狄更斯雙語小說:《董貝父子》第27章Part 06

'Ah! You are like your cousin Feenix, my dearest Edith,' said Mrs Skewton. 'He has been to Warwick Castle fifty times, if he has been there once; yet if he came to Leamington to-morrow - I wish he would, dear angel! - he would make his fifty-second visit next day.'
'We are all enthusiastic, are we not, Mama?' said Edith, with a cold smile.
'Too much so, for our peace, perhaps, my dear,' returned her mother; 'but we won't complain. Our own emotions are our recompense. If, as your cousin Feenix says, the sword wears out the what's-its-name
'The scabbard, perhaps,' said Edith.
'Exactly - a little too fast, it is because it is bright and glowing, you know, my dearest love.'
Mrs Skewton heaved a gentle sigh, supposed to cast a shadow on the surface of that dagger of lath, whereof her susceptible bosom was the sheath: and leaning her head on one side, in the Cleopatra manner, looked with pensive affection on her darling child.
Edith had turned her face towards Mr Dombey when he first addressed her, and had remained in that attitude, while speaking to her mother, and while her mother spoke to her, as though offering him her attention, if he had anything more to say. There was something in the manner of this simple courtesy: almost defiant, and giving it the character of being rendered on compulsion, or as a matter of traffic to which she was a reluctant party again not lost upon that same observer who was smiling round the board. It set him thinking of her as he had first seen her, when she had believed herself to be alone among the trees.
Mr Dombey having nothing else to say, proposed - the breakfast being now finished, and the Major gorged, like any Boa Constrictor - that they should start. A barouche being in waiting, according to the orders of that gentleman, the two ladies, the Major and himself, took their seats in it; the Native and the wan page mounted the box, Mr Towlinson being left behind; and Mr Carker, on horseback, brought up the rear.

“啊，你就像你的表哥菲尼克斯，我最親愛的伊迪絲，”斯丘頓夫人說道，“他到沃裏克城堡去過一次，以後就又去了五十次。可是如果他明天到了萊明頓——我真希望他能來啊，親愛的天使！——那麼第二天他就會進行第五十二次參觀了。”
“我們都是很熱心的人，是不是，媽媽？”伊迪絲冷冷地微笑着說道。
“也許是過分熱心了，使我們都不能安靜下來了，我親愛的，”母親回答道，“但是我們不用抱怨。我們興高采烈的情緒就是最好的報酬。就像你的表哥菲尼克斯所說的，如果劍磨破了——叫什麼來的——”
“也許是鞘吧，”伊迪絲說。
“一點不錯。——如果劍把鞘磨破得太快一點兒，你知道，我親愛的，那是由於劍鋥亮發光的緣故。”
斯丘頓夫人輕輕地嘆了一口氣，好像想要在這把鋒利的劍的表面投下一個陰影，使它那鋥亮的光芒暗淡一些似的；她的敏感的心就是這把劍的鞘；然後她仿效克利奧佩特拉的姿態，頭歪向一邊，沉思而又親切地看着她的可愛的孩子。
當董貝先生第一次對伊迪絲說話的時候，伊迪絲把臉朝着他；以後當她跟母親講話的時候，以及當她母親跟話講話的時候，她都一直保持着這個姿態，好像如果他還有什麼話要對她說，她就一直在對他顯示出她的殷勤似的；在這純粹出於禮貌的姿態中包含着一些幾乎是對抗的東西，或者說是一項她無可奈何勉強參加的交易。這種情景同樣被笑嘻嘻地坐在餐桌旁的那一個人注意到了。這使他想起了他第一次看到她時的情形，那時她以爲樹林裏就只有她一個人。
董貝先生沒有其他的話要說，就建議啓程——這時早餐已經完畢，少校像蟒蛇一樣，把肚子塞得飽飽的——。遵照董貝先生的囑咐，一輛雙馬四輪大馬車正在等待着；兩位夫人，少校和他本人坐在馬車裏面；本地人和臉無血色的侍童登上車伕的座位，託林森先生留在家中；卡克先生騎着馬，跟隨在後面。