I’ve liv’d with low and high,
But ne’er knew I a thing so dear
As my own Mother’s eye!
It swell’d with grief, when grief was mine;
It beam’d, when joy was given;
On earth no sun like it could shine—
How glows it now, in Heaven!
“How changed to my eye was now that mountain road, by which, in the early morning, I had hastened, full of joy and expectation, to Hawkshead School! Not that there was any change in reality; for the evening sun shone as bright in the West over my returning path, as its morning beams had gilded1 my eastern track. The cows were once more lowing in the valleys for the evening milking. The cuckoos were shouting to each other from glen to glen, as if they alone had a right to be heard in their own domain2. The lark3 was whistling a highland4 fling in the sunbeams, and dancing to his own merry music in the very centre of the sky. But all this was lost upon me; for my spirits had sunk to the very lowest point of despair, and I was thinking, in melancholy5 sadness, of the reception I should meet with at home, all black and bruised6 as I was; and of the blank which would sadden my poor mother’s face, when she hastened to meet me, and hear my account of the adventures of the day. My little companions, to do them justice, sympathized with my feelings; for though they said little to comfort me, yet they restrained their boyish mirth within a reasonable compass; and tried to conduct themselves as if nothing particular had happened—all that could be expected from youths like them. I shall never forget my p. 23feelings when Dash rushed out, wagging his tail, and bounding with joy at my approach, and then, suddenly looking me in the face, turned round with his tail between his legs, and ran into the house as though he had been guilty of some serious doggish fault, and expected instant chastisement7! ‘Surely,’ thought I, ‘if Dash does not know me, my own mother wont8!’ and so it proved; for at first sight she hardly recollected9 who it was, so changed was I in appearance. But her experience in the history of schoolboys was much greater than my own; and I saw at once that she comprehended the whole matter before I had said a word to her. She looked deadly pale for a moment; but all she said was,—‘My dear boy, are you to blame for this?’ ‘No, mother, I am NOT,’ said I, with a firmness which I saw at once carried conviction to her heart, and I felt I had made peace with one of my parents. But the worst, I knew, and so did my mother, was yet to come. My father was of another stamp, and viewed matters in another light. He saw, too, and comprehended at a glance what had happened; but, quite independent of the right or wrong of the question, his determination was that all such proceedings11 should be put down with the strong hand. I saw, therefore, that I was to be severely12 beaten; for my father was not one who did these things by halves. It was not anger, it was not want of feeling, that impelled13 him to this course; it was a strong, though in this case surely a mistaken, sense of duty. My mother and I, both knowing his character and feelings, knew it was in vain to remonstrate14; so I stood with terror, and my poor mother stood as pale as death, prepared for the worst. Just at that moment, and when the feelings of all the party, my father’s included, were almost past endurance, the door flew open with some violence, and Joshua Prince stood in the middle of the room! ‘Dont strike the boy,’ said he, in a firm voice that seemed resolved to be listened to, ‘dont strike the boy, for he does not deserve it.’ Had an angel from heaven appeared to us at that moment, my mother and I could not have been more p. 24delighted, nor hardly more startled than we at first were at his most unexpected and most timely appearance; and in truth, I believe my father was not the least relieved of the whole party. The uplifted rod dropped by his side, as it were by instinct; and he looked at Joshua with an expression of respect which led me to hope that the crisis of my fate was past. In the neighbourhood of large grammar schools there is always much interest felt in their proceedings among those inhabitants of the district who have little or no immediate15 connexion with them. They are proud of the success of the best scholars—even those who are no scholars whatever themselves—and the head boy of a school is always spoken of with great respect, especially by those who are in any way connected with the place, either through their children or their own early education. My father, therefore, had a strong feeling of almost reverence16 for Joshua Prince, though he had hardly ever seen him before; and would have at once obeyed him, even in a matter less agreeable to his feelings. The rod, therefore, at once fell idly to his side.
“‘I thought it possible,’ continued Joshua, ‘that you might beat him, and so I came to tell you that he does not deserve it. He was ill-used by Tom Hebblethwaite, and he fought like a man. Send him to school to-morrow, and I will see that he comes by no harm—good night!’—and Joshua disappeared in the gloom. Now, sir, you may talk of great and generous actions, but I do not think you will easily mention one which, as far as it goes, will surpass this of Joshua Prince. You will recollect10 that he was, after all, but a boy; young and thoughtless; delighted with the battle, and pleased that he had done justice to the conqueror17, if such I could be called. He lived down the valley towards Newby Bridge, nearly four miles from school, and in almost an opposite direction to Yewdale. Yet all at once, when more than half way home, and with the prospect18 of supper before a hungry boy brightening as he goes, it flashes across his mind that I may possibly be chastised19 undeservedly for the day’s occurrences, and he hesitates not a p. 25moment as to what steps he should take. He turns aside across hill and valley, bog20 and stream, where there is no footpath21 even for the goat, forgets his supper and his evening fishing-rod, and all to save a little boy whom he never saw before from a beating which, from its frequency at school, and from the way in which he had encouraged the battle, he might have been expected to care very little about. Nor was it the beating that he cared about. It was its injustice22 that dwelt upon his mind. The brave have an instinctive23 admiration24 of bravery; and he did not like to think that the little boy should be ill-used, or rather misunderstood, who had shown such firmness and courage in the school-yard. These were Joshua’s motives25; and verily he had his reward. The gratitude26 towards him of our whole family, including my sister, (of whom I shall speak by and by,) was such that there was nothing that we would not have done for his sake. Yet he never seemed to expect any thing; or to show that he thought himself to have done any thing extraordinary. He paid me very little attention at school; none, in fact, beyond what he showed to most of the younger boys; except that when any injury was attempted towards me by any of those who were stronger than myself, he was always ready to see justice done me. Favouritism he scrupulously27 avoided. An acquaintance between us thus commenced, which ripened28 almost into friendship as I grew older, and before he left us for college. But, what is most remarkable29, his kindness towards me seemed to increase, rather than diminish, by absence. Many a kind message of advice did he send me by fellow-pupils while I remained at school; and he has more than once visited me in my quiet dwelling30 in Salford, though he has had an earl’s son under his care; and has brought him to see the ways of Manchester, and taught him to sympathize with its toiling31 population. These, sir, are the links, which bind32 all the parts of English society together, stronger than chains of brass33! These good old schools are like rivets34 which run through the whole body politic35; hence it was that the earl’s son, p. 26Joshua Prince, and your humble36 servant, became fast friends for life!”
The old man’s face glowed as he said this, with a feeling which showed that he was a patriot37 to the back bone. His poverty, and his age, in the ardour of the moment, were quite forgotten.—His school-days were as fresh on his mind as if they had hardly yet passed away; and I felt thankful to Providence38 as I experienced how deeply he has infused happiness into natures and conditions where the hasty observer might scarcely be able to observe a trace of it.
He continued—“I will not detain you longer with the history of my school-days; I have something far more important, and I hope, more interesting to speak of,—my first religious impressions. But I cannot help just mentioning one early companion who was soon lost to us all, but whose character made a deep impression upon myself and many of my school-fellows. He was but the son of a poor labourer, but showed an early talent for poetry, and produced some pieces of very great merit, which I wish I could recollect now, as they would be a comfort to me in my solitary39 hours; but he sank, in decline, to an early grave; and all his verses, I fear, died with him; for though many of his poems were committed by his school-fellows to memory, yet none have recorded any of them in writing.”
“Your story,” said I, “reminds me of an exactly similar case, (and doubtless there are hundreds such,) which happened nearly thirty years ago, at a school very like your own,—that of Richmond, in Yorkshire. Poor Herbert Knowles was, like your young companion, taken from one of the lowest stations in life, and sent by kind friends to Richmond school, with the intention of his being afterwards removed to college. But the hand of death was upon him. He was of a gentle and pious40 mind, and of a sickly frame. He knew that his days were fast drawing to a close, and a few weeks before he died he wrote the following verses at night in Richmond Church-yard, which show the way in which he looked p. 27death in the face, and the faith and hope which pointed41 beyond the grave. As you are fond of poetry, I will repeat the verses to you, and they may perhaps somewhat console you for the loss of your friend’s:—
‘LINES WRITTEN IN THE CHURCH-YARD OF RICHMOND,
YORKSHIRE, BY HERBERT KNOWLES.
It is good for us to be here: if Thou wilt42 let us make here three tabernacles, one for Thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias. Matthew, xvii. 4.
Methinks it is good to be here;
If Thou wilt, let us build: but for whom?
Nor Elias nor Moses appear,
But the shadows of eve that encompass43 the gloom,
The abode44 of the dead, and the place of the tomb.
Shall we build to Ambition! Oh, no!
Affrighted he shrinketh away:
For see, they would pin him below
In a small narrow cave, and begirt with cold clay,
To the meanest of reptiles45 a peer and a prey46.
To Beauty! Ah, no! she forgets
The charms which she wielded47 before;
Nor knows the foul48 worm that he frets49
The skin which but yesterday fools could adore
For the smoothness it held, or the tint50 which it wore.
Shall we build to the purple of Pride,
The trappings which dizen the proud?
Alas51! they are all laid aside;
And here’s neither dress nor adornment52 allow’d
But the long winding-sheet, and the fringe of the shroud53.
To Riches? Alas! ’tis in vain;
Who hid, in their turns have been hid:
The treasures are squandered54 again,
And here in the grave are all metals forbid
But the tinsel that shone on the dark coffin-lid.
To the pleasures which Mirth can afford?
The revel55, the laugh, and the jeer56?
Ah! here is a plentiful57 board,
But the guests are all mute at their pitiful cheer,
And none but the worm is a reveller58 here.
p. 28Shall we build to Affection and Love?
Ah no! they have wither’d and died,
Or fled with the spirit above:
Friends, brothers, and sisters are laid side by side,
Yet none have saluted59, and none have replied.
Unto Sorrow? The dead cannot grieve,
Not a sob60, not a sigh meets mine ear,
Which compassion61 itself could relieve:
Ah, sweetly they slumber62, nor hope, love, nor fear;
Peace, peace is the watch-word, the only one here.
Unto Death, to whom monarchs63 must bow?
Ah, no! for his empire is known;
And here there are trophies64 enow:
Beneath, the cold dead, and around, the dark stone,
Are the signs of a sceptre that none may disown.
The first Tabernacle to Hope we will build,
And look for the sleepers65 around us to rise;
The second to Faith, which insures it fulfill’d;
And the third to the Lamb of the great sacrifice,
Who bequeath’d us them both when He rose to the skies!’”
“This is poetry,” exclaimed the old man, when I had finished reciting the above beautiful lines,—“and piety66 as well as poetry. The youth who, with his own death full in view, could give utterance67 to such holy thoughts, and in the darkness of the night, with the dead of old lying around him and beneath his feet, must surely be gone to heaven!”
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1
gilded
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| a.镀金的，富有的 | |
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domain
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| n.(活动等)领域，范围；领地，势力范围 | |
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lark
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| n.云雀，百灵鸟；n.嬉戏，玩笑；vi.嬉戏 | |
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4
highland
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| n.(pl.)高地，山地 | |
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melancholy
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| n.忧郁，愁思；adj.令人感伤（沮丧）的，忧郁的 | |
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6
bruised
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| [医]青肿的，瘀紫的 | |
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chastisement
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| n.惩罚 | |
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8
wont
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| adj.习惯于；v.习惯；n.习惯 | |
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9
recollected
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| adj.冷静的；镇定的；被回忆起的；沉思默想的v.记起，想起( recollect的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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10
recollect
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| v.回忆，想起，记起，忆起，记得 | |
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11
proceedings
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| n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报 | |
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12
severely
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| adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地 | |
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impelled
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| v.推动、推进或敦促某人做某事( impel的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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14
remonstrate
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| v.抗议，规劝 | |
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15
immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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16
reverence
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| n.敬畏，尊敬，尊严；Reverence:对某些基督教神职人员的尊称；v.尊敬，敬畏，崇敬 | |
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17
conqueror
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| n.征服者，胜利者 | |
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18
prospect
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| n.前景，前途；景色，视野 | |
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19
chastised
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| v.严惩（某人）（尤指责打）( chastise的过去式 ) | |
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bog
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| n.沼泽；室...陷入泥淖 | |
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footpath
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| n.小路，人行道 | |
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injustice
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| n.非正义，不公正，不公平，侵犯（别人的）权利 | |
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instinctive
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| adj.(出于)本能的；直觉的；(出于)天性的 | |
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admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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25
motives
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| n.动机，目的( motive的名词复数 ) | |
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gratitude
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| adj.感激，感谢 | |
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scrupulously
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| adv.一丝不苟地；小心翼翼地，多顾虑地 | |
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28
ripened
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| v.成熟，使熟( ripen的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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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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30
dwelling
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| n.住宅，住所，寓所 | |
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31
toiling
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| 长时间或辛苦地工作( toil的现在分词 )； 艰难缓慢地移动，跋涉 | |
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32
bind
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| vt.捆，包扎；装订；约束；使凝固；vi.变硬 | |
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33
brass
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| n.黄铜；黄铜器，铜管乐器 | |
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34
rivets
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| 铆钉( rivet的名词复数 ) | |
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35
politic
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| adj.有智虑的；精明的；v.从政 | |
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36
humble
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| adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低 | |
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patriot
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| n.爱国者，爱国主义者 | |
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providence
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| n.深谋远虑，天道，天意；远见；节约；上帝 | |
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39
solitary
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| adj.孤独的，独立的，荒凉的；n.隐士 | |
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40
pious
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| adj.虔诚的；道貌岸然的 | |
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41
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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42
wilt
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| v.(使)植物凋谢或枯萎；(指人)疲倦，衰弱 | |
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43
encompass
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| vt.围绕，包围；包含，包括；完成 | |
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44
abode
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| n.住处，住所 | |
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reptiles
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| n.爬行动物，爬虫( reptile的名词复数 ) | |
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46
prey
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| n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨 | |
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47
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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48
foul
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| adj.污秽的；邪恶的；v.弄脏；妨害；犯规；n.犯规 | |
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49
frets
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| 基质间片； 品丝（吉他等指板上定音的）( fret的名词复数 ) | |
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50
tint
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| n.淡色，浅色；染发剂；vt.着以淡淡的颜色 | |
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51
alas
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| int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等) | |
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52
adornment
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| n.装饰；装饰品 | |
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53
shroud
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| n.裹尸布，寿衣；罩，幕；vt.覆盖，隐藏 | |
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54
squandered
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| v.（指钱，财产等）浪费，乱花( squander的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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55
revel
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| vi.狂欢作乐，陶醉；n.作乐，狂欢 | |
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56
jeer
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| vi.嘲弄，揶揄；vt.奚落；n.嘲笑，讥评 | |
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57
plentiful
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| adj.富裕的，丰富的 | |
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58
reveller
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| n.摆设酒宴者，饮酒狂欢者 | |
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59
saluted
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| v.欢迎，致敬( salute的过去式和过去分词 )；赞扬，赞颂 | |
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60
sob
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| n.空间轨道的轰炸机；呜咽，哭泣 | |
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61
compassion
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| n.同情，怜悯 | |
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62
slumber
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| n.睡眠，沉睡状态 | |
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63
monarchs
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| 君主，帝王( monarch的名词复数 ) | |
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64
trophies
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| n.（为竞赛获胜者颁发的）奖品( trophy的名词复数 )；奖杯；（尤指狩猎或战争中获得的）纪念品；（用于比赛或赛跑名称）奖 | |
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65
sleepers
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| n.卧铺（通常以复数形式出现）；卧车( sleeper的名词复数 )；轨枕；睡觉（呈某种状态）的人；小耳环 | |
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66
piety
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| n.虔诚，虔敬 | |
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utterance
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| n.用言语表达，话语，言语 | |
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