Mrs. Linley’s application for a Divorce was heard in the first division of the Court of Session at Edinburgh, the Lord President being the judge.
To the disappointment of the large audience assembled, no defense1 was attempted on the part of the husband — a wise decision, seeing that the evidence of the wife and her witnesses was beyond dispute. But one exciting incident occurred toward the close of the proceedings2. Sudden illness made Mrs. Linley’s removal necessary, at the moment of all others most interesting to herself — the moment before the judge’s decision was announced.
But, as the event proved, the poor lady’s withdrawal3 was the most fortunate circumstance that could have occurred, in her own interests. After condemning4 the husband’s conduct with unsparing severity, the Lord President surprised most of the persons present by speaking of the wife in these terms:
“Grievously as Mrs. Linley has been injured, the evidence shows that she was herself by no means free from blame. She has been guilty, to say the least of it, of acts of indiscretion. When the criminal attachment5 which had grown up between Mr. Herbert Linley and Miss Westerfield had been confessed to her, she appears to have most unreasonably6 overrated whatever merit there might have been in their resistance to the final temptation. She was indeed so impulsively7 ready to forgive (without waiting to see if the event justified8 the exercise of mercy) that she owns to having given her hand to Miss Westerfield, at parting, not half an hour after that young person’s shameless forgetfulness of the claims of modesty9, duty and gratitude10 had been first communicated to her. To say that this was the act of an inconsiderate woman, culpably11 indiscreet and, I had almost added, culpably indelicate, is only to say what she has deserved. On the next occasion to which I feel bound to advert12, her conduct was even more deserving of censure13. She herself appears to have placed the temptation under which he fell in her husband’s way, and so (in some degree at least) to have provoked the catastrophe14 which has brought her before this court. I allude15, it is needless to say, to her having invited the governess — then out of harm’s way; then employed elsewhere — to return to her house, and to risk (what actually occurred) a meeting with Mr. Herbert Linley when no third person happened to be present. I know that the maternal16 motive17 which animated18 Mrs. Linley is considered, by many persons, to excuse and even to justify19 that most regrettable act; and I have myself allowed (I fear weakly allowed) more than due weight to this consideration in pronouncing for the Divorce. Let me express the earnest hope that Mrs. Linley will take warning by what has happened; and, if she finds herself hereafter placed in other circumstances of difficulty, let me advise her to exercise more control over impulses which one might expect perhaps to find in a young girl, but which are neither natural nor excusable in a woman of her age.”
His lordship then decreed the Divorce in the customary form, giving the custody20 of the child to the mother.
As fast as a hired carriage could take him, Mr. Sarrazin drove from the court to Mrs. Linley’s lodgings21, to tell her that the one great object of securing her right to her child had been achieved.
At the door he was met by Mrs. Presty. She was accompanied by a stranger, whose medical services had been required. Interested professionally in hearing the result of the trial, this gentleman volunteered to communicate the good news to his patient. He had been waiting to administer a composing draught22, until the suspense23 from which Mrs. Linley was suffering might be relieved, and a reasonable hope be entertained that the medicine would produce the right effect. With that explanation he left the room.
While the doctor was speaking, Mrs. Presty was drawing her own conclusions from a close scrutiny24 of Mr. Sarrazin’s face.
“I am going to make a disagreeable remark,” she announced. “You look ten years older, sir, than you did when you left us this morning to go to the Court. Do me a favor — come to the sideboard.” The lawyer having obeyed, she poured out a glass of wine. “There is the remedy,” she resumed, “when something has happened to worry you.”
“‘Worry’ isn’t the right word,” Mr. Sarrazin declared. “I’m furious! It’s a most improper25 thing for a person in my position to say of a person in the Lord President’s position; but I do say it — he ought to be ashamed of himself.”
“After giving us our Divorce!” Mrs. Presty exclaimed. “What has he done?”
Mr. Sarrazin repeated what the judge had said of Mrs. Linley. “In my opinion,” he added, “such language as that is an insult to your daughter.”
“And yet,” Mrs. Presty repeated, “he has given us our Divorce.” She returned to the sideboard, poured out a second dose of the remedy against worry, and took it herself. “What sort of character does the Lord President bear?” she asked when she had emptied her glass.
This seemed to be an extraordinary question to put, under the circumstances. Mr. Sarrazin answered it, however, to the best of his ability. “An excellent character,” he said —“that’s the unaccountable part of it. I hear that he is one of the most careful and considerate men who ever sat on the bench. Excuse me, Mrs. Presty, I didn’t intend to produce that impression on you.”
“What impression, Mr. Sarrazin?”
“You look as if you thought there was some excuse for the judge.”
“That’s exactly what I do think.”
“You find an excuse for him?”
“I do.”
“What is it, ma’am?”
“Constitutional infirmity, sir.”
“May I ask of what nature?”
“You may. Gout.”
Mr. Sarrazin thought he understood her at last. “You know the Lord President,” he said.
Mrs. Presty denied it positively26. “No, Mr. Sarrazin, I don’t get at it in that way. I merely consult my experience of another official person of high rank, and apply it to the Lord President. You know that my first husband was a Cabinet Minister?”
“I have heard you say so, Mrs. Presty, on more than one occasion.”
“Very well. You may also have heard that the late Mr. Norman was a remarkably27 well-bred man. In and out of the House of Commons, courteous28 almost to a fault. One day I happened to interrupt him when he was absorbed over an Act of Parliament. Before I could apologize — I tell you this in the strictest confidence — he threw the Act of Parliament at my head. Ninety-nine women out of a hundred would have thrown it back again. Knowing his constitution, I decided29 on waiting a day or two. On the second day, my anticipations30 were realized. Mr. Norman’s great toe was as big as my fist and as red as a lobster31; he apologized for the Act of Parliament with tears in his eyes. Suppressed gout in Mr. Norman’s temper; suppressed gout in the Lord President’s temper. He will have a toe; and, if I can prevail upon my daughter to call upon him, I have not the least doubt he will apologize to her with tears in his eyes.”
This interesting experiment was never destined32 to be tried. Right or wrong, Mrs. Presty’s theory remained the only explanation of the judge’s severity. Mr. Sarrazin attempted to change the subject. Mrs. Presty had not quite done with it yet. “There is one more thing I want to say,” she proceeded. “Will his lordship’s remarks appear in the newspapers?”
“Not a doubt of it.”
“In that case I will take care (for my daughter’s sake) that no newspapers enter the house to-morrow. As for visitors, we needn’t be afraid of them. Catherine is not likely to be able to leave her room; the worry of this miserable33 business has quite broken her down.”
The doctor returned at that moment.
Without taking the old lady’s gloomy view of his patient, he admitted that she was in a low nervous condition, and he had reason to suppose, judging by her reply to a question which he had ventured to put, that she had associations with Scotland which made a visit to that country far from agreeable to her. His advice was that she should leave Edinburgh as soon as possible, and go South. If the change of climate led to no improvement, she would at least be in a position to consult the best physicians in London. In a day or two more it would be safe to remove her — provided she was not permitted to exhaust her strength by taking long railway journeys.
Having given his advice, the doctor took leave. Soon after he had gone, Kitty made her appearance, charged with a message from Mrs. Linley’s room.
“Hasn’t the physic sent your mother to sleep yet?” Mrs. Presty inquired.
Kitty shook her head. “Mamma wants to go away tomorrow, and no physic will make her sleep till she has seen you, and settled about it. That’s what she told me to say. If I behaved in that way about my physic, I should catch it.”
Mrs. Presty left the room; watched by her granddaughter with an appearance of anxiety which it was not easy to understand.
“What’s the matter?” Mr. Sarrazin asked. “You look very serious to-day.”
Kitty held up a warning hand. “Grandmamma sometimes listens at doors,” she whispered; “I don’t want her to hear me.” She waited a little longer, and then approached Mr. Sarrazin, frowning mysteriously. “Take me up on your knee,” she said. “There’s something wrong going on in this house.”
Mr. Sarrazin took her on his knee, and rashly asked what had gone wrong. Kitty’s reply puzzled him.
“I go to mamma’s room every morning when I wake,” the child began. “I get into her bed, and I give her a kiss, and I say ‘Good-morning’— and sometimes, if she isn’t in a hurry to get up, I stop in her bed, and go to sleep again. Mamma thought I was asleep this morning. I wasn’t asleep — I was only quiet. I don’t know why I was quiet.”
Mr. Sarrazin’s kindness still encouraged her. “Well,” he said, “and what happened after that?”
“Grandmamma came in. She told mamma to keep up her spirits. She says, ‘It will all be over in a few hours more.’ She says, ‘What a burden it will be off your mind!’ She says, ‘Is that child asleep?’ And mamma says, ‘Yes.’ And grandmamma took one of mamma’s towels. And I thought she was going to wash herself. What would you have thought?”
Mr. Sarrazin began to doubt whether he would do well to discuss Mrs. Presty’s object in taking the towel. He only said, “Go on.”
“Grandmamma dipped it into the water-jug,” Kitty continued, with a grave face; “but she didn’t wash herself. She went to one of mamma’s boxes. Though she’s so old, she’s awfully34 strong, I can tell you. She rubbed off the luggage-label in no time. Mamma says, ‘What are you doing that for?’ And grandmamma says — this is the dreadful thing that I want you to explain; oh, I can remember it all; it’s like learning lessons, only much nicer — grandmamma says, ‘Before the day’s over, the name on your boxes will be your name no longer.’”
Mr. Sarrazin now became aware of the labyrinth35 into which his young friend had innocently led him. The Divorce, and the wife’s inevitable36 return (when the husband was no longer the husband) to her maiden37 name — these were the subjects on which Kitty’s desire for enlightenment applied38 to the wisest person within her reach, her mother’s legal adviser39.
Mr. Sarrazin tried to put her off his knee. She held him round the neck. He thought of the railway as a promising40 excuse, and told her he must go back to London. She held him a little tighter. “I really can’t wait, my dear;” he got up as he said it. Kitty hung on to him with her legs as well as her arms, and finding the position uncomfortable, lost her temper. “Mamma’s going to have a new name,” she shouted, as if the lawyer had suddenly become deaf. “Grandmamma says she must be Mrs. Norman. And I must be Miss Norman. I won’t! Where’s papa? I want to write to him; I know he won’t allow it. Do you hear? Where’s papa?”
She fastened her little hands on Mr. Sarrazin’s coat collar and tried to shake him, in a fury of resolution to know what it all meant. At that critical moment Mrs. Presty opened the door, and stood petrified41 on the threshold.
“Hanging on to Mr. Sarrazin with her arms and her legs!” exclaimed the old lady. “You little wretch42, which are you, a monkey or a child?”
The lawyer gently deposited Kitty on the floor.
“Mind this, Samuel,” she whispered, as he set her down on her feet, “I won’t be Miss Norman.”
Mrs. Presty pointed43 sternly at the open door. “You were screaming just now, when quiet in the house is of the utmost importance to your mother. If I hear you again, bread and water and no doll for the rest of the week.”
Kitty retired44 in disgrace, and Mrs. Presty sharpened her tongue on Mr. Sarrazin next. “I’m astonished, sir, at your allowing that impudent45 grandchild of mine to take such liberties with you. Who would suppose that you were a married man, with children of your own?”
“That’s just the reason, my dear madam,” Mr. Sarrazin smartly replied. “I romp46 with my own children — why not with Kitty? Can I do anything for you in London?” he went on, getting a little nearer to the door; “I leave Edinburgh by the next train. And I promise you,” he added, with the spirit of mischief47 twinkling in his eyes, “this shall be my last confidential48 interview with your grandchild. When she wants to ask any more questions, I transfer her to you.”
Mrs. Presty looked after the retreating lawyer thoroughly49 mystified. What “confidential interview”? What “questions”? After some consideration, her experience of her granddaughter suggested that a little exercise of mercy might be attended with the right result. She looked at a cake on the sideboard. “I have only to forgive Kitty,” she decided, “and the child will talk about it of her own accord.”
收听单词发音 |
1
defense
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| n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩 | |
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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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withdrawal
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| n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销 | |
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4
condemning
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| v.（通常因道义上的原因而）谴责( condemn的现在分词 )；宣判；宣布…不能使用；迫使…陷于不幸的境地 | |
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attachment
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| n.附属物，附件；依恋；依附 | |
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unreasonably
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| adv. 不合理地 | |
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impulsively
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| adv.冲动地 | |
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justified
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| a.正当的，有理的 | |
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modesty
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| n.谦逊，虚心，端庄，稳重，羞怯，朴素 | |
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gratitude
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| adj.感激，感谢 | |
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culpably
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| adv.该罚地，可恶地 | |
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advert
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| vi.注意，留意，言及；n.广告 | |
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13
censure
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| v./n.责备；非难；责难 | |
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catastrophe
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| n.大灾难，大祸 | |
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allude
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| v.提及，暗指 | |
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maternal
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| adj.母亲的，母亲般的，母系的，母方的 | |
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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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18
animated
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| adj.生气勃勃的，活跃的，愉快的 | |
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justify
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| vt.证明…正当(或有理)，为…辩护 | |
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custody
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| n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留 | |
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21
lodgings
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| n. 出租的房舍, 寄宿舍 | |
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22
draught
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| n.拉，牵引，拖；一网（饮，吸，阵)；顿服药量，通风；v.起草，设计 | |
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23
suspense
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| n.（对可能发生的事）紧张感，担心，挂虑 | |
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24
scrutiny
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| n.详细检查，仔细观察 | |
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25
improper
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| adj.不适当的，不合适的，不正确的，不合礼仪的 | |
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26
positively
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| adv.明确地，断然，坚决地；实在，确实 | |
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remarkably
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| ad.不同寻常地，相当地 | |
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28
courteous
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| adj.彬彬有礼的，客气的 | |
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29
decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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30
anticipations
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| 预期( anticipation的名词复数 )； 预测； （信托财产收益的）预支； 预期的事物 | |
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31
lobster
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| n.龙虾，龙虾肉 | |
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32
destined
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| adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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33
miserable
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| adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的 | |
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awfully
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| adv.可怕地，非常地，极端地 | |
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labyrinth
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| n.迷宫；难解的事物；迷路 | |
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36
inevitable
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| adj.不可避免的，必然发生的 | |
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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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38
applied
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| adj.应用的；v.应用，适用 | |
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adviser
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| n.劝告者，顾问 | |
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promising
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| adj.有希望的，有前途的 | |
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41
petrified
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| adj.惊呆的；目瞪口呆的v.使吓呆，使惊呆；变僵硬；使石化(petrify的过去式和过去分词) | |
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42
wretch
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| n.可怜的人，不幸的人；卑鄙的人 | |
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43
pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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44
retired
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| adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的 | |
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45
impudent
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| adj.鲁莽的，卑鄙的，厚颜无耻的 | |
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46
romp
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| n.欢闹；v.嬉闹玩笑 | |
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47
mischief
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| n.损害，伤害，危害；恶作剧，捣蛋，胡闹 | |
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48
confidential
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| adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的 | |
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49
thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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