Watching through the night by Carmina’s bedside, Teresa found herself thinking of Mr. Le Frank. It was one way of getting through the weary time, to guess at the motive1 which had led him to become a lodger2 in the house.
Common probabilities pointed3 to the inference that he might have reasons for changing his residence, which only concerned himself. But common probabilities — from Teresa’s point of view — did not apply to Mr. Le Frank. On meeting him, at the time of her last visit to England, his personal appearance had produced such a disagreeable impression on her, that she had even told Carmina “the music-master looked like a rogue4.” With her former prejudice against him now revived, and with her serious present reasons for distrusting Mrs. Gallilee, she rejected the idea of his accidental presence under her landlady’s roof. To her mind, the business of the new lodger in the house was, in all likelihood, the business of a spy.
While Mr. Le Frank was warily5 laying his plans for the next day, he had himself become an object of suspicion to the very woman whose secrets he was plotting to surprise.
This was the longest and saddest night which the faithful old nurse had passed at her darling’s bedside.
For the first time, Carmina was fretful, and hard to please: patient persuasion6 was needed to induce her to take her medicine. Even when she was thirsty, she had an irritable7 objection to being disturbed, if the lemonade was offered to her which she had relished8 at other times. Once or twice, when she drowsily9 stirred in her bed, she showed symptoms of delusion10. The poor girl supposed it was the eve or her wedding-day, and eagerly asked what Teresa had done with her new dress. A little later, when she had perhaps been dreaming, she fancied that her mother was still alive, and repeated the long-forgotten talk of her childhood. “What have I said to distress11 you?” she asked wonderingly, when she found Teresa crying.
Soon after sunrise, there came a long interval12 of repose13.
At the later time when Benjulia arrived, she was quiet and uncomplaining. The change for the worse which had induced Teresa to insist on sending for him, was perversely14 absent. Mr. Null expected to be roughly rebuked15 for having disturbed the great man by a false alarm. He attempted to explain: and Teresa attempted to explain. Benjulia paid not the slightest attention to either of them. He made no angry remarks — and he showed, in his own impenetrable way, as gratifying an interest in the case as ever.
“Draw up the blind,” he said; “I want to have a good look at her.”
Mr. Null waited respectfully, and imposed strict silence on Teresa, while the investigation16 was going on. It lasted so long that he ventured to say, “Do you see anything particular, sir?”
Benjulia saw his doubts cleared up: time (as he had anticipated) had brought development with it, and had enabled him to arrive at a conclusion. The shock that had struck Carmina had produced complicated hysterical17 disturbance18, which was now beginning to simulate paralysis19. Benjulia’s profound and practised observation detected a trifling20 inequality in the size of the pupils of the eyes, and a slightly unequal action on either side of the face — delicately presented in the eyelids21, the nostrils22, and the lips. Here was no common affection of the brain, which even Mr. Null could understand! Here, at last, was Benjulia’s reward for sacrificing the precious hours which might otherwise have been employed in the laboratory! From that day, Carmina was destined23 to receive unknown honour: she was to take her place, along with the other animals, in his note-book of experiments.
He turned quietly to Mr. Null, and finished the consultation24 in two words.
“All right!”
“Have you nothing to suggest, sir?” Mr. Null inquired.
“Go on with the treatment — and draw down the blind, if she complains of the light. Good-day!”
“Are you sure he’s a great doctor?” said Teresa, when the door had closed on him.
“The greatest we have!” cried Mr. Null with enthusiasm.
“Is he a good man?”
“Why do you ask?”
“I want to know if we can trust him to tell us the truth?”
“Not a doubt of it!” (Who could doubt it, indeed, after he had approved of Mr. Null’s medical treatment?)
“There’s one thing you have forgotten,” Teresa persisted. “You haven’t asked him when Carmina can be moved.”
“My good woman, if I had put such a question, he would have set me down as a fool! Nobody can say when she will be well enough to be moved.”
He took his hat. The nurse followed him out.
“Are you going to Mrs. Gallilee, sir?”
“Not to-day.”
“Is she better?”
“She is almost well again.”
收听单词发音 |
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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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lodger
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| n.寄宿人，房客 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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rogue
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| n.流氓；v.游手好闲 | |
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warily
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| adv.留心地 | |
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persuasion
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| n.劝说；说服；持有某种信仰的宗派 | |
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irritable
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| adj.急躁的；过敏的；易怒的 | |
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8
relished
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| v.欣赏( relish的过去式和过去分词 )；从…获得乐趣；渴望 | |
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9
drowsily
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| adv.睡地，懒洋洋地，昏昏欲睡地 | |
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delusion
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| n.谬见，欺骗，幻觉，迷惑 | |
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distress
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| n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛 | |
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12
interval
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| n.间隔，间距；幕间休息，中场休息 | |
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repose
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| v.(使)休息；n.安息 | |
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perversely
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| adv. 倔强地 | |
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rebuked
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| 责难或指责( rebuke的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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investigation
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| n.调查，调查研究 | |
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hysterical
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| adj.情绪异常激动的，歇斯底里般的 | |
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disturbance
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| n.动乱，骚动；打扰，干扰；(身心)失调 | |
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paralysis
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| n.麻痹(症)；瘫痪(症) | |
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trifling
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| adj.微不足道的；没什么价值的 | |
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21
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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22
nostrils
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| 鼻孔( nostril的名词复数 ) | |
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23
destined
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| adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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consultation
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| n.咨询；商量；商议；会议 | |
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