Thepeoplethatattractedhisattentionmost,werethreeorfourmenofshabby-genteelappearance,whotouchedtheirhatstomanyoftheattorneyswhopassed,andseemedtohavesomebusinessthere,thenatureofwhichMr。Pickwickcouldnotdivine。Theywerecurious-lookingfellows。Onewasaslimandratherlamemaninrustyblack,andawhiteneckerchief。anotherwasastoutburlyperson,dressedinthesameapparel,withagreatreddish-blackclothroundhisneck。athird,wasalittleweazendrunken-lookingbody,withapimplyface。Theywereloiteringabout,withtheirhandsbehindthem,andnowandthenwithananxiouscountenancewhisperedsomethingintheearofsomeofthegentlemenwithpapers,astheyhurriedby。Mr。
Pickwickrememberedtohaveveryoftenobservedthemloungingunderthearchwaywhenhehadbeenwalkingpast。andhiscuriositywasquiteexcitedtoknowtowhatbranchoftheprofessionthesedingy-lookingloungerscouldpossiblybelong。
HewasabouttopropoundthequestiontoNamby,whokeptclosebehindhim,suckingalargegoldringonhislittlefinger,whenPerkerbustledup,andobservingthattherewasnotimetolose,ledthewayintotheInn。AsMr。Pickwickfollowed,thelamemansteppeduptohim,andcivillytouchinghishat,heldoutawrittencard,whichMr。Pickwick,notwishingtohurttheman’sfeelingsbyrefusing,courteouslyacceptedanddepositedinhiswaistcoat-pocket。
Now,saidPerker,turningroundbeforeheenteredoneoftheoffices,toseethathiscompanionswereclosebehindhim。Inhere,mydearsir。
Hallo,whatdoyouwant?
Thislastquestionwasaddressedtothelameman,who,unobservedbyMr。Pickwick,madeoneoftheparty。Inreplytoit,thelamemantouchedhishatagain,withallimaginablepoliteness,andmotionedtowardsMr。
Pickwick。
No,no,saidPerkerwithasmile。Wedon’twantyou,mydearfriend,wedon’twantyou。
Ibegyourpardon,sir,saidthelameman。Thegentlemantookmycard。Ihopeyouwillemployme,sir。Thegentlemannoddedtome。I’llbejudgedbythegentlemanhimself。Younoddedtome,sir?
Pooh,pooh,nonsense。Youdidn’tnodtoanybody,Pickwick?Amistake,amistake,saidPerker。
Thegentlemanhandedmehiscard,repliedMr。Pickwick,producingitfromhiswaistcoat-pocket。Iacceptedit,asthegentlemanseemedtowishit——infactIhadsomecuriositytolookatitwhenIshouldbeatleisure。I——
Thelittleattorneyburstintoaloudlaugh,andreturningthecardtothelameman,informinghimitwasallamistake,whisperedtoMr。Pickwickasthemanturnedawayindudgeon,thathewasonlyabail。
Awhat!exclaimedMr。Pickwick。
Abail!repliedPerker。
Abail!
Yes,mydearsir——halfadozenof’emhere。Bailyoutoanyamount,andonlychargehalf-a-crown。Curioustrade,isn’tit?saidPerker,regalinghimselfwithapinchofsnuff。
What!AmItounderstandthatthesemenearnalivelihoodbywaitingabouthere,toperjurethemselvesbeforethejudgesoftheland,attherateofhalf-a-crownacrime!exclaimedMr。Pickwick,quiteaghastatthedisclosure。
Why,Idon’texactlyknowaboutperjury,mydearsir,repliedthelittlegentleman。Harshword,mydearsir,veryharshwordindeed。It’salegalfiction,mydearsir,nothingmore。Sayingwhich,theattorneyshruggedhisshoulders,smiled,tookasecondpinchofsnuff,andledthewayintotheofficeofthejudge’sclerk。
Thiswasaroomofspeciallydirtyappearance,withaverylowceilingandoldpanelledwalls。andsobadlylighted,thatalthoughitwasbroaddayoutside,greattallowcandleswereburningonthedesks。Atoneend,wasadoorleadingtothejudge’sprivateapartment,roundwhichwerecongregatedacrowdofattorneysandmanagingclerks,whowerecalledin,intheorderinwhichtheirrespectiveappointmentsstooduponthefile。Everytimethisdoorwasopenedtoletapartyout,thenextpartymadeaviolentrushtogetin。and,asinadditiontothenumerousdialogueswhichpassedbetweenthegentlemenwhowerewaitingtoseethejudge,avarietyofpersonalsquabblesensuedbetweenthegreaterpartofthosewhohadseenhim,therewasasmuchnoiseascouldwellberaisedinanapartmentofsuchconfineddimensions。
Norweretheconversationsofthesegentlementheonlysoundsthatbrokeupontheear。Standingonaboxbehindawoodenbaratanotherendoftheroom,wasaclerkinspectacles,whowastakingtheaffidavits:largebatchesofwhichwere,fromtimetotime,carriedintotheprivateroombyanotherclerkforthejudge’ssignature。Therewerealargenumberofattorneys’clerkstobesworn,anditbeingamoralimpossibilitytoswearthemallatonce,thestrugglesofthesegentlementoreachtheclerkinspectacles,werelikethoseofacrowdtogetinatthepitdoorofatheatrewhenGraciousMajestyhonoursitwithitspresence。Anotherfunctionary,fromtimetotime,exercisedhislungsincallingoverthenamesofthosewhohadbeensworn,forthepurposeofrestoringtothemtheiraffidavitsaftertheyhadbeensignedbythejudge:whichgaverisetoafewmorescuffles。andallthesethingsgoingonatthesametime,occasionedasmuchbustleasthemostactiveandexcitablepersoncoulddesiretobehold。
Therewereyetanotherclassofpersons——thosewhowerewaitingtoattendsummonsestheiremployershadtakenout,whichitwasoptionaltotheattorneyontheoppositesidetoattendornot——andwhosebusinessitwas,fromtimetotime,tocryouttheoppositeattorney’sname,tomakecertainthathewasnotinattendancewithouttheirknowledge。
Forexample。Leaningagainstthewall,closebesidetheseatMr。Pickwickhadtaken,wasanoffice-ladoffourteen,withatenorvoice。nearhim,acommon-lawclerkwithabassone。
Aclerkhurriedinwithabundleofpapers,andstaredabouthim。
SniggleandBlink,criedthetenor。
PorkinandSnob,growledthebass。
StumpyandDeacon,saidthenew-comer。
Nobodyanswered。thenextmanwhocamein,washailedbythewholethree。
andheinhisturnshoutedforanotherfirm。andthensomebodyelseroaredinaloudvoiceforanother。andsoforth。
Allthistime,themaninspectacleswashardatwork,swearingtheclerks:theoathbeinginvariablyadministered,withoutanyeffortatpunctuation,andusuallyinthefollowingterms:
Takethebookinyourrighthandthisisyournameandhand-writingyouswearthatthecontentsofthisyouraffidavitaretruesohelpyouGodashillingyoumustgetchangeIhaven’tgotit。
Well,Sam,saidMr。Pickwick,Isupposetheyaregettingthehabeascorpusready。
Yes,saidSam,andIvishthey’dbringoutthehave-his-carcase。
It’sweryunpleasantkeepin’usvaitin’here。I’dha’gothalfadozenhave-his-carcasesready,pack’dupandall,bythistime。
Whatsortofcumbrousandunmanageablemachine,SamWellerimaginedahabeascorpustobe,doesnotappear。forPerker,atthatmoment,walkedup,andtookMr。Pickwickaway。
Theusualformshavingbeengonethrough,thebodyofSamuelPickwickwassoonafterwardsconfidedtothecustodyofthetipstaff,tobebyhimtakentotheWardenoftheFleetPrison,andtheredetaineduntiltheamountofthedamagesandcostsintheactionofBardellagainstPickwickwasfullypaidandsatisfied。
Andthat,saidMr。Pickwick,laughing,willbeaverylongtime。
Sam,callanotherhackney-coach。Perker,mydearfriend,goodbye。
Ishallgowithyou,andseeyousafethere,saidPerker。
Indeed,repliedMr。Pickwick,IwouldrathergowithoutanyotherattendantthanSam。AssoonasIgetsettled,Iwillwriteandletyouknow,andIshallexpectyouimmediately。Untilthen,goodbye。
AsMr。Pickwicksaidthis,hegotintothecoachwhichhadbythistimearrived:followedbythetipstaff。Samhavingstationedhimselfonthebox,itrolledaway。
Amostextraordinarymanthat!saidPerker,ashestoppedtopullonhisgloves。
Whatabankrupthe’dmake,sir,observedMr。Lowten,whowasstandingnear。Howhewouldbotherthecommissioners!He’dset’ematdefianceiftheytalkedofcommittinghim,sir。
Theattorneydidnotappearverymuchdelightedwithhisclerk’sprofessionalestimateofMr。Pickwick’scharacter,forhewalkedawaywithoutdeigninganyreply。
Thehackney-coachjoltedalongFleetStreet,ashackney-coachesusuallydo。Thehorseswentbetter,thedriversaid,whentheyhadanythingbeforethemtheymusthavegoneatamostextraordinarypacewhentherewasnothing,andsothevehiclekeptbehindacart。whenthecartstopped,itstopped。
andwhenthecartwentonagain,itdidthesame。Mr。Pickwicksatoppositethetipstaff。andthetipstaffsatwithhishatbetweenhisknees,whistlingatune,andlookingoutofthecoachwindow。
Timeperformswonders。Bythepowerfuloldgentleman’said,evenahackney-coachgetsoverhalfamileofground。Theystoppedatlength,andMr。PickwickalightedatthegateoftheFleet。
Thetipstaff,lookingoverhisshouldertoseethathischargewasfollowingcloseathisheels,precededMr。Pickwickintotheprison。turningtotheleft,aftertheyhadentered,theypassedthroughanopendoorintoalobbyfromwhichaheavygate:oppositetothatbywhichtheyhadentered,andwhichwasguardedbyastoutturnkeywiththekeyinhishand:ledatonceintotheinterioroftheprison。
Heretheystopped,whilethetipstaffdeliveredhispapers。andhereMr。Pickwickwasapprisedthathewouldremain,untilhehadundergonetheceremony,knowntotheinitiatedassittingforyourportrait。
Sittingformyportrait!saidMr。Pickwick。
Havingyourlikenesstaken,sir,repliedthestoutturnkey。We’recapitalhandsatlikenesseshere。Take’eminnotime,andalwaysexact。
Walkin,sir,andmakeyourselfathome。
Mr。Pickwickcompliedwiththeinvitation,andsathimselfdown:whenMr。Weller,whostationedhimselfatthebackofthechair,whisperedthatthesittingwasmerelyanothertermforundergoinganinspectionbythedifferentturnkeys,inorderthattheymightknowprisonersfromvisitors。
Well,Sam,saidMr。Pickwick,thenIwishtheartistswouldcome。
Thisisratherapublicplace。
Theyvontbelong,sir,Ides-say,repliedSam。There’saDutchclock,sir。
SoIsee,observedMr。Pickwick。
Andabird-cage,sir,saysSam。Veelsvithinveels,aprisoninaprison。Ain’tit,sir?
AsMr。Wellermadethisphilosophicalremark,Mr。Pickwickwasawarethathissittinghadcommened。Thestoutturnkey,havingbeenrelievedfromthelock,satdown,andlookedathimcarelessly,fromtimetotime,whilealongthinmanwhohadrelievedhim,thrusthishandsbeneathhiscoat-tails,andplantinghimselfopposite,tookagoodlongviewofhim。
Athirdrathersurly-lookinggentleman:whohadapparentlybeendisturbedathistea,forhewasdisposingofthelastremnantofacrustandbutterwhenhecamein:stationedhimselfclosetoMr。Pickwick。and,restinghishandsonhiships,inspectedhimnarrowly。whiletwoothersmixedwiththegroup,andstudiedhisfeatureswithmostintentandthoughtfulfaces。
Mr。Pickwickwincedagooddealundertheoperation,andappearedtositveryuneasilyinhischair。buthemadenoremarktoanybodywhileitwasbeingperformed,noteventoSam,whoreclineduponthebackofthechair,reflecting,partlyonthesituationofhismaster,andpartlyonthegreatsatisfactionitwouldhaveaffordedhimtomakeafierceassaultuponalltheturnkeysthereassembled,oneaftertheother,ifitwerelawfulandpeaceablesotodo。
Atlengththelikenesswascompleted,andMr。Pickwickwasinformed,thathemightnowproceedintotheprison。
WhereamItosleepto-night?inquiredMr。Pickwick。
WhyIdon’trightlyknowaboutto-night,repliedthestoutturnkey。
You’llbechummedonsomebodytomorrow,andthenyou’llbeallsnugandcomfortable。Thefirstnight’sgenerallyratherunsettled,butyou’llbesetallsquaresto-morrow。
Aftersomediscussion,itwasdiscoveredthatoneoftheturnkeyshadabedtolet,whichMr。Pickwickcouldhaveforthatnight。Hegladlyagreedtohireit。
Ifyou’llcomewithme,I’llshowityouatonce,saidtheman。Itain’talarge’un。butit’sanout-and-outertosleepin。Thisway,sir。
Theypassedthroughtheinnergate,anddescendedashortflightofsteps。Thekeywasturnedafterthem。andMr。Pickwickfoundhimself,forthefirsttimeinhislife,withinthewallsofadebtor’sprison。
[NextChapter][TableofContents]ThePickwickPapers:Chapter41[PreviousChapter][TableofContents]CHAPTERXLIWHATBEFELLMR。PICKWICKWHENHEGOTINTOTHEFLEET。
WHATPRISONERSHESAWTHERE。ANDHOWHEPASSEDTHENIGHT
MR。TOMROKER,thegentlemanwhohadaccompaniedMr。Pickwickintotheprison,turnedsharproundtotherightwhenhegottothebottomofthelittleflightofsteps,andledtheway,throughanirongatewhichstoodopen,andupanothershortflightofsteps,intoalongnarrowgallery,dirtyandlow,pavedwithstone,andverydimlylightedbyawindowateachremoteend。
This,saidthegentleman,thrustinghishandsintohispockets,andlookingcarelesslyoverhisshouldertoMr。Pickwick,Thishereisthehallflight。
Oh,repliedMr。Pickwick,lookingdownadarkandfilthystaircase,whichappearedtoleadtoarangeofdampandgloomystonevaults,beneaththeground,andthose,Isuppose,arethelittlecellarswheretheprisonerskeeptheirsmallquantitiesofcoals。Unpleasantplacestohavetogodownto。butveryconvenient,Idaresay。
Yes,Ishouldn’twonderiftheywasconvenient,repliedthegentleman,seeingthatafewpeoplelivethere,prettysnug。That’stheFair,thatis。
Myfriend,saidMr。Pickwick,youdon’treallymeantosaythathumanbeingslivedowninthosewretcheddungeons?
Don’tI?repliedMr。Roker,withindignantastonishment。whyshouldn’tI?
Live!Livedownthere!exclaimedMr。Pickwick。
Livedownthere!Yes,anddiedownthere,too,weryoften!repliedMr。Roker。andwhatofthat?Who’sgottosayanythingaginit?Livedownthere!Yes,andawerygoodplaceitistolivein,ain’tit?
AsRokerturnedsomewhatfiercelyuponMr。Pickwickinsayingthis,and,moreovermutteredinanexcitedfashioncertainunpleasantinvocationsconcerninghisowneyes,limbs,andcirculatingfluids,thelattergentlemandeemeditadvisabletopursuethediscoursenofurther。Mr。Rokerthenproceededtomountanotherstaircase,asdirtyasthatwhichledtotheplacewhichhadjustbeenthesubjectofdiscussion,inwhichascenthewascloselyfollowedbyMr。PickwickandSam。
There,saidMr。Roker,pausingforbreathwhentheyreachedanothergalleryofthesamedimensionsastheonebelow,thisisthecoffee-roomflight。theoneabove’sthethird,andtheoneabovethat’sthetop。andtheroomwhereyou’rea-goingtosleepto-nightisthewarden’sroom,andit’sthisway——comeon。Havingsaidallthisinabreath,Mr。Rokermountedanotherflightofstairs,withMr。PickwickandSamWellerfollowingathisheels。
Thesestaircasesreceivedlightfromsundrywindowsplacedatsomelittledistanceabovethefloor,andlookingintoagravelledareaboundedbyahighbrickwall,withironchevaux-de-fviseatthetop。Thisarea,itappearedfromMr。Roker’sstatement,wastheracket-ground。anditfurtherappeared,onthetestimonyofthesamegentleman,thattherewasasmallerareainthatportionoftheprisonwhichwasnearestFarringdonStreet,denominatedandcalledthePaintedGround,fromthefactofitswallshavingoncedisplayedthesemblancesofvariousmen-of-warinfullsail,andotherartisticaleffectsachievedinbygonetimesbysomeimprisoneddraughtsmaninhisleisurehours。
Havingcommunicatedthispieceofinformation,apparentlymoreforthepurposeofdischarginghisbosomofanimportantfact,thanwithanyspecificviewofenlighteningMr。Pickwick,theguide,havingatlengthreachedanothergallery,ledthewayintoasmallpassageattheextremeend:openedadoor:anddisclosedanapartmentofanappearancebynomeansinviting,containingeightornineironbedsteads。
There,saidMr。Roker,holdingthedooropen,andlookingtriumphantlyroundatMr。Pickwick,there’saroom!
Mr。Pickwick’sface,however,betokenedsuchaverytriflingportionofsatisfactionattheappearanceofhislodging,thatMr。RokerlookedforareciprocityoffeelingintothecountenanceofSamuelWeller,who,untilnow,hadobservedadignifiedsilence。
There’saroom,youngman,observedMr。Roker。
Iseeit,repliedSam,withaplacidnodofthehead。
Youwouldn’tthinktofindsucharoomasthisintheFarringdonHotel,wouldyou?saidMr。Roker,withacomplacentsmile。
TothisMr。Wellerrepliedwithaneasyandunstudiedclosingofoneeye。whichmightbeconsideredtomean,eitherthathewouldhavethoughtit,orthathewouldnothavethoughtit,orthathehadneverthoughtanythingatallaboutit:astheobserver’simaginationsuggested。Havingexecutedthisfeat,andre-openedhiseye,Mr。WellerproceededtoinquirewhichwastheindividualbedsteadthatMr。Rokerhadsoflatteringlydescribedasanout-an-outertosleepin。
That’sit,repliedMr。Roker,pointingtoaveryrustyoneinacorner。
Itwouldmakeanyonegotosleep,thatbedsteadwould,whethertheywantedtoornot。
Ishouldthink,saidSam,eyeingthepieceoffurnitureinquestionwithalookofexcessivedisgust,Ishouldthinkpoppieswasnothingtoit。
Nothingatall,saidMr。Roker。
AndIs’pose,saidSam,withasidelongglanceathismaster,asiftoseewhethertherewereanysymptomsofhisdeterminationbeingshakenbywhatpassed,Is’posetheothergen’l’menassleepshere,aregen’l’men。
Nothingbutit,saidMr。Roker。Oneof’emtakeshistwelvepintsofalea-day,andneverleavesoffsmokingevenathismeals。
Hemustbeafirst-rater,saidSam。
A,I,repliedMr。Roker。
Nothingdaunted,evenbythisintelligence,Mr。Pickwicksmilinglyannouncedhisdeterminationtotestthepowersofthenarcoticbedsteadforthatnight。andMr。Roker,afterinforminghimthathecouldretiretorestatwhateverhourhethoughtproper,withoutanyfurthernoticeorformality,walkedoff,leavinghimstandingwithSaminthegallery。
Itwasgettingdark。thatistosay,afewgasjetswerekindledinthisplacewhichwasneverlight,bywayofcomplimenttotheevening,whichhadsetinoutside。Asitwasratherwarm,someofthetenantsofthenumerouslittleroomswhichopenedintothegalleryoneitherhand,hadsettheirdoorsajar。Mr。Pickwickpeepedintothemashepassedalong,withgreatcuriosityandinterest。Herefourorfivegreathulkingfellows,justvisiblethroughacloudoftobacco-smoke,wereengagedinnoisyandriotousconversationoverhalf-emptiedpotsofbeer,orplayingatall-fourswithaverygreasypackofcards。Intheadjoiningroom,somesolitarytenantmightbeseen,poring,bythelightofafeebletallowcandle,overabundleofsoiledandtatteredpapers,yellowwithdustanddroppingtopiecesfromage:writing,forthehundredthtime,somelengthenedstatementofhisgrievances,fortheperusalofsomegreatmanwhoseeyesitwouldneverreach,orwhoseheartitwouldnevertouch。Inathird,aman,withhiswifeandawholecrowdofchildrenmightbeseenmakingupascantybedontheground,oruponafewchairs,fortheyoungeronestopassthenightin。Andinafourth,andafifth,andasixth,andaseventh,thenoise,andthebeer,andthetobacco-smoke,andthecards,allcameoveragainingreaterforcethanbefore。
Inthegalleriesthemselves,andmoreespeciallyonthestaircases,therelingeredagreatnumberofpeople,who...完整阅读请扫描二维码下载丁香书院APP免费看:
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