CHAPTER II.

By this time the potency¹ of their morning beverage² began to betray itself. The merchant, no longer irresolute³, put on the air of a determined⁵ man, ready to do the utmost bidding of his covetous⁶ spirit. And the captain, no longer calm and self-controlled, grew self-complacent, and, in the pride of his heart, felt brave and true enough to do anything.
'Kegs!' replied the governor; 'no. The last was a poor speculation⁷, and Lundy Cave is gorged⁸ enough by this time. I'm for a short cut, Mr. Stauncy, a short cut; and, if I can only get a bold heart to help me, I'll go through with it.'
'Here you are then!' exclaimed the captain. 'A bold heart? It isn't much I fear. I should like to see what I wouldn't face. Why, I once ran for the bar with a king's ship at my heels, when it was blowing a gale⁹ of wind, and hardly half-tide on; when the bay was like a boiling caldron, and every wave sprinkled our topmast-head. Twice we were on our beam ends; and, as we neared the South Tail, a huge sea struck us, which cleaned our deck and carried away the rudder, leaving us to the mercy of the surge, which roared and hissed¹⁰ as it leapt around such daring prey¹¹. My heart feared nothing, however, and, by manoeuvring with the sails, we got safely through it, and reached the Pool. Then there was that affair in Cawsand Bay, when Heard, the vagabond, betrayed me, and I was taken on board the three-decker'—
'Say no more, Stauncy,' responded the merchant, interrupting him. 'You have a heart bold enough, I know; but the courage you are thinking of is not exactly what I want just now. There are plenty who could be cool and resolute⁴ under such circumstances; but show me the man whose conscience is not governed by human laws, but by human rights; who, with such a conscience, can face the shame which the violation¹² of those laws may incur¹³. Show me the man who, in a land where poverty is a crime and wealth a virtue¹⁴, and where imposts are so levied¹⁵ as to oppress the class least able to bear them, has spirit enough to give the revenue the go-by rather than slave on, without the chance of doing what his heart tells him he ought to do, for himself and family.'
'Ay, ay, sir,' said the captain, wondering at the merchant's earnestness, and little suspecting his base design in giving utterance¹⁶ to such atrocious sentiments; 'our circumstances, you mean, must determine our duties, and not our one-sided laws. I should think I've courage enough to follow out that creed¹⁷ any day.'
'I believe it, captain, and I'll put you to the proof now: help yourself.' Then, rising from his chair and pacing the room, he continued, 'The worst of a thing does not always appear at the first; but my scheme has this advantage, that you can see all its darkness, if there be any, at once. I want to improve the state of my pocket, and of yours too, Stauncy, and nothing can be easier. The way of it is'—And then, approaching close to the captain, he whispered for a few moments in his ear.
The seaman¹⁸ compressed his lips and was silent, whilst the merchant continued to pace the room, ejaculating occasionally to himself, and waiting until his victim had taken in the idea.
 
'FIFTY POUNDS, AND THE QUARTER-DECK OF THE "ARIADNE."'
'Fifty pounds, Stauncy!' he at length exclaimed; for he began to fear lest the captain's heart was misgiving¹⁹ him, and promptly²⁰ stated a sum about which he had long haggled²¹ with himself an hour or so before,—'fifty pounds and the quarter-deck of the Ariadne when she is launched. A mushroom like that is not kicked up every day.'
'The money is tempting²², Mr. Phillipson, but the scheme is new. I don't see any bravery in it either.'
'The less the bravery the less the risk, captain; and let the waves cast up what they may against smugglers, they will never tell tales after such a pretty funeral.'
'Not likely, sir, not likely. Fifty pounds, you said, Mr. Phillipson? Well, I don't see why I shouldn't do as I'm bid, and ask no questions. Pay me down the money, and I'm at your service.'
'I said,' observed the merchant, 'that the less the bravery the less the risk; but you must remember that in my case the risk is considerable. I put myself completely into your hands, and must therefore secure myself by a pledge from you, if I secure you by paying down the money.'
'What pledge do you want, sir?' said Stauncy, colouring, and looking displeased²³. 'One halter has been about our necks for many years, and I'm not the man to slip it, unless we can slip it together. Do you think I shall turn king's evidence?'
'No fear of that,' said Mr. Phillipson blandly²⁴. 'I'm as sure of you as I am of myself. All I want you to do is, to promise that my name shall never be mentioned in the matter, come what may.'
'Granted,' said the captain; 'I promise.'
'Stop, stop!' exclaimed the merchant hurriedly; 'let us do it regular—and make it what it ought to be.'
'Anything you like,' responded the captain. 'What I say I mean. I'll pledge my life if you will.' And then, by a solemn vow²⁵, the blinded and seduced²⁶ sailor bound himself never to divulge²⁷ the name of his tempter, imprecating fearful judgments²⁸ on himself if he violated his promise.
'I am satisfied,' said the merchant. 'Here's the money, Stauncy; and now all you have to do is to whistle for a breeze.'
A gust²⁹ of wind that moment rushing through the passage shrieked³⁰ into the keyhole. The fire cracked and flared³¹ with intense excitement. The merchant's dog, which had lain quietly under the table, gave one short bark and one long howl; and so they separated.

1 potency   

n. 效力，潜能

参考例句：

• Alcohol increases the drug's potency.酒精能增加这种毒品的效力。
• Sunscreen can lose its potency if left over winter in the bathroom cabinet.如果把防晒霜在盥洗室的壁橱里放一个冬天，就有可能失效。

2 beverage   

n.(水，酒等之外的)饮料

参考例句：

• The beverage is often colored with caramel.这种饮料常用焦糖染色。
• Beer is a beverage of the remotest time.啤酒是一种最古老的饮料。

3 irresolute   

adj.无决断的，优柔寡断的，踌躇不定的

参考例句：

• Irresolute persons make poor victors.优柔寡断的人不会成为胜利者。
• His opponents were too irresolute to call his bluff.他的对手太优柔寡断,不敢接受挑战。

4 resolute   

adj.坚决的，果敢的

参考例句：

• He was resolute in carrying out his plan.他坚决地实行他的计划。
• The Egyptians offered resolute resistance to the aggressors.埃及人对侵略者作出坚决的反抗。

5 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

6 covetous   

adj.贪婪的，贪心的

参考例句：

• She is envious of Jane's good looks and covetous of her car.她既忌妒简的美貌又垂涎她的汽车。
• He raised his head,with a look of unrestrained greed in his covetous eyes.他抬起头来，贪婪的眼光露出馋涎欲滴的神情。

7 speculation   

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。

8 gorged   

v.（用食物把自己）塞饱，填饱( gorge的过去式和过去分词 )；作呕

参考例句：

• He gorged himself at the party. 在宴会上他狼吞虎咽地把自己塞饱。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The men, gorged with food, had unbuttoned their vests. 那些男人，吃得直打饱嗝，解开了背心的钮扣。 来自辞典例句

9 gale   

n.大风，强风，一阵闹声（尤指笑声等）

参考例句：

• We got our roof blown off in the gale last night.昨夜的大风把我们的房顶给掀掉了。
• According to the weather forecast,there will be a gale tomorrow.据气象台预报，明天有大风。

10 hissed   

发嘶嘶声( hiss的过去式和过去分词 )； 发嘘声表示反对

参考例句：

• Have you ever been hissed at in the middle of a speech? 你在演讲中有没有被嘘过？
• The iron hissed as it pressed the wet cloth. 熨斗压在湿布上时发出了嘶嘶声。

11 prey   

n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨

参考例句：

• Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
• The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。

12 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。

13 incur   

vt.招致，蒙受，遭遇

参考例句：

• Any costs that you incur will be reimbursed in full.你的所有花费都将全额付还。
• An enterprise has to incur certain costs and expenses in order to stay in business.一个企业为了维持营业,就不得不承担一定的费用和开支。

14 virtue   

n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力

参考例句：

• He was considered to be a paragon of virtue.他被认为是品德尽善尽美的典范。
• You need to decorate your mind with virtue.你应该用德行美化心灵。

15 levied   

征（兵）( levy的过去式和过去分词 )； 索取； 发动（战争）； 征税

参考例句：

• Taxes should be levied more on the rich than on the poor. 向富人征收的税应该比穷人的多。
• Heavy fines were levied on motoring offenders. 违规驾车者会遭到重罚。

16 utterance   

n.用言语表达，话语，言语

参考例句：

• This utterance of his was greeted with bursts of uproarious laughter.他的讲话引起阵阵哄然大笑。
• My voice cleaves to my throat,and sob chokes my utterance.我的噪子哽咽，泣不成声。

17 creed   

n.信条；信念，纲领

参考例句：

• They offended against every article of his creed.他们触犯了他的每一条戒律。
• Our creed has always been that business is business.我们的信条一直是公私分明。

18 seaman   

n.海员，水手，水兵

参考例句：

• That young man is a experienced seaman.那个年轻人是一个经验丰富的水手。
• The Greek seaman went to the hospital five times.这位希腊海员到该医院去过五次。

19 misgiving   

n.疑虑，担忧，害怕

参考例句：

• She had some misgivings about what she was about to do.她对自己即将要做的事情存有一些顾虑。
• The first words of the text filled us with misgiving.正文开头的文字让我们颇为担心。

20 promptly   

adv.及时地，敏捷地

参考例句：

• He paid the money back promptly.他立即还了钱。
• She promptly seized the opportunity his absence gave her.她立即抓住了因他不在场给她创造的机会。

21 haggled   

v.讨价还价( haggle的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The cook and the grocer haggled over the price of eggs. 厨师和杂货商为蛋价计较个没完。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• After they had haggled for some time, the two men decided to close the bargain. 那两个人经过一番讨价还价以后，决定成交。 来自《简明英汉词典》

22 tempting   

a.诱人的, 吸引人的

参考例句：

• It is tempting to idealize the past. 人都爱把过去的日子说得那么美好。
• It was a tempting offer. 这是个诱人的提议。

23 displeased   

a.不快的

参考例句：

• The old man was displeased and darted an angry look at me. 老人不高兴了，瞪了我一眼。
• He was displeased about the whole affair. 他对整个事情感到很不高兴。

24 blandly   

adv.温和地，殷勤地

参考例句：

• There is a class of men in Bristol monstrously prejudiced against Blandly. 布里斯托尔有那么一帮人为此恨透了布兰德利。 来自英汉文学 - 金银岛
• \"Maybe you could get something in the stage line?\" he blandly suggested. “也许你能在戏剧这一行里找些事做，\"他和蔼地提议道。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

25 vow   

n.誓(言)，誓约；v.起誓，立誓

参考例句：

• My parents are under a vow to go to church every Sunday.我父母许愿，每星期日都去做礼拜。
• I am under a vow to drink no wine.我已立誓戒酒。

26 seduced   

诱奸( seduce的过去式和过去分词 )； 勾引； 诱使堕落； 使入迷

参考例句：

• The promise of huge profits seduced him into parting with his money. 高额利润的许诺诱使他把钱出了手。
• His doctrines have seduced many into error. 他的学说把许多人诱入歧途。

27 divulge   

v.泄漏(秘密等)；宣布，公布

参考例句：

• They refused to divulge where they had hidden the money.他们拒绝说出他们把钱藏在什么地方。
• He swore never to divulge the secret.他立誓决不泄露秘密。

28 judgments   

判断( judgment的名词复数 )； 鉴定； 评价； 审判

参考例句：

• A peculiar austerity marked his judgments of modern life. 他对现代生活的批评带着一种特殊的苛刻。
• He is swift with his judgments. 他判断迅速。

29 gust   

n.阵风，突然一阵（雨、烟等），（感情的）迸发

参考例句：

• A gust of wind blew the front door shut.一阵大风吹来，把前门关上了。
• A gust of happiness swept through her.一股幸福的暖流流遍她的全身。

30 shrieked   

v.尖叫( shriek的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She shrieked in fright. 她吓得尖叫起来。
• Li Mei-t'ing gave a shout, and Lu Tzu-hsiao shrieked, "Tell what? 李梅亭大声叫，陆子潇尖声叫：“告诉什么？ 来自汉英文学 - 围城

31 Flared   

adj. 端部张开的, 爆发的, 加宽的, 漏斗式的 动词flare的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The match flared and went out. 火柴闪亮了一下就熄了。
• The fire flared up when we thought it was out. 我们以为火已经熄灭，但它突然又燃烧起来。