"Good morning, Elsie. Dull morning, isn't it? Is master up yet?" said Mrs. Arb vivaciously1, rubbing her hands in the chilly2, murky3 dawn, and brightening the dawn.
"Oh, 'm! He's gone out. I don't expect him back till eleven. It's one of his buying mornings, ye see."
"Oh, dear, dear!" Mrs. Arb exclaimed, with cheerful resignation. "And I've only got ten minutes. Well, I haven't really got that. Shop ought to be open now. But I thought I'd let 'em wait a bit this morning."
She glanced anxiously at her own establishment to see whether any customer had come down the steps from the square. But, in truth, as she had now sold the business, and the premises4, and was to give possession in a few weeks, she was not genuinely concerned about the possible loss of profit on an ounce or two ounces of tea. She wandered with apparent aimlessness into Mr. Earlforward's shop.
"Did you want to see him particular, 'm?"[Pg 68]
"I won't say so particular as all that. So you look after the shop when Mr. Earlforward is out, Elsie?"
"It's like this, 'm. All the books is marked inside, and some outside. If anybody comes in that looks respectable, I ask 'em to look round for themselves, and if they take a book they pay me, and I ask 'em to write down the name of it on a bit of paper." She pointed5 to some small memorandum6 sheets prepared from old unassorted envelopes which had been cut open and laid flat, with pencil close by. "If it's some regular customer like, that must see Mr. Earlforward himself, I ask 'em to write their names down. And if I don't like the look of anybody, I tell 'em I don't know anything, and out they go."
"What a good arrangement!" said Mrs. Arb approvingly. "But if you have to attend to the shop, how can you do the cleaning and so on?"
"Ah, 'm! There you've got me. I can't. I can only clean the shop these mornings, and not much of that neither, because I must keep my hands dry for customers."
Mrs. Arb, vaguely11 smiling to herself, trotted12 to and fro in the gloomy shop, which had the air of a crypt, except that in these days crypts are usually lighted by electricity, and the shop was lighted by nature alone on this dark morning. She peered, bending forward, into the dark spaces between the bays, and descried13 the heaps of books on the floor. The dirt and the immense disorder14 almost frightened her. She had not examined the inside of the shop before—had, indeed, previously15 entered it only once, when she was in no condition to observe. Mr. Earlforward had never seized an occasion to invite her within.
"This will want some putting straight," she said, "if ever it is put straight."
"And well you may say it, 'm," Elsie replied compassionately16. "He's always trying to get straight,[Pg 69] 'specially17 lately, 'm. We did get one room straight upstairs, but it meant letting all the others go. Between you and me, he'll never get straight. But he has hopes, and it's no use saying anything to him."
"I suppose you can do this room, too, on his buying mornings," said Mrs. Arb, peeping into Mr. Earlforward's private back-room from which the shop and the shop-door could be kept under observation.
"Oh, 'm! He wouldn't let me. He won't have anything touched in that room."
"Then who does it?"
"He does it himself, 'm—when it is done."
The bookshelves went up to the ceiling on every side. The floor was thickly strewn with books, the table also. Chairs also. The blind lay crumpled19 on the book-covered window-sill. The window was obscured by dirt. The ceiling was a blackish-grey. A heavy deposit of black dust covered all things. The dreadful den21 expressed intolerably to Mrs. Arb the pathos22 of the existence of a man who is determined23 to look after himself. It convicted a whole sex of being feckless, foolish, helpless, infantile, absurd. Mrs. Arb and Elsie exchanged glances. Elsie blushed.
"Yes. I'm that ashamed of it, 'm!" said Elsie. "But you know what they are!"
Mrs. Arb gave two short nods. She moved her hand as if to plumb24 the layer of dust with one feminine finger, but refrained; she dared not.
"And do you do his cooking, too?" she asked.
"Well, 'm. He gets his own breakfast, and he makes his own bed—it's always done before I come of a morning—and he cleans his own boots. I begin his dinner, but, seeing as I go at twelve, he finishes it. He gets his own tea. I must say he isn't what you call a big eater."
"Seems to me it's all very cleverly organized."
"Oh, it is, 'm! There's not many gentlemen could manage as he does. But it's a dreadful pity. Makes me[Pg 70] fair cry sometimes. And him so clean and neat himself, too."
"Yes," said Mrs. Arb, agreeing that the contrast between the master and his home was miraculous25, awful, and tragic26.
"I suppose I'd better not go upstairs as he isn't here, Elsie?"
The two women exchanged more glances. Elsie perfectly27 comprehended the case of Mrs. Arb, and sympathized with her. Mrs. Arb was being courted. Mrs. Arb had come to no decision. Mrs. Arb desired as much information as possible before coming to a decision. Women had the right to look after themselves against no matter what man. Women were women, and men were men. The Arb-Earlforward affair was crucial for both parties.
"Oh! I think you might, 'm. But I can't go with you." Sex-loyalty had triumphed over a too-strict interpretation28 of the duty of the employed to the employer. A conspiracy29 had been set up.
Mrs. Arb had to step over hummocks30 of books in order to reach the foot of the stairs. The left-hand half of every step of the stairs was stacked with books—cheap editions of novels in paper jackets, under titles such as "Just a Girl," "Not Like Other Girls," "A Girl Alone." Weak but righteous and victorious31 girls crowded the stairs from top to bottom, so that Mrs. Arb could scarcely get up. The landing also was full of girls. The front-room on the first floor was, from the evidence of its furniture, a dining-room, though not used as such. The massive mahogany table was piled up with books, as also the big sideboard, the mantelpiece, various chairs. The floor was carpeted with books. Less dust than in the den below, but still a great deal. The Victorian furniture was "good"; it was furniture meant to survive revolutions and conflagrations32 and generations; it was everlasting33 furniture; it would command respect through any thickness of dust.
The back-room, with quite as large a number of books[Pg 71] as the front-room, but even less dust, was a bedroom. The very wide bed had been neatly34 made. Mrs. Arb turned down the corner of the coverlet; a fairly clean pillow-slip, no sheets, only blankets! She drew open drawers in a great mahogany chest. Two of them were full of blue suits, absolutely new. In another drawer were at least a dozen quite new grey flannel35 shirts. A wardrobe was stuffed with books.
Coming out of the bedroom, she perceived between it and the stairs a long, narrow room. Impossible to enter this room because of books; but Mrs. Arb did the impossible, and after some excavation36 with her foot disclosed a bath, which was full to the brim and overflowing37 with books. Now Mrs. Arb was pretty well accustomed to baths; she was not aware of the extreme rarity of baths in Clerkenwell, and hence she could not adequately appreciate the heroism38 of a hero who, possessing such a treasure, had subdued39 it to the uses of mere40 business. Nevertheless, her astonishment41 and amaze were sufficiently42 noticeable, and she felt, disturbingly and delightfully43, the thrill of surprising clandestinely44 the secrets of a man's intimate personal existence.
Then she caught the sound of dropping water; it was on the second-floor, in a room shaped like the bathroom, a room with two shelves, a gas-ring, and a sink. The water was dropping with a queer reverberation45 on to the sink from a tap above. There were a few plates, cups, saucers, jugs46, saucepans, dishes; half a loaf of bread, a slice of cooked bacon; there was no milk, no butter. His kitchen and larder47! One gas-ring! No fireplace! Mrs. Arb was impressed.
The other rooms on the second-floor were full of majestic48 furniture, books and dust. One of them had recently been cleaned and tidied, but dozens of books still lay on the floor. She picked up a book, a large, thick volume, for no other reason than that the cover bore a representation of a bird. It was a heavy book, with many coloured pictures of birds. She thought it was quite a pretty thing to look at. By accident she noticed the[Pg 72] price pencilled inside the front cover. ￡40. She was not astonished nor amazed—she was staggered. Mrs. Arb had probably not read ten books since girlhood. To her, reading was a refuge from either idleness or life. She was never idle, and she loved life. Thus she condescended49 towards books. That any book, least of all a picture-book of birds, could be worth ￡40 had not occurred to her mind. (And this one lying on the floor!) Instantly, in spite of her commonsense50, she thought for a brief space of all the books in the establishment as worth ￡40 apiece! Before returning down the book-encumbered stairs, she paused on the top landing. Her throat was coated with the dust which she had displaced in her passage through the house. Her hands were very dirty and very cold—they shone with cold. No fire could have burnt in any of those rooms for years. She dared not touch the handrail of the staircase, even with her fingers all dirty. She paused because she was disconcerted and wanted to arrange the perplexing confusion of her thoughts. The more she reflected the better she realized how strange and powerful and ruthless a person was Mr. Earlforward. She admired, comprehended, sympathized, and yet was intimidated51. The character of the man was displayed beyond any misunderstanding by the house with its revelations of his daily life; but there was no clue to it in his appearance and deportment. She was more than intimidated—she was frightened. Withal, the terror—for it amounted to terror—fascinated her. She went down gingerly, hesitating at every step.... At the bottom of the lower flight she heard, with new alarm, the bland52 voice of Mr. Earlforward himself. He was talking with a customer in his den.
"I'll slip out," she very faintly whispered to Elsie, who was sweeping53 near the stairs. Elsie nodded—like a conspirator54. But at the same moment Mr. Earlforward and his customer emerged from the back room, and Mrs. Arb was trapped.
"Oh, thank you, but I only stepped across to speak to Elsie about something."
The lie, invented on the instant, succeeded perfectly. And Elsie, the honestest soul in Clerkenwell, gave it the support of her silence in the great cause of women against men.
"I'm glad to see you in here," said Mr. Earlforward gently, having dismissed the customer. "It's a bit of luck. I'd gone off for Houndsditch, but I happened to meet someone on the road, and nothing would do but I must come back with him. Come in here."
He drew her by the attraction of his small eyes into the back room. Books had been tipped off one of the chairs on to the floor. She sat down. Surely Mr. Earlforward was the most normal being in the world, the mildest, the quietest, the easiest! But the bath, the kitchen, the blankets, the filth56, the food, the ￡40 book, and all those new suits and new shirts! She had never even conceived such an inside of a house! She could hardly credit her senses.
"I've wanted to see you in here, in this room," said Mr. Earlforward in a warm voice. And then no more.
She could not withstand his melting glance. She knew that their intimacy57, having developed gradually through weeks, was startlingly on the point of bursting into a new phase. The sense of danger with her, as with nearly all women, was intermittent58. The man was in love with her. He was in her hands. What could she not do with him? Could she not accomplish marvels59? Could she not tame monsters? And she understood his instincts; she shared them. And he was a rock of defence, shelter, safety!... The alternative: solitude60, celibacy61, spinsterishness, eternal self-defence, eternal misgivings62 about her security; horrible!
"And I must be getting away again, too," he said, and put on his hat and began to button his overcoat. Nothing more. But at the door he added:[Pg 74] "Maybe I'll come across and see you to-night, if it isn't intruding64."
"You'll be very welcome, I'm sure," she answered, modestly smiling.
She was no better than a girl, then. She knew she had uttered the deciding word of her fate. She trembled with apprehension65 and felicity. He was a wonderful man and an enigma66. He inspired love and dread20. As the day passed her feeling for him became intense. At closing time her ecstatic heart was liquid with acquiescence67. And she had, too, a bright, adventurous68 valour, but shot through with forebodings.
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1
vivaciously
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| adv.快活地；活泼地；愉快地 | |
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chilly
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| adj.凉快的，寒冷的 | |
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murky
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| adj.黑暗的，朦胧的；adv.阴暗地，混浊地；n.阴暗；昏暗 | |
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premises
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| n.建筑物，房屋 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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memorandum
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| n.备忘录，便笺 | |
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ingenuous
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| adj.纯朴的，单纯的；天真的；坦率的 | |
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distress
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| n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛 | |
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softened
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| （使）变软( soften的过去式和过去分词 )； 缓解打击； 缓和； 安慰 | |
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solicitude
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| n.焦虑 | |
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vaguely
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| adv.含糊地，暖昧地 | |
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trotted
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| 小跑，急走( trot的过去分词 )； 匆匆忙忙地走 | |
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descried
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| adj.被注意到的，被发现的，被看到的 | |
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disorder
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| n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调 | |
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previously
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| adv.以前，先前（地） | |
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compassionately
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| adv.表示怜悯地，有同情心地 | |
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specially
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| adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地 | |
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peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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crumpled
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| adj. 弯扭的, 变皱的 动词crumple的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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dread
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| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
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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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pathos
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| n.哀婉，悲怆 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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plumb
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| adv.精确地，完全地；v.了解意义，测水深 | |
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miraculous
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| adj.像奇迹一样的，不可思议的 | |
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tragic
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| adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的 | |
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perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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interpretation
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| n.解释，说明，描述；艺术处理 | |
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conspiracy
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| n.阴谋，密谋，共谋 | |
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30
hummocks
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| n.小丘，岗( hummock的名词复数 ) | |
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victorious
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| adj.胜利的，得胜的 | |
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conflagrations
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| n.大火（灾）( conflagration的名词复数 ) | |
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everlasting
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| adj.永恒的，持久的，无止境的 | |
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neatly
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| adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地 | |
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flannel
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| n.法兰绒；法兰绒衣服 | |
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excavation
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| n.挖掘，发掘；被挖掘之地 | |
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overflowing
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| n. 溢出物,溢流 adj. 充沛的，充满的 动词overflow的现在分词形式 | |
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heroism
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| n.大无畏精神，英勇 | |
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subdued
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| adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词 | |
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mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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astonishment
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| n.惊奇，惊异 | |
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sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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delightfully
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| 大喜，欣然 | |
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clandestinely
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| adv.秘密地，暗中地 | |
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reverberation
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| 反响； 回响； 反射； 反射物 | |
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jugs
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| （有柄及小口的）水壶( jug的名词复数 ) | |
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larder
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| n.食物贮藏室，食品橱 | |
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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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49
condescended
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| 屈尊，俯就( condescend的过去式和过去分词 )； 故意表示和蔼可亲 | |
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50
commonsense
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| adj.有常识的；明白事理的；注重实际的 | |
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51
intimidated
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| v.恐吓；威胁adj.害怕的；受到威胁的 | |
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bland
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| adj.淡而无味的，温和的，无刺激性的 | |
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sweeping
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| adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的 | |
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54
conspirator
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| n.阴谋者，谋叛者 | |
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amiably
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| adv.和蔼可亲地，亲切地 | |
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56
filth
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| n.肮脏，污物，污秽；淫猥 | |
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intimacy
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| n.熟悉，亲密，密切关系，亲昵的言行 | |
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intermittent
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| adj.间歇的，断断续续的 | |
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59
marvels
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| n.奇迹( marvel的名词复数 )；令人惊奇的事物（或事例）；不平凡的成果；成就v.惊奇，对…感到惊奇( marvel的第三人称单数 ) | |
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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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celibacy
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| n.独身(主义) | |
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misgivings
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| n.疑虑，担忧，害怕；疑虑，担心，恐惧( misgiving的名词复数 )；疑惧 | |
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nervously
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| adv.神情激动地，不安地 | |
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64
intruding
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| v.侵入，侵扰，打扰( intrude的现在分词)；把…强加于 | |
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65
apprehension
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| n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑 | |
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66
enigma
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| n.谜，谜一样的人或事 | |
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67
acquiescence
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| n.默许；顺从 | |
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adventurous
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| adj.爱冒险的；惊心动魄的，惊险的，刺激的 | |
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