The horse plodded1 slowly down the gravelled drive of the road house and turned into the main highway. It was very dark on earth, and very bright in the heavens. The afternoon fog had cleared away, dissipated in the warm air from the sand hills, for the day had been hot. Overhead flared2 thousands of stars, throwing the world small. Nan, shivering in reaction, nestled against her husband. He drew her close. She rested her cheek against his shoulder and sighed happily. Neither spoke3.
At first Keith's whole being was filled with rage. His mind whirled with plans for revenge. On the morrow he would hunt down Morrell and Sansome. At the thought of what he would do to them, his teeth clamped and his muscles stiffened4. Then he became wholly preoccupied5 with Nan's narrow escape. His quick mind visualized6 a hundred possibilities--suppose he had gone on Durkee's expedition? Suppose Mex Ryan had not happened to remember his name? Suppose Mrs. Sherwood and Krafft had not found him? Suppose they had been an hour later? Suppose--He leaned over tenderly to draw the lap robe closer about her. She had stopped shivering and was nestling contentedly7 against him.
But gradually the storm in Keith's soul fell. The great and solemn night stood over against his vision, and at last he could not but look. The splendour of the magnificent skies, the dreamy peace of the velvet-black earth lying supine like a weary creature at rest--these two simple infinities8 of space and of promise took him to themselves. An eager glad chorus of frogs came from some invisible pool. The slithering sound of the sand dividing before the buggy wheels whispered. Every once in a while the plodding9 horse sighed deeply.
With the warm cozy10 feel of the woman, his woman, in the hollow of his arm, his spirit stilled and uplifted by the simple yet august and eternal things before him, Keith fell into inchoate11 rumination12. The fever of activity in the city, the clash of men's interests, greeds, and passions, the tumult13 and striving, the sweat and dust of the arena14 fell to nothing about his feet. He cleared his vision of the small necessary unessentials, and stared forth15 wide-eyed at the big simplicities16 of life--truth as one sees it, loyalty17 to one's ideal, charity toward one's beaten enemy, a steadfast18 front toward one's unbeaten enemy, scorn of pettiness, to be unafraid. Unless the struggle is for and by these things, it is useless, meaningless. And one's possessions--Keith's left arm tightened19 convulsively. He had come near to losing the only possession worth while. At the pressure Nan stirred sleepily.
"Are we there, dear?" she inquired, raising her head.
Keith had reined20 in the horse, and was peering into the surrounding darkness. He laughed.
"No, we seem to be here," he replied, "And I'm blest if I know where 'here' is! I've been day-dreaming!"
"I believe I've been asleep," confessed Nan.
They both stared about them, but could discern nothing familiar in the dim outlines of the hills. Not a light flickered21.
"Perhaps if you'd give the horse his head, he'd take us home. I've heard, they would," suggested Nan.
"He's had his head completely for the last two hours. That theory is exploded. We must have turned wrong after leaving Jake's Place."
"Well, we're on a road. It must go somewhere."
Keith, with some difficulty, managed to awaken22 the horse. It sighed and resumed its plodding.
"I'm afraid we're lost," confessed Keith.
"I don't much care," confessed Nan.
"He seems to be a perfectly23 safe horse," said he.
By way of answer to this she passed her arms gently about his neck and bent24 his lips to hers. The horse immediately stopped.
"Seems a fairly intelligent brute25, too," observed Keith, after a few moments.
"Did you ever see so many stars?" said she.
The buggy moved slowly, on through the night. They did not talk. Explanations and narrative26 could wait until the morrow--a distant morrow only dimly foreseen, across this vast ocean of night. All sense of tune27 or direction left them; they were wandering irresponsibly, without thought of why, as children wander and get lost. After a long time they saw a silver gleam far ahead and below them.
"That must be the bay," said Keith. "If we turn to the right we ought to get back to town."
"I suppose so," said Nan.
A very long time later the horse stopped short with an air of finality, and refused absolutely to proceed. Keith descended28 to see what was the matter.
"The road seems to end here," he told her. "There's a steep descent just ahead."
"What now?"
"Nothing," he replied, climbing back into the buggy.
The horse slumbered29 profoundly. They wrapped the lap robe around themselves. For a tune they whispered little half-forgotten things to each other. The pauses grew longer and longer. With an effort she roused herself to press her lips again to his. They, too, slept. And as dawn slowly lighted the world, they must have presented a strange and bizarre silhouette30 atop the hill against the paling sky--the old sagging31 buggy, the horse with head down and ears adroop, the lovers clasped in each other's arms.
Silently all about them the new day was preparing its great spectacle. The stars were growing dim; the masses of eastern hills were becoming visible. A full rich life was swelling32 through the world, quietly, stealthily, as though under cover of darkness multitudes were stealing to their posts. Shortly, when the signal was given, the curtain would roll up, the fanfare33 of trumpets34 would resound--A meadow lark35 chirped36 low out of the blackness. And another, boldly, with full throat, uttered its liquid, joyous37 song. This was apparently38 the signal. The east turned gray. Mt. Tamalpais caught the first ghostly light. And ecstatically the birds and the insects and the flying and crawling and creeping things awakened39, and each in his own voice and manner devoutly40 welcomed the brand-new day with its fresh, clean chances of life and its forgetfulness of old, disagreeable things. The meadow larks41 became hundreds, the song sparrows trilled, distant cocks crowed, and a dog barked exuberantly42 far away.
Keith stirred and looked about him. Objects were already becoming dimly visible. Suddenly something attracted his attention. He held his head sideways, listening. Faintly down the little land breeze came the sound of a bell. It was the Vigilante tocsin. Nan sat up, blinking and putting her hair back from her eyes. She laughed a little happily.
"Why, it's the dawn!" she cried, "We've been out all night!"
"The dawn," repeated Keith, his arm about her, but his ear attuned43 to the beat of the distant bell. "The gray dawn of better things."
收听单词发音 |
1
plodded
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| v.沉重缓慢地走（路）( plod的过去式和过去分词 )；努力从事；沉闷地苦干；缓慢进行（尤指艰难枯燥的工作） | |
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Flared
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| adj. 端部张开的, 爆发的, 加宽的, 漏斗式的 动词flare的过去式和过去分词 | |
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spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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stiffened
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| 加强的 | |
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preoccupied
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| adj.全神贯注的，入神的；被抢先占有的；心事重重的v.占据（某人）思想，使对…全神贯注，使专心于( preoccupy的过去式) | |
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visualized
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| 直观的，直视的 | |
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contentedly
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| adv.心满意足地 | |
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infinities
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| n.无穷大( infinity的名词复数 )；无限远的点；无法计算的量；无限大的量 | |
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plodding
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| a.proceeding in a slow or dull way | |
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cozy
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| adj.亲如手足的，密切的，暖和舒服的 | |
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inchoate
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| adj.才开始的，初期的 | |
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rumination
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| n.反刍，沉思 | |
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tumult
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| n.喧哗；激动，混乱；吵闹 | |
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arena
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| n.竞技场，运动场所；竞争场所，舞台 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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simplicities
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| n.简单，朴素，率直( simplicity的名词复数 ) | |
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loyalty
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| n.忠诚，忠心 | |
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steadfast
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| adj.固定的，不变的，不动摇的；忠实的；坚贞不移的 | |
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tightened
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| 收紧( tighten的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）变紧； （使）绷紧； 加紧 | |
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reined
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| 勒缰绳使（马）停步( rein的过去式和过去分词 )； 驾驭； 严格控制； 加强管理 | |
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flickered
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| （通常指灯光）闪烁，摇曳( flicker的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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awaken
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| vi.醒，觉醒；vt.唤醒，使觉醒，唤起，激起 | |
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perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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brute
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| n.野兽，兽性 | |
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narrative
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| n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的 | |
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tune
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| n.调子；和谐，协调；v.调音，调节，调整 | |
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28
descended
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| a.为...后裔的，出身于...的 | |
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slumbered
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| 微睡，睡眠（slumber的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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silhouette
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| n.黑色半身侧面影，影子，轮廓；v.描绘成侧面影，照出影子来，仅仅显出轮廓 | |
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sagging
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| 下垂[沉，陷]，松垂，垂度 | |
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swelling
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| n.肿胀 | |
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fanfare
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| n.喇叭；号角之声；v.热闹地宣布 | |
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34
trumpets
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| 喇叭( trumpet的名词复数 )； 小号； 喇叭形物； （尤指）绽开的水仙花 | |
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35
lark
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| n.云雀，百灵鸟；n.嬉戏，玩笑；vi.嬉戏 | |
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36
chirped
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| 鸟叫，虫鸣( chirp的过去式 ) | |
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joyous
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| adj.充满快乐的；令人高兴的 | |
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apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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awakened
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| v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到 | |
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devoutly
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| adv.虔诚地，虔敬地，衷心地 | |
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41
larks
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| n.百灵科鸟（尤指云雀）( lark的名词复数 )；一大早就起床；鸡鸣即起；（因太费力而不想干时说）算了v.百灵科鸟（尤指云雀）( lark的第三人称单数 )；一大早就起床；鸡鸣即起；（因太费力而不想干时说）算了 | |
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42
exuberantly
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| adv.兴高采烈地，活跃地，愉快地 | |
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43
attuned
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| v.使协调( attune的过去式和过去分词 )；调音 | |
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