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CHAPTER XI
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In accepting Captain Forbes’s invitation to supper Dorothy had taken it for granted that the other two survivors1 of the Queen were included, and was somewhat startled to find that they were not.
 
“Gallegher insisted on your friends eating with him,” explained Forbes, with a smile. “He declared that I might have the best, but that I shouldn’t hog2 everything, and I had to give in.”
 
Dorothy accepted the explanation, but her heart beat anxiously. Nor was her anxiety lessened3 by Captain Forbes’s attitude. Had she not been warned of his probable designs, she might have passed over his behavior as merely the would-be gallantry of an uncultivated man, and even then would have found it sufficiently4 offensive. But, in view of all she had been told, its import quickly became portentous5.[148] Between extravagant6 compliments, often so pointed7 as to cause her considerable embarrassment8, Forbes sandwiched encomiums of the life on the wreckage9, for support of which he appealed to Mother Joyce, declaring that Dorothy would soon submit to the inevitable10, and settle down to remain there for life. All suggestions as to the possibility of escape he pushed aside.
 
“Our known history of life here goes back for more than fifty years,” he declared, “and in that time nobody has escaped. Nobody ever will. It’s impossible. You will fight against the idea for awhile, and then settle down to enjoy yourself.”
 
“Enjoy myself!”
 
“Why not? We have everything here that any one needs—all the necessaries, and far more of the luxuries than any except a very few favored people enjoy anywhere. We have a storehouse full of everything that delights a woman, and if[149] it was destroyed to-morrow, we could easily fill it again. Duplicates of all its contents will drift in to us again sooner or later on some ship. Ask what you will, and it will be my delight to lay it at your feet.”
 
Dorothy tried to smile. “Very well, then,” she particularized, “just give me a telegraph-office.”
 
“With pleasure. We have a complete outfit11. I’m sorry to say, though, that the wires are not strung yet.”
 
“Then give me a boat and a—compass, isn’t it, that we need?”
 
“Those are about the only things we cannot furnish, Miss Fairfax. When sailors are forced to leave their ships, they invariably take the boats and the compasses with them. But why do you wish to leave us? It will be our constant study to make you happy. You shall have the best of everything, and your lightest wish shall be law.”
 
“My only wish is to get back to dry[150] land. If my wish is law, help me to do so.”
 
“I cannot! And I would not if I could. I have waited long for a woman as fair and sweet as you to drift in to me, and now that you have come, I will not give you up lightly. The wrecks12 and their contents are ours by right of salvage13. You, too, are salvage—and the fairest salvage I have ever known.”
 
This was forcing the game with a vengeance14. Dorothy’s lip quivered, and she cast a frightened glance at Mother Joyce. But that lady was eating her supper stolidly15, and made no sign. Evidently, for the moment at least, she intended to let Dorothy play her own hand.
 
Forbes continued: “No, you are here for life, Miss Fairfax. I regret it for your sake, but I rejoice in it for my own. You are here for life, and you must make up your mind to it, choose a husband, and settle down.”
 
“I shall never marry.”
 
[151]“You must consider a moment. There are twenty-two of us men here and only two women. Under such circumstances, how can we afford to permit any woman to remain single. We used to do it years ago, when the disproportion was not quite so great, and what was the result? Decimation of our numbers, no less! The men quarreled and fought and murdered each other, exactly as wild beasts do, all for the sake of one woman. Well do I remember the last time this happened! In a week five men had been killed, and bad blood stirred up that did not subside16 for years. We could not chance a repetition of this sort of thing, and we made a law that every woman who arrived here must marry within twenty-four hours. She could choose any one she liked, but choose she must.”
 
“But no such rule can apply to me.”
 
“Why not? You are a lady, of course, and far above the level of nine-tenths of the men here. But there is the remaining[152] tenth to choose from. Of course, none of us are worthy17 of you, but—we will make good husbands.”
 
Dorothy tried to laugh the words away, but could not. She told herself that all this was some horrible dream from which she would presently awake, but all the while she knew it was terribly real. The toils18 were closing round her fast. Her thoughts flew to Howard. He, she felt, would save her, if man could; but he was one, and Forbes and his followers19 were many. If it came to a struggle the result would be inevitable. What could she do? What could she do?
 
Forbes was watching her keenly. “You realize the situation now?” he continued. “For our own welfare we cannot permit you to remain single. You could not get away, and we would not permit you to do so if you could. You must marry—in twenty-four hours. And since you must marry, let me advise you to choose one who can provide for you—and there is no[153] one here who can do that so well as I. I won’t talk about love—that is for boys, and I am a man; but if you will marry me, you shall be queen here. Come! what do you say?”
 
Dorothy pushed back her chair and rose. “I say that this is utterly20 preposterous21. I will not marry any one on compulsion. Certainly I will not marry you. I wish you good day, Captain Forbes.”
 
She turned toward the door, but Forbes stepped before her.
 
“One moment, Miss Fairfax,” he said. “I know how you feel, and I do not wish to turn you against me by undue22 persistency23. If you want to go now, go! But think over what I have said. I believe that you will come to see that it is the best thing you can possibly do. Talk it over with your friends, I think they will advise you to consent. At all events, you have twenty-four hours—till four o’clock to-morrow, to get used to the idea. Take my advice and wait calmly till then.”
 
[154]Dorothy bowed haughtily24. “Very well,” she returned. “I will wait. Now, will you kindly25 summon my friends. I wish to return to my ship.”
 
Forbes’ lips curved in a cruel smile. “Your ship, Miss Fairfax,” he echoed. “You have no ship. You and your companions abandoned the Queen of your own accord, and by the law of the sea she and everything on her became the property of any one who salvaged26 her. My men have taken possession of everything, including your abandoned trunks—which are now mine. You have no place to lay your head, and nothing in the world except what you have on your person. However, I am not unkind. For twenty-four hours I will give you food and shelter. At the end of that time—well, we will see. Now you may go with Mother Joyce, who will care for you. And think over my proposition.”

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1 survivors 02ddbdca4c6dba0b46d9d823ed2b4b62     
幸存者,残存者,生还者( survivor的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
  • survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者
2 hog TrYzRg     
n.猪;馋嘴贪吃的人;vt.把…占为己有,独占
参考例句:
  • He is greedy like a hog.他像猪一样贪婪。
  • Drivers who hog the road leave no room for other cars.那些占着路面的驾驶员一点余地都不留给其他车辆。
3 lessened 6351a909991322c8a53dc9baa69dda6f     
减少的,减弱的
参考例句:
  • Listening to the speech through an interpreter lessened its impact somewhat. 演讲辞通过翻译的嘴说出来,多少削弱了演讲的力量。
  • The flight to suburbia lessened the number of middle-class families living within the city. 随着迁往郊外的风行,住在城内的中产家庭减少了。
4 sufficiently 0htzMB     
adv.足够地,充分地
参考例句:
  • It turned out he had not insured the house sufficiently.原来他没有给房屋投足保险。
  • The new policy was sufficiently elastic to accommodate both views.新政策充分灵活地适用两种观点。
5 portentous Wiey5     
adj.不祥的,可怕的,装腔作势的
参考例句:
  • The present aspect of society is portentous of great change.现在的社会预示着重大变革的发生。
  • There was nothing portentous or solemn about him.He was bubbling with humour.他一点也不装腔作势或故作严肃,浑身散发着幽默。
6 extravagant M7zya     
adj.奢侈的;过分的;(言行等)放肆的
参考例句:
  • They tried to please him with fulsome compliments and extravagant gifts.他们想用溢美之词和奢华的礼品来取悦他。
  • He is extravagant in behaviour.他行为放肆。
7 pointed Il8zB4     
adj.尖的,直截了当的
参考例句:
  • He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
  • She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。
8 embarrassment fj9z8     
n.尴尬;使人为难的人(事物);障碍;窘迫
参考例句:
  • She could have died away with embarrassment.她窘迫得要死。
  • Coughing at a concert can be a real embarrassment.在音乐会上咳嗽真会使人难堪。
9 wreckage nMhzF     
n.(失事飞机等的)残骸,破坏,毁坏
参考例句:
  • They hauled him clear of the wreckage.他们把他从形骸中拖出来。
  • New states were born out of the wreckage of old colonial empires.新生国家从老殖民帝国的废墟中诞生。
10 inevitable 5xcyq     
adj.不可避免的,必然发生的
参考例句:
  • Mary was wearing her inevitable large hat.玛丽戴着她总是戴的那顶大帽子。
  • The defeat had inevitable consequences for British policy.战败对英国政策不可避免地产生了影响。
11 outfit YJTxC     
n.(为特殊用途的)全套装备,全套服装
参考例句:
  • Jenney bought a new outfit for her daughter's wedding.珍妮为参加女儿的婚礼买了一套新装。
  • His father bought a ski outfit for him on his birthday.他父亲在他生日那天给他买了一套滑雪用具。
12 wrecks 8d69da0aee97ed3f7157e10ff9dbd4ae     
n.沉船( wreck的名词复数 );(事故中)遭严重毁坏的汽车(或飞机等);(身体或精神上)受到严重损伤的人;状况非常糟糕的车辆(或建筑物等)v.毁坏[毁灭]某物( wreck的第三人称单数 );使(船舶)失事,使遇难,使下沉
参考例句:
  • The shores are strewn with wrecks. 海岸上满布失事船只的残骸。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • My next care was to get together the wrecks of my fortune. 第二件我所关心的事就是集聚破产后的余财。 来自辞典例句
13 salvage ECHzB     
v.救助,营救,援救;n.救助,营救
参考例句:
  • All attempts to salvage the wrecked ship failed.抢救失事船只的一切努力都失败了。
  • The salvage was piled upon the pier.抢救出的财产被堆放在码头上。
14 vengeance wL6zs     
n.报复,报仇,复仇
参考例句:
  • He swore vengeance against the men who murdered his father.他发誓要向那些杀害他父亲的人报仇。
  • For years he brooded vengeance.多年来他一直在盘算报仇。
15 stolidly 3d5f42d464d711b8c0c9ea4ca88895e6     
adv.迟钝地,神经麻木地
参考例句:
  • Too often people sat stolidly watching the noisy little fiddler. 人们往往不动声色地坐在那里,瞧着这位瘦小的提琴手闹腾一番。 来自辞典例句
  • He dropped into a chair and sat looking stolidly at the floor. 他坐在椅子上,两眼呆呆地望着地板。 来自辞典例句
16 subside OHyzt     
vi.平静,平息;下沉,塌陷,沉降
参考例句:
  • The emotional reaction which results from a serious accident takes time to subside.严重事故所引起的情绪化的反应需要时间来平息。
  • The controversies surrounding population growth are unlikely to subside soon.围绕着人口增长问题的争论看来不会很快平息。
17 worthy vftwB     
adj.(of)值得的,配得上的;有价值的
参考例句:
  • I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
  • There occurred nothing that was worthy to be mentioned.没有值得一提的事发生。
18 toils b316b6135d914eee9a4423309c5057e6     
参考例句:
  • It did not declare him to be still in Mrs. Dorset's toils. 这并不表明他仍陷于多赛特夫人的情网。
  • The thief was caught in the toils of law. 这个贼陷入了法网。
19 followers 5c342ee9ce1bf07932a1f66af2be7652     
追随者( follower的名词复数 ); 用户; 契据的附面; 从动件
参考例句:
  • the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
  • The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。
20 utterly ZfpzM1     
adv.完全地,绝对地
参考例句:
  • Utterly devoted to the people,he gave his life in saving his patients.他忠于人民,把毕生精力用于挽救患者的生命。
  • I was utterly ravished by the way she smiled.她的微笑使我完全陶醉了。
21 preposterous e1Tz2     
adj.荒谬的,可笑的
参考例句:
  • The whole idea was preposterous.整个想法都荒唐透顶。
  • It would be preposterous to shovel coal with a teaspoon.用茶匙铲煤是荒谬的。
22 undue Vf8z6V     
adj.过分的;不适当的;未到期的
参考例句:
  • Don't treat the matter with undue haste.不要过急地处理此事。
  • It would be wise not to give undue importance to his criticisms.最好不要过分看重他的批评。
23 persistency ZSyzh     
n. 坚持(余辉, 时间常数)
参考例句:
  • I was nettled by her persistency. 我被她的固执惹恼了。
  • We should stick to and develop the heritage of persistency. 我们应坚持和发扬坚忍不拔的传统。
24 haughtily haughtily     
adv. 傲慢地, 高傲地
参考例句:
  • She carries herself haughtily. 她举止傲慢。
  • Haughtily, he stalked out onto the second floor where I was standing. 他傲然跨出电梯,走到二楼,我刚好站在那儿。
25 kindly tpUzhQ     
adj.和蔼的,温和的,爽快的;adv.温和地,亲切地
参考例句:
  • Her neighbours spoke of her as kindly and hospitable.她的邻居都说她和蔼可亲、热情好客。
  • A shadow passed over the kindly face of the old woman.一道阴影掠过老太太慈祥的面孔。
26 salvaged 38c5bbbb23af5841708243ca20b38dce     
(从火灾、海难等中)抢救(某物)( salvage的过去式和过去分词 ); 回收利用(某物)
参考例句:
  • The investigators studied flight recorders salvaged from the wreckage. 调查者研究了从飞机残骸中找到的黑匣子。
  • The team's first task was to decide what equipment could be salvaged. 该队的首要任务是决定可以抢救哪些设备。


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