第 26 节
作者:独来读网      更新:2022-11-28 19:18      字数:9322
  is my cook; and Cornelia is my housemaid。  I suffer much sadness;
  and almost misery sometimes; in reflecting that here are we; ten
  brothers and sisters; born of one father and mother; who might have
  mixed together and shared all in the same scenes; and been properly
  happy; if it were not for the strange accidents that have split us
  up into sections as you see; cutting me off from them without the
  compensation of joining me to any others。  They are all true as
  steel in keeping the secret of our kin; certainly; but that brings
  little joy; though some satisfaction perhaps。'
  'You might be less despondent; I think。  The tale…telling has been
  one of the successes of the season。'
  'Yes; I might; but I may observe that you scarcely set the example
  of blitheness。'
  'Ahthat's not because I don't recognize the pleasure of being
  here。  It is from a more general cause:  simply an underfeeling I
  have that at the most propitious moment the distance to the
  possibility of sorrow is so short that a man's spirits must not rise
  higher than mere cheerfulness out of bare respect to his insight。
  〃As long as skies are blue; and fields are green;
  Evening must usher night; night urge the morrow;
  Month follow month with woe; and year wake year to sorrow。〃'
  Ethelberta bowed uncertainly; the remark might refer to her past
  conduct or it might not。  'My great cause of uneasiness is the
  children;' she presently said; as a new page of matter。  'It is my
  duty; at all risk and all sacrifice of sentiment; to educate and
  provide for them。  The grown…up ones; older than myself; I cannot
  help much; but the little ones I can。  I keep my two French lodgers
  for the sake of them。'
  'The lodgers; of course; don't know the relationship between
  yourself and the rest of the people in the house?'
  'O no!nor will they ever。  My mother is supposed to let the ground
  and first floors to mea strange ladyas she does the second and
  third floors to them。  Still; I may be discovered。'
  'Wellif you are?'
  'Let me be。  Life is a battle; they say; but it is only so in the
  sense that a game of chess is a battlethere is no seriousness in
  it; it may be put an end to at any inconvenient moment by owning
  yourself beaten; with a careless 〃Ha…ha!〃 and sweeping your pieces
  into the box。  Experimentally; I care to succeed in society; but at
  the bottom of my heart; I don't care。'
  'For that very reason you are likely to do it。  My idea is; make
  ambition your business and indifference your relaxation; and you
  will fail; but make indifference your business and ambition your
  relaxation; and you will succeed。  So impish are the ways of the
  gods。'
  'I hope that you at any rate will succeed;' she said; at the end of
  a silence。
  'I never canif success means getting what one wants。'
  'Why should you not get that?'
  'It has been forbidden to me。'
  Her complexion changed just enough to show that she knew what he
  meant。  'If you were as bold as you are subtle; you would take a
  more cheerful view of the matter;' she said; with a look signifying
  innermost things。
  'I will instantly!  Shall I test the truth of my cheerful view by a
  word of question?'
  'I deny that you are capable of taking that view; and until you
  prove that you are; no question is allowed;' she said; laughing; and
  still warmer in the face and neck。  'Nothing but melancholy; gentle
  melancholy; now as in old times when there was nothing to cause it。'
  'Ahyou only tease。'
  'You will not throw aside that bitter medicine of distrust; for the
  world。  You have grown so used to it; that you take it as food; as
  some invalids do their mixtures。'
  'Ethelberta; you have my heartmy whole heart。  You have had it
  ever since I first saw you。  Now you understand me; and no
  pretending that you don't; mind; this second time。'
  'I understood you long ago; you have not understood me。'
  'You are mysterious;' he said lightly; 'and perhaps if I disentangle
  your mystery I shall find it to coverindifference。  I hope it
  doesfor your sake。'
  'How can you say so!' she exclaimed reproachfully。  'Yet I wish it
  did tooI wish it did cover indifferencefor yours。  But you have
  all of me that you care to have; and may keep it for life if you
  wish to。  Listen; surely there was a knock at the door?  Let us go
  inside the room:  I am always uneasy when anybody comes; lest any
  awkward discovery should be made by a visitor of my miserable
  contrivances for keeping up the establishment。'
  Joey met them before they had left the landing。
  'Please; Berta;' he whispered; 'Mr。 Ladywell has called; and I've
  showed him into the liberry。  You know; Berta; this is how it was;
  you know:  I thought you and Mr。 Julian were in the drawing…room;
  and wouldn't want him to see ye together; and so I asked him to step
  into the liberry a minute。'
  'You must improve your way of speaking;' she said; with quick
  embarrassment; whether at the mention of Ladywell's name before
  Julian; or at the way Joey coupled herself with Christopher; was
  quite uncertain。  'Will you excuse me for a few moments?' she said;
  turning to Christopher。  'Pray sit down; I shall not be long。'  And
  she glided downstairs。
  They had been standing just by the drawing…room door; and
  Christopher turned back into the room with no very satisfactory
  countenance。  It was very odd; he thought; that she should go down
  to Ladywell in that mysterious manner; when he might have been
  admitted to where they were talking without any trouble at all。
  What could Ladywell have to say; as an acquaintance calling upon her
  for a few minutes; that he was not to hear?  Indeed; if it came to
  that; what right had Ladywell to call upon her at all; even though
  she were a widow; and to some extent chartered to live in a way
  which might be considered a trifle free if indulged in by other
  young women。  This was the first time that he himself had ventured
  into her house on that very accounta doubt whether it was quite
  proper to call; considering her youth; and the fertility of her
  position as ground for scandal。  But no sooner did he arrive than
  here was Ladywell blundering in; and; since this conjunction had
  occurred on his first visit; the chances were that Ladywell came
  very often。
  Julian walked up and down the room; every moment expanding itself to
  a minute in his impatience at the delay and vexation at the cause。
  After scrutinizing for the fifth time every object on the walls as
  if afflicted with microscopic closeness of sight; his hands under
  his coat…tails; and his person jigging up and down upon his toes; he
  heard her coming up the stairs。  When she entered the apartment her
  appearance was decidedly that of a person subsiding after some
  little excitement。
  'I did not calculate upon being so long;' she said sweetly; at the
  same time throwing back her face and smiling。  'But Iwas longer
  than I expected。'
  'It seemed rather long;' said Christopher gloomily; 'but I don't
  mind it。'
  'I am glad of that;' said Ethelberta。
  'As you asked me to stay; I was very pleased to do so; and always
  should be; but I think that now I will wish you good…bye。'
  'You are not vexed with me?' she said; looking quite into his face。
  'Mr。 Ladywell is nobody; you know。'
  'Nobody?'
  'Well; he is not much; I mean。  The case is; that I am sitting to
  him for a subject in which my face is to be usedotherwise than as
  a portraitand he called about it。'
  'May I say;' said Christopher; 'that if you want yourself painted;
  you are ill…advised not to let it be done by a man who knows how to
  use the brush a little?'
  'O; he can paint!' said Ethelberta; rather warmly。  'His last
  picture was excellent; I think。  It was greatly talked about。'
  'I imagined you to say that he was a mere nobody!'
  'Yes; buthow provoking you are!nobody; I mean; to talk to。  He
  is a true artist; nevertheless。'
  Christopher made no reply。  The warm understanding between them had
  quite ended now; and there was no fanning it up again。  Sudden tiffs
  had been the constant misfortune of their courtship in days gone by;
  had been the remote cause of her marriage to another; and the
  familiar shadows seemed to be rising again to cloud them with the
  same persistency as ever。  Christopher went downstairs with well…
  behaved moodiness; and left the house forthwith。  The postman came
  to the door at the same time。
  Ethelberta opened a letter from Picoteenow at Sandbourne again;
  and; stooping to the fire…light; she began to read:
  'MY DEAR ETHELBERTA;I have tried to like staying at Sandbourne
  because you wished it; but I can't endure the town at all; dear
  Berta; everything is so wretched and dull!  O; I only wish you knew
  how dismal it is here; and how much I would give to come to London!
  I cannot help thinking that I could do better in town。  You see; I
  should be close to you; and should have the benefit of your
  experience。  I would not mind what I did for a living could I be
  there where you all are。  It is so like banishment to be here。  If I
  could not get a pupil…teachership in some London school (and I
  believe I could by advertising) I could stay with you; and be
  governess to Georgina and Myrtle; for I am sure you cannot spar