狄更斯雙語小說:《董貝父子》第31章Part 2

The pastry-cook is hard at work in the funereal room in Brook Street, and the very tall young men are busy looking on. One of the very tall young men already smells of sherry, and his eyes have a tendency to become fixed in his head, and to stare at objects without seeing them. The very tall young man is conscious of this failing in himself; and informs his comrade that it's his 'exciseman.' The very tall young man would say excitement, but his speech is hazy.
The men who play the bells have got scent of the marriage; and the marrow-bones and cleavers too; and a brass band too. The first, are practising in a back settlement near Battlebridge; the second, put themselves in communication, through their chief, with Mr Towlinson, to whom they offer terms to be bought off; and the third, in the person of an artful trombone, lurks and dodges round the corner, waiting for some traitor tradesman to reveal the place and hour of breakfast, for a bribe. Expectation and excitement extend further yet, and take a wider range. From Balls Pond, Mr Perch brings Mrs Perch to spend the day with Mr Dombey's servants, and accompany them, surreptitiously, to see the wedding. In Mr Toots's lodgings, Mr Toots attires himself as if he were at least the Bridegroom; determined to behold the spectacle in splendour from a secret corner of the gallery, and thither to convey the Chicken: for it is Mr Toots's desperate intent to point out Florence to the Chicken, then and there, and openly to say, 'Now, Chicken, I will not deceive you any longer; the friend I have sometimes mentioned to you is myself; Miss Dombey is the object of my passion; what are your opinions, Chicken, in this state of things, and what, on the spot, do you advise? The so-much-to-be-astonished Chicken, in the meanwhile, dips his beak into a tankard of strong beer, in Mr Toots's kitchen, and pecks up two pounds of beefsteaks. In Princess's Place, Miss Tox is up and doing; for she too, though in sore distress, is resolved to put a shilling in the hands of Mrs Miff, and see the ceremony which has a cruel fascination for her, from some lonely corner. The quarters of the wooden Midshipman are all alive; for Captain Cuttle, in his ankle-jacks and with a huge shirt-collar, is seated at his breakfast, listening to Rob the Grinder as he reads the marriage service to him beforehand, under orders, to the end that the Captain may perfectly understand the solemnity he is about to witness: for which purpose, the Captain gravely lays injunctions on his chaplain, from time to time, to 'put about,' or to 'overhaul that 'ere article again,' or to stick to his own duty, and leave the Amens to him, the Captain; one of which he repeats, whenever a pause is made by Rob the Grinder, with sonorous satisfaction.
Besides all this, and much more, twenty nursery-maids in Mr Dombey's street alone, have promised twenty families of little women, whose instinctive interest in nuptials dates from their cradles, that they shall go and see the marriage. Truly, Mr Sownds the Beadle has good reason to feel himself in office, as he suns his portly figure on the church steps, waiting for the marriage hour. Truly, Mrs Miff has cause to pounce on an unlucky dwarf child, with a giant baby, who peeps in at the porch, and drive her forth with indignation!
Cousin Feenix has come over from abroad, expressly to attend the marriage. Cousin Feenix was a man about town, forty years ago; but he is still so juvenile in figure and in manner, and so well got up, that strangers are amazed when they discover latent wrinkles in his lordship's face, and crows' feet in his eyes: and first observe him, not exactly certain when he walks across a room, of going quite straight to where he wants to go. But Cousin Feenix, getting up at half-past seven o'clock or so, is quite another thing from Cousin Feenix got up; and very dim, indeed, he looks, while being shaved at Long's Hotel, in Bond Street.
Mr Dombey leaves his dressing-room, amidst a general whisking away of the women on the staircase, who disperse in all directions, with a great rustling of skirts, except Mrs Perch, who, being (but that she always is) in an interesting situation, is not nimble, and is obliged to face him, and is ready to sink with confusion as she curtesys; - may Heaven avert all evil consequences from the house of Perch! Mr Dombey walks up to the drawing-room, to bide his time. Gorgeous are Mr Dombey's new blue coat, fawn-coloured pantaloons, and lilac waistcoat; and a whisper goes about the house, that Mr Dombey's hair is curled.
A double knock announces the arrival of the Major, who is gorgeous too, and wears a whole geranium in his button-hole, and has his hair curled tight and crisp, as well the Native knows.
'Dombey!' says the Major, putting out both hands, 'how are you?'

糕餅師傅在布魯克街那間具有喪葬氣氛的房間中辛勤工作着。兩位身材很高的年輕人在專心致志地看着；其中的一位早已聞到了雪利酒的香味，他的眼睛有一種固定不動的傾向，在凝視着東西時卻看不見它們；這位身材很高的年輕人承認他有這個弱點，並告訴他的同伴說，這是由於”心放”引起的；這位身材很高的年輕人本來是想說”興奮”，可是他說得模糊不清。
打鈴的人已打聽到結婚的風聲；賣肉的人和銅管樂器的吹奏樂隊也一樣。打鈴的人正在巴特爾橋附近偏僻的地方練習；賣肉的人通過他們的頭頭和託林森先生建立了聯繫，跟他商議價錢，建議他向他們買肉；吹奏樂隊由一個機靈的吹長號的人躲藏在角落裏，暗中偵察，等待着向泄露祕密的商人行賄，從他們那裏打聽早餐的地點和時間。盼望和興奮的情緒進一步擴展開來，波及到更廣闊的範圍。珀奇先生把珀奇太太從鮑爾斯池溏領來，準備和董貝先生的僕人們一起度過這一天，並和他們一道偷偷地觀看婚禮。在圖茨先生的住所，圖茨先生把自己打扮得彷彿他至少是個新郎似的；他打定主意從教堂樓座的一個祕密角落裏觀看這個富麗豪華的場面，並把鬥雞帶到那裏去；因爲圖茨先生非常想把弗洛倫斯指點給鬥雞看，並坦率地對他說，”現在，鬥雞，我不打算再欺瞞你了；我好幾次向你提到的朋友就是我自己；董貝小姐就是我的意中人；情況就是這樣，鬥雞，你的看法怎麼樣？你現在有什麼建議要立刻提出的嗎？”這時候，這位將要大吃一驚的鬥雞正在圖茨先生的廚房裏把他的喙浸到一大杯烈性啤酒中，啄出兩磅牛排。在公主廣場，托克斯小姐已經起牀，正在忙碌着；因爲她雖然深深地感到痛苦，但也決定塞一個先令到米福太太手裏，從一個離開衆人的角落裏看看這個對她具有殘酷魔力的典禮。木製海軍軍官候補生的住所裏是一片活躍的氣氛。卡特爾船長穿着節日的短靴和大領子的襯衣，坐着吃早飯，一邊聽着磨工羅布按照他的囑咐，事先向他念婚禮儀式，以便船長能完全理解他準備前去親自觀看的莊嚴場面；爲了這個目的，船長不時指示他的牧師”轉回去”或”這一節重來一遍”或把他自己分內的事情做好，阿門留給他船長來喊。每當磨工羅布停歇的時候，他就響亮和滿意地喊一聲阿門。
除此之外，單就董貝先生的這條街來說，就有二十個年輕保姆答應二十個家庭的女孩子們，帶領她們去看婚禮；這些女孩子們從睡在搖籃裏的時候起，對結婚就本能地產生興趣了。教區事務員桑茲先生在教堂臺階上讓太陽曬着他肥胖的身軀，一邊等待着結婚的時刻來到，說實在的，這時候他很有理由覺得他是在履行職務。有一個倒黴的矮女孩子抱了一個巨大的娃娃在教堂門廊裏窺探的時候，米福太太向她撲過去，怒氣衝衝地把她攆跑；說實在的，她這樣做並不是沒有道理的。
菲尼克斯表哥從國外特地回來參加這次婚禮。四十年以前，菲尼克斯表哥是在倫敦的俱樂部、劇場等處閒混日子的人，可是從身姿和態度來看，他現在仍顯得十分年輕，裝飾得又很雅緻，所以一些跟他陌生的人在他閣下的臉上發現隱伏的皺紋和眼外角的魚尾皺時都感到驚奇。當他走過房間的時候，人們初初一看，都不十分肯定他是不是很筆直地走向他想要去的地方。但是菲尼克斯表哥早上七點半左右起牀的時候，跟打扮得漂漂亮亮的菲尼克斯表哥是完全不同的人；當他在拜德街朗旅館中被修臉的時候，他的容貌看上去確實黯然失色，平庸無奇。
董貝先生從化妝室中走出來的時候，樓梯上的婦女們急忙逃避，從各個方向散開，裙子發出一陣沙沙的響聲，只有珀奇太太一人除外。珀奇太太身上已經有喜（不過她經常是有喜的），手腳又不靈活，所以不得不面對着他；她行屈膝禮的時候，手忙腳亂，不知所措，真準備鑽到地底下去。--願老天爺給珀奇家裏消災除禍吧！董貝先生到客廳裏，等待時間到來；董貝先生的新的藍色的外套、淡黃色的褲子、淡紫色的背心全都是豪華的，屋子裏的人們還交頭接耳地說，董貝先生的頭髮已做成捲曲的了。
門敲了兩下，通報少校來到。他的衣着也是豪華的，鈕釦洞裏還佩戴了一整株天竺葵，頭髮又緊又起微波地捲曲着，本地人很懂得這樣做。
“董貝，”少校伸出雙手，說道，”您好！”