It was only at daybreak that I had recovered a fuller consciousness of what was going on around me. The creaking of hinges startled me out of my stupor8. Mme Gabin had just opened the window. It must have been about seven o'clock, for I heard the cries of hawkers in the street, the shrill9 voice of a girl offering groundsel and the hoarse10 voice of a man shouting "Carrots! The clamorous11 awakening of Paris pacified12 me at first. I could not believe that I should be laid under the sod in the midst of so much life; and, besides, a sudden tht would cheer you up."
She was addressing Marguerite, and a slow trickling14 sound as of something filtering indicated that she had been making some coffee.
"I don't mind owning," she continued, "that I needed it. At my age sitting up IS trying. The night seems so dreary15 when there is a misfortune in the house. DO have a cup of coffee, my dear--just a drop."
She persuaded Marguerite to taste it.
"Isn't it nice and hot?" she continued, "and doesn't it set one up? Ah, you'll be wanting all your strength presently for what you've got to go through today. Now if you were sensible you'd step into my room and just wait there."
"No, I want to stay here," said Marguerite resolutely16.
Her voice, which I had not heard since the previous evening, touched me strangely. It was changed, broken as by tears. To feel my dear wife near me was a last consolation17. I knew that her eyes were fastened on me and that she was weeping with all the anguish of her heart.
The minutes flew by. An inexplicable18 noise sounded from beyond the door. It seemed as if some people were bringing a bulky piece of furniture upstairs and knocking against the walls as they did so. Suddenly I understood, as I heard Marguerite begin to sob19; it was the coffin20.
"You are too early," said Mme Gabin crossly. "Put it behind the bed."
What o'clock was it? Nine, perhaps. So the coffin had come. Amid the opaque21 night around me I could see it plainly, quite new, with roughly planed boards. Heavens! Was this the end then? Was I to be borne off in that box which I realized was lying at my feet?
However, I had one supreme22 joy. Marguerite, in spite of her weakness, insisted upon discharging all the last offices. Assisted by the old woman, she dressed me with all the tenderness of a wife and a sister. Once more I felt myself in her arms as she clothed me in various garments. She paused at times, overcome by grief; she clasped me convulsively, and her tears rained on my face. Oh, how I longed to return her embrace and cry, "I live!" And yet I was lying there powerless, motionless, inert23!
"You are foolish," suddenly said Mme Gabin; "it is all wasted."
"Never mind," answered Marguerite, sobbing24. "I want him to wear his very best things."
I understood that she was dressing13 me in the clothes I had worn on my wedding day. I had kept them carefully for great occasions. When she had finished she fell back exhausted25 in the armchair.
Simoneau now spoke26; he had probably just entered the room.
"They are below," he whispered.
"Well, it ain't any too soon," answered Mme Gabin, also lowering her voice. "Tell them to come up and get it over."
"But I dread27 the despair of the poor little wife."
The old woman seemed to reflect and presently resumed: "Listen to me, Monsieur Simoneau. You must take her off to my room. I wouldn't have her stop here. It is for her own good. When she is out of the way we'll get it done in a jiffy."
These words pierced my heart, and my anguish was intense when I realized that a struggle was actually taking place. Simoneau had walked up to Marguerite, imploring28 her to leave the room.
"Do, for pity's sake, come with me!" he pleaded. "Spare yourself useless pain."
"No, no!" she cried. "I will remain till the last minute. Remember that I have only him in the world, and when he is gone I shall be all alone!"
From the bedside Mme Gabin was prompting the young man.
"Don't parley--take hold of her, carry her off in your arms."
Was Simoneau about to lay his hands on Marguerite and bear her away? She screamed. I wildly endeavored to rise, but the springs of my limbs were broken. I remained rigid29, unable to lift my eyelids30 to see what was going on. The struggle continued, and my wife clung to the furniture, repeating, "Oh, don't, don't! Have mercy! Let me go! I will not--"
He must have lifted her in his stalwart arms, for I heard her moaning like a child. He bore her away; her sobs31 were lost in the distance, and I fancied I saw them both--he, tall and strong, pressing her to his breast; she, fainting, powerless and conquered, following him wherever he listed.
"Drat it all! What a to-do!" muttered Mme Gabin. "Now for the tug32 of war, as the coast is clear at last."
In my jealous madness I looked upon this incident as a monstrous33 outrage34. I had not been able to see Marguerite for twenty-four hours, but at least I had still heard her voice. Now even this was denied me; she had been torn away; a man had eloped with her even before I was laid under the sod. He was alone with her on the other side of the wall, comforting her--embracing her, perhaps!
But the door opened once more, and heavy footsteps shook the floor.
"Quick, make haste," repeated Mme Gabin. "Get it done before the lady comes back."
She was speaking to some strangers, who merely answered her with uncouth35 grunts36.
"You understand," she went on, "I am not a relation; I'm only a neighbor. I have no interest in the matter. It is out of pure good nature that I have mixed myself up in their affairs. And I ain't overcheerful, I can tell you. Yes, yes, I sat up the whole blessed night--it was pretty cold, too, about four o'clock. That's a fact. Well, I have always been a fool--I'm too soft-hearted."
The coffin had been dragged into the center of the room. As I had not awakened37 I was condemned38. All clearness departed from my ideas; everything seemed to revolve39 in a black haze40, and I experienced such utter lassitude that it seemed almost a relief to leave off hoping.
"They haven't spared the material," said one of the undertaker's men in a gruff voice. "The box is too long."
"He'll have all the more room," said the other, laughing.
I was not heavy, and they chuckled41 over it since they had three flights of stairs to descend42. As they were seizing me by the shoulders and feet I heard Mme Gabin fly into a violent passion.
"You cursed little brat," she screamed, "what do you mean by poking43 your nose where you're not wanted? Look here, I'll teach you to spy and pry44."
Dede had slipped her tousled head through the doorway45 to see how the gentleman was being put into the box. Two ringing slaps resounded46, however, by an explosion of sobs. And as soon as the mother returned she began to gossip about her daughter for the benefit of the two men who were settling me in the coffin.
"She is only ten, you know. She is not a bad girl, but she is frightfully inquisitive47. I do not beat her often; only I WILL be obeyed."
"Oh," said one of the men, "all kids are alike. Whenever there is a corpse48 lying about they always want to see it."
I was commodiously49 stretched out, and I might have thought myself still in bed, had it not been that my left arm felt a trifle cramped50 from being squeezed against a board. The men had been right. I was pretty comfortable inside on account of my diminutive51 stature52.
"Stop!" suddenly exclaimed Mme Gabin. "I promised his wife to put a pillow under his head."
The men, who were in a hurry, stuffed in the pillow roughly. One of them, who had mislaid his hammer, began to swear. He had left the tool below and went to fetch it, dropping the lid, and when two sharp blows of the hammer drove in the first nail, a shock ran through my being--I had ceased to live. The nails then entered in rapid succession with a rhythmical53 cadence54. It was as if some packers had been closing a case of dried fruit with easy dexterity55. After that such sounds as reached me were deadened and strangely prolonged, as if the deal coffin had been changed into a huge musical box. The last words spoken in the room of the Rue56 Dauphine-at least the last ones that I heard distinctly--were uttered by Mme Gabin.
"Mind the staircase," she said; "the banister of the second flight isn't safe, so be careful."
While I was being carried down I experienced a sensation similar to that of pitching as when one is on board a ship in a rough sea. However, from that moment my impressions became more and more vague. I remember that the only distinct thought that still possessed57 me was an imbecile, impulsive58 curiosity as to the road by which I should be taken to the cemetery59. I was not acquainted with a single street of Paris, and I was ignorant of the position of the large burial grounds (though of course I had occasionally heard their names), and yet every effort of my mind was directed toward ascertaining60 whether we were turning to the right or to the left. Meanwhile the jolting61 of the hearse over the paving stones, the rumbling62 of passing vehicles, the steps of the foot passengers, all created a confused clamor, intensified63 by the acoustical64 properties of the coffin.
At first I followed our course pretty closely; then came a halt. I was again lifted and carried about, and I concluded that we were in church, but when the funeral procession once more moved onward65 I lost all consciousness of the road we took. A ringing of bells informed me that we were passing another church, and then the softer and easier progress of the wheels indicated that we were skirting a garden or park. I was like a victim being taken to the gallows66, awaiting in stupor a deathblow that never came.
At last they stopped and pulled me out of the hearse. The business proceeded rapidly. The noises had ceased; I knew that I was in a deserted67 space amid avenues of trees and with the broad sky over my head. No doubt a few persons followed the bier, some of the inhabitants of the lodginghouse, perhaps--Simoneau and others, for instance--for faint whisperings reached my ear. Then I heard a psalm68 chanted and some Latin words mumbled69 by a priest, and afterward70 I suddenly felt myself sinking, while the ropes rubbing against the edges of the coffin elicited71 lugubrious72 sounds, as if a bow were being drawn73 across the strings74 of a cracked violoncello. It was the end. On the left side of my head I felt a violent shock like that produced by the bursting of a bomb, with another under my feet and a third more violent still on my chest. So forcible, indeed, was this last one that I thought the lid was cleft75 atwain. I fainted from it.
点击
收听单词发音
收听单词发音 |
1
hideous
|
|
| adj.丑陋的，可憎的，可怕的，恐怖的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
2
formulate
|
|
| v.用公式表示；规划；设计；系统地阐述 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
3
persistent
|
|
| adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
4
yearning
|
|
| a.渴望的；向往的；怀念的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
5
awakening
|
|
| n.觉醒，醒悟 adj.觉醒中的；唤醒的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
6
anguish
|
|
| n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦，烦恼 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
7
poignant
|
|
| adj.令人痛苦的，辛酸的，惨痛的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
8
stupor
|
|
| v.昏迷；不省人事 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
9
shrill
|
|
| adj.尖声的；刺耳的；v尖叫 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
10
hoarse
|
|
| adj.嘶哑的，沙哑的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
11
clamorous
|
|
| adj.吵闹的，喧哗的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
12
pacified
|
|
| 使（某人）安静( pacify的过去式和过去分词 )； 息怒； 抚慰； 在（有战争的地区、国家等）实现和平 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
13
dressing
|
|
| n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
14
trickling
|
|
| n.油画底色含油太多而成泡沫状突起v.滴( trickle的现在分词 )；淌；使)慢慢走；缓慢移动 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
15
dreary
|
|
| adj.令人沮丧的，沉闷的，单调乏味的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
16
resolutely
|
|
| adj.坚决地，果断地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
17
consolation
|
|
| n.安慰，慰问 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
18
inexplicable
|
|
| adj.无法解释的，难理解的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
19
sob
|
|
| n.空间轨道的轰炸机；呜咽，哭泣 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
20
coffin
|
|
| n.棺材，灵柩 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
21
opaque
|
|
| adj.不透光的；不反光的，不传导的；晦涩的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
22
supreme
|
|
| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
23
inert
|
|
| adj.无活动能力的，惰性的；迟钝的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
24
sobbing
|
|
| <主方>Ⅰ adj.湿透的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
25
exhausted
|
|
| adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
26
spoke
|
|
| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
27
dread
|
|
| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
28
imploring
|
|
| 恳求的，哀求的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
29
rigid
|
|
| adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
30
eyelids
|
|
| n.眼睑( eyelid的名词复数 )；眼睛也不眨一下；不露声色；面不改色 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
31
sobs
|
|
| 啜泣（声），呜咽（声）( sob的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
32
tug
|
|
| v.用力拖(或拉)；苦干；n.拖；苦干；拖船 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
33
monstrous
|
|
| adj.巨大的；恐怖的；可耻的，丢脸的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
34
outrage
|
|
| n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
35
uncouth
|
|
| adj.无教养的，粗鲁的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
36
grunts
|
|
| （猪等）作呼噜声( grunt的第三人称单数 )； （指人）发出类似的哼声； 咕哝着说； 石鲈 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
37
awakened
|
|
| v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
38
condemned
|
|
| adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
39
revolve
|
|
| vi.(使)旋转；循环出现 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
40
haze
|
|
| n.霾，烟雾；懵懂，迷糊；vi.(over)变模糊 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
41
chuckled
|
|
| 轻声地笑( chuckle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
42
descend
|
|
| vt./vi.传下来，下来，下降 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
43
poking
|
|
| n. 刺，戳，袋 vt. 拨开，刺，戳 vi. 戳，刺，捅，搜索，伸出，行动散慢 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
44
pry
|
|
| vi.窥(刺)探，打听；vt.撬动(开，起) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
45
doorway
|
|
| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
46
resounded
|
|
| v.（指声音等）回荡于某处( resound的过去式和过去分词 )；产生回响；（指某处）回荡着声音 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
47
inquisitive
|
|
| adj.求知欲强的，好奇的，好寻根究底的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
48
corpse
|
|
| n.尸体，死尸 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
49
commodiously
|
|
| adv.宽阔地，方便地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
|
50
cramped
|
|
| a.狭窄的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
51
diminutive
|
|
| adj.小巧可爱的，小的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
52
stature
|
|
| n.（高度）水平，（高度）境界，身高，身材 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
53
rhythmical
|
|
| adj.有节奏的，有韵律的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
54
cadence
|
|
| n.（说话声调的）抑扬顿挫 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
55
dexterity
|
|
| n.(手的)灵巧，灵活 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
56
rue
|
|
| n.懊悔，芸香，后悔；v.后悔，悲伤，懊悔 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
57
possessed
|
|
| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
58
impulsive
|
|
| adj.冲动的，刺激的；有推动力的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
59
cemetery
|
|
| n.坟墓，墓地，坟场 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
60
ascertaining
|
|
| v.弄清，确定，查明( ascertain的现在分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
61
jolting
|
|
| adj.令人震惊的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
62
rumbling
|
|
| n. 隆隆声, 辘辘声 adj. 隆隆响的 动词rumble的现在分词 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
63
intensified
|
|
| v.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
64
acoustical
|
|
| adj. 听觉的，声学的，音响学的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
65
onward
|
|
| adj.向前的，前进的；adv.向前，前进，在先 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
66
gallows
|
|
| n.绞刑架，绞台 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
67
deserted
|
|
| adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
68
psalm
|
|
| n.赞美诗，圣诗 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
69
mumbled
|
|
| 含糊地说某事，叽咕，咕哝( mumble的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
70
afterward
|
|
| adv.后来；以后 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
71
elicited
|
|
| 引出，探出( elicit的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
72
lugubrious
|
|
| adj.悲哀的，忧郁的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
73
drawn
|
|
| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
74
strings
|
|
| n.弦 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
75
cleft
|
|
| n.裂缝；adj.裂开的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
| 欢迎访问英文小说网 |