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an international episode-第8节

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said Percy Beaumont。



〃Well; I do!〃  Mrs。 Westgate declared; and she turned to her sister。

〃You know you have to go to town。  The phaeton is there。

You had better take Lord Lambeth。〃



At this point Percy Beaumont certainly looked straight at his kinsman;

he tried to catch his eye。  But Lord Lambeth would not look at him; his own

eyes were better occupied。  〃I shall be very happy;〃 cried Bessie Alden。

〃I am only going to some shops。  But I will drive you about and show

you the place。〃



〃An American woman who respects herself;〃 said Mrs。 Westgate;

turning to Beaumont with her bright expository air; 〃must buy

something every day of her life。  If she can not do it herself;

she must send out some member of her family for the purpose。

So Bessie goes forth to fulfill my mission。〃



The young girl had walked away; with Lord Lambeth by her side;

to whom she was talking still; and Percy Beaumont watched them

as they passed toward the house。  〃She fulfills her own mission;〃

he presently said; 〃that of being a very attractive young lady。〃



〃I don't know that I should say very attractive;〃 Mrs。 Westgate rejoined。

〃She is not so much that as she is charming when you really know her。

She is very shy。〃



〃Oh; indeed!〃 said Percy Beaumont。



〃Extremely shy;〃 Mrs。 Westgate repeated。  〃But she is a dear good girl; she is

a charming species of girl。  She is not in the least a flirt; that isn't

at all her line; she doesn't know the alphabet of that sort of thing。

She is very simple; very serious。  She has lived a great deal in Boston;

with another sister of minethe eldest of uswho married a Bostonian。

She is very cultivated; not at all like me; I am not in the least cultivated。

She has studied immensely and read everything; she is what they call

in Boston 'thoughtful。'〃



〃A rum sort of girl for Lambeth to get hold of!〃 his lordship's

kinsman privately reflected。



〃I really believe;〃 Mrs。 Westgate continued; 〃that the most charming

girl in the world is a Boston superstructure upon a New York fonds;

or perhaps a New York superstructure upon a Boston fonds。  At any rate;

it's the mixture;〃 said Mrs。 Westgate; who continued to give Percy

Beaumont a great deal of information。



Lord Lambeth got into a little basket phaeton with Bessie Alden;

and she drove him down the long avenue; whose extent he had

measured on foot a couple of hours before; into the ancient town;

as it was called in that part of the world; of Newport。  The ancient

town was a curious affaira collection of fresh…looking little

wooden houses; painted white; scattered over a hillside and clustered

about a long straight street paved with enormous cobblestones。

There were plenty of shopsa large proportion of which appeared

to be those of fruit vendors; with piles of huge watermelons and

pumpkins stacked in front of them; and; drawn up before the shops;

or bumping about on the cobblestones; were innumerable other basket

phaetons freighted with ladies of high fashion; who greeted each other

from vehicle to vehicle and conversed on the edge of the pavement

in a manner that struck Lord Lambeth as demonstrative; with a great

many 〃Oh; my dears;〃 and little quick exclamations and caresses。

His companion went into seventeen shopshe amused himself with

counting themand accumulated at the bottom of the phaeton a pile

of bundles that hardly left the young Englishman a place for his feet。

As she had no groom nor footman; he sat in the phaeton to hold

the ponies; where; although he was not a particularly acute observer;

he saw much to entertain himespecially the ladies just mentioned;

who wandered up and down with the appearance of a kind of aimless

intentness; as if they were looking for something to buy; and who;

tripping in and out of their vehicles; displayed remarkably pretty feet。

It all seemed to Lord Lambeth very odd; and bright; and gay。

Of course; before they got back to the villa; he had had a great

deal of desultory conversation with Bessie Alden。



The young Englishmen spent the whole of that day and the whole

of many successive days in what the French call the intimite

of their new friends。  They agreed that it was extremely jolly;

that they had never known anything more agreeable。

It is not proposed to narrate minutely the incidents

of their sojourn on this charming shore; though if it were

convenient I might present a record of impressions nonetheless

delectable that they were not exhaustively analyzed。

Many of them still linger in the minds of our travelers;

attended by a train of harmonious imagesimages of brilliant

mornings on lawns and piazzas that overlooked the sea;

of innumerable pretty girls; of infinite lounging and talking

and laughing and flirting and lunching and dining; of universal

friendliness and frankness; of occasions on which they knew

everyone and everything and had an extraordinary sense of ease;

of drives and rides in the late afternoon over gleaming beaches;

on long sea roads; beneath a sky lighted up by marvelous sunsets;

of suppers; on the return; informal; irregular; agreeable;

of evenings at open windows or on the perpetual verandas;

in the summer starlight; above the warm Atlantic。

The young Englishmen were introduced to everybody;

entertained by everybody; intimate with everybody。  At the end

of three days they had removed their luggage from the hotel

and had gone to stay with Mrs。 Westgatea step to which Percy

Beaumont at first offered some conscientious opposition。

I call his opposition conscientious; because it was founded upon

some talk that he had had; on the second day; with Bessie Alden。

He had indeed had a good deal of talk with her; for she

was not literally always in conversation with Lord Lambeth。

He had meditated upon Mrs。 Westgate's account of her sister;

and he discovered for himself that the young lady was clever;

and appeared to have read a great deal。  She seemed very nice;

though he could not make out; as Mrs。 Westgate had said; she was shy。

If she was shy; she carried it off very well。



〃Mr。 Beaumont;〃 she had said; 〃please tell me something about Lord

Lambeth's family。  How would you say it in Englandhis position?〃



〃His position?〃  Percy Beaumont repeated。



〃His rank; or whatever you call it。  Unfortunately we haven't got

a PEERAGE; like the people in Thackeray。〃



〃That's a great pity;〃 said Beaumont。  〃You would find it all set

forth there so much better than I can do it。〃



〃He is a peer; then?〃



〃Oh; yes; he is a peer。〃



〃And has he any other title than Lord Lambeth?〃



〃His title is the Marquis of Lambeth;〃 said Beaumont; and then he was silent。

Bessie Alden appeared to be looking at him with interest。  〃He is the son

of the Duke of Bayswater;〃 he added presently。



〃The eldest son?〃



〃The only son。〃



〃And are his parents living?〃



〃Oh yes; if his father were not living he would be a duke。〃



〃So that when his father dies;〃 pursued Bessie Alden with more

simplicity than might have been expected in a clever girl;

〃he will become Duke of Bayswater?〃



〃Of course;〃 said Percy Beaumont。  〃But his father is in excellent health。〃



〃And his mother?〃



Beaumont smiled a little。  〃The duchess is uncommonly robust。〃



〃And has he any sisters?〃



〃Yes; there are two。〃



〃And what are they called?〃



〃One of them is married。  She is the Countess of Pimlico。〃



〃And the other?〃



〃The other is unmarried; she is plain Lady Julia。〃



Bessie Alden looked at him a moment。  〃Is she very plain?〃



Beaumont began to laugh again。  〃You would not find her so handsome as

her brother;〃 he said; and it was after this that he attempted to dissuade

the heir of the Duke of Bayswater from accepting Mrs。 Westgate's invitation。

〃Depend upon it;〃 he said; 〃that girl means to try for you。〃



〃It seems to me you are doing your best to make a fool of me;〃

the modest young nobleman answered。



〃She has been asking me;〃 said Beaumont; 〃all about your people

and your possessions。〃



〃I am sure it is very good of her!〃  Lord Lambeth rejoined。



〃Well; then;〃 observed his companion; 〃if you go; you go

with your eyes open。〃



〃Damn my eyes!〃 exclaimed Lord Lambeth。  〃If one is to be a dozen times

a day at the house; it is a great deal more convenient to sleep there。

I am sick of traveling up and down this beastly avenue。〃



Since he had determined to go; Percy Beaumont would; of course;

have been very sorry to allow him to go alone; he was a man

of conscience; and he remembered his promise to the duchess。

It was obviously the memory of this promise that made him say

to his companion a couple of days later that he rather wondered

he should be so fond of that girl。



〃In the first place; how do you know how fond I am of her?〃

asked Lord Lambeth。  〃And; in the second place; why shouldn't

I be fond of her?〃



〃I shouldn't think she would be i

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