CHAPTER XXXI. PHILIP FINDS A FRIEND.

 When the two unauthorized ministers of justice had departed Oscar and his father looked at each other in anger and stupefaction.

 

"It's an outrage¹!" exclaimed Nahum Sprague.

 

"I'd like to shoot them!" returned Oscar. "I'd like to see them flayed² within an inch of their lives."

 

"So would I. They are the most audacious desperadoes I ever encountered."

 

"Do you know them, dad?"

 

"Yes; they are Bill Murphy and Joe Hastings. They are always hanging round the drinking saloon."

 

"We can lick Philip at any rate!" said Oscar, with a furious look at poor Phil. "He brought it on us."

 

But Nahum Sprague was more prudent³. He had heard the threat of Bill and Joe to repeat the punishment if Philip were attacked, and he thought it best to wait.

 

"Leave it to me," he said. "I'll flog him in due time."

 

"Ain't you going to do anything to him, dad?" asked Oscar in disappointment.

 

"Yes. Come here, you, sir!"

 

Phil approached his stern guardian⁴ with an uncomfortable sense of something unpleasant awaiting him.

 

Nahum Sprague seized him by the collar and said, "Follow me."

 

He pushed the boy before him and walked him into the house, then up the stairs into an attic⁵ room, where he locked him in. Just then the bell rang for dinner.

 

Poor Phil was hungry, but nothing was said about dinner for him. A dread⁶ suspicion came to him that he was to be starved. But half an hour later the door opened, and Oscar appeared with two thin slices of bread without butter.

 

"Here's your dinner," he said.

 

It was a poor enough provision for a hungry boy, but Phil ate them with relish⁷, Oscar looking on with an amused smile.

 

"Is that all I am to have?" asked Phil.

 

"Yes; it is all you deserve."

 

"I don't know what I have done."

 

"You don't, hey? You broke the bottle and spilled the whisky."

 

"I wouldn't have done it if you hadn't pushed me."

 

"There you go, laying it off on me. You'd better not."

 

"But it's true, Oscar."

 

"No, it isn't. You broke the bottle to spite pa."

 

"I wouldn't have dared to do it," said Philip.

 

"You dared a little too much, anyway. Didn't you get those men to follow you and interfere⁸ with what was none of their business?"

 

"No, I didn't."

 

"Hadn't you spoken with them at the saloon?"

 

"Yes."

 

"I thought so."

 

"They asked me who sent me for the whisky and I told them."

 

"You didn't need to tell them. If it hadn't been for that they wouldn't have come round to our place and assaulted pa and me. They'll catch it, pa says. Shouldn't wonder if they'd be put in prison for five years."

 

Young as he was Phil put no faith in this ridiculous statement, but he thought it best not to make any comment.

 

"How long is your father going to keep me here?" he asked.

 

"Maybe a month."

 

This opened a terrible prospect⁹ to poor Phil, who thought Mr. Sprague quite capable of inflicting¹⁰ such a severe punishment.

 

"If he does I won't live through it," he said desperately¹¹.

 

"You don't mean to kill yourself?" said Oscar, startled.

 

"No, but I shall starve. I am awfully¹² hungry now."

 

"What, after eating two slices of bread?"

 

"They were very thin, and I have exercised a good deal."

 

"Then I advise you to make it up with pa. If you get down on your knees and tell him you are sorry, perhaps he will forgive you, and let you out."

 

Phil did not feel willing to humiliate¹³ himself in that way, and remained silent.

 

"There ain't any bed for me to sleep on," he said, looking around.

 

"You will have to sleep on the floor. I guess you'll get enough of it."

 

Oscar locked the door on the outside and went down-stairs. Disagreeable as he was Phil was sorry to have him go. He was some company, and when left to himself there was nothing for him to do. If there had been any paper or book in the room it would have helped him tide over the time, but the apartment was bare of furniture.

 

There was one window looking out on the side of the house. Phil posted himself at this, and soon saw Oscar and his father leave the premises¹⁴ and go down the street. Nahum had a bottle in his hand, and Phil concluded he was going to the drinking saloon to get a fresh bottle of whisky.

 

Phil continued to look out of the window.

 

Presently he saw a boy pass whom he knew—a boy named Arthur Burks.

 

He opened the window and called out eagerly, "Arthur!"

 

Arthur turned round and looking up espied¹⁵ Philip.

 

"Hello!" he cried. "What are you doing up there?"

 

"I am locked in."

 

"What for?"

 

"I accidentally dropped a bottle of whisky, and spilled it. Mr. Sprague got mad and locked me up here."

 

"That's a shame. How long have you got to stay?"

 

"Oscar says he may keep me here a month."

 

"He's only frightening you. Old Sprague wouldn't dare to do it."

 

"That isn't all. I am half starved. He only gave me two small slices of bread for dinner."

 

"He's a mean old hunks. I just wish you could come round to our house. We'd give you enough to eat."

 

"I wish I were there now," sighed Philip.

 

"I've got an idea," said Arthur, brightening up. "What time do Mr. Sprague and Oscar go to bed?"

 

"Very early. About nine o'clock."

 

"Would you run away if you could?"

 

"Yes."

 

"Then I'll tell you what I'll do. At half-past nine Albert Frost and I will come around with a tall ladder—Mr. Frost has got one—and we'll put it up against your window. Will you dare to get out of the window, and come down?"

 

"Yes, I'll do anything to get away. But can you get the ladder?"

 

"Yes; Albert will manage it. Do you think the old man will be likely to see or hear us?"

 

"No; he sleeps on the other side of the house."

 

"All right! You can expect us. I guess I had better go now, for fear I may be seen, and they might suspect something."

 

"But where can I go when I leave here?"

 

"Come to our house. You can sleep with Rob, my little brother."

 

"Thank you, Arthur. I'll expect you."

 

Philip felt a good deal more cheerful after Arthur had gone. He knew that in Arthur's house he would be very differently treated from what he had been by Nahum Sprague. He did not feel it wrong to leave the Spragues', as they were constantly complaining that he was a burden.

 

"If Mr. Burks would only let me live with him," he thought, "I should be happy, and I would be willing to work hard."

 

At half-past five Oscar came up to the room again, this time accompanied by his father.

 

"How do you like being locked up here?" asked Nahum.

 

"Not very well."

 

"Get down on your knees and beg my pardon for your bad conduct, and I will let you out."

 

"I would rather not, sir."

 

"Do you hear that, Oscar? He would rather not."

 

"I heard it, pa."

 

"It is only right that he should suffer the penalty of his headstrong conduct. Give him his supper and we will leave him to think of his sinfulness."

 

Oscar produced two more thin slices of bread and a cup of very weak tea.

 

"You are not entitled to tea," said Nahum. "It is only because we are kind-hearted that I permitted Mrs. Sprague to send up a cup. I have not put in milk or sugar because I refuse to pamper¹⁶ you."

 

Philip made no comment, but disposed of the tea and bread in a very short space of time. He felt ready to join in with Oliver, in Dickens's immortal¹⁷ story, when he asked for "more." But he knew it would be of no use.

 

"Now, we will go down, Oscar."

 

"All right, pa. I hope the house won't catch fire in the night," he added, with the laudable purpose of terrifying Philip, "for we might not be able to come up and unlock the door."

 

Philip felt uncomfortable, but he reflected that before many hours, if Arthur Burks kept his promise, he would no longer be an inmate¹⁸ of Mr. Sprague's home.

 

"He'll have a sweet time sleeping on the floor, pa," said Oscar as they went down-stairs.

 

"It will serve the little fool right," returned Nahum Sprague grimly.

1 outrage   

n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒

参考例句：

• When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
• We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。

2 flayed   

v.痛打( flay的过去式和过去分词 )；把…打得皮开肉绽；剥（通常指动物）的皮；严厉批评

参考例句：

• He was so angry he nearly flayed his horse alive. 他气得几乎把马活活抽死。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The teacher flayed the idle students. 老师严责那些懒惰的学生。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

3 prudent   

adj.谨慎的，有远见的，精打细算的

参考例句：

• A prudent traveller never disparages his own country.聪明的旅行者从不贬低自己的国家。
• You must school yourself to be modest and prudent.你要学会谦虚谨慎。

4 guardian   

n.监护人；守卫者，保护者

参考例句：

• The form must be signed by the child's parents or guardian. 这张表格须由孩子的家长或监护人签字。
• The press is a guardian of the public weal. 报刊是公共福利的卫护者。

5 attic   

n.顶楼，屋顶室

参考例句：

• Leakiness in the roof caused a damp attic.屋漏使顶楼潮湿。
• What's to be done with all this stuff in the attic?顶楼上的材料怎么处理？

6 dread   

vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧

参考例句：

• We all dread to think what will happen if the company closes.我们都不敢去想一旦公司关门我们该怎么办。
• Her heart was relieved of its blankest dread.她极度恐惧的心理消除了。

7 relish   

n.滋味，享受，爱好，调味品；vt.加调味料，享受，品味；vi.有滋味

参考例句：

• I have no relish for pop music.我对流行音乐不感兴趣。
• I relish the challenge of doing jobs that others turn down.我喜欢挑战别人拒绝做的工作。

8 interfere   

v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰

参考例句：

• If we interfere, it may do more harm than good.如果我们干预的话，可能弊多利少。
• When others interfere in the affair,it always makes troubles. 别人一卷入这一事件，棘手的事情就来了。

9 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

10 inflicting   

把…强加给，使承受，遭受( inflict的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He was charged with maliciously inflicting grievous bodily harm. 他被控蓄意严重伤害他人身体。
• It's impossible to do research without inflicting some pain on animals. 搞研究不让动物遭点罪是不可能的。

11 desperately   

adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地

参考例句：

• He was desperately seeking a way to see her again.他正拼命想办法再见她一面。
• He longed desperately to be back at home.他非常渴望回家。

12 awfully   

adv.可怕地，非常地，极端地

参考例句：

• Agriculture was awfully neglected in the past.过去农业遭到严重忽视。
• I've been feeling awfully bad about it.对这我一直感到很难受。

13 humiliate   

v.使羞辱，使丢脸[同]disgrace

参考例句：

• What right had they to bully and humiliate people like this?凭什么把人欺侮到这个地步呢？
• They pay me empty compliments which only humiliate me.他们虚情假意地恭维我，这只能使我感到羞辱。

14 premises   

n.建筑物，房屋

参考例句：

• According to the rules,no alcohol can be consumed on the premises.按照规定，场内不准饮酒。
• All repairs are done on the premises and not put out.全部修缮都在家里进行，不用送到外面去做。

15 espied   

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

16 pamper   

v.纵容，过分关怀

参考例句：

• Don't pamper your little daughter.别把你的小女儿娇坏了！
• You need to pamper yourself and let your charm come through.你需要对自己放纵一些来表现你的魅力。

17 immortal   

adj.不朽的；永生的，不死的；神的

参考例句：

• The wild cocoa tree is effectively immortal.野生可可树实际上是不会死的。
• The heroes of the people are immortal!人民英雄永垂不朽！

18 inmate   

n.被收容者；(房屋等的)居住人；住院人

参考例句：

• I am an inmate of that hospital.我住在那家医院。
• The prisoner is his inmate.那个囚犯和他同住一起。