At this point a maid announced that supper was served and instantly Gilbert took his departure. At the same timethe family arose and Mrs. Griffiths asked the maid: "Has Bella telephoned yet?""No, ma'am," replied the servant, "not yet.""Well, have Mrs. Truesdale call up the Finchleys and see if she's there. You tell her I said that she is to comehome at once."The maid departed for a moment while the group proceeded to the dining room, which lay to the west of thestairs at the rear. Again, as Clyde saw, this was another splendidly furnished room done in a very light brown,with a long center table of carved walnut1, evidently used only for special occasions. It was surrounded by high-backed chairs and lighted by candelabras set at even spaces upon it. In a lower ceilinged and yet ample circularalcove beyond this, looking out on the garden to the south, was a smaller table set for six. It was in this alcovethat they were to dine, a different thing from what Clyde had expected for some reason.
Seated in a very placid2 fashion, he found himself answering questions principally as to his own family, the natureof its life, past and present; how old was his father now? His mother? What had been the places of their residencebefore moving to Denver? How many brothers and sisters had he? How old was his sister, Esta? What did shedo? And the others? Did his father like managing a hotel? What had been the nature of his father's work inKansas City? How long had the family lived there?
Clyde was not a little troubled and embarrassed by this chain of questions which flowed rather heavily andsolemnly from Samuel Griffiths or his wife. And from Clyde's hesitating replies, especially in regard to thenature of the family life in Kansas City, both gathered that he was embarrassed and troubled by some of thequestions. They laid it to the extreme poverty of their relatives, of course. For having asked, "I suppose youbegan your hotel work in Kansas City, didn't you, after you left school?" Clyde blushed deeply, bethinkinghimself of the incident of the stolen car and of how little real schooling4 he had had. Most certainly he did not likethe thought of having himself identified with hotel life in Kansas City, and more especially the Green- Davidson.
But fortunately at this moment, the door opened and Bella entered, accompanied by two girls such as Clydewould have assumed at once belonged to this world. How different to Rita and Zella with whom his thought sorecently had been disturbedly concerned. He did not know Bella, of course, until she proceeded most familiarlyto address her family. But the others--one was Sondra Finchley, so frequently referred to by Bella and hermother--as smart and vain and sweet a girl as Clyde had ever laid his eyes upon--so different to any he had everknown and so superior. She was dressed in a close-fitting tailored suit which followed her form exactly andwhich was enhanced by a small dark leather hat, pulled fetchingly low over her eyes. A leather belt of the samecolor encircled her neck. By a leather leash5 she led a French bull and over one arm carried a most striking coat ofblack and gray checks--not too pronounced and yet having the effect of a man's modish6 overcoat. To Clyde'seyes she was the most adorable feminine thing he had seen in all his days. Indeed her effect on him was electric-thrilling--arousing in him a curiously7 stinging sense of what it was to want and not to have--to wish to win andyet to feel, almost agonizingly that he was destined8 not even to win a glance from her. It tortured and flusteredhim. At one moment he had a keen desire to close his eyes and shut her out--at another to look only at herconstantly--so truly was he captivated.
Yet, whether she saw him or not, she gave no sign at first, exclaiming to her dog: "Now, Bissell, if you're notgoing to behave, I'm going to take you out and tie you out there. Oh, I don't believe I can stay a moment if hewon't behave better than this." He had seen a family cat and was tugging9 to get near her.
Beside her was another girl whom Clyde did not fancy nearly so much, and yet who, after her fashion, was assmart as Sondra and perhaps as alluring10 to some. She was blonde--tow-headed--with clear almond-shaped,greenish-gray eyes, a small, graceful11, catlike figure, and a slinky feline12 manner. At once, on entering, she sidledacross the room to the end of the table where Mrs. Griffiths sat and leaning over her at once began to purr.
"Oh, how are you, Mrs. Griffiths? I'm so glad to see you again. It's been some time since I've been over here,hasn't it? But then Mother and I have been away. She and Grant are over at Albany to-day. And I just picked upBella and Sondra here at the Lamberts'. You're just having a quiet little supper by yourselves, aren't you? Howare you, Myra?" she called, and reaching over Mrs. Griffiths' shoulder touched Myra quite casually13 on the arm,as though it were more a matter of form than anything else.
In the meantime Bella, who next to Sondra seemed to Clyde decidedly the most charming of the three, wasexclaiming: "Oh, I'm late. Sorry, Mamma and Daddy. Won't that do this time?" Then noting Clyde, and asthough for the first time, although he had risen as they entered and was still standing15, she paused in semi-mockmodesty as did the others. And Clyde, oversensitive to just such airs and material distinctions, was fairlytremulous with a sense of his own inadequacy16, as he waited to be introduced. For to him, youth and beauty insuch a station as this represented the ultimate triumph of the female. His weakness for Hortense Briggs, to say nothing of Rita, who was not so attractive as either of these, illustrated17 the effect of trim femininity on him,regardless of merit.
"Bella," observed Samuel Griffiths, heavily, noting Clyde still standing, "your cousin, Clyde.""Oh, yes," replied Bella, observing that Clyde looked exceedingly like Gilbert. "How are you? Mother has beensaying that you were coming to call one of these days." She extended a finger or two, then turned toward herfriends. "My friends, Miss Finchley and Miss Cranston, Mr. Griffiths."The two girls bowed, each in the most stiff and formal manner, at the same time studying Clyde most carefullyand rather directly, "Well, he does look like Gil a lot, doesn't he?" whispered Sondra to Bertine, who had drawnnear to her. And Bertine replied: "I never saw anything like it. He's really better-looking, isn't he-- a lot?"Sondra nodded, pleased to note in the first instance that he was somewhat better-looking than Bella's brother,whom she did not like--next that he was obviously stricken with her, which was her due, as she invariablydecided in connection with youths thus smitten19 with her. But having thus decided14, and seeing that his glance waspersistently and helplessly drawn18 to her, she concluded that she need pay no more attention to him, for thepresent anyway. He was too easy.
But now Mrs. Griffiths, who had not anticipated this visitation and was a little irritated with Bella for introducingher friends at this time since it at once raised the question of Clyde's social position here, observed: "Hadn't youtwo better lay off your coats and sit down? I'll just have Nadine lay extra plates at this end. Bella, you can sitnext to your father.""Oh, no, not at all," and "No, indeed, we're just on our way home ourselves. I can't stay a minute," came fromSondra and Bertine. But now that they were here and Clyde had proved to be as attractive as he was, they wereperversely interested to see what, if any, social flair20 there was to him. Gilbert Griffiths, as both knew, was farfrom being popular in some quarters--their own in particular, however much they might like Bella. He was, fortwo such self-centered beauties as these, too aggressive, self-willed and contemptuous at times. Whereas Clyde,if one were to judge by his looks, at least was much more malleable21. And if it were to prove now that he was ofequal station, or that the Griffiths thought so, decidedly he would be available locally, would he not? At any rate,it would be interesting to know whether he was rich. But this thought was almost instantly satisfied by Mrs.
Griffiths, who observed rather definitely and intentionally22 to Bertine: "Mr. Griffiths is a nephew of ours from theWest who has come on to see if he can make a place for himself in my husband's factory. He's a young man whohas to make his own way in the world and my husband has been kind enough to give him an opportunity."Clyde flushed, since obviously this was a notice to him that his social position here was decidedly below that ofthe Griffiths or these girls. At the same time, as he also noticed, the look of Bertine Cranston, who was onlyinterested in youths of means and position, changed from one of curiosity to marked indifference23. On the otherhand, Sondra Finchley, by no means so practical as her friend, though of a superior station in her set, since shewas so very attractive and her parents possessed24 of even more means--re-surveyed Clyde with one thoughtwritten rather plainly on her face, that it was too bad. He really was so attractive.
At the same time Samuel Griffiths, having a peculiar25 fondness for Sondra, if not Bertine, whom Mrs. Griffiths also disliked as being too tricky26 and sly, was calling to her: "Here, Sondra, tie up your dog to one of the dining-room chairs and come and sit by me. Throw your coat over that chair. Here's room for you." He motioned to herto come.
"But I can't, Uncle Samuel!" called Sondra, familiarly and showily and yet somehow sweetly, seeking toingratiate herself by this affected27 relationship. "We're late now. Besides Bissell won't behave. Bertine and I arejust on our way home, truly.""Oh, yes, Papa," put in Bella, quickly, "Bertine's horse ran a nail in his foot yesterday and is going lame28 to-day.
And neither Grant nor his father is home. She wants to know if you know anything that's good for it.""Which foot is it?" inquired Griffiths, interested, while Clyde continued to survey Sondra as best he might. Shewas so delicious, he thought--her nose so tiny and tilted--her upper lip arched so roguishly upward toward hernose.
"It's the left fore3. I was riding out on the East Kingston road yesterday afternoon. Jerry threw a shoe and musthave picked up a splinter, but John doesn't seem to be able to find it.""Did you ride him much with the nail, do you think?""About eight miles--all the way back.""Well, you had better have John put on some liniment and a bandage and call a veterinary. He'll come around allright, I'm sure."The group showed no signs of leaving and Clyde, left quite to himself for the moment, was thinking what aneasy, delightful29 world this must be--this local society. For here they were without a care, apparently30, between anyof them. All their talk was of houses being built, horses they were riding, friends they had met, places they weregoing to, things they were going to do. And there was Gilbert, who had left only a little while before--motoringsomewhere with a group of young men. And Bella, his cousin, trifling31 around with these girls in the beautifulhomes of this street, while he was shunted away in a small third-floor room at Mrs. Cuppy's with no place to go.
And with only fifteen dollars a week to live on. And in the morning he would be working in the basement again,while these girls were rising to more pleasure. And out in Denver were his parents with their small lodging32 houseand mission, which he dared not even describe accurately33 here.
Suddenly the two girls declaring they must go, they took themselves off. And he and the Griffiths were oncemore left to themselves--he with the feeling that he was very much out of place and neglected here, sinceSamuel Griffiths and his wife and Bella, anyhow, if not Myra, seemed to be feeling that he was merely beingpermitted to look into a world to which he did not belong; also, that because of his poverty it would beimpossible to fit him into--however much he might dream of associating with three such wonderful girls asthese. And at once he felt sad--very--his eyes and his mood darkening so much that not only Samuel Griffiths,but his wife as well as Myra noticed it. If he could enter upon this world, find some way. But of the group it wasonly Myra, not any of the others, who sensed that in all likelihood he was lonely and depressed34. And inconsequence as all were rising and returning to the large living room (Samuel chiding35 Bella for her habit of keeping her family waiting) it was Myra who drew near to Clyde to say: "I think after you've been here a littlewhile you'll probably like Lycurgus better than you do now, even. There are quite a number of interesting placesto go and see around here--lakes and the Adirondacks are just north of here, about seventy miles. And when thesummer comes and we get settled at Greenwood, I'm sure Father and Mother will like you to come up there oncein a while."She was by no means sure that this was true, but under the circumstances, whether it was or not, she felt likesaying it to Clyde. And thereafter, since he felt more comfortable with her, he talked with her as much as hecould without neglecting either Bella or the family, until about half-past nine, when, suddenly feeling very muchout of place and alone, he arose saying that he must go, that he had to get up early in the morning. And as he didso, Samuel Griffiths walked with him to the front door and let him out. But he, too, by now, as had Myra beforehim, feeling that Clyde was rather attractive and yet, for reasons of poverty, likely to be neglected from now on,not only by his family, but by himself as well, observed most pleasantly, and, as he hoped, compensatively: "It'srather nice out, isn't it? Wykeagy Avenue hasn't begun to show what it can do yet because the spring isn't quitehere. But in a few weeks," and he looked up most inquiringly at the sky and sniffed36 the late April air, "we musthave you out. All the trees and flowers will be in bloom then and you can see how really nice it is. Good night."He smiled and put a very cordial note into his voice, and once more Clyde felt that, whatever Gilbert Griffiths'
attitude might be, most certainly his father was not wholly indifferent to him.
这时，一个女佣人进来说，晚饭准备好了，吉尔伯特立时起身走了。一家人也都站了起来，格里菲思太太问女佣人:
"贝拉来过电话没有?
""没有，太太，"女佣人回答说，"还没有呢。""那就告诉特鲁斯黛尔太太打电话到芬奇利家去，看她在不在那儿。你跟她说是我说的，要她马上就回家。"女佣人走了出去，大家都朝客厅后边西头的餐厅走去。克莱德发现，这里也是陈设华丽，全部淡褐色调，中间摆一张胡桃木雕的长餐桌，显然在特殊喜庆节日才使用的。长桌子四周都是高靠背椅子，点燃一盏盏位置摆得非常匀称的枝形烛台。长餐桌对面，有一个天花板虽低但很宽敞的圆形凸室，可以望得见南花园。里面还有一张可供六人就餐的小餐桌。他们就在这个凸室里吃晚饭，这是克莱德始料所不及的。
克莱德好歹心情平静地坐了下来，就得不断回答问题，主要有关他家里生活情况，过去怎么样，现在又怎么样?
他父亲多大岁数?
他母亲呢?
迁至丹佛以前，他们住过哪些地方?
他有几个兄弟姐妹?
他姐姐爱思达有多大了?
她在做什么工作?
还有别人呢?
他父亲喜欢经营旅馆吗?
他父亲在堪萨斯城是干哪一行的?
他们一家子住在那里已有多久了?
在塞缪尔。格里菲思和他太太一本正经地提出这一连串问题的压力下，克莱德真的感到有点窘困不安。从克莱德躲躲闪闪的回答看来，特别是谈到他家在堪萨斯城的生活时，他们俩都发觉某些问题使他感到很窘，使他惴惴不安。
他们当然都归咎于他们这个亲戚委实太穷了。塞缪尔。格里菲思问:
"依我看，你离开学校后，就开始在堪萨斯城干旅馆这一行，是不是?
"克莱德一下子脸红了，心里就想到了偷车的事，还有他受的教育确实太少了。当然罗，他最不愿这里的人知道自己在堪萨斯城旅馆业……尤其是在格林－戴维逊大酒店……干过活。
多亏这时门开了，贝拉走了进来，后面还有两位姑娘陪着。克莱德一看就知道她们都是属于这个圈子里的人。瞧她们跟最近使克莱德心荡神移的丽达和泽拉相比，该有多么不一样啊。当然罗，在贝拉怪亲昵地招呼家里人以前，克莱德并不知道她就是贝拉。至于另外那两位……一位是桑德拉。芬奇利，贝拉母女俩时常提到她……她是克莱德从没见过的那么漂亮。自负而又可爱的一个姑娘……跟他过去认识的任何姑娘相比，迥然不同，而且高雅非凡。她穿一套剪裁非常讲究的衣服，再配上一顶浅黑色小皮帽，诱人地低拉到眼梢上，显得更美了。她脖子上套着一条同样颜色的皮带，一手牵着用皮绳子拴住的一只法国种牛头犬。胳臂上搭着一件很讲究的灰底黑方格子外套……不大显眼，倒是有些象很时髦的男式外衣。在克莱德眼里，她是他迄今为止所见到过的最可爱的女性了。是的，她就象一股电流，一下子贯穿他全身上下……让他感到火辣辣的灼痛……产生一种心中悬渴一时难以得到满足的异样痛感……真是恨不能马上得到她，可又恼人地感到自己命里注定得不到，哪怕是她回首时迷人的一瞥。这就象在折磨他，可又使他如痴似醉。他一忽儿恨不得闭上眼睛，不去看她……可一忽儿又想看她个不停……他真的被她迷住了。
可是，桑德拉是不是看到了他，开头一点儿都看不出来，她只是冲她的小狗在大声吆喝:
"喂，比斯尔，你要是不老老实实，我就把你拖出去，拴到门外边。
唉，它要是再不老实的话，我说，我在这儿也就一刻都待不下去了。"小狗看到一只小猫咪，就使劲挣脱着要过去。
桑德拉身边是另一位姑娘，克莱德对她并不那么喜欢，可她有自己的特点，如同桑德拉一样漂亮，而且在某些人心目中，也许同样诱人。她是一位肌肤白皙的女郎……一头金色鬈发……一双明亮的杏圆形的灰绿色眼睛，一个小猫咪似的优美纤小的身段，还有一种象小猫咪似的悄没声儿的神态。她一走进来，马上斜穿过房间，来到格里菲思太太坐着的桌子跟前，紧偎着她，一下子就象小猫咪那样兴冲冲，低声耳语道。
"哦，您好，格里菲思太太?
又见到了您，我简直太高兴了。我已有好长时间没来这儿，可不是吗?
不过，那是因为妈妈和我全都出门去了。她和格兰特至今还在奥尔巴尼哩。我在兰伯特家碰巧遇见贝拉和桑德拉。我说，今儿个你们一家人安安静静地吃晚饭，是不是?
您好，麦拉?
"她一面招呼麦拉，一手从格里菲思太太肩膀上伸过去，熟不拘礼地碰了一下麦拉的胳膊，仿佛仅仅表示一下客套罢了。
依克莱德看，三个姑娘里头，桑德拉最迷人。这时，站在桑德拉旁边的贝拉正大声嚷道:
"哦，我迟到了。对不起，妈和爹。就饶了我这一回，好吗?
"随后，她好象是刚刚看到克莱德似的，虽说她们一走进来，他便站起来，而且直到此刻还站立在那里。她就象她的女友一样，半似嘲笑。半似客气地停顿不语。克莱德本来对类似这样高傲的神态，乃至于优渥的物质生活特别敏感，还在等着人家介绍时候，早就明白自己微不足道，因而心里慌了神。他觉得，年轻貌美，再加上这样显赫的社会地位，不啻是女性的最大胜利。论漂亮，霍丹斯。布里格斯尽管都不如这里任何一个姑娘，但她照样能叫他为之倾倒，更不用谈丽达了，由此可见:
只要是漂亮的女性，不论优点如何，对他都具有吸引力。
"贝拉，"塞缪尔。格里菲思看见克莱德还站立在那里，便慢条斯理地说:
"这是你的堂兄，克莱德。""哦，是啊，"贝拉回答说，马上就发觉克莱德的样子酷肖吉尔伯特。"您好?
妈对我说您这两天要来看我们。"她伸出一两个手指头，随后侧过身去，面对着她的两位女友说:
"这是我的朋友……芬奇利小姐。克兰斯顿小姐，格里菲思先生。
"这两位姑娘鞠了一躬，瞧她们俩都是极不自然，拘泥虚礼，同时又直勾勾地非常仔细地把克莱德上下打量了一番。"哦，他真的活脱脱象吉尔，可不是吗?
"桑德拉对紧接着她的伯蒂娜低声耳语道。伯蒂娜回答说:
"再象也没有了。不过说真的，他长得好看得多，是吗?
……好看得多。"桑德拉点点头。首先，她高兴地注意到:
克莱德比吉尔伯特要好看得多(她不喜欢贝拉的哥哥)……其次，他显然对她一见倾心。她认为这是应该如此，她一向就是这样让不少年轻人一见钟情。不过，看到克莱德老是目不转睛地死盯着她，她就认为，至少暂时用不着再留意他了。要征服他，太容易了。
可是，格里菲思太太对这些不速之客，事先是没有预料到的。她对贝拉在此刻介绍她的女友，也不免有点儿生气;因为这么一来，马上就引起克莱德在这里的社会地位问题。她就建议说:
"你们两位最好还是把衣服撂下，先坐下来，好吗?
我马上叫纳丁在这一头再摆上两只盘子。贝拉，你坐在爹旁边，就得了。
""哦，不，不必了。"她们回答说，"不，真的，我们该回家去了。我在这儿只待一会儿就走，"桑德拉和伯蒂娜都这么说。不过，她们现在既然来了，看到克莱德确实挺漂亮，她们就恨不得了解清楚他在上流社会里(要是他常去的话)是不是红得发紫的人物。她们俩心里都明白:
吉尔伯特。格里菲思在某些场所远不是很受欢迎的，比方说，她们俩就不喜欢他，尽管她们俩很喜欢他的妹妹贝拉。
象这样的两个自尊心很强的美人儿觉得，吉尔伯特这个人太自信，太固执，有时也太瞧不起人了。而克莱德呢，如果从他的外貌来看，至少他要比较随和一些。只要事实证明他是平等的一个成员，或者说格里菲思一家人都这样看法，那末，他当然可以被当地上流社会所接受。可不是吗?
反正不管怎么说，了解一下他到底是不是有钱，也很有意思。可是，她们上面这个想法，几乎一下子就得到了回答，因为格里菲思太太好象故意向伯蒂娜点明似的说:
"格里菲思先生……是我们的侄子。他从西部来这里，看自己能不能在我丈夫的厂里寻摸个位置。他这个年轻人，就得靠自个儿闯出一条路来。我丈夫心眼儿太好，就给了他一个施展才能的机会。"克莱德一下子脸涨红了，因为这段话显然告诉他:
他在这里的社会地位，无可比拟地低于格里菲思一家人，或是这些姑娘们。同时，他还注意到，在只对有钱有势年轻人感兴趣的伯蒂娜。克兰斯顿的脸上，好奇心一下子变成完全漠不关心。另一方面，桑德拉。芬奇利决不象她的女友那么注重实际，尽管她在跟她相仿的这拨人里处于更为优越的地位……她毕竟出落得更为迷人，而她的父母则比克兰斯顿更加殷富……她还是再次仔细端详着克莱德，脸上分明表达出了她心中深为惋惜的看法。说实话，他是太漂亮了。
塞缪尔。格里菲思特别疼爱桑德拉。(他不喜欢伯蒂娜，正如格里菲思太太也不喜欢她，认为她太淘气，太佻巧。)塞缪尔。格里菲思向桑德拉招呼说:
"来吧，桑德拉，把你的小狗拴到餐厅的一只椅子上。过来，坐在我身边。把你的外套扔到那椅子上。这里给你留着空座，"他随手就指给她看了。
"可我怎么也不能坐了，塞缪尔大叔!
"桑德拉大声说，显得熟不拘礼，但又有些嗲声嗲气，很想用这种矫揉造作的亲热劲儿来讨好主人。"现在已经很晚了。
再说，比斯尔也不会老老实实的。说真的，伯蒂娜和我该回家去了。
""哦，是的，爸爸，"贝拉马上说了一句，"昨天，伯蒂娜骑的马蹄子上扎了一颗钉子，今天一条腿就瘸了。格兰特和他爸爸全都不在家。她想问问您，看看怎么办才好。""哪一条腿瘸了?
"格里菲思很关心地问。这时，克莱德趁机又继续把桑德拉尽可能仔细地端详一番，暗自思忖:
她啊多么迷人……小小的鼻子，有点儿往上翘……上唇又俏皮地往上拱起。
"左前蹄。昨天下午，我在东金斯顿路上溜马。杰里丢了一块蹄铁，肯定扎进一根刺了，可是约翰怎么也找不出来。""扎了钉子以后，你还骑了多久?
""一路骑回来，我想大概有八英里吧。""哦，你最好还是让约翰给它先敷些药膏，包扎好，再去请兽医看看。马儿包管没事，你放心好了。"她们俩并没有要走的迹象。暂时被撇在一旁的克莱德却在暗自寻思，想必在这儿上流社会里一定是轻松愉快的。看来在这儿人们个个都是无忧无虑的。
他们所谈论的，不外乎是:
他们正在盖的房子呀，他们骑的骏马呀，他们遇到的朋友呀，他们准备去玩儿的地方呀，以及心中在想的那些赏心乐事呀，如此等等。还有那个刚才离座的吉尔伯特，跟一拨年轻人开汽车上哪儿玩去了。还有贝拉，他的堂妹，就在这条街上漂亮的府邸跟这些女孩子在闲聊天;可他，克莱德，却关在柯比太太寄宿舍三层楼上的一个小房间垦，无处可去。每星期就靠这十五块美元糊口。明天一早，他还得照常上工厂地下室干活去，而这些女孩子一起床，心里就在琢磨怎样更痛快地去寻欢作乐。而在丹佛，他的父母则在惨淡经营他们的那个小小寄宿舍和传道馆……在这里他甚至都不敢据实相告。
蓦然间，这两位小姐说非走不可，她们也就走了。这时又只剩下他和格里菲思一家人在一起……他觉得在这里很不合适，备受怠慢。因为塞缪尔。格里菲思跟他太太和贝拉……反正麦拉除外……好象只让他开开眼界，看看那个不属于他的上流社会;同时，又因为他穷，他也就不可能跻身进去……尽管他多么梦想要结交这样几位了不起的姑娘。他心中马上感到悲哀……非常悲哀……他的眼睛。他的心绪，是那么阴郁，不仅塞缪尔。格里菲思注意到了，就连他太太跟麦拉也都注意到了。只要他能够进入这个上流社会，找到出路，该有多好。
可是，就在这一家人里，除了麦拉，没有一个人体察到他在目前的处境很可能感到孤单，心情沮丧。因此，当大家都纷纷起身，回到那个大客厅时(塞缪尔则在呵责贝拉回家太晚，老是让全家人等着她吃晚饭)，麦拉走到克莱德身旁说:
"我说，不管怎么说，你只要在这儿再待一会儿，也许就会比现在更喜欢莱柯格斯。这一带有不少地方，挺好玩的，可以去看看……有湖泊，还有艾迪隆达克斯山脉也不太远，在北面约莫七十英里的地方。到夏天，我们一家人都到格林伍德湖别墅去，我相信，爹和妈说不定欢迎你有时候也去玩玩。"她父母是不是真的请克莱德去别墅消暑，她也远不是那么有把握，不过，她觉得，在当前这种场合，不管怎么样，此刻应该跟克莱德这么说的。经她这么一说，他觉得跟她在一起比较自在，所以只要不怠慢贝拉和她家里其他一些人，就尽管跟她多说说话儿。将近九点半光景，他突然觉得自己再待下去很不合适，也很孤单，所以就站起身来说，他该走了，明儿一早他还得早起。告别时，塞缪尔。格里菲思领他到正门口，送他出门。到这时，老格里菲思如同在他之前的麦拉，也觉得克莱德长得相当漂亮，只不过因为穷，从今以后很可能不仅受到他家里人，而且会受到他自己的忽视，于是，在告别时，为了褒奖一下克莱德，就说了几句挺好听的话:
"出来走走很好，可不是吗?
等着瞧吧，春天一到，威克吉大街这才更美。以后嘛，"他抬头仿佛望着天空寻摸什么似的，吸了一口四月底新鲜的空气说，"过几个星期，我们一定要请你再来。那时候，所有的树上已是繁花似锦，你就可以看到，这儿真的有多美。晚安。"他微微一笑，而且说话时语调亲切极了。克莱德再次感到，不管吉尔伯待。
格里菲思的态度如何，伯父对他肯定不是漠不关心的。
收听单词发音 |
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walnut
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| n.胡桃，胡桃木，胡桃色，茶色 | |
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placid
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| adj.安静的，平和的 | |
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fore
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| adv.在前面；adj.先前的；在前部的；n.前部 | |
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schooling
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| n.教育；正规学校教育 | |
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leash
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| n.牵狗的皮带，束缚；v.用皮带系住 | |
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modish
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| adj.流行的，时髦的 | |
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curiously
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| adv.有求知欲地；好问地；奇特地 | |
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destined
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| adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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tugging
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| n.牵引感v.用力拉，使劲拉，猛扯( tug的现在分词 ) | |
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alluring
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| adj.吸引人的，迷人的 | |
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graceful
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| adj.优美的，优雅的；得体的 | |
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feline
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| adj.猫科的 | |
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casually
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| adv.漠不关心地，无动于衷地，不负责任地 | |
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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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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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inadequacy
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| n.无法胜任，信心不足 | |
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illustrated
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| adj. 有插图的，列举的 动词illustrate的过去式和过去分词 | |
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drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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smitten
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| 猛打，重击，打击( smite的过去分词 ) | |
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flair
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| n.天赋，本领，才华；洞察力 | |
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malleable
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| adj.(金属)可锻的;有延展性的；(性格)可训练的 | |
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intentionally
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| ad.故意地，有意地 | |
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indifference
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| n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎 | |
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possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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tricky
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| adj.狡猾的，奸诈的；(工作等)棘手的，微妙的 | |
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affected
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| adj.不自然的，假装的 | |
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lame
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| adj.跛的，(辩解、论据等)无说服力的 | |
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delightful
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| adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的 | |
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apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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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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lodging
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| n.寄宿，住所；(大学生的)校外宿舍 | |
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accurately
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| adv.准确地，精确地 | |
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depressed
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| adj.沮丧的，抑郁的，不景气的，萧条的 | |
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chiding
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| v.责骂，责备( chide的现在分词 ) | |
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sniffed
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| v.以鼻吸气，嗅，闻( sniff的过去式和过去分词 )；抽鼻子（尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气）；抱怨，不以为然地说 | |
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