Faye moved out of the San Berdoo the day after the funeral. Tod didn’t know where she had gone and was getting up the courage to call Mrs. Jenning when he saw her from the window of his office. She was dressed in the costume of a Napoleonic vivandière. By the time he got the window open, she had almost turned the corner of the building. He shouted for her to wait. She waved, but when he got downstairs she was gone.
From her dress, he was sure that she was working in the picture called “Waterloo.” He asked a studio policeman where the company was shooting and was told on the back lot. He started toward it at once. A platoon of cuirassiers, big men mounted on gigantic horses, went by. He knew that they must be headed for the same set and followed them. They broke into a gallop2 and he was soon outdistanced.
The sun was very hot. His eyes and throat were choked with the dust thrown up by the horses’ hooves and his head throbbed3. The only bit of shade he could find was under an ocean liner made of painted canvas with real lifeboats hanging from its davits. He stood in its narrow shadow for a while, then went on toward a great forty-foot papier maché sphinx that loomed4 up in the distance. He had to cross a desert to reach it, a desert that was continually being made larger by a fleet of trucks dumping white sand. He had gone only a few feet when a man with a megaphone ordered him off.
He skirted the desert, making a wide turn to the right, and came to a Western street with a plank5 sidewalk. On the porch of the “Last Chance Saloon” was a rocking chair. He sat down on it and lit a cigarette.
From there he could see a jungle compound with a water buffalo6 tethered to the side of a conical grass hut. Every few seconds the animal groaned7 musically. Suddenly an Arab charged by on a white stallion. He shouted at the man, but got no answer. A little while later he saw a truck with a load of snow and several malamute dogs. He shouted again. The driver shouted something back, but didn’t stop.
Throwing away his cigarette, he went through the swinging doors of the saloon. There was no back to the building and he found himself in a Paris street. He followed it to its end, coming out in a Romanesque courtyard. He heard voices a short distance away and went toward them. On a lawn of fiber8, a group of men and women in riding costume were picnicking. They were eating cardboard food in front of a cellophane waterfall. He started toward them to ask his way, but was stopped by a man who scowled9 and held up a sign —“Quiet, Please, We’re Shooting.” When Tod took another step forward, the man shook his fist threateningly.
Next he came to a small pond with large celluloid swans floating on it. Across one end was a bridge with a sign that read, “To Kamp Komfit.” He crossed the bridge and followed a little path that ended at a Greek temple dedicated10 to Eros. The god himself lay face downward in a pile of old newspapers and bottles.
From the steps of the temple, he could see in the distance a road lined with Lombardy poplars. It was the one on which he had lost the cuirassiers. He pushed his way through a tangle11 of briars, old flats and iron junk, skirting the skeleton of a Zeppelin, a bamboo stockade12, an adobe13 fort, the wooden horse of Troy, a flight of baroque palace stairs that started in a bed of weeds and ended against the branches of an oak, part of the Fourteenth Street elevated station, a Dutch windmill, the bones of a dinosaur14, the upper half of the Merrimac, a corner of a Mayan temple, until he finally reached the road.
He was out of breath. He sat down under one of the poplars on a rock made of brown plaster and took off his jacket. There was a cool breeze blowing and he soon felt more comfortable.
He had lately begun to think not only of Goya and Daumier but also of certain Italian artists of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, of Salvator Rosa, Francesco Guardi and Monsu Desiderio, the painters of Decay and Mystery. Looking downhill now, he could see compositions that might have actually been arranged from the Calabrian work of Rosa. There were partially15 demolished16 buildings and broken monuments, half-hidden by great, tortured trees, whose exposed roots writhed17 dramatically in the arid18 ground, and by shrubs19 that carried, not flowers or berries, but armories20 of spikes21, hooks and swords.
For Guardi and Desiderio there were bridges which bridged nothing, sculpture in trees, palaces that seemed of marble until a whole stone portico22 began to flap in the light breeze. And there were figures as well. A hundred yards from where Tod was sitting a man in a derby hat leaned drowsily23 against the gilded24 poop of a Venetian barque and peeled an apple. Still farther on, a charwoman on a stepladder was scrubbing with soap and water the face of a Buddha25 thirty feet high.
He left the road and climbed across the spine26 of the hill to look down on the other side. From there he could see a ten-acre field of cockleburs spotted27 with clumps28 of sunflowers and wild gum. In the center of the field was a gigantic pile of sets, flats and props29. While he watched, a ten-ton truck added another load to it. This was the final dumping ground. He thought of Janvier’s “Sargasso Sea.” Just as that imaginary body of water was a history of civilization in the form of a marine30 junkyard, the studio lot was one in the form of a dream dump. A Sargasso of the imagination! And the dump grew continually, for there wasn’t a dream afloat somewhere which wouldn’t sooner or later turn up on it, having first been made photographic by plaster, canvas, lath and paint. Many boats sink and never reach the Sargasso, but no dream ever entirely31 disappears. Somewhere it troubles some unfortunate person and some day, when that person has been sufficiently32 troubled, it will be reproduced on the lot.
When he saw a red glare in the sky and heard the rumble33 of cannon34, he knew it must be Waterloo. From around a bend in the road trotted35 several cavalry36 regiments37. They wore casques and chest armor of black cardboard and carried long horse pistols in their saddle holsters. They were Victor Hugo’s soldiers. He had worked on some of the drawings for their uniforms himself, following carefully the descriptions in “Les Miserables.”
He went in the direction they took. Before long he was passed by the men of Lefebvre–Desnouttes, followed by a regiment38 of gendarmes39 d’élite, several companies of chasseurs of the guard and a flying detachment of Rimbaud’s lancers.
They must be moving up for the disastrous40 attack on La Haite Santee. He hadn’t read the scenario41 and wondered if it had rained yesterday. Would Grouchy42 or Bulcher arrive? Grotenstein, the producer, might have changed it.
The sound of cannon was becoming louder all the time and the red fan in the sky more intense. He could smell the sweet, pungent43 odor of blank powder. It might be over before he could get there. He started to run. When he topped a rise after a sharp bend in the road, he found a great plain below him covered with early nineteenth-century troops, wearing all the gay and elaborate uniforms that used to please him so much when he was a child and spent long hours looking at the soldiers in an old dictionary. At the far end of the field, he could see an enormous hump around which the English and their allies were gathered. It was Mont St. Jean and they were getting ready to defend it gallantly45. It wasn’t quite finished, however, and swarmed46 with grips, property men, set dressers, carpenters and painters.
Tod stood near a eucalyptus47 tree to watch, concealing48 himself behind a sign that read, “Waterloo’— A Charles H. Grotenstein Production.” Nearby a youth in a carefully torn horse guard’s uniform was being rehearsed in his lines by one of the assistant directors.
“Vive l’Empereur!” the young man shouted, then clutched his breast and fell forward dead. The assistant director was a hard man to please and made him do it over and over again.
In the center of the plain, the battle was going ahead briskly. Things looked tough for the British and their allies. The Prince of Orange commanding the center, Hill the right and Picton the left wing, were being pressed hard by the veteran French. The desperate and intrepid49 Prince was in an especially bad spot. Tod heard him cry hoarsely50 above the din1 of battle, shouting to the Hollande–Belgians, “Nassau! Brunswick! Never retreat!” Nevertheless, the retreat began. Hill, too, fell back. The French killed General Picton with a ball through the head and he returned to his dressing51 room. Alten was put to the sword and also retired52. The colors of the Lunenberg battalion53, borne by a prince of the family of Deux–Ponts, were captured by a famous child star in the uniform of a Parisian drummer boy. The Scotch54 Greys were destroyed and went to change into another uniform. Ponsonby’s heavy dragoons were also cut to ribbons. Mr. Grotenstein would have a large bill to pay at the Western Costume Company.
Neither Napoleon nor Wellington was to be seen. In Wellington’s absence, one of the assistant directors, a Mr. Crane, was in command of the allies. He reinforced his center with one of Chasse’s brigades and one of Wincke’s. He supported these with infantry55 from Brunswick, Welsh foot, Devon yeomanry and Hanoverian light horse with oblong leather caps and flowing plumes56 of horsehair.
For the French, a man in a checked cap ordered Milhaud’s cuirassiers to carry Mont St. Jean. With their sabers in their teeth and their pistols in their hands, they charged. It was a fearful sight.
The man in the checked cap was making a fatal error. Mont St. Jean was unfinished. The paint was not yet dry and all the struts57 were not in place. Because of the thickness of the cannon smoke, he had failed to see that the hill was still being worked on by property men, grips and carpenters.
It was the classic mistake, Tod realized, the same one Napoleon had made. Then it had been wrong for a different reason. The Emperor had ordered the cuirassiers to charge Mont St. Jean not knowing that a deep ditch was hidden at its foot to trap his heavy cavalry. The result had been disaster for the French; the beginning of the end.
This time the same mistake had a different outcome. Waterloo, instead of being the end of the Grand Army, resulted in a draw. Neither side won, and it would have to be fought over again the next day. Big losses, however, were sustained by the insurance company in workmen’s compensation. The man in the checked cap was sent to the dog house by Mr. Grotenstein just as Napoleon was sent to St. Helena.
When the front rank of Milhaud’s heavy division started up the slope of Mont St. Jean, the hill collapsed58. The noise was terrific. Nails screamed with agony as they pulled out of joists. The sound of ripping canvas was like that of little children whimpering. Lath and scantling snapped as though they were brittle59 bones. The whole hill folded like an enormous umbrella and covered Napoleon’s army with painted cloth.
It turned into a route. The victors of Bersina, Leipsic, Austerlitz, fled like schoolboys who had broken a pane60 of glass. “Sauve qui peut!” they cried, or, rather, “Scram!”
The armies of England and her allies were too deep in scenery to flee. They had to wait for the carpenters and ambulances to come up. The men of the gallant44 Seventy–Fifth Highlanders were lifted out of the wreck61 with block and tackle. They were carted off by the stretcher-bearers, still clinging bravely to their claymores.
收听单词发音 |
1
din
|
|
| n.喧闹声，嘈杂声 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
2
gallop
|
|
| v./n.(马或骑马等)飞奔；飞速发展 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
3
throbbed
|
|
| 抽痛( throb的过去式和过去分词 )； （心脏、脉搏等）跳动 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
4
loomed
|
|
| v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的过去式和过去分词 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
5
plank
|
|
| n.板条，木板，政策要点，政纲条目 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
6
buffalo
|
|
| n.(北美)野牛；(亚洲)水牛 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
7
groaned
|
|
| v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
8
fiber
|
|
| n.纤维，纤维质 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
9
scowled
|
|
| 怒视，生气地皱眉( scowl的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
10
dedicated
|
|
| adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
11
tangle
|
|
| n.纠缠；缠结；混乱；v.(使)缠绕；变乱 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
12
stockade
|
|
| n.栅栏，围栏；v.用栅栏防护 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
13
adobe
|
|
| n.泥砖，土坯，美国Adobe公司 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
14
dinosaur
|
|
| n.恐龙 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
15
partially
|
|
| adv.部分地，从某些方面讲 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
16
demolished
|
|
| v.摧毁( demolish的过去式和过去分词 )；推翻；拆毁（尤指大建筑物）；吃光 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
17
writhed
|
|
| （因极度痛苦而）扭动或翻滚( writhe的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
18
arid
|
|
| adj.干旱的；(土地)贫瘠的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
19
shrubs
|
|
| 灌木( shrub的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
20
armories
|
|
| n.纹章( armory的名词复数 )；纹章学；兵工厂；军械库 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
21
spikes
|
|
| n.穗( spike的名词复数 )；跑鞋；（防滑）鞋钉；尖状物v.加烈酒于( spike的第三人称单数 )；偷偷地给某人的饮料加入（更多）酒精（ 或药物）；把尖状物钉入；打乱某人的计划 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
22
portico
|
|
| n.柱廊，门廊 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
23
drowsily
|
|
| adv.睡地，懒洋洋地，昏昏欲睡地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
24
gilded
|
|
| a.镀金的，富有的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
25
Buddha
|
|
| n.佛；佛像；佛陀 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
26
spine
|
|
| n.脊柱，脊椎；(动植物的)刺；书脊 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
27
spotted
|
|
| adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
28
clumps
|
|
| n.（树、灌木、植物等的）丛、簇( clump的名词复数 )；（土、泥等）团；块；笨重的脚步声v.（树、灌木、植物等的）丛、簇( clump的第三人称单数 )；（土、泥等）团；块；笨重的脚步声 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
29
props
|
|
| 小道具； 支柱( prop的名词复数 )； 支持者； 道具； （橄榄球中的）支柱前锋 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
30
marine
|
|
| adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
31
entirely
|
|
| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
32
sufficiently
|
|
| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
33
rumble
|
|
| n.隆隆声；吵嚷；v.隆隆响；低沉地说 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
34
cannon
|
|
| n.大炮，火炮；飞机上的机关炮 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
35
trotted
|
|
| 小跑，急走( trot的过去分词 )； 匆匆忙忙地走 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
36
cavalry
|
|
| n.骑兵；轻装甲部队 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
37
regiments
|
|
| （军队的）团( regiment的名词复数 )； 大量的人或物 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
38
regiment
|
|
| n.团，多数，管理；v.组织，编成团，统制 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
39
gendarmes
|
|
| n.宪兵，警官( gendarme的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
40
disastrous
|
|
| adj.灾难性的，造成灾害的；极坏的，很糟的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
41
scenario
|
|
| n.剧本，脚本；概要 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
42
grouchy
|
|
| adj.好抱怨的；愠怒的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
43
pungent
|
|
| adj.（气味、味道）刺激性的，辛辣的；尖锐的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
44
gallant
|
|
| adj.英勇的，豪侠的；(向女人)献殷勤的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
45
gallantly
|
|
| adv. 漂亮地，勇敢地，献殷勤地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
46
swarmed
|
|
| 密集( swarm的过去式和过去分词 )； 云集； 成群地移动； 蜜蜂或其他飞行昆虫成群地飞来飞去 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
47
eucalyptus
|
|
| n.桉树，桉属植物 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
48
concealing
|
|
| v.隐藏，隐瞒，遮住( conceal的现在分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
49
intrepid
|
|
| adj.无畏的，刚毅的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
50
hoarsely
|
|
| adv.嘶哑地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
51
dressing
|
|
| n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
52
retired
|
|
| adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
53
battalion
|
|
| n.营；部队；大队(的人) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
54
scotch
|
|
| n.伤口，刻痕；苏格兰威士忌酒；v.粉碎，消灭，阻止；adj.苏格兰(人)的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
55
infantry
|
|
| n.[总称]步兵(部队) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
56
plumes
|
|
| 羽毛( plume的名词复数 )； 羽毛饰； 羽毛状物； 升上空中的羽状物 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
57
struts
|
|
| （框架的）支杆( strut的名词复数 )； 支柱； 趾高气扬的步态； （尤指跳舞或表演时）卖弄 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
58
collapsed
|
|
| adj.倒塌的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
59
brittle
|
|
| adj.易碎的；脆弱的；冷淡的；(声音)尖利的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
60
pane
|
|
| n.窗格玻璃，长方块 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
61
wreck
|
|
| n.失事，遇难；沉船；vt.(船等)失事，遇难 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
| 欢迎访问英文小说网 |