The Commons cryed pitiously."
It has already been mentioned that there was one recurrent subject of discussion which saved Oneirian politics from entire extinction2. This was the great marriage question.
The wise founder3, anxious no doubt to perpetuate4 his race to the ends for which he had lived, and fully5 aware of the jeopardy6 to which his descendants would be exposed in the midst of savage7 Berber tribes, had made it an intrinsic part of the constitution that every king of Oneiria, before he reached the age of thirty, must marry the woman chosen for him by his people.
Formerly8 the Parliament had taken the greatest interest in its legislative9 work. Each proposal was debated at length, and with considerable intelligence. In process of time, however, all this changed. The founder had elaborated a system of taxation10, something on the lines of that afterwards described by Harrington in his Oceana, whereby it was made by a natural [Pg 18]development self-extinguishing. An unhappy result of the contrivance was perhaps unforeseen by the founder, but it soon appeared that as the central fund increased and the annual taxes dwindled11, it was more and more difficult to get members to attend the sessions.
Before the colony was a hundred years old taxes were declared unnecessary, and at an end for ever. By an inherent elasticity12 the central fund grew with the growth of the people, and even began to afford a surplus to be distributed amongst the beggars. There was no need any longer to vote money. No reform of the perfected laws was possible. Parliament became an agreeable club, to which the members when once elected belonged by tacit consent for life. Sessions were, however, still held, where the more imaginative deputies debated the sublime13 and eternal principles of government, and pointed14 out to each other, with never fading satisfaction, how divinely the Oneirian statute-book embodied15 that quintessential spirit of justice which their heated rhapsodies had distilled16.
As for their business, it was almost entirely17 formal, consisting chiefly in the periodical endorsement18 of the King's choice from among their own number of the great state officers. It will then be easily understood how jealously they valued their last live prerogative20 of choosing the King's bride. As a matter[Pg 19] of fact, of course, she was always selected by the high officers of state, and the Parliament ratified21 the choice; but this ratification22 could not be said to be a mere23 form, for as late as the beginning of the century the House had absolutely refused to endorse19 the ministers' choice, because the lady presented to them was not sufficiently24 beautiful.
Since then greater care had been exercised in the preliminary selection, and the attendant ceremonial considerably25 elaborated. The bride-elect was now presented to the full House, dressed with every care and splendour which was in any way calculated to enhance her attractions, and after question put and carried, the decision of the House was sealed by the Speaker imprinting26 a kiss upon the lips of the chosen beauty as she knelt before the chair. Thereupon he raised her up, and pronounced her election in this poetic27 form, "Reign28, beautiful princess, crowned with a people's kiss."
Since the introduction of the new coronation ceremony the office of Speaker had become extremely popular. He was elected annually29 by virtue30 of the original constitution and party feeling on the marriage question, began once more to run very high, as the election was always decided31 on strictly32 party lines in relation to this single topic.
It will be easy, then, to picture the condition of political circles at the time of which we are now speaking. For some eight years[Pg 20] the King had been seen to reject beauty after beauty without reason given, to the acute disappointment of successive Speakers. But now the period had arrived when he must absolutely marry within the year and the excitement over the approaching election to the chair had reached an almost alarming intensity33.
The body politic1 was divided into two main parties, the Kallists, who professed34 that beauty should be the sole ground on which the queen should be chosen, and the Agathists, who would have the selection determined35 by moral worth alone. Such at least was said to be the distinction when intelligent foreigners asked for information. Possibly it was actually so once, but now the principles of the two parties so overlapped36 that the only real question between them was who should elect the Speaker.
It should perhaps be mentioned that there was a third party styling themselves the Kallikagathists. They were a well-meaning offshoot of the Agathists, who, fondly believing that two distinct policies still existed, thought to produce unity37 by adopting both. So far it had been a failure, and though the party had the names of many superior persons upon it, it was little regarded.
The Court was divided into corresponding groups, and what further complicated political relations was that the heads of the separate palace circles were regarded as the leaders of[Pg 21] the Parliamentary parties, although of course their aims were widely different. In the House the occupation of the chair filled the whole political horizon. In the palace that was a matter of complete indifference38, and the whole struggle was to see whose introduction would eventually be made acceptable to the King. Thus between the leaders and their followers39 there existed no more real connection than there did between the professed opinions of the respective parties and their actual aims, and it may be doubted whether any country in Europe had been so entirely successful in elaborating a party system by which it was impossible for any question to be decided on its merits.
The system can only be described as chaotic40. Every trace of the original landmarks41 had disappeared, and yet a good Kallist would rather be called anything than an Agathist, unless perhaps it were a Kallikagathist. An Agathist regarded a Kallist as a frivolous42 person of low moral tone, while, in the eyes of a Kallist, an Agathist was a detestable outcome of the Puritan taint43 in the old settlers, a shallow pretender to an impossible standard of virtue. A Kallist who could invent a new way of saying an Agathist was a prig became a marked personality in the House, while a young Agathist who succeeded in inventing a fresh figure to express his contempt for a cynic might at once pose as a coming man.
[Pg 22]
Cynicism was certainly the prevailing44 tone of the Kallist salons45. There you might hear of a young girl who had hurried for an hour's relaxation46 from the sickbed of a brother, or a genial47 old gentleman who had spent his day in extricating48 a poor relation from a debtor's prison, giving it as their perfected conviction that no excellence49 could be credited with existence which you could not see. On the other hand, the atmosphere of Agathist gatherings50 was decidedly one of moral platitude51, where elaborately dressed men and daintily rouged52 women prattled54 in polished phrase of the nothingness of exteriors55, and the all-sufficiency of truth and goodness. It is certainly remarkable56 that a similar condition of society has appeared nowhere else, and it is these unique politico-social phenomena57 which constitute Oneiria's chief claim to find an adequate historian.
At present the Kallists were in the ascendant. With Turbo at their head they were naturally more than a match for the opposition58, whose fortunes at court were intrusted to the Queen-mother. The Chancellor59 was certainly the strongest statesman who had appeared in the colony since its foundation, while the Queen Margaret was fitted for her position rather by disposition60 than political ability. She was the daughter of a German officer of noble birth who, having entered the service of Spain, rose to be Governor of[Pg 23] the Canaries. From him she inherited all the homely61 simplicity62 so characteristic of the family relations of his nation. Otherwise she was not without shrewdness and a certain power of resistance, which enabled her to oppose the splendid abilities of the Chancellor as well, perhaps, as any one in the kingdom. It was whispered that there were other reasons why these two naturally found themselves in opposite camps, reasons that were known to none but themselves.
There would have been little doubt that the report was well founded in the mind of any one who could have seen the Chancellor as he stood at the window watching the beggars. Ten minutes after the King had left there was a sound on his ear of a woman's tread in the ante-chamber, and a gentle rustle63 of a silk dress upon the polished boards. Turbo started and looked towards the door. It began to open, and as quickly he turned to the window again.
"That will do," said a soft voice full of quiet dignity. "You need not stay. I wish to be alone, and shall remain here till suppertime. Attend me then."
The heavy door closed, and the Chancellor looked round to see the Queen-mother advancing into the room. She was a handsome woman of not more than fifty, with a spare, stately figure. In her powder and rouge53 and the modish64 gown she had just assumed for[Pg 24] the evening she looked little more than half her age. At least so thought the Chancellor; and, as the fitful firelight lit up her queenly form, she looked to him almost as beautiful as though a quarter of a century had not passed since first they met.
"If your majesty65 would be alone," said Turbo, with a profound bow, "I pray your leave to retire."
"I would be alone with you, Chancellor," the Queen answered. "I wish to speak with you."
"And your majesty denied me the pleasure of waiting on you?" said the Chancellor, with a smile that made his snarl66 more hideously67 apparent.
"Yes," the Queen replied; "because I have that to say which I would have no one hear; and, besides, there are other reasons why none should know of our interview."
"Your majesty interests me strangely," said the Chancellor.
"I wish to speak to you about my son," said the Queen, with a slight tremor68 in her voice. She drew towards the founder's hearth69, and sat down in a great chair that was almost a throne, and, at the same time, motioned the Chancellor to a seat opposite to her.
"Be seated," she said, with the same hesitation70 as before; "I want to converse71 with you as an old friend."
She looked at Turbo wistfully, as though to see some softening72 of his snarl, but he avoided her glance with another profound bow in acknowledgment of her condescension73; and the Queen's heart sank as she felt her mission was almost hopeless.
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1
politic
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| adj.有智虑的；精明的；v.从政 | |
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extinction
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| n.熄灭，消亡，消灭，灭绝，绝种 | |
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Founder
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| n.创始者，缔造者 | |
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perpetuate
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| v.使永存，使永记不忘 | |
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fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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jeopardy
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| n.危险；危难 | |
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savage
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| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
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8
formerly
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| adv.从前，以前 | |
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legislative
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| n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的 | |
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10
taxation
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| n.征税，税收，税金 | |
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11
dwindled
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| v.逐渐变少或变小( dwindle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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12
elasticity
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| n.弹性，伸缩力 | |
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sublime
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| adj.崇高的，伟大的；极度的，不顾后果的 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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15
embodied
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| v.表现( embody的过去式和过去分词 )；象征；包括；包含 | |
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16
distilled
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| adj.由蒸馏得来的v.蒸馏( distil的过去式和过去分词 )；从…提取精华 | |
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17
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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18
endorsement
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| n.背书；赞成，认可，担保；签(注)，批注 | |
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19
endorse
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| vt.(支票、汇票等)背书，背署；批注；同意 | |
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prerogative
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| n.特权 | |
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ratified
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| v.批准，签认（合约等）( ratify的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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ratification
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| n.批准，认可 | |
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23
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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considerably
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| adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上 | |
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imprinting
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| n.胚教，铭记（动物生命早期即起作用的一种学习机能）；印记 | |
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poetic
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| adj.富有诗意的，有诗人气质的，善于抒情的 | |
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reign
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| n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势 | |
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annually
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| adv.一年一次，每年 | |
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30
virtue
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| n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力 | |
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31
decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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32
strictly
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| adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地 | |
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33
intensity
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| n.强烈，剧烈；强度；烈度 | |
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34
professed
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| 公开声称的，伪称的，已立誓信教的 | |
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35
determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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36
overlapped
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| _adj.重叠的v.部分重叠( overlap的过去式和过去分词 )；（物体）部份重叠；交叠；（时间上）部份重叠 | |
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37
unity
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| n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调 | |
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38
indifference
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| n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎 | |
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followers
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| 追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件 | |
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40
chaotic
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| adj.混沌的，一片混乱的，一团糟的 | |
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41
landmarks
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| n.陆标( landmark的名词复数 )；目标；（标志重要阶段的）里程碑 ~ (in sth)；有历史意义的建筑物（或遗址） | |
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42
frivolous
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| adj.轻薄的；轻率的 | |
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43
taint
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| n.污点；感染；腐坏；v.使感染；污染 | |
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44
prevailing
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| adj.盛行的；占优势的；主要的 | |
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45
salons
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| n.（营业性质的）店( salon的名词复数 )；厅；沙龙（旧时在上流社会女主人家的例行聚会或聚会场所）；（大宅中的）客厅 | |
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46
relaxation
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| n.松弛，放松；休息；消遣；娱乐 | |
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47
genial
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| adj.亲切的，和蔼的，愉快的，脾气好的 | |
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48
extricating
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| v.使摆脱困难，脱身( extricate的现在分词 ) | |
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49
excellence
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| n.优秀，杰出，(pl.)优点，美德 | |
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50
gatherings
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| 聚集( gathering的名词复数 )； 收集； 采集； 搜集 | |
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51
platitude
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| n.老生常谈，陈词滥调 | |
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52
rouged
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| 胭脂，口红( rouge的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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53
rouge
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| n.胭脂，口红唇膏；v.(在…上)擦口红 | |
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54
prattled
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| v.（小孩般）天真无邪地说话( prattle的过去式和过去分词 )；发出连续而无意义的声音；闲扯；东拉西扯 | |
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55
exteriors
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| n.外面( exterior的名词复数 )；外貌；户外景色图 | |
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56
remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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57
phenomena
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| n.现象 | |
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58
opposition
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| n.反对，敌对 | |
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59
chancellor
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| n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长 | |
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60
disposition
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| n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署 | |
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61
homely
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| adj.家常的，简朴的；不漂亮的 | |
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62
simplicity
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| n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯 | |
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63
rustle
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| v.沙沙作响；偷盗(牛、马等)；n.沙沙声声 | |
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64
modish
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| adj.流行的，时髦的 | |
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65
majesty
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| n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权 | |
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66
snarl
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| v.吼叫，怒骂，纠缠，混乱；n.混乱，缠结，咆哮 | |
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67
hideously
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| adv.可怕地，非常讨厌地 | |
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68
tremor
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| n.震动，颤动，战栗，兴奋，地震 | |
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69
hearth
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| n.壁炉炉床，壁炉地面 | |
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70
hesitation
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| n.犹豫，踌躇 | |
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71
converse
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| vi.谈话，谈天，闲聊；adv.相反的，相反 | |
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72
softening
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| 变软，软化 | |
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73
condescension
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| n.自以为高人一等，贬低(别人) | |
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