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CHAPTER II—A PLANTATION NEWSPAPER
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 The printing-office was a greater revelation to Joe Maxwell than it would be to any of the youngsters who may happen to read this. It was a very small affair; the type was old and worn, and the hand-press—a Washington No. 2—had seen considerable service. But it was all new to Joe, and the fact that he was to become a part of the machinery1 aroused in his mind the most delightful2 sensation. He quickly mastered the boxes of the printer’s case, and before many days was able to set type swiftly enough to be of considerable help to Mr. Snel-son, who was foreman, compositor, and pressman.
 
The one queer feature about The Countryman was the fact that it was the only plantation3 newspaper that has ever been published, the nearest post-office being nine miles away. It might be supposed that such a newspaper would be a failure; but The Countryman was a success from the start, and at one time it reached a circulation of nearly two thousand copies. The editor was a very original writer, and his editorials in The Countryman were quoted in all the papers in the Confederacy, but he was happiest when engaged in a political controversy4. Another feature of The Countryman was the fact that there was never any lack of copy for the foreman and the apprentice5 to set. Instead of clipping from his exchanges, the editor sent to the office three books, from which extracts could be selected. These books were Lacon, Percy’s Anecdotes6, and Rochefoucauld’s Maxims7. Then there were weekly letters from the army in Virginia and voluntary contributions from many ambitious writers. Some of the war correspondence was very gloomy, for as the months wore on it told of the death of a great many young men whom Joe had known, and the most of them had been very kind to him.
 
The days in the printing-office would have been very lonely for Joe, but the grove9 that surrounded it was full of gray squirrels. These had been so long undisturbed that they were comparatively tame. They were in the habit of running about over the roof of the office and playing at hide-and-seek like little children. To the roof, too, the blue-jays would bring their acorns10 and hammer at the hard shells in the noisiest way, and once a red fox made bold to venture near Joe’s window, where he stood listening and sniffing11 the air until some noise caused him to vanish like a flash. Most interesting of all, a partridge and her mate built their nest within a few feet of the window, and it often happened that Joe neglected his work in watching the birds. They bent12 the long grass over from each side carefully until they had formed a little tunnel three or four feet long. When this was done, Mrs. Partridge made her way to the end of it and began to scratch and flutter just as a hen does when taking a dust-bath. She was hollowing out her nest. By the time the nest was completed the archway of grass that had hid it was considerably13 disarranged. Then Mrs. Partridge sat quietly on the little hollow she had made, while Mr. Partridge rebuilt the archway over her until she was completely concealed14. He was very careful about this. Frequently he would walk off a little way and turn and look at the nest. If his sharp eyes could see anything suspicious, he would return and weave the grass more closely together. Finally, he seemed to be satisfied with his work. He shook his wings and began to preen15 himself, and then Mrs. Partridge came out and joined him. They consulted together with queer little duckings, and finally ran off into the undergrowth as if bent on a frolic.
 
The work of Mr. and Mrs. Partridge was so well done that Joe found it very difficult to discover the nest when he went out of the office. He knew where it was from his window, but when he came to look for it out of doors it seemed to have disappeared, so deftly16 was it concealed; and he would have been compelled to hunt for it very carefully but for the fact that when Mrs. Partridge found herself disturbed she rushed from the little grass tunnel and threw herself at Joe’s feet, fluttering around as if desperately17 wounded, and uttering strange little cries of distress18. Once she actually touched his feet with her wings, but when he stooped to pick her up she managed to flutter off just out of reach of his hand. Joe followed along after Mrs. Partridge for some little distance, and he discovered that the farther she led him away from her nest the more her condition improved, until finally she ran off into the sedge and disappeared. Joe has never been able to find any one to tell him how Mrs. Partridge knew what kind of antics a badly wounded bird would cut up. He has been told that it is the result of instinct. The scientists say, however, that instinct is the outgrowth of necessity; but it seems hard to believe that necessity could have given Mrs. Partridge such accurate knowledge of the movements of a wounded bird.
 
In carrying proofs from the printing-office to the editor, Joe Maxwell made two discoveries that he considered very important. One was that there was a big library of the best books at his command, and the other was that there was a pack of well-trained harriers on the plantation. He loved books and he loved dogs, and if he had been asked to choose between the library and the harriers he would have hesitated a long time. The books were more numerous—there were nearly two thousand of them, while there were only five harriers—but in a good many respects the dogs were the liveliest. Fortunately, Joe was not called on to make any choice. He had the dogs to himself in the late afternoon and the books at night, and he made the most of both. More than this, he had the benefit of the culture of the editor of The Countryman and of the worldly experience of Mr. Snelson, the printer.
 
To Joe Maxwell, sadly lacking in knowledge of mankind, Mr. Snelson seemed to be the most engaging of men. He was the echo and mouthpiece of a world the youngster had heard of but never seen, and it pleased him to hear the genial19 printer rehearse his experiences, ranging all the way from Belfast, Ireland, where he was born, to all the nooks and corners of the United States, including the little settlement where the plantation newspaper was published. Mr. Snelson had been a tramp and almost a tragedian, and he was pleased on many occasions to give his little apprentice a taste of his dramatic art. He would stuff a pillow under his coat and give readings from Richard III, or wrap his wife’s mantilla about him and play Hamlet.
 
 
 
0047
 
When tired of the stage he would clear his throat and render some of the old ballads20, which he sang very sweetly indeed.
 
One night, after the little domestic concert was over and Joe was reading a book by the light of the pine-knot fire, a great fuss was heard in the hen-house, which was some distance from the dwelling21.
 
“Run, John,” exclaimed Mrs. Snelson; “I just know somebody is stealing my dominicker hen and her chickens. Run!”
 
“Let the lad go,” said Mr. Snelson, amiably22. “He’s young and nimble, and whoever’s there he’ll catch ’em.—Run, lad! and if ye need help, lift your voice and I’ll be wit’ ye directly.”
 
The dwelling occupied by Mr. Snelson was in the middle of a thick wood, and at night, when there was no moon, it was very dark out of doors; but Joe Maxwell was not afraid of the dark. He leaped from the door and had reached the hen-house before the chickens ceased cackling and fluttering. It was too dark to see anything, but Joe, in groping his way around, laid his hand on Somebody.
 
His sensations would be hard to describe. His heart seemed to jump into his mouth, and he felt a thrill run over him from head to foot. It was not fear, for he did not turn and flee. He placed his hand again on the Somebody and asked:
 
“Who are you?”
 
Whatever it was trembled most violently and the reply came in a weak, shaking voice and in the shape of another question:
 
“Is dis de little marster what come fum town ter work in de paper office?”
 
“Yes; who are you, and what are you doing here?”
 
“I’m name Mink23, suh, an’ I b’longs to Marse Tom Gaither. I bin24 run’d away an’ I got dat hongry dat it look like I bleedz ter ketch me a chicken. I bin mighty25 nigh famished26, suh. I wish you’d please, suh, excusen me dis time.”
 
“Why didn’t you break and run when you heard me coming?” asked Joe, who was disposed to take a practical view of the matter.
 
“You wuz dat light-footed, suh, dat I ain’t hear you, an’ sides dat, I got my han’ kotch in dish yer crack, an’ you wuz right on top er me ’fo’ I kin8 work it out.”
 
“Why don’t you stay at home?” asked Joe.
 
“Dey don’t treat me right, suh,” said the negro, simply. The very tone of his voice was more convincing than any argument could have been.
 
“Can you get your hand out of the crack?” asked Joe.
 
“Lord, yes, suh; I’d’a done got it out fo’ now, but when you lipt on me so quick all my senses wuz skeered out’n me.”
 
“Well,” said Joe, “get your hand out and stay here till I come back, and I’ll fetch you something to eat.”
 
“You ain’t foolin’ me, is you, little marster?”
 
“Do I look like I’d fool you?” said Joe, scornfully.
 
“I can’t see you plain, suh,” said the negro, drawing a long breath, “but you don’t talk like it.”
 
“Well, get your hand loose and wait.”
 
As Joe turned to go to the house, he saw Mr. Snelson standing27 in the door.
 
“It’s all right, sir,” the youngster said. “None of the chickens are gone.”
 
“A great deal of fuss and no feathers,” said Mr. Snelson. “I doubt but it was a mink.”
 
“Yes,” said Joe, laughing. “It must have been a Mink, and I’m going to set a bait for him.”
 
“In all this dark?” asked the printer. “Why, I could stand in the door and crush it wit’ me teeth.”
 
“Why, yes,” replied Joe. “I’ll take some biscuit and a piece of corn bread, and scatter28 them around the hen-house, and if the mink comes back he’ll get the bread and leave the chickens alone.”
 
“Capital!” exclaimed Mr. Snelson, slapping Joe on the back. “I says to mother here, says I, ‘As sure as you’re born to die, old woman, that B’y has got the stuff in ’im that they make men out of.’ I said them very words. Now didn’t I, mother?”
 
Joe got three biscuits and a pone29 of cornbread and carried them to Mink. The negro had freed his hand, and he loomed30 up in the darkness as tall as a giant.
 
“Why, you seem to be as big as a horse,” said Joe.
 
“Thanky, little marster, thanky. Yes, suh, I’m a mighty stout31 nigger, an’ ef marster would des make dat overseer lemme ’lone I’d do some mighty good work, an’ I’d a heap druther do it dan ter be hidin’ out in de swamp dis away like some wil’ varmint. Good-night, little marster.”
 
 
 
0052
 
“Good-night!” said Joe.
 
“God bless you, little marster!” cried Mink, as he vanished in the darkness.
 
That night in Joe Maxwell’s dreams the voice of the fugitive32 came back to him, crying, “God bless you, little marster!”
 
But it was not in dreams alone that Mink came back to Joe. In more than one way the negro played an important part in the lad’s life on the plantation. One evening about dusk, as Joe was going home, taking a “near cut” through the Bermuda pasture, a tall form loomed up before him, outlining itself against the sky.
 
“Howdy, little marster! ’Tain’t nobody but Mink. I des come ter tell you dat ef you want anything out’n de woods des sen’ me word by Harbert. I got some pa’tridge-eggs here now. Deyer tied up in a rag, but dat don’t hurt um. Ef you’ll des spread out yo’ hank’cher I’ll put um in it.”
 
“Haven’t you gone home yet?” asked Joe, as he held out his handkerchief.
 
“Lord, no, suh!” exclaimed the negro. “De boys say dat de overseer say he waitin’ fer Mink wid a club.”
 
There were four dozen of these eggs, and Joe and Mr. Snelson enjoyed them hugely.
 
From that time forward, in one way and another, Joe Maxwell kept in communication with Mink. The lad was not too young to observe that the negroes on the plantation treated him with more consideration than they showed to other white people with the exception of their master. There was nothing they were not ready to do for him at any time of day or night. The secret of it was explained by Har-bert, the man-of-all-work around the “big house.”
 
“Marse Joe,” said Harbert one day, “I wuz gwine’long de road de udder night an’ I met a great big nigger man. Dish yer nigger man took an’ stop me, he did, an’ he’low, ‘Dey’s a little white boy on y o’ place which I want you fer ter keep yo’ two eyes on ’im, an’ when he say come, you come, an’ when he say go, you go.’ I’low, ‘’hey, big nigger man! what de matter?’ an’ he ’spon’ back, ‘I done tole you, an’ I ain’t gwine tell you no mo’. So dar you got it, Marse Joe, an’ dat de way it stan’s.”
 
And so it happened that, humble33 as these negroes were, they had it in their power to smooth many a rough place in Joe Maxwell’s life. The negro women looked after him with almost motherly care, and pursued him with kindness, while the men were always ready to contribute to his pleasure.

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1 machinery CAdxb     
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。
2 delightful 6xzxT     
adj.令人高兴的,使人快乐的
参考例句:
  • We had a delightful time by the seashore last Sunday.上星期天我们在海滨玩得真痛快。
  • Peter played a delightful melody on his flute.彼得用笛子吹奏了一支欢快的曲子。
3 plantation oOWxz     
n.种植园,大农场
参考例句:
  • His father-in-law is a plantation manager.他岳父是个种植园经营者。
  • The plantation owner has possessed himself of a vast piece of land.这个种植园主把大片土地占为己有。
4 controversy 6Z9y0     
n.争论,辩论,争吵
参考例句:
  • That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
  • We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。
5 apprentice 0vFzq     
n.学徒,徒弟
参考例句:
  • My son is an apprentice in a furniture maker's workshop.我的儿子在一家家具厂做学徒。
  • The apprentice is not yet out of his time.这徒工还没有出徒。
6 anecdotes anecdotes     
n.掌故,趣闻,轶事( anecdote的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • amusing anecdotes about his brief career as an actor 关于他短暂演员生涯的趣闻逸事
  • He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman. 他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。 来自《简明英汉词典》
7 maxims aa76c066930d237742b409ad104a416f     
n.格言,座右铭( maxim的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Courts also draw freely on traditional maxims of construction. 法院也自由吸收传统的解释准则。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法
  • There are variant formulations of some of the maxims. 有些准则有多种表达方式。 来自辞典例句
8 kin 22Zxv     
n.家族,亲属,血缘关系;adj.亲属关系的,同类的
参考例句:
  • He comes of good kin.他出身好。
  • She has gone to live with her husband's kin.她住到丈夫的亲戚家里去了。
9 grove v5wyy     
n.林子,小树林,园林
参考例句:
  • On top of the hill was a grove of tall trees.山顶上一片高大的树林。
  • The scent of lemons filled the grove.柠檬香味充满了小树林。
10 acorns acorns     
n.橡子,栎实( acorn的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Great oaks from little acorns grow. 万丈高楼平地起。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Welcome to my new website!It may not look much at the moment, but great oaks from little acorns grow! 欢迎来到我的新网站。它现在可能微不足道,不过万丈高楼平地起嘛。 来自《简明英汉词典》
11 sniffing 50b6416c50a7d3793e6172a8514a0576     
n.探查法v.以鼻吸气,嗅,闻( sniff的现在分词 );抽鼻子(尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气);抱怨,不以为然地说
参考例句:
  • We all had colds and couldn't stop sniffing and sneezing. 我们都感冒了,一个劲地抽鼻子,打喷嚏。
  • They all had colds and were sniffing and sneezing. 他们都伤风了,呼呼喘气而且打喷嚏。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
12 bent QQ8yD     
n.爱好,癖好;adj.弯的;决心的,一心的
参考例句:
  • He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
  • We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。
13 considerably 0YWyQ     
adv.极大地;相当大地;在很大程度上
参考例句:
  • The economic situation has changed considerably.经济形势已发生了相当大的变化。
  • The gap has narrowed considerably.分歧大大缩小了。
14 concealed 0v3zxG     
a.隐藏的,隐蔽的
参考例句:
  • The paintings were concealed beneath a thick layer of plaster. 那些画被隐藏在厚厚的灰泥层下面。
  • I think he had a gun concealed about his person. 我认为他当时身上藏有一支枪。
15 preen 51Kz7     
v.(人)打扮修饰
参考例句:
  • 50% of men under 35 spend at least 20 minutes preening themselves every morning in the bathroom.50%的35岁以下男性每天早上至少花20分钟在盥洗室精心打扮。
  • Bill preened his beard.比尔精心修剪了他的胡须。
16 deftly deftly     
adv.灵巧地,熟练地,敏捷地
参考例句:
  • He deftly folded the typed sheets and replaced them in the envelope. 他灵巧地将打有字的纸折好重新放回信封。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • At last he had a clew to her interest, and followed it deftly. 这一下终于让他发现了她的兴趣所在,于是他熟练地继续谈这个话题。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
17 desperately cu7znp     
adv.极度渴望地,绝望地,孤注一掷地
参考例句:
  • He was desperately seeking a way to see her again.他正拼命想办法再见她一面。
  • He longed desperately to be back at home.他非常渴望回家。
18 distress 3llzX     
n.苦恼,痛苦,不舒适;不幸;vt.使悲痛
参考例句:
  • Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。
  • Please don't distress yourself.请你不要忧愁了。
19 genial egaxm     
adj.亲切的,和蔼的,愉快的,脾气好的
参考例句:
  • Orlando is a genial man.奥兰多是一位和蔼可亲的人。
  • He was a warm-hearted friend and genial host.他是个热心的朋友,也是友善待客的主人。
20 ballads 95577d817acb2df7c85c48b13aa69676     
民歌,民谣,特别指叙述故事的歌( ballad的名词复数 ); 讴
参考例句:
  • She belted out ballads and hillbilly songs one after another all evening. 她整晚一个接一个地大唱民谣和乡村小调。
  • She taught him to read and even to sing two or three little ballads,accompanying him on her old piano. 她教他读书,还教他唱两三首民谣,弹着她的旧钢琴为他伴奏。
21 dwelling auzzQk     
n.住宅,住所,寓所
参考例句:
  • Those two men are dwelling with us.那两个人跟我们住在一起。
  • He occupies a three-story dwelling place on the Park Street.他在派克街上有一幢3层楼的寓所。
22 amiably amiably     
adv.和蔼可亲地,亲切地
参考例句:
  • She grinned amiably at us. 她咧着嘴向我们亲切地微笑。
  • Atheists and theists live together peacefully and amiably in this country. 无神论者和有神论者在该国和睦相处。 来自《简明英汉词典》
23 mink ZoXzYR     
n.貂,貂皮
参考例句:
  • She was wearing a blue dress and a mink coat.她穿着一身蓝色的套装和一件貂皮大衣。
  • He started a mink ranch and made a fortune in five years. 他开了个水貂养殖场,五年之内就赚了不少钱。
24 bin yR2yz     
n.箱柜;vt.放入箱内;[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件
参考例句:
  • He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
  • He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。
25 mighty YDWxl     
adj.强有力的;巨大的
参考例句:
  • A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
  • The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。
26 famished 0laxB     
adj.饥饿的
参考例句:
  • When's lunch?I'm famished!什么时候吃午饭?我饿得要死了!
  • My feet are now killing me and I'm absolutely famished.我的脚现在筋疲力尽,我绝对是极饿了。
27 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。
28 scatter uDwzt     
vt.撒,驱散,散开;散布/播;vi.分散,消散
参考例句:
  • You pile everything up and scatter things around.你把东西乱堆乱放。
  • Small villages scatter at the foot of the mountain.村庄零零落落地散布在山脚下。
29 pone Xu8yF     
n.玉米饼
参考例句:
  • Give me another mite of that pone before you wrap it up.慢点包,让我再吃口玉米面包吧。
  • He paused and gnawed the tough pone.他停下来,咬一了口硬面包。
30 loomed 9423e616fe6b658c9a341ebc71833279     
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
参考例句:
  • A dark shape loomed up ahead of us. 一个黑糊糊的影子隐隐出现在我们的前面。
  • The prospect of war loomed large in everyone's mind. 战事将起的庞大阴影占据每个人的心。 来自《简明英汉词典》
32 fugitive bhHxh     
adj.逃亡的,易逝的;n.逃犯,逃亡者
参考例句:
  • The police were able to deduce where the fugitive was hiding.警方成功地推断出那逃亡者躲藏的地方。
  • The fugitive is believed to be headed for the border.逃犯被认为在向国境线逃窜。
33 humble ddjzU     
adj.谦卑的,恭顺的;地位低下的;v.降低,贬低
参考例句:
  • In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见,他将在选举中获胜。
  • Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。


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