登陆注册
15420500000087

第87章 Chapter 32(1)

The Feast's Beginning--The End Dick brought me at once into the little field which, as I had seen from the garden, was covered with gaily-coloured tents arranged in orderly lanes, about which were sitting and lying in the grass some fifty or sixty men, women, and children, all of them in the height of good temper and enjoyment--with their holiday mood on, so to say.

"You are thinking that we don't make a great show as to numbers," said Dick; "but you must remember that we shall have more to-morrow;because in this haymaking work there is room for a great many people who are not over-skilled in country matters: and there are many who lead sedentary lives, whom it would be unkind to deprive of their pleasure in the hay-field--scientific men and close students generally: so that the skilled workmen, outside those who are wanted as mowers, and foremen of the haymaking, stand aside, and take a little downright rest, which you know is good for them, whether they like it or not: or else they go to other countrysides, as I am doing here. You see, the scientific men and historians, and students generally, will not be wanted till we are fairly in the midst of tedding, which of course will not be till the day after to-morrow."With that he brought me out of the little field on to a kind of causeway above the riverside meadow, and thence turning to the left on to a path through the mowing grass, which was thick and very tall, led on till we came to the river above the weir and its mill. There we had a delightful swim in the broad piece of water above the lock, where the river looked much bigger than its natural size from its being dammed up by the weir.

"Now we are in a fit mood for dinner," said Dick, when we had dressed and were going through the grass again; "and certainly of all the cheerful meals in the year, this one of haysel is the cheerfullest;not even excepting the corn-harvest feast; for then the year is beginning to fail, and one cannot help having a feeling behind all the gaiety, of the coming of the dark days, and the shorn fields and empty gardens; and the spring is almost too far off to look forward to. It is, then, in the autumn, when one almost believes in death.""How strangely you talk," said I, "of such a constantly recurring and consequently commonplace matter as the sequence of the seasons." And indeed these people were like children about such things, and had what seemed to me a quite exaggerated interest in the weather, a fine day, a dark night, or a brilliant one, and the like.

"Strangely?" said he. "Is it strange to sympathise with the year and its gains and losses?""At any rate," said I, "if you look upon the course of the year as a beautiful and interesting drama, which is what I think you do, you should be as much pleased and interested with the winter and its trouble and pain as with this wonderful summer luxury.""And am I not?" said Dick, rather warmly; "only I can't look upon it as if I were sitting in a theatre seeing the play going on before me, myself taking no part of it. It is difficult," said he, smiling good-humouredly, "for a non-literary man like me to explain myself properly, like that dear girl Ellen would; but I mean that I am part of it all, and feel the pain was well as the pleasure in my own person. It is not done for me by somebody else, merely that I may eat and drink and sleep; but I myself do my share of it."In his way also, as Ellen in hers, I could see that Dick had that passionate love of the earth which was common to but few people at least, in the days I knew; in which the prevailing feeling amongst intellectual persons was a kind of sour distaste for the changing drama of the year, for the life of earth and its dealings with men.

Indeed, in those days it was thought poetic and imaginative to look upon life as a thing to be borne, rather than enjoyed.

So I mused till Dick's laugh brought me back into the Oxfordshire hay-fields. "One thing seems strange to me," said he--"that I must needs trouble myself about the winter and its scantiness, in the midst of the summer abundance. If it hadn't happened to me before, I should have thought it was your doing, guest; that you had thrown a kind of evil charm over me. Now, you know," said he, suddenly, "that's only a joke, so you mustn't take it to heart.""All right," said I; "I don't." Yet I did feel somewhat uneasy at his words, after all.

We crossed the causeway this time, and did not turn back to the house, but went along a path beside a field of wheat now almost ready to blossom. I said: "We do not dine in the house or garden, then? for Ican see that the houses are mostly very small.""Yes," said Dick, "you are right, they are small in this countryside:

there are so many good old houses left, that people dwell a good deal in such small detached houses. As to our dinner, we are going to have our feast in the church. I wish, for your sake, it were as big and handsome as that of the old Roman town to the west, or the forest town to the north;* but, however, it will hold us all; and though it is a little thing, it is beautiful in its way."* Cirencester and Burford he must have meant.

This was somewhat new to me, this dinner in a church, and I thought of the church-ales of the Middle Ages; but I said nothing, and presently we came out into the road which ran through the village. Dick looked up and down it, and seeing only two straggling groups before us, said:

"It seems as if we must be somewhat late; they are all gone on; and they will be sure to make a point of waiting for you, as the guest of guests, since you come from so far."He hastened as he spoke, and I kept up with him, and presently we came to a little avenue of lime-trees which led us straight to the church porch, from whose open door came the sound of cheerful voices and laughter, and varied merriment.

同类推荐
  • 呃门

    呃门

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 明伦汇编家范典姊妹部

    明伦汇编家范典姊妹部

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 金箓十回度人晚朝开收仪

    金箓十回度人晚朝开收仪

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 妇人规

    妇人规

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • Glossary

    Glossary

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
热门推荐
  • 我的青春宣言

    我的青春宣言

    大家好,你以为我是个淑女,欧不,你猜错了,我是个暴力女!
  • 天启之后

    天启之后

    睡梦中,灵魂穿越回到了明朝天启年间,成了本来胎死腹中的皇太子——不和亲,不赔款,不割地,不纳贡。天子守国门,君王死社稷!各位看官,且看二十一世纪天朝小生,如何在百疴缠身的大明乱世中渐行渐远……有些历史爱好和穿越小情结,满纸荒唐,权作牢骚。小子一梦,不知所言。
  • 寻找轩辕剑

    寻找轩辕剑

    问苍茫大地,谁主沉浮?紫家少年紫天逃婚至泰山,欲寻得轩辕剑,决定自己婚事,怎料一场风云等着他?奸臣当道少年斩,乱麻情丝谁来理?正邪势不两立,试看正派侠义之士众志成城,力挽狂澜;还是妖邪冷血之徒支配人间?生与死,正与邪,情与义,命运的抗争,寻找中阻扰,阻扰中找寻,是是非非,错错对对。看少年如何在朋友、亲人、长辈、爱人帮助下,寻得轩辕剑,拯救万民于水火。
  • EXO之似水流年

    EXO之似水流年

    那时的我们都很小,不懂得所谓的爱恨情仇,没有一颗坚强的心。某个人的一句话,也许能让人看到希冀,也许会让人坠入谷底。我的高中生活,充满了无尽的背叛,无尽的黑暗,无尽的痛苦与失落。我曾以为他就是我的全世界,但他,却如同一把匕首,深深地插入了我的心脏。知道被朋友背叛的感觉吗?知道被爱人不信任的感觉吗?我曾渴望过的,得到过的,现在,都已经成为了幻影。我现在唯一能做的,就是不惜一切代价,把他,抢回来。『ET·LF』白寒笙
  • 相思谋:妃常难娶

    相思谋:妃常难娶

    某日某王府张灯结彩,婚礼进行时,突然不知从哪冒出来一个小孩,对着新郎道:“爹爹,今天您的大婚之喜,娘亲让我来还一样东西。”说完提着手中的玉佩在新郎面前晃悠。此话一出,一府宾客哗然,然当大家看清这小孩与新郎如一个模子刻出来的面容时,顿时石化。此时某屋顶,一个绝色女子不耐烦的声音响起:“儿子,事情办完了我们走,别在那磨矶,耽误时间。”新郎一看屋顶上的女子,当下怒火攻心,扔下新娘就往女子所在的方向扑去,吼道:“女人,你给本王站住。”一场爱与被爱的追逐正式开始、、、、、、、
  • 邪剑天武

    邪剑天武

    一个追求武道巅峰的少年,赖于资质受限,无法突破,只得挣扎在低层次。面对家族内部的冷嘲热讽,又有世家女的当众屈辱,少年该如何?是该报复?还是该忍气吞声?不,这些都不是他所想的。他决心要站在天武大陆的巅峰之上,俯瞰着芸芸众生,让当年羞辱他的人知道,莫欺少年穷!一把上古遗留的血红暗剑。一卷篆刻天下的神书天武。铺垫了一个强者的路。生死相斗,莫欺少年。剑锋指下,苍天可逆。天武榜主,何人能敌!何人能敌!
  • (完)皇上我错了续:老公,我错了!

    (完)皇上我错了续:老公,我错了!

    “呵…,输给宇文邕,我认了!可是你…你竟然和他做出这样的事!!!…”门开的霎那,落入他浅褐双眸的是凌乱的床帏与衣衫不整的两人,暧昧至极的相拥让他无法克制心底的撕痛。前世,他与这个女人生死绝恋,而今生,她竟与另一个男人弃爱而叛。“听我解释…你听我解释…”拉过散乱的衣衫,她无力地朝他转过的身扑去苦苦哀求,然而,他却并未止步。冰冰冷冷的话击碎了她一切的乞望:“借口!!…哈哈哈哈…”笑,凄迷在回廊中,千年的记忆若如音尘,弦断章终,总有它句号的那一日。今日,就是那一日么?…………【皇上,我错了!】视频地址:http://***.***/p48/v_OTE0NjQwNjk.html&pstyle=1http://***.***/p37/v_OTE1OTc0NjY.html?pstyle=1
  • 一只史莱姆

    一只史莱姆

    看似意外的事故,吴凡身死。然而,却是另一段生命的开始。世界的意识没有完整,刚刚发展的大陆上降临了被法则之力修正过的……史莱姆。一只史莱姆呀,一只史莱姆。
  • 相思谋:妃常难娶

    相思谋:妃常难娶

    某日某王府张灯结彩,婚礼进行时,突然不知从哪冒出来一个小孩,对着新郎道:“爹爹,今天您的大婚之喜,娘亲让我来还一样东西。”说完提着手中的玉佩在新郎面前晃悠。此话一出,一府宾客哗然,然当大家看清这小孩与新郎如一个模子刻出来的面容时,顿时石化。此时某屋顶,一个绝色女子不耐烦的声音响起:“儿子,事情办完了我们走,别在那磨矶,耽误时间。”新郎一看屋顶上的女子,当下怒火攻心,扔下新娘就往女子所在的方向扑去,吼道:“女人,你给本王站住。”一场爱与被爱的追逐正式开始、、、、、、、
  • 我是大魔头

    我是大魔头

    天地为棋盘,众生为棋子他跳出三界六道,不在阴阳五行,又是否可以逆天改命,摆脱命运束缚?