“Now as all this racketing’s over,” he said crossly—he meant by ‘racketing’ the general election which had just put the Liberal party into power—“I’ll thank ye to see as all that red and blue ink is cleaned off the rollers and slabs1, and the types cleaned too. I’ve told ’em ten times if I’ve told ’em once, but as far as I can make out, they’ve done naught2 to it yet.”
His father was now a fattish man, and he had aged4 quite as much as Edwin. Some of his scanty5 hair was white; the rest was grey. White hair sprouted6 about his ears; gold gleamed in his mouth; and a pair of spectacles hung insecurely balanced half-way down his nose; his waistcoat seemed to be stretched tightly over a perfectly7 smooth hemisphere. He had an air of somewhat gross and prosperous untidiness. Except for the teeth, his bodily frame appeared to have fallen into disrepair, as though he had ceased to be interested in it, as though he had been using it for a long time as a mere8 makeshift lodging9. And this impression was more marked at table; he ate exactly as if throwing food to a wild animal concealed10 somewhere within the hemisphere, an animal which was never seen, but which rumbled11 threateningly from time to time in its dark dungeon12.
Of all this, Edwin had definitely noticed nothing save that his father was ‘getting stouter13.’ To Edwin, Darius was exactly the same father, and for Darius, Edwin was still aged sixteen. They both of them went on living on the assumption that the world had stood still in those seven years between 1873 and 1880. If they had been asked what had happened during those seven years, they would have answered: “Oh, nothing particular!”
But the world had been whizzing ceaselessly from one miracle into another. Board schools had been opened in Bursley, wondrous14 affairs, with ventilation; indeed ventilation had been discovered. A Jew had been made Master of the Rolls: a spectacle at which England shivered, and then, perceiving no sign of disaster, shrugged15 its shoulders. Irish members had taught the House of Commons how to talk for twenty-four hours without a pause. The wages of the agricultural labourer had sprung into the air and leaped over the twelve shilling bar into regions of opulence17. Moody18 and Sankey had found and conquered England for Christ. Landseer and Livingstone had died, and the provinces could not decide whether “Dignity and Impudence” or the penetration19 of Africa was the more interesting feat20. Herbert Spencer had published his “Study of Sociology”; Matthew Arnold his “Literature and Dogma”; and Frederic Farrar his Life of his Lord; but here the provinces had no difficulty in deciding, for they had only heard of the last. Every effort had been made to explain by persuasion21 and by force to the working man that trade unions were inimical to his true welfare, and none had succeeded, so stupid was he. The British Army had been employed to put reason into the noddle of a town called Northampton which was furious because an atheist22 had not been elected to Parliament. Pullman cars, “The Pirates of Penzance,” Henry Irving’s “Hamlet,” spelling-bees, and Captain Webb’s channel swim had all proved that there were novelties under the sun. Bishops23, archbishops, and dissenting24 ministers had met at Lambeth to inspect the progress of irreligious thought, with intent to arrest it. Princes and dukes had conspired25 to inaugurate the most singular scheme that ever was, the Kyrle Society,—for bringing beauty home to the people by means of decorative26 art, gardening, and music. The Bulgarian Atrocities27 had served to give new life to all penny gaffs and blood-tubs. The “Eurydice” and the “Princess Alice” had foundered28 in order to demonstrate the uncertainty29 of existence and the courage of the island-race. The “Nineteenth Century” had been started, a little late in the day, and the “Referee.” Ireland had all but died of hunger, but had happily been saved to enjoy the benefits of Coercion30. The Young Men’s Christian31 Association had been born again in the splendour of Exeter Hall. Bursley itself had entered on a new career as a chartered borough32, with Mayor, alderman, and councillors, all in chains of silver. And among the latest miracles were Northampton’s success in sending the atheist to Parliament, the infidelity of the Tay Bridge three days after Christmas, the catastrophe33 of Majuba Hill, and the discovery that soldiers objected to being flogged into insensibility for a peccadillo34.
But, in spite of numerous attempts, nobody had contrived35 to make England see that her very existence would not be threatened if museums were opened on Sunday, or that Nonconformists might be buried according to their own rites36 without endangering the constitution.
Two.
Darius was possibly a little uneasy in his mind about the world. Possibly there had just now begun to form in his mind the conviction, in which most men die, that all was not quite well with the world, and that in particular his native country had contracted a fatal malady37 since he was a boy.
He was a printer, and yet the General Election had not put sunshine in his heart. And this was strange, for a general election is the brief millennium38 of printers, especially of steam-printers who for dispatch can beat all rivals. During a general election the question put by a customer to a printer is not, “How much will it be?” but “How soon can I have it?” There was no time for haggling39 about price; and indeed to haggle40 about price would have been unworthy, seeing that every customer (ordinary business being at a standstill), was engaged in the salvation41 of England. Darius was a Liberal, but a quiet one, and he was patronised by both political parties—blue and red. As a fact, neither party could have done without him. His printing office had clattered42 and thundered early and late, and more than once had joined the end of one day’s work to the beginning of another; and more than once had Big James with his men and his boy (a regiment43 increased since 1873), stood like plotters muttering in the yard at five minutes to twelve on Sunday evening, waiting for midnight to sound, and Big James had unlocked the door of the office on the new-born Monday, and work had instantly commenced to continue till Monday was nearly dead of old age.
Once only had work been interrupted, and that was on a day when, a lot of ‘blue jobs’ being about, a squad44 of red fire-eaters had come up the back alley45 with intent to answer arguments by thwackings and wreckings; but the obstinacy46 of an oak door had fatigued47 them. The staff had enjoyed that episode. Every member of it was well paid for overtime48. Darius could afford to pay conscientiously49. In the printing trade, prices were steadier then than they are now. But already the discovery of competition was following upon the discovery of ventilation. Perhaps Darius sniffed50 it from a distance, and was disturbed thereby51.
Three.
For though he was a Liberal in addition to being a printer, and he had voted Liberal, and his party had won, yet the General Election had not put sunshine in his heart. No! The tendencies of England worried him. When he read in a paper about the heretical tendencies of Robertson Smith’s Biblical articles in the “Encyclopaedia Britannica,” he said to himself that they were of a piece with the rest, and that such things were to be expected in those modern days, and that matters must have come to a pretty pass when even the “Encyclopaedia Britannica” was infected. (Still, he had sold a copy of the new edition.) He was exceedingly bitter against Ireland; and also, in secret, behind Big James’s back, against trade unions. When Edwin came home one night and announced that he had joined the Bursley Liberal Club, Darius lost his temper. Yet he was a member of the club himself. He gave no reason for his fury, except that it was foolish for a tradesman to mix himself up with politics. Edwin, however, had developed a sudden interest in politics, and had made certain promises of clerical aid, which promises he kept, saying nothing more to his father. Darius’s hero was Sir Robert Peel, simply because Sir Robert Peel had done away with the Corn Laws. Darius had known England before and after the repeal52 of the Corn Laws, and the difference between the two Englands was so strikingly dramatic to him that he desired no further change. He had only one date—1846. His cup had been filled then. Never would he forget the scenes of anguishing53 joy that occurred at midnight of the day before the new Act became operative. From that moment he had finished with progress... If Edwin could only have seen those memories, shining in layers deep in his father’s heart, and hidden now by all sorts of Pliocene deposits, he would have understood his father better. But Edwin did not see into his father’s heart at all, nor even into his head. When he looked at his father he saw nothing but an ugly, stertorous54 old man (old, that is, to Edwin), with a peculiar55 and incalculable way of regarding things and a temper of growing capriciousness.
Four.
Darius was breathing and fidgeting all over him as he sat bent56 at the desk. His presence overwhelmed every other physical phenomenon.
“What’s this?” asked Darius, picking up the bit of paper on which Edwin had written the memorandum57 about “The Light of Asia.”
When the barometer59 of Darius’s temper was falling rapidly, there was a sign: a small spot midway on the bridge of his nose turned ivory-white. Edwin glanced upwards60 now to see if the sign was there, and it was. He flushed slightly and resumed his work.
Then Darius began.
“What did I tell ye?” he shouted. “What in the name of God’s the use o’ me telling ye things? Have I told ye not to take any more orders for books, or haven’t I? Haven’t I said over and over again that I want this shop to be known for wholesale61?” He raved62.
Five.
Stifford could hear. Any person who might chance to come into the shop would hear. But Darius cared neither for his own dignity nor for that of his son. He was in a passion. The real truth was that this celibate63 man, who never took alcohol, enjoyed losing his temper; it was his one outlet64; he gave himself up almost luxuriously65 to a passion; he looked forward to it as some men look forward to brandy. And Edwin had never stopped him by some drastic step. At first, years before, Edwin had said to himself, trembling with resentment66 in his bedroom, “The next time, the very next time, he humiliates67 me like that in front of other people, I’ll walk out of his damned house and shop, and I swear I won’t come back until he’s apologised. I’ll bring him to his senses. He can’t do without me. Once for all I’ll stop it. What! He forces me into his business, and then insults me!”
But Edwin had never done it. Always, it was ‘the very next time’! Edwin was not capable of doing it. His father had a sort of moral brute-force, against which he could not stand firm. He soon recognised this, with his intellectual candour. Then he had tried to argue with Darius, to ‘make him see’! Worse than futile68! Argument simply put Darius beside himself. So that in the end Edwin employed silence and secret scorn, as a weapon and as a defence. And somehow without a word he conveyed to Stifford and to Big James precisely69 what his attitude in these crises was, so that he retained their respect and avoided their pity. The outbursts still wounded him, but he was wonderfully inured70.
As he sat writing under the onslaught, he said to himself, “By God! If ever I get the chance, I’ll pay you out for this some day!” And he meant it. A peep into his mind, then, would have startled Janet Orgreave, Mrs Nixon, and other persons who had a cult16 for the wistfulness of his appealing eyes.
Edwin rose and went. As he passed through the shop, Stifford, who had in him the raw material of fine manners, glanced down, but not too ostentatiously, at a drawer under the counter.
The printing office was more crowded than ever with men and matter. Some of the composing was now done on the ground-floor. The whole organism functioned, but under such difficulties as could not be allowed to continue, even by Darius Clayhanger. Darius had finally recognised that.
“Oh!” said Edwin, in a tone of confidential74 intimacy75 to Big James, “I see they’re getting on with the cleaning! Good. Father’s beginning to get impatient, you know. It’s the bigger cases that had better be done first.”
“Right it is, Mr Edwin!” said Big James. The giant was unchanged. No sign of grey in his hair; and his cheek was smooth, apparently76 his philosophy put him beyond the touch of time.
“I say, Mr Edwin,” he inquired in his majestic77 voice. “When are we going to rearrange all this?” He gazed around.
Edwin laughed. “Soon,” he said.
“Won’t be too soon,” said Big James.
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1
slabs
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| n.厚板，平板，厚片( slab的名词复数 )；厚胶片 | |
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naught
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| n.无，零 [=nought] | |
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grunted
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| （猪等）作呼噜声( grunt的过去式和过去分词 )； （指人）发出类似的哼声； 咕哝着说 | |
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aged
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| adj.年老的，陈年的 | |
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scanty
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| adj.缺乏的，仅有的，节省的，狭小的，不够的 | |
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6
sprouted
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| v.发芽( sprout的过去式和过去分词 )；抽芽；出现；（使）涌现出 | |
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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
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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9
lodging
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| n.寄宿，住所；(大学生的)校外宿舍 | |
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10
concealed
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| a.隐藏的，隐蔽的 | |
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11
rumbled
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| 发出隆隆声，发出辘辘声( rumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 轰鸣着缓慢行进； 发现…的真相； 看穿（阴谋） | |
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dungeon
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| n.地牢，土牢 | |
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13
stouter
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| 粗壮的( stout的比较级 )； 结实的； 坚固的； 坚定的 | |
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14
wondrous
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| adj.令人惊奇的，奇妙的；adv.惊人地；异乎寻常地；令人惊叹地 | |
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15
shrugged
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| vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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cult
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| n.异教，邪教；时尚，狂热的崇拜 | |
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17
opulence
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| n.财富，富裕 | |
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18
moody
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| adj.心情不稳的，易怒的，喜怒无常的 | |
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19
penetration
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| n.穿透，穿人，渗透 | |
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20
feat
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| n.功绩；武艺，技艺；adj.灵巧的，漂亮的，合适的 | |
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21
persuasion
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| n.劝说；说服；持有某种信仰的宗派 | |
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22
atheist
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| n.无神论者 | |
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23
bishops
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| （基督教某些教派管辖大教区的）主教( bishop的名词复数 )； （国际象棋的）象 | |
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24
dissenting
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| adj.不同意的 | |
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25
conspired
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| 密谋( conspire的过去式和过去分词 )； 搞阴谋； （事件等）巧合； 共同导致 | |
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26
decorative
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| adj.装饰的，可作装饰的 | |
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27
atrocities
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| n.邪恶，暴行( atrocity的名词复数 )；滔天大罪 | |
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28
foundered
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| v.创始人( founder的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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29
uncertainty
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| n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物 | |
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30
coercion
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| n.强制，高压统治 | |
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31
Christian
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| adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒 | |
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32
borough
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| n.享有自治权的市镇；(英)自治市镇 | |
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33
catastrophe
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| n.大灾难，大祸 | |
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34
peccadillo
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| n.轻罪，小过失 | |
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35
contrived
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| adj.不自然的，做作的；虚构的 | |
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36
rites
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| 仪式，典礼( rite的名词复数 ) | |
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37
malady
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| n.病，疾病(通常做比喻) | |
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38
millennium
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| n.一千年，千禧年；太平盛世 | |
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39
haggling
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| v.讨价还价( haggle的现在分词 ) | |
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40
haggle
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| vi.讨价还价，争论不休 | |
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41
salvation
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| n.（尤指基督）救世，超度，拯救，解困 | |
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42
clattered
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| 发出咔哒声（clatter的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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43
regiment
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| n.团，多数，管理；v.组织，编成团，统制 | |
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44
squad
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| n.班，小队，小团体；vt.把…编成班或小组 | |
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45
alley
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| n.小巷，胡同；小径，小路 | |
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46
obstinacy
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| n.顽固；（病痛等）难治 | |
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47
fatigued
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| adj. 疲乏的 | |
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48
overtime
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| adj.超时的，加班的；adv.加班地 | |
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49
conscientiously
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| adv.凭良心地；认真地，负责尽职地；老老实实 | |
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50
sniffed
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| v.以鼻吸气，嗅，闻( sniff的过去式和过去分词 )；抽鼻子（尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气）；抱怨，不以为然地说 | |
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51
thereby
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| adv.因此，从而 | |
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52
repeal
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| n.废止，撤消；v.废止，撤消 | |
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53
anguishing
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| v.（尤指心理上的）极度的痛苦( anguish的现在分词 ) | |
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54
stertorous
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| adj.打鼾的 | |
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55
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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56
bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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57
memorandum
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| n.备忘录，便笺 | |
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58
lamely
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| 一瘸一拐地，不完全地 | |
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59
barometer
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| n.气压表，睛雨表，反应指标 | |
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60
upwards
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| adv.向上，在更高处...以上 | |
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61
wholesale
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| n.批发；adv.以批发方式；vt.批发，成批出售 | |
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62
raved
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| v.胡言乱语( rave的过去式和过去分词 )；愤怒地说；咆哮；痴心地说 | |
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63
celibate
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| adj.独身的，独身主义的；n.独身者 | |
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64
outlet
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| n.出口/路；销路；批发商店；通风口；发泄 | |
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65
luxuriously
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| adv.奢侈地，豪华地 | |
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66
resentment
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| n.怨愤，忿恨 | |
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67
humiliates
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| 使蒙羞，羞辱，使丢脸( humiliate的第三人称单数 ) | |
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68
futile
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| adj.无效的，无用的，无希望的 | |
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69
precisely
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| adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地 | |
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70
inured
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| adj.坚强的，习惯的 | |
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71
steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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72
conflagration
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| n.建筑物或森林大火 | |
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73
growled
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| v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说 | |
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74
confidential
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| adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的 | |
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75
intimacy
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| n.熟悉，亲密，密切关系，亲昵的言行 | |
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76
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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77
majestic
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| adj.雄伟的，壮丽的，庄严的，威严的，崇高的 | |
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