Chapter1
ItbeganinaWoman’sClubinLondononaFebruaryafternoon—anuncomfortableclub,
і
andamiserableafternoon—whenMrs.Wilkins,whohadcomedownfromHampsteadtoshopі
andhadlunchedatherclub,tookupTheTimesfromthetableinthesmoking-room,і
andrunningherlistlesseyedowntheAgonyColumnsawthis:.To
Тих
ThosewhoAppreciateWistariaandSunshine.SmallmediaevalItalianCastleontheshoresoftheMediterraneantobeLetFurnishedforthemonthofApril.
Necessaryservantsremain.
Z,Box1000,TheTimes.
Thatwasitsconception;
yet,asinthe
випадку
caseofmanyanother,theconceiverwasunawareofitatthemoment.SoentirelyunawarewasMrs.Wilkins
що
thatherAprilforthatроку
yearhadthenandtherebeensettledforherщо
thatshedroppedthenewspaperwithagestureщо
thatwasbothirritatedandresigned,andwentovertothewindowandstareddrearilyoutatthedrippingstreet.Notforherweremediaevalcastles,
навіть
eventhosethatarespeciallydescribedasневеликі
small.NotforhertheshoresinApriloftheMediterranean,
і
andthewistariaandsunshine.Такі
Suchdelightswereonlyfortherich.Yettheadvertisementhadbeenaddressedtopersonswhoappreciate
ці
thesethings,sothatithadbeen,anyhow,addressedtootoнеї
her,forshecertainlyappreciatedїх
them;morethananybodyknew;
більше
morethanshehadevertold.Але
Butshewaspoor.Inthewhole
світі
worldshepossessedofherveryownлише
onlyninetypounds,savedfromyeartoyear,putbycarefullypoundbypound,outofherdressallowance.Shehadscraped
цю
thissumtogetheratthesuggestionofherhusbandasashieldі
andrefugeagainstarainyдня
day.Herdressallowance,givenherbyher
батько
father,was£100ayear,sothatMrs.Wilkins’sclotheswerewhatherчоловік
husband,urginghertosave,calledmodestandbecoming,andheracquaintancetoeachother,коли
whentheyspokeofheratall,whichwasseldomforshewasдуже
verynegligible,calledaperfectsight.Mr.
Wilkins,asolicitor,encouragedthrift,exceptthatbranchofitwhichgotintohis
їжу
food.Hedidnotcallthatthrift,hecalleditbadhousekeeping.
Але
Butforthethriftwhich,як
likemoth,penetratedintoMrs.Wilkins’sclothesі
andspoiltthem,hehadбагато
muchpraise.“Youneverknow,”hesaid,“whenthere
буде
willbearainyday,і
andyoumaybeverygladtoзнайти
findyouhaveanest-egg.Indeedwe
обидва
bothmay.”Lookingoutof
на
theclubwindowintoShaftesburyAvenue—herswasaneconomicalclub,але
butconvenientforHampstead,whereshelived,andforShoolbred’s,де
wheresheshopped—Mrs.Wilkins,havingstood
там
theresometimeverydrearily,hermind’seyeontheMediterraneaninApril,andthewistaria,andtheenviableopportunitiesoftherich,whileherbodilyeyewatchedthereallyextremelyhorriblesootyrainfallingsteadilyonthehurryingumbrellasandsplashingomnibuses,suddenlywonderedwhetherможливо
perhapsthiswasnottherainyдень
dayMellersh—MellershwasMr.Wilkins—hadsooftenencouragedhertopreparefor,andwhethertogetoutofsuchaclimateandintothesmallmediaevalcastlewasn’tможливо
perhapswhatProvidencehadallalongintendedhertodoзі
withhersavings.Partofhersavings,of
звичайно
course;perhapsquiteasmallpart.
Thecastle,beingmediaeval,might
також
alsobedilapidated,anddilapidationsweresurelycheap.Shewouldn’tintheleastminda
кілька
fewofthem,becauseyoudidn’tpayfordilapidationsякі
whichwerealreadythere;onthecontrary—byreducingthepriceyouhadto
заплатити
paytheyreallypaidyou.Але
Butwhatnonsensetothinkofit...Sheturnedawayfromthewindowwiththesamegestureofmingledirritation
і
andresignationwithwhichshehadlaiddownTheTimes,і
andcrossedtheroomtowardstheдверей
doorwiththeintentionofgettinghermackintoshі
andumbrellaandfightingherwayintoодин
oneoftheovercrowdedomnibusesі
andgoingtoShoolbred’sonherwayдодому
homeandbuyingsomesolesforMellersh’sdinner—Mellershwasdifficultwithfishі
andlikedonlysoles,exceptsalmon—whenshebeheldMrs.Arbuthnot,aжінку
womansheknewbysightasalsolivinginHampsteadі
andbelongingtotheclub,sittingatthetableinthemiddleoftheroomonяка
whichthenewspapersandmagazineswerekept,absorbed,inherturn,inthefirstpageofTheTimes.Mrs.
Wilkinshad
ніколи не
neveryetspokentoMrs.Arbuthnot,whobelongedtooneofthevariouschurchsets,і
andwhoanalysed,classified,dividedі
andregisteredthepoor;whereasshe
і
andMellersh,whentheydidgoout,wenttoна
thepartiesofimpressionistpainters,ofwhominHampsteadtherewereбагато
many.Mellershhadasisterwhohadmarried
одного
oneofthemandlivedupontheHeath,і
andbecauseofthisallianceMrs.Wilkinswasdrawnintoacircleяка
whichwashighlyunnaturaltoнеї
her,andshehadlearnedtodreadpictures.Shehadtosaythings
про
aboutthem,andshedidn’tknowwhattosay.Sheusedtomurmur,“Marvellous,”
і
andfeelthatitwasnotenough.Але
Butnobodyminded.Nobodylistened.
Ніхто не
NobodytookanynoticeofMrs.Wilkins.Shewasthekindofpersonwhoisnotnoticedatparties.
Herclothes,infestedbythrift,madeherpracticallyinvisible;
her
обличчя
facewasnon-arresting;herconversationwasreluctant;
shewasshy.
А
Andifone’sclothesandобличчя
faceandconversationareallnegligible,thoughtMrs.Wilkins,whorecognisedherdisabilities,що
what,atparties,isthereleftofone?Крім того
AlsoshewasalwayswithWilkins,thatclean-shaven,fine-lookingman,whogaveна
aparty,merelybycomingtoit,на
agreatair.Wilkinswas
дуже
veryrespectable.Hewasknowntobehighlythoughtofbyhisseniorpartners.
Hissister’scircleadmiredhim.
Hepronouncedadequatelyintelligentjudgmentsonart
та
andartists.Hewaspithy;
hewasprudent;
he
ніколи не
neversaidawordtooбагато
much,nor,ontheotherбоку
hand,didheeversayaслова
wordtoolittle.Heproducedtheimpressionofkeepingcopiesofeverythinghesaid;
і
andhewassoobviouslyreliablethatitoftenhappenedthatлюди
peoplewhomethimatцих
thesepartiesbecamediscontentedwiththeirownsolicitors,і
andafteraperiodofrestlessnessextricatedthemselvesі
andwenttoWilkins.NaturallyMrs.Wilkinswasblottedout.
“She,”saidhis
сестра
sister,withsomethingherselfofthejudicial,thedigested,і
andthefinalinhermanner,“shouldзалишитися
stayathome.”ButWilkinscouldnot
залишити
leavehiswifeathome.Hewasafamilysolicitor,
і
andallsuchhavewivesі
andshowthem.Withhisinthe
тиждень
weekhewenttoparties,а
andwithhisonSundayshewenttochurch.Beingstillfairlyyoung—hewasthirty-nine—andambitiousofoldladies,ofwhomhehadnotyetacquiredinhispracticeasufficientnumber,hecouldnotaffordtomisschurch,
і
anditwastherethatMrs.Wilkinsbecamefamiliar,хоча
thoughneverthroughwords,withMrs.Arbuthnot.Shesawhermarshalling
на
thechildrenofthepoorintopews.ShewouldcomeinattheheadoftheprocessionfromtheSunday
Школи
Schoolexactlyfiveminutesbeforethechoir,і
andgetherboysandgirlsneatlyfittedintotheirallottedseats,і
anddownontheirlittlekneesintheirpreliminaryprayer,і
andupagainontheirfeetтільки
justas,totheswellingorgan,thevestryдвері
dooropened,andthechoirі
andclergy,bigwiththelitaniesі
andcommandmentstheywerepresentlytorollout,emerged.Shehadasad
обличчя
face,yetshewasevidentlyefficient.ThecombinationusedtomakeMrs.Wilkinswonder,forshehadbeentoldbyMellersh,ondays
коли
whenshehadonlybeenabletoотримати
getplaice,thatifonewereefficientonewouldn’tbedepressed,і
andthatifonedoesone’sроботу
jobwellonebecomesautomaticallybrightі
andbrisk.AboutMrs.Arbuthnottherewas
нічого
nothingbrightandbrisk,thoughmuchinherwayз
withtheSundaySchoolchildrenthatwasautomatic;but
коли
whenMrs.Wilkins,turningfromthewindow,caughtsightofherintheclubshewasnotbeingautomaticatall,butwaslookingfixedlyatодну
oneportionofthefirstpageofTheTimes,holdingthepaperquitestill,hereyesnotmoving.Shewas
просто
juststaring;andherface,asusual,wasthe
обличчя
faceofapatientanddisappointedMadonna.Obeyinganimpulseshewonderedateven
під час
whileobeyingit,Mrs.Wilkins,theshyandthereluctant,insteadofproceedingasshehadintendedtothecloakroomandfromthencetoSchoolbred’sinsearchofMellersh’sfish,stoppedatthetableandsatdownexactlyoppositeMrs.Arbuthnot,towhomshehadneveryetspokeninherжитті
life.Itwasoneof
тих
thoselong,narrowrefectorytables,soщо
thattheywerequiteclosetoeachother.Mrs.
Arbuthnot,however,didnotlookup.
Shecontinuedtogaze,witheyes
які
thatseemedtobedreaming,atonespotтільки
onlyofTheTimes.Mrs.
Wilkinswatchedher
на
aminute,tryingtoscrewupcouragetospeaktoнеї
her.Shewantedtoaskherifshehadseentheadvertisement.
Shedidnotknow
чому
whyshewantedtoaskherце
this,butshewantedto.Як
Howstupidnottobeзмозі
abletospeaktoher.Shelookedsokind.
Shelookedsounhappy.
Чому
Whycouldn’ttwounhappypeoplerefresheachotherontheirшляху
waythroughthisdustybusinessofжиття
lifebyalittletalk—real,naturaltalk,про
aboutwhattheyfelt,whattheywouldhaveliked,whattheystilltriedtohope?І
Andshecouldnothelpthinkingщо
thatMrs.Arbuthnot,too,wasreadingщо
thatverysameadvertisement.Hereyeswereontheverypartofthepaper.
Wasshe,
теж
too,picturingwhatitwouldbelike—thecolour,thefragrance,theсвітло
light,thesoftlappingoftheseaamonglittlehotrocks?Colour,fragrance,
світло
light,sea;insteadofShaftesburyAvenue,andthewetomnibuses,andthefishdepartmentatShoolbred’s,andtheTubetoHampstead,anddinner,and
завтра
to-morrowthesameandthedayafterthesameandзавжди
alwaysthesame...SuddenlyMrs.Wilkinsfoundherselfleaningacrossthetable.
“Areyoureading
про
aboutthemediaevalcastleandthewistaria?”sheheardherselfasking.
NaturallyMrs.Arbuthnotwassurprised;
але
butshewasnothalfsomuchsurprisedasMrs.Wilkinswasatherselfforasking.Mrs.
Arbuthnothadnot
ще
yettoherknowledgeseteyesontheshabby,lank,loosely-put-togetherfiguresittingoppositeher,з
withitssmallfreckledfaceі
andbiggreyeyesalmostdisappearingпід
underasmashed-downwet-weatherhat,і
andshegazedatheraмить
momentwithoutanswering.Shewasreading
про
aboutthemediaevalcastleandthewistaria,або
orratherhadreadaboutitдесять
tenminutesbefore,andsincethenhadbeenlostindreams—ofсвітло
light,ofcolour,offragrance,ofthesoftlappingoftheseaamonglittlehotrocks...“Whydoyouaskmethat?”
shesaidinhergravevoice,forhertrainingof
і
andbythepoorhadmadehergraveі
andpatient.Mrs.
Wilkinsflushed
і
andlookedexcessivelyshyandfrightened.“Oh,
тільки
onlybecauseIsawitтеж
too,andIthoughtperhaps—Ithoughtsomehow—”shestammered.
WhereuponMrs.Arbuthnot,hermindbeingusedtogetting
людей
peopleintolistsanddivisions,fromhabitconsidered,asshegazedthoughtfullyatMrs.Wilkins,під
underwhatheading,supposingshehadtoclassifyїї
her,shecouldmostproperlybeput.“AndI
знаю
knowyoubysight,”wentonMrs.Wilkins,who,як
likealltheshy,onceshewasstartedplungedon,frighteningherselftomoreі
andmorespeechbythesheerзвуку
soundofwhatshehadsaidlastinherears.“EverySunday—Iseeyou
кожну
everySundayinchurch—”.“Inchurch?”
echoedMrs.Arbuthnot.
“Andthisseemssuchawonderfulthing—thisadvertisement
про
aboutthewistaria—and—”.Mrs.
Wilkins,whomusthavebeenatleastthirty,brokeoff
і
andwriggledinherchairwiththemovementofanawkwardі
andembarrassedschoolgirl.“Itseemssowonderful,”shewentoninakindofburst,“and—itis
такий
suchamiserableday...”AndthenshesatlookingatMrs.Arbuthnotwiththeeyesofanimprisoneddog.
“This
бідна
poorthing,”thoughtMrs.Arbuthnot,whoseжиття
lifewasspentinhelpingі
andalleviating,“needsadvice.”Sheaccordinglypreparedherselfpatientlyto
дати
giveit.“Ifyouseemeinchurch,”shesaid,kindly
і
andattentively,“Isupposeyouживете
liveinHampsteadtoo?”“Ohyes,”saidMrs.Wilkins.
І
Andsherepeated,herheadonitslongthinneckdroopingaтрохи
littleasiftherecollectionofHampsteadbowedher,“Ohyes.”“Where?”
askedMrs.Arbuthnot,who,
коли
whenadvicewasneeded,naturallyfirstproceededtocollectthefacts.ButMrs.Wilkins,layingher
руку
handsoftlyandcaressinglyonthepartofTheTimesде
wheretheadvertisementwas,asthoughthemereprintedwordsofitwereprecious,тільки
onlysaid,“Perhapsthat’swhythisseemssowonderful.”“No—I
думаю
thinkthat’swonderfulanyhow,”saidMrs.Arbuthnot,forgettingfactsі
andfaintlysighing.“Thenyouwerereadingit?”
“Yes,”saidMrs.Arbuthnot,hereyesgoingdreamy
знову
again.“Wouldn’titbewonderful?”
murmuredMrs.Wilkins.
“Wonderful,”saidMrs.Arbuthnot.
Her
обличчя
face,whichhadlitup,fadedintopatienceзнову
again.“Verywonderful,”shesaid.
“Butit’s
немає
nousewastingone’stimethinkingofтакі
suchthings.”“Oh,butitis,”wasMrs.Wilkins’squick,surprisingreply;
surprising
тому
becauseitwassomuchunlikeна
therestofher—thecharacterlesscoatі
andskirt,thecrumpledhat,на
theundecidedwispofhairstragglingout.“Andjusttheconsideringofthemisworthwhileinitself—sucha
зміна
changefromHampstead—andsometimesIbelieve—Iдійсно
reallydobelieve—ifoneconsidersважко
hardenoughonegetsthings.”Mrs.
Arbuthnotobservedherpatiently.
Inwhatcategorywould
вона
she,supposingshehadto,покласти
puther?“Perhaps,”shesaid,leaningforwarda
трохи
little,“youwilltellmeyourім'я
name.Ifwearetobefriends”—shesmiledhergravesmile—“asI
сподіваюся
hopeweare,wehadкраще
betterbeginatthebeginning.”“Ohyes—howkindofyou.
I’mMrs.Wilkins,”saidMrs.Wilkins.
“Idon’texpect,”sheadded,flushing,asMrs.Arbuthnotsaidnothing,“thatitconveysanythingtoyou.
Іноді
Sometimesit—itdoesn’tseemtoconveyнічого
anythingtomeeither.But”—shelookedroundwithamovementofseekinghelp—“IamMrs.Wilkins.”
Shedidnotlikeher
ім'я
name.Itwasamean,small
ім'я
name,withakindoffacetioustwist,shethought,про
aboutitsendliketheupwardcurveofapugdog’stail.Thereitwas,however.
Therewas
не
nodoinganythingwithit.Wilkinsshewas
і
andWilkinsshewouldremain;і
andthoughherhusbandencouragedhertogiveitonalloccasionsasMrs.Mellersh-Wilkinssheтільки
onlydidthatwhenhewaswithinearshot,forshethoughtMellershmadeWilkinsworse,emphasisingitinthewayChatsworthonthegate-postsofavillaemphasisesthevilla.WhenfirsthesuggestedsheshouldaddMellershshehadobjectedfortheabovereason,
і
andafterapause—Mellershwasmuchtooprudenttoговорити
speakexceptafterapause,duringwhichpresumablyhewastakingacarefulmentalcopyofhiscomingobservation—hesaid,muchdispleased,“ButIamnotavilla,”і
andlookedatherashelooksхто
whohopes,forperhapsthehundredthtime,що
thathemaynothaveодружився
marriedafool.Ofcoursehewasnotavilla,Mrs.Wilkinsassured
його
him;shehadneversupposedhewas;
shehadnotdreamedofmeaning...
shewasonly
просто
justthinking...The
більше
moresheexplainedthemoreearnestbecameMellersh’sнадія
hope,familiartohimbyцього
thistime,forhehadthenbeenahusbandforдва
twoyears,thathemightnotbyanychancehavemarriedafool;і
andtheyhadaprolongedquarrel,якщо
ifthatcanbecalledaquarrelwhichisconductedз
withdignifiedsilenceononeбоку
sideandearnestapologyontheother,astowhetherornoMrs.WilkinshadintendedtosuggestthatMr.Wilkinswasavilla.“Ibelieve,”shehadthought
коли
whenitwasatlastover—ittookalongwhile—“thatanybodywouldquarrelпро
aboutanythingwhenthey’venotleftoffbeingразом
togetherforasingledayforдвох
twowholeyears.Whatwebothneedisaholiday.”
“Myhusband,”wentonMrs.WilkinstoMrs.Arbuthnot,tryingtothrowsomelightonherself,“isasolicitor.
He—”
Shecast
про
aboutforsomethingshecouldсказати
sayelucidatoryofMellersh,andfound:“He’s
дуже
veryhandsome.”“Well,”saidMrs.Arbuthnotkindly,“thatmustbeagreatpleasuretoyou.”
“Why?”
askedMrs.Wilkins.
“Because,”saidMrs.Arbuthnot,a
трохи
littletakenaback,forconstantintercourseз
withthepoorhadaccustomedhertohaveherpronouncementsacceptedбез
withoutquestion,“becausebeauty—handsomeness—isagiftяк
likeanyother,andifitisproperlyused—”.Shetrailedoffintosilence.
Mrs.Wilkins’sgreatgreyeyeswerefixedonher,
і
anditseemedsuddenlytoMrs.Arbuthnotthatможливо
perhapsshewasbecomingcrystallisedintoahabitofexposition,і
andofexpositionafterthemannerofnursemaids,через
throughhavinganaudiencethatcouldn’tbutagree,thatwouldbeafraid,якщо
ifitwished,tointerrupt,thatdidn’tknow,thatwas,inте
fact,athermercy.ButMrs.Wilkinswasnotlistening;
forjustthen,absurdasitseemed,apicturehadflashedacrossherbrain,andtherewere
дві
twofiguresinitsittingразом
togetherunderagreattrailingwistariathatstretchedacrossthebranchesofatreeshedidn’tknow,anditwasherselfandMrs.Arbuthnot—shesawthem—shesawthem.А
Andbehindthem,brightinsunshine,wereстарі
oldgreywalls—themediaevalcastle—shesawit—theywereтам
there...ShethereforestaredatMrs.Arbuthnot
і
anddidnothearaслова
wordshesaid.AndMrs.Arbuthnotstared
теж
tooatMrs.Wilkins,arrestedbytheexpressiononherface,whichwassweptbytheexcitementofwhatshesaw,і
andwasasluminousandtremulousпід
underitaswaterinsunlightколи
whenitisruffledbyagustofwind.At
цей
thismoment,ifshehadbeenataparty,Mrs.Wilkinswouldhavebeenlookedatз
withinterest.Theystaredateachother;
Mrs.Arbuthnotsurprised,inquiringly,Mrs.Wilkinswiththeeyesofsomeonewhohashadarevelation.
Of
звичайно
course.Thatwashowitcouldbedone.
Sheherself,shebyherself,couldn’taffordit,
і
andwouldn’tbeable,evenifshecouldaffordit,toпіти
gothereallalone;butshe
і
andMrs.Arbuthnottogether...Sheleanedacrossthetable.
“Whydon’twetryand
отримати
getit?”shewhispered.
Mrs.
Arbuthnotbecame
ще
evenmorewide-eyed.“Getit?”
sherepeated.
“Yes,”saidMrs.Wilkins,stillasthoughshewereafraidofbeingoverheard.
“Not
просто
justsithereandsayHowwonderful,andthenйти
gohometoHampsteadwithouthavingputoutafinger—goдодому
homejustasusualandseeaboutthedinnerandthefishпросто
justaswe’vebeendoingforyearsandyearsandwillйти
goondoingforyearsandyears.Infact,”saidMrs.Wilkins,flushingtotherootsofher
волосся
hair,forthesoundofwhatshewassaying,ofwhatwascomingpouringout,frightenedїї
her,andyetshecouldn’tstop,“Iseeне
noendtoit.Thereis
немає
noendtoit.Sothatthereoughttobea
перерва
break,thereoughttobeintervals—ineverybody’sinterests.Why,itwould
справді
reallybebeingunselfishtoпіти
goawayandbehappyforaтрохи
little,becausewewouldcomebacksoнабагато
muchnicer.Yousee,afterabit
всім
everybodyneedsaholiday.”“But—howdoyou
увазі
mean,getit?”askedMrs.Arbuthnot.
“Takeit,”saidMrs.Wilkins.
“Takeit?”