I walked past the house, and took several turns in the street, with that kind of hesitation5 which is natural to a man who is conscious that the visit he is about to pay is unexpected, and may not be very acceptable. However, as the door of the shop was shut, and it did not appear likely that I should be recognized by those within, if I continued merely to pass up and down before it, I soon conquered this irresolution6, and found myself in the Curiosity Dealer’s warehouse7.
The old man and another person were together in the back part, and there seemed to have been high words between them, for their voices which were raised to a very high pitch suddenly stopped on my entering, and the old man advancing hastily towards me, said in a tremulous tone that he was very glad I had come.
‘You interrupted us at a critical moment,’ said he, pointing to the man whom I had found in company with him; ‘this fellow will murder me one of these days. He would have done so, long ago, if he had dared.’
‘Bah! You would swear away my life if you could,’ returned the other, after bestowing8 a stare and a frown on me; ‘we all know that!’
‘I almost think I could,’ cried the old man, turning feebly upon him. ‘If oaths, or prayers, or words, could rid me of you, they should. I would be quit of you, and would be relieved if you were dead.’
‘I know it,’ returned the other. ‘I said so, didn’t I? But neither oaths, or prayers, nor words, WILL kill me, and therefore I live, and mean to live.’
‘And his mother died!’ cried the old man, passionately9 clasping his hands and looking upward; ‘and this is Heaven’s justice!’
The other stood lunging with his foot upon a chair, and regarded him with a contemptuous sneer10. He was a young man of one-and-twenty or thereabouts; well made, and certainly handsome, though the expression of his face was far from prepossessing, having in common with his manner and even his dress, a dissipated, insolent11 air which repelled12 one.
‘Justice or no justice,’ said the young fellow, ‘here I am and here I shall stop till such time as I think fit to go, unless you send for assistance to put me out — which you won’t do, I know. I tell you again that I want to see my sister.’
‘YOUR sister!’ said the old man bitterly.
‘Ah! You can’t change the relationship,’ returned the other. ‘If you could, you’d have done it long ago. I want to see my sister, that you keep cooped up here, poisoning her mind with your sly secrets and pretending an affection for her that you may work her to death, and add a few scraped shillings every week to the money you can hardly count. I want to see her; and I will.’
‘Here’s a moralist to talk of poisoned minds! Here’s a generous spirit to scorn scraped-up shillings!’ cried the old man, turning from him to me. ‘A profligate13, sir, who has forfeited14 every claim not only upon those who have the misfortune to be of his blood, but upon society which knows nothing of him but his misdeeds. A liar15 too,’ he added, in a lower voice as he drew closer to me, ‘who knows how dear she is to me, and seeks to wound me even there, because there is a stranger nearby.’
‘Strangers are nothing to me, grandfather,’ said the young fellow catching16 at the word, ‘nor I to them, I hope. The best they can do, is to keep an eye to their business and leave me to mind. There’s a friend of mine waiting outside, and as it seems that I may have to wait some time, I’ll call him in, with your leave.’
Saying this, he stepped to the door, and looking down the street beckoned17 several times to some unseen person, who, to judge from the air of impatience18 with which these signals were accompanied, required a great quantity of persuasion19 to induce him to advance. At length there sauntered up, on the opposite side of the way — with a bad pretense20 of passing by accident — a figure conspicuous21 for its dirty smartness, which after a great many frowns and jerks of the head, in resistence of the invitation, ultimately crossed the road and was brought into the shop.
‘There. It’s Dick Swiveller,’ said the young fellow, pushing him in. ‘Sit down, Swiveller.’
‘But is the old min agreeable?’ said Mr Swiveller in an undertone.
Mr Swiveller complied, and looking about him with a propritiatory smile, observed that last week was a fine week for the ducks, and this week was a fine week for the dust; he also observed that whilst standing22 by the post at the street-corner, he had observed a pig with a straw in his mouth issuing out of the tobacco-shop, from which appearance he augured23 that another fine week for the ducks was approaching, and that rain would certainly ensue. He furthermore took occasion to apologize for any negligence24 that might be perceptible in his dress, on the ground that last night he had had ‘the sun very strong in his eyes’; by which expression he was understood to convey to his hearers in the most delicate manner possible, the information that he had been extremely drunk.
‘But what,’ said Mr Swiveller with a sigh, ‘what is the odds25 so long as the fire of soul is kindled26 at the taper27 of conwiviality, and the wing of friendship never moults a feather! What is the odds so long as the spirit is expanded by means of rosy28 wine, and the present moment is the least happiest of our existence!’
‘You needn’t act the chairman here,’ said his friend, half aside.
‘Fred!’ cried Mr Swiveller, tapping his nose, ‘a word to the wise is sufficient for them — we may be good and happy without riches, Fred. Say not another syllable29. I know my cue; smart is the word. Only one little whisper, Fred — is the old min friendly?’
‘Never you mind,’ repled his friend.
‘Right again, quite right,’ said Mr Swiveller, ‘caution is the word, and caution is the act.’ with that, he winked30 as if in preservation31 of some deep secret, and folding his arms and leaning back in his chair, looked up at the ceiling with profound gravity.
It was perhaps not very unreasonable32 to suspect from what had already passed, that Mr Swiveller was not quite recovered from the effects of the powerful sunlight to which he had made allusion33; but if no such suspicion had been awakened34 by his speech, his wiry hair, dull eyes, and sallow face would still have been strong witnesses against him. His attire35 was not, as he had himself hinted, remarkable36 for the nicest arrangement, but was in a state of disorder37 which strongly induced the idea that he had gone to bed in it. It consisted of a brown body-coat with a great many brass38 buttons up the front and only one behind, a bright check neckerchief, a plaid waistcoat, soiled white trousers, and a very limp hat, worn with the wrong side foremost, to hide a hole in the brim. The breast of his coat was ornamented39 with an outside pocket from which there peeped forth40 the cleanest end of a very large and very ill-favoured handkerchief; his dirty wristbands were pulled on as far as possible and ostentatiously folded back over his cuffs41; he displayed no gloves, and carried a yellow cane42 having at the top a bone hand with the semblance43 of a ring on its little finger and a black ball in its grasp. With all these personal advantages (to which may be added a strong savour of tobacco-smoke, and a prevailing44 greasiness45 of appearance) Mr Swiveller leant back in his chair with his eyes fixed46 on the ceiling, and occasionally pitching his voice to the needful key, obliged the company with a few bars of an intensely dismal47 air, and then, in the middle of a note, relapsed into his former silence.
The old man sat himself down in a chair, and with folded hands, looked sometimes at his grandson and sometimes at his strange companion, as if he were utterly48 powerless and had no resource but to leave them to do as they pleased. The young man reclined against a table at no great distance from his friend, in apparent indifference49 to everything that had passed; and I— who felt the difficulty of any interference, notwithstanding that the old man had appealed to me, both by words and looks — made the best feint I could of being occupied in examining some of the goods that were disposed for sale, and paying very little attention to a person before me.
The silence was not of long duration, for Mr Swiveller, after favouring us with several melodious50 assurances that his heart was in the Highlands, and that he wanted but his Arab steed as a preliminary to the achievement of great feats51 of valour and loyalty52, removed his eyes from the ceiling and subsided53 into prose again.
‘Fred,’ said Mr Swiveller stopping short, as if the idea had suddenly occurred to him, and speaking in the same audible whisper as before, ‘is the old min friendly?’
‘What does it matter?’ returned his friend peevishly54.
‘No, but IS he?’ said Dick.
‘Yes, of course. What do I care whether he is or not?’
Emboldened55 as it seemed by this reply to enter into a more general conversation, Mr Swiveller plainly laid himself out to captivate our attention.
He began by remarking that soda-water, though a good thing in the abstract, was apt to lie cold upon the stomach unless qualified56 with ginger57, or a small infusion58 of brandy, which latter article he held to be preferable in all cases, saving for the one consideration of expense. Nobody venturing to dispute these positions, he proceeded to observe that the human hair was a great retainer of tobacco-smoke, and that the young gentlemen of Westminster and Eton, after eating vast quantities of apples to conceal59 any scent60 of cigars from their anxious friends, were usually detected in consequence of their heads possessing this remarkable property; when he concluded that if the Royal Society would turn their attention to the circumstance, and endeavour to find in the resources of science a means of preventing such untoward61 revelations, they might indeed be looked upon as benefactors62 to mankind. These opinions being equally incontrovertible with those he had already pronounced, he went on to inform us that Jamaica rum, though unquestionably an agreeable spirit of great richness and flavour, had the drawback of remaining constantly present to the taste next day; and nobody being venturous enough to argue this point either, he increased in confidence and became yet more companionable and communicative.
‘It’s a devil of a thing, gentlemen,’ said Mr Swiveller, ‘when relations fall out and disagree. If the wing of friendship should never moult a feather, the wing of relationship should never be clipped, but be always expanded and serene63. Why should a grandson and grandfather peg64 away at each other with mutual65 wiolence when all might be bliss66 and concord67. Why not jine hands and forgit it?’
‘Hold your tongue,’ said his friend.
‘Sir,’ replied Mr Swiveller, ‘don’t you interrupt the chair. Gentlemen, how does the case stand, upon the present occasion? Here is a jolly old grandfather — I say it with the utmost respect — and here is a wild, young grandson. The jolly old grandfather says to the wild young grandson, ‘I have brought you up and educated you, Fred; I have put you in the way of getting on in life; you have bolted a little out of course, as young fellows often do; and you shall never have another chance, nor the ghost of half a one.’ The wild young grandson makes answer to this and says, ‘You’re as rich as rich can be; you have been at no uncommon68 expense on my account, you’re saving up piles of money for my little sister that lives with you in a secret, stealthy, hugger-muggering kind of way and with no manner of enjoyment69 — why can’t you stand a trifle for your grown-up relation?’ The jolly old grandfather unto this, retorts, not only that he declines to fork out with that cheerful readiness which is always so agreeable and pleasant in a gentleman of his time of life, but that he will bow up, and call names, and make reflections whenever they meet. Then the plain question is, an’t it a pity that this state of things should continue, and how much better would it be for the gentleman to hand over a reasonable amount of tin, and make it all right and comfortable?’
Having delivered this oration70 with a great many waves and flourishes of the hand, Mr Swiveller abruptly71 thrust the head of his cane into his mouth as if to prevent himself from impairing72 the effect of his speech by adding one other word.
‘Why do you hunt and persecute73 me, God help me!’ said the old man turning to his grandson. ‘Why do you bring your prolifigate companions here? How often am I to tell you that my life is one of care and self-denial, and that I am poor?’
‘How often am I to tell you,’ returned the other, looking coldly at him, ‘that I know better?’
‘You have chosen your own path,’ said the old man. ‘Follow it. Leave Nell and me to toil74 and work.’
‘Nell will be a woman soon,’ returned the other, ‘and, bred in your faith, she’ll forget her brother unless he shows himself sometimes.’
‘Take care,’ said the old man with sparkling eyes, ‘that she does not forget you when you would have her memory keenest. Take care that the day don’t come when you walk barefoot in the streets, and she rides by in a gay carriage of her own.’
‘You mean when she has your money?’ retorted the other. ‘How like a poor man he talks!’
‘And yet,’ said the old man dropping his voice and speaking like one who thinks aloud, ‘how poor we are, and what a life it is! The cause is a young child’s guiltless of all harm or wrong, but nothing goes well with it! Hope and patience, hope and patience!’
These words were uttered in too low a tone to reach the ears of the young men. Mr Swiveller appeared to think the they implied some mental struggle consequent upon the powerful effect of his address, for he poked75 his friend with his cane and whispered his conviction that he had administered ‘a clincher,’ and that he expected a commission on the profits. Discovering his mistake after a while, he appeared to grow rather sleeply and discontented, and had more than once suggested the proprieity of an immediate76 departure, when the door opened, and the child herself appeared.
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收听单词发音
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1
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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detailed
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| adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的 | |
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bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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4
thither
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| adv.向那里；adj.在那边的，对岸的 | |
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hesitation
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| n.犹豫，踌躇 | |
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irresolution
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| n.不决断，优柔寡断，犹豫不定 | |
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7
warehouse
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| n.仓库；vt.存入仓库 | |
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bestowing
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| 砖窑中砖堆上层已烧透的砖 | |
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passionately
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| ad.热烈地，激烈地 | |
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10
sneer
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| v.轻蔑；嘲笑；n.嘲笑，讥讽的言语 | |
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insolent
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| adj.傲慢的，无理的 | |
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repelled
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| v.击退( repel的过去式和过去分词 )；使厌恶；排斥；推开 | |
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13
profligate
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| adj.行为不检的；n.放荡的人，浪子，肆意挥霍者 | |
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14
forfeited
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| （因违反协议、犯规、受罚等）丧失，失去( forfeit的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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15
liar
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| n.说谎的人 | |
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catching
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| adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住 | |
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17
beckoned
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| v.（用头或手的动作）示意，召唤( beckon的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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18
impatience
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| n.不耐烦，急躁 | |
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19
persuasion
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| n.劝说；说服；持有某种信仰的宗派 | |
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pretense
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| n.矫饰，做作，借口 | |
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21
conspicuous
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| adj.明眼的，惹人注目的；炫耀的，摆阔气的 | |
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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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23
augured
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| v.预示，预兆，预言( augur的过去式和过去分词 )；成为预兆；占卜 | |
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24
negligence
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| n.疏忽，玩忽，粗心大意 | |
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odds
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| n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别 | |
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26
kindled
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| （使某物）燃烧，着火( kindle的过去式和过去分词 )； 激起（感情等）； 发亮，放光 | |
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27
taper
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| n.小蜡烛，尖细，渐弱；adj.尖细的；v.逐渐变小 | |
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28
rosy
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| adj.美好的，乐观的，玫瑰色的 | |
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syllable
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| n.音节；vt.分音节 | |
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30
winked
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| v.使眼色( wink的过去式和过去分词 )；递眼色（表示友好或高兴等）；（指光）闪烁；闪亮 | |
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31
preservation
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| n.保护，维护，保存，保留，保持 | |
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32
unreasonable
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| adj.不讲道理的，不合情理的，过度的 | |
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allusion
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| n.暗示，间接提示 | |
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34
awakened
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| v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到 | |
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attire
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| v.穿衣，装扮[同]array；n.衣着；盛装 | |
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36
remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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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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38
brass
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| n.黄铜；黄铜器，铜管乐器 | |
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39
ornamented
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| adj.花式字体的v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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40
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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41
cuffs
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| n.袖口( cuff的名词复数 )v.掌打，拳打( cuff的第三人称单数 ) | |
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42
cane
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| n.手杖，细长的茎，藤条；v.以杖击，以藤编制的 | |
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43
semblance
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| n.外貌，外表 | |
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44
prevailing
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| adj.盛行的；占优势的；主要的 | |
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45
greasiness
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| n.多脂，油腻，阿谀 | |
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46
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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47
dismal
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| adj.阴沉的，凄凉的，令人忧郁的，差劲的 | |
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48
utterly
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| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
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49
indifference
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| n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎 | |
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50
melodious
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| adj.旋律美妙的，调子优美的，音乐性的 | |
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51
feats
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| 功绩，伟业，技艺( feat的名词复数 ) | |
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52
loyalty
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| n.忠诚，忠心 | |
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53
subsided
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| v.（土地）下陷（因在地下采矿）( subside的过去式和过去分词 )；减弱；下降至较低或正常水平；一下子坐在椅子等上 | |
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54
peevishly
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| adv．暴躁地 | |
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55
emboldened
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| v.鼓励，使有胆量( embolden的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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56
qualified
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| adj.合格的，有资格的，胜任的，有限制的 | |
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57
ginger
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| n.姜，精力，淡赤黄色；adj.淡赤黄色的；vt.使活泼，使有生气 | |
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58
infusion
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| n.灌输 | |
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59
conceal
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽 | |
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60
scent
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| n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉 | |
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61
untoward
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| adj.不利的，不幸的，困难重重的 | |
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62
benefactors
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| n.捐助者，施主( benefactor的名词复数 )；恩人 | |
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63
serene
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| adj. 安详的，宁静的，平静的 | |
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64
peg
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| n.木栓，木钉；vt.用木钉钉，用短桩固定 | |
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65
mutual
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| adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的 | |
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66
bliss
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| n.狂喜，福佑，天赐的福 | |
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67
concord
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| n.和谐；协调 | |
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68
uncommon
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| adj.罕见的，非凡的，不平常的 | |
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69
enjoyment
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| n.乐趣；享有；享用 | |
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70
oration
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| n.演说，致辞，叙述法 | |
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71
abruptly
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| adv.突然地，出其不意地 | |
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72
impairing
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| v.损害，削弱( impair的现在分词 ) | |
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73
persecute
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| vt.迫害，虐待；纠缠，骚扰 | |
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74
toil
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| vi.辛劳工作，艰难地行动；n.苦工，难事 | |
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75
poked
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| v.伸出( poke的过去式和过去分词 )；戳出；拨弄；与（某人）性交 | |
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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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