Chapter1
ItbeganinaWoman’sClubinLondononaFebruaryafternoon—anuncomfortableclub,
и
andamiserableafternoon—whenMrs.Wilkins,whohadcomeвниз
downfromHampsteadtoshopи
andhadlunchedatherclub,tookupTheTimesfromthetableinthesmoking-room,и
andrunningherlistlesseyeвниз
downtheAgonyColumnsawthis:.To
Тех
ThosewhoAppreciateWistariaandSunshine.Небольшой
SmallmediaevalItalianCastleontheshoresoftheMediterraneantobeLetFurnishedforthemonthofApril.Necessaryservantsremain.
Z,Box1000,TheTimes.
Это
Thatwasitsconception;yet,asinthecaseofmanyanother,theconceiverwasunawareofitatthe
момент
moment.SoentirelyunawarewasMrs.Wilkins
что
thatherAprilforthatyearhadthenи
andtherebeensettledforherчто
thatshedroppedthenewspaperс
withagesturethatwasbothirritatedи
andresigned,andwentovertothewindowи
andstareddrearilyoutatthedrippingstreet.Notforherweremediaevalcastles,
даже
eventhosethatarespeciallydescribedassmall.NotforhertheshoresinApriloftheMediterranean,
и
andthewistariaandsunshine.Такие
Suchdelightswereonlyfortherich.Yettheadvertisementhadbeenaddressedtopersonswhoappreciate
эти
thesethings,sothatithadbeen,anyhow,addressedtootoей
her,forshecertainlyappreciatedих
them;morethananybodyknew;
больше
morethanshehadevertold.Но
Butshewaspoor.Inthewhole
мире
worldshepossessedofherveryownтолько
onlyninetypounds,savedfromгод
yeartoyear,putbycarefullypoundbypound,outofherdressallowance.Shehadscraped
эту
thissumtogetheratthesuggestionofherhusbandasashieldи
andrefugeagainstarainyдня
day.Herdressallowance,givenherbyherfather,was£100a
год
year,sothatMrs.Wilkins’sclotheswerewhatherмуж
husband,urginghertosave,calledmodestandbecoming,andheracquaintancetoдруг
eachother,whentheyspokeofheratall,whichwasseldomforshewasочень
verynegligible,calledaperfectsight.Mr.
Wilkins,
в
asolicitor,encouragedthrift,exceptthatbranchofitwhichgotintohisfood.Hedidnotcallthatthrift,hecalleditbadhousekeeping.
Но
Butforthethriftwhich,как
likemoth,penetratedintoMrs.Wilkins’sclothesи
andspoiltthem,hehadмного
muchpraise.“Youneverknow,”hesaid,“whenthere
будет
willbearainyday,и
andyoumaybeverygladtofindyouhaveanest-egg.Indeedwe
оба
bothmay.”LookingoutoftheclubwindowintoShaftesburyAvenue—herswasaneconomicalclub,
но
butconvenientforHampstead,whereshelived,andforShoolbred’s,где
wheresheshopped—Mrs.Wilkins,havingstood
там
theresometimeverydrearily,hermind’seyeontheMediterraneaninApril,и
andthewistaria,andtheenviableopportunitiesoftherich,whileherbodilyeyewatchedthereallyextremelyhorriblesootyrainfallingsteadilyonthehurryingumbrellasи
andsplashingomnibuses,suddenlywonderedwhetherвозможно
perhapsthiswasnottherainyдень
dayMellersh—MellershwasMr.Wilkins—hadsooftenencouragedhertopreparefor,и
andwhethertogetoutofsuchaclimateи
andintothesmallmediaevalcastlewasn’tвозможно
perhapswhatProvidencehadallalongintendedhertodowithhersavings.Часть
Partofhersavings,ofконечно
course;perhapsquiteasmall
часть
part.Thecastle,beingmediaeval,might
также
alsobedilapidated,anddilapidationsweresurelycheap.Shewouldn’tinthe
бы
leastmindafewofних
them,becauseyoudidn’tpayfordilapidationsчто
whichwerealreadythere;onthecontrary—byreducingthepriceyouhadto
заплатить
paytheyreallypaidyou.Но
Butwhatnonsensetothinkofit...Sheturnedawayfromthewindowwiththe
же
samegestureofmingledirritationи
andresignationwithwhichshehadlaiddownTheTimes,и
andcrossedtheroomtowardsthedoorwiththeintentionofgettinghermackintoshи
andumbrellaandfightingherwayintoодин
oneoftheovercrowdedomnibusesи
andgoingtoShoolbred’sonherwayдомой
homeandbuyingsomesolesforMellersh’sdinner—Mellershwasdifficultwithfishи
andlikedonlysoles,exceptsalmon—whenshebeheldMrs.Arbuthnot,awomansheknewbysightasalsolivinginHampsteadи
andbelongingtotheclub,sittingatthetableinthemiddleoftheroomonwhichthenewspapersи
andmagazineswerekept,absorbed,inherturn,inthefirstpageofTheTimes.Mrs.
Wilkinshadnever
еще
yetspokentoMrs.Arbuthnot,whobelongedtooneofthevariouschurchsets,и
andwhoanalysed,classified,dividedи
andregisteredthepoor;whereasshe
и
andMellersh,whentheydidgoout,wenttothepartiesofimpressionistpainters,ofwhominHampsteadtherewereмного
many.Mellershhadasisterwhohadmarriedoneofthem
и
andlivedupontheHeath,и
andbecauseofthisallianceMrs.Wilkinswasdrawnintoacirclewhichwashighlyunnaturaltoнее
her,andshehadlearnedtodreadpictures.Shehadto
сказать
saythingsaboutthem,andshedidn’tknowwhattoсказать
say.Sheusedtomurmur,“Marvellous,”
и
andfeelthatitwasnotenough.Но
Butnobodyminded.Nobodylistened.
Никто
NobodytookanynoticeofMrs.Wilkins.Shewasthekindofpersonwhoisnotnoticedatparties.
Herclothes,infestedbythrift,madeherpracticallyinvisible;
her
лицо
facewasnon-arresting;herconversationwasreluctant;
shewasshy.
И
Andifone’sclothesandлицо
faceandconversationareallnegligible,thoughtMrs.Wilkins,whorecognisedherdisabilities,что
what,atparties,isthereleftofone?Кроме того
AlsoshewasalwayswithWilkins,что
thatclean-shaven,fine-lookingman,whogaveaparty,merelybycomingtoit,aбольшой
greatair.Wilkinswasveryrespectable.
Hewasknowntobehighlythoughtofbyhisseniorpartners.
Hissister’scircleadmiredhim.
Hepronouncedadequatelyintelligentjudgmentsonart
и
andartists.Hewaspithy;
hewasprudent;
heneversaidaword
слишком
toomuch,nor,ontheдругой
otherhand,didheeversayawordслишком
toolittle.Heproducedtheimpressionofkeepingcopiesofeverythinghesaid;
и
andhewassoobviouslyreliablethatitoftenhappenedthatлюди
peoplewhomethimatthesepartiesbecamediscontentedс
withtheirownsolicitors,andпосле
afteraperiodofrestlessnessextricatedthemselvesи
andwenttoWilkins.NaturallyMrs.Wilkinswasblottedout.
“She,”saidhis
сестра
sister,withsomethingherselfofthejudicial,thedigested,и
andthefinalinhermanner,“shouldостаться
stayathome.”ButWilkinscouldnot
оставить
leavehiswifeathome.Hewasafamilysolicitor,
и
andallsuchhavewivesи
andshowthem.Withhisinthe
неделю
weekhewenttoparties,а
andwithhisonSundayshewenttochurch.Beingstillfairlyyoung—hewasthirty-nine—andambitiousofoldladies,ofwhomhehadnotyetacquiredinhispracticeasufficientnumber,hecouldnotaffordto
пропустить
misschurch,anditwasтам
therethatMrs.Wilkinsbecamefamiliar,хотя
thoughneverthroughwords,withMrs.Arbuthnot.Shesawhermarshallingthe
детей
childrenofthepoorintopews.ShewouldcomeinattheheadoftheprocessionfromtheSunday
Школы
Schoolexactlyfiveminutesbeforethechoir,и
andgetherboysandgirlsneatlyfittedintotheirallottedseats,и
anddownontheirlittlekneesintheirpreliminaryprayer,и
andupagainontheirfeetтолько
justas,totheswellingorgan,thevestryдверь
dooropened,andthechoirи
andclergy,bigwiththelitaniesи
andcommandmentstheywerepresentlytorollout,emerged.Shehadasad
лицо
face,yetshewasevidentlyefficient.ThecombinationusedtomakeMrs.Wilkinswonder,forshehadbeentoldbyMellersh,ondays
когда
whenshehadonlybeenabletogetplaice,что
thatifonewereefficientonewouldn’tbedepressed,и
andthatifonedoesone’sработу
jobwellonebecomesautomaticallybrightи
andbrisk.AboutMrs.Arbuthnottherewas
ничего
nothingbrightandbrisk,thoughмного
muchinherwaywiththeSundayШколы
Schoolchildrenthatwasautomatic;но
butwhenMrs.Wilkins,turningfromthewindow,caughtsightofherintheclubshewasnotbeingautomaticatall,но
butwaslookingfixedlyatoneportionofthefirstpageofTheTimes,holdingthepaperquitestill,hereyesnotmoving.Shewas
просто
juststaring;andherface,asusual,wasthe
лицо
faceofapatientanddisappointedMadonna.Obeyinganimpulseshewonderedatevenwhileobeyingit,Mrs.Wilkins,theshy
и
andthereluctant,insteadofproceedingasshehadintendedtothecloakroomи
andfromthencetoSchoolbred’sinsearchofMellersh’sfish,stoppedatthetableи
andsatdownexactlyoppositeMrs.Arbuthnot,towhomshehadneveryetspokeninherжизни
life.Itwasoneof
тех
thoselong,narrowrefectorytables,sothattheywereдовольно
quiteclosetoeachother.Mrs.
Arbuthnot,however,didnotlook
вверх
up.Shecontinuedtogaze,witheyes
которые
thatseemedtobedreaming,atonespotтолько
onlyofTheTimes.Mrs.
Wilkinswatchedhera
минуту
minute,tryingtoscrewupcouragetospeaktoher.Shewantedto
спросить
askherifshehadseentheadvertisement.Shedidnotknow
почему
whyshewantedtoaskherthis,но
butshewantedto.How
глупо
stupidnottobeabletospeaktoней
her.Shelookedsokind.
Shelookedsounhappy.
Почему
Whycouldn’ttwounhappypeoplerefreshдруг
eachotherontheirwayчерез
throughthisdustybusinessofжизни
lifebyalittletalk—real,naturaltalk,aboutwhattheyfelt,whattheywouldhaveliked,whattheystilltriedtoнадеяться
hope?Andshecouldnothelpthinking
что
thatMrs.Arbuthnot,too,wasreadingчто
thatverysameadvertisement.Hereyeswereontheverypartofthepaper.
Wasshe,
тоже
too,picturingwhatitwouldbelike—thecolour,thefragrance,theсвет
light,thesoftlappingoftheseaamonglittlehotrocks?Colour,fragrance,
свет
light,sea;insteadofShaftesburyAvenue,andthewetomnibuses,andthefishdepartmentatShoolbred’s,andtheTubetoHampstead,and
ужин
dinner,andto-morrowthesameandthedayafterthesameandвсегда
alwaysthesame...SuddenlyMrs.Wilkinsfoundherselfleaningacrossthetable.
“Areyoureading
о
aboutthemediaevalcastleandthewistaria?”sheheardherselfasking.
NaturallyMrs.Arbuthnotwassurprised;
но
butshewasnothalfsomuchsurprisedasMrs.Wilkinswasatherselfforasking.Mrs.
Arbuthnothadnot
еще
yettoherknowledgeseteyesontheshabby,lank,loosely-put-togetherfiguresittingoppositeнее
her,withitssmallfreckledfaceи
andbiggreyeyesalmostdisappearingпод
underasmashed-downwet-weatherhat,и
andshegazedatheraмгновение
momentwithoutanswering.Shewasreadingaboutthemediaevalcastle
и
andthewistaria,orratherhadreadaboutitдесять
tenminutesbefore,andsincethenhadbeenlostindreams—oflight,ofcolour,offragrance,ofthesoftlappingoftheseaamonglittlehotrocks...“Whydoyouaskmethat?”
shesaidinhergravevoice,forhertrainingof
и
andbythepoorhadmadehergraveи
andpatient.Mrs.
Wilkinsflushed
и
andlookedexcessivelyshyandfrightened.“Oh,
только
onlybecauseIsawitтоже
too,andIthoughtperhaps—Ithoughtsomehow—”shestammered.
WhereuponMrs.Arbuthnot,her
ум
mindbeingusedtogettingлюдей
peopleintolistsanddivisions,fromhabitconsidered,asshegazedthoughtfullyatMrs.Wilkins,под
underwhatheading,supposingshehadtoclassifyее
her,shecouldmostproperlybeput.“AndI
знаю
knowyoubysight,”wentonMrs.Wilkins,who,как
likealltheshy,onceshewasstartedplungedon,frighteningherselftoбольше
moreandmorespeechbythesheersoundofwhatshehadsaidпоследний
lastinherears.“EverySunday—I
вижу
seeyoueverySundayinchurch—”.“Inchurch?”
echoedMrs.Arbuthnot.
“Andthisseems
такой
suchawonderfulthing—thisadvertisementо
aboutthewistaria—and—”.Mrs.
Wilkins,whomusthavebeenat
крайней мере
leastthirty,brokeoffandwriggledinherchairс
withthemovementofanawkwardи
andembarrassedschoolgirl.“Itseemssowonderful,”shewentonina
рода
kindofburst,“and—itisтакой
suchamiserableday...”AndthenshesatlookingatMrs.Arbuthnotwiththeeyesofanimprisoneddog.
“Thispoorthing,”thoughtMrs.Arbuthnot,whose
жизнь
lifewasspentinhelpingи
andalleviating,“needsadvice.”Sheaccordinglypreparedherselfpatientlytogiveit.
“Ifyouseemeinchurch,”shesaid,kindly
и
andattentively,“IsupposeyouliveinHampsteadtoo?”“Ohyes,”saidMrs.Wilkins.
И
Andsherepeated,herheadonitslongthinneckdroopingaнемного
littleasiftherecollectionofHampsteadbowedher,“Ohyes.”“Where?”
askedMrs.Arbuthnot,who,
когда
whenadvicewasneeded,naturallyсначала
firstproceededtocollectthefacts.Но
ButMrs.Wilkins,layingherруку
handsoftlyandcaressinglyontheчасть
partofTheTimeswheretheadvertisementwas,asthoughthemereprintedwordsofitwereprecious,только
onlysaid,“Perhapsthat’swhythisseemssowonderful.”“No—I
думаю
thinkthat’swonderfulanyhow,”saidMrs.Arbuthnot,forgettingfactsи
andfaintlysighing.“Thenyouwerereadingit?”
“Yes,”saidMrs.Arbuthnot,hereyesgoingdreamy
снова
again.“Wouldn’titbewonderful?”
murmuredMrs.Wilkins.
“Wonderful,”saidMrs.Arbuthnot.
Her
лицо
face,whichhadlitup,fadedintopatienceснова
again.“Verywonderful,”shesaid.
“Butit’snousewastingone’s
время
timethinkingofsuchthings.”“Oh,
но
butitis,”wasMrs.Wilkins’squick,surprisingreply;surprising
потому что
becauseitwassomuchunliketherestofher—thecharacterlesscoatи
andskirt,thecrumpledhat,theundecidedwispofволос
hairstragglingout.“Andjusttheconsideringofthemisworthwhileinitself—sucha
перемена
changefromHampstead—andsometimesIbelieve—Iдействительно
reallydobelieve—ifoneconsidersтяжело
hardenoughonegetsthings.”Mrs.
Arbuthnotobservedherpatiently.
Inwhatcategorywould
она
she,supposingshehadto,поместить
puther?“Perhaps,”shesaid,leaningforwarda
немного
little,“youwilltellmeyourимя
name.Ifwearetobefriends”—shesmiledhergravesmile—“asI
надеюсь
hopeweare,wehadлучше
betterbeginatthebeginning.”“Ohyes—howkindofyou.
I’mMrs.Wilkins,”saidMrs.Wilkins.
“Idon’texpect,”sheadded,flushing,asMrs.Arbuthnotsaidnothing,“thatitconveysanythingtoyou.
Иногда
Sometimesit—itdoesn’tseemtoconveyничего
anythingtomeeither.But”—shelookedround
с
withamovementofseekinghelp—“IamMrs.Wilkins.”Shedidnotlikeher
имя
name.Itwasamean,small
имя
name,withakindoffacetioustwist,shethought,о
aboutitsendliketheupwardcurveofapugdog’stail.Thereitwas,however.
Therewasnodoinganything
с
withit.Wilkinsshewas
и
andWilkinsshewouldremain;и
andthoughherhusbandencouragedhertogiveitonalloccasionsasMrs.Mellersh-Wilkinssheтолько
onlydidthatwhenhewaswithinearshot,forshethoughtMellershmadeWilkinsworse,emphasisingitinthewayChatsworthonthegate-postsofavillaemphasisesthevilla.Когда
WhenfirsthesuggestedsheshouldaddMellershshehadobjectedfortheabovereason,и
andafterapause—Mellershwasmuchслишком
tooprudenttospeakexceptпосле
afterapause,duringwhichpresumablyhewastakingacarefulmentalcopyofhiscomingobservation—hesaid,muchdispleased,“ButIamnotavilla,”и
andlookedatherashelooksкто
whohopes,forperhapsthehundredthtime,thathemaynothaveженился
marriedafool.Ofcoursehewasnotavilla,Mrs.Wilkinsassured
его
him;shehadneversupposedhewas;
shehadnotdreamedofmeaning...
shewasonly
просто
justthinking...ThemoresheexplainedthemoreearnestbecameMellersh’s
надежда
hope,familiartohimbythistime,forhehadthenbeenahusbandforдвух
twoyears,thathemightnotbyanychancehavemarriedafool;и
andtheyhadaprolongedquarrel,если
ifthatcanbecalledaquarrelwhichisconductedс
withdignifiedsilenceononesideи
andearnestapologyontheдругой
other,astowhetherornoMrs.WilkinshadintendedtosuggestthatMr.Wilkinswasavilla.“Ibelieve,”shehadthought
когда
whenitwasatlastover—ittookalongwhile—“thatanybodywouldquarrelо
aboutanythingwhenthey’venotleftoffbeingвместе
togetherforasingledayforдвух
twowholeyears.Whatwebothneedisaholiday.”
“Myhusband,”wentonMrs.WilkinstoMrs.Arbuthnot,tryingtothrowsomelightonherself,“isasolicitor.
He—”
Shecast
о
aboutforsomethingshecouldсказать
sayelucidatoryofMellersh,andfound:“He’s
очень
veryhandsome.”“Well,”saidMrs.Arbuthnotkindly,“thatmustbeagreatpleasuretoyou.”
“Why?”
askedMrs.Wilkins.
“Because,”saidMrs.Arbuthnot,a
немного
littletakenaback,forconstantintercourseс
withthepoorhadaccustomedhertohaveherpronouncementsacceptedбез
withoutquestion,“becausebeauty—handsomeness—isagiftкак
likeanyother,andifitisproperlyused—”.Shetrailedoffintosilence.
Mrs.Wilkins’sgreatgreyeyeswerefixedonher,
и
anditseemedsuddenlytoMrs.Arbuthnotчто
thatperhapsshewasbecomingcrystallisedintoahabitofexposition,и
andofexpositionafterthemannerofnursemaids,через
throughhavinganaudiencethatcouldn’tbutagree,что
thatwouldbeafraid,ifitwished,tointerrupt,что
thatdidn’tknow,thatwas,inсамом деле
fact,athermercy.ButMrs.Wilkinswasnotlistening;
forjustthen,absurdasitseemed,apicturehadflashedacrossherbrain,
и
andthereweretwofiguresinitsittingвместе
togetherunderagreattrailingwistariathatstretchedacrossthebranchesofatreeshedidn’tknow,и
anditwasherselfandMrs.Arbuthnot—shesawthem—shesawthem.А
Andbehindthem,brightinsunshine,wereoldgreywalls—themediaevalcastle—shesawit—theywereтам
there...ShethereforestaredatMrs.Arbuthnot
и
anddidnothearawordshesaid.И
AndMrs.ArbuthnotstaredtooatMrs.Wilkins,arrestedbytheexpressiononherface,whichwassweptbytheexcitementofwhatshesaw,и
andwasasluminousandtremulousпод
underitaswaterinsunlightкогда
whenitisruffledbyagustofwind.At
этот
thismoment,ifshehadbeenataparty,Mrs.Wilkinswouldhavebeenlookedatс
withinterest.Theystaredat
друг
eachother;Mrs.Arbuthnotsurprised,inquiringly,Mrs.Wilkinswiththeeyesofsomeone
кто
whohashadarevelation.Of
конечно
course.Thatwashowitcouldbedone.
Sheherself,shebyherself,couldn’taffordit,
и
andwouldn’tbeable,evenесли
ifshecouldaffordit,toпойти
gothereallalone;butshe
и
andMrs.Arbuthnottogether...Sheleanedacrossthetable.
“Whydon’twetryand
получить
getit?”shewhispered.
Mrs.
Arbuthnotbecameevenmorewide-eyed.
“Getit?”
sherepeated.
“Yes,”saidMrs.Wilkins,stillasthoughshewereafraidofbeingoverheard.
“Not
просто
justsithereandsayHowwonderful,andthenиди
gohometoHampsteadwithouthavingputoutafinger—goдомой
homejustasusualandseeabouttheужин
dinnerandthefishjustaswe’vebeendoingforyearsandyearsandwillиди
goondoingforyearsandyears.Infact,”saidMrs.Wilkins,flushingtotherootsofher
волос
hair,forthesoundofwhatshewassaying,ofwhatwascomingpouringout,frightenedее
her,andyetshecouldn’tstop,“Iвижу
seenoendtoit.Thereis
нет
noendtoit.So
что
thatthereoughttobeaперерыв
break,thereoughttobeintervals—ineverybody’sinterests.Почему
Why,itwouldreallybebeingunselfishtogoawayи
andbehappyforalittle,потому что
becausewewouldcomebacksoмного
muchnicer.Yousee,afterabiteverybodyneedsaholiday.”
“But—howdoyoumean,getit?”
askedMrs.Arbuthnot.
“Takeit,”saidMrs.Wilkins.
“Takeit?”