第 5 节
作者:京文      更新:2024-09-15 09:12      字数:9322
  the same time Mrs。 Milray sat down。
  〃You will find Miss Milray;〃 she continued; with the same glacial
  hauteur; 〃a very agreeable and cultivated lady。〃
  Clementina said nothing; and Mrs。 Milray added;
  〃And I hope she may have the happiness of being more useful to you than I
  have。〃
  〃What do you mean; Mrs。 Milray?  〃Clementina asked with unexpected spirit
  and courage。
  〃I mean simply this; that I have not succeeded in putting you on your
  guard against your love of admirationespecially the admiration of
  gentlemen。  A young girl can't be too careful how she accepts the
  attentions of gentlemen; and if she seems to invite them〃
  〃Mrs。 Milray cried Clementina。  〃How can you say such a thing to me?〃
  〃How?  I shall have to be plain with you; I see。  Perhaps I have not
  considered that; after all; you know nothing about life and are not to
  blame for things that a person born and bred in the world would
  understand from childhood。  If you don't know already; I can tell you
  that the way you have behaved with Lord Lioncourt during the last two or
  three days; and the way you showed your pleasure the other night in his
  ridiculous flatteries of you; was enough to make you the talk of the
  whole steamer。  I advise you for your own sake to take my warning in
  time。  You are very young; and inexperienced and ignorant; but that will
  not save you in the eyes of the world if you keep on。〃  Mrs。 Milray rose。
  〃And now I will leave you to think of what I have said。  Here is the
  letter for Miss Milray〃
  Clementina shook her head。  〃I don't want it。〃
  〃You don't want it?  But I have written it at Mr。 Milray's request; and I
  shall certainly leave it with you!〃
  〃If you do;〃 said Clementina; 〃I shall not take it!〃
  〃And what shall I say to Mr。 Milray?〃
  〃What you have just said to me。〃
  〃What have I said to you?〃
  〃That I'm a bold girl; and that I've tried to make men admi'a me。〃
  Mrs。 Milray stopped as if suddenly daunted by a fact that had not
  occurred to her before。  〃Did I say that?〃
  〃The same as that。〃
  〃I didn't mean thatImerely meant to put you on your guard。  It may be
  because you are so innocent yourself; that you can't imagine what others
  think; andI did it out of my regard for you。〃
  Clementina did not answer。
  Mrs。 Milray went on; 〃That was why I was so provoked with you。  I think
  that for a young girl to stand up and dance alone before a whole steamer
  full of strangers〃Clementina looked at her without speaking; and Mrs。
  Milray hastened to say; 〃To be sure I advised you to do it; but I
  certainly was surprised that you should give an encore。  But no matter;
  now。  This letter〃
  〃I can't take it; Mrs。 Milray;〃 said Clementina; with a swelling heart。
  〃Now; listen!〃  urged Mrs。 Milray。  〃You think I'm just saying it
  because; if you don't take it I shall have to tell Mr。 Milray I was so
  hateful to you; you couldn't。  Well; I should hate to tell him that; but
  that isn't the reason。  There!〃  She tore the letter in pieces; and threw
  it on the floor。  Clementina did not make any sign of seeing this; and
  Mrs。 Milray dropped upon her chair again。  〃Oh; how hard you are!  Can't
  you say something to me?〃
  Clementina did not lift her eyes。  〃I don't feel like saying anything
  just now。〃
  Mrs。 Milray was silent a moment。  Then she sighed。  〃Well; you may hate
  me; but I shall always be your friend。  What hotel are you going to in
  Liverpool?
  〃I don't know;〃 said Clementina。
  〃You had better come to the one where we go。  I'm afraid Mrs。 Lander
  won't know how to manage very well; and we've been in Liverpool so often。
  May I speak to her about it?〃
  〃If you want to;〃 Clementina coldly assented。
  〃I see!〃  said Mrs。 Milray。  〃You don't want to be under the same roof
  with me。  Well; you needn't!  But I'll tell you a good hotel: the one
  that the trains start out of; and I'll send you that letter for Miss
  Milray。〃  Clemeutina was silent。  〃Well; I'll send it; anyway。〃
  Mrs。 Milray went away in sudden tears; but the girl remained dry…eyed。
  XIX。
  Mrs。 Lander realized when the ship came to anchor in the stream at
  Liverpool that she had not been seasick a moment during the voyage。  In
  the brisk cold of the winter morning; as they came ashore in the tug; she
  fancied a property of health in the European atmosphere; which she was
  sure would bring her right up; if she stayed long enough; and a regret
  that she had never tried it with Mr。 Lander mingled with her new hopes
  for herself。
  But Clementina looked with home…sick eyes at the strangeness of the alien
  scene: the pale; low heaven which seemed not to be clouded and yet was so
  dim; the flat shores with the little railroad trains running in and out
  over them; the grimy bulks of the city; and the shipping in the river;
  sparse and sombre after the gay forest of sails and stacks at New York。
  She did not see the Milrays after she left the tug; in the rapid
  dispersal of the steamer's passengers。  They both took leave of her at
  the dock; and Mrs。 Milray whispered with penitence in her voice and eyes;
  I will write;〃 but the girl did not answer。
  Before Mrs。 Lander's trunks and her own were passed; she saw Lord
  Lioncourt going away with his heavily laden man at his heels。  Mr。 Ewins
  came up to see if he could help her through the customs; but she believed
  that be had come at Mrs。 Milray's bidding; and she thanked him so
  prohibitively that he could not insist。  The English clergyman who had
  spoken to her the morning after the charity entertainment left his wife
  with Mrs。 Lander; and came to her help; and then Mr。 Ewins went his way。
  The clergyman; who appeared to feel the friendlessness of the young girl
  and the old woman a charge laid upon him; bestowed a sort of fatherly
  protection upon them both。  He advised them to stop at a hotel for a few
  hours and take the later train for London that he and his wife were going
  up by; they drove to the hotel together; where Mrs。 Lander could not be
  kept from paying the omnibus; and made them have luncheon with her。  She
  allowed the clergyman to get her tickets; and she could not believe that
  be had taken second class tickets for himself and his wife。  She said
  that she had never heard of anyone travelling second class before; and
  she assured him that they never did it in America。  She begged him to let
  her pay the difference; and bring his wife into her compartment; which
  the guard had reserved for her。  She urged that the money was nothing to
  her; compared with the comfort of being with some one you knew; and the
  clergyman had to promise that as they should be neighbors; he would look
  in upon her; whenever the train stopped long enough。
  Before it began to move; Clementina thought she saw Lord Lioncourt
  hurrying past their carriage…window。  At Rugby the clergyman appeared;
  but almost before he could speak; Lord Lioncourt's little red face showed
  at his elbow。  He asked Clementina to present him to Mrs。 Lander; who
  pressed him to get into her compartment; the clergyman vanished; and Lord
  Lioncourt yielded。
  Mrs。 Lander found him able to tell her the best way to get to Florence;
  whose situation he seemed to know perfectly; he confessed that he had
  been there rather often。  He made out a little itinerary for going
  straight through by sleeping…car as soon as you crossed the Channel; she
  had said that she always liked a through train when she could get it; and
  the less stops the better。  She bade Clementina take charge of the plan
  and not lose it; without it she did not see what they could do。  She
  conceived of him as a friend of Clementina's; and she lost in the strange
  environment the shyness she had with most people。  She told him how Mr。
  Lander had made his money; and from what beginnings he rose to be
  ignorant of what he really was worth when he died。  She dwelt upon the
  diseases they had suffered; and at the thought of his death; so
  unnecessary in view of the good that the air was already doing her in
  Europe; she shed tears。
  Lord Lioncourt was very polite; but there was no resumption of the ship's
  comradery in his manner。  Clementina could not know how quickly this
  always drops from people who have been fellow…passengers; and she
  wondered if he were guarding himself from her because she had danced at
  the charity entertainment。  The poison which Mrs。 Milray had instilled
  worked in her thoughts while she could not help seeing how patient he was
  with all Mrs。 Lander's questions; he answered them with a simplicity of
  his own; or laughed and put them by; when they were quite impossible。
  Many of them related to the comparative merits of English and American
  railroads; and what he thought himself of these。  Mrs。 Lander noted the
  difference of the English stations; but she did not see much in the
  landscape to examine him upon。  She required him to tell her why the
  rooks they saw were not crows; and she was not satisfied that he should
  say the country seat she pointed out was a castle when it was plainly
  deficient in battlements。  She based upon his immovable confidence in
  respect to it an inquiry into the structure of English society; and she
  made him tell her what a lord was; and a commoner; and how the royal
  family diffe