DRIFTED BACK

 The stranger walked into the corner grocery with the air of one who had come back after many years to see someone who would be glad to see him. He shed his swag and stood it by the wall with great deliberation; then he rested his elbow on the counter, stroked his beard, and grinned quizzically at the shopman, who smiled back presently in a puzzled way.

 

“Good afternoon,” said the grocer.

 

“Good afternoon.”

 

Pause.

 

“Nice day,” said the grocer.

 

Pause.

 

“Anything I can do for you?”

 

“Yes; tell the old man there's a chap wants to speak to him for a minute.”

 

“Old man? What old man?”

 

“Hake, of course—old Ben Hake! Ain't he in?”

 

The grocer smiled.

 

“Hake ain't here now. I'm here.”

 

“How's that?”

 

“Why, he sold out to me ten years ago.”

 

“Well, I suppose I'll find him somewhere about town?”

 

“I don't think you will. He left Australia when he sold out. He's—he's dead now.”

 

“Dead! Old Ben Hake?”

 

“Yes. You knew him, then?”

 

The stranger seemed to have lost a great deal of his assurance¹. He turned his side to the counter, hooked² his elbow on it, and gazed out through the door along Sunset Track.

 

“You can give me half a pound of nailrod,” he said, in a quiet tone—“I s'pose young Hake is in town?”

 

“No; the whole family went away. I think there's one of the sons in business in Sydney now.”

 

“I s'pose the M'Lachlans are here yet?”

 

“No; they are not. The old people died about five years ago; the sons are in Queensland, I think; and both the girls are married and in Sydney.”

 

“Ah, well!... I see you've got the railway here now.”

 

“Oh, yes! Six years.”

 

“Times is changed a lot.”

 

“They are.”

 

“I s'pose—I s'pose you can tell me where I'll find old Jimmy Nowlett?”

 

“Jimmy Nowlett? Jimmy Nowlett? I never heard of the name. What was he?”

 

“Oh, he was a bullock-driver. Used to carry from the mountains before the railway was made.”

 

“Before my time, perhaps. There's no one of that name round here now.”

 

“Ah, well!... I don't suppose you knew the Duggans?”

 

“Yes, I did. The old man's dead, too, and the family's gone away—Lord knows where. They weren't much loss, to all accounts. The sons got into trouble, I b'lieve—went to the bad. They had a bad name here.”

 

“Did they? Well, they had good hearts—at least, old Malachi Duggan and the eldest³ son had.... You can give me a couple of pounds of sugar.”

 

“Right. I suppose it's a long time since you were here last?”

 

“Fifteen years.”

 

“Indeed!”

 

“Yes. I don't s'pose I remind you of anyone you know around here?”

 

“N—no!” said the grocer with a smile. “I can't say you do.”

 

“Ah, well! I s'pose I'll find the Wilds still living in the same place?”

 

“The Wilds? Well, no. The old man is dead, too, and—”

 

“And—and where's Jim? He ain't dead?”

 

“No; he's married and settled down in Sydney.”

 

Long pause.

 

“Can you—” said the stranger, hesitatingly; “did you—I suppose you knew Mary—Mary Wild?”

 

“Mary?” said the grocer, smilingly. “That was my wife's maiden⁴ name. Would you like to see her?”

 

“No, no! She mightn't remember me!”

 

He reached hastily⁵ for his swag, and shouldered it.

 

“Well, I must be gettin' on.”

 

“I s'pose you'll camp here over Christmas?”

 

“No; there's nothing to stop here for—I'll push on. I did intend to have a Christmas here—in fact, I came a long way out of my road a-purpose.... I meant to have just one more Christmas with old Ben Hake an' the rest of the boys—but I didn't know as they'd moved on so far west. The old bush school is dyin' out.”

 

There was a smile in his eyes, but his bearded lips twitched⁶ a little.

 

“Things is changed. The old houses is pretty much the same, an' the old signs want touchin' up and paintin' jest as had as ever; an' there's that old palin' fence that me an' Ben Hake an' Jimmy Nowlett put up twenty year ago. I've tramped and travelled long ways since then. But things is changed—at least, people is.... Well, I must be goin'. There's nothing to keep me here. I'll push on and get into my track again. It's cooler travellin' in the night.”

 

“Yes, it's been pretty hot to-day.”

 

“Yes, it has. Well, s'long.”

 

“Good day. Merry Christmas!”

 

“Eh? What? Oh, yes! Same to you! S'long!”

 

“Good day!” He drifted out and away along Sunset Track.

1 assurance   

n.把握，信心，保证，（人寿）保险

参考例句：

• The young teacher lacked assurance in front of his class.这位青年教师在学生面前缺少自信心。
• He has a life assurance.他投保了人寿保险。

2 hooked   

adj.钩状的，弯曲的

参考例句：

• I first got hooked on scuba diving when I was twelve. 12 岁时我开始迷上了带水肺潜水。
• He hooked his arm round her neck and pulled her head down. 他一只胳膊钩在她的脖子上，把她的头拉低。

3 eldest   

adj.最年长的，最年老的

参考例句：

• The King's eldest son is the heir to the throne.国王的长子是王位的继承人。
• The castle and the land are entailed on the eldest son.城堡和土地限定由长子继承。

4 maiden   

n.少女，处女；adj.未婚的，纯洁的，无经验的

参考例句：

• The prince fell in love with a fair young maiden.王子爱上了一位年轻美丽的少女。
• The aircraft makes its maiden flight tomorrow.这架飞机明天首航。

5 hastily   

ad.过于匆忙地，急急忙忙地

参考例句：

• I query very much whether it is wise to act so hastily. 我真怀疑如此操之过急地行动是否明智。
• Nothing must be done hastily but killing of fleas. 除非要捉跳蚤，做事不可匆忙。

6 twitched   

vt.& vi.（使）抽动，（使）颤动（twitch的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• Her lips twitched with amusement. 她忍俊不禁地颤动着嘴唇。
• The child's mouth twitched as if she were about to cry. 这小孩的嘴抽动着，像是要哭。 来自《简明英汉词典》