牛津书虫系列版第6级4苔丝

1、本书于 txtba 小说吧，读者预览，如喜欢请正版如果认站了您的权益,请来信告知,我们会立即删除!小说请关注The Maiden1One evening at the end of May a middle-aged man was walking home from Shaston to the village of Marlott in the Vale of BlackmoorHis legs were thin and weak，and he could not walk in a straight lineHe had an empty egg-basket on his arm，

2、and his hat was old and wornAfter a while he passed an elderly parson riding a grey horseGood night，said the man with the basketGood night，Sir John，said the parsonAfter another step or two the man stopped and turned round to speak to the parsonNow，sir，last market-day we met on this road at the same

3、time，and I said “Good night”and you answered“Good night，Sir John，”as you did just nowI did，said the parsonAnd once before that，almost a month agoI may haveSo why do you call me Sir John，when I am only John Durbeyfield？The parson rode nearer，and after a moment's hesitation，explained：It was becaus

4、e I've discovered something of historical interest I am Parson Tringham ， the historianDo you really not know，Durbeyfield，that you are a direct descendant of the ancient and noble family of the dUrbervilles？They descended from Sir Pagan d Urberville，who came from Normandy with William the Conque

5、ror in 1066Never heard that before，sir！Well，it's trueLet me see your faceYes， you have the dUrberville nose and chinDUrbervilles have owned land and served their King for hundreds ofyearsThere have been many Sir Johns，and you could have been Sir John yourselfWell！exclaimed the manAnd how long ha

6、s this news about me been known， Parson Tringham？Nobody knows about it at all，said the parsonI just happened to discover it last spring，when I was trying to find out more about the dUrbervilles and noticed your name in the villageI've got an old silver spoon，and an old seal too at home，said the

7、man， wonderingSo where do we d”Urbervilles live now，Parson？You don't live anywhereYou have died，as a noble familyThat's badSo where do we lie？In the churchyard at Kingsbere-sub-GreenhillAnd where are our family lands？You haven't anyJohn Durbeyfield pausedAnd what should I do about it，sir

8、？Oh，nothingIt's a fact of historical interest，nothing moreGood nightBut you'll come and have some beer with me，Parson Tringham？No，thank you，not this evening，DurbeyfieldYou've had enough alreadyThe parson rode away，half regretting that he had told Durbeyfield of his discoveryDurbeyfield w

9、alked on a few steps in a dream，then sat down with his basketIn a few minutes a boy appearedDurbeyfield called to himBoy！Take this basket！I want you to go and do something for meThe boy frownedWho are you，John Durbeyfield，to order me about and call me“boy”？You know my name as well as I know yours！Do

10、 you，do you？That's the secret！Well，Fred，I don't mind telling you that the secret is that I'm one of a noble familyAnd Durbeyfield lay back comfortably on the grassSir John dUrberville，that's who I amAnd I've got the family seal to prove it！Oh？Now take up the basket，and tell them

11、in the village to send a horse and carriage to me immediatelyHere's a shilling for youThis made a difference to the boy's view of the situationYes，Sir JohnThank you，Sir JohnAs they spoke，sounds of music came through the evening air from the villageWhat's that？said DurbeyfieldHave they he

12、ard my news already？It's the women dancing，Sir JohnThe boy went on his way and Durbeyfield lay waiting in the evening sunNobody passed by for a long time，and he could just hear the faint music in the distanceThe village of Marlott lies in the beautiful Vale of BlackmoorAlthough this valley is on

13、ly four hours away from London，it has not yet been discovered by tourists and artistsThe best view of the vale is from the hills surrounding it；it looks like a map spread outIt is a quiet，sheltered part of the countryside，where the fields are always green and the rivers never dry upTo the south lies

14、 the great dividing line of hillsFrom here to the coast the hills are open，the sun pours down on the huge dry fields，the atmosphere is colourlessBut here in the valley lies a completely different countryside，smaller and more delicateThe fields are tiny，the air makes you sleepy， the sky is of the dee

15、pest blueEverywhere you can see a rich greenery of grass andtrees，coverinaller hills and valleysThis is the Vale of BlackmoorAnd in the village of Marlott，following ancient custom，the young women gathered to dance every holiday For this May- Day dance，all wore white dressesThere was a fine，handsome

16、girl among them，with a red ribbon in her hairAs they danced，they noticed a carriage go by Durbeyfield lay back in it，singing，I'mSirJohn andI'vegotaspoonandsealandmyfamilyliesatKingsbere！ The girl with the ribbon，who was called Tess，turned red and said quickly to her friends，Father's tire

17、d，that's allThe other girls just laughed but stopped when Tess looked unhappyThe dancing went onIn the evening the men of the village came to watch and later to join the dancersThree young strangers，who were passing by，also stopped to lookThey explained they were brothers on a walking tourThe ol

18、der two continued their walk， but the youngest seemed more interested in the girls than his brothers were，and stayed to dance with several of them As he left the dance， he noticed Tess， who seemed a little sad that he had not chosen her He looked back from the road， andcould still see her in her whi

19、te dress， standing modestly apart from the dancers He wished he had danced with her He wished he had asked her name But it was too lateHe hurried on to join his brothersThe young stranger had made an impression on Tess But soon， worried by her father's strange appearance that afternoon，she decid

20、ed to walk home After the excitement of the dance，her parents'small cottage was a depressing sightIt was dark inside， as they had only one candleThe furniture was old and worn There were six children crowded into the tiny spaceTheir mother was doing the washing at the same time as putting the ba

21、by to sleepLooking after so many children had aged Joan Durbeyfield， but she still showed some of her early prettiness，which Tess had inheritedLet me help with the washing， mother，said Tess gentlyOh Tess，I'm glad you've come，said her motherThere's something I must tell youIs it anything

22、to do with father making such a fool of himself this afternoon？ asked Tess，frowningThat's all part of the excitement！They've discovered we're the oldest family in the whole county，going back a long way！And our real name is dUrberville！Doesn't that make you proud！That's why your f

23、ather rode home in the carriage，not because he'd been drinking， as people thoughtI'm glad of thatWill it do us any good， mother？Oh yes！Great thinay come of itNo doubt our noble relations will be arrivingin their carriages as soon as they find outWhere is father now？asked Tess suddenlyHer mot

24、her did not answer directlyHe saw the doctor today， you knowIt's fat round the heart，he saysThat's the cause of his illness He might last ten years might last ten months or daysTess looked anxiousHer father， suddenly a great man， to die so soon！But where is father？she asked firmlyNow don'

25、;t you get angry！said Mrs DurbeyfieldThe poor man was feeling so weak after the news that he went to Rolliver'sHe needs to build up his strength to deliver the beehives tomorrow，rememberOh my God！cried TessHe went to a public house！And you agreed to it， mother！No，I didn't，said Mrs Durbeyfiel

26、d crosslyI've been waiting for you to look after the children while I fetch himTess knew that her mother greatly looked forwad to these trips to Rolliver'sThere she could sit by her husband's side among the beer-drinkers，and forget that the children existedIt was one of the few bright mo

27、ments in her hardworking lifeMrs Durbeyfield went out，and Tess was left with the childrenThey were very young， and totally dependent on the Durbeyfield couple：six helpless creatures who had not asked to be born at all，much less to be part of the irresponsible Durbeyfield family2It was eleven oclock

28、before all the family were in bed，and two oclock next morning was the latest time to set off with the beehivesIt was a distance of twenty orthirtyon bad roads to Casterbridge，where the Saturday market was heldAthalf-past one Mrs Durbeyfield came into the bedroom where Tess and all the children slept

29、The poor man can't go，she whisperedTess sat up in bedBut it's late for the bees alreadyWe must take them todayMaybe a young man would go？asked Mrs Durbeyfield doubtfullyOne of the ones dancing with you yesterday？Oh no，not for the world！said Tess proudlyAnd let everybody know the reason？I'

30、;d be so ashamed！I think I could go if little Abraham came with meTess and Abraham dressed， led out the old horse Prince with the loaded waggon，and set off in the dark They cheered themselves up with bread and butter and conversationTess！said Abraham， after a silenceYes， AbrahamAren't you glad t

31、hat we're a noble family？Not particularlyBut you're glad you're going to marry a gentleman？What？said Tess，lifting her faceOur noble relations are going to help you marry a gentlemanMe？Our noble relations？We haven't anyWhatever put that into your head？I heard them talking about it at

32、homeThere's a rich lady of our family out at Trantridge，and mother said that if you claimed relationship with her，she'd help you marry a gentlemanHis sister became suddenly silentAbraham talked on， not noticing her lack of attentionDid you say the stars were worlds，Tess？YesAll like ours？They

33、 seem like our applesmost of them good， a few badWhich do we live on？A good one or a bad one？A bad oneIf we lived on a good one，how would things be different？Well，father wouldn't be ill and cough as he does，and mother wouldn't always be washingAnd you would have been a ready-made rich lady，a

34、nd not have to marry a gentlemanOh，Aby，don'tdon't talk of that any more！Abraham finally went to sleep on the waggonTess drove the horse Gradually she fell into a dream She could see her father，foolish in his pride， and the rich gentleman of her mother's imagination laughing at the poor D

35、urbeyfield familySuddenly she awoke from her dream to noise and violent movementSomething terrible had happenedShe jumped down and discovered that the post carriage， speeding along the dark road， had driven into her slow and unlighted waggonPoor Prince was seriously hurt，and as she watched he fell t

36、o the groundYou were on the wrong side，said the post driverI must go on with the post，but I'll send somebody to help you as soon as I canYou'd better stay here with your waggonHe went on his way， while Tess stood and waited，tears pouring down her cheeks Daylight came Prince lay there，unmovin

37、g，his eyes half openIt's all my fault，cried TessWhat will mother and father live on now？Aby， Aby，wake up！We can't go on with our beehivesPrince is dead！When Aby realized what had happened， his face looked like an old man'sIt's because we live on a bad star，isn't it，Tess？he said t

38、hrough his tearsFinally a man arrived with a horse，to take the waggon on to Casterbridge tiverthe beehives，and then collect Prince on the way backWhen they got home，Tess broke the news to her parentsThey were not angry with her，but she blamed herself completelyWhen Durbeyfield heard he would only ge

39、t a few shillings for Prince's dead body，he rose to the occasionWe dUrbervilles don't sell our horses for cat's meat！he insistedAnd the following day he worked harder than usual in digging a grave，where Prince was buriedAll the children cried：Has he gone to heaven？asked Abraham in tearsB

40、ut Tess did not cryHer face was dry and paleShe felt she had murdered a friend3Life now became rather difficult for the DurbeyfieldsWithout Prince to carry loads， John Durbeyfield could not buy and sell as he used toHe had never worked hard or regularly，and now he only occasionally felt like working

41、Tess wondered how she could help her parentsOne day her mother made a suggestionIt's lucky we've found out about your noble blood，TessDo you know there's a very rich lady called Mrs dUrberville living on the other side of the wood？ She must be our relationYou must go to her and claim rel

42、ationship with her，and ask for same help in our troubleI wouldn't like to do that，said TessIf there is such a lady，it would be enough to be friendlyWe can't expect help from herYou could persuade anybody，my dearBesides，something else might happenYou never knowAnd her mother nodded wiselyI

43、9;d rather try to get work，said Tess sadlyWhat do you say，Durbeyfield？said his wife，turning to himI don't like my children asking for help，said he proudlyI'm the head of the oldest branch of the family and a noble family like ours shouldn't have to ask for helpTess could not accept his r

44、easons for not goingWell，as I killed the horse，mother，I suppose I ought to goBut don't start thinking about her finding a husband for meWho said I had such an idea？asked Joan innocentlyI know you，motherBut I'll goNext morning Tess walked to Shaston，a town she hardly knew，and went on by waggo

45、n to TrantridgeThe Vale of Blackmoor was her only world，and she had never been far outside the valleyAll the knowledge she had came from her lessons in the village school，which she had left a year or two earlierAs soon as she left school she had tried to earn a little money by helping in the fields

46、or milking cows or making butterShe blamed her mother for thoughtlessly producing so many childrenJoan Durbeyfield was like a child herself， and never thought about the futureIt was Tess who worried and worked and felt responsible for her little brothers and sistersSonaturally it was Tess who should

47、 represent her family at the dUrberville homeFrom Trantridge she walked up a hill，and turning a corner，saw the houseShe stoppd in amazementIt was large and almost new，a rich red against the green of the bushes around itBehind it lay the woods called The Chase， an ancient forestThere were greenhouses

48、 and well-kept gardensThere was no lack of money here Tess hesitated， almost frightenedI thought we were an old family！she said to herself，but this is all new！She wished she had not comeShe was right in a wayAll this was owned by the dUrbervilles，or the Stoke-d Urbervilles as they called themselves

49、at firstThe Stokes were a northern business family who took an old-sounding name to add to their own when they moved into the southSo Tess was more of a dUrberville than any of them， but did not know itA young man appeared in the garden He looked about twenty-four， and was tall and dark， with full r

50、ed lips and a black moustache curled at the endsWell，my beauty，what can I do for you？he said， looking interestedly herI'm Mr dUrbervilleatIt needed all Tess's courage to replyI came to see your mother，sirI'm afraid you can't see her She's illWhat do you want to see her about？IIit

51、 seems so foolish！Never mind，said he kindlyI like foolish thingsTry again，my dearI came，sir，to tell you we are of the same family as youAha！Poor relations？YesStokes？No，dUrbervillesOh yes，of course，I mean dUrbervillesWe have several proofs that we are dUrbervillesWe have an old silver spoon and a sea

52、l at homeBut mother uses the spoon to stir the soupMother said we ought totell you，as we are the oldest branch of the family and we've lost our horse in an accidentVery kind of your mother，said Alec dUrberville，and I certainly don't regret it He looked admiringly at Tess，whose face blushed a

53、 deep pinkAnd so you've come on a friendly visit？I suppose I have，murmured Tess， looking uncomfortableLet us walk round the gardens until you have to go home，my pretty cousinTess wanted to leave as soon as possible，but the young man insistedHe took her to the greenhousesDo you like strawberries？

54、he askedYes，said Tess，when they are readyThese are ready now，and so saying，dUrberville picked one and held it to her mouthNo no！she saidI'd rather take it myselfBut Alec put it into her mouthHe put roses into her hair and filled her basket with strawberries and flowers He gave her food to eat，an

55、d watched her，while he quietly smoked a cigarette She looked more adult and womanly than she really wasAleccould not take his eyes off herShe did not know as she sd innocently at theflowers that behind the cigarette smoke was the cause of future sorrow in her lifeWhat is your name？asked AlecTess Dur

56、beyfieldWe live at MarlottI must see if my mother can find a place for youThey said goodbye and she set off home carrying her strawberries and flowersThis then was the beginning Why did she have to meet the wrong man， and one who was so strongly attracted to her？Yet to the right man， she was only a

57、half-forgotten impression from an evening's dancing in a country fieldIn life， the right man to love hardly ever comes at the right time for lovingNature does not often answer a call for love， until the caller is tired of callingIn this case，as in millions， it was not the two halves of a perfect

58、 whole who metA missing half wandered somewhere else，arriving much laterThis delay was to have tragic results4When Tess arrived home the following afternoon a letter had already been received by her motherIt appeared to come from Mrs dUrberville，and offered Tess work looking after chickens Joan Durbeyfield was delight