Vanity Fair

第127章

So,pleasedherself,shetriedwithallhermighttopleaseeverybody;andweknowthatshewaseminentandsuccessfulasapractitionerintheartofgivingpleasure。AsforJos,eveninthatlittleinterviewinthegarretattheElephantInn,shehadfoundmeanstowinbackagreatdealofhisgood-will。Inthecourseofaweek,thecivilianwasherswornslaveandfranticadmirer。Hedidn’tgotosleepafterdinner,ashiscustomwasinthemuchlesslivelysocietyofAmelia。HedroveoutwithBeckyinhisopencarriage。Heaskedlittlepartiesandinventedfestivitiestodoherhonour。

Tapeworm,theCharged’Affaires,whohadabusedhersocruelly,cametodinewithJos,andthencameeverydaytopayhisrespectstoBecky。PoorEmmy,whowasneververytalkative,andmoreglumandsilentthaneverafterDobbin’sdeparture,wasquiteforgottenwhenthissuperiorgeniusmadeherappearance。TheFrenchMinisterwasasmuchcharmedwithherashisEnglishrival。

TheGermanladies,neverparticularlysqueamishasregardsmorals,especiallyinEnglishpeople,weredelightedwiththeclevernessandwitofMrs。Osborne’scharmingfriend,andthoughshedidnotasktogotoCourt,yetthemostaugustandTransparentPersonagesthereheardofherfascinationsandwerequitecurioustoknowher。Whenitbecameknownthatshewasnoble,ofanancientEnglishfamily,thatherhusbandwasaColoneloftheGuard,ExcellenzandGovernorofanisland,onlyseparatedfromhisladybyoneofthosetriflingdifferenceswhichareoflittleaccountinacountrywhereWertherisstillreadandtheWahlverwandtschaftenofGoetheisconsideredanedifyingmoralbook,nobodythoughtofrefusingtoreceiveherintheveryhighestsocietyofthelittleDuchy;andtheladieswereevenmorereadytocallherduandtosweareternalfriendshipforherthantheyhadbeentobestowthesameinestimablebenefitsuponAmelia。LoveandLibertyareinterpretedbythosesimpleGermansinawaywhichhonestfolksinYorkshireandSomersetshirelittleunderstand,andaladymight,insomephilosophicandcivilizedtowns,bedivorcedeversomanytimesfromherrespectivehusbandsandkeephercharacterinsociety。Jos’shouseneverwassopleasantsincehehadahouseofhisownasRebeccacausedittobe。Shesang,sheplayed,shelaughed,shetalkedintwoorthreelanguages,shebroughteverybodytothehouse,andshemadeJosbelievethatitwashisowngreatsocialtalentsandwitwhichgatheredthesocietyoftheplaceroundabouthim。

AsforEmmy,whofoundherselfnotintheleastmistressofherownhouse,exceptwhenthebillsweretobepaid,Beckysoondiscoveredthewaytosootheandpleaseher。ShetalkedtoherperpetuallyaboutMajorDobbinsentabouthisbusiness,andmadenoscrupleofdeclaringheradmirationforthatexcellent,high-

mindedgentleman,andoftellingEmmythatshehadbehavedmostcruellyregardinghim。Emmydefendedherconductandshowedthatitwasdictatedonlybythepurestreligiousprinciples;thatawomanonce,&c。,andtosuchanangelashimwhomshehadhadthegoodfortunetomarry,wasmarriedforever;butshehadnoobjectiontoheartheMajorpraisedasmuchaseverBeckychosetopraisehim,andindeed,broughttheconversationroundtotheDobbinsubjectascoreoftimeseveryday。

MeanswereeasilyfoundtowinthefavourofGeorgyandtheservants。Amelia’smaid,ithasbeensaid,washeartandsoulinfavourofthegenerousMajor。HavingatfirstdislikedBeckyforbeingthemeansofdismissinghimfromthepresenceofhermistress,shewasreconciledtoMrs。Crawleysubsequently,becausethelatterbecameWilliam’smostardentadmirerandchampion。Andinthosenightlyconclavesinwhichthetwoladiesindulgedaftertheirparties,andwhileMissPaynewas“brushingtheir’airs。”asshecalledtheyellowlocksoftheoneandthesoftbrowntressesoftheother,thisgirlalwaysputinherwordforthatdeargoodgentlemanMajorDobbin。HeradvocacydidnotmakeAmeliaangryanymorethanRebecca’sadmirationofhim。ShemadeGeorgewritetohimconstantlyandpersistedinsendingMamma’skindloveinapostscript。Andasshelookedatherhusband’sportraitofnights,itnolongerreproachedher——perhapsshereproachedit,nowWilliamwasgone。

Emmywasnotveryhappyafterherheroicsacrifice。

Shewasverydistraite,nervous,silent,andilltoplease。

Thefamilyhadneverknownhersopeevish。Shegrewpaleandill。Sheusedtotrytosingcertainso

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