In spite of love, however, the boy felt somewhat as a discharged criminal is supposed to feel. He did not know where to go, or what to do. The prohibition8 of the society of other boys had been strengthened by new and stringent9 clauses. Jack could not very well seek out girls to play with, unless he chose to run the risk of being laughed at, and being suspected of fickleness10 by nice little Mattie Barker. His recent conversations with his mother had not been of a variety of which he wanted more, his father was pleasant enough of speech—when not pre-occupied—but he would persist in affixing11 a moral or a warning to every sentence he spoke12, and though Jack felt sure that no person living had a higher regard for moral applications than himself, he did not care to have them in everything. His father liked butter, as was proper enough, but did he mix it with everything he put in his mouth—cake, coffee, fruit, etc.? Jack rather thought not.
Perhaps the doctor had never heard of the pope's bull against the comet and its impotence, or he might have evolved a moral application for his own use, in the matter of prohibiting Jack from associating with other boys. No matter how earnestly the world, in the time of the pope alluded13 to, expressed its objections to associating with comets, the comet came right along as straight as a due deference14 to solar control would allow. And the order of seclusion15 imposed upon Jack did not make him any the less yearned16 after by his late playmates. It began to be noticed, by boys of observing habits, that the youth of Doveton were falling into ruts, and showing no inclination17 to depart from them; that there was nothing particular to do; that the procession of games, each according to its season, was lapsing18 into irregularity; that nobody got up anything new, and the only plausible19 reason seemed to be the absence of Jack. In a general convention of boys it was agreed, with but two dissenting20 voices—those of the jugged loafer and the buttonless Pinkshaw twin—that what society needed was to have Jack resume his place in it, and the two dissenters21 were informed that if they didn't make the vote unanimous they would find it advisable to move to the next town.
Then it was informally resolved that Jack's father was an old hog22, and a protest from lame23 Joey Wilson, who declared that during his own illness, which had made him lame, the doctor had been just lovely to him, only made it more inexcusable that the doctor should not be better to Jack. To such a pitch of indignation did the feeling against the doctor arise, that after the nine o'clock evening bell broke up the convention, the braver and more close-tongued boys expressed their disapprobation of the doctor's course by building a rail fence, some forty lengths long, around the doctor's front gate, carrying the rails from a pasture a square away. To remove this fence, and replace the rails in their rightful positions, required all of Jack's time during the following week, noting which fact the boys doubted whether their operation against the doctor had been a positive success, while Jack himself perceived, as he perspired24, that even sympathy has its penalties.
But he adhered manfully to his good resolutions. As the time for the next Puttytop demonstration25 approached, he determined26 that he would leave all his delightful27 devices to the friend who suggested them to him, while to Matt, who one day sneaked28 to the fence and asked when that new torpedo29 blower could be had, Jack tragically30 exclaimed, "Get thee behind me, Satan." To be sure, he said it before he had taken time to ponder upon the advisability of saying it, and the instant it escaped his lips he wished he had only thought it instead of uttering it; but none of this reconsideration had any effect upon Matt, for on receipt of the unexpected reply, he had bestowed31 just one frightened look upon Jack and then taken to his heels, and remained invisible to Jack through all subsequent days until he received an apologetic note, after which confidence was restored by supplementary32 proceedings33 at the front gate.
The great Puttytop demonstration was effected without disturbance34, but there were some signs of despondency manifested by those interested in the local ticket, which Puttytop helped and was helped by, for the Germans, incensed35 by the treatment which Nuderkopf Trinkelspiel had received, made their grievance36 an affair of nationality, and went over bodily to the Baggs faction37. As the few last days of the campaign approached, Jack's patriotic38 spirit began to chafe39 at inaction, and he finally became excited to the pitch of asking his father whether he might not take part in the great and final Baggs torchlight procession. The doctor was astonished by the temerity40 of this request, but he was himself a Baggs man, Doveton was too far from any great city for politics to have become exclusively rowdyish, the marshals of the procession were nearly all church members, Jack had been quiet for a long time, so the doctor gave his assent41, taking the precaution, however, to make a personal appeal to each marshal to keep an eye on the boy.
Jack was overjoyed, and proceeded at once to make a transparency and covered it with stirring mottoes. Then he made another, a very fine one it was, too, which he embellished42 with the inscription43, "Truth crushed to earth shall rise again," and this he presented to Nuderkopf Trinkelspiel. But Nuderkopf intimated that he had had enough of politics to last him until the next campaign, so he used the sympathetic transparency to shield a plant of late tomatoes from the frost, and when Jack learned this he confided44 to Matt that he washed his hands of that ungrateful Dutchman, then and forever.
Somehow Jack had frequent and imperative45 needs to consult other boys before the night of the procession, but each time he asked the permission of his father, and made known the subjects of the conversation desired, until the doctor began to believe that Jack was really trying to do right. As for the subjects of consultation46 with the boys, they ranged all the way from lights for transparencies to the particular style and succession of hoots47 to be uttered on passing Puttytop headquarters. Upon this last-named affair Jack bestowed a great deal of time, and, finally, having gone to Matt's for something, and found nearly all the boys in the Bolton barn, he conducted a rehearsal48 with such success that within five seconds after the first note had sounded, the Bolton horse had started back in wild affright, snapped his halter-strap, and bumped the side of the barn behind him so forcibly that he was stiff for a month afterward49.
When the procession finally formed, Jack's transparency was the observed of all observers. On one side he had acknowledged his youth, but warned the opposition50 against despising it by the inscription, "Little, but Oh, My!" On the second face of the transparency, Mephistopheles, all in red, laid a gaunt hand, black, upon an ungainly individual in blue. Lest the meaning of this painting might seem doubtful to the general gaze, the name of Mr. Puttytop appeared under the blue personage. A third side was ornamented51 with the portrait of the opposition candidate, and it must have been a good one, for Jack had cut it from a Puttytop poster which had been tacked53 to his father's new stable. In this picture the adapter proved himself to be not without genius, for over the whole of that portion of the candidate's cranium which had been devoted54 to hair, Jack had affixed55 real putty, fastening it in place with pins, their heads enlarged with red sealing wax and their points bent56 inside the canvas. The effect of this work of art, when it came under a light from the outside, was that of a bald-headed man, upon whose scalp a bad case of smallpox57 had concentrated its energies. On the fourth and last side there was a palpable allusion58 to the bibulous59 habits of which Puttytop had been accused by the managers of the Baggs faction, for the ornament52 was a sketch60 of a declivity61, beginning at an upper corner and drooping62 downward almost to the opposite corner; on the top of this began a series of red spots which increased in size, number, and intensity63 of tint64 until they culminated65 in the general deep red at the base; under all this was the inscription, "His Nose."
Many were the stones and imprecations hurled66 at this chef d'?uvre as the procession moved through the streets, and all of Jack's strength of mind and body was required to enable the young man to manage his temper and hold his transparency upright. It would hardly be safe to say that the doctor, who viewed the procession from a corner, entirely67 approved of his son's taste, but the boy's upright bearing pleased the old gentleman, and as one of the marshals, who was also Jack's Sunday-school teacher, rode very close behind Jack, the doctor went home feeling that his boy was in safe hands.
But the final disposing of the procession did not conclude Jack's patriotic duties. A large paper balloon, inscribed68 "Baggs Forever, One and Inseparable," was to be sent up by the boys. This was to be placed in the heavens by means of heated air, to be provided by a burning sponge saturated69 with alcohol, and hanging on a wire which was stretched across the open mouth of the balloon. The boy who had been charged with procuring70 the alcohol had dishonestly spent the money for powder and shot with which to go hunting, but he had made good the deficiency by stealing his mother's bottle of cooking brandy. It burned to a charm, the balloon soared gracefully71 aloft amid a loud chorus of "Ah!" and then the boy who held the bottle and who knew the liquor by its smell, remarked that it was a pity not to put the remaining contents where they would do the most good. The motion was seconded by one or two bad boys who were not unacquainted with liquor, and the bottle was passed from mouth to mouth, Jack being the fourth who received it.
"I don't drink," said he, holding the bottle and wondering whether it would be best to empty it on the ground.
"You're afraid to," said one of the drinkers, to whom Jack had been held up, to the extreme pitch of exasperation72, as a good temperance boy.
"Of course he's afraid," said another bad boy.
The mere73 smell of the brandy made Jack shudder74, but this was as nothing to the trembling caused by the charge of fear. Afraid? well, he was afraid—of being laughed at, so he placed the bottle to his lips. He did not know anything about the quantity to drink, except that when he drank water out of a bottle as he frequently did when out after berries in summer, he usually took about a dozen swallows, so he swallowed industriously75 until one of the bad boys who had not drunk complained that none was being left for the others. Then it seemed to him that he had been swallowing the whole of a great conflagration76, and that he would cough himself to death, if, indeed, he did not die of the uncontrollable trembling that agitated77 his frame.
During the long-drawn moment in which this new misery78 was being experienced by Jack, most of the remaining boys had been vociferating discordantly79 about something, and when Jack regained80 some little control over himself he saw that the balloon was the cause of their agitation81; it had lost its balance, perhaps from too much of the brandy getting to its head, and in turning sideways it had caught fire and begun to fall. It caused a beautiful though dissolving view, and soon there was nothing remaining but the sponge, which was coming down as brightly and apparently82 as swiftly as a meteor. Everybody ran to see where it fell, and although the sponge was making considerably83 the best time, it had by far the greater distance to travel, so the boys had nearly reached it when it tumbled into the well-stocked pig pen of Shantz, the butcher, where it was received with all the hubbub84 which the appearance of so unusual a visitor could warrant. The spectacle of a brightly-blazing sponge in a small enclosure, with a dozen hogs85 squealing86 at it, was one which commended itself to the boys by its utter novelty, but when the proprietor87 of the establishment opened his own back door, and descended88 the yard with a club, the scene became suddenly devoid89 of interest, and the place which knew the boys but now, knew them no more that evening. The boys afterward agreed, while talking the matter over, that any sensible man would first have cast the dangerous visitor from the pen. But Shantz had seen so much of juvenile90 mischief91 that whenever he saw a boy near the scene of any irregularity, he thought more of preventing future trouble than of curing that which existed, so he left the pigs to take care of the sponge, and gave chase to the boys.
Jack did his best to keep up with his companions, but he had never in his life suspected our quiet old globe of such unstable92 ways as she indulged in during that short run. The world tipped to one side until Jack was certain that he would roll over to his left in a moment and slide straight down hill to the Atlantic Ocean, which was five hundred miles away. Then the world tipped the other way, and Jack felt himself going, going, going, until he felt sure that in a minute or two he would be caught and impaled93 on some lofty peak of the Rocky Mountains, more than a thousand miles to the right. Then all the stars of heaven forsook94 their orbits and dashed about each other in a manner which made Jack too giddy to look at them, so he looked straight before him at the steeple of the Presbyterian Church, just in time to see it dissolve itself into two steeples, which trembled awhile and then indulged in a mad strife95 to see which should overtop the other. The antics which Hoccamine's store indulged in were very dangerous to a brick structure which had been erected96 by contract, as that had. Then Jack seemed to be treading on air, a league at a step, yet unable to approach any nearer to his companions.
Suddenly his collar tightened, though he could not imagine why; then the judgment-day seemed surely to come, for stars and steeples and stores all mixed themselves in utter confusion, and Jack fell backward some thousands of miles, apparently, and the last sensation he experienced was of seeing a giant about a mile high, but of a face, form and voice identical with those of Shantz the butcher, and the giant raised a club, which was certainly the trunk of the largest of the California big trees, and——
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1
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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retirement
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| n.退休，退职 | |
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complexion
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| n.肤色；情况，局面；气质，性格 | |
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bouquet
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| n.花束，酒香 | |
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secrete
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| vt.分泌；隐匿，使隐秘 | |
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culled
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| v.挑选，剔除( cull的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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manly
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| adj.有男子气概的；adv.男子般地，果断地 | |
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prohibition
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| n.禁止；禁令，禁律 | |
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stringent
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| adj.严厉的；令人信服的；银根紧的 | |
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fickleness
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| n.易变；无常；浮躁；变化无常 | |
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affixing
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| v.附加( affix的现在分词 )；粘贴；加以；盖（印章） | |
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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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alluded
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| 提及，暗指( allude的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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deference
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| n.尊重，顺从；敬意 | |
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seclusion
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| n.隐遁，隔离 | |
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yearned
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| 渴望，切盼，向往( yearn的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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inclination
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| n.倾斜；点头；弯腰；斜坡；倾度；倾向；爱好 | |
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lapsing
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| v.退步( lapse的现在分词 )；陷入；倒退；丧失 | |
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plausible
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| adj.似真实的，似乎有理的，似乎可信的 | |
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dissenting
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| adj.不同意的 | |
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dissenters
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| n.持异议者，持不同意见者( dissenter的名词复数 ) | |
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hog
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| n.猪；馋嘴贪吃的人；vt.把…占为己有，独占 | |
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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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perspired
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| v.出汗，流汗( perspire的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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demonstration
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| n.表明，示范，论证，示威 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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delightful
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| adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的 | |
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sneaked
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| v.潜行( sneak的过去式和过去分词 )；偷偷溜走；（儿童向成人）打小报告；告状 | |
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torpedo
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| n.水雷，地雷；v.用鱼雷破坏 | |
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tragically
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| adv. 悲剧地，悲惨地 | |
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bestowed
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| 赠给，授予( bestow的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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supplementary
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| adj.补充的，附加的 | |
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proceedings
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| n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报 | |
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disturbance
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| n.动乱，骚动；打扰，干扰；(身心)失调 | |
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incensed
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| 盛怒的 | |
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grievance
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| n.怨愤，气恼，委屈 | |
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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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patriotic
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| adj.爱国的，有爱国心的 | |
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chafe
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| v.擦伤；冲洗；惹怒 | |
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temerity
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| n.鲁莽，冒失 | |
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assent
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| v.批准，认可；n.批准，认可 | |
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embellished
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| v.美化( embellish的过去式和过去分词 )；装饰；修饰；润色 | |
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inscription
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| n.（尤指石块上的）刻印文字，铭文，碑文 | |
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44
confided
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| v.吐露（秘密，心事等）( confide的过去式和过去分词 )；（向某人）吐露（隐私、秘密等） | |
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45
imperative
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| n.命令，需要；规则；祈使语气；adj.强制的；紧急的 | |
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consultation
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| n.咨询；商量；商议；会议 | |
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47
hoots
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| 咄，啐 | |
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48
rehearsal
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| n.排练，排演；练习 | |
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afterward
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| adv.后来；以后 | |
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opposition
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| n.反对，敌对 | |
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51
ornamented
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| adj.花式字体的v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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ornament
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| v.装饰，美化；n.装饰，装饰物 | |
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53
tacked
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| 用平头钉钉( tack的过去式和过去分词 )； 附加，增补； 帆船抢风行驶，用粗线脚缝 | |
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devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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affixed
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| adj.[医]附着的，附着的v.附加( affix的过去式和过去分词 )；粘贴；加以；盖（印章） | |
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bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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smallpox
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| n.天花 | |
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allusion
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| n.暗示，间接提示 | |
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bibulous
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| adj.高度吸收的，酗酒的 | |
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sketch
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| n.草图；梗概；素描；v.素描；概述 | |
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declivity
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| n.下坡，倾斜面 | |
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drooping
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| adj. 下垂的，无力的 动词droop的现在分词 | |
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intensity
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| n.强烈，剧烈；强度；烈度 | |
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tint
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| n.淡色，浅色；染发剂；vt.着以淡淡的颜色 | |
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culminated
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| v.达到极点( culminate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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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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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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inscribed
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| v.写，刻( inscribe的过去式和过去分词 )；内接 | |
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saturated
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| a.饱和的，充满的 | |
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procuring
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| v.（努力）取得， （设法）获得( procure的现在分词 )；拉皮条 | |
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gracefully
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| ad.大大方方地；优美地 | |
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exasperation
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| n.愤慨 | |
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mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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shudder
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| v.战粟，震动，剧烈地摇晃；n.战粟，抖动 | |
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industriously
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conflagration
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| n.建筑物或森林大火 | |
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agitated
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| adj.被鼓动的，不安的 | |
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misery
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| n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦 | |
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discordantly
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| adv.不一致地，不和谐地 | |
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regained
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| 复得( regain的过去式和过去分词 )； 赢回； 重回； 复至某地 | |
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agitation
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| n.搅动；搅拌；鼓动，煽动 | |
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apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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considerably
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| adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上 | |
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hubbub
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| n.嘈杂；骚乱 | |
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hogs
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| n.（尤指喂肥供食用的）猪( hog的名词复数 )；（供食用的）阉公猪；彻底地做某事；自私的或贪婪的人 | |
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squealing
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| v.长声尖叫，用长而尖锐的声音说( squeal的现在分词 ) | |
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proprietor
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| n.所有人；业主；经营者 | |
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descended
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| a.为...后裔的，出身于...的 | |
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devoid
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| adj.全无的，缺乏的 | |
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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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mischief
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| n.损害，伤害，危害；恶作剧，捣蛋，胡闹 | |
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unstable
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| adj.不稳定的，易变的 | |
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impaled
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| 钉在尖桩上( impale的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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forsook
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| forsake的过去式 | |
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strife
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| n.争吵，冲突，倾轧，竞争 | |
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ERECTED
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| adj. 直立的，竖立的，笔直的 vt. 使 ... 直立，建立 | |
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