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1、【英文读物】Through the FrayPREFACE My Dear Lads:The beginning of the present century, glorious as it was for British arms abroad, was a dark time to those who lived by their daily labor at home. The heavy taxation entailed by the war, the injury to trade, and the enormous prices of food, all pressed heav
2、ily upon the working classes. The invention of improved machinery, vast as has been the increase of trade which it has brought about, at first pressed heavily upon the hand workers, who assigned all their distress to the new inventions. Hence a movement arose, which did much damage and for a time th
3、reatened to be extremely formidable. It had its ramifications through all the manufacturing districts of England, the object being the destruction of the machinery, and a return to the old methods of work. The troubles which occurred in various parts of the country were known as the Luddite Riots, a
4、nd the secret body which organized them was called King or General Lud. In the present story I have endeavored to give you an idea of the state of things which prevailed in Yorkshire, where, among the croppers and others employed in the woolen manufactures, was one of the most formidable branches of
5、 the secret association. The incidents of the murder of Mr. Horsfall and the attack upon Mr. Cartwrights mill are strictly accurate in all their details.In this story I have left the historical battlefields, across so many of which I have taken you, and have endeavored to show that there are peacefu
6、l battles to be fought and victories to be won every jot as arduous and as difficult as those contested under arms. In “Facing Death” my hero won such a battle. He had to fight against external circumstances, and step by step, by perseverance, pluck, and determination, made his way in life. In the p
7、resent tale my heros enemy was within, and although his victory was at last achieved the victor was well nigh worsted in the fray. We have all such battles to fight, dear lads; may we all come unscathed and victorious through the fray!Yours sincerely,G. A. HentyCHAPTER I: A FISHING EXPEDITION It has
8、 just struck one, and the boys are streaming out from the schoolroom of Mr. Hathorns academy in the little town of Marsden in Yorkshire. Their appearance would create some astonishment in the minds of lads of the present generation, for it was the year 1807, and their attire differed somewhat materi
9、ally from that now worn. They were for the most part dressed in breeches tight at the knee, and buttoning up outside the close fitting jacket nearly under the arms, so that they seemed almost devoid of waist. At the present moment they were bareheaded; but when they went beyond the precincts of the
10、school they wore stiff caps, flat and very large at the top, and with far projecting peaks.They were not altogether a happy looking set of boys, and many of their cheeks were stained with tears and begrimed with dirt from the knuckles which had been used to wipe them away; for there was in the year
11、1807 but one known method of instilling instruction into the youthful mind, namely, the cane, and one of the chief qualifications of a schoolmaster was to be able to hit hard and sharp.Mr. Hathorn, judged by this standard, stood very high in his profession; his cane seemed to whiz through the air, s
12、o rapidly and strongly did it descend, and he had the knack of finding out tender places, and of hitting them unerringly.Any one passing in front of the schoolhouse during the hours when the boys were at their lessons would be almost sure to hear the sharp cracks of the cane, followed sometimes by d
13、ead silence, when the recipient of the blows was of a sturdy and Spartan disposition, but more frequently by shrieks and cries.That Hathorns boys hated their master was almost a matter of course. At the same time they were far from regarding him as an exceptional monster of cruelty, for they knew fr
14、om their friends that flogging prevailed almost everywhere, and accepted it as a necessary portion of the woes of boyhood. Indeed, in some respects, when not smarting under the infliction, they were inclined to believe that their lot was, in comparison with that of others, a fortunate one; for where
15、as in many schools the diet was so poor and bad that the boys were half starved, at Hathorns if their food was simple and coarse it was at least wholesome and abundant.Mr. Hathorn, in fact, intended, and as he quite believed with success, to do his duty by his boys. They were sent to him to be taugh
16、t, and he taught them through the medium then recognized as most fitting for the purposethe cane; while, as far as an abundance of porridge for breakfast, and of heavy pudding at dinner, with twice a week an allowance of meat, the boys were unstinted. He would indeed point with pride to his pupils w
17、hen their parents assembled at the annual presentation of prizes.“Look at them!” he would say proudly. “None of your half starved skeletons herewell filled out and in good condition every boy of themno stint of porridge here. It keeps them in good health and improves their learning; for, mark you, a
18、 plump boy feels the cane twice as much as a skinny one; it stings, my dear sir, it stings, and leaves its mark; whereas there is no getting at a boy whose clothes hang like bags about him.”This was no doubt true, and the boys themselves were conscious of it, and many had been the stern resolutions
19、made while smarting in agony that henceforward food should be eschewed, or taken only in sufficient quantities to keep life together. But boys appetites are stronger than boys resolutions, and in the end there was never any marked falling off in the consumption of viands at Hathorns.Like other thing
20、s punishment fails when administered in excess. There was no disgrace whatever in what was common to all, for although some of the boys of superior ability and perseverance would escape with a smaller amount of punishment than their fellows, none could hope to escape altogether. Thus it was only the
21、 pain that they had to bear, and even this became to some extent deadened by repetition, and was forgotten as soon as inflicted, save when a sudden movement caused a sharp pain in back or leg. Once in the playground their spirits revived, and except a few whose recent punishment incapacitated them f
22、or a time from active exercise, the whole were soon intent upon their games.One only of the party wore his cap, and he after a few minutes left the others, and went toward a door which led from the playground into the road.“Dont be long, Sankey; come back as soon as you can, you know we agreed to go
23、 fishing this afternoon.”“All right, Tompkins; I will come back directly I have done my dinner. I expect I shall have finished quite as soon as you will.”Edward Sankey, who was regarded with envy by his schoolfellows, was the only home boarder at Hathorns; for, as a general thing, the master set his
24、 face against the introduction of home boarders. They were, he considered, an element of disturbance; they carry tales to and from the school; they cause discontent among the other boys, and their parents are in the habit of protesting and interfering. Not, indeed, that parents in those days conside
25、red it in any way a hardship for their boys to suffer corporal punishment; they had been flogged at school, and they believed that they had learned their lessons all the better for it. Naturally the same thing would happen to their sons. Still mothers are apt to be weak and soft hearted, and therefo
26、re Mr. Hathorn objected to home boarders.He had made an exception in Sankeys case; his father was of a different type to those of the majority of his boys; he had lost his leg at the battle of Assaye, and had been obliged to leave the army, and having but small means beyond his pension, had settled
27、near the quiet little Yorkshire town as a place where he could live more cheaply than in more bustling localities. He had, when he first came, no acquaintances whatever in the place, and therefore would not be given to discuss with the parents of other boys the doings in the school. Not that Mr. Hat
28、horn was afraid of discussion, for he regarded his school as almost perfect of its kind. Still it was his fixed opinion that discussion was, as a general rule, unadvisable. Therefore, when Captain Sankey, a few weeks after taking up his residence in the locality, made a proposal to him that his son
29、should attend his school as a home boarder, Mr. Hathorn acceded to the proposition, stating frankly his objections, as a rule, to boys of that class.“I shall not interfere,” Captain Sankey said. “Of course boys must be thrashed, and provided that the punishment is not excessive, and that it is justl
30、y administered, I have nothing to say against it. Boys must be punished, and if you dont flog you have to confine them, and in my opinion that is far worse for a boys temper, spirit, and health.”So Ned Sankey went to Hathorns, and was soon a great favorite there. Just at first he was regarded as a d
31、isobliging fellow because he adhered strictly to a stipulation which Mr. Hathorn had made, that he should not bring things in from the town for his school fellows. Only once a week, on the Saturday half holiday, were the boys allowed outside the bounds of the wall round the playground, and although
32、on Wednesday an old woman was allowed to come into those precincts to sell fruit, cakes, and sweets, many articles were wanted in the course of the week, and the boys took it much amiss for a time that Ned refused to act as their messenger; but he was firm in his refusals. His father had told him no
33、t to do so, and his fathers word was law to him; but when the boys saw that in all other respects he was a thoroughly good fellow, they soon forgave him what they considered his undue punctiliousness, and he became a prime favorite in the school.It is due to Mr. Hathorn to say that no fear of interf
34、erence induced him to mitigate his rule to thrash when he considered that punishment was necessary, and that Ned received his full share of the general discipline. He was never known to utter a cry under punishment, for he was, as his school fellows said admiringly, as hard as nails; and he was, mor
35、eover, of a dogged disposition which would have enabled him, when he had once determined upon a thing, to carry it through even if it killed him. Mr. Hathorn regarded this quality as obstinacy, the boys as iron resolution; and while the former did his best to conquer what he regarded as a fault, the
36、 boys encouraged by their admiration what they viewed as a virtue.At home Ned never spoke of his punishments; and if his father observed a sudden movement which told of a hidden pain, and would say cheerfully, “What! have you been getting it again, Ned?” the boy would smile grimly and nod, but no co
37、mplaint ever passed his lips.There was no disgrace in being floggedit was the natural lot of schoolboys; why should he make a fuss about it? So he held his tongue. But Mr. Hathorn was not altogether wrong. Ned Sankey was obstinate, but though obstinate he was by no means sulky. When he made up his m
38、ind to do a thing he did it, whether it was to be at the top of his class in order to please his father, or to set his teeth like iron and let no sound issue from them as Mr. Hathorns cane descended on his back.Ned Sankey was about fourteen years of age. He had a brother and a sister, but between th
39、em and himself was a gap of four years, as some sisters who had been born after him had died in infancy. Ned adored his father, who was a most kind and genial man, and would have suffered anything in silence rather than have caused him any troubles or annoyance by complaining to him.For his mother h
40、is feelings were altogether different. She was a kindly and well intentioned woman, but weak and silly. On leaving school she had gone out to join her father in India. Captain Sankey had sailed in the same ship and, taken by her pretty face and helpless, dependent manner, he had fallen in love with
41、her, knowing nothing of her real disposition, and they had been married upon their arrival at the termination of the voyage. So loyal was his nature that it is probable Captain Sankey never admitted even to himself that his marriage had been a mistake; but none of his comrades ever doubted it. His w
42、ife turned out one of the most helpless of women. Under the plea of ill health she had at a very early period of their marriage given up all attempt to manage the affairs of the household, and her nerves were wholly unequal to the strain of looking after her children. It was noticeable that though h
43、er health was unequal to the discharge of her duties, she was always well enough to take part in any pleasure or gayety which might be going on; and as none of the many doctors who attended her were able to discover any specific ailment, the general opinion was that Mrs. Sankeys ill health was the c
44、reation of her own imagination. This, however, was not wholly the case. She was not strong; and although, had she made an effort, she would have been able to look after her children like other women, she had neither the disposition nor the training to make that effort.Her son regarded her with the s
45、ort of pity, not unmingled with contempt, with which young people full of life and energy are apt to regard those who are weak and ailing without having any specific disease or malady which would account for their condition.“All the bothers fall upon father,” he would say to himself; “and if mother
46、did but make up her mind she could take her share in them well enough. There was he walking about for two hours this evening with little Lucy in his arms, because she had fallen down and hurt herself; and there was mother lying on the sofa reading that book of poetry, as if nothing that happened in
47、the house was any affair of hers. She is very nice and very kind, but I do wish she wouldnt leave everything for father to do. It might have been all very well before he lost his leg, but I do think she ought to make an effort now.”However, Mrs. Sankey made no effort, nor did her husband ever hint t
48、hat it would be better for herself as well as her family if she did so. He accepted the situation as inevitable, and patiently, and indeed willingly, bore her burden as well as his own.Fortunately she had in the childrens nurse an active and trustworthy woman. Abijah Wolf was a Yorkshire woman. She
49、had in her youth been engaged to a lad in her native village. In a moment of drunken folly, a short time before the day fixed for their wedding, he had been persuaded to enlist. Abijah had waited patiently for him twelve years. Then he had returned a sergeant, and she had married him and followed him with his regiment, which was that in which Captain Sankeyat that time a young ensignserved. When the latters first child was born at Madras there was a difficulty in obtaining a white nurse, and Mrs. Sa