MOONFLEET John Meade Falkner Author
- nuovo livroISBN: 2940012860231
CONTENTS 1 IN MOONFLEET VILLAGE 2 THE FLOODS 3 A DISCOVERY 4 IN THE VAULT 5 THE RESCUE 6 AN ASSAULT 7 AN AUCTION 8 THE LANDING 9 A JUDGEMENT10 THE ESCAPE11 THE SEA-CAVE12 A FUNERAL13 AN I… mais…
CONTENTS 1 IN MOONFLEET VILLAGE 2 THE FLOODS 3 A DISCOVERY 4 IN THE VAULT 5 THE RESCUE 6 AN ASSAULT 7 AN AUCTION 8 THE LANDING 9 A JUDGEMENT10 THE ESCAPE11 THE SEA-CAVE12 A FUNERAL13 AN INTERVIEW14 THE WELL-HOUSE15 THE WELL16 THE JEWEL17 AT YMEGUEN18 IN THE BAY19 ON THE BEACHSays the Cap'n to the Crew,We have slipped the Revenue, I can see the cliffs of Dover on the lee:Tip the signal to the _Swan_,And anchor broadside on, And out with the kegs of Eau-de-Vie, Says the Cap'n: Out with the kegs of Eau-de-Vie.Says the Lander to his men,Get your grummets on the pin, There's a blue light burning out at sea.The windward anchors creep,And the Gauger's fast asleep, And the kegs are bobbing one, two, three, Says the Lander: The kegs are bobbing one, two, three.But the bold Preventive manPrimes the powder in his pan And cries to the Posse, Follow me.We will take this smuggling gang,And those that fight shall hang Dingle dangle from the execution tree, Says the Gauger:Dingle dangle with the weary moon to see.CHAPTER 1IN MOONFLEET VILLAGESo sleeps the pride of former days--_More_The village of Moonfleet lies half a mile from the sea on the right orwest bank of the Fleet stream. This rivulet, which is so narrow as itpasses the houses that I have known a good jumper clear it without apole, broadens out into salt marshes below the village, and loses itselfat last in a lake of brackish water. The lake is good for nothing exceptsea-fowl, herons, and oysters, and forms such a place as they call in theIndies a lagoon; being shut off from the open Channel by a monstrousgreat beach or dike of pebbles, of which I shall speak more hereafter.When I was a child I thought that this place was called Moonfleet,because on a still night, whether in summer, or in winter frosts, themoon shone very brightly on the lagoon; but learned afterwards that 'twasbut short for 'Mohune-fleet', from the Mohunes, a great family who wereonce lords of all these parts.My name is John Trenchard, and I was fifteen years of age when this storybegins. My father and mother had both been dead for years, and I boardedwith my aunt, Miss Arnold, who was kind to me in her own fashion, but toostrict and precise ever to make me love her.I shall first speak of one evening in the fall of the year 1757. It musthave been late in October, though I have forgotten the exact date, and Isat in the little front parlour reading after tea. My aunt had few books;a Bible, a Common Prayer, and some volumes of sermons are all that I canrecollect now; but the Reverend Mr. Glennie, who taught us villagechildren, had lent me a story-book, full of interest and adventure,called the _Arabian Nights Entertainment_. At last the light began tofail, and I was nothing loth to leave off reading for several reasons;as, first, the parlour was a chilly room with horse-hair chairs and sofa,and only a coloured-paper screen in the grate, for my aunt did not allowa fire till the first of November; second, there was a rank smell ofmolten tallow in the house, for my aunt was dipping winter candles onframes in the back kitchen; third, I had reached a part in the _ArabianNights_ which tightened my breath and made me wish to leave off readingfor very anxiousness of expectation. It was that point in the story ofthe 'Wonderful Lamp', where the false uncle lets fall a stone that sealsthe mouth of the underground chamber; and immures the boy, Aladdin, inthe darkness, because he would not give up the lamp till he stood safe onthe surface again. This scene reminded me of one of those dreadfulnightmares, where we dream we are shut in a little room, the walls ofwhich are closing in upon us, and so impressed me that the memory of itserved as a warning in an adventure that befell me later on. So I gave upreading and stepped out into the street. It was a poor street at best,though once, no doubt, it had been finer. Digital Content>E-books>Undefined>Undefined>Undefined, SAP Digital >16<
