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CHAPTER XXV
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 In the high, gusty1 evening Tommy Williams, the gombeen-man, was standing2 proudly at his own door surveying the street of Garradrimna. It was his custom to appear thus at the close of the day in contemplation of his great possessions. He owned four houses in the village, four proud buildings which advertised his worth before the beggars of the parish—out of whom he had made the price of them. But he was distrustful of his customers to an enormous degree, and his purpose in standing thus at his own door was not altogether one of aimless speculation3 upon his own spacious4 importance in Garradrimna. He was watching to see that some people going down the valley road upon ass-carts did not attempt to take away any of the miscellaneous merchandise exhibited outside the door. As he stood against the background of his shop, from which he might be said to have derived5 his personality, one could view the man in his true proportions beneath his hard, high hat. His short beard was beginning to show tinges6 of gray, and the deepening look of preoccupation behind his glasses gave him the appearance of becoming daily more and more like John Dillon.
 
Father O'Keeffe came by and said: "Good-evening, Tommy!" This was a tribute to his respectability and worth. He was the great man of the village, the head and front of everything. Events revolved7 around him.[Pg 204] He would have you know that he was somebody, so he was. A politician after the fashion in the Ireland of his time, he organized and spoke8 at public meetings. He always wanted to be saying things in support of "The Cause." "The Cause" was to him a kind of poetic9 ideal. His patriotic11 imagination had intensified12 its glory. But it was not the future of Ireland he yearned13 to see made glorious. He looked forward only to the triumph of "The Cause."
 
Upon the death of his father, also a patriot10, the little mean huckstery at the tail end of the village street had descended14 to him; and although he had risen to the dignity and proprietorship15 of four houses, this establishment had never changed, for, among the many ancient superstitions16 which crowded his mind, the hoary17 one of the existence of luck where there is muck occupied a place of prominence18. And like his father he was a rebel—in his mind. The more notable political mountebanks of his time were all men who had fought as upon a field of battle. Words served them as weapons, and words were the weapons that he loved; he might have died if he were not fighting, and to him talk meant battle. He used to collect all the supplemental pictures of those patriots19 from The Weekly Freeman and paste them in a scrapbook for edification of his eldest20 son, whom he desired to be some day a unit of their combination. An old-fashioned print of Dan O'Connell hung side by side with a dauby caricature of Robert Emmet in the old porter-smelling parlor21 off the bar. The names of the two men were linked inseparably with one of his famous phrases—"The undying spirit of Irish Nationality."
 
Occasionally, when he had a drunken and enthusiastic[Pg 205] crowd in that part of his many-sided establishment which was a public bar, he would read out in a fine loud voice how "The Cause" was progressing, and, having learned by heart a speech of John Dillon's, he would lash22 it out to them as a composition of his own. Whereupon the doubly excited audience would shake his hand as one man and shout: "More power there, mister; 'tis yourself is the true Irishman, me sweet fellow!" He could be very funny too when occasion demanded, and tell stories of Father Healy of Bray23 at pleasant little dinners which took place in the upper story of his house after every political meeting held in Garradrimna. He never missed the opportunity and the consequent honor of singing "On an old Irish Hill in the Morning" at every one of those dinners. He was always warmly applauded by Father O'Keeffe, who invariably occupied the chair. He was treasurer24 of the fund, out of which he was paid for supplying all this entertainment.
 
His wife was the daughter of a farmer of the "red-hat" class. He had been compelled to marry her.... If this had happened to a poor man the talk would have followed him to the grave. But they were afraid to talk censoriously of the patriot who had enveloped25 all of them. He practically owned them.... The priest could not deliver an attack upon the one who headed his lists of Offerings and Easter Dues and the numerous collections which brought in the decent total of Father O'Keeffe's income.
 
To Rebecca Kerr had been given the position of governess to the Williams household. She had not sought it, but, on the removal of the two boys, Michael Joseph and Paddy, from the care of Master Donnellan to this[Pg 206] more genteel way of imparting knowledge and giving correction, which savored26 somewhat of the splendor27 of the Moores of Garradrimna and the Houlihans of Clonabroney, had merely accepted it as part of the system of the place. She had fully28 anticipated such possibilities upon the very evening of her arrival.... Besides old Master Donnellan had thanked her from his heart for the release she had been the means of affording him, and she liked the master for a quiet, kind old man who did not prate29 or meddle30. So far she had made little improvement in either of the boys. But Mrs. Williams was evidently delighted for "our governess, Miss Kerr," was the one person she ever spoke a good word of to Father O'Keeffe.
 
This evening Rebecca was in the parlor, seated just beneath the pictures of Dan O'Connell and Robert Emmet, wrestling hard with the boys. All at once her pupils commanded her to be silent. "Whist!" they said in unison31. She was momentarily amazed into eavesdropping32 at their behest....
 
"Oh, not at all, Mrs. Brennan, sure and I couldn't think of the like at all at all!"
 
"Well, Mr. Williams, as a well-known benefactor33 of the college at Ballinamult and a good, religious man to boot, I thought that mebbe you could give John a recommendation. It would be grand to see him there and he working himself up to the summit of his ambition. There would be a great reward to your soul for doing the like of that, Mr. Williams, as sure as you're there."
 
"And now, woman-a-dear, what about my own sons, Michael Joseph and Paddy?"
 
"Oh, indeed, there's no fear of them, Mr. Williams!"
 
[Pg 207]
 
"But I could not think of jeopardizing34 them while I'd be doing for the families or the sons of the stranger."
 
"But sure, sir, I'll pay you at any rate of interest you like if only you could see your way to give me this help. Enough to buy a bicycle that'll take him over to Ballinamult every day and your grand recommendation to the priests that'll be worth gold. I'll pay you every penny I can, and sure the poor boy will repay you everything when he comes into the position that's due to him."
 
"Well, I don't know. I don't think the missus—"
 
At this very moment Mrs. Williams came into the parlor where Rebecca sat with them, and beamed upon her sons.
 
"Oh, my poor boys, sure it is killed you are with the terrible strain of the study. Sure it is what you'd better go out into the fields now with the pony35; but mind, be careful! You poor little fellows!"
 
Michael Joseph and Paddy at once snatched up their caps and rushed for the door. So much for the extent of their training and Rebecca's control of them, for this was a daily happening. But another part of her hour of torture at the gombeen-man's house had yet to come. Of late Mrs. Williams had made of her a kind of confidante in the small concerns of her household. She was the sort of woman who must needs be always talking to some one of her affairs. Now she enlarged upon the immediate36 story of how Mrs. Brennan had been begging and craving37 of Tommy to do something for her son John, who had been sent home from the place he was in England. "The cheek of her, mind you, that Mrs. Brennan!" emphasized Mrs. Williams.
 
If it had been any other schoolmistress or girl of any[Pg 208] kind at all that Mrs. Williams had ever known, they would have acquiesced38 in this statement of denunciation and said: "That's a sure fact for you, ma'am!" or "Just so!" But this had never been Rebecca's way. She merely said: "John Brennan is a very nice young fellow!"
 
Although Mrs. Williams was surprised, she merely said: "Is that so? Sure I know very little about him only to see him pass the door. They say he's taken the fashion of tippling a bit, and it's to McDermott's he does go, d'ye mind, with Ulick Shannon, and not to this house. But, of course, it's my bold Ulick that's spending. Easy for him, begad, and it not his own."
 
Rebecca saw the dirty meanness that stirred in this speech.
 
"That's what they say and it is surely a great pity to see him wasting his time about the roads of the valley. I think it would be a grand piece of charity on the part of any one who would be the means of taking him away from this place. If only he could be afforded some little help. 'Tis surely not his fault that the college in England broke down, and although his mother is, I believe, contriving39 the best for his future, sure it is hard for her. She is only a poor woman, and the people of the valley seem queerly set against her. I don't know why. They seem to hate the very sight of her."
 
"You may say that indeed, and it is the good reasons they have—"
 
Mrs. Williams suddenly checked herself, for there flashed across her mind a chapter of her own story. She had been one of the lucky ones.... Besides, by slow steps, Rebecca was coming to have some power over her.
 
[Pg 209]
 
"Of course it would be no loss to Tommy if he did give this help. He'd be bound to get the interest of his money, even if he were to sell her out of house and home. He knows his business, and he's not against it himself, I may tell you; for he sees a return in many a way. It was myself that was keeping him from it on account of the boy's mother. But, of course, if you think it would be a nice, good thing to do—"
 
"It would be a good thing, and a very good thing, and one of the best actions you could put for luck before your own sons."
 
"Oh, indeed, there's no fear of them! Is it Michael Joseph or Paddy?"
 
"Of course not, indeed, nor did I mean anything of the kind. I only said it to soften40 you, Mrs. Williams."
 
"Well, I may tell you it's all right, Miss Kerr. Mrs. Brennan is out there in the shop, and she's craving from me man.... It'll be all right, Miss Kerr, and that's a fact.... I'll make it all right, never you fear!"
 
In this way was John Brennan again led back into the paths of the Church. Curious that it should have been given Rebecca to effect the change in his condition—Rebecca, whose beauty, snatching at his spirit always, had drawn41 his mind into other ways of contemplation. In less than a week, through the powerful ecclesiastical influence of Tommy Williams, the gombeen-man, he was riding daily to the college at Ballinamult. By teaching outside the hours allotted42 for his own study he was earning part of his fees, and, as a further example of his worth to the community, Tommy Williams was paying the other portion, although as a purely43 financial speculation.... In a year it was expected he would win one[Pg 210] of the Diocesan Scholarships and go up to Maynooth. Mrs. Brennan knew more joy than had ever before possessed44 her. Her son was to be ordained45 in Ireland after all, and maybe given a curacy in his own diocese. Who knew but he might yet follow in the footsteps of Father O'Keeffe and become Parish Priest of Garradrimna while she was still alive here in this little house in the valley!
 
 

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1 gusty B5uyu     
adj.起大风的
参考例句:
  • Weather forecasts predict more hot weather,gusty winds and lightning strikes.天气预报预测高温、大风和雷电天气将继续。
  • Why was Candlestick Park so windy and gusty? 埃德尔斯蒂克公园里为什么会有那么多的强劲阵风?
2 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。
3 speculation 9vGwe     
n.思索,沉思;猜测;投机
参考例句:
  • Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
  • There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。
4 spacious YwQwW     
adj.广阔的,宽敞的
参考例句:
  • Our yard is spacious enough for a swimming pool.我们的院子很宽敞,足够建一座游泳池。
  • The room is bright and spacious.这房间很豁亮。
5 derived 6cddb7353e699051a384686b6b3ff1e2     
vi.起源;由来;衍生;导出v.得到( derive的过去式和过去分词 );(从…中)得到获得;源于;(从…中)提取
参考例句:
  • Many English words are derived from Latin and Greek. 英语很多词源出于拉丁文和希腊文。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He derived his enthusiasm for literature from his father. 他对文学的爱好是受他父亲的影响。 来自《简明英汉词典》
6 tinges 260098812ed8a40b87f745683bf2f049     
n.细微的色彩,一丝痕迹( tinge的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Tinges of green apple, citric fruits and a slight mineral touch. 萦绕着青苹果,柠檬和矿物质的芳香。 来自互联网
  • Tinges the landscape with a golden hue. 它们给这片风景染上一片金色。 来自互联网
7 revolved b63ebb9b9e407e169395c5fc58399fe6     
v.(使)旋转( revolve的过去式和过去分词 );细想
参考例句:
  • The fan revolved slowly. 电扇缓慢地转动着。
  • The wheel revolved on its centre. 轮子绕中心转动。 来自《简明英汉词典》
8 spoke XryyC     
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。
9 poetic b2PzT     
adj.富有诗意的,有诗人气质的,善于抒情的
参考例句:
  • His poetic idiom is stamped with expressions describing group feeling and thought.他的诗中的措辞往往带有描写群体感情和思想的印记。
  • His poetic novels have gone through three different historical stages.他的诗情小说创作经历了三个不同的历史阶段。
10 patriot a3kzu     
n.爱国者,爱国主义者
参考例句:
  • He avowed himself a patriot.他自称自己是爱国者。
  • He is a patriot who has won the admiration of the French already.他是一个已经赢得法国人敬仰的爱国者。
11 patriotic T3Izu     
adj.爱国的,有爱国心的
参考例句:
  • His speech was full of patriotic sentiments.他的演说充满了爱国之情。
  • The old man is a patriotic overseas Chinese.这位老人是一位爱国华侨。
12 intensified 4b3b31dab91d010ec3f02bff8b189d1a     
v.(使)增强, (使)加剧( intensify的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • Violence intensified during the night. 在夜间暴力活动加剧了。
  • The drought has intensified. 旱情加剧了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
13 yearned df1a28ecd1f3c590db24d0d80c264305     
渴望,切盼,向往( yearn的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • The people yearned for peace. 人民渴望和平。
  • She yearned to go back to the south. 她渴望回到南方去。
14 descended guQzoy     
a.为...后裔的,出身于...的
参考例句:
  • A mood of melancholy descended on us. 一种悲伤的情绪袭上我们的心头。
  • The path descended the hill in a series of zigzags. 小路呈连续的之字形顺着山坡蜿蜒而下。
15 proprietorship 1Rcx5     
n.所有(权);所有权
参考例句:
  • A sole proprietorship ends with the incapacity or death of the owner. 当业主无力经营或死亡的时候,这家个体企业也就宣告结束。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
  • This company has a proprietorship of the copyright. 这家公司拥有版权所有权。 来自辞典例句
16 superstitions bf6d10d6085a510f371db29a9b4f8c2f     
迷信,迷信行为( superstition的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Old superstitions seem incredible to educated people. 旧的迷信对于受过教育的人来说是不可思议的。
  • Do away with all fetishes and superstitions. 破除一切盲目崇拜和迷信。
17 hoary Jc5xt     
adj.古老的;鬓发斑白的
参考例句:
  • They discussed the hoary old problem.他们讨论老问题。
  • Without a word spoken,he hurried away,with his hoary head bending low.他什么也没说,低着白发苍苍的头,匆匆地走了。
18 prominence a0Mzw     
n.突出;显著;杰出;重要
参考例句:
  • He came to prominence during the World Cup in Italy.他在意大利的世界杯赛中声名鹊起。
  • This young fashion designer is rising to prominence.这位年轻的时装设计师的声望越来越高。
19 patriots cf0387291504d78a6ac7a13147d2f229     
爱国者,爱国主义者( patriot的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Abraham Lincoln was a fine type of the American patriots. 亚伯拉罕·林肯是美国爱国者的优秀典型。
  • These patriots would fight to death before they surrendered. 这些爱国者宁愿战斗到死,也不愿投降。
20 eldest bqkx6     
adj.最年长的,最年老的
参考例句:
  • The King's eldest son is the heir to the throne.国王的长子是王位的继承人。
  • The castle and the land are entailed on the eldest son.城堡和土地限定由长子继承。
21 parlor v4MzU     
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?
22 lash a2oxR     
v.系牢;鞭打;猛烈抨击;n.鞭打;眼睫毛
参考例句:
  • He received a lash of her hand on his cheek.他突然被她打了一记耳光。
  • With a lash of its tail the tiger leaped at her.老虎把尾巴一甩朝她扑过来。
23 bray hnRyv     
n.驴叫声, 喇叭声;v.驴叫
参考例句:
  • She cut him off with a wild bray of laughter.她用刺耳的狂笑打断了他的讲话。
  • The donkey brayed and tried to bolt.这头驴嘶叫着试图脱缰而逃。
24 treasurer VmHwm     
n.司库,财务主管
参考例句:
  • Mr. Smith was succeeded by Mrs.Jones as treasurer.琼斯夫人继史密斯先生任会计。
  • The treasurer was arrested for trying to manipulate the company's financial records.财务主管由于试图窜改公司财政帐目而被拘留。
25 enveloped 8006411f03656275ea778a3c3978ff7a     
v.包围,笼罩,包住( envelop的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She was enveloped in a huge white towel. 她裹在一条白色大毛巾里。
  • Smoke from the burning house enveloped the whole street. 燃烧着的房子冒出的浓烟笼罩了整条街。 来自《简明英汉词典》
26 savored b2e8dc5ced86b908663d80760a443370     
v.意味,带有…的性质( savor的过去式和过去分词 );给…加调味品;使有风味;品尝
参考例句:
  • We savored the barbed hits in his reply. 我们很欣赏他在回答中使用的带刺的俏皮话。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • We savored, (the pleasures of) mountain life to the full. 我们充分体会了山居生活的乐趣。 来自辞典例句
27 splendor hriy0     
n.光彩;壮丽,华丽;显赫,辉煌
参考例句:
  • Never in his life had he gazed on such splendor.他生平从没有见过如此辉煌壮丽的场面。
  • All the splendor in the world is not worth a good friend.人世间所有的荣华富贵不如一个好朋友。
28 fully Gfuzd     
adv.完全地,全部地,彻底地;充分地
参考例句:
  • The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气,然后全部呼出。
  • They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。
29 prate hSaz7     
v.瞎扯,胡说
参考例句:
  • Listen to him prating on about nothing.听他瞎唠叨。
  • If the hen does not prate,she will not lay.母鸡不唠叨不下蛋。
30 meddle d7Xzb     
v.干预,干涉,插手
参考例句:
  • I hope he doesn't try to meddle in my affairs.我希望他不来干预我的事情。
  • Do not meddle in things that do not concern you.别参与和自己无关的事。
31 unison gKCzB     
n.步调一致,行动一致
参考例句:
  • The governments acted in unison to combat terrorism.这些国家的政府一致行动对付恐怖主义。
  • My feelings are in unison with yours.我的感情与你的感情是一致的。
32 eavesdropping 4a826293c077353641ee3f86da957082     
n. 偷听
参考例句:
  • We caught him eavesdropping outside the window. 我们撞见他正在窗外偷听。
  • Suddenly the kids,who had been eavesdropping,flew into the room. 突然间,一直在偷听的孩子们飞进屋来。
33 benefactor ZQEy0     
n. 恩人,行善的人,捐助人
参考例句:
  • The chieftain of that country is disguised as a benefactor this time. 那个国家的首领这一次伪装出一副施恩者的姿态。
  • The first thing I did, was to recompense my original benefactor, my good old captain. 我所做的第一件事, 就是报答我那最初的恩人, 那位好心的老船长。
34 jeopardizing 6ec88fcb3085928bbf8588a5c3ba3e65     
危及,损害( jeopardize的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • Plans may also become inefficient in the attainment of objectives by jeopardizing group satisfactions. 用危及群体利益方法去达到目标的计划,也是无效率的。
  • That boosted government revenues in the short term, but is now jeopardizing them. Morales将天然气工业,电信业和部分采矿业收归国有的举措吓跑了投资者们。
35 pony Au5yJ     
adj.小型的;n.小马
参考例句:
  • His father gave him a pony as a Christmas present.他父亲给了他一匹小马驹作为圣诞礼物。
  • They made him pony up the money he owed.他们逼他还债。
36 immediate aapxh     
adj.立即的;直接的,最接近的;紧靠的
参考例句:
  • His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
  • We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。
37 craving zvlz3e     
n.渴望,热望
参考例句:
  • a craving for chocolate 非常想吃巧克力
  • She skipped normal meals to satisfy her craving for chocolate and crisps. 她不吃正餐,以便满足自己吃巧克力和炸薯片的渴望。
38 acquiesced 03acb9bc789f7d2955424223e0a45f1b     
v.默认,默许( acquiesce的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • Senior government figures must have acquiesced in the cover-up. 政府高级官员必然已经默许掩盖真相。
  • After a lot of persuasion,he finally acquiesced. 经过多次劝说,他最终默许了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
39 contriving 104341ff394294c813643a9fe96a99cb     
(不顾困难地)促成某事( contrive的现在分词 ); 巧妙地策划,精巧地制造(如机器); 设法做到
参考例句:
  • Why may not several Deities combine in contriving and framing a world? 为什么不可能是数个神联合起来,设计和构造世界呢? 来自哲学部分
  • The notorious drug-pusher has been contriving an escape from the prison. 臭名昭著的大毒枭一直都在图谋越狱。
40 soften 6w0wk     
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。
41 drawn MuXzIi     
v.拖,拉,拔出;adj.憔悴的,紧张的
参考例句:
  • All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
  • Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。
42 allotted 5653ecda52c7b978bd6890054bd1f75f     
分配,拨给,摊派( allot的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • I completed the test within the time allotted . 我在限定的时间内完成了试验。
  • Each passenger slept on the berth allotted to him. 每个旅客都睡在分配给他的铺位上。
43 purely 8Sqxf     
adv.纯粹地,完全地
参考例句:
  • I helped him purely and simply out of friendship.我帮他纯粹是出于友情。
  • This disproves the theory that children are purely imitative.这证明认为儿童只会单纯地模仿的理论是站不住脚的。
44 possessed xuyyQ     
adj.疯狂的;拥有的,占有的
参考例句:
  • He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门。
  • He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。
45 ordained 629f6c8a1f6bf34be2caf3a3959a61f1     
v.任命(某人)为牧师( ordain的过去式和过去分词 );授予(某人)圣职;(上帝、法律等)命令;判定
参考例句:
  • He was ordained in 1984. 他在一九八四年被任命为牧师。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He was ordained priest. 他被任命为牧师。 来自辞典例句


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