Was never face so pleased my mind,
I did but see her passing by,
And yet I love her till I die,”
He was sitting by the window of his cottage, engaged—truth will out—in darning a pair of green socks. Occasionally he lifted his head from his work and gazed through the window. It was intensely still outside; not a leaf, not a blade of grass was stirring. It was almost overpoweringly close and sultry. Peter had set both door and window open in invitation to a non-existent breeze to enter.
From the north, where a great bank of ominous2 black clouds was piled, came a low, sinister3 rumble4.
“It’s coming,” said Peter aloud, looking through the window. “The storm, the tempest, the whole wrath5 of the furious elements will shortly be loosed upon us. The clouds are coming up with extraordinary rapidity, considering there’s no wind at all down here. Up there it must be blowing half a gale6. We’ll get rain soon.”
He returned to his darning.
“Her gesture, motion, and her smiles,
Beguiles my heart, I know not why,
And yet I love her till I die,”
he sang, sticking his needle carefully in and out of the heel of the sock.
“And the green of the wool doesn’t match the green of the sock one little bit!” he said ruefully. “But, after all, no one looks at me; and I certainly can’t look at my own heels—at least, not without a certain amount of effort, so n’importe, as they say in France.”
“Cupid is wingèd and doth range
Her country, so my love doth change;
But change she earth, or change she sky,
Yet will I love her till I die.”
Peter cut the wool with his pocket-knife, and [Pg 173]contemplated the sock with his head on one side. Then he threw it on to the table. There was a little laugh in his eyes, not caused by the contemplation of the sock.
“I believe,” he said whimsically, “that that fellow—what was his name?—Neil Macdonald, was right after all, and that Chaucer is—well, an old fraud. Yet,” and a wistful look crept into his blue eyes, “I might have done much better if I’d gone on believing in him. Yet, I don’t know. After all, Peter, my son, isn’t the joy worth a bit of heartache!”
He got up from his chair and went towards the door. He could look over the hedge and up and down the lane from his position. A couple of big drops, large as half-crowns, had just fallen on his spotlessly white doorstep—Peter was proud of his doorstep. They were followed by another and another. There was a flash, a terrific peal9, and then with a sudden hiss10 came the deluge11. Straight down it fell, as if poured from buckets, and the lightning played across the sky and the thunder pealed12.
“Ouf!” said Peter, drawing in a huge breath as the refreshing13 scent14 of the grateful earth came to his nostrils15. “That’s really quite the very best smell there is, and worth all your eau-de-colognes, and your phulnanas, and—and your whatever you call ’em put together. It really is—” And then he broke off, for down the lane came running a woman, her head bent16, the rain beating, drenching17 down upon her. Peter was at the gate in a moment.
“Come in here!” he called.
She paused, hesitated. Peter saw her face. His heart jumped, and then started off klip-klopping at a terrible rate.
“I—” she began. A blinding flash of lightning, followed by a terrific peal right overhead, stopped the words.
“Come at once!” said Peter imperatively19, sharply almost. “It’s not safe.”
She ran up the path, he following. In the shelter of the cottage she turned and faced him. The colour in her face was not, perhaps, quite to be accounted for by the rain and her own haste.
“You’re drenched,” said Peter abruptly21. “You can’t stay in those wet things a moment longer than absolutely necessary. With your permission, I shall go to your house and order your carriage to be sent immediately. But first—” He had put her a chair by the fireplace; he was on his knees applying a match to the pile of sticks and fir-cones already laid therein.
“But,” protested Lady Anne, “I cannot give my permission. You will yourself be soaked—drenched—if you venture out in this downpour.”
Peter laughed lightly. “It will not be the first time, nor, I dare to say, the last. Rain has but little effect on me.” He rose from his knees. The flames were twining and twisting from stick to stick in long tongues of orange and yellow and blue. There was a merry crackling, there were flying sparks.
Peter crossed to the cupboard. From it he brought a black bottle and a wineglass.
“I have, alas22! no brandy to offer you, but port wine will, I hope, prove as efficacious against a chill.” Without paying the smallest heed23 to her protestations he poured her out a glass, which he held towards her. “Drink it,” he said, in somewhat the tone one orders a refractory24 child to take a glass of medicine.
Anne took the glass, meekly25, obediently, with [Pg 176]the faintest gurgle of laughter. “To your health!” she said as she sipped26 the wine.
Peter’s heart beat hotly, madly. Here was She, actually She in the flesh, toasting him in his own room. He poured out another glass.
“To you,” he said, and under his breath he added, “My Lady, my Star, my altogether Divinity!” Then he moved firmly to the door.
“I cannot allow you to go,” said Anne quickly.
“Alas!” said Peter, smiling, “then I must forego your permission. In less than half an hour, in twenty minutes perhaps, your carriage will be here.” And he vanished into the sluice27 without.
“And now,” he said, as he set off at a half-canter down the lane, “if she does glance round the room and find it sleeping-apartment as well as sitting-room28, she will, I trust, be less embarrassed. For Heaven knows whether in some particulars she may not bow to old Dame29 Grundy’s decrees. Bless her!” And it is to be conjectured30 that it was not on Mrs. Grundy’s head that Peter’s blessing31 was invoked32.
Anne, left to solitude33, a blazing fire, and a glass of port, sat for a moment or so deep in thought. Who was this man, with his little imperative18 ways, his abrupt20 speech, hiding, she was well aware, a certain embarrassment34? He was well-born, there was no doubt about that fact. His voice, in spite of its abruptness35, had the pleasant modulation36 of breeding. His hands—she had noticed his hands—were long-fingered, flexible, and brown. They were also well kept. Who was he? But who was he?
The fire offering her no solution, she finished her glass of port, and, kneeling down by the hearth37, let the warmth of the flames play upon her wet blouse. She unpinned her hat and shook the rain from it. The drops sizzled as they fell among the flames and glowing sticks. She put her hat on the ground beside her and turned towards the room. She scrutinized38 it with interest. It was barely furnished but spotlessly clean. Against the farther wall she saw a truckle-bed covered with a blanket of cheerful red and blue stripes; she saw a cupboard on which were tea-things; a table; two chairs; and the chair on which she had been sitting. And that was all.
Then on the table she saw lying a pair of green socks; softly green they were, and somewhat faded, and beside them was a card of green—virulently green—mending wool.
“O-oh!” said Anne, with a little shudder40. But after a moment she rose from her knees in order to examine them closer. One sock had a patch of virulent39 green in the heel, a neat darn enough.
“Long practice,” said Anne, with a little shake of the head. In the other was a hole—quite a good-sized hole.
For a moment Anne hesitated, then, with a little smile, took up the card of excruciatingly green wool and broke off a strand41. She threaded the needle she found stuck into the wool, and fitted the sock on her hand.
“I owe him,” said Anne, “some small payment for the shelter.” And she laughed, seating herself again in the armchair. Neatly42, deftly43, she drew the wool in and out across the hole, her ears alert to catch the sound of returning steps, or of carriage-wheels. The needle moved swiftly and with dexterity44.
What is one to make of her? Lady Anne Garland—the proud, the much-courted, the to the world always aloof45 and sometimes disdainful Lady Anne Garland—sitting in a meagrely furnished little room by a fire of sticks and fir-cones, darning the green sock of a vagabond Piper! And infinitely46 more incomprehensible is the fact that he—this man on whom she had only twice before set eyes—was causing her to think of him in a manner not at all good for the peace of her own soul; especially as—and here a distinct confession47 must be made—she was already quite more than half in love with a man she had never even seen—the writer of books and letters, Robin48 Adair.
Human nature is a complex and curious thing, though by those who, having read thus far, hold the key to the riddle49 her nature may perhaps be understood.
Ten minutes later and a neat darn had replaced the gaping50 hole. Finding no implement51 handy with which to cut the wool she broke it, then placed the sock, the wool, and the needle again upon the table in much the same position they had previously52 occupied.
She got up from her chair and crossed to the window. The rain was still coming down in torrents53, and the lightning was still frequent, but the thunder was muttering now at a distance.
Once more she looked back into the room. What a queer little room it was, and how entirely54 peaceful! Why did the villagers imagine it to be haunted? Could anything be more restful, more reposeful55? And how very homely56 it looked in spite of its somewhat bare appearance! And then she stopped in her reflections, for the sound of wheels had struck upon her ear. A moment later the carriage came in sight down the lane. On the box, mackintoshed and stately, were both coachman and footman.
Anne laughed. “It really was unnecessary for them both to come,” she said to herself. And then Peter was out of the carriage and up the path to the door.
“It is here,” he said.
Anne came forward. “I am more than grateful,” she said. “And you must be terribly wet.”
“Oh, I shall dry again,” he said carelessly.
“It was very good of you,” said Anne.
“It was a pleasure,” said Peter, “to drive in a carriage.”
“And—” he continued, and stopped. But in his heart he added, “To do any mortal thing for you, dear Lady!” But these speeches had a way of remaining in his heart without reaching his lips.
“The rain is not quite so furious now,” he said as he opened it.
“Oh, my hat!” said Anne. She was at the hearth and back beside him in an instant. But in the transit59 she had glanced for a moment at the green socks on the table.
Peter, holding the umbrella carefully over her, conducted her down the path. The footman was standing60 by the carriage door. Anne held out her hand.
“A thousand thanks!” she said.
Peter gripped her hand hard. “I was delighted to be of the smallest service,” he assured her.
The footman shut the door; Peter handed him the umbrella and he mounted with it to the box. The carriage, which had already turned, drove up in the direction of the white house on the hill.
Peter stood looking after it till it was out of sight, then went back into the cottage. He divested61 himself of his extremely wet coat and hung it on the back of a chair by the fire. Not the armchair; that he gazed at almost reverently62, for had not She sat in it! Then he went to the table and took up the socks. Arrested suddenly by something he saw, he examined them both carefully.
“I am sure,” said Peter aloud, “that I only mended one sock, and now both—” He looked at a darn carefully. “Oh, oh!” said Peter, a light of illumination in his eyes. It was, however, almost incredible; he could hardly believe his senses. He lifted the sock nearer his face. A faint hint of lavender came to him. “Oh!” said he again; “the darling, the adorable darling!”
Peter crossed to his cupboard; he placed the sock carefully inside a sheet of clean manuscript paper and put it on a shelf.
Then he sat down in the armchair by the fire, filled and lit his pipe, and fell into an abstracted reverie, which lasted fully8 half an hour.
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1
tenor
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| n.男高音（歌手），次中音（乐器），要旨，大意 | |
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2
ominous
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| adj.不祥的，不吉的，预兆的，预示的 | |
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3
sinister
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| adj.不吉利的，凶恶的，左边的 | |
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4
rumble
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| n.隆隆声；吵嚷；v.隆隆响；低沉地说 | |
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5
wrath
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| n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒 | |
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6
gale
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| n.大风，强风，一阵闹声（尤指笑声等） | |
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7
beguiles
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| v.欺骗( beguile的第三人称单数 )；使陶醉；使高兴；消磨（时间等） | |
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8
fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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9
peal
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| n.钟声；v.鸣响 | |
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10
hiss
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| v.发出嘶嘶声；发嘘声表示不满 | |
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11
deluge
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| n./vt.洪水，暴雨，使泛滥 | |
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12
pealed
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| v.（使）（钟等）鸣响，（雷等）发出隆隆声( peal的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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13
refreshing
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| adj.使精神振作的，使人清爽的，使人喜欢的 | |
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14
scent
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| n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉 | |
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15
nostrils
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| 鼻孔( nostril的名词复数 ) | |
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16
bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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17
drenching
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| n.湿透v.使湿透( drench的现在分词 )；在某人（某物）上大量使用（某液体） | |
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18
imperative
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| n.命令，需要；规则；祈使语气；adj.强制的；紧急的 | |
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19
imperatively
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| adv.命令式地 | |
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20
abrupt
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| adj.突然的，意外的；唐突的，鲁莽的 | |
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21
abruptly
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| adv.突然地，出其不意地 | |
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22
alas
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| int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等) | |
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23
heed
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| v.注意，留意；n.注意，留心 | |
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24
refractory
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| adj.倔强的，难驾驭的 | |
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25
meekly
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| adv.温顺地，逆来顺受地 | |
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26
sipped
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| v.小口喝，呷，抿( sip的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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27
sluice
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| n.水闸 | |
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28
sitting-room
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| n.（BrE）客厅，起居室 | |
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29
dame
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| n.女士 | |
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30
conjectured
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| 推测，猜测，猜想( conjecture的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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31
blessing
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| n.祈神赐福；祷告；祝福，祝愿 | |
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32
invoked
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| v.援引( invoke的过去式和过去分词 )；行使（权利等）；祈求救助；恳求 | |
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33
solitude
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| n. 孤独; 独居,荒僻之地,幽静的地方 | |
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34
embarrassment
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| n.尴尬；使人为难的人(事物)；障碍；窘迫 | |
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35
abruptness
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| n. 突然，唐突 | |
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36
modulation
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| n.调制 | |
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37
hearth
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| n.壁炉炉床，壁炉地面 | |
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38
scrutinized
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| v.仔细检查，详审( scrutinize的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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39
virulent
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| adj.有毒的，有恶意的，充满敌意的 | |
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40
shudder
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| v.战粟，震动，剧烈地摇晃；n.战粟，抖动 | |
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41
strand
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| vt.使（船）搁浅，使（某人）困于（某地） | |
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42
neatly
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| adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地 | |
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43
deftly
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| adv.灵巧地，熟练地，敏捷地 | |
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44
dexterity
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| n.(手的)灵巧，灵活 | |
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45
aloof
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| adj.远离的；冷淡的，漠不关心的 | |
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46
infinitely
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| adv.无限地，无穷地 | |
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47
confession
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| n.自白，供认，承认 | |
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48
robin
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| n.知更鸟，红襟鸟 | |
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49
riddle
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| n.谜，谜语，粗筛；vt.解谜，给…出谜，筛，检查，鉴定，非难，充满于；vi.出谜 | |
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50
gaping
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| adj.口的；张口的；敞口的；多洞穴的v.目瞪口呆地凝视( gape的现在分词 )；张开，张大 | |
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51
implement
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| n.(pl.)工具，器具；vt.实行，实施，执行 | |
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52
previously
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| adv.以前，先前（地） | |
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53
torrents
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| n.倾注；奔流( torrent的名词复数 )；急流；爆发；连续不断 | |
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54
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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55
reposeful
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| adj.平稳的，沉着的 | |
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56
homely
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| adj.家常的，简朴的；不漂亮的 | |
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57
demurely
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| adv.装成端庄地，认真地 | |
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58
purloined
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| v.偷窃( purloin的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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59
transit
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| n.经过，运输；vt.穿越，旋转；vi.越过 | |
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60
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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61
divested
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| v.剥夺( divest的过去式和过去分词 )；脱去（衣服）；2。从…取去…；1。（给某人）脱衣服 | |
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62
reverently
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| adv.虔诚地 | |
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