章节正文
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instinct. He was fleeing for his life; nevertheless, the
strongest instinct at the time was his desire to fight.
He knew when these three horsemen saw him, and a moment
afterward he lost sight of them as he got into the mesquite
again. He meant now to try to reach the road, and pushed his
mount severely, though still saving him for a final burst.
Rocks, thickets, bunches of cactus, washes--all operated
against his following a straight line. Almost he lost his
bearings, and finally would have ridden toward his enemies had
not good fortune favored him in the matter of an open
burned-over stretch of ground.
Here he saw both groups of pursuers, one on each side and
almost within gun-shot. Their sharp yells, as much as his cruel
spurs, drove his horse into that pace which now meant life or
death for him. And never had Duane bestrode a gamer, swifter,
stancher beast. He seemed about to accomplish the impossible.
In the dragging sand he was far superior to any horse in
pursuit, and on this sandy open stretch he gained enough to
spare a little in the brush beyond. Heated now and thoroughly
terrorized, he kept the pace through thickets that almost tore
Duane from his saddle. Something weighty and grim eased off
Duane. He was going to get out in front! The horse had speed,
fire, stamina.
Duane dashed out into another open place dotted by few trees,
and here, right in his path, within pistol-range, stood
horsemen waiting. They yelled, they spurred toward him, but did
not fire at him. He turned his horse--faced to the right. Only
one thing kept him from standing his ground to fight it out. He
remembered those dangling limp figures hanging from the
cottonwoods. These ranchers would rather hang an outlaw than do
anything. They might draw all his fire and then capture him.
His horror of hanging was so great as to be all out of
proportion compared to his gun-fighter's instinct of
self-preservation.
A race began then, a dusty, crashing drive through gray
mesquite. Duane could scarcely see, he was so blinded by
stinging branches across his eyes. The hollow wind roared in
his ears. He lost his sense of the nearness of his pursuers.
But they must have been close. Did they shoot at him? He
imagined he heard shots. But that might have been the cracking
of dead snags. His left arm hung limp, almost useless; he
handled the rein with his right; and most of the time he hung
low over the pommel. The gray walls flashing by him, the whip
of twigs, the rush of wind, the heavy, rapid pound of hoofs,
the violentmotion of his horse--these vied in sensation with
the smart of sweat in his eyes, the rack of his wound, the
cold, sick cramp in his stomach. With these also was dull,
raging fury. He had to run when he wanted to fight. It took all
his mind to force back that bitter hate of himself, of his
pursuers, of this race for his useless life.
Suddenly he burst out of a line of mesquite into the road. A
long stretch of lonely road! How fiercely, with hot, strange
joy, he wheeled his horse upon it! Then he was sweeping along,
sure now that he was out in front. His horse still had strength
and speed, but showed signs of breaking. Presently Duane looked
back. Pursuers--he could not count how many--were loping along
in his rear. He paid no more attention to them, and with teeth
set he faced ahead, grimmer now in his determination to foil
them.
He passed a few scattered ranch-houses where horses whistled
from corrals, and men curiously watched him fly past. He saw
one rancher running, and he felt intuitively that this fellow
was going to join in the chase. Duane's steed pounded on, not
noticeably slower, but with a lack of former smoothness, with a
strained, convulsive, jerking stride which showed he was almost
done.
Sight of the village ahead surprised Duane. He had reached it
sooner than he expected. Then he made a discovery--he had
entered the zone of wire fences. As he dared not turn back now,
he kept on, intending to ride through the village. Looking
backward, he saw that his pursuers were half a mile distant,
too far to alarm any villagers in time to intercept him in his
flight. As he rode by the first houses his horse broke and
began to labor. Duane did not believe he would last long enough
to go through the village.
Saddled horses in front of a store gave Duane an idea, not by
any means new, and one he had carried out successfully before.
strongest instinct at the time was his desire to fight.
He knew when these three horsemen saw him, and a moment
afterward he lost sight of them as he got into the mesquite
again. He meant now to try to reach the road, and pushed his
mount severely, though still saving him for a final burst.
Rocks, thickets, bunches of cactus, washes--all operated
against his following a straight line. Almost he lost his
bearings, and finally would have ridden toward his enemies had
not good fortune favored him in the matter of an open
burned-over stretch of ground.
Here he saw both groups of pursuers, one on each side and
almost within gun-shot. Their sharp yells, as much as his cruel
spurs, drove his horse into that pace which now meant life or
death for him. And never had Duane bestrode a gamer, swifter,
stancher beast. He seemed about to accomplish the impossible.
In the dragging sand he was far superior to any horse in
pursuit, and on this sandy open stretch he gained enough to
spare a little in the brush beyond. Heated now and thoroughly
terrorized, he kept the pace through thickets that almost tore
Duane from his saddle. Something weighty and grim eased off
Duane. He was going to get out in front! The horse had speed,
fire, stamina.
Duane dashed out into another open place dotted by few trees,
and here, right in his path, within pistol-range, stood
horsemen waiting. They yelled, they spurred toward him, but did
not fire at him. He turned his horse--faced to the right. Only
one thing kept him from standing his ground to fight it out. He
remembered those dangling limp figures hanging from the
cottonwoods. These ranchers would rather hang an outlaw than do
anything. They might draw all his fire and then capture him.
His horror of hanging was so great as to be all out of
proportion compared to his gun-fighter's instinct of
self-preservation.
A race began then, a dusty, crashing drive through gray
mesquite. Duane could scarcely see, he was so blinded by
stinging branches across his eyes. The hollow wind roared in
his ears. He lost his sense of the nearness of his pursuers.
But they must have been close. Did they shoot at him? He
imagined he heard shots. But that might have been the cracking
of dead snags. His left arm hung limp, almost useless; he
handled the rein with his right; and most of the time he hung
low over the pommel. The gray walls flashing by him, the whip
of twigs, the rush of wind, the heavy, rapid pound of hoofs,
the violentmotion of his horse--these vied in sensation with
the smart of sweat in his eyes, the rack of his wound, the
cold, sick cramp in his stomach. With these also was dull,
raging fury. He had to run when he wanted to fight. It took all
his mind to force back that bitter hate of himself, of his
pursuers, of this race for his useless life.
Suddenly he burst out of a line of mesquite into the road. A
long stretch of lonely road! How fiercely, with hot, strange
joy, he wheeled his horse upon it! Then he was sweeping along,
sure now that he was out in front. His horse still had strength
and speed, but showed signs of breaking. Presently Duane looked
back. Pursuers--he could not count how many--were loping along
in his rear. He paid no more attention to them, and with teeth
set he faced ahead, grimmer now in his determination to foil
them.
He passed a few scattered ranch-houses where horses whistled
from corrals, and men curiously watched him fly past. He saw
one rancher running, and he felt intuitively that this fellow
was going to join in the chase. Duane's steed pounded on, not
noticeably slower, but with a lack of former smoothness, with a
strained, convulsive, jerking stride which showed he was almost
done.
Sight of the village ahead surprised Duane. He had reached it
sooner than he expected. Then he made a discovery--he had
entered the zone of wire fences. As he dared not turn back now,
he kept on, intending to ride through the village. Looking
backward, he saw that his pursuers were half a mile distant,
too far to alarm any villagers in time to intercept him in his
flight. As he rode by the first houses his horse broke and
began to labor. Duane did not believe he would last long enough
to go through the village.
Saddled horses in front of a store gave Duane an idea, not by
any means new, and one he had carried out successfully before.
- unable [ʌn´eibəl]
a.不能的；无能为力的 (初中英语单词) - pasture [´pɑ:stʃə] n.牧场；放牧 v.吃(草) (初中英语单词)
- daylight [´deilait] n.日光；黎明 (初中英语单词)
- frighten [´fraitn] vt.吓唬，使惊惧 (初中英语单词)
- valley [´væli] n.谷；河谷；流域 (初中英语单词)
- stream [stri:m] n.河 vi.流出；飘扬 (初中英语单词)
- strangely [´streindʒli] ad.奇怪地；陌生地 (初中英语单词)
- account [ə´kaunt] vi.说明 vt.认为 n.帐目 (初中英语单词)
- swiftly [´swiftli] ad.迅速地，敏捷地 (初中英语单词)
- bullet [´bulit] n.子弹 (初中英语单词)
- hillside [´hilsaid] n.山腰 (初中英语单词)
- moreover [mɔ:´rəuvə] ad.再者，此外，而且 (初中英语单词)
- unfortunate [ʌn´fɔ:tʃunit] a.不幸的，运气差的 (初中英语单词)
- magnificent [mæg´nifisənt] a.壮丽的；豪华的 (初中英语单词)
- willow [´wiləu] n.柳树 (初中英语单词)
- presently [´prezəntli] ad.不久；目前 (初中英语单词)
- unusual [ʌn´ju:ʒuəl] a.不平常的；异常的 (初中英语单词)
- backward [´bækwəd] ad.向后 a.向后的 (初中英语单词)
- running [´rʌniŋ] a.奔跑的；流动的 (初中英语单词)
- likewise [´laikwaiz] ad.同样地；也，又 (初中英语单词)
- factor [´fæktə] n.因素；原动力；要素 (初中英语单词)
- despite [di´spait] prep.尽管 (初中英语单词)
- dismay [dis´mei] n.惊慌 vt.使惊慌 (初中英语单词)
- career [kə´riə] n.经历；生涯；职业 (初中英语单词)
- nevertheless [,nevəðə´les] conj.&ad.然而；不过 (初中英语单词)
- instinct [´instiŋkt] n.本能；直觉；天资 (初中英语单词)
- saddle [´sædl] n.鞍子 v.装鞍(于) (初中英语单词)
- waiting [´weitiŋ] n.等候；伺候 (初中英语单词)
- standing [´stændiŋ] n.持续 a.直立的 (初中英语单词)
- capture [´kæptʃə] vt.&n.捕获；俘获；夺取 (初中英语单词)
- horror [´hɔrə] n.恐怖；战栗 (初中英语单词)
- useless [´ju:sləs] a.无用的，无价值的 (初中英语单词)
- violent [´vaiələnt] a.强暴的；猛烈的 (初中英语单词)
- sensation [sen´seiʃən] n.感觉；轰动；轰动一时 (初中英语单词)
- stomach [´stʌmək] n.胃；胃口，食欲 (初中英语单词)
- lonely [´ləunli] a.孤独的；无人烟的 (初中英语单词)
- fiercely [´fiəsli] ad.凶猛地，残忍地 (初中英语单词)
- curiously [´kjuəriəsli] ad.好奇地；稀奇古怪地 (初中英语单词)
- decided [di´saidid] a.明显的；决定的 (高中英语单词)
- cautiously [´kɔ:ʃəsli] ad.小心地；谨慎地 (高中英语单词)
- southwest [,sauθ´west] n.&a.西南(方)(的) (高中英语单词)
- exceedingly [ik´si:diŋli] ad.非常地，极度地 (高中英语单词)
- endurance [in´djuərəns] n.忍受(耐)；耐力 (高中英语单词)
- decidedly [di´saididli] ad.坚决地，果断地 (高中英语单词)
- hesitation [,hezi´teiʃən] n.犹豫，踌躇 (高中英语单词)
- severely [si´viəli] ad.剧烈地；严格地 (高中英语单词)
- hanging [´hæŋiŋ] n.绞刑 a.悬挂着的 (高中英语单词)
- motion [´məuʃən] n.手势 vt.打手势 (高中英语单词)
- sweeping [´swi:piŋ] a.掠过的 n.扫除；清除 (高中英语单词)
- determination [di,tə:mi´neiʃən] n.决心；决定 (高中英语单词)
- stride [straid] n.进展 v.跨过；骑 (高中英语单词)
- successfully [sək´sesfəli] ad.成功地 (高中英语单词)
- accomplished [ə´kʌmpliʃt] a.完成了的；熟练的 (英语四级单词)
- somber [´sɔmbə] a.昏暗的；忧郁的 (英语四级单词)
- grotesque [grəu´tesk] a.奇异的，想象中的 (英语四级单词)
- hoarse [hɔ:s] a.嘶哑的；嗓门粗哑的 (英语四级单词)
- outlaw [´autlɔ:] n.歹徒 vt.将…放逐 (英语四级单词)
- gotten [´gɔtn] get的过去分词 (英语四级单词)
- zigzag [´zigzæg] n.锯齿形 a.工字形(的) (英语四级单词)
- seemingly [´si:miŋli] ad.表面上；似乎 (英语四级单词)
- ridden [´ridn] ride 的过去分词 (英语四级单词)
- covert [kʌvət] a.隐藏的 n.隐藏处 (英语六级单词)
- outskirts [´autskə:ts] n.外边；郊区 (英语六级单词)
- intact [in´tækt] a.未动过的，完整的 (英语六级单词)
- extended [iks´tendid] a.伸长的；广大的 (英语六级单词)
- intercept [,intə´sept] vt.拦截；截获；窃听 (英语六级单词)
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章节正文
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