That good lady being then very much in want of something to do was so pleased with the idea of a new cemetery2 that she entered into the scheme with great earnestness. She was particularly pleased with this opportunity of making good use of her money, because, having been asked by others to join them in this work, she was not obliged to pose as a self-appointed public benefactor3.
Mrs. Cliff worked so well in behalf of the new cemetery and subscribed4 so much money towards it, through Mr. Perley, that it was not many months before it became the successor to the little crowded graveyard5 near the centre of the town; and the remains6 of Mr. Cliff were removed to a handsome lot and overshadowed by a suitable monument.
Mrs. Ferguson, however, in speaking with Mrs. Cliff upon the subject, was happy to have an opportunity of[Pg 100] assuring her that she thought it much better to devote her slender means to the education of her daughters than to the removal of her late husband to a more eligible7 resting-place.
"I'm sure he's done very well as he is for all these years," she said, "and if he could have a voice in the matter, I'm quite sure that he would prefer his daughters' education to his own removal."
Mrs. Cliff did not wish to make any offer which might hurt Mrs. Ferguson's very sensitive feelings, but she said that she had no doubt that arrangements could be made by which Mr. Ferguson's transfer could be effected without interfering8 with any plans which might have been made for the benefit of his daughters; but, although this remark did not satisfy Mrs. Ferguson, she was glad of even this slight opportunity of bringing the subject of her daughters' education before the consideration of her friend.
As to the other would-be heirs, they did not immediately turn upon Miss Inchman and rend9 her in revenge for the way in which she had tricked and frightened them, for there was no knowing what such a woman would do if she were exasperated10, and not for the world would they have Mrs. Cliff find out the real subject of their discussion on that unlucky morning when she made herself decidedly one too many in Miss Cushing's parlor12.
Consequently, all attempts at concerted action were dropped, and each for herself determined13 that Mrs. Cliff should know that she was a true friend, and to trust to[Pg 101] the good lady's well-known gratitude14 and friendly feeling when the time should come for her to apportion15 her worldly goods among the dear ones she would leave behind her.
There were certain articles in Mrs. Cliff's house for which each of her friends had a decided11 admiration16, and remarks were often made which it was believed would render it impossible for Mrs. Cliff to make a mistake when she should be planning her will, and asking herself to whom she should give this, and to whom that?
It was about a week after the events in Miss Cushing's parlor, that something occurred which sent a thrill through the souls of a good many people in Plainton, affecting them more or less according to their degree of sensibility.
Willy Croup, who had been driven about the town attending to various matters of business and pleasure, was informed by Andrew Marks, as she alighted about four o'clock in the afternoon at the house of an acquaintance, that he hoped she would not stop very long because he had some business of his own to attend to that afternoon, and he wanted to get the horse cared for and the cow milked as early as possible, so that he might lock up the barn and go away. To this Willy answered that he need not wait for her, for she could easily walk home when she had finished her visit.
But when she left the house, after a protracted17 call, she did not walk very far, for it so happened that Mr. Burke, who had found leisure that afternoon to take a drive in his barouche, came up behind her, and very[Pg 102] naturally stopped and offered to take her home. Willy, quite as naturally, accepted the polite proposition and seated herself in the barouche by the side of the fur-trimmed overcoat and the high silk hat.
Thus it was that the people of the town who were in the main street that afternoon, or who happened to be at doors or windows; that the very birds of the air, hopping18 about on trees or house-tops; that the horses, dogs, and cats; that even the insects, whose constitutions were strong enough to enable them to buzz about in the autumn sunlight, beheld19 the startling sight of Willy Croup and the fine gentleman at the hotel riding together, side by side, in broad daylight, through the most public street of the town.
Once before these two had been seen together out of doors, but then they had been walking, and almost any two people who knew each other and who might be walking in the same direction, could, without impropriety walk side by side and converse20 as they went; but now the incident was very different.
It created a great impression, not all to the advantage of Mr. Burke, for, after the matter had been very thoroughly21 discussed, it was generally conceded that he must be no better than a fortune-hunter. Otherwise, why should he be paying attention to Willy Croup, who, as everybody knew, was not a day under forty-five years old, and therefore at least ten years older than the gentleman at the hotel.
In regard to the fortune which he was hunting, there was no difference of opinion; whatever Mrs. Cliff's fort[Pg 103]une might be, this Mr. Burke wanted it. Of course, he would not endeavor to gain his object by marrying the widow, for she was entirely22 too old for him; but if he married Willy, her only relative, that would not be quite so bad as to age, and there could be no doubt that these two would ultimately come into Mrs. Cliff's fortune, which was probably more than had been generally supposed. She had always been very close-mouthed about her affairs, and there were some who said that even in her early days of widowhood she might have been more stingy than she was poor. She must have considerable property, or Mr. Burke would not be so anxious to get it.
Thus it happened that the eventful drive in the barouche had a very different effect upon the reputations of the three persons concerned. Mr. Burke was lowered from his position as a man of means enjoying his fortune, for even his building operations were probably undertaken for the purpose of settling himself in Mrs. Cliff's neighborhood, and so being able to marry Willy as soon as possible.
Willy Croup, although everybody spoke23 of her conduct as absolutely ridiculous and even shameful24, rose in public estimation simply from the belief that she was about to marry a man who, whatever else he might be, was of imposing25 appearance and was likely to be rich.
As to Mrs. Cliff, there could be no doubt that the general respect for her was on the increase. If she were rich enough to attract Mr. Burke to the town, she was probably rich enough to do a good many other things,[Pg 104] and after all it might be that that new house at the corner was being built with her money.
Miss Shott was very industrious26 and energetic in expressing her opinion of Mr. Burke. "There's a chambermaid at the hotel," she said, "who's told me a lot of things about him, and it's very plain to my mind that he isn't the gentleman that he makes himself out to be! His handkerchiefs and his hair-brush aren't the kind that go with fur overcoats and high hats, and she has often seen him stop in the hall downstairs and black his own boots! Everybody knows he was a sailor, but as to his ever having commanded a vessel28, I don't believe a word of it! But Willy Croup and that man needn't count on their schemes coming out all right, for Sarah Cliff isn't any older than I am, and she's just as likely to outlive them as she is to die before them!"
The fact that nobody had ever said that Burke had commanded a vessel, and that Miss Shott had started the belief that Mrs. Cliff was in a rapid decline, entirely escaped the attention of her hearers, so interested were they in the subject of the unworthiness of the fine gentleman at the hotel.
Winter had not yet really set in when George Burke, who had perceived no reason to imagine that he had made a drop in public estimation, felt himself stirred by emotions of triumphant29 joy. The new building on the corner lot was on the point of completion!
Workmen and master-workmen, mechanics and laborers30, had swarmed31 in, over, and about the new edifice32 in such numbers that sometimes they impeded33 each other.[Pg 105] Close upon the heels of the masons came the carpenters, and following them the plumbers34 and the plasterers; while the painters impatiently restrained themselves in order to give their predecessors36 time to get out of their way.
The walls and ceilings were covered with the plaster which would dry the quickest, and the paper-hangers entered the rooms almost before the plasterers could take away their trowels and their lime-begrimed hats and coats. Cleaners with their brooms and pails jostled the mechanics, as the latter left the various rooms, and everywhere strode Mr. Burke. He had made up his mind that the building must be ready to move into the instant it arrived at its final destination.
It was a very different building from what Mrs. Cliff had proposed to herself when she decided to add a dining-room to her old house. It was so different indeed, that after having gone two or three times to look upon the piles of lumber35 and stone and the crowds of men, digging, and hammering, and sawing on the corner lot, she had decided to leave the whole matter in the hands of Mr. Burke, the architect, and the contractor37. And when Willy Croup endeavored to explain to her what was going on, she always stopped her, saying that she would wait until it was done and then she would understand it.
Mr. Burke too had urged her, especially as the building drew near to completion, not to bother herself in the least about it, but to give him the pleasure of presenting it to her entirely finished and ready for occupancy. So[Pg 106] even the painting and paper-hanging had been left to a professional decorator, and Mrs. Cliff assured Burke that she was perfectly38 willing to wait for the new dining-room until it was ready for her.
This dining-room, large and architecturally handsome, was planned, as has been said, so that one of its doors should fit exactly against the side hall door of the little house, but the other door of the dining-room opened into a wide and elegant hall, at one end of which was a portico39 and spacious40 front steps. On the other side of this hall was a handsome drawing-room, and behind the drawing-room and opening into it, an alcove41 library with a broad piazza42 at one side of it. Back of the dining-room was a spacious kitchen, with pantries, closets, scullery, and all necessary adjuncts.
In the second and third stories of the edifice were large and beautiful bedrooms, small and neat bedrooms, bath-rooms, servants' rooms, trunk-rooms, and every kind of room that modern civilization demands.
Now that the building was finished, Mr. Burke almost regretted that he had not constructed it upon the top of a hill in order that he might have laid his smooth and slippery timbers from the eminence43 to the side of Mrs. Cliff's house, so that when all should be ready he could have knocked away the blocks which held the building, so that he could have launched it as if it had been a ship, and could have beheld it sliding gracefully44 and rapidly from its stocks into its appointed position. But as this would probably have resulted in razing45 Mrs. Cliff's old house to the level of the ground, he[Pg 107] did not long regret that he had not been able to afford himself the pleasure of this grand spectacle.
The night before the day on which the new building was to be moved, the lot next to Mrs. Cliff's house was covered by masons, laborers, and wagons46 hauling stones, and by breakfast-time the next morning the new cellar was completed.
Almost immediately the great timbers, which, polished and greased, had been waiting for several days, were put in their places, and the great steam engines and windlasses, which had been ready as long a time, were set in motion. And, as the house began to move upon its course, it almost missed a parting dab47 from the brush of a painter who was at work upon some final trimming.
That afternoon, as Mrs. Cliff happened to be in her dining-room, she remarked to Willy that it was getting dark very early, but she would not pull up the blind of the side window, because she would then look out on the new cellar, and she had promised Mr. Burke not to look at anything until he had told her to do so. Willy, who had looked out of the side door at least fifty times that day, knew that the early darkness was caused by the shadows thrown by a large building slowly approaching from the west.
When Mrs. Cliff came downstairs the next morning she was met by Willy, very much excited, who told her that Mr. Burke wished to see her.
"Where is he?" said she. "At the dining-room door," answered Willy, and as Mrs. Cliff turned towards the little room in which she had been accus[Pg 108]tomed to take her meals, Willy seized her hand and led her into the side hall. There, in the open doorway48, stood Mr. Burke, his high silk hat in one hand, and the other outstretched towards her.
"Welcome to your new dining-room, madam!" said he, as he took her hand and led her into the great room, which seemed to her, as she gazed in amazement49 about her, like a beautiful public hall.
We will not follow Mrs. Cliff, Willy, and the whole body of domestic servants, as they passed through the halls and rooms of that grand addition to Mrs. Cliff's little house.
"Carpets and furniture is all that you want, madam!" said Burke, "and then you're at home!"
When Mrs. Cliff had been upstairs and downstairs, and into every chamber27, and when she had looked out of the window and had beheld hundreds of men at work upon the grounds and putting up fences; and when Mr. Burke had explained to her that the people at the back of the lot were beginning to erect50 a stable and carriage house,—for no dining-room such as she had was complete, he assured her, without handsome quarters for horses and carriages,—she left him and went downstairs by herself.
As she stood by the great front door and looked up at the wide staircase, and into the lofty rooms upon each side, there came to her, rising above all sentiments of amazement, delight, and pride in her new possessions, a feeling of animated51 and inspiring encouragement. The mists of doubt and uncertainty52, which had hung over her,[Pg 109] began to clear away. This noble edifice must have cost grandly! And, for the first time, she began to feel that she might yet be equal to her fortune.
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1
anticipations
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| 预期( anticipation的名词复数 )； 预测； （信托财产收益的）预支； 预期的事物 | |
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cemetery
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| n.坟墓，墓地，坟场 | |
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benefactor
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| n. 恩人，行善的人，捐助人 | |
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subscribed
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| v.捐助( subscribe的过去式和过去分词 )；签署，题词；订阅；同意 | |
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graveyard
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| n.坟场 | |
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remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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eligible
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| adj.有条件被选中的；(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的 | |
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interfering
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| adj. 妨碍的 动词interfere的现在分词 | |
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rend
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| vt.把…撕开，割裂；把…揪下来，强行夺取 | |
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exasperated
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| adj.恼怒的 | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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12
parlor
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| n.店铺，营业室；会客室，客厅 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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gratitude
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| adj.感激，感谢 | |
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15
apportion
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| vt.（按比例或计划）分配 | |
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16
admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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17
protracted
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| adj.拖延的；延长的v.拖延“protract”的过去式和过去分词 | |
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18
hopping
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| n. 跳跃 动词hop的现在分词形式 | |
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19
beheld
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| v.看，注视( behold的过去式和过去分词 )；瞧；看呀；（叙述中用于引出某人意外的出现）哎哟 | |
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converse
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| vi.谈话，谈天，闲聊；adv.相反的，相反 | |
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thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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23
spoke
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| 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 | |
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24
shameful
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| adj.可耻的，不道德的 | |
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imposing
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| adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的 | |
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industrious
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| adj.勤劳的，刻苦的，奋发的 | |
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27
chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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28
vessel
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| n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管 | |
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29
triumphant
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| adj.胜利的，成功的；狂欢的，喜悦的 | |
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30
laborers
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| n.体力劳动者，工人( laborer的名词复数 )；（熟练工人的）辅助工 | |
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31
swarmed
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| 密集( swarm的过去式和过去分词 )； 云集； 成群地移动； 蜜蜂或其他飞行昆虫成群地飞来飞去 | |
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32
edifice
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| n.宏伟的建筑物(如宫殿，教室) | |
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impeded
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| 阻碍，妨碍，阻止( impede的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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34
plumbers
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| n.管子工，水暖工( plumber的名词复数 )；[美][口]（防止泄密的）堵漏人员 | |
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35
lumber
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| n.木材，木料；v.以破旧东西堆满；伐木；笨重移动 | |
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36
predecessors
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| n.前任( predecessor的名词复数 )；前辈；（被取代的）原有事物；前身 | |
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contractor
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| n.订约人，承包人，收缩肌 | |
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38
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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39
portico
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| n.柱廊，门廊 | |
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spacious
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| adj.广阔的，宽敞的 | |
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alcove
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| n.凹室 | |
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42
piazza
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| n.广场；走廊 | |
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43
eminence
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| n.卓越，显赫；高地，高处；名家 | |
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44
gracefully
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| ad.大大方方地；优美地 | |
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45
razing
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| v.彻底摧毁，将…夷为平地( raze的现在分词 ) | |
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46
wagons
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| n.四轮的运货马车( wagon的名词复数 )；铁路货车；小手推车 | |
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47
dab
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| v.轻触，轻拍，轻涂；n.(颜料等的)轻涂 | |
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48
doorway
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| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
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49
amazement
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| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
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50
erect
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| n./v.树立，建立，使竖立；adj.直立的，垂直的 | |
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51
animated
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| adj.生气勃勃的，活跃的，愉快的 | |
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52
uncertainty
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| n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物 | |
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