While in prison O.Henry started to write short stories to earn money to support his daughter Margaret.His first work,“ Whistling Dick s Christmas Stocking”(1899),appeared in McClure s Magazine.After doing three years of the five years sentence,Porter emerged from the prison in 1901 and changed his name to O.Henry.O.Henry moved to New York City in 1902 and from December 1903 to January 1906 he wrote a story a week for the New York World.Henry s first collection,Cabbages And Kings appeared in 1904.The second,The Four Million,was published two years later and included his well-known stories “The Gift of the Magi”and“The Furnished Room”. The Trimmed Lamp（1907 )included“ The Last Leaf”. Henry s best known work is perhaps the much anthologized“The Ransom of Red Chief”,included in the collection Whirligigs (1910).The Heart of the West (1907) presented tales of the Texas range.O.Henry published 10 collections and over 600 short stories during his lifetime.O.Henry s last years were shadowed by alcoholism,ill health,and financial problems.He married Sara Lindsay Coleman in 1907,but the marriage was not happy,and they separated a year later.O.Henry died of cirrhosis of the liver on June 5,1910,in New York.Three more collections, Sixes and Sevens (1911),Rolling Stones (1912) and Waifs and Strays (1917),appeared posthumously.Ⅱ.Words and Expressions bulldoze v.to treat in an abusive manner; bully 威胁,恫吓。
parsimony,n.过度节俭,吝啬。
instigate,v.to stir up; foment subside.
v.to sink to a lower or normal level sterling,a.of the highest quality ransack,v.to search or examine thoroughly intoxication n.陶醉。
prudence,n.the care and good sense that someone shows when making a decision or taking action 审慎。
discreet,a.marked by,exercising,or showing prudence and wise self-restraint in speech and behavior;
circumspect 谨慎的,做事谨慎理智的,周到的。
duplication n.重复,复制。
beggar description 非言语所能形容。
on the lookout for alert and careful about something 密切注视。
attend to deal with collect oneself make an effort to calm oneself or prepare oneself mentally 镇定下来。
singed cat n.实质优于外表的人。
Ⅲ.Notes to the Text
1.Della had very little money,and this was further emphasized by the value of one third of the amount she possessed.2.This illustrates the difficult life of the couple and the hard struggle and sacrifice for Della to save up such a small amount of money.(Note the effect of the derogatory word“bulldoze”.)
3.She wished that she had got it wrong and frantically hoped that the amount could be larger.4.Their living conditions were so poor as to be identified for mendicancy only.5.Probably because they were unable to afford the bills,the electricity was cut off.6.The three grey objects set off her dull,depressed mood.7.Della got a sudden change in her mood at the thought of something revealed later.8.These two comparisons emphasize the great value of their two possessions.The Queen of Sheba:
“The Queen of the South will appear at the Judgment when this generation is on trial.”
The Queen of Sheba was said to“test Solomon with hard questions”
she wanted to know whether he was really as wise as they said he was.So,the Bible is interested in her because of her mind.But posterity has remembered her for the rich gifts she brought with her,spices,gold and precious stones,gifts that lend her a kind of oriental exoticism.She was said to be“breathless”before Solomon s wisdom and admitted that his God must be the greatest.Though almost his equal in money and brains,she gave in and adored Solomon.A foreign queen from a distant land with strange gods,she converted to Solomon and his god.Sheba might have been a match for Solomon and the Bible text almost has it so.But tradition has made him her conqueror and so inspired and validated many other victories of Europe over the orient,of man over women,of“Truth”over error.But Jesus promised that Sheba would have her day,that she would rise up in judgment.King Solomon:
Solomon,the son of King David and Bathsheba,was the third king of Israel.Solomon was renowned for his wisdom,wealth and for his construction projects.Israel enjoyed an era of security,prosperity,and international political and economic importance under Solomon.Solomon began his 40-year reign in 967 B.C.and his domain stretched from Tipshah on the Euphrates to Gaza on the border of Egypt.The Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream and told him to ask for anything he wanted.Solomon asked for wisdom to lead the Israelites.God was so pleased with Solomon s reply,He not only gave him wisdom,but riches and honor too.It was in the fourth year of Solomon s reign,that he began the construction of the Temple.Seven years later it was completed,and the Ark of the Covenant was moved from the Tabernacle in Zion,the City of David,to the Temple.He also built a large palace for himself,Fort Millo, the wall of Jerusalem,and the cities of Hazor,Megiddo and Gezer.He also built cities for grain storage,cities to keep his chariots,homes for his army,and resort cities.He built a fleet of ships to bring gold in from Ophir.People from many lands came to visit him and to listen to his God-given wisdom,including the Queen of Sheba.Solomon was the author of 3,000 proverbs and wrote 1,005 songs.The Books of Ecclesiastes,The Song of Songs,and parts of the Book of Proverbs are ascribed to him.