Oakhurst(startinginastonishment;aside)。SandyMorton,mylostpartner’sfather!Thisisfate。
  Morton。Youareastonished;butIthoughtso。Ay,youwillhearmenow!Iamyourfather,AlexanderMorton,whodroveyou,ahelplessboy,intodisgraceandmisery。Iknowyourshamelesslife:fortwentyyearsitwasmine,andworse,until,bythegraceofGod,Ireformed,asyoushall。Ihavestoppedyouinadisgracefulact。Yourmother——Godforgiveme!——leftHERhouse,forMYarms,aswickedly,aswantonly,asshamelessly——
  Oakhurst。Stop,oldman!Stop!Anotherword(seizinghim),andI
  mayforgetyouryears。
  Morton。Butnotyourblood。No,AlexanderMorton,Ihavecomethousandsofmilesforonesacredpurpose,——tosaveyou;andI
  shall,withGod’swill,doitnow。Beitso,ononecondition。
  Youshallhavethisgirl;butlawfully,openly,withthesanctionofHeavenandyourparents。
  Oakhurst(aside)。Iseearayofhope。ThisisSandy’sfather;
  thecold,insensatebrute,whodrovehimintoexile,theonebittermemoryofhislife。Sandydisappeared,irreclaimable,orlivingalone,hatingirrevocablytheauthorofhismisery;whyshouldnotI——
  Morton(continuing)。Ononecondition。Hearme,AlexanderMorton。
  Ifwithinayear,you,abandoningyourevilpractices,yourwaywardlife,seektoreformbeneathmyroof,IwillmakethisproudSpanishDongladtoacceptyouasthemorethanequalofhisdaughter。
  Oakhurst(aside)。Itwouldbeaneasydeception。Sandyhasgivenmethedetailsofhisearlylife。Atleast,beforetheimpositionwasdiscoveredIshallbe——(Aloud。)I——I——(Aside。)Perdition!
  SHEiscoming!Thereisalightmovingintheupperchamber。DonJoseisawakened。(Aloud。)I——I——accept。
  Morton。Itiswell。Takethesekeys,openyondergate,andfly!
  (AsOAKHURSThesitates。)Obeyme。Iwillmeetyoursweetheart,andexplainall。Youwillcomehereatdaylightinthemorning,andclaimadmittance,notasavagabond,ahousebreaker,butasmyson。Youhesitate。AlexanderMorton,I,yourfather,commandyou。
  Go!
  OAKHURSTgoestothegate,opensit,asthesoundofDIEGO’Svoice,singinginthefog,comesfaintlyin。
  Oyer’syourSandyMorton,Drinkhimdown!
  Oyer’syourSandyMorton,Drinkhimdown!
  Oyer’syourSandyMorton,Forhe’sdrunk,andgoin’a-courtin’。
  Oyer’syourSandyMorton,Drinkhimdown!
  OAKHURSTrecoilsagainstgate,MORTONhesitates,aswindowincorridoropens,andDONJOSEcallsfromuppercorridor。
  DonJose。Concho!(Pause。)’TisthatvagabondDiego,losthiswayinthefog。StrangethatConchoshouldhaveoverlookedhim。I
  willdescend。
  Morton(toOAKHURST)。Doyouhear?
  ExitOAKHURSTthroughgateway。MORTONclosesgate,andreturnstocentre。EnterJOVITAhurriedly。
  Jovita。Ihaveithere。Quick!thereisalightinDonJose’schamber;myfatheriscomingdown。(SeesMORTON,andscreams。)
  Morton(seizingher。)Hush!foryourownsake;forHIS;controlyourself。Heisgone,buthewillreturn。(ToJOVITA,stillstruggling。)Hush,Ibeg,MissJovita。Ibeg,Icommandyou,mydaughter。Hush!
  Jovita(whispering)。Hisvoicehaschanged。Whatdoesthismean?
  (Aloud。)Wherehashegone?andwhyareYOUhere?
  Morton(slowlyandseriously)。Hehasleftmeheretoanswertheunansweredquestionyouaskedhim。(EnterDonJoseandCol。
  STARBOTTLE,R。andL。)IamheretotellyouthatIamhisfather,andthatheisAlexanderMorton。
  TABLEAUX。
  Curtain。
  ENDOFACTI。
  ACTII。
  SCENE1。——RedGulch。Canyonofriver,anddistantviewofSierras,snow-ravined。Schoolhouseoflogsinrightmiddledistance。Ledgeofrocksincentre。Onstepsofschoolhousetwolargebunchesofflowers。EnterSTARBOTTLE,slowlyclimbingrocksL。,pantingandexhausted。Seatshimselfonrock,foreground,andwipeshisfacewithhispocket-handkerchief。
  Starbottle。Thisisevidentlytheer——locality。Herearethe——er——
  grovesofAcademus——theheightsofer——Ida!Ishouldsaythattheunwillingnesswhichthe——er——divineShakespearepointsoutinthe——
  er——"whiningschoolboy"isintensifiedin——er——climbingthisheight,andthe——er——alacrityofhisdeparturemustbeinexactratiotohisgravitation。Goodidea。Ged!sayittoschoolma’am。
  Wonderwhatshe’slike?Humph!theusualthin,weazened,hatchet-
  facedYankeespinster,withanindecentfamiliaritywithWebster’sDictionary!Andthisisthewoman,Star,you’reexpectedtodiscover,andbringbacktoaffluenceandplenty。ThisisthenewfanaticismofMr。AlexanderMorton,sen。Ged!notsatisfiedwithdragginghisprodigalsonoutofmeritedobscurity,thismiserableoldlunaticcommissionsMEtohuntupanotherofhisabusedrelatives;someforty-fifthcousin,whosemotherhehadfrozen,beaten,orstarvedtodeath!Andallthistopleasehisprodigal!
  Ged!ifthatprodigalhadn’tpresentedhimselfthatmorning,I’dhavepickedup——er——some——er——reducedgentleman——Ged,thatknewhowtospendtheoldman’smoneytobetteradvantage。(Musing。)Ifthisschoolmistresswerebarelygood-looking,Star,——andshe’ssuretohavefiftythousandfromtheoldman,——Ged,youmightgetevenwithAlexander,sen。,forbetrothinghisprodigaltoDonaJovita,inspiteofthe——er——evidentpreferencethatthegirlshowedforyou。Capitalidea!Ifshe’snotpositivelyhideousI’lldoit!
  Ged!I’llreconnoitrefirst!(Musing。)Icouldstandoneeye;
  yes——er——singleeyewouldnotbepositivelyobjectionableinthe——
  er——presentexperimentsofsciencetowardthe——er——thesubstitutionofglass。Redhair,Star,is——er——Venetian,——thebeautyofGiorgione。(Goesuptoschoolhousewindow,andlooksin。)Tooearly!Sevenemptybenches;sevendeskssplashedwithink。The——
  er——rostrumoftheawfulMinervaempty,but——er——adornedwithflowers,nosegays——demnme!Andhere,hereonthe——er——verythreshold(lookingdown),floraltributes。The——er——conceitoftheseNewEnglandschoolma’ams,andtheir——er——evidentJesuiticalinfluenceovertheyoung,isfraught,sir,fraughtwith——er——darklypoliticalsignificance。Eh,Ged!there’sacaricatureontheblackboard。(Laughing。)Ha,ha!Absurdchalkoutlineofridiculousfatperson。Evidentlytheschoolma’am’sadmirer。Ged!
  immenselyfunny!Ah!boyswillbeboys。Likeyou,Star,justlikeyou,——alwaysuptotrickslikethat。Asentencescrawledbelowthefigureseemstobe——er——explanation。Hem!(Takesouteyeglass。)
  Let’ssee(reading。)"Thisisold"——old——er——old——demme,sir!——
  "Starbottle!"Thisisinfamous。Ihaven’tbeenforty-eighthoursintheplace,andtomycertainknowledgehaven’tspokentoachild。Ged,sir,it’sthe——er——postingofalibel!Thewoman,the——er——female,whopermitsthiskindofthing,shouldbemaderesponsible——er——personallyresponsible。Eh,hush!Whathavewehere?(Retirestoledgeofrocks。)
  EnterMISSMARYL。,readingletter。
  MissMary。Strange!Isitalladream?No!herearethefamiliarrocks,thedistantsnow-peaks,theschoolhouse,thespringbelow。
  AnhouragoIwasthepoorschoolmistressofRedGulch,withnoambitionnorhopebeyondthismountainwall;andnow——oh,itmustbeadream!Buthereistheletter。Certainlythisisnodelusion:itistooplain,formal,business-like。(Reads。)
  MYDEARCOUSIN——IaddresstheonlysurvivingchildofmycousinMaryandherhusbandJohnMorris,bothdeceased。ItismydutyasaChristianrelativetoprovideyouwithahome——tosharewithyouthatwealthandthoseblessingsthatakindprovidencehasvouchsafedme。Iamawarethatmyconducttoyourfatherandmother,whileinmysinfulandunregeneratestate,isnowarranteeformypresentpromise;butmylegaladviser,Col。Starbottle,whoisempoweredtotreatwithyou,willassureyouofthesincerityofmyintention,andmylegalabilitytoperformit。Hewillconductyoutomyhouse;youwillshareitsroofwithmeandmyprodigalsonAlexander,nowbythegraceofGodrestored,andmindfuloftheerrorofhisways。Iencloseadraftforonethousanddollars:ifyourequiremore,drawuponmeforthesame。
  Yourcousin,ALEXANDERMORTON,SEN。
  Mymother’scousin——so!CousinAlexander!arichman,andreunitedtothesonhedroveintoshamefulexile。Well!wewillseethisconfidentiallawyer;anduntilthen——untilthen——why,wearetheschoolmistressofRedGulch,andresponsibleforitsyouthfulprodigals。(Goingtoschoolhousedoor。)
  MissMary(stoppingtoexamineflowers)。Poor,poorSandy!
  Anotheroffering,and,ashefondlybelieves,unknownandanonymous!Asifhewerenotvisibleineverypetalandleaf!
  Themariposablossomoftheplain。ThesnowflowerIlongedfor,fromthosecoolsnowdriftsbeyondtheridge。AndIreallybelievehewassoberwhenhearrangedthem。Poorfellow!Ibegintothinkthatthedissipatedportionofthiscommunityarethemostinteresting。Ah!someonebehindtherock,——Sandy,I’llwager。
  No!astranger!
  Col。Starbottle(aside,andadvancing)。IfIcouldmakeherthinkIleftthoseflowers!(Aloud。)WhenIstatethat——er——Iamperhaps——er——stranger——
  MissMary(interruptinghimcoldly)。Youexplain,sir,yourappearanceonaspotwhichtherudecourtesyofeventhisrudeminer’scamphaspreservedfromintrusion。
  Starbottle(slightlyabashed,butrecoveringhimself)。Yes——Ged!——
  thatis,I——er——sawyouadmiring——er——tribute——er——humbletributeofflowers。Iammyselfpassionatelydevotedtoflowers。Ged!
  I’vespenthours——in——er——bendingoverthe——er——gracefulsunflower,in——er——pluckingthetimidvioletfromtheoverhangingbutreluctantbough,incollectingthe——er——er——fauna——Imeanthe——er——
  flora——ofthis——er——district。
  MissMary(whohasbeenregardinghimintently)。Permitmetoleaveyouinuninterruptedadmirationofthem。(Handinghimflowers。)Youwillhaveampletimeinyourjourneydownthegulchtoindulgeyourcuriosity!
  HandsSTARBOTTLEflowers,entersschoolhouse,andquietlyclosesdooronSTARBOTTLEasSANDYMORTONenterscautiouslyandsheepishlyfromleft。SANDYstopsinastonishmentonobservingSTARBOTTLE,andremainsbywingleft。
  Starbottle(smellingflowers,andnotnoticingMISSMARY’Sabsence)。
  Beautiful——er——exquisite。(Lookingupatcloseddoor。)Ged!Mostextraordinarydisappearance!(Looksaround,anddiscoversSANDY;
  examineshimforamomentthroughhiseyeglass,andthen,afterapause,inflateshischest,turnshisbackonSANDY,andadvancestoschoolhousedoor。SANDYcomesquickly,and,asSTARBOTTLEraiseshiscanetorapondoor,seizeshisarm。Bothmen,regardingeachotherfixedly,holdingeachother,retreatslowlyandcautiouslytocentre。ThenSTARBOTTLEdisengageshisarm。)
  Sandy(embarrassedlybutdeterminedly)。Lookyer,stranger。Bytherulesofthiscamp,thisplaceissacredtotheschoolma’amandherchildren。
  Starbottle(withloftyseverity)。Itis!Then——er——permitmetoask,sir,whatYOUaredoinghere。
  Sandy(embarrassed,anddroppinghisheadinconfusion)。Iwas——
  passing。Thereisnoschoolto-day。
  Starbottle。Then,sir,Ged!permitmeto——er——DEMAND——DEMAND,sir——
  anapology。Youhavelaid,sir,yourhanduponmyperson——demnme!Notthefirsttime,sir,either;for,ifIamnotmistaken,youarethe——er——inebriatedmenial,sir,whotwomonthsagojostledme,sir,——demnme,——asIenteredtheranchoofmyfriendDonJoseCastro。
  Sandy(starting,aside)。DonJose!(Aloud。)Hush,hush!Shewillhearyou。No——thatis——(stops,confusedandembarrassed。
  Aside。)Shewillhearofmydisgrace。Hewilltellherthewholestory。
  Starbottle。Ishallawaityourapologyonehour。Attheendofthattime,ifitisnotforthcoming,Ishall——er——er——waiveyourmenialantecedents,andexpectthe——er——satisfactionofagentleman。Good-morning,sir。(Turnstoschoolhouse。)
  Sandy。No,no:youshallnotgo!
  Starbottle。Whowillpreventme?
  Sandy(grapplinghim)。Iwill。(Appealingly。)Lookyer,stranger,don’tprovokeme,I,adesperateman,desperateandcrazedwithdrink,——don’tye,don’tyedoit!ForGod’ssake,takeyourhandsoffme!Yedon’tknowwhatyedo。Ah!(Wildly,holdingSTARBOTTLEfirmly,andforcinghimbackwardtoprecipicebeyondledgeofrocks。)Hearme。Threeyearsago,inamomentlikethis,Idraggedaman——myfriend——tothisprecipice。I——I——
  no!no!——don’tangermenow!(Sandy’sgriponSTARBOTTLErelaxesslightly,andhisheaddroops。)
  Starbottle(coolly)。Permitmetoremark,sir,thatanyreminiscenceofyour——er——friend——oranyothermanis——er——atthismoment,irrelevantandimpertinent。Permitmetopointoutthe——er——fact,sir,thatyourhandispressingheavily,demnedheavily,onmyshoulder。
  Sandy(fiercely)。Youshallnotgo!
  Starbottle(fiercely)。Shallnot?
  Struggle。STARBOTTLEdrawsderringerfromhisbreast-pocket,andSANDYseizeshisarm。Inthispositionbothpartiesstruggletoledgeofrocks,andCOL。STARBOTTLEisforcedpartlyover。
  MissMary(openingschoolhousedoor)。IthoughtIheardvoices。
  (Lookingtowardledgeofrocks,whereCOL。STARBOTTLEandSANDYarepartlyhiddenbytrees。BothmenrelaxgraspofeachotheratMISS
  MARY’Svoice。)
  Col。Starbottle(aloudandwithvoiceslightlyraised,toSANDY)。
  By——er——leaningoverthiswayamoment,asinglemoment,youwill——
  er——perceivethetrailIspeakof。Itfollowsthecanyontotheright。Itwillbringyouto——er——thesettlementinanhour。(ToMISSMARY,asifobservingherforthefirsttime。)IbelieveI
  am——er——right;but,being——er——morefamiliarwiththelocality,youcandirectthegentlemanbetter。
  SANDYslowlysinksonhiskneesbesiderock,withhisfaceavertedfromschoolhouse,asCOL。STARBOTTLEdisengageshimself,andadvancesjauntilyandgallantlytoschoolhouse。
  Col。Starbottle。In——er——er——showingthestrangerthe——er——way,I
  perhapsinterruptedourinterview。The——er——observancesof——er——
  civilityandhumanitymustnotbeforegone,evenfor——er——theladies。I——er——believeIaddressMissMaryMorris。WhenI——er——
  statethatmynameisCol。Starbottle,chargedonmissionof——er——
  delicatenature,IbelieveI——er——explainMYintrusion。
  MISSMARYbows,andmotionstoschoolhousedoor;COL。STARBOTTLE,bowingdeeply,enters;butMISSMARYremainsstandingbydoor,lookingtowardtreesthathideSANDY。
  MissMary(aside)。IamsureitwasSandy’svoice!Butwhydoesheconcealhimself?
  Sandy(aside,risingslowlytohisfeet,withhisbacktoschoolhousedoor)。Eventhisconceitedbullyovercomesme,andshamesmewithhisreadinessandtact。Hewasquicktospareher——
  astranger——thespectacleoftwoangrymen。I——I——mustneedswranglebeforeherverydoor!Well,well!betteroutofhersightforever,thananobjectofpityorterror。[Exitslowly,andwithdowncasteyes,right。
  MissMary(watchingthetrail)。ItWASSandy!andthisconcealmentmeanssomethingmorethanbashfulness。Perhapsthestrangercanexplain。
  [Entersschoolhouse,andclosesdoor。
  SCENE2。——Thesame。EnterCONCHO,lame,cautiously,fromR。
  PausesatR。,andthenbeckonstoHOPSING,whofollowsR。
  Concho(impatiently)。Well!yousawhim?
  HopSing。Meseehim。
  Concho。Andyourecognizedhim?
  HopSing。Noshabelikoquize。
  Concho(furiously)。Youknewhim,eh?Carramba!YouKNEWhim。
  HopSing(slowlyandsententiously)。MeshabemanyoucalleeDiego。MeshabbeeLedGulcheecallSandy。MeshabbeemanPokerFlatcalleeAlexandleeMolton。Alleesame,John!Alleesame!
  Concho(rubbinghishands)。Bueno!GoodJohn!goodJohn!AndyouknewhewascalledAlexanderMorton?Andgoon——goodJohn——goon!
  HopSing。Meplenteewasheeshirtee——MelicanmanPokerFlat。MeplenteewasheeshirtAlexandleeMolton。Alwayslitee,liteeonshirtalleetime。(Pointingtotailofhisblouse,andimitatingwritingwithfinger。)AlexandleeMolton。Melicanmantelleeme——
  shirtsayAlexandleeMolton——shabbee?
  Concho。Bueno!ExcellentJohn。GoodJohn。HislinenmarkedAlexanderMorton。Theproofsaregathering!(crossestoC。)——theletterIfoundinhispack,addressedtoAlexanderMorton,PokerFlat,whichfirstputmeonhistrack;thestoryofhiswife’sinfidelity,andherflightwithhispartnertoredGulch,thequarrelandfightthatseparatedthem,hisflighttoSanJose,hiswanderingstothemissionofSanCarmel,totheranchooftheHolyFisherman。Therecordiscomplete!
  HopSing。AlexandleeMolton——
  Concho(hurriedlyreturningtoHOPSING)。Yes!goodJohn;yes,goodJohn——goon。AlexanderMorton——
  HopSing。AlexandleeMolton。Mewasheeshirt,AlexandleeMolton;
  henopaywashee。Mewasheeflowtydozenhep——fourbittiedozen——
  twentydollarhep。AlexandleeMoltonnopayee。Hesay,"Gotohellee!"Youpayme(extendinghishand)。
  Concho。Car——!(checkinghimself)。Pocotiempo,John!Ingoodtime,John。Fortydollar——yes。Fiftydollar!Tomorrow,John。
  HopSing。Menolikee"to-mollow!"Menolikee"nextime,John!"
  AlleetimeMelicanmansay,"Chalkeeup,John,""Nosmalleechange,John,"——umph。Plentyfoolee...剩余内容请长按扫描二维码或下载丁香书院APP继续免费看:

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