THE HOUSE OPPOSITE

 We were talking over the sad case of young Algy Groom¹; I was explaining to Mrs. Hilary exactly what had happened.

 

“His father gave him,” said I, “a hundred pounds, to keep him for three months in Paris while he learnt French.”

 

“And very liberal too,” said Mrs. Hilary.

 

“It depends where you dine,” said I. “However, that question did not arise, for Algy went to the Grand Prix the day after he arrived—”

 

“A horse race?” asked Mrs. Hilary with great contempt.

 

“Certainly the competitors are horses,” I rejoined. “And there he, most unfortunately, lost the whole sum, without learning any French to speak of.”

 

“How disgusting!” exclaimed Mrs. Hilary, and little Miss Phyllis gasped² in horror.

 

“Oh, well,” said Hilary, with much bravery (as it struck me), “his father’s very well off.”

 

“That doesn’t make it a bit better, declared his wife.

 

“There’s no mortal sin in a little betting, my dear. Boys will be boys—”

 

“And even that,” I interposed, “wouldn’t matter if we could only prevent girls from being girls.”

 

Mrs. Hilary, taking no notice whatever of me, pronounced sentence. “He grossly deceived his father,” she said, and took up her embroidery³.

 

“Most of us have grossly deceived our parents before now,” said I. “We should all have to confess to something of the sort.”

 

“I hope you’re speaking for your own sex,” observed Mrs. Hilary.

 

“Not more than yours,” said I. “You used to meet Hilary on the pier⁴ when your father wasn’t there—you told me so.”

 

“Father had authorized⁵ my acquaintance with Hilary.”

 

“I hate quibbles,” said I.

 

There was a pause. Mrs. Hilary stitched; Hilary observed that the day was fine.

 

“Now,” I pursued carelessly, “even Miss Phyllis here has been known to deceive her parents.”

 

“Oh, let the poor child alone, anyhow,” said Mrs. Hilary.

 

“Haven’t you?” said I to Miss Phyllis.

 

I expected an indignant denial. So did Mrs. Hilary, for she remarked with a sympathetic air:

 

“Never mind his folly⁶, Phyllis dear.”

 

“Haven’t you, Miss Phyllis?” said I.

 

Miss Phyllis grew very red. Fearing that I was causing her pain, I was about to observe on the prospects⁷ of a Dissolution when a shy smile spread over Miss Phyllis’s face.

 

“Yes, once,” said she with a timid glance at Mrs. Hilary, who immediately laid down her embroidery.

 

“Out with it,” I cried, triumphantly⁸. “Come along, Miss Phyllis. We won’t tell, honor bright!”

 

Miss Phyllis looked again at Mrs. Hilary. Mrs. Hilary is human:

 

“Well, Phyllis, dear,” said she, “after all this time I shouldn’t think it my duty—”

 

“It only happened last summer,” said Miss Phyllis.

 

Mrs. Hilary looked rather put out.

 

“Still,” she began.

 

“We must have the story,” said I.

 

Little Miss Phyllis put down the sock she had been knitting.

 

“I was very naughty,” she remarked. “It was my last term at school.”

 

“I know that age,” said I to Hilary.

 

“My window looked out towards the street. You’re sure you won’t tell? Well, there was a house opposite—”

 

“And a young man in it,” said I.

 

“How did you know that?” asked Miss Phyllis, blushing immensely.

 

“No girls’ school can keep up its numbers without one,” I explained.

 

“Well, there was, anyhow,” said Miss Phyllis. “And I and two other girls went to a course of lectures at the Town Hall on literature or something of that kind. We used to have a shilling given us for our tickets.”

 

“Precisely,” said I. “A hundred pounds!”

 

“No, a shilling,” corrected Miss Phyllis. “A hundred pounds! How absurd, Mr. Carter! Well, one day I—I—”

 

“You’re sure you wish to go on, Phyllis?” asked Mrs. Hilary.

 

“You’re afraid, Mrs. Hilary,” said I severely⁹.

 

“Nonsense, Mr. Carter. I thought Phyllis might—”

 

“I don’t mind going on,” said Miss Phyllis, smiling. “One day I—I lost the other girls.”

 

“The other girls are always easy to lose,” I observed.

 

“And on the way there—oh, you know, he went to the lectures.”

 

“The young dog,” said I, nudging Hilary. “I should think he did!”

 

“On the way there it became rather—rather foggy.”

 

“Blessings on it!” I cried; for little Miss Phyllis’s demure¹⁰ but roguish expression delighted me.

 

“And he—he found me in the fog.”

 

“What are you doing, Mr. Carter?” cried Mrs. Hilary angrily.

 

“Nothing, nothing,” said I. I believe I had winked¹¹ at Hilary.

 

“And—we couldn’t find the Town Hall.”

 

“Oh, Phyllis!” groaned¹² Mrs. Hilary.

 

Little Miss Phyllis looked alarmed for a moment. Then she smiled.

 

“But we found the confectioner’s,” said she.

 

“The Grand Prix,” said I, pointing my forefinger¹³ at Hilary.

 

“He had no money at all,” said Miss Phyllis.

 

“It’s ideal!” said I.

 

“And—and we had tea on—on—”

 

“The shilling?” I cried in rapture¹⁴.

 

“Yes,” said little Miss Phyllis, “on the shilling. And he saw me home.”

 

“Details, please,” said I.

 

Little Miss Phyllis shook her head.

 

“And left me at the door.”

 

“Was it still foggy?” I asked.

 

“Yes. Or he wouldn’t have—”

 

“Now what did he—?”

 

“Come to the door, Mr. Carter,” said Miss Phyllis, with obvious wariness¹⁵. “Oh, and it was such fun!”

 

“I’m sure it was.”

 

“No, I mean when we were examined in the lectures. I bought the local paper, you know, and read it up, and I got top marks easily, and Miss Green wrote to mother to say how well I had done.”

 

“It all ends most satisfactorily,” I observed.

 

“Yes, didn’t it?” said little Miss Phyllis.

 

Mrs. Hilary was grave again.

 

“And you never told your mother, Phyllis?” she asked.

 

“N-no, Cousin Mary,” said Miss Phyllis.

 

I rose and stood with my back to the fire. Little Miss Phyllis took up her sock again, but a smile still played about the corners of her mouth.

 

“I wonder,” said I, looking up at the ceiling, “what happened at the door.” Then, as no one spoke¹⁶, I added:

 

“Pooh! I know what happened at the door.”

 

“I’m not going to tell you anything more,” said Miss Phyllis.

 

“But I should like to hear it in your own—”

 

Miss Phyllis was gone! She had suddenly risen and run from the room!

 

“It did happen at the door,” said I.

 

“Fancy Phyllis!” mused¹⁷ Mrs. Hilary.

 

“I hope,” said I, “that it will be a lesson to you.”

 

“I shall have to keep my eye on her,” said Mrs. Hilary.

 

“You can’t do it,” said I in easy confidence. I had no fear of little Miss Phyllis being done out of her recreations. “Meanwhile,” I pursued, “the important thing is this: my parallel is obvious and complete.”

 

“There’s not the least likeness,” said Mrs. Hilary sharply.

 

“As a hundred pounds are to a shilling, so is the Grand Prix to the young man opposite,” I observed, taking my hat, and holding out my hand to Mrs. Hilary.

 

“I am very angry with you,” she said. “You’ve made the child think there was nothing wrong in it.”

 

“Oh! Nonsense,” said I. “Look how she enjoyed telling it.”

 

Then, not heeding¹⁸ Mrs. Hilary, I launched into an apostrophe.

 

“O, divine House Opposite!” I cried. “Charming House Opposite! If only I might dwell forever in the House Opposite!”

 

“I haven’t the least notion of what you mean,” remarked Mrs. Hilary, stiffly. “I suppose it’s something silly—or worse.”

 

I looked at her in some puzzle.

 

“Have you no longing¹⁹ for the House Opposite?” I asked.

 

Mrs. Hilary looked at me. Her eyes ceased to be absolutely blank. She put her arm through Hilary’s and answered gently—

 

“I don’t want the House Opposite.”

 

“Ah,” said I, giving my hat a brush, “but maybe you remember the House—when it was Opposite?”

 

Mrs. Hilary, one arm still in Hilary’s, gave me her hand. She blushed and smiled.

 

“Well,” said she, “it was your fault; so I won’t scold Phyllis.”

 

“No, don’t my dear,” said Hilary, with a laugh.

 

As for me, I went downstairs, and, in absence of mind, bade my cabman drive to the House Opposite. But I have never got there.

 该作者的其它作品
《曾达的囚徒 The Prisoner of Zenda》
《The Heart of Princess Osra》

1 groom   

vt.给（马、狗等）梳毛，照料，使...整洁

参考例句：

• His father was a groom.他父亲曾是个马夫。
• George was already being groomed for the top job.为承担这份高级工作，乔治已在接受专门的培训。

2 gasped   

v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要

参考例句：

• She gasped at the wonderful view. 如此美景使她惊讶得屏住了呼吸。
• People gasped with admiration at the superb skill of the gymnasts. 体操运动员的高超技艺令人赞叹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

3 embroidery   

n.绣花，刺绣；绣制品

参考例句：

• This exquisite embroidery won people's great admiration.这件精美的绣品，使人惊叹不已。
• This is Jane's first attempt at embroidery.这是简第一次试着绣花。

4 pier   

n.码头；桥墩，桥柱；[建]窗间壁，支柱

参考例句：

• The pier of the bridge has been so badly damaged that experts worry it is unable to bear weight.这座桥的桥桩破损厉害，专家担心它已不能负重。
• The ship was making towards the pier.船正驶向码头。

5 authorized   

a.委任的，许可的

参考例句：

• An administrative order is valid if authorized by a statute.如果一个行政命令得到一个法规的认可那么这个命令就是有效的。

6 folly   

n.愚笨，愚蠢，蠢事，蠢行，傻话

参考例句：

• Learn wisdom by the folly of others.从别人的愚蠢行动中学到智慧。
• Events proved the folly of such calculations.事情的进展证明了这种估计是愚蠢的。

7 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

8 triumphantly   

ad.得意洋洋地；得胜地；成功地

参考例句：

• The lion was roaring triumphantly. 狮子正在发出胜利的吼叫。
• Robert was looking at me triumphantly. 罗伯特正得意扬扬地看着我。

9 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

10 demure   

adj.严肃的；端庄的

参考例句：

• She's very demure and sweet.她非常娴静可爱。
• The luscious Miss Wharton gave me a demure but knowing smile.性感迷人的沃顿小姐对我羞涩地会心一笑。

11 winked   

v.使眼色( wink的过去式和过去分词 )；递眼色（表示友好或高兴等）；（指光）闪烁；闪亮

参考例句：

• He winked at her and she knew he was thinking the same thing that she was. 他冲她眨了眨眼，她便知道他的想法和她一样。
• He winked his eyes at her and left the classroom. 他向她眨巴一下眼睛走出了教室。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

12 groaned   

v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦

参考例句：

• He groaned in anguish. 他痛苦地呻吟。
• The cart groaned under the weight of the piano. 大车在钢琴的重压下嘎吱作响。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 forefinger   

n.食指

参考例句：

• He pinched the leaf between his thumb and forefinger.他将叶子捏在拇指和食指之间。
• He held it between the tips of his thumb and forefinger.他用他大拇指和食指尖拿着它。

14 rapture   

n.狂喜；全神贯注；着迷；v.使狂喜

参考例句：

• His speech was received with rapture by his supporters.他的演说受到支持者们的热烈欢迎。
• In the midst of his rapture,he was interrupted by his father.他正欢天喜地，被他父亲打断了。

15 wariness   

n. 注意,小心

参考例句：

• The British public's wariness of opera is an anomaly in Europe. 英国公众对歌剧不大轻易接受的态度在欧洲来说很反常。
• There certainly is a history of wariness about using the R-word. 历史表明绝对应当谨慎使用“衰退”一词。

16 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。

17 mused   

v.沉思，冥想( muse的过去式和过去分词 )；沉思自语说（某事）

参考例句：

• \"I wonder if I shall ever see them again, \"he mused. “我不知道是否还可以再见到他们，”他沉思自问。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• \"Where are we going from here?\" mused one of Rutherford's guests. 卢瑟福的一位客人忍不住说道：‘我们这是在干什么？” 来自英汉非文学 - 科学史

18 heeding   

v.听某人的劝告，听从( heed的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• This come of heeding people who say one thing and mean another! 有些人嘴里一回事，心里又是一回事，今天这个下场都是听信了这种人的话的结果。 来自辞典例句
• Her dwarfish spouse still smoked his cigar and drank his rum without heeding her. 她那矮老公还在吸他的雪茄，喝他的蔗酒，睬也不睬她。 来自辞典例句

19 longing   

n.（for）渴望

参考例句：

• Hearing the tune again sent waves of longing through her.再次听到那首曲子使她胸中充满了渴望。
• His heart burned with longing for revenge.他心中燃烧着急欲复仇的怒火。