老妇人的故事 英文版The Old Wives' Tale
阿诺德.本涅特 Arnold Bennett
II
Chirac protested, telling him .
What continually impressed Sophia as strange, in the behaviour notonly of Gerald but of Chirac and other people with whom she cameinto contact, was its quality of casualness. She had all her lifebeen accustomed to see enterprises, even minor ones, well ponderedand then carefully schemed beforehand. In St. Luke's Square therewas always, in every head, a sort of time-table of existenceprepared at least one week in advance. But in Gerald's worldnothing was prearranged. Elaborate affairs were decided in amoment and undertaken with extraordinary lightness. Thus theexcursion to Auxerre! During lunch scarcely a word was said as toit; the conversation, in English for Sophia's advantage, turning,as usual under such circumstances, upon the difficulty oflanguages and the differences between countries. Nobody would haveguessed that any member of the party had any preoccupationwhatever for the rest of the day. The meal was delightful toSophia; not merely did she find Chirac comfortingly kind andsincere, but Gerald was restored to the perfection of his charmand his good humour. Then suddenly, in the midst of coffee, thequestion of trains loomed up like a swift crisis. In five minutesChirac had departed--whether to his office or his home Sophia didnot understand, and within a quarter of an hour she and Geraldwere driving rapidly to the Gare de Lyon, Gerald stuffing into hispocket a large envelope full of papers which he had received byregistered post. They caught the train by about a minute, andChirac by a few seconds. Yet neither he nor Gerald seemed toenvisage the risk of inconvenience and annoyance which they hadincurred and escaped. Chirac chattered through the window withanother journalist in the next compartment. When she had leisureto examine him, Sophia saw that he must have called at his home toput on old clothes. Everybody except herself and Gerald seemed totravel in his oldest clothes.
The train was hot, noisy, and dusty. But, one after another, allthree of them fell asleep and slept heavily, calmly, like healthyand exhausted young animals. Nothing could disturb them for morethan a moment. To Sophia it appeared to be by simple chance thatChirac aroused himself and them at Laroche and sleepily seized hervalise and got them all out on the platform, where they yawned andsmiled, full of the deep, half-realized satisfaction of repose.They drank nectar from a wheeled buffet, drank it eagerly, inthirsty gulps, and sighed with pleasure and relief, and Geraldthrew down a coin, refusing change with a lord's gesture. Thelocal train to Auxerre was full, and with a varied and sinistercargo. At length they were in the zone of the waiting guillotine.The rumour ran that the executioner was on the train. No one hadseen him; no one was sure of recognizing him, but everyone huggedthe belief that he was on the train. Although the sun was sinkingthe heat seemed not to abate. Attitudes grew more limp, moreabandoned. Soot and prickly dust flew in unceasingly at the openwindows. The train stopped at Bonnard, Chemilly, and Moneteau,each time before a waiting crowd that invaded it. And at last, inthe great station at Auxerre, it poured out an incredible mass ofbefouled humanity that spread over everything like an inundation.Sophia was frightened. Gerald left the initiative to Chirac, andChirac took her arm and led her forward, looking behind him to seethat Gerald followed with the valise. Frenzy seemed to reign inAuxerre.
The driver of a cab demanded ten francs for transporting them tothe Hotel de l'Epee.
"Bah!" scornfully exclaimed Chirac, in his quality of experiencedParisian who is not to be exploited by heavy-witted provincials.
But the driver of the next cab demanded twelve francs.
"Jump in," said Gerald to Sophia. Chirac lifted his eyebrows.
At the same moment a tall, stout man with the hard face of aflourishing scoundrel, and a young, pallid girl on his arm, pushedaside both Gerald and Chirac and got into the cab with hiscompanion.
Chirac protested, telling him that the cab was already engaged.
The usurper scowled and swore, and the young girl laughed boldly.
Sophia, shrinking, expected her escort to execute justice heroicand final; but she was disappointed.
"Brute!" murmured Chirac, and shrugged his shoulders, as thecarriage drove off, leaving them foolish on the kerb.
By this time all the other cabs had been seized. They walked tothe Hotel de l'Epee, jostled by the crowd, Sophia and Chirac infront, and Gerald following with the valise, whose weight causedhim to lean over to the right and his left arm to rise. The avenuewas long, straight, and misty with a floating dust. Sophia had avivid sense of the romantic. They saw towers and spires, andChirac talked to her slowly and carefully of the cathedral and thefamous churches. He said that the stained glass was marvellous,and with much care he catalogued for her all the things she mustvisit. They crossed a river. She felt as though she was steppinginto the middle age. At intervals Gerald changed the valise fromhand to hand; obstinately, he would not let Chirac touch it. Theystruggled upwards, through narrow curving streets.
"Voila!" said Chirac.
They were in front of the Hotel de l'Epee. Across the street was acafe crammed with people. Several carriages stood in front. TheHotel de l'Epee had a reassuring air of mellow respectability,such as Chirac had claimed for it. He had suggested this hotel forMadame Scales because it was not near the place of execution.Gerald had said, "Of course! Of course!" Chirac, who did not meanto go to bed, required no room for himself.
The Hotel de l'Epee had one room to offer, at the price of twenty-five francs.
Gerald revolted at the attempted imposition. "A nice thing!" hegrumbled, "that ordinary travellers can't get a decent room at adecent price just because some one's going to be guillotined to-morrow! We'll try elsewhere!"
His features expressed disgust, but Sophia fancied that he wassecretly pleased.
They swaggered out of the busy stir of the hotel, as those mustwho, having declined to be swindled, wish to preserve theirimportance in the face of the world. In the street a cabmansolicited them, and filled them with hope by saying that he knewof a hotel that might suit them and would drive them there forfive francs. He furiously lashed his horse. The mere fact of beingin a swiftly moving carriage which wayfarers had to avoid nimbly,maintained their spirits. They had a near glimpse of thecathedral. The cab halted with a bump, in a small square, in frontof a repellent building which bore the sign, 'Hotel de Vezelay.'The horse was bleeding. Gerald instructed Sophia to remain whereshe was, and he and Chirac went up four stone steps into thehotel. Sophia, stared at by loose crowds that were promenading,gazed about her, and saw that all the windows of the square wereopen and most of them occupied by people who laughed andchattered. Then there was a shout: Gerald's voice. He had appearedat a window on the second floor of the hotel with Chirac and avery fat woman. Chirac saluted, and Gerald laughed carelessly, andnodded.
"It's all right," said Gerald, having descended.
"How much do they ask?" Sophia inquired indiscreetly.
Gerald hesitated, and looked self-conscious. "Thirty-five francs,"he said. "But I've had enough of driving about. It seems we'relucky to get it even at that."
And Chirac shrugged his shoulders as if to indicate that thesituation and the price ought to be accepted philosophically.Gerald gave the driver five francs. He examined the piece anddemanded a pourboire.
"Oh! Damn!" said Gerald, and, because he had no smaller change,parted with another two francs.
"Is any one coming out for this damned valise?" Gerald demanded,like a tyrant whose wrath would presently fall if the populace didnot instantly set about minding their p's and q's.
But nobody emerged, and he was compelled to carry the bag himself.
The hotel was dark and malodorous, and every room seemed to becrowded with giggling groups of drinkers.
"We can't both sleep in this bed, surely," said Sophia when,Chirac having remained downstairs, she faced Gerald in a small,mean bedroom.
"You don't suppose I shall go to bed, do you?" said Gerald, ratherbrusquely. "It's for you. We're going to eat now. Look sharp."