CHAPTER XXXIV. MR. WOLVERTON'S LETTER.

 While the boys are meeting with adventures, on their way down the river, we will return to the town of Carver, in which, as it will be remembered, the Burton ranch¹ was located.

 

There was no one more interested in the progress of the expedition than Aaron Wolverton. It was against his wishes and his interest that Bob should succeed in carrying out his plans. He wanted to get possession of the Burton ranch, and force Mrs. Burton to take him for her second husband. Most of all, perhaps, he wanted to humble² the pride of "the Burton boy," as he styled Bob, for he cordially hated him, and was well aware that Bob disliked and despised him. If he could only bring about the failure of Bob's trip, and the loss of his cargo³, he[Pg 298] would have both Bob and his mother in his power.

 

Wolverton had been anxiously awaiting intelligence from his agents, and the postmaster was somewhat surprised at his numerous visits to the office for letters.

 

At length, one morning, Aaron Wolverton's patience was rewarded.

 

A letter was handed him, directed in an almost illegible⁴ scrawl⁵ to

 

MR. A. WOLVERTON, ESQ.

 

It was written by Brown, who was by no means an accomplished⁶ scholar.

 

Wolverton opened it eagerly, and read the following lines:

 

Mr. Wolverton: I write you these few lines from Rocky Creek⁷. I am pleased to say we have got the bote, and are jest starting for St. Louis with the cargo onbord. If you want to know about the boys, bob burton and the little nigger are locked up in a house in the village belonging to one of my friends, and they won't be let out till it is perfecly saif. We got hold of them by a nise trick. I haven't time to tell you about it now, but when we meat, you shall kno all.

 

Send that fifty dollars to Mr. J. Brown, St.[Pg 299] Louis Post Office. Don't forget! This is important.

 

Yours to command, 

J. Brown.

 

This letter, ill-spelled as it was, seemed to give Aaron Wolverton unbounded satisfaction. A gratified smile overspread his face, and he said to himself: "That will bring down the Burton pride. That young whipper-snapper will come home with a few less airs than when he set out. The chances are that he'll have to walk home or buy a passage."

 

Wolverton chuckled⁸ at this agreeable thought. He would be revenged upon poor Bob for all the mortifications to which the boy had subjected him: and, to a man of Wolverton's temperament⁹, revenge was sweet.

 

"You have received good news, Mr. Wolverton," said the postmaster, observing the land agent's evident glee.

 

"What makes you think so?" asked Wolverton, cautiously.

 

"I judged from your smiling face."

 

"It wasn't the letter. I was thinking of something."[Pg 300]

 

"That is only a blind," thought the postmaster. "I saw his face light up when he read the letter. Let me see; it was mailed from Rocky Creek. I will bear that in mind, and some day I may discover the secret."

 

As Wolverton picked his way through the mud from the post-office to his office, he fell in with Mrs. Burton, who had come to the village on business. He smiled to himself, and prepared to accost¹⁰ her.

 

"I hope I see you well, Mrs. Burton," he said, with gravity.

 

"Very well, thank you, Mr. Wolverton," answered the widow, coldly.

 

"What do you hear from your son?"

 

"I received a letter yesterday. All was going well with him."

 

"I am really glad to hear it," said Wolverton, with a queer smile. "Still you must remember that 'there's many a slip 'twixt the cup and the lip.'"

 

"What do you mean, Mr. Wolverton?" asked Mrs. Burton, quickly.

 

"What should I mean?" said Wolverton, in apparent surprise.[Pg 301]

 

"Have you heard any bad news of Robert?"

 

"Oh, dear, no! I am sorry to say that your son is prejudiced against me, and would hardly favor me with any letter."

 

Mrs. Burton looked relieved.

 

"I was only warning you on general principles. 'Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed¹¹ lest he fall,' as the Scriptures¹² have it."

 

"Thank you for the caution," said Mrs. Burton, dryly. "By the way, have you heard anything of your nephew, Sam?"

 

Wolverton's face darkened.

 

"No," he answered. "I did think, I confess, that he might have run away with Bob, but I don't think so now."

 

"If he did, I know nothing of it."

 

This was true. For obvious reasons, Bob had not taken his mother into his confidence on this subject.

 

"The boy has shown base ingratitude¹³ to me," continued Wolverton, bitterly. "I cared for him and kept him from starving, and how has he rewarded me?"

 

"If his home was so agreeable as you [Pg 302]represent, it is certainly surprising that he should have left you. Good-morning, Mr. Wolverton."

 

"What did she mean?" Wolverton asked himself. "Some of her sarcasm¹⁴, I suppose. When she becomes Mrs. Wolverton, I will get even with her."

 

As nothing had been said of Sam in the letter of his confidential¹⁵ agent, Wolverton no longer suspected that he had gone down the river with Bob Burton. On the whole, as he had Sam's property in his possession, he did not care whether the boy ever returned, except that he would have liked to give him a good flogging.

 

1 ranch   

n.大牧场，大农场

参考例句：

• He went to work on a ranch.他去一个大农场干活。
• The ranch is in the middle of a large plateau.该牧场位于一个辽阔高原的中部。

2 humble   

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。

3 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。

4 illegible   

adj.难以辨认的，字迹模糊的

参考例句：

• It is impossible to deliver this letter because the address is illegible.由于地址字迹不清，致使信件无法投递。
• Can you see what this note says—his writing is almost illegible!你能看出这个便条上写些什么吗？他的笔迹几乎无法辨认。

5 scrawl   

vt.潦草地书写；n.潦草的笔记，涂写

参考例句：

• His signature was an illegible scrawl.他的签名潦草难以辨认。
• Your beautiful handwriting puts my untidy scrawl to shame.你漂亮的字体把我的潦草字迹比得见不得人。

6 accomplished   

adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的

参考例句：

• Thanks to your help,we accomplished the task ahead of schedule.亏得你们帮忙,我们才提前完成了任务。
• Removal of excess heat is accomplished by means of a radiator.通过散热器完成多余热量的排出。

7 creek   

n.小溪，小河，小湾

参考例句：

• He sprang through the creek.他跳过小河。
• People sunbathe in the nude on the rocks above the creek.人们在露出小溪的岩石上裸体晒日光浴。

8 chuckled   

轻声地笑( chuckle的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She chuckled at the memory. 想起这件事她就暗自发笑。
• She chuckled softly to herself as she remembered his astonished look. 想起他那惊讶的表情，她就轻轻地暗自发笑。

9 temperament   

n.气质，性格，性情

参考例句：

• The analysis of what kind of temperament you possess is vital.分析一下你有什么样的气质是十分重要的。
• Success often depends on temperament.成功常常取决于一个人的性格。

10 accost   

v.向人搭话，打招呼

参考例句：

• He ruminated on his defenses before he should accost her father.他在与她父亲搭话前，仔细地考虑着他的防范措施。
• They have been assigned to accost strangers and extract secrets from them.他们被指派去与生疏人搭讪从并从他们那里套出奥秘。

11 heed   

v.注意，留意；n.注意，留心

参考例句：

• You must take heed of what he has told.你要注意他所告诉的事。
• For the first time he had to pay heed to his appearance.这是他第一次非得注意自己的外表不可了。

12 scriptures   

经文，圣典( scripture的名词复数 )； 经典

参考例句：

• Here the apostle Peter affirms his belief that the Scriptures are 'inspired'. 使徒彼得在此表达了他相信《圣经》是通过默感写成的。
• You won't find this moral precept in the scriptures. 你在《圣经》中找不到这种道德规范。

13 ingratitude   

n.忘恩负义

参考例句：

• Tim's parents were rather hurt by his ingratitude.蒂姆的父母对他的忘恩负义很痛心。
• His friends were shocked by his ingratitude to his parents.他对父母不孝，令他的朋友们大为吃惊。

14 sarcasm   

n.讥讽，讽刺，嘲弄，反话 （adj.sarcastic）

参考例句：

• His sarcasm hurt her feelings.他的讽刺伤害了她的感情。
• She was given to using bitter sarcasm.她惯于用尖酸刻薄语言挖苦人。

15 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。