CHAPTER III. A STREET FIGHT.

 Tom, of course, knew nothing of Jacob's accident. He fancied him safe at home, and was only concerned to make enough money to pay the necessary expenses of both. He felt little anxiety on this score, as he was of an enterprising disposition¹, and usually got his fair share of business. He stationed himself near the Astor House, and kept an eye on the boots of all who passed, promptly² offering his services where they appeared needed. Of course, there were long intervals³ between his customers, but in the course of two hours he had made fifty cents, which he regarded as doing fairly.

 

Finally a gentleman, rather tall and portly, descended⁴ the steps of the Astor House, and bent⁵ his steps in Tom's direction.

 

"Shine yer boots?" asked Tom.

 

The gentleman looked down upon the face of the boy, and a sudden expression swept over his own, as if he were surprised or startled. His boots were tolerably clean; but, after a moment's hesitation⁶, he said:

 

"Yes."

 

Tom was instantly on his knees, first spreading a piece of carpet, about a foot square, to kneel upon, and set to work with energy.

 

"How long have you been in this line of business, boy?" asked his customer.

 

"Four or five years," answered Tom.

 

"Do you like it?"

 

"I have to like it," said Tom. "I've got to do somethin' for a livin'. Bread and meat don't grow on trees."

 

"What's your name?" asked the stranger, abruptly⁷.

 

"Tom."

 

"Haven't you got but one name?"

 

"Tom Grey's my whole name; but everybody calls me Tom."

 

"Grey? Did you say your name was Grey?" asked the stranger, in a tone of some excitement.

 

"Yes," said Tom, surprised at the gentleman's tone.

 

In his surprise he looked up into his customer's face, and for the first time took notice of it. This was what he saw: a square face, with a heavy lower jaw⁸, grizzled whiskers, and cold, gray eyes. But there was something besides that served to distinguish it from other faces—a scar, of an inch in length, on his right cheek, which, though years old, always looked red under excitement.

 

"Grey," repeated the stranger. "Is your father living?"

 

"I don't know," said Tom. "If he is, he's too busy to call round and see me."

 

"You mean that you don't know anything about your father?"

 

"That's about so," said Tom. "I'm ready to adopt a rich gentleman as a father, if it's agreeable."

 

And he looked up with a smile in the face of his customer.

 

But the latter did not respond to the joke, but looked more and more serious.

 

"That smile," he said to himself. "He is wonderfully like. Is it possible that this boy can be——"

 

But here he stopped, and left the sentence unfinished.

 

"Are you sure your name is Tom?" asked the stranger.

 

"Why shouldn't it be?" demanded the boy, in natural surprise.

 

"To be sure," returned the gentleman. "Only I have a theory that there is a connection between faces and names, and you don't look like my idea of Tom."

 

This was rather philosophical⁹ to be addressed to a New York bootblack; but Tom was smart enough to comprehend it.

 

"If I don't look like Tom, what do I look like?" he asked.

 

"John, or Henry, or—or Gilbert," said the gentleman, bringing out the last name after a slight pause.

 

"I like Tom best," said the boy; "it's short and easy."

 

"Do you live alone, or have you any friends?" asked the stranger.

 

"I live with an old man, but he ain't any relation to me."

 

"What's his name?"

 

"Jacob."

 

"What other name?" asked the customer, quickly.

 

Tom had by this time completed his task, and was standing¹⁰ erect¹¹, facing the speaker.

 

"He's got an inquirin' mind," thought Tom; but, though rather surprised at the questions, he had no objection to answer them.

 

"I don't know," he said.

 

"Don't know?"

 

"He never told me. Maybe it's Grey, like mine. Some call him my grandfather, but he isn't."

 

"It is he," thought the stranger; "but things are well as they are. He knows nothing, and need know nothing. I am safe enough, since between us there is a great gulf¹² of ignorance, and more than a thousand miles of space."

 

"Well, my boy," he said, aloud, "I suppose you want to be paid?"

 

"That's what's the matter," answered Tom.

 

The stranger put in his hand a half dollar, and Tom, plunging¹³ his hand in his pocket, prepared to give change.

 

"Never mind," said his late customer, with a wave of his hand.

 

"Thanks," said Tom, and he mentally wished he might be as well paid every day for answering questions.

 

Tom shouldered his box, and walked a few steps down Broadway. It was some time before another customer appeared, and meanwhile another bootblack came up. The name of the newcomer was Pat Walsh. He enjoyed a bad reputation among his comrades—as one who would take a mean advantage, if he dared, and was at all times ready to bully¹⁴ a smaller boy. He had long cherished an ill feeling toward Tom, because the latter had interfered¹⁵, on one occasion, to protect a smaller boy whom Pat tried to cheat out of a job. As Tom's prowess was well known, Pat had contented¹⁶ himself hitherto with uttering threats which he hesitated to carry into execution. It was shrewdly suspected by his companions that he was afraid to contend with Tom, and they had taunted¹⁷ him with it. Finding his authority diminishing, Pat decided¹⁸ to force a quarrel upon Tom at the first opportunity. He had no great appetite for the fight, but felt it to be a disagreeable necessity.

 

Just as he came up a gentleman approached with a valise in his hand. His boots were decidedly dirty, and he was hailed as a prize by the bootblacks.

 

"Shine yer boots?" exclaimed Tom and Pat, simultaneously¹⁹.

 

"I don't know but they need brushing," said the traveler.

 

Instantly both bootblacks were on their knees before him, ready to proceed to business.

 

"I don't need both of you," he said, smiling.

 

"Take me," said Pat; "I'll give you a bully shine."

 

"I'll give you the bulliest," said Tom, good humoredly. "I spoke²⁰ first."

 

"Lave wid yer, or I'll mash²¹ yer!" said Pat.

 

"Better not try it," said Tom, not in the least intimidated²². "The gentleman will choose between us."

 

"I'll choose you," said the traveler, decidedly more prepossessed by Tom's appearance than by that of his competitor.

 

There was no appeal from this decision, and Pat rose to his feet, his face wearing a very ugly scowl²³. He remained standing near, while Tom was engaged with his job, watching him with an aspect which betokened²⁴ mischief²⁵.

 

"Thank you, sir," said Tom, as he received pay for his services.

 

The customer had no sooner left the spot than Pat strode up to Tom.

 

"I want that money," he said, menacingly.

 

"Do you?" returned Tom, coolly, as he thrust it into his vest pocket, for, unlike the majority of his companions, he indulged in the luxury of a vest.

 

"Yes, I do. It was my job."

 

"I don't see it."

 

"I spoke first."

 

"The gentleman chose me."

 

"You stuck yourself in where you wasn't wanted. Give me the money."

 

"Come and take it," said Tom, unconsciously making the same answer that was once returned by a heroic general to an insolent²⁶ demand for surrender.

 

"I'll do it, then," said Pat, who had been nursing his rage till he was grown reckless of consequences.

 

He threw down his box and sprang at Tom. The latter also quickly rid himself of the incumbrance, and the two were soon wrestling at close quarters. Pat, by his impetuous onset²⁷, came near upsetting his adversary²⁸; but, by an effort, Tom saved himself.

 

Then commenced a determined²⁹ contest. Both boys were unusually strong for their ages, and were, in fact, very evenly matched. But at length Tom, by an adroit³⁰ movement of the foot, tripped his opponent, and came down on top of him. He did not hold him down, for he was fond of fair play, but rose immediately.

 

"You didn't do it; I slipped," said Pat, in anger and mortification³¹, and he instantly threw himself upon Tom again. But our hero kept cool, while Pat was excited, and this placed him at an advantage. So the second contest terminated like the first.

 

Cheers from a crowd of boys greeted this second victory—cheers to which Pat listened with mortification and rage. He was half tempted³² to renew the battle, but a cry from the boys, "A cop! a cop!" warned him of the approach of his natural enemy, the policeman, and he walked sullenly³³ away, breathing threats of future vengeance³⁴, to which Tom paid very little attention.

 

Five minutes later little Mike Flanagan came up, and pulled Tom by the arm.

 

"What's the matter, Mike?" asked Tom, seeing that the little boy looked excited.

 

"Your grandfather's been run over wid a horse," said the little boy, not very intelligibly³⁵.

 

"Run over!" exclaimed Tom. "How can that be, when he was at home on the bed?"

 

"He went out soon after you, and was beggin' on Broadway."

 

"Where is he now?" asked Tom, quickly.

 

"He was took to the hospital," said Mike.

1 disposition   

n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署

参考例句：

• He has made a good disposition of his property.他已对财产作了妥善处理。
• He has a cheerful disposition.他性情开朗。

2 promptly   

adv.及时地，敏捷地

参考例句：

• He paid the money back promptly.他立即还了钱。
• She promptly seized the opportunity his absence gave her.她立即抓住了因他不在场给她创造的机会。

3 intervals   

n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 )；间隔时间；[数学]区间；（戏剧、电影或音乐会的）幕间休息

参考例句：

• The forecast said there would be sunny intervals and showers. 预报间晴，有阵雨。
• Meetings take place at fortnightly intervals. 每两周开一次会。

4 descended   

a.为...后裔的，出身于...的

参考例句：

• A mood of melancholy descended on us. 一种悲伤的情绪袭上我们的心头。
• The path descended the hill in a series of zigzags. 小路呈连续的之字形顺着山坡蜿蜒而下。

5 bent   

n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的

参考例句：

• He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
• We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。

6 hesitation   

n.犹豫，踌躇

参考例句：

• After a long hesitation, he told the truth at last.踌躇了半天，他终于直说了。
• There was a certain hesitation in her manner.她的态度有些犹豫不决。

7 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。

8 jaw   

n.颚，颌，说教，流言蜚语；v.喋喋不休，教训

参考例句：

• He delivered a right hook to his opponent's jaw.他给了对方下巴一记右钩拳。
• A strong square jaw is a sign of firm character.强健的方下巴是刚毅性格的标志。

9 philosophical   

adj.哲学家的，哲学上的，达观的

参考例句：

• The teacher couldn't answer the philosophical problem.老师不能解答这个哲学问题。
• She is very philosophical about her bad luck.她对自己的不幸看得很开。

10 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。

11 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。

12 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

13 plunging   

adj.跳进的，突进的v.颠簸( plunge的现在分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降

参考例句：

• War broke out again, plunging the people into misery and suffering. 战祸复发，生灵涂炭。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• He is plunging into an abyss of despair. 他陷入了绝望的深渊。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 bully   

n.恃强欺弱者，小流氓；vt.威胁，欺侮

参考例句：

• A bully is always a coward.暴汉常是懦夫。
• The boy gave the bully a pelt on the back with a pebble.那男孩用石子掷击小流氓的背脊。

15 interfered   

v.干预( interfere的过去式和过去分词 )；调停；妨碍；干涉

参考例句：

• Complete absorption in sports interfered with his studies. 专注于运动妨碍了他的学业。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I am not going to be interfered with. 我不想别人干扰我的事情。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 contented   

adj.满意的，安心的，知足的

参考例句：

• He won't be contented until he's upset everyone in the office.不把办公室里的每个人弄得心烦意乱他就不会满足。
• The people are making a good living and are contented,each in his station.人民安居乐业。

17 taunted   

嘲讽( taunt的过去式和过去分词 )； 嘲弄； 辱骂； 奚落

参考例句：

• The other kids continually taunted him about his size. 其他孩子不断地耻笑他的个头儿。
• Some of the girls taunted her about her weight. 有些女孩子笑她胖。

18 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。

19 simultaneously   

adv.同时发生地，同时进行地

参考例句：

• The radar beam can track a number of targets almost simultaneously.雷达波几乎可以同时追着多个目标。
• The Windows allow a computer user to execute multiple programs simultaneously.Windows允许计算机用户同时运行多个程序。

20 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。

21 mash   

n.麦芽浆，糊状物，土豆泥；v.把…捣成糊状，挑逗，调情

参考例句：

• He beat the potato into a mash before eating it.他把马铃薯捣烂后再吃。
• Whiskey,originating in Scotland,is distilled from a mash of grains.威士忌源于苏格兰，是从一种大麦芽提纯出来的。

22 intimidated   

v.恐吓；威胁adj.害怕的；受到威胁的

参考例句：

• We try to make sure children don't feel intimidated on their first day at school. 我们努力确保孩子们在上学的第一天不胆怯。
• The thief intimidated the boy into not telling the police. 这个贼恫吓那男孩使他不敢向警察报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》

23 scowl   

vi.(at)生气地皱眉，沉下脸，怒视；n.怒容

参考例句：

• I wonder why he is wearing an angry scowl.我不知道他为何面带怒容。
• The boss manifested his disgust with a scowl.老板面带怒色，清楚表示出他的厌恶之感。

24 betokened   

v.预示，表示( betoken的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Nothing betokened that the man know anything of what had occurred. 显然那个人还不知道已经发生了什么事。 来自互联网
• He addressed a few angry words to her that betokened hostility. 他对她说了几句预示敌意的愤怒的话。 来自互联网

25 mischief   

n.损害，伤害，危害；恶作剧，捣蛋，胡闹

参考例句：

• Nobody took notice of the mischief of the matter. 没有人注意到这件事情所带来的危害。
• He seems to intend mischief.看来他想捣蛋。

26 insolent   

adj.傲慢的，无理的

参考例句：

• His insolent manner really got my blood up.他那傲慢的态度把我的肺都气炸了。
• It was insolent of them to demand special treatment.他们要求给予特殊待遇，脸皮真厚。

27 onset   

n.进攻，袭击，开始，突然开始

参考例句：

• The drug must be taken from the onset of the infection.这种药必须在感染的最初期就开始服用。
• Our troops withstood the onset of the enemy.我们的部队抵挡住了敌人的进攻。

28 adversary   

adj.敌手，对手

参考例句：

• He saw her as his main adversary within the company.他将她视为公司中主要的对手。
• They will do anything to undermine their adversary's reputation.他们会不择手段地去损害对手的名誉。

29 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

30 adroit   

adj.熟练的，灵巧的

参考例句：

• Jamie was adroit at flattering others.杰米很会拍马屁。
• His adroit replies to hecklers won him many followers.他对质问者的机敏应答使他赢得了很多追随者。

31 mortification   

n.耻辱，屈辱

参考例句：

• To my mortification, my manuscript was rejected. 使我感到失面子的是：我的稿件被退了回来。
• The chairman tried to disguise his mortification. 主席试图掩饰自己的窘迫。

32 tempted   

v.怂恿（某人）干不正当的事；冒…的险（tempt的过去分词）

参考例句：

• I was sorely tempted to complain, but I didn't. 我极想发牢骚，但还是没开口。
• I was tempted by the dessert menu. 甜食菜单馋得我垂涎欲滴。

33 sullenly   

不高兴地，绷着脸，忧郁地

参考例句：

• 'so what?" Tom said sullenly. “那又怎么样呢？”汤姆绷着脸说。
• Emptiness after the paper, I sIt'sullenly in front of the stove. 报看完，想不出能找点什么事做，只好一人坐在火炉旁生气。

34 vengeance   

n.报复，报仇，复仇

参考例句：

• He swore vengeance against the men who murdered his father.他发誓要向那些杀害他父亲的人报仇。
• For years he brooded vengeance.多年来他一直在盘算报仇。

35 intelligibly   

adv.可理解地，明了地，清晰地

参考例句：

• The foreigner spoke to us quite intelligibly. 这个外国人对我们讲的话理解很好。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Logically or intelligibly ordered or presented; coherent. 有逻辑或理性地排列或表现的；协调的。 来自互联网