When two days had passed, Sunday came; I breakfasted by myself in the solitary1 dingle; and then, having set things a little to rights, I ascended2 to Mr. Petulengro’s encampment. I could hear church-bells ringing around in the distance, appearing to say, ‘Come to church, come to church,’ as clearly as it was possible for church-bells to say. I found Mr. Petulengro seated by the door of his tent, smoking his pipe, in rather an ungenteel undress. ‘Well, Jasper,’ said I, ‘are you ready to go to church; for if you are, I am ready to accompany you?’ ‘I am not ready, brother,’ said Mr. Petulengro, ‘nor is my wife; the church, too, to which we shall go is three miles off 91; so it is of no use to think of going there this morning, as the service would be three-quarters over before we got there; if, however, you are disposed to go in the afternoon, we are your people.’ Thereupon I returned to my dingle, where I passed several hours in conning3 the Welsh Bible, which the preacher, Peter Williams, had given me.
At last I gave over reading, took a slight refreshment4, and was about to emerge from the dingle, when I heard the voice of Mr. Petulengro calling me. I went up again to the encampment, where I found Mr. Petulengro, his wife, and Tawno Chikno, ready to proceed to church. Mr. and Mrs. Petulengro were dressed in Roman fashion, though not in the full-blown manner in which they had paid their visit to Isopel and myself. Tawno had on a clean white slop, with a nearly new black beaver5, with very broad rims6, and the nap exceedingly long. As for myself, I was dressed in much the same manner as that in which I departed from London, having on, in honour of the day, a shirt perfectly7 clean, having washed one on purpose for the occasion, with my own hands, the day before, in the pond of tepid8 water in which the newts and efts were in the habit of taking their pleasure. We proceeded for upwards9 of a mile, by footpaths10 through meadows and corn-fields; we crossed various stiles; at last, passing over one, we found ourselves in a road, wending along which for a considerable distance, we at last came in sight of a church, the bells of which had been tolling11 distinctly in our ears for some time; before, however, we reached the church-yard the bells had ceased their melody. It was surrounded by lofty beech-trees of brilliant green foliage12. We entered the gate, Mrs. Petulengro leading the way, and proceeded to a small door near the east end of the church. As we advanced, the sound of singing within the church rose upon our ears. Arrived at the small door, Mrs. Petulengro opened it and entered, followed by Tawno Chikno. I myself went last of all, following Mr. Petulengro, who, before I entered, turned round, and, with a significant nod, advised me to take care how I behaved. The part of the church which we had entered was the chancel; on one side stood a number of venerable old men — probably the neighbouring poor — and on the other a number of poor girls belonging to the village school, dressed in white gowns and straw bonnets13, whom two elegant but simply dressed young women were superintending. Every voice seemed to be united in singing a certain anthem14, which, notwithstanding it was written neither by Tate nor Brady, contains some of the sublimest15 words which were ever put together, not the worst of which are those which burst on our ears as we entered.
‘Every eye shall now behold17 Him,
Robed in dreadful majesty18;
Those who set at nought19 and sold Him,
Pierced and nailed Him to the tree,
??????Deeply wailing20,
??????Shall the true Messiah see.’
Still following Mrs. Petulengro, we proceeded down the chancel and along the aisle21; notwithstanding the singing, I could distinctly hear as we passed many a voice whispering, ‘Here come the gypsies! here come the gypsies!’ I felt rather embarrassed, with a somewhat awkward doubt as to where we were to sit; none of the occupiers of the pews, who appeared to consist almost entirely22 of farmers, with their wives, sons and daughters, opened a door to admit us. Mrs. Petulengro, however, appeared to feel not the least embarrassment23, but tripped along the aisle with the greatest nonchalance24. We passed under the pulpit, in which stood the clergyman in his white surplice, and reached the middle of the church, where we were confronted by the sexton dressed in long blue coat, and holding in his hand a wand. This functionary25 motioned towards the lower end of the church, where were certain benches, partly occupied by poor people and boys. Mrs. Petulengro, however, with a toss of her head, directed her course to a magnificent pew, which was unoccupied, which she opened and entered, followed closely by Tawno Chikno, Mr. Petulengro, and myself. The sexton did not appear by any means to approve of the arrangement, and as I stood next the door laid his finger on my arm, as if to intimate that myself and companions must quit our aristocratical location. I said nothing, but directed my eyes to the clergyman, who uttered a short and expressive26 cough; the sexton looked at him for a moment, and then, bowing his head, closed the door — in a moment more the music ceased. I took up a Prayer-book, on which was engraved27 an earl’s coronet. The clergyman uttered, ‘I will arise and go to my father.’ England’s sublime16 liturgy28 had commenced.
Oh what feelings came over me on finding myself again in an edifice29 devoted30 to the religion of my country. I had not been in such a place I cannot tell for how long — certainly not for years; and now I had found my way there again, it appeared as if I had fallen asleep in the pew of the old church of pretty D——. 92 I had occasionally done so when a child, and had suddenly woke up. Yes, surely I had been asleep and had woken up; but, no! alas31, no! I had not been asleep — at least not in the old church — if I had been asleep I had been walking in my sleep, struggling, striving, learning, and unlearning in my sleep. Years had rolled away whilst I had been asleep — ripe fruit had fallen, green fruit had come on whilst I had been asleep — how circumstances had altered, and above all myself, whilst I had been asleep. No, I had not been asleep in the old church! I was in a pew it is true, but not the pew of black leather, in which I sometimes fell asleep in days of yore, but in a strange pew; and then my companions, they were no longer those of days of yore. I was no longer with my respectable father and mother, and my dear brother, but with the gypsy cral 93 and his wife, and the gigantic Tawno, the Antinous of the dusky people. And what was I myself? No longer an innocent child, but a moody32 man, bearing in my face, as I knew well, the marks of my strivings and strugglings, of what I had learnt and unlearnt; nevertheless, the general aspect of things brought to my mind what I had felt and seen of yore. There was difference enough it is true, but still there was a similarity — at least I thought so — the church, the clergyman, and the clerk, differing in many respects from those of pretty D—— put me strangely in mind of them; and then the words! — by-the-by, was it not the magic of the words which brought the dear enchanting33 past so powerfully before the mind of Lavengro? for the words were the same sonorous34 words of high import which had first made an impression on his childish ear in the old church of pretty D——.
The liturgy was now over, during the reading of which my companions behaved in a most unexceptionable manner, sitting down and rising up when other people sat down and rose, and holding in their hands Prayer-books which they found in the pew, into which they stared intently, though I observed that, with the exception of Mrs. Petulengro, who knew how to read a little, they held the books by the top, and not the bottom, as is the usual way. The clergyman now ascended the pulpit, arrayed in his black gown. The congregation composed themselves to attention, as did also my companions, who fixed35 their eyes upon the clergyman with a certain strange immovable stare, which I believe to be peculiar36 to their race. The clergyman gave out his text, and began to preach. He was a tall, gentlemanly man, seemingly between fifty and sixty, with greyish hair; his features were very handsome, but with a somewhat melancholy37 cast: the tones of his voice were rich and noble, but also with somewhat of melancholy in them. The text which he gave out was the following one, ‘In what would a man be profited, provided he gained the whole world, and lost his own soul?’
And on this text the clergyman preached long and well: he did not read his sermon, but spoke38 it extempore; his doing so rather surprised and offended me at first; I was not used to such a style of preaching in a church devoted to the religion of my country. I compared it within my mind with the style of preaching used by the high-church rector in the old church of pretty D—— and I thought to myself it was very different, and being very different I did not like it, and I thought to myself how scandalized the people of D—— would have been had they heard it, and I figured to myself how indignant the high-church clerk would have been had any clergyman got up in the church of D—— and preached in such a manner. Did it not savour strongly of dissent39, methodism, and similar low stuff? Surely it did; why the Methodist I had heard preach on the heath above the old city, preached in the same manner — at least he preached extempore; ay, and something like the present clergyman, for the Methodist spoke very zealously41 and with great feeling, and so did the present clergyman; so I, of course, felt rather offended with the clergyman for speaking with zeal40 and feeling. However, long before the sermon was over I forgot the offence which I had taken, and listened to the sermon with much admiration42, for the eloquence43 and powerful reasoning with which it abounded44.
Oh how eloquent45 he was when he talked of the inestimable value of a man’s soul, which he said endured for ever, whilst his body, as everyone knew, lasted at most for a very contemptible46 period of time; and how forcibly he reasoned on the folly47 of a man, who, for the sake of gaining the whole world — a thing, he said, which provided he gained he could only possess for a part of the time, during which his perishable48 body existed — should lose his soul, that is, cause that precious deathless portion of him to suffer indescribable misery49 time without end.
There was one part of his sermon which struck me in a very particular manner, he said: ‘That there were some people who gained something in return for their souls; if they did not get the whole world, they got a part of it — lands, wealth, honour, or renown50; mere51 trifles, he allowed, in comparison with the value of a man’s soul, which is destined52 either to enjoy delight, or suffer tribulation53 time without end; but which, in the eyes of the worldly, had a certain value, and which afforded a certain pleasure and satisfaction. But there were also others who lost their souls and got nothing for them — neither lands, wealth, renown, nor consideration, who were poor outcasts, and despised by everybody. My friends,’ he added, ‘if the man is a fool who barters54 his soul for the whole world, what a fool he must be who barters his soul for nothing.’
The eyes of the clergyman, as he uttered these words, wandered around the whole congregation, and when he had concluded them, the eyes of the whole congregation were turned upon my companions and myself.
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1
solitary
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| adj.孤独的，独立的，荒凉的；n.隐士 | |
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2
ascended
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| v.上升，攀登( ascend的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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3
conning
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| v.诈骗，哄骗( con的现在分词 )；指挥操舵( conn的现在分词 ) | |
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4
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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5
beaver
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| n.海狸，河狸 | |
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6
rims
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| n.（圆形物体的）边( rim的名词复数 )；缘；轮辋；轮圈 | |
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7
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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8
tepid
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| adj.微温的，温热的，不太热心的 | |
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9
upwards
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| adv.向上，在更高处...以上 | |
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10
footpaths
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| 人行小径，人行道( footpath的名词复数 ) | |
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11
tolling
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| [财]来料加工 | |
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12
foliage
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| n.叶子，树叶，簇叶 | |
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13
bonnets
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| n.童帽( bonnet的名词复数 )；（烟囱等的）覆盖物；（苏格兰男子的）无边呢帽；（女子戴的）任何一种帽子 | |
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14
anthem
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| n.圣歌，赞美诗，颂歌 | |
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15
sublimest
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| 伟大的( sublime的最高级 )； 令人赞叹的； 极端的； 不顾后果的 | |
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16
sublime
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| adj.崇高的，伟大的；极度的，不顾后果的 | |
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17
behold
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| v.看，注视，看到 | |
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18
majesty
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| n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权 | |
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19
nought
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| n.／adj.无，零 | |
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20
wailing
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| v.哭叫，哀号( wail的现在分词 )；沱 | |
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21
aisle
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| n.（教堂、教室、戏院等里的）过道，通道 | |
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22
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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23
embarrassment
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| n.尴尬；使人为难的人(事物)；障碍；窘迫 | |
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24
nonchalance
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| n.冷淡，漠不关心 | |
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25
functionary
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| n.官员；公职人员 | |
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26
expressive
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| adj.表现的，表达…的，富于表情的 | |
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27
engraved
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| v.在（硬物）上雕刻（字，画等）( engrave的过去式和过去分词 )；将某事物深深印在（记忆或头脑中） | |
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28
liturgy
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| n.礼拜仪式 | |
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29
edifice
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| n.宏伟的建筑物(如宫殿，教室) | |
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30
devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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31
alas
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| int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等) | |
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32
moody
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| adj.心情不稳的，易怒的，喜怒无常的 | |
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33
enchanting
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| a.讨人喜欢的 | |
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34
sonorous
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| adj.响亮的，回响的；adv.圆润低沉地；感人地；n.感人，堂皇 | |
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35
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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36
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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37
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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38
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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39
dissent
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| n./v.不同意，持异议 | |
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40
zeal
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| n.热心，热情，热忱 | |
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41
zealously
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| adv.热心地；热情地；积极地；狂热地 | |
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42
admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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43
eloquence
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| n.雄辩；口才，修辞 | |
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44
abounded
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| v.大量存在，充满，富于( abound的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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45
eloquent
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| adj.雄辩的，口才流利的；明白显示出的 | |
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46
contemptible
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| adj.可鄙的，可轻视的，卑劣的 | |
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47
folly
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| n.愚笨，愚蠢，蠢事，蠢行，傻话 | |
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48
perishable
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| adj.（尤指食物）易腐的，易坏的 | |
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49
misery
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| n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦 | |
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50
renown
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| n.声誉，名望 | |
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51
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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52
destined
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| adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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53
tribulation
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| n.苦难，灾难 | |
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54
barters
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| n.物物交换，易货( barter的名词复数 )v.作物物交换，以货换货( barter的第三人称单数 ) | |
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