Chapter 15 Important Disclosures

 QUIN.--Is all our company here? -- MID-SUMMER'S NIGHT DREAM. CHAPTER XV. IMPORTANT DISCLOSURES

 

    A Picture--The Lawyer's Note--Mr. Hardwill once more--The Scene at the Law Office--Mr. Flint Hors du Combat--Face to Face. 

 

"Mortimer!" That was all Daisy said. The candles were lighted, the dim, sad twilight¹ driven out of the room, and a happy trio sat around the supper table. Mrs. Snarle smoothed her silk apron² complacently³; Daisy's eyes and smiles were full of silent happiness; and Mortimer, in watching the variations of her face, all so charming, forgot the misfortunes which had so recently threatened him. Daisy gave Mortimer an account of the unknown's strange visit; and, inexplicable⁴ to himself, Mortimer connected it in some way with his unexpected release. Soon after Mrs. Snarle had retired⁵, the lovers sat in the little room, which was only lighted by a pleasant fire in the grate. Wavering fingers of flame drew grotesque⁶ pictures on the papered walls; then a thin puff⁷ of smoke would break the enchantment⁸, and the fire-light tracery fled into the shadows of the room. It was a delicate picture. Mortimer was sitting at Daisy's feet, playing with the fingers of a very diminutive⁹ and dainty hand; Daisy was bending over him; and as the glow from the fire came and went in their eyes, one could see that a long brown tress of Daisy's hair rested on Mortimer's. What if their lips touched? "O!" cried Daisy, drawing back, "a note was left here this afternoon, while you were in----" "The Tombs," finished Mortimer, smiling. "Yes," replied Daisy. "I was afraid to open it, though." "Were you?" "Yes," she said, laughing. "I thought it might be from that charming young lady whom you assisted to cross Broadway last month; and of whom you speak so pleasantly when I am the least bit out of humor." And the girl looked at him quizzically with her impudent¹⁰ eyes. Mortimer, by kneeling close to the fire, was enabled to read the note. "That is strange--read it, Daisy." Daisy read:

 

    "SIR,--By calling at my office, No. ---- Wall-street, to-morrow, at 4 P. M., you will learn something of importance. It is necessary that Mrs. Snarle and her daughter should accompany you. "Respectfully, "J. C. BURBANK, "Attorney at Law."

 

About the same hour that evening, Mr. Flint received a communication of similar import, after reading which, he said: "Hum!" and thrust the note into his vest-pocket. Hum, indeed, Mr. Flint. There was something in store for you. The next morning Mortimer bethought himself of his "Romance," and directed his steps toward the sanctum of Mr. Hardwill. He found that gentleman talking with three new geniuses in pantelets, who were attempting to convince the great Pub of his mistake in refusing to "bring out" a pregnant-looking manuscript which the authoress was holding in her hand with a tenderness that was touching¹¹ to behold¹². When they had retired, Mr. Hardwill extended his hand to Mortimer. "Sharp young man," he said, displaying his white teeth. "You didn't wish to appear anxious about your book; I was on the point of sending for you. You were to have called on me three days since. Well, sir, I like the story." Mortimer bowed. "Did you read it all, sir?" "I? Not a line of it," returned Mr. Hardwill. "I never look at anything but the size of the manuscript." "Then you buy by the weight," said Mortimer, smiling. "Not precisely¹³. I never publish anything of less than four hundred pages. As to weight, I sometimes find a MS. of the right size altogether too heavy; but yours is not, my reader says." "Your reader, sir?" "Yes, I am a mere¹⁴ business man," quoth Mr. Hardwill, explanatorily. "I seldom read my publications. I merely sell them--sometimes I don't do that. I have a reader who looks over sizeable MSS., and I abide¹⁵ by his judgment¹⁶." "Ah!" "He is a man of fine scholarship and literary attainments¹⁷." Mr. Hardwill might have added--"and has the sway of 'The Morning Rabid' and 'The Evening Twilight,'" but he did not. Arrangements were made to publish "Goldwood," with the euphonious¹⁸ and "striking title" of "Picklebeet Papers." Now, whether "Picklebeet" was a vegetable in vinegar, or the name of some charming country-place, I cannot say; but "Picklebeet," whatever it was, had as much to do with the contents of the book as the biography of my reader's grandmother. On what terms the "Picklebeet Papers" were published, concern neither the reader nor myself; but, while remarking, en passant, that the book, owing to some extraordinary freak on the part of the public, never went to a "second edition," we will fix the hands of the city clock to suit ourselves. It is 4 P. M. Without further preamble¹⁹, we will lead the reader (mine, not Mr. Hardwill's) to Mr. Burbank's law office, at which place the threads of our story become somewhat disentangled. We are not sorry at this, (we doubt if the reader is,) for there is a satisfaction in rounding off a plot--in coming to the last page, where the author can write "FINIS"--which no one but a scribbler may know. But this pleasure is not a little touched with regret, as he sweeps the carefully-moved images from the chess-board of his brain, and tells you in those five letters that the game is finished. The personages in the law office are not strangers to us, if we except the lawyer. Mrs. Snarle and Daisy, with their veils down, are sitting in the back part of the room, and Mortimer stands behind them, speaking in a low voice to Daisy. Edward Walters is seated at a desk, the screen around which prevents him from being observed by the first-described group. Mr. Burbank, a dark-eyed, large-mouthed man, occupies a table in the centre of the apartment, near which is a chair for Mr. Flint, who has not yet made his appearance. This was the position of the parties on Mr. Flint's entrance. The merchant gave the lawyer three bony fingers, bestowed²⁰ a stiff, surprised bow on Mortimer, and glanced suspiciously around him, evidently not liking²¹ the company he was in. Mr. Flint glanced inquiringly at the lawyer. "As all the parties concerned in this meeting are present," commenced the devotee of Blackstone, "I will at once proceed to business. You are too much of a business man, Mr. Flint, to require a prelude²² to interrogations which will explain themselves." Mr. Flint looked very doubtful. The lawyer ran his fingers through a crop of shaggy hair with professional dignity. "It is something over twenty years since your brother, Henry Flint, died, is it not?" The merchant nodded. "He left no heirs--I believe," continued the lawyer, with a delightful²³ appearance of hesitation²⁴. "He left one child," said Flint, nervously²⁵. Mr. Flint did not like the turn which the conversation was taking. "Ah, yes! A daughter, if I remember correctly. Let me see, Maude Flint was the name." (This slight dialogue caused Daisy's breath to come and go quickly.) "Maude Flint!" she whispered hastily to Mortimer. "Listen! M. F.,--the initials in the necklace!" "I drew up the will at the time," said Mr. Burbank, thoughtfully; "but my memory has been tasked with more important things." He turned abruptly²⁶ to Mr. Flint. "What became of this child--Maude?" "Died," returned Flint, briefly²⁷, with an uncomfortable air. "And the property----?" "Came to me--the child having no other relative," said Flint, rallying. The lawyer was silent for a moment. "Now, Mr. Flint, suppose I should tell you that your brother's child is still living, what would you say?" "I should say, sir," cried the startled merchant, springing to his feet, "I should say, sir, that it was a lie! I see through it all. This is a miserable²⁸ conspiracy²⁹ to force money from me. Your plot, sir, is transparent³⁰, and I see that snaky individual crawling at the bottom of it." He pointed³¹ at Mortimer. "But it won't do!" he thundered, "it won't do!" "Of course it won't for you to get in a passion. The man who gets into a passion," continued Mr. Burbank, philosophically³², "never acts with judgment. And what is the use, Mr. Flint? I am acquainted with all the circumstances of the child's disappearance³³; indeed, I have a full account of them in your own handwriting." Mr. Flint turned white. "This letter, which I shall give you by and by," said the man of law, "divulges³⁴ a plot of villainy which heaven happily thought fit to prostrate³⁵; and I'll prove the truth of what I say." And the lawyer motioned for Daisy to approach him. She did so, mechanically. "This lady," said Mr. Burbank, smiling blandly³⁶, "is my first witness. Will you raise your veil?" Daisy complied with the request, and looked Mr. Flint in the face. Flint turned his eyes on her with such earnestness that she shrunk back. Then he staggered to a chair, and exclaimed involuntarily: "So help me God, it is Henry's child!" Edward Walters rested his hands on the desk, and looked over the baize screen. Mortimer stepped to Daisy's side. "This necklace," he said, in a trembling voice, "I return to the owner. It was my misfortune to take it by mistake, and it is happiness to return it to one who does not require any proof of my innocence³⁷." Daisy pressed his hand. "Let me go!" exclaimed Mr. Flint. "Presently, Mr. Flint. You must first witness the denouement³⁸ of our little drama." With this the lawyer turned to Mortimer, and handed him a paper. "What this fails to explain relative to your father, you must seek from his own lips." "My father!--his lips!"--repeated Mortimer, bewildered. He opened the paper. "My father! where is he?" "Mortimer!" cried Walters, pushing aside the screen. And they stood face to face. 

1 twilight   

n.暮光，黄昏；暮年，晚期，衰落时期

参考例句：

• Twilight merged into darkness.夕阳的光辉融于黑暗中。
• Twilight was sweet with the smell of lilac and freshly turned earth.薄暮充满紫丁香和新翻耕的泥土的香味。

2 apron   

n.围裙；工作裙

参考例句：

• We were waited on by a pretty girl in a pink apron.招待我们的是一位穿粉红色围裙的漂亮姑娘。
• She stitched a pocket on the new apron.她在新围裙上缝上一只口袋。

3 complacently   

adv. 满足地, 自满地, 沾沾自喜地

参考例句：

• He complacently lived out his life as a village school teacher. 他满足于一个乡村教师的生活。
• "That was just something for evening wear," returned his wife complacently. “那套衣服是晚装，"他妻子心安理得地说道。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

4 inexplicable   

adj.无法解释的，难理解的

参考例句：

• It is now inexplicable how that development was misinterpreted.当时对这一事态发展的错误理解究竟是怎么产生的，现在已经无法说清楚了。
• There are many things which are inexplicable by science.有很多事科学还无法解释。

5 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

6 grotesque   

adj.怪诞的，丑陋的；n.怪诞的图案，怪人（物）

参考例句：

• His face has a grotesque appearance.他的面部表情十分怪。
• Her account of the incident was a grotesque distortion of the truth.她对这件事的陈述是荒诞地歪曲了事实。

7 puff   

n.一口(气)；一阵(风)；v.喷气，喘气

参考例句：

• He took a puff at his cigarette.他吸了一口香烟。
• They tried their best to puff the book they published.他们尽力吹捧他们出版的书。

8 enchantment   

n.迷惑，妖术，魅力

参考例句：

• The beauty of the scene filled us with enchantment.风景的秀丽令我们陶醉。
• The countryside lay as under some dread enchantment.乡村好像躺在某种可怖的魔法之下。

9 diminutive   

adj.小巧可爱的，小的

参考例句：

• Despite its diminutive size,the car is quite comfortable.尽管这辆车很小，但相当舒服。
• She has diminutive hands for an adult.作为一个成年人，她的手显得非常小。

10 impudent   

adj.鲁莽的，卑鄙的，厚颜无耻的

参考例句：

• She's tolerant toward those impudent colleagues.她对那些无礼的同事采取容忍的态度。
• The teacher threatened to kick the impudent pupil out of the room.老师威胁着要把这无礼的小学生撵出教室。

11 touching   

adj.动人的，使人感伤的

参考例句：

• It was a touching sight.这是一幅动人的景象。
• His letter was touching.他的信很感人。

12 behold   

v.看，注视，看到

参考例句：

• The industry of these little ants is wonderful to behold.这些小蚂蚁辛勤劳动的样子看上去真令人惊叹。
• The sunrise at the seaside was quite a sight to behold.海滨日出真是个奇景。

13 precisely   

adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地

参考例句：

• It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
• The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。

14 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

15 abide   

vi.遵守；坚持；vt.忍受

参考例句：

• You must abide by the results of your mistakes.你必须承担你的错误所造成的后果。
• If you join the club,you have to abide by its rules.如果你参加俱乐部，你就得遵守它的规章。

16 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

17 attainments   

成就，造诣； 获得( attainment的名词复数 )； 达到； 造诣； 成就

参考例句：

• a young woman of impressive educational attainments 一位学业成就斐然的年轻女子
• He is a scholar of the highest attainments in this field. 他在这一领域是一位颇有造就的学者。

18 euphonious   

adj.好听的，悦耳的，和谐的

参考例句：

• He was enchanted with the euphonious music.他陶醉在那悦耳的音乐中。
• The euphonious sound of Carrie's cello playing always puts me at ease.嘉莉悦耳的大提琴演奏总让我心旷神怡。

19 preamble   

n.前言；序文

参考例句：

• He spoke without preamble.他没有开场白地讲起来。
• The controversy has arisen over the text of the preamble to the unification treaty.针对统一条约的序文出现了争论。

20 bestowed   

赠给，授予( bestow的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• It was a title bestowed upon him by the king. 那是国王赐给他的头衔。
• He considered himself unworthy of the honour they had bestowed on him. 他认为自己不配得到大家赋予他的荣誉。

21 liking   

n.爱好；嗜好；喜欢

参考例句：

• The word palate also means taste or liking.Palate这个词也有“口味”或“嗜好”的意思。
• I must admit I have no liking for exaggeration.我必须承认我不喜欢夸大其词。

22 prelude   

n.序言，前兆，序曲

参考例句：

• The prelude to the musical composition is very long.这首乐曲的序曲很长。
• The German invasion of Poland was a prelude to World War II.德国入侵波兰是第二次世界大战的序幕。

23 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。

24 hesitation   

n.犹豫，踌躇

参考例句：

• After a long hesitation, he told the truth at last.踌躇了半天，他终于直说了。
• There was a certain hesitation in her manner.她的态度有些犹豫不决。

25 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。

26 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。

27 briefly   

adv.简单地，简短地

参考例句：

• I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
• He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。

28 miserable   

adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的

参考例句：

• It was miserable of you to make fun of him.你取笑他，这是可耻的。
• Her past life was miserable.她过去的生活很苦。

29 conspiracy   

n.阴谋，密谋，共谋

参考例句：

• The men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder.这些人被裁决犯有阴谋杀人罪。
• He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him.他声称这一切都是一场针对他的阴谋。

30 transparent   

adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的

参考例句：

• The water is so transparent that we can see the fishes swimming.水清澈透明，可以看到鱼儿游来游去。
• The window glass is transparent.窗玻璃是透明的。

31 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

32 philosophically   

adv.哲学上；富有哲理性地；贤明地；冷静地

参考例句：

• He added philosophically that one should adapt oneself to the changed conditions. 他富于哲理地补充说，一个人应该适应变化了的情况。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Harry took his rejection philosophically. 哈里达观地看待自己被拒的事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

33 disappearance   

n.消失，消散，失踪

参考例句：

• He was hard put to it to explain her disappearance.他难以说明她为什么不见了。
• Her disappearance gave rise to the wildest rumours.她失踪一事引起了各种流言蜚语。

34 divulges   

v.吐露，泄露( divulge的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Teri divulges to Alan York that she and Jack had been separated. 泰瑞向阿伦透露，她和杰克曾经分居过。 来自互联网
• Pertinent information source divulges this system be on original telephone call to pay the function. 相关消息来源透露该系统将基于原有的电话支付宝功能。 来自互联网

35 prostrate   

v.拜倒，平卧，衰竭；adj.拜倒的，平卧的，衰竭的

参考例句：

• She was prostrate on the floor.她俯卧在地板上。
• The Yankees had the South prostrate and they intended to keep It'so.北方佬已经使南方屈服了,他们还打算继续下去。

36 blandly   

adv.温和地，殷勤地

参考例句：

• There is a class of men in Bristol monstrously prejudiced against Blandly. 布里斯托尔有那么一帮人为此恨透了布兰德利。 来自英汉文学 - 金银岛
• \"Maybe you could get something in the stage line?\" he blandly suggested. “也许你能在戏剧这一行里找些事做，\"他和蔼地提议道。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

37 innocence   

n.无罪；天真；无害

参考例句：

• There was a touching air of innocence about the boy.这个男孩有一种令人感动的天真神情。
• The accused man proved his innocence of the crime.被告人经证实无罪。

38 denouement   

n.结尾，结局

参考例句：

• The book's sentimental denouement is pure Hollywood.该书的煽情结局纯粹是好莱坞式的。
• In a surprising denouement,she becomes a nun.结局出人意表，她当修女了。