百萬英鎊官觅！

Part One: From San Francisco to London

When I was 27 years old, I worked in an office in San Francisco. I did my job well and my future was promising. I was alone in the world and I was happy. On Saturday afternoons I didn't work. I sailed my little sailboat on San Francisco Bay. One Saturday afternoon, I sailed out too far. The strong afternoon wind pushed my sailboat out of the bay, into the Pacific Ocean.

That night, when I had lost all hope, a small British brig saw me and took me on board. The brig was sailing to London. The voyage was long and stormy. I worked as a sailor to pay for my trip.

When I arrived in London, my clothes were old and dirty. I had only one dollar in my pocket. With this dollar, I ate and slept for the first twenty-four hours. During the next twenty-four hours, I didn't eat and I didn't sleep.

At about ten o'clock the following morning, I went to Portland Place. I saw a child walking past, holding a big pear. The child ate one small piece and then threw the pear onto the street.

I stopped and looked at it. I was very hungry and I really wanted that pear.

But every time I tried to get it, someone passed by and looked at me. I

quickly turned in the other direction and waited for the person to pass by. I tried again and again to get that pear, but the same thing happened. I was desperate . I decided to get the pear and not to worry about the people who saw me. At that moment, a gentleman opened a window behind me and said,"Come in here, please."

A well-dressed servant opened the door. He took me to a beautiful room.

Here, two old gentlemen were sitting and discussing something important.

Their breakfast was still on the table. I was very hungry and I stared at their breakfast.

I want to tell the reader that the two gentlemen had made a bet several days before. I knew nothing about the bet until later. Let me tell you what happened.

仲夏夜之夢

Chapter Four: Dickson?

One day Mary saw a boy sitting under a tree. He seemed about twelve years old. He played on a pipe. Two rabbits and a squirrel were near him.

They seemed to listen to the tune he played.

The boy got up carefully because he didn't want to frighten the animals.

He had blue eyes and a round, pink face. 'I'm Dickson,' he said to Mary. 'I've brought the garden tools and some flower seeds.'

Dickson had a kind and gentle smile and Mary felt that she knew him quite well. She felt that if the wild animals could trust him, then she could trust him, too.

'Do you know about the secret garden?' asked Mary.

'I've heard about it,' Dickson answered. 'But I don't know where it is.'

'Come with me,' Mary said.

Mary was careful that no one saw them, and then she took Dickson through the door in the wall. Dickson was very surprised. 'This is a strange,

pretty place,' he said. 'It's like being in a dream.'

Dickson looked around at all the plants and trees which Mary thought were dead. 'All of these will grow,' he said. 'There'll be flowers and roses everywhere in a few weeks.'

Dickson and Mary worked together to clear away the weeds and dead wood. Mary felt that she had never known anyone like Dickson. She tried to speak in a warm, friendly voice, like Dickson's and Martha's.

'Do you like me?' she asked.

'Yes, I do,' he laughed. 'The robin likes you, too.'

That evening, after dinner, Mrs Medlock took Mary to see Mr Craven.

'He's going abroad tomorrow, and he wants to see you first,' she said.

Mary felt a little afraid. She felt sure that she would not like Mr Craven and that he would not like her. But she found that Mr Craven wasn't really frightening, and that his back wasn't really crooked. His face was handsome , but he looked sad and worried. He asked Mary if there was anything that she would like. Mary asked for a piece of garden in which to grow her own flowers.

'Of course,' said her uncle. 'You may take any bit that is not used.' Mary was delighted . Now she could have the secret garden for herself!

That same night, Mary was awakened by the wind roaring around the house. She couldn't sleep, and as she lay in bed, she heard the crying noise again.

'That's not the wind,' she thought. 'I'm going to find out where that noise is coming from.'

Mary took a candle to light her way along the dark corridors.

Suddenly, she noticed a light from under one of the doors. The crying sound came from behind the door, and Mary knew that it was a child. She gently opened the door, and saw that a young boy lay on the bed, crying.

When the boy saw Mary, he stopped crying at once. 'Are you a ghost?' he asked. He looked very frightened.

'No, I'm Mary Lennox,' she answered. 'Who are you?'

Chapter Five: Colin 'I'm Colin, Mr Craven's son,' said the boy.

'Then I must be your cousin,' Mary said. 'Don't you know that I came to live here?'

'No,' he answered. 'No one told me.'

'Why?' asked Mary.

'Because I am afraid that people will see me. I won't let people see me and talk about me.'

'Why?' asked Mary. She felt more puzzled with each moment that passed. 'Because I'm always ill, and I must stay in bed. The servants are not allowed to speak about me. My father won't let anyone mention me. He's afraid I'll grow up to have a crooked back. My father hates me because my mother died when I was born.'

'Have you always been here?' asked Mary.

'Nearly always,' said Colin. 'If I go out, people stare at me, and I hate it.'

'If you don't like people to see you,' Mary said, 'shall I go away?'

'Oh, no!' Colin replied quickly. 'You must stay and talk to me.'

Mary put her candle down on a table near the bed and sat on a chair. They talked for a long time. Colin wanted to know all about Mary and about her life at Misselthwaite. He told her how unhappy and lonely he was, even though he was given anything that he wanted.

'Everyone must do as I say,' Colin said. 'I will be ill if they don't.'

'Do you think you will get well?' Mary asked.

'I don't suppose I will,' Colin answered. 'No one believes I will live until I

grow up. Let's talk about something else. How old are you?'

'I'm ten, like you,' Mary said.

'How do you know I'm ten?' he asked.

'Because when you were born, your father locked the garden door and buried the key. It's been locked for ten years,' Mary answered.

'What garden?' Colin asked.

'It was the garden Mr Craven hates,' said Mary, nervously . 'He locked the door. No one knew where he buried the key.'

'What's the garden like?' Colin persisted.

'It's been locked for ten years,' Mary said, carefully. She did not want him to know that she had found it. But it was too late to be careful. Colin was very excited at the idea of a hidden garden.

'I will make them open the door,' he said.

'Oh, no!' cried Mary. 'Let's keep it a secret. If they open the door, it will never be a secret again. If we find the door one day, we can go inside and no one will know about it except us.'

'I would like that,' said Colin. 'I've never had a secret before.'

He was tired from talking, and as he fell asleep, Mary went quietly away.