The river, up which the fish went in thousands, was broad, deep, and rapid. Its banks were clothed with spruce-fir and dense3 underwood. There was little of the picturesque4 or the beautiful in the scenery. It was a bleak5 spot and unattractive.
Two of the four men who conducted the fishery were stationed at the mouth of the river. The other two attended to the nets about six miles farther up, at a place where there was a considerable fall terminating in a long, turbulent rapid.
With his wonted promptitude and energy, Jack began to make himself master of his position long before the men were stirring. Before Ladoc, who was superintendent6, had lighted his first pipe and strolled down to the boat to commence the operations of the day, Jack had examined the nets, the salt boxes, the curing-vats7, the fish in pickle8, the casks, and all the other matériel of the fishery, with a critical eye. From what he saw, he was convinced that Ladoc was not the best manager that could be desired, and, remembering that Ladoc was a bully9, he was strengthened in an opinion which he had long entertained, namely, that a bully is never a trustworthy man.
He was in the act of forming this opinion, when Ladoc approached.
“Good morning, Ladoc,” said he; “you rise early.”
“Oui, sair; mais, you gits up more earlier.”
“It doos, monsieur,” said Ladoc, accepting the remark as a compliment to himself; “ve have catch fifteen casks already, and they is in most splendid condition.”
“Hum!” ejaculated Jack, with a doubtful look at a cask which was evidently leaking, “hum! yes, you are getting on pretty well, but—”
Here Jack “hummed” again, and looked pointedly12 at one of the large vats, which was also leaking, and around which there was a great deal of salt that had been scattered13 carelessly on the ground. Raising big eyes to the roof of the low shed in which the salt-boxes stood, he touched with his stick a torn piece of its tarpaulin14 covering, through which rain had found its way in bad weather. He “hummed” again, but said nothing, for he saw that Ladoc was a little disconcerted.
“The next station is—how many miles did you say?”
“Six, monsieur.”
“Ah, six! well, let us go up and see it. You can show me the way.”
“Breakfast be ready ver’ soon,” said Ladoc, “monsieur vill eat first, p’r’aps?”
“No, we will breakfast at the upper station. Ho, Rollo! here, I want you.”
Rollo, who issued from the hut at the moment, with a view to examine the weather and light his pipe, came forward.
“I am going with Ladoc to the upper station,” said Jack; “you will take his place here until we return.”
“Very well, sir,” replied Rollo, fixing his eyes upon Ladoc. At the same moment Ladoc fixed16 his eyes on Rollo. The two men seemed to read each other’s character in a single glance, and then and there hurled17 silent defiance18 in each other’s teeth through their eyes! Ladoc was annoyed at having been silently found fault with and superseded19; Rollo was aggrieved20 at being left behind; both men were therefore enraged—for it is wonderful how small a matter is sufficient to enrage21 a bully—but Jack ordered Ladoc to lead the way, so the rivals, or enemies, parted company with another glance of defiance.
That day, Jack Robinson had a somewhat rough and remarkable22 experience of life.
He began by overhauling23 the nets at the mouth of the river, and these were so prolific25 that the small flat-bottomed boat used by the fishermen was soon half filled with glittering salmon, varying from ten to fifteen pounds in weight. In order to avoid having his mocassins and nether26 garments soiled, Jack, who pulled the sculls, sat with bare feet and tucked-up trousers. In less than an hour he rowed back to the landing-place, literally27 up to the knees in salmon! Among these were a few young seals that had got entangled28 in the nets, while in pursuit of the fish, and been drowned. These last were filled with water to such an extent, that they resembled inflated29 bladders!
“Very good,” replied Jack; turning to Ladoc, “now, my man, are you ready to start for the upper fishery?”
“Eh? ah—oui, monsieur.”
There was a titter amongst the men at the expression of their big comrade’s face, for Ladoc was ravenously31 hungry, and felt inclined to rebel at the idea of being obliged to start on a six-miles’ walk without food; but as his young master was about to do the same he felt that it was beneath his dignity to complain. Besides, there was a something peculiar32 about Jack’s manner that puzzled and overawed the man.
The fact was, that Jack Robinson wanted to know what his bullies33 were made of, and took rather eccentric methods of finding it out. He accordingly set off at his best pace, and pushed Ladoc so hard, that he arrived at the upper fishery in a state of profuse34 perspiration35, with a very red face, and with a disagreeably vacuous36 feeling about the pit of his stomach.
They found the men at the station just landing with a boat-load of fish. They were all clean-run, and shone in the bright sunshine like bars of burnished37 silver.
“Now, Ladoc,” said Jack, “get breakfast ready, while I look over matters here.”
It need not be said that the man obeyed most willingly. His master went to examine into details. Half-an-hour sufficed to make him pretty well acquainted with the state of matters at the station, and, during breakfast, he soon obtained from the men all the knowledge they possessed38 about the fishery, the natives, and the region.
One of the men was a half-caste, a fine-looking, grave, earnest fellow, who spoke39 English pretty well. His name was Marteau.
“The seals and the bears are our worst enemies, sir,” said Marteau, in the course of conversation.
“Indeed! and which of the two are worst?” inquired Jack. “Another slice of pork, Ladoc, your appetite appears to be sharp this morning; thank you, go on, Marteau, you were saying something about the bears and seals.”
“It’s not easy to say which of them is worst, sir. I think the bears is, for the seals eat the bits that they bite out o’ the fish, and so get some good of it; but the bears, they goes to the vats and pulls out the salt fish with their claws, for you see, sir, they can’t resist the smell, but when they tries to eat ’em—ah, you should see the faces they do make! You see, they can’t stand the salt, so they don’t eat much, but they hauls about and tears up an uncommon40 lot of fish.”
“It makes one thirsty to think of it,” said Jack, imitating Ladoc’s example; “now, lads, we’ll go and overhaul24 the nets.”
Just as he spoke, Ladoc sprang from his seat, seized Jack’s gun, which leant against the wall, shouted, “A bear!” and, levelling the piece through the open doorway42, took aim at the bushes in front of the hut.
At the same moment Jack leaped forward, struck up the muzzle43 of the gun just as it exploded, and, seizing Ladoc by the collar, hurled him with extraordinary violence, considering his size, against the wall.
“Make yourself a better hunter,” said he, sternly, “before you presume to lay hands again on my gun. Look there!”
Jack pointed11, as he spoke, in the direction in which the man had fired, where the object that had been mistaken for a bear appeared in the form of a man, crawling out of the bushes on all-fours. He seemed to move unsteadily, as if he were in pain.
Running to his assistance, they found that he was an Indian, and, from the blood that bespattered his dress and hand, it was evident that he had been wounded. He was a pitiable object, in the last stage of exhaustion44. When the party ran towards him, he looked up in their faces with lustreless45 eyes, and then sank fainting on the ground.
“Poor fellow!” said Jack, as they carried him into the hut and placed him on one of the low beds; “he must have met with an accident, for there is no warfare46 in this region among the Indians to account for his being wounded.”
“’Tis a strange accident,” said Marteau, when the man’s clothes were stripped off and the wounds exposed. “An accident sometimes puts one bullet through a man, but seldom puts two!”
“True,” said Jack, “this looks bad, here is a hole clean through the fleshy part of his right arm, and another through his right thigh47. An enemy must have done this.”
On farther examination it was found that the bone of the man’s leg had been smashed by the bullet, which, after passing through to the other side of the limb, was arrested by the skin. It was easily extracted, and the wounds were dressed by Jack, who, to his many useful qualities, added a considerable knowledge of medicine and surgery.
When the Indian recovered sufficiently48 to give an account of himself to Marteau, who understood his language perfectly49, he told him, to the surprise of all, that his double wound was indeed the result of an accident, and, moreover, that he had done the deed with his own hand. Doubtless it will puzzle the reader to imagine how a man could so twist himself, that with an unusually long gun he could send a bullet at one shot through his right arm and right thigh. It puzzled Jack and his men so much, that they were half inclined to think the Indian was not telling the truth, until he explained that about a mile above the hut, while walking through the bushes, he tripped and fell. He was carrying the gun over his shoulder in the customary Indian fashion, that is, by the muzzle, with the stock behind him. He fell on his hands and knees; the gun was thrown forward and struck against a tree so violently, that it exploded; in its flight it had turned completely round, so that, at the moment of discharge, the barrel was in a line with the man’s arm and leg, and thus the extraordinary wound was inflicted50.
To crawl from the spot where the accident occurred took the poor fellow nearly twelve hours, and he performed this trying journey during the night and morning over a rugged51 country and without food.
The surgical52 operation engaged Jack’s attention the greater part of the forenoon. When it was completed and the Indian made as comfortable as possible, he went out with the men to visit the nets which were set at the rapids about two miles higher up the river.
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1
salmon
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| n.鲑，大马哈鱼，橙红色的 | |
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jack
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| n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克 | |
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dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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picturesque
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| adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的 | |
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bleak
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| adj.(天气)阴冷的；凄凉的；暗淡的 | |
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6
superintendent
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| n.监督人，主管，总监；(英国)警务长 | |
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7
vats
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| varieties 变化，多样性，种类 | |
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8
pickle
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| n.腌汁，泡菜；v.腌，泡 | |
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bully
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| n.恃强欺弱者，小流氓；vt.威胁，欺侮 | |
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prospers
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| v.成功，兴旺( prosper的第三人称单数 ) | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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pointedly
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| adv.尖地，明显地 | |
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13
scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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14
tarpaulin
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| n.涂油防水布，防水衣，防水帽 | |
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bland
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| adj.淡而无味的，温和的，无刺激性的 | |
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16
fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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17
hurled
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| v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂 | |
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18
defiance
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| n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗 | |
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19
superseded
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| [医]被代替的，废弃的 | |
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aggrieved
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| adj.愤愤不平的，受委屈的；悲痛的；（在合法权利方面）受侵害的v.令委屈，令苦恼，侵害( aggrieve的过去式)；令委屈，令苦恼，侵害( aggrieve的过去式和过去分词) | |
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enrage
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| v.触怒，激怒 | |
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remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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23
overhauling
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| n.大修；拆修；卸修；翻修v.彻底检查( overhaul的现在分词 )；大修；赶上；超越 | |
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overhaul
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| v./n.大修，仔细检查 | |
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prolific
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| adj.丰富的，大量的；多产的，富有创造力的 | |
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nether
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| adj.下部的，下面的；n.阴间；下层社会 | |
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literally
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| adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实 | |
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28
entangled
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| adj.卷入的；陷入的；被缠住的；缠在一起的v.使某人（某物/自己）缠绕，纠缠于（某物中），使某人（自己）陷入（困难或复杂的环境中）( entangle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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29
inflated
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| adj.（价格）飞涨的；（通货）膨胀的；言过其实的；充了气的v.使充气（于轮胎、气球等）( inflate的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）膨胀；（使）通货膨胀；物价上涨 | |
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30
ashore
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| adv.在(向)岸上，上岸 | |
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ravenously
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| adv.大嚼地，饥饿地 | |
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32
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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bullies
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| n.欺凌弱小者, 开球 vt.恐吓, 威胁, 欺负 | |
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profuse
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| adj.很多的，大量的，极其丰富的 | |
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perspiration
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| n.汗水；出汗 | |
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36
vacuous
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| adj.空的，漫散的，无聊的，愚蠢的 | |
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37
burnished
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| adj.抛光的，光亮的v.擦亮（金属等），磨光( burnish的过去式和过去分词 )；被擦亮，磨光 | |
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38
possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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39
spoke
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| 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 | |
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40
uncommon
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| adj.罕见的，非凡的，不平常的 | |
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41
draught
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| n.拉，牵引，拖；一网（饮，吸，阵)；顿服药量，通风；v.起草，设计 | |
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42
doorway
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| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
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43
muzzle
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| n.鼻口部；口套；枪(炮)口；vt.使缄默 | |
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44
exhaustion
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| n.耗尽枯竭，疲惫，筋疲力尽，竭尽，详尽无遗的论述 | |
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45
lustreless
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| adj.无光泽的，无光彩的，平淡乏味的 | |
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46
warfare
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| n.战争(状态)；斗争；冲突 | |
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47
thigh
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| n.大腿；股骨 | |
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48
sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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49
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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50
inflicted
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| 把…强加给，使承受，遭受( inflict的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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51
rugged
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| adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的 | |
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52
surgical
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| adj.外科的，外科医生的，手术上的 | |
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