登陆注册
19597500000020

第20章 Mr.Pryor's Door(2)

"He's enough of a gunner to bring mother in a wagon from Pennsylvania all the way here,and he kept wolves,bears,Indians,and Gypsies from her,and shot things for food.Yes sir,my father can shoot if he wants to,better than any of our family except Laddie.""And does Laddie shoot well?"

"Laddie does everything well,"I answered proudly."He won't try to do anything at all,until he practises so he can do it well.""Score one for Laddie,"he said in a queer voice.

"Are you in a hurry about the lions and tigers?""Not at all,"he answered.

"Well,here I always stop and let Governor Oglesby go swimming,"I said.

Mr.Mahlon Pryor sat on the bank of our Little Creek,took off his hat and shook back his hair as if the wind felt good on his forehead.I fished Dick Oglesby from the ammunition in my apron pocket,and held him toward the cross old man,and he wasn't cross at all.It's funny how you come to get such wrong ideas about people.

"My big married sister who lives in Westchester sent him to me last Christmas,"I explained."I have another doll,great big,with a Scotch plaid dress made from pieces of mine,but I only play with her on Sunday when I dare not do much else.I like Dick the best because he fits my apron pocket.Father wanted me to change his name and call him Oliver P.Morton,after a friend of his,but I told him this doll had to be called by the name he came with,and if he wanted me to have one named for his friend,to get it,and I'd play with it.""What did he do?"

"He didn't want one named Morton that much."

Mr.Pryor took Dick Oglesby in his fingers and looked at his curly black hair and blue eyes,his chubby outstretched arms,like a baby when it wants you to take it,and his plump little feet and the white shirt with red stripes all a piece of him as he was made,and said:"The honourable governor of our sister state seems a little weighty;I am at a loss to understand how he swims.""It's a new way,"I said."He just stands still and the water swims around him.It's very easy for him."Then I carried Dick to the water,waded in and stood him against a stone.Something funny happened instantly.It always did.I found it out one day when I got some apple butter on the governor giving him a bite of my bread,and put him in the wash bowl to soak.He was two and a half inches tall;but the minute you stood him in water he went down to about half that height and spread out to twice his size around.You should have heard Mr.

Pryor.

"If you will lie on the bank and watch you'll have more to laugh at than that,"I promised.

He lay down and never paid the least attention to his clothes.

Pretty soon a little chub fish came swimming around to make friends with Governor Oglesby,and then a shiner and some more chub.They nibbled at his hands and toes,and then went flashing away,and from under the stone came backing a big crayfish and seized the governor by the leg and started dragging him,so I had to jump in and stop it.I took a shot at the crayfish with the tiger ammunition and then loaded for lions.

We went on until the marsh became a thicket of cattails,bulrushes,willow bushes,and blue flags;then I found a path where the lions left the jungle,hid Mr.Pryor and told him he must be very still or they wouldn't come.At last I heard one.

I touched Mr.Pryor's sleeve to warn him to keep his eyes on the trail.Pretty soon the lion came in sight.Really it was only a little gray rabbit hopping along,but when it was opposite us,I pinged it in the side,it jumped up and turned a somersault with surprise,and squealed a funny little squeal,--well,I wondered if Mr.Pryor's people didn't hear him,and think he had gone crazy as Paddy Ryan.I never did hear any one laugh so.I thought if he enjoyed it like that,I'd let him shoot one.I do May sometimes;so we went to another place I knew where there was a tiger's den,and I loaded with tiger lily bullets,gave him the gun and showed him where to aim.After we had waited a long time out came a muskrat,and started for the river.I looked to see why Mr.Pryor didn't shoot,and there he was gazing at it as if a snake had charmed him;his hands shaking a little,his cheeks almost red,his eyes very bright.

"Shoot!"I whispered."It won't stay all day!"He forgot how to push the ramrod like I showed him,so he reached out and tried to hit it with the gun.

"Don't do that!"I said.

"But it's getting away!It's getting away!"he cried.

"Well,what if it is?"I asked,half provoked."Do you suppose I really would hurt a poor little muskrat?Maybe it has six hungry babies in its home.""Oh THAT way,"he said,but he kept looking at it,so he made me think if I hadn't been there,he would have thrown a stone or hit it with a stick.It is perfectly wonderful about how some men can't get along without killing things,such little bits of helpless creatures too.I thought he'd better be got from the jungle,so I invited him to see the place at the foot of the hill below our orchard where some men thought they had discovered gold before the war.They had been to California in '49,and although they didn't come home with millions,or anything else except sick and tired,they thought they had learned enough about gold to know it when they saw it.

I told him about it and he was interested and anxious to see the place.If there had been a shovel,I am quite sure he would have gone to digging.He kept poking around with his boot toe,and he said maybe the yokels didn't look good.

He said our meadow was a beautiful place,and when he praised the creek I told him about the wild ducks,and he laughed again.He didn't seem to be the same man when we went back to the road.I pulled some sweet marsh grass and gave his horse bites,so Mr.

Pryor asked if I liked animals.I said I loved horses,Laddie's best of all.He asked about it and I told him.

"Hasn't your father but one thoroughbred?"

"Father hasn't any,"I said."Flos really belongs to Laddie,and we are mighty glad he has her.""You should have one soon,yourself,"he said.

同类推荐
  • 海东逸史

    海东逸史

    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。
  • 子夏易传

    子夏易传

    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。
  • 吴子兵法

    吴子兵法

    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。
  • 觚剩及续编

    觚剩及续编

    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。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 上清天宝斋初夜仪

    上清天宝斋初夜仪

    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。
热门推荐
  • 暗神争霸

    暗神争霸

    背景设定:东元元年,人类被一场未知的灾难所毁灭。毁灭即是开始,经过几千年的演化,在地球诞生新人类,他们具有比旧人类更强的体魄,更长的寿命。而新人类中的佼佼者更拥有着可以与在地球诞生时的古老力量进行沟通的能力。这种能力被称为功法。一个天才由于封印沦落成了废物,还好被死了万年的初皇看中,帮其解开封印,收为弟子。一步一步变强,直到足以杀死初皇的仇家,太,古双皇。
  • 判官李坏

    判官李坏

    如果好人难做,就做天下第一人,坏人。职场艳遇,极品美女,杀人越货,盗亦有道。寂寞了,杀个倭寇玩玩,孤单了,斩个狼人解解闷,心痛了,灭只蝙蝠消消气。问天令一出,江湖大统,扰我华夏者,杀无赦。
  • 星域之傲睨万物

    星域之傲睨万物

    位于辰星大陆的神秘学院——绝望星辰,收录各族天才鬼才妖孽。于冰棺中复苏的少年,追寻一条未知的回家之路。因身份引起的谜团,未知却不是不知。当身份转变,少年变成少女,有多少人惊愕?
  • 尘心

    尘心

    天地玄黄,宇宙洪荒。日月盈昃,辰宿列张。
  • 北京市青少年慈善需求研究报告

    北京市青少年慈善需求研究报告

    我国家庭德育状况及改进研究报告、事件视野下家庭德育的基本走向、加强横向衔接,提升家庭德育功能、家庭德育环境及其建设、公德教育与家庭责任、家庭劳动教育及改进策略、亲子阅读与儿童德育成长、网络:现代家庭德育的新挑战、良好的运动习惯有助于孩子的道德养成、家庭德育认知误区及解决策略。《中国家庭教育蓝皮书(2013-2014)·回到家庭谈德育:我国家庭德育状况及改进研究报告》的特点是秉持以问题为中心的设计原则,突出问题性、现实性和针对性,力求以最新的视角回答家庭德育的挑战。对德育工作者、教师和家长有启迪价值。
  • 非卿不可之娇宠医妃

    非卿不可之娇宠医妃

    救人不成反噬命?一觉醒来,她变成无才无德无貌无父的四无小少女。还好老天待她不薄,给了她一个如花的年龄,纤细的身材,既然如此那就不客气了,入医馆,解杂症,奉师傅,友师兄,勾王爷。她一步步名震京师,也一步步让他为之沦陷。他是京城显贵,腹黑高冷,深情如水,更是京城第一美男子,当她遇上他会迸发出怎样的火花!初遇用心,再遇上心,最后失心。
  • 念卿归

    念卿归

    从何时开始,她不在开口唤他哥哥。从何时开始,她看他的眼神开始不在清明…第一次见面她被师傅抱回了山里,一副营养不良的身体穿着一套洗的发白的衣服,他捉住她的手,扬起好看的剑眉对她说“放心吧,你以后就是我的师妹了,哥罩你。”因为这句话从此她对他的爱便开始生根发芽,随着时间的推移越发的深刻。最后一次见面她站在高高的城墙上,一身被风吹乱的红衣,对他含泪的点了点头“师哥,这次换我来罩你…”如若可以我愿用生命终结,来换你一生平安。
  • 天地命劫

    天地命劫

    命,为天地所定之理,劫,为天地所握之力。这是一个少年的修炼史,也是一段铿锵万古的岁月。。。。万物命数有天定,长生劫后方超脱!待我重回世间,诸逆臣皆当死去!
  • 异世界的毁灭者

    异世界的毁灭者

    领域展开!魔王重临!五大学院,魔法五杰!空间、元素、毁灭究竟谁能够登顶魔法的巅峰!“吾等卑微的人类,在真正的恐惧下,毁灭吧!”“现在的我,是因为有了想要守护的人而去守护!”领域之间的对碰,魔王与魔神的厮杀!
  • 异界调皮之旅

    异界调皮之旅

    这是个倒霉的孩子在异界世界中调皮的故事本人新手,第一次写书,没啥经验,如有不足,请多关照