The morn of the eventful day dawned at last, and, early as it was when Doctor Wittingham had to start for the railway station, there was already approaching his wood-pile fat Billy Barker, who was so treacherous14 a sleeper15 that he had remained awake all night so as to be on hand in time in the morning. Then one of the loafers, whose family owned no timepiece, lounged up, and made Billy very uncomfortable with prophecies that a certain boy would hardly escape melting on such a warm day as that particular Saturday promised to be, and that only a pair of leg boots could be trusted to save enough of the remains16 to justify17 a full sized funeral. Then one of the country boys appeared, riding bareback upon an ancient mare18, and his extreme taciturnity became as annoying to Billy as the chaffing of the loafer had been, while the loafer himself visibly abated19 his arrogance20 by a degree or two. Then the Pinkshaw twins approached, each with an axe1 in one hand and a piece of bread and butter in the other. Matt Bolton came next, quite out of breath, for though he had half an hour to spare, a sense of his official responsibility had somehow impelled21 him to run every step of the way from his own home. Lame22 Joey Wilson staggered in soon after, with his heavy "saw horse" and saw, and close behind him came a country boy whose family had brought him as far as the main street in the farm wagon23. Then two loafers, successful catchers of occasional saw logs and drift wood, lounged up from the river. Several boys from the neighborhood known as the other side of town, approached in a body, led by big Frank Parker, who was the largest boy in school and who it was always considered a privilege to follow. Then as the hour for business came nearer, boys approached from all directions so rapidly that they could scarcely be catalogued, and when Matt drew his sister's watch from his pocket for the twentieth time and announced that it was ten minutes of eight, there were present forty-three boys, five horses (belonging to the delegation24 from the country), besides three unemployed25 men who had come to look on. The stalwart appearance of some of the larger contestants26 terrified certain small, weak and lazy boys into determining to throw up the sponge in advance, but when the challenger, the boastful Jack himself, sauntered out from the house with an axe on his shoulder, a toothpick in his mouth and an intolerable air of self-sufficiency in his face, the nerves of the most timid boy grew suddenly as fine as steel, and he determined27 to drop dead on his axe rather than let that bragging28 Jack crow over him any longer.
Suddenly Matt mounted the wood-pile, consulted his sister's watch, and exclaimed—
"Only five minutes more. Now, fellows, this is to be a fair fight, you know. Every man picks his own place, carries wood to it from the pile, cuts each stick into three equal lengths, and throws in front of him whatever he chops. If at twelve o'clock there's any doubt who has done most, the biggest piles are to be laid up straight against a stake, and carefully measured. Nobody need split his wood. When it's time to begin, I'll holloa 'One, two, three—go!' and when twelve o'clock comes I'll say 'One, two, three—stop!' I'll have a pail of water and a cup here by the fence, for anyone who wants a drink."
The boys were already carrying the four foot sticks of wood to their chosen locations, and between the confusion of selecting desirable places and that occasioned by snatching from a wood-pile which did not afford elbow-room for forty-three boys at a time, there was considerable bad feeling engendered29, and sundry punishments with impolite names were promised for the indefinite future. The country boys had judiciously30 hugged the ends of the wood-pile from the moment of their arrival, which prospective31 advantage certain other boys attempted to nullify by taking wood from the ends, and there might have ensued a serious collision had not Matt, who had moved the judge's stand from the wood-pile to the fence, shouted,
"Eight o'clock. One, two, three—go!"
Thirty-nine axes came down nearly as one, and four saws began a not discordant32 quartette across the bark of sundry sticks, while the three unemployed men thrust their hands deep into their pockets and adjured33 the boys, collectively, to "go in." A chip from fat Billy Barker's axe started to avenge34 Billy upon his tormentor35 of an hour before, and it struck the loafer in the back of the neck with such force that the bad boy howled with anguish36, and volubly condemned37 his soul to all sorts of uncomfortable places and conditions. The axes soon broke the uniformity of their stroke; some flew at the rate of nearly a blow a second, others, particularly those of the country boys, were slow, but oh, so regular! Still others, confined almost exclusively to the loafers, struck the wood rapidly and with a particularly vicious hardness which was not without its influence upon boys of small spirit. The peculiar38 ringing of an occasional "glance" was heard, and soon a yell from Scoopy Brown, who was a very awkward boy, called general attention to that youth, who was sitting upon the ground holding one of his feet and weeping bitterly. A careful examination determined that his axe had not gone deeper than the stocking, so Scoopy dried his tears and began work again, his spirits sharpened by many uncomplimentary remarks by the loafers and others who had lost time by stopping work to look at him.
Within a quarter of an hour fat Billy Barker had visited the water-pail three times; a quarter of an hour later he was curled up with agony beside the fence, his only consolation39 consisting in making dreadful faces at the big loafer who had proved a tolerable prophet. At the same time two other boys, one of whom had broken an arm within three months, and the other being so small that he realized the folly40 of contending against many large boys, retired41 from the contest, and took place among the spectators, who already consisted of seven men, one woman (with baby) and two dogs. Then one of the loafers declared that although he could beat as easily as falling off a log, fifty cents wouldn't pay for half a day of work under such a sun. Of the spare forty who remained, nearly half were of apoplectic42 hue43, so that Matt the umpire, consulting his sister's watch, felt in duty bound to inform them that barely half an hour had elapsed, and that they would never get through the morning unless they took things easier.
As for Jack, he did splendidly. With great sagacity he had selected the largest sticks, these requiring less handling, and fewer delays between an old stick and a new one, besides making a heap look more bulky. His axe was in capital condition, as his physique always was, his nerve was equally good, and he had the additional incentive44 of wanting to keep up the general interest, which would be sure to flag if he were discovered to be falling behind. The country boys led him a close race, and compelled him to do his best, as did also two of the loafers. At the end of the first hour, Matt the umpire, who had attended closely to his sister's watch for the ten minutes preceding, shouted "Nine o'clock," and most of the country boys stopped for a brief rest. Jack was glad to follow their example, and at the same time one of the loafers took a flask45 bottle from his pocket and swallowed considerable whiskey. A request, proffered46 by another loafer, that the bottle be passed was met by a reply similar in tenor47 to that given by the five wise virgins48 to their foolish companions, and the apparent meanness of this proceeding49 made even the weariest boy determine to at least beat that particular loafer.
Half-past nine came, and with it a loud snap which proved to proceed from the saw block of lame Joey Wilson. As Joey was a very pleasant little fellow, with a widowed mother whose lot in life was not the easiest, another boy, who had a saw, pressed it upon Joey, and thus honorably retired from a contest which had kept his back aching frightfully for nearly an hour. Then two or three other boys honestly acknowledged themselves completely used up, and they retired to such shade as the fence afforded and constituted themselves an invalid50 corps51 of observation. The loafer who had drank the whiskey dropped suddenly, muttered something about sunstroke, and crawled away unlamented by any one.
At the cry of "Ten o'clock!" the working force had dwindled52 to twenty-seven axes and two saws. Two boys had been legitimately53 summoned from the field by their legal guardians54, and at least half a dozen others longed earnestly for a similar fate. Jack began to be doubtful of the entire success of his scheme, but the country boys all stuck manfully to business, and at least one of them was beginning to show signs of becoming excited. The remaining loafers, too, hung on very well, and so did a spare half dozen of other boys, mostly large. The crowd was still large and industrious55 enough to astonish several farmers who drove into town, and the road became literally56 paved with chips. The invalid corps increased at about the rate of four men an hour between ten and eleven, but by this time Jack's mind was easy, for the only danger was that there would not be wood enough left with which the fittest who survived could complete the half day. Nearly all the loafers broke down, as loafers always do during the decisive hour, and the strife57 narrowed down to the country boys, one loafer, big Frank Parker, lame Joey Wilson and Jack. Each boy had his special adherents58; the loafers cheered their own representative with much outlandish language, most of the men encouraged the country boys, the delegation from the other side of town urged big Frank Parker to "lay himself out," to "come down lively," to "sling59 himself," and to do many other things which to the youthful mind seem best signified by idioms of great peculiarity60, but the mass of sympathy was pretty equally divided between Jack and lame Joey Wilson. Eligible61 sticks of wood began to be sought at the piles of those who had abandoned the contest, and Matt the umpire had to exert the extreme measure of his authority to prevent the partizans of the two favorites from rushing in and carrying wood for them. The breaking of the axe-helve of one of the country boys elicited62 a tremendous roar from the entire assemblage, which was now upon its feet. The lame Joey Wilson faction63 began to sing the chorus "Go in lemons, if you do get squeezed," which was known to be Joey's favorite air and the song stimulated64 Joey wonderfully, noting which fact the adherents of Jack started "John Brown's body lies mouldering65 in the grave," which Jack was known to consider the finest thing ever written. But somehow the tune66 did not stimulate Jack as it was expected to do; perhaps the words with which the air is indissolubly associated had a depressing effect upon him, besides, the two songs were roared with about equal volume of sound, and as they are written in different keys, measures, and time, the general effect was horribly discordant and annoying to a tired man.
At half past eleven the remaining sticks, like angels' visits, became far between, and finally dwindled to one, over which two of the country boys fought, dropping it in their struggle, to be triumphantly67 snatched and sawed by lame Joey Wilson. Then Matt, the umpire, first ascertaining68 from his sister's watch that it was not yet twelve o'clock, announced that any man might take a stick from any other man who had uncut sticks before him. At thirteen minutes of twelve, five of the six country boys were upon their last sticks and the other had a single stick yet uncut before him, which seemed to lie between Jack and lame Joey Wilson. Jack's axe glanced several times and Joey got the stick, and at precisely69 ten minutes before twelve Joey had the last stick reposing70 in three pieces upon his pile. The whole crowd rushed in, but Matt shouted—
"Everybody get back—quick—get back! every man piles his own wood!"
Some little delay occasioned by the difficulty of getting stakes against which to stake the piles which seemed largest, was ended by an order to pile against the fence. It was generally admitted, by every one but the country boys, that the decision must be between Jack and Joey, and as Jack was quick upon his feet and Joey, an account of his lame leg, was slow, the former was allowed to assist the latter, but no one noticed that Jack took considerable wood from the piles of the boys who had been unsuccessful with the saw; the result was that Joey's pile was so much the larger that no one insisted upon a measurement, and Matt handed the half dollar to lame Joey Wilson without a protest from any one, though the shouts that went up formed a conglomerate71 sound which was truly appalling72 to any adult ear which it reached.
Then the boys separated and started homeward with their respective axes, saws, and saw-horses. Dr. Wittingham met several of them, as he returned at an earlier hour than Jack had expected from his consultation73. What to make of the unusual number of business looking boys he did not know, but as he went around to the wood-pile to see how his son had begun his self-imposed penalty, the truth dawned upon him, and he exclaimed:
"I've used every evening this week upon that chapter of heredity, and now it isn't worth the paper it's written on!"
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1
axe
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| n.斧子；v.用斧头砍，削减 | |
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truancy
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| n.逃学，旷课 | |
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juvenile
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| n.青少年，少年读物；adj.青少年的，幼稚的 | |
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unprecedented
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| adj.无前例的，新奇的 | |
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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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conceit
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| n.自负，自高自大 | |
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hearty
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| adj.热情友好的；衷心的；尽情的，纵情的 | |
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8
melodious
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| adj.旋律美妙的，调子优美的，音乐性的 | |
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9
stimulate
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| vt.刺激，使兴奋；激励，使…振奋 | |
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appreciation
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| n.评价；欣赏；感谢；领会，理解；价格上涨 | |
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11
sundry
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| adj.各式各样的，种种的 | |
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12
puff
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| n.一口(气)；一阵(风)；v.喷气，喘气 | |
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demon
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| n.魔鬼，恶魔 | |
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treacherous
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| adj.不可靠的，有暗藏的危险的；adj.背叛的，背信弃义的 | |
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sleeper
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| n.睡眠者，卧车，卧铺 | |
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16
remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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justify
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| vt.证明…正当(或有理)，为…辩护 | |
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mare
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| n.母马，母驴 | |
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abated
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| 减少( abate的过去式和过去分词 )； 减去； 降价； 撤消（诉讼） | |
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arrogance
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| n.傲慢，自大 | |
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impelled
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| v.推动、推进或敦促某人做某事( impel的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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lame
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| adj.跛的，(辩解、论据等)无说服力的 | |
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wagon
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| n.四轮马车，手推车，面包车；无盖运货列车 | |
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delegation
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| n.代表团；派遣 | |
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unemployed
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| adj.失业的，没有工作的；未动用的，闲置的 | |
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contestants
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| n.竞争者，参赛者( contestant的名词复数 ) | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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bragging
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| v.自夸，吹嘘( brag的现在分词 )；大话 | |
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29
engendered
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| v.产生（某形势或状况），造成，引起( engender的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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30
judiciously
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| adv.明断地，明智而审慎地 | |
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prospective
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| adj.预期的，未来的，前瞻性的 | |
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discordant
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| adj.不调和的 | |
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adjured
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| v.（以起誓或诅咒等形式）命令要求( adjure的过去式和过去分词 )；祈求；恳求 | |
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avenge
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| v.为...复仇，为...报仇 | |
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tormentor
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| n. 使苦痛之人, 使苦恼之物, 侧幕 =tormenter | |
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36
anguish
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| n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦，烦恼 | |
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condemned
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| adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词 | |
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peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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consolation
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| n.安慰，慰问 | |
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40
folly
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| n.愚笨，愚蠢，蠢事，蠢行，傻话 | |
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retired
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| adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的 | |
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42
apoplectic
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| adj.中风的；愤怒的；n.中风患者 | |
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43
hue
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| n.色度；色调；样子 | |
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incentive
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| n.刺激；动力；鼓励；诱因；动机 | |
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45
flask
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| n.瓶，火药筒，砂箱 | |
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46
proffered
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| v.提供，贡献，提出( proffer的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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tenor
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| n.男高音（歌手），次中音（乐器），要旨，大意 | |
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48
virgins
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| 处女，童男( virgin的名词复数 )； 童贞玛利亚（耶稣之母） | |
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proceeding
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| n.行动，进行，(pl.)会议录，学报 | |
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50
invalid
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| n.病人，伤残人；adj.有病的，伤残的；无效的 | |
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51
corps
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| n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组 | |
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52
dwindled
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| v.逐渐变少或变小( dwindle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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53
legitimately
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| ad.合法地；正当地，合理地 | |
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54
guardians
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| 监护人( guardian的名词复数 )； 保护者，维护者 | |
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55
industrious
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| adj.勤劳的，刻苦的，奋发的 | |
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literally
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| adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实 | |
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strife
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| n.争吵，冲突，倾轧，竞争 | |
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adherents
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| n.支持者，拥护者( adherent的名词复数 )；党羽；徒子徒孙 | |
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sling
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| vt.扔；悬挂；n.挂带；吊索，吊兜；弹弓 | |
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peculiarity
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| n.独特性，特色；特殊的东西；怪癖 | |
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eligible
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| adj.有条件被选中的；(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的 | |
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elicited
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| 引出，探出( elicit的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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faction
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| n.宗派，小集团；派别；派系斗争 | |
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stimulated
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| a.刺激的 | |
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mouldering
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| v.腐朽( moulder的现在分词 )；腐烂，崩塌 | |
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66
tune
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| n.调子；和谐，协调；v.调音，调节，调整 | |
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67
triumphantly
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| ad.得意洋洋地；得胜地；成功地 | |
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ascertaining
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| v.弄清，确定，查明( ascertain的现在分词 ) | |
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precisely
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| adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地 | |
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70
reposing
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| v.将（手臂等）靠在某人（某物）上( repose的现在分词 ) | |
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71
conglomerate
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| n.综合商社，多元化集团公司 | |
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72
appalling
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| adj.骇人听闻的，令人震惊的，可怕的 | |
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consultation
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| n.咨询；商量；商议；会议 | |
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