CHAPTER XXIV. — SAM'S EXCUSES.

 Sam was not used to liquor, and was more easily affected¹ than most. When he got out into the street his head spun² round, and he staggered. His companion observed it.

 

"Why, you don't mean ter say yer tight, Sam?" he said, pausing and looking at him.

 

"I don't know what it is," said Sam, "but I feel queer."

 

"Kinder light in the head, and shaky in the legs?"

 

"Yes, that's the way I feel."

 

"Then you're drunk."

 

"Drunk!" ejaculated Sam, rather frightened, for he was still unsophisticated compared with his companion.

 

"Just so. I say, you must be a chicken to get tight on one whiskey-punch," added Jim, rather contemptuously.

 

"It was strong," said Sam, by way of apology, leaning against a lamp-post for support.

 

"It was stiffish," said Jim. "I always take 'em so."

 

"And don't you feel it at all?" queried³ Sam.

 

"Not a bit," said Jim, decidedly. "I aint a baby."

 

"Nor I either," said Sam, with a spark of his accustomed spirit. "Only I aint used to it."

 

"Why, I could take three glasses, one after the other, without gettin' tight," said Jim, proudly. "I tell you, I've got a strong stomach."

 

"I wish I hadn't taken the drink," said Sam. "When will I feel better?"

 

"In an hour or two."

 

"I can't go back to the doctor this way. He'll know I've been drinkin'. I wish I could lie down somewhere."

 

"I'll tell you what. Come round to the ferry-room. You can sit down there till you feel better."

 

"Give me your arm, Jim. I'm light-headed."

 

With Jim's assistance Sam made his way to Fulton Ferry, but instead of going over in the next boat he leaned back in his seat in the waiting-room, and rested. Jim walked about on the pier⁵, his hands in his pocket, with an independent air. He felt happy and prosperous. Never before in his life, probably, had he had so much money in his possession. Some men with a hundred thousand dollars would have felt poorer than Jim with nine dollars and a half.

 

By and by Sam felt enough better to start on his homeward journey. Jim agreed to accompany him as far as the New York side.

 

"I don't know what the doctor will say when he finds out the money is gone," said Sam, soberly.

 

"You just tell him it was stolen from you by a pickpocket⁶."

 

"Suppose he don't believe it?"

 

"He can't prove nothin'."

 

"He might search me."

 

"So he might," said Jim. "I'll tell you what you'd better do."

 

"What?"

 

"Just give me the money to keep for you. Then if he searches you, he won't find it."

 

If Jim expected this suggestion to be adopted, he undervalued Sam's shrewdness. That young man had not knocked about the streets eight months for nothing.

 

"I guess not," said Sam, significantly. "Maybe I wouldn't find it any easier if you took it."

 

"You don't call me a thief, do you?" demanded Jim, offended.

 

"It looks as if we was both thieves," said Sam, candidly⁷.

 

"You needn't talk so loud," said Jim, hurriedly. "There's no use in tellin' everybody that I see. I don't want the money, only, if the old man finds it, don't blame me."

 

"You needn't be mad, Jim," said Sam. "I'll need the money myself. I guess I'll have to hide it."

 

"Do you wear stockin's?" asked Jim.

 

"Yes; don't you?"

 

"Not in warm weather. They aint no good. They only get dirty. But if you wear 'em, that's the place to hide the money."

 

"I guess you're right," said Sam. "I wouldn't have thought of it. Where can I do it?"

 

"Wait till we're on the New York side. You can sit down on one of the piers⁸ and do it. Nobody'll see you."

 

Sam thought this good advice, and decided⁴ to follow it.

 

"There is some use in stockin's," said Jim, reflectively. "If I was in your place, I wouldn't know where to stow away the money. Where are you goin' now?"

 

"I'll have to go back," said Sam. "I've been a long time already."

 

"I'm goin to get some dinner," said Jim.

 

"I haven't got time," said Sam. "Besides, I don't feel so hungry as usual. I guess it's the drink I took."

 

"It don't take away my appetite," said his companion, with an air of superiority.

 

Sam took the cars home. Knowing what he did, it was with an uncomfortable feeling that he ascended⁹ the stairs and entered the presence of Dr. Graham.

 

The doctor looked angry.

 

"What made you so long?" he demanded abruptly¹⁰. "Did you find the house?"

 

"No," answered Sam, wishing that his embarrassing explanations were fully¹¹ over. "No, I didn't."

 

"You didn't find the house!" exclaimed the doctor, in angry surprise. "Why didn't you?"

 

"I thought it wasn't any use," stammered¹² Sam.

 

"Wasn't any use!" repeated the chiropodist. "Explain yourself, sir, at once."

 

"As long as I hadn't got the letter," proceeded Sam.

 

Now the secret was out.

 

"What did you do with the letter?" demanded Dr. Graham, suspiciously.

 

"I lost it."

 

"Lost it! How could you lose it? Did you know there was money in it?" said his employer, looking angry and disturbed.

 

"Yes, sir; you said so."

 

"Then why were you not careful of it, you young rascal¹³?"

 

"I was, sir; that is, I tried to be. But it was stolen."

 

"Who would steal the letter unless he knew that it contained money?"

 

"That's it, sir. I ought not to have told anybody."

 

"Sit down, and tell me all about it, or it will be the worse for you," said the doctor.

 

"Now for it!" thought Sam.

 

"You see, sir," he commenced, "I was in the horse-cars in Brooklyn, when I saw a boy I knew. We got to talking, and, before I knew it, I told him that I was carryin' a letter with money in it. I took it out of my coat-pocket, and showed it to him."

 

"You had no business to do it," said Dr. Graham. "No one but a fool would show a money-letter. So the boy stole it, did he?"

 

"Oh, no," said Sam, hastily. "It wasn't he."

 

"Who was it, then? Don't be all day telling your story," said the doctor, irritably¹⁴.

 

"There was a young man sitting on the other side of me," said Sam. "He was well-dressed, and I didn't think he'd do such a thing; but he must have stole the letter."

 

"What makes you think so?"

 

"He got out only two or three minutes afterwards, and it wasn't long after that that I missed the letter."

 

"What did you do?"

 

"I stopped the car, and went back. Jim went back along with me. We looked all round, tryin' to find the man, but we couldn't."

 

"Of course you couldn't," growled¹⁵ the doctor. "Did you think he would stay till you came up?"

 

"No, sir. That is, I didn't know what to think. I felt so bad about losing the money," said Sam, artfully.

 

Now this story was on the whole very well got up. It did not do credit to Sam's principles, but it did do credit to his powers of invention. It might be true. There are such men as pickpockets¹⁶ to be found riding in our city horse-cars, as possibly some of my readers may have occasion to know. As yet Dr. Graham did not doubt the story of his young assistant. Sam came very near getting off scot-free.

 

"But for your carelessness this money would not have been lost," said his employer. "You ought to make up the loss to me."

 

"I haven't got any money," said Sam.

 

A sudden thought came to Dr. Graham. "Empty your pockets," he said.

 

"How lucky I put the bills in my stocking!" thought Sam.

 

He turned out his pockets, disclosing fifty cents. It was Friday, and to-morrow his weekly wages would come due.

 

"That's all I've got," he said.

 

"Twenty dollars is five weeks salary," said Dr. Graham. "You ought to work for me five weeks without pay."

 

"I'd starve to death," said Sam, in alarm. "I wouldn't be able to buy anything to eat."

 

"I can keep back part of your salary, then," said his employer. "It is only proper that you should suffer for your negligence¹⁷."

 

At this moment a friend of the doctor's entered the office.

 

"What is the matter?" he asked.

 

Dr. Graham explained briefly¹⁸.

 

"Perhaps," said the visitor, "I can throw some light upon your loss."

 

"You! How?"

 

"I happened to be coming over from Brooklyn an hour since on the same boat with that young man there," he said, quietly.

 

Sam turned pale. There was something in the speaker's tone that frightened him.

 

1 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

2 spun   

v.纺，杜撰，急转身

参考例句：

• His grandmother spun him a yarn at the fire.他奶奶在火炉边给他讲故事。
• Her skilful fingers spun the wool out to a fine thread.她那灵巧的手指把羊毛纺成了细毛线。

3 queried   

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）

4 decided   

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 pier   

n.码头；桥墩，桥柱；[建]窗间壁，支柱

参考例句：

• The pier of the bridge has been so badly damaged that experts worry it is unable to bear weight.这座桥的桥桩破损厉害，专家担心它已不能负重。
• The ship was making towards the pier.船正驶向码头。

6 pickpocket   

n.扒手；v.扒窃

参考例句：

• The pickpocket pinched her purse and ran away.扒手偷了她的皮夹子跑了。
• He had his purse stolen by a pickpocket.他的钱包被掏了。

7 candidly   

adv.坦率地，直率而诚恳地

参考例句：

• He has stopped taking heroin now,but admits candidly that he will always be a drug addict.他眼下已经不再吸食海洛因了,不过他坦言自己永远都是个瘾君子。
• Candidly,David,I think you're being unreasonable.大卫，说实话我认为你不讲道理。

8 piers   

n.水上平台( pier的名词复数 )；（常设有娱乐场所的）突堤；柱子；墙墩

参考例句：

• Most road bridges have piers rising out of the vally. 很多公路桥的桥墩是从河谷里建造起来的。 来自辞典例句
• At these piers coasters and landing-craft would be able to discharge at all states of tide. 沿岸航行的海船和登陆艇，不论潮汐如何涨落，都能在这种码头上卸载。 来自辞典例句

9 ascended   

v.上升，攀登( ascend的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He has ascended into heaven. 他已经升入了天堂。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The climbers slowly ascended the mountain. 爬山运动员慢慢地登上了这座山。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 abruptly   

adv.突然地，出其不意地

参考例句：

• He gestured abruptly for Virginia to get in the car.他粗鲁地示意弗吉尼亚上车。
• I was abruptly notified that a half-hour speech was expected of me.我突然被通知要讲半个小时的话。

11 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。

12 stammered   

v.结巴地说出( stammer的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He stammered most when he was nervous. 他一紧张往往口吃。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Barsad leaned back in his chair, and stammered, \"What do you mean?\" 巴萨往椅背上一靠，结结巴巴地说，“你是什么意思？” 来自英汉文学 - 双城记

13 rascal   

n.流氓；不诚实的人

参考例句：

• If he had done otherwise,I should have thought him a rascal.如果他不这样做，我就认为他是个恶棍。
• The rascal was frightened into holding his tongue.这坏蛋吓得不敢往下说了。

14 irritably   

ad.易生气地

参考例句：

• He lost his temper and snapped irritably at the children. 他发火了，暴躁地斥责孩子们。
• On this account the silence was irritably broken by a reproof. 为了这件事，他妻子大声斥责，令人恼火地打破了宁静。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

15 growled   

v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说

参考例句：

• \"They ought to be birched, \" growled the old man. 老人咆哮道：“他们应受到鞭打。” 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He growled out an answer. 他低声威胁着回答。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 pickpockets   

n.扒手( pickpocket的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Crowded markets are a happy hunting ground for pickpockets. 拥挤的市场是扒手大展身手的好地方。
• He warned me against pickpockets. 他让我提防小偷。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 negligence   

n.疏忽，玩忽，粗心大意

参考例句：

• They charged him with negligence of duty.他们指责他玩忽职守。
• The traffic accident was allegedly due to negligence.这次车祸据说是由于疏忽造成的。

18 briefly   

adv.简单地，简短地

参考例句：

• I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
• He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。