【国外英文文学】Miss Billie's Decision.docx

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1、【国外英文文学】Miss Billies DecisionMiss Billies Decisionby Eleanor H. PorterTOMy Cousin Helen CONTENTSCHAPTER I. CALDERWELL DOES SOME TALKINGII. AUNT HANNAH GETS A LETTERIII. BILLY AND BERTRAMIV. FOR MARY JANEV. MARIE SPEAKS HER MINDVI. AT THE SIGN OF THE PINKVII. OLD FRIENDS AND NEWVIII. M. J. OPENS THE

2、GAMEIX. A RUG, A PICTURE, AND A GIRL AFRAIDX. A JOB FOR PETE-AND FOR BERTRAMXI. A CLOCK AND AUNT HANNAHXII. SISTER KATEXIII. CYRIL AND A WEDDINGXIV. M. J. MAKES ANOTHER MOVEXV. MR. BILLY AND MISS MARY JANEXVI. A GIRL AND A BIT OF LOWESTOFTXVII. ONLY A LOVE SONG, BUT-XVIII. SUGARPLUMSXIX. ALICE GREGG

3、ORYXX. ARKWRIGHT TELLS A STORYXXI. A MATTER OF STRAIGHT BUSINESSXXII. PLANS AND PLOTTINGSXXIII. THE CAUSE AND BERTRAMXXIV. THE ARTIST AND HIS ARTXXV. THE OPERETTAXXVI. ARKWRIGHT TELLS ANOTHER STORYXXVII. THE THING THAT WAS THE TRUTHXXVIII. BILLY TAKES HER TURNXXIX. KATE WRITES A LETTERXXX. IVE HINDE

4、RED HIMXXXI. FLIGHTXXXII. PETE TO THE RESCUEXXXIII. BERTRAM TAKES THE REINSMiss Billys DecisionCHAPTER ICALDERWELL DOES SOME TALKINGCalderwell had met Mr. M. J. Arkwright in London through a common friend; since then they had tramped half over Europe together in a comradeship that was as delightful

5、as it was unusual. As Calderwell put it in a letter to his sister, Belle:We smoke the same cigar and drink the same tea (hes just as much of an old woman on that subject as I am!), and we agree beautifully on all necessary points of living, from tipping to late sleeping in the morning; while as for

6、politics and religion-we disagree in those just enough to lend spice to an otherwise tame existence.Farther along in this same letter Calderwell touched upon his new friend again.I admit, however, I would like to know his name. To find out what that mysterious M. J. stands for has got to be pretty n

7、early an obsession with me. I am about ready to pick his pocket or rifle his trunk in search of some lurking Martin or John that will set me at peace. As it is, I confess that I have ogled his incoming mail and his outgoing baggage shamelessly, only to be slapped in the face always and everlastingly

8、 by that bland M. J. Ive got my revenge, now, though. To myself I call him Mary Jane- and his broad-shouldered, brown-bearded six feet of muscular manhood would so like to be called Mary Jane! By the way, Belle, if you ever hear of murder and sudden death in my direction, better set the sleuths on t

9、he trail of Arkwright. Six to one youll find I called him Mary Jane to his face!Calderwell was thinking of that letter now, as he sat at a small table in a Paris caf. Opposite him was the six feet of muscular manhood, broad shoulders, pointed brown beard, and all-and he had just addressed it, inadve

10、rtently, as Mary Jane.During the brief, sickening moment of silence after the name had left his lips, Calderwell was conscious of a whimsical realization of the lights, music, and laughter all about him.Well, I chose as safe a place as I could! he was thinking. Then Arkwright spoke.How long since yo

11、uve been in correspondence with members of my family?Eh?Arkwright laughed grimly.Perhaps you thought of it yourself, then- Ill admit youre capable of it, he nodded, reaching for a cigar. But it so happens you hit upon my familys favorite name for me._Mary Jane!_ You mean they actually _call_ you tha

12、t?Yes, bowed the big fellow, calmly, as he struck a light. Appropriate!-dont you think?Calderwell did not answer. He thought he could not.Well, silence gives consent, they say, laughed the other. Anyhow, you must have had _some_ reason for calling me that.Arkwright, what _does_ M. J. stand for? dema

13、nded Calderwell.Oh, is that it? smiled the man opposite. Well, Ill own those initials have been something of a puzzle to people. One man declares theyre Merely Jokes; but another, not so friendly, says they stand for Mostly Jealousy of more fortunate chaps who have real names for a handle. My small

14、brothers and sisters, discovering, with the usual perspicacity of ones family on such matters, that I never signed, or called myself anything but M. J., dubbed me Mary Jane. And there you have it.Mary Jane! You!Arkwright smiled oddly.Oh, well, whats the difference? Would you deprive them of their in

15、nocent amusement? And they do so love that Mary Jane! Besides, whats in a name, anyway? he went on, eyeing the glowing tip of the cigar between his fingers. A rose by any other name-youve heard that, probably. Names dont always signify, my dear fellow. For instance, I know a Billy-but hes a girl.Cal

16、derwell gave a sudden start.You dont mean Billy-Neilson?The other turned sharply.Do _you_ know Billy Neilson?Calderwell gave his friend a glance from scornful eyes.Do I know Billy Neilson? he cried. Does a fellow usually know the girl hes proposed to regularly once in three months? Oh, I know Im tel

17、ling tales out of school, of course, he went on, in response to the look that had come into the brown eyes opposite. But whats the use? Everybody knows it-that knows us. Billy herself got so she took it as a matter of course-and refused as a matter of course, too; just as she would refuse a serving

18、of apple pie at dinner, if she hadnt wanted it.Apple pie! scouted Arkwright.Calderwell shrugged his shoulders.My dear fellow, you dont seem to realize it, but for the last six months you have been assisting at the obsequies of a dead romance.Indeed! And is it-buried, yet?Oh, no, sighed Calderwell, c

19、heerfully. I shall go back one of these days, Ill warrant, and begin the same old game again; though I will acknowledge that the last refusal was so very decided that its been a year, almost, since I received it. I think I was really convinced, for a while, that-that she didnt want that apple pie, h

20、e finished with a whimsical lightness that did not quite coincide with the stern lines that had come to his mouth.For a moment there was silence, then Calderwell spoke again.Where did you know-Miss Billy?Oh, I dont know her at all. I know of her- through Aunt Hannah.Calderwell sat suddenly erect.Aun

21、t Hannah! Is she your aunt, too? Jove! This _is_ a little old world, after all; isnt it?She isnt my aunt. Shes my mothers third cousin. None of us have seen her for years, but she writes to mother occasionally; and, of course, for some time now, her letters have been running over full of Billy. She

22、lives with her, I believe; doesnt she?She does, rejoined Calderwell, with an unexpected chuckle. I wonder if you know how she happened to live with her, at first.Why, no, I reckon not. What do you mean?Calderwell chuckled again.Well, Ill tell you. You, being a Mary Jane, ought to appreciate it. You

23、see, Billy was named for one William Henshaw, her fathers chum, who promptly forgot all about her. At eighteen, Billy, being left quite alone in the world, wrote to Uncle William and asked to come and live with him.Well?But it wasnt well. William was a forty-year- old widower who lived with two youn

24、ger brothers, an old butler, and a Chinese cook in one of those funny old Beacon Street houses in Boston. The Strata, Bertram called it. Bright boy-Bertram!The Strata!Yes. I wish you could see that house, Arkwright. Its a regular layer cake. Cyril-hes the second brother; must be thirty-four or five

25、now-lives on the top floor in a rugless, curtainless, music-mad existence-just a plain crank. Below him comes William. William collects things -everything from tenpenny nails to teapots, I should say, and theyre all there in his rooms. Farther down somewhere comes Bertram. Hes _the_ Bertram Henshaw,

26、 you understand; the artist.Not the Face-of-a-Girl Henshaw?The same; only of course four years ago he wasnt quite so well known as he is now. Well, to resume and go on. It was into this house, this masculine paradise ruled over by Pete and Dong Ling in the kitchen, that Billys nave request for a hom

27、e came.Great Scott! breathed Arkwright, appreciatively.Yes. Well, the letter was signed Billy. They took her for a boy, naturally, and after something of a struggle they agreed to let him come. For his particular delectation they fixed up a room next to Bertram with guns and fishing rods, and such l

28、adylike specialties; and William went to the station to meet the boy.With never a suspicion?With never a suspicion.Gorry!Well, he came, and she conquered. I guess things were lively for a while, though. Oh, there was a kitten, too, I believe, Spunk, who added to the gayety of nations.But what did th

29、e Henshaws do?Well, I wasnt there, of course; but Bertram says they spun around like tops gone mad for a time, but finally quieted down enough to summon a married sister for immediate propriety, and to establish Aunt Hannah for permanency the next day.So thats how it happened! Well, by George! cried

30、 Arkwright.Yes, nodded the other. So you see there are untold possibilities just in a name. Remember that. Just suppose _you_, as Mary Jane, should beg a home in a feminine household-say in Miss Billys, for instance!Id like to, retorted Arkwright, with sudden warmth.Calderwell stared a little.The ot

31、her laughed shamefacedly.Oh, its only that I happen to have a devouring curiosity to meet that special young lady. I sing her songs (you know shes written some dandies!), Ive heard a lot about her, and Ive seen her picture. (He did not add that he had also purloined that same picture from his mother

32、s bureau-the picture being a gift from Aunt Hannah.) So you see I would, indeed, like to occupy a corner in the fair Miss Billys household. I could write to Aunt Hannah and beg a home with her, you know; eh?Of course! Why dont you-Mary Jane? laughed Calderwell. Billyd take you all right. Shes had a

33、little Miss Hawthorn, a music teacher, there for months. Shes always doing stunts of that sort. Belle writes me that shes had a dozen forlornites there all this last summer, two or three at a time-tired widows, lonesome old maids, and crippled kids-just to give them a royal good time. So you see she

34、d take you, without a doubt. Jove! what a pair youd make: Miss Billy and Mr. Mary Jane! Youd drive the suffragettes into conniption fits-just by the sound of you!Arkwright laughed quietly; then he frowned.But how about it? he asked. I thought she was keeping house with Aunt Hannah. Didnt she stay at

35、 all with the Henshaws?Oh, yes, a few months. I never knew just why she did leave, but I fancied, from something Billy herself said once, that she discovered she was creating rather too much of an upheaval in the Strata. So she took herself off. She went to school, and travelled considerably. She wa

36、s over here when I met her first. After that she was with us all one summer on the yacht. A couple of years ago, or so, she went back to Boston, bought a house and settled down with Aunt Hannah.And shes not married-or even engaged?Wasnt the last I heard. I havent seen her since December, and Ive hea

37、rd from her only indirectly. She corresponds with my sister, and so do I-intermittently. I heard a month ago from Belle, and _she_ had a letter from Billy in August. But I heard nothing of any engagement.How about the Henshaws? I should think there might be a chance there for a romance- a charming g

38、irl, and three unattached men.Calderwell gave a slow shake of the head.I dont think so. William is-let me see- nearly forty-five, I guess, by this time; and he isnt a marrying man. He buried his heart with his wife and baby years ago. Cyril, according to Bertram, hates women and all other confusion,

39、 so that ought to let him out. As for Bertram himself-Bertram is only Bertram. Hes always been that. Bertram loves girls-to paint; but I cant imagine him making serious love to any one. It would always be the tilt of a chin or the turn of a cheek that he was admiring-to paint.No, theres no chance fo

40、r a romance there, Ill warrant.But theres-yourself.Calderwells eyebrows rose the fraction of an inch.Oh, of course. I presume January or February will find me back there, he admitted with a sigh and a shrug. Then, a little bitterly, he added: No, Arkwright. I shall keep away if I can. I _know_ there

41、s no chance for me-now.Then youll leave me a clear field? bantered the other.Of course-Mary Jane, retorted Calderwell, with equal lightness.Thank you.Oh, you neednt, laughed Calderwell. My giving you the right of way doesnt insure you a thoroughfare for yourself-there are others, you know. Billy Nei

42、lson has had sighing swains about I her, I imagine, since she could walk and talk. She is a wonderfully fascinating little bit of femininity, and she has a heart of pure gold. All is, I envy the man who wins it-for the man who wins that, wins her.There was no answer. Arkwright sat with his eyes on t

43、he moving throng outside the window near them. Perhaps he had not heard. At all events, when he spoke some time later, it was of a matter far removed from Miss Billy Neilson, or the way to her heart. Nor was the young lady mentioned between them again that day.Long hours later, just before parting f

44、or the night, Arkwright said:Calderwell, Im sorry, but I believe, after all, I cant take that trip to the lakes with you. I- Im going home next week.Home! Hang it, Arkwright! Id counted on you. Isnt this rather sudden?Yes, and no. Ill own Ive been drifting about with you contentedly enough for the l

45、ast six months to make you think mountain-climbing and boat-paddling were the end and aim of my existence. But they arent, you know, really.Nonsense! At heart youre as much of a vagabond as I am; and you know it.Perhaps. But unfortunately I dont happen to carry your pocketbook.You may, if you like. Ill hand it over any time, grinned Calderwell.Thanks. You know well enough what I mean, shrugged the other.There was a moments silence; then Calderwell queried:Arkwright, how old are you?