'Tis but a small adventure for a youth who is a strong swimmer to save a party of cits from drowning in a river, but 'twas a story much repeated, having a picturesqueness1 and colour because its chief figure Nature had fitted out with all the appointments which might be expected to adorn2 a hero.
"'Tis a pretty story, too," said a laughing great lady when 'twas talked of in town. "My lord Marquess dashing in and out of the river, bearing in his big white arms soused little citizen beauties and their half-drowned sweethearts, and towering in their midst giving orders—like a tall young god in marble come to life. The handsomest Marquess in Great Britain, and in France likewise, they tell me."
"The handsomest man," quoth the old Dowager Lady Storms, who had a country seat in Oxfordshire and knew more of the tale than any one else. "The handsomest man, say I, for it chanced that I drove by the river at that moment and saw him."
And then—freedom of speech being the fashion in those days and she an old woman—she painted such a picture of his fine looks, his broad shoulders, and the markings of his muscles under his polished skin, as, being repeated and spread abroad, as gossip will spread itself, fixed4 him in the minds of admirers of manly5 beauty and built him a reputation in the world of fashion before he had entered it or even left his books.
When he did leave them and quitted the University, it was with honour to himself and family, and also with joy to his Governour and Chaplain Mr. Fox, who had attended him. At his coming of age there were feastings and bonfires in five villages again, and Rowe rang the bells at Camylott Church with an exultant6 ardour which came near to being his final end, and though seventy years of age, he would give up his post to no younger man, and actually blubbered aloud when 'twas delicately suggested that his middle-aged7 son should take his place to save him fatigue8.
"Nay9! nay!" he cried; "I rang their Graces' wedding peal—I rang my lord Marquess into the world, and will give him up to none until I am a dead man."
At the Tower there was high feasting, the apartments being filled with guests from foreign Courts as well as from the English one, and as the young hero of the day moved among them, and among the tenantry rejoicing with waving flags and rural games in the park, as he danced with lovely ladies in the ball-room, and as he made his maiden11 speech to the people, who went wild with joy over him, all agreed that a noble house having such an heir need not fear for its future renown12, howsoever glorious its history might have been in the past.
After he had been presented at Court there seemed nothing this young man might not have asked for with the prospect13 of getting—a place near the King, a regiment14 to lead to glory, the hand of the fairest beauty of the greatest fortune and rank. But it seemed that he wanted nothing, for he made no request for any favour which might have brought him place or power or love. The great events at that time disturbing the nation he observed with an interest grave and thoughtful beyond his years. Men who were deep in the problems of statesmanship were amazed to discover the seriousness of his views and the amount of reflection he had given to public questions. Beauties who paraded themselves before him to attract his heart and eye—even sweetly tender ones who blushed when he approached them and sighed when he made his obeisance15 and retired—all were treated with a like courtesy and grace of manner, but he gave none more reason to sigh and blush, to ogle16 and languish17, than another, the honest truth being that he did not fall in love, despite his youth and the warmth of his nature, not having yet beheld18 the beauty who could blot19 out all others for him and reign10 alone.
"I will not play with love," he said to his mother once as they talked intimately to each other. "I have thought of it—that which should come to a man and be himself, not a part of his being but the very life of him. If it comes not, a man must go unsatisfied to his grave. If it comes—You know," he said, and turned and kissed her hand impulsively20, "It came to my father and to you."
"Yes," he answered, "I should know rapture22 that would make life Heaven. I do not know what it is I wait for—but when I see it in some woman's eyes I shall know, and so will she."
His mother kissed his ringed hair, smiling softly.
"Till then you wait and think of other things."
"There are so many things for a man to do," he said, "if he would not sit idle. But when that comes it will be first and greatest of all."
At this period all the world talked of the wondrous23 and splendid Churchill, who, having fought brilliantly for the Stuarts and been made by them first Lord Churchill of Eyemouth, and next Baron24 Churchill of Sandridge, having, after receiving these advancements25, the cold astuteness26 to see the royal fortunes waver perilously29, deserted30 James the Second with stately readiness and transferred his services to William of Orange. He was rewarded with an earldom and such favour as made him the most shining figure both at the Court of England and in the foreign countries which had learned to regard his almost supernatural powers with somewhat approaching awe31.
This man inspired Roxholm with a singular feeling; he in fact exercised over him the fascination32 he exercised over so many others, but in the case of the young Marquess, wonder and admiration33 were mixed with other emotions. There were stories so brilliant to be heard of him on all sides, stories of other actions so marvellously ruthless and of things so wondrously35 mean. Upon a bargain so shameless he had built so wondrous a career—a faithfulness of service so magnificent he had closed with a treachery so base. All greatness and all littleness, all heroism36 and all crimes, seemed to combine themselves in this one strange being. Having shamelessly sold his youth to a King's mistress, he devoted37 his splendid maturity38 to a tender, faithful passion for a beauteous virago39, whose displeasure was the sole thing on earth which moved him to pain or fear. In truth 'twas not his genius, his bravery, his victories, which held Roxholm's thought upon him most constantly; 'twas two other things, the first being the marvel34 of his control over himself, the power with which he held in subjection his passions, his emotions, almost, it seemed, his very thoughts themselves—the power with which he had trained John Churchill to be John Churchill's servant—in peril28, in temptation from any weakness to which he did not choose to succumb40, in circumstances which, arising without warning, might have caused another man to start, to falter41, to change colour, but which he encountered with indomitable calm.
"Tis that I wish to learn," said the young nobleman in his secret thoughts as he watched him at Court, in the world outside it, among soldiers, statesmen, women, in the society of those greater than himself, of those smaller, of those he would win and of those he would repel42. "'Tis that I would learn: to be stronger than my very self, so that naught43 can betray me—no passion I am tormented44 by, no anger I would conceal45, no lure46 I would resist. 'Tis a man's self who oftenest entraps47 him. The traitor48 once subject, life lies at one's feet."
The second thing which stirred the young observer's interest was the great man's great love. The most parsimonious49 and mercantile of beings, he had married a poor beauty when fair creatures with fortunes smiled upon him on every side; the most indomitable of spirits, the warrior50 of whom armies stood in awe, he was the willing subject of a woman whose fiery51 temper and tempestuous52 spirit the world knew as well as it knew her beauty and her dominating charm. For some reason he could scarcely have analyzed53, it gave Roxholm a strange pleasure to hear anecdotes54 of the passionate55 love-letters scrawled56 on the field—on the eve of battle, the hour after a great encounter and triumph; to know that better than victory to the great conquerer, who could command the slaughter57 of thousands without the quiver of a muscle or a moment's qualm, were the few lines in a woman's hand which told him he was forgiven for some fancied wrong or missed in some tender hour.
"My Lady Sarah is a handsome creature, and ever was one," 'twas said, "but there are those who are greater beauties, and who have less brimstone in the air about them and less lightning in their eyes."
"But 'twas she who was his own," Roxholm said to himself in pondering it over, "and when their eyes met each knew—and when she is fierce and torments58 him 'tis as if the fire in his own blood spoke59, as if his own voice reproached him—and he remembers their dear hours together, and forgives, and woos her back to him. If she were not his own—if he were not hers, neither could endure it. They would strike each other dead. 'Tis sure nature makes one man for one woman, one woman for one man—as it was in the garden where our first parents loved. Few creatures find their mates, alas60; but when they do 'tis Eden over again, in spite of all things—and all else is mean and incomplete.
He did not know that, as he had observed and been attracted by the hero, so the hero had been attracted by himself, though 'twas in a lesser61 degree, since one man was cold and mature and the other young and warm.
My Lord Churchill had been the most beautiful youth of his time, distinguished62 for the elegance63 of his bearing and the perfection of his countenance64 and form. When, at fifteen, the services of his father in the royal cause had procured65 for him the place of page in the household of the Duke of York, he had borne away the palm from all others of his age. When, at sixteen, his martial66 instincts had led to the Prince's obtaining for him a commission in a regiment of the guards, his first appearance in his scarlet67 and gold lace had produced such commotion68 among the court beauties as promised to lead to results almost disastrous69, since he attracted attention in places too high to reach with safety. But even then his ambitions were stronger than his temptations, and he fled the latter to go to fight the Moors70. On his return, more beautiful than ever, the lustre71 of success in arms added to his ripened72 charms, the handsomest and wickedest woman in England cast her eyes upon him, and he became the rival of royalty73 itself. All England knew the story of the founding of his later fortunes, but if he himself blushed for it, none but John Churchill knew—outwardly he was the being whose name was the synonym74 for success, the lover of the brilliant Castlemaine, the hero of the auxiliary75 force sent to Louis, the "handsome Englishman" of the siege of Nimeguen for whom Turenne predicted the greatest future a man could dream of.
When Roxholm first had the honour of being presented to this gentleman 'twas at a time when, after a brief period during which the hero's fortunes had been under a cloud, the tide had turned for him and the sun of royal favour shone forth76 again. Perhaps during certain perilous27 dark days in the Tower, my Lord Marlborough had passed through hours which had caused him to look back upon the past with some regret and doubting, and when among those who crowded about him when fortune smiled once more—friends, sycophants77, place-hunters, and new admirers—he beheld a figure whose youth and physical gifts brought back old memories to him, 'tis possible they awakened78 in him curious reflections.
"You," he said to Roxholm one day at St. James, "begin the game with all the cards in your hand."
"The game, my lord?" said the youthful Marquess, bowing.
"The game of life," returned the Earl of Marlborough (for so William of Orange had made him nine years before), and his eagle eye rested on the young man with a keen, strange look. "You need not plan and strive for rank and fortune. You were born to them—to those things which will aid a man to gain what he desires, if he is not a flippant idler and has brain enough to create ambitions for him. Most men must spend their youth in building the bridge which is to carry their dreams across to the shore which is their goal. Your bridge was built before you were born. You left Oxford3 with high honours, they tell me; you are not long of age, you come of a heroic race—what do you think to do, my lord?"
Roxholm met his scrutinizing79 gaze with that steadiness which ever marked his own. He knew that he reddened a little, but he did not look away.
"I am young to know, my Lord Marlborough," he returned, "but I think to live—to live."
His Lordship slightly narrowed his eyes, and nodded his head.
"Ay," he said, "you will live!"
"There have been soldiers of our house," said Roxholm. "I may fight if need be, perhaps," bowing, "following your lordship to some greater triumph, if I have that fortune. There may be services to the country at home I may be deemed worthy80 to devote my powers to when I have lived longer. But," reddening and bowing again, "before men of achievement and renown, I am yet a boy."
"England wants such boys," complimented his lordship, gracefully81. "The Partition Treaty and the needs of the Great Alliance call for the breeding of them. You will marry?"
"My house is an old one," replied Roxholm, "and if I live I shall be its chief."
My lord cast a glance about the apartment. It was a gala day and there were many lovely creatures near, laughing, conversing82, coquetting, bearing themselves with dignity, airiness, or sweet grace. There were beauties who were brown, and beauties who were fair; there were gay charmers and grave ones, those who were tall and commanding, and those who were small and nymph-like.
"There is none here to match you," he said with an imperturbable83 gravity ('twas plain he was not trifling84, but thinking some serious and unusual thoughts). "A man of your build has needs out of the common. No pretty, idle young thing will do. She should have beauty, and that which is more. 'Tis a strange kinship—marriage. No; she has not yet come to court."
"I will wait until she does," Roxholm answered, and his youthful face was as grave as the hero's own, though if triflers had heard their words, they would have taken their talk for idle persiflage85 and jest.
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1
picturesqueness
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adorn
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| vt.使美化，装饰 | |
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Oxford
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| n.牛津（英国城市） | |
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fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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manly
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| adj.有男子气概的；adv.男子般地，果断地 | |
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exultant
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| adj.欢腾的，狂欢的，大喜的 | |
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middle-aged
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| adj.中年的 | |
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fatigue
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| n.疲劳，劳累 | |
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nay
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| adv.不；n.反对票，投反对票者 | |
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reign
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| n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势 | |
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maiden
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| n.少女，处女；adj.未婚的，纯洁的，无经验的 | |
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renown
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| n.声誉，名望 | |
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prospect
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| n.前景，前途；景色，视野 | |
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regiment
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| n.团，多数，管理；v.组织，编成团，统制 | |
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obeisance
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| n.鞠躬，敬礼 | |
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ogle
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| v.看；送秋波；n.秋波，媚眼 | |
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languish
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| vi.变得衰弱无力，失去活力，（植物等）凋萎 | |
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beheld
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| v.看，注视( behold的过去式和过去分词 )；瞧；看呀；（叙述中用于引出某人意外的出现）哎哟 | |
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blot
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| vt.弄脏（用吸墨纸）吸干；n.污点，污渍 | |
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impulsively
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| adv.冲动地 | |
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bliss
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| n.狂喜，福佑，天赐的福 | |
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rapture
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| n.狂喜；全神贯注；着迷；v.使狂喜 | |
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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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baron
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| n.男爵；(商业界等)巨头，大王 | |
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advancements
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| n.（级别的）晋升( advancement的名词复数 )；前进；进展；促进 | |
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astuteness
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| n.敏锐；精明；机敏 | |
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perilous
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| adj.危险的，冒险的 | |
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peril
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| n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物 | |
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perilously
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| adv.充满危险地，危机四伏地 | |
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deserted
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| adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的 | |
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awe
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| n.敬畏，惊惧；vt.使敬畏，使惊惧 | |
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fascination
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| n.令人着迷的事物，魅力，迷恋 | |
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admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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marvel
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| vi.(at)惊叹vt.感到惊异；n.令人惊异的事 | |
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wondrously
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| adv.惊奇地，非常，极其 | |
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heroism
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| n.大无畏精神，英勇 | |
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devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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maturity
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| n.成熟；完成；(支票、债券等)到期 | |
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virago
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| n.悍妇 | |
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succumb
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| v.屈服，屈从；死 | |
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falter
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| vi.(嗓音)颤抖，结巴地说；犹豫；蹒跚 | |
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repel
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| v.击退，抵制，拒绝，排斥 | |
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naught
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| n.无，零 [=nought] | |
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tormented
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| 饱受折磨的 | |
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conceal
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽 | |
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lure
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| n.吸引人的东西，诱惑物；vt.引诱，吸引 | |
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entraps
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| v.使陷入圈套，使入陷阱( entrap的第三人称单数 ) | |
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traitor
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| n.叛徒，卖国贼 | |
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parsimonious
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| adj.吝啬的，质量低劣的 | |
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50
warrior
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| n.勇士，武士，斗士 | |
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fiery
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| adj.燃烧着的，火红的；暴躁的；激烈的 | |
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tempestuous
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| adj.狂暴的 | |
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53
analyzed
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| v.分析( analyze的过去式和过去分词 )；分解；解释；对…进行心理分析 | |
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anecdotes
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| n.掌故，趣闻，轶事( anecdote的名词复数 ) | |
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passionate
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| adj.热情的，热烈的，激昂的，易动情的，易怒的，性情暴躁的 | |
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scrawled
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| 乱涂，潦草地写( scrawl的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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slaughter
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| n.屠杀，屠宰；vt.屠杀，宰杀 | |
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torments
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| （肉体或精神上的）折磨，痛苦( torment的名词复数 )； 造成痛苦的事物[人] | |
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59
spoke
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| 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 | |
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60
alas
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| int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等) | |
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lesser
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| adj.次要的，较小的；adv.较小地，较少地 | |
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distinguished
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| adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的 | |
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elegance
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| n.优雅；优美，雅致；精致，巧妙 | |
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countenance
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| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
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procured
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| v.（努力）取得， （设法）获得( procure的过去式和过去分词 )；拉皮条 | |
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martial
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| adj.战争的，军事的，尚武的，威武的 | |
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scarlet
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| n.深红色，绯红色，红衣；adj.绯红色的 | |
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commotion
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| n.骚动，动乱 | |
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disastrous
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| adj.灾难性的，造成灾害的；极坏的，很糟的 | |
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moors
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| v.停泊，系泊（船只）( moor的第三人称单数 ) | |
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lustre
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| n.光亮，光泽；荣誉 | |
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72
ripened
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| v.成熟，使熟( ripen的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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royalty
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| n.皇家，皇族 | |
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synonym
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| n.同义词，换喻词 | |
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75
auxiliary
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| adj.辅助的，备用的 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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sycophants
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| n.谄媚者，拍马屁者( sycophant的名词复数 ) | |
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78
awakened
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| v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到 | |
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79
scrutinizing
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| v.仔细检查，详审( scrutinize的现在分词 ) | |
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80
worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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81
gracefully
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| ad.大大方方地；优美地 | |
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82
conversing
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| v.交谈，谈话( converse的现在分词 ) | |
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83
imperturbable
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| adj.镇静的 | |
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84
trifling
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| adj.微不足道的；没什么价值的 | |
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85
persiflage
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| n.戏弄；挖苦 | |
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