小说搜索     点击排行榜   最新入库
首页 » 儿童英文小说 » Andy Gordon The Fortunes of A Young Janitor » CHAPTER XIV. ANDY IS BESIEGED.
选择底色: 选择字号:【大】【中】【小】
CHAPTER XIV. ANDY IS BESIEGED.
关注小说网官方公众号(noveltingroom),原版名著免费领。
 My readers will admit that to awaken1 from sleep, and see a man looking in at the window, is sufficient to startle a brave man. When it is added that the face bore the unmistakable mark of bad passions and a lawless life, it will be understood that Andy might well have been excused for momentary2 terror.
He was, however, partly prepared for the visit by the knowledge that there was money in the house, which he was especially commissioned to guard. Still, he had not really supposed there was any danger of a burglar coming to so quiet a village as Hamilton in pursuit of money.
Besides, no one but himself, so he supposed, knew that the maiden3 ladies had a large sum of money in their dwelling4.
I will not deny that Andy was startled—I will not admit that he was frightened, for this is inconsistent with his conduct.
He certainly had not awakened5 any too soon. There was not a minute to lose. The burglar was trying to raise the window, preparatory to entering the room.
In this, however, he met with a difficulty.{88} The window was fastened at the middle, and he could not raise it.
“Curse the bolt!” exclaimed the disappointed burglar. “I shall have to smash it in!”
Just then, however, Andy sprang from the bed, and, under the circumstances, Hogan felt glad. He could frighten the boy into turning the fastening, and admitting him.
As Andy rose, he grasped the old musket7, and, not without a thrill of excitement, faced the scoundrel.
If the gun had been loaded, he would have felt safe, but he knew very well that he could do no harm with it.
Mike Hogan saw the gun, but he was not a coward, and he felt convinced that Andy would not dare to use it, though he supposed it to be loaded.
“What do you want?” called out Andy, in a firm voice.
“Open this window!” cried Hogan, in a tone of command.
He was not afraid of being heard by other parties, on account of the isolated8 position of the house.
As he spoke9, he tugged10 at the frame of the window; but, of course, without success.
“Why should I?” returned Andy, who wanted time to think.{89}
“Never mind, you young jackanapes. Do as I tell you!” said Hogan, fiercely.
As he spoke, overcome by his irritation11 at being foiled when close upon the treasure he coveted12, he smashed a pane13 with his fist, but not without cutting his hand and drawing blood.
Through the fractured pane Andy could hear him more distinctly.
“What do you want?” repeated Andy.
“I want that five hundred dollars you are guarding, and I mean to have it!” returned Hogan.
“What five hundred dollars?” asked Andy, but he could not help being startled by the accurate information of the burglar.
“Oh, you needn’t play ignorant!” said Hogan, impatiently. “The lady who lives here sent for you to take care of it. She might as well have engaged a baby,” he added, contemptuously.
“You will find I am something more than a baby!” said Andy, stoutly14.
“Open this window, I tell you once again.”
“I won’t!” said Andy, shortly.
“You won’t, hey? Do you know what I will do with you when I get in?” demanded Hogan, furiously.
“No, I don’t.”{90}
“I’ll beat you black and blue.”
“You’ll have to get in first,” said our hero, undaunted.
“Do you think I can’t?”
Hogan spoke with assumed confidence, but he realized that it would not be easy if Andy held out. He had already had a severe experience in breaking one pane of glass, and shrank from trying another.
“I know you can’t,” said Andy, and he raised the gun significantly to his shoulder and held it pointed6 toward the burglar.
“Put down that gun!” shouted Hogan.
“Then leave the window.”
“Just wait till I get at you,” said Hogan, grinding his teeth.
He realized that Andy was not as easily scared as he anticipated. To be balked15 by a mere16 boy was galling17 to him. If he only had a pistol himself; but he had none. He had had one when he left New York, but he had sold it for two dollars, fifty miles away. He was positively18 helpless, while Andy had him at a disadvantage. Should he give up his intended robbery? That would be a bitter disappointment, for he was penniless, and five hundred dollars would be a great windfall for him. An idea came to him.
“Put down your gun,” he said, in a milder{91} tone. “I have something to propose to you.”
In some surprise, Andy complied with his request.
“There are five hundred dollars in this house.”
“You say so,” said Andy, non-committally.
“Pooh! I know there are. That is a large sum of money.”
“I suppose it is,” said Andy, who did not understand his drift.
“So is half of it. Two hundred and fifty dollars would be a big sum for a boy like you.”
“What have I to do with it?” asked Andy, puzzled.
“Open this window and let me in, and I’ll share the money with you.”
“Oh, that’s what you mean, is it?”
“Yes. No one need know that you have part of the money. It will be thought that I have made off with all of it.”
“Then you think I am a thief, like yourself?” exclaimed Andy, indignantly. “You are very much mistaken. Even if this money were in the house, I wouldn’t take a cent of it.”
“Oh, you’re mighty19 honest! And I’m a thief, am I?” sneered20 Hogan, surveying our hero with an ugly look.
“Yes,” answered Andy.{92}
“You’ll repent21 your impudence,” said Hogan, with a vindictive22 scowl23.
As he spoke, he enlarged the hole in the pane, and, putting in his hand, attempted, by thrusting it upward, to unlock the fastening.
Had he succeeded in doing this, he could have raised the window easily, and, once in the chamber24, our young hero would have been no match for him.
Andy realized this, and saw that he must act instantly.
He brought down the butt25 end of the musket on the intruding26 hand with all his strength, the result being a howl of pain from the burglar.
“You’d better give that up,” said Andy, his eyes flashing with excitement.
Somehow all his timidity had vanished, and he was firmly resolved to defend the property, intrusted to his charge as long as his strength or shrewdness enabled him to do so.
“Your life shall pay for this,” exclaimed the injured burglar, with a terrible oath.
Andy realized that he would fare badly if he should fall into the clutches of the villain27, whose face was actually distorted by rage and pain. The extremity28 of his danger, however, only nerved him for continued resistance.{93}
“Once more, will you open the window?” demanded Hogan, who would not have parleyed so long if he had known any way to get in without Andy’s help.
“No, I won’t!” answered Andy with resolution.
Mike Hogan surveyed the window, and considered whether it would be feasible to throw his burly frame against it, and so crush it in. Undoubtedly29 he could have done it had he been on the same level, but it was about three feet higher than he, and so the feat30 would be more difficult. Besides, it would be a work of time, and Andy, in whom he found much more boldness than he anticipated, might shoot him.
A thought came to him, and he began to descend31 the sloping roof.
“What is he going to do now?” thought Andy. “Has he given it up as a bad job?”
This was a point which he could not determine.

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 awaken byMzdD     
vi.醒,觉醒;vt.唤醒,使觉醒,唤起,激起
参考例句:
  • Old people awaken early in the morning.老年人早晨醒得早。
  • Please awaken me at six.请于六点叫醒我。
2 momentary hj3ya     
adj.片刻的,瞬息的;短暂的
参考例句:
  • We are in momentary expectation of the arrival of you.我们无时无刻不在盼望你的到来。
  • I caught a momentary glimpse of them.我瞥了他们一眼。
3 maiden yRpz7     
n.少女,处女;adj.未婚的,纯洁的,无经验的
参考例句:
  • The prince fell in love with a fair young maiden.王子爱上了一位年轻美丽的少女。
  • The aircraft makes its maiden flight tomorrow.这架飞机明天首航。
4 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。
5 awakened de71059d0b3cd8a1de21151c9166f9f0     
v.(使)醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 );(使)觉醒;弄醒;(使)意识到
参考例句:
  • She awakened to the sound of birds singing. 她醒来听到鸟的叫声。
  • The public has been awakened to the full horror of the situation. 公众完全意识到了这一状况的可怕程度。 来自《简明英汉词典》
6 pointed Il8zB4     
adj.尖的,直截了当的
参考例句:
  • He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
  • She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。
7 musket 46jzO     
n.滑膛枪
参考例句:
  • I hunted with a musket two years ago.两年前我用滑膛枪打猎。
  • So some seconds passed,till suddenly Joyce whipped up his musket and fired.又过了几秒钟,突然,乔伊斯端起枪来开了火。
8 isolated bqmzTd     
adj.与世隔绝的
参考例句:
  • His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
  • Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。
9 spoke XryyC     
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。
10 tugged 8a37eb349f3c6615c56706726966d38e     
v.用力拉,使劲拉,猛扯( tug的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She tugged at his sleeve to get his attention. 她拽了拽他的袖子引起他的注意。
  • A wry smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. 他的嘴角带一丝苦笑。 来自《简明英汉词典》
11 irritation la9zf     
n.激怒,恼怒,生气
参考例句:
  • He could not hide his irritation that he had not been invited.他无法掩饰因未被邀请而生的气恼。
  • Barbicane said nothing,but his silence covered serious irritation.巴比康什么也不说,但是他的沉默里潜伏着阴郁的怒火。
12 coveted 3debb66491eb049112465dc3389cfdca     
adj.令人垂涎的;垂涎的,梦寐以求的v.贪求,觊觎(covet的过去分词);垂涎;贪图
参考例句:
  • He had long coveted the chance to work with a famous musician. 他一直渴望有机会与著名音乐家一起工作。
  • Ther other boys coveted his new bat. 其他的男孩都想得到他的新球棒。 来自《简明英汉词典》
13 pane OKKxJ     
n.窗格玻璃,长方块
参考例句:
  • He broke this pane of glass.他打破了这块窗玻璃。
  • Their breath bloomed the frosty pane.他们呼出的水气,在冰冷的窗玻璃上形成一层雾。
14 stoutly Xhpz3l     
adv.牢固地,粗壮的
参考例句:
  • He stoutly denied his guilt.他断然否认自己有罪。
  • Burgess was taxed with this and stoutly denied it.伯杰斯为此受到了责难,但是他自己坚决否认有这回事。
15 balked 9feaf3d3453e7f0c289e129e4bd6925d     
v.畏缩不前,犹豫( balk的过去式和过去分词 );(指马)不肯跑
参考例句:
  • He balked in his speech. 他忽然中断讲演。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • They balked the robber's plan. 他们使强盗的计划受到挫败。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
16 mere rC1xE     
adj.纯粹的;仅仅,只不过
参考例句:
  • That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
  • It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。
17 galling galling     
adj.难堪的,使烦恼的,使焦躁的
参考例句:
  • It was galling to have to apologize to a man she hated. 令人恼火的是得向她憎恶的男人道歉。
  • The insolence in the fellow's eye was galling. 这家伙的傲慢目光令人恼怒。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
18 positively vPTxw     
adv.明确地,断然,坚决地;实在,确实
参考例句:
  • She was positively glowing with happiness.她满脸幸福。
  • The weather was positively poisonous.这天气着实讨厌。
19 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。
20 sneered 0e3b5b35e54fb2ad006040792a867d9f     
讥笑,冷笑( sneer的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He sneered at people who liked pop music. 他嘲笑喜欢流行音乐的人。
  • It's very discouraging to be sneered at all the time. 成天受嘲讽是很令人泄气的。
21 repent 1CIyT     
v.悔悟,悔改,忏悔,后悔
参考例句:
  • He has nothing to repent of.他没有什么要懊悔的。
  • Remission of sins is promised to those who repent.悔罪者可得到赦免。
22 vindictive FL3zG     
adj.有报仇心的,怀恨的,惩罚的
参考例句:
  • I have no vindictive feelings about it.我对此没有恶意。
  • The vindictive little girl tore up her sister's papers.那个充满报复心的小女孩撕破了她姐姐的作业。
23 scowl HDNyX     
vi.(at)生气地皱眉,沉下脸,怒视;n.怒容
参考例句:
  • I wonder why he is wearing an angry scowl.我不知道他为何面带怒容。
  • The boss manifested his disgust with a scowl.老板面带怒色,清楚表示出他的厌恶之感。
24 chamber wnky9     
n.房间,寝室;会议厅;议院;会所
参考例句:
  • For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说,牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
  • The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。
25 butt uSjyM     
n.笑柄;烟蒂;枪托;臀部;v.用头撞或顶
参考例句:
  • The water butt catches the overflow from this pipe.大水桶盛接管子里流出的东西。
  • He was the butt of their jokes.他是他们的笑柄。
26 intruding b3cc8c3083aff94e34af3912721bddd7     
v.侵入,侵扰,打扰( intrude的现在分词);把…强加于
参考例句:
  • Does he find his new celebrity intruding on his private life? 他是否感觉到他最近的成名侵扰了他的私生活?
  • After a few hours of fierce fighting,we saw the intruding bandits off. 经过几小时的激烈战斗,我们赶走了入侵的匪徒。 来自《简明英汉词典》
27 villain ZL1zA     
n.反派演员,反面人物;恶棍;问题的起因
参考例句:
  • He was cast as the villain in the play.他在戏里扮演反面角色。
  • The man who played the villain acted very well.扮演恶棍的那个男演员演得很好。
28 extremity tlgxq     
n.末端,尽头;尽力;终极;极度
参考例句:
  • I hope you will help them in their extremity.我希望你能帮助在穷途末路的他们。
  • What shall we do in this extremity?在这种极其困难的情况下我们该怎么办呢?
29 undoubtedly Mfjz6l     
adv.确实地,无疑地
参考例句:
  • It is undoubtedly she who has said that.这话明明是她说的。
  • He is undoubtedly the pride of China.毫无疑问他是中国的骄傲。
30 feat 5kzxp     
n.功绩;武艺,技艺;adj.灵巧的,漂亮的,合适的
参考例句:
  • Man's first landing on the moon was a feat of great daring.人类首次登月是一个勇敢的壮举。
  • He received a medal for his heroic feat.他因其英雄业绩而获得一枚勋章。
31 descend descend     
vt./vi.传下来,下来,下降
参考例句:
  • I hope the grace of God would descend on me.我期望上帝的恩惠。
  • We're not going to descend to such methods.我们不会沦落到使用这种手段。


欢迎访问英文小说网

©英文小说网 2005-2010

有任何问题,请给我们留言,管理员邮箱:[email protected]  站长QQ :点击发送消息和我们联系56065533