The windows were filthy13 with the stains of a thousand showers; the paint had blistered14 and peeled off the heavy old door, and round the gaping15 chasm16 of the letter-box; and in the daytime the place looked woebegone and deserted17. Nobody came there till about two in the afternoon, when three or four quiet-looking gentlemen would drop in one by one, and after remaining an hour or two, depart as they had come. But at night the old house woke up with a roar; its windows blazed with light; its old sides echoed to the creaking throes of a huge steam-engine; its querulous bell was perpetually being tugged18; boys in paper caps and smeary19 faces and shirt-sleeves were perpetually issuing from its portals, and returning, now with fluttering slips of paper, now with bibulous20 refreshment21. Messengers from the Electric Telegraph Companies were there about every half-hour; and cabs that had dashed up with a stout22 gentleman in spectacles dashed away with a slim gentleman in a white hat, returning with a little man in a red beard, and flying off with the stout gentleman again. Blinds were down all round the neighbourhood; porters of the Worshipful Companies, sextons of the congregationless churches, agents for printing-ink and Cumberland black-lead, wood-engravers, box-block sellers, and the proprietors23 of the Never-say-die or Health-restoring Drops, who held the corner premises,--were all sleeping the sleep of the just, or at least doing the best they could towards it, in spite of the reverberation24 of the steam-engine at the office of the Statesman daily journal.
On a hot night in September Mr. Churchill sat in a large room on the first-floor of the Statesman office. On the desk before him stood a huge battered25 old despatch-box, overflowing26 with papers--some in manuscript, neatly27 folded and docketed; others long printed slips, scored and marked all over with ink-corrections. Immediately in front of him hung an almanac and a packet of half-sheets of note-paper, strung together on a large hook. A huge waste-paper basket by his side was filled, while the floor was littered with envelopes of all sizes and colours, fragments cut from newspapers, ink-splashes, and piles of books in paper parcels waiting for review. A solemn old clock, pointing to midnight, ticked gravely on the mantelpiece; a small library of grim old books of reference, in solemn brown bindings, with the flaming cover of the Post-Office Directory like a star in the midst of them, was ranged against the wall; three or four speaking tubes, with ivory mouthpieces, were curling round Mr. Churchill's feet; and Mr. Churchill himself was reading the last number of the Revue de Deux Mondes by the light of a shaded lamp, when a heavy hand was laid on his shoulder, and a cheery voice said,
"Still at the mill, Churchill? still at the mill?"
"Ah, Harding, my dear fellow, I'm delighted to see you!"
"I should think you were," said Harding, laughing; "for my presence here means a good deal to you,--bed, and rest, and country, eh? Well, how have you been?--not knocked up? You've done capitally, my boy! I've watched you carefully, and am more than content." (For Mr. Harding was the editor of the Statesman, and Churchill, one of his principal contributors, had been taking his place while he made holiday.)
"That's a relief," said Churchill. "I've been rather nervous about it; but I thought that Tooby and I between us had managed to push the ship along somehow. Tooby's a capital fellow!"
"Yes, yes," said Mr. Harding, seating himself; "Tooby is a capital fellow, and there's not a better 'sub' in London. But Tooby couldn't have written that article on the Castle-Hedingham dinner, or shown up the Teaser's blunders in classical quotation28, Master Frank. Palman qui meruit. Who did the Bishops29 and the Crystal Palace?"
"Oh, Slummer wrote those. Weren't they good?"
"Very smart; very smart indeed. A thought too strong of Billingsgate, though. That young man is a very hard hitter, but wants training. Where's Hawker?"
"Just gone. He's been very kind and very useful, so have Williams and Burke, and all. And you--how have you enjoyed yourself?"
"Never so much in my life. I've read nothing but the paper. I've done nothing but lie upon the beach and play with the children."
"And the children--are they all right? and Mrs. Harding?"
"Splendid! I never saw the wife look so well for the last six years. She sent all kind remembrances to you, and the usual inquiry30."
"What! if I was going to be married? No, no; you must take back my usual answer. She must find me a wife, and it must be one after her own pattern."
"Seriously, Frank Churchill, it's time you began to look after a wife. In our profession, especially, it's the greatest blessing31 to have some one to care for and to be petted by in the intervals32 of business-strife. There used to be a notion that a literary man required to be perpetually 'seeing life,' which meant 'getting drunk, and never going home;' but that's exploded, and I believe that our best character-painters owe half their powers of delineation33 to their wives' suggestions. Women,--by Jove, sir!--women read character wonderfully."
"Mrs. Harding has made a bad shot at mine, old friend," said Churchill, laughing, "if she thinks that I am in any way desirous to be married. No, no! So far as the seeing life is concerned, I began early, and all that has been over long since. But I've got rather a queer temper of my own. I'm not the most tolerant man in the world; and I've had my own way so long, that any little missy fal-lals and pettishness34 would jar upon me horribly. Besides, I've not got money enough to marry upon. I like my comforts, and to be able to buy occasional books and pictures, and to keep my horse, and my club, and--"
"Well, but a fellow like you might pick up a woman with money!" said Harding.
"That's the worst pick-up possible,--to have to be civil to your wife's trustees, or listen to reproaches as to how 'poor papa's money' is being spent. No, no, no! So long as my dear old mother lives, I shall have a decent home; and afterwards--well, I shall go into chambers35, I suppose, and settle down into a club-haunting old fogey."
"Stuff, Frank; don't talk such rubbish. Affectation of cynicism and affectation of premature36 age are two of the most pernicious cants of the day. Very likely now at the watering-place to which you're going for your holiday, you'll meet some pretty girl who--"
"Watering-place!" cried Frank, shouting with laughter; "I'm going to my old godfather's country place for some partridge-shooting; and as he's an old bachelor of very peculiar37 temper, there's not likely to be much womankind about."
"Ho, ho! A country place, eh? and partridge-shooting? Hum, hum! We're coming out. Don't get your head turned with grand people, Frank."
"Grand people!" echoed Churchill. "Don't I tell you the man's my godfather? There will probably be half a dozen men staying in the house, whose sole care about me will be that I carry my gun properly, and don't hit them out in the stubble."
"When do you go?"
"To-morrow, by the midday express. I've some matters to settle in the morning, and can't get down before dinner-time."
"Well, then, get to bed at once. I've got to say a few words to Tooby; and I'll see Marks when he comes up with the statement, and take care that all's straight. You've seen your own proofs? Very well, then; God bless you! and be off, and don't let us see your face for a month."
They shook hands warmly; and as Churchill left the room, Harding called after him, "Two things, Frank: look out for a nice wife, and don't get your head turned with what are called 'swells38.'"
Throughout London town there breathed no simpler-minded man than George Harding. At College, as in after-life, he had lived with a very small set, entirely39 composed of men of his own degree in the world; and of any other he had the vaguest possible notion. His intellectual acquirements were great, and his reading was vast and catholic; but of men and cities he had seen literally40 nothing; and as, except in his annual vacation, when he could go down with his family and potter about the quietest of watering-places, he never went any where save from his home to the Statesman office, and from the Statesman office to his home, he was not likely to enlarge his knowledge of life. Occasionally, on a Saturday night in the season, he would get the Opera-box from the musical critic, and would take Mrs. Harding to Her Majesty's; but there his whole attention would be absorbed in contemplating41 the appearance and manners of the "swells,"--the one word not to be found in the dictionary which he sometimes indulged in. Slightly Radical42 in his opinions was George Harding; and that he was not much gratified by his observation of these specimens43 of the upper ten thousand, was to be traced in certain little pungencies and acerbities in his leading articles after these Opera visits. He worshipped his calling, in his own honest, simple, steadfast44 way, and resented, quietly but sturdily, any attempts at what he considered patronage45 by those of higher social rank. The leaders of his political party, recognisant of the good service done to them by Harding's pen, had, on several occasions, essayed to prove their gratitude46 by little set civilities: huge cards of invitation to Lady Helmsman's Saturday-evening reunions had found their way to the Statesman's deep-mouthed letter-box; carriage-paid hampers47 of high-flavoured black game sped thither48 from the Highland49 shooting-box, where the Foreign Secretary was spending his hard-earned holiday; earliest intimation of political changes, in "confidential50" covers, were conveyed there by Downing-Street messengers. But George Harding never appeared at Protocol51 House; his name was never seen low down amongst those of the Foreign-Office clerks and outer selvage of fashion, chronicled with such urbanity by Mr. Henchman of the High-Life Gazette; and no attention or flattery ever made him pander52 to a shuffle53, or register a lie. He had a very high opinion of Churchill's talents and honour; but he knew him to be fond of praise, and, above all, greatly wanting in discretion54. Harding had seen so many men full of promise fall into the dreary vortex of drink and debt and pot-house dissipation, that he had hailed with delight the innate55 decency56 and gentlemanly feeling which had kept Frank Churchill out of such dirty orgies; but now he feared lest the disinfectant might prove even worse than the disease itself; and lest the aristocratic notions, which his friend undoubtedly57 possessed58, might lead him into society where his manliness59 and proper pride might be swallowed up in the effulgency of his surroundings.
So mused60 George Harding, bending over the dingy61 old grate at the Statesman office, and gazing vacantly at the shavings with which it was filled, while waiting for Mr. Marks, the head printer, to bring him the "statement," showing the amount required to fill the paper. Meanwhile Churchill, cigar in mouth, was striding through the deserted streets, rejoicing in the thought of his coming holiday, and inwardly chuckling62 over his friend's warnings. At last he stopped at a door in a dull respectable street leading out of Brunswick Square, let himself in with a latch-key, drank a tumbler of soda-water, and glanced at the addresses of some letters in his little dining-room, exchanged his boots for slippers63 at the bottom of the staircase, and crept slowly up the stairs. As he arrived at the second floor, he paused for a minute, and a voice said, "God bless you, Frank!"
"God bless you, mother!" he replied; "good night, dear;" and passed into his room.
Then he sat himself on the side of his bed, and began leisurely64 to undress himself, smiling meanwhile.
"Bring back a wife, and beware of swells, eh? That is the essence of Harding's advice. No, no my darling old mother; you and I get on too well together to change our lives. An amusing time a wife would have with me,--out half the night at the office, and she shivering in the dining-room waiting my return. Wife, by Jove! Yes; and thick fat chops, and sixteen-shilling trousers, and the knifeboard of the omnibus instead of the cob to ride on! No; I think not. And as for swells--that old republican, Harding, thinks every man with a handle to his name is an enemy to Magna Charta. I should like to show him my old godfather walking into an idiotic65 peer of the realm!"
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1
diminution
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| n.减少；变小 | |
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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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proximity
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| n.接近，邻近 | |
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affiliated
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| adj. 附属的, 有关连的 | |
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thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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quaint
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| adj.古雅的，离奇有趣的，奇怪的 | |
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warehouse
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| n.仓库；vt.存入仓库 | |
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dreary
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| adj.令人沮丧的，沉闷的，单调乏味的 | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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mildewed
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| adj.发了霉的，陈腐的，长了霉花的v.（使）发霉，（使）长霉( mildew的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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streaks
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| n.（与周围有所不同的）条纹( streak的名词复数 )；（通常指不好的）特征（倾向）；（不断经历成功或失败的）一段时期v.快速移动( streak的第三人称单数 )；使布满条纹 | |
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12
reeking
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| v.发出浓烈的臭气( reek的现在分词 )；散发臭气；发出难闻的气味 (of sth)；明显带有（令人不快或生疑的跡象） | |
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filthy
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| adj.卑劣的；恶劣的，肮脏的 | |
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blistered
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| adj.水疮状的，泡状的v.（使）起水泡( blister的过去式和过去分词 )；（使表皮等）涨破，爆裂 | |
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gaping
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| adj.口的；张口的；敞口的；多洞穴的v.目瞪口呆地凝视( gape的现在分词 )；张开，张大 | |
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chasm
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| n.深坑，断层，裂口，大分岐，利害冲突 | |
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deserted
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| adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的 | |
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tugged
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| v.用力拉，使劲拉，猛扯( tug的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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smeary
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| 弄脏的 | |
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bibulous
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| adj.高度吸收的，酗酒的 | |
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refreshment
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| n.恢复，精神爽快，提神之事物；（复数）refreshments:点心，茶点 | |
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proprietors
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| n.所有人，业主( proprietor的名词复数 ) | |
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reverberation
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| 反响； 回响； 反射； 反射物 | |
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battered
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| adj.磨损的；v.连续猛击；磨损 | |
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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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neatly
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| adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地 | |
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quotation
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| n.引文，引语，语录；报价，牌价，行情 | |
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bishops
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| （基督教某些教派管辖大教区的）主教( bishop的名词复数 )； （国际象棋的）象 | |
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inquiry
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| n.打听，询问，调查，查问 | |
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blessing
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| n.祈神赐福；祷告；祝福，祝愿 | |
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intervals
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| n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 )；间隔时间；[数学]区间；（戏剧、电影或音乐会的）幕间休息 | |
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delineation
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| n.记述；描写 | |
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pettishness
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chambers
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| n.房间( chamber的名词复数 )；（议会的）议院；卧室；会议厅 | |
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premature
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| adj.比预期时间早的；不成熟的，仓促的 | |
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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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swells
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| 增强( swell的第三人称单数 )； 肿胀； （使）凸出； 充满（激情） | |
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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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literally
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| adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实 | |
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contemplating
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| 深思，细想，仔细考虑( contemplate的现在分词 )； 注视，凝视； 考虑接受（发生某事的可能性）； 深思熟虑，沉思，苦思冥想 | |
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radical
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| n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的 | |
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specimens
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| n.样品( specimen的名词复数 )；范例；（化验的）抽样；某种类型的人 | |
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steadfast
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| adj.固定的，不变的，不动摇的；忠实的；坚贞不移的 | |
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patronage
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| n.赞助，支援，援助；光顾，捧场 | |
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gratitude
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| adj.感激，感谢 | |
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hampers
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| 妨碍，束缚，限制( hamper的第三人称单数 ) | |
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thither
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| adv.向那里；adj.在那边的，对岸的 | |
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highland
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| n.(pl.)高地，山地 | |
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confidential
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| adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的 | |
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protocol
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| n.议定书，草约，会谈记录，外交礼节 | |
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pander
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| v.迎合；n.拉皮条者，勾引者；帮人做坏事的人 | |
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shuffle
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| n.拖著脚走，洗纸牌；v.拖曳，慢吞吞地走 | |
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discretion
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| n.谨慎；随意处理 | |
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innate
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| adj.天生的，固有的，天赋的 | |
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decency
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| n.体面，得体，合宜，正派，庄重 | |
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undoubtedly
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| adv.确实地，无疑地 | |
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possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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manliness
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| 刚毅 | |
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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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dingy
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| adj.昏暗的，肮脏的 | |
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chuckling
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| 轻声地笑( chuckle的现在分词 ) | |
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slippers
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| n. 拖鞋 | |
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leisurely
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| adj.悠闲的；从容的，慢慢的 | |
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idiotic
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| adj.白痴的 | |
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tickled
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| （使）发痒( tickle的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）愉快，逗乐 | |
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