GEORGE couldn't say a word. She just stood there, staring at the pile of ingots, holding one in herhand. She could hardly believe that these strange brick-shaped things were really gold. Her heartthumped fast. What a wonderful, marvellous find!
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Suddenly Tim began to bark loudly. He stood with his back to the children, his nose towards the door— and how he barked!
"Shut up, Tim!" said Julian. "What can you hear? Is it the others coming back?"He went to the door and yelled down the passage outside. "Dick! Anne! Is it you? Come quickly,because we've found the ingots! WE'VE FOUND THEM! HURRY! HURRY!"Tim stopped barking and began to growl1. George looked puzzled. "Whatever can be the matter withTim?" she said. "He surely can't be growling2 at Dick and Anne."Then both children got a most tremendous shock— for a man's voice came booming down the darkpassage, making queer echoes all around.
"Who is here? Who is down here?"
George clutched Julian in fright. Tim went on growling, all the hairs on his neck standing3 up straight.
"Do be quiet, Tim!" whispered George, snapping off her torch.
But Tim simply would not be quiet. He went on growling as if he were a small thunderstorm.
The children saw the beam of a powerful torchlight coming round the corner of the dungeon4 passage.
Then the light picked them out, and the holder5 of the torch came to a surprised stop.
"Well, well, well!" said a voice. "Look who's here! Two children in the dungeons6 of my castle.""What do you mean, your castle!" cried George.
"Well, my dear little girl, it is my castle, because I'm in the process of buying it," said the voice.
Then another voice spoke7, more gruffly.
"What are you doing down here? What did you mean when you shouted out ‘Dick’ and ‘Anne,’
and said you had found the ingots? What ingots?""Don't answer," whispered Julian to George. But the echoes took his words and made them very loudin the passage."DON'T ANSWER! DON'T ANSWER!""Oh, so you won't answer," said the second man, and he stepped towards the children. Tim bared histeeth, but the man didn't seem at all frightened of him. The man went to the door and flashed his torchinside the dungeon. He gave a long whistle of surprise.
"Jake! Look here!" he said. "You were right. The gold's here all right. And how easy to take away!
All in ingots —my word, this is the most amazing thing we've ever struck.""This gold is mine," said George, in a fury. "The island and the castle belong to my mother—and so does anything found here. This gold was brought here and stored by my great-great-great-grandfather before his ship got wrecked8. It's not yours, and never will be. As soon as I get back 71home I shall tell my father and mother what we've found— and then you may be sure you won't beable to buy the castle or the island! You were very clever, finding out from the map in the old boxabout the gold –but just not clever enough for us. We found it first!"The men listened in silence to George's clear and angry voice. One of them laughed. "You're only achild," he said. "You surely don't think you can keep us from getting our way? We're going to buythis island— and everything in it— and we shall take the gold when the deeds are signed. And if byany chance we couldn't buy the island, we'd take the gold just the same. It would be easy enough tobring a ship here and transfer the ingots from here by boat to the ship.
Don't worry— we shall get what we want all right.""You will not!" said George, and she stepped out of the door. "I'm going straight home now—and I'll tell my father all you've said.""My dear little girl, you are not going home," said the first man, putting his hands on George andforcing her back into the dungeon. "And, by the way, unless you want me to shoot this unpleasantdog of yours, call him off, will you?"
George saw, to her dismay, that the man had a shining revolver in his hand. In fright she caught holdof Tim's collar and pulled him to her. "Be quiet, Tim," she said. "It's all right."But Tim knew quite well that it wasn't all right. Something was very wrong. He went on growlingfiercely.
"Now listen to me," said the man, after he had had a hurried talk with his companion. "If you aregoing to be sensible, nothing unpleasant will happen to you. But if you want to be obstinate9, you'll bevery sorry. What we are going to do is this— we're going off in our motor-boat, leaving you nicelylocked up here— and we're going to get a ship and come back for the gold. We don't think it's worthwhile buying the island now we know where the ingots are.""And you are going to write a note to your companions above, telling them you've found the gold andthey are to come down and look for it," said the other man. "Then we shall lock up all of you in thisdungeon, with the ingots to play with, leaving you food and drink till we come back. Now then—here is a pencil. Write a note to Dick and Anne, whoever they are, and send your dog up with it.
Come on."
"I won't," said George, her face furious. "I won't. You can't make me do a thing like that. I won't getpoor Dick and Anne down here to be made prisoners. And I won't let you have my gold, just whenI've discovered it."
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"We shall shoot your dog if you don't do as you're told," said the first man, suddenly. George's heartsank down and she felt cold and terrified.
"No, no," she said, in a low, desperate voice.
"Well, write the note then," said the man, offering her a pencil and paper. "Go on. I'll tell you what tosay."
"I can't!" sobbed10 George. "I don't want to get Dick and Anne down here to be made prisoners.""All right— I'll shoot the dog then," said the man, in a cold voice and he levelled his revolver at poorTim. George threw her arms round her dog and gave a scream.
"No, no! I'll write the note. Don't shoot Tim, don't shoot him!"The girl took the paper and pencil in a shaking hand and looked at the man. "Write this," he ordered.
"Dear Dick and Anne. We've found the gold. Come on down at once and see it." Then sign yourname, whatever it is."
George wrote what the man had said. Then she signed her name. But instead of writing ‘George’
she put ‘Georgina.’ She knew that the others would feel certain she would never sign herself that—and she hoped it would warn them that something queer was up. The man took the note and fastenedit to Tim's collar. The dog growled11 all the time, but George kept telling him not to bite.
"Now tell him to go and find your friends," said the man.
"Find Dick and Anne," commanded George. "Go on, Tim. Find Dick and Anne. Give them the note."Tim did not want to leave George, but there was something very urgent in her voice. He took one lastlook at his mistress, gave her hand a lick and sped off down the passage. He knew the way now. Upthe rocky steps he bounded and into the open air. He stopped in the old yard, sniffing12.
Where were Dick and Anne?
He smelt13 their footsteps and ran off, his nose to the ground. He soon found the two children out onthe rocks. Dick was feeling better now and was sitting up. His cheek had almost stopped bleeding.
"Hallo," he said in surprise, when he saw Tim. "Here's Timothy! Why, Tim, old chap, why have youcome to see us? Did you get tired of being underground in the dark?"73
"Look, Dick— he's got something twisted into his collar," said Anne, her sharp eyes seeing the paperthere. "It's a note. I expect it's from the others, telling us to go down. Isn't Tim clever to bring it?"Dick took the paper from Tim's collar. He undid14 it and read it.
"Dear Dick and Anne," he read out aloud, "We've found the gold. Come on down at once and see it.
Georgina."
"Oooh!" said Anne, her eyes shining. "They've found it. Oh Dick— are you well enough to comenow? Let's hurry."
But Dick did not get up from the rocks. He sat and stared at the note, puzzled.
"What's the matter?" said Anne, impatiently.
"Well, don't you think it's funny that George should suddenly sign herself ‘Georgina’?" said Dick,slowly. "You know how she hates being a girl, and having a girl's name. You know how she willnever answer if anyone calls her Georgina. And yet in this note she signs herself by the name shehates. It does seem a bit funny to me. Almost as if it's a kind of warning that there's somethingwrong."
"Oh, don't be so silly, Dick," said Anne. "What could be wrong? Do come on.""Anne, I'd like to pop over to that inlet of ours to make sure there's no one else come to the island,"said Dick. "You stay here."
But Anne didn't want to stay there alone. She ran round the coast with Dick, telling him all the timethat she thought he was very silly.
But when they came to the little harbour, they saw that there was another boat there, as well as theirown. It was a motor-boat! Someone else was on the island!
"Look," said Dick, in a whisper. "There is someone else here. And I bet it's the men who want to buythe island. I bet they've read that old map and know there's gold here. And they've found George andJulian and want to get us all together down in the dungeons so that they can keep us safe till they'vestolen the gold. That's why they made George send us that note— but she signed it with a name shenever uses— to warn us! Now— we must think hard. What are we going to do?"
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收听单词发音
收听单词发音 |
1
growl
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| v.（狗等）嗥叫，（炮等）轰鸣；n.嗥叫，轰鸣 | |
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2
growling
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| n.吠声, 咆哮声 v.怒吠, 咆哮, 吼 | |
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3
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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4
dungeon
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| n.地牢，土牢 | |
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holder
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| n.持有者，占有者；(台，架等)支持物 | |
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6
dungeons
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| n.地牢( dungeon的名词复数 ) | |
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7
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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8
wrecked
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| adj.失事的，遇难的 | |
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9
obstinate
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| adj.顽固的，倔强的，不易屈服的，较难治愈的 | |
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10
sobbed
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| 哭泣，啜泣( sob的过去式和过去分词 )； 哭诉，呜咽地说 | |
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11
growled
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| v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说 | |
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12
sniffing
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| n.探查法v.以鼻吸气，嗅，闻( sniff的现在分词 )；抽鼻子（尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气）；抱怨，不以为然地说 | |
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13
smelt
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| v.熔解，熔炼；n.银白鱼，胡瓜鱼 | |
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14
Undid
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| v. 解开, 复原 | |
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