登陆注册
5150400000238

第238章

And many a light-hearted coward, doubtless, who had scoffed (as many did) at the notion of the Armada's coming, because he dare not face the thought, gave himself up to abject fear, "as he now plainly saw and heard that of which before he would not be persuaded." And many a brave man, too, as he knelt beside his wife and daughters, felt his heart sink to the very pavement, at the thought of what those beloved ones might be enduring a few short days hence, from a profligate and fanatical soldiery, or from the more deliberate fiendishness of the Inquisition.The massacre of St.Bartholomew, the fires of Smithfield, the immolation of the Moors, the extermination of the West Indians, the fantastic horrors of the Piedmontese persecution, which make unreadable the too truthful pages of Morland,--these were the spectres, which, not as now, dim and distant through the mist of centuries, but recent, bleeding from still gaping wounds, flitted before the eyes of every Englishman, and filled his brain and heart with fire.

He knew full well the fate in store for him and his.One false step, and the unspeakable doom which, not two generations afterwards, befell the Lutherans of Magdeburg, would have befallen every town from London to Carlisle.All knew the hazard, as they prayed that day, and many a day before and after, throughout England and the Netherlands.And none knew it better than she who was the guiding spirit of that devoted land, and the especial mark of the invaders' fury; and who, by some Divine inspiration (as men then not unwisely held), devised herself the daring stroke which was to anticipate the coming blow.

But where is Amyas Leigh all this while? Day after day he has been seeking the Sta.Catharina in the thickest of the press, and cannot come at her, cannot even hear of her: one moment he dreads that she has sunk by night, and balked him of his prey; the next, that she has repaired her damages, and will escape him after all.He is moody, discontented, restless, even (for the first time in his life) peevish with his men.He can talk of nothing but Don Guzman;he can find no better employment, at every spare moment, than taking his sword out of the sheath, and handling it, fondling it, talking to it even, bidding it not to fail him in the day of vengeance.At last, he has sent to Squire, the armorer, for a whetstone, and, half-ashamed of his own folly, whets and polishes it in bye-corners, muttering to himself.That one fixed thought of selfish vengeance has possessed his whole mind; he forgets England's present need, her past triumph, his own safety, everything but his brother's blood.And yet this is the day for which he has been longing ever since he brought home that magic horn as a fifteen years boy; the day when he should find himself face to face with an invader, and that invader Antichrist himself.

He has believed for years with Drake, Hawkins, Grenville, and Raleigh, that he was called and sent into the world only to fight the Spaniard: and he is fighting him now, in such a cause, for such a stake, within such battle-lists, as he will never see again: and yet he is not content, and while throughout that gallant fleet, whole crews are receiving the Communion side by side, and rising with cheerful faces to shake hands, and to rejoice that they are sharers in Britain's Salamis, Amyas turns away from the holy elements.

"I cannot communicate, Sir John.Charity with all men? I hate, if ever man hated on earth.""You hate the Lord's foes only, Captain Leigh.""No, Jack, I hate my own as well."

"But no one in the fleet, sir?"

"Don't try to put me off with the same Jesuit's quibble which that false knave Parson Fletcher invented for one of Doughty's men, to drug his conscience withal when he was plotting against his own admiral.No, Jack, I hate one of whom you know; and somehow that hatred of him keeps me from loving any human being.I am in love and charity with no man, Sir John Brimblecombe--not even with you!

Go your ways in God's name, sir! and leave me and the devil alone together, or you'll find my words are true."Jack departed with a sigh, and while the crew were receiving the Communion on deck, Amyas sate below in the cabin sharpening his sword, and after it, called for a boat and went on board Drake's ship to ask news of the Sta.Catharina, and listened scowling to the loud chants and tinkling bells, which came across the water from the Spanish fleet.At last, Drake was summoned by the lord admiral, and returned with a secret commission, which ought to bear fruit that night; and Amyas, who had gone with him, helped him till nightfall, and then returned to his own ship as Sir Amyas Leigh, Knight, to the joy and glory of every soul on board, except his moody self.

So there, the livelong summer Sabbath-day, before the little high-walled town and the long range of yellow sandhills, lie those two mighty armaments, scowling at each other, hardly out of gunshot.

同类推荐
  • On Our Selection

    On Our Selection

    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。
  • 燕对录

    燕对录

    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。
  • 太清经断谷法

    太清经断谷法

    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。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 大业杂记

    大业杂记

    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。
  • 佛祖心灯

    佛祖心灯

    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。
热门推荐
  • 法宝:宁夏“继续解放思想推进跨越式发展”研讨文集

    法宝:宁夏“继续解放思想推进跨越式发展”研讨文集

    明确提出,要“继续解放思想,坚持改革开放,推动科学发展,促进社会和谐”,要“勇于变革、勇于创新,永不僵化、永不停滞,不为任何风险所惧,不被任何干扰所惑。”思想上的不断解放,观念上的不断创新,实践上的不断开拓,使中国特色社会主义事业进入了欣欣向荣的新阶段。
  • Obsolete

    Obsolete

    Thanks to advancing technology and shifting mores, the amount of change we experience in our lifetimes is truly exceptional. Objects and practices that are commonplace can very quickly become outmoded. In this witty and informative collection of short essays, journalist and social commentator Anna Jane Grossman takes a thoughtful look at what everyday apparatuses, ideas, and behaviors are quickly disappearingor else have already left the wkkk.nete contains essays and entries on more than 100 alphabetized fading subjects, including Blind Dates, Mix Tapes, Getting Lost, Porn Magazines, Looking Old, Operators, Camera Film, Hitchhiking, Body Hair, Writing Letters, Basketball Players in Short Shorts, Privacy, Cash, and, yes, Books. This ode to obsolescence also includes 25 quirky pen-and-ink line illustrations to further help us remember exactly what we’re missing.
  • 给小学生讲世界地理(上)

    给小学生讲世界地理(上)

    本书是一扇认识和了解世界的窗口。它能带你穿越高山、沙漠、森林,带你去地球上的每一个角落,你不仅能在短时间内纵览壮美河山,感受大自然的鬼斧神工,还能领略世界各地风土人情,多角度解读世界自然和人文地理。
  • 悦读MOOK(第十二卷)

    悦读MOOK(第十二卷)

    本书将带你走进茫茫书海,我们将请一些学者和专家帮你指津,请一些书界人士为你剖析书坛风云,使你从中获得大量的图书信息,还能饱览各类书籍的精彩片段,一册在手,尽情享受读书的乐趣。
  • 财富的创造

    财富的创造

    创业投资不走歪门邪道,只有傻瓜才拿自己的钱去发财,借来东风好赚钱,成功者都有一套借力的本领。
  • 闪回

    闪回

    转眼自己已经四十六了,已经过了感伤的年龄,可感伤这种奢侈病为什么一阵又一阵地袭击着自己?周雨楼为自己的这种心态感到痛苦,甚至有些痛恨。感伤如此骄傲地盘踞在自己的内心,周雨楼对这种情绪清算的本身比沉浸在感伤中更令人难受,就像一位老是失眠的家伙其实他的大部分的烦恼不是来自失眠本身,而是因为埋怨自己竟然会失眠这件事花去了大半心绪。雨楼想尽快摆脱感伤,因为这与自己的身份和职业极不相符。自己本应该是帮助其他人驱逐感伤的人,可如今的自己,还不断沉溺在大大小小的感伤病的漩涡之中。
  • 805班的那些事儿

    805班的那些事儿

    蓝星学校又一次迎来了特殊的805班,可这次的805班似乎有些不同……
  • 幽默的艺术

    幽默的艺术

    幽默生活中起着非同小可的作用。本书将教会你:在工作时,上司可能因为你幽默风趣、头脑的机敏睿智,而对你大加赞赏或提拔重用;在爱情中,你所追求的异性可能因为你妙语连珠、诙谐幽默,而对你青睐有加;在人际关系,人们可能因为你大方得体的幽默口才,而对你加倍称赞,从而树立起自己的威信。
  • 魂飞疯人院(下)

    魂飞疯人院(下)

    瑟隆亚医院清洁工在一只猫头鹰的引导下,进入医院的防空洞地道,发现失踪不久的女精神病人和精神科主任的尸体。数月后,瑟隆亚医院因拆迁搬走。留守旧宅的拆迁钉子户伍崇远和禹镇宝,却在半夜听到瑟隆亚医院旧址传来恐怖的惨叫声。两人好奇想一探究竟,不料噩梦从此开始。伍崇远开出租车撞倒一男子。伍崇远将车开至医院,受伤男子却不知所踪。随后又以精神病人“孙木”的身份,将伍崇远挟持回精神病医院。更令人匪夷所思的是,医院竟将伍崇远当成了“孙木”,对他进行大脑信息替代的实验。
  • 回家路

    回家路

    傍晚的时候,胡建突然感觉不太对劲儿。这种不对劲儿不是身体的某个部位或者某个器官不舒服,说白了,是突然产生一种莫名其妙的不详之感。右眼皮突然开始跳动,而且是越调越明显,嘣、嘣、嘣的,一下跟着一下,跳得胡建心烦意乱。关于眼皮跳动,民间的说法是左男右女:男人左眼跳福,右眼跳灾;女人左眼跳灾,右眼跳福。胡建的右眼皮越跳越厉害,无奈之下,他只好停下手头的事用手去乱揉,希望能制止右眼皮的剧烈跳动。不过,胡建的右眼皮跳动不是第一次,十一年来,他的右眼皮总是不间断地跳动,只不过,很多时候他习以为常了。