第11章
加入书架 A- A+
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  Hewas,indeed,walkingwithawilloverthefurze,asstraightasaline,asifhislifedependeduponit。

  Hismotherdrewalongbreath,and,abandoningthevisittoThomasin,turnedback。Theeveningfilmsbegantomakenebulouspicturesofthevalleys,butthehighlandsstillwererakedbythedecliningraysofthewintersun,whichglancedonClymashewalkedforward,eyedbyeveryrabbitandfield—farearound,alongshadowadvancinginfrontofhim。

  Ondrawingneartothefurze—coveredbankandditchwhichfortifiedthecaptain’sdwellinghecouldhearvoiceswithin,signifyingthatoperationshadbeenalreadybegun。

  Attheside—entrancegatehestoppedandlookedover。

  Halfadozenable—bodiedmenwerestandinginalinefromthewell—mouth,holdingaropewhichpassedoverthewell—rollerintothedepthsbelow。Fairway,withapieceofsmallerroperoundhisbody,madefasttooneofthestandards,toguardagainstaccidents,wasleaningovertheopening,hisrighthandclaspingtheverticalropethatdescendedintothewell。

  \"Now,silence,folks,\"saidFairway。

  Thetalkingceased,andFairwaygaveacircularmotiontotherope,asifhewerestirringbatter。Attheendofaminuteadullsplashingreverberatedfromthebottomofthewell;thehelicaltwisthehadimpartedtotheropehadreachedthegrapnelbelow。

  \"Haul!\"saidFairway;andthemenwhoheldtheropebegantogatheritoverthewheel。

  \"Ithinkwe’vegotsommat,\"saidoneofthehaulers—in。

  \"Thenpullsteady,\"saidFairway。

  Theygatheredupmoreandmore,tillaregulardrippingintothewellcouldbeheardbelow。Itgrewsmarterwiththeincreasingheightofthebucket,andpresentlyahundredandfiftyfeetofropehadbeenpulledin。

  Fairwaythenlitalantern,tiedittoanothercord,andbeganloweringitintothewellbesidethefirst:

  Clymcameforwardandlookeddown。Strangehumidleaves,whichknewnothingoftheseasonsoftheyear,andquaint—naturedmosseswererevealedonthewellsideasthelanterndescended;tillitsraysfelluponaconfusedmassofropeandbucketdanglinginthedank,darkair。

  \"We’veonlygotenbytheedgeofthehoop——steady,forGod’ssake!\"saidFairway。

  Theypulledwiththegreatestgentleness,tillthewetbucketappearedabouttwoyardsbelowthem,likeadeadfriendcometoearthagain。Threeorfourhandswerestretchedout,thenjerkwenttherope,whizzwentthewheel,thetwoforemosthaulersfellbackward,thebeatingofafallingbodywasheard,recedingdownthesidesofthewell,andathunderousuproararoseatthebottom。

  Thebucketwasgoneagain。

  \"Damnthebucket!\"saidFairway。

  \"Loweragain,\"saidSam。

  \"I’masstiffasaram’shornstoopingsolong,\"

  saidFairway,standingupandstretchinghimselftillhisjointscreaked。

  \"Restafewminutes,Timothy,\"saidYeobright。

  \"I’lltakeyourplace。\"

  Thegrapnelwasagainlowered。Itssmartimpactuponthedistantwaterreachedtheirearslikeakiss,whereuponYeobrightkneltdown,andleaningoverthewellbegandraggingthegrapnelroundandroundasFairwayhaddone。

  \"Tiearoperoundhim——itisdangerous!\"criedasoftandanxiousvoicesomewhereabovethem。

  Everybodyturned。Thespeakerwasawoman,gazingdownuponthegroupfromanupperwindow,whosepanesblazedintheruddyglarefromthewest。Herlipswerepartedandsheappearedforthemomenttoforgetwhereshewas。

  Theropewasaccordinglytiedroundhiswaist,andtheworkproceeded。Atthenexthaultheweightwasnotheavy,anditwasdiscoveredthattheyhadonlysecuredacoiloftheropedetachedfromthebucket。Thetangledmasswasthrownintothebackground。HumphreytookYeobright’splace,andthegrapnelwasloweredagain。

  Yeobrightretiredtotheheapofrecoveredropeinameditativemood。Oftheidentitybetweenthelady’svoiceandthatofthemelancholymummerhehadnotamoment’sdoubt。

  \"Howthoughtfulofher!\"hesaidtohimself。

  Eustacia,whohadreddenedwhensheperceivedtheeffectofherexclamationuponthegroupbelow,wasnolongertobeseenatthewindow,thoughYeobrightscanneditwistfully。Whilehestoodtherethemenatthewellsucceededingettingupthebucketwithoutamishap。

  Oneofthemwenttoinquireforthecaptain,tolearnwhatordershewishedtogiveformendingthewell—tackle。

  Thecaptainprovedtobeawayfromhome,andEustaciaappearedatthedoorandcameout。Shehadlapsedintoaneasyanddignifiedcalm,farremovedfromtheintensityoflifeinherwordsofsolicitudeforClym’ssafety。

  \"Willitbepossibletodrawwaterheretonight?\"

  sheinquired。

  \"No,miss;thebottomofthebucketiscleanknockedout。

  Andaswecandonomorenowwe’llleaveoff,andcomeagaintomorrowmorning。\"

  \"Nowater,\"shemurmured,turningaway。

  \"IcansendyouupsomefromBlooms—End,\"saidClym,comingforwardandraisinghishatasthemenretired。

  YeobrightandEustacialookedateachotherforoneinstant,asifeachhadinmindthosefewmomentsduringwhichacertainmoonlightscenewascommontoboth。

  Withtheglancethecalmfixityofherfeaturessublimeditselftoanexpressionofrefinementandwarmth;

  itwaslikegarishnoonrisingtothedignityofsunsetinacoupleofseconds。

  \"Thankyou;itwillhardlybenecessary,\"shereplied。

  \"Butifyouhavenowater?\"

  \"Well,itiswhatIcallnowater,\"shesaid,blushing,andliftingherlong—lashedeyelidsasiftoliftthemwereaworkrequiringconsideration。\"Butmygrandfathercallsitwaterenough。I’llshowyouwhatImean。\"

  Shemovedawayafewyards,andClymfollowed。Whenshereachedthecorneroftheenclosure,wherethestepswereformedformountingtheboundarybank,shesprangupwithalightnesswhichseemedstrangeafterherlistlessmovementtowardsthewell。Itincidentallyshowedthatherapparentlanguordidnotarisefromlackofforce。

  Clymascendedbehindher,andnoticedacircularburntpatchatthetopofthebank。\"Ashes?\"hesaid。

  \"Yes,\"saidEustacia。\"WehadalittlebonfireherelastFifthofNovember,andthosearethemarksofit。\"

  OnthatspothadstoodthefireshehadkindledtoattractWildeve。

  \"That’stheonlykindofwaterwehave,\"shecontinued,tossingastoneintothepool,whichlayontheoutsideofthebanklikethewhiteofaneyewithoutitspupil。

  Thestonefellwithaflounce,butnoWildeveappearedontheotherside,asonapreviousoccasionthere。

  \"Mygrandfathersayshelivedformorethantwentyyearsatseaonwatertwiceasbadasthat,\"shewenton,\"andconsidersitquitegoodenoughforushereonanemergency。\"

  \"Well,asamatteroffacttherearenoimpuritiesinthewaterofthesepoolsatthistimeoftheyear。

  Ithasonlyjustrainedintothem。\"

  Sheshookherhead。\"Iammanagingtoexistinawilderness,butIcannotdrinkfromapond,\"shesaid。

  Clymlookedtowardsthewell,whichwasnowdeserted,themenhavinggonehome。\"Itisalongwaytosendforspring—water,\"hesaid,afterasilence。

  \"Butsinceyoudon’tlikethisinthepond,I’lltrytogetyousomemyself。\"Hewentbacktothewell。

  \"Yes,IthinkIcoulddoitbytyingonthispail。\"

  \"But,sinceIwouldnottroublethementogetit,Icannotinconscienceletyou。\"

  \"Idon’tmindthetroubleatall。\"

  Hemadefastthepailtothelongcoilofrope,putitoverthewheel,andallowedittodescendbylettingtheropeslipthroughhishands。Beforeithadgonefar,however,hecheckedit。

  \"Imustmakefasttheendfirst,orwemaylosethewhole,\"

  hesaidtoEustacia,whohaddrawnnear。\"Couldyouholdthisamoment,whileIdoit——orshallIcallyourservant?\"

  \"Icanholdit,\"saidEustacia;andheplacedtheropeinherhands,goingthentosearchfortheend。

  \"IsupposeImayletitslipdown?\"sheinquired。

  \"Iwouldadviseyounottoletitgofar,\"saidClym。

  \"Itwillgetmuchheavier,youwillfind。\"

  However,Eustaciahadbeguntopayout。Whilehewastyingshecried,\"Icannotstopit!\"

  Clymrantoherside,andfoundhecouldonlychecktheropebytwistingtheloosepartroundtheuprightpost,whenitstoppedwithajerk。\"Hasithurtyou?\"

  \"Yes,\"shereplied。

  \"Verymuch?\"

  \"No;Ithinknot。\"Sheopenedherhands。Oneofthemwasbleeding;theropehaddraggedofftheskin。

  Eustaciawrappeditinherhandkerchief。

  \"Youshouldhaveletgo,\"saidYeobright。\"Whydidn’tyou?\"

  \"YousaidIwastoholdon……ThisisthesecondtimeIhavebeenwoundedtoday。\"

  \"Ah,yes;Ihaveheardofit。IblushformynativeEgdon。

  Wasitaseriousinjuryyoureceivedinchurch,MissVye?\"

  TherewassuchanabundanceofsympathyinClym’stonethatEustaciaslowlydrewuphersleeveanddisclosedherroundwhitearm。Abrightredspotappearedonitssmoothsurface,likearubyonParianmarble。

  \"Thereitis,\"shesaid,puttingherfingeragainstthespot。

  \"Itwasdastardlyofthewoman,\"saidClym。\"WillnotCaptainVyegetherpunished?\"

  \"Heisgonefromhomeonthatverybusiness。IdidnotknowthatIhadsuchamagicreputation。\"

  \"Andyoufainted?\"saidClym,lookingatthescarletlittlepunctureasifhewouldliketokissitandmakeitwell。

  \"Yes,itfrightenedme。Ihadnotbeentochurchforalongtime。AndnowIshallnotgoagainforeversolong——perhapsnever。Icannotfacetheireyesafterthis。

  Don’tyouthinkitdreadfullyhumiliating?IwishedIwasdeadforhoursafter,butIdon’tmindnow。\"

  \"Ihavecometocleanawaythesecobwebs,\"saidYeobright。

  \"Wouldyouliketohelpme——byhigh—classteaching?Wemightbenefitthemmuch。\"

  \"Idon’tquitefeelanxiousto。Ihavenotmuchloveformyfellow—creatures。SometimesIquitehatethem。\"

  \"StillIthinkthatifyouweretohearmyschemeyoumighttakeaninterestinit。Thereisnouseinhatingpeople——ifyouhateanything,youshouldhatewhatproducedthem。\"

  \"DoyoumeanNature?Ihateheralready。ButIshallbegladtohearyourschemeatanytime。\"

  Thesituationhadnowworkeditselfout,andthenextnaturalthingwasforthemtopart。Clymknewthiswellenough,andEustaciamadeamoveofconclusion;

  yethelookedatherasifhehadonewordmoretosay。

  PerhapsifhehadnotlivedinParisitwouldneverhavebeenuttered。

  \"Wehavemetbefore,\"hesaid,regardingherwithrathermoreinterestthanwasnecessary。

  \"Idonotownit,\"saidEustacia,witharepressed,stilllook。

  \"ButImaythinkwhatIlike。\"

  \"Yes。\"

  \"Youarelonelyhere。\"

  \"Icannotenduretheheath,exceptinitspurpleseason。

  Theheathisacrueltaskmastertome。\"

  \"Canyousayso?\"heasked。\"Tomyminditismostexhilarating,andstrengthening,andsoothing。Iwouldratherliveonthesehillsthananywhereelseintheworld。\"

  \"Itiswellenoughforartists;butIneverwouldlearntodraw。\"

  \"Andthereisaverycuriousdruidicalstonejustoutthere。\"

  Hethrewapebbleinthedirectionsignified。\"Doyouoftengotoseeit?\"

  \"Iwasnotevenawarethereexistedanysuchcuriousdruidicalstone。IamawarethatthereareboulevardsinParis。\"

  Yeobrightlookedthoughtfullyontheground。

  \"Thatmeansmuch,\"hesaid。

  \"Itdoesindeed,\"saidEustacia。

  \"IrememberwhenIhadthesamelongingfortownbustle。

  Fiveyearsofagreatcitywouldbeaperfectcureforthat。\"

  \"Heavensendmesuchacure!Now,Mr。Yeobright,Iwillgoindoorsandplastermywoundedhand。\"

  Theyseparated,andEustaciavanishedintheincreasingshade。

  Sheseemedfullofmanythings。Herpastwasablank,herlifehadbegun。TheeffectuponClymofthismeetinghedidnotfullydiscovertillsometimeafter。

  Duringhiswalkhomehismostintelligiblesensationwasthathisschemehadsomehowbecomeglorified。

  Abeautifulwomanhadbeenintertwinedwithit。

  Onreachingthehousehewentuptotheroomwhichwastobemadehisstudy,andoccupiedhimselfduringtheeveninginunpackinghisbooksfromtheboxesandarrangingthemonshelves。Fromanotherboxhedrewalampandacanofoil。Hetrimmedthelamp,arrangedhistable,andsaid,\"Now,Iamreadytobegin。\"

  Heroseearlythenextmorning,readtwohoursbeforebreakfastbythelightofhislamp——readallthemorning,alltheafternoon。Justwhenthesunwasgoingdownhiseyesfeltweary,andheleantbackinhischair。

  Hisroomoverlookedthefrontofthepremisesandthevalleyoftheheathbeyond。Thelowestbeamsofthewintersunthrewtheshadowofthehouseoverthepalings,acrossthegrassmarginoftheheath,andfarupthevale,wherethechimneyoutlinesandthoseofthesurroundingtree—topsstretchedforthinlongdarkprongs。Havingbeenseatedatworkallday,hedecidedtotakeaturnuponthehillsbeforeitgotdark;and,goingoutforthwith,hestruckacrosstheheathtowardsMistover。

  Itwasanhourandahalflaterwhenheagainappearedatthegardengate。Theshuttersofthehousewereclosed,andChristianCantle,whohadbeenwheelingmanureaboutthegardenallday,hadgonehome。Onenteringhefoundthathismother,afterwaitingalongtimeforhim,hadfinishedhermeal。

  \"Wherehaveyoubeen,Clym?\"sheimmediatelysaid。

  \"Whydidn’tyoutellmethatyouweregoingawayatthistime?\"

  \"Ihavebeenontheheath。\"

  \"You’llmeetEustaciaVyeifyougoupthere。\"

  Clympausedaminute。\"Yes,Imetherthisevening,\"

  hesaid,asthoughitwerespokenunderthesheernecessityofpreservinghonesty。

  \"Iwonderedifyouhad。\"

  \"Itwasnoappointment。\"

  \"No;suchmeetingsneverare。\"

  \"Butyouarenotangry,Mother?\"

  \"IcanhardlysaythatIamnot。Angry?No。ButwhenI

  considertheusualnatureofthedragwhichcausesmenofpromisetodisappointtheworldIfeeluneasy。\"

  \"Youdeservecreditforthefeeling,Mother。ButIcanassureyouthatyouneednotbedisturbedbyitonmyaccount。\"

  \"WhenIthinkofyouandyournewcrotchets,\"saidMrs。Yeobright,withsomeemphasis,\"Inaturallydon’tfeelsocomfortableasIdidatwelvemonthago。ItisincredibletomethatamanaccustomedtotheattractivewomenofParisandelsewhereshouldbesoeasilyworkeduponbyagirlinaheath。Youcouldjustaswellhavewalkedanotherway。\"

  \"Ihadbeenstudyingallday。\"

  \"Well,yes,\"sheaddedmorehopefully,\"Ihavebeenthinkingthatyoumightgetonasaschoolmaster,andrisethatway,sinceyoureallyaredeterminedtohatethecourseyouwerepursuing。\"

  Yeobrightwasunwillingtodisturbthisidea,thoughhisschemewasfarenoughremovedfromonewhereintheeducationofyouthshouldbemadeamerechannelofsocialascent。

  Hehadnodesiresofthatsort。Hehadreachedthestageinayoungman’slifewhenthegrimnessofthegeneralhumansituationfirstbecomesclear;andtherealizationofthiscausesambitiontohaltawhile。InFranceitisnotuncustomarytocommitsuicideatthisstage;

  inEnglandwedomuchbetter,ormuchworse,asthecasemaybe。

  Thelovebetweentheyoungmanandhismotherwasstrangelyinvisiblenow。Ofloveitmaybesaid,thelessearthlythelessdemonstrative。Initsabsolutelyindestructibleformitreachesaprofundityinwhichallexhibitionofitselfispainful。Itwassowiththese。

  Hadconversationsbetweenthembeenoverheard,peoplewouldhavesaid,\"Howcoldtheyaretoeachother!\"

  HistheoryandhiswishesaboutdevotinghisfuturetoteachinghadmadeanimpressiononMrs。Yeobright。

  Indeed,howcoulditbeotherwisewhenhewasapartofher——whentheirdiscourseswereasifcarriedonbetweentherightandthelefthandsofthesamebody?

  Hehaddespairedofreachingherbyargument;anditwasalmostasadiscoverytohimthathecouldreachherbyamagnetismwhichwasassuperiortowordsaswordsaretoyells。

  Strangelyenoughhebegantofeelnowthatitwouldnotbesohardtopersuadeherwhowashisbestfriendthatcomparativepovertywasessentiallythehighercourseforhim,astoreconciletohisfeelingstheactofpersuadingher。Fromeveryprovidentpointofviewhismotherwassoundoubtedlyright,thathewasnotwithoutasicknessofheartinfindinghecouldshakeher。

  Shehadasingularinsightintolife,consideringthatshehadnevermixedwithit。Thereareinstancesofpersonswho,withoutclearideasofthethingstheycriticizehaveyethadclearideasoftherelationsofthosethings。

  Blacklock,apoetblindfromhisbirth,coulddescribevisualobjectswithaccuracy;ProfessorSanderson,whowasalsoblind,gaveexcellentlecturesoncolour,andtaughtothersthetheoryofideaswhichtheyhadandhehadnot。Inthesocialspherethesegiftedonesaremostlywomen;theycanwatchaworldwhichtheyneversaw,andestimateforcesofwhichtheyhaveonlyheard。

  Wecallitintuition。

  WhatwasthegreatworldtoMrs。Yeobright?Amultitudewhosetendenciescouldbeperceived,thoughnotitsessences。

  Communitieswereseenbyherasfromadistance;

  shesawthemasweseethethrongswhichcoverthecanvasesofSallaert,VanAlsloot,andothersofthatschool——vastmassesofbeings,jostling,zigzagging,andprocessioningindefinitedirections,butwhosefeaturesareindistinguishablebytheverycomprehensivenessoftheview。

  Onecouldseethat,asfarasithadgone,herlifewasverycompleteonitsreflectiveside。Thephilosophyofhernature,anditslimitationbycircumstances,wasalmostwritteninhermovements。Theyhadamajesticfoundation,thoughtheywerefarfrombeingmajestic;andtheyhadaground—workofassurance,buttheywerenotassured。

  Asheronceelasticwalkhadbecomedeadenedbytime,sohadhernaturalprideoflifebeenhinderedinitsbloomingbyhernecessities。

  ThenextslighttouchintheshapingofClym’sdestinyoccurredafewdaysafter。Abarrowwasopenedontheheath,andYeobrightattendedtheoperation,remainingawayfromhisstudyduringseveralhours。IntheafternoonChristianreturnedfromajourneyinthesamedirection,andMrs。Yeobrightquestionedhim。

  \"Theyhavedugahole,andtheyhavefoundthingslikeflowerpotsupsidedown,Mis’essYeobright;andinsidetheseberealcharnelbones。Theyhavecarried’emofftomen’shouses;

  butIshouldn’tliketosleepwheretheywillbide。

  Deadfolkshavebeenknowntocomeandclaimtheirown。

  Mr。Yeobrighthadgotonepotofthebones,andwasgoingtobring’emhome——realskellingtonbones——but’twasorderedotherwise。You’llberelievedtohearthathegaveawayhispotandall,onsecondthoughts;andablessedthingforye,Mis’essYeobright,consideringthewindo’nights。\"

  \"Gaveitaway?\"

  \"Yes。ToMissVye。Shehasacannibaltasteforsuchchurchyardfurnitureseemingly。\"

  \"MissVyewastheretoo?\"

  \"Ay,’ab’lieveshewas。\"

  WhenClymcamehome,whichwasshortlyafter,hismothersaid,inacurioustone,\"Theurnyouhadmeantformeyougaveaway。\"

  Yeobrightmadenoreply;thecurrentofherfeelingwastoopronouncedtoadmitit。

  Theearlyweeksoftheyearpassedon。Yeobrightcertainlystudiedathome,buthealsowalkedmuchabroad,andthedirectionofhiswalkwasalwaystowardssomepointofalinebetweenMistoverandRainbarrow。

  ThemonthofMarcharrived,andtheheathshoweditsfirstsignsofawakeningfromwintertrance。Theawakeningwasalmostfelineinitsstealthiness。ThepooloutsidethebankbyEustacia’sdwelling,whichseemedasdeadanddesolateasevertoanobserverwhomovedandmadenoisesinhisobservation,wouldgraduallydiscloseastateofgreatanimationwhensilentlywatchedawhile。

  Atimidanimalworldhadcometolifefortheseason。

  Littletadpolesandeftsbegantobubbleupthroughthewater,andtoracealongbeneathit;toadsmadenoiseslikeveryyoungducks,andadvancedtothemarginintwosandthrees;overhead,bumblebeesflewhitherandthitherinthethickeninglight,theirdronecomingandgoinglikethesoundofagong。

  OnaneveningsuchasthisYeobrightdescendedintotheBlooms—Endvalleyfrombesidethatverypool,wherehehadbeenstandingwithanotherpersonquitesilentlyandquitelongenoughtohearallthispunystirofresurrectioninnature;yethehadnotheardit。

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