CHAPTER VIII. WHAT WAS FOUND IN THE WOOD.

 "B stands for Bates," said Dean to himself. "Perhaps Uncle Adin may not be so far wrong after all. But how strange it would be if a rich and prominent man like Squire¹ Bates should have stooped to such a crime! I find it very hard to believe."

Dean's perplexed² look gave place to one of firm determination.

"I mean to look up this matter," he said resolutely³, "and if my uncle has been robbed of his little fortune by this man, I'll bring him to justice if I can."

Scarcely had this purpose been formed when he heard the sound of wheels, and not caring to be found by one who might ask curious questions, he concealed⁴ himself behind a tree.

What was his surprise when, as the buggy stopped, he found that its solitary⁵ occupant was the man who had been foremost in his thoughts—Squire Bates himself.

"What does he want here?" thought Dean.

From his post behind the tree he glanced curiously⁶ at the new arrival, and watched what he should do.

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Squire Bates descended⁷ from the buggy, and then walked to the very tree under which Adin Dunham had, according to his own account, found himself lying unconscious. Then he walked in different directions around it, peering carefully at the ground, as if in search of something.

"He's looking for the button!" thought Dean in growing excitement.

Then, as if distrusting his eyes, Squire Bates put on a pair of glasses, and once more resumed his search. But it proved unavailing.

"I must have dropped it somewhere else," Dean heard him mutter.

"That settles it!" thought our hero. "He means the sleeve button without doubt. My uncle is right after all, but," he added after a pause, "no one would believe the story, I must wait for additional proof. I wonder what the squire would say if he should find me here. Would he look guilty?"

Upon the impulse of the moment, not stopping to consider whether he was acting⁸ wisely or not, Dean determined⁹ to let the squire know that he was present. He did not care to arouse his suspicion, however, by letting him think that he had been watched. He therefore glided¹⁰ swiftly a short distance to the right, and then, showing himself openly, advanced towards the squire, whistling carelessly.

Squire Bates turned quickly at the sound, and looked annoyed when he saw who it was that intruded¹¹ upon him.

"You here, Dean Dunham?" he exclaimed.

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"Oh, it's Squire Bates," said Dean, as if surprised. "Yes, it is I."

"And why do you come? It is a long walk from your house."

"That's true, but it is the place where Uncle Adin was robbed, and I thought I would come and see if I could discover anything of the money, or anything that belonged to him."

"This is the place, then? I thought it might be," said the squire composedly. "I am on my way to Rockmount, and the same idea occurred to me. But it isn't of much use. If your uncle was robbed, the money is far away by this time."

"Do you think so?" asked Dean, fixing his eyes attentively¹² on the squire.

"Why, it is natural to suppose so. How is your uncle?"

"I left him in bed. He was upset by the shock."

"How sad! In what condition was he found?"

"He seemed bewildered, and hardly conscious where he was."

"The effect of the chloroform!" thought the squire.

"I have thought, Dean," he said in a confidential¹³ tone, "that perhaps he fainted away and fell from the buggy."

"But the money was missing."

"To be sure! Probably some tramp came along, and finding him unconscious robbed him as he lay powerless."

"I thought of that, but if he had fallen from the buggy he would have been bruised¹⁴."

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"And he was not?"

"There was no sign of hurt or violence, only that he seemed upset by some shock."

"What account did he give of the robbery—if there was one?" asked Squire Bates, his face expressing keen interest.

"He said that a man stopped his horse, climbed into the buggy, assaulted and robbed him."

"Humph!" said the squire, with an expression difficult to read. "Did he describe the person?"

Dean hesitated. Should he or should he not, let Squire Bates know that he was suspected! He decided¹⁵ to half reveal the secret.

"He thought it was some one that he knew," he answered briefly¹⁶.

"Any one living around here?" asked Squire Bates, nervously¹⁷.

"Excuse me, Squire Bates, but at present I think I would rather not tell. The party may be perfectly¹⁸ innocent, and my uncle's mind may be affected¹⁹."

"Very true! It would not be at all surprising if that were the case. If you do care to take any one into your confidence, please remember that I am your uncle's friend, and might have it in my power to help you in your search."

"Yes, sir, I will remember that. I shall probably sometime wish to consult you about the matter."

There was a significance in Dean's tone that made the lawyer uneasy, but he had self-control enough not to show his feeling.

"As we are on the spot suppose we make a search,56 as each of us proposed. Did your uncle lose anything except the money—his watch, for instance?"

"No, his watch was all right."

This had not occurred before to Dean as singular. Now it tended to confirm him in the thought that it might have been Squire Bates, and not some common thief, that had robbed his uncle. The plain silver watch, never very valuable, which Adin Dunham had carried for twenty-five years, might have presented a temptation to an ordinary tramp. A genteel highwayman would not have thought it worth his while to take it.

"Really that is very singular," said the squire. "Thieves generally take whatever they find, and are not very likely to leave a watch behind."

"It seems to show that the thief was no ordinary one," said Dean.

"What do you mean by that?" asked the lawyer suspiciously.

"It was a high-toned robber who wouldn't care to be burdened with an old silver watch such as Uncle Adin carried."

"True! Your remark shows penetration²⁰. I shouldn't have thought of that. Perhaps, however, there was another reason."

"What?" asked Dean, his curiosity aroused.

"The watch would easily have been identified, and might have led to the apprehension²¹ of the robber."

"Yes, there is something in that."

Meanwhile Dean and the squire continued their investigations²². Dean, however, merely made a show57 of searching. He felt convinced that the only thing worth discovering he had already found, but of course he had no intention of making this known to his companion.

"It would be refreshing²³ if we could find your uncle's lost wallet—did he carry his money in a wallet?"

"Yes, I believe so."

"But we can hardly expect it."

"No, there is very little chance of it, I am afraid."

"Ha, what is this?" exclaimed the squire, who had wandered some little distance from the tree.

Dean looked up eagerly.

"Why, that is Uncle Adin's wallet," he said surprised.

"Unfortunately it is empty!" said the squire, opening it.

"Yes, so it seems. Where did you find it?"

"Just here. It is clear that the thief took the money, and threw it away."

"I suppose so," answered Dean, slowly.

"You had better take charge of it. And now I think I must resume my journey to Rockmount."

Dean sat down to think. He was puzzled by the discovery of the wallet, for he had looked in the very spot where it was found before the squire's arrival, and seen nothing. It looked as if the squire had produced it from an inner pocket, and thrown it down before picking it up, and announced its discovery.

"There is something very queer about all this!" said Dean to himself, as he walked slowly homeward.

1 squire   

n.护卫, 侍从, 乡绅

参考例句：

• I told him the squire was the most liberal of men.我告诉他乡绅是世界上最宽宏大量的人。
• The squire was hard at work at Bristol.乡绅在布里斯托尔热衷于他的工作。

2 perplexed   

adj.不知所措的

参考例句：

• The farmer felt the cow,went away,returned,sorely perplexed,always afraid of being cheated.那农民摸摸那头牛，走了又回来，犹豫不决，总怕上当受骗。
• The child was perplexed by the intricate plot of the story.这孩子被那头绪纷繁的故事弄得迷惑不解。

3 resolutely   

adj.坚决地，果断地

参考例句：

• He resolutely adhered to what he had said at the meeting. 他坚持他在会上所说的话。
• He grumbles at his lot instead of resolutely facing his difficulties. 他不是果敢地去面对困难，而是抱怨自己运气不佳。

4 concealed   

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。

5 solitary   

adj.孤独的，独立的，荒凉的；n.隐士

参考例句：

• I am rather fond of a solitary stroll in the country.我颇喜欢在乡间独自徜徉。
• The castle rises in solitary splendour on the fringe of the desert.这座城堡巍然耸立在沙漠的边际，显得十分壮美。

6 curiously   

adv.有求知欲地；好问地；奇特地

参考例句：

• He looked curiously at the people.他好奇地看着那些人。
• He took long stealthy strides. His hands were curiously cold.他迈着悄没声息的大步。他的双手出奇地冷。

7 descended   

a.为...后裔的，出身于...的

参考例句：

• A mood of melancholy descended on us. 一种悲伤的情绪袭上我们的心头。
• The path descended the hill in a series of zigzags. 小路呈连续的之字形顺着山坡蜿蜒而下。

8 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

9 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

10 glided   

v.滑动( glide的过去式和过去分词 )；掠过；（鸟或飞机 ） 滑翔

参考例句：

• The President's motorcade glided by. 总统的车队一溜烟开了过去。
• They glided along the wall until they were out of sight. 他们沿着墙壁溜得无影无踪。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 intruded   

n.侵入的，推进的v.侵入，侵扰，打扰( intrude的过去式和过去分词 )；把…强加于

参考例句：

• One could believe that human creatures had never intruded there before. 你简直会以为那是从来没有人到过的地方。 来自辞典例句
• The speaker intruded a thin smile into his seriousness. 演说人严肃的脸上掠过一丝笑影。 来自辞典例句

12 attentively   

adv.聚精会神地；周到地；谛；凝神

参考例句：

• She listened attentively while I poured out my problems. 我倾吐心中的烦恼时，她一直在注意听。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She listened attentively and set down every word he said. 她专心听着，把他说的话一字不漏地记下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 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。

14 bruised   

[医]青肿的，瘀紫的

参考例句：

• his bruised and bloodied nose 他沾满血的青肿的鼻子
• She had slipped and badly bruised her face. 她滑了一跤，摔得鼻青脸肿。

15 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

16 briefly   

adv.简单地，简短地

参考例句：

• I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
• He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。

17 nervously   

adv.神情激动地，不安地

参考例句：

• He bit his lip nervously,trying not to cry.他紧张地咬着唇，努力忍着不哭出来。
• He paced nervously up and down on the platform.他在站台上情绪不安地走来走去。

18 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

19 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

20 penetration   

n.穿透，穿人，渗透

参考例句：

• He is a man of penetration.他是一个富有洞察力的人。
• Our aim is to achieve greater market penetration.我们的目标是进一步打入市场。

21 apprehension   

n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑

参考例句：

• There were still areas of doubt and her apprehension grew.有些地方仍然存疑，于是她越来越担心。
• She is a girl of weak apprehension.她是一个理解力很差的女孩。

22 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

23 refreshing   

adj.使精神振作的，使人清爽的，使人喜欢的

参考例句：

• I find it'so refreshing to work with young people in this department.我发现和这一部门的青年一起工作令人精神振奋。
• The water was cold and wonderfully refreshing.水很涼，特别解乏提神。