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At about eleven o'clock, however, a few specks of small
rain upon the windows caught Catherine's watchful eye,
and "Oh! dear, I do believe it will be wet," broke from
her in a most desponding tone.
 "I thought how it would be," said Mrs. Allen.
"No walk for me today," sighed Catherine; "but perhaps
it may come to nothing, or it may hold up before twelve."
"Perhaps it may, but then, my dear, it will be so dirty."
"Oh! That will not signify; I never mind dirt."
"No," replied her friend very placidly, "I know you
never mind dirt."
After a short pause, "It comes on faster and faster!"
said Catherine, as she stood watching at a window.
"So it does indeed. If it keeps raining, the streets
will be very wet."
"There are four umbrellas up already. How I hate
the sight of an umbrella!"
"They are disagreeable things to carry. I would
much rather take a chair at any time."
"It was such a nice-looking morning! I felt
so convinced it would be dry!"
"Anybody would have thought so indeed. There will
be very few people in the pump-room, if it rains all
the morning. I hope Mr. Allen will put on his greatcoat
when he goes, but I dare say he will not, for he had rather
do anything in the world than walk out in a greatcoat;
I wonder he should dislike it, it must be so comfortable."
The rain continued--fast, though not heavy.
Catherine went every five minutes to the clock,
threatening on each return that, if it still kept on
raining another five minutes, she would give up the matter
as hopeless. The clock struck twelve, and it still rained.
"You will not be able to go, my dear."
"I do not quite despair yet. I shall not give
it up till a quarter after twelve. This is just
the time of day for it to clear up, and I do think it
looks a little lighter. There, it is twenty minutes
after twelve, and now I shall give it up entirely.
Oh! That we had such weather here as they had at Udolpho,
or at least in Tuscany and the south of France!--the
night that poor St. Aubin died!--such beautiful weather!"
At half past twelve, when Catherine's anxious attention
to the weather was over and she could no longer claim
any merit from its amendment, the sky began voluntarily
to clear. A gleam of sunshine took her quite by surprise;
she looked round; the clouds were parting, and she instantly
returned to the window to watch over and encourage the
happy appearance. Ten minutes more made it certain that a
bright afternoon would succeed, and justified the opinion
of Mrs. Allen, who had "always thought it would clear up."
But whether Catherine might still expect her friends,
whether there had not been too much rain for Miss Tilney
to venture, must yet be a question.
It was too dirty for Mrs. Allen to accompany her
husband to the pump-room; he accordingly set off by himself,
and Catherine had barely watched him down the street
when her notice was claimed by the approach of the same
two open carriages, containing the same three people
that had surprised her so much a few mornings back.
"Isabella, my brother, and Mr. Thorpe, I declare!
They are coming for me perhaps--but I shall not go--I
cannot go indeed, for you know Miss Tilney may still call."
Mrs. Allen agreed to it. John Thorpe was soon with them,
and his voice was with them yet sooner, for on the
stairs he was calling out to Miss Morland to be quick.
"Make haste! Make haste!" as he threw open the door.
"Put on your hat this moment--there is no time to be lost--we
are going to Bristol. How d'ye do, Mrs. Allen?"
"To Bristol! Is not that a great way off? But,
however, I cannot go with you today, because I am engaged;
I expect some friends every moment." This was of course
vehemently talked down as no reason at all; Mrs. Allen
was called on to second him, and the two others walked in,
to give their assistance. "My sweetest Catherine, is not
this delightful? We shall have a most heavenly drive.
You are to thank your brother and me for the scheme;
it darted into our heads at breakfast-time, I verily
believe at the same instant; and we should have been off
two hours ago if it had not been for this detestable rain.
But it does not signify, the nights are moonlight, and we
shall do delightfully. Oh! I am in such ecstasies at the
thoughts of a little country air and quiet! So much better
than going to the Lower Rooms. We shall drive directly
to Clifton and dine there; and, as soon as dinner is over,
if there is time for it, go on to Kingsweston."
"I doubt our being able to do so much," said Morland.
"You croaking fellow!" cried Thorpe. "We shall
be able to do ten times more. Kingsweston! Aye,
and Blaize Castle too, and anything else we can hear of;
but here is your sister says she will not go."
"Blaize Castle!" cried Catherine. "What is that'?"
"The finest place in England--worth going fifty
miles at any time to see."
"What, is it really a castle, an old castle?"
"The oldest in the kingdom."
"But is it like what one reads of?"
"Exactly--the very same."
"But now really--are there towers and long galleries?"
"By dozens."
 "Then I should like to see it; but I cannot--I
cannot go.
"Not go! My beloved creature, what do you mean'?"
"I cannot go, because"--looking down as she spoke,
fearful of Isabella's smile--"I expect Miss Tilney
and her brother to call on me to take a country walk.
They promised to come at twelve, only it rained; but now,
as it is so fine, I dare say they will be here soon."
"Not they indeed," cried Thorpe; "for, as we turned
into Broad Street, I saw them--does he not drive a phaeton
with bright chestnuts?"
"I do not know indeed."
"Yes, I know he does; I saw him. You are talking
of the man you danced with last night, are not you?"
"Yes.
"Well, I saw him at that moment
turn up the Lansdown Road, driving a smart-looking girl."
"Did you indeed?"
"Did upon my soul; knew him again directly, and he
seemed to have got some very pretty cattle too."
"It is very odd! But I suppose they thought it would
be too dirty for a walk."
"And well they might, for I never saw so much dirt
in my life. Walk! You could no more walk than you
could fly! It has not been so dirty the whole winter;
it is ankle-deep everywhere."
Isabella corroborated it: "My dearest Catherine,
you cannot form an idea of the dirt; come, you must go;
you cannot refuse going now."
"I should like to see the castle; but may we go
all over it? May we go up every staircase, and into every
suite of rooms?"
"Yes, yes, every hole and corner."
"But then, if they should only be gone out for
an hour till it is dryer, and call by and by?"
"Make yourself easy, there is no danger of that,
for I heard Tilney hallooing to a man who was just passing
by on horseback, that they were going as far as Wick Rocks."
"Then I will. Shall I go, Mrs. Allen?"
"Just as you please, my dear."
"Mrs. Allen, you must persuade her to go,"
was the general cry. Mrs. Allen was not inattentive
to it: "Well, my dear," said she, "suppose you go."
And in two minutes they were off.
Catherine's feelings, as she got into the carriage,
were in a very unsettled state; divided between regret
for the loss of one great pleasure, and the hope of soon
enjoying another, almost its equal in degree, however unlike
in kind. She could not think the Tilneys had acted quite
well by her, in so readily giving up their engagement,
without sending her any message of excuse. It was now
but an hour later than the time fixed on for the beginning
of their walk; and, in spite of what she had heard of the
prodigious accumulation of dirt in the course of that hour,
she could not from her own observation help thinking
that they might have gone with very little inconvenience.
To feel herself slighted by them was very painful.
On the other hand, the delight of exploring an edifice
like Udolpho, as her fancy represented Blaize Castle to be, [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]