CHAPTER 18. A STORMY TIME.

 "What does this mean?" demanded Grit¹, in a stern voice. "What have these men been doing?"

 

"Oh, Grit, I am glad you are here!" said his mother. "Mr. Brandon has brought this man here against my will, and he has treated me rudely."

 

Travers looked round and saw the boy.

 

"Hello, my young friend!" he said. "You didn't tell me that my friend Brandon was your stepfather."

 

"Because I was ashamed of it," answered Grit promptly².

 

"D'ye hear that, Brandon?" said Travers. "The boy says he is ashamed of you."

 

"I'll settle with him when I feel better," said Brandon, who realized that he was not in a condition even to deal with a boy. "He's a bad-mannered cub³, an' deserves a floggin'."

 

"You won't give it to me!" said Grit contemptuously. "What is the name of this man you have brought into the house?"

 

[Pg 128]

 

"He's my frien' Travers," answered Brandon. "My frien' Travers is a gen'l'man."

 

"A gentleman isn't insolent⁴ to ladies," retorted Grit. "Mr. Travers, if that is your name, my mother wishes you to leave the house."

 

"Couldn't do it," said Travers, leering. "My frien' Brandon wants me to stay—don't you, Brandon?"

 

"Certainly, Travers. This is my house, an' I'm master of the house. Don't you mind what Mrs. B. or this cub says. Just stay where you are, and stand by me."

 

"I'll do it with pleasure," said Travers. "My friend Brandon is the master of this house, and what he says I will do."

 

"Mr. Travers," said Grit firmly, "you shall not stay here. This house belongs to my mother, and she wishes you to go. I suppose you can understand that?"

 

"My dear boy, you may as well shut up. I shan't go."

 

"You won't!" said Grit menacingly.

 

"Oh, Grit, don't get into any difficulty," said his mother, becoming alarmed.

 

Travers puffed⁵ away at his pipe, surveying Grit with an insulting smile.

 

[Pg 129]

 

"Listen to your mother, boy!" he said. "She talks sense."

 

"Mother," said Grit quietly, "will you be kind enough to go up-stairs for five minutes? I will deal with these men."

 

"I will go if you think it best, Grit; but do be cautious. I am sure Mr. Travers will see the impropriety of his remaining here against my wishes."

 

"I may see it in a few days," said Travers insolently⁶. "Don't trouble yourself, ma'am. The law is on my side, and I am the guest of my friend Brandon. Isn't that so, Brandon?"

 

"To be sure, Travers," said Brandon, in a drowsy⁷ tone.

 

"Mr. Brandon's friends are not welcome here," said Grit, "nor is he himself welcome."

 

"That's an unkind thing for your own boy to say," said Brandon, in a tone which he tried to make pathetic. "Because I've been unfortunate, my own family turn against me."

 

"If you had behaved decently, Mr. Brandon, we would have tolerated your presence," said Grit; "but during the short time you have been here, you have annoyed and robbed my mother and myself, and spent the money you stole at the tavern⁸. We have had enough of you!"

 

[Pg 130]

 

"Do you hear that, Travers?" asked Brandon, by a ludicrous transition shedding maudlin⁹ tears. "Do you hear that ungrateful boy?"

 

Meanwhile, Mrs. Brandon, in accordance with Grit's request, had left the room.

 

Grit felt that the time had come for decisive measures. He was not a quarrelsome boy, nor was he given to fighting, but he had plenty of spirit, and he was deeply moved and provoked by the insolence¹⁰ of Travers.

 

Some consideration he perhaps owed to his mother's husband; but to his disreputable companion, none whatever.

 

"Mr. Travers," he said, with cool determination, turning toward the intruder, "did you hear me say that my mother desired you to leave the house?"

 

"I don't care that for your mother!" said Travers, snapping his fingers. "My friend Brandon——"

 

He did not complete the sentence. Grit could not restrain himself when he heard this insolent defiance¹¹ of his mother, and, without a moment's hesitation¹², he approached Travers, with one sweep of his arm dashed the pipe he was smoking into a hundred pieces, and, seizing the astonished visitor by the shoulders,[Pg 131] pushed him forcibly to the door and thrust him out.

 

Travers was so astonished that he was quite unable to resist, nor indeed was he a match for the strong and muscular boy in his present condition.

 

"Well, that beats all I ever heard of!" he muttered, as he stumbled into a sitting position on the door-step.

 

Brandon stared at Grit and his summary proceeding¹³ in a dazed manner.

 

"Wha—what's all this, Grit?" he asked, trying to rise from his chair. "How dare you treat my friend Travers so rudely?"

 

Grit's blood was up. His cheeks were flushed, and his eyes sparkled with resentment¹⁴.

 

"Mr. Brandon," he said, "we have borne with you, my mother and I, but this has got to stop. When you bring one of your disreputable friends here to insult my mother, you've got me to deal with. Don't you dare bring that man here again!"

 

This was, I admit, rather a singular tone for a boy of Grit's age to assume, but it must be considered what provocation¹⁵ he had. Circumstances had made him feel older than he really was. For nearly five years he had been his mother's adviser¹⁶, protector, and dependence,[Pg 132] and he felt indignant through and through at the mean and dastardly course of his stepfather.

 

"Don't be sassy, Grit," said Brandon, slipping back into his chair. "I'm the master of this house."

 

"That is where you are mistaken, Mr. Brandon," said Grit.

 

"Perhaps you are," retorted Brandon, with mild sarcasm¹⁷.

 

"This house has no master. My mother is the mistress and owner," said Grit.

 

"I'm goin' to flog you, Grit, when I feel better."

 

"I'm willing to wait," said Grit calmly.

 

Here there was an interruption. The ejected guest rose from his sitting posture¹⁸ on the steps, and essayed to lift the latch¹⁹ and gain fresh admittance.

 

He failed, for Grit, foreseeing the attempt, had bolted the door.

 

Finding he could not open the door, Travers rattled²⁰ the latch and called out:

 

"Open the door, Brandon, and let me in!"

 

"Open the door, Grit," said his stepfather, not finding it convenient to rise.

 

"I refuse to do so, Mr. Brandon," said Grit, in a firm tone.

 

[Pg 133]

 

"Why don't you let me in?" was heard from the outside, as Travers rattled the latch once more.

 

"I'll have to open it myself," said Brandon, half rising and trying to steady himself.

 

The attempt was vain, for he had already drunk more than was good for him when he met Travers, and had drunk several glasses on top of that.

 

Instead of going to the door, he sank helpless and miserable²¹ on the floor.

 

"That disposes of him," said Grit, eying the prostrate²² form with a glance of disgust and contempt. "I shall be able to manage the other one now with less trouble."

 

"Let me in, Brandon!" repeated Travers, beginning to pound on the door.

 

Grit went to a window on a line with the door, and, raising it, looked out at the besieging²³ force.

 

"Mr. Travers," he said, "you may as well go away; you won't get back into the house."

 

"My friend Brandon will let me in. You're only a boy. My friend Brandon is the master of the house. He will let me in."

 

"Your friend Brandon is lying on the floor, drunk, and doesn't hear you," said Grit.

 

[Pg 134]

 

"Then I'll let myself in!" said Travers, with an oath.

 

He picked up a rock, and began to pound the door, to the imminent²⁴ danger of breaking the panels. "There's more than one way to get in. When I get in, I'll mash²⁵ you!"

 

The time had come for decisive action. Drunk as he was, Travers would sooner or later break down the door, and then there would be trouble.

 

Grit seized an old pistol which lay on the mantel-piece. It had long been disused, and was so rusty²⁶ that it was very doubtful whether any use could have been made of it. Still it presented a formidable appearance, as the young boatman pointed²⁷ it at Travers.

 

"Stop pounding that door, or I fire!" Grit exclaimed, in a commanding tone.

 

Travers turned quickly at the word, and as he saw the rusty weapon pointed at him, his small stock of courage left him, and he turned pale, for he was a coward at heart.

 

"For the Lord's sake, don't fire!" he cried hastily.

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 cub   

n.幼兽，年轻无经验的人

参考例句：

• The lion cub's mother was hunting for what she needs. 这只幼师的母亲正在捕猎。
• The cub licked the milk from its mother's breast. 这头幼兽吸吮着它妈妈的奶水。

4 insolent   

adj.傲慢的，无理的

参考例句：

• His insolent manner really got my blood up.他那傲慢的态度把我的肺都气炸了。
• It was insolent of them to demand special treatment.他们要求给予特殊待遇，脸皮真厚。

5 puffed   

adj.疏松的v.使喷出( puff的过去式和过去分词 )；喷着汽（或烟）移动；吹嘘；吹捧

参考例句：

• He lit a cigarette and puffed at it furiously. 他点燃了一支香烟，狂吸了几口。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He felt grown-up, puffed up with self-importance. 他觉得长大了，便自以为了不起。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 insolently   

adv.自豪地，自傲地

参考例句：

• No does not respect, speak insolently,satire, etc for TT management team member. 不得发表对TT管理层人员不尊重、出言不逊、讽刺等等的帖子。 来自互联网
• He had replied insolently to his superiors. 他傲慢地回答了他上司的问题。 来自互联网

7 drowsy   

adj.昏昏欲睡的，令人发困的

参考例句：

• Exhaust fumes made him drowsy and brought on a headache.废气把他熏得昏昏沉沉，还引起了头疼。
• I feel drowsy after lunch every day.每天午饭后我就想睡觉。

8 tavern   

n.小旅馆，客栈；小酒店

参考例句：

• There is a tavern at the corner of the street.街道的拐角处有一家酒馆。
• Philip always went to the tavern,with a sense of pleasure.菲利浦总是心情愉快地来到这家酒菜馆。

9 maudlin   

adj.感情脆弱的，爱哭的

参考例句：

• He always becomes maudlin after he's had a few drinks.他喝了几杯酒后总是变得多愁善感。
• She continued in the same rather maudlin tone.她继续用那种颇带几分伤感的语调说话。

10 insolence   

n.傲慢；无礼；厚颜；傲慢的态度

参考例句：

• I've had enough of your insolence, and I'm having no more. 我受够了你的侮辱，不能再容忍了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• How can you suffer such insolence? 你怎么能容忍这种蛮横的态度？ 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 defiance   

n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗

参考例句：

• He climbed the ladder in defiance of the warning.他无视警告爬上了那架梯子。
• He slammed the door in a spirit of defiance.他以挑衅性的态度把门砰地一下关上。

12 hesitation   

n.犹豫，踌躇

参考例句：

• After a long hesitation, he told the truth at last.踌躇了半天，他终于直说了。
• There was a certain hesitation in her manner.她的态度有些犹豫不决。

13 proceeding   

n.行动，进行，(pl.)会议录，学报

参考例句：

• This train is now proceeding from Paris to London.这次列车从巴黎开往伦敦。
• The work is proceeding briskly.工作很有生气地进展着。

14 resentment   

n.怨愤，忿恨

参考例句：

• All her feelings of resentment just came pouring out.她一股脑儿倾吐出所有的怨恨。
• She cherished a deep resentment under the rose towards her employer.她暗中对她的雇主怀恨在心。

15 provocation   

n.激怒，刺激，挑拨，挑衅的事物，激怒的原因

参考例句：

• He's got a fiery temper and flares up at the slightest provocation.他是火爆性子，一点就着。
• They did not react to this provocation.他们对这一挑衅未作反应。

16 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

17 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。

18 posture   

n.姿势，姿态，心态，态度；v.作出某种姿势

参考例句：

• The government adopted an uncompromising posture on the issue of independence.政府在独立这一问题上采取了毫不妥协的态度。
• He tore off his coat and assumed a fighting posture.他脱掉上衣，摆出一副打架的架势。

19 latch   

n.门闩，窗闩；弹簧锁

参考例句：

• She laid her hand on the latch of the door.她把手放在门闩上。
• The repairman installed an iron latch on the door.修理工在门上安了铁门闩。

20 rattled   

慌乱的，恼火的

参考例句：

• The truck jolted and rattled over the rough ground. 卡车嘎吱嘎吱地在凹凸不平的地面上颠簸而行。
• Every time a bus went past, the windows rattled. 每逢公共汽车经过这里，窗户都格格作响。

21 miserable   

adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的

参考例句：

• It was miserable of you to make fun of him.你取笑他，这是可耻的。
• Her past life was miserable.她过去的生活很苦。

22 prostrate   

v.拜倒，平卧，衰竭；adj.拜倒的，平卧的，衰竭的

参考例句：

• She was prostrate on the floor.她俯卧在地板上。
• The Yankees had the South prostrate and they intended to keep It'so.北方佬已经使南方屈服了,他们还打算继续下去。

23 besieging   

包围，围困，围攻( besiege的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• They constituted a near-insuperable obstacle to the besieging infantry. 它们就会形成围城步兵几乎不可逾越的障碍。
• He concentrated the sun's rays on the Roman ships besieging the city and burned them. 他把集中的阳光照到攻城的罗马船上，把它们焚毁。

24 imminent   

adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的

参考例句：

• The black clounds show that a storm is imminent.乌云预示暴风雨即将来临。
• The country is in imminent danger.国难当头。

25 mash   

n.麦芽浆，糊状物，土豆泥；v.把…捣成糊状，挑逗，调情

参考例句：

• He beat the potato into a mash before eating it.他把马铃薯捣烂后再吃。
• Whiskey,originating in Scotland,is distilled from a mash of grains.威士忌源于苏格兰，是从一种大麦芽提纯出来的。

26 rusty   

adj.生锈的；锈色的；荒废了的

参考例句：

• The lock on the door is rusty and won't open.门上的锁锈住了。
• I haven't practiced my French for months and it's getting rusty.几个月不用，我的法语又荒疏了。

27 pointed   

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。