CHAPTER XXXIV A TERRIBLE ORDEAL

 At the summit of the hill Walter's captors came to a halt.

“Young man,” said the leader sternly, “your hours are numbered. Have you anything to say?”

“I have a good deal to say,” answered Walter, finding his voice and speaking indignantly. “Even if I were guilty, which I am not, you have no right to condemn¹ me to death untried.”

One of the masked men, who had hitherto stood in the background, came forward, and in clear, ringing accents spoke²:

“The lad says right. He has not been proved guilty, and I for one believe him innocent.”

“I thank God,” said Walter, “that there is one among you whose heart is not wholly hardened. I stand here a boy—barely eighteen years old. Is there no one among you who has a son of my age?”

“The boy is right,” said another in a deep voice. “Men, we are acting³ like cowards and brutes⁴.”

“So say I!” a third man broke in, and he ranged himself beside the other two.

“This is all folly⁵!” exclaimed the leader angrily. “You men are milksops and chicken-hearted.” Walter's face flamed.

“Will you allow this?” he exclaimed, as the leader seized him by the collar and drew him to a tree.

“I won't!” said the first man to pronounce in his favor. “Seth Pendleton, let go your hold!”

“Look out!” cried Pendleton fiercely, “or you may swing, too!”

“You hear what he says,” said Walter's friend. “Why are you so hard on the boy?”

“Why am I so hard on horse thieves? I'll tell you. Ten years ago I had a horse that was as dear to me as a brother. One morning I found the stable door open and the horse gone. I followed him, but I never recovered him.”

“Who stole him?”

“A man named Dick Ranney, who has since become a noted⁶ highwayman.”

This was astonishing news to Walter.

“Do you know where Dick Ranney is now?” he asked.

“I heard that he had been captured.”

“I am the one who captured him, and for this I received a reward of a thousand dollars!” answered Walter.

1 condemn   

vt.谴责，指责；宣判(罪犯)，判刑

参考例句：

• Some praise him,whereas others condemn him.有些人赞扬他，而有些人谴责他。
• We mustn't condemn him on mere suppositions.我们不可全凭臆测来指责他。

2 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。

3 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

4 brutes   

兽( brute的名词复数 )； 畜生； 残酷无情的人； 兽性

参考例句：

• They're not like dogs; they're hideous brutes. 它们不像狗，是丑陋的畜牲。
• Suddenly the foul musty odour of the brutes struck his nostrils. 突然，他的鼻尖闻到了老鼠的霉臭味。 来自英汉文学

5 folly   

n.愚笨，愚蠢，蠢事，蠢行，傻话

参考例句：

• Learn wisdom by the folly of others.从别人的愚蠢行动中学到智慧。
• Events proved the folly of such calculations.事情的进展证明了这种估计是愚蠢的。

6 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。