CHAPTER X.

WHAT IS LIFE WITHOUT LOVE?

 

Every evening, on some pretext¹ or other, Jay Gardiner managed to pay David Moore, the basket-maker, a visit, and the cynical² old man began to look forward to these visits.

 

He never dreamed that his daughter was the magnet which drew the young man to his poor home. They were evenings that Jay Gardiner never forgot.

 

Bernardine was slightly confused at first by his presence; then she began to view the matter in another light—that the young doctor had taken quite an interest in her father. He had certainly cured him of a terrible habit, and she was only too pleased that her father should have visits from so pleasant a man.

 

She always had some work in her slender white hands when the doctor called. Sometimes, glancing up unexpectedly, she would find the doctor's keen blue eyes regarding her intently, and she would bend lower over her sewing. Jay Gardiner, however, saw the flush that rose to her cheek and brow.

 

As he sat in that little tenement³ sitting-room⁴—he who had been flattered and courted by the most beautiful heiresses—he experienced a feeling of rest come over him.

 

He would rather pass one hour in that plain, unpretentious sitting-room than visit the grandest Fifth Avenue mansion⁵.

 

And thus a fortnight passed. At the end of that time, Jay Gardiner stood face to face with the knowledge of his own secret—that he had at last met in Bernardine Moore the idol⁶ of his life. He stood face to face with this one fact—that wealth, grandeur⁷, anything that earth could give him, was of little value unless he had the love of sweet Bernardine.

 

It came upon him suddenly that the sweet witchery, the glamor⁸ falling over him was—love.

 

He realized that he lived only in Bernardine's presence, and that without her life would be but a blank to him. His love for Bernardine became the one great passion of his life. Compared with her, all other women paled into insignificance⁹.

 

He fell, without knowing it, from a state of intense admiration¹⁰ into one of blind adoration¹¹ for her. He had never before trembled at a woman's touch. Now, if his hand touched hers, he trembled as a strong tree trembles in a storm.

 

Looking forward to the years to come, he saw no gleam of brightness in them unless they were spent with the girl he loved.

 

Then came the awakening¹². He received a letter from Sally Pendleton, in which she upbraided¹³ him for not writing. That letter reminded him that he was not free; that before he had met Bernardine, he had bound himself in honor to another.

 

He was perplexed¹⁴, agitated¹⁵. He loved Bernardine with his whole heart, and yet, upon another girl's hand shone his betrothal-ring.

 

When the knowledge of his love for sweet Bernardine came to him, he told himself that he ought to fly from her; go where the witchery of her face, the charm of her presence, would never set his heart on fire; go where he could never hear her sweet voice again.

 

"Only a few days more," he said, sadly. "I will come here for another week, and then the darkness of death will begin for me, for the girl who holds me in such galling¹⁶ chains will return to the city."

 

Why should he not see Bernardine for another week? It would not harm her, and it would be his last gleam of happiness.

 

At this time another suitor for Bernardine's hand appeared upon the scene. On one of his visits to the Moores' home he met a young man there. The old basket-maker introduced him, with quite a flourish, as Mr. Jasper Wilde, a wine merchant, and his landlord. The two men bowed stiffly and looked at each other as they acknowledged the presentation.

 

Doctor Gardiner saw before him a heavy-set, dark-eyed young man with a low, sinister¹⁷ brow. An unpleasant leer curled his thin lips, which a black mustache partially¹⁸ shaded, and he wore a profusion¹⁹ of jewels which was disgusting to one of his refined temperament²⁰.

 

He could well understand that he was a wine merchant's son. He certainly gave evidence of his business, and that he had more money than good breeding. The word roué was stamped on his every feature.

 

Jay Gardiner was troubled at the very thought of such a man being brought in contact with sweet Bernardine. Then the thought flashed through his mind that this was certainly the man whom the woman on the doorstep had told him about.

 

Jasper Wilde, looking at the young doctor, summed him up as a proud, white-handed, would-be doctor who hadn't a cent in his pocket.

 

"I can see what the attraction is here—it's Bernardine; but I'll block his little game," he muttered. "The few weeks that I've been out of the city he has been making great headway; but I'll stop that."

 

The young doctor noticed that what the woman had told him was quite true. He could readily see that Bernardine showed a feeling of repugnance²¹ toward her visitor.

 

But another thing he noticed with much anxiety was, that the old basket-maker was quite hilarious²², as though he had been dosed with wine or something stronger.

 

Jay Gardiner knew at once that this man must have known the basket-maker's failing and slipped him a bottle, and that that was his passport to favor.

 

Doctor Gardiner talked with David Moore and his daughter, addressing no remarks whatever to the obnoxious²³ visitor.

 

"The impudent²⁴ popinjay is trying to phase me," thought Wilde; "but he will see that it won't work."

 

Accordingly he broke into every topic that was introduced; and thus the evening wore on, until it became quite evident to Doctor Gardiner that Mr. Jasper Wilde intended to sit him out.

 

Bernardine looked just a trifle weary when the clock on the mantel struck ten, and Doctor Gardiner rose to depart.

 

"Shall I hold the light for you?" she asked. "The stair-way is always very dark."

 

"If you will be so kind," murmured the doctor.

 

Jasper Wilde's face darkened as he listened to this conversation. His eyes flashed fire as they both disappeared through the door-way.

 

On the landing outside Doctor Gardiner paused a few moments.

 

How he longed to give her a few words of advice, to tell her to beware of the man whom he had just left talking to her father! But he remembered that he had not that right. She might think him presumptuous²⁵.

 

If he had only been free, he would have pleaded his own suit then and there. That she was poor and unknown, and the daughter of such a father, he cared nothing.

 

Ah! cruel fate, which forbid him taking her in his arms and never letting her go until she had promised to be his wife!

 

As it was, knowing that he loved her with such a mighty²⁶ love, he told himself that he must look upon her face but once again, and then it must be only to say farewell.

 

"The night is damp and the air is chill, and these narrow halls are draughty. Do not stand out here," he said, with eager solicitude²⁷; "you might catch cold."

 

She laughed a sweet, amused laugh.

 

"I am used to all kinds of weather, Doctor Gardiner," she said. "I am always out in it. I make the first track in winter through the deep snows. I go for the work in the morning, and return with it at night. You know, when one is poor, one can not be particular about such little things as the weather; it would never do."

1 pretext   

n.借口，托词

参考例句：

• He used his headache as a pretext for not going to school.他借口头疼而不去上学。
• He didn't attend that meeting under the pretext of sickness.他以生病为借口，没参加那个会议。

2 cynical   

adj.(对人性或动机)怀疑的，不信世道向善的

参考例句：

• The enormous difficulty makes him cynical about the feasibility of the idea.由于困难很大，他对这个主意是否可行持怀疑态度。
• He was cynical that any good could come of democracy.他不相信民主会带来什么好处。

3 tenement   

n.公寓；房屋

参考例句：

• They live in a tenement.他们住在廉价公寓里。
• She felt very smug in a tenement yard like this.就是在个这样的杂院里，她觉得很得意。

4 sitting-room   

n.（BrE）客厅，起居室

参考例句：

• The sitting-room is clean.起居室很清洁。
• Each villa has a separate sitting-room.每栋别墅都有一间独立的起居室。

5 mansion   

n.大厦，大楼；宅第

参考例句：

• The old mansion was built in 1850.这座古宅建于1850年。
• The mansion has extensive grounds.这大厦四周的庭园广阔。

6 idol   

n.偶像，红人，宠儿

参考例句：

• As an only child he was the idol of his parents.作为独子，他是父母的宠儿。
• Blind worship of this idol must be ended.对这个偶像的盲目崇拜应该结束了。

7 grandeur   

n.伟大，崇高，宏伟，庄严，豪华

参考例句：

• The grandeur of the Great Wall is unmatched.长城的壮观是独一无二的。
• These ruins sufficiently attest the former grandeur of the place.这些遗迹充分证明此处昔日的宏伟。

8 glamor   

n.魅力，吸引力

参考例句：

• His performance fully displayed the infinite glamor of Chinese dance.他的表演充分展示了中华舞蹈的无穷魅力。
• The glamor of the East was brought to international prominence by the Russion national school.俄罗斯民族学派使东方的魅力产生了国际性的影响。

9 insignificance   

n.不重要；无价值；无意义

参考例句：

• Her insignificance in the presence of so much magnificence faintly affected her. "她想象着他所描绘的一切，心里不禁有些刺痛。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• It was above the common mass, above idleness, above want, above insignificance. 这里没有平凡，没有懒散，没有贫困，也没有低微。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

10 admiration   

n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕

参考例句：

• He was lost in admiration of the beauty of the scene.他对风景之美赞不绝口。
• We have a great admiration for the gold medalists.我们对金牌获得者极为敬佩。

11 adoration   

n.爱慕，崇拜

参考例句：

• He gazed at her with pure adoration.他一往情深地注视着她。
• The old lady fell down in adoration before Buddhist images.那老太太在佛像面前顶礼膜拜。

12 awakening   

n.觉醒，醒悟 adj.觉醒中的；唤醒的

参考例句：

• the awakening of interest in the environment 对环境产生的兴趣
• People are gradually awakening to their rights. 人们正逐渐意识到自己的权利。

13 upbraided   

v.责备，申斥，谴责( upbraid的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The captain upbraided his men for falling asleep. 上尉因他的部下睡着了而斥责他们。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• My wife upbraided me for not earning more money. 我的太太为了我没有赚更多的钱而责备我。 来自辞典例句

14 perplexed   

adj.不知所措的

参考例句：

• The farmer felt the cow,went away,returned,sorely perplexed,always afraid of being cheated.那农民摸摸那头牛，走了又回来，犹豫不决，总怕上当受骗。
• The child was perplexed by the intricate plot of the story.这孩子被那头绪纷繁的故事弄得迷惑不解。

15 agitated   

adj.被鼓动的，不安的

参考例句：

• His answers were all mixed up,so agitated was he.他是那样心神不定，回答全乱了。
• She was agitated because her train was an hour late.她乘坐的火车晚点一个小时，她十分焦虑。

16 galling   

adj.难堪的,使烦恼的,使焦躁的

参考例句：

• It was galling to have to apologize to a man she hated. 令人恼火的是得向她憎恶的男人道歉。
• The insolence in the fellow's eye was galling. 这家伙的傲慢目光令人恼怒。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

17 sinister   

adj.不吉利的，凶恶的，左边的

参考例句：

• There is something sinister at the back of that series of crimes.在这一系列罪行背后有险恶的阴谋。
• Their proposals are all worthless and designed out of sinister motives.他们的建议不仅一钱不值，而且包藏祸心。

18 partially   

adv.部分地，从某些方面讲

参考例句：

• The door was partially concealed by the drapes.门有一部分被门帘遮住了。
• The police managed to restore calm and the curfew was partially lifted.警方设法恢复了平静，宵禁部分解除。

19 profusion   

n.挥霍；丰富

参考例句：

• He is liberal to profusion.他挥霍无度。
• The leaves are falling in profusion.落叶纷纷。

20 temperament   

n.气质，性格，性情

参考例句：

• The analysis of what kind of temperament you possess is vital.分析一下你有什么样的气质是十分重要的。
• Success often depends on temperament.成功常常取决于一个人的性格。

21 repugnance   

n.嫌恶

参考例句：

• He fought down a feelings of repugnance.他抑制住了厌恶感。
• She had a repugnance to the person with whom she spoke.她看不惯这个和她谈话的人。

22 hilarious   

adj.充满笑声的，欢闹的；[反]depressed

参考例句：

• The party got quite hilarious after they brought more wine.在他们又拿来更多的酒之后，派对变得更加热闹起来。
• We stop laughing because the show was so hilarious.我们笑个不停，因为那个节目太搞笑了。

23 obnoxious   

adj.极恼人的，讨人厌的，可憎的

参考例句：

• These fires produce really obnoxious fumes and smoke.这些火炉冒出来的烟气确实很难闻。
• He is the most obnoxious man I know.他是我认识的最可憎的人。

24 impudent   

adj.鲁莽的，卑鄙的，厚颜无耻的

参考例句：

• She's tolerant toward those impudent colleagues.她对那些无礼的同事采取容忍的态度。
• The teacher threatened to kick the impudent pupil out of the room.老师威胁着要把这无礼的小学生撵出教室。

25 presumptuous   

adj.胆大妄为的，放肆的，冒昧的，冒失的

参考例句：

• It would be presumptuous for anybody to offer such a view.任何人提出这种观点都是太放肆了。
• It was presumptuous of him to take charge.他自拿主张，太放肆了。

26 mighty   

adj.强有力的；巨大的

参考例句：

• A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
• The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。

27 solicitude   

n.焦虑

参考例句：

• Your solicitude was a great consolation to me.你对我的关怀给了我莫大的安慰。
• He is full of tender solicitude towards my sister.他对我妹妹满心牵挂。