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CHAPTER II
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When Dorothy Fairfax came on deck again the sun was dropping fast toward the horizon. A gusty1 breeze was blowing and the steamer was pitching slightly in the short, choppy seas that characterize West Indian waters. Movement had become unpleasant to those inclined to seasickness2 and this, combined with the comparative lightness of the passenger list, caused the deck of the Queen to be nearly deserted3.
 
Dorothy was glad of it. She wanted solitude4 in order to think in peace, and there was seldom solitude for her when young men—or old men, for that matter—were near. They seemed to gravitate naturally to her side.
 
Mrs. Renfrew’s words, and especially the paragraph in the New York paper, were troubling her. She could see the[16] words now, published under a San Juan date-line:
 
“Miss Dorothy Fairfax, daughter of the multimillionaire railroader, John Fairfax, will sail next week for New York to order her trousseau for her coming marriage with Lieutenant5 Loving, U. S. N. Mr. Fairfax, who is financing the railroad here, will follow in about three weeks.”
 
That was all; the whole thing taken for granted! Evidently the writer had supposed that the engagement had been already announced, or he would either have made some inquiry6 or—supposing that he was determined7 to publish—would have “spread” himself on the subject. Miss Fairfax had been written up enough to know that her engagement would be worth at least a column to the society editors of the New York papers. Yes, she concluded, the item must have emanated8 from some chance correspondent who had picked up a stray bit of gossip.
 
She had known Mr. Loving for two years or more, and had liked him. Three[17] months before, at the close of the Howard trial, she had become convinced that he intended to ask her to marry him, and she had slipped away to join her father in Porto Rico in order to gain time to think before deciding on her answer. And here she was, returning home, no more resolved than when she had left.
 
It was odd that her ship should also bear Lieutenant Howard, of whom Mr. Loving had been so fond, standing9 by him all through his trial when everybody else fell away. She had had a glimpse of Mr. Howard once, and vaguely10 recalled him, wondering what combination of desperate circumstances could have brought a man like him to the commission of such a crime.
 
The judge, she remembered, in sentencing him to death had declared that no mercy should be shown to one who, with everything to keep him in the straight path, had deliberately11 gone wrong.
 
The soft pad of footsteps on the deck[18] roused her from her musings, and she turned to see the purser drawing near.
 
“Ah! Good evening, Miss Fairfax!” he ventured. “We missed you at tea. Feeling the motion a bit? It is a little rough, ain’t it?”
 
Miss Fairfax did not like the purser, but she found it difficult to snub any one. Therefore she answered the man pleasantly, though not with any especial enthusiasm.
 
“Why! no, Mr. Sprigg. I don’t consider this rough; I’m rather a good sailor, you know. I simply wasn’t hungry at tea-time.”
 
Mr. Sprigg came closer.
 
“By the way, Miss Fairfax,” he insinuated12. “You know Lieutenant Howard is on board. If you’d like to have a peep at him, just say the word and I’ll manage. Oh!” he added, hastily, as a slight frown marred13 Miss Fairfax’s pretty brows, “I know you must be interested in his case. He’s a friend of[19] Lieutenant Loving, and I read the notice in the paper to-day, you know.”
 
The look the girl gave him drove the smirk14 in haste from his face.
 
“The notice in the paper was entirely15 without foundation, Mr. Sprigg,” she declared, coldly. “As for seeing Mr. Howard, I’m afraid my tastes do not run in that direction. Besides, he probably would not like to be stared at. He was a gentleman once, you know.”
 
She turned impatiently away and looked eastward16. Then she uttered an exclamation17.
 
“Why! Whatever’s happened to the water?” she cried.
 
The question was not surprising. In the last hour the sea had changed. From a smiling playfellow, lightly buffeting18 the ship, it had grown cold and sullen19. The sparkles had died from the waves, giving place to a metallic20 lustre21. Long, slow undulations swelled22 out of the southeast, chasing each other sluggishly23 up in the wake of the ship.
 
[20]It did not need a sailor’s eye to tell that something was brewing24. Miss Fairfax shivered slightly and drew her light wrap closer around her.
 
“Makes you feel cold, don’t it?” asked Mr. Sprigg cheerfully. “Lord bless you, that’s nothing to the way you’ll feel before it’s over. Funny the weather bureau didn’t give us any storm warnings before we sailed.”
 
The weather bureau had, but the warnings had been thrown away, unposted, by a sapient25 native official of San Juan, who considered the efforts of the Americans to foretell26 the weather to be immoral27.
 
“Will there be any danger?”
 
“Danger? Naw! Not a bit of it. If you stay below, you won’t even know that there’s been anything doing. Even if we run into a hurricane, which ain’t likely, we’ll be just as safe as if we were ashore28. The Queen don’t need to worry about anything short of an island or a derelict.”
 
“A derelict?”
 
[21]“Sure. A ship that has been abandoned at sea for some reason or other, but that ain’t been broken up or sunk. Derelicts are real terrors, all right.”
 
“Some of ’em float high; they ain’t so bad, because you can usually see ’em in time to dodge29, and because they ain’t likely to be solid enough to do you much damage even if you do run into them. But some of ’em float low—just awash—and they’re just— Well, they’re mighty30 bad. They ain’t really ships any more; they’re solid bulks of wood.”
 
“I suppose they are all destroyed sooner or later?”
 
The little purser unconsciously struck an attitude. “A good deal later, sometimes,” he qualified31. “Derelicts have been known to float for three years in the Atlantic, and to travel for thousands of miles. Generally, however, in the North Atlantic, they either break up in a storm within a few months, or else they drift into the Sargasso Sea and stay there till they sink.”
 
[22]“The Sargasso Sea? Where is that? I suppose I used to know when I went to school, but I’ve forgotten.”
 
Mr. Sprigg waved his hand toward the east and north. “Yonder,” he generalized vaguely. “We are on the western edge of it now. See the weed floating in the water there? Farther north and east it gets thicker until it collects into a solid mass that stretches five hundred miles in every direction.
 
“Nobody knows just what it looks like in the middle, for nobody has ever been there; or, rather, nobody has ever been there and come back to tell about it. Old sailors say that there’s thousands of derelicts collected there.”
 
“The Gulf32 Stream encircles the whole ocean in a mighty whirlpool, you know, and sooner or later everything floating in the North Atlantic is caught in it. They may be carried away up to the North Pole, but they’re bound to come south again with the icebergs33 and back into the[23] main stream, and some day they get into the west-wind drift and are carried down the Canary current, until the north equatorial current catches them, and sweeps them into the sea over yonder.”
 
“For four hundred years and more—ever since Columbus—derelicts must have been gathering34 there. Millions of them must have sunk, but thousands must have been washed into the center. Once there, they must float for a long time. There are storms there, of course, but they’re only wind-storms—there can’t be any waves; the weed is too thick.”
 
“I guess there are ships still afloat there that were built hundreds of years ago. Maybe Columbus’s lost caravels are there; maybe people are imprisoned35 there! Gee36! but it’s fascinating.”
 
Miss Fairfax stared at the little man in amazement37. He was the last person she would ever have suspected of imagination or romance; and here he was, with flushed cheeks and sparkling eyes, declaiming[24] away like one inspired. Most men can talk well on some one subject, and this subject was Mr. Sprigg’s own. For years he had been reading and talking and thinking about it.
 
Miss Fairfax rose from her steamer-chair and looked around her, then paused, awestruck. Down in the southeast a mass of black clouds darkened the day as they spread. Puffs38 of wind ran before them, each carrying sheets of spray torn from the tops of the waves; one stronger than the rest dashed its burden into Miss Fairfax’s face with little stinging cuts. The cry of the stewards39, “All passengers below!” was not needed to tell her that the deck was rapidly becoming no place for women.
 

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 gusty B5uyu     
adj.起大风的
参考例句:
  • Weather forecasts predict more hot weather,gusty winds and lightning strikes.天气预报预测高温、大风和雷电天气将继续。
  • Why was Candlestick Park so windy and gusty? 埃德尔斯蒂克公园里为什么会有那么多的强劲阵风?
2 seasickness ojpzVf     
n.晕船
参考例句:
  • Europeans take melons for a preventive against seasickness. 欧洲人吃瓜作为预防晕船的方法。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • He was very prone to seasickness and already felt queasy. 他快晕船了,已经感到恶心了。 来自辞典例句
3 deserted GukzoL     
adj.荒芜的,荒废的,无人的,被遗弃的
参考例句:
  • The deserted village was filled with a deathly silence.这个荒废的村庄死一般的寂静。
  • The enemy chieftain was opposed and deserted by his followers.敌人头目众叛亲离。
4 solitude xF9yw     
n. 孤独; 独居,荒僻之地,幽静的地方
参考例句:
  • People need a chance to reflect on spiritual matters in solitude. 人们需要独处的机会来反思精神上的事情。
  • They searched for a place where they could live in solitude. 他们寻找一个可以过隐居生活的地方。
5 lieutenant X3GyG     
n.陆军中尉,海军上尉;代理官员,副职官员
参考例句:
  • He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
  • He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官,递上了一张简短的便条进去。
6 inquiry nbgzF     
n.打听,询问,调查,查问
参考例句:
  • Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
  • The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。
7 determined duszmP     
adj.坚定的;有决心的
参考例句:
  • I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
  • He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。
8 emanated dfae9223043918bb3d770e470186bcec     
v.从…处传出,传出( emanate的过去式和过去分词 );产生,表现,显示
参考例句:
  • Do you know where these rumours emanated from? 你知道谣言出自何处吗? 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The rumor emanated from Chicago. 谣言来自芝加哥。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
9 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
参考例句:
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
10 vaguely BfuzOy     
adv.含糊地,暖昧地
参考例句:
  • He had talked vaguely of going to work abroad.他含糊其词地说了到国外工作的事。
  • He looked vaguely before him with unseeing eyes.他迷迷糊糊的望着前面,对一切都视而不见。
11 deliberately Gulzvq     
adv.审慎地;蓄意地;故意地
参考例句:
  • The girl gave the show away deliberately.女孩故意泄露秘密。
  • They deliberately shifted off the argument.他们故意回避这个论点。
12 insinuated fb2be88f6607d5f4855260a7ebafb1e3     
v.暗示( insinuate的过去式和过去分词 );巧妙或迂回地潜入;(使)缓慢进入;慢慢伸入
参考例句:
  • The article insinuated that he was having an affair with his friend's wife. 文章含沙射影地点出他和朋友的妻子有染。
  • She cleverly insinuated herself into his family. 她巧妙地混进了他的家庭。 来自《简明英汉词典》
13 marred 5fc2896f7cb5af68d251672a8d30b5b5     
adj. 被损毁, 污损的
参考例句:
  • The game was marred by the behaviour of drunken fans. 喝醉了的球迷行为不轨,把比赛给搅了。
  • Bad diction marred the effectiveness of his speech. 措词不当影响了他演说的效果。
14 smirk GE8zY     
n.得意地笑;v.傻笑;假笑着说
参考例句:
  • He made no attempt to conceal his smirk.他毫不掩饰自鸣得意的笑容。
  • She had a selfsatisfied smirk on her face.她脸上带着自鸣得意的微笑。
15 entirely entirely     
ad.全部地,完整地;完全地,彻底地
参考例句:
  • The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
  • His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。
16 eastward CrjxP     
adv.向东;adj.向东的;n.东方,东部
参考例句:
  • The river here tends eastward.这条河从这里向东流。
  • The crowd is heading eastward,believing that they can find gold there.人群正在向东移去,他们认为在那里可以找到黄金。
17 exclamation onBxZ     
n.感叹号,惊呼,惊叹词
参考例句:
  • He could not restrain an exclamation of approval.他禁不住喝一声采。
  • The author used three exclamation marks at the end of the last sentence to wake up the readers.作者在文章的最后一句连用了三个惊叹号,以引起读者的注意。
18 buffeting c681ae460087cfe7df93f4e3feaed986     
振动
参考例句:
  • The flowers took quite a buffeting in the storm. 花朵在暴风雨中备受摧残。
  • He's been buffeting with misfortunes for 15 years. 15年来,他与各种不幸相博斗。
19 sullen kHGzl     
adj.愠怒的,闷闷不乐的,(天气等)阴沉的
参考例句:
  • He looked up at the sullen sky.他抬头看了一眼阴沉的天空。
  • Susan was sullen in the morning because she hadn't slept well.苏珊今天早上郁闷不乐,因为昨晚没睡好。
20 metallic LCuxO     
adj.金属的;金属制的;含金属的;产金属的;像金属的
参考例句:
  • A sharp metallic note coming from the outside frightened me.外面传来尖锐铿锵的声音吓了我一跳。
  • He picked up a metallic ring last night.昨夜他捡了一个金属戒指。
21 lustre hAhxg     
n.光亮,光泽;荣誉
参考例句:
  • The sun was shining with uncommon lustre.太阳放射出异常的光彩。
  • A good name keeps its lustre in the dark.一个好的名誉在黑暗中也保持它的光辉。
22 swelled bd4016b2ddc016008c1fc5827f252c73     
增强( swell的过去式和过去分词 ); 肿胀; (使)凸出; 充满(激情)
参考例句:
  • The infection swelled his hand. 由于感染,他的手肿了起来。
  • After the heavy rain the river swelled. 大雨过后,河水猛涨。
23 sluggishly d76f4d1262958898317036fd722b1d29     
adv.懒惰地;缓慢地
参考例句:
  • The river is silted up and the water flows sluggishly. 河道淤塞,水流迟滞。
  • Loaded with 870 gallons of gasoline and 40 gallons of oil, the ship moved sluggishly. 飞机载着八百七十加仑汽油和四十加仑机油,缓慢地前进了。 来自英汉非文学 - 百科语料821
24 brewing eaabd83324a59add9a6769131bdf81b5     
n. 酿造, 一次酿造的量 动词brew的现在分词形式
参考例句:
  • It was obvious that a big storm was brewing up. 很显然,一场暴风雨正在酝酿中。
  • She set about brewing some herb tea. 她动手泡一些药茶。
25 sapient VYExH     
adj.有见识的,有智慧的
参考例句:
  • If you follow her sapient advice,you will be sure to succeed.如你遵照她明智的建议,你一定能够成功。
  • It was no just and sapient counsellor,in its last analysis.归根结底,这也不是一个聪明正直的顾问。
26 foretell 9i3xj     
v.预言,预告,预示
参考例句:
  • Willow trees breaking out into buds foretell the coming of spring.柳枝绽青报春来。
  • The outcome of the war is hard to foretell.战争胜负难以预卜。
27 immoral waCx8     
adj.不道德的,淫荡的,荒淫的,有伤风化的
参考例句:
  • She was questioned about his immoral conduct toward her.她被询问过有关他对她的不道德行为的情况。
  • It is my belief that nuclear weapons are immoral.我相信使核武器是不邪恶的。
28 ashore tNQyT     
adv.在(向)岸上,上岸
参考例句:
  • The children got ashore before the tide came in.涨潮前,孩子们就上岸了。
  • He laid hold of the rope and pulled the boat ashore.他抓住绳子拉船靠岸。
29 dodge q83yo     
v.闪开,躲开,避开;n.妙计,诡计
参考例句:
  • A dodge behind a tree kept her from being run over.她向树后一闪,才没被车从身上辗过。
  • The dodge was coopered by the police.诡计被警察粉碎了。
30 mighty YDWxl     
adj.强有力的;巨大的
参考例句:
  • A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
  • The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。
31 qualified DCPyj     
adj.合格的,有资格的,胜任的,有限制的
参考例句:
  • He is qualified as a complete man of letters.他有资格当真正的文学家。
  • We must note that we still lack qualified specialists.我们必须看到我们还缺乏有资质的专家。
32 gulf 1e0xp     
n.海湾;深渊,鸿沟;分歧,隔阂
参考例句:
  • The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
  • There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。
33 icebergs 71cdbb120fe8de8e449c16eaeca8d8a8     
n.冰山,流冰( iceberg的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • The drift of the icebergs in the sea endangers the ships. 海上冰山的漂流危及船只的安全。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The icebergs towered above them. 冰山高耸于他们上方。 来自辞典例句
34 gathering ChmxZ     
n.集会,聚会,聚集
参考例句:
  • He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
  • He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。
35 imprisoned bc7d0bcdd0951055b819cfd008ef0d8d     
下狱,监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He was imprisoned for two concurrent terms of 30 months and 18 months. 他被判处30个月和18个月的监禁,合并执行。
  • They were imprisoned for possession of drugs. 他们因拥有毒品而被监禁。
36 gee ZsfzIu     
n.马;int.向右!前进!,惊讶时所发声音;v.向右转
参考例句:
  • Their success last week will gee the team up.上星期的胜利将激励这支队伍继续前进。
  • Gee,We're going to make a lot of money.哇!我们会赚好多钱啦!
37 amazement 7zlzBK     
n.惊奇,惊讶
参考例句:
  • All those around him looked at him with amazement.周围的人都对他投射出惊异的眼光。
  • He looked at me in blank amazement.他带着迷茫惊诧的神情望着我。
38 puffs cb3699ccb6e175dfc305ea6255d392d6     
n.吸( puff的名词复数 );(烟斗或香烟的)一吸;一缕(烟、蒸汽等);(呼吸或风的)呼v.使喷出( puff的第三人称单数 );喷着汽(或烟)移动;吹嘘;吹捧
参考例句:
  • We sat exchanging puffs from that wild pipe of his. 我们坐在那里,轮番抽着他那支野里野气的烟斗。 来自辞典例句
  • Puffs of steam and smoke came from the engine. 一股股蒸汽和烟雾从那火车头里冒出来。 来自辞典例句
39 stewards 5967fcba18eb6c2dacaa4540a2a7c61f     
(轮船、飞机等的)乘务员( steward的名词复数 ); (俱乐部、旅馆、工会等的)管理员; (大型活动的)组织者; (私人家中的)管家
参考例句:
  • The stewards all wore armbands. 乘务员都戴了臂章。
  • The stewards will inspect the course to see if racing is possible. 那些干事将检视赛马场看是否适宜比赛。


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