第 30 节
作者:散发弄舟      更新:2021-02-21 16:19      字数:9317
  disliked asking questions about people to an uncommon degree; and so
  preferred waiting for a natural revelation。  Her later behaviour had
  repelled him; impressing him with the notion that she was proud; and
  that she had made up her mind; notwithstanding her apparent
  frankness at first; to keep him at a distance。  That she was fitful;
  too; and incapable of showing much tenderness even to poor Harry; he
  had already concluded in his private judgment…hall。  Nor could he
  doubt that; whether from wrong theories; incapacity; or culpable
  indifference; she must have taken very bad measures indeed with her
  young pupil。
  The next day resembled the two former; with this difference; that
  the rain fell in torrents。  Seated in their strawy bower; they cared
  for no rain。  They were safe from the whole world; and all the
  tempers of nature。
  Then Hugh told Harry about the slow beginnings and the mighty birth
  of the great Roman people。  He told him tales of their battles and
  conquests; their strifes at home; and their wars abroad。  He told
  him stories of their grand men; great with the individuality of
  their nation and their own。  He told him their characters; their
  peculiar opinions and grounds of action; and the results of their
  various schemes for their various ends。  He told him about their
  love to their country; about their poetry and their religion; their
  courage; and their hardihood; their architecture; their clothes; and
  their armour; their customs and their laws; but all in such
  language; or mostly in such language; as one boy might use in
  telling another of the same age; for Hugh possessed the gift of a
  general simplicity of thought; one of the most valuable a man can
  have。  It cost him a good deal of labour (well…repaid in itself; not
  to speak of the evident delight of Harry); to make himself perfectly
  competent for this; but he had a good foundation of knowledge to
  work upon。
  This went on for a long time after the period to which I am now more
  immediately confined。  Every time they stopped to rest from their
  rambles or gamesas often; in fact; as they sat down alone; Harry's
  constant request was:
  〃Now; Mr。 Sutherland; mightn't we have something more about the
  Romans?〃
  And Mr。 Sutherland gave him something more。  But all this time he
  never uttered the wordLatin。
  CHAPTER V。
  LARCH AND OTHER HUNTING。
  For there is neither buske nor hay
  In May; that it n'ill shrouded bene;
  And it with new?leav閟 wrene;
  These wood閟 eke recoveren grene;
  That drie in winter ben to sene;
  And the erth waxeth proud withall;
  For swot?dewes that on it fall;
  And the poore estate forget;
  In which that winter had it set:
  And than becomes the ground so proude;
  That it wol have a new?shroude;
  And maketh so queint his robe and faire;
  That it hath hewes an hundred paire;
  Of grasse and floures; of Ind and Pers;
  And many hew閟 full divers:
  That is the robe I mean; ywis;
  Through which the ground to praisen is。
  CHAUCER'S translation of the Romaunt of the Rose。
  So passed the three days of rain。  After breakfast the following
  morning; Hugh went to find Harry; according to custom; in the
  library。  He was reading。
  〃What are you reading; Harry?〃 asked he。
  〃A poem;〃 said Harry; and; rising as before; he brought the book to
  Hugh。 It was Mrs。 Hemans's Poems。
  〃You are fond of poetry; Harry。〃
  〃Yes; very。〃
  〃Whose poems do you like best?〃
  〃Mrs。 Hemans's; of course。  Don't you think she is the best; sir?〃
  〃She writes very beautiful verses; Harry。  Which poem are you
  reading now?〃
  〃Oh! one of my favouritesThe Voice of Spring。〃
  〃Who taught you to like Mrs。 Hemans?〃
  〃Euphra; of course。〃
  〃Will you read the poem to me?〃
  Harry began; and read the poem through; with much taste and evident
  enjoyment; an enjoyment which seemed; however; to spring more from
  the music of the thought and its embodiment in sound; than from
  sympathy with the forms of nature called up thereby。  This was shown
  by his mode of reading; in which the music was everything; and the
  sense little or nothing。  When he came to the line;
  〃And the larch has hung all his tassels forth;〃
  he smiled so delightedly; that Hugh said:
  〃Are you fond of the larch; Harry?〃
  〃Yes; very。〃
  〃Are there any about here?〃
  〃I don't know。  What is it like?〃
  〃You said you were fond of it。〃
  〃Oh; yes; it is a tree with beautiful tassels; you know。  I think I
  should like to see one。  Isn't it a beautiful line?〃
  〃When you have finished the poem; we will go and see if we can find
  one anywhere in the woods。  We must know where we are in the world;
  Harrywhat is all round about us; you know。〃
  〃Oh; yes;〃 said Harry; 〃let us go and hunt the larch。〃
  〃Perhaps we shall meet Spring; if we look for herperhaps hear her
  voice; too。〃
  〃That would be delightful;〃 answered Harry; smiling。  And away they
  went。
  I may just mention here that Mrs。 Hemans was allowed to retire
  gradually; till at last she was to be found only in the more
  inaccessible recesses of the library…shelves; while by that time
  Harry might be heard; not all over the house; certainly; but as far
  off as outside the closed door of the library; reading aloud to
  himself one or other of Macaulay's ballads; with an evident
  enjoyment of the go in it。  A story with drum and trumpet
  accompaniment was quite enough; for the present; to satisfy Harry;
  and Macaulay could give him that; if little more。
  As they went across the lawn towards the shrubbery; on their way to
  look for larches and Spring; Euphra joined them in walking dress。
  It was a lovely morning。
  〃I have taken you at your word; you see; Mr。 Sutherland;〃 said she。
  〃I don't want to lose my Harry quite。〃
  〃You dear kind Euphra!〃 said Harry; going round to her side and
  taking her hand。  He did not stay long with her; however; nor did
  Euphra seem particularly to want him。
  〃There was one thing I ought to have mentioned to you the other
  night; Mr。 Sutherland; and I daresay I should have mentioned it; had
  not Mr。 Arnold interrupted our t阾e…?t阾e。  I feel now as if I had
  been guilty of claiming far more than I have a right to; on the
  score of musical insight。  I have Scotch blood in me; and was indeed
  born in Scotland; though I left it before I was a year old。  My
  mother; Mr。 Arnold's sister; married a gentleman who was half
  Sootch; and I was born while they were on a visit to his relatives;
  the Camerons of Lochnie。  His mother; my grandmother; was a Bohemian
  lady; a countess with sixteen quarteringsnot a gipsy; I beg to
  say。〃
  Hugh thought she might have been; to judge from present appearances。
  But how was he to account for this torrent of genealogical
  information; into which the ice of her late constraint had suddenly
  thawed?  It was odd that she should all at once volunteer so much
  about herself。  Perhaps she had made up one of those minds which
  need making up; every now and then; like a monthly magazine; and now
  was prepared to publish it。  Hugh responded with a question:
  〃Do I know your name; then; at last?  You are Miss Cameron?〃
  〃Euphrasia Cameron; at your service; sir。〃  And she dropped a gay
  little courtesy to Hugh; looking up at him with a flash of her black
  diamonds。
  〃Then you must sing to me to…night。〃
  〃With all the pleasure in gipsy…land;〃 replied she; with a second
  courtesy; lower than the first; taking for granted; no doubt; his
  silent judgment on her person and complexion。
  By this time they had reached the woods in a different quarter from
  that which Hugh had gone through the other day with Harry。  And
  here; in very deed; the Spring met them; with a profusion of
  richness to which Hugh was quite a stranger。  The ground was
  carpeted with primroses; and anemones; and other spring flowers;
  which are the loveliest of all flowers。  They were drinking the
  sunlight; which fell upon them through the budded boughs。  By the
  time the light should be hidden from them by the leaves; which are
  the clouds of the lower firmament of the woods; their need of it
  would be gone: exquisites in living; they cared only for the
  delicate morning of the year。
  〃Do look at this darling; Mr。 Sutherland!〃 exclaimed Euphrasia
  suddenly; as she bent at the root of a great beech; where grew a
  large bush of rough leaves; with one tiny but perfectly…formed
  primrose peeping out between。 〃Is it not a little pet?all
  eyesall one eye staring out of its curtained bed to see what ever
  is going on in the world。You had better lie down again: it is not
  a nice place。〃
  She spoke to it as if it had been a kitten or a baby。  And as she
  spoke; she pulled the leaves yet closer over the little starer so as
  to hide it quite。
  As they went on; she almost obtrusively avoided stepping on the
  flowers; saying she almost felt cruel; or at least rude; when she
  did so。  Yet she trailed her dress over them in quite a careless
  way; not lifting it at all。  This was a peculiarity of hers; which
  Hugh never understood till he understood herself。
  All about in shady places; the ferns were busy untucking themselves
  from their grave…clothes; unrolling their mysterious coils of life;
  adding continually to the hidden growth as they unfolded the
  visible。  In this; the