Chapter 30 Congreve's Scheme

James Congreve was a dangerous companion for Philip. He was utterly¹ unscrupulous, but took care to keep up a semblance² of propriety³, in order not to terrify the boy whom he was leading into mischief⁴.

They had commenced playing cards for amusement--at least, that was Congreve's pretext--but it had led to playing for a stake.

Occasionally, when the stake was small, Congreve allowed Philip to win; but, when more than a dollar was staked on the game, he generally managed to win himself.

Of course, Philip did not know that he was a victim, and that his chosen friend, Congreve, was a skillful sharper, who had practiced his art on Western steamboats, and was sure to get the better of him.

Why had he remained in this country village so long? Surely, it didn't pay him to fleece one victim, and that one a boy.

I can give the explanation.

He had been leading a fast life for a year back, and a physician whom he consulted had recommended country air and quiet for the summer.

"Unless you follow my directions, Mr. Congreve," he said, "I won't answer for your life. You have been going at too quick a pace altogether."

James was sensible enough to follow this advice, and that is why we find him a guest at the quiet village hotel.

The physician's advice proved to be good. His wasted energies were recuperated⁵, his thin cheeks filled out and showed a healthy color, his appetite improved, and he felt himself again.

When the first week in September arrived, he felt that he was well enough to go back to the city, to more congenial scenes. He was heartily⁶ tired of the country, and anxious to get away. Only one thing remained to be done, and that was to collect what Philip owed him.

"I can't wait any longer," he said to himself. "I must compel the boy to pay up. It will liquidate⁷ my hotel bill and leave me something over. I can't let the thing stand any longer."

Soon after he had come to this conclusion, Philip entered his friend's chamber⁸.

"How are you, Phil?" said Congreve, carelessly.

"All right!"

"By the way, I've got some news for you."

"What is it?"

"I'm going away."

"Going away? Where?"

"Back to the city first. I have an urgent summons from my friends there."

"How soon do you go?"

"That depends upon you."

"Upon me? I don't understand!" said Philip, puzzled.

"You ought to. As soon as you have paid me what you owe me. I need it to enable me to settle up at the hotel."

Philip turned pale. It was just what he had worried over many a time--this terrible debt, which he felt utterly unable to liquidate.

"How much is it?" he asked, nervously⁹.

"How much? Really, I haven't reckoned it up yet; but I will," said Congreve, carelessly.

He took out his wallet, and drew out a variety of papers, to which Philip's signature was attached.

Then he sat down at a table, took a pencil from his pocket, set the different sums on paper, and added them up deliberately¹⁰. All this was humbug¹¹, for he had added it up before Philip came in, and knew to a dollar how much it amounted to. Philip stood by, feeling miserably¹² uncomfortable, while the reckoning went on.

"Really," said Congreve, looking up at length, in assumed surprise, "I had no idea it amounted to so much!"

"How much does it come to?" questioned his wretched dupe.

"One hundred and thirty-six dollars," was the calm response.

"A hundred and thirty-six dollars!" gasped¹³ Philip.

"Yes; surprising, isn't it? Little sums count up, you know. However, we've had some fun out of it, haven't we?"

"I don't see where the fun comes in," said Philip, bitterly. "Of course, it's fun for you to win so much."

"You won some of the time, Phil. Think how many games we have had, and how exciting it was. You play a good deal better game than you did."

"But I have lost a big pile of money."

"Oh, yes. Experience costs money, you know. You'll get it all back, and more, too, some day."

"How can I, when you are going away?"

"I don't mean out of me. I suppose my game is better than yours. I mean out of somebody else."

Philip was silent. The hope held out did not seem to comfort him much.

"When will you pay me that money, Phil?" asked Congreve, abruptly¹⁴.

"When? I'm sure I don't know. I haven't any money, you know."

"That won't do. It isn't satisfactory," said Congreve, assuming a sternness he had never before exhibited toward his friend.

"What do you mean?" asked Philip, half frightened, half offended.

"I mean that I need the money, and must have it."

"I'd pay it to you if I had it, but I haven't."

"You must get it."

"How can I? My father won't give it to me."

"Listen to me. I am in earnest. I want to ask you a question. Suppose you had won, wouldn't you have expected me to pay you?"

"Why, yes, I suppose so."

"Well, it's a poor rule that doesn't work both ways. I tell you, Phil, I need that money. I need it to pay my hotel bill."

"Was that what you depended upon to pay your bills?" asked Philip, with awakening¹⁵ suspicion. "I thought you had plenty of money."

This was what Congreve had represented to his dupe, but the question by no means disconcerted him.

"Of course," he said; "but a man can't always command his resources. I have sent in two different directions for money, but they have put me off, so I have to fall back on you."

"I'd like to pay the money, and get it off my mind," said Philip, uncomfortably, "but the fact of it is I can't."

"This is a debt of honor. Gentlemen always pay their debts of honor. It takes precedence of all other claims."

"I have no other claims. That is all I owe to anybody."

"Well, when can you let me have the money?"

"I am sure I don't know," returned Philip, sullenly¹⁶. "I didn't expect you were going to press me so."

James Congreve saw that Philip had reached the point which he desired.

"I press you because I have to," he said. "I have already told you how you can settle the claim."

"How?" asked Philip, uneasily.

He could guess, for there had been conversation on that point before.

"You know what I mean. Get hold of some of your father's government bonds," said Congreve, insinuatingly¹⁷.

"I don't want to become a thief."

"Pooh! Isn't he your father, and ain't you an only son? Won't it all be yours sometime?"

"Yes, but----"

"Oh, don't bother with buts! That makes all the difference in the world."

"I couldn't do it without being suspected," objected Philip, with whom this was the principal consideration.

"Yes, you can. You'll give the bonds to me, and I will dispose of them. If you could get hold of two hundred-dollar bonds, I would give you the balance, after deducting¹⁸ the amount of my debt."

"But I am sure to be suspected."

"Unless you throw the suspicion upon some one else."

"How can I?"

"There's your friend, Harry¹⁹ Gilbert----"

"He isn't my friend."

"Well, your enemy, then. So much the better. You can say you saw him prowling round the house. If you could get him arrested, it would be a satisfaction, even if he wasn't convicted."

"That's true. I should like to get even with him."

"So you can. You can throw suspicion on him, and get off free yourself. It will be a splendid revenge."

Philip began to think favorably of the scheme, arid²⁰ before he left the hotel had agreed to it.

1 utterly   

adv.完全地，绝对地

参考例句：

• Utterly devoted to the people,he gave his life in saving his patients.他忠于人民，把毕生精力用于挽救患者的生命。
• I was utterly ravished by the way she smiled.她的微笑使我完全陶醉了。

2 semblance   

n.外貌，外表

参考例句：

• Her semblance of anger frightened the children.她生气的样子使孩子们感到害怕。
• Those clouds have the semblance of a large head.那些云的形状像一个巨大的人头。

3 propriety   

n.正当行为；正当；适当

参考例句：

• We hesitated at the propriety of the method.我们对这种办法是否适用拿不定主意。
• The sensitive matter was handled with great propriety.这件机密的事处理得极为适当。

4 mischief   

n.损害，伤害，危害；恶作剧，捣蛋，胡闹

参考例句：

• Nobody took notice of the mischief of the matter. 没有人注意到这件事情所带来的危害。
• He seems to intend mischief.看来他想捣蛋。

5 recuperated   

v.恢复（健康、体力等），复原( recuperate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• For a while she recuperated there. 她曾在那儿休养了一个时期。 来自辞典例句
• Can chronic rhinitis cause giddy tinnitus? What method can be recuperated! 慢性鼻炎会引起头晕耳鸣吗？有什么方法可以调理！ 来自互联网

6 heartily   

adv.衷心地，诚恳地，十分，很

参考例句：

• He ate heartily and went out to look for his horse.他痛快地吃了一顿，就出去找他的马。
• The host seized my hand and shook it heartily.主人抓住我的手，热情地和我握手。

7 liquidate   

v.偿付，清算，扫除；整理，破产

参考例句：

• A unanimous vote was taken to liquidate the company.全体投票一致通过停业清理公司。
• They have not hesitated in the past to liquidate their rivals.过去他们曾毫不犹豫地铲除对手。

8 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

9 nervously   

adv.神情激动地，不安地

参考例句：

• He bit his lip nervously,trying not to cry.他紧张地咬着唇，努力忍着不哭出来。
• He paced nervously up and down on the platform.他在站台上情绪不安地走来走去。

10 deliberately   

adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地

参考例句：

• The girl gave the show away deliberately.女孩故意泄露秘密。
• They deliberately shifted off the argument.他们故意回避这个论点。

11 humbug   

n.花招，谎话，欺骗

参考例句：

• I know my words can seem to him nothing but utter humbug.我知道，我说的话在他看来不过是彻头彻尾的慌言。
• All their fine words are nothing but humbug.他们的一切花言巧语都是骗人的。

12 miserably   

adv.痛苦地；悲惨地；糟糕地；极度地

参考例句：

• The little girl was wailing miserably. 那小女孩难过得号啕大哭。
• It was drizzling, and miserably cold and damp. 外面下着毛毛细雨，天气又冷又湿，令人难受。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 gasped   

v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要

参考例句：

• She gasped at the wonderful view. 如此美景使她惊讶得屏住了呼吸。
• People gasped with admiration at the superb skill of the gymnasts. 体操运动员的高超技艺令人赞叹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

14 abruptly   

adv.突然地，出其不意地

参考例句：

• He gestured abruptly for Virginia to get in the car.他粗鲁地示意弗吉尼亚上车。
• I was abruptly notified that a half-hour speech was expected of me.我突然被通知要讲半个小时的话。

15 awakening   

n.觉醒，醒悟 adj.觉醒中的；唤醒的

参考例句：

• the awakening of interest in the environment 对环境产生的兴趣
• People are gradually awakening to their rights. 人们正逐渐意识到自己的权利。

16 sullenly   

不高兴地，绷着脸，忧郁地

参考例句：

• 'so what?" Tom said sullenly. “那又怎么样呢？”汤姆绷着脸说。
• Emptiness after the paper, I sIt'sullenly in front of the stove. 报看完，想不出能找点什么事做，只好一人坐在火炉旁生气。

17 insinuatingly   

参考例句：

• Corell said insinuatingly,"Are you afraid, Colonel?" 科雷尔很婉转地说：“你害怕了吗，上校？” 来自辞典例句

18 deducting   

v.扣除，减去( deduct的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Deducting drop size and velocity from circular blood stains. 如何从循环的血液中降低血滴的大小和速度。 来自电影对白
• Ordinary shareholders receive dividend from profit after deducting the preference shares dividend. 普通股股东可获派剩馀的盈利为股息。 来自互联网

19 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

20 arid   

adj.干旱的；(土地)贫瘠的

参考例句：

• These trees will shield off arid winds and protect the fields.这些树能挡住旱风,保护农田。
• There are serious problems of land degradation in some arid zones.在一些干旱地带存在严重的土地退化问题。