over the teacups-第11章
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reference。 But we have never asked her。 I do not think she wants to
be famous。 How she comes to be unmarried is a mystery to me; it must
be that she has found nobody worth caring enough for。 I wish she
would furnish us with the romance which; as I said; our tea…table
needs to make it interesting。 Perhaps the new…comer will make love
to her;I should think it possible she might fancy him。
And who is the new…comer? He is a Counsellor and a Politician。 Has
a good war record。 Is about forty…five years old; I conjecture。 Is
engaged in a great law case just now。 Said to be very eloquent。 Has
an intellectual head; and the bearing of one who has commanded a
regiment or perhaps a brigade。 Altogether an attractive person;
scholarly; refined has some accomplishments not so common as they
might be in the class we call gentlemen; with an accent on the word。
There is also a young Doctor; waiting for his bald spot to come; so
that he may get into practice。
We have two young ladies at the table;the English girl referred to
in a former number; and an American girl of about her own age。 Both
of them are students in one of those institutionsI am not sure
whether they call it an 〃annex〃 or not; but at any rate one of those
schools where they teach the incomprehensible sort of mathematics and
other bewildering branches of knowledge above the common level of
high…school education。 They seem to be good friends; and form a very
pleasing pair when they walk in arm in arm; nearly enough alike to
seem to belong together; different enough to form an agreeable
contrast。
Of course we were bound to have a Musician at our table; and we have
one who sings admirably; and accompanies himself; or one or more of
our ladies; very frequently。
Such is our company when the table is full。 But sometimes only half
a dozen; or it may be only three or four; are present。 At other
times we have a visitor or two; either in the place of one of our
habitual number; or in addition to it。 We have the elements; we
think; of a pleasant social gathering;different sexes; ages;
pursuits; and tastes;all that is required for a 〃symphony concert〃
of conversation。 One of the curious questions which might well be
asked by those who had been with us on different occasions would be;
〃How many poets are there among you?〃 Nobody can answer this
question。 It is a point of etiquette with us not to press our
inquiries about these anonymous poems too sharply; especially if any
of them betray sentiments which would not bear rough handling。
I don't doubt that the different personalities at our table will get
mixed up in the reader's mind if be is not particularly clear…headed。
That happens very often; much oftener than all would be willing to
confess; in reading novels and plays。 I am afraid we should get a
good deal confused even in reading our Shakespeare if we did not look
back now and then at the dramatis personae。 I am sure that I am very
apt to confound the characters in a moderately interesting novel;
indeed; I suspect that the writer is often no better off than the
reader in the dreary middle of the story; when his characters have
all made their appearance; and before they have reached near enough
to the denoument to have fixed their individuality by the position
they have arrived at in the chain of the narrative。
My reader might be a little puzzled when he read that Number Five did
or said such or such a thing; and ask; 〃Whom do you mean by that
title? I am not quite sure that I remember。〃 Just associate her with
that line of Emerson;
〃Why nature loves the number five;〃
and that will remind you that she is the favorite of our table。
You cannot forget who Number Seven is if I inform you that he
specially prides himself on being a seventh son of a seventh son。
The fact of such a descent is supposed to carry wonderful endowments
with it。 Number Seven passes for a natural healer。 He is looked
upon as a kind of wizard; and is lucky in living in the nineteenth
century instead of the sixteenth or earlier。 How much confidence he
feels in himself as the possessor of half…supernatural gifts I cannot
say。 I think his peculiar birthright gives him a certain confidence
in his whims and fancies which but for that he would hardly feel。
After this explanation; when I speak of Number Five or Number Seven;
you will know to whom I refer。
The company are very frank in their criticisms of each other。 〃I did
not like that expression of yours; planetary foundlings;〃 said the
Mistress。 〃It seems to me that it is too like atheism for a good
Christian like you to use。〃
Ah; my dear madam; I answered; I was thinking of the elements and the
natural forces to which man was born an almost helpless subject in
the rudimentary stages of his existence; and from which he has only
partially got free after ages upon ages of warfare with their
tyranny。 Think what hunger forced the caveman to do! Think of the
surly indifference of the storms that swept the forest and the
waters; the earthquake chasms that engulfed him; the inundations that
drowned him out of his miserable hiding…places; the pestilences that
lay in wait for him; the unequal strife with ferocious animals!
I need not sum up all the wretchedness that goes to constitute the
〃martyrdom of man。〃 When our forefathers came to this wilderness as
it then was; and found everywhere the bones of the poor natives who
had perished in the great plague (which our Doctor there thinks was
probably the small…pox); they considered this destructive malady as a
special mark of providential favor for them。 How about the miserable
Indians? Were they anything but planetary foundlings? No!
Civilization is a great foundling hospital; and fortunate are all
those who get safely into the creche before the frost or the malaria
has killed them; the wild beasts or the venomous reptiles worked out
their deadly appetites and instincts upon them。 The very idea of
humanity seems to be that it shall take care of itself and develop
its powers in the 〃struggle for life。〃 Whether we approve it or not;
if we can judge by the material record; man was born a foundling; and
fought his way as he best might to that kind of existence which we
call civilized;one which a considerable part of the inhabitants of
our planet have reached。
If you do not like the expression planetary foundlings; I have no
objection to your considering the race as put out to nurse。 And what
a nurse Nature is! She gives her charge a hole in the rocks to live
in; ice for his pillow and snow for his blanket; in one part of the
world; the jungle for his bedroom in another; with the tiger for his
watch…dog; and the cobra as his playfellow。
Well; I said; there may be other parts of the universe where there
are no tigers and no cobras。 It is not quite certain that such
realms of creation are better off; on the whole; than this earthly
residence of ours; which has fought its way up to the development of
such centres of civilization as Athens and Rome; to such
personalities as Socrates; as Washington。
〃One of our company has been on an excursion among the celestial
bodies of our system; I understand;〃 said the Professor。
Number Five colored。 〃Nothing but a dream;〃 she said。 〃The truth
is; I had taken ether in the evening for a touch of neuralgia; and it
set my imagination at work in a way quite unusual with me。 I had
been reading a number of books about an ideal condition of society;
Sir Thomas Mores 'Utopia;' Lord Bacon's 'New Atlantis;' and another
of more recent date。 I went to bed with my brain a good deal
excited; and fell into a deep slumber; in which I passed through some
experiences so singular that; on awaking; I put them down on paper。
I don't know that there is anything very original about the
experiences I have recorded; but I thought them worth preserving。
Perhaps