He thought of those dead boys, some of whom he knew well and others whom he knew but slightly, and he pictured them made perfect by suffering, buying themselves the Kingdom of Heaven by their blood. He knew that his creed4 gave him no right to do so—Christ died for the elect, and no man can squeeze his way into salvation5 by wounds and blood. And yet these boys were crucified with Christ.... He saw all the crosses of Flanders, a million graves.... Perhaps there was a back way to [276] the Kingdom, a path of pain and sacrifice by which sinners won the gate....
He rebuked7 himself, and bent8 again to his work. The setting sun poured in from the west, making the little room, with its faded, peeling walls, and mangy furniture, a tub of swimming light. Mr. Sumption had got down to his Fourthly when his thoughts went off again, and this time after a boy who was not dead. It was a couple of months since he had heard from Jerry, and the letter had been unsatisfactory, though by this time he should have learned not to expect so much from Jerry’s letters. He lifted his head from the paper with a sigh, and, chin propped9 on hand, gazed out of the window to where bars of heavy crimson10 cloud reefed the blue bay of light. He remembered an evening nearly a year ago, when he and Jerry had sat by the window of a poor lodging-house room in Kemp Town, and felt nearer to each other than before in their lives....
“Reckon he can’t help it—reckon he’s just a vessel11 of wrath12.”
He bit his tongue as a cure for weakness, and for another ten minutes bobbed and fumed13 over his notes. The sermon was not going well. He had taken for his text: “Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand; a day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains.” He told the congregation that their grief for the death of these young men was but part of the universal woe14, a spark of that furnace which should devour15 the world. Melting together in Doomsday fires the Book of Revelation and the Minor16 Prophets, he pointed17 out how the Scriptures18 had been fulfilled ... the Beast, the False Prophet, the Army from the North, the Star called Wormwood, the Woman on Seven Hills, the Vision [277] of Four Horns, the Crowns of Joshua, the Flying Roll, all these were in the world to-day, Signs in the rolling clouds of smoke that poured from the burning fiery19 furnace, where only the Children of God could walk unharmed. “And the Sign of the Son of Man shall be in the heavens....”
Here it was that again his thoughts became treacherous20 to his theme. Instead of the Sign of the Son of Man appearing in the heavens, he seemed to see it rising out of the earth, the crosses on the million graves of Flanders. Could it be that Christ was already come? ... come in the brave and patient sufferings of boys, who died that the world might live?... “It is expedient21 that one man should die for the people.” He drove away the thought as a blasphemy22, and stooped once more to his paper, while his finger rubbed under the lines of his big Bible beside him.
“Sixthly: The Crowns of Joshua. Satan at his right hand. ‘The Lord rebuke6 thee, O Satan.’ The promise of the Branch. The promise of the Temple. But all must first be utterly23 destroyed. ‘I will utterly consume all things, saith the Lord.’ Don’t think the War will end before everything is destroyed. ‘That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress24, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness.’ The hope of the Elect. ’I will bring the third part through fire.’ ...”
There was the rattle25 and jar of crockery outside the door, and the next minute Mrs. Hubble kicked it open, and brought in the minister’s supper of bread and cocoa. She set it down, ruthlessly sweeping26 aside his books and paper, and then took a telegram out of her apron27 pocket.
“This has just come, and the girl’s waiting for an answer.”
Telegrams came only on one errand in the country of [278] the Four Roads, and Mrs. Hubble felt sure that this was to announce either the wounds or death of Jerry. It is true that he might be coming home on leave, but in that case she reckoned he would never trouble to send a telegram—he would just turn up, and give her his room to sweep and his bed to make all on the minute.
She narrowly watched the minister as he read it—if it brought bad news she would like to be able to give the village a detailed28 account of his reception of it. But he made no sign—only struck her for the first time as looking rather stupid. It was queer that she had never noticed before what a heavy, blunted kind of face he had.
“Any answer?”
He shook his head, and put the telegram face downwards29 on the tray. Mrs. Hubble flounced out and banged the door.
For some minutes after she had gone Mr. Sumption sat motionless, his arm dangling30 at his sides, his eyes fixed31 rather vacantly on the steam rising from the cocoa-jug. The sun had dipped behind the meadow-hills of Bird-in-Eye, and only a few red, fiery rays glowed on the ceiling. Mr. Sumption picked up the telegram and read it again.
“Deeply regret to inform you that Private J. M. Sumption has died at the front.”
He felt weak, boneless, as if his joints32 had been smitten33 asunder34. Something hot and heavy seemed to press down his skull35. He could not think, and yet the inhibition was not a respite36, but a torment37. His ears sang. Every now and then he tried pitifully to collect himself, but failed. Jerry dead ... Jerry dead ... then suddenly his head fell forward on his hands, and he began to cry, first weakly, then stormily, noisily, his whole body shaking.
The sobs38 stopped as suddenly as they had begun, but [279] the brain-pressure had been relieved, and he could now think a little. He saw, as from a great way off, himself before the telegram came—he saw that as he planned that memorial service, prepared that elegiac sermon, there had run in his veins39 a fiery, subtle pride that he, at least, was father of a living man. He had not seen it at the time, but he saw it now—now that his pride had been trampled40 and he himself was in the same abyss with the souls he was to comfort. He too was father of the dead; Jerry was dead—at last and for ever beyond the reach of his help, his efforts, even his prayers ... the son of the woman from Ihornden.
The room was almost in darkness now; fiery lights moved and shifted, and by their glow he read the telegram over again, for at the bottom of his heart was always a sick, insane thought that he must be mistaken, that this blow could not have fallen, that Jerry must still be somewhere alive and up to no good. But the message was there, and now on this third reading, he noticed something peculiar41 about the phrasing of it—“Private Sumption has died at the front.” Surely this was not the usual form of announcement. He had seen several such messages of woe, and they had read “killed in action” or “died of wounds.” He had never seen one put exactly like this.
However, it was not of any real importance. Jerry was dead; that was the only vital, necessary fact. But he would write to Mus’ Archie for particulars.... The lamp was on the table, and he lit it, pushing aside the unused supper-tray and the littered sermon-paper.
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1
muddled
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| adj.混乱的；糊涂的；头脑昏昏然的v.弄乱，弄糟( muddle的过去式)；使糊涂；对付，混日子 | |
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2
crooked
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| adj.弯曲的；不诚实的，狡猾的，不正当的 | |
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3
racing
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| n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的 | |
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creed
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| n.信条；信念，纲领 | |
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salvation
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| n.（尤指基督）救世，超度，拯救，解困 | |
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6
rebuke
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| v.指责，非难，斥责 [反]praise | |
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7
rebuked
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| 责难或指责( rebuke的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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8
bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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propped
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| 支撑，支持，维持( prop的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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crimson
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| n./adj.深(绯)红色(的)；vi.脸变绯红色 | |
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11
vessel
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| n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管 | |
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12
wrath
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| n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒 | |
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13
fumed
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| 愤怒( fume的过去式和过去分词 )； 大怒； 发怒； 冒烟 | |
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14
woe
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| n.悲哀，苦痛，不幸，困难；int.用来表达悲伤或惊慌 | |
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15
devour
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| v.吞没；贪婪地注视或谛听，贪读；使着迷 | |
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16
minor
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| adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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18
scriptures
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| 经文，圣典( scripture的名词复数 )； 经典 | |
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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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20
treacherous
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| adj.不可靠的，有暗藏的危险的；adj.背叛的，背信弃义的 | |
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21
expedient
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| adj.有用的，有利的；n.紧急的办法，权宜之计 | |
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22
blasphemy
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| n.亵渎，渎神 | |
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23
utterly
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| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
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24
distress
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| n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛 | |
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25
rattle
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| v.飞奔，碰响；激怒；n.碰撞声；拨浪鼓 | |
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26
sweeping
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| adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的 | |
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apron
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| n.围裙；工作裙 | |
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28
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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29
downwards
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| adj./adv.向下的（地），下行的（地） | |
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30
dangling
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| 悬吊着( dangle的现在分词 )； 摆动不定； 用某事物诱惑…； 吊胃口 | |
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31
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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32
joints
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| 接头( joint的名词复数 )； 关节； 公共场所（尤指价格低廉的饮食和娱乐场所） （非正式）； 一块烤肉 （英式英语） | |
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33
smitten
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| 猛打，重击，打击( smite的过去分词 ) | |
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34
asunder
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| adj.分离的，化为碎片 | |
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skull
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| n.头骨；颅骨 | |
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respite
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| n.休息，中止，暂缓 | |
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37
torment
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| n.折磨；令人痛苦的东西(人)；vt.折磨；纠缠 | |
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38
sobs
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| 啜泣（声），呜咽（声）( sob的名词复数 ) | |
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39
veins
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| n.纹理；矿脉( vein的名词复数 )；静脉；叶脉；纹理 | |
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40
trampled
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| 踩( trample的过去式和过去分词 )； 践踏； 无视； 侵犯 | |
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41
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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