登陆注册
25633200000056

第56章

A long interval of silence. The Other Man was looking out of the window, and had apparently forgotten his companion completely. But as I stretched my head out of the curtain I saw four other heads as eagerly reached out from other berths to hear the conclusion of the story. One head, a female one, instantly disappeared on my looking around, but a certain tremulousness of her window-curtain showed an unabated interest. The only two utterly disinterested men were the One Man and the Other Man.

The Other Man (detaching himself languidly from the window): "Cy Dunham?"

"Yes; Cy never hed hed either convictions or purfessions. Uster get drunk and go round with permiscous women. Sorter like the prodigal son, only a little more so, ez fur ez I kin judge from the facks ez stated to me. Well, Cy one day petered out down at Little Rock, and was sent up yer for interment. The fammerly, being proud-like, of course didn't spare no money on that funeral, and it waz--now between you and me--about ez shapely and first-class and prime-mess affair ez I ever saw. Wilkins hed put in his extrys.

He hed put onto that prodigal's face the A1 touch,--hed him fixed up with a 'Christian's hope.' Well, it was about the turning-point, for thar waz some of the members and the pastor hisself thought that the line oughter to be drawn somewhere, and thar was some talk at Deacon Tibbet's about a reg'lar conference meetin' regardin' it. But it wasn't thet which made him onpoplar."

Another silence; no expression nor reflection from the face of the Other Man of the least desire to know what ultimately settled the unpopularity of the undertaker. But from the curtains of the various berths several eager and one or two even wrathful faces, anxious for the result.

The Other Man (lazily recurring to the fading topic): "Well, what made him onpoplar?"

The One Man (quietly): "Extrys, I think--that is, I suppose, not knowin'" (cautiously) "all the facts. When Mrs. Widdecombe lost her husband, 'bout two months ago, though she'd been through the valley of the shadder of death twice--this bein' her third marriage, hevin' been John Barker's widder--"

The Other Man (with an intense expression of interest): "No, you're foolin' me!"

The One Man (solemnly): "Ef I was to appear before my Maker to-morrow, yes! she was the widder of Barker."

The Other Man: "Well, I swow."

The One Man: "Well, this Widder Widdecombe, she put up a big funeral for the deceased. She hed Wilkins, and thet ondertaker just laid hisself out. Just spread hisself. Onfort'natly,--perhaps fort'natly in the ways of Providence,--one of Widdecombe's old friends, a doctor up thar in Chicago, comes down to the funeral. He goes up with the friends to look at the deceased, smilin' a peaceful sort o' heavinly smile, and everybody sayin' he's gone to meet his reward, and this yer friend turns round, short and sudden on the widder settin' in her pew, and kinder enjoyin, as wimen will, all the compliments paid the corpse, and he says, says he:--

"'What did you say your husband died of, marm?'

"'Consumption,' she says, wiping her eyes, poor critter.

'Consumption--gallopin' consumption.'

"'Consumption be d--d,' sez he, bein' a profane kind of Chicago doctor, and not bein' ever under conviction. 'Thet man died of strychnine. Look at thet face. Look at thet contortion of them fashal muscles. Thet's strychnine. Thet's risers Sardonikus' (thet's what he said; he was always sorter profane).

"'Why, doctor,' says the widder, 'thet--thet is his last smile.

It's a Christian's resignation.'

"'Thet be blowed; don't tell me,' sez he. 'Hell is full of thet kind of resignation. It's pizon. And I'll--' Why, dern my skin, yes we are; yes, it's Joliet. Wall, now, who'd hey thought we'd been nigh onto an hour."

Two or three anxious passengers from their berths: "Say; look yer, stranger! Old man! What became of--"

But the One Man and the Other Man had vanished.

同类推荐
热门推荐
  • 绝代小农女

    绝代小农女

    叶欣儿一不小心穿来了麒麟国,来到比现代还穷的家庭,本来照样可以好好生活,可是,自从遇到他,叶欣儿就灾难不断!不是刺杀,就是坠崖。他天天戴着面具,难道是长着一副死后下葬都要被人挖出来的容貌,地狱无他的容身之处?所有只能长年都戴着面具?叶欣儿努力的修练,只求能保自身平安无事,可是总是事与愿违。不管怎么样两人的身上都被标下了“同伙”的字样,甩都甩不掉啊。
  • 来世不言离愁

    来世不言离愁

    从青春到成熟,天真善良女主角刘雪晴从学校里直到一步一步成为公司总裁,然而她的感情道路却并没有一帆风顺,经历了那么多的起伏,跌宕,一步一步的成熟起来,在不断的世俗纷扰,经历了爱恨折磨,是否还可以坚持自我,依然保持着那颗感恩的心?
  • 恶魔校草:笨丫头不许乱跑

    恶魔校草:笨丫头不许乱跑

    一次林雨夏钱包被偷,他抢回来他和她的命运就这样开始了,第二次她被人骗,闯进他的房子,他和她的命运又开始了第三次她被人欺负,他为了她可以不惜自己的生命,全力保护她,‘谢谢你,我的爱人’
  • 落花惊梦

    落花惊梦

    本书从今日起正式更名为《杀神记》,恢复上传!
  • 一往情深:男神是女生

    一往情深:男神是女生

    她是世人眼中的纨绔公子,吃,喝,赌,嫖,样样精通,不为人知的是她真实身份是个女生!所谓的女扮男装就从她身上展现了,且看她如何在男校勾搭一打美男的故事!
  • 佛说帝释般若波罗蜜多心经

    佛说帝释般若波罗蜜多心经

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 欲海孽杀

    欲海孽杀

    人之初性本善,姚一鸣自认是良善纯洁之人,可是当一叠不堪入目的照片‘啪’的一声甩在他面前的时候,一切都将为之颠覆……
  • 逐录

    逐录

    魂力,乃天下力量之源泉。帝境,乃世间无上之神通。大千世界,星天万宇,乾坤明灭,万道争锋。修炼人须谨记:实力之下,万古如烟土!!登绝顶,踏苍穹,悠悠征途,皆在至尊逐录。新书刚发,希望各位兄弟姐妹,多多支持!!!
  • 九转真仙

    九转真仙

    一个资质奇差几乎被逐出师门的小子,另辟蹊径,用佛道两门秘法凝造金丹舍利,重塑法身,二百年后重回山门,带领一个没落颓废、充满内忧外患的门派重新振兴起来——阴山背后探鬼国,太平洋里钓金鳖。冰岛火山炼神剑,非洲沙漠斩魔蝎。尼罗河内飞龙怪,亚马逊中玛雅蝶。奥林匹斯众神庙,大蓝山上万佛节!——————————————————本书QQ群:凝碧崖:5005942;紫云宫:22117110
  • 放学后的侦探队

    放学后的侦探队

    我们班发生了连续消失事件。都说我是第四个被害者!话虽如此,不见的只不过是在课上已经不使用的竖笛的一部分。为什么是这样的东西呢?栋方的画,鸡,巨大的招财猫形的捐款箱,并且竖笛每隔一天消失一次的现象只在5年级3班发生。鸡是在密室消失的。在我的劝诱之下,喜欢江户川乱步的龙之介君决定和我一起开始我们的侦探活动。那些鸡惨遭杀害的目击证言……!和市内发生的珠宝大盗的关系是……