英语天堂-第49章

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—cried　about　it；　she　did；　and　lopped　round；　as　if　she’d　lost　every　friend　she　had。　It　re’lly　was　droll　to　think　on　’t。　Lord；　there　ain’t　no　end　to　women’s　notions。”
“Wal；　jest　so　with　me；”　said　Haley。　“　summer；　down　on　Red　river；　I　got　a　gal　traded　off　on　me；　with　a　likely　lookin’　child　enough；　and　his　eyes　looked　as　bright　as　yourn；　but；　come　to　look；　I　found　him　stone　blind。　Fact—he　was　stone　blind。　Wal；　ye　see；　I　thought　there　warn’t　no　harm　in　my　jest　passing　him　along；　and　not　sayin’　nothin’；　and　I’d　got　him　nicely　swapped　off　for　a　keg　o’　whiskey；　but　come　to　get　him　away　from　the　gal；　she　was　jest　like　a　tiger。　So　’t　was　before　we　started；　and　I　hadn’t　got　my　gang　chained　up；　so　what　should　she　do　but　ups　on　a　cotton…bale；　like　a　cat；　ketches　a　knife　from　one　of　the　deck　hands；　and；　I　tell　ye；　she　made　all　fly　for　a　minit；　till　she　saw　’t　wan’t　no　use；　and　she　jest　turns　round；　and　pitches　head　first；　young　un　and　all；　into　the　river；—went　down　plump；　and　never　ris。”
“Bah！”　said　Tom　Loker；　who　had　listened　to　these　stories　with　ill…repressed　disgust；—“shif’less；　both　on　ye！　my　gals　don’t　cut　up　no　such　shines；　I　tell　ye！”
“Indeed！　how　do　you　help　it？”　said　Marks；　briskly。
“Help　it？　why；　I　buys　a　gal；　and　if　she’s　got　a　young　un　to　be　sold；　I　jest　walks　up　and　puts　my　fist　to　her　face；　and　says；　‘Look　here；　now；　if　you　give　me　one　word　out　of　your　head；　I’ll　smash　yer　face　in。　I　won’t　hear　one　word—not　the　beginning　of　a　word。’　I　says　to　’em；　‘This　yer　young　un’s　mine；　and　not　yourn；　and　you’ve　no　kind　o’　business　with　it。　I’m　going　to　sell　it；　first　chance；　mind；　you　don’t　cut　up　none　o’　yer　shines　about　it；　or　I’ll　make　ye　wish　ye’d　never　been　born。’　I　tell　ye；　they　sees　it　an’t　no　play；　when　I　gets　hold。　I　makes　’em　as　whist　as　fishes；　and　if　one　on　’em　begins　and　gives　a　yelp；　why；—”　and　Mr。　Loker　brought　down　his　fist　with　a　thump　that　fully　explained　the　hiatus。
“That　ar’s　what　ye　may　call　emphasis；”　said　Marks；　poking　Haley　in　the　side；　and　going　into　another　small　giggle。　“An’t　Tom　peculiar？　he！　he！　I　say；　Tom；　I　s’pect　you　make　’em　understand；　for　all　niggers’　heads　is　woolly。　They　don’t　never　have　no　doubt　o’　your　meaning；　Tom。　If　you　an’t　the　devil；　Tom；　you　’s　his　twin　brother；　I’ll　say　that　for　ye！”
Tom　received　the　compliment　with　becoming　modesty；　and　began　to　look　as　affable　as　was　consistent；　as　John　Bunyan　says；　“with　his　doggish　nature。”
Haley；　who　had　been　imbibing　very　freely　of　the　staple　of　the　evening；　began　to　feel　a　sensible　elevation　and　enlargement　of　his　moral　faculties；—a　phenomenon　not　unusual　with　gentlemen　of　a　serious　and　reflective　turn；　under　similar　circumstances。
“Wal；　now；　Tom；”　he　said；　“ye　re’lly　is　too　bad；　as　I　al’ays　have　told　ye；　ye　know；　Tom；　you　and　I　used　to　talk　over　these　yer　matters　down　in　Natchez；　and　I　used　to　prove　to　ye　that　we　made　full　as　much；　and　was　as　well　off　for　this　yer　world；　by　treatin’　on　’em　well；　besides　keepin’　a　better　chance　for　comin’　in　the　kingdom　at　last；　when　wust　comes　to　wust；　and　thar　an’t　nothing　else　left　to　get；　ye　know。”
“Boh！”　said　Tom；　“don’t　I　know？—don’t　make　me　too　sick　with　any　yer　stuff；—my　stomach　is　a　leetle　riled　now；”　and　Tom　drank　half　a　glass　of　raw　brandy。
“I　say；”　said　Haley；　and　leaning　back　in　his　chair　and　gesturing　impressively；　“I’ll　say　this　now；　I　al’ays　meant　to　drive　my　trade　so　as　to　make　money　on　’t　fust　and　foremost；　as　much　as　any　man；　but；　then；　trade　an’t　everything；　and　money　an’t　everything；　’cause　we　’s　all　got　souls。　I　don’t　care；　now；　who　hears　me　say　it；—and　I　think　a　cussed　sight　on　it；—so　I　may　as　well　come　out　with　it。　I　b’lieve　in　religion；　and　one　of　these　days；　when　I’ve　got　matters　tight　and　snug；　I　calculates　to　tend　to　my　soul　and　them　ar　matters；　and　so　what’s　the　use　of　doin’　any　more　wickedness　than　’s　re’lly　necessary？—it　don’t　seem　to　me　it’s　’t　all　prudent。”
“Tend　to　yer　soul！”　repeated　Tom；　contemptuously；　“take　a　bright　lookout　to　find　a　soul　in　you；—save　yourself　any　care　on　that　score。　If　the　devil　sifts　you　through　a　hair　sieve；　he　won’t　find　one。”
“Why；　Tom；　you’re　cross；”　said　Haley；　“why　can’t　ye　take　it　pleasant；　now；　when　a　feller’s　talking　for　your　good？”
“Stop　that　ar　jaw　o’　yourn；　there；”　said　Tom；　gruffly。　“I　can　stand　most　any　talk　o’　yourn　but　your　pious　talk；—that　kills　me　right　up。　After　all；　what’s　the　odds　between　me　and　you？　’Tan’t　that　you　care　one　bit　more；　or　have　a　bit　more　feelin’—it’s　clean；　sheer；　dog　meanness；　wanting　to　cheat　the　devil　and　save　your　own　skin；　don’t　I　see　through　it？　And　your　‘gettin’　religion；’　as　you　call　it；　arter　all；　is　too　p’isin　mean　for　any　crittur；—run　up　a　bill　with　the　devil　all　your　life；　and　then　sneak　out　when　pay　time　comes！　Bob！”
“Come；　come；　gentlemen；　I　say；　this　isn’t　business；”　said　Marks。　“There’s　different　ways；　you　know；　of　looking　at　all　subjects。　Mr。　Haley　is　a　very　nice　man；　no　doubt；　and　has　his　own　conscience；　and；　Tom；　you　have　your　ways；　and　very　good　ones；　too；　Tom；　but　quarrelling；　you　know；　won’t　answer　no　kind　of　purpose。　Let’s　go　to　business。　Now；　Mr。　Haley；　what　is　it？—you　want　us　to　undertake　to　catch　this　yer　gal？”
“The　gal’s　no　matter　of　mine；—she’s　Shelby’s；　it’s　only　the　boy。　I　was　a　fool　for　buying　the　monkey！”
“You’re　generally　a　fool！”　said　Tom；　gruffly。
“Come；　now；　Loker；　none　of　your　huffs；”　said　Marks；　licking　his　lips；　“you　see；　Mr。　Haley　’s　a　puttin’　us　in　a　way　of　a　good　job；　I　reckon；　just　hold　still—these　yer　arrangements　is　my　forte。　This　yer　gal；　Mr。　Haley；　how　is　she？　what　is　she？”
“Wal！　white　and　handsome—well　brought　up。　I’d　a　gin　Shelby　eight　hundred　or　a　thousand；　and　then　made　well　on　her。”
“White　and　handsome—well　brought　up！”　said　Marks；　his　sharp　eyes；　nose　and　mouth；　all　alive　with　enterprise。　“Look　here；　now；　Loker；　a　beautiful　opening。　We’ll　do　a　business　here　on　our　own　acomount；—we　does　the　catchin’；　the　boy；　of　course；　goes　to　Mr。　Haley；—we　takes　the　gal　to　Orleans　to　speculate　on。　An’t　it　beautiful？”
Tom；　whose　great　heavy　mouth　had　stood　ajar　during　this　communication；　now　suddenly　snapped　it　together；　as　a　big　dog　closes　on　a　piece　of　meat；　and　seemed　to　be　digesting　the　idea　at　his　leisure。
“Ye　see；”　said　Marks　to　Haley；　stirring　his　punch　as　he　did　so；　“ye　see；　we　has　justices　convenient　at　all　p’ints　along　shore；　that　does　up　any　little　jobs　in　our　line　quite　reasonable。　Tom；　he　does　the　knockin’　down　and　that　ar；　and　I　come　in　all　dressed　up—shining　boots—everything　first　chop；　when　the　swearin’　’s　to　be　done。　You　oughter　see；　now；”　said　Marks；　in　a　glow　of　professional　pride；　“how　I　can　tone　it　off。　One　day；　I’m　Mr。　Twickem；　from　New　Orleans；　’nother　day；　I’m　just　come　from　my　plantation　on　Pearl　river；　where　I　works　seven　hundred　niggers；　then；　again；　I　come　out　a　distant　relation　of　Henry　Clay；　or　some　old　cock　in　Kentuck。　Talents　is　different；　you　know。　Now；　Tom’s　roarer　when　there’s　any　thumping　or　fighting　to　be　done；　but　at　lying　he　an’t　good；　Tom　an’t；—ye　see　it　don’t　come　natural　to　him；　but；　Lord；　if　thar’s　a　feller　in　the　country　that　can　swear　to　anything　and　everything；　and　put　in　all　the　circumstances　and　flourishes　with　a　long　face；　and　carry　’t　through　better　’n　I　can；　why；　I’d　like　to　see　him；　that’s　all！　I　b’lieve　my　heart；　I　could　get　along　and　snake　through；　even　if　justices　were　more　particular　than　they　is。　Sometimes　I　rather　wish　they　was　more　particular；　’t　would　be　a　heap　more　relishin’　if　they　was；—more　fun；　yer　know。”
Tom　Loker；　who；　as　we　have　made　it　appear；　was　a　man　of　slow　thoughts　and　movements；　here　interrupted　Marks　by　bringing　his　heavy　fist　down　on　the　table；　so　as　to　make　all　ring　again；　“It’ll　do！”　he　said。
“Lord　bless　ye；　Tom；　ye　needn’t　break　all　the　glasses！”　said　Marks；　“save　your　fist　for　time　o’　need。”
“But；　gentlemen；　an’t　I　to　come　in　for　a　share　of　the　profits？”　said　Haley。
“An’t　it　enough　we　catch　the　boy　for　ye？”　said　Loker。　“What　do　ye　want？”
“Wal；”　said　Haley；　“if　I　gives　you　the　job；　it’s　worth　something；—say　ten　per　cent。　on　the　profits；　expenses　paid。”
“Now；”　said　Loker；　with　a　tremendous　oath；　and　striking　the　table　with　his　heavy　fist；　“don’t　I　know　you；　Dan　Haley？　Don’t　you　think　to　come　it　over　me！　Suppose　Marks　and　I　have　taken　up　the　catchin’　trade；　jest　to　’commodate　gentlemen　like　you；　and　get　nothin’　for　ourselves？—Not　by　a　long　chalk！　we’ll　have　the　gal　out　and　out；　and　you　keep　quiet；　or；　ye　see；　we’ll　have　both；—what’s　to　hinder？　Han’t　you　show’d　us　the　game？　It’s　as　free　to　us　as　you；　I　hope。　If　you　or　Shelby　wants　to　chase　us；　look　where　the　partridges　was　last　year；　if　you　find　them　or　us；　you’re　quite　welcome。”
“O；　wal；　certainly；　jest　let　it　go　at　that；”　said　Haley；　alarmed；　“you　catch　the　boy　for　the　job；—you　allers　did　trade　far　with　me；　Tom；　and　was　up　to　yer　word。”
“Ye　know　that；”　said　Tom；　“I　don’t　pretend　none　of　your　snivelling　ways；　but　I　won’t　lie　in　my　’counts　with　the　devil　himself。　What　I　ses　I’ll　do；　I　will　do；—you　know　that；　Dan　Haley。”
“Jes　so；　jes　so；—I　said　so；　Tom；”　said　Haley；　“and　if　you’