CHAPTER 43

 Shrimps, rice, and watered wine for a sunset dinner. At its end the three Chapdelaines, each with her small cup of black coffee, left the table and its remnants to the other two members of the household, and passed out as usual to the bower¹ benches and the goldfish pool.

 

Humming-birds were there, drinking frenziedly from honeysuckle cups to the health of all things beautiful and ecstatic. Mlle. Yvonne stood at a bench's end to watch one of them dart² from bloom to bloom. "Ah, Corinne," she sighed, "if we could all be juz' humming-bird'!"

 

"Chérie," cried her sister, "you are spilling yo' coffee!"

 

Whether for the coffee, for the fact that we can't all be humming-birds, or for some thought not yet spoken, Mlle. Corinne's eyes were all but spilling their tears. As the trio sat down. Aline said in gentlest accusation³ to the younger aunt:

 

"You are trembling. Why is that?"

 

The younger sister looked appealingly to the elder. "Chère," Mlle. Corinne said to the girl, "we are anxiouz to confezz you something. We woul'n' never be anxiouz to confezz that, only we're af-raid already you've foun' us out!"

 

"Yes. I came this evening by Ovide's shop to return a book----"

 

"An' he tell you he's meet us----?"

 

"On the steps of the archevêché."

 

"Ah, chèrie," Yvonne tearfully broke in, "can you ever pardon that to us?"

 

Aline smiled: "Oh, yes; in the course of time, I suppose. That was not like a drinking-saloon."

 

"Ah-h! not in the leas'! We di'n' touch there a drop--nobodie di'n' offer us!"

 

The niece addressed the other aunt: "Go on. Tell me why you were there."

 

"Aline, we'll confess us! We wend there biccause--we are orphan⁴'! Of co'se, we know that biffo', sinze long time, many, many year'; but only sinze a few day'----"

 

"Joy-ride day," Aline put in, a bit tensely.

 

"Ah, no! Chérie, you muz' not supose----"

 

"Never mind; 'last few days'--go on."

 

"Well, sinze those laz' few day' we bigin to feel like we juz' got to take step' ab-oud that!"

 

"So you took those steps of the archevêché."

 

"Chère, we'll tell you! Yvonne and me, avter all those many 'appy year' with you, we think we want--ah, chérie, you'll pardon that?--we want ad the laz' to live independent! So we go ad the archbishop. And he say, 'How I'm going to make you that? You think to be independent by biccoming Sizter' of Charitie--of Mercy--of St. Joseph?'

 

"'Ah, no,' we say, 'we have not the geniuz to be those; not even to be Li'l'-Sizter'-of-the-Poor. All we want--and we coul'n' make ourselv' the courage to ask you that, only we've save' you so large egspenses not asking you that already sinze twenty-thirty year' aggo--we want you to put us in orphan asylum⁵.' We was af-raid at firz' he's goin' to be mad; but he smile very kine and say: 'Yes, yes; you want, like the good Lord say, to biccome like li'l' children, eh?'

 

"'Ah, yes!' we tell him, 'tha'z what we be glad to do. They got nothing in the worl' we can do, Yvonne and me, so easy like that! And same time we be no egspense, like those li'l' orpheline'; we can wash dish', make bed', men' apron'; and in that way we be independent!' Well, he scratch his head; yet same time he smile', while he say, 'Go, li'l' children, to yo' home. I'll see if Mère Veronique can figs⁶ that, and if yes, I'll san' for you.' And, chérie, juz' the way he said that, we are sure he's goin' to san'."

 

With her tears running freely Aline softly laughed. She rose, took a hand of each aunt, laid the two together, bent⁷ low, and kissed them, saying: "He will not, for he shall not. Nothing shall ever part us but heaven."

1 bower   

n.凉亭，树荫下凉快之处；闺房；v.荫蔽

参考例句：

• They sat under the leafy bower at the end of the garden and watched the sun set.他们坐在花园尽头由叶子搭成的凉棚下观看落日。
• Mrs. Quilp was pining in her bower.奎尔普太太正在她的闺房里度着愁苦的岁月。

2 dart   

v.猛冲，投掷；n.飞镖，猛冲

参考例句：

• The child made a sudden dart across the road.那小孩突然冲过马路。
• Markov died after being struck by a poison dart.马尔科夫身中毒镖而亡。

3 accusation   

n.控告，指责，谴责

参考例句：

• I was furious at his making such an accusation.我对他的这种责备非常气愤。
• She knew that no one would believe her accusation.她知道没人会相信她的指控。

4 orphan   

n.孤儿；adj.无父母的

参考例句：

• He brought up the orphan and passed onto him his knowledge of medicine.他把一个孤儿养大，并且把自己的医术传给了他。
• The orphan had been reared in a convent by some good sisters.这个孤儿在一所修道院里被几个好心的修女带大。

5 asylum   

n.避难所，庇护所，避难

参考例句：

• The people ask for political asylum.人们请求政治避难。
• Having sought asylum in the West for many years,they were eventually granted it.他们最终获得了在西方寻求多年的避难权。

6 figs   

figures 数字，图形，外形

参考例句：

• The effect of ring dyeing is shown in Figs 10 and 11. 环形染色的影响如图10和图11所示。
• The results in Figs. 4 and 5 show the excellent agreement between simulation and experiment. 图4和图5的结果都表明模拟和实验是相当吻合的。

7 bent   

n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的

参考例句：

• He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
• We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。