Chapter 30 Sydney Frees His Mind

"You're pretty weak, aren't you?" This was Mrs. Fox's remark as she eased Sydney down into a rocking chair in the little parlor¹. It was quite dark, save for the faint light that came in from the street lamp over the curtain pole in the window.

"I suppose I was too weak to venture to come," Sydney answered, "but I felt that I must. Did you understand all that I meant to say in my note?"

"I understand that you know of a great sum of money that is coming to Maurice Darley. It's strange, very strange."

"Why is it? Did you know anything about it? Did you expect it?"

There was a note of alarm in Sydney's tones.

"No, not that in particular. But you must tell me all the details before I dare to tell any more."

The old lady seated herself on a low chair close to Sydney's side. It was extremely weird², this confidential³ talk in the darkness.

"What details do you want?" Sydney asked.

"Why, proofs that there is really something to this fortune. Maurice has talked too much about others that have nothing to them."

"You see him often, then," exclaimed Sydney eagerly. "He's here, perhaps."

"S'h!" commanded the old Lady in a stern whisper. "Yes, he is here. He is in the back room yonder. I am so afraid he will hear us. That is why I had you come at midnight, when he would be sound asleep."

"But why can I not see him?"

"Because he is weak-- weak in his mind. He is all the while fancying that he is rich. A talk about money would excite him so that I fear the consequences."

"And you say he knew Mr. Tyler?" Sydney remembered and spoke⁴ this name very softly.

"Yes, he talks of him continually now."

"Was he in his office once?"

"Yes, I believe so."

"One more question. Has this Mr. Darley any children?"

"He had one once-- a boy. But it must have died when a baby, soon after Mrs. Darley did. And now do you know why I do not want you to come here with stories of riches for Maurice Darley? He's daft on the subject already. I do not want him to go so far that they will take him away from me."

"You are fond of him, then?" asked Sydney.

"He is all I have. If he goes I must live alone. It is my delight to care for him. The little money David left me is enough for my simple wants, Maurice lives like a lord in his fancies. Why do you want to come and disturb us in our content?"

"Because I must," Sydney broke out, as passionately⁵ as he could in restrained tones. "Don't you understand that the money which belongs to Maurice Darley I have been diverting to other uses? It was left to him by Mr. Tyler, but I tore up the will. He made it about three hours after another one, in which he had left everything to the woman who had acted as a mother to me for twenty years.

"He was a vacillating old man. I felt that he might change his mind back again if he should live three hours longer, so when he was dead I tore up the last will. I alone knew what it contained, and I have been a miserable⁶ man ever since."

Sydney bowed his head on his hands, and there was silence in the little room for a moment or two.

"You-- you are a criminal, then?" said the old lady presently.

Sydney winced⁷ at the term, but at the same time he felt a sense of relief, as one does after taking a plunge⁸ into cold water. At any rate the shock of the first contact was over.

"Yes, I suppose I am," he answered. "And I am ready to suffer the penalty. The only excuse I have to offer is the fact that what I did, I did not for myself, but for those I love, who have done so much for me. And now it is not joy, but misery⁹, I shall bring them."

"You are repentant¹⁰, though," murmured the old lady softly. "It is not as if you were hardened and only gave up when some one else found it out and forced you to. There is hope for you in that. But how much money is there?"

"Nearly half a million. But some of it has been used, put into a house, which of course will be given up to Mr. Darley."

"Then you will take him away from me?" It was almost a wail¹¹ with which the old lady said this.

"No, you can come with him, of course."

"No. It will be his taking care of me then, and that will be so different. Oh, why did you come to disturb us?" She seemed quite forgetful for the time of the presence of any one else in the room, of her own caution to Sydney to speak quietly. Suddenly she appeared to recollect¹² this latter necessity.

She ceased the half moaning she had begun and clutched Sydney's arm tightly.

"I suppose," she whispered, "that it would not be right to ask you to keep this money?"

"I can't keep it," Sydney replied. "I have suffered enough from it already."

"But how can you give it to a man who is not in his right mind? He thinks he is a wealthy man. I have given him a quantity of gilt¹³ paper to play with. He is like a child, you know. The possession of real money will not make him any happier."

"But there is the son," suggested Sydney.

"I told you he was dead."

"I am not so sure of that. I think I have seen him. Would he not be about seventeen now?"

"Yes, and you have seen him?"

It was with difficulty the old lady kept her tones within bounds.

"But you cannot be sure it is the same," she went on.

"No. I cannot be certain, but I am pretty sure."

"Perhaps he looks like his father. Wait, I think I can find a picture of him in the dark."

"But I cannot see it in the dark."

"By holding it close to the window you can get the ray from the lamp on it There! here it is, I think."

Mrs. Fox took the portrait to the front of the room, and parting the curtains a little, held it for Sydney to look at.

"Yes, it is very like," he said. "This picture must have been taken when Mr. Darley was quite young."

"He sat for it before he was married. But where is this boy?"

"Living at a little town out in New Jersey¹⁴. He wants to find his father."

"How comes it he isn't dead?" the old lady wanted to know.

Sydney told the story of Miles Harding as he had heard it from Rex.

"Do you know why he was compelled to give up the child?" he added.

"Poverty, I suppose. You know he was very sick once, and he lost everything. That was what unsettled his reason. But to think he should have given out that the child was dead!"

"Did you ever hear him speak of the Morriseys?"

"No, I never heard the name before. But I should like to see this boy. Does he know that his father is living?"

"No, not yet; you see I did not hear of it until tonight. But I must not stay longer. My brothers are waiting for me in the carriage. We must arrange what we are going to do."

"I don't know what to say. The boy ought to have his rights. Can't we fix it all quietly some way? I don't think you meant to do wrong."

"Yes, I did. I did everything with my eyes open. I ought to suffer for it. The only trouble is that those I love will suffer with me. But don't you think the restoration of fortune will bring back Mr. Darley's mind?"

"I don't know. I can't tell about that. He is very queer."

"Do you have a doctor for him?"

"Oh, no. I'd be afraid they'd want to take him away. I expect I'm selfish about it. But bring the boy here. He is old enough. We can talk it over with him, and maybe his father will recognize him."

"I can come any time, then?" said Sydney.

"Yes, now I know who you are."

"Good night, then. I shall see you soon again. I feel better than when I came."

Sydney rose and walked to the door without assistance. As soon as the boys saw him they hurried out to help him into the carriage. Within three minutes they were driving towards home and a church clock near by chimed one-- for half past twelve.

"Boys," began Sydney, "I have something to tell you. I was not glad before that I was not your own brother. I am glad of it now, because-- I am a criminal."

There was a pause. No one spoke. There was no sound but the rattle¹⁵ of the wheels. It was too dark to see the expression on the faces of the twins. Rex was leaning partly forward, one hand gripping Roy's knee. He could think of nothing save the night Mr. Keeler had spent with them and the horror they had had of him before they found out that it was his brother whose picture was in that book.

1 parlor   

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？

2 weird   

adj.古怪的，离奇的；怪诞的，神秘而可怕的

参考例句：

• From his weird behaviour,he seems a bit of an oddity.从他不寻常的行为看来，他好像有点怪。
• His weird clothes really gas me.他的怪衣裳简直笑死人。

3 confidential   

adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的

参考例句：

• He refused to allow his secretary to handle confidential letters.他不让秘书处理机密文件。
• We have a confidential exchange of views.我们推心置腹地交换意见。

4 spoke   

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。

5 passionately   

ad.热烈地，激烈地

参考例句：

• She could hate as passionately as she could love. 她能恨得咬牙切齿，也能爱得一往情深。
• He was passionately addicted to pop music. 他酷爱流行音乐。

6 miserable   

adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的

参考例句：

• It was miserable of you to make fun of him.你取笑他，这是可耻的。
• Her past life was miserable.她过去的生活很苦。

7 winced   

赶紧避开，畏缩( wince的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He winced as the dog nipped his ankle. 狗咬了他的脚腕子，疼得他龇牙咧嘴。
• He winced as a sharp pain shot through his left leg. 他左腿一阵剧痛疼得他直龇牙咧嘴。

8 plunge   

v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲

参考例句：

• Test pool's water temperature before you plunge in.在你跳入之前你应该测试水温。
• That would plunge them in the broil of the two countries.那将会使他们陷入这两国的争斗之中。

9 misery   

n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦

参考例句：

• Business depression usually causes misery among the working class.商业不景气常使工薪阶层受苦。
• He has rescued me from the mire of misery.他把我从苦海里救了出来。

10 repentant   

adj.对…感到悔恨的

参考例句：

• He was repentant when he saw what he'd done.他看到自己的作为，心里悔恨。
• I'll be meek under their coldness and repentant of my evil ways.我愿意乖乖地忍受她们的奚落，忏悔我过去的恶行。

11 wail   

vt./vi.大声哀号，恸哭；呼啸，尖啸

参考例句：

• Somewhere in the audience an old woman's voice began plaintive wail.观众席里，一位老太太伤心地哭起来。
• One of the small children began to wail with terror.小孩中的一个吓得大哭起来。

12 recollect   

v.回忆，想起，记起，忆起，记得

参考例句：

• He tried to recollect things and drown himself in them.他极力回想过去的事情而沉浸于回忆之中。
• She could not recollect being there.她回想不起曾经到过那儿。

13 gilt   

adj.镀金的；n.金边证券

参考例句：

• The plates have a gilt edge.这些盘子的边是镀金的。
• The rest of the money is invested in gilt.其余的钱投资于金边证券。

14 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

15 rattle   

v.飞奔，碰响；激怒；n.碰撞声；拨浪鼓

参考例句：

• The baby only shook the rattle and laughed and crowed.孩子只是摇着拨浪鼓，笑着叫着。
• She could hear the rattle of the teacups.她听见茶具叮当响。