第 26 节
作者:旅游巴士      更新:2021-10-16 18:45      字数:9322
  was generally       forgotten a few weeks later in the excitement of some new
  discovery。
  〃The     inspiration    came    to  me    whilst   I  was    dressing;〃    announced
  Lucas; 〃it will be THE thing in the next music… hall REVUE。                    All London
  will   go   mad   over   it。  It's   just   a couplet;   of   course   there   will   be   other
  words; but they        won't matter。      Listen:
  Cousin Teresa takes out Caesar; Fido; Jock; and the big borzoi。
  A lifting; catchy sort of refrain; you see; and big… drum business on
  the   two   syllables   of   bor…zoi。   It's   immense。       And   I've   thought   out   all
  the business of it;       the singer will sing the first verse alone; then during
  the   second   verse   Cousin   Teresa   will   walk   through;        followed   by   four
  wooden   dogs   on   wheels;   Caesar   will   be   an      Irish   terrier;   Fido   a   black
  poodle;   Jock   a   fox…terrier;    and   the   borzoi;   of   course;   will   be   a   borzoi。
  During the       third verse Cousin Teresa will come on alone; and the                  dogs
  will be drawn across by themselves from the opposite                   wing; then Cousin
  Teresa will catch on to the singer and            go off…stage in one direction; while
  the  dogs'   procession       goes   off   in   the  other;   crossing   en   route;   which   is
  always      very effective。      There'll be a lot of applause there; and             for the
  fourth verse Cousin Teresa will come on in sables                  and the dogs will all
  have coats on。       Then I've got a       great idea for the fifth verse; each of the
  dogs will be       led on by a Nut; and Cousin Teresa will come on from the
  opposite   side;   crossing   en   route;   always   effective;   and      then   she   turns
  round and leads the whole lot of them off                 on a string; and all the time
  every one singing like mad:
  Cousin Teresa takes out Caesar Fido; Jock; and the big borzoi。
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  Tum…Tum!        Drum      business    on   the   two   last  syllables。      I'm    so
  excited;  I   shan't sleep   a  wink   to…night。     I'm  off   to…morrow   by  the   ten…
  fifteen。    I've wired to Hermanova to           lunch with me。〃
  If any of the rest of the family felt any excitement               over the creation
  of Cousin Teresa; they were signally            successful in concealing the fact。
  〃Poor   Lucas   does   take   his   silly   little   ideas seriously;〃   said   Colonel
  Harrowcluff afterwards in the           smoking…room。
  〃Yes;〃 said his younger son; in a slightly less            tolerant tone; 〃in a day
  or   two   he'll   come   back   and   tell  us   that   his   sensational   masterpiece   is
  above   the   heads   of    the   public;   and   in   about   three   weeks'   time   he'll   be
  wild     with enthusiasm over a scheme to dramatise the poems of                   Herrick
  or something equally promising。〃
  And then an extraordinary thing befell。            In defiance      of all precedent
  Lucas's glowing anticipations were             justified and endorsed by the course
  of   events。    If   Cousin   Teresa   was   above   the   heads   of   the   public;   the
  public     heroically    adapted     itself  to  her   altitude。      Introduced      as   an
  experiment at a dull moment in a new                REVUE; the success of the item
  was   unmistakable;   the      calls   were   so   insistent   and   uproarious   that   even
  Lucas'     ample   devisings   of   additional   〃business〃   scarcely         sufficed   to
  keep   pace   with   the   demand。       Packed   houses   on      successive   evenings
  confirmed the verdict of the first           night audience; stalls and boxes filled
  significantly      just   before   the   turn  came    on;   and   emptied    significantly
  after    the   last  ENCORE         had   been    given。     The     manager      tearfully
  acknowledged that Cousin Teresa was It。                 Stage    hands and supers and
  programme        sellers  acknowledged        it  to  one    another    without    the  least
  reservation。       The     name     of     the    REVUE        dwindled      to  secondary
  importance; and vast         letters of electric blue blazoned the words 〃Cousin
  Teresa〃 from the front of the great palace of pleasure。                  And; of course;
  the   magic   of   the   famous   refrain   laid   its spell   all   over   the   Metropolis。
  Restaurant   proprietors       were   obliged   to   provide   the   members   of       their
  orchestras      with     painted    wooden     dogs    on   wheels;    in  order    that  the
  much…demanded and always conceded melody should be                         rendered with
  the necessary spectacular effects; and the              crash of bottles and forks on
  the tables at the mention         of the big borzoi usually drowned the sincerest
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  efforts    of   drum   or   cymbals。      Nowhere   and   at   no   time   could   one   get
  away   from   the   double   thump   that   brought   up   the   rear   of     the   refrain;
  revellers     reeling   home     at  night   banged     it  on    doors    and    hoardings;
  milkmen   clashed   their   cans   to   its   cadence;   messenger   boys   hit   smaller
  messenger boys         resounding double smacks on the same principle。                  And
  the    more thoughtful circles of the great city were not deaf                to the claims
  and     significance      of   the   popular     melody。       An       enterprising      and
  emancipated preacher  discoursed   from  his              pulpit on   the  inner   meaning
  of 〃Cousin Teresa;〃 and Lucas             Harrowcluff was invited to lecture on the
  subject     of  his    great    achievement       to  members      of   the  Young     Mens'
  Endeavour        League; the Nine Arts Club; and other learned and                  willing…
  to…learn bodies。       In Society it seemed to be the           one thing people really
  cared     to  talk   about;    men    and    women       of   middle    age    and   average
  education might be seen           together in corners earnestly discussing; not the
  question   whether   Servia   should   have   an   outlet   on   the      Adriatic;   or   the
  possibilities   of   a   British   success   in  international   polo   contests;   but   the
  more  absorbing   topic        of  the   problematic Aztec   or   Nilotic  origin of   the
  Teresa     MOTIV。
  〃Politics   and   patriotism   are   so   boring   and   so   out   of  date;〃   said   a
  revered   lady   who   had   some   pretensions   to       oracular   utterance;   〃we   are
  too cosmopolitan nowadays to              be really moved by them。            That is why
  one welcomes an          intelligible production like 'Cousin Teresa;' that has a
  genuine message for one。           One can't understand the          message all at once;
  of course; but one felt from the           very first that it was there。       I've been to
  see it    eighteen times and I'm going again to…morrow and on                     Thursday。
  One can't see it often enough。〃
  * * * *
  〃It   would   be   rather   a   popular   move   if   we   gave   this Harrowcluff
  person     a   knighthood      or  something      of   the    sort;〃   said   the   Minister
  reflectively。
  〃Which Harrowcluff?〃asked his secretary。
  〃Which?        There   is   only   one;   isn't   there?〃   said   the Minister;   〃the
  'Cousin Teresa' man; of course。            I think     every one would be pleased if
  we knighted him。         Yes; you      can put him down on the list of certainties …
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  under the    letter L。〃
  〃The letter L;〃 said the secretary; who was new to       his job; 〃does that
  stand for Liberalism or liberality?〃
  Most of the recipients of Ministerial favour were      expected to qualify
  in both of those subjects。
  〃Literature;〃 explained the Minister。
  And    thus;  after  a  fashion;  Colonel  Harrowcluff's    expectation    of
  seeing his son's name in the list of   Honours was gratified。
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  THE YARKAND MANNER
  SIR   LULWORTH          QUAYNE        was    making     a  leisurely   progress
  through the Zoological Society's Gardens in company with                 his nephew;
  recen