She kept no servant, and, as usual, answered the knock in person.
“Mr. Ross!” she said, in surprise, as she recognized in her caller the wealthy village lawyer.
“Yes, Mrs. Gordon,” said Mr. Ross, blandly2, for he had determined3 in this business to figure simply as the agent of another and carefully to conceal4 that he felt any personal interest in an affair which was likely to give the poor widow considerable trouble. “Yes, Mrs. Gordon. I call upon a little matter of business.”{36}
“Won’t you come in?” said the widow, not forgetting her politeness in her surprise.
“I believe I will trespass5 on your hospitality for a brief space,” said the lawyer. “Are you quite well?”
“Thank you, sir—quite so.” And she led the way into the little sitting-room6. “Take the rocking-chair, Mr. Ross,” said the widow, pointing to the best chair which the plainly furnished apartment contained.
“You are very kind,” said the lawyer, seating himself gingerly in the chair referred to.
“Your son is at school, I suppose?” continued the lawyer.
“Yes, sir. It is nearly time for Andy to be home.” And the mother’s voice showed something of the pride she felt in her boy. “I believe your son is in his class, Mr. Ross.”
“Yes, very likely,” responded the lawyer, indifferently.
“You said you came on business?” inquired the widow.
“Yes, Mrs. Gordon. I fear the business may prove unpleasant for you, but you will remember that I am only an agent in the matter.”
“Unpleasant!” repeated Mrs. Gordon, apprehensively7.
“Yes. Mr. Joshua Starr has placed in my{37} hands, for collection, a note for one hundred dollars, executed by your late husband. With arrears8 of interest, it will amount to one hundred and thirty dollars, or thereabouts. I suppose you know something about it.”
“Yes, Mr. Ross, I do know something about it. The note was paid by my husband during his life—in fact, just before he set out for the war—and Mr. Starr knows it perfectly9 well.”
In fact, he was not at all surprised, knowing that Starr was an unprincipled man and not too honest to take advantage of any loss or omission11 on the part of his debtor12.
“Didn’t Mr. Starr say that we disputed his claim?” asked the widow.
“The fact is, Mrs. Gordon, I had very little conversation with Mr. Starr on the subject. He called at my house last evening and put the note into my hand for collection. I believe he said you had refused to pay it, or something of the kind.”
“I refused to pay what had been paid already,” said Mrs. Gordon, indignantly. “I regard Mr. Starr as a swindler.”
“Softly, Mrs. Gordon! You must be cautious how you speak of an old and respected citizen.”{38}
“He may be old,” admitted the widow; “but I deny that he is respected.”
“Well, that is a matter of opinion,” said the lawyer, diplomatically. “Meanwhile, he has the law on his side.”
“How do you make that out, sir?”
“I have in my hands the note signed by your husband. If he paid it, why was it not given up?”
“I will tell you, sir. My husband was not a suspicious man, and he had confidence in others, crediting them with as much honesty as he himself possessed13. When the note came due, he paid it; but Mr. Starr pretended that he had mislaid the note and couldn’t lay hands on it. He told my husband he would give him a receipt for the money, and that would be all the same. He was laying a trap for him all the time.”
“I don’t see that. The proposal was perfectly regular.”
“He thought, in case my husband lost the receipt, he would have the note and could demand payment over again. Oh, it was a rascally14 plot!”
“But,” said the lawyer, “I suppose you have the receipt, and, in that case, you have only to show it.”
“I am sorry to say that I have not been able{39} to find it anywhere. I have hunted high and low, and I am afraid my poor husband must have carried it away in his wallet when he went South with his regiment15. The note was paid only the day before he left, out of the bounty16 money he received from the State.”
“That would certainly be unfortunate,” said Lawyer Ross, veiling the satisfaction he felt, “for you will, in that case, have to pay the money over again.”
“Can the law be so unjust?” asked Mrs. Gordon, in dismay.
“You cannot call it unjust. As you cannot prove the payment of the money, you will have to bear the consequences.”
“But I have no money. I cannot pay!”
“You have your pension,” said the lawyer. “You can pay out of that. My client may be willing to accept quarterly installments17.”
“I need all I have for the support of Andy and myself.”
“Oh, heavens!” exclaimed the poor woman, in agitation19. “Can such things be allowed in a civilized20 country?”
“I don’t think you look upon the affair in the right light, Mrs. Gordon,” said Lawyer Ross, rising from the rocking-chair in which he{40} had been seated. “It is a common thing, and quite regular, I can assure you. I will venture to give you a week to find the receipt, though not authorized21 by my client to do so. Good-afternoon!”
As he was going out he met, on the threshold, Andy, excited and out of breath.
The boy just caught a glimpse of his mother in tears, through the open door of the sitting room, and said to Mr. Ross, whom he judged to be responsible for his mother’s grief:
“What have you been saying to my mother, to make her cry?”
“Stand aside, boy! It’s none of your business,” said the lawyer, who lost all his blandness22 when he saw the boy who had assaulted his son.
“My mother’s business is mine,” said Andy, firmly.
“You will have enough to do to attend to your own affairs,” said the lawyer, with a sneer23. “You made a great mistake when you made a brutal24 assault upon my son.”
“And you have come to revenge yourself upon my mother?” demanded Andy, in a tone indicating so much scorn that the lawyer, case-hardened as he was, couldn’t help winding25.
“You are mistaken,” he said, remembering{41} his determination to appear only as agent. “I came on business of my client, Mr. Starr. I shall take a future opportunity to settle with you.”
He walked away, and Andy entered the cottage to learn from his mother what had passed between her and the lawyer.
This was soon communicated, and gave our hero considerable anxiety, for he felt that Mr. Starr, though his claim was a dishonest one, might nevertheless be able to enforce it.
“How did Mr. Ross treat you, mother?” he asked, fearing that the lawyer might have made his errand unnecessarily unpleasant.
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1
humble
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| adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低 | |
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2
blandly
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| adv.温和地，殷勤地 | |
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3
determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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4
conceal
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽 | |
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5
trespass
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| n./v.侵犯，闯入私人领地 | |
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6
sitting-room
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| n.（BrE）客厅，起居室 | |
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7
apprehensively
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| adv.担心地 | |
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8
arrears
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| n.到期未付之债，拖欠的款项；待做的工作 | |
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9
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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10
eyebrows
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| 眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 ) | |
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11
omission
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| n.省略，删节；遗漏或省略的事物，冗长 | |
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12
debtor
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| n.借方，债务人 | |
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13
possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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14
rascally
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| adj. 无赖的，恶棍的 adv. 无赖地，卑鄙地 | |
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15
regiment
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| n.团，多数，管理；v.组织，编成团，统制 | |
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16
bounty
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| n.慷慨的赠予物，奖金；慷慨，大方；施与 | |
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17
installments
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| 部分( installment的名词复数 ) | |
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18
levy
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| n.征收税或其他款项，征收额 | |
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19
agitation
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| n.搅动；搅拌；鼓动，煽动 | |
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20
civilized
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| a.有教养的，文雅的 | |
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21
authorized
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| a.委任的，许可的 | |
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22
blandness
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| n.温柔，爽快 | |
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23
sneer
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| v.轻蔑；嘲笑；n.嘲笑，讥讽的言语 | |
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24
brutal
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| adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的 | |
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25
winding
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| n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈 | |
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