snuff-box from the soft cotton, and from the snuff-box the diamond as big as a walnut², and beheld³ the English flea⁴ lying there exactly as before, and nothing else whatever.

 

Says Platoff: "What's this? And where is your work, wherewith you wished to solace⁵ the Emperor?"

 

The gunsmiths reply: "Our work is here, also."

 

Platoff inquires: "Wherein does it consist?"

 

And the gunsmiths reply: "Why[Pg 46] declare that? All is here, before your eyes—and you can look."

 

Platoff shrugged⁶ his shoulders and shouted: "Where is the key to the flea?"

 

"Here, also," they answered. "Where the flea is, there, also, is the key, in one and the same walnut."

 

Platoff tried to grasp the key, but his fingers were blunt; he fumbled⁷ and fumbled, but could not manage to get hold either of the flea, or of the key which projected from the machinery⁸ in its belly⁹, and all at once he flew into a rage, and began to curse in words after the Cossack fashion. He shouted: "What do you mean, you rascals¹⁰? You have made nothing, and have spoiled the whole thing, to boot! I'll cut your heads off!"

 

But the men of Tula made reply: "Without cause do you thus abuse us. We must suffer all insults from you, as[Pg 47] from the Emperor's emissary, but just because you have doubted us and have thought that we are capable of deceiving even the Imperial name, we will not tell you our secret, but you will please to carry it to the Emperor. He will see what sort of people he has in us, and whether he will suffer shame because of us."

 

But Platoff roared: "Come, you are lying, you rascals! I'll not part from you, but one of you shall go to Petrograd with me, and there I will put him to the question as to the nature of your cunning devices."

 

Thereupon, he stretched out his hand, seized the squint-eyed, left-handed smith by the collar with his stubby fingers, so that all the hooks flew off the man's coat, and flung him at his feet in the calash.

 

"Sit here," says he, "in the manner of a poodle, until we get to Petrograd[Pg 48]—you shall answer to me for all of them. And you," says he to the Cossacks of the Suite, "whip up, there! Don't dawdle¹¹! See that you get me to the Emperor in Petrograd the day after to-morrow."

 

The artisans merely ventured to say to him, on behalf of their comrade: "How can you take him from us thus without a tugament?[23] He will not be able to come back."

 

But Platoff, in place of answer, showed them his fist,—such a horrible fist,—dark red and all slashed¹², seemingly grown together here and there—and menacing them, he said: "Here's his tugament for you!"

 

And to the Cossacks he said: "Whip up, my lads!"

 

Cossacks, coachman, and horses all began to work simultaneously¹³, and bore[Pg 49] away the left-handed man without his tugament; and the next day but one, as Platoff had commanded, they whirled him up to the Emperor's palace, and even, having over-galloped as was befitting, they drove past the columns.

 

Platoff rose, fastened on his Orders, and went to the Emperor, commanding the Cossacks of the Suite to stand guard at the entrance over the squint-eyed, left-handed smith.

 

1 suite   

n.一套(家具)；套房；随从人员

参考例句：

• She has a suite of rooms in the hotel.她在那家旅馆有一套房间。
• That is a nice suite of furniture.那套家具很不错。

2 walnut   

n.胡桃，胡桃木，胡桃色，茶色

参考例句：

• Walnut is a local specialty here.核桃是此地的土特产。
• The stool comes in several sizes in walnut or mahogany.凳子有几种尺寸，材质分胡桃木和红木两种。

3 beheld   

v.看，注视( behold的过去式和过去分词 )；瞧；看呀；（叙述中用于引出某人意外的出现）哎哟

参考例句：

• His eyes had never beheld such opulence. 他从未见过这样的财富。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The soul beheld its features in the mirror of the passing moment. 灵魂在逝去的瞬间的镜子中看到了自己的模样。 来自英汉文学 - 红字

4 flea   

n.跳蚤

参考例句：

• I'll put a flea in his ear if he bothers me once more.如果他再来打扰的话，我就要对他不客气了。
• Hunter has an interest in prowling around a flea market.亨特对逛跳蚤市场很感兴趣。

5 solace   

n.安慰；v.使快乐；vt.安慰(物)，缓和

参考例句：

• They sought solace in religion from the harshness of their everyday lives.他们日常生活很艰难，就在宗教中寻求安慰。
• His acting career took a nosedive and he turned to drink for solace.演艺事业突然一落千丈，他便借酒浇愁。

6 shrugged   

vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• Sam shrugged and said nothing. 萨姆耸耸肩膀，什么也没说。
• She shrugged, feigning nonchalance. 她耸耸肩，装出一副无所谓的样子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 fumbled   

（笨拙地）摸索或处理（某事物）( fumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 乱摸，笨拙地弄； 使落下

参考例句：

• She fumbled in her pocket for a handkerchief. 她在她口袋里胡乱摸找手帕。
• He fumbled about in his pockets for the ticket. 他（瞎）摸着衣兜找票。

8 machinery   

n.(总称)机械，机器；机构

参考例句：

• Has the machinery been put up ready for the broadcast?广播器材安装完毕了吗？
• Machinery ought to be well maintained all the time.机器应该随时注意维护。

9 belly   

n.肚子，腹部；(像肚子一样)鼓起的部分，膛

参考例句：

• The boss has a large belly.老板大腹便便。
• His eyes are bigger than his belly.他眼馋肚饱。

10 rascals   

流氓( rascal的名词复数 )； 无赖； （开玩笑说法）淘气的人（尤指小孩）； 恶作剧的人

参考例句：

• "Oh, but I like rascals. "唔，不过我喜欢流氓。
• "They're all second-raters, black sheep, rascals. "他们都是二流人物，是流氓，是恶棍。

11 dawdle   

vi.浪费时间；闲荡

参考例句：

• Don't dawdle over your clothing.You're so beautiful already.不要再在衣着上花费时间了，你已经够漂亮的了。
• The teacher told the students not to dawdle away their time.老师告诉学生们别混日子。

12 slashed   

v.挥砍( slash的过去式和过去分词 )；鞭打；割破；削减

参考例句：

• Someone had slashed the tyres on my car. 有人把我的汽车轮胎割破了。
• He slashed the bark off the tree with his knife. 他用刀把树皮从树上砍下。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 simultaneously   

adv.同时发生地，同时进行地

参考例句：

• The radar beam can track a number of targets almost simultaneously.雷达波几乎可以同时追着多个目标。
• The Windows allow a computer user to execute multiple programs simultaneously.Windows允许计算机用户同时运行多个程序。