Lesson 30 The death of a ghost

Why did the two brothers keep the secret?

For years, villagers believed that Endley Farm was haunted.

The farm was owned by two brothers, Joe and Bob Cox.

They employed a few farmhands, but no one was willing to work there long.

Every time a worker gave up his job, he told the same story.

Farm laborers said that they always woke up to find that work had been done overnight.

Hay had been cut and cowsheds had been cleaned.

A farm worker, who stayed up all night claimed to have seen a figure cutting corn in the moonlight.

In time, it became an accepted fact that the Cox brothers employed a conscientious ghost that did most of their work for them.

No one suspected that there might be someone else on the farm who had never been seen.

This was indeed the case.

A short time ago, villagers were astonished to learn that the ghost of Endley had died.

Everyone went to the funeral, for the 'ghost' was none other than Eric Cox, a third brother who was supposed to have died as a young man.

After the funeral, Joe and Bob revealed a secret which they had kept for over fifty years.

Eric had been the eldest son of the family, very much older than his two brothers.

He had been obliged to join the army during the Second World War.

As he hated army life, he decided to desert his regiment.

When he learnt that he would be sent abroad, he returned to the farm and his father hid him until the end of the war.

Fearing the authorities, Eric remained in hiding after the war as well.

His father told everybody that Eric had been killed in action.

The only other people who knew the secret were Joe and Bob. They did not even tell their wives.

When their father died, they thought it their duty to keep Eric in hiding.

All these years, Eric had lived as a recluse.

He used to sleep during the day and work at night, quite unaware of the fact that he had become the ghost of Endley.

When he died, however, his brothers found it impossible to keep the secret any longer.

 

1.      haunted闹鬼的，反复出现的，受到困扰的;被一种情感或问题困扰

He was haunted by memories of the war for the rest of his life. 他的余生都被战争的记忆纠缠

2.      overnight

adv. 1) during or for the night 在晚上 She stayed overnight in the hotel. 她在旅馆过了一夜

2)suddenly or very quickly 突然很快 Our success isn’t won overnight. 我们的成功不是一夜之间得来的

adj.1) during or for the night 一整夜的，晚上的 she took the overnight train to New York.

2) sudden; very quick突然的很快的 The show was an overnight success on Broadway.

3.      figure

1)     One of the most colorful figures in boxing history was Danial Mendoza. 人物

2)     A farm worker, who stayed up all night claimedto have seen a figure cutting corn in the moon light. 人影    I can only see a figure in a distance.

4.      desert词性不同，发音不同

1)     n.  barren land, with very little water 沙漠，不毛之地 Lesson 12 Life on a desert island

2)     vt. leave without help or support; give up  Never desert a friend in need. 绝不要抛弃有困难的朋友

5.      authorities local authorities 当局 

6.      aware  & unaware

be aware of .. he is fully aware of the consequences. Lesson 27 Nothing tosell and nothing to buy

be unaware of ..

be unaware (of  the fact) that +从句

7.      表达以为的动词

1)     believe毫无根据的以为

2)     suspect 比believe更加不确定的以为

3)     suppose 与事实相符或不相符的以为

4)     claim 声称，无根据的说