Chapter 6

She watched him walk off down the Street, stopping to light his pipe where the oast of Egypt Farm made a lee against the racing¹ wind. Then she walked slowly and heavily back to the house, planning a little consolation² for herself in listening to Nell’s tale of wonders.

But when she came to the kitchen she found that Nell had gone upstairs—to wash, Mus’ Beatup told her. Moved by a spasm³ of tenderness, she took the kettle from the fire and creaked off with it to her daughter’s room.

Knocking at bedroom doors was a refinement⁴ unknown at Worge. Mrs. Beatup accordingly burst in, to find Nell sitting on the bed, with her face hidden in her hands. [259] She had taken off her gown, and sat arrayed in a short silk petticoat and an under-bodice of a transparency that made her mother gasp⁵; over her shoulders was nothing but two pale-blue ribbons, against which her arms showed yellowish-white and plumper than they used to be. So astonished was Mrs. Beatup at this display that she scarcely noticed the hidden face.

“Nell, how fine! But you’ll catch your death—I wonder your husband let you....” Her voice trailed off, for Nell had dropped her hands, and her face was running with tears.

“My poor liddle girl!”—the mother’s heart went out in pity. She put the kettle on the floor, and going over to the bed, sat down on it with a great creaking of springs, and put her arms round her daughter—at first rather gingerly, for fear of spoiling so much elegance⁷, then straining them closer, as Nell, melted into an abandonment of weakness, began to sob⁸ against her breast.

“My poor liddle girl!... It’s unaccountable sad fur you. I know.... I know.... But doan’t you vrother, chick—he’ll come back. I’ve a feeling as he’ll come back.”

A long shudder⁹ passed through Nell. Then suddenly she raised herself, gripping her mother’s arms, while her eyes blazed through her tears. “Oh, mother, mother ... don’t you see? ... it’s not that I’m afraid he won’t come back ... it’s that I’m afraid he will.”

She threw herself down upon the pillow, sobbing¹⁰ with the accumulated misery¹¹, humiliation¹², rage and dread¹³ of weeks. Mrs. Beatup stared at her, dumbfounded.

“Nell—wot are you talking of? You doan’t want Steve to come back?”

[260]

“No—I hate him. I—I ... if he comes back ... and takes me away to be my husband for good, I—I’ll kill myself.”

“Reckon you doan’t know what you’re saying. You loved him unaccountable when you wur wed⁶.”

“I didn’t love him ... not truly. And he’s killed the little love I had.”

“But all the fine things he’s guv you....”

“Doan’t talk about them. They’re just part of the horribleness.”

“Then you’re telling me as you maade a mistake?”

“Reckon I did. Reckon my only chance now is that he won’t come back.”

She began to sob again, not tempestuously¹⁴, but slowly and painfully, gradually jerking to silence. A soft green twilight¹⁵ deepened in the room, and the low gurgling calls of starlings trilled under the eaves. The mother still sat on the bed-foot, staring at her daughter, who now lay still, a pool of blue in the dusk with her silk petticoat, her shoulders showing nacreous against the dead-white of the pillow. Mrs. Beatup was stunned¹⁶, her mind slowly adjusting itself to the revelation that there was in war another tragedy besides the tragedy of those who do not come back—and that is the tragedy of some who do.

1 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。

2 consolation   

n.安慰，慰问

参考例句：

• The children were a great consolation to me at that time.那时孩子们成了我的莫大安慰。
• This news was of little consolation to us.这个消息对我们来说没有什么安慰。

3 spasm   

n.痉挛，抽搐；一阵发作

参考例句：

• When the spasm passed,it left him weak and sweating.一阵痉挛之后，他虚弱无力，一直冒汗。
• He kicked the chair in a spasm of impatience.他突然变得不耐烦，一脚踢向椅子。

4 refinement   

n.文雅；高尚；精美；精制；精炼

参考例句：

• Sally is a woman of great refinement and beauty. 莎莉是个温文尔雅又很漂亮的女士。
• Good manners and correct speech are marks of refinement.彬彬有礼和谈吐得体是文雅的标志。

5 gasp   

n.喘息，气喘；v.喘息；气吁吁他说

参考例句：

• She gave a gasp of surprise.她吃惊得大口喘气。
• The enemy are at their last gasp.敌人在做垂死的挣扎。

6 wed   

v.娶，嫁，与…结婚

参考例句：

• The couple eventually wed after three year engagement.这对夫妇在订婚三年后终于结婚了。
• The prince was very determined to wed one of the king's daughters.王子下定决心要娶国王的其中一位女儿。

7 elegance   

n.优雅；优美，雅致；精致，巧妙

参考例句：

• The furnishings in the room imparted an air of elegance.这个房间的家具带给这房间一种优雅的气氛。
• John has been known for his sartorial elegance.约翰因为衣着讲究而出名。

8 sob   

n.空间轨道的轰炸机；呜咽，哭泣

参考例句：

• The child started to sob when he couldn't find his mother.孩子因找不到他妈妈哭了起来。
• The girl didn't answer,but continued to sob with her head on the table.那个女孩不回答，也不抬起头来。她只顾低声哭着。

9 shudder   

v.战粟，震动，剧烈地摇晃；n.战粟，抖动

参考例句：

• The sight of the coffin sent a shudder through him.看到那副棺材，他浑身一阵战栗。
• We all shudder at the thought of the dreadful dirty place.我们一想到那可怕的肮脏地方就浑身战惊。

10 sobbing   

<主方>Ⅰ adj.湿透的

参考例句：

• I heard a child sobbing loudly. 我听见有个孩子在呜呜地哭。
• Her eyes were red with recent sobbing. 她的眼睛因刚哭过而发红。

11 misery   

n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦

参考例句：

• Business depression usually causes misery among the working class.商业不景气常使工薪阶层受苦。
• He has rescued me from the mire of misery.他把我从苦海里救了出来。

12 humiliation   

n.羞辱

参考例句：

• He suffered the humiliation of being forced to ask for his cards.他蒙受了被迫要求辞职的羞辱。
• He will wish to revenge his humiliation in last Season's Final.他会为在上个季度的决赛中所受的耻辱而报复的。

13 dread   

vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧

参考例句：

• We all dread to think what will happen if the company closes.我们都不敢去想一旦公司关门我们该怎么办。
• Her heart was relieved of its blankest dread.她极度恐惧的心理消除了。

14 tempestuously   

adv.剧烈地，暴风雨似地

参考例句：

• The rain beat strongly against the panes, the wind blew tempestuously. 雨狠狠地抽打着窗玻璃，风狂暴地刮着。 来自辞典例句
• The explosion stirred the atmosphere tempestuously. 那爆炸猛烈地搅乱了大气。 来自辞典例句

15 twilight   

n.暮光，黄昏；暮年，晚期，衰落时期

参考例句：

• Twilight merged into darkness.夕阳的光辉融于黑暗中。
• Twilight was sweet with the smell of lilac and freshly turned earth.薄暮充满紫丁香和新翻耕的泥土的香味。

16 stunned   

adj. 震惊的，惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The fall stunned me for a moment. 那一下摔得我昏迷了片刻。
• The leaders of the Kopper Company were then stunned speechless. 科伯公司的领导们当时被惊得目瞪口呆。