狄更斯雙語小說:《董貝父子》第27章Part 14

Cleopatra was so much fluttered and moved, by hearing this, of course, incomprehensible speech, that she could only shut her eyes, and shake her head, and give Mr Dombey her hand; which Mr Dombey, not exactly knowing what to do with, dropped.
'Dombey, come along!' cried the Major, looking in at the door. 'Damme, Sir, old Joe has a great mind to propose an alteration in the name of the Royal Hotel, and that it should be called the Three Jolly Bachelors, in honour of ourselves and Carker.' With this, the Major slapped Mr Dombey on the back, and winking over his shoulder at the ladies, with a frightful tendency of blood to the head, carried him off.
Mrs Skewton reposed on her sofa, and Edith sat apart, by her harp, in silence. The mother, trifling with her fan, looked stealthily at the daughter more than once, but the daughter, brooding gloomily with downcast eyes, was not to be disturbed.
Thus they remained for a long hour, without a word, until Mrs Skewton's maid appeared, according to custom, to prepare her gradually for night. At night, she should have been a skeleton, with dart and hour-glass, rather than a woman, this attendant; for her touch was as the touch of Death. The painted object shrivelled underneath her hand; the form collapsed, the hair dropped off, the arched dark eyebrows changed to scanty tufts of grey; the pale lips shrunk, the skin became cadaverous and loose; an old, worn, yellow, nodding woman, with red eyes, alone remained in Cleopatra's place, huddled up, like a slovenly bundle, in a greasy flannel gown.
The very voice was changed, as it addressed Edith, when they were alone again.
'Why don't you tell me,' it said sharply, 'that he is coming here to-morrow by appointment?'
'Because you know it,' returned Edith, 'Mother.'
The mocking emphasis she laid on that one word!

克利奧佩特拉聽到這些自然是需要猜測的話之後，非常興奮、激動，因此她只能閉上眼睛，搖晃着腦袋，並把手向董貝先生伸過去；董貝先生真不知該怎麼辦，就把它放下了。
“董貝，來吧！”少校在門口向裏探望着，說道，“他媽的，先生，老喬想出個絕妙的主意；爲了紀念我們兩人和卡克，建議把皇家旅館的名稱改爲‘三個快活的單身漢’吧”，少校一邊說，一邊拍着董貝先生的背，並回過頭來向夫人們眨巴着眼睛，這時血可怕地快涌到他的頭上，然後他就領着董貝先生離開了。
斯丘頓夫人躺在沙發上休息，伊迪絲則遠遠地坐在豎琴旁邊，默默無言。母親一邊玩弄着扇子，一邊不止一次地偷偷地看着女兒，但是她不應當去打攪女兒；女兒這時正低垂着眼睛，憂悶地沉思着。
她們這樣坐了整整一個小時，一句話也不說，直到斯丘頓夫人的侍女按照慣例跑來做她就寢的準備工作爲止。這位侍女一到夜間與其說是一個女人，倒不如應當說是一個拿着標槍和沙漏的骷髏，因爲她的接觸就跟死神的接觸一樣。塗染上顏色的臉孔在她的手下顯出了皺紋；身形蜷縮了，頭髮脫落了，彎彎的黑眉變成了稀稀落落的幾根灰毛；蒼白的嘴脣乾癟了，皮膚像死屍一樣灰白和鬆弛；克利奧佩特拉原先所在的地方，現在只留下一個年邁的、疲乏的、枯黃的、腦袋顫抖的、眼睛發紅的女人，被卷在一件油污的法蘭絨長外衣中，就像一個骯髒的包袱一樣。
當房間裏又只有她們母女兩人的時候，她對伊迪絲說話時，甚至連聲音也改變了。
“你爲什麼不告訴我，”她厲聲問道，“你約他明天到這裏來？”
“因爲你已知道了，”伊迪絲回答道，“媽媽。”
她說最後兩個字的時候，用了極爲譏諷的語調。