下载掌阅APP，畅读海量书库
立即打开
T he small town of Verrieres may be regarded as one of the most attractive in France. Its white houses with their high roofs of red tiles are spread over the slope of a hill, and the entire town is sheltered on the north by a high mountain. A torrent which comes tearing down from the mountain passes through Verrieres, provides power for the numerous wood-cutting businesses in the area.
No sooner has one entered the town than one is startled by the noise of a particular local factory, where enormous hammers transform little scraps of iron into nails. When asking the townspeople to whom it belongs, he is told, “It belongs to the Mayor.”
Provided the traveller halts for a few moments in this main street of Verrieres, chances are that he will see a tall man appear, with a busy, important air. At the sight of him every hat is quickly raised. The visitor's first impression may be one of dignity. But soon this will change, ultimately resulting in the visitor feeling that this man's talent is confined to securing the exact payment of whatever is owed to him and to postponing payment till the last possible moment when he is the debtor.Such is the Mayor of Verrieres, Mr. de Renal.
His home, about a hundred meters down from Town Hall, is a rather imposing one with beautiful gardens, built extensively around it. In fact, they are so extensive that a peasant's wood cutting mill recently had to be relocated in order to make room for further gardening property. The stubborn peasant, known as Sorel did not agree to the move unless he was paid handsomely.Mr. de Renal handed over a large sum of cash and the deal was sealed. Sorel became rather wealthy then and began to be known as Pere.
It was a fine day in autumn and Mr. de Renal was strolling down the town's main avenue, his lady on his arm. Madame de Renal looked like a woman of thirty, but was still extremely pretty.
“He may live to regret the day, that fine gentleman from Paris,” Mr. de Renal was saying in a tone of annoyance . “I myself am not entirely without friends at Court...”
This fine gentleman from Paris, so disliked by the Mayor of Verrieres was none other than Mr. Appert, who, a couple of days earlier, had contrived to make his way not only into the prison and the poorhouse of Verrieres but also into the hospital, administered and funded by the Mayor and the principal landowners of the neighborhood. He was given a tour of these various localities by the priest, Mr. Chelan, who had been at the church of Verrieres for most of his life.
“But,” Madame de Renal put in timidly , “what harm can this gentleman from Paris do you, since you provide for the welfare of the poor with the most conscientious honesty?”
“He has only come to cast blame, and then he'll go back and have articles put in the Liberal papers.”
“You never read them, my dear.”
“But people tell us about those articles; all that distracts us, and hinders us from doing good. As for me, I shall never forgive the priest.”
tile /taɪl/ n. 瓦片，瓷砖
torrent /ˈtɒrənt/ n. 急流，洪流
scrap /skræp/ n. 小片，小块
townspeople /ˈtaʊnzpi:pl/ n. 市民，镇民
ultimately /ˈʌltɪmətlɪ/ adv. 最后，终于
relocate /ri:ləʊˈkeɪt/ ˌ v t. 搬迁，迁移
stubborn /ˈstʌbən/ adj. 顽固的，固执的
stroll /strəʊl/ vi. 漫步，闲逛
annoyance /əˈnɔɪəns/ n. 烦恼；可厌之事
entirely /ɪnˈtaɪəlɪ/ adv. 完全地，全然地，一概地
contrive /kənˈtraɪv/ vi. 设法做到；发明，设计
poorhouse /ˈpʊəhaʊs/ n. 救济院
administer /ædˈmɪnɪstə/ vt. 管理；给予；执行
landowner /ˈlændəʊnə/ n. 地主，土地所有者
locality /ləʊˈkælɪtɪ/ n. 地区，地点；现场
timidly /ˈtɪmɪdlɪ/ adv. 胆小地，羞怯地
conscientious /ˌkɒnʃɪˈenʃəs/ adj. 认真的；一丝不苟的