That amiable1 youth, Jimmy Thesiger, came racing2 down the big staircaseat Chimneys two steps at a time. So precipitate3 was his descent that he col-lided with Tredwell, the stately butler, just as the latter was crossing thehall bearing a fresh supply of hot coffee. Owing to the marvellous pres-ence of mind and masterly agility4 of Tredwell, no casualty occurred.
“Sorry,” apologized Jimmy. “I say, Tredwell, am I the last down?”
“No, sir. Mr. Wade5 has not come down yet.”
“Good,” said Jimmy, and entered the breakfast room.
The room was empty save for his hostess, and her reproachful gaze gaveJimmy the same feeling of discomfort6 he always experienced on catchingthe eye of a defunct7 codfish exposed on a fisherman’s slab8. Yet, hang it all,why should the woman look at him like that? To come down at a punctualnine thirty when staying in a country house simply wasn’t done. To besure, it was now a quarter past eleven which was, perhaps, the outsidelimit, but even then—
“Afraid I’m a bit late, Lady Coote. What?”
“Oh, it doesn’t matter,” said Lady Coote in a melancholy9 voice.
As a matter of fact, people being late for breakfast worried her verymuch. For the first ten years of her married life, Sir Oswald Coote (thenplain Mr.) had, to put it badly, raised hell if his morning meal were even ahalf minute later than eight o’clock. Lady Coote had been disciplined to re-gard unpunctuality as a deadly sin of the most unpardonable nature. Andhabit dies hard. Also, she was an earnest woman, and she could not helpasking herself what possible good these young people would ever do in theworld without early rising. As Sir Oswald so often said, to reporters andothers: “I attribute my success entirely10 to my habits of early rising, frugalliving, and methodical habits.”
Lady Coote was a big, handsome woman in a tragic11 sort of fashion. Shehad large, mournful eyes and a deep voice. An artist looking for a modelfor “Rachel mourning for her children” would have hailed Lady Cootewith delight. She would have done well, too, in melodrama13, staggeringthrough the falling snow as the deeply wronged wife of the villain14.
She looked as though she had some terrible secret sorrow in her life,and yet if the truth be told, Lady Coote had had no trouble in her lifewhatever, except the meteoric15 rise to prosperity of Sir Oswald. As a younggirl she had been a jolly flamboyant16 creature, very much in love with Os-wald Coote, the aspiring17 young man in the bicycle shop next to herfather’s hardware store. They had lived very happily, first in a couple ofrooms, and then in a tiny house, and then in a larger house, and then insuccessive houses of increasing magnitude, but always within a reason-able distance of “the Works,” until now Sir Oswald had reached such aneminence that he and “the Works” were no longer interdependent, and itwas his pleasure to rent the very largest and most magnificent mansionsavailable all over England. Chimneys was a historic place, and in renting itfrom the Marquis of Caterham for two years, Sir Oswald felt that he hadattained the top notch18 of his ambition.
Lady Coote was not nearly so happy about it. She was a lonely woman.
The principal relaxation19 of her early married life had been talking to “thegirl”—and even when “the girl” had been multiplied by three, conversa-tion with her domestic staff had still been the principal distraction20 of LadyCoote’s day. Now, with a pack of housemaids, a butler like an archbishop,several footmen of imposing21 proportions, a bevy22 of scuttling23 kitchen andscullery maids, a terrifying foreign chef with a “temperament,” and ahousekeeper of immense proportions who alternately creaked and rustledwhen she moved, Lady Coote was as one marooned24 on a desert island.
She sighed now, heavily, and drifted out through the open window,much to the relief of Jimmy Thesiger, who at once helped himself to morekidneys and bacon on the strength of it.
Lady Coote stood for a few moments tragically25 on the terrace and thennerved herself to speak to MacDonald, the head gardener, who was sur-veying the domain26 over which he ruled with an autocratic eye. MacDon-ald was a very chief and prince among head gardeners. He knew his place—which was to rule. And he ruled—despotically.
Lady Coote approached him nervously27.
“Good morning, MacDonald.”
“Good morning, m’lady.”
He spoke28 as head gardeners should speak—mournfully, but with dignity—like an emperor at a funeral.
“I was wondering—could we have some of those late grapes for desserttonight?”
“They’re no fit for picking yet,” said MacDonald.
He spoke kindly29 but firmly.
“Oh!” said Lady Coote.
She plucked up courage.
“Oh! but I was in the end house yesterday, and I tasted one and theyseemed very good.”
MacDonald looked at her, and she blushed. She was made to feel thatshe had taken an unpardonable liberty. Evidently the late Marchioness ofCaterham had never committed such a solecism as to enter one of her ownhothouses and help herself to grapes.
“If you had given orders, m’lady, a bunch should have been cut and sentin to you,” said MacDonald severely30.
“Oh, thank you,” said Lady Coote. “Yes, I will do that another time.”
“But they’re no properly fit for picking yet.”
“No,” murmured Lady Coote, “no, I suppose not. We’d better leave itthen.”
MacDonald maintained a masterly silence. Lady Coote nerved herselfonce more.
“I was going to speak to you about the piece of lawn at the back of therose garden. I wondered if it could be used as a bowling31 green. Sir Oswaldis very fond of a game of bowls.”
“And why not?” thought Lady Coote to herself. She had been instructedin her history of England. Had not Sir Francis Drake and his knightly32 com-panions been playing a game of bowls when the Armada was sighted?
Surely a gentlemanly pursuit and one to which MacDonald could not reas-onably object. But she had reckoned without the predominant trait of agood head gardener, which is to oppose any and every suggestion made tohim.
“Nae doot it could be used for that purpose,” said MacDonald noncom-mittally.
He threw a discouraging flavour into the remark, but its real object wasto lure33 Lady Coote on to her destruction.
“If it was cleared up and—er—cut—and—er—all that sort of thing,” shewent on hopefully.
“Aye,” said MacDonald slowly. “It could be done. But it would mean tak-ing William from the lower border.”
“Oh!” said Lady Coote doubtfully. The words “lower border” conveyedabsolutely nothing to her mind—except a vague suggestion of a Scottishsong—but it was clear that to MacDonald they constituted an insuperableobjection.
“And that would be a pity,” said MacDonald.
“Oh, of course,” said Lady Coote. “It would.” And wondered why sheagreed so fervently34.
MacDonald looked at her very hard.
“Of course,” he said, “if it’s your orders, m’lady—”
He left it like that. But his menacing tone was too much for Lady Coote.
She capitulated at once.
“Oh, no,” she said. “I see what you mean, MacDonald. N—no—Williamhad better get on with the lower border.”
“That’s what I thocht meself, m’lady.”
“Yes,” said Lady Coote. “Yes, certainly.”
“I thocht you’d agree, m’lady,” said MacDonald.
“Oh, certainly,” said Lady Coote again.
MacDonald touched his hat and moved away.
Lady Coote sighed unhappily and looked after him. Jimmy Thesiger, re-plete with kidneys and bacon, stepped out on to the terrace beside her,and sighed in quite a different manner.
“Topping morning, eh?” he remarked.
“Is it?” said Lady Coote absently. “Oh, yes, I suppose it is. I hadn’t no-ticed.”
“Where are the others? Punting on the lake?”
“I expect so. I mean, I shouldn’t wonder if they were.”
Lady Coote turned and plunged35 abruptly36 into the house again. Tredwellwas just examining the coffee pot.
“Oh, dear,” said Lady Coote. “Isn’t Mr.—Mr.—”
“Wade, m’lady?”
“Yes, Mr. Wade. Isn’t he down yet?”
“No, m’lady.”
“It’s very late.”
“Yes, m’lady.”
“Oh, dear. I suppose he will come down sometime, Tredwell?”
“Oh, undoubtedly37, m’lady. It was eleven thirty yesterday morning whenMr. Wade came down, m’lady.”
Lady Coote glanced at the clock. It was now twenty minutes to twelve. Awave of human sympathy rushed over her.
“It’s very hard luck on you, Tredwell. Having to clear and then get lunchon the table by one o’clock.”
“I am accustomed to the ways of young gentlemen, m’lady.”
The reproof38 was dignified39, but unmistakable. So might a prince of theChurch reprove a Turk or an infidel who had unwittingly committed a sol-ecism in all good faith.
Lady Coote blushed for the second time that morning. But a welcome in-terruption occurred. The door opened and a serious, spectacled youngman put his head in.
“Oh, there you are, Lady Coote. Sir Oswald was asking for you.”
“Oh, I’ll go to him at once, Mr. Bateman.”
Lady Coote hurried out.
Rupert Bateman, who was Sir Oswald’s private secretary, went out theother way, through the window where Jimmy Thesiger was still loungingamiably.
“ ’Morning, Pongo,” said Jimmy. “I suppose I shall have to go and makemyself agreeable to those blasted girls. You coming?”
Bateman shook his head and hurried along the terrace and in at the lib-rary window. Jimmy grinned pleasantly at his retreating back. He andBateman had been at school together, when Bateman had been a serious,spectacled boy, and had been nicknamed Pongo for no earthly reasonwhatever.
Pongo, Jimmy reflected, was very much the same sort of ass40 now that hehad been then. The words “Life is real, life is earnest” might have beenwritten specially41 for him.
Jimmy yawned and strolled slowly down to the lake. The girls werethere, three of them—just the usual sort of girls, two with dark, shingledheads and one with a fair, shingled42 head. The one that giggled43 most was(he thought) called Helen—and there was another called Nancy—and thethird one was, for some reason, addressed as Socks. With them were histwo friends, Bill Eversleigh and Ronny Devereux, who were employed in apurely ornamental44 capacity at the Foreign Office.
“Hallo,” said Nancy (or possibly Helen). “It’s Jimmy. Where’s what’s hisname?”
“You don’t mean to say,” said Bill Eversleigh, “that Gerry Wade’s not upyet? Something ought to be done about it.”
“If he’s not careful,” said Ronny Devereux, “he’ll miss his breakfast alto-gether one day—find it’s lunch or tea instead when he rolls down.”
“It’s a shame,” said the girl called Socks. “Because it worries Lady Cooteso. She gets more and more like a hen that wants to lay an egg and can’t.
It’s too bad.”
“Let’s pull him out of bed,” suggested Bill. “Come on, Jimmy.”
“Oh! let’s be more subtle than that,” said the girl called Socks. Subtle wasa word of which she was rather fond. She used it a great deal.
“I’m not subtle,” said Jimmy. “I don’t know how.”
“Let’s get together and do something about it tomorrow morning,” sug-gested Ronny vaguely45. “You know, get him up at seven. Stagger the house-hold. Tredwell loses his false whiskers and drops the tea urn12. Lady Cootehas hysterics and faints in Bill’s arms—Bill being the weight carrier. SirOswald says ‘Ha!’ and steel goes up a point and five eighths. Pongo re-gisters emotion by throwing down his spectacles and stamping on them.”
“You don’t know Gerry,” said Jimmy. “I daresay enough cold watermight wake him—judiciously applied46, that is. But he’d only turn over andgo to sleep again.”
“Oh! we must think of something more subtle than cold water,” saidSocks.
“Well, what?” asked Ronny bluntly. And nobody had any answer ready.
“We ought to be able to think of something,” said Bill. “Who’s got anybrains?”
“Pongo,” said Jimmy. “And here he is, rushing along in a harried47 man-ner as usual. Pongo was always the one for brains. It’s been his misfortunefrom his youth upwards48. Let’s turn Pongo on to it.”
Mr. Bateman listened patiently to a somewhat incoherent statement. Hisattitude was that of one poised49 for flight. He delivered his solution withoutloss of time.
“I should suggest an alarum clock,” he said briskly. “I always use onemyself for fear of oversleeping. I find that early tea brought in in a noise-less manner is sometimes powerless to awaken50 one.”
He hurried away.
“An alarum clock.” Ronny shook his head. “One alarum clock. It wouldtake about a dozen to disturb Gerry Wade.”
“Well, why not?” Bill was flushed and earnest. “I’ve got it. Let’s all gointo Market Basing and buy an alarum clock each.”
There was laughter and discussion. Bill and Ronny went off to get holdof cars. Jimmy was deputed to spy upon the dining room. He returned rap-idly.
“He’s here right enough. Making up for lost time and wolfing down toastand marmalade. How are we going to prevent him coming along with us?”
It was decided51 that Lady Coote must be approached and instructed tohold him in play. Jimmy and Nancy and Helen fulfilled this duty. LadyCoote was bewildered and apprehensive52.
“A rag? You will be careful, won’t you, my dears? I mean, you won’tsmash the furniture and wreck53 things or use too much water. We’ve got tohand this house over next week, you know. I shouldn’t like Lord Caterhamto think—”
Bill, who had returned from the garage, broke in reassuringly54.
“That’s all right, Lady Coote. Bundle Brent—Lord Caterham’s daughter—is a great friend of mine. And there’s nothing she’d stick at—absolutelynothing! You can take it from me. And anyway there’s not going to be anydamage done. This is quite a quiet affair.”
“Subtle,” said the girl called Socks.
Lady Coote went sadly along the terrace just as Gerald Wade emergedfrom the breakfast room. Jimmy Thesiger was a fair, cherubic young man,and all that could be said of Gerald Wade was that he was fairer and morecherubic, and that his vacuous55 expression made Jimmy’s face quite intelli-gent by contrast.
“ ’Morning, Lady Coote,” said Gerald Wade. “Where are all the others?”
“They’ve all gone to Market Basing,” said Lady Coote.
“What for?”
“Some joke,” said Lady Coote in her deep, melancholy voice.
“Rather early in the morning for jokes,” said Mr. Wade.
“It’s not so very early in the morning,” said Lady Coote pointedly56.
“I’m afraid I was a bit late coming down,” said Mr. Wade with engagingfrankness. “It’s an extraordinary thing, but wherever I happen to be stay-ing, I’m always last to be down.”
“Very extraordinary,” said Lady Coote.
“I don’t know why it is,” said Mr. Wade, meditating57. “I can’t think, I’msure.”
“Why don’t you just get up?” suggested Lady Coote.
“Oh!” said Mr. Wade. The simplicity58 of the solution rather took himaback.
Lady Coote went on earnestly.
“I’ve heard Sir Oswald say so many times that there’s nothing for gettinga young man on in the world like punctual habits.”
“Oh, I know,” said Mr. Wade. “And I have to when I’m in town. I mean, Ihave to be round at the jolly old Foreign Office by eleven o’clock. Youmustn’t think I’m always a slacker, Lady Coote. I say, what awfully59 jollyflowers you’ve got down in that lower border. I can’t remember the namesof them, but we’ve got some at home—those mauve thingummybobs. Mysister’s tremendously keen on gardening.”
Lady Coote was immediately diverted. Her wrongs rankled60 within her.
“What kind of gardeners do you have?”
“Oh just one. Rather an old fool, I believe. Doesn’t know much, but hedoes what he’s told. And that’s a great thing, isn’t it?”
Lady Coote agreed that it was with a depth of feeling in her voice thatwould have been invaluable61 to her as an emotional actress. They began todiscourse on the iniquities62 of gardeners.
Meanwhile the expedition was doing well. The principal emporium ofMarket Basing had been invaded and the sudden demand for alarumclocks was considerably63 puzzling the proprietor64.
“I wish we’d got Bundle here,” murmured Bill. “You know her, don’tyou, Jimmy? Oh, you’d like her. She’s a splendid girl—a real good sport—and mark you, she’s got brains too. You know her, Ronny?”
Ronny shook his head.
“Don’t know Bundle? Where have you been vegetating65? She’s simply it.”
“Be a bit more subtle, Bill,” said Socks. “Stop blethering about your ladyfriends and get on with the business.”
Mr. Murgatroyd, owner of Murgatroyd’s Stores, burst into eloquence66.
“If you’ll allow me to advise you, Miss, I should say—not the 7/11 one.
It’s a good clock—I’m not running it down, mark you, but I should stronglyadvise this kind at 10/6. Well worth the extra money. Reliability67, you un-derstand. I shouldn’t like you to say afterwards—”
It was evident to everybody that Mr. Murgatroyd must be turned off likea tap.
“We don’t want a reliable clock, said Nancy.
“It’s got to go for one day, that’s all,” said Helen.
“We don’t want a subtle one,” said Socks. “We want one with a goodloud ring.”
“We want—” began Bill, but was unable to finish, because Jimmy, whowas of a mechanical turn of mind, had at last grasped the mechanism68. Forthe next five minutes the shop was hideous69 with the loud raucous70 ringingof many alarum clocks.
In the end six excellent starters were selected.
“And I’ll tell you what,” said Ronny handsomely, “I’ll get one for Pongo.
It was his idea, and it’s a shame that he should be out of it. He shall be rep-resented among those present.”
“That’s right,” said Bill. “And I’ll take an extra one for Lady Coote. Themore the merrier. And she’s doing some of the spade work. Probably gass-ing away to old Gerry now.”
Indeed at this precise moment Lady Coote was detailing a long storyabout MacDonald and a prize peach and enjoying herself very much.
The clocks were wrapped up and paid for. Mr. Murgatroyd watched thecars drive away with a puzzled air. Very spirited the young people of theupper classes nowadays, very spirited indeed, but not at all easy to under-stand. He turned with relief to attend to the vicar’s wife, who wanted anew kind of dripless teapot.
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1
amiable
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| adj.和蔼可亲的，友善的，亲切的 | |
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racing
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| n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的 | |
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precipitate
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| adj.突如其来的；vt.使突然发生；n.沉淀物 | |
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agility
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| n.敏捷，活泼 | |
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wade
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| v.跋涉，涉水；n.跋涉 | |
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discomfort
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| n.不舒服，不安，难过，困难，不方便 | |
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defunct
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| adj.死亡的；已倒闭的 | |
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slab
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| n.平板，厚的切片；v.切成厚板，以平板盖上 | |
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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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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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tragic
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| adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的 | |
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urn
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| n.（有座脚的）瓮；坟墓；骨灰瓮 | |
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melodrama
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| n.音乐剧；情节剧 | |
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villain
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| n.反派演员，反面人物；恶棍；问题的起因 | |
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meteoric
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| adj.流星的，转瞬即逝的，突然的 | |
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flamboyant
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| adj.火焰般的，华丽的，炫耀的 | |
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aspiring
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| adj.有志气的；有抱负的；高耸的v.渴望；追求 | |
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notch
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| n.(V字形)槽口，缺口，等级 | |
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relaxation
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| n.松弛，放松；休息；消遣；娱乐 | |
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distraction
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| n.精神涣散，精神不集中，消遣，娱乐 | |
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imposing
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| adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的 | |
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bevy
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scuttling
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| n.船底穿孔，打开通海阀（沉船用）v.使船沉没( scuttle的现在分词 )；快跑，急走 | |
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marooned
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| adj.被围困的；孤立无援的；无法脱身的 | |
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tragically
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| adv. 悲剧地，悲惨地 | |
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domain
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| n.(活动等)领域，范围；领地，势力范围 | |
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nervously
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spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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kindly
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| adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地 | |
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severely
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| adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地 | |
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bowling
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| n.保龄球运动 | |
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knightly
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| adj. 骑士般的 adv. 骑士般地 | |
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lure
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| n.吸引人的东西，诱惑物；vt.引诱，吸引 | |
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fervently
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| adv.热烈地，热情地，强烈地 | |
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plunged
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| v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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abruptly
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| adv.突然地，出其不意地 | |
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undoubtedly
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| adv.确实地，无疑地 | |
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reproof
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| n.斥责，责备 | |
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dignified
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| a.可敬的，高贵的 | |
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ass
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| n.驴；傻瓜，蠢笨的人 | |
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specially
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| adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地 | |
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shingled
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| adj.盖木瓦的；贴有墙面板的v.用木瓦盖(shingle的过去式和过去分词形式) | |
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giggled
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| v.咯咯地笑( giggle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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ornamental
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| adj.装饰的；作装饰用的；n.装饰品；观赏植物 | |
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vaguely
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| adv.含糊地，暖昧地 | |
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applied
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| adj.应用的；v.应用，适用 | |
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harried
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| v.使苦恼( harry的过去式和过去分词 )；不断烦扰；一再袭击；侵扰 | |
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upwards
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| adv.向上，在更高处...以上 | |
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poised
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| a.摆好姿势不动的 | |
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awaken
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| vi.醒，觉醒；vt.唤醒，使觉醒，唤起，激起 | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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apprehensive
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| adj.担心的，恐惧的，善于领会的 | |
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wreck
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| n.失事，遇难；沉船；vt.(船等)失事，遇难 | |
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reassuringly
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| ad.安心，可靠 | |
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vacuous
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| adj.空的，漫散的，无聊的，愚蠢的 | |
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pointedly
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| adv.尖地，明显地 | |
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meditating
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| a.沉思的，冥想的 | |
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simplicity
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| n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯 | |
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awfully
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| adv.可怕地，非常地，极端地 | |
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rankled
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| v.（使）痛苦不已，（使）怨恨不已( rankle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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invaluable
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| adj.无价的，非常宝贵的，极为贵重的 | |
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iniquities
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| n.邪恶( iniquity的名词复数 )；极不公正 | |
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considerably
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| adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上 | |
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proprietor
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| n.所有人；业主；经营者 | |
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vegetating
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| v.过单调呆板的生活( vegetate的现在分词 )；植物似地生长；（瘤、疣等）长大 | |
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eloquence
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| n.雄辩；口才，修辞 | |
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reliability
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| n.可靠性，确实性 | |
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mechanism
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| n.机械装置；机构，结构 | |
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hideous
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| adj.丑陋的，可憎的，可怕的，恐怖的 | |
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raucous
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| adj.(声音)沙哑的，粗糙的 | |
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