《星期一和星期二》第15章

ss；　there　on　the　back　of　my　neck。　and　my　hand　shook　all　the　afternoon　so　that　i　couldn’t　paint。　i　took　out　my　watch　and　marked　the　hour　when　i　would　allow　myself　to　think　of　the　kiss　for　five　minutes　only—it　was　so　precious—the　kiss　of　an　old　grey–haired　woman　with　a　wart　on　her　nose；　the　mother　of　all　my　kisses　all　my　life。　e；　caroline；　e；　hubert。”
they　walked　on　the　past　the　flower–bed；　now　walking　four　abreast；　and　soon　diminished　in　size　among　the　trees　and　looked　half　transparent　as　the　sunlight　and　shade　swam　over　their　backs　in　large　trembling　irregular　patches。
in　the　oval　flower　bed　the　snail；　whose　shelled　had　been　stained　red；　blue；　and　yellow　for　the　space　of　two　minutes　or　so；　now　appeared　to　be　moving　very　slightly　in　its　shell；　and　next　began　to　labour　over　the　crumbs　of　loose　earth　which　broke　away　and　rolled　down　as　it　passed　over　them。　it　appeared　to　have　a　definite　goal　in　front　of　it；　differing　in　this　respect　from　the　singular　high　stepping　angular　green　insect　who　attempted　to　cross　in　front　of　it；　and　waited　for　a　second　with　its　antenna　trembling　as　if　in　deliberation；　and　then　stepped　off　as　rapidly　and　strangely　in　the　opposite　direction。　brown　cliffs　with　deep　green　lakes　in　the　hollows；　flat；　blade–like　trees　that　waved　from　root　to　tip；　round　boulders　of　grey　stone；　vast　crumpled　surfaces　of　a　thin　crackling　texture—all　these　objects　lay　across　the　snail’s　progress　between　one　stalk　and　another　to　his　goal。　before　he　had　decided　whether　to　circumvent　the　arched　tent　of　a　dead　leaf　or　to　breast　it　there　came　past　the　bed　the　feet　of　other　human　beings。
this　time　they　were　both　men。　the　younger　of　the　two　wore　an　expression　of　perhaps　unnatural　calm；　he　raised　his　eyes　and　fixed　them　very　steadily　in　front　of　him　while　his　panion　spoke；　and　directly　his　panion　had　done　speaking　he　looked　on　the　ground　again　and　sometimes　opened　his　lips　only　after　a　long　pause　and　sometimes　did　not　open　them　at　all。　the　elder　man　had　a　curiously　uneven　and　shaky　method　of　walking；　jerking　his　hand　forward　and　throwing　up　his　head　abruptly；　rather　in　the　manner　of　an　impatient　carriage　horse　tired　of　waiting　outside　a　house；　but　in　the　man　these　gestures　were　irresolute　and　pointless。　he　talked　almost　incessantly；　he　smiled　to　himself　and　again　began　to　talk；　as　if　the　smile　had　been　an　answer。　he　was　talking　about　spirits—the　spirits　of　the　dead；　who；　according　to　him；　were　even　now　telling　him　all　sorts　of　odd　things　about　their　experiences　in　heaven。
“heaven　was　known　to　the　ancients　as　thessaly；　william；　and　now；　with　this　war；　the　spirit　matter　is　rolling　between　the　hills　like　thunder。”　he　paused；　seemed　to　listen；　smiled；　jerked　his　head　and　continued：—
“you　have　a　small　electric　battery　and　a　piece　of　rubber　to　insulate　the　wire—isolate？—insulate？—well；　we’ll　skip　the　details；　no　good　going　into　details　that　wouldn’t　be　understood—and　in　short　the　little　machine　stands　in　any　convenient　position　by　the　head　of　the　bed；　we　will　say；　on　a　neat　mahogany　stand。　all　arrangements　being　properly　fixed　by　workmen　under　my　direction；　the　widow　applies　her　ear　and　summons　the　spirit　by　sign　as　agreed。　women！　widows！　women　in　black—”
here　he　seemed　to　have　caught　sight　of　a　woman’s　dress　in　the　distance；　which　in　the　shade　looked　a　purple　black。　he　took　off　his　hat；　placed　his　hand　upon　his　heart；　and　hurried　towards　her　muttering　and　gesticulating　feverishly。　but　william　caught　him　by　the　sleeve　and　touched　a　flower　with　the　tip　of　his　walking–stick　in　order　to　divert　the　old　man’s　attention。　after　looking　at　it　for　a　moment　in　some　confusion　the　old　man　bent　his　ear　to　it　and　seemed　to　answer　a　voice　speaking　from　it；　for　he　began　talking　about　the　forests　of　uruguay　which　he　had　visited　hundreds　of　years　ago　in　pany　with　the　most　beautiful　young　woman　in　europe。　he　could　be　heard　murmuring　about　forests　of　uruguay　blanketed　with　the　wax　petals　of　tropical　roses；　nightingales；　sea　beaches；　mermaids；　and　women　drowned　at　sea；　as　he　suffered　himself　to　be　moved　on　by　william；　upon　whose　face　the　look　of　stoical　patience　grew　slowly　deeper　and　deeper。
following　his　steps　so　closely　as　to　be　slightly　puzzled　by　his　gestures　came　two　elderly　women　of　the　lower　middle　class；　one　stout　and　ponderous；　the　other　rosy　cheeked　and　nimble。　like　most　people　of　their　station　they　were　frankly　fascinated　by　any　signs　of　eccentricity　betokening　a　disordered　brain；　especially　in　the　well–to–do；　but　they　were　too　far　off　to　be　certain　whether　the　gestures　were　merely　eccentric　or　genuinely　mad。　after　they　had　scrutinised　the　old　man’s　back　in　silence　for　a　moment　and　given　each　other　a　queer；　sly　look；　they　went　on　energetically　piecing　together　their　very　plicated　dialogue：
“nell；　bert；　lot；　cess；　phil；　pa；　he　says；　i　says；　she　says；　i　says；　i　says；　i　says—”
“my　bert；　sis；　bill；　grandad；　the　old　man；　sugar；　sugar；　flour；　kippers；　greens；　sugar；　sugar；　sugar。”
the　ponderous　woman　looked　through　the　pattern　of　falling　words　at　the　flowers　standing　cool；　firm；　and　upright　in　the　earth；　with　a　curious　expression。　she　saw　them　as　a　sleeper　waking　from　a　heavy　sleep　sees　a　brass　candlestick　reflecting　the　light　in　an　unfamiliar　way；　and　closes　his　eyes　and　opens　them；　and　seeing　the　brass　candlestick　again；　finally　starts　broad　awake　and　stares　at　the　candlestick　with　all　his　powers。　so　the　heavy　woman　came　to　a　standstill　opposite　the　oval–shaped　flower　bed；　and　ceased　even　to　pretend　to　listen　to　what　the　other　woman　was　saying。　she　stood　there　letting　the　words　fall　over　her；　swaying　the　top　part　of　her　body　slowly　backwards　and　forwards；　looking　at　the　flowers。　then　she　suggested　that　they　should　find　a　seat　and　have　their　tea。
the　snail　had　now　considered　every　possible　method　of　reaching　his　goal　without　going　round　the　dead　leaf　or　climbing　over　it。　let　alone　the　effort　needed　for　climbing　a　leaf；　he　was　doubtful　whether　the　thin　texture　which　vibrated　with　such　an　alarming　crackle　when　touched　even　by　the　tip　of　his　horns　would　bear　his　weight；　and　this　determined　him　finally　to　creep　beneath　it；　for　there　was　a　point　where　the　leaf　curved　high　enough　from　the　ground