CHAPTER IV WHAT THE NURSE THOUGHT OF IT

 WHY, where can you have been, princess?" asked the nurse, taking her in her arms. "It's very unkind of you to hide away so long. I began to be afraid—"

Here she checked herself.

 

"What were you afraid of, nursie?" asked the princess.

 

"Never mind," she answered. "Perhaps I will tell you another day. Now tell me where you have been?"

 

"I've been up a long way to see my very great, huge, old grandmother," said the princess.

 

"What do you mean by that?" asked the nurse, who thought she was making fun.

 

"I mean that I've been a long way up and up to see my great grandmother. Ah, nursie, you don't know what a beautiful mother of grandmothers I've got upstairs. She is such an old lady! with such lovely white hair!—as white as my silver cup. Now, when I think of it, I think her hair must be silver."

 

"What nonsense you are talking, princess!" said the nurse.

 

"I'm not talking nonsense," returned Irene, rather offended. "I will tell you all about her. She's much taller than you, and much prettier."

 

"Oh, I daresay!" remarked the nurse.

 

"And she lives upon pigeon's eggs."

 

"Most likely," said the nurse.

 

"And she sits in an empty room, spin-spinning all day long."

 

"Not a doubt of it," said the nurse.

 

"And she keeps her crown in her bedroom."

 

"Of course—quite the proper place to keep her crown in. She wears it in bed, I'll be bound."

 

"She didn't say that. And I don't think she does. That wouldn't be comfortable—would it? I don't think my papa wears his crown for a night-cap. Does he, nursie?"

 

"I never asked him. I daresay he does."

 

"And she's been there ever since I came here—ever so many years."

 

"Anybody could have told you that," said the nurse, who did not believe a word Irene was saying.

 

"Why didn't you tell me then?"

 

"There was no necessity. You could make it all up for yourself."

 

"You don't believe me then!" exclaimed the princess, astonished and angry, as well she might be.

 

"Did you expect me to believe you, princess?" asked the nurse coldly. "I know princesses are in the habit of telling make-believes, but you are the first I ever heard of who expected to have them believed," she added, seeing that the child was strangely in earnest.

 

The princess burst into tears.

 

"Well, I must say," remarked the nurse, now thoroughly¹ vexed² with her for crying, "it is not at all becoming in a princess to tell stories and expect to be believed just because she is a princess."

 

"But it's quite true, I tell you, nursie."

 

"You've dreamt it, then, child."

 

"No, I didn't dream it. I went up-stairs, and I lost myself, and if I hadn't found the beautiful lady, I should never have found myself."

 

"Oh, I daresay!"

 

"Well, you just come up with me, and see if I'm not telling the truth."

 

"Indeed I have other work to do. It's your dinner-time, and I won't have any more such nonsense."

 

The princess wiped her eyes, and her face grew so hot that they were soon quite dry. She sat down to her dinner, but ate next to nothing. Not to be believed does not at all agree with princesses; for a real princess cannot tell a lie. So all the afternoon she did not speak a word. Only when the nurse spoke³ to her, she answered her, for a real princess is never rude—even when she does well to be offended.

 

Of course the nurse was not comfortable in her mind—not that she suspected the least truth in Irene's story, but that she loved her dearly, and was vexed with herself for having been cross to her. She thought her crossness was the cause of the princess' unhappiness, and had no idea that she was really and deeply hurt at not being believed. But, as it became more and more plain during the evening in every motion and look, that, although she tried to amuse herself with her toys, her heart was too vexed and troubled to enjoy them, her nurse's discomfort⁴ grew and grew. When bedtime came, she undressed and laid her down, but the child, instead of holding up her little mouth to be kissed, turned away from her and lay still. Then nursie's heart gave way altogether, and she began to cry. At the sound of her first sob⁵, the princess turned again, and held her face to kiss her as usual. But the nurse had her handkerchief to her eyes, and did not see the movement.

 

"Nursie," said the princess, "why won't you believe me?"

 

"Because I can't believe you," said the nurse, getting angry again.

 

"Ah! then you can't help it," said Irene, "and I will not be vexed with you any more. I will give you a kiss and go to sleep."

 

"You little angel!" cried the nurse, and caught her out of bed, and walked about the room with her in her arms, kissing and hugging her.

 

"You will let me take you to see my dear old great big grandmother, won't you?" said the princess, as she laid her down again.

 

"And you won't say I'm ugly, any more—will you, princess?"

 

"Nursie! I never said you were ugly. What can you mean?"

 

"Well, if you didn't say it, you meant it."

 

"Indeed, I never did."

 

"You said I wasn't so pretty as that—"

 

"As my beautiful grandmother—yes, I did say that; and I say it again, for it's quite true."

 

"Then I do think you are unkind!" said the nurse, and put her handkerchief to her eyes again.

 

"Nursie, dear, everybody can't be as beautiful as every other body, you know. You are very nice-looking, but if you had been as beautiful as my grandmother—"

 

"Bother your grandmother!" said the nurse.

 

"Nurse, that's very rude. You are not fit to be spoken to—till you can behave better."

 

The princess turned away once more, and again the nurse was ashamed of herself.

 

"I'm sure I beg your pardon, princess," she said, though still in an offended tone⁶. But the princess let the tone pass, and heeded⁷ only the words.

 

"You won't say it again, I am sure," she answered, once more turning toward her nurse. "I was only going to say that if you had been twice as nice-looking as you are, some king or other would have married you, and then what would have become of me?"

 

"You are an angel!" repeated the nurse, again embracing her.

 

"Now," insisted Irene, "you will come and see my grandmother—won't you?"

 

"I will go with you anywhere you like, my cherub," she answered; and in two minutes the weary⁸ little princess was fast asleep.

1 thoroughly   

adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地

参考例句：

• The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
• The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。

2 vexed   

adj.争论不休的；（指问题等）棘手的；争论不休的问题；烦恼的v.使烦恼( vex的过去式和过去分词 )；使苦恼；使生气；详细讨论

参考例句：

• The conference spent days discussing the vexed question of border controls. 会议花了几天的时间讨论边境关卡这个难题。
• He was vexed at his failure. 他因失败而懊恼。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

3 spoke   

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

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

4 discomfort   

n.不舒服，不安，难过，困难，不方便

参考例句：

• One has to bear a little discomfort while travelling.旅行中总要忍受一点不便。
• She turned red with discomfort when the teacher spoke.老师讲话时她不好意思地红着脸。

5 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。

6 tone   

n.语气，音调，气度，色调；vt.（up）增强

参考例句：

• There was a tone of mockery in his voice.他说话的语气含有嘲笑的意味。
• Holmes used an informal,chatty tone in his essays.霍姆斯在文章中语气轻松随便。

7 heeded   

v.听某人的劝告，听从( heed的过去式和过去分词 )；变平，使（某物）变平( flatten的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She countered that her advice had not been heeded. 她反驳说她的建议未被重视。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I heeded my doctor's advice and stopped smoking. 我听从医生的劝告，把烟戒了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 weary   

adj.疲劳的，使人疲劳的；vi.厌烦，不耐烦

参考例句：

• He has laid out all his strength and is weary.他使出了全部气力，非常疲倦。
• I am weary of his constant complaints.我对他不断发牢骚感到厌烦。