CHAPTER 6. GRIT'S RECOMPENSE.

 No time was lost in arraying Willie in clothes more suitable for him. The little boy was glad to lay aside Grit¹'s old suit, which certainly was not very becoming to him.

 

"Are we going now, papa?" asked the little boy.

 

"Yes, Willie; but first I must express to this good lady my great thanks for her kindness."

 

"I have done but little, sir," said Mrs. Brandon; "but that little I was very glad to do."

 

"I am sure of that," said the visitor cordially.

 

"If you remain in the neighborhood, I shall hope to see your little boy again, and yourself, also."

 

"I will come," said Willie promptly².

 

"He answers for himself," said his father, smiling, "and he will keep his promise. Now,[Pg 42] Grit," he said, turning to the young boatman, "I will ask you to accompany me to the hotel."

 

"Certainly, sir."

 

When they had passed from the cottage, Mr. Jackson turned to the boy and grasped his hand.

 

"I have not yet expressed to you my obligations," he said, with emotion, "for the great service you have done me—the greatest in the power of any man, or boy."

 

"Don't speak of it, sir," said Grit modestly.

 

"But I must. You have saved the life of my darling boy."

 

"I don't know, sir."

 

"But I do. I cannot swim a stroke, and but for your prompt bravery, he would have drowned before my eyes."

 

Grit could not well contradict this statement, for it was incontestably true.

 

"It was lucky I could swim," he answered.

 

"Yes, it was. It seems providential that I should have had with me so brave a boy, when Willie's life was in peril³. It will be something that you will remember with satisfaction to the end of your own life."

 

"Yes, sir, there is no doubt of that," answered Grit sincerely.

 

[Pg 43]

 

"I shudder⁴ to think what a sad blank my own life would have been if I had lost my dear boy. He is my only child, and for this reason I should have missed him the more. Your brave act is one that I cannot fitly reward——"

 

"I don't need any reward, Mr. Jackson," said Grit hastily.

 

"I am sure you do not. You do not look like a mercenary boy. But, for all that, I owe it to myself to see that so great a favor does not go unacknowledged. My brave boy, accept this wallet and what it contains, not as the payment of a debt, but as the first in the series of my acknowledgments to you."

 

As he spoke⁵, he put into the hand of the young boatman a wallet.

 

"I am very much obliged to you, Mr. Jackson," said Grit, "but I am not sure that I ought to take this."

 

"Then let me decide for you," said the broker⁶, smiling. "I am older, and may be presumed to have more judgment⁷."

 

"It will seem as if I took pay for saving Willie from drowning."

 

"If you did, it would be perfectly⁸ proper.[Pg 44] But you forget that I have had the use of your boat and your own services for the greater part of the afternoon."

 

"I presume you have paid me more than I ask for such services."

 

"Very likely," answered Mr. Jackson. "In fact, outside of my obligations to you, I have formed a good opinion of a boy who works hard and faithfully to support his mother. I was a poor boy once, and I have not forgotten how to sympathize with those who are beginning the conflict with narrow means. Mind, Grit, I don't condole⁹ with you. You have good health and strong hands, and in our favored country there is no reason why, when you reach my age, you may not be equally well off."

 

"I wish I might—for mother's sake," said Grit, his face lighting¹⁰ up with hope.

 

"I shall see more of you while I am here, but I may as well say now that I mean to bear you in mind, and wish you to come to me, either here or in the city, when you stand in need of advice or assistance."

 

Grit expressed his gratitude¹¹. Mr. Jackson selected a room at the hotel, and promised to[Pg 45] take up his quarters there the next day. Then Grit once more took up his oars¹² and ferried Willie and his father across the river.

 

It was not for some time, therefore, that he had a chance to examine the wallet which had been given him.

1 grit   

n.沙粒，决心，勇气；v.下定决心，咬紧牙关

参考例句：

• The soldiers showed that they had plenty of grit. 士兵们表现得很有勇气。
• I've got some grit in my shoe.我的鞋子里弄进了一些砂子。

2 promptly   

adv.及时地，敏捷地

参考例句：

• He paid the money back promptly.他立即还了钱。
• She promptly seized the opportunity his absence gave her.她立即抓住了因他不在场给她创造的机会。

3 peril   

n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物

参考例句：

• The refugees were in peril of death from hunger.难民有饿死的危险。
• The embankment is in great peril.河堤岌岌可危。

4 shudder   

v.战粟，震动，剧烈地摇晃；n.战粟，抖动

参考例句：

• The sight of the coffin sent a shudder through him.看到那副棺材，他浑身一阵战栗。
• We all shudder at the thought of the dreadful dirty place.我们一想到那可怕的肮脏地方就浑身战惊。

5 spoke   

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。

6 broker   

n.中间人，经纪人；v.作为中间人来安排

参考例句：

• He baited the broker by promises of higher commissions.他答应给更高的佣金来引诱那位经纪人。
• I'm a real estate broker.我是不动产经纪人。

7 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

8 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。

9 condole   

v.同情；慰问

参考例句：

• We condole with him on his loss.我们对他的损失深表同情。
• I condole with you.We have lost a most dear and valuable relation.我向你表示唁慰，我们失去了一位最可爱的、最可贵的亲人。

10 lighting   

n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光

参考例句：

• The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
• The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。

11 gratitude   

adj.感激，感谢

参考例句：

• I have expressed the depth of my gratitude to him.我向他表示了深切的谢意。
• She could not help her tears of gratitude rolling down her face.她感激的泪珠禁不住沿着面颊流了下来。

12 oars   

n.桨，橹( oar的名词复数 )；划手v.划（行）( oar的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• He pulled as hard as he could on the oars. 他拼命地划桨。
• The sailors are bending to the oars. 水手们在拼命地划桨。 来自《简明英汉词典》