CHAPTERI.OURSOCIETY
Inthefirstplace,CranfordisinpossessionoftheAmazons;
все
alltheholdersofhousesвыше
aboveacertainrentarewomen.Если
Ifamarriedcouplecometosettleintheгород
town,somehowthegentlemandisappears;heiseitherfairlyfrightenedto
смерти
deathbybeingtheonlymanintheCranfordeveningparties,orheisaccountedforbybeingсо
withhisregiment,hisship,orcloselyengagedinbusinessalltheнеделю
weekinthegreatneighbouringcommercialtownofDrumble,distantвсего
onlytwentymilesonarailroad.Inshort,
что
whateverdoesbecomeofthegentlemen,theyarenotatCranford.Whatcouldthey
сделать
doiftheywerethere?The
хирург
surgeonhashisroundofthirtymiles,и
andsleepsatCranford;but
каждый
everymancannotbeasurgeon.Forkeepingthetrimgardensfullofchoiceflowers
без
withoutaweedtospeckих
them;forfrighteningawaylittleboys
которые
wholookwistfullyatthesaidflowersчерез
throughtherailings;forrushingoutatthegeesethat
иногда
occasionallyventureintothegardensесли
ifthegatesareleftopen;fordecidingallquestionsof
литературы
literatureandpoliticswithouttroublingthemselveswithunnecessaryreasonsили
orarguments;forobtainingclear
и
andcorrectknowledgeofeverybody’saffairsintheparish;forkeepingtheirneatmaid-servantsinadmirableorder;
forkindness(somewhatdictatorial)tothepoor,
и
andrealtendergoodofficestoдруг
eachotherwhenevertheyareindistress,theladiesofCranfordareвполне
quitesufficient.“Aman,”asoneofthemobservedtome
однажды
once,“issointhewayinthehouse!”Хотя
AlthoughtheladiesofCranfordknowвсе
alleachother’sproceedings,theyareexceedinglyindifferenttoдруг
eachother’sopinions.Indeed,aseachhasherownindividuality,nottosayeccentricity,
довольно
prettystronglydeveloped,nothingissoлегко
easyasverbalretaliation;but,
то
somehow,good-willreignsamongthemtoaconsiderableстепени
degree.TheCranfordladieshave
только
onlyanoccasionallittlequarrel,spiritedoutinafewpepperywordsи
andangryjerksofthehead;только
justenoughtopreventtheeventenoroftheirlivesfrombecomingслишком
tooflat.Theirdressis
очень
veryindependentoffashion;astheyobserve,“Whatdoesitsignifyhowwedress
здесь
hereatCranford,whereeverybodyknowsus?”И
Andiftheygofromдома
home,theirreasonisequallycogent,“Whatdoesitsignifyкак
howwedresshere,whereникто
nobodyknowsus?”Thematerialsoftheir
одежды
clothesare,ingeneral,goodи
andplain,andmostofthemareпочти
nearlyasscrupulousasMissTyler,ofcleanlyпамяти
memory;butIwillanswerfor
это
it,thelastgigot,theпоследний
lasttightandscantypetticoatinwearinEngland,wasseeninCranford—andseenбез
withoutasmile.Ican
свидетельствовать
testifytoamagnificentfamilyredsilkumbrella,под
underwhichagentlelittlespinster,leftодна
aloneofmanybrothersandsisters,usedtopattertoцерковь
churchonrainydays.HaveyouanyredsilkumbrellasinLondon?
Wehada
традиция
traditionofthefirstthathadeverbeenseeninCranford;и
andthelittleboysmobbedего
it,andcalledit“astickinpetticoats.”Itmighthavebeenthevery
красный
redsilkoneIhavedescribed,heldbyastrongfatherнад
overatroopoflittleones;thepoorlittlelady—thesurvivorofall—could
едва
scarcelycarryit.Thentherewererules
и
andregulationsforvisitingandcalls;и
andtheywereannouncedtoanyyoungpeopleкоторые
whomightbestayinginthetown,withallthesolemnitywithwhichtheoldManxlawswerereadраз
onceayearontheTinwaldMount.“Ourfriendshavesentto
спросить
inquirehowyouareafteryourjourneyto-night,mydear”(fifteenmilesinagentleman’scarriage);“theywillgiveyousome
отдохнуть
restto-morrow,butthenextдень
day,Ihavenodoubt,theywillcall;sobeatliberty
после
aftertwelve—fromtwelvetothreeareourcallinghours.”Then,
после
aftertheyhadcalled—.“Itisthe
третий
thirdday;Idaresayyourmammahastoldyou,mydear,nevertolet
более
morethanthreedayselapseмежду
betweenreceivingacallandreturningего
it;andalso,thatyouareneverto
оставаться
staylongerthanaquarterofanhour.”“ButamItolookatmywatch?
HowamItofindoutwhena
четверть
quarterofanhourhaspassed?”“Youmustkeepthinkingaboutthetime,mydear,
и
andnotallowyourselftoзабыть
forgetitinconversation.”Aseverybodyhad
это
thisruleintheirminds,ли
whethertheyreceivedorpaidaзвонок
call,ofcoursenoabsorbingsubjectwaseverspokenabout.Wekeptourselvestoshortsentencesofsmalltalk,
и
andwerepunctualtoourtime.Iimagine
что
thatafewofthegentlefolksofCranfordwerepoor,и
andhadsomedifficultyinmakingоба
bothendsmeet;buttheywere
как
liketheSpartans,andconcealedtheirsmartпод
underasmilingface.We
никто
noneofusspokeofmoney,потому что
becausethatsubjectsavouredofcommerceи
andtrade,andthoughsomemightbepoor,wewereвсе
allaristocratic.TheCranfordianshadthatkindlyespritdecorps
который
whichmadethemoverlookalldeficienciesinsuccessкогда
whensomeamongthemtriedtoconcealtheirбедность
poverty.WhenMrsForrester,forinstance,gaveapartyinherbaby-houseofadwelling,andthelittle
дева
maidendisturbedtheladiesonthesofabyarequestthatshemightgetthetea-trayoutfromunderneath,everyonetookэтот
thisnovelproceedingasthemostnaturalthingintheмире
world,andtalkedonabouthouseholdformsandceremoniesasесли
ifweallbelievedthatourhostesshadaобычный
regularservants’hall,secondtable,withhousekeeperandsteward,вместо
insteadoftheonelittlecharity-schoolдева
maiden,whoseshortruddyarmscouldneverhavebeenstrongдостаточно
enoughtocarrythetrayнаверх
upstairs,ifshehadnotbeenassistedinprivatebyhermistress,whonowsatinstate,pretendingnottoknowwhatcakesweresentup,thoughsheknew,andweknew,andsheknewthatweknew,andweknewthatsheknewthatweknew,shehadbeenbusyallthemorningmakingtea-breadandsponge-cakes.Therewereone
или
ortwoconsequencesarisingfromthisgeneralно
butunacknowledgedpoverty,andthisочень
verymuchacknowledgedgentility,whichwerenotamiss,и
andwhichmightbeintroducedintoмногие
manycirclesofsocietytotheirgreatimprovement.Forinstance,theinhabitantsofCranfordkeptearlyhours,
и
andclatteredhomeintheirpattens,под
undertheguidanceofalantern-bearer,около
aboutnineo’clockatnight;и
andthewholetownwasabedи
andasleepbyhalf-pastten.Moreover,itwasconsidered“vulgar”(atremendous
слово
wordinCranford)togiveanythingexpensive,inthewayofeatableили
ordrinkable,attheeveningentertainments.Waferbread-and-butter
и
andsponge-biscuitswereallthattheHonourableMrsJamiesongave;и
andshewassister-in-lawtothelateEarlofGlenmire,хотя
althoughshedidpractisesuch“eleganteconomy.”“Eleganteconomy!”
Как
HownaturallyonefallsbackintothephraseologyofCranford!Там
There,economywasalways“elegant,”andmoney-spendingвсегда
always“vulgarandostentatious”;a
рода
sortofsour-grapeismwhichmadeusочень
verypeacefulandsatisfied.Inevershallforgetthedismayfelt
когда
whenacertainCaptainBrowncametoжить
liveatCranford,andopenlyspokeо
abouthisbeingpoor—notinawhispertoanintimatefriend,thedoorsandwindowsbeingранее
previouslyclosed,butinthepublicулице
street!inaloudmilitaryvoice!
alleginghis
бедность
povertyasareasonfornottakingaparticularдом
house.TheladiesofCranfordwere
уже
alreadyrathermoaningovertheвторжение
invasionoftheirterritoriesbyamanи
andagentleman.Hewasahalf-paycaptain,
и
andhadobtainedsomesituationonaneighbouringrailroad,whichhadbeenvehementlypetitionedagainstbythelittletown;и
andif,inadditiontohismasculinegender,и
andhisconnectionwiththeobnoxiousrailroad,hewassobrazenastoговорить
talkofbeingpoor—why,then,действительно
indeed,hemustbesenttoCoventry.Смерть
Deathwasastrueandascommonasбедность
poverty;yetpeopleneverspoke
об
aboutthat,loudoutinthestreets.Itwasa
слово
wordnottobementionedtoearspolite.Wehadtacitlyagreedto
игнорировать
ignorethatanywithwhomweassociatedontermsofvisitingequalitycouldeverbepreventedbypovertyfromdoingвсе
anythingthattheywished.Ifwewalkedto
или
orfromaparty,itwasпотому что
becausethenightwassofine,или
ortheairsorefreshing,notпотому что
becausesedan-chairswereexpensive.Ifweworeprints,
вместо
insteadofsummersilks,itwasпотому что
becausewepreferredawashingматериал
material;andsoon,tillweblindedourselvestothevulgar
факт
factthatwewere,allofus,люди
peopleofverymoderatemeans.Of
конечно
course,then,wedidnotknowwhattomakeofamanкоторый
whocouldspeakofpovertyasifitwasnotadisgrace.Yet,
то
somehow,CaptainBrownmadehimselfrespectedinCranford,и
andwascalledupon,inнесмотря
spiteofallresolutionstotheнапротив
contrary.Iwassurprisedtohearhisopinionsquotedas
авторитет
authorityatavisitwhichIpaidtoCranfordaboutaгод
yearafterhehadsettledinthetown.Myownfriendshadbeenamongthebitterestopponentsofanyproposalto
посетить
visittheCaptainandhisdaughters,всего
onlytwelvemonthsbefore;and
теперь
nowhewasevenadmittedinthetabooedhoursдо
beforetwelve.True,itwasto
обнаружить
discoverthecauseofasmokingchimney,beforetheогонь
firewaslighted;butstill
Капитан
CaptainBrownwalkedupstairs,nothingdaunted,spokeinavoiceслишком
toolargefortheroom,и
andjokedquiteinthewayofatamemanо
aboutthehouse.Hehadbeenblindtoallthesmallslights,
и
andomissionsoftrivialceremonies,с
withwhichhehadbeenreceived.Hehadbeenfriendly,
хотя
thoughtheCranfordladieshadbeencool;hehadanswered
мелкие
smallsarcasticcomplimentsingoodfaith;и
andwithhismanlyfranknesshadoverpoweredвсе
alltheshrinkingwhichmethimasamanwhowasnotashamedtobepoor.И
And,atlast,hisexcellentмужской
masculinecommonsense,andhisfacilityindevisingexpedientstoovercomedomesticdilemmas,hadgainedhimanextraordinaryместо
placeasauthorityamongtheCranfordladies.Hehimselfwentoninhiscourse,asunawareofhis
популярности
popularityashehadbeenofthereverse;и
andIamsurehewasstartledonedayкогда
whenhefoundhisadvicesoвысоко
highlyesteemedastomakeнекоторые
somecounselwhichhehadgiveninjesttobetakeninтрезвый
sober,seriousearnest.Itwason
эту
thissubject:AnoldladyhadanAlderney
корова
cow,whichshelookeduponasaдочь
daughter.Youcouldnotpaytheshort
четверть
quarterofanhourcallбез
withoutbeingtoldofthewonderfulmilkили
orwonderfulintelligenceofthisanimal.The
весь
wholetownknewandkindlyregardedМисс
MissBetsyBarker’sAlderney;thereforegreatwasthe
сочувствие
sympathyandregretwhen,inanunguardedмомент
moment,thepoorcowtumbledintoalime-pit.Shemoanedso
громко
loudlythatshewassoonheardи
andrescued;butmeanwhilethepoor
зверь
beasthadlostmostofherволос
hair,andcameoutlookingnaked,cold,и
andmiserable,inabareskin.Все
Everybodypitiedtheanimal,thoughafewcouldnotrestraintheirsmilesatherdrollappearance.Мисс
MissBetsyBarkerabsolutelycriedwithскорби
sorrowanddismay;anditwassaidshethoughtoftryingabathofoil.
Это
Thisremedy,perhaps,wasrecommendedbysomeoneofthenumberчьи
whoseadvicesheasked;butthe
предложение
proposal,ifeveritwasmade,wasknockedontheheadbyCaptainBrown’sdecided“Getheraflannelwaistcoatandflanneldrawers,ma’am,если
ifyouwishtokeepheralive.Но
Butmyadviceis,killthepoorсущество
creatureatonce.”MissBetsyBarkerdriedhereyes,
и
andthankedtheCaptainheartily;shesettowork,
и
andby-and-byallthetownturnedouttoseetheAlderneymeeklygoingtoherпастбище
pasture,cladindarkgreyflannel.Ihavewatchedhermyself
много
manyatime.DoyoueverseecowsdressedingreyflannelinLondon?
Капитан
CaptainBrownhadtakenaнебольшой
smallhouseontheoutskirtsoftheгорода
town,wherehelivedwithhistwodaughters.Hemusthavebeenupwardsofsixtyatthe
время
timeofthefirstvisitIpaidtoCranfordпосле
afterIhadleftitasaresidence.Но
Buthehadawiry,well-trained,эластичная
elasticfigure,astiffmilitarythrow-backofhishead,и
andaspringingstep,whichmadehimappearгораздо
muchyoungerthanhewas.His
старшая
eldestdaughterlookedalmostasoldashimself,и
andbetrayedthefactthathisrealwasбольше
morethanhisapparentage.Мисс
MissBrownmusthavebeenforty;shehadasickly,pained,careworn
выражение
expressiononherface,andlookedasifthegaietyofyouthhadlongfadedoutofвиду
sight.Evenwhenyoungshemusthavebeen
простой
plainandhard-featured.MissJessie
Браун
Brownwastenyearsyoungerthanhersister,и
andtwentyshadesprettier.Her
лицо
facewasroundanddimpled.Мисс
MissJenkynsoncesaid,inapassionagainstCaptainBrown(thecauseofwhichIwilltellyoupresently),“thatshethoughtitwasвремя
timeforMissJessietoоставить
leaveoffherdimples,andnotвсегда
alwaystobetryingtoвыглядеть
looklikeachild.”Itwas
правда
truetherewassomethingchildlikeinherface;и
andtherewillbe,Iдумаю
think,tillshedies,thoughsheshouldжить
livetoahundred.Hereyeswerelargebluewonderingeyes,looking
прямо
straightatyou;hernosewasunformedandsnub,andherlipswereredanddewy;
sheworeher
волосы
hair,too,inlittlerowsofcurls,whichheightenedэтот
thisappearance.Idonot
знаю
knowwhethershewasprettyили
ornot;butIlikedher
лицо
face,andsodideverybody,и
andIdonotthinkshecouldпомочь
helpherdimples.Shehad
то
somethingofherfather’sjauntinessofgaitи
andmanner;andanyfemale
наблюдатель
observermightdetectaslightdifferenceintheодежде
attireofthetwosisters—thatofМисс
MissJessiebeingabouttwopoundsperannummoreexpensiveчем
thanMissBrown’s.Twopoundswasa
большой
largesuminCaptainBrown’sannualdisbursements.Suchwasthe
впечатление
impressionmadeuponmebytheБраун
BrownfamilywhenIfirstsawthemallвместе
togetherinCranfordChurch.The
Капитан
CaptainIhadmetbefore—ontheслучаю
occasionofthesmokychimney,который
whichhehadcuredbysomesimplealterationintheflue.In
церкви
church,heheldhisdoubleeye-glasstohiseyesво время
duringtheMorningHymn,andthenlifteduphisголову
headerectandsangoutгромко
loudandjoyfully.Hemadetheresponseslouder
чем
thantheclerk—anoldmanс
withapipingfeeblevoice,который
who,Ithink,feltaggrievedattheCaptain’ssonorousбас
bass,andquiveredhigherandвыше
higherinconsequence.Oncomingoutof
церкви
church,thebriskCaptainpaidthemostgallantвнимание
attentiontohistwodaughters.Henodded
и
andsmiledtohisacquaintances;но
butheshookhandswithnoneпока
untilhehadhelpedMissБраун
Browntounfurlherumbrella,hadrelievedherofherprayer-book,и
andhadwaitedpatientlytillона
she,withtremblingnervoushands,hadtakenupherплатье
gowntowalkthroughthewetroads.I
интересно
wonderwhattheCranfordladiesdidс
withCaptainBrownattheirparties.Wehad
часто
oftenrejoiced,informerdays,что
thattherewasnogentlemantobeattendedto,и
andtofindconversationfor,atthecard-parties.Wehadcongratulatedourselvesuponthesnugnessoftheevenings;
и
and,inourloveforgentility,и
anddistasteofmankind,wehadпочти
almostpersuadedourselvesthattobeamanwastobe“vulgar”;sothat
когда
whenIfoundmyfriendи
andhostess,MissJenkyns,wasgoingtohaveapartyinmyhonour,и
andthatCaptainandtheМисс
MissBrownswereinvited,Iwonderedмного
muchwhatwouldbethecourseoftheevening.Card-tables,
с
withgreenbaizetops,weresetoutbydaylight,justasобычно
usual;itwasthethird
неделя
weekinNovember,sotheeveningsclosedinaboutчетыре
four.Candles,andcleanpacksofcards,werearrangedoneachtable.
The
огонь
firewasmadeup;theneatmaid-servanthadreceivedherlastdirections;
и
andtherewestood,dressedinourbest,каждый
eachwithacandle-lighterinourhands,readytodartatthecandlesasтолько
soonasthefirstknockcame.PartiesinCranfordweresolemnfestivities,makingtheladiesfeelgravelyelatedastheysat
вместе
togetherintheirbestdresses.As
только
soonasthreehadarrived,wesatdownto“Preference,”Ibeingtheunluckyfourth.Thenext
четыре
fourcomerswereputdownсразу
immediatelytoanothertable;and
настоящее время
presentlythetea-trays,whichIhadseensetoutinthestore-roomasIpassedinthemorning,wereplacedкаждый
eachonthemiddleofacard-table.Thechinawasdelicateegg-shell;
theold-fashioned
серебро
silverglitteredwithpolishing;buttheeatableswereoftheslightestdescription.
Whilethetrayswereyetonthetables,
Капитан
CaptainandtheMissBrownscamein;и
andIcouldseethat,somehowили
orother,theCaptainwasafavouritewithalltheladiespresent.Ruffledbrowsweresmoothed,
острые
sharpvoicesloweredathisapproach.Мисс
MissBrownlookedill,andдепрессии
depressedalmosttogloom.MissJessiesmiledas
обычно
usual,andseemednearlyaspopularasherотец
father.Heimmediatelyandquietlyassumedtheman’s
место
placeintheroom;attendedtoeveryone’swants,lessenedtheprettymaid-servant’slabourbywaitingonemptycups
и
andbread-and-butterlessladies;andyetdidit
все
allinsoeasyanddignifiedamanner,и
andsomuchasifitwereamatterofcourseforthestrongtoattendtotheweak,thathewasatruemanthroughout.Heplayedforthreepennypoints
с
withasgraveaninterestasесли
iftheyhadbeenpounds;и
andyet,inallhisattentiontostrangers,hehadanглаз
eyeonhissufferingdaughter—forsufferingIwasуверен
sureshewas,thoughtomanyeyesshemightтолько
onlyappeartobeirritable.Мисс
MissJessiecouldnotplaycards:но
butshetalkedtothesitters-out,которые
who,beforehercoming,hadbeenскорее
ratherinclinedtobecross.Shesang,too,toanoldcracked
пианино
piano,whichIthinkhadbeenaspinetinitsyouth.Мисс
MissJessiesang,“JockofHazeldean”в
alittleoutoftune;но
butwewerenoneofusmusical,хотя
thoughMissJenkynsbeattime,outofвремя
time,bywayofappearingtobeso.Itwas
очень
verygoodofMissJenkynstoсделать
dothis;forIhadseen
что
that,alittlebefore,shehadbeenagooddealannoyedbyМисс
MissJessieBrown’sunguardedadmission(àproposofShetlandwool)что
thatshehadanuncle,hermother’sбрат
brother,whowasashopkeeperinEdinburgh.Мисс
MissJenkynstriedtodrownэто
thisconfessionbyaterriblecough—fortheHonourableMrsJamiesonwassittingatacard-tablenearestМисс
MissJessie,andwhatwouldshesayили
orthinkifshefoundoutshewasintheодной
sameroomwithashop-keeper’sniece!Но
ButMissJessieBrown(whohadне
notact,asweallagreedthenextmorning)wouldrepeattheinformation,и
andassureMissPoleshecouldлегко
easilygethertheidenticalShetlandшерсть
woolrequired,“throughmyuncle,whohastheлучший
bestassortmentofShetlandgoodsofanyoneinEdinbro’.”Itwasto
взять
takethetasteofthisoutofourmouths,и
andthesoundofthisoutofourears,thatМисс
MissJenkynsproposedmusic;soIsay
снова
again,itwasverygoodofhertoпобедить
beattimetothesong.Когда
Whenthetraysre-appearedwithbiscuitsи
andwine,punctuallyataчетверть
quartertonine,therewasconversation,comparingofcards,и
andtalkingovertricks;butby-and-by
Капитан
CaptainBrownsportedabitofлитературы
literature.“Haveyouseenanynumbersof‘ThePickwickPapers’?”
said
он
he.(Theywerethenpublishinginparts.)
“Capitalthing!”
Now
Мисс
MissJenkynswasdaughterofadeceasedrectorofCranford;и
and,onthestrengthofanumberofрукописных
manuscriptsermons,andaprettygoodlibraryofdivinity,consideredherselfliterary,и
andlookeduponanyconversationaboutbooksasaвызов
challengetoher.Sosheansweredandsaid,“Yes,shehadseen
их
them;indeed,shemightsayshehadreadthem.”
“Andwhatdoyouthinkofthem?”
exclaimed
Капитан
CaptainBrown.“Aren’ttheyfamouslygood?”
Sourged
Мисс
MissJenkynscouldnotbutговорить
speak.“Imustsay,Idon’t
думаю
thinktheyarebyanymeansequaltoDrJohnson.Still,
возможно
perhaps,theauthorisyoung.Пусть
Lethimpersevere,andwhoknowswhatheможет
maybecomeifhewilltakeв
thegreatDoctorforhismodel?”Это
ThiswasevidentlytoomuchforCaptainBrowntoпринять
takeplacidly;andIsawthewordsonthetipofhistongue
до
beforeMissJenkynshadfinishedherпредложение
sentence.“Itisquiteadifferentsortof
дело
thing,mydearmadam,”hebegan.“Iam
вполне
quiteawareofthat,”returnedона
she.“AndImakeallowances,
Капитан
CaptainBrown.”“Justallowmeto
прочитать
readyouasceneoutofthismonth’snumber,”pleadedон
he.“Ihaditonlythismorning,
и
andIdon’tthinktheкомпания
companycanhavereadityet.”“Asyouplease,”said
она
she,settlingherselfwithanairofотставки
resignation.Hereadtheaccountofthe“swarry”
который
whichSamWellergaveatBath.Некоторые
Someofuslaughedheartily.Ididnotdare,
потому что
becauseIwasstayinginthehouse.