养子 第2期

开篇：润墨网以专业的文秘视角，为您筛选了一篇养子 第2期范文，如需获取更多写作素材，在线客服老师一对一协助。欢迎您的阅读与分享！

The two cottages stood beside each other at the foot of a hill near a little seashore resort. The two peasants labored hard on the unproductive soil to rear their little ones, and each family had four.

Before the adjoining doors a whole troop of urchins played and tumbled about from morning till night. The two eldest were six years old, and the youngest were about fifteen months;the marriages, and afterward the births, having taken place nearly simultaneously in both families.

The two mothers could hardly distinguish their own offspring among the lot, and as for the fathers, they were altogether at sea. The eight names danced in their heads; they were always getting them mixed up;and when they wished to call one child, the men often called three names before getting the right one.

The first of the two cottages, as you came up from the bathing beach, Rolleport, was occupied by the Tuvaches, who had three girls and one boy; the other house sheltered the Vallins, who had one girl and three boys.

They all subsisted frugally on soup, potatoes and fresh air. At seven o' clock in the morning, then at noon, then at six o' clock in the evening, the housewives got their broods together to give them their food, as the gooseherds collect their charges. The children were seated, according to age, before the wooden table, varnished by fifty years of use; the mouths of the youngest hardly reaching the level of the table. Before them was placed a bowl filled with bread, soaked in the water in which the potatoes had been boiled, half a cabbage and three onions; and the whole line ate until their hunger was appeased. The mother herself fed thesmallest.

A small pot roast on Sunday was a feast for all;and the father on this day sat longer over the meal, repeating:"I wish we could have this everyday."

One afternoon, in the month of August, a phaeton stopped suddenly in front of the cottages, and a young woman, who was driving the horses, said to the gentleman sitting at her side: "Oh, look at all those children, Henri! How pretty they are, tumbling about in the dust, like that!"

The man did not answer, accustomed to these outbursts of admiration, which were a pain and almost a reproach to him. The young woman continued:"I must hug them! Oh, how I should like to have one of them-that one there- the little tiny one!"

Springing down from the carriage, she ran toward the children, took one of the two youngest - a Tuvache child - and lifting it up in her arms, she kissed him passionately on his dirty cheeks, on his tousled hair daubed with earth, and on his little hands, with which he fought vigorously, to get away from the caresses which displeased him.

Then she got into the carriage again, and drove off at a lively trot. But she returned the following week, and seating herself on the ground, took the youngster in her arms, stuffed him with cakes; gave candies to all the others, and played with them like a young girl, while the husband waited patiently in the carriage.

She returned again; made the acquaintance of the parents, and reappeared every day with her pockets full of dainties and pennies.

Her name was Madame Henri Hubieres.

One morning, on arriving, her husband alighted with her, and without stopping to talk to the children, who now knew her well, she entered the farmer's cottage.

They were busy chopping wood for the fire. They rose to their feet in surprise, brought forward chairs, and waited expectantly.

Then the woman, in a broken, trembling voice, began, "My good people, I have come to see you, because I should like--I should like to take your little boy with me--"

The country people, too bewildered to think, did not answer.

She recovered her breath, and continued: "We are alone, my husband and I. We would keep it. Are you willing?"

The peasant woman began to understand. She asked, "You want to take Charlot from us? Oh, no, indeed!"

Then M. Hubieres intervened, "My wife has not made her meaning clear. We wish to adopt him, but he will come back to see you. If he turns out well, as there is every reason to expect, he will be our heir. If we, perchance, should have children, he will share equally with them; but if he should not reward our care, we should give him, when he comes of age, a sum of twenty thousand francs, which shall be deposited immediately in his name, with a lawyer. As we have thought also of you, we should pay you, until your death, a pension of one hundred francs a month. Do you understand me?"

The woman had arisen, furious.

"You want me to sell you Charlot? Oh, no, that' s not the sort of thing to ask of a mother! Oh, no! That would be an abomination!"

The man, grave and deliberate, said nothing;but approved of what his wife said by a continued nodding of his head.

Madame Hubieres, in dismay, began to weep; turning to her husband, with a voice full of tears, the voice of a child used to having all its wishes gratified, she stammered, "They will not do it, Henri, they will not do it."

Then he made a last attempt: "But, my friends, think of the child' s future, of his happiness, of…"

The peasant woman, however, exasperated, cut him short, "It' s all considered! It's all understood! Get out of here, and don't let me see you again- the idea of wanting to take away a child like that!"

Madame Hubieres remembered that there were two children, quite little, and she asked, through her tears, with the tenacity of a wilful and spoiled woman, "But is the other little one not yours?"

Father Tuvache answered, "No, it is our neighbors". You can go to them if you wish." And he went back into his house, when resounded the indignant voice of his wife.

The Vallins were at table, slowly eating slices of bread which they parsimoniously spread with a little rancid butter on a plate between the two.

M. Hubieres recommenced his proposals, but with more insinuations, more oratorical precautions, more shrewdness.

The two country people shook their heads, in sign of refusal, but when they learned that they were to have a hundred francs a month, they considered the matter, consulting one another by glances, much disturbed. They kept silent for a long time, tortured, hesitating. At last the woman asked, "What do you say to it, man?" In a weighty tone he said:"I say that it' s not to be despised. "

Madame Hubieres, trembling with anguish, spoke of the future of their child, of his happiness, and of the money which he could give them later.

The peasant asked, "This pension of twelve hundred francs, will it be promised before a lawyer?"

M. Hubieres responded, "Why, certainly, beginning with tomorrow."

The woman, who was thinking it over, continued,"A hundred francs a month is not enough to pay for depriving us of the child. That child would be working in a few years;we must have a hundred and twenty francs."

Tapping her foot with impatience, Madame Hubieres granted it at once, and, as she wished to carry off the child with her, she gave a hundred francs extra, as a present, while her husband drew up a paper. And the young woman, radiant, carried off the howling brat, as one cames away a wished- for knick- knack from a shop.

The Tuvaches, from their door, watched her departure, silent, serious, perhaps regretting their refusal.

Nothing more was heard of little Jean Vallin. The parents went to the lawyer every month to collect their hundred and twenty francs. They had quarrelled with their neighbors, because Mother Tuvache grossly insulted them, continually, repeating from door to door that one must be unnatural to sell one' s child;that it was horrible, disgusting, bribery. Sometimes she would take her Charlot in her arms, ostentatiously exclaiming, as if he understood,

"I didn't sell you, I didn't! I didn't sell you, my little one!I'm not rich, but I don't sell my children!"

The Vallins lived comfortably, thanks to the pension. That was the cause of the unappeasable fury of the Tuvaches, who had remained miserably poor. Their eldest went away to serve his time in the army; Charlot alone remained to labor with his old father, to support the mother and two younger sisters.

He had reached twenty- one years when, one morning, a brilliant carriage stopped before the two cottages. A young gentleman, with a gold watch-chain, got out, giving his hand to an aged, white- haired lady. The old lady said to him," It is there, my child, at the second house." And he entered the house of the Vallins as though at home.

The old mother was washing her aprons; the infirm father slumbered at the chimney - corner. Both raised their heads, and the young man said,"Good - morning, papa; good morning, mamma !"

They both stood up, frightened! In a flutter, the peasant woman dropped her soap into the water, and stammered,

"Is it you, my child? Is it you, my child?"

He took her in his arms and hugged her, repeating, "Good morning, mamma," while the old man, all a tremble, said, in his calm tone which he never lost," Here you are, back again, Jean," as if he had just seen him a month ago.

When they had got to know one another again, the parents wighed to take their boy out in the neighborhood, and show him. They took him to the mayor, to the deputy, to the cure, and to the schoolmaster.

Charlot, standing on the threshold of his cottage, watched him pass. In the evening, at supper, he said to the old people," You must have been stupid to let the Vallins' boy be taken."

The mother answered, obstinately, "I wouldn' t sell my child."

The father remained silent. The son continued, "It is unfortunate to be sacrificed like that."

Then Father Tuvache, in an angry tone, said,"Are you going to reproach us for having kept you?" And the young man said, "brutally,"

"Yes, I reproach you for having been such fools. Parents like you make the misfortune of their children. You deserve that I should leave you." The old woman wept over her plate. She moaned, as she swallowed the spoonfuls of soup, half of which she spilled: "One may kill one's self to bring up children!"

Then the boy said, roughly. "I'd rather not have been born than be what I am. When I saw the other, my heart stood still. I said to myself, ‘See what I should have been now!’" He got up," See here, I feel that I would do better not to stay here, because I would throw it up to you from morning till night, and I would make your life miserable. I'll never forgive you for that!"

The two old people were silent, downcast, in tears.

He continued, "No, the thought of that would be too much. I'd rather look for a living somewhere else."

He opened the door. A sound of voices came in at the door. The Vallins were celebrating the return of their child.

海边的山脚下，有两座紧挨着的农舍。两家的主人都辛勤地在贫瘠的土地上劳作，他们各自需要抚养四个孩子。

在两座紧挨着的农舍大门前，一群淘气的孩子从早到晚玩耍打闹。最大的两个孩子6岁，最小的只有15个月。这两家的主人从结婚到生孩子，几乎是同时进行的。

这么多的孩子，连他们的母亲都几乎分不清哪个是自己的，两位父亲更是两眼一摸瞎，他们知道八个孩子的名字，却分不清楚谁是谁，他们叫一个孩子的名字时，总是要叫两三次才能叫对。

如果你从露泊特海滨浴场方向过来，看到的第一家农舍是图瓦兹的家，他们家有三个女孩和一个男孩。另一家是瓦伦家，他们家有一个女孩和三个男孩。

他们过着非常俭朴的生活，除了土豆和稀汤外，只有新鲜的空气。早上7点、正午和晚上6点是主妇们给小孩子开饭的时间，就像养鹅人喂鹅一样，孩子们从大到小，依次坐在木头桌子旁边，这桌子用了半个世纪，已经被磨得光滑无比，最小的孩子还够不到桌面。每个孩子都能分到一碗泡着面包的汤。这汤是用一些土豆、半个卷心菜和三个洋葱熬成的。坐成一排的孩子们就用这些食物填饱他们的肚子，而最小的孩子则需要母亲去喂。

每个星期天会有一小锅烤肉，这是全家人的大餐。这天，父亲跟家人们吃饭的时间也长一些，他总是不断地说：“但愿我们每天都能吃到这样的食物。”

8月的一天下午，一辆四轮马车停在了两家农舍前。驾车的太太对身边的先生说：“亨利，看那些孩子，他们打打闹闹，弄得跟泥猴似的，真是可爱。”

男人没说话，他早已习惯了夫人在这方面的向往，而这对他来说几乎是一种痛苦，或者说是一种责备。这位年轻女士接着说：“我要抱抱他们!噢，我真希望有这样一个孩子――最小的那个。”

她跳下马车，跑到孩子们中间，把其中最小的――图瓦兹家的孩子抱在怀里，动情地亲吻着孩子脏兮兮的小脸蛋、乱蓬蓬的沾满泥土的头发和他的小手，孩子用力挣扎着，想摆脱这种让他很不舒服的拥抱。

然后她回到马车上，驾着马车飞快地离开了。第二个星期，她又来了。她坐在地上，把最小的孩子抱在怀里，给他点心吃，还给其他的孩子发糖果，并像个小女孩似的和他们一起玩耍，那位丈夫则耐心地坐在马车上。

她经常来，和家长们也相识了，每次她的口袋里都装满了硬币和好吃的零食。

她就是亨利・杜比艾女士。

一天早晨，她的丈夫和她一起来了，这次她并没有与和她熟识的小孩子们说话，而是直接走进了农舍。

主人正在劈柴，看到他们来了，非常惊讶，急忙拿来椅子请他们坐下，然后等着他们说明来意。

女人颤抖着，断断续续地说：“善良的人啊，我来看望你们，因为我希望……我希望……你们能把最小的孩子送给我……”

这对夫妇有点糊涂了，不知道该说什么。

女人停了停喘了口气，接着说道：“我丈夫和我，我们没有孩子，我们希望抚养你们的一个孩子，你们同意吗?”

这时女主人才明白过来，她说：“你想带走夏洛特?噢，不，绝不。”

杜比艾先生打断了她的话：“我的妻子没有说清楚，我们想领养他，但他还是可以来看望你们。假如他长大了以后能够有出息，这是很有可能的，他可以继承我们的财产。如果我们以后有了自己的孩子，他将和我们的孩子平分财产。如果他不愿意这样，等他成年后，我们会赠给他两万法郎，这可以通过律师，立刻转到他的名下。考虑到你们对他的抚养，我们每月付给你们100法郎，直到你们过世，你们明白了吗?”

女主人愤怒地跳了起来。

“你们要我把夏洛特卖给你们?噢，我不会这么做的，一个母亲绝不会这么做!噢!不!这种事真让人恶心。”

男主人陷入沉思，他表情严肃，沉默不语，但不停地点着头，表示同意妻子的话。

杜比艾女士非常沮丧，她哭着转过头看着丈夫，带着哭腔，像是一个被惯坏了的小女孩受了委屈似的，结结巴巴地说：“亨利，他们不干，他们不干呀。”

杜比艾先生做了最后的努力，尝试着想说服他们：“但是，朋友啊，想想孩子的未来吧，他的幸福，他的……”

女主人被激怒了，她打断他的话：“我们考虑过了，我们非常清楚，请离开吧，不要再让我看见你――想带走我们的孩子――休想!”

这时杜比艾女士想到，有两个同龄的小孩子，她像一个被宠坏了的孩子一样，一定要达到自己的目的，她眼泪汪汪地问道：“还有一个孩子，他不是你家的吧?”

父亲图瓦兹回答道：“不是，是我们邻居的。你如果愿意，可以去问他们。”他回到屋子里，里面传来了女主人愤怒的声音。

瓦伦一家坐在桌子边小心翼翼地把变了味的黄油涂在面包片上，慢慢地吃着。

杜比艾先生小心地向他们说明来意，措辞十分谨慎，尽可能地不招致他们的反感。

这对夫妇起先不愿意，但当他们知道每月能得到100法郎时，心情就不平静了，他们开始认真地思索起来，不断地用眼神交换意见。他们沉默了很久，再三思量，痛苦地进行抉择。最后，女主人问道：“你说呢，孩子他爸?”丈夫沉重地说：“我觉得不应该讨厌这事吧。”

杜比艾夫人痛苦地、全身颤抖着对他们说，要为孩子的未来着想，想想他的幸福，而且这样还会给他们带来一笔补偿金。

男主人问道：“可以当着律师的面保证给我们每年1200法郎吗?”

杜比艾先生回答道：“噢，当然，明天就可以。”

女主人考虑了一下后又说：“我们失去了孩子，一个月100法郎可不够。几年后，孩子就可以干活了。我们一个月要120法郎。”

听到这话，杜比艾夫人不耐烦地跺跺脚，迫不及待地答应了她，她想立刻带走孩子，为此，她又多给了他们100法郎，而她丈夫则写下了合约。这位年轻的夫人兴高采烈地带走了哭叫的小孩，好像一个孩子得到了一个盼望已久的玩具似的，非常高兴。

图瓦兹一家站在自己家门口，沉默不语，严肃地看着他们离去，他们也许开始为拒绝此事感到后悔了。

从此以后小瓦伦再也没有音信了。夫妻俩每月到律师那里领取120法郎，他们常常与邻居争吵，因为图瓦兹夫人不停地奚落他们，挨家挨户地告诉别人，卖掉自己的孩子是多么的不道德、多么的可怕，说这种事令人作呕。有时，她抱着夏洛特，好像他听得懂似的，很自豪地说：

“我没有把你卖掉，我没有!我没有把你卖掉，我的小宝贝!我很穷，但我不卖孩子。”

由于这笔补偿金，瓦伦一家的生活得到改善。这更使得图瓦兹一家愤懑不已，他们家还是穷得叮当响。他们家的大儿子参了军；只有夏洛特一人与老父亲在田里耕作，来养活母亲和两个弟妹。

夏洛特21岁的一天早晨，一辆华丽的马车停在了两家农舍门前。一位戴着金表的年轻绅士走下来，搀扶着一位上了年纪的、头发花白的女士下了马车。这位女士对他说：“我的孩子，就在那儿，靠里面那座房子。”他走进瓦伦家，好像回到自己家一样。

老母亲正在洗衣服，衰老的父亲在壁炉边打着盹。他们抬起头，年轻人对他们说：

“早上好，爸爸!早上好，妈妈!”

他们俩吓了一跳，都站起来，惶恐之下，农妇肥皂掉进了水里，她结结巴巴地说：

“是你吗，我的孩子?是你吗，我的孩子?”

他拥抱她，不停地说：“早上好，妈妈。”而那位年迈的父亲，浑身颤抖着，用一贯平静的声音说：“让,你回来了。”好像他们仅仅分别了一个月似的。

寒暄一番以后，父母亲希望孩子去拜访邻居们，见见人。他们带他拜访了市长、议员、牧师及校长等人。

夏洛特站在自己家门口，看着他走过。晚上，吃晚饭时，他对老两口说：“你们真傻，让人家带走了瓦伦家的孩子。”

母亲固执地回答道：“我可不愿意卖掉我的孩子。”

父亲则一言不发。孩子继续说：“失去这个机会真是不幸。”

父亲图瓦兹气愤地说：“你是在埋怨我们没把你送给人?”

年轻人残忍地说：“是的，我埋怨你们，是因为你们太傻了。像你们这样的父母只会带给孩子不幸。我要离开这里，这是你们的报应。”老农妇一边吃一边哭泣着，她咽下一勺汤，因哽咽几乎洒掉了一半，她说：“把孩子养大真是作孽啊！”

孩子粗鲁地说：“现在，我宁愿你们没有生过我。当我看着他，我便心灰意冷。我告诉自己：‘看，这本应该是我啊!’”他站起来，“好了，我觉得我还是别留在家里，因为我会整天冲你们发火，我会让你们难过。在这件事上，我不会原谅你们!”

老两口低着头，默默地流着泪，一言不发。

他继续说：“不，我不能再想下去了，我受不了了。我宁可到别的地方去谋生。”

他打开门，外面的喧闹传了进来，瓦伦一家正在庆祝他们孩子的归来。

注释

seashoren．海岸；海滨

urchinn．淘气鬼，小孩，顽童

altogetheradv．完全，全然；总而言之，总之；合计，全部

frugallyadv．节约地；俭朴地

accustomv．使习惯于

vigorouslyadv．精神旺盛地；活泼地

bewilderv．使迷惑；使昏乱；使不知所措

tenacityn．固执；坚韧，韧性；坚持，不屈不挠，顽强；保持力

proposaln．提议，求婚，计划

comfortablyadv．安乐地，充裕地，舒服地

reproachn．责备，指摘；丢丑的人；责备话；耻辱

v．责备，使丢脸，申斥

downcastadj．气馁的，悲哀的