CHAPTER XLIV. A FRESH START.

 Five days later, just as Mr. Taylor was sitting down to dinner, at the close of the day, the door-bell rang violently.

There was a hurried step heard in the hall, and the door opening quickly Henry Taylor rushed in, his face beaming with smiles.

“Oh, I'm so glad to see you, Henry!” said Jennie, embracing him. “I missed you awfully¹.”

Henry looked at his father, a little doubtful of his reception.

“Are you well, father?” he asked.

“Quite well,” responded Mr. Taylor coolly. “Where did you leave your scalps?”

“What?” ejaculated Henry, bewildered.

“I thought you left home to kill Indians.”

“Oh!” said Henry, smiling faintly. “I didn't meet any Indians—except one—and he was friendly.”

“Then your expedition was a failure?”

“I guess I'll leave the Indians alone,” said Henry sheepishly.

“That strikes me as a sensible remark. Of course, a few Indian scalps would be of great use to you. I fully² expected a present of one, as a trophy³ of my son's valor⁴; but still, in case the Indian objected to being scalped, there might be a little risk in performing the operation.”

“I see you are laughing at me, father,” said Henry.

“Not at all. You can see that I am very sober. If you think you can make a good living hunting Indians—I don't know myself how much their scalps bring in the market—I might set you up in the business.”

“I am not so foolish as I was. I prefer some other business. Philip told me—”

“Where is Philip?” asked Jennie eagerly.

“I left him in the parlor⁵. He said I had better come in first.”

“Go and call him. Invite him, with my compliments, to stay to dinner.”

Henry left the room, and reappeared almost immediately with Philip.

Both boys were perfectly⁶ neat in appearance, for Philip had insisted on going to a hotel and washing and dressing⁷ themselves.

As he followed Henry into the room, with modest self-possession, his cheeks glowing with a healthy color, both Jennie and Mr. Taylor were instantly prepossessed in his favor.

“I am glad to see you, Philip,” said the broker⁸, “and beg to thank you, not only for the material help you gave Henry, but also for the good advice, which I consider of still greater importance and value.”

“Thank you, sir. I don't feel competent to give much advice, but I thought his best course was to come home.”

“You haven't as high an idea of hunting Indians as Henry, I infer?”

“No, sir,” answered Philip, smiling. “It seems to me they have as much right to live as we, if they behave themselves.”

“I think so, too,” said Henry, who was rather ashamed of what had once been his great ambition.

“You haven't introduced me to Philip—I mean Mr. Gray,” said Jennie.

“This is my sister Jennie, Phil,” said Henry, in an off-hand manner.

“I am very glad to see you, Mr. Gray,” said Jennie, extending her hand.

“I am hardly used to that name,” said Philip, smiling.

“When I get well acquainted with you I shall call you Philip.”

“I hope you will.”

Within an hour Miss Jennie appeared to feel well acquainted with her brother's friend, for she dropped “Mr. Gray” altogether, and called him Philip.

At her solicitation⁹ he played on his violin. Both Mr. Taylor and Jennie were surprised at the excellence¹⁰ of his execution.

When Philip rose to go, Mr. Taylor said cordially:

“I cannot permit you to leave us, Philip. You must remain here as our guest.”

“But, sir, I left my things at a hotel.”

“Then Henry will go with you and get them.”

So Philip found himself established in a fine house on Madison Avenue as a favored guest.

The next morning, when Mr. Taylor went to his office, he asked Philip to go with him. Arrived in Wall Street, he sent a boy to the bank with a check. On his return, he selected five twenty-dollar bills, and handed them to Philip.

“You have expended¹¹ some money for Henry,” he said.

“Yes, sir; but not quarter as much as this.”

“Then accept the rest as a gift. You will probably need some new clothes. Henry will take you to our tailor. Don't spare expense. The bill will be sent to me.”

“But, Mr. Taylor, I do not deserve such kindness.”

“Let me be the judge of that. In a few days I shall have a proposal to make to you.”

This was the proposal, and the way it was made:

“I find, Philip,” said Mr. Taylor, some days later, “that Henry is much attached to you, and that your influence over him is excellent. He has agreed to go to an academy in Connecticut, and study hard for a year, provided you will go with him. I take it for granted you haven't completed your education?”

“No, sir.”

“I shall pay all the bills and provide for you in every way, exactly as I do for Henry.”

“But, Mr. Taylor, how can I ever repay you?” asked Philip.

“By being Henry's friend and adviser—perhaps, I may say, guardian—for, although you are about the same age, you are far wiser and more judicious¹².”

“I will certainly do the best I can for him, sir.”

During the next week the two boys left New York, and became pupils at Doctor Shelley's private academy, at Elmwood—a pleasant country town not far from Long Island Sound—and there we bid them adieu.

THE END. 

1 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。

2 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

3 trophy   

n.优胜旗，奖品，奖杯，战胜品，纪念品

参考例句：

• The cup is a cherished trophy of the company.那只奖杯是该公司很珍惜的奖品。
• He hung the lion's head as a trophy.他把那狮子头挂起来作为狩猎纪念品。

4 valor   

n.勇气，英勇

参考例句：

• Fortitude is distinct from valor.坚韧不拔有别于勇猛。
• Frequently banality is the better parts of valor.老生常谈往往比大胆打破常规更为人称道。

5 parlor   

n.店铺，营业室；会客室，客厅

参考例句：

• She was lying on a small settee in the parlor.她躺在客厅的一张小长椅上。
• Is there a pizza parlor in the neighborhood?附近有没有比萨店？

6 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

7 dressing   

n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料

参考例句：

• Don't spend such a lot of time in dressing yourself.别花那么多时间来打扮自己。
• The children enjoy dressing up in mother's old clothes.孩子们喜欢穿上妈妈旧时的衣服玩。

8 broker   

n.中间人，经纪人；v.作为中间人来安排

参考例句：

• He baited the broker by promises of higher commissions.他答应给更高的佣金来引诱那位经纪人。
• I'm a real estate broker.我是不动产经纪人。

9 solicitation   

n.诱惑；揽货；恳切地要求；游说

参考例句：

• Make the first solicitation of the three scheduled this quarter. 进行三位名单上预期捐助人作本季第一次邀请捐献。 来自互联网
• Section IV is about the proxy solicitation system and corporate governance. 随后对委托书的格式、内容、期限以及能否实行有偿征集、征集费用由谁承担以及违反该制度的法律责任进行论述，并提出自己的一些见解。 来自互联网

10 excellence   

n.优秀，杰出，(pl.)优点，美德

参考例句：

• His art has reached a high degree of excellence.他的艺术已达到炉火纯青的地步。
• My performance is far below excellence.我的表演离优秀还差得远呢。

11 expended   

v.花费( expend的过去式和过去分词 )；使用（钱等）做某事；用光；耗尽

参考例句：

• She expended all her efforts on the care of home and children. 她把所有精力都花在料理家务和照顾孩子上。
• The enemy had expended all their ammunition. 敌人已耗尽所有的弹药。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 judicious   

adj.明智的，明断的，能作出明智决定的

参考例句：

• We should listen to the judicious opinion of that old man.我们应该听取那位老人明智的意见。
• A judicious parent encourages his children to make their own decisions.贤明的父亲鼓励儿女自作抉择。