But past the gap in the road, which led across country to the Red House, no flower-strewers came. For there the excited chatterers broke and whirled through like a flight of sea-pies, and made straight for the field of more substantial delights lest the boys should secure all the best places.
The wedding-party, however, having disdained9 the use of carriages for so short a distance, strolled quietly along the scented10 lanes, past the Boys' School, and by the Carrefour, with no apprehension11 of the feast beginning until they arrived, or of being relegated12 to back seats if they were late.
The cottage and the Red House had been buzzing hives since dawn, Mrs. Carré handling her forces and volunteers and supernumeraries with the skill of a veteran, and with encouragement so shrill13 and animated14 that it sounded like scolding, but was in reality only emphatic15 patois16.
She had, indeed, left matters in the hands of certain tried elders while she sped across the fields to the church for a few minutes, just to see that everything there was done properly and in order. But she was back in the thick of things before the wedding-party reached home, and everything was ready and in apple-pie order for a merry-making such as Sark had not seen for many a day.
First, the children were settled at their long tables in the field behind the house, with good things enough in front of them, and active assistants enough behind them, to keep them quiet for a good long time to come.
Graeme and Margaret went round bidding them all enjoy themselves to their fullest, which they cheerfully promised to do, and the eager youngsters gave them back wish for wish, with one eye for them and one for the unusual dainties on the tables.
"Hello, Johnnie!" said Graeme to that young man, gorging17 stolidly18, with a palpable interval19 between him and his neighbour on either hand, but with no other visible signs of wizardry about him. "Getting on all right?"
But there was no room for speech in Johnnie's mouth just then. He winked20 one black eye solemnly and devoted21 himself to the business in hand.
And Punch and Scamp, accepted favourites of the host and hostess, tore to and fro in vain attempt to keep pace with all the attentions lavished22 upon them by the guests as soon as their own desires had been satisfied. They devoured23 everything that was offered and attainable24 before it was withdrawn25, and had no need to ask for more unless in the matter of storage-room.
Everybody was very happy and very excited, for no such feast had been in Sark within the memory of the oldest child present. And if Charles Svendt's Stock-Exchange friends could have seen him—merrily circling the tables and exhorting26 already distent youngsters to still greater and greater exertions27; poking28 them in the ribs29 to prove, against their own better judgment30, but in accordance with their inclinations31, that there was assuredly still room for more; bidding them "Mangez! Mangez!" in the one word of French he could recall as specially applicable at the moment—it is certain they would not have known him.
And Miss Penny, too, looked as if she had never enjoyed herself so much in her life, and backed him up in all his endeavours right heartily32. And now and again, when Charles Svendt looked at her, he said to himself, "By Jove, she's as good-looking a girl as I know, and as clever as they make 'em!"
For there is no greater beautifier in the world than happiness, and Hennie Penny was completely and quite unusually happy.
To the actual wedding-feast, Graeme had asked the Vicar and his wife, and such of the neighbours as he had come to know personally, especially not forgetting his very first friend in the island, whom he still always called Count Tolstoi, and Mrs. De Carteret. For the rest, he had given Mrs. Carré carte-blanche to invite whom she deemed well among her friends, and she had exercised her privilege with judgment and enjoyment33.
The Sénéchal was there, and the Greffier, and the Prév?t and the members of the Court, ex officio, so to speak, and the Wesleyan minister who was on excellent terms with the Vicar, and the Post-Master and his jovial34 white-haired father, who built the boats and coffins35 for the community, and had supplied the tables for the feast; and many more—a right goodly company of stalwart, weather-browned men and pleasant-faced women, all vastly happy to be assisting at so unusual an event as an English wedding.
They drank the health of the bride and bridegroom in the special mulled wine thereto ordained36 by custom and prepared according to the laws of the Medes and Persians. And Graeme, on behalf of himself and his wife, assured them that there was no place in the world like Sark, and that they had never enjoyed a wedding so much in all their lives, and that if they had to be married a hundred times they could wish no happier wedding than Sark had given them.
And of all that company, none beamed more brightly, nor enjoyed himself more, than Charles Pixley, who, having come to curse, had, in most approved fashion, stayed to bless, and had even beaten the prophet's record by giving away to another the treasure he had desired for himself.
In the usual course of things, after the feasting would have come games and songs until dark. But that had been adjudged too much of an ordeal37 by the ladies, and the onus38 of it was laid upon the youngsters outside. While Margaret and Miss Penny rested from their labours, and Mrs. Carré and her helpers cleared the rooms for the festivities of the evening, and prepared the milder and more intermittent39 refections necessary thereto, Graeme and Pixley and the Vicar and others set the children to games and races, for which indeed their previous exertions at the tables had not best fitted them, but which nevertheless, or perhaps on that very account, were provocative40 of much laughter and merriment.
Then, when it grew dark, and the reluctant youngsters had been cajoled and dragged and packed off to bed, the hitherto-unprovided-for section—the young men and maidens41, all in their best and a trifle shy to begin with—came flocking in for their share in the festivities, and Orpheus and Terpsichore held the floor for the rest of the night.
And they did dance! Margaret and Miss Penny and Graeme and Pixley thought they had seen dancing before, but dancing such as this it had never been theirs to witness.
If it lacked anything in grace—and far be it from me to say so—it more than made up for all by its inexhaustible energy and tireless enjoyment. The men had brought their own music in the shape of a concertina, which passed from hand to hand and with which they all seemed on equally friendly terms.
Jokes, laughter, round dances, refreshments42, interludes of smokings and gigglings in the darkness of the verandah, occasional more intellectual flights in the shape of songs and recitations,—mostly of a somewhat lugubrious43 tendency, to judge by the faces of the auditors44, but being mostly in patois they were unintelligible45 to the British foreigners,—more dances,—coats off now, to reduce the temperature of the performers,—more refreshments, more dances,—dances with broomsticks held between the partners, over which they slipped and skipped to the tune46 of caustic47 comments by the onlookers,—dances between caps laid on the floor and which must on no account be touched by the dancers. And always the cry to the musician of the moment was,—"Faster! Faster!"—and the race between Orpheus and Terpsichore—between the music and the flying feet, grew still more fast and furious.
Now Charles Svendt, as we know, did not look like a dancing man, but dancing was one of the superficial accomplishments48 in which he excelled.
Miss Penny, also, through much experience with girls, was lighter49 of foot than she looked.
They stood for a time watching, and presently both their feet were tapping to the quickstep of the rest.
"Let's have a shot at it," said Charles. "Will you?" and he looked down at her.
"I'd love to," and in a moment they were whirling in the circle with the rest, but with a grace that none there could rival,—gallant dancers as the Sark boys and girls are.
"Delightful50!" murmured Charles Svendt. "You dance like an angel, and we fit splendidly," and Hennie Penny found a man's arm about her decidedly and delightfully51 more inspiriting than all the arms of all the schoolgirls in the world, and danced as she had never danced before.
So swift and light and smooth and graceful52 was their flight that before long the rest tailed off and all stood propped53 against the walls to watch them.
"We've got the floor all to ourselves," murmured Miss Penny at last, as she woke to the fact.
"We've licked them into fits on their own ground," he laughed in her ear. "You can dance and no mistake. It's a treat to dance with a really good dancer."
"I think we ought to stop. We're stopping their fun," said Hennie Penny, and when he led her to a seat the rest of the room all clapped their enjoyment.
Graeme and Margaret danced a round or two to endorse54 the festivities, but they were not in it with Pixley and Hennie Penny, and they soon dropped out and clapped heartily with the rest.
When Charles Svendt, later on, suggested another dance, Miss Penny bade him go and dance with one of the Sark girls.
"But I don't want to dance with any of them. Besides, I don't know any of 'em, and I couldn't talk to her if I did."
"Oh yes, you can. They all speak English."
"Do they now? It don't sound like it. Come on, Miss Penny. They wouldn't enjoy it and I wouldn't enjoy it, and I never enjoyed anything so much in my life as that last round."
So Hennie took pity on him, and they danced many times amid great applause.
"Awfully55 good of you!" said Charles Svendt, as the dawn came peeping in through the east windows and the open front door; and Mrs. Carré, as Mistress of the Ceremonies, and a very tired one at that, bluffly56 informed the company that it was time to go home.
"I've enjoyed it immensely," said Hennie Penny, and if her face was any index to her feelings, there was no mistake about it.
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收听单词发音
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1
specially
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| adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地 | |
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picturesque
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| adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的 | |
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aisle
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| n.（教堂、教室、戏院等里的）过道，通道 | |
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vociferously
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| adv.喊叫地，吵闹地 | |
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5
strewing
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| v.撒在…上( strew的现在分词 )；散落于；点缀；撒满 | |
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iris
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| n.虹膜，彩虹 | |
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scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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8
strewed
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| v.撒在…上( strew的过去式和过去分词 )；散落于；点缀；撒满 | |
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9
disdained
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| 鄙视( disdain的过去式和过去分词 )； 不屑于做，不愿意做 | |
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10
scented
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| adj.有香味的；洒香水的；有气味的v.嗅到(scent的过去分词) | |
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11
apprehension
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| n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑 | |
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12
relegated
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| v.使降级( relegate的过去式和过去分词 )；使降职；转移；把…归类 | |
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13
shrill
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| adj.尖声的；刺耳的；v尖叫 | |
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14
animated
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| adj.生气勃勃的，活跃的，愉快的 | |
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15
emphatic
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| adj.强调的，着重的；无可置疑的，明显的 | |
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16
patois
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| n.方言；混合语 | |
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17
gorging
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| v.（用食物把自己）塞饱，填饱( gorge的现在分词 )；作呕 | |
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18
stolidly
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| adv.迟钝地，神经麻木地 | |
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19
interval
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| n.间隔，间距；幕间休息，中场休息 | |
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20
winked
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| v.使眼色( wink的过去式和过去分词 )；递眼色（表示友好或高兴等）；（指光）闪烁；闪亮 | |
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21
devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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22
lavished
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| v.过分给予，滥施( lavish的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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23
devoured
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| 吞没( devour的过去式和过去分词 )； 耗尽； 津津有味地看； 狼吞虎咽地吃光 | |
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24
attainable
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| a.可达到的，可获得的 | |
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25
withdrawn
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| vt.收回；使退出；vi.撤退，退出 | |
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26
exhorting
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| v.劝告，劝说( exhort的现在分词 ) | |
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27
exertions
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| n.努力( exertion的名词复数 )；费力；（能力、权力等的）运用；行使 | |
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28
poking
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| n. 刺，戳，袋 vt. 拨开，刺，戳 vi. 戳，刺，捅，搜索，伸出，行动散慢 | |
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29
ribs
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| n.肋骨( rib的名词复数 )；（船或屋顶等的）肋拱；肋骨状的东西；（织物的）凸条花纹 | |
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30
judgment
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| n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见 | |
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31
inclinations
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| 倾向( inclination的名词复数 )； 倾斜； 爱好； 斜坡 | |
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32
heartily
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| adv.衷心地，诚恳地，十分，很 | |
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33
enjoyment
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| n.乐趣；享有；享用 | |
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34
jovial
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| adj.快乐的，好交际的 | |
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35
coffins
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| n.棺材( coffin的名词复数 )；使某人早亡[死，完蛋，垮台等]之物 | |
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36
ordained
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| v.任命（某人）为牧师( ordain的过去式和过去分词 )；授予（某人）圣职；（上帝、法律等）命令；判定 | |
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37
ordeal
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| n.苦难经历，（尤指对品格、耐力的）严峻考验 | |
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38
onus
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| n.负担；责任 | |
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39
intermittent
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| adj.间歇的，断断续续的 | |
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40
provocative
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| adj.挑衅的，煽动的，刺激的，挑逗的 | |
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41
maidens
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| 处女( maiden的名词复数 )； 少女； 未婚女子； （板球运动）未得分的一轮投球 | |
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42
refreshments
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| n.点心,便餐;(会议后的)简单茶点招 待 | |
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43
lugubrious
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| adj.悲哀的，忧郁的 | |
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44
auditors
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| n.审计员，稽核员( auditor的名词复数 )；（大学课程的）旁听生 | |
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45
unintelligible
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| adj.无法了解的，难解的，莫明其妙的 | |
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46
tune
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| n.调子；和谐，协调；v.调音，调节，调整 | |
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47
caustic
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| adj.刻薄的，腐蚀性的 | |
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48
accomplishments
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| n.造诣；完成( accomplishment的名词复数 )；技能；成绩；成就 | |
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49
lighter
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| n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级 | |
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50
delightful
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| adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的 | |
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51
delightfully
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| 大喜，欣然 | |
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52
graceful
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| adj.优美的，优雅的；得体的 | |
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53
propped
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| 支撑，支持，维持( prop的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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54
endorse
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| vt.(支票、汇票等)背书，背署；批注；同意 | |
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55
awfully
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| adv.可怕地，非常地，极端地 | |
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56
bluffly
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| 率直地，粗率地 | |
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