CHAPTER IV

What vain weather-cocks we are! I, who had determined to hold myself independent of all social intercourse, and thanked my stars that, at length, I had lighted on a spot where it was next to impracticable—I, weak wretch, after maintaining till dusk a struggle with low spirits and solitude, was finally compelled to strike my colours; and under pretence of gaining information concerning the necessities of my establishment, I desired Mrs. Dean, when she brought in supper, to sit down while I ate it; hoping sincerely she would prove a regular gossip, and either rouse me to animation or lull me to sleep by her talk.

“You have lived here a considerable time,” I commenced; “did you not say sixteen years?”

“Eighteen, sir: I came when the mistress was married, to wait on her; after she died, the master retained me for his housekeeper.”

“Indeed.”

There ensued a pause. She was not a gossip, I feared; unless about her own affairs, and those could hardly interest me. However, having studied for an interval, with a fist on either knee, and a cloud of meditation over her ruddy countenance, she ejaculated—“Ah, times are greatly changed since then!”

“Yes,” I remarked, “you’ve seen a good many alterations, I suppose?”

“I have: and troubles too,” she said.

“Oh, I’ll turn the talk on my landlord’s family!” I thought to myself. “A good subject to start! And that pretty girl-widow, I should like to know her history: whether she be a native of the country, or, as is more probable, an exotic that the surly indigenae will not recognise for kin.” With this intention I asked Mrs. Dean why Heathcliff let Thrushcross Grange, and preferred living in a situation and residence so much inferior. “Is he not rich enough to keep the estate in good order?” I inquired.

“Rich, sir!” she returned. “He has nobody knows what money, and every year it increases. Yes, yes, he’s rich enough to live in a finer house than this: but he’s very near—close-handed; and, if he had meant to flit to Thrushcross Grange, as soon as he heard of a good tenant he could not have borne to miss the chance of getting a few hundreds more. It is strange people should be so greedy, when they are alone in the world!”

“He had a son, it seems?”

“Yes, he had one—he is dead.”

“And that young lady, Mrs. Heathcliff, is his widow?”

“Yes.”

“Where did she come from originally?”

“Why, sir, she is my late master’s daughter: Catherine Linton was her maiden name. I nursed her, poor thing! I did wish Mr. Heathcliff would remove here, and then we might have been together again.”

“What! Catherine Linton?” I exclaimed, astonished. But a minute’s reflection convinced me it was not my ghostly Catherine. “Then,” I continued, “my predecessor’s name was Linton?”

“It was.”

“And who is that Earnshaw: Hareton Earnshaw, who lives with Mr. Heathcliff? Are they relations?”

“No; he is the late Mrs. Linton’s nephew.”

“The young lady’s cousin, then?”

“Yes; and her husband was her cousin also: one on the mother’s, the other on the father’s side: Heathcliff married Mr. Linton’s sister.”

“I see the house at Wuthering Heights has ‘Earnshaw’ carved over the front door. Are they an old family?”

“Very old, sir; and Hareton is the last of them, as our Miss Cathy is of us—I mean, of the Lintons. Have you been to Wuthering Heights? I beg pardon for asking; but I should like to hear how she is!”

“Mrs. Heathcliff? she looked very well, and very handsome; yet, I think, not very happy.”

“Oh dear, I don’t wonder! And how did you like the master?”

“A rough fellow, rather, Mrs. Dean. Is not that his character?”

“Rough as a saw-edge, and hard as whinstone! The less you meddle with him the better.”

“He must have had some ups and downs in life to make him such a churl. Do you know anything of his history?”

“It’s a cuckoo’s, sir—I know all about it: except where he was born, and who were his parents, and how he got his money at first. And Hareton has been cast out like an unfledged dunnock! The unfortunate lad is the only one in all this parish that does not guess how he has been cheated.”

“Well, Mrs. Dean, it will be a charitable deed to tell me something of my neighbours: I feel I shall not rest if I go to bed; so be good enough to sit and chat an hour.”

“Oh, certainly, sir! I’ll just fetch a little sewing, and then I’ll sit as long as you please. But you’ve caught cold: I saw you shivering, and you must have some gruel to drive it out.”

The worthy woman bustled off, and I crouched nearer the fire; my head felt hot, and the rest of me chill: moreover, I was excited, almost to a pitch of foolishness, through my nerves and brain. This caused me to feel, not uncomfortable, but rather fearful (as I am still) of serious effects from the incidents of to-day and yesterday. She returned presently, bringing a smoking basin and a basket of work; and, having placed the former on the hob, drew in her seat, evidently pleased to find me so companionable.

* * * * *

第4章

我们真地都是些徒有其表、随风摇摆的风向标！我本来下定决心拒绝一切社交活动，谢天谢地，我最终落脚在一个近乎不切实际的地点——我，一个可怜的软蛋，情绪消沉、孤独寂寞，内心一直挣扎着到黄昏，最后还是被迫举起白旗表示投降。丁太太把晚饭送来时，我假装向她打听有关我住所的生活所需，吃饭时让她坐下来陪着我，诚恳希望她是个正儿八经爱嚼舌根的碎嘴子，这样她的话不是令我兴奋活泼，就是催我早些入眠。

“你在这儿住很久了吧，”我开始说，“你不是说有十六年了吗？”

“十八年啦，先生。太太结婚时，我过来伺候她。她去世后，主人就把我留下来当他的管家了。”

“原来是这样。”

接着是一阵静默。我想她不是个碎嘴子，除非谈到她自己的事，而那些事又提不起我的兴致。但是，她沉思了一会，把一只拳头放在膝上，她那红红的脸上罩着一层沉思的阴云，突然失声叹道：

“啊，从那时起，世事变得太厉害啦！”

“是的，”我说，“我想你一定经历过许多变化吧？”

“我都经历过，还有不少烦恼呢。”她说。

“啊，我要把谈话内容转到我房东家里来了！”我自忖着。“这倒是个很好的话头！还有那个漂亮的小寡妇，我很想了解她的过去。不管她是不是本地人，或者她更可能是个外路人，本地人都太傲慢，不认她这门亲。”这样想着，我问丁太太，为什么黑思克里夫出租画眉田庄，宁可住在一个位置与住房条件都相对差很多的地方。“他难道还不够有钱把房产好好整修一下吗？”我问。

“有钱，先生！”她回答，“谁也不知道他有多少钱，而且钱数每年还在不断增加。是啊，他有足够的钱住一所比这更好的房子。可是他有点——手头紧。而且，假使他有意搬到画眉田庄的话，他一听见有个好房客，他就绝不会放弃这个多挣几百的机会。有的人孤孤单单地活在这世上，可还要这么贪财，真叫人想不通！”

“好像他有过儿子吧？”

“是的，有过一个儿子——他死啦。”

“那位年轻的太太，黑思克里夫太太，是他的遗孀吧？”

“是的。”

“她原先从哪儿来？”

“哪，先生，她是我那已过世主人的女儿——阚思睿•林腾是她做姑娘时的名字，林腾是娘家姓。是我一手把她带大的，可怜的小冤家！我真希望黑思克里夫先生搬到这儿来，那样我们娘俩又可以在一起了。”

“你说啥？阚思睿•林腾！”我大为吃惊地叫道，可是只经过片刻回想，我就相信那不是我那鬼魂般的阚思睿了。“那么，”我接着说，“我之前的房东是姓林腾吗？”

“是的。”

“那，俄韶——海瑞腾•俄韶，就是和黑思克里夫先生同住的俄韶又是谁？他们是亲戚吗？”

“不，他是已过世林腾太太的侄子。”

“那么，他是那年轻太太的表哥？”

“是的，她的丈夫也就是她的表弟——一个是母亲的内侄，一个是父亲的外甥；黑思克里夫娶了林腾的妹妹。”

“我看见呼啸山庄房子正门上刻着‘俄韶’这个字。他们是个古老的世家吧？”

“很古老，先生，他们家族就剩下海瑞腾最后一个了，就像我们的阚思小姐也是我们家族最后一个——我意思是说林腾家族的最后一个。你已到过呼啸山庄了吧？我冒昧地问一句，我很想听听她现在怎么样了！”

“黑思克里夫太太吗？她看上去很好，人长得很漂亮。可是，我想，她不太快乐。”

“哎呀，那我倒不奇怪！你看那位主人怎么样？”

“简直是个粗糙的家伙，丁太太。他就是那样性格吗？”

“像锯齿一样粗糙，像岩石一样坚硬！你越少跟他来往，对你就越有好处。”

“他这辈子生活上肯定经历过不少起起伏伏，才使他变得这样粗鄙吧。你了解他过去的一些事情吗？”

“他的一生好比布谷鸟（注：布谷鸟不筑巢，把蛋下到喜鹊窝里，蛋孵出后，小布谷鸟会把喜鹊的蛋推出喜鹊窝，让喜鹊妈妈喂养），先生——除了他的出生地、亲生父母以及他当初如何发了财这些我不知道，其他有关他的事情我全知道。海瑞腾就像个羽毛还没长齐全的篱雀儿给扔了出去！在整个教区里这可怜的孩子，只有他自己想象不到是怎么被骗的呢。”

“啊，丁太太，请告诉我一些有关我的这些邻里们的故事吧，你这等于在做一桩好事。我觉得要是现在上床去睡，我也睡不踏实，所以你就做回好人，坐下和我聊个把钟头吧。”

“啊，没问题，先生！我先取些针线活，然后你高兴要我坐多久，我就坐多久。可是你感冒啦——我看你浑身直打哆嗦，你得喝点粥把寒气赶出来。”这位令人钦佩的太太匆忙走开了，我蜷缩到离炉火更近的地方。我的头感觉很烫，浑身发冷——而且我的神经和大脑受到刺激，几乎有些犯傻。这让我觉得并非不舒服，而是更感觉到害怕（直到现在还害怕），担心今天和昨天所发生的事情会带给我什么严重后果。没过一会儿她就回来了，带来一个冒着热气的盆，还有一个针线笸箩。她把盆放在炉台上，拉过椅子，显然很高兴发现，我这个人还算好相处。