狄更斯雙語小說:《董貝父子》第29章Part 1

Miss Tox, all unconscious of any such rare appearances in connexion with Mr Dombey's house, as scaffoldings and ladders, and men with their heads tied up in pocket-handkerchiefs, glaring in at the windows like flying genii or strange birds, - having breakfasted one morning at about this eventful period of time, on her customary viands; to wit, one French roll rasped, one egg new laid (or warranted to be), and one little pot of tea, wherein was infused one little silver scoopful of that herb on behalf of Miss Tox, and one little silver scoopful on behalf of the teapot - a flight of fancy in which good housekeepers delight; went upstairs to set forth the bird waltz on the harpsichord, to water and arrange the plants, to dust the nick-nacks, and, according to her daily custom, to make her little drawing-room the garland of Princess's Place.
Miss Tox endued herself with a pair of ancient gloves, like dead leaves, in which she was accustomed to perform these avocations - hidden from human sight at other times in a table drawer - and went methodically to work; beginning with the bird waltz; passing, by a natural association of ideas, to her bird - a very high-shouldered canary, stricken in years, and much rumpled, but a piercing singer, as Princess's Place well knew; taking, next in order, the little china ornaments, paper fly-cages, and so forth; and coming round, in good time, to the plants, which generally required to be snipped here and there with a pair of scissors, for some botanical reason that was very powerful with Miss Tox. Miss Tox was slow in coming to the plants, this morning. The weather was warm, the wind southerly; and there was a sigh of the summer-time In Princess's Place, that turned Miss Tox's thoughts upon the country. The pot-boy attached to the Princess's Arms had come out with a can and trickled water, in a flowering pattern, all over Princess's Place, and it gave the weedy ground a fresh scent - quite a growing scent, Miss Tox said. There was a tiny blink of sun peeping in from the great street round the corner, and the smoky sparrows hopped over it and back again, brightening as they passed: or bathed in it, like a stream, and became glorified sparrows, unconnected with chimneys. Legends in praise of Ginger-Beer, with pictorial representations of thirsty customers submerged in the effervescence, or stunned by the flying corks, were conspicuous in the window of the Princess's Arms. They were making late hay, somewhere out of town; and though the fragrance had a long way to come, and many counter fragrances to contend with among the dwellings of the poor (may God reward the worthy gentlemen who stickle for the Plague as part and parcel of the wisdom of our ancestors, and who do their little best to keep those dwellings miserable!), yet it was wafted faintly into Princess's Place, whispering of Nature and her wholesome air, as such things will, even unto prisoners and captives, and those who are desolate and oppressed, in very spite of aldermen and knights to boot: at whose sage nod - and how they nod! - the rolling world stands still!
Miss Tox sat down upon the window-seat, and thought of her good Papa deceased - Mr Tox, of the Customs Department of the public service; and of her childhood, passed at a seaport, among a considerable quantity of cold tar, and some rusticity. She fell into a softened remembrance of meadows, in old time, gleaming with buttercups, like so many inverted firmaments of golden stars; and how she had made chains of dandelion-stalks for youthful vowers of eternal constancy, dressed chiefly in nankeen; and how soon those fetters had withered and broken.
Sitting on the window-seat, and looking out upon the sparrows and the blink of sun, Miss Tox thought likewise of her good Mama deceased - sister to the owner of the powdered head and pigtail - of her virtues and her rheumatism. And when a man with bulgy legs, and a rough voice, and a heavy basket on his head that crushed his hat into a mere black muffin, came crying flowers down Princess's Place, making his timid little roots of daisies shudder in the vibration of every yell he gave, as though he had been an ogre, hawking little children, summer recollections were so strong upon Miss Tox, that she shook her head, and murmured she would be comparatively old before she knew it - which seemed likely.
In her pensive mood, Miss Tox's thoughts went wandering on Mr Dombey's track; probably because the Major had returned home to his lodgings opposite, and had just bowed to her from his window. What other reason could Miss Tox have for connecting Mr Dombey with her summer days and dandelion fetters? Was he more cheerful? thought Miss Tox. Was he reconciled to the decrees of fate? Would he ever marry again? and if yes, whom? What sort of person now!
A flush - it was warm weather - overspread Miss Tox's face, as, while entertaining these meditations, she turned her head, and was surprised by the reflection of her thoughtful image In the chimney-glass. Another flush succeeded when she saw a little carriage drive into Princess's Place, and make straight for her own door. Miss Tox arose, took up her scissors hastily, and so coming, at last, to the plants, was very busy with them when Mrs Chick entered the room.
'How is my sweetest friend!' exclaimed Miss Tox, with open arms.

跟董貝先生公館有關的這些以往罕見的現象--腳手架啦，梯子啦，還有那些頭上扎着手絹、像會飛的鳥兒一樣，在窗口瞪着眼睛往裏看的工人啦，--托克斯小姐絲毫也不知道。在這一段多事的時期中的一個早晨，她按照平常的食譜吃完了早餐，也就是說，吃了一個咬起來喀嚓喀嚓發響的花捲蛋糕，一個新鮮的（或賣蛋人保證是新鮮的）雞蛋和喝了一小壺茶（在這個小壺裏，分量爲一銀勺的茶葉是爲托克斯小姐沏的；另一銀勺是爲這個茶壺沏的；這是善良的主婦們所喜愛的一種奇思妙想）；然後托克斯小姐上樓去，準備把”鳥兒圓舞曲”曲譜擺在大鍵琴上，給花澆澆水和整整枝葉，給小擺設抹抹灰塵，並按照她平日的習慣，把她的小客廳佈置成爲公主廣場的一個花環。
托克斯小姐戴上一雙枯葉色的舊式手套（她習慣在幹這些活的時候戴上它，在其他時候則把它藏在桌子抽屜裏，不讓別人看見），有條不紊地動手工作；開始是把”鳥兒圓舞曲”曲譜擺好；由於自然的聯想，她接着跑去照料她的鳥兒--這是一隻胸口很窄的金絲雀，它已經老了，羽毛十分蓬亂，但卻是一個聲音尖銳的歌唱家，在公主廣場是很有名的--；按照次序，下面輪到瓷做的裝飾品，紙做的捕蠅籠，等等。然後她按時地轉到花卉上，根據托克斯小姐十分信服的生物學的理由，需要用剪刀把它們這裏那裏剪去一些。這天早晨，托克斯小姐是不慌不忙地前去照料花卉的。氣候溫暖，南風吹拂，公主廣場上盪漾着夏天的氣息，這使托克斯小姐的思想轉到了鄉間。”公主紋章”酒館的服務員拿着一個噴壺出來灑水，在公主廣場上佈滿了流動的圖案；經他這樣噴灑之後，長着野草的土地散發出了新鮮的香氣--托克斯小姐說，這完全是野草生長的香氣。從大街拐角偷偷地透進一點陽光，那些被煙燻黑的麻雀跳過它，又跳回來，在陽光下閃閃發亮；要不然它們就像沐浴在溪流中一樣，沐浴在陽光中，成了光彩奪目的麻雀，好像從沒和煙囪爲鄰似的。“公主紋章”酒館的櫥窗中顯眼地陳列着讚揚薑汁啤酒的廣告，廣告中畫着口渴的顧客正被翻滾着的泡沫淹沒或被飛出的瓶塞打得不省人事。城外的什麼地方，人們正在翻曬晚割的乾草，雖然香氣要經過遠遠的距離才能傳過來，而且還得跟窮人茅屋中間散發出的迥然不同的氣味相競爭（有些值得尊敬的大人先生們認爲瘟疫是我們祖先智慧不可缺少的部分，並竭盡他們微薄的力量來把這些骯髒破爛的茅屋保存下來；願上帝獎賞這些大人先生們吧！），然而這些香氣還是微弱地飄送到了公主廣場，低聲訴說着大自然和它有益於健康的空氣，而且無視市參議員和騎士先生們的反對，（他們賢明地點一點頭，這轉動的世界也就會停止不動；而他們是怎樣點頭的啊！），甚至把這些喁喁私語也傳送到了囚犯、俘虜以及那些孤獨無依和遭受壓迫的人們那裏（這樣的事情總是會發生的）。
托克斯小姐在窗下坐下，想到了她死去的好爸爸--在海關署當公務員的托克斯先生；想到了她在一個海港度過的童年，那海港帶有幾分鄉村風味，附近有大量的冷焦油；她沉湎在往昔歲月中那些草地的甜蜜的回憶之中；那些閃爍着毛茛的草地，真好像佈滿金色的星星的蒼穹上下顛倒過來似的；她記得她曾經怎樣用蒲公英的梗子爲那些海誓山盟、主要穿着土布的年輕情侶們編織腳鐐，這些腳鐐不久又怎樣枯萎和破碎了。
托克斯小姐坐在窗下，眼望着麻雀和閃爍的陽光，又想到了她死去的，媽媽--那位頭上敷粉和梳了一根辮子的人的姐姐--，想到了她的善行美德和她的風溼病。有一個兩腿粗壯、聲音刺耳的男子跑到公主廣場來賣花；他頭上沉重的籃子把他的帽子壓得像一塊黑色的鬆餅一樣；他每麼喝一聲，膽怯的雛菊就顫抖一下，彷彿他是個叫賣小孩的吃人魔鬼似的；這時托克斯小姐夏日的回憶強烈地涌上心頭，她搖搖頭，咕噥着說，她將在她沒有覺察之前就變老了--這似乎是很可能的。
托克斯小姐在沉思狀態中開始想到了董貝先生，也許是因爲少校已經回到了對面的住所，剛纔還從他的窗口向她鞠躬致意的緣故。要不然，還有什麼別的原因能使托克斯小姐把董貝先生跟她關於夏天與蒲公英編織的腳鐐的回憶聯繫起來呢？他是不是快活一些了？托克斯小姐想。他是不是安於命運的擺佈？他是不是將會再婚呢？如果是的話，跟誰結婚呢？她是個什麼樣的人呢！
托克斯小姐的臉上泛起一陣紅暈--天氣是溫暖的--，因爲當她正沉陷在這些思想中的時候，她回過頭去，驚奇地看到了煙囪上鏡子里正反照出她自己在沉思的形象。當她看到一輛小馬車駛進公主廣場，直奔她的家門時，臉上又涌上另一陣紅暈。托克斯小姐站起身來，急忙拿起剪刀，最後走到花旁；當奇剋夫人走進房間的時候，她正十分忙碌地剪着。
“我最親愛的朋友，您好嗎？”托克斯小姐張開胳膊，高聲喊道。