Vanity Fair William Makepeace Thackeray (portable ebook reader .txt) đ
- Author: William Makepeace Thackeray
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The boat followed the smoke into sight. Georgy had a dandy telescope and got the vessel under view in the most skilful manner. And he made appropriate nautical comments upon the manner of the approach of the steamer as she came nearer and nearer, dipping and rising in the water. The signal of an English steamer in sight went fluttering up to the mast on the pier. I daresay Mrs. Ameliaâs heart was in a similar flutter.
Emmy tried to look through the telescope over Georgeâs shoulder, but she could make nothing of it. She only saw a black eclipse bobbing up and down before her eyes.
George took the glass again and raked the vessel. âHow she does pitch!â he said. âThere goes a wave slap over her bows. Thereâs only two people on deck besides the steersman. Thereâs a man lying down, and aâ âchap in aâ âcloak with aâ âHooray!â âitâs Dob, by Jingo!â He clapped to the telescope and flung his arms round his mother. As for that lady, let us say what she did in the words of a favourite poetâ ââÎαÎșÏÎœÏΔΜ γΔλαÏÎŹÏα.â She was sure it was William. It could be no other. What she had said about hoping that he would not come was all hypocrisy. Of course he would come; what could he do else but come? She knew he would come.
The ship came swiftly nearer and nearer. As they went in to meet her at the landing-place at the quay, Emmyâs knees trembled so that she scarcely could run. She would have liked to kneel down and say her prayers of thanks there. Oh, she thought, she would be all her life saying them!
It was such a bad day that as the vessel came alongside of the quay there were no idlers abroad, scarcely even a commissioner on the look out for the few passengers in the steamer. That young scapegrace George had fled too, and as the gentleman in the old cloak lined with red stuff stepped on to the shore, there was scarcely anyone present to see what took place, which was briefly this:
A lady in a dripping white bonnet and shawl, with her two little hands out before her, went up to him, and in the next minute she had altogether disappeared under the folds of the old cloak, and was kissing one of his hands with all her might; whilst the other, I suppose, was engaged in holding her to his heart (which her head just about reached) and in preventing her from tumbling down. She was murmuring something aboutâ âforgiveâ âdear Williamâ âdear, dear, dearest friendâ âkiss, kiss, kiss, and so forthâ âand in fact went on under the cloak in an absurd manner.
When Emmy emerged from it, she still kept tight hold of one of Williamâs hands, and looked up in his face. It was full of sadness and tender love and pity. She understood its reproach and hung down her head.
âIt was time you sent for me, dear Amelia,â he said.
âYou will never go again, William?â
âNo, never,â he answered, and pressed the dear little soul once more to his heart.
As they issued out of the customhouse precincts, Georgy broke out on them, with his telescope up to his eye, and a loud laugh of welcome; he danced round the couple and performed many facetious antics as he led them up to the house. Jos wasnât up yet; Becky not visible (though she looked at them through the blinds). Georgy ran off to see about breakfast. Emmy, whose shawl and bonnet were off in the passage in the hands of Mrs. Payne, now went to undo the clasp of Williamâs cloak, andâ âwe will, if you please, go with George, and look after breakfast for the Colonel. The vessel is in port. He has got the prize he has been trying for all his life. The bird has come in at last. There it is with its head on his shoulder, billing and cooing close up to his heart, with soft outstretched fluttering wings. This is what he has asked for every day and hour for eighteen years. This is what he pined after. Here it isâ âthe summit, the endâ âthe last page of the third volume. Goodbye, Colonelâ âGod bless you, honest William!â âFarewell, dear Ameliaâ âGrow green again, tender little parasite, round the rugged old oak to which you cling!
Perhaps it was compunction towards the kind and simple creature, who had been the first in life to defend her, perhaps it was a dislike to all such sentimental scenesâ âbut Rebecca, satisfied with her part in the transaction, never presented herself before Colonel Dobbin and the lady whom he married. âParticular business,â she said, took her to Bruges, whither she went, and only Georgy and his uncle were present at the marriage ceremony. When it was over, and Georgy had rejoined his parents, Mrs. Becky returned (just for a few days) to comfort the solitary bachelor, Joseph Sedley. He preferred a continental life, he said, and declined to join in housekeeping with his sister and her husband.
Emmy was very glad in her heart to think that she had written to her husband before she read or knew of that letter of Georgeâs. âI knew it all along,â William said; âbut could I use that weapon against the poor fellowâs memory? It was that which made me suffer so when youâ ââ
âNever speak of that day again,â Emmy cried out, so contrite and humble that William turned off the conversation by his account of Glorvina and dear old Peggy OâDowd, with whom he was sitting when the letter of recall reached him. âIf you hadnât sent for me,â he added with a laugh, âwho knows what Glorvinaâs name might be now?â
At present it is Glorvina Posky (now Mrs. Major Posky); she took him on the death
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