HIS COLONIAL OATH

 I lately met an old schoolmate of mine up-country. He was much changed. He was tall and lank¹, and had the most hideous² bristly red beard I ever saw. He was working on his father's farm. He shook hands, looked anywhere but in my face—and said nothing. Presently I remarked at a venture “So poor old Mr B., the schoolmaster, is dead.”

 

“My oath!” he replied.

 

“He was a good old sort.”

 

“My oath!”

 

“Time goes by pretty quick, doesn't it?”

 

His oath (colonial).

 

“Poor old Mr B. died awfully³ sudden, didn't he?”

 

He looked up the hill, and said: “My oath!”

 

Then he added: “My blooming oath!”

 

I thought, perhaps, my city rig or manner embarrassed him, so I stuck my hands in my pockets, spat⁴, and said, to set him at his ease: “It's blanky hot to-day. I don't know how you blanky blanks stand such blank weather! It's blanky well hot enough to roast a crimson⁵ carnal bullock; ain't it?” Then I took out a cake of tobacco, bit off a quarter, and pretended to chew. He replied:

 

“My oath!”

 

The conversation flagged here. But presently, to my great surprise, he came to the rescue with:

 

“He finished me, yer know.”

 

“Finished? How? Who?”

 

He looked down towards the river, thought (if he did think) and said: “Finished me edyercation, yer know.”

 

“Oh! you mean Mr B.?”

 

“My oath—he finished me first-rate.”

 

“He turned out a good many scholars, didn't he?”

 

“My oath! I'm thinkin' about going down to the trainin' school.”'

 

“You ought to—I would if I were you.”

 

“My oath!”

 

“Those were good old times,” I hazarded, “you remember the old bark school?”

 

He looked away across the sidling, and was evidently getting uneasy. He shifted about, and said:

 

“Well, I must be goin'.”

 

“I suppose you're pretty busy now?”

 

“My oath! So long.”

 

“Well, good-bye. We must have a yarn⁶ some day.”

 

“My oath!”

 

He got away as quickly as he could.

 

I wonder whether he was changed after all—or, was it I? A man does seem to get out of touch with the bush after living in cities for eight or ten years.

 

 

1 lank   

adj.瘦削的；稀疏的

参考例句：

• He rose to lank height and grasped Billy McMahan's hand.他瘦削的身躯站了起来，紧紧地握住比利·麦默恩的手。
• The old man has lank hair.那位老人头发稀疏

2 hideous   

adj.丑陋的，可憎的，可怕的，恐怖的

参考例句：

• The whole experience had been like some hideous nightmare.整个经历就像一场可怕的噩梦。
• They're not like dogs,they're hideous brutes.它们不像狗，是丑陋的畜牲。

3 awfully   

adv.可怕地，非常地，极端地

参考例句：

• Agriculture was awfully neglected in the past.过去农业遭到严重忽视。
• I've been feeling awfully bad about it.对这我一直感到很难受。

4 spat   

n.口角，掌击；v.发出呼噜呼噜声

参考例句：

• Her parents always have spats.她的父母经常有些小的口角。
• There is only a spat between the brother and sister.那只是兄妹间的小吵小闹。

5 crimson   

n./adj.深(绯)红色(的)；vi.脸变绯红色

参考例句：

• She went crimson with embarrassment.她羞得满脸通红。
• Maple leaves have turned crimson.枫叶已经红了。

6 yarn   

n.纱，纱线，纺线；奇闻漫谈，旅行轶事

参考例句：

• I stopped to have a yarn with him.我停下来跟他聊天。
• The basic structural unit of yarn is the fiber.纤维是纱的基本结构单元。