During the next day or two Reuben thought a great deal about Rose Lardner. He made covert enquiries about her in the neighbourhood. He found out that she was an orphan and old Lardner's only surviving relative. He was an extremely prosperous man, and at his death Rose would have all his money. Moreover, rumour gave him a cancer which would carry him off before very long."Indeed! very welland you are this young person's mother-in-law?" said the baroness, for the first time addressing Edith.
ONE:"By St. Nicholas! the prophet does not know you! Do you think he would have trusted you, if he had thought you would have skulked into a chapel to steal the very candlesticks from the holy altar!"
TWO:"Bring the water!Bring the water!" screamed Naomi, hardly knowing what she said."I want a parson," he moaned, throwing himself about the bed, and his terrors seemed to grow upon him as the darkness grew.
TWO:Rose approved of this attitudeshe liked to be envied; also Caro was useful to her in many ways, helping her[Pg 280] in the house, taking the burden of many irksome duties off her shoulders, leaving her free to entertain her friends or mix complexion washes. Moreover, there was something in Caro which appealed in itself, a certain heavy innocence which tickled the humour of the younger, more-experienced woman. Once her stepdaughter had asked her what it felt like to be kissed, which had sent Rose into rockings of laughter and a carnival of reminiscence. She liked to dazzle this elderly child with her "affairs," she liked to shock her a little too. She soon discovered that Caro was deeply scandalised at the thought of a married woman having men friends to visit her, so she encouraged the counter-jumpers and the clerks for Caro's benefit as well as Reuben's.
TWO:There was much turning of heads when Ben Backfield was seen to take his place with his children in their pew.... "Wot's he arter now?""Summat to do wud his farm you may be sartain.""He's heard about his gals and young Realf.""Ho, the wicked old sinner! I wish as Passon 'ud tip it to un straight.""O! swear, Roland! swear!" said Isabella, starting from her seat, and, forgetful of all save her own intense feelings, she clasped her hands on her husband's shoulder.
Polly and Meg and Kate and Nell"Do something for her! you canyou must."In the Court-house the beaten Conservatives heard the shouts and turned fiercelyon one another."Perhaps now you have enough boys?" he said rather truculently.
荣誉榜
THREE:The smith was here interrupted by a messenger from Richard, with a proclamation for the Commons to meet him the next morning in Smithfield, when they should have every thing they required.He also missed her in the househer soft pale face and gentle ways. He forgot the sallowness and the peevishness of later years, and pictured her always with creamy roseal skin and timid voice. He was the only one who missed her. Mrs. Backfield's softer feelings seemed to have been atrophied by hard workshe grew daily more and more like a machine; the children were too young to care much, and Harry was incapable of regret. However, the strange thing about Harry was that he did indeed seem to miss someone, but not Naomi. For the first time since little Fanny's death he began to ask for her, and search for her about the house"Where's the pretty baby?oh, save the pretty baby!" he would wail"she's gone, she's gonethe pretty baby's gone."
THREE:"I never asked.""But what is it," asked Black Jack, "that I shall add to the parchment?"
