CHAPTER XL. IN PERIL

Connie was the first to recover herself. She knew far better than Mary how great the danger was, how great the need for coolness and judgment¹. And she had been in dire² straits like this before. She held the flaring³ match above her head and looked round the deserted⁴ room. On the mantelpiece stood a fragment of candle stuck in the neck of a bottle, and this Connie proceeded to light.

 

"Now we can go over the house and see if they have placed our belongings⁵ anywhere," she said cheerfully. "I have been in one or two strange predicaments, but never anything quite so bad as this. Still, I am sure that Mrs. Speed is an honest woman. It is more than likely that she has placed our goods and chattels⁷ somewhere."

 

But though the house was searched from top to bottom, nothing could be found. Mary did not give way, though she was tired out and weary, and sinking for the need of food. She had not yet lost her robust⁸ country appetite; she had not brought herself down to exist on weak tea and bread and butter, as Connie did.

 

"It is downright cruel," she cried. "That woman knew that we should come back, that you are in the habit of entering the house with a latch⁹ key. And to go off with all our wardrobe like this; to take everything. What are we to do?"

 

"It must have been some terrible mistake," Connie said. As usual, she seemed loth to judge anybody harshly. "The poor woman could not pay her rent. No doubt the landlord had threatened to come in tomorrow and take everything. And Mrs. Speed has a young family. She probably went to the agent and asked for time----"

 

"Oh, I know she did," Mary cried, recollection suddenly coming back to her. "As it happens, I overheard the conversation. There was some man here, a man I know something about, though we need not go into that. And Mrs. Speed seemed to be terribly short of money. I heard her say what was going to happen. Oh, Connie, my head is so confused that I cannot think, I shall wake up presently and find myself at the dear old dower house again. I did not dream that there were things like this in the world; I did not think it possible."

 

"There are worse things," Connie said sadly. "It is very terrible--very indeed; but what can poor people do? And yet there are others who waste thousands on their dress and amusement and pleasures, little dreaming of the sort of hell that forms half the life of the poor. Mrs. Speed sees that her household is in danger--her furniture is the one thing that stands between herself and the workhouse. The poor creature is so distressed¹⁰ that she has no thought for anybody else--she forgets our existence. She finds another house to go to, and she hires a man to come late at night and remove the things. I understand that there is a contractor¹¹ who holds himself ready for this kind of thing. He employs very rapid workmen, and he uses vans with no name on the cover. The thing is easily done in this stony-hearted town, where your next door neighbour is a matter of indifference¹² to you.

 

"Mrs. Speed is in the new house waiting to receive her goods. In the haste and confusion everything is packed, sent away. I have no doubt we shall get our belongings back again."

 

"And meanwhile, we have lost everything," Mary protested. "We have exactly what we stand up in. And every penny of my money, to say nothing of my jewels, has gone. We ought to go straight to the police."

 

"No," Connie said firmly. "A year or two ago I should have done so without hesitation¹³, but not now. Ah, my dear I know how the poor live, how fierce are their temptations. When the great Day of Judgment comes God will be tender to His poor."

 

The fierce flame of Mary's anger died away, and a feeling of shame succeeded it. She was forced to recognise the many ways in which her companion was the superior of herself. Should she ever grow soft and sympathetic like that? Would her misfortunes render her more lenient¹⁴ to the failings of others? And yet Connie had said that she had been at one time the child of hard selfishness.

 

"Perhaps you are right," Mary admitted. "But what are we going to do? Where are we going to sleep tonight? And have you any money?"

 

"Two shillings," Connie replied. "Two shillings in my pocket, more by accident than anything else. My bank has vanished with my tin box. We can't go back to Grace's lodgings¹⁵ at this time of night. But that is not the worst."

 

Mary's heart sank within her. Could there be any worse than this?

 

"It is that very question of lodgings," Connie explained. "Nobody will take us without belongings. They would regard us as a pair of swindlers."

 

"Swindlers!" Mary's face flamed at the new word. The late mistress of Dashwood Hall regarded by a common Cockney landlady¹⁶ as a swindler!

 

"It seems so cold, so hard-hearted," she protested. "And just now you were speaking of the virtues¹⁷ of the poor, their kindness to each other, and----"

 

"My dear Mary, there is no kindness like it in the world, because generally it is the very essence of self-sacrifice. But there is another side to the matter. They have to be careful, they are compelled to look coldly on outsiders, they--but why am I preaching social sermons to you at this time of night? We must make the best of it till morning and then try to find Mrs. Speed."

 

It seemed a hopeless kind of business to Mary. Something like looking for a needle in the proverbial truss of hay. But the girl's wits were sharpened now by this sudden contact with adversity. She began to see a way.

 

"It may be possible to find Mrs. Speed," she said. "It will be weary work, but the thing has to be done. The man I was speaking about, the man who was here yesterday--he is calling here tomorrow for a certain letter. I could force him to . . . but that shall be my business. The question is where shall we sleep? Not on these bare boards. And I shall drop if I don't have something to eat."

 

The dawn was breaking in through the shutterless¹⁸ windows now--the red dawn of the summer day that gives London an added touch of beauty. It would be broad daylight before long. The presence of the light gave Mary a new courage.

 

"It is useless to think of sleeping anywhere," Connie said. Her face was pale and downcast, all the colour had gone out of her eyes. Mary had not before seen her friend on the verge¹⁹ of despondency, and the knowledge spurred her to new efforts.

 

"Let us go for a walk before the place gets hot and stuffy²⁰ and full of struggling humanity. A London crowd always makes me so sad--it is awful to think that every man and woman streaming past you is engaged in the struggle for bread."

 

"Come out of this," Mary said hoarsely²¹. "Let us feel the sunshine. This is heart-breaking, nerve-destroying work, but I am not sorry that I came. Let us go and watch the sun rise, and if there is any place where we can get something to eat----"

 

There was, at the end of the Embankment, a coffee stall, the leaden-eyed proprietor²² of which regarded the girls without emotion. He had served all classes of customers in his time, and these well-dressed girls, with an unmistakable air of class about them, inspired him with no curiosity. He filled up the thick cups of muddy coffee and cut the stodgy²³ bread and the debatable butter. It was hideous²⁴ stuff altogether, but Mary was astonished to find with what zest²⁵ she was devouring²⁶ it. A flashy woman, terrible in her cheap finery, staggered up and demanded tea. A man, unmistakably a gentleman, with a well-cut suit of clothes, partook of cocoa and a slice of bread. His coat collar was turned up, and Mary surmised²⁷ that this was to hide the absence of a shirt. The girl was learning her lesson with terrible swiftness. Another man, with a bag in his hand, hurried up and breathlessly asked for tea. His face was white and pink by turns, he looked about him a furtive²⁸ kind of way. From behind the barrow a powerful figure shot out and grabbed at the shoulder of the man with the bag. The latter showed fight for a moment, then his white face broke into a profuse²⁹ shower of moisture.

 

"Better come quietly," the powerful man said. "You can have a cab if you like, though it does not matter much at this time of day. You've given me a long chase."

 

The two vanished in the direction of the Strand³⁰, where now the houses and spires³¹ were all golden in the purple mists. Mary shuddered³².

 

"What does that mean?" she asked. "Was--was he some criminal?"

 

"That is it," Connie explained quietly. "And the other man was a detective. Oh, it is a horrible place, this London, if you come to see it from the underside. I long for millions of money to turn this city into a paradise. You think I am always cheerful and careless, but my two years here have left a mark upon me that I will never get rid of. Let us walk along the Embankment as far as Westminster, and then strike West for the Park. I feel a perfect longing⁶ for flowers and green grass. We will go through Park Lane, and speculate as to what the millionaires there are dreaming about--the people who have a hundred times as much as they can spend, and are yet greedy for more. Oh, my dear, if you only knew how tired I am, so utterly³³ worn out."

 

Connie sat down on a seat on the Embankment and burst into tears.

1 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

2 dire   

adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的

参考例句：

• There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.曾经有人就看电视太多的危害性提出严重警告。
• We were indeed in dire straits.But we pulled through.那时我们的困难真是大极了，但是我们渡过了困难。

3 flaring   

a.火焰摇曳的，过份艳丽的

参考例句：

• A vulgar flaring paper adorned the walls. 墙壁上装饰着廉价的花纸。
• Goebbels was flaring up at me. 戈塔尔当时已对我面呈愠色。

4 deserted   

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。

5 belongings   

n.私人物品，私人财物

参考例句：

• I put a few personal belongings in a bag.我把几件私人物品装进包中。
• Your personal belongings are not dutiable.个人物品不用纳税。

6 longing   

n.（for）渴望

参考例句：

• Hearing the tune again sent waves of longing through her.再次听到那首曲子使她胸中充满了渴望。
• His heart burned with longing for revenge.他心中燃烧着急欲复仇的怒火。

7 chattels   

n.动产，奴隶( chattel的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• An assignment is a total alienation of chattels personal. 动产转让是指属人动产的完全转让。 来自辞典例句
• Alan and I, getting our chattels together, struck into another road to reassume our flight. 艾伦和我收拾好我们的财物，急匆匆地走上了另一条路，继续过我们的亡命生活。 来自辞典例句

8 robust   

adj.强壮的，强健的，粗野的，需要体力的，浓的

参考例句：

• She is too tall and robust.她个子太高，身体太壮。
• China wants to keep growth robust to reduce poverty and avoid job losses,AP commented.美联社评论道，中国希望保持经济强势增长，以减少贫困和失业状况。

9 latch   

n.门闩，窗闩；弹簧锁

参考例句：

• She laid her hand on the latch of the door.她把手放在门闩上。
• The repairman installed an iron latch on the door.修理工在门上安了铁门闩。

10 distressed   

痛苦的

参考例句：

• He was too distressed and confused to answer their questions. 他非常苦恼而困惑，无法回答他们的问题。
• The news of his death distressed us greatly. 他逝世的消息使我们极为悲痛。

11 contractor   

n.订约人，承包人，收缩肌

参考例句：

• The Tokyo contractor was asked to kick $ 6000 back as commission.那个东京的承包商被要求退还6000美元作为佣金。
• The style of house the contractor builds depends partly on the lay of the land.承包商所建房屋的式样，有几分要看地势而定。

12 indifference   

n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎

参考例句：

• I was disappointed by his indifference more than somewhat.他的漠不关心使我很失望。
• He feigned indifference to criticism of his work.他假装毫不在意别人批评他的作品。

13 hesitation   

n.犹豫，踌躇

参考例句：

• After a long hesitation, he told the truth at last.踌躇了半天，他终于直说了。
• There was a certain hesitation in her manner.她的态度有些犹豫不决。

14 lenient   

adj.宽大的，仁慈的

参考例句：

• The judge was lenient with him.法官对他很宽大。
• It's a question of finding the means between too lenient treatment and too severe punishment.问题是要找出处理过宽和处罚过严的折中办法。

15 lodgings   

n. 出租的房舍, 寄宿舍

参考例句：

• When he reached his lodgings the sun had set. 他到达公寓房间时，太阳已下山了。
• I'm on the hunt for lodgings. 我正在寻找住所。

16 landlady   

n.女房东，女地主

参考例句：

• I heard my landlady creeping stealthily up to my door.我听到我的女房东偷偷地来到我的门前。
• The landlady came over to serve me.女店主过来接待我。

17 virtues   

美德( virtue的名词复数 )； 德行； 优点； 长处

参考例句：

• Doctors often extol the virtues of eating less fat. 医生常常宣扬少吃脂肪的好处。
• She delivered a homily on the virtues of family life. 她进行了一场家庭生活美德方面的说教。

18 shutterless   

快门不

参考例句：

• The camera has a shutter speed of one-sixtieth of a second. 这架照像机的快门速度达六十分之一秒。
• The slam of the shutter awoke me. 百叶窗砰的一声把我惊醒了。

19 verge   

n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• She was on the verge of bursting into tears.她快要哭出来了。

20 stuffy   

adj.不透气的，闷热的

参考例句：

• It's really hot and stuffy in here.这里实在太热太闷了。
• It was so stuffy in the tent that we could sense the air was heavy with moisture.帐篷里很闷热，我们感到空气都是潮的。

21 hoarsely   

adv.嘶哑地

参考例句：

• "Excuse me," he said hoarsely. “对不起。”他用嘶哑的嗓子说。
• Jerry hoarsely professed himself at Miss Pross's service. 杰瑞嘶声嘶气地表示愿为普洛丝小姐效劳。 来自英汉文学 - 双城记

22 proprietor   

n.所有人；业主；经营者

参考例句：

• The proprietor was an old acquaintance of his.业主是他的一位旧相识。
• The proprietor of the corner grocery was a strange thing in my life.拐角杂货店店主是我生活中的一个怪物。

23 stodgy   

adj.易饱的；笨重的；滞涩的；古板的

参考例句：

• It wasn't easy to lose puppy fat when Mum fed her on stodgy home cooking.母亲给她吃易饱的家常菜，她想减掉婴儿肥可是很难。
• The gateman was a stodgy fellow of 60.看门人是个六十岁的矮胖子。

24 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。

25 zest   

n.乐趣；滋味，风味；兴趣

参考例句：

• He dived into his new job with great zest.他充满热情地投入了新的工作。
• He wrote his novel about his trip to Asia with zest.他兴趣浓厚的写了一本关于他亚洲之行的小说。

26 devouring   

吞没( devour的现在分词 )； 耗尽； 津津有味地看； 狼吞虎咽地吃光

参考例句：

• The hungry boy was devouring his dinner. 那饥饿的孩子狼吞虎咽地吃饭。
• He is devouring novel after novel. 他一味贪看小说。

27 surmised   

v.臆测，推断( surmise的过去式和过去分词 )；揣测；猜想

参考例句：

• From the looks on their faces, I surmised that they had had an argument. 看他们的脸色，我猜想他们之间发生了争执。
• From his letter I surmised that he was unhappy. 我从他的信中推测他并不快乐。 来自《简明英汉词典》

28 furtive   

adj.鬼鬼崇崇的，偷偷摸摸的

参考例句：

• The teacher was suspicious of the student's furtive behaviour during the exam.老师怀疑这个学生在考试时有偷偷摸摸的行为。
• His furtive behaviour aroused our suspicion.他鬼鬼祟祟的行为引起了我们的怀疑。

29 profuse   

adj.很多的，大量的，极其丰富的

参考例句：

• The hostess is profuse in her hospitality.女主人招待得十分周到。
• There was a profuse crop of hair impending over the top of his face.一大绺头发垂在他额头上。

30 strand   

vt.使（船）搁浅，使（某人）困于（某地）

参考例句：

• She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ears.她把一缕散发夹到了耳后。
• The climbers had been stranded by a storm.登山者被暴风雨困住了。

31 spires   

n.（教堂的） 塔尖，尖顶( spire的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Her masts leveled with the spires of churches. 船的桅杆和教堂的塔尖一样高。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• White church spires lift above green valleys. 教堂的白色尖顶耸立在绿色山谷中。 来自《简明英汉词典》

32 shuddered   

v.战栗( shudder的过去式和过去分词 )；发抖；（机器、车辆等）突然震动；颤动

参考例句：

• He slammed on the brakes and the car shuddered to a halt. 他猛踩刹车，车颤抖着停住了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I shuddered at the sight of the dead body. 我一看见那尸体就战栗。 来自《简明英汉词典》

33 utterly   

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。