Morrow,nephew。
HelaysasidethelapboardwhereonhedraftshisbillsofcostsfortheeyesofMasterGoffandMasterShaplandTandy,filingconsentsandcommonsearchesandawritofDucesTecum。Abogoakframeoverhisbaldhead:Wilde’sRequiescat。ThedroneofhismisleadingwhistlebringsWalterback。
Yes,sir?
MaltforRichieandStephen,tellmother。Whereisshe?
BathingCrissie,sir。
Papa’slittlebedpal。Lumpoflove。
No,uncleRichie……
CallmeRichie。Damnyourlithiawater。Itlowers。Whusky!
UncleRichie,really……
SitdownorbythelawHarryI’llknockyoudown。
Waltersquintsvainlyforachair。
Hehasnothingtositdownon,sir。
Hehasnowheretoputit,youmug。BringinourChippendalechair。
Wouldyoulikeabiteofsomething?Noneofyourdamnedlawdeedawairhere;
therichofarasherfriedwithaherring?Sure?Somuchthebetter。Wehavenothinginthehousebutbackachepills。
All’erta!
HedronesbarsofFerrando’sariadesortita。Thegrandestnumber,Stephen,inthewholeopera。Listen。
Histunefulwhistlesoundsagain,finelyshaded,withrushesoftheair,hisfistsbigdrummingonhispaddedknees。
Thiswindissweeter。
Housesofdecay,mine,hisandall。YoutoldtheClongowesgentryyouhadanuncleajudgeandanuncleageneralinthearmy。Comeoutofthem,Stephen。Beautyisnotthere。NorinthestagnantbayofMarsh’slibrarywhereyoureadthefadingpropheciesofJoachimAbbas。Forwhom?Thehundredheadedrabbleofthecathedralclose。Ahaterofhiskindranfromthemtothewoodofmadness,hismanefoaminginthemoon,hiseyeballsstars。Houyhnhnm,horsenostrilled。Theovalequinefaces。Temple,BuckMulligan,FoxyCampbell。
Lanternjaws。Abbasfather,furiousdean,whatoffencelaidfiretotheirbrains?Paff!Descende,calve,utnenimiumdecalveris。Agarlandofgreyhaironhiscomminatedheadseehimmeclamberingdowntothefootpacedescende,clutchingamonstrance,basiliskeyed。Getdown,baldpoll!Achoirgivesbackmenaceandecho,assistingaboutthealtar’shorns,thesnortedLatinofjackpriestsmovingburlyintheiralbs,tonsuredandoiledandgelded,fatwiththefatofkidneysofwheat。
Andatthesameinstantperhapsapriestroundthecorneriselevatingit。Dringdring!Andtwostreetsoffanotherlockingitintoapyx。Dringadring!
Andinaladychapelanothertakinghouselalltohisowncheek。DringdringlDown,up,forward,back。DanOccamthoughtofthat,invincibledoctor。
AmistyEnglishmorningtheimphypostasistickledhisbrain。Bringinghishostdownandkneelingheheardtwinewithhissecondbellthefirstbellinthetranseptheisliftinghisand,rising,heardnowIamlifting
theirtwobellsheiskneelingtwangindiphthong。
CousinStephen,youwillneverbeasaint。Isleofsaints。Youwereawfullyholy,weren’tyou?YouprayedtotheBlessedVirginthatyoumightnothavearednose。YouprayedtothedevilinSerpentineavenuethatthefubsywidowinfrontmightliftherclothesstillmorefromthewetstreet。Osi,certo!Sellyoursoulforthat,do,dyedragspinnedroundasquaw。Moretellme,morestill!OnthetopoftheHowthtramalonecryingtotherain:nakedwomen!Whataboutthat,eh?
Whataboutwhat?Whatelseweretheyinventedfor?
Readingtwopagesapieceofsevenbookseverynight,eh?Iwasyoung。
Youbowedtoyourselfinthemirror,steppingforwardtoapplauseearnestly,strikingface。HurrayfortheGoddamnedidiot!Hray!No-onesaw:tellno-one。
Booksyouweregoingtowritewithlettersfortitles。HaveyoureadhisF?Oyes,butIpreferQ。Yes,butWiswonderful。Oyes,W。Rememberyourepiphaniesongreenovalleaves,deeplydeep,copiestobesentifyoudiedtoallthegreatlibrariesoftheworld,includingAlexandria?Someonewastoreadthemthereafterafewthousandyear,amahamanvantara。PicodellaMirandolalike。Ay,verylikeawhale。Whenonereadsthesestrangepagesofonelonggoneonefeelsthatoneisatonewithonewhoonce……
Thegrainysandhadgonefromunderhisfeet。Hisbootstrodagainadampcracklingmast,razorshells,squeakingpebbles,thatontheunnumberedpebblesbeats,woodsievedbytheshipworm,lostArmada。Unwholesomesandflatswaitedtosuckhistreadingsoles,breathingupwardsewagebreath。Hecoastedthem,walkingwarily。Aporter-bottlestoodup,stoggedtoitswaist,inthecakeysanddough。Asentinel:isleofdreadfulthirst。Brokenhoopsontheshore;atthelandamazeofdarkcunningnets;fartherawaychalkscrawledbackdoorsandonthehigherbeachadryinglinewithtwocrucifiedshirts。
Ringsend:wigwamsofbrownsteersmenandmastermariners。Humanshells。
Hehalted。IhavepassedthewaytoauntSara’s。AmInotgoingthere?
Seemsnot。No-oneabout。HeturnednortheastandcrossedthefirmersandtowardsthePigeonhouse。
Quivousamisdanscettefichueposition?
C’estlepigeon,Joseph。
Patrice,homeonfurlough,lappedwarmmilkwithmeinthebarMacMahon。
Sonofthewildgoose,KevinEganofParis。Myfather’sabird,helappedthesweetlaitchaudwithpinkyoungtongue,plumpbunny’sface。
Lap,lapin。Hehopestowininthegroslots。AboutthenatureofwomenhereadinMichelet。ButhemustsendmeLaViedeJé;susbyM。LeoTaxil。Lentittohisfriend。
C’esttordant,vowssavez。Moijesuissocialiste。Jenecroispasenl’existencedeDieu。Fautpasledireà;monpè;re。
Ilcroit?
Monpè;re,oui。
Schluss。Helaps。
MyLatinquarterhat。God,wesimplymustdressthecharacter。Iwantpucegloves。Youwereastudent,weren’tyou?Ofwhatintheotherdevil’sname?Paysayenn。P。C。N。,youknow:physiques,chimiquesetnaturelles。
Aha。Eatingyourgroatsworthofmouencivet,fleshpotsofEgypt,elbowedbybelchingcabmen。Justsayinthemostnaturaltone:whenIwasinParis,boul’Mich’,Iusedto。Yes,usedtocarrypunchedticketstoproveanalibiiftheyarrestedyouformurdersomewhere。Justice。OnthenightoftheseventeenthofFebruary1904theprisonerwasseenbytwowitnesses。Otherfellowdidit:otherme。Hat,tie,overcoat,nose。Lui,c’estmoi。Youseemtohaveenjoyedyourself。
Proudlywalking。Whomwereyoutryingtowalklike?Forget:adispossessed。
Withmother’smoneyorder,eightshillings,thebangingdoorofthepostofficeslammedinyourfacebytheusher。Hungertoothache。Encoredeuxminutes。Lookclock。Mustget。Fermé;。Hireddog!Shoothimtobloodybitswithabangshotgun,bitsmanspatteredwallsallbrassbuttons。Bitsallkhrrrrklakinplaceclackback。Nothurt?O,that’sallright。Shakehands。SeewhatImeant,see?O,that’sallright。Shakeashake。O,that’sallonlyallright。
Youweregoingtodowonders,what?MissionarytoEuropeafterfieryColumbanus。FiacreandScotusontheircreepystoolsinheavenspiltfromtheirpintpots,loudlatinlaughing:Euge!Euge!PretendingtospeakbrokenEnglishasyoudraggedyourvalise,porterthreepence,acrosstheslimypieratNewhaven。Comment?Richbootyyoubroughtback;LeTutu,fivetatterednumbersofPantalonBlancetCulotteRouge,ablueFrenchtelegram,curiositytoshow:
Motherdyingcomehomefather。
Theauntthinksyoukilledyourmother。That’swhyshewon’t。Thenhere’sahealthtoMulligan’sauntAndI’lltellyouthereasonwhy。
ShealwayskeptthingsdecentinTheHanniganfamileye。Hisfeetmarchedinsuddenproudrhythmoverthesandfurrows,alongbythebouldersofthesouthwall。Hestaredatthemproudly,piledstonemammothskulls。Goldlightonsea,onsand,onboulders。Thesunisthere,theslendertrees,thelemonhouses。
Parisrawlywaking,crudesunlightonherlemonstreets。Moistpithoffarlsofbread,thefroggreenwormwood,hermatinincense,courttheair。Belluomorisesfromthebedofhiswife’slover’swife,thekerchiefedhousewifeisastir,asaucerofaceticacidinherhands。InRodot’sYvonneandMadeleinenewmaketheirtumbledbeauties,shatteringwithgoldteethchaussonsofpastry,theirmouthsyellowedwiththepusofflanbreton。FacesofParismengoby,theirwellpleasedpleasers,curledconquistadores。
Noonslumbers。KevinEganrollsgunpowdercigarettesthroughfingerssmearedwithprinter’sink,sippinghisgreenfairyasPatricehiswhite。
Aboutusgobblersforkspicedbeansdowntheirgullets。Undemisetier!Ajetofcoffeesteamfromtheburnishedcaldron。Sheservesmeathisbeck。Ilestirlandais。Hollandais?Nonfromage。Deuxirlandais,nous,Irlande,voussavez?Ahoui!Shethoughtyouwantedacheesehollandais。
Yourpostprandial,doyouknowthatword?Postprandial。TherewasafellowIknewonceinBarcelona,queerfellow,usedtocallithispostprandial。
Well:slainte!Aroundtheslabbedtablesthetangleofwinedbreathsandgrumblinggorges。Hisbreathhangsoveroursaucestainedplates,thegreenfairy’sfangthrustingbetweenhislips。OfIreland,theDalcassians,ofhopes,conspiracies,ofArthurGriffithnow。Toyokemeashisyokefellow,ourcrimesourcommoncause。You’reyourfather’sson。Iknowthevoice。
Hisfustianshirt,sanguineflowered,tremblesitsSpanishtasselsathissecrets。M。Drumont,famousjournalist,Drumont,knowwhathecalledqueenVictoria?Oldhagwiththeyellowteeth。Vieilleogressewiththedentsjaunes。MaudGonne,beautifulwoman,LaPatrie,M。
Millevoye,Fé;lixFaure,knowhowhedied?Licentiousmen。Thefroeken,bonneà;toutfaire,whorubsmalenakednessinthebathatUpsala。Moifaire,shesaid。Touslesmessieurs。NotthisMonsieur,Isaid。Mostlicentiouscustom。Bathamostprivatething。
Iwouldn’tletmybrother,notevenmyownbrother,mostlasciviousthing。
Greeneyes,Iseeyou。Fang,Ifeel。Lasciviouspeople。
Thebluefuseburnsdeadlybetweenhandsandburnsclear。Loosetobaccoshredscatchfire:aflameandacridsmokelightourcorner。Rawfacebonesunderhispeepofdayboy’shat。Howtheheadcentregotaway,authenticversion。Gotupasayoungbride,man,veilorangeblossoms,droveouttheroadtoMalahide。Did,faith。Oflostleaders,thebetrayed,wildescapes。
Disguises,clutchedat,gone,nothere。
Spurnedlover。Iwasastrappingyounggossoonatthattime,Itellyou,I’llshowyoumylikenessoneday。Iwas,faith。Lover,forherloveheprowledwithcolonelRichardBurke,tanistofhissept,underthewallsofClerkenwelland,crouching,sawaflameofvengeancehurlthemupwardinthefog。Shatteredglassandtopplingmasonry。IngayPareehehides,EganofParis,unsoughtbyanysavebyme。Makinghisday’sstations,thedingyprintingcase,histhreetaverns,theMontmartrelairhesleepsshortnightin,ruedelaGoutte-d’Or,damascenedwithflyblownfacesofthegone。Loveless,landless,wifeless。Sheisquiteniceycomfywithoutheroutcastman,madame,inrueGî;t-le-Coeur,canaryandtwobucklodgers。
Peachycheeks,azebraskirt,friskyasayoungthing’s。Spurnedandundespairing。
TellPatyousawme,won’tyou?IwantedtogetpoorPatajobonetime。Monfils,soldierofFrance。Itaughthimtosing。TheboysofKilkennyarestoutroaringblades。Knowthatoldlay?ItaughtPatricethat。OldKilkenny:saintCanice,Strongbow’scastleontheNore。Goeslikethis。O,O。Hetakesme,NapperTandy,bythehand。O,OtheboysofKilkenny……Weakwastinghandonmine。TheyhaveforgottenKevinEgan,nothethem。
Rememberingthee,OSion。
Hehadcomenearertheedgeoftheseaandwetsandslappedhisboots。
Thenewairgreetedhim,harpinginwildnerves,windofwildairofseedsofbrightness。Here,IamnotwalkingouttotheKishlightship,amI?
Hestoodsuddenly,hisfeetbeginningtosinkslowlyinthequakingsoil。
Turnback。
Turning,hescannedtheshoresouth,hisfeetsinkingagainslowlyinnewsockets。Thecolddomedroomofthetowerwaits。Throughthebarbicanstheshaftsoflightaremovingever,slowlyeverasmyfeetaresinking,creepingduskwardoverthedialfloor。Bluedusk,nightfall,deepbluenight。Inthedarknessofthedometheywait,theirpushedbackchairs,myobeliskvalise,aroundaboardofabandonedplatters。Whotoclearit?
Hehasthekey。Iwillnotsleeptherewhenthisnightcomes。Ashutdoorofasilenttowerentombingtheirblindbodies,thepanthersahibandhispointer。Call:noanswer。Heliftedhisfeetupfromthesuckandturnedbackbythemoleofboulders。Takeall,keepall。Mysoulwalkswithme,formofforms。Sointhemoon’smidwatchesIpacethepathabovetherocks,insablesilvered,hearingElsinore’stemptingflood。
第7章