In pursuance of the arrangements which Mr. Blarden had, on the evening before, announced to his intended victim, Gordon Chancey was despatched early the next morning to engage the services of a clergyman for the occasion. He knew pretty well how to choose his man, and for the most part, when a plot was to be executed, in theatrical1 phrase, cast the parts well. He proceeded leisurely2 to the city, and sauntering through the streets, found himself at length in Saint Patrick's Close; beneath the shadow of the old Cathedral he turned down a narrow and deserted3 lane and stopped before a dingy4, miserable5 little shop, over whose doorway6 hung a panel with the dusky and faded similitude of two great keys crossed, now scarcely discernible through the ancient dust and soot7. The shop itself was a chaotic8 depository of old locks, holdfasts, chisels9, crowbars, and in short, of rusty10 iron in almost every conceivable shape. Chancey entered this dusky shop, and accosting11 a very grimed and rusty-looking little boy who was, with a file, industriously12 employed in converting a kitchen candlestick into a cannon13, inquired,—
"I say, my good boy, does the Reverend Doctor Ebenezer Shycock stop here yet?"
"Aye, does he," said the youth, inspecting the visitor with a broad and leisurely stare, while he wiped his forehead with his shirt sleeve.
"Up the stairs, is it?" demanded Chancey.
"Aye, the garrets," replied the boy. "And mind the hole in the top lobby," he shouted after him, as he passed through the little door in the back of the shop and began to ascend14 the narrow stairs.
He did "mind the hole in the top lobby" (a very necessary caution, by the way, as he might otherwise have been easily engulfed15 therein and broken either his neck or his leg, after descending16 through the lath and plaster, upon the floor of the landing-place underneath); and having thus safely reached the garret door, he knocked thereupon with his knuckles17.
"Come in," answered a female voice, not of the most musical quality, and Chancey accordingly entered. A dirty, sluttish woman was sitting by the window, knitting, and as it seemed, she was the only inmate18 of the room.
"Is the Reverend Ebenezer at home, my dear?" inquired the barrister.
"He is, and he isn't," rejoined the female, oracularly.
"How's that, my good girl?" inquired Chancey.
"He's in the house, but he's not good for much," answered she.
"Has he been throwing up the little finger, my dear?" said Chancey, "he used to be rayther partial to brandy."
"Brandy—brandy—who says brandy?" exclaimed a voice briskly from behind a sheet which hung upon a string so as to screen off one corner of the chamber19.
"Ay, ay, that's the word that'll waken you," said the woman. "Here's a gentleman wants to speak with you."
"The devil there is!" exclaimed the clerical worthy20, abruptly21, while with a sudden chuck he dislodged the sheet which had veiled his presence, and disclosed, by so doing, the form of a stout22, short, bull-necked man, with a mulberry-coloured face and twinkling grey eyes—one of them in deep mourning. He wore a greasy23 red night-cap and a very tattered24 and sad-coloured shirt, and was sitting upright in a miserable bed, the covering of which appeared to be a piece of ancient carpet. With one hand he scratched his head, while in the other he held the sheet which he had just pulled down.
"How are you, Parson Shycock?" said Chancey; "how do you find yourself this morning, doctor?"
"Tolerably well. But what is it you want with me? out with it, spooney. Any job in my line, eh?" inquired the clergyman.
"Yes, indeed, doctor," replied Chancey, "and a very good job; you're wanted to marry a gentleman and a lady privately26, not a mile and a half out of town, this evening; you'll get five guineas for the job, and I think that's no trifle."
"Well," said he, "you must do a little job for me first. You can't be ignorant that we members of the Church militant28 are often hard up; and whenever I'm in a fix I pop wig29, breeches, and gown, and take to my bed; you'll find the three articles in this lane, corner house—sign, three golden balls; present this docket—where the devil is it? ay, here; all right—present this along with two guineas, paid in advance on account of job: bring me the articles, and I'll get up and go along with you in a brace30 of shakes. And stay; didn't I hear some one talking of brandy? or—or was I dreaming? You may as well get in a half-pint31, for I'm never the thing till I have some little moderate refreshment32; so, dearly beloved, mizzle at once."
"Dear me, dear me, doctor," said Chancey, "how can you think I'd go for to bring two guineas along with me?"
"If you haven't the rhino33, this is no place for you, my fellow-sinner," rejoined the couple-beggar; "and if you have, off with you and deliver the togs out of pop. You wouldn't have a clergyman walk the streets without breeches, eh, dearly beloved cove25?"
"Well, well, but you're a wonderful man," rejoined Chancey, with a faint smile. "I suppose, then, I must do it; so give me the docket, and I'll be here again as soon as I can."
"And do you mind me, you stray sheep, you, don't forget the lush," added the pastor34. "I'm very desirous to wet my whistle; my mums, by the hokey, is as dry as a Dutch brick. Good-bye to you, and do you mind, be back here in the twinkling of a brace of bed-posts."
With this injunction, and bearing the crumpled35 document, which the reverend divine had given him, as his credentials36 with the pawnbroker37, Mr. Chancey cautiously lounged down the crazy stairs.
"I say, my nutty Nancy," observed the parson, after a long yawn and a stretch, addressing the female who sat at the window, "that chap's made of money. I had a pint with him once in Clarke's public—round the corner there. His name's Chancey, and he does half the bills in town—a regular Jew chap."
So saying, the Reverend Ebenezer Shycock, LL.D., unceremoniously rolled himself out of bed and hobbled to a crazy deal box, in which were deposited such articles of attire38 as had not been transmitted to the obliging proprietor39 of the neighbouring three golden balls.
While the reverend divine was kneeling before this box, and, with a tenderness suited to their frail40 condition, removing the few scanty41 articles of his wardrobe and laying them reverently42 upon a crazy stool beside him, Mr. Chancey returned, bearing the liberated43 decorations of the doctor's person, as also a small black bottle.
"Oh, dear me, doctor," said Chancey, "but I'm glad to see you're stirring. Here's the things."
"And the—the lush, eh?" inquired the clergyman, peering inquisitively44 round Chancey's side to have a peep at the bottle.
"Yes, and the lush too," said the barrister.
"Well, give me the breeches," said the doctor, with alacrity45, clutching those essential articles and proceeding46 to invest his limbs therein. "And, Nancy, a sup of water and a brace of cups."
A cracked mug and a battered47 pewter goblet48 made their appearance, and, along with the ruin of a teapot which contained the pure element, were deposited on a chair—for tables were singularly scarce in the reverend doctor's establishment.
"Now, my beloved fellow-sinner, mix like a Trojan!" exclaimed the divine; "and take care, take care, pogey aqua, don't drown it with water; chise it, chise it, man, that'll do."
With these words he grasped the vessel49, nodded to Chancey, and directing his two grey eyes with a greedy squint50 upon the liquor as it approached his lips, he quaffed51 it at a single draught52.
Without waiting for an invitation, which Chancey thought his clerical acquaintance might possibly forget, the barrister mingled53 some of the same beverage54 for his own private use, and quietly gulped55 it down; seeing which, and dreading56 Mr. Chancey's powers, which he remembered to have already seen tested at "Clarke's public," the learned divine abstractedly inverted57 the brandy bottle into his pewter goblet, and shedding upon it an almost imperceptible dew from the dilapidated teapot, he terminated the symposium58 and proceeded to finish his toilet.
This was quickly done, and Mr. Gordon Chancey and the Reverend Ebenezer Shycock—two illustrious and singularly well-matched ornaments59 of their respective professions—proceeded arm in arm, both redolent of grog, to the nearest coach stand, where they forthwith supplied themselves with a vehicle; and while Mr. Chancey pretty fully60 instructed his reverend companion in the precise nature of the service required of him, and, as far as was necessary, communicated the circumstances of the whole case, they traversed the interval61 which separated Dublin city from the manor62 of Morley Court.
点击收听单词发音
1 theatrical | |
adj.剧场的,演戏的;做戏似的,做作的 | |
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2 leisurely | |
adj.悠闲的;从容的,慢慢的 | |
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3 deserted | |
adj.荒芜的,荒废的,无人的,被遗弃的 | |
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4 dingy | |
adj.昏暗的,肮脏的 | |
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5 miserable | |
adj.悲惨的,痛苦的;可怜的,糟糕的 | |
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6 doorway | |
n.门口,(喻)入门;门路,途径 | |
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7 soot | |
n.煤烟,烟尘;vt.熏以煤烟 | |
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8 chaotic | |
adj.混沌的,一片混乱的,一团糟的 | |
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9 chisels | |
n.凿子,錾子( chisel的名词复数 );口凿 | |
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10 rusty | |
adj.生锈的;锈色的;荒废了的 | |
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11 accosting | |
v.走过去跟…讲话( accost的现在分词 );跟…搭讪;(乞丐等)上前向…乞讨;(妓女等)勾搭 | |
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12 industriously | |
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13 cannon | |
n.大炮,火炮;飞机上的机关炮 | |
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14 ascend | |
vi.渐渐上升,升高;vt.攀登,登上 | |
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15 engulfed | |
v.吞没,包住( engulf的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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16 descending | |
n. 下行 adj. 下降的 | |
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17 knuckles | |
n.(指人)指关节( knuckle的名词复数 );(指动物)膝关节,踝v.(指人)指关节( knuckle的第三人称单数 );(指动物)膝关节,踝 | |
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18 inmate | |
n.被收容者;(房屋等的)居住人;住院人 | |
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19 chamber | |
n.房间,寝室;会议厅;议院;会所 | |
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20 worthy | |
adj.(of)值得的,配得上的;有价值的 | |
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21 abruptly | |
adv.突然地,出其不意地 | |
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23 greasy | |
adj. 多脂的,油脂的 | |
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24 tattered | |
adj.破旧的,衣衫破的 | |
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25 cove | |
n.小海湾,小峡谷 | |
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26 privately | |
adv.以私人的身份,悄悄地,私下地 | |
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27 mused | |
v.沉思,冥想( muse的过去式和过去分词 );沉思自语说(某事) | |
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28 militant | |
adj.激进的,好斗的;n.激进分子,斗士 | |
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29 wig | |
n.假发 | |
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30 brace | |
n. 支柱,曲柄,大括号; v. 绷紧,顶住,(为困难或坏事)做准备 | |
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31 pint | |
n.品脱 | |
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32 refreshment | |
n.恢复,精神爽快,提神之事物;(复数)refreshments:点心,茶点 | |
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33 rhino | |
n.犀牛,钱, 现金 | |
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34 pastor | |
n.牧师,牧人 | |
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35 crumpled | |
adj. 弯扭的, 变皱的 动词crumple的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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36 credentials | |
n.证明,资格,证明书,证件 | |
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37 pawnbroker | |
n.典当商,当铺老板 | |
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38 attire | |
v.穿衣,装扮[同]array;n.衣着;盛装 | |
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39 proprietor | |
n.所有人;业主;经营者 | |
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40 frail | |
adj.身体虚弱的;易损坏的 | |
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41 scanty | |
adj.缺乏的,仅有的,节省的,狭小的,不够的 | |
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42 reverently | |
adv.虔诚地 | |
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43 liberated | |
a.无拘束的,放纵的 | |
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44 inquisitively | |
过分好奇地; 好问地 | |
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45 alacrity | |
n.敏捷,轻快,乐意 | |
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46 proceeding | |
n.行动,进行,(pl.)会议录,学报 | |
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47 battered | |
adj.磨损的;v.连续猛击;磨损 | |
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48 goblet | |
n.高脚酒杯 | |
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49 vessel | |
n.船舶;容器,器皿;管,导管,血管 | |
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50 squint | |
v. 使变斜视眼, 斜视, 眯眼看, 偏移, 窥视; n. 斜视, 斜孔小窗; adj. 斜视的, 斜的 | |
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51 quaffed | |
v.痛饮( quaff的过去式和过去分词 );畅饮;大口大口将…喝干;一饮而尽 | |
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52 draught | |
n.拉,牵引,拖;一网(饮,吸,阵);顿服药量,通风;v.起草,设计 | |
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53 mingled | |
混合,混入( mingle的过去式和过去分词 ); 混进,与…交往[联系] | |
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54 beverage | |
n.(水,酒等之外的)饮料 | |
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55 gulped | |
v.狼吞虎咽地吃,吞咽( gulp的过去式和过去分词 );大口地吸(气);哽住 | |
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56 dreading | |
v.害怕,恐惧,担心( dread的现在分词 ) | |
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57 inverted | |
adj.反向的,倒转的v.使倒置,使反转( invert的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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58 symposium | |
n.讨论会,专题报告会;专题论文集 | |
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59 ornaments | |
n.装饰( ornament的名词复数 );点缀;装饰品;首饰v.装饰,点缀,美化( ornament的第三人称单数 ) | |
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60 fully | |
adv.完全地,全部地,彻底地;充分地 | |
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61 interval | |
n.间隔,间距;幕间休息,中场休息 | |
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62 manor | |
n.庄园,领地 | |
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