So granny, in rather low spirits, sought her elevated 157room, and threw herself upon the bed to sleep off her fatigue6.
On awaking, granny seated herself at the window, and picked up mechanically the advertising7 sheet of the “Herald,” in which a loaf of bread had been wrapped that had been given to her the day previous. It was seldom that Mrs. Walsh indulged in reading, not possessing very marked literary tastes; but to-day she was seized with an idle impulse, which she obeyed, without anticipating that she would see anything that concerned her.
In glancing through the advertisements under the head “Personal,” her attention was drawn8 to the following:—
/# “If Margaret Walsh, who left Philadelphia in the year 1855, will call at No. — Wall Street, Room 8, she will hear of something to her advantage.” #/
“Why, that’s me!” exclaimed granny, letting the paper fall from her lap in surprise. “It’s my name, and I left Philadelphy that year. I wonder what it’s about. Maybe it’s about Tom.”
There were circumstances which led Mrs. Walsh to think it by no means improbable that the inquiries9 to 158be made were about Tom, and this made her regret more keenly that she had lost her.
“If it is,” she soliloquized, “I’ll get hold of her somehow.”
There was one part of the advertisement which particularly interested granny,—that in which it was suggested that she would hear something to her advantage. If there was any money to be made, granny was entirely10 willing to make it. Considering the unpromising state of her prospects11, she felt that it was a piece of extraordinary good luck.
Looking at the date of the paper, she found that it was a fortnight old, and was troubled by the thought that it might be too late. At any rate no time was to be lost. So, in spite of the fatigue of her morning expedition, she put on her old cloak and bonnet12, and, descending13 the stairs, sallied out into the street. She made her way down Nassau Street to Wall, and, carefully looking about her, found without difficulty the number mentioned in the advertisement. It was a large building, containing a considerable number of offices. No. 8 was on the third floor. On the door was a tin sign bearing the name:—
159“EUGENE SELDEN,
Attorney and Counsellor.”
Mrs. Walsh knocked at the door; but there was no response. She knocked again, after a while, and then tried the door. But it was locked.
“The office closes at three, ma’am,” said a young man, passing by. “You will have to wait till to-morrow.”
Mrs. Walsh was disappointed, being very anxious to ascertain14 what advantage she was likely to receive. She presented herself the next morning at nine, only to find herself too early. At last she found the lawyer in. He looked up from his desk as she entered.
“Have you business with me?” he asked.
“Are you the man that advertised for Margaret Walsh?” asked granny.
“Yes,” said Mr. Selden, laying down his pen, and regarding her with interest. “Are you she?”
“Yes, your honor,” said granny, thinking her extra politeness might increase the advantage promised.
“Did you ever live in Philadelphia?”
160“Yes, your honor.”
“Were you in service?”
Mrs. Walsh answered in the affirmative.
“In what family?”
“In the family of Mrs. Lindsay.”
“What made you leave her?” asked the lawyer, fixing his eyes searchingly upon Margaret.
Granny looked a little uneasy.
“I got tired of staying there,” she said.
“When you left Philadelphia, did you come to New York?”
“Yes, your honor.”
“Did you know that Mrs. Lindsay’s only child disappeared at the time you left the house?” inquired the lawyer.
“If I tell the truth will it harm me?” asked granny, uneasily.
“Then I took the child with me.”
“What motive16 had you for doing this wicked thing? Do you know that Mrs. Lindsay nearly broke her heart at the loss of the child?”
161“I was mad with her,” said granny, “that’s one reason.”
“Then there was another reason?”
“Yes, your honor.”
“What was it?”
“Young Mr. Lindsay hired me to do it. He offered me a thousand dollars.”
“Are you ready to swear this?”
“Yes,” said granny. “I hope you’ll pay me handsome for tellin’,” she added. “I’m a poor—woman,” she was on the point of saying “widder with five small children;” but it occurred to her that this would injure her in the present instance.
“You shall receive a suitable reward when the child is restored. It is living, I suppose?”
“Yes,” said granny.
“With you?”
“No, your honor. She ran away two months ago; but I saw her this morning.”
“Why should she run away? Didn’t you treat her well?”
“Like as if she was my own child,” said granny. “I’ve often and often gone without anything 162to eat, so that Tom might have enough. I took great care of her, your honor, and would have brought her up as a leddy if I hadn’t been so poor.”
“I thought it was a girl.”
“So it was, your honor.”
“Then why do you call her Tom?”
“’Cause she was more like a boy than a gal,—as sassy a child as I ever see.”
“So you have lost her?”
“Yes, your honor. She ran away from me two months since.”
“But you said you saw her yesterday. Why did you not take her back?”
“She wouldn’t come. She told the policeman she didn’t know me,—me that have took care of her since she was a little gal,—the ungrateful hussy!”
The lawyer looked thoughtful.
“The child must be got back,” he said. “It is only recently that her mother ascertained19 the treachery by which she was taken from her, and now 163she is most anxious to recover her. If you will bring her to me, you shall have a suitable reward.”
“How much?” asked granny, with a cunning look.
“I cannot promise in advance, but it will certainly be two hundred dollars,—perhaps more. Mrs. Lindsay will be generous.”
The old woman’s eyes sparkled. Such a sum promised an unlimited20 amount of whiskey for a considerable time. The only disagreeable feature in the case was that Tom would benefit by the restoration, since she would obtain a comfortable home, and a parent whose ideas of the parental21 relation differed somewhat from those of Mrs. Walsh. Still, two hundred dollars were worth the winning, and granny determined22 to win them. She suggested, however, that, in order to secure the co-operation of the police, she needed to be more respectably dressed; otherwise her claim would be scouted23, provided Tom undertook to deny it.
This appeared reasonable, and as the lawyer had authority to incur24 any expense that he might consider likely to further the successful prosecution25 of the 164search, he sent out some one, in whom he had confidence, to purchase a respectable outfit26 for Mrs. Walsh. He further agreed to allow her three dollars a week for the present, that she might be able to devote all her time to hunting up Tom. This arrangement was very satisfactory to Mrs. Walsh, who felt like a lady in easy circumstances. Her return to the tenement27 house, in her greatly improved dress, created quite a sensation. She did not deign28 to enlighten her neighbors upon the cause of her improved fortunes, but dropped hints that she had come into a legacy29.
From this time Mrs. Walsh began to frequent the up-town streets, particularly Eighteenth Street, where she had before encountered Tom. But as she still continued to make her rounds in the morning, it was many days before she caught a glimpse of the object of her search. As her expenses were paid in the mean time, she waited patiently, though she anticipated with no little pleasure the moment which should place Tom in her power. She resolved, before restoring her to her mother, to inflict30 upon her late ward17 a 165suitable punishment for her rebellion and flight, for which granny was not likely ever to forgive her.
“I’ll give her something to remember me by,” muttered granny. “See if I don’t!”
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1
despondent
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| adj.失望的，沮丧的，泄气的 | |
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incensed
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| 盛怒的 | |
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exertion
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| n.尽力，努力 | |
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sane
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| adj.心智健全的，神志清醒的，明智的，稳健的 | |
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guardian
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| n.监护人；守卫者，保护者 | |
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fatigue
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| n.疲劳，劳累 | |
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7
advertising
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| n.广告业；广告活动 a.广告的；广告业务的 | |
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8
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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inquiries
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| n.调查( inquiry的名词复数 )；疑问；探究；打听 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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prospects
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| n.希望，前途(恒为复数) | |
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12
bonnet
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| n.无边女帽；童帽 | |
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descending
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| n. 下行 adj. 下降的 | |
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ascertain
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| vt.发现，确定，查明，弄清 | |
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15
conceal
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽 | |
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motive
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| n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的 | |
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17
ward
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| n.守卫，监护，病房，行政区，由监护人或法院保护的人（尤指儿童）；vt.守护，躲开 | |
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18
pathos
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| n.哀婉，悲怆 | |
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ascertained
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| v.弄清，确定，查明( ascertain的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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unlimited
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| adj.无限的，不受控制的，无条件的 | |
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parental
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| adj.父母的；父的；母的 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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23
scouted
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| 寻找，侦察( scout的过去式和过去分词 )； 物色（优秀运动员、演员、音乐家等） | |
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incur
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| vt.招致，蒙受，遭遇 | |
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prosecution
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| n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营 | |
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outfit
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| n.（为特殊用途的）全套装备，全套服装 | |
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tenement
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| n.公寓；房屋 | |
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deign
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| v. 屈尊, 惠允 ( 做某事) | |
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29
legacy
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| n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西 | |
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inflict
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| vt.(on)把…强加给，使遭受，使承担 | |
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