CHAPTER XXIV THE RESCUE

 The sight that had so suddenly shocked Major Dale and his helpers was indeed appalling¹.

 

Within the secret room they had found a man, not a ghost nor a demon², but a sick, almost helpless old man—the once popular Captain Mayberry.

 

At a glance it was plain he was in hiding in the wretched place, and the surroundings showed he had food and some of life's necessities within reach, although the very rats, whose presence were painfully evident, must have enjoyed a keener advantage in the mansion³, once proud of the name "Mayberry."

 

Frightened almost into convulsions, the decrepit⁴ old man fell back into a corner, his eyes glaring with the unmistakable gleam of insanity⁵, and his teeth chattering⁶ terribly.

 

A stove, barely alive with heat, served to shelter him from the intruders, for he managed to get behind the old piece of iron, and there crouched⁷ and shuddered⁸.

 

"Come, come!" said Major Dale as quickly as he could command his voice. "Don't you know me? Look! I'm Dale—of the Guards—come to save you, Cap. We have no wish to frighten you!"

 

"Save me!" hissed⁹ the old man. "Go away! I'm crazy—crazy!"

 

"Not a bit of it," answered the major, stepping nearer to the stove. "Come along. We are snowbound, and had to come in uninvited."

 

Assured that the specter was a man and nothing more nor less, Tom had hurried back to reassure¹⁰ the girls. Nat turned his attention to old Abe, and, between scolding and explaining, finally succeeded in quieting the colored man's fears. But the major kept close to the lunatic—for such he took Captain Mayberry to be.

 

"And don't you remember me?" he kept asking, satisfied that a gleam of recognition did pass over the wrinkled face that now peered out into the glare of the lamp from the Fire Bird. "Come! We are hungry, and you are too, I'll wager¹¹. Let's have mess. Rations¹² are plenty to-night."

 

Crawling like some animal, the old man was finally persuaded to come out from behind the stove.

 

Major Dale laid his hand on the arm of Captain Mayberry.

"Just out here," directed the major, leading the trembling one. "You see, we have taken possession of your house. Tell me how you feel? How you are?"

 

Major Dale wanted him to talk, both to quiet the girls' fears and to determine his actual state of mind. But Captain Mayberry's speech was very slow, and decidedly confused.

 

"I—guess—I'm all right—now," he managed to utter. "Where's—Jane?"

 

"Jane? Oh, yes, Jane," repeated the major. "That's your sister, Miss Pumfret?"

 

"Was—not now. She locks me up—leaves me to die!"

 

"Oh, now, come. Isn't it Jane who brings you things to eat?" asked the major, venturing a guess. "Why, didn't she send—the coal—and the bread?"

 

"Yes, yes," answered the old man, "but she will not let me go. She drove me crazy. Yes, and I'm crazy now."

 

"Not a bit of it. Here, sit down on this seat," and Major Dale motioned to Tom. "This young man will stay by you to keep you company while we prepare the mess. Perhaps you will show us how to get water? And have you any way of lighting¹³ up?"

 

A look of intelligence crossed Captain Mayberry's face. He shuffled¹⁴ over to a corner, and actually pressed a button.

 

The chandeliers poured out a flood of electric light.

 

"Jane did that," he muttered. "She likes light."

 

"Well, I'll be hanged!" exclaimed Tom.

 

"And I'll be jiggered!" added Nat.

 

"The poor old man!" whispered Dorothy, venturing to take a step toward him. "And to think we were afraid of him!"

 

"Were!" remarked Tavia significantly. "I'm just scared to death this very minute. Suppose he screams again?"

 

"What if he does?" Dorothy whispered back. "Surely he has more cause to fear us than we have to fear him. I'm going to—help—with things."

 

Abe stood with wide-open mouth surveying "the ghost."

 

Tom and Nat had brought the relief supplies from the wagon—old Abe's strongest carry-all—which had successfully weathered the snowdrifts between Tanglewood Park and The Cedars¹⁵.

 

"It's stopped snowing," announced Nat cheerfully. "Guess we will be able to make it all right by daylight."

 

"Fall in! fall in!" called the major, making a place for Captain Mayberry on the end of the seat that served as table and chairs collectively.

 

It was a queer meal—but a delightful¹⁶ one.

 

The relief that Major Dale brought was not in food alone.

 

"And there's the coffee!" he announced. "Will one of you boys just let that stand on the stove in the captain's private room?"

 

Tom jumped to comply. He readily found the means of lighting the secret room, and soon found other conveniences, such as water and cooking utensils¹⁷.

 

Captain Mayberry had not forgotten how to eat. He was "almost human," as Nat whispered to Dorothy.

 

"Here, guard!" called the major. "Fetch that coffee. Help yourself." This to the captain. "We eat according to rank this time."

 

Captain Mayberry seemed to smile. He took the cup of coffee—then the others raised their cups to drink a toast.

 

"To the Guards!" proposed the major. "Long life and happiness to the last of them!"

 

It was a strange sight—the cracked and broken cups that Tom had secured in the captain's quarters raised to drink the honored toast!

 

"And a merry Christmas to Captain Mayberry!" called out Dorothy.

 

Old Abe dropped his cup—spilled his coffee. He looked down ruefully at the puddle¹⁸ on the floor.

 

"Any mo'?" he asked. It was the first word he had spoken since he entered the house.

 

Tom refilled the cup.

 

"Take care of that," he cautioned Abe. "It's about all."

 

"What time?" asked the major, addressing Nat.

 

"Four! Would you believe it? It will be daylight soon."

 

"Glad of it," replied the major. "We can't leave here any too quickly. It has cleared, you say?"

 

"Beautifully," answered Nat; "and the sun to-morrow will be a 'ringer' for the moon to-night. I'll bet it will be one of those dazzling days——"

 

"Likely," agreed the major. "We must take Mayberry back with us," he said in a low voice. "Poor old chap! To think that I should find him—and in such a pitiable condition!"

 

1 appalling   

adj.骇人听闻的，令人震惊的，可怕的

参考例句：

• The search was hampered by appalling weather conditions.恶劣的天气妨碍了搜寻工作。
• Nothing can extenuate such appalling behaviour.这种骇人听闻的行径罪无可恕。

2 demon   

n.魔鬼，恶魔

参考例句：

• The demon of greed ruined the miser's happiness.贪得无厌的恶习毁掉了那个守财奴的幸福。
• He has been possessed by the demon of disease for years.他多年来病魔缠身。

3 mansion   

n.大厦，大楼；宅第

参考例句：

• The old mansion was built in 1850.这座古宅建于1850年。
• The mansion has extensive grounds.这大厦四周的庭园广阔。

4 decrepit   

adj.衰老的，破旧的

参考例句：

• The film had been shot in a decrepit old police station.该影片是在一所破旧不堪的警察局里拍摄的。
• A decrepit old man sat on a park bench.一个衰弱的老人坐在公园的长凳上。

5 insanity   

n.疯狂，精神错乱；极端的愚蠢，荒唐

参考例句：

• In his defense he alleged temporary insanity.他伪称一时精神错乱，为自己辩解。
• He remained in his cell,and this visit only increased the belief in his insanity.他依旧还是住在他的地牢里，这次视察只是更加使人相信他是个疯子了。

6 chattering   

n. （机器振动发出的）咔嗒声，(鸟等)鸣，啁啾 adj. 喋喋不休的，啾啾声的 动词chatter的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• The teacher told the children to stop chattering in class. 老师叫孩子们在课堂上不要叽叽喳喳讲话。
• I was so cold that my teeth were chattering. 我冷得牙齿直打战。

7 crouched   

v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He crouched down beside her. 他在她的旁边蹲了下来。
• The lion crouched ready to pounce. 狮子蹲下身，准备猛扑。

8 shuddered   

v.战栗( shudder的过去式和过去分词 )；发抖；（机器、车辆等）突然震动；颤动

参考例句：

• He slammed on the brakes and the car shuddered to a halt. 他猛踩刹车，车颤抖着停住了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I shuddered at the sight of the dead body. 我一看见那尸体就战栗。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 hissed   

发嘶嘶声( hiss的过去式和过去分词 )； 发嘘声表示反对

参考例句：

• Have you ever been hissed at in the middle of a speech? 你在演讲中有没有被嘘过？
• The iron hissed as it pressed the wet cloth. 熨斗压在湿布上时发出了嘶嘶声。

10 reassure   

v.使放心，使消除疑虑

参考例句：

• This seemed to reassure him and he continued more confidently.这似乎使他放心一点，于是他更有信心地继续说了下去。
• The airline tried to reassure the customers that the planes were safe.航空公司尽力让乘客相信飞机是安全的。

11 wager   

n.赌注；vt.押注，打赌

参考例句：

• They laid a wager on the result of the race.他们以竞赛的结果打赌。
• I made a wager that our team would win.我打赌我们的队会赢。

12 rations   

定量( ration的名词复数 )； 配给量； 正常量； 合理的量

参考例句：

• They are provisioned with seven days' rations. 他们得到了7天的给养。
• The soldiers complained that they were getting short rations. 士兵们抱怨他们得到的配给不够数。

13 lighting   

n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光

参考例句：

• The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
• The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。

14 shuffled   

v.洗（纸牌）( shuffle的过去式和过去分词 )；拖着脚步走；粗心地做；摆脱尘世的烦恼

参考例句：

• He shuffled across the room to the window. 他拖着脚走到房间那头的窗户跟前。
• Simon shuffled awkwardly towards them. 西蒙笨拙地拖着脚朝他们走去。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 cedars   

雪松，西洋杉( cedar的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The old cedars were badly damaged in the storm. 风暴严重损害了古老的雪松。
• Open thy doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour thy cedars. 1黎巴嫩哪，开开你的门，任火烧灭你的香柏树。

16 delightful   

adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的

参考例句：

• We had a delightful time by the seashore last Sunday.上星期天我们在海滨玩得真痛快。
• Peter played a delightful melody on his flute.彼得用笛子吹奏了一支欢快的曲子。

17 utensils   

器具，用具，器皿( utensil的名词复数 )； 器物

参考例句：

• Formerly most of our household utensils were made of brass. 以前我们家庭用的器皿多数是用黄铜做的。
• Some utensils were in a state of decay when they were unearthed. 有些器皿在出土时已经残破。

18 puddle   

n.(雨)水坑，泥潭

参考例句：

• The boy hopped the mud puddle and ran down the walk.这个男孩跳过泥坑，沿着人行道跑了。
• She tripped over and landed in a puddle.她绊了一下，跌在水坑里。