ChapterITheBertolini
“TheSignorahad
ni
nobusinesstodoit,”saidMissBartlett,“nobusinessatall.Shepromisedus
južne
southroomswithaviewblizu
closetogether,insteadofwhichtukaj
herearenorthrooms,lookingintoje
acourtyard,andalongwayapart.Oh,Lucy!”
“AndaCockney,besides!”
saidLucy,
ki
whohadbeenfurthersaddenedbyje
theSignora’sunexpectedaccent.“ItmightbeLondon.”
Shelookedat
je
thetworowsofEnglishpeopleki
whoweresittingatthemizo
table;attherowofwhitebottlesof
vode
waterandredbottlesofvina
winethatranbetweentheEnglishpeople;attheportraitsofthelateQueen
in
andthelatePoetLaureateki
thathungbehindtheEnglishpeople,močno
heavilyframed;atthenoticeoftheEnglish
cerkve
church(Rev.CuthbertEager,M.A.
Oxon.),
to
thatwastheonlyotherdecorationofje
thewall.“Charlotte,don’tyoufeel,
tudi
too,thatwemightbeinLondon?Ican
komaj
hardlybelievethatallkindsofdrugih
otherthingsarejustoutside.I
predvidevam
supposeitisone’sbeingsotired.”“This
meso
meathassurelybeenusedforsoup,”saidMissBartlett,layingdownherfork.“I
rad
wantsotoseetheArno.Je
TheroomstheSignorapromisedusinherletterwouldhavelookedoverje
theArno.TheSignorahad
ni
nobusinesstodoitatall.Oh,itisashame!”
“Anynookdoesforme,”MissBartlettcontinued;
“butitdoes
zdi
seemhardthatyoushouldn’timeti
haveaview.”Lucyfelt
da
thatshehadbeenselfish.“Charlotte,youmustn’tspoilme:
of
seveda
course,youmustlookovertheArno,tudi
too.Imeantthat.
The
prva
firstvacantroominthefront—”“Youmusthaveit,”saidMissBartlett,partofwhosetravellingexpenseswerepaidbyLucy’smother—apieceof
velikodušnost
generositytowhichshemadeveliko
manyatactfulallusion.“No,
ne
no.Youmusthaveit.”“Iinsistonit.
Your
mama
motherwouldneverforgiveme,Lucy.”“Shewould
nikoli
neverforgiveme.”Theladies’voicesgrewanimated,and—if
je
thesadtruthbeowned—alittlepeevish.Theywere
utrujeni
tired,andundertheguiseofunselfishnesstheywrangled.Someoftheirneighboursinterchangedglances,
in
andoneofthem—oneofje
theill-bredpeoplewhomonedoesmeetabroad—leantforwardčez
overthetableandactuallyintrudedintotheirargument.Hesaid:.
“Ihavea
pogled
view,Ihaveaview.”MissBartlettwasstartled.
Splošno
Generallyatapensionpeoplelookedthemoverforadan
dayortwobeforespeaking,in
andoftendidnotfindoutda
thattheywould“do”tilltheyhadgone.Sheknew
da
thattheintruderwasill-bred,še
evenbeforesheglancedatga
him.Hewasanold
moški
man,ofheavybuild,withafair,shavenfacein
andlargeeyes.Therewas
nekaj
somethingchildishinthoseeyes,čeprav
thoughitwasnotthechildishnessofsenility.What
točno
exactlyitwasMissBartlettdidnotstoptoconsider,forherpogled
glancepassedontohisobleke
clothes.Thesedidnotattracther.
Hewas
verjetno
probablytryingtobecomeacquaintedz
withthembeforetheygotintotheswim.Sosheassumedadazed
izraz
expressionwhenhespoketonjo
her,andthensaid:“Aview?
Oh,aview!
Kako
Howdelightfulaviewis!”“Thisismyson,”saidtheoldman;
“hisname’sGeorge.
Hehasaviewtoo.”
“Ah,”saidMissBartlett,repressingLucy,
ki
whowasabouttospeak.“WhatImean,”hecontinued,“is
da
thatyoucanhaveourrooms,andwe’llimeli
haveyours.We’llchange.”
Thebetter
razred
classoftouristwasshockedattem
this,andsympathizedwiththenew-comers.MissBartlett,inreply,openedher
usta
mouthaslittleaspossible,in
andsaid“Thankyouverymuchindeed;to
thatisoutofthequestion.”“Why?”
said
je
theoldman,withbothfistsonje
thetable.“Becauseitisquiteoutofthequestion,
hvala
thankyou.”“Yousee,wedon’tliketotake—”
beganLucy.
Her
bratranec
cousinagainrepressedher.“Butwhy?”
hepersisted.
“Women
všeč
likelookingataview;mendon’t.”
In
Andhethumpedwithhisfistskot
likeanaughtychild,andturnedtohissinu
son,saying,“George,persuadethem!”“It’sso
očitno
obvioustheyshouldhavetherooms,”saidje
theson.“There’snothingelsetosay.”
Hedidnotlookattheladiesashespoke,
vendar
buthisvoicewasperplexedin
andsorrowful.Lucy,too,wasperplexed;
butshesaw
da
thattheywereinforwhatisknownas“quiteascene,”in
andshehadanoddfeelingda
thatwhenevertheseill-bredtouristsspokethetekmovanje
contestwidenedanddeepenedtillitdealt,notz
withroomsandviews,butwith—well,z
withsomethingquitedifferent,whoseexistenceshehadnotrealizedbefore.Now
je
theoldmanattackedMissBartlettskoraj
almostviolently:Whyshouldshenotchange?
Whatpossibleobjectionhad
ona
she?Theywouldclearoutin
pol
halfanhour.MissBartlett,
čeprav
thoughskilledinthedelicaciesofconversation,waspowerlessinje
thepresenceofbrutality.Itwas
nemogoče
impossibletosnubanyonesogross.Her
obraz
facereddenedwithdispleasure.Shelooked
okrog
aroundasmuchastosay,“Areyouvsi
alllikethis?”Andtwolittle
stari
oldladies,whoweresittingfurtherupje
thetable,withshawlshangingnad
overthebacksofthechairs,lookednazaj
back,clearlyindicating“Wearenot;wearegenteel.”
“Eatyour
večerjo
dinner,dear,”shesaidtoLucy,in
andbegantotoyagainz
withthemeatthatshehadnekoč
oncecensured.Lucymumbledthatthoseseemed
zelo
veryoddpeopleopposite.“Eatyour
večerjo
dinner,dear.Thispensionisa
neuspeh
failure.To-morrowwewillmakeachange.”
Komaj
Hardlyhadsheannouncedthisfellodločitev
decisionwhenshereversedit.Thecurtainsatthe
koncu
endoftheroomparted,in
andrevealedaclergyman,stoutbutattractive,ki
whohurriedforwardtotakehismesto
placeatthetable,cheerfullyapologizingforhislateness.Lucy,
ki
whohadnotyetacquireddecency,atoncerosetohernoge
feet,exclaiming:“Oh,oh!
Why,it’sMr.Beebe!
Oh,
kako
howperfectlylovely!Oh,Charlotte,wemust
ustaviti
stopnow,howeverbadtheroomsare.Oh!”
MissBartlettsaid,
z
withmorerestraint:.“Howdoyoudo,Mr.Beebe?
Iexpect
da
thatyouhaveforgottenus:MissBartlett
in
andMissHoneychurch,whowereatTunbridgeWellsko
whenyouhelpedtheVicarofSt.Peter’sthatzelo
verycoldEaster.”Theclergyman,
ki
whohadtheairofenega
oneonaholiday,didnotremembertheladiespovsem
quiteasclearlyastheyrememberednjega
him.Buthecameforwardpleasantly
dovolj
enoughandacceptedthechairintowhichhewasbeckonedbyLucy.“Iamsogladtoseeyou,”saidthe
dekle
girl,whowasinastateofspirituallakote
starvation,andwouldhavebeengladtoseethewaiterče
ifhercousinhadpermittedto
it.“Justfancyhowsmallthe
svet
worldis.SummerStreet,too,makesitsospeciallyfunny.”
“MissHoneychurchlivesin
je
theparishofSummerStreet,”saidGospodična
MissBartlett,fillingupthevrzel
gap,“andshehappenedtotellmeinje
thecourseofconversationthatyouhavepravkar
justacceptedtheliving—”.“Yes,Iheardfrom
matere
mothersolastweek.Shedidn’tknow
da
thatIknewyouatTunbridgeWells;toda
butIwrotebackatonce,in
andIsaid:‘Mr.
Beebeis—’”.
“Quiteright,”said
je
theclergyman.“ImoveintotheRectoryatSummerStreet
naslednji
nextJune.Iamluckytobeappointedtosucha
očarljivo
charmingneighbourhood.”“Oh,howgladIam!
The
ime
nameofourhouseisWindyCorner.”Mr.Beebebowed.
“Thereis
mama
motherandmegenerally,andmybrat
brother,thoughit’snotoftenwegethimtoch——The
cerkev
churchisratherfaroff,Imean.”“Lucy,dearest,letMr.Beebeeathisdinner.”
“Iameatingit,
hvala
thankyou,andenjoyingit.”HepreferredtotalktoLucy,whoseplayingheremembered,
raje
ratherthantoMissBartlett,ki
whoprobablyrememberedhissermons.Heaskedthe
dekle
girlwhethersheknewFlorencedobro
well,andwasinformedatnekaj
somelengththatshehadnikoli
neverbeentherebefore.Itisdelightfultoadviseanewcomer,andhewas
prvi
firstinthefield.“Don’tneglect
je
thecountryround,”hisadviceconcluded.“Thefirstfine
popoldne
afternoondriveuptoFiesole,in
androundbySettignano,ornekaj
somethingofthatsort.”“No!”
crieda
glas
voicefromthetopofthetable.“Mr.
Beebe,youarewrong.
The
prvo
firstfineafternoonyourladiesmustgotoPrato.”“That
gospa
ladylookssoclever,”whisperedMissBartletttohercousin.“Weareinluck.”
In
And,indeed,aperfecttorrentofinformationburstonnjimi
them.Peopletoldthemwhattosee,whentoseeit,
kako
howtostoptheelectrictrams,kako
howtogetridofthebeggars,kako
howmuchtogiveforavellumblotter,kako
howmuchtheplacewouldgrowuponjim
them.ThePensionBertolinihaddecided,
skoraj
almostenthusiastically,thattheywoulddo.Whicheverwaytheylooked,kindladiessmiled
in
andshoutedatthem.And
nad
aboveallrosethevoiceofje
thecleverlady,crying:“Prato!
Theymust
iti
gotoPrato.Thatplaceis
preveč
toosweetlysqualidforwords.Ilove
to
it;Irevelinshakingoff
je
thetrammelsofrespectability,asyouknow.”Je
TheyoungmannamedGeorgeglancedatje
thecleverlady,andthenreturnedmoodilytohiskrožnik
plate.Obviouslyheandhis
oče
fatherdidnotdo.Lucy,in
je
themidstofhersuccess,foundčas
timetowishtheydid.Itgaveher
ni
noextrapleasurethatanyoneshouldbeleftinthecold;in
andwhensherosetogo,sheturnednazaj
backandgavethetwooutsidersanervousmali
littlebow.Thefatherdidnotseeit;
je
thesonacknowledgedit,notbyanotherbow,ampak
butbyraisinghiseyebrowsin
andsmiling;heseemedtobesmilingacross
nekaj
something.Shehastenedafterhercousin,whohad
že
alreadydisappearedthroughthecurtains—curtainswhichsmoteoneinje
theface,andseemedheavyz
withmorethancloth.Beyondthemstood
je
theunreliableSignora,bowinggood-eveningtoherguests,in
andsupportedby’Enery,hermali
littleboy,andVictorier,herhči
daughter.Itmadeacurious
mali
littlescene,thisattemptoftheCockneytoconveythemilost
graceandgenialityoftheSouth.In
Andevenmorecuriouswasthedrawing-room,ki
whichattemptedtorivalthetrdno
solidcomfortofaBloomsburyboarding-house.Was
to
thisreallyItaly?MissBartlettwas
že
alreadyseatedonatightlystuffedarm-chair,ki
whichhadthecolourandthecontoursofaparadižnika
tomato.ShewastalkingtoMr.Beebe,
in
andasshespoke,herlongozka
narrowheaddrovebackwardsandforwards,počasi
slowly,regularly,asthoughsheweredemolishingsomeinvisibleobstacle.“Wearemostgratefultoyou,”shewassaying.
“The
prvi
firsteveningmeanssomuch.Ko
Whenyouarrivedwewereinforje
apeculiarlymauvaisquartd’heure.”Heexpressedhisregret.
“Doyou,byanychance,knowthe
ime
nameofanoldmanki
whosatoppositeusatdinner?”“Emerson.”
“Ishea
prijatelj
friendofyours?”“Wearefriendly—asoneisinpensions.”
“ThenIwillsay
ne
nomore.”Hepressedher
zelo
veryslightly,andshesaidveč
more.“Iam,asitwere,”sheconcluded,“thechaperonofmyyoungcousin,Lucy,
in
anditwouldbearesna
seriousthingifIputherpod
underanobligationtopeopleofwhomweknowničesar
nothing.Hismannerwassomewhatunfortunate.
I
upam
hopeIactedforthebest.”“Youactedverynaturally,”said
je
he.Heseemedthoughtful,and
po
afterafewmomentsadded:“Allthesame,Idon’t
mislim
thinkmuchharmwouldhavecomeofaccepting.”“No
škode
harm,ofcourse.Butwecouldnotbe
pod
underanobligation.”“Heisratherapeculiarman.”
Spet
Againhehesitated,andthensaidnežno
gently:“Ithinkhewouldnottakeadvantageofyouracceptance,norexpectyoutoshow
hvaležnost
gratitude.Hehasthemerit—ifitisone—ofsaying
točno
exactlywhathemeans.Hehasroomshedoesnotvalue,
in
andhethinksyouwouldvaluejih
them.Henomorethoughtofputtingyou
pod
underanobligationthanhethoughtofbeingvljuden
polite.Itissodifficult—at
vsaj
least,Ifinditdifficult—torazumeti
understandpeoplewhospeakthetruth.”Lucywaspleased,
in
andsaid:“Iwashoping
da
thathewasnice;Idoso
vedno
alwayshopethatpeoplewillbenice.”“I
mislim
thinkheis;niceand
utrujajoče
tiresome.Idifferfromhimon
skoraj
almosteverypointofanyimportance,andso,Iexpect—Ilahko
maysayIhope—youwilldiffer.Toda
Buthisisatypeonedisagreess
withratherthandeplores.Whenhe
prvič
firstcameherehenotunnaturallyputpeople’sbacksup.Hehas
ne
notactandnomanners—Idon’tmeanbythatthathehasbadmanners—andhebo
willnotkeephisopinionstohimself.We
skoraj
nearlycomplainedabouthimtoourdepressingSignora,vendar
butIamgladtorečem
saywethoughtbetterofit.”“AmItoconclude,”saidMissBartlett,“thatheisaSocialist?”
Mr.
Beebeacceptedthe
priročno
convenientword,notwithoutaslighttwitchingofthelips.“Andpresumablyhehasbroughtuphis
sina
sontobeaSocialist,too?”“I
komaj
hardlyknowGeorge,forhehasn’tlearnttogovoriti
talkyet.