Chapter XXXVI — A Surprising Discovery

 "I suppose I have done all I can," said Ben to himself. "There will be no object in remaining in Montreal any longer."

 

He immediately purchased a ticket, and took the next train homeward. He arrived in Boston at mid-day.

 

He went at once to the store, and was cordially welcomed by the bookkeeper.

 

"I am glad to see you, Ben," said the young man. "My uncle is well pleased with the orders you have sent home."

 

"Then he is satisfied with me?"

 

"I leave him to tell you that. You can go at once into the countingroom."

 

Ben reported himself as directed.

 

"Welcome back, Ben," said the old gentleman. "Have you just arrived?"

 

"I reached the station twenty minuets ago, sir."

 

"And came directly to the store; I like that. How do you like drumming?"

 

"It requires patience, sir; but I like it. I hope you are satisfied with me."

 

"You have exceeded my anticipations¹. To be candid² with you, I doubted the expedience³ of sending so young a representative."

 

"I know that, sir, and it made me work harder."

 

"I should have no hesitation⁴ in sending you again. In fact, I shall probably send you next month to New York and Philadelphia."

 

"I should like that very much, sir," said Ben, his eyes sparkling. "I shall try to satisfy you."

 

"I think you will," said his employer kindly⁵. "I never doubted your fidelity⁶. Now I feel assured of your capacity and tact⁷. Have you any orders not yet reported?"

 

"Two or three small ones, sir."

 

"Give them to me."

 

This done, Mr. Porter dismissed Ben for the day. "You need not report for work till to-morrow morning."

 

Ben was glad to go to his boarding-house. On arriving there he received another cordial greeting, this time from Mr. Benton. The old gentleman seemed really delighted to see him, and eager to learn what he had accomplished⁸. Ben began to speak of the orders he had received; but Mr. Benton interrupted him.

 

"I don't mean that," he said. "I want to hear about your own affairs. Did you see Mr. Brief the lawyer?"

 

"Yes, sir."

 

"How did you like him?"

 

"Not at all, at first, but better before we parted."

 

"How was that?" asked Mr. Benton, showing some curiosity.

 

At first he insisted strongly on the claim the estate has against my aunt; but after awhile he said he should not press the matter at present, and recommended us to look for Uncle Matthew's letter.

 

"You have searched for it, have you not?" asked Mr. Benton.

 

"Yes, sir; but so far without success. Still I haven't given up all hope of finding it. My motto is, 'Wait and Hope.'"

 

"I think it will all come out right," said the old man. "Did you see John Tremlett?"

 

"Yes, sir."

 

"Tell me about him," said the old man eagerly. "Ho does he look?"

 

"He looks like a fast young man," answered Ben. "I did not like him at all."

 

"Do you think he is spending money fast?"

 

"I know he is. How much money do you think he has drawn⁹ in a month?"

 

"Two hundred dollars?" suggested Mr. Benton.

 

"He had drawn eight hundred and spent it all, for he came into the office to ask for more."

 

"The young scoundrel!" exclaimed Marcus Benton, with an excitement which Ben could not understand. "Why he is making ducks and drakes of my old friend's fortune."

 

"Did you know Uncle Matthew?" asked Ben quickly.

 

"Yes," answered the old man. "I told you so, didn't I?"

 

"No, sir, you never told me that. Do you know John Tremlett?"

 

"Yes, I have seen him. He was a sober, steady young man apparently¹⁰, who ingratiated himself with Mr. Baldwin, whom he deceived as to his real character."

 

"What relation was he to Uncle Matthew?"

 

"Very distant, but he seemed near, having been in his employ for several years. He collected rents and attended to other necessary matters."

 

"If he was ever sober and steady, he has changed a good deal."

 

"Did Mr. Brief give him the money he asked for?"

 

"Not all he wanted. He gave him one hundred dollars, and reminded him that he was only at liberty to pay over to him the income of the estate—that is, for the first twelve months."

 

"Quite right!" murmured Mr. Benton.

 

"He lectured him upon his extravagance and fast life, and warned him that he must check himself."

 

"He did right."

 

"What I dislike most about this John Tremlett was the way in which he spoke¹¹ of Uncle Matthew," said Ben.

 

"How did he speak of him?" demanded Marcus Benton quickly.

 

"As a tight-fisted old curmudgeon¹²."

 

"He did—the young viper¹³!" exclaimed the old man indignantly. "Spoke so of the man who left him his fortune!"

 

"Yes, sir. I couldn't help telling him I thought it not very becoming to speak in that way of his benefactor¹⁴; and he told me to mind my own business."

 

"I wouldn't have believed John Tremlett would act so," said Mr. Benton slowly; "I trusted him so, and always treated him kindly."

 

"You trusted him!" repeated Ben, astonished.

 

"My boy," said Mr. Benton, "the time has come for me to throw off the mask. I am not Marcus Benton, as you suppose. I am Matthew Baldwin."

 

"But I thought Mr. Baldwin was dead—committed suicide," exclaimed Ben, in wild amazement¹⁵.

 

"The world thinks so; but the world is mistaken. I will tell you the whole story. I found myself getting old. In all probability I had but a few years to live. By industry and economy I had accumulated a fortune, which I must leave behind me. I was anxious that it should not be squandered¹⁶. I selected John Tremlett as my heir. So far as I knew he was devoted¹⁷ to my interests, and he seemed steady in his habits. But it occurred to me to try him. Accordingly I sent a letter to my lawyer, Solomon Brief, who had my will in his possession, announcing my intention to commit suicide, and directing him to open the will and carry out the provisions. Then I left Montreal secretly, staying a short time in northern Vermont. Later I came on to Boston and managed to throw myself in your way. Not knowing me, you treated me with kindness and consideration. I became interested in you, and regretted that I had made no provision for you and your aunt. Through you I have learned how unwisely I disposed of my fortune. Thank Heaven it is not too late to remedy that.

 

"This seems like a romance, Mr. Benton—I mean, Uncle Matthew."

 

"Yes; call me uncle. I like to feel that I have somebody to live for."

 

"Come out to Milltown with me, Uncle Matthew. Aunt Jane will be delighted to see you," said Ben.

 

"I have work to do first," said the old man firmly. "I must go to Montreal, and you must go with me."

 

"I am not sure that Jones & Porter will allow me."

 

"Then throw up your situation. You shall lose nothing by it."

 

"When do you wish to start?"

 

"To-night," said Mr. Baldwin resolutely¹⁸.

 

"Then I must go to the store, at once, and give notice of my absence."

 

Ben lost no time in going to the store. He explained matters fully¹⁹, and obtained a week's leave of absence. Then he bought tickets for his uncle and himself, and they set out on their long journey.

1 anticipations   

预期( anticipation的名词复数 )； 预测； （信托财产收益的）预支； 预期的事物

参考例句：

• The thought took a deal of the spirit out of his anticipations. 想到这，他的劲头消了不少。
• All such bright anticipations were cruelly dashed that night. 所有这些美好的期望全在那天夜晚被无情地粉碎了。

2 candid   

adj.公正的，正直的；坦率的

参考例句：

• I cannot but hope the candid reader will give some allowance for it.我只有希望公正的读者多少包涵一些。
• He is quite candid with his friends.他对朋友相当坦诚。

3 expedience   

n.方便，私利，权宜

参考例句：

• This system has universality, expedience to use, and expansibility in practice. 该系统在使用中具有广泛性、高效性、使用方便性和可扩展性。 来自互联网
• Moral convictions must out-weigh expedience and buck passing. 道德的信念必须重于权宜之计和逃避责任。 来自互联网

4 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。

5 kindly   

adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地

参考例句：

• Her neighbours spoke of her as kindly and hospitable.她的邻居都说她和蔼可亲、热情好客。
• A shadow passed over the kindly face of the old woman.一道阴影掠过老太太慈祥的面孔。

6 fidelity   

n.忠诚，忠实；精确

参考例句：

• There is nothing like a dog's fidelity.没有什么能比得上狗的忠诚。
• His fidelity and industry brought him speedy promotion.他的尽职及勤奋使他很快地得到晋升。

7 tact   

n.机敏，圆滑，得体

参考例句：

• She showed great tact in dealing with a tricky situation.她处理棘手的局面表现得十分老练。
• Tact is a valuable commodity.圆滑老练是很有用处的。

8 accomplished   

adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的

参考例句：

• Thanks to your help,we accomplished the task ahead of schedule.亏得你们帮忙,我们才提前完成了任务。
• Removal of excess heat is accomplished by means of a radiator.通过散热器完成多余热量的排出。

9 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

10 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

11 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。

12 curmudgeon   

n. 脾气暴躁之人，守财奴，吝啬鬼

参考例句：

• The old curmudgeon found a new scapegoat and that let me out.那个老守财奴找到一个新的替罪羊，这样我就脱身了。
• The old curmudgeon was talking about the smothering effects of parental duty on creative lives.那些坏脾气的老人们喋喋不休于父母生儿育女之责任的妨碍性效应。

13 viper   

n.毒蛇；危险的人

参考例句：

• Envy lucks at the bottom of the human heart a viper in its hole.嫉妒潜伏在人心底，如同毒蛇潜伏在穴中。
• Be careful of that viper;he is dangerous.小心那个阴险的人，他很危险。

14 benefactor   

n. 恩人，行善的人，捐助人

参考例句：

• The chieftain of that country is disguised as a benefactor this time. 那个国家的首领这一次伪装出一副施恩者的姿态。
• The first thing I did, was to recompense my original benefactor, my good old captain. 我所做的第一件事, 就是报答我那最初的恩人, 那位好心的老船长。

15 amazement   

n.惊奇，惊讶

参考例句：

• All those around him looked at him with amazement.周围的人都对他投射出惊异的眼光。
• He looked at me in blank amazement.他带着迷茫惊诧的神情望着我。

16 squandered   

v.（指钱，财产等）浪费，乱花( squander的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He squandered all his money on gambling. 他把自己所有的钱都糟蹋在赌博上了。
• She felt as indignant as if her own money had been squandered. 她心里十分生气，好像是她自己的钱给浪费掉了似的。 来自飘（部分）

17 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

18 resolutely   

adj.坚决地，果断地

参考例句：

• He resolutely adhered to what he had said at the meeting. 他坚持他在会上所说的话。
• He grumbles at his lot instead of resolutely facing his difficulties. 他不是果敢地去面对困难，而是抱怨自己运气不佳。

19 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。