Gloomy dullards never see anything in receptions and other social gatherings10 but frivolous11 distractions12, necessary, perhaps, to youth, but positively13 reprehensible14 when indulged in by older people. In truth, however, balls and parties of every description are indispensable to all human beings and to the maintenance of their moral and mental health. A man who leads a solitary15 confined existence loses his equilibrium16. He ceases to see things in their just perspective, exaggerates and misunderstands everything, looks at life tragically17, and makes mountains out of mole-hills.
As soon as he leaves off isolating18 himself, comes in contact with other people, exchanges ideas with them, laughs and talks a little, his mental balance is restored, and the mountains become mole-hills again. Also, the more various are the people he meets, the more his mind broadens and develops. People who exclusively frequent their own immediate19 circles, be they aristocratic or[215] otherwise, invariably grow dull and stupid. That is why the hospitable20 host who receives very mixed gatherings renders a great service to society—though society itself is short-sighted enough not to recognize this service.
To receive on a large scale is not as easy as people think. It by no means suffices to be rich and to issue invitations broadcast. The principal thing is to know how to receive one’s guests, an accomplishment21 attainable22 only on the two following conditions: Aristocratic extraction and love of humanity. At least three or four generations of well-born and wealthy people accustomed to social surroundings are needed for the production of a good host. Everyone who has been in the house of a nouveau riche knows that he felt, on that occasion, as though he were in a restaurant. The hosts did not know how to greet their visitors, nor how to introduce or unite them, so the latter ate and drank, and having witnessed what entertainment was provided for them, left, sometimes even forgetting to say good-bye to the hosts. A[216] love of humanity is as indispensable to a good host as blue blood, and Count Primoli may be said to have been richly endowed with both these qualifications. He was a true “Grand Seigneur,” and knew how to make his guests feel at home. He sincerely loved them all, and wished to give them pleasure. There were some vulgar people who made fun of his charming cordiality. Had he forgotten to invite them, or had he treated them with lofty disdain24, they would immediately have begun to respect him. Nice people, however, valued his kind heart, and took no notice of the silly anecdotes25 that rumour26 spread about him.
Like all ideal hosts, Count Primoli loved his beautiful villa, and never tired of improving it.
“Je veux que ma maison ne ressemble à nulle autre,” he said to his friends.
This was not easy to attain23, since, in our day, it is hardly possible to invent anything really new or original. Thanks to railways, steamships27, newspapers, and journals, life grows every day more level and commonplace. Almost all the world lives, eats, and[217] dresses alike. The women of Greenland know the latest fashions as well as their Parisian sisters. The cannibals of Central Asia, imitating English lords, put on smoking-suits when they sit down to eat their roasted neighbours. The aristocratic drawing-rooms of Pekin are furnished like those of Madrid. Dinners, balls, receptions, are alike everywhere, and people travel from one end of the earth to the other noticing hardly any difference.
Count Primoli, however, managed to attain his object, and his receptions, once witnessed, were not easily forgotten.
Already, on driving up to the entrance of his villa, one felt a sense of gaiety and pleasure. The small covered courtyard was carpeted for the occasion and was decorated with flowers and the Bonaparte arms. A majestic28 outdoor servant, theatrically29 attired30, received the carriages as they drove up. In the square hall, on each side of the door, stood rows of footmen, in long gold-embroidered31 satin tail-coats, knee breeches, white silk stockings, and buckled32 shoes, an original,[218] old, and now extinct French fashion of dressing33 house-servants.
The costumes of these footmen, indeed, were so splendid, that many people were sure they must be original ancient liveries of the Bonaparte family, and ought to be in glass cases in a museum. Perhaps this was true; but it is nevertheless a fact that the liveries were much more effective and much more clearly remembered on the shoulders of footmen than they would have been had they been hidden in a museum. The guests, on arrival, felt that they had left their humdrum34 daily existence outside the door, and that they had entered the enchanted35 realms of fairyland. Like children who expect a Christmas-tree and surprises, they crossed the hall, with its wonderful arm-chairs of velvet36 and cloth of gold, and its enormous sofa, covered with fur rugs and decorated with masks from Greek tragedy. Then up the staircase, over the balustrade of which were thrown priceless brocades of all shades and colours, the walls being hung with Chinese embroideries37 and fans of peacock-feathers.
[219]
Upstairs, the elegant drawing-rooms, with their pink curtains and gilt38 furniture, were wonderful and interesting museums of Napoleonic souvenirs. Count Primoli honoured the memory of his famous great-uncle, Napoleon I., and carefully preserved all Napoleonic relics39. There were masks and miniatures of the great Emperor, and other ancient family treasures, jewelled combs, fans, lace, snuff-boxes, letters, seals, and silhouettes40. In a prominent place stood a large glass case, brilliantly illuminated41, containing two dresses: one of green velvet, embroidered with gold, from the wardrobe of the Empress Josephine, and the other of lace over a pink foundation, the priceless robe of Marie Louise. At the side lay fans and satin slippers42, to match the dresses. On the walls of the room were shelves, and on them signed photographs of the present-day members of the Bonaparte family.
Another remarkable43 and charming peculiarity44 of the villa was the wealth of flowers with which it was always decorated. Magnificent azaleas of all shades stood about everywhere,[220] garlands of lilac were suspended from one chandelier to the other, and other garlands of hyacinths, roses, and violets, surrounded the glass cases, wound themselves round the shelves, and framed the looking-glasses.
“Quella fantasmorgia dei fiore!” laughed Roman Princesses and Countesses, as they entered. It is strange that Roman women, who are surrounded by flowers that grow in the open air all the year round, do not really care for them, and only decorate their rooms with them because it is the fashion, and because it pleases foreigners. Count Primoli, however, was a great lover of flowers, and so completely filled his villa with them that one grew faint with the sweetness of their overpowering fragrance45. The air, indeed, was full of something romantic and reminiscent—one thought of old Italy and the Renaissance46.
“Quand je vais chez le Comte Primoli,” said a foreign lady once, “j’ai toujours envie de parler en vers, et de demander un sorbet aux domestiques”—and there were many who shared this impression.
[221]
The crowd at these receptions was always composed of the most varied47 cosmopolitan elements. There was the Chinese Ambassador, who, having but yesterday cut off his “pigtail,” had thrown off his flowered robe, and wore European dress clothes with the ease and chic48 of a London clubman. There was the American Ambassador, whose quiet dignity stood out in relief against the noisy vulgarity of his numerous compatriots. There were members of all the Embassies with their wives, the latter attired, according to the custom of luxurious Rome, in beautiful Paris dresses, low-necked, and even in some cases set off by wonderful diamond ornaments49 or tiaras. All Western women consider themselves queens, and by no means object to sometimes wearing crowns, as a sign of their high rank.
Loveliest of all, however, was the Russian singer L?, recently arrived in Rome to fulfil an engagement at the Costanzi theatre. Perfectly50 dressed, and wearing wonderful pearls, she was modest, dignified51, and charming. The arrival of the famous French painter, Carolus[222] Duran, was greeted by exclamations52 from all sides: “Comment allez-vous, cher ma?tre? Quel bonheur de vous voir!” But, as was to be expected from a painter, the great Frenchman was immediately attracted by the beautiful singer; and the latter, having previously53 announced that she never sang in private houses, offered, on learning that the charming and universally beloved old man had never heard her, to make an exception for his benefit. The painter was so sympathetic and irresistible54, that no one was surprised at her wish to sing to him. He was, indeed, the personification of all that is best in France: industrious55 democracy, firm principles, and profound belief in God and in the triumph of right and justice.
An excellent tenor56 and an experienced accompanist, never very far away in Rome, were immediately forthcoming. They disappeared for a moment with Madame L?, and then returned to the principal drawing-room, into which all the visitors crowded to admire and enjoy what was sure to be an exquisite57 performance.
[223]
The artists sang excerpts58 from “Traviata” and “Tosca,” and, as her last number, Madame L? gave some Russian melodies.
The applause was rapturous. With remarkable warmth and kindness, many of the listeners congratulated not only L? herself, but also all the other Russians who happened to be present. For the first time in her life, Irene realized that it was possible to be proud of someone else’s success.
“These foreigners,” observed the Bulgarian Minister to Irene, in perfect Russian, “always imagine that we Slavs live on tallow candles. It is good to be able to show them what our songs are like, and our singers and our national Slavonic genius.”
While listening to L?, Irene had observed the public, and had noticed many envious59 glances levelled at the singer. “Why should she have everything?” they seemed to say—“beauty, talent, splendid dresses, and jewels!”
Irene would have liked to console them with the answer that every singer, every actress, indeed every great talent is endowed[224] by fate not only with wealth and success, but also with a profound capacity for suffering. No one can sing well, play well, or write well, without living through moments of the deepest pain and anguish60. Every real talent has known times of torturing depression when the heart in its agony has cried out to God: “Why hast Thou forsaken61 me? What have I done that I should suffer so?”
And then, at the very darkest moment, suddenly, the veil is torn from their eyes! Truth, with her flaming torch, stands before them, and they understand that God sends them suffering to strengthen and ennoble their talent, that it may touch men’s hearts and show to tired wanderers on earth glimpses of heaven.
Having once grasped this fact, men and women of talent humbly62 bow their heads before God’s will. Uncomplainingly and nobly they bear the insatiable yearning63 that tears their souls, accepting success with indifference64, since they know that their own personal fame is but a secondary matter, and[225] plays but a minor65 part in their mission on earth.
Irene felt that there comes a moment in the life not only of every artist, writer, or musician, but also in that of every thinking human being, when nature asks him her great question: “Canst thou relinquish66 personal interests and help me in my work for humanity?” On his answer depends his soul’s serenity67, the peace of his old age, and his faith in God and the justice of God’s ways. For should he indeed refuse, should he harden his heart against his brothers, a despair so boundless68 will take possession of his soul that there will be no escape or loophole but—suicide.
Irene wondered, with a shudder69, what her own answer to the fateful question would be.
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1
cosmopolitan
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| adj.世界性的，全世界的，四海为家的，全球的 | |
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luxurious
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| adj.精美而昂贵的；豪华的 | |
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villa
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| n.别墅，城郊小屋 | |
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delightful
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| adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的 | |
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5
celebrated
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| adj.有名的，声誉卓著的 | |
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disapproved
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| v.不赞成( disapprove的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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cosmopolitanism
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| n. 世界性,世界主义 | |
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disapproval
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| n.反对，不赞成 | |
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rendering
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| n.表现，描写 | |
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gatherings
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| 聚集( gathering的名词复数 )； 收集； 采集； 搜集 | |
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frivolous
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| adj.轻薄的；轻率的 | |
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distractions
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| n.使人分心的事[人]( distraction的名词复数 )；娱乐，消遣；心烦意乱；精神错乱 | |
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positively
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| adv.明确地，断然，坚决地；实在，确实 | |
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reprehensible
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| adj.该受责备的 | |
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solitary
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| adj.孤独的，独立的，荒凉的；n.隐士 | |
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equilibrium
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| n.平衡，均衡，相称，均势，平静 | |
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tragically
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| adv. 悲剧地，悲惨地 | |
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isolating
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| adj.孤立的，绝缘的v.使隔离( isolate的现在分词 )；将…剔出（以便看清和单独处理）；使（某物质、细胞等）分离；使离析 | |
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immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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hospitable
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| adj.好客的；宽容的；有利的，适宜的 | |
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accomplishment
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| n.完成，成就，（pl.）造诣，技能 | |
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attainable
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| a.可达到的，可获得的 | |
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attain
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| vt.达到，获得，完成 | |
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disdain
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| n.鄙视，轻视；v.轻视，鄙视，不屑 | |
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anecdotes
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| n.掌故，趣闻，轶事( anecdote的名词复数 ) | |
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rumour
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| n.谣言，谣传，传闻 | |
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steamships
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| n.汽船，大轮船( steamship的名词复数 ) | |
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28
majestic
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| adj.雄伟的，壮丽的，庄严的，威严的，崇高的 | |
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theatrically
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| adv.戏剧化地 | |
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attired
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| adj.穿着整齐的v.使穿上衣服，使穿上盛装( attire的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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embroidered
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| adj．绣花的 | |
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buckled
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| a. 有带扣的 | |
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dressing
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| n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料 | |
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humdrum
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| adj.单调的，乏味的 | |
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enchanted
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| adj. 被施魔法的，陶醉的，入迷的 动词enchant的过去式和过去分词 | |
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velvet
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| n.丝绒，天鹅绒；adj.丝绒制的，柔软的 | |
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embroideries
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| 刺绣( embroidery的名词复数 )； 刺绣品； 刺绣法 | |
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38
gilt
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| adj.镀金的；n.金边证券 | |
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relics
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| [pl.］n.遗物，遗迹，遗产；遗体，尸骸 | |
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40
silhouettes
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| 轮廓( silhouette的名词复数 )； （人的）体形； （事物的）形状； 剪影 | |
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41
illuminated
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| adj.被照明的；受启迪的 | |
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42
slippers
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| n. 拖鞋 | |
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remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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peculiarity
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| n.独特性，特色；特殊的东西；怪癖 | |
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45
fragrance
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| n.芬芳，香味，香气 | |
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46
renaissance
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| n.复活，复兴，文艺复兴 | |
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varied
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| adj.多样的，多变化的 | |
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chic
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| n./adj.别致(的)，时髦(的)，讲究的 | |
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49
ornaments
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| n.装饰( ornament的名词复数 )；点缀；装饰品；首饰v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的第三人称单数 ) | |
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50
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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51
dignified
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| a.可敬的，高贵的 | |
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52
exclamations
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| n.呼喊( exclamation的名词复数 )；感叹；感叹语；感叹词 | |
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53
previously
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| adv.以前，先前（地） | |
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54
irresistible
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| adj.非常诱人的，无法拒绝的，无法抗拒的 | |
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55
industrious
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| adj.勤劳的，刻苦的，奋发的 | |
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56
tenor
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| n.男高音（歌手），次中音（乐器），要旨，大意 | |
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57
exquisite
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| adj.精美的；敏锐的；剧烈的，感觉强烈的 | |
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58
excerpts
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| n.摘录，摘要( excerpt的名词复数 )；节选（音乐，电影）片段 | |
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59
envious
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| adj.嫉妒的，羡慕的 | |
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60
anguish
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| n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦，烦恼 | |
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61
Forsaken
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| adj. 被遗忘的, 被抛弃的 动词forsake的过去分词 | |
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62
humbly
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| adv. 恭顺地，谦卑地 | |
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63
yearning
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| a.渴望的；向往的；怀念的 | |
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indifference
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| n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎 | |
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65
minor
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| adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修 | |
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66
relinquish
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| v.放弃，撤回，让与，放手 | |
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67
serenity
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| n.宁静，沉着，晴朗 | |
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68
boundless
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| adj.无限的；无边无际的；巨大的 | |
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69
shudder
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| v.战粟，震动，剧烈地摇晃；n.战粟，抖动 | |
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