酷兔英语
    当前位置:
  1. 首页
  2. 文章
  3. 娱乐英语
  4. 原版小说
  5. 正文

The Warden-Part15_Antony Trollope(1815-1882)_English Literature(文学名著)-第2页

0 收藏 0 分享 0 赞

章节正文
文章总共2页


to prove to the world that I have been right, and to uphold

the place I have held; but I cannot do it at such a cost



as this. I cannot bear this. Could you tell me to do so?' And

he appealed, almost in tears, to the bishop, who had left his



chair, and was now leaning on the warden's arm as he stood

on the further side of the table facing the archdeacon. 'Could



you tell me to sit there at ease, indifferent, and satisfied, while

such things as these are said loudly of me in the world?'



The bishop could feel for him and sympathise with him, but

he could not advise him, he could only say, 'No, no, you shall



be asked to do nothing that is painful; you shall do just what

your heart tells you to be right; you shall do whatever you



think best yourself. Theophilus, don't advise him, pray don't

advise the warden to do anything which is painful.'



But the archdeacon, though he could not sympathise, could

advise; and he saw that the time had come when it behoved



him to do so in a somewhat peremptory manner.

'Why, my lord,' he said, speaking to his father: and when



he called his father 'my lord,' the good old bishop shook in

his shoes, for he knew that an evil time was coming. 'Why,



my lord, there are two ways of giving advice: there is advice

that may be good for the present day; and there is advice that



may be good for days to come: now I cannot bring myself to

give the former, if it be incompatible with the other.'



'No, no, no, I suppose not,' said the bishop, re-seating himself,

and shading his face with his hands. Mr Harding sat



down with his back to the further wall, playing to himself some

air fitted for so calamitous an occasion, and the archdeacon



said out his say standing, with his back to the empty fire-place.

'It is not to be supposed but that much pain will spring out



of this unnecessarily raised question. We must all have foreseen

that, and the matter has in no wise gone on worse than we



expected; but it will be weak, yes, and wicked also, to abandon

the cause and own ourselves wrong, because the inquiry is



painful. It is not only ourselves we have to look to; to a certain

extent the interest of the church is in our keeping. Should it



be found that one after another of those who hold preferment

abandoned it whenever it might be attacked, is it not plain



that such attacks would be renewed till nothing was left us?

and, that if so deserted, the Church of England must fall to the



ground altogether? If this be true of many, it is true of one.

Were you, accused as you now are, to throw up the wardenship,



and to relinquish the preferment which is your property,

with the vain object of proving yourself disinterested, you



would fail in that object, you would inflict a desperate blow on

your brother clergymen, you would encourage every cantankerous



dissenter in England to make a similar charge against some

source of clericalrevenue, and you would do your best to



dishearten those who are most anxious to defend you and

uphold your position. I can fancy nothing more weak, or



more wrong. It is not that you think that there is any justice

in these charges, or that you doubt your own right to the



wardenship: you are convinced of your own honesty, and yet

would yield to them through cowardice.'



'Cowardice!' said the bishop, expostulating. Mr Harding

sat unmoved, gazing on his son-in-law.



'Well; would it not be cowardice? Would he not do so

because he is afraid to endure the evil things which will be



falsely spoken of him? Would that not be cowardice? And

now let us see the extent of the evil which you dread. The



Jupiter publishes an article which a great many, no doubt, will

read; but of those who understand the subject how many will



believe The Jupiter? Everyone knows what its object is: it has

taken up the case against Lord Guildford and against the Dean



of Rochester, and that against half a dozen bishops; and does

not everyone know that it would take up any case of the kind,



right or wrong, false or true, with known justice or known

injustice, if by doing so it could further its own views? Does



not all the world know this of The Jupiter? Who that really

knows you will think the worse of you for what The Jupiter says?



And why care for those who do not know you? I will say

nothing of your own comfort, but I do say that you could not



be justified in throwing up, in a fit of passion, for such it would

be, the only maintenance that Eleanor has; and if you did so,



if you really did vacate the wardenship, and submit to ruin,

what would that profit you? If you have no future right to






文章总共2页
文章标签:名著  

章节正文
Copyright © 2023 Qeto All rights reserved.
商务合作 | 联系我们 | 关于我们 | 版权声明 | 隐私条款 | 如果智培

京ICP备05059198号-1 京公网安备 11011202003401号