第121页
《简·爱(英文版)》章节:第121页,宠文网网友提供全文无弹窗免费在线阅读。!
'There are Mrs. Eshton and her three daughters- very elegant
young ladies indeed; and there are the Honourable Blanche and Mary
Ingram, most beautiful women, I suppose: indeed I have seen Blanche,
six or seven years since, when she was a girl of eighteen. She came
here to a Christmas ball and party Mr. Rochester gave. You should have
seen the dining-room that day- how richly it was decorated, how
brilliantly lit up! I should think there were fifty ladies and
gentlemen present- all of the first county families; and Miss Ingram
was considered the belle of the evening.'
'You saw her, you say, Mrs. Fairfax: what was she like?'
'Yes, I saw her. The dining-room doors were thrown open; and, as it
was Christmas-time, the servants were allowed to assemble in the hall,
to hear some of the ladies sing and play. Mr. Rochester would have
me to come in, and I sat down in a quiet corner and watched them. I
never saw a more splendid scene: the ladies were magnificently
dressed; most of them- at least most of the younger ones- looked
handsome; but Miss Ingram was certainly the queen.'
'And what was she like?'
'Tall, fine bust, sloping shoulders; long, graceful neck: olive
complexion, dark and clear; noble features; eyes rather like Mr.
Rochester's: large and black, and as brilliant as her jewels. And then
she had such a fine head of hair; raven-black and so becomingly
arranged: a crown of thick plaits behind, and in front the longest,
the glossiest curls I ever saw. She was dressed in pure white; an
amber-coloured scarf was passed over her shoulder and across her
breast, tied at the side, and descending in long, fringed ends below
her knee. She wore an amber-coloured flower, too, in her hair: it
contrasted well with the jetty mass of her curls.'
'She was greatly admired, of course?'
'Yes, indeed: and not only for her beauty, but for her
accomplishments. She was one of the ladies who sang: a gentleman
accompanied her on the piano. She and Mr. Rochester sang a duet.'
'Mr. Rochester? I was not aware he could sing.'
'Oh! he has a fine bass voice, and an excellent taste for music.'
'And Miss Ingram: what sort of a voice had she?'
'A very rich and powerful one: she sang delightfully; it was a
treat to listen to her;- and she played afterwards. I am no judge of
music, but Mr. Rochester is; and I heard him say her execution was
remarkably good.'
'And this beautiful and accomplished lady, she is not yet married.'
'It appears not: I fancy neither she nor her sister have very large
fortunes. Old Lord Ingram's estates were chiefly entailed, and the
eldest son came in for everything almost.'
'But I wonder no wealthy nobleman or gentleman has taken a fancy to
her: Mr. Rochester, for instance. He is rich, is he not?'
'Oh! yes. But you see there is a considerable difference in age:
Mr. Rochester is nearly forty; she is but twenty-five.'
'What of that? More unequal matches are made every day.'