Before nine next morning the two canoes were installed on a light country cart at Etreux: and we were soon following them along the side of a pleasant valley full of hop-gardens and poplars. Agreeable villages lay here and there on the slope of the hill; notably1, Tupigny, with the hop-poles hanging their garlands in the very street, and the houses clustered with grapes. There was a faint enthusiasm on our passage; weavers2 put their heads to the windows; children cried out in ecstasy3 at sight of the two 'boaties'--barguettes: and bloused pedestrians4, who were acquainted with our charioteer, jested with him on the nature of his freight.
We had a shower or two, but light and flying. The air was clean and sweet among all these green fields and green things growing. There was not a touch of autumn in the weather. And when, at Vadencourt, we launched from a little lawn opposite a mill, the sun broke forth5 and set all the leaves shining in the valley of the Oise.
The river was swollen6 with the long rains. From Vadencourt all the way to Origny, it ran with ever-quickening speed, taking fresh heart at each mile, and racing7 as though it already smelt8 the sea. The water was yellow and turbulent, swung with an angry eddy9 among half-submerged willows10, and made an angry clatter11 along stony12 shores. The course kept turning and turning in a narrow and well- timbered valley. Now the river would approach the side, and run griding along the chalky base of the hill, and show us a few open colza-fields among the trees. Now it would skirt the garden-walls of houses, where we might catch a glimpse through a doorway13, and see a priest pacing in the chequered sunlight. Again, the foliage14 closed so thickly in front, that there seemed to be no issue; only a thicket15 of willows, overtopped by elms and poplars, under which the river ran flush and fleet, and where a kingfisher flew past like a piece of the blue sky. On these different manifestations16 the sun poured its clear and catholic looks. The shadows lay as solid on the swift surface of the stream as on the stable meadows. The light sparkled golden in the dancing poplar leaves, and brought the hills into communion with our eyes. And all the while the river never stopped running or took breath; and the reeds along the whole valley stood shivering from top to toe.
There should be some myth (but if there is, I know it not) founded on the shivering of the reeds. There are not many things in nature more striking to man's eye. It is such an eloquent17 pantomime of terror; and to see such a number of terrified creatures taking sanctuary18 in every nook along the shore, is enough to infect a silly human with alarm. Perhaps they are only a-cold, and no wonder, standing19 waist-deep in the stream. Or perhaps they have never got accustomed to the speed and fury of the river's flux20, or the miracle of its continuous body. Pan once played upon their forefathers21; and so, by the hands of his river, he still plays upon these later generations down all the valley of the Oise; and plays the same air, both sweet and shrill22, to tell us of the beauty and the terror of the world.
The canoe was like a leaf in the current. It took it up and shook it, and carried it masterfully away, like a Centaur24 carrying off a nymph. To keep some command on our direction required hard and diligent25 plying26 of the paddle. The river was in such a hurry for the sea! Every drop of water ran in a panic, like as many people in a frightened crowd. But what crowd was ever so numerous, or so single-minded? All the objects of sight went by at a dance measure; the eyesight raced with the racing river; the exigencies27 of every moment kept the pegs28 screwed so tight, that our being quivered like a well-tuned instrument; and the blood shook off its lethargy, and trotted29 through all the highways and byways of the veins30 and arteries31, and in and out of the heart, as if circulation were but a holiday journey, and not the daily moil of threescore years and ten. The reeds might nod their heads in warning, and with tremulous gestures tell how the river was as cruel as it was strong and cold, and how death lurked32 in the eddy underneath33 the willows. But the reeds had to stand where they were; and those who stand still are always timid advisers34. As for us, we could have shouted aloud. If this lively and beautiful river were, indeed, a thing of death's contrivance, the old ashen35 rogue36 had famously outwitted himself with us. I was living three to the minute. I was scoring points against him every stroke of my paddle, every turn of the stream. I have rarely had better profit of my life.
For I think we may look upon our little private war with death somewhat in this light. If a man knows he will sooner or later be robbed upon a journey, he will have a bottle of the best in every inn, and look upon all his extravagances as so much gained upon the thieves. And above all, where instead of simply spending, he makes a profitable investment for some of his money, when it will be out of risk of loss. So every bit of brisk living, and above all when it is healthful, is just so much gained upon the wholesale37 filcher38, death. We shall have the less in our pockets, the more in our stomach, when he cries stand and deliver. A swift stream is a favourite artifice39 of his, and one that brings him in a comfortable thing per annum; but when he and I come to settle our accounts, I shall whistle in his face for these hours upon the upper Oise.
Towards afternoon we got fairly drunken with the sunshine and the exhilaration of the pace. We could no longer contain ourselves and our content. The canoes were too small for us; we must be out and stretch ourselves on shore. And so in a green meadow we bestowed40 our limbs on the grass, and smoked deifying tobacco and proclaimed the world excellent. It was the last good hour of the day, and I dwell upon it with extreme complacency.
On one side of the valley, high up on the chalky summit of the hill, a ploughman with his team appeared and disappeared at regular intervals41. At each revelation he stood still for a few seconds against the sky: for all the world (as the Cigarette declared) like a toy Burns who should have just ploughed up the Mountain Daisy. He was the only living thing within view, unless we are to count the river.
On the other side of the valley a group of red roofs and a belfry showed among the foliage. Thence some inspired bell-ringer made the afternoon musical on a chime of bells. There was something very sweet and taking in the air he played; and we thought we had never heard bells speak so intelligibly42, or sing so melodiously43, as these. It must have been to some such measure that the spinners and the young maids sang, 'Come away, Death,' in the Shakespearian Illyria. There is so often a threatening note, something blatant44 and metallic45, in the voice of bells, that I believe we have fully23 more pain than pleasure from hearing them; but these, as they sounded abroad, now high, now low, now with a plaintive46 cadence47 that caught the ear like the burthen of a popular song, were always moderate and tunable48, and seemed to fall in with the spirit of still, rustic49 places, like the noise of a waterfall or the babble50 of a rookery in spring. I could have asked the bell-ringer for his blessing51, good, sedate52 old man, who swung the rope so gently to the time of his meditations53. I could have blessed the priest or the heritors, or whoever may be concerned with such affairs in France, who had left these sweet old bells to gladden the afternoon, and not held meetings, and made collections, and had their names repeatedly printed in the local paper, to rig up a peal54 of brand- new, brazen55, Birmingham-hearted substitutes, who should bombard their sides to the provocation56 of a brand-new bell-ringer, and fill the echoes of the valley with terror and riot.
At last the bells ceased, and with their note the sun withdrew. The piece was at an end; shadow and silence possessed57 the valley of the Oise. We took to the paddle with glad hearts, like people who have sat out a noble performance and returned to work. The river was more dangerous here; it ran swifter, the eddies58 were more sudden and violent. All the way down we had had our fill of difficulties. Sometimes it was a weir59 which could be shot, sometimes one so shallow and full of stakes that we must withdraw the boats from the water and carry them round. But the chief sort of obstacle was a consequence of the late high winds. Every two or three hundred yards a tree had fallen across the river, and usually involved more than another in its fall.
Often there was free water at the end, and we could steer60 round the leafy promontory61 and hear the water sucking and bubbling among the twigs62. Often, again, when the tree reached from bank to bank, there was room, by lying close, to shoot through underneath, canoe and all. Sometimes it was necessary to get out upon the trunk itself and pull the boats across; and sometimes, when the stream was too impetuous for this, there was nothing for it but to land and 'carry over.' This made a fine series of accidents in the day's career, and kept us aware of ourselves.
Shortly after our re-embarkation, while I was leading by a long way, and still full of a noble, exulting63 spirit in honour of the sun, the swift pace, and the church bells, the river made one of its leonine pounces64 round a corner, and I was aware of another fallen tree within a stone-cast. I had my backboard down in a trice, and aimed for a place where the trunk seemed high enough above the water, and the branches not too thick to let me slip below. When a man has just vowed65 eternal brotherhood66 with the universe, he is not in a temper to take great determinations coolly, and this, which might have been a very important determination for me, had not been taken under a happy star. The tree caught me about the chest, and while I was yet struggling to make less of myself and get through, the river took the matter out of my hands, and bereaved67 me of my boat. The Arethusa swung round broadside on, leaned over, ejected so much of me as still remained on board, and thus disencumbered, whipped under the tree, righted, and went merrily away down stream.
I do not know how long it was before I scrambled68 on to the tree to which I was left clinging, but it was longer than I cared about. My thoughts were of a grave and almost sombre character, but I still clung to my paddle. The stream ran away with my heels as fast as I could pull up my shoulders, and I seemed, by the weight, to have all the water of the Oise in my trousers-pockets. You can never know, till you try it, what a dead pull a river makes against a man. Death himself had me by the heels, for this was his last ambuscado, and he must now join personally in the fray69. And still I held to my paddle. At last I dragged myself on to my stomach on the trunk, and lay there a breathless sop70, with a mingled71 sense of humour and injustice72. A poor figure I must have presented to Burns upon the hill-top with his team. But there was the paddle in my hand. On my tomb, if ever I have one, I mean to get these words inscribed73: 'He clung to his paddle.'
The Cigarette had gone past a while before; for, as I might have observed, if I had been a little less pleased with the universe at the moment, there was a clear way round the tree-top at the farther side. He had offered his services to haul me out, but as I was then already on my elbows, I had declined, and sent him down stream after the truant74 Arethusa. The stream was too rapid for a man to mount with one canoe, let alone two, upon his hands. So I crawled along the trunk to shore, and proceeded down the meadows by the river-side. I was so cold that my heart was sore. I had now an idea of my own why the reeds so bitterly shivered. I could have given any of them a lesson. The Cigarette remarked facetiously75 that he thought I was 'taking exercise' as I drew near, until he made out for certain that I was only twittering with cold. I had a rub down with a towel, and donned a dry suit from the india-rubber bag. But I was not my own man again for the rest of the voyage. I had a queasy76 sense that I wore my last dry clothes upon my body. The struggle had tired me; and perhaps, whether I knew it or not, I was a little dashed in spirit. The devouring77 element in the universe had leaped out against me, in this green valley quickened by a running stream. The bells were all very pretty in their way, but I had heard some of the hollow notes of Pan's music. Would the wicked river drag me down by the heels, indeed? and look so beautiful all the time? Nature's good-humour was only skin-deep after all.
There was still a long way to go by the winding78 course of the stream, and darkness had fallen, and a late bell was ringing in Origny Sainte-Benoite, when we arrived.
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notably
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| adv.值得注意地，显著地，尤其地，特别地 | |
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weavers
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| 织工，编织者( weaver的名词复数 ) | |
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ecstasy
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| n.狂喜，心醉神怡，入迷 | |
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pedestrians
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| n.步行者( pedestrian的名词复数 ) | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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swollen
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| adj.肿大的，水涨的；v.使变大，肿胀 | |
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racing
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| n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的 | |
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smelt
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| v.熔解，熔炼；n.银白鱼，胡瓜鱼 | |
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eddy
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| n.漩涡，涡流 | |
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willows
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| n.柳树( willow的名词复数 )；柳木 | |
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clatter
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| v./n.(使)发出连续而清脆的撞击声 | |
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stony
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| adj.石头的，多石头的，冷酷的，无情的 | |
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doorway
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| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
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foliage
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| n.叶子，树叶，簇叶 | |
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thicket
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| n.灌木丛，树林 | |
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manifestations
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| n.表示，显示（manifestation的复数形式） | |
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eloquent
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| adj.雄辩的，口才流利的；明白显示出的 | |
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sanctuary
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| n.圣所，圣堂，寺庙；禁猎区，保护区 | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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flux
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| n.流动；不断的改变 | |
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forefathers
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| n.祖先，先人；祖先，祖宗( forefather的名词复数 )；列祖列宗；前人 | |
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shrill
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| adj.尖声的；刺耳的；v尖叫 | |
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fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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centaur
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| n.人首马身的怪物 | |
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diligent
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| adj.勤勉的，勤奋的 | |
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plying
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| v.使用（工具）( ply的现在分词 )；经常供应（食物、饮料）；固定往来；经营生意 | |
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exigencies
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| n.急切需要 | |
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pegs
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| n.衣夹( peg的名词复数 )；挂钉；系帐篷的桩；弦钮v.用夹子或钉子固定( peg的第三人称单数 )；使固定在某水平 | |
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29
trotted
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| 小跑，急走( trot的过去分词 )； 匆匆忙忙地走 | |
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veins
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| n.纹理；矿脉( vein的名词复数 )；静脉；叶脉；纹理 | |
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arteries
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| n.动脉( artery的名词复数 )；干线，要道 | |
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32
lurked
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| vi.潜伏，埋伏（lurk的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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underneath
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| adj.在...下面，在...底下；adv.在下面 | |
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advisers
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| 顾问，劝告者( adviser的名词复数 )； （指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授 | |
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ashen
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| adj.灰的 | |
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rogue
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| n.流氓；v.游手好闲 | |
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wholesale
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| n.批发；adv.以批发方式；vt.批发，成批出售 | |
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filcher
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| 小偷 | |
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artifice
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| n.妙计，高明的手段；狡诈，诡计 | |
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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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intervals
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| n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 )；间隔时间；[数学]区间；（戏剧、电影或音乐会的）幕间休息 | |
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intelligibly
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| adv.可理解地，明了地，清晰地 | |
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melodiously
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blatant
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| adj.厚颜无耻的；显眼的；炫耀的 | |
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metallic
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| adj.金属的；金属制的；含金属的；产金属的；像金属的 | |
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plaintive
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| adj.可怜的，伤心的 | |
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cadence
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| n.（说话声调的）抑扬顿挫 | |
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tunable
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| adj.可调的；可调谐 | |
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rustic
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| adj.乡村的，有乡村特色的；n.乡下人，乡巴佬 | |
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babble
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| v.含糊不清地说，胡言乱语地说，儿语 | |
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blessing
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| n.祈神赐福；祷告；祝福，祝愿 | |
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sedate
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| adj.沉着的，镇静的，安静的 | |
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53
meditations
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| 默想( meditation的名词复数 )； 默念； 沉思； 冥想 | |
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peal
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| n.钟声；v.鸣响 | |
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brazen
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| adj.厚脸皮的，无耻的，坚硬的 | |
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56
provocation
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| n.激怒，刺激，挑拨，挑衅的事物，激怒的原因 | |
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possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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58
eddies
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| （水、烟等的）漩涡，涡流( eddy的名词复数 ) | |
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weir
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| n.堰堤，拦河坝 | |
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60
steer
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| vt.驾驶，为…操舵；引导；vi.驾驶 | |
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promontory
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| n.海角；岬 | |
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twigs
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| 细枝，嫩枝( twig的名词复数 ) | |
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exulting
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| vi. 欢欣鼓舞，狂喜 | |
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pounces
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| v.突然袭击( pounce的第三人称单数 )；猛扑；一眼看出；抓住机会（进行抨击） | |
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vowed
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| 起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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brotherhood
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| n.兄弟般的关系，手中情谊 | |
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bereaved
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| adj.刚刚丧失亲人的v.使失去（希望、生命等）( bereave的过去式和过去分词)；（尤指死亡）使丧失（亲人、朋友等）；使孤寂；抢走（财物） | |
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scrambled
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| v.快速爬行( scramble的过去式和过去分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞 | |
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69
fray
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| v.争吵；打斗；磨损，磨破；n.吵架；打斗 | |
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sop
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| n.湿透的东西，懦夫；v.浸，泡，浸湿 | |
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mingled
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| 混合，混入( mingle的过去式和过去分词 )； 混进，与…交往[联系] | |
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injustice
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| n.非正义，不公正，不公平，侵犯（别人的）权利 | |
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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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truant
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| n.懒惰鬼，旷课者；adj.偷懒的，旷课的，游荡的；v.偷懒，旷课 | |
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facetiously
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| adv.爱开玩笑地；滑稽地，爱开玩笑地 | |
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76
queasy
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| adj.易呕的 | |
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devouring
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| 吞没( devour的现在分词 )； 耗尽； 津津有味地看； 狼吞虎咽地吃光 | |
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winding
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| n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈 | |
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