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首页 » 儿童英文小说 » Hector's Inheritance or The Boys of Smith Institute » CHAPTER XXIII. ANOTHER CHANCE FOR THE USHER.
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CHAPTER XXIII. ANOTHER CHANCE FOR THE USHER.
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 Mr. Smith had been thinking it over. He had discharged Mr. Crabb in the anger of the moment, but after his anger had abated1, he considered that it was not for his interest to part with him. Mr. Crabb was a competent teacher, and it would be well-nigh impossible to obtain another so cheap. Twenty dollars a month for a teacher qualified2 to instruct in Latin and Greek was certainly a beggarly sum, but Mr. Crabb’s dire3 necessity had compelled him to accept it. Where could he look for another teacher as cheap? Socrates Smith appreciated the difficulty, and decided4 to take Mr. Crabb back, on condition that he would make an apology to Jim.
To do Mr. Crabb justice, it may be said that he would not have done this even if he saw no chance of another situation. But this Mr. Smith did not know. He did observe, however, that the usher5 entered his presence calm, erect6 and appearing by no means depressed7, as he had expected.
“You sent for me, sir?” said the usher interrogatively.
“Yes, Mr. Crabb. You will remember that I had occasion to rebuke8 you, when we last conferred together, for overstepping the limits of your authority?”
“I remember, Mr. Smith, that you showed anger, and found fault with me.”
“Exactly so.”
“Why doesn’t he ask to be taken back?” thought Socrates.
“I have thought the matter over since,” continued the principal, “and have concluded we might be able to arrange matters.”
The usher was surprised. He had not expected that Mr. Smith would make overtures9 of reconciliation10. He decided not to mention at present his brighter prospects11 in New York, but to wait and see what further his employer had to say.
Mr. Crabb bowed, but did not make any reply.
“I take it for granted, Mr. Crabb, that your means are limited,” proceeded Socrates.
“You are right there, sir. If I had not been poor I should not have accepted the position of teacher in Smith Institute for the pitiful salary of twenty dollars a month.”
“Twenty dollars a month and your board, Mr. Crabb,” said Socrates, with dignity, “I consider a very fair remuneration.”
“I do not, Mr. Smith,” said the usher, in a decided tone.
“I apprehend12 you will find it considerably13 better than to be out of employment,” said Socrates, rather angry.
“You are right there, sir.”
“I am glad you show signs of returning reason. Well, Mr. Crabb, I have thought the matter over, and I have a proposal to make to you.”
“Very well, sir!”
“I do not wish to distress14 you by taking away your means of livelihood15.”
“You are very considerate, sir.”
There was something in Mr. Crabb’s tone that Socrates did not understand. It really seemed that he did not care whether he was taken back or not. But, of course, this could not be. It was absolutely necessary for him, poor as he was, that he should be reinstated. So Mr. Smith proceeded.
“To cut the matter short, I am willing to take you back on two conditions.”
“May I ask you to name them?”
“The first is, that you shall apologize to my nephew for your unjustifiable attack upon him day before yesterday.”
“What is the other, Mr. Smith?”
“The other is, that hereafter you will not exceed the limits of your authority.”
“And you wish my answer?” asked the usher, raising his eyes, and looking fixedly16 at his employer.
“If you please, Mr. Crabb.”
“Then, sir, you shall have it. Your proposal that I should apologize to that overgrown bully17 for restraining him in his savage18 treatment of a fellow-pupil is both ridiculous and insulting.”
“You forget yourself, Mr. Crabb,” said Socrates, gazing at the hitherto humble19 usher in stupefaction.
“As to promising20 not to do it again, you will understand that I shall make no such engagement.”
“Then, Mr. Crabb,” said Socrates, angrily, “I shall adhere to what I said the other day. At the end of this week you must leave me.”
“Of course, sir, that is understood!”
“You haven’t another engagement, I take it,” said Mr. Smith, very much puzzled by the usher’s extraordinary independence.
“Yes, sir, I have.”
“Indeed!” said Socrates, amazed. “Where do you go?” Then was Mr. Crabb’s time for triumph.
“I have received this morning an offer from the city of New York,” he said.
“From New York! Is it in a school?”
“No, sir; I am to be private tutor in a family.”
“Indeed! Do you receive as good pay as here?”
“As good!” echoed the usher. “I am offered sixty dollars a month and board, with the possibility of a larger sum, in the event of extra service being demanded.”
Socrates Smith had never been more surprised.
This Mr. Crabb, whom he had considered to be under his thumb, as being wholly dependent upon him, was to receive a salary which he considered princely.
“How did you get this office?” he asked.
“Through my friend, Hector Roscoe,” answered the usher.
“Probably he is deceiving you. It is ridiculous to offer you such a sum.”
“I am quite aware that you would never think of offering it, but, Mr. Smith, there are other employers more generous.”
Mr. Crabb left the office with the satisfied feeling that he had the best of the encounter.. He would have felt gratified could he have known the increased respect with which he was regarded by the principal as a teacher who could command so lucrative21 an engagement in the great city of New York.
Before closing this chapter I must take notice of one circumstance which troubled Mr. Smith, and in the end worked him additional loss.
I have already said that Jim Smith, in appropriating his uncle’s wallet, abstracted therefrom a five-dollar bill before concealing22 it in Hector’s pocket.
This loss Mr. Smith speedily discovered, and he questioned Jim about it.
“I suppose Roscoe took it,” said Jim, glibly23.
“But he says he did not take the wallet,” said Socrates, who was assured in his own mind that his nephew was the one who found it on the bureau. Without stigmatizing24 him as a thief, he concluded that Jim meant to get Hector into trouble.
“Wasn’t it found in his pants’ pocket?” queried25 Jim.
“Yes, but why should he take five dollars out of the wallet?”
“I don’t know.”
“It doesn’t look likely that he would!” said Socrates, eying Jim keenly.
“Then it may have been Ben Platt or Wilkins,” said Jim, with a bright idea.
“So it might,” said the principal, with a feeling of relief.
“They said they were in the room—at any rate, Platt said so—at the time it was concealed26, only he made a mistake and took Roscoe for me.”
“There is something in that, James. It may be as you suggest.”
“They are both sneaks,” said Jim, who designated all his enemies by that name. “They’d just as lieve do it as not. I never liked them.”
“I must look into this matter. It’s clear that some one has got this money, and whoever has it has got possession of it dishonestly.”
“To be sure,” answered Jim, with unblushing assurance. “If I were you I would find out who did it, that is, if you don’t think Roscoe did it.”
“No, I don’t think Roscoe did it, now. You may tell Platt and Wilkins that I wish to see them.”
Jim could not have been assigned a more pleasing duty. He hated the two boys quite as much as he did Hector, and he was glad to feel that they were likely to get into hot water.
He looked about for some time before he found the two boys. At length he espied27 them returning from a walk.
“Here, you two!” he called out, in a voice ef authority. “You’re wanted!”
“Who wants us?” asked Ben Platt.
“My uncle wants you,” answered Jim, with malicious28 satisfaction. “You’d better go and see him right off, too. You won’t find it a trifling29 matter, either.”
“Probably Jim has been hatchng some mischief,” said Wilkins. “He owes us a grudge30. We’ll go and see what it is.”

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 abated ba788157839fe5f816c707e7a7ca9c44     
减少( abate的过去式和过去分词 ); 减去; 降价; 撤消(诉讼)
参考例句:
  • The worker's concern about cuts in the welfare funding has not abated. 工人们对削减福利基金的关心并没有减少。
  • The heat has abated. 温度降低了。
2 qualified DCPyj     
adj.合格的,有资格的,胜任的,有限制的
参考例句:
  • He is qualified as a complete man of letters.他有资格当真正的文学家。
  • We must note that we still lack qualified specialists.我们必须看到我们还缺乏有资质的专家。
3 dire llUz9     
adj.可怕的,悲惨的,阴惨的,极端的
参考例句:
  • There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.曾经有人就看电视太多的危害性提出严重警告。
  • We were indeed in dire straits.But we pulled through.那时我们的困难真是大极了,但是我们渡过了困难。
4 decided lvqzZd     
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。
5 usher sK2zJ     
n.带位员,招待员;vt.引导,护送;vi.做招待,担任引座员
参考例句:
  • The usher seated us in the front row.引座员让我们在前排就座。
  • They were quickly ushered away.他们被迅速领开。
6 erect 4iLzm     
n./v.树立,建立,使竖立;adj.直立的,垂直的
参考例句:
  • She held her head erect and her back straight.她昂着头,把背挺得笔直。
  • Soldiers are trained to stand erect.士兵们训练站得笔直。
7 depressed xu8zp9     
adj.沮丧的,抑郁的,不景气的,萧条的
参考例句:
  • When he was depressed,he felt utterly divorced from reality.他心情沮丧时就感到完全脱离了现实。
  • His mother was depressed by the sad news.这个坏消息使他的母亲意志消沉。
8 rebuke 5Akz0     
v.指责,非难,斥责 [反]praise
参考例句:
  • He had to put up with a smart rebuke from the teacher.他不得不忍受老师的严厉指责。
  • Even one minute's lateness would earn a stern rebuke.哪怕迟到一分钟也将受到严厉的斥责。
9 overtures 0ed0d32776ccf6fae49696706f6020ad     
n.主动的表示,提议;(向某人做出的)友好表示、姿态或提议( overture的名词复数 );(歌剧、芭蕾舞、音乐剧等的)序曲,前奏曲
参考例句:
  • Their government is making overtures for peace. 他们的政府正在提出和平建议。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He had lately begun to make clumsy yet endearing overtures of friendship. 最近他开始主动表示友好,样子笨拙却又招人喜爱。 来自辞典例句
10 reconciliation DUhxh     
n.和解,和谐,一致
参考例句:
  • He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
  • Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。
11 prospects fkVzpY     
n.希望,前途(恒为复数)
参考例句:
  • There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
  • They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。
12 apprehend zvqzq     
vt.理解,领悟,逮捕,拘捕,忧虑
参考例句:
  • I apprehend no worsening of the situation.我不担心局势会恶化。
  • Police have not apprehended her killer.警察还未抓获谋杀她的凶手。
13 considerably 0YWyQ     
adv.极大地;相当大地;在很大程度上
参考例句:
  • The economic situation has changed considerably.经济形势已发生了相当大的变化。
  • The gap has narrowed considerably.分歧大大缩小了。
14 distress 3llzX     
n.苦恼,痛苦,不舒适;不幸;vt.使悲痛
参考例句:
  • Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。
  • Please don't distress yourself.请你不要忧愁了。
15 livelihood sppzWF     
n.生计,谋生之道
参考例句:
  • Appropriate arrangements will be made for their work and livelihood.他们的工作和生活会得到妥善安排。
  • My father gained a bare livelihood of family by his own hands.父亲靠自己的双手勉强维持家计。
16 fixedly 71be829f2724164d2521d0b5bee4e2cc     
adv.固定地;不屈地,坚定不移地
参考例句:
  • He stared fixedly at the woman in white. 他一直凝视着那穿白衣裳的女人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The great majority were silent and still, looking fixedly at the ground. 绝大部分的人都不闹不动,呆呆地望着地面。 来自英汉文学 - 双城记
17 bully bully     
n.恃强欺弱者,小流氓;vt.威胁,欺侮
参考例句:
  • A bully is always a coward.暴汉常是懦夫。
  • The boy gave the bully a pelt on the back with a pebble.那男孩用石子掷击小流氓的背脊。
18 savage ECxzR     
adj.野蛮的;凶恶的,残暴的;n.未开化的人
参考例句:
  • The poor man received a savage beating from the thugs.那可怜的人遭到暴徒的痛打。
  • He has a savage temper.他脾气粗暴。
19 humble ddjzU     
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。
20 promising BkQzsk     
adj.有希望的,有前途的
参考例句:
  • The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
  • We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。
21 lucrative dADxp     
adj.赚钱的,可获利的
参考例句:
  • He decided to turn his hobby into a lucrative sideline.他决定把自己的爱好变成赚钱的副业。
  • It was not a lucrative profession.那是一个没有多少油水的职业。
22 concealing 0522a013e14e769c5852093b349fdc9d     
v.隐藏,隐瞒,遮住( conceal的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • Despite his outward display of friendliness, I sensed he was concealing something. 尽管他表现得友善,我还是感觉到他有所隐瞒。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • SHE WAS BREAKING THE COMPACT, AND CONCEALING IT FROM HIM. 她违反了他们之间的约定,还把他蒙在鼓里。 来自英汉文学 - 三万元遗产
23 glibly glibly     
adv.流利地,流畅地;满口
参考例句:
  • He glibly professed his ignorance of the affair. 他口口声声表白不知道这件事。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • He put ashes on his head, apologized profusely, but then went glibly about his business. 他表示忏悔,满口道歉,但接着又故态复萌了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
24 stigmatizing a439a524b86cf0ed076d1e37e322db08     
v.使受耻辱,指责,污辱( stigmatize的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • Laing regards the concept of mental illness as both unscientific and stigmatizing. 菜恩认为精神病的概念是不科学的和诬蔑性的。 来自辞典例句
  • The existing social benefits are considered to be stigmatizing and repressive. 现存的社会福利被指责为是无价值的、残暴的。 来自互联网
25 queried 5c2c5662d89da782d75e74125d6f6932     
v.质疑,对…表示疑问( query的过去式和过去分词 );询问
参考例句:
  • She queried what he said. 她对他说的话表示怀疑。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • \"What does he have to do?\" queried Chin dubiously. “他有什么心事?”琴向觉民问道,她的脸上现出疑惑不解的神情。 来自汉英文学 - 家(1-26) - 家(1-26)
26 concealed 0v3zxG     
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。
27 espied 980e3f8497fb7a6bd10007d67965f9f7     
v.看到( espy的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • One day a youth espied her as he was hunting.She saw him and recognized him as her own son, mow grown a young man. 一日,她被一个正在行猎的小伙子看见了,她认出来这个猎手原来是自己的儿子,现在已长成为一个翩翩的少年。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • In a little while he espied the two giants. 一会儿就看见了那两个巨人。 来自辞典例句
28 malicious e8UzX     
adj.有恶意的,心怀恶意的
参考例句:
  • You ought to kick back at such malicious slander. 你应当反击这种恶毒的污蔑。
  • Their talk was slightly malicious.他们的谈话有点儿心怀不轨。
29 trifling SJwzX     
adj.微不足道的;没什么价值的
参考例句:
  • They quarreled over a trifling matter.他们为这种微不足道的事情争吵。
  • So far Europe has no doubt, gained a real conveniency,though surely a very trifling one.直到现在为止,欧洲无疑地已经获得了实在的便利,不过那确是一种微不足道的便利。
30 grudge hedzG     
n.不满,怨恨,妒嫉;vt.勉强给,不情愿做
参考例句:
  • I grudge paying so much for such inferior goods.我不愿花这么多钱买次品。
  • I do not grudge him his success.我不嫉妒他的成功。


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