Mr. Gossett had been on a fruitless errand. When his son George reached home that morning and told him that Mr. Jim Simmons's dogs had followed the trail to the river and there lost it, Mr. Gossett remarked that he was glad he did not go on a fool's errand, and he made various statements about Mr. Simmons and his dogs that were not at all polite. Later in the day, however (though the hour was still early), when Mr. Gossett was making the customary round of his plantation4, he fell in with a negro who had been hunting for some stray sheep. The negro, after giving an account of his movements, made this further remark:—
"I sholy 'spected you'd be over yander wid Mr. Jim Simmons, Marster. His dogs done struck a track leadin' inter5 de swamp, an' dey sho went a callyhootin'."
"When was that?" Mr. Gossett inquired.
"Not mo' dan two hours ago, ef dat," responded the negro. "I lis'n at um, I did, an' dey went right spang tor'ds de Swamp. I know'd de dogs, kaze I done hear um soon' dis mornin'."
[168]
Giving the negro some instructions that would keep him busy the rest of the day if he carried them out, Mr. Gossett turned his horse's head in the direction of the Swamp, and rode slowly thither6. The blue falcon7 soared high in the air and paid no attention to Mr. Gossett. For various reasons that the Swamp knew about the Turkey Buzzard was not in sight. The Swamp itself was full of the reposeful8 silence that daylight usually brought to it. Mr. Gossett rode about and listened; but if all the dogs in the world had suddenly disappeared, the region round about could not have been freer of their barking and baying than it was at that moment.
All that Mr. Gossett could do was to turn about and ride back home. But he was very much puzzled. If Mr. Simmons had trailed a runaway10 into the Swamp and caught him, or if he had made two failures in one morning, Mr. Gossett would like very much to know it. In point of fact, he was such a practical business man that he felt it was Mr. Simmons's duty to make some sort of report to him. In matters of this kind Mr. Gossett was very precise.
But after dinner he felt in a more jocular mood.[169] He informed his son George that he thought he would go over and worry Mr. Simmons a little over his failure to catch Aaron, and he had his horse put to the buggy, and rode six or seven miles to Mr. Simmons's home, smiling grimly as he went along.
Mr. Simmons was at home, but was not feeling very well, as his wife informed Mr. Gossett. Mrs. Simmons herself was in no very amiable11 mood, as Mr. Gossett very soon observed. But she asked him in politely enough, and said she'd go and tell Jimmy that company had come. She went to the garden gate not very far from the house and called out to her husband in a shrill12 voice:—
"Jimmy! Oh, Jimmy! That old buzzard of a Gossett is in the house. Come see what he wants. And do put on your coat before you come in the house. And wash your hands. They're dirtier than sin. And hit that shock of yours one lick with the comb and brush. Come right on now. If I have to sit in there and talk to the old rascal13 long I'll have a fit. Ain't you coming? I'll run back before he ransacks14 the whole house."
Mr. Simmons came sauntering in after a while, and his wife made that the excuse for disappearing,[170] though she went no further than the other side of the door, where she listened with all her ears, being filled with a consuming curiosity to know what business brought Mr. Gossett to that house. She had not long to wait, for the visitor plunged15 into the subject at once.
"You may know I was anxious about you, Simmons, or I wouldn't be here." ("The old hypocrite!" remarked Mrs. Simmons, on the other side of the door.) "You didn't come by when your hunt ended, and I allowed maybe that you had caught the nigger and either killed or crippled him, and—ahem!—felt a sort of backwardness in telling me about it. So I thought I would come over and see you, if only to say that whether you caught the nigger or killed him, he's responsible for it and not you."
"No, Colonel, I'm not in the practice of killing16 niggers nor crippling 'em. I've caught a many of 'em, but I've never hurt one yet. But, Colonel! If you'd 'a' gone through with what I've been through this day, you'd 'a' done exactly what I done. You'd 'a' went right straight home without stopping to ask questions or to answer 'em—much less tell tales."
[171]
Thereupon Mr. Simmons told the story of his adventure in the Swamp, varnishing17 up the facts as he thought he knew them, and adding some details calculated to make the episode much more interesting from his point of view. It will be remembered that Mr. Simmons was in total ignorance of what really happened in the Swamp. He had conceived the theory that his dogs had hit upon the trail of a wildcat going from the river to its den9 in the Swamp, and that, when the dogs had followed it there, they had been attacked, not by one wildcat, but by the whole "caboodle" of wildcats, to use Mr. Simmons's expression.
Having conceived this theory, Mr. Simmons not only stuck to it, but added various incidents that did credit to his imagination. For instance, he made this statement in reply to a question from Mr. Gossett:—
"What did I think when I heard all the racket and saw Sound come out mangled18? Well, I'll tell you, Colonel, I didn't know what to think. I never heard such a terrible racket in all my born days. I says to myself, 'I'll just ride in and see what the trouble is, and if there ain't but one wildcat, why, I'll soon put an end to him.' So I[172] spurred my hoss up, and started in; but before we went anyways, hardly, the hoss give a snort and tried to whirl around and run out.
"It made me mad at the time," Mr. Simmons went on, his inventive faculty19 rising to the emergency, "but, Colonel, it's a mighty20 good thing that hoss had more sense than I did, because if he hadn't I'd 'a' never been setting here telling you about it. I tried to make the hoss stand, but he wouldn't, and, just then, what should I see but two great big wildcats trying to sneak21 up on me? And all the time, Colonel, the racket in the Swamp was getting louder and louder. Pluto22 was in there somewheres, and I know'd he was attending to his business, so I just give the hoss the reins23 and he went like he was shot out of a gun.
"I pulled him in, and turned him around, and then I saw Pluto trying to come out. Now, Colonel, you may know if it was too hot for him it was lots too warm for me. Pluto tried to come, and he was a-fighting like fury; but it was no go. The two cats that had been sneaking24 up on me lit on him, and right then and there they tore him all to flinders! Colonel, they didn't leave a piece of that dog's hide big enough to make a woman's glove if it had been tanned. And as if that wouldn't do 'em, they made another sally and come at me, tush and claw. And I just clapped spurs to the hoss and cleaned up from there. Do you blame me, Colonel?"
"As I understand it, Simmons," remarked Mr. Gossett, after pulling his beard and reflecting a while, "you didn't catch the nigger."
("The nasty old buzzard!" remarked Mrs. Simmons, on the other side of the door. "If I was Jimmy I'd hit him with a cheer.")
"Do you think you'd 'a' caught him, Colonel, taking into account all the circumstances and things?" inquired Mr. Simmons, with his irritating drawl.
"I didn't say I was going to catch him, did I?" replied Mr. Gossett. "I didn't say he couldn't get away from my dogs, did I?"
"Supposing you had," suggested Mr. Simmons, "would you 'a' done it? I ain't never heard of you walking in amongst a drove of wildcats to catch a nigger."
"And so you didn't catch him; and your fine dogs are finer now than they ever were?" Mr. Gossett remarked.
[174]
("My goodness! If Jimmy don't hit him, I'll go in and do it myself," said Mrs. Simmons, on the other side of the door.)
"Well, Colonel, it's just like I tell you." Mr. Simmons would have said something else, but just then the door opened and Mrs. Simmons walked in, fire in her eye.
"You've saved your $30, hain't you?" she said to Mr. Gossett.
"Why—er—yes'm—but"—
"No buts about it," she snapped. "If you ain't changed mightily25, you think a heap more of $30 in your pocket than you do of a nigger in the bushes. Jimmy don't owe you nothin', does he?"
"Well—er—no'm." Mr. Gossett had been taken completely by surprise.
"No, he don't, and if he did I'd quit him right now—this very minute," Mrs. Simmons declared, gesticulating ominously26 with her forefinger27. "And what Jimmy wants to go trolloping about the country trying to catch the niggers you drive to the woods is more'n I can tell to save my life. Why, if he was to catch your runaway niggers they wouldn't stay at home no[175] longer than the minute you took the ropes off 'em."
Mr. Simmons cleared his throat, as if to say something, but his wife anticipated him.
"Oh, hush28 up, Jimmy!" she cried. "You know I'm telling nothing but the truth. There ain't a living soul in this country that don't know a Gossett nigger as far as they can see him."
"What are the ear-marks, ma'am?" inquired Mr. Gossett, trying hard to be jocular. In a moment he was heartily29 sorry he had asked the question.
"Ear-marks? Ear-marks? Hide-marks, you better say. Why, they've been abused and half fed till they are ashamed to look folks in the face, and I don't blame 'em. They go sneaking and shambling along and look meaner than sin. And 't ain't their own meanness that shows in 'em. No! Not by a long sight. I'll say that much for the poor creeturs."
There was something of a pause here, and Mr. Gossett promptly30 took advantage of it. He rose, bowed to Mrs. Simmons, who turned her back on him, and started for the door, saying:—
[176]
"Well, Simmons, I just called to see what luck you'd had this morning. My time's up. I must be going."
Mr. Simmons followed him to the door and out to the gate. Before Mr. Gossett got in his buggy he turned and looked toward the house, remarking to Mr. Simmons in a confidential31 tone:—
"I say, Simmons! She's a scorcher, ain't she?"
"A right warm one, Colonel, if I do say it myself," replied Mr. Simmons, with a touch of pride. "But, Colonel, before you get clean away, let's have a kind of understanding about this matter."
"About what matter?" Mr. Gossett stood with one foot on his buggy step, ready to get in.
"About this talk of Jenny's," said Mr. Simmons, nodding his head toward the house. "I'll go this far—I'll say that I'm mighty sorry it wasn't somebody else that done the talkin', and in somebody else's house. But sence it was Jenny, it can't be holp. If what she said makes you feel tired—sort of weary like—when you begin to think about it, jest bear in mind,[177] Colonel, that I hold myself both personally and individually responsible for everything Jenny has said to-day, and everything she may say hereafter."
"Why, of course, Simmons," he said a little stiffly, "we all have to stand by the women folks. I understand that. But blamed if I'd like to be in your shoes."
"Well, Colonel, they fit me like a glove."
Mr. Gossett seated himself in his buggy and drove away. Mrs. Simmons was standing32 in the door, her arms akimbo, when her husband returned to the house.
"Jimmy, you didn't go and apologize to that old buzzard for what I said, did you?"
Mr. Simmons laughed heartily at the idea, and when he repeated what he had said to Mr. Gossett his wife jumped at him, and kissed him, and then ran into the next room and cried a little. It's the one way that all women have of "cooling down," as Mr. Simmons would have expressed it.
But it need not be supposed that Mr. Gossett[178] was in a good humor. He felt that Mrs. Simmons, in speaking as she did, was merely the mouthpiece of public opinion, and the idea galled34 him. He called on a neighbor, on his way back home, to discuss a business matter; and he was in such a bad humor, so entirely out of sorts, as he described it, that the neighbor hastened to get a jug35 of dram out of the cupboard, and, soothed36 and stimulated37 by the contents of the jug, Mr. Gossett thawed38 out. By degrees his good humor, such as it was, returned, and by degrees he took more of the dram than was good for him. So that when he started home, which was not until after sundown, his toddies had begun to tell on him. His eyes informed him that his horse had two heads, and he realized that he was not in a condition to present himself at home, where his son George could see him. The example would be too much for George, who had already on various occasions shown a fondness for the bottle.
What, then, was to be done? A very brilliant idea struck Mr. Gossett. He would not drive straight home; that would never do in the world. He'd go up the road that led to town[179] until he came to Wesley Chapel39, and there he'd take the other road that led by the Aikin plantation. This was a drive of about ten miles, and by that time the effects of the dram would be worn off.
Mr. Gossett carried out this programme faithfully, and that was why the buggy was coming over the hill as Aaron was going along the road on his way to the Swamp.
Contrary to Mr. Gossett's expectations the dram did not exhaust itself. He still felt its influences, but he was no longer good-humored. Instead, he was nervous and irritable40. He began to brood over the unexpected tongue-lashing that Mrs. Simmons had given him, and succeeded in working himself into a very ugly frame of mind.
When his horse came to the top of the hill, something the animal saw—a stray pig, or maybe a cow lying in the fence corner—caused it to swerve41 to one side. This was entirely too much for Mr. Gossett's unstrung nerves. He seized the whip and brought it down upon the animal's back with all his might. Maddened by the sudden and undeserved blow, the horse made a terrific lunge forward, causing Mr. Gossett to[180] drop the reins and nearly throwing him from the buggy. Finding itself free, the excited horse plunged along the road. The grade of the hill was so heavy that the animal could not run at top speed, but made long jumps, flirting42 the buggy about as though it had been made of cork43.
The swinging and lurching of the buggy added to the animal's excitement, and the climax44 of its terror was reached when Aaron loomed45 up in the dark before it. The horse made one wild swerve to the side of the road, but failed to elude46 Aaron. The sudden swerve, however, threw Mr. Gossett out. He fell on the soft earth, and lay there limp, stunned47, and frightened. Aaron, holding to the horse, ran by its side a little way, and soon had the animal under control. He soothed it a moment, talked to it until it whinnied, fastened the lines to a fence corner, and then went back to see about the man who had fallen from the buggy, little dreaming that it was his owner, Mr. Gossett. But just as he leaned over the man, Rambler told him the news; the keen nose of the dog had discovered it, though he stood some distance away.
This caused Aaron to straighten himself again, and as he did so he saw something gleam in the starlight. It was Mr. Gossett's pistol, which had fallen from his pocket as he fell. Aaron picked up the weapon, handling it very gingerly, for he was unused to firearms, and placed it under the buggy seat. Then he returned with an easier mind and gave his attention to Mr. Gossett.
"More scared than hurt, I reckon," replied Mr. Gossett. "What was that dog barking at just now?"
"He ain't used to seeing white folks in the dirt," Aaron explained.
"Who are you?" Mr. Gossett inquired.
"One," answered Aaron.
"Well, if I'd seen you a half hour ago I'd 'a' sworn you were Two." Mr. Gossett made this joke at his own expense, but Aaron did not understand it, and therefore could not appreciate it. So he said nothing.
"Put your hand under my shoulder here, and help me to sit up. I want to see if any bones are broken."
Aided by Aaron Mr. Gossett assumed a sitting[182] posture50. While he was feeling of himself, searching for wounds and broken bones, he heard his horse snort. This reminded him (for he was still somewhat dazed) that he had started out with a horse and buggy.
"That's your horse, I reckon. Mine's at home by this time with two buggy shafts51 swinging to him. Lord! what a fool a man can be!"
"That's your horse," said Aaron.
"Mine? Who stopped him?"
"Me," Aaron answered.
"You? Why, as near as I can remember, he was coming down this hill like the dogs were after him. Who are you, anyhow?"
"One."
"Well, you are worth a dozen common men. Give me your hand."
Mr. Gossett slowly raised himself to his feet, shook first one leg and then the other, and appeared to be much relieved to find that his body and all of its members were intact. He walked about a little, and then went close to Aaron and peered in his face.
"Blamed if I don't believe you are my runaway nigger!" Mr. Gossett exclaimed.
[183]
"I smell whiskey," said Aaron.
"Confound the stuff! I never will get rid of it."
Mr. Gossett put his hands in his pocket and walked around again.
"Your name is Aaron," he suggested. Receiving no reply, he said: "If your name is Aaron you belong to me; if you belong to me get in the buggy and let's go home. You've been in the woods long enough."
"Too long," replied Aaron.
"That's a fact," Mr. Gossett assented52. "Come on and go home with me. If you're afeard of me you can put that idea out of your mind. I swear you shan't be hit a lick. You are the only nigger I ever had any respect for, and I'll be blamed if I know how I came to have any for you after the way you've treated me. But if you'll promise not to run off any more I'll treat you right. You're a good hand and a good man."
Mr. Gossett paused and felt in his pockets, evidently searching for something. "Have you seen a pistol lying loose anywhere around here?" he asked.
"It's all safe," replied Aaron.
"You've got it. Very well. I was just going to pull it out and hand it to you. Come on; it's getting late." Seeing that Aaron made no movement, Mr. Gossett tried another scheme. "Well, if you won't go home," he said, "and I think I can promise that you'll be sorry if you don't, get in the buggy and drive part of the way for me. I'm afraid of that horse after his caper53 to-night."
"Well, I'll do that," remarked Aaron.
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1
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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dignified
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| a.可敬的，高贵的 | |
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humility
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| n.谦逊，谦恭 | |
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4
plantation
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| n.种植园，大农场 | |
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inter
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| v.埋葬 | |
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thither
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| adv.向那里；adj.在那边的，对岸的 | |
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falcon
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| n.隼，猎鹰 | |
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reposeful
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| adj.平稳的，沉着的 | |
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den
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| n.兽穴；秘密地方；安静的小房间，私室 | |
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runaway
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| n.逃走的人，逃亡，亡命者；adj.逃亡的，逃走的 | |
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amiable
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| adj.和蔼可亲的，友善的，亲切的 | |
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shrill
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| adj.尖声的；刺耳的；v尖叫 | |
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rascal
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| n.流氓；不诚实的人 | |
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ransacks
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| v.彻底搜查( ransack的第三人称单数 )；抢劫，掠夺 | |
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plunged
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| v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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killing
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| n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财 | |
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varnishing
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| 在（某物）上涂清漆( varnish的现在分词 ) | |
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mangled
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| vt.乱砍（mangle的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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faculty
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| n.才能；学院，系；(学院或系的)全体教学人员 | |
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mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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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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Pluto
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| n.冥王星 | |
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reins
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| 感情，激情； 缰( rein的名词复数 )； 控制手段； 掌管； （成人带着幼儿走路以防其走失时用的）保护带 | |
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sneaking
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| a.秘密的，不公开的 | |
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mightily
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ominously
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forefinger
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hush
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| int.嘘，别出声；n.沉默，静寂；v.使安静 | |
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heartily
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| adv.衷心地，诚恳地，十分，很 | |
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promptly
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| adv.及时地，敏捷地 | |
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confidential
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| adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的 | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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eyebrows
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| 眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 ) | |
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galled
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| v.使…擦痛( gall的过去式和过去分词 )；擦伤；烦扰；侮辱 | |
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jug
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| n.(有柄，小口，可盛水等的)大壶，罐，盂 | |
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soothed
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| v.安慰( soothe的过去式和过去分词 )；抚慰；使舒服；减轻痛苦 | |
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stimulated
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| a.刺激的 | |
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thawed
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| 解冻 | |
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chapel
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| n.小教堂，殡仪馆 | |
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irritable
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| adj.急躁的；过敏的；易怒的 | |
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swerve
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| v.突然转向，背离；n．转向，弯曲，背离 | |
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flirting
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| v.调情，打情骂俏( flirt的现在分词 ) | |
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cork
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| n.软木，软木塞 | |
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climax
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| n.顶点；高潮；v.(使)达到顶点 | |
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loomed
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| v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的过去式和过去分词 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近 | |
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elude
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| v.躲避，困惑 | |
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stunned
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| adj. 震惊的，惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词 | |
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curtly
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| adv.简短地 | |
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prostrate
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| v.拜倒，平卧，衰竭；adj.拜倒的，平卧的，衰竭的 | |
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posture
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| n.姿势，姿态，心态，态度；v.作出某种姿势 | |
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shafts
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| n.轴( shaft的名词复数 )；（箭、高尔夫球棒等的）杆；通风井；一阵（疼痛、害怕等） | |
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assented
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| 同意，赞成( assent的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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caper
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| v.雀跃，欢蹦；n.雀跃，跳跃；续随子，刺山柑花蕾；嬉戏 | |
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untied
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| 松开，解开( untie的过去式和过去分词 )； 解除，使自由； 解决 | |
参考例句： |
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