From New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine had come a strange company, earnest, patient, determined9, unschooled in even the primer of refinement10, hungry for something the significance of which, when they had it, they could not even guess, anxious to be called great, determined so to be without ever knowing how. Here came the dreamy gentleman of the South, robbed of his patrimony11; the hopeful student of Yale and Harvard and Princeton; the enfranchised12 miner of California and the Rockies, his bags of gold and silver in his hands. Here was already the bewildered foreigner, an alien speech confounding him—the Hun, the Pole, the Swede, the German, the Russian—seeking his homely13 colonies, fearing his neighbor of another race.
Here was the negro, the prostitute, the blackleg, the gambler, the romantic adventurer par14 excellence15. A city with but a handful of the native-born; a city packed to the doors with all the riffraff of a thousand towns. Flaring16 were the lights of the bagnio; tinkling17 the banjos, zithers, mandolins of the so-called gin-mill; all the dreams and the brutality18 of the day seemed gathered to rejoice (and rejoice they did) in this new-found wonder of a metropolitan19 life in the West.
The first prominent Chicagoan whom Cowperwood sought out was the president of the Lake City National Bank, the largest financial organization in the city, with deposits of over fourteen million dollars. It was located in Dearborn Street, at Munroe, but a block or two from his hotel.
“Find out who that man is,” ordered Mr. Judah Addison, the president of the bank, on seeing him enter the president’s private waiting-room.
Mr. Addison’s office was so arranged with glass windows that he could, by craning his neck, see all who entered his reception-room before they saw him, and he had been struck by Cowperwood’s face and force. Long familiarity with the banking20 world and with great affairs generally had given a rich finish to the ease and force which the latter naturally possessed21. He looked strangely replete22 for a man of thirty-six—suave, steady, incisive23, with eyes as fine as those of a Newfoundland or a Collie and as innocent and winsome24. They were wonderful eyes, soft and spring-like at times, glowing with a rich, human understanding which on the instant could harden and flash lightning. Deceptive25 eyes, unreadable, but alluring26 alike to men and to women in all walks and conditions of life.
The secretary addressed came back with Cowperwood’s letter of introduction, and immediately Cowperwood followed.
Mr. Addison instinctively27 arose—a thing he did not always do. “I’m pleased to meet you, Mr. Cowperwood,” he said, politely. “I saw you come in just now. You see how I keep my windows here, so as to spy out the country. Sit down. You wouldn’t like an apple, would you?” He opened a left-hand drawer, producing several polished red winesaps, one of which he held out. “I always eat one about this time in the morning.”
“Thank you, no,” replied Cowperwood, pleasantly, estimating as he did so his host’s temperament28 and mental caliber29. “I never eat between meals, but I appreciate your kindness. I am just passing through Chicago, and I thought I would present this letter now rather than later. I thought you might tell me a little about the city from an investment point of view.”
As Cowperwood talked, Addison, a short, heavy, rubicund30 man with grayish-brown sideburns extending to his ear-lobes and hard, bright, twinkling gray eyes—a proud, happy, self-sufficient man—munched his apple and contemplated31 Cowperwood. As is so often the case in life, he frequently liked or disliked people on sight, and he prided himself on his judgment32 of men. Almost foolishly, for one so conservative, he was taken with Cowperwood—a man immensely his superior—not because of the Drexel letter, which spoke33 of the latter’s “undoubted financial genius” and the advantage it would be to Chicago to have him settle there, but because of the swimming wonder of his eyes. Cowperwood’s personality, while maintaining an unbroken outward reserve, breathed a tremendous humanness which touched his fellow-banker. Both men were in their way walking enigmas34, the Philadelphian far the subtler of the two. Addison was ostensibly a church-member, a model citizen; he represented a point of view to which Cowperwood would never have stooped. Both men were ruthless after their fashion, avid35 of a physical life; but Addison was the weaker in that he was still afraid—very much afraid—of what life might do to him. The man before him had no sense of fear. Addison contributed judiciously36 to charity, subscribed37 outwardly to a dull social routine, pretended to love his wife, of whom he was weary, and took his human pleasure secretly. The man before him subscribed to nothing, refused to talk save to intimates, whom he controlled spiritually, and did as he pleased.
“Why, I’ll tell you, Mr. Cowperwood,” Addison replied. “We people out here in Chicago think so well of ourselves that sometimes we’re afraid to say all we think for fear of appearing a little extravagant38. We’re like the youngest son in the family that knows he can lick all the others, but doesn’t want to do it—not just yet. We’re not as handsome as we might be—did you ever see a growing boy that was?—but we’re absolutely sure that we’re going to be. Our pants and shoes and coat and hat get too small for us every six months, and so we don’t look very fashionable, but there are big, strong, hard muscles and bones underneath39, Mr. Cowperwood, as you’ll discover when you get to looking around. Then you won’t mind the clothes so much.”
Mr. Addison’s round, frank eyes narrowed and hardened for a moment. A kind of metallic40 hardness came into his voice. Cowperwood could see that he was honestly enamoured of his adopted city. Chicago was his most beloved mistress. A moment later the flesh about his eyes crinkled, his mouth softened41, and he smiled. “I’ll be glad to tell you anything I can,” he went on. “There are a lot of interesting things to tell.”
Cowperwood beamed back on him encouragingly. He inquired after the condition of one industry and another, one trade or profession and another. This was somewhat different from the atmosphere which prevailed in Philadelphia—more breezy and generous. The tendency to expatiate42 and make much of local advantages was Western. He liked it, however, as one aspect of life, whether he chose to share in it or not. It was favorable to his own future. He had a prison record to live down; a wife and two children to get rid of—in the legal sense, at least (he had no desire to rid himself of financial obligation toward them). It would take some such loose, enthusiastic Western attitude to forgive in him the strength and freedom with which he ignored and refused to accept for himself current convention. I satisfy myself was his private law, but so to do he must assuage43 and control the prejudices of other men. He felt that this banker, while not putty in his hands, was inclined to a strong and useful friendship.
“My impressions of the city are entirely44 favorable, Mr. Addison,” he said, after a time, though he inwardly admitted to himself that this was not entirely true; he was not sure whether he could bring himself ultimately to live in so excavated45 and scaffolded a world as this or not. “I only saw a portion of it coming in on the train. I like the snap of things. I believe Chicago has a future.”
“You came over the Fort Wayne, I presume,” replied Addison, loftily. “You saw the worst section. You must let me show you some of the best parts. By the way, where are you staying?”
“At the Grand Pacific.”
“How long will you be here?”
“Not more than a day or two.”
“Let me see,” and Mr. Addison drew out his watch. “I suppose you wouldn’t mind meeting a few of our leading men—and we have a little luncheon46-room over at the union League Club where we drop in now and then. If you’d care to do so, I’d like to have you come along with me at one. We’re sure to find a few of them—some of our lawyers, business men, and judges.”
“That will be fine,” said the Philadelphian, simply. “You’re more than generous. There are one or two other people I want to meet in between, and”—he arose and looked at his own watch—“I’ll find the union Club. Where is the office of Arneel & Co.?”
At the mention of the great beef-packer, who was one of the bank’s heaviest depositors, Addison stirred slightly with approval. This young man, at least eight years his junior, looked to him like a future grand seigneur of finance.
At the union Club, at this noontime luncheon, after talking with the portly, conservative, aggressive Arneel and the shrewd director of the stock-exchange, Cowperwood met a varied47 company of men ranging in age from thirty-five to sixty-five gathered about the board in a private dining-room of heavily carved black walnut48, with pictures of elder citizens of Chicago on the walls and an attempt at artistry in stained glass in the windows. There were short and long men, lean and stout49, dark and blond men, with eyes and jaws50 which varied from those of the tiger, lynx, and bear to those of the fox, the tolerant mastiff, and the surly bulldog. There were no weaklings in this selected company.
Mr. Arneel and Mr. Addison Cowperwood approved of highly as shrewd, concentrated men. Another who interested him was Anson Merrill, a small, polite, recherche51 soul, suggesting mansions52 and footmen and remote luxury generally, who was pointed53 out by Addison as the famous dry-goods prince of that name, quite the leading merchant, in the retail54 and wholesale55 sense, in Chicago.
Still another was a Mr. Rambaud, pioneer railroad man, to whom Addison, smiling jocosely56, observed: “Mr. Cowperwood is on from Philadelphia, Mr. Rambaud, trying to find out whether he wants to lose any money out here. Can’t you sell him some of that bad land you have up in the Northwest?”
Rambaud—a spare, pale, black-bearded man of much force and exactness, dressed, as Cowperwood observed, in much better taste than some of the others—looked at Cowperwood shrewdly but in a gentlemanly, retiring way, with a gracious, enigmatic smile. He caught a glance in return which he could not possibly forget. The eyes of Cowperwood said more than any words ever could. Instead of jesting faintly Mr. Rambaud decided57 to explain some things about the Northwest. Perhaps this Philadelphian might be interested.
To a man who has gone through a great life struggle in one metropolis58 and tested all the phases of human duplicity, decency59, sympathy, and chicanery60 in the controlling group of men that one invariably finds in every American city at least, the temperament and significance of another group in another city is not so much, and yet it is. Long since Cowperwood had parted company with the idea that humanity at any angle or under any circumstances, climatic or otherwise, is in any way different. To him the most noteworthy characteristic of the human race was that it was strangely chemic, being anything or nothing, as the hour and the condition afforded. In his leisure moments—those free from practical calculation, which were not many—he often speculated as to what life really was. If he had not been a great financier and, above all, a marvelous organizer he might have become a highly individualistic philosopher—a calling which, if he had thought anything about it at all at this time, would have seemed rather trivial. His business as he saw it was with the material facts of life, or, rather, with those third and fourth degree theorems and syllogisms which control material things and so represent wealth. He was here to deal with the great general needs of the Middle West—to seize upon, if he might, certain well-springs of wealth and power and rise to recognized authority. In his morning talks he had learned of the extent and character of the stock-yards’ enterprises, of the great railroad and ship interests, of the tremendous rising importance of real estate, grain speculation61, the hotel business, the hardware business. He had learned of universal manufacturing companies—one that made cars, another elevators, another binders62, another windmills, another engines. Apparently63, any new industry seemed to do well in Chicago. In his talk with the one director of the Board of Trade to whom he had a letter he had learned that few, if any, local stocks were dealt in on ’change. Wheat, corn, and grains of all kinds were principally speculated in. The big stocks of the East were gambled in by way of leased wires on the New York Stock Exchange—not otherwise.
As he looked at these men, all pleasantly civil, all general in their remarks, each safely keeping his vast plans under his vest, Cowperwood wondered how he would fare in this community. There were such difficult things ahead of him to do. No one of these men, all of whom were in their commercial-social way agreeable, knew that he had only recently been in the penitentiary64. How much difference would that make in their attitude? No one of them knew that, although he was married and had two children, he was planning to divorce his wife and marry the girl who had appropriated to herself the role which his wife had once played.
“Are you seriously contemplating65 looking into the Northwest?” asked Mr. Rambaud, interestedly, toward the close of the luncheon.
“That is my present plan after I finish here. I thought I’d take a short run up there.”
“Let me put you in touch with an interesting party that is going as far as Fargo and Duluth. There is a private car leaving Thursday, most of them citizens of Chicago, but some Easterners. I would be glad to have you join us. I am going as far as Minneapolis.”
Cowperwood thanked him and accepted. A long conversation followed about the Northwest, its timber, wheat, land sales, cattle, and possible manufacturing plants.
What Fargo, Minneapolis, and Duluth were to be civically66 and financially were the chief topics of conversation. Naturally, Mr. Rambaud, having under his direction vast railroad lines which penetrated67 this region, was confident of the future of it. Cowperwood gathered it all, almost by instinct. Gas, street-railways, land speculations68, banks, wherever located, were his chief thoughts.
Finally he left the club to keep his other appointments, but something of his personality remained behind him. Mr. Addison and Mr. Rambaud, among others, were sincerely convinced that he was one of the most interesting men they had met in years. And he scarcely had said anything at all—just listened.
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1
laurels
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| n.桂冠，荣誉 | |
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2
shimmering
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| v.闪闪发光，发微光( shimmer的现在分词 ) | |
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3
shreds
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| v.撕碎，切碎( shred的第三人称单数 )；用撕毁机撕毁（文件） | |
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4
yokel
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| n.乡下人；农夫 | |
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epic
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| n.史诗，叙事诗；adj.史诗般的，壮丽的 | |
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6
bard
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| n.吟游诗人 | |
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mire
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| n.泥沼，泥泞；v.使...陷于泥泞，使...陷入困境 | |
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8
gaping
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| adj.口的；张口的；敞口的；多洞穴的v.目瞪口呆地凝视( gape的现在分词 )；张开，张大 | |
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9
determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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10
refinement
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| n.文雅；高尚；精美；精制；精炼 | |
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11
patrimony
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| n.世袭财产，继承物 | |
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12
enfranchised
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| v.给予选举权( enfranchise的过去式和过去分词 )；（从奴隶制中）解放 | |
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13
homely
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| adj.家常的，简朴的；不漂亮的 | |
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14
par
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| n.标准，票面价值，平均数量；adj.票面的，平常的，标准的 | |
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15
excellence
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| n.优秀，杰出，(pl.)优点，美德 | |
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16
flaring
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| a.火焰摇曳的，过份艳丽的 | |
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17
tinkling
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| n.丁当作响声 | |
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18
brutality
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| n.野蛮的行为，残忍，野蛮 | |
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19
metropolitan
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| adj.大城市的，大都会的 | |
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banking
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| n.银行业，银行学，金融业 | |
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21
possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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22
replete
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| adj.饱满的，塞满的；n.贮蜜蚁 | |
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23
incisive
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| adj.敏锐的，机敏的，锋利的，切入的 | |
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24
winsome
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| n.迷人的，漂亮的 | |
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25
deceptive
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| adj.骗人的，造成假象的，靠不住的 | |
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26
alluring
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| adj.吸引人的，迷人的 | |
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27
instinctively
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| adv.本能地 | |
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28
temperament
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| n.气质，性格，性情 | |
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29
caliber
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| n.能力；水准 | |
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30
rubicund
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| adj.(脸色)红润的 | |
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31
contemplated
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| adj. 预期的 动词contemplate的过去分词形式 | |
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32
judgment
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| n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见 | |
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33
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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34
enigmas
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| n.难于理解的问题、人、物、情况等，奥秘( enigma的名词复数 ) | |
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35
avid
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| adj.热心的；贪婪的；渴望的；劲头十足的 | |
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36
judiciously
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| adv.明断地，明智而审慎地 | |
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37
subscribed
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| v.捐助( subscribe的过去式和过去分词 )；签署，题词；订阅；同意 | |
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38
extravagant
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| adj.奢侈的；过分的；(言行等)放肆的 | |
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39
underneath
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| adj.在...下面，在...底下；adv.在下面 | |
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40
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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41
softened
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| （使）变软( soften的过去式和过去分词 )； 缓解打击； 缓和； 安慰 | |
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42
expatiate
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| v.细说，详述 | |
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43
assuage
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| v.缓和，减轻，镇定 | |
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44
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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45
excavated
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| v.挖掘( excavate的过去式和过去分词 )；开凿；挖出；发掘 | |
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46
luncheon
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| n.午宴，午餐，便宴 | |
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47
varied
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| adj.多样的，多变化的 | |
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48
walnut
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| n.胡桃，胡桃木，胡桃色，茶色 | |
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50
jaws
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| n.口部；嘴 | |
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51
recherche
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| adj.精选的；罕有的 | |
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52
mansions
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| n.宅第，公馆，大厦( mansion的名词复数 ) | |
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53
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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54
retail
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| v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格 | |
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55
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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56
jocosely
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| adv.说玩笑地，诙谐地 | |
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57
decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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58
metropolis
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| n.首府；大城市 | |
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59
decency
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| n.体面，得体，合宜，正派，庄重 | |
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60
chicanery
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| n.欺诈，欺骗 | |
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61
speculation
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| n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机 | |
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62
binders
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| n.（司机行话）刹车器；（书籍的）装订机( binder的名词复数 )；（购买不动产时包括预付订金在内的）保证书；割捆机；活页封面 | |
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63
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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64
penitentiary
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| n.感化院；监狱 | |
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65
contemplating
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| 深思，细想，仔细考虑( contemplate的现在分词 )； 注视，凝视； 考虑接受（发生某事的可能性）； 深思熟虑，沉思，苦思冥想 | |
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66
civically
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| 爱嘲笑地，冷笑地 | |
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67
penetrated
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| adj. 击穿的，鞭辟入里的 动词penetrate的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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68
speculations
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| n.投机买卖( speculation的名词复数 )；思考；投机活动；推断 | |
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