NORTH DORMER'S celebration naturally included thevillages attached to its township, and the festivitieswere to radiate over the whole group, from Dormer andthe two Crestons to Hamblin, the lonely hamlet on thenorth slope of the Mountain where the first snow alwaysfell. On the third day there were speeches andceremonies at Creston and Creston River; on the fourththe principal performers were to be driven in buck-boards to Dormer and Hamblin.
It was on the fourth day that Charity returned for thefirst time to the little house. She had not seenHarney alone since they had parted at the wood's edgethe night before the celebrations began. In theinterval she had passed through many moods, but for themoment the terror which had seized her in the Town Hallhad faded to the edge of consciousness. She hadfainted because the hall was stiflingly1 hot, andbecause the speakers had gone on and on....Severalother people had been affected2 by the heat, andhad had to leave before the exercises were over. Therehad been thunder in the air all the afternoon, andeveryone said afterward3 that something ought to havebeen done to ventilate the hall....
At the dance that evening--where she had gonereluctantly, and only because she feared to stay away,she had sprung back into instant reassurance4. As soonas she entered she had seen Harney waiting for her, andhe had come up with kind gay eyes, and swept her off ina waltz. Her feet were full of music, and though heronly training had been with the village youths she hadno difficulty in tuning5 her steps to his. As theycircled about the floor all her vain fears dropped fromher, and she even forgot that she was probably dancingin Annabel Balch's slippers6.
When the waltz was over Harney, with a last hand-clasp,left her to meet Miss Hatchard and Miss Balch, who werejust entering. Charity had a moment of anguish7 as MissBalch appeared; but it did not last. The triumphantfact of her own greater beauty, and of Harney's senseof it, swept her apprehensions8 aside. Miss Balch, inan unbecoming dress, looked sallow and pinched, andCharity fancied there was a worried expression inher pale-lashed eyes. She took a seat near MissHatchard and it was presently apparent that she did notmean to dance. Charity did not dance often either.
Harney explained to her that Miss Hatchard had beggedhim to give each of the other girls a turn; but he wentthrough the form of asking Charity's permission eachtime he led one out, and that gave her a sense ofsecret triumph even completer than when she waswhirling about the room with him.
She was thinking of all this as she waited for him inthe deserted9 house. The late afternoon was sultry, andshe had tossed aside her hat and stretched herself atfull length on the Mexican blanket because it wascooler indoors than under the trees. She lay with herarms folded beneath her head, gazing out at the shaggyshoulder of the Mountain. The sky behind it was fullof the splintered glories of the descending10 sun, andbefore long she expected to hear Harney's bicycle-bellin the lane. He had bicycled to Hamblin, instead ofdriving there with his cousin and her friends, so thathe might be able to make his escape earlier and stop onthe way back at the deserted house, which was onthe road to Hamblin. They had smiled together at thejoke of hearing the crowded buck-boards roll by on thereturn, while they lay close in their hiding above theroad. Such childish triumphs still gave her a sense ofreckless security.
Nevertheless she had not wholly forgotten the vision offear that had opened before her in the Town Hall. Thesense of lastingness11 was gone from her and every momentwith Harney would now be ringed with doubt.
The Mountain was turning purple against a fiery12 sunsetfrom which it seemed to be divided by a knife-edge ofquivering light; and above this wall of flame the wholesky was a pure pale green, like some cold mountain lakein shadow. Charity lay gazing up at it, and watchingfor the first white star....
Her eyes were still fixed13 on the upper reaches of thesky when she became aware that a shadow had flittedacross the glory-flooded room: it must have been Harneypassing the window against the sunset....She halfraised herself, and then dropped back on her foldedarms. The combs had slipped from her hair, and ittrailed in a rough dark rope across her breast. Shelay quite still, a sleepy smile on her lips, herindolent lids half shut. There was a fumbling14 at thepadlock and she called out: "Have you slipped thechain?" The door opened, and Mr. Royall walked into theroom.
She started up, sitting back against the cushions, andthey looked at each other without speaking. Then Mr.
Royall closed the door-latch15 and advanced a few steps.
Charity jumped to her feet. "What have you come for?"she stammered16.
The last glare of the sunset was on her guardian'sface, which looked ash-coloured in the yellow radiance.
"Because I knew you were here," he answered simply.
She had become conscious of the hair hanging looseacross her breast, and it seemed as though she couldnot speak to him till she had set herself in order. Shegroped for her comb, and tried to fasten up the coil.
Mr. Royall silently watched her.
"Charity," he said, "he'll be here in a minute. Let metalk to you first.""You've got no right to talk to me. I can do what Iplease.""Yes. What is it you mean to do?""I needn't answer that, or anything else."He had glanced away, and stood looking curiously17 aboutthe illuminated18 room. Purple asters and red maple-leaves filled the jar on the table; on a shelf againstthe wall stood a lamp, the kettle, a little pile ofcups and saucers. The canvas chairs were groupedabout the table.
"So this is where you meet," he said.
His tone was quiet and controlled, and the factdisconcerted her. She had been ready to give himviolence for violence, but this calm acceptance ofthings as they were left her without a weapon.
"See here, Charity--you're always telling me I've gotno rights over you. There might be two ways of lookingat that--but I ain't going to argue it. All I know isI raised you as good as I could, and meant fairly byyou always except once, for a bad half-hour. There'sno justice in weighing that half-hour against the rest,and you know it. If you hadn't, you wouldn't have goneon living under my roof. Seems to me the fact of yourdoing that gives me some sort of a right; the right totry and keep you out of trouble. I'm not asking you toconsider any other."She listened in silence, and then gave a slightlaugh. "Better wait till I'm in trouble," shesaid. He paused a moment, as if weighing her words.
"Is that all your answer?""Yes, that's all.""Well--I'll wait."He turned away slowly, but as he did so the thing shehad been waiting for happened; the door opened againand Harney entered.
He stopped short with a face of astonishment19, and then,quickly controlling himself, went up to Mr. Royall witha frank look.
"Have you come to see me, sir?" he said coolly,throwing his cap on the table with an air ofproprietorship.
Mr. Royall again looked slowly about the room; then hiseyes turned to the young man.
"Is this your house?" he inquired.
Harney laughed: "Well--as much as it's anybody's. Icome here to sketch20 occasionally.""And to receive Miss Royall's visits?""When she does me the honour----""Is this the home you propose to bring her to when youget married?"There was an immense and oppressive silence. Charity,quivering with anger, started forward, and thenstood silent, too humbled21 for speech. Harney's eyeshad dropped under the old man's gaze; but he raisedthem presently, and looking steadily22 at Mr. Royall,said: "Miss Royall is not a child. Isn't it ratherabsurd to talk of her as if she were? I believe sheconsiders herself free to come and go as she pleases,without any questions from anyone." He paused andadded: "I'm ready to answer any she wishes to ask me."Mr. Royall turned to her. "Ask him when he's going tomarry you, then----" There was another silence, and helaughed in his turn--a broken laugh, with a scrapingsound in it. "You darsn't!" he shouted out with suddenpassion. He went close up to Charity, his right armlifted, not in menace but in tragic23 exhortation24.
"You darsn't, and you know it--and you know why!" Heswung back again upon the young man. "And you know whyyou ain't asked her to marry you, and why you don'tmean to. It's because you hadn't need to; nor anyother man either. I'm the only one that was foolenough not to know that; and I guess nobody'll repeatmy mistake--not in Eagle County, anyhow. They all knowwhat she is, and what she came from. They all know hermother was a woman of the town from Nettleton,that followed one of those Mountain fellows up to hisplace and lived there with him like a heathen. I sawher there sixteen years ago, when I went to bring thischild down. I went to save her from the kind of lifeher mother was leading--but I'd better have left her inthe kennel25 she came from...." He paused and stareddarkly at the two young people, and out beyond them, atthe menacing Mountain with its rim26 of fire; then he satdown beside the table on which they had so often spreadtheir rustic27 supper, and covered his face with hishands. Harney leaned in the window, a frown on hisface: he was twirling between his fingers a smallpackage that dangled28 from a loop of string....Charityheard Mr. Royall draw a hard breath or two, and hisshoulders shook a little. Presently he stood up andwalked across the room. He did not look again at theyoung people: they saw him feel his way to the door andfumble for the latch; and then he went out into thedarkness.
After he had gone there was a long silence. Charitywaited for Harney to speak; but he seemed at first notto find anything to say. At length he broke outirrelevantly: "I wonder how he found out?"She made no answer and he tossed down the package hehad been holding, and went up to her.
"I'm so sorry, dear...that this should havehappened...."She threw her head back proudly. "I ain't ever beensorry--not a minute!""No."She waited to be caught into his arms, but he turnedaway from her irresolutely29. The last glow was gonefrom behind the Mountain. Everything in the room hadturned grey and indistinct, and an autumnal dampnesscrept up from the hollow below the orchard30, laying itscold touch on their flushed faces. Harney walked thelength of the room, and then turned back and sat downat the table.
"Come," he said imperiously.
She sat down beside him, and he untied31 the string aboutthe package and spread out a pile of sandwiches.
"I stole them from the love-feast at Hamblin," he saidwith a laugh, pushing them over to her. She laughedtoo, and took one, and began to eat"Didn't you make the tea?""No," she said. "I forgot----""Oh, well--it's too late to boil the water now." Hesaid nothing more, and sitting opposite to each otherthey went on silently eating the sandwiches. Darknesshad descended32 in the little room, and Harney's face wasa dim blur33 to Charity. Suddenly he leaned across thetable and laid his hand on hers.
"I shall have to go off for a while--a month or two,perhaps--to arrange some things; and then I'll comeback...and we'll get married."His voice seemed like a stranger's: nothing was left init of the vibrations34 she knew. Her hand lay inertlyunder his, and she left it there, and raised her head,trying to answer him. But the words died in herthroat. They sat motionless, in their attitude ofconfident endearment35, as if some strange death hadsurprised them. At length Harney sprang to his feetwith a slight shiver. "God! it's damp--we couldn'thave come here much longer." He went to the shelf, tookdown a tin candle-stick and lit the candle; then hepropped an unhinged shutter36 against the empty window-frame and put the candle on the table. It threw aqueer shadow on his frowning forehead, and made thesmile on his lips a grimace37.
"But it's been good, though, hasn't it,Charity?...What's the matter--why do you stand therestaring at me? Haven't the days here been good?" Hewent up to her and caught her to his breast. "Andthere'll be others--lots of others...jollier...evenjollier...won't there, darling?"He turned her head back, feeling for the curve of herthroat below the ear, and kissing here there, and onthe hair and eyes and lips. She clung to himdesperately, and as he drew her to his knees on thecouch she felt as if they were being sucked downtogether into some bottomless abyss.
收听单词发音 |
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stiflingly
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| adv. 令人窒息地(气闷地，沉闷地) | |
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affected
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| adj.不自然的，假装的 | |
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afterward
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| adv.后来；以后 | |
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reassurance
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| n.使放心，使消除疑虑 | |
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tuning
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| n.调谐，调整，调音v.调音( tune的现在分词 )；调整；（给收音机、电视等）调谐；使协调 | |
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slippers
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| n. 拖鞋 | |
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anguish
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| n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦，烦恼 | |
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apprehensions
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| 疑惧 | |
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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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descending
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| n. 下行 adj. 下降的 | |
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lastingness
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| 耐久 | |
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fiery
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| adj.燃烧着的，火红的；暴躁的；激烈的 | |
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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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fumbling
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| n. 摸索,漏接 v. 摸索,摸弄,笨拙的处理 | |
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latch
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| n.门闩，窗闩；弹簧锁 | |
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stammered
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| v.结巴地说出( stammer的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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curiously
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| adv.有求知欲地；好问地；奇特地 | |
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illuminated
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| adj.被照明的；受启迪的 | |
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astonishment
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| n.惊奇，惊异 | |
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sketch
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| n.草图；梗概；素描；v.素描；概述 | |
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humbled
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| adj. 卑下的，谦逊的，粗陋的 vt. 使 ... 卑下，贬低 | |
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steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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tragic
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| adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的 | |
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exhortation
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| n.劝告，规劝 | |
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kennel
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| n.狗舍，狗窝 | |
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rim
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| n.(圆物的)边，轮缘；边界 | |
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rustic
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| adj.乡村的，有乡村特色的；n.乡下人，乡巴佬 | |
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dangled
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| 悬吊着( dangle的过去式和过去分词 )； 摆动不定； 用某事物诱惑…； 吊胃口 | |
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irresolutely
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| adv.优柔寡断地 | |
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orchard
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| n.果园，果园里的全部果树，(美俚)棒球场 | |
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untied
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| 松开，解开( untie的过去式和过去分词 )； 解除，使自由； 解决 | |
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descended
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| a.为...后裔的，出身于...的 | |
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blur
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| n.模糊不清的事物；vt.使模糊，使看不清楚 | |
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vibrations
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| n.摆动( vibration的名词复数 )；震动；感受；（偏离平衡位置的）一次性往复振动 | |
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endearment
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| n.表示亲爱的行为 | |
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shutter
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| n.百叶窗；(照相机)快门；关闭装置 | |
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grimace
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| v.做鬼脸，面部歪扭 | |
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