Winter had come and gone; spring was nearing its end, and London still suffered under the rigid1 regularity2 of easterly winds. Although in less than a week summer would begin with the first of June, Mr. Sarrazin was glad to find his office warmed by a fire, when he arrived to open the letters of the day.
The correspondence in general related exclusively to proceedings3 connected with the law. Two letters only presented an exception to the general rule. The first was addressed in Mrs. Linley’s handwriting, and bore the postmark of Hanover. Kitty’s mother had not only succeeded in getting to the safe side of the lake — she and her child had crossed the German Ocean as well. In one respect her letter was a remarkable4 composition. Although it was written by a lady, it was short enough to be read in less than a minute:
“MY DEAR MR. SARRAZIN— I have just time to write by this evening’s post. Our excellent courier has satisfied himself that the danger of discovery has passed away. The wretches5 have been so completely deceived that they are already on their way back to England, to lie in wait for us at Folkestone and Dover. To-morrow morning we leave this charming place — oh, how unwillingly6!— for Bremen, to catch the steamer to Hull7. You shall hear from me again on our arrival. Gratefully yours,
“CATHERINE LINLEY.”
Mr. Sarrazin put this letter into a private drawer and smiled as he turned the key. “Has she made up her mind at last?” he asked himself. “But for the courier, I shouldn’t feel sure of her even now.”
The second letter agreeably surprised him. It was announced that the writer had just returned from the United States; it invited him to dinner that evening; and it was signed “Randal Linley.” In Mr. Sarrazin’s estimation, Randal had always occupied a higher place than his brother. The lawyer had known Mrs. Linley before her marriage, and had been inclined to think that she would have done wisely if she had given her hand to the younger brother instead of the elder. His acquaintance with Randal ripened8 rapidly into friendship. But his relations with Herbert made no advance toward intimacy9: there was a gentlemanlike cordiality between them, and nothing more.
At seven o’clock the two friends sat at a snug10 little table, in the private room of a hotel, with an infinite number of questions to ask of each other, and with nothing to interrupt them but a dinner of such extraordinary merit that it insisted on being noticed, from the first course to the last.
Randal began. “Before we talk of anything else,” he said, “tell me about Catherine and the child. Where are they?”
“On their way to England, after a residence in Germany.”
“And the old lady?”
“Mrs. Presty has been staying with friends in London.”
“What! have they parted company? Has there been a quarrel?”
“Nothing of the sort; a friendly separation, in the strictest sense of the word. Oh, Randal, what are you about? Don’t put pepper into this perfect soup. It’s as good as the gras double at the Cafe Anglais in Paris.”
“So it is; I wasn’t paying proper attention to it. But I am anxious about Catherine. Why did she go abroad?”
“Haven’t you heard from her?”
“Not for six months or more. I innocently vexed11 her by writing a little too hopefully about Herbert. Mrs. Presty answered my letter, and recommended me not to write again. It isn’t like Catherine to bear malice12.”
“Don’t even think such a thing possible!” the lawyer answered, earnestly. “Attribute her silence to the right cause. Terrible anxieties have been weighing on her mind since you went to America.”
“Anxieties caused by my brother? Oh, I hope not!”
“Caused entirely13 by your brother — if I must tell the truth. Can’t you guess how?”
“Is it the child? You don’t mean to tell me that Herbert has taken Kitty away from her mother!”
“While I am her mother’s lawyer, my friend, your brother won’t do that. Welcome back to England in the first glass of sherry; good wine, but a little too dry for my taste. No, we won’t talk of domestic troubles just yet. You shall hear all about it after dinner. What made you go to America? You haven’t been delivering lectures, have you?”
“I have been enjoying myself among the most hospitable14 people in the world.”
Mr. Sarrazin shook his head; he had a case of copyright in hand just then. “A people to be pitied,” he said.
“Why?”
“Because their Government forgets what is due to the honor of the nation.”
“How?”
“In this way. The honor of a nation which confers right of property in works of art, produced by its own citizens, is surely concerned in protecting from theft works of art produced by other citizens.”
“That’s not the fault of the people.”
“Certainly not. I have already said it’s the fault of the Government. Let’s attend to the fish now.”
Randal took his friend’s advice. “Good sauce, isn’t it?” he said.
The epicure15 entered a protest. “Good?” he repeated. “My dear fellow, it’s absolute perfection. I don’t like to cast a slur16 on English cookery. But think of melted butter, and tell me if anybody but a foreigner (I don’t like foreigners, but I give them their due) could have produced this white wine sauce? So you really had no particular motive17 in going to America?”
“On the contrary, I had a very particular motive. Just remember what my life used to be when I was in Scotland — and look at my life now! No Mount Morven; no model farm to look after; no pleasant Highland18 neighbors; I can’t go to my brother while he is leading his present life; I have hurt Catherine’s feelings; I have lost dear little Kitty; I am not obliged to earn my living (more’s the pity); I don’t care about politics; I have a pleasure in eating harmless creatures, but no pleasure in shooting them. What is there left for me to do, but to try change of scene, and go roaming around the world, a restless creature without an object in life? Have I done something wrong again? It isn’t the pepper this time — and yet you’re looking at me as if I was trying your temper.”
The French side of Mr. Sarrazin’s nature had got the better of him once more. He pointed19 indignantly to a supreme20 preparation of fowl21 on his friend’s plate. “Do I actually see you picking out your truffles, and putting them on one side?” he asked.
“Well,” Randal acknowledged, “I don’t care about truffles.”
Mr. Sarrazin rose, with his plate in his hand and his fork ready for action. He walked round the table to his friend’s side, and reverently22 transferred the neglected truffles to his own plate. “Randal, you will live to repent23 this,” he said solemnly. “In the meantime, I am the gainer.” Until he had finished the truffles, no word fell from his lips. “I think I should have enjoyed them more,” he remarked, “if I had concentrated my attention by closing my eyes; but you would have thought I was going to sleep.” He recovered his English nationality, after this, until the dessert had been placed on the table, and the waiter was ready to leave the room. At that auspicious24 moment, he underwent another relapse. He insisted on sending his compliments and thanks to the cook.
“At last,” said Randal, “we are by ourselves — and now I want to know why Catherine went to Germany.”
收听单词发音 |
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rigid
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| adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的 | |
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regularity
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| n.规律性，规则性；匀称，整齐 | |
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proceedings
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| n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报 | |
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remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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wretches
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| n.不幸的人( wretch的名词复数 )；可怜的人；恶棍；坏蛋 | |
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unwillingly
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| adv.不情愿地 | |
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hull
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| n.船身；(果、实等的)外壳；vt.去(谷物等)壳 | |
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ripened
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| v.成熟，使熟( ripen的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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intimacy
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| n.熟悉，亲密，密切关系，亲昵的言行 | |
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snug
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| adj.温暖舒适的，合身的，安全的；v.使整洁干净，舒适地依靠，紧贴；n.（英）酒吧里的私房 | |
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vexed
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| 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 | |
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12
malice
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| n.恶意，怨恨，蓄意；[律]预谋 | |
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13
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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hospitable
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| adj.好客的；宽容的；有利的，适宜的 | |
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epicure
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| n.行家，美食家 | |
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16
slur
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| v.含糊地说；诋毁；连唱；n.诋毁；含糊的发音 | |
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motive
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| n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的 | |
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highland
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| n.(pl.)高地，山地 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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supreme
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| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
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fowl
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| n.家禽，鸡，禽肉 | |
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reverently
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| adv.虔诚地 | |
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repent
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| v.悔悟，悔改，忏悔，后悔 | |
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auspicious
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| adj.吉利的；幸运的，吉兆的 | |
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