This mood of revolt was made stronger by Gordon’s fret4 over her social gatherings5. In the dim light of the pulpit, preaching with mystic elation6, he had seemed to her a god. Now, in the full blaze of physical possession, the divine glow had paled about his brow. She had found him only a man, self-conscious, egotistic and domineering. He had many personal habits she did not like. He was overfastidious in his dress, and critical and fussy7 about her lack of order in housekeeping. He was finicky about his food. He hated tea, declaring the odour made him sick. She felt this a covert8 thrust at her five-o’clocks.
To his criticisms she at last coolly replied:
“I claim the perfect freedom you preach. I will do as I please. You can do the same.”
He laughed in a weak sort of way and declared he liked her independence.
At this moment of reaction, satiety10, and the beginning of friction11 he had introduced her to Overman. His candour, his brutal12 realism, his defiance13 and scorn for poetic14 theories, presented to her the sharp contrast which made him doubly fascinating. Just at the moment Gordon was growing peevishly15 dogmatic in the reiteration16 of his ideals, she had suffered a physical disillusioning17 and begun to tire of poetry.
The sheer brute18 power of the other man, the incarnation of the thing that is, with a cynic’s contempt for dreams and dreamers, had given voice to her own rebellion and drawn19 her resistlessly.
The boyish tenderness underlying20 Overman’s nature, which she discovered later, had made his ugliness and brute strength added charms.
He had a pathetic way of looking at her with a doglike worship, as though conscious of his defects, which pleased and nattered her own sense of the perfection of beauty.
They were seated in his box at the Metropolitan21 Opera House while Gordon was at the farewell banquet to his foreign delegates.
“I feel,” he said, bitterly, “every time I see this play of ‘Faust,’ and hear Edouard De Reszke’s deep bass22 speak for His Majesty23 the Devil, that His Majesty really made this world. I’d know it but for the paradox24 of such divine perfection before my eyes in the living reality of a woman like you.”
His voice throbbed25 with earnestness.
“I’m growing to love the world. It’s a beautiful old place,” she answered, with a lazy smile.
“Well, it’s the only one I’m likely to travel in, so I’m going to make the best of it, work with its mighty26 forces, dare and defy the fools who cross my purposes. If the future has for me only pain, I’ll not complain. I’ll grin and bear it, but I’ll confess to you I get a little lonely sometimes.”
Her eyes lifted with surprise.
“I never heard you admit that before.”
“No; and what’s more, no one else ever did or ever will.”
He looked at her pathetically, and a deeper colour flooded her cheeks.
When they reached home Gordon had just returned from the banquet and was bubbling over with enthusiasm.
“Mark, we have had a grand time to-night—organised a movement that will put out a sign ‘To Let’ on every den9 of thieves in Wall Street.”
“What? Founded another church already?”
“A new Brotherhood27 within the Church Universal.”
Overman shrugged28 his shoulders.
“Talk plain English. What will be its name at Police Headquarters?”
Gordon smilingly and proudly replied, “The Federated Democracy of the World.”
“H’m; what are you going to do? Federate the hobos of all tongues and demand better straw in empty freight cars and shorter stops at sidings for express trains to pass?”
“Our purpose will be to inaugurate the Cooperative Commonwealth30 of Man. The movement will bring into harmonious31 action the insurgent32 forces of the world. Within ten years an earthquake will shake the social fabric33. Within twenty years profound political and social revolutions will lift the human race over centuries of plodding34 into a new world of real liberty, equality, and fraternity.”
Overman growled35 cynically36.
“That has a French accent. I hear there are fifty thousand active Socialists37 in France divided into exactly fifty thousand factions39. Which division of this grand army will lead the movement in Gaul?”
Gordon ignored his interruption, and his voice thrilled with passionate40 eloquence41.
“We have abolished crowns and scepters. It is a moral and physical absurdity42 that, in a democracy, a whiskered babe, whose labour value to society is just ten dollars a week, should inherit millions of dollars that give him the power over men more terrible, absolute and irresponsible than a Caesar ever wielded43 over the empire of the world. No wonder our papers shiver when these babes sneeze, and report their daily life with servile pride.”
“And would the oil of anointment of your new king, the walking delegate, be strong enough to temper the onion in his breath? I’d like to know that before drawing too near the throne.” The banker’s mouth twisted into a sneer44 with the last word.
“This new Democracy will itself be the highest nobility, an ethical45 aristocracy, and when it comes the Kingdom of Heaven will be at hand.”
The one eye glanced quickly at the speaker and blinked.
“Let me know before it gets here,” said Overman, a reminiscent look overspreading his rugged29 face, while Kate leaned closer with eager interest.
“Why?”
“Because I’m going somewhere. When I was a boy I had to go to church. Our old preacher faithfully urged us for hours at a time to get ready for heaven, a glorious place away up in space where all wore crowns and there wasn’t a Democrat46 in town, everybody played psalms47 on big gold harps48, and every day was Sunday. I early learned to hate heaven and look on hell as my only home. Now you come along, rub hell off the map, and threaten me with a heaven here on earth worse than the old one. Hell would be a summer resort to this thing you’ve conjured49 up. If it comes, I’ll get off the earth.”
“Get your flying machine ready.”
“Oh, ten cents’ worth of ‘rough on rats’ will do me.”
Gordon shook his head thoughtfully.
“It’s a strange thing to me you conservatives are blind to the coming of this revolution. It will be the grimmest joke Fate ever played on the pride of man. Within the generation now living a Cooperative Commonwealth will supplant50 the whole system of slave wages.”
The banker suddenly straightened his massive neck and his eye flashed.
“You mean establish a system of universal slavery. Suppose under your maudlin51 cry of brotherhood you set up your fool’s paradise, where would reside the authority of your Commonwealth?”
“In the State, of course.”
“And who would be the State? You talk about the State as though it were some mysterious Ark of the Covenant52 of God, let down out of heaven and enshrined in capitals of marble. The State is simply made out of common dirt called Tom, Dick and Harry53, whom a lot of other plain Toms, Dicks and Harrys set up in power. Will not your pig-pen you call the Cooperative Commonwealth have men in charge with authority to call the pigs to dinner and drive them to the fields to root?”
“Certainly, there must be authority,” Gordon snapped.
Overman mused54 a moment.
“Yet your patron saint, William Morris, proclaims a heaven here below without law, where man kills his fellow man and answers only to his own conscience; where we will tear up the railroads and walk, blow up our steamships55 and use rowboats, in our harvest fields the whetstone on the old hand-scythe will still the music of the McCormick reaper56. With his delicate tastes he fears the hoof-beat of your herd57. But you all agree that to go backward means to go forward, and that the way to save civilisation58 is to lapse59 into barbarism. Whether you call yourselves Socialist38 or Anarchist—that is, whether you long for the herd or the solitude60 of the forest, you mean the same thing and don’t know it, that your mind has not been able to adjust itself to the speed of modern progress, and has broken down under the strain. You preach ‘Fellowship,’ herd-life, as the cure. You believe in law and authority.”
“Yes,” Gordon cried, with pride. “Our ideal is constructive61 in the largest and noblest sense.”
“And if a man can work and will not work?”
“He will be made to work.”
“Very well. Suppose your pig heaven established and the herd duly penned. The Labour Master of your local pen would naturally be a man after the heart of the herd. He would be a greasy62 Labour agitator63. No other man could be elected. Suppose he should become interested in the extraordinary beauty of your wife. Suppose you were presumptuous64 enough to resent this, and, in revenge for your insolence65, your Master transferred you, the scholar, idealist and orator66, to the task of cleaning the spittoons in the City Hall, and ordered your wife to scrub the floor of his office. You both refuse, you who walk with your head among the stars, What then? The dirty-fingered one, your Labour Master, sends you to prison for the first offense67. For the second, you would be stripped, placed in the public stocks and flogged, man and woman alike in this kingdom of equality. For, mark you, enforced labour is the only possible foundation of such a society.”
Gordon listened with dreamy disgust.
“You’ve set up a man of straw. In this new world each would choose his work and labour would be a joy,” he answered, with lofty scorn.
The banker chuckled68.
“No doubt they would all choose joyous69 jobs. But there would be a surplus of joyous labourers hunting for joyful70 tasks, and a dearth71 of fools looking for disagreeable work. In your pig paradise everything must be fixed72. There could be no uncertainty73 about the future—no worry, or fret, or anxiety—hence no hopes or fears. Man would be guaranteed food, clothes, shelter and children, just as the chattel74 slave. There could be no inducement to work unless compelled to, and no man except an idiot would do a disagreeable task unless forced to do it. You must remember there could be no lawyers or bankers, preachers or orators75. The chief occupation of your Labour Master would be the assignment of people he didn’t like to the hard, dirty jobs, and the granting of favourite tasks to such people as made themselves agreeable to His Majesty. Witness the master of the Russian Commune, who is notoriously the lord of all the wives of the village.”
Overman was still a moment, and then growled from the depths of his being:
“I call this the lowest, the most degrading, the most bestial76 nightmare the human mind ever dreamed!”
Gordon waved him off with an eloquent77 gesture.
“You have assumed that a free commonwealth of godlike men and women would choose their worst units for their leaders.”
“Nothing of the sort,” he snapped. “I’ve supposed they would do the inevitable—choose the strongest man who looks like the majority and smells like the majority.”
“A bad man would be removed,” the dreamer quickly replied.
“What difference if your master be changed by an election now and then? All the worse. If I am to be a slave, I prefer the old chattel system with a master whose favour I could win and hold for life by faithful service. The old slaves often loved their masters. Could you love the Executive Officer of a Bureau for the Enforcement of Labour? Do convicts become infatuated with their keepers? To assassinate78 such a man would become a positive joy. How many years of such life would it take to crush out of the human soul the last spark of hope and aspiration79 and reduce man to a beast?”
“But we affirm the inherent divinity of man. You assume him to be a child of the devil.”
There was another silence, and then the banker’s brow wrinkled.
“Affirm. Yes, you fellows are all orators. You must affirm else the crowd will leave you. You never have doubts and fears. You always know. Only affirm a thing enough and never try to prove it, and thousands of fools will accept it at last as the word of God. That is the secret of the power of all demagogues and emotional orators. The slickest horse-thief that ever operated in the West was a revivalist who migrated there with a tent. While he held the crowd spellbound with his eloquence, his confederates loosed the horses in the woods and got them to a safe place. Oratory80 is one of the cheapest tricks ever played on man, but an everlastingly81 effective one, because it is based on affirmation. Any man who is too hard-headed and honest to affirm a thing he don’t know and can’t know never leads a mob. They will only follow a man who speaks with the sublime82 authority of knowledge he does not possess.”
While Overman was talking Gordon’s brow clouded as he watched Kate’s face flash with interest and a smile now and then play between her eyes and lips.
“We seem to be developing another orator,” he slowly answered.
Overman pursed his lips.
“I haven’t wasted so much breath in a long time. Your French programme stirred me. I wonder if you recalled the decline of the French nation in modern times, and its causes, in arranging for your conquest of France? A little while ago the Anglo-Saxon race numbered but a few millions, and the Latin ruled the world. Now the flag of the Anglo-Saxon flies over one-fourth the inhabitants of the globe, his army can withstand the combined armies of the world, his navy rules the sea, and his wealth is so great he could buy the entire possessions of the rest of mankind. Why? Because he developed the most powerful individual man in history, while other races have sought refuge in the herd idea of communal83 interests. I noticed you never preach now from the old text, ‘What shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world and forfeit84 his life?’ Why save the world if you destroy man?”
But Gordon had ceased to listen to Overman. With his great blue-veined fist clenched85 on his chin and a new gleam of light in his steel-gray eyes he was watching his wife’s face.
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1
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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dominion
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| n.统治，管辖，支配权；领土，版图 | |
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3
inevitable
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| adj.不可避免的，必然发生的 | |
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4
fret
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| v.(使)烦恼；(使)焦急；(使)腐蚀，(使)磨损 | |
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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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elation
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| n.兴高采烈，洋洋得意 | |
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fussy
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| adj.为琐事担忧的，过分装饰的，爱挑剔的 | |
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8
covert
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| adj.隐藏的；暗地里的 | |
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den
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| n.兽穴；秘密地方；安静的小房间，私室 | |
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10
satiety
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| n.饱和；(市场的)充分供应 | |
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friction
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| n.摩擦，摩擦力 | |
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12
brutal
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| adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的 | |
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defiance
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| n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗 | |
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14
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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15
peevishly
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| adv．暴躁地 | |
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reiteration
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| n. 重覆, 反覆, 重说 | |
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17
disillusioning
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| 使不再抱幻想，使理想破灭( disillusion的现在分词 ) | |
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brute
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| n.野兽，兽性 | |
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drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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20
underlying
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| adj.在下面的，含蓄的，潜在的 | |
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metropolitan
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| adj.大城市的，大都会的 | |
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bass
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| n.男低音(歌手)；低音乐器；低音大提琴 | |
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23
majesty
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| n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权 | |
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paradox
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| n.似乎矛盾却正确的说法；自相矛盾的人(物) | |
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throbbed
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| 抽痛( throb的过去式和过去分词 )； （心脏、脉搏等）跳动 | |
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mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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brotherhood
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| n.兄弟般的关系，手中情谊 | |
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28
shrugged
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| vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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rugged
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| adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的 | |
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commonwealth
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| n.共和国，联邦，共同体 | |
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harmonious
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| adj.和睦的，调和的，和谐的，协调的 | |
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insurgent
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| adj.叛乱的，起事的；n.叛乱分子 | |
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fabric
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| n.织物，织品，布；构造，结构，组织 | |
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plodding
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| a.proceeding in a slow or dull way | |
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growled
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| v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说 | |
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cynically
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| adv.爱嘲笑地，冷笑地 | |
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socialists
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| 社会主义者( socialist的名词复数 ) | |
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socialist
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| n.社会主义者；adj.社会主义的 | |
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factions
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| 组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 ) | |
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passionate
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| adj.热情的，热烈的，激昂的，易动情的，易怒的，性情暴躁的 | |
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41
eloquence
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| n.雄辩；口才，修辞 | |
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absurdity
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| n.荒谬，愚蠢；谬论 | |
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wielded
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| 手持着使用（武器、工具等）( wield的过去式和过去分词 )； 具有； 运用（权力）； 施加（影响） | |
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sneer
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| v.轻蔑；嘲笑；n.嘲笑，讥讽的言语 | |
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45
ethical
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| adj.伦理的，道德的，合乎道德的 | |
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democrat
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| n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员 | |
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psalms
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| n.赞美诗( psalm的名词复数 )；圣诗；圣歌；(中的) | |
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48
harps
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| abbr.harpsichord 拨弦古钢琴n.竖琴( harp的名词复数 ) | |
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49
conjured
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| 用魔术变出( conjure的过去式和过去分词 )； 祈求，恳求； 变戏法； （变魔术般地） 使…出现 | |
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50
supplant
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| vt.排挤；取代 | |
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51
maudlin
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| adj.感情脆弱的，爱哭的 | |
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52
covenant
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| n.盟约，契约；v.订盟约 | |
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53
harry
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| vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼 | |
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54
mused
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| v.沉思，冥想( muse的过去式和过去分词 )；沉思自语说（某事） | |
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55
steamships
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| n.汽船，大轮船( steamship的名词复数 ) | |
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56
reaper
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| n.收割者，收割机 | |
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57
herd
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| n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起 | |
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58
civilisation
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| n.文明，文化，开化，教化 | |
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59
lapse
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| n.过失，流逝，失效，抛弃信仰，间隔；vi.堕落，停止，失效，流逝；vt.使失效 | |
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60
solitude
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| n. 孤独; 独居,荒僻之地,幽静的地方 | |
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constructive
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| adj.建设的，建设性的 | |
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greasy
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| adj. 多脂的，油脂的 | |
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agitator
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| n.鼓动者；搅拌器 | |
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64
presumptuous
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| adj.胆大妄为的，放肆的，冒昧的，冒失的 | |
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65
insolence
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| n.傲慢；无礼；厚颜；傲慢的态度 | |
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66
orator
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| n.演说者，演讲者，雄辩家 | |
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67
offense
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| n.犯规，违法行为；冒犯，得罪 | |
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68
chuckled
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| 轻声地笑( chuckle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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69
joyous
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| adj.充满快乐的；令人高兴的 | |
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70
joyful
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| adj.欢乐的，令人欢欣的 | |
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71
dearth
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| n.缺乏，粮食不足，饥谨 | |
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72
fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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73
uncertainty
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| n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物 | |
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74
chattel
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| n.动产；奴隶 | |
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75
orators
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| n.演说者，演讲家( orator的名词复数 ) | |
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76
bestial
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| adj.残忍的；野蛮的 | |
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77
eloquent
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| adj.雄辩的，口才流利的；明白显示出的 | |
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assassinate
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| vt.暗杀，行刺，中伤 | |
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79
aspiration
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| n.志向，志趣抱负；渴望；(语)送气音；吸出 | |
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80
oratory
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| n.演讲术；词藻华丽的言辞 | |
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81
everlastingly
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| 永久地，持久地 | |
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82
sublime
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| adj.崇高的，伟大的；极度的，不顾后果的 | |
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communal
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| adj.公有的，公共的，公社的，公社制的 | |
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84
forfeit
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| vt.丧失；n.罚金，罚款，没收物 | |
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85
clenched
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| v.紧握，抓紧，咬紧( clench的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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