登陆注册
5362000000076

第76章 CHAPTER IX ON GOAT ISLAND(3)

Then he came back to the American side of the island, crossed close to the crumpled aluminium wreckage of the Hohenzollern to Green Islet, and scrutinised the hopeless breach in the further bridge and the water that boiled beneath it. Towards Buffalo there was still much smoke, and near the position of the Niagara railway station the houses were burning vigorously. Everything was deserted now, everything was still. One little abandoned thing lay on a transverse path between town and road, a crumpled heap of clothes with sprawling limbs....

"'Ave a look round," said Bert, and taking a path that ran through the middle of the island he presently discovered the wreckage of the two Asiatic aeroplanes that had fallen out of the struggle that ended the Hohenzollern.

With the first he found the wreckage of an aeronaut too.

The machine had evidently dropped vertically and was badly knocked about amidst a lot of smashed branches in a clump of trees. Its bent and broken wings and shattered stays sprawled amidst new splintered wood, and its forepeak stuck into the ground. The aeronaut dangled weirdly head downward among the leaves and branches some yards away, and Bert only discovered him as he turned from the aeroplane. In the dusky evening light and stillness--for the sun had gone now and the wind had altogether fallen-this inverted yellow face was anything but a tranquilising object to discover suddenly a couple of yards away. A broken branch had run clean through the man's thorax, and he hung, so stabbed, looking limp and absurd. In his hand he still clutched, with the grip of death, a short light rifle.

For some time Bert stood very still, inspecting this thing.

Then he began to walk away from it, looking constantly back at it.

Presently in an open glade he came to a stop.

"Gaw!" he whispered, "I don' like dead bodies some'ow! I'd almost rather that chap was alive."He would not go along the path athwart which the Chinaman hung.

He felt he would rather not have trees round him any more, and that it would be more comfortable to be quite close to the sociable splash and uproar of the rapids.

He came upon the second aeroplane in a clear grassy space by the side of the streaming water, and it seemed scarcely damaged at all. It looked as though it had floated down into a position of rest. It lay on its side with one wing in the air. There was no aeronaut near it, dead or alive. There it lay abandoned, with the water lapping about its long tail.

Bert remained a little aloof from it for a long time, looking into the gathering shadows among the trees, in the expectation of another Chinaman alive or dead. Then very cautiously he approached the machine and stood regarding its widespread vans, its big steering wheel and empty saddle. He did not venture to touch it.

"I wish that other chap wasn't there," he said. "I do wish 'e wasn't there!"He saw a few yards away, something bobbing about in an eddy that spun within a projecting head of rock. As it went round it seemed to draw him unwillingly towards it....

What could it be?

"Blow!" said Bert. "It's another of 'em."

It held him. He told himself that it was the other aeronaut that had been shot in the fight and fallen out of the saddle as he strove to land. He tried to go away, and then it occurred to him that he might get a branch or something and push this rotating object out into the stream. That would leave him with only one dead body to worry about. Perhaps he might get along with one.

He hesitated and then with a certain emotion forced himself to do this. He went towards the bushes and cut himself a wand and returned to the rocks and clambered out to a corner between the eddy and the stream, By that time the sunset was over and the bats were abroad--and he was wet with perspiration.

He prodded the floating blue-clad thing with his wand, failed, tried again successfully as it came round, and as it went out into the stream it turned over, the light gleamed on golden hair and--it was Kurt!

It was Kurt, white and dead and very calm. There was no mistaking him. There was still plenty of light for that. The stream took him and he seemed to compose himself in its swift grip as one who stretches himself to rest. White-faced he was now, and all the colour gone out of him.

A feeling of infinite distress swept over Bert as the body swept out of sight towards the fall. "Kurt!" he cried, "Kurt! Ididn't mean to! Kurt! don' leave me 'ere! Don' leave me!"Loneliness and desolation overwhelmed him. He gave way. He stood on the rock in the evening light, weeping and wailing passionately like a child. It was as though some link that had held him to all these things had broken and gone. He was afraid like a child in a lonely room, shamelessly afraid.

The twilight was closing about him. The trees were full now of strange shadows. All the things about him became strange and unfamiliar with that subtle queerness one feels oftenest in dreams. "O God! I carn' stand,this," he said, and crept back from the rocks to the grass and crouched down, and suddenly wild sorrow for the death of Kurt, Kurt the brave, Kurt the kindly, came to his help and he broke from whimpering to weeping. He ceased to crouch; he sprawled upon the grass and clenched an impotent fist.

"This war," he cried, "this blarsted foolery of a war.

"O Kurt! Lieutenant Kurt!

"I done," he said, "I done. I've 'ad all I want, and more than Iwant. The world's all rot, and there ain't no sense in it. The night's coming.... If 'E comes after me--'E can't come after me--'E can't! ...

"If 'E comes after me, I'll fro' myself into the water."...

Presently he was talking again in a low undertone.

"There ain't nothing to be afraid of reely. It's jest imagination. Poor old Kurt--he thought it would happen.

同类推荐
  • 明伦汇编人事典命运部

    明伦汇编人事典命运部

    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。
  • 阿阇世王授决经

    阿阇世王授决经

    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。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 四符

    四符

    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。
  • 书诀

    书诀

    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。
  • Hero Tales From American History

    Hero Tales From American History

    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
  • 莫泊桑中短篇小说精选(上)

    莫泊桑中短篇小说精选(上)

    在19世纪的法国文坛上,莫泊桑有“短篇小说之王”的美誉。莫泊桑最擅长的题材是他亲身参加过的普法战争、长达十年的小职员生涯和青少年时代在诺曼底故乡的生活,这三种环境为他的短篇小说提供了极为丰富的题材。这些作品歌颂了人民的爱国主义热情,表现了农村的习俗和世态,真实地反映了小职员的单调刻板的生活。它们在艺术上各有特色、并不雷同,犹如宝石上的各个校面,共同折射出灿烂的光芒。
  • 樵隐词

    樵隐词

    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。
  • 日月琴仙

    日月琴仙

    伯牙的音乐响彻世界,为了一切的灵魂创造了日月琴仙,承载着他的灵魂的她们,在一次次的努力中成长,琴声到底意味着什么……
  • 湛少,你老婆有毒

    湛少,你老婆有毒

    《夫人在拯救世界》新书已发~她借用了双胞胎妹妹的身份起死回生,从此舒家的废物小姐摇身变成了碾压一切的女神。正当她虐渣报仇爽歪歪的时候,却被皇甫家族那个最神秘的男人纠缠上了。在舒娆看来,皇甫湛就是个无赖、戏精、臭流氓!然而,在皇甫湛那里,自己这位蔫坏的小未婚妻却是他一生都不想离开的解药。
  • 世界最具影响性的文坛巨匠(2)

    世界最具影响性的文坛巨匠(2)

    我的课外第一本书——震撼心灵阅读之旅经典文库,《阅读文库》编委会编。通过各种形式的故事和语言,讲述我们在成长中需要的知识。
  • 超级巨星之头条女王

    超级巨星之头条女王

    为钱出道,寻找真相阴谋阳谋,魑魅魍魉不惧,不恐,不退原以为一切背道而驰,却不料殊途同归走到星光前,势要搅她个天翻地覆。【片段一】这是什么?”叶柠接过一个信封问道。“叶柠,这是你的新任务。”“新任务?”“我不去。” “这是命令。”“今日凌晨,微博曝光了一张价目表,里面囊括了娱乐圈大多数明星的片酬,其中以秦阳8000万的片酬位居榜首……”“你不是需要钱吗?成为艺人,你想赚多少就有多少。”八千万,叶柠看了一眼电视。“好,”。【片段二】真人秀“啊啊啊啊,这里有蛇,”李诗诗看到树枝头缠绕着花花绿绿的蛇,花容失色的尖叫着。如果再给她一次选择的机会,她死也不参加这个节目。“啪,”一根干枯的树枝飞了过来,将枝头的蛇打落下来。“噗”。“看,我们的晚餐有了。”叶柠一手拿着匕首,一手捏着没有蛇头,不停挪动渗着血的蛇身,凑到李诗诗面前。开心的露出八颗牙笑道。“呵呵”,李诗诗脸色苍白的退后一步。
  • 遇见最好的他:红尘四合

    遇见最好的他:红尘四合

    晋江当红作家尤四姐再掀京味儿古言浪潮,独家番外首面世。温家嫡女温定宜年幼时,父亲犯事,一夜之间,繁华崩塌,锦衣玉食的日子仿佛梦一场。全家死的死、流放的流放,只剩下她一个,被奶妈子救了出来。为了谋生,定宜扮成小子,拜在顺天府最有名的刽子手乌长庚门下做学徒。寒来暑往的,长到了十七岁。这天出门没看黄历,一不留神把七王爷给得罪了。对方是天潢贵胄,看她和看只蝼蚁没什么区别,眼看着定宜就要被人拉下去当瓜切了,命悬一线之际,踱过来一个人,随口几句话,救了她一条小命。很久很久以后,有一次定宜问起他对自己的第一印象。他挑起一道眉,说:“小个儿,娘娘腔,站在大太阳底下歪个头、眯个眼儿,像个二愣子。”定宜:“……”
  • 一匹雪白的马(中国好小说)

    一匹雪白的马(中国好小说)

    一部纯乡土文化的反腐小说,由主人公“侯震东”偶遇一匹雪白的马,牵出一系列的跌宕起伏、环环相扣的人物背景,以及乡镇生活的腐化与人情世故,故事贴近生活,是一部原生态的“人情”小说,作者最后道出了人间自有真情在的的意义,这个社会需要正义,需要正能量。
  • 江湖三女侠

    江湖三女侠

    本书主要讲述了清朝初年以吕四娘、冯瑛、冯琳组成的江湖三女侠的传奇经历。康熙末年,隐居十载的河南武师冯广潮在为孪生孙女冯瑛、冯琳周岁之时,突遭清廷“血滴子”的袭杀。冯广潮之徒弟唐晓澜携师嫂及冯瑛逃亡途中,得关东四侠相助,终逃上氓山,为武林奇人独臂神尼的徒弟吕四娘所救,冯瑛则落入双魔手中。杨之女杨柳青与唐晓澜朝夕相处,暗生情愫,杨仲英也有意将其许配与唐晓澜。但因其娇纵任性不为唐所喜,唐心底钦慕的仍是风姿爽朗、温言笑语的吕四娘,遂留书出走。
  • 群狗追击之你给我过来

    群狗追击之你给我过来

    十岁的特工成为贵族学院的学生?奇怪的姓氏和莫名的管家伯伯?奇葩的家族使命和命中注定的穿越?陌九清河是一个头N个大。。。尤其是穿越后遇到的那个死皮赖脸的男人,一口一个娘子的叫着。清河无语:帅B,我们这是第一次见面,麻烦你正常一点,要脸一点好不好!!!帅B回答:不好!清河要的话就给清河好了!清河晕。。。