CHAPTER XXXI. THE ADVERTISEMENT.

 If there was any one of whom Tom Burns stood in fear it was Luke Robbins. When he found himself in the grasp of his dreaded¹ enemy he grew weak with terror.

 

It was no longer a question of successful robbery. It was a matter of personal safety.

 

"Well, what have you to say for yourself?" demanded Luke, tightening² his grasp.

 

"Have mercy on me, Mr. Robbins! Don't kill me!" ejaculated Burns, half choked.

 

"What did you come here for?"

 

"I--I had no money, and--"

 

"You thought you could get some here. That is the explanation."

 

"Ye-es," faltered³ Burns.

 

"You thought you would be more than a match for the boy. Well, you have no boy to deal with."

 

"I know that very well," confessed Burns.

 

"How long have you been in Oreville?"

 

"I only came this morning."

 

"You have improved your time," said Luke, dryly. "You have stolen a gold watch, besides making this attempt at robbery."

 

Tom Burns could not deny it, though he was surprised at Luke's knowledge. He did not reply.

 

"Hand over that watch!" said Luke, in a tone of authority.

 

"Will you let me go if I do?"

 

"I will make no conditions with you. Hand over that watch!"

 

Burns drew it from his inside pocket and handed it over.

 

"Humph! So far so good. Now how about that dollar you took to buy eggs?"

 

"It is the only money I have, except a few pennies. Please let me keep it."

 

"If I tell the miners what you have done you won't need any more money," said Luke, grimly.

 

"Why not?" asked Burns, trembling.

 

"Why not?" repeated Luke. "Because they will hang you to the nearest tree. You won't need to trouble about money matters after that."

 

"You won't give me up, Mr. Robbins," pleaded Burns in an agony of terror. "I--I am not fit to die. Besides, I am a young man. I am not yet forty. I will turn over a new leaf. I will, truly."

 

"It's high time you did. It is a long time since you earned an honest living."

 

"I know it, Mr. Robbins. I have been a bad man, but it is not too late to reform. If you'll let me go I will leave Oreville to-night, and I will never trouble you again."

 

"It isn't me you have troubled. It is the boy. You robbed him, or tried to do it, at Oak Forks, and now you have turned up here."

 

"I didn't know he was here. Truly I didn't."

 

"You didn't know I was here, or I think you would have given the place a wide berth⁴."

 

"I am very sorry for what I did, and if you'll only spare my life I'll promise to reform."

 

"I haven't much faith in your promises, but I'll leave it to the boy. Ernest, what shall I do with this man?"

 

Ernest had come forward, and was standing⁵ but a few feet from Luke and his captive.

 

"If he promises to reform," said Ernest, "you'd better give him another chance, Luke."

 

"I am not sure that I ought to, but it is you to whom he has done the most harm. If you give him over to the miners we shall never be troubled by him again."

 

Tom Burns turned pale, for he knew that life and death were in the balance, and that those two--Luke and the boy--were to decide his fate.

 

Ernest could not help pitying the trembling wretch⁶. He was naturally kind hearted, and at that moment he felt that he could forgive Burns all that he had done.

 

"Since you have left it to me, Luke," he said, "let him go."

 

"It shall be as you say, Ernest."

 

As he spoke⁷ he released his hold, and Tom Burns stood erect⁸. He breathed a deep sigh of relief.

 

"May I go?" he asked submissively.

 

"Yes."

 

Before leaving he turned to Ernest.

 

"You are a good-hearted boy," he said, "and I shall not forget that you have saved my life. If I am ever able to do anything for you, I will do it. You will find that Tom Burns, bad as he has been, knows how to be grateful."

 

"I think you mean what you say," returned Ernest. "I hope you will keep your promise and will turn over a new leaf. Is it true that you are penniless?"

 

"Not quite. This is all I have."

 

Burns drew from his pocket a handful of small change--less than a dollar in all--and held it out for inspection⁹.

 

"Then I will help you along."

 

Ernest took from his pocket a five-dollar gold piece, and offered it to the tramp.

 

"That is more than I would do for him," said Luke.

 

"It is more than I deserve," replied Burns, "but you won't be sorry for your kindness. If ever you see me again, I shall be a different man."

 

He passed out of the window, and they saw him no more.

 

Luke and Ernest said very little of their night's adventure, but the gold watch and the Mexican dollar were returned to the man from whom they had been taken.

 

Six months passed. Oreville had doubled its population, the mines had yielded a large sum in gold dust, and the store presided over by Ernest was considerably¹⁰ enlarged.

 

His services had been so satisfactory that Horace Ames, whose time was taken up elsewhere, had raised his share of the profits to one half.

 

At the end of six months, besides defraying his expenses, Ernest found himself possessed¹¹ of a thousand dollars.

 

"Luke, I feel rich," said he, when his faithful friend came round for a chat.

 

"You've done better than I have," rejoined Luke. "The most I have been able to scrape together is four hundred dollars."

 

"I will give you a part of my money, so that we may be even."

 

"No, you won t, Ernest. What do you take me for? I should be ashamed to touch any of your hard earnings¹²."

 

"They are not hard earnings, Luke. Mr. Ames has been very liberal, and that is why I have got so much. I don't feel that I ought to have so much more than you."

 

"Don't bother about me, lad; I feel rich with four hundred dollars. I never was worth so much before, though I'm almost three times your age. And I wouldn't have that but for you."

 

"How do you make that out, Luke?"

 

"Because I never had any ambition till I met you. I never thought of saving money; as long as I got enough to eat I cared for nothing else. I should have died without enough to bury me if you had not set me the example of putting something by for a rainy day."

 

"I am glad if I have done you any good, Luke, for you have been a kind friend to me."

 

A. week later Luke came into the store holding a letter in his hand.

 

"Here is a letter for you, Ernest," he said. "I was passing the post-office just now when I was hailed by the postmaster, who asked me if I would take the letter to you. I didn't know that you had any correspondents."

 

"Nor I, Luke. I think it is the first letter I ever received. Whom can it be from?"

 

"From some one who knows you are here. It is postmarked St. Louis."

 

"Well, I can easily discover who wrote it," said Ernest, as he cut open the envelope with his penknife.

 

He turned at once to the signature, and exclaimed, in great surprise, "Why, it's from Tom Burns."

 

"The man who tried to rob the store?"

 

"Yes."

 

"He has probably written to ask you for some money."

 

"No, Luke, you are mistaken. I will read it to you."

 

The letter started thus:

 

ERNEST RAY:

 

You will probably be surprised to hear from me. Let me begin by saying that I have kept the promise I made to you and Mr. Robbins when you let me off six months ago. I have turned over a new leaf, and have been strictly¹³ honest ever since, as I promised you I would be.

 

I won't trouble you with an account of my struggles to get along. I will only say that I am employed at present as a waiter at the Planters Hotel, and though I can't save up much money, I am able to live comfortable. But you will wonder why I am writing to you. It is because I have seen your name mentioned in an advertisement in one of the St. Louis daily papers. I inclose the advertisement, and hope it is something to your advantage. I have taken the liberty to write to Mr. Bolton, telling him where you were six months since, and now I write to you so that you may communicate with him also.

 

Yours respectfully, TOM BURNS.

 

The advertisement appended ran thus:

 

INFORMATION WANTED.--Should this meet the eye of Ernest Ray, some time residing at Oak Forks, Iowa, he is requested to communicate with Benjamin Bolton, Attorney-at-Law, 182 Nassau Street, New York City.

1 dreaded   

adj.令人畏惧的；害怕的v.害怕，恐惧，担心( dread的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• The dreaded moment had finally arrived. 可怕的时刻终于来到了。
• He dreaded having to spend Christmas in hospital. 他害怕非得在医院过圣诞节不可。 来自《用法词典》

2 tightening   

上紧，固定，紧密

参考例句：

• Make sure the washer is firmly seated before tightening the pipe. 旋紧水管之前，检查一下洗衣机是否已牢牢地固定在底座上了。
• It needs tightening up a little. 它还需要再收紧些。

3 faltered   

（嗓音）颤抖( falter的过去式和过去分词 )； 支吾其词； 蹒跚； 摇晃

参考例句：

• He faltered out a few words. 他支吾地说出了几句。
• "Er - but he has such a longhead!" the man faltered. 他不好意思似的嚅嗫着：“这孩子脑袋真长。”

4 berth   

n.卧铺，停泊地，锚位；v.使停泊

参考例句：

• She booked a berth on the train from London to Aberdeen.她订了一张由伦敦开往阿伯丁的火车卧铺票。
• They took up a berth near the harbor.他们在港口附近找了个位置下锚。

5 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

6 wretch   

n.可怜的人，不幸的人；卑鄙的人

参考例句：

• You are really an ungrateful wretch to complain instead of thanking him.你不但不谢他，还埋怨他，真不知好歹。
• The dead husband is not the dishonoured wretch they fancied him.死去的丈夫不是他们所想象的不光彩的坏蛋。

7 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。

8 erect   

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。

9 inspection   

n.检查，审查，检阅

参考例句：

• On random inspection the meat was found to be bad.经抽查，发现肉变质了。
• The soldiers lined up for their daily inspection by their officers.士兵们列队接受军官的日常检阅。

10 considerably   

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。

11 possessed   

adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的

参考例句：

• He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门。
• He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。

12 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。

13 strictly   

adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地

参考例句：

• His doctor is dieting him strictly.他的医生严格规定他的饮食。
• The guests were seated strictly in order of precedence.客人严格按照地位高低就座。