V. THAT OF MATILDA.

 

 

Yes, I love you, dear Matilda,

But you may not be my bride,

And the obstacles are many

Which have caused me to decide.

Firstly, what is most annoying,

And I'm not above confessing,

Is, that I think you indolent,

And over-fond of dressing¹.

I've known you spend an hour or two

In a-sitting on a chair,

And a-fussing and attending

To your toilet or your hair.

There's another little matter—

You may say a simple thing—

Yet, Matilda, I must own it,

I object to hear you sing.

For the sounds you make in singing

Are so very much like squalling,

That the only term appropriate

To them is caterwauling.

Indeed, I've never heard such horrid²

Noises in my life,

And I'd certainly not tolerate

Such singing in a wife.

And, Matilda dear, your language!

It is really very bad;

The expressions which you use at times,

They make me feel quite sad.

It is very, very shocking,

But I do not mind declaring

That I've heard some sounds proceeding³

From your lips so much like swearing,

That I've had to raise a finger,

And to close at least one ear,

For I couldn't feel quite certain

What bad words I mightn't hear.

 

But worse than this, Matilda:

I hear, with pious⁴ grief,

Many rumours⁵ that Matilda

Is no better than a thief

And I'm shocked to find my darling

So entirely⁶ lost to feeling,

As to go and give her mind up

Unto picking and a-stealing.

Oh, Matilda! pray take warning,

For a prison cell doth yearn⁷

For a person that appropriates

And takes what isn't her'n.

And the culminating blow is this:

You stay out late at night.

Now, Matilda dear, you must confess

To do this is not right.

Where you go to, dear, or what you do,

There really is no telling,

And with rage and indignation

My fond foolish heart is swelling⁸.

Yet the faults which I've enumera-

Ted⁹ can't be wondered at,

When one realises clearly

That "Matilda"—is a cat.

1 dressing   

n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料

参考例句：

• Don't spend such a lot of time in dressing yourself.别花那么多时间来打扮自己。
• The children enjoy dressing up in mother's old clothes.孩子们喜欢穿上妈妈旧时的衣服玩。

2 horrid   

adj.可怕的；令人惊恐的；恐怖的；极讨厌的

参考例句：

• I'm not going to the horrid dinner party.我不打算去参加这次讨厌的宴会。
• The medicine is horrid and she couldn't get it down.这种药很难吃，她咽不下去。

3 proceeding   

n.行动，进行，(pl.)会议录，学报

参考例句：

• This train is now proceeding from Paris to London.这次列车从巴黎开往伦敦。
• The work is proceeding briskly.工作很有生气地进展着。

4 pious   

adj.虔诚的；道貌岸然的

参考例句：

• Alexander is a pious follower of the faith.亚历山大是个虔诚的信徒。
• Her mother was a pious Christian.她母亲是一个虔诚的基督教徒。

5 rumours   

n.传闻( rumour的名词复数 )；风闻；谣言；谣传

参考例句：

• The rumours were completely baseless. 那些谣传毫无根据。
• Rumours of job losses were later confirmed. 裁员的传言后来得到了证实。

6 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

7 yearn   

v.想念；怀念；渴望

参考例句：

• We yearn to surrender our entire being.我们渴望着放纵我们整个的生命。
• Many people living in big cities yearn for an idyllic country life.现在的很多都市人向往那种田园化的生活。

8 swelling   

n.肿胀

参考例句：

• Use ice to reduce the swelling. 用冰敷消肿。
• There is a marked swelling of the lymph nodes. 淋巴结处有明显的肿块。

9 ted   

vt.翻晒，撒，撒开

参考例句：

• The invaders gut ted the village.侵略者把村中财物洗劫一空。
• She often teds the corn when it's sunny.天好的时候她就翻晒玉米。