After his bottle of port with Sir Bale, the Doctor had gone down again to the room where poor Philip Feltram lay.
Mrs. Julaper had dried her eyes, and was busy by this time; and two old women were making all their arrangements for a night-watch by the body, which they had washed, and, as their phrase goes, ‘laid out’ in the humble1 bed where it had lain while there was still a hope that a spark sufficient to rekindle2 the fire of life might remain. These old women had points of resemblance: they were lean, sallow, and wonderfully wrinkled, and looked each malign3 and ugly enough for a witch.
Marcella Bligh’s thin hooked nose was now like the beak4 of a bird of prey5 over the face of the drowned man, upon whose eyelids6 she was placing penny-pieces, to keep them from opening; and her one eye was fixed7 on her work, its sightless companion showing white in its socket8, with an ugly leer.
Judith Wale was lifting the pail of hot water with which they had just washed the body. She had long lean arms, a hunched9 back, a great sharp chin sunk on her hollow breast, and small eyes restless as a ferret’s; and she clattered10 about in great bowls of shoes, old and clouted11, that were made for a foot as big as two of hers.
The Doctor knew these two old women, who were often employed in such dismal12 offices.
“How does Mrs. Bligh? See me with half an eye? Hey — that’s rhyme, isn’t it?— And, Judy lass — why, I thought you lived nearer the town — here making poor Mr. Feltram’s last toilet. You have helped to dress many a poor fellow for his last journey. Not a bad notion of drill either — they stand at attention stiff and straight enough in the sentry-box. Your recruits do you credit, Mrs. Wale.”
The Doctor stood at the foot of the bed to inspect, breathing forth13 a vapour of very fine old port, his hands in his pockets, speaking with a lazy thickness, and looking so comfortable and facetious14, that Mrs. Julaper would have liked to turn him out of the room.
But the Doctor was not unkind, only extremely comfortable. He was a good-natured fellow, and had thought and care for the living, but not a great deal of sentiment for the dead, whom he had looked in the face too often to be much disturbed by the spectacle.
“You’ll have to keep that bandage on. You should be sharp; you should know all about it, girl, by this time, and not let those muscles stiffen15. I need not tell you the mouth shuts as easily as this snuff-box, if you only take it in time.— I suppose, Mrs. Julaper, you’ll send to Jos Fringer for the poor fellow’s outfit16. Fringer is a very proper man — there ain’t a properer und-aker in England. I always re-mmend Fringer — in Church-street in Golden Friars. You know Fringer, I daresay.”
“I can’t say, sir, I’m sure. That will be as Sir Bale may please to direct,” answered Mrs. Julaper.
“You’ve got him very straight — straighter than I thought you could; but the large joints17 were not so stiff. A very little longer wait, and you’d hardly have got him into his coffin18. He’ll want a vr-r-ry long one, poor lad. Short cake is life, ma’am. Sad thing this. They’ll open their eyes, I promise you, down in the town. ’Twill be cool enough, I’d shay, affre all th-thunr-thunnle, you know. I think I’ll take a nip, Mrs. Jool-fr, if you wouldn’t mine makin’ me out a thimmle-ful bran-band-bran-rand-andy, eh, Mishs Joolfr?”
And the Doctor took a chair by the fire; and Mrs. Julaper, with a dubious19 conscience and dry hospitality, procured20 the brandy-flask and wine-glass, and helped the physician in a thin hesitating stream, which left him ample opportunity to cry “Hold — enough!” had he been so minded. But that able physician had no confidence, it would seem, in any dose under a bumper21, which he sipped22 with commendation, and then fell asleep with the firelight on his face — to tender-hearted Mrs. Julaper’s disgust — and snored with a sensual disregard of the solemnity of his situation; until with a profound nod, or rather dive, toward the fire, he awoke, got up and shook his ears with a kind of start, and standing23 with his back to the fire, asked for his muffler and horse; and so took his leave also of the weird24 sisters, who were still pottering about the body, with croak25 and whisper, and nod and ogle26. He took his leave also of good Mrs. Julaper, who was completing arrangements with teapot and kettle, spiced elderberry wine, and other comforts, to support them through their proposed vigil. And finally, in a sort of way, he took his leave of the body, with a long business-like stare, from the foot of the bed, with his short hands stuffed into his pockets. And so, to Mrs. Julaper’s relief, this unseemly doctor, speaking thickly, departed.
And now, the Doctor being gone, and all things prepared for the ‘wake’ to be observed by withered27 Mrs. Bligh of the one eye, and yellow Mrs. Wale of the crooked28 back, the house grew gradually still. The thunder had by this time died into the solid boom of distant battle, and the fury of the gale29 had subsided30 to the long sobbing31 wail32 that is charged with so eerie33 a melancholy34. Within all was stirless, and the two old women, each a ‘Mrs.’ by courtesy, who had not much to thank Nature or the world for, sad and cynical35, and in a sort outcasts told off by fortune to these sad and grizzly36 services, sat themselves down by the fire, each perhaps feeling unusually at home in the other’s society; and in this soured and forlorn comfort, trimming their fire, quickening the song of the kettle to a boil, and waxing polite and chatty; each treating the other with that deprecatory and formal courtesy which invites a return in kind, and both growing strangely happy in this little world of their own, in the unusual and momentary38 sense of an importance and consideration which were delightful39.
The old still-room of Mardykes Hall is an oblong room wainscoted. From the door you look its full length to the wide stone-shafted Tudor window at the other end. At your left is the ponderous41 mantelpiece, supported by two spiral stone pillars; and close to the door at the right was the bed in which the two crones had just stretched poor Philip Feltram, who lay as still as an uncoloured wax-work, with a heavy penny-piece on each eye, and a bandage under his jaw42, making his mouth look stern. And the two old ladies over their tea by the fire conversed43 agreeably, compared their rheumatisms and other ailments44 wordily, and talked of old times, and early recollections, and of sick-beds they had attended, and corpses45 that “you would not know, so pined and windered” were they; and others so fresh and canny46, you’d say the dead had never looked so bonny in life.
Then they began to talk of people who grew tall in their coffins47, of others who had been buried alive, and of others who walked after death. Stories as true as holy writ48.
“Were you ever down by Hawarth, Mrs. Bligh — hard by Dalworth Moss49?” asked crook-backed Mrs. Wale, holding her spoon suspended over her cup.
“Neea whaar sooa far south, Mrs. Wale, ma’am; but ma father was off times down thar cuttin’ peat.”
“Ah, then ye’ll not a kenned50 farmer Dykes40 that lived by the Lin-tree Scaur. ‘Tweer I that laid him out, poor aad fellow, and a dow man he was when aught went cross wi’ him; and he cursed and sweared, twad gar ye dodder to hear him. They said he was a hard man wi’ some folk; but he kep a good house, and liked to see plenty, and many a time when I was swaimous about my food, he’d clap t’ meat on ma plate, and mak’ me eat ma fill. Na, na — there was good as well as bad in farmer Dykes. It was a year after he deed, and Tom Ettles was walking home, down by the Birken Stoop one night, and not a soul nigh, when he sees a big ball, as high as his knee, whirlin’ and spangin’ away before him on the road. What it wer he could not think; but he never consayted there was a freet or a bo thereaway; so he kep near it, watching every spang and turn it took, till it ran into the gripe by the roadside. There was a gravel51 pit just there, and Tom Ettles wished to take another gliff at it before he went on. But when he keeked into the pit, what should he see but a man attoppa a horse that could not get up or on: and says he, ‘I think ye be at a dead-lift there, gaffer.’ And wi’ the word, up looks the man, and who sud it be but farmer Dykes himsel; and Tom Ettles saw him plain eneugh, and kenned the horse too for Black Captain, the farmer’s aad beast, that broke his leg and was shot two years and more before the farmer died. ‘Ay,’ says farmer Dykes, lookin’ very bad; ‘forsett-and-backsett, ye’ll tak me oot, Tom Ettles, and clap ye doun behint me quick, or I’ll claw ho’d o’ thee.’ Tom felt his hair risin’ stiff on his heed52, and his tongue so fast to the roof o’ his mouth he could scarce get oot a word; but says he, ‘If Black Jack53 can’t do it o’ noo, he’ll ne’er do’t and carry double.’ ‘I ken37 my ain business best,’ says Dykes. ‘If ye gar me gie ye a look, ’twill gie ye the creepin’s while ye live; so git ye doun, Tom;’ and with that the dobby lifts its neaf, and Tom saw there was a red light round horse and man, like the glow of a peat fire. And says Tom, ‘In the name o’ God, ye’ll let me pass;’ and with the word the gooast draws itsel’ doun, all a-creaked, like a man wi’ a sudden pain; and Tom Ettles took to his heels more deed than alive.”
They had approached their heads, and the story had sunk to that mysterious murmur54 that thrills the listener, when in the brief silence that followed they heard a low odd laugh near the door.
In that direction each lady looked aghast, and saw Feltram sitting straight up in the bed, with the white bandage in his hand, and as it seemed, for one foot was below the coverlet, near the floor, about to glide55 forth.
Mrs. Bligh, uttering a hideous56 shriek57, clutched Mrs. Wale, and Mrs. Wale, with a scream as dreadful, gripped Mrs. Bligh; and quite forgetting their somewhat formal politeness, they reeled and tugged58, wrestling towards the window, each struggling to place her companion between her and the ‘dobby,’ and both uniting in a direful peal59 of yells.
This was the uproar60 which had startled Sir Bale from his dream, and was now startling the servants from theirs.
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1
humble
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| adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低 | |
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rekindle
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| v.使再振作；再点火 | |
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malign
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| adj.有害的；恶性的；恶意的；v.诽谤，诬蔑 | |
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beak
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| n.鸟嘴，茶壶嘴，钩形鼻 | |
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prey
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| n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨 | |
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eyelids
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| n.眼睑( eyelid的名词复数 )；眼睛也不眨一下；不露声色；面不改色 | |
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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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socket
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| n.窝，穴，孔，插座，插口 | |
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hunched
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| （常指因寒冷、生病或愁苦）耸肩弓身的，伏首前倾的 | |
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clattered
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| 发出咔哒声（clatter的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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clouted
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| adj.缀补的，凝固的v.（尤指用手）猛击，重打( clout的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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12
dismal
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| adj.阴沉的，凄凉的，令人忧郁的，差劲的 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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facetious
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| adj.轻浮的，好开玩笑的 | |
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stiffen
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| v.(使)硬，(使)变挺，(使)变僵硬 | |
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outfit
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| n.（为特殊用途的）全套装备，全套服装 | |
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joints
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| 接头( joint的名词复数 )； 关节； 公共场所（尤指价格低廉的饮食和娱乐场所） （非正式）； 一块烤肉 （英式英语） | |
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coffin
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| n.棺材，灵柩 | |
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dubious
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| adj.怀疑的，无把握的；有问题的，靠不住的 | |
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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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bumper
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| n.(汽车上的)保险杠；adj.特大的，丰盛的 | |
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sipped
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| v.小口喝，呷，抿( sip的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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weird
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| adj.古怪的，离奇的；怪诞的，神秘而可怕的 | |
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croak
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| vi.嘎嘎叫，发牢骚 | |
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ogle
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| v.看；送秋波；n.秋波，媚眼 | |
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27
withered
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| adj. 枯萎的，干瘪的，（人身体的部分器官）因病萎缩的或未发育良好的 动词wither的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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28
crooked
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| adj.弯曲的；不诚实的，狡猾的，不正当的 | |
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29
gale
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| n.大风，强风，一阵闹声（尤指笑声等） | |
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30
subsided
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| v.（土地）下陷（因在地下采矿）( subside的过去式和过去分词 )；减弱；下降至较低或正常水平；一下子坐在椅子等上 | |
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31
sobbing
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| <主方>Ⅰ adj.湿透的 | |
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wail
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| vt./vi.大声哀号，恸哭；呼啸，尖啸 | |
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eerie
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| adj.怪诞的；奇异的；可怕的；胆怯的 | |
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melancholy
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| n.忧郁，愁思；adj.令人感伤（沮丧）的，忧郁的 | |
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35
cynical
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| adj.(对人性或动机)怀疑的，不信世道向善的 | |
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grizzly
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| adj.略为灰色的，呈灰色的；n.灰色大熊 | |
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37
ken
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| n.视野，知识领域 | |
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38
momentary
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| adj.片刻的，瞬息的；短暂的 | |
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delightful
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| adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的 | |
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40
dykes
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| abbr.diagonal wire cutters 斜线切割机n.堤( dyke的名词复数 )；坝；堰；沟 | |
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41
ponderous
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| adj.沉重的，笨重的，(文章)冗长的 | |
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42
jaw
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| n.颚，颌，说教，流言蜚语；v.喋喋不休，教训 | |
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43
conversed
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| v.交谈，谈话( converse的过去式 ) | |
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44
ailments
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| 疾病（尤指慢性病），不适( ailment的名词复数 ) | |
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45
corpses
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| n.死尸，尸体( corpse的名词复数 ) | |
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46
canny
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| adj.谨慎的，节俭的 | |
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47
coffins
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| n.棺材( coffin的名词复数 )；使某人早亡[死，完蛋，垮台等]之物 | |
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48
writ
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| n.命令状，书面命令 | |
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49
moss
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| n.苔，藓，地衣 | |
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50
kenned
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| v.知道( ken的过去式和过去分词 )；懂得；看到；认出 | |
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51
gravel
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| n.砂跞；砂砾层；结石 | |
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52
heed
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| v.注意，留意；n.注意，留心 | |
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53
jack
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| n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克 | |
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54
murmur
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| n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言 | |
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55
glide
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| n./v.溜，滑行；(时间)消逝 | |
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56
hideous
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| adj.丑陋的，可憎的，可怕的，恐怖的 | |
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57
shriek
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| v./n.尖叫，叫喊 | |
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58
tugged
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| v.用力拉，使劲拉，猛扯( tug的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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59
peal
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| n.钟声；v.鸣响 | |
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60
uproar
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| n.骚动，喧嚣，鼎沸 | |
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