CHAPTER III. A SURPRISE

On the afternoon when our story begins Mary Louise walked home from school and found Colonel Weatherby waiting for her in the garden, leggings strapped to his gaunt legs, the checked walking-cap on his head, a gold-headed crop in his hand. Il pomeriggio in cui inizia la nostra storia Mary Louise tornò a casa da scuola e trovò il colonnello Weatherby ad attenderla in giardino, con i gambali allacciati alle gambe magre, il berretto da passeggio a quadri in testa, un raccolto dalla testa d'oro in mano.

"Let us go for a walk, my dear," he proposed. "It is Friday, so you will have all day to-morrow in which to get your lessons." "Oh, it won't take all day for that," she replied with a laugh. "I'll be glad of the walk. "Where shall we go, Gran'pa Jim?" "Perhaps to the mill-race. "Forse alla corsa del mulino. We haven't visited it for a long time." She ran to the house to put away her books and get her stout shoes, and presently rejoined him, when together they strolled up the street and circled round the little town until they came to the river bank. Lei corse in casa a mettere via i libri e a prendere le sue scarpe robuste, e poco dopo si ricongiunse a lui, quando insieme passeggiarono per la strada e girarono intorno alla cittadina fino a raggiungere la riva del fiume. Then they followed the stream toward the old mill.

Mary Louise told her grandfather of the recent edict of Miss Stearne and the indignation it had aroused in her girl boarders. Mary Louise raccontò al nonno il recente editto della signorina Stearne e l'indignazione che aveva suscitato nelle sue pensionanti.

"And what do you think of it, Gran'pa Jim?" she asked in conclusion.

"What do YOU think of it, Mary Louise?" "It is rather hard on the girls, who have enjoyed their liberty for so long; but I think it is Miss Stearne's plan to keep them away from the picture theatre." "And so?" "And so," she said, "it may do the girls more good than harm." He smiled approvingly. Sorrise con approvazione. It was his custom to draw out her ideas on all questions, rather than to assert his own in advance. Era sua abitudine esporre le idee di lei su tutte le questioni, piuttosto che affermare le proprie in anticipo. If he found her wrong or misinformed he would then correct her and set her right.

"So you do not approve of the pictures, Mary Louise?" "Not all of them, Gran'pa Jim, although they all seem to have been 'passed by the Board of Censors'—perhaps when their eyes were shut. "Non tutti, nonno Jim, anche se sembra che tutti siano stati "passati dalla commissione censoria", forse quando avevano gli occhi chiusi. I love the good pictures, and I know that you do, but some we have seen lately gave me the shivers. Amo le belle immagini, e so che anche voi le amate, ma alcune di quelle che abbiamo visto ultimamente mi hanno fatto venire i brividi. So, perhaps Miss Stearne is right." "I am confident she is," he agreed. "Some makers of pictures may consider it beneficial to emphasize good by exhibiting evil, by way of contrast, but they are doubtless wrong. I've an old-fashioned notion that young girls should be shielded, as much as possible, from knowledge of the world's sins and worries, which is sure to be impressed upon them in later years. Ho l'idea all'antica che le ragazze debbano essere protette, per quanto possibile, dalla conoscenza dei peccati e delle preoccupazioni del mondo, che sicuramente si ripercuoteranno su di loro negli anni successivi. We cannot ignore evil, unfortunately, but we can often avoid it." "But why, if these pictures are really harmful, does Mr. Welland exhibit them at his theatre?" asked the girl.

"Mr. Welland is running his theatre to make money," explained the Colonel," and the surest way to make money is to cater to the tastes of his patrons, the majority of whom demand picture plays of the more vivid sort, such as you and I complain of. "Il signor Welland gestisce il suo teatro per fare soldi", spiegò il colonnello, "e il modo più sicuro per fare soldi è quello di soddisfare i gusti dei suoi clienti, la maggior parte dei quali chiede spettacoli di tipo più vivace, come quelli di cui ci lamentiamo io e lei. So the fault lies not with the exhibitor but with the sensation-loving public. La colpa non è quindi dell'espositore, ma del pubblico che ama le sensazioni. If Mr. Welland showed only such pictures as have good morals he would gain the patronage of Miss Stearne's twelve young ladies, and a few others, but the masses would refuse to support him." "Then," said Mary Louise, "the masses ought to be educated to desire better things." "Many philanthropists have tried to do that, and signally failed. "Molti filantropi hanno cercato di farlo, fallendo clamorosamente. I believe the world is gradually growing better, my dear, but ages will pass before mankind attains a really wholesome mental atmosphere. Credo che il mondo stia gradualmente migliorando, mia cara, ma passeranno secoli prima che l'umanità raggiunga un'atmosfera mentale davvero salubre. However, we should each do our humble part toward the moral uplift of our fellows and one way is not to condone what we know to be wrong." Tuttavia, ognuno di noi dovrebbe fare la sua umile parte per l'elevazione morale dei suoi simili e un modo è quello di non condonare ciò che sappiamo essere sbagliato". He spoke earnestly, in a conversational tone that robbed his words of preachment. Parlava seriamente, con un tono colloquiale che privava le sue parole di prediche. Mary Louise thought Gran'pa Jim must be an exceptionally good man and hoped she would grow, in time, to be like him. The only thing that puzzled her was why he refused to associate with his fellow men, while at heart he so warmly espoused their uplift and advancement. L'unica cosa che la lasciava perplessa era il motivo per cui rifiutava di associarsi con i suoi simili, mentre in cuor suo ne sosteneva con tanto calore l'elevazione e il progresso.

They had now reached the mill-race and had seated themselves on the high embankment where they could watch the water swirl swiftly beneath them. Avevano ormai raggiunto la pista del mulino e si erano seduti sull'alto argine dove potevano osservare l'acqua che scorreva veloce sotto di loro. The mill was not grinding to-day and its neighborhood seemed quite deserted. Il mulino non stava macinando oggi e le sue vicinanze sembravano del tutto deserte. Here the old Colonel and his granddaughter sat dreamily for a long time, conversing casually on various subjects or allowing themselves to drift into thought. Qui l'anziano colonnello e la nipote rimasero a lungo seduti in modo sognante, conversando casualmente su vari argomenti o lasciandosi andare ai pensieri. It was a happy hour for them both and was only interrupted when Jackson the miller passed by on his way home from the village. The man gave the Colonel a surly nod, but he smiled on Mary Louise, the girl being as popular in the district as her grandfather was unpopular. L'uomo fece un cenno burbero al colonnello, ma sorrise a Mary Louise, la ragazza era tanto popolare nel distretto quanto impopolare era suo nonno.

After Jackson had passed them by Gran'pa Jim rose slowly and proposed they return home. Dopo che Jackson li ebbe superati Gran'pa Jim si alzò lentamente e propose loro di tornare a casa. "If we go through the village," said he, "we shall reach home, without hurrying ourselves, in time to dress for dinner. I object to being hurried, don't you, Mary Louise?" Mi oppongo alla fretta, non è vero, Mary Louise?". "Yes, indeed, if it can be avoided." Going through the village saved them half a mile in distance, but Mary Louise would not have proposed it herself, on account of the Colonel's well-known aversion to meeting people. Attraversare il villaggio fece risparmiare mezzo miglio di distanza, ma Mary Louise non l'avrebbe mai proposto, a causa della nota avversione del colonnello per gli incontri con la gente. This afternoon, however, he made the proposal himself, so they strolled away to the main road that led through the one business street of the little town. Oggi pomeriggio, però, fu lui stesso a fare la proposta, così si allontanarono verso la strada principale che attraversava l'unica via commerciale della cittadina.

At this hour there was little life in Beverly's main street. The farmers who drove in to trade had now returned home; the town women were busy getting supper and most of their men were at home feeding the stock or doing the evening chores. I contadini che erano arrivati in auto per commerciare erano ormai tornati a casa; le donne del paese erano impegnate a preparare la cena e la maggior parte degli uomini era a casa a nutrire il bestiame o a sbrigare le faccende serali. However, they passed an occasional group of two or three and around the general store stood a few other natives, listlessly awaiting the call to the evening meal. Tuttavia, ogni tanto incrociavano un gruppo di due o tre persone e intorno al negozio generale stavano alcuni altri indigeni, che aspettavano svogliatamente la chiamata per il pasto serale. These cast curious glances at the well-known forms of the old man and the young girl, for his two years' residence had not made the testy old Colonel any less strange to them. Questi lanciarono sguardi curiosi alle forme ben note del vecchio e della giovane, perché i due anni di permanenza non avevano reso il vecchio colonnello irascibile meno strano per loro. They knew all about him there was to know—which was nothing at all—and understood they must not venture to address him as they would have done any other citizen. Sapevano tutto quello che c'era da sapere su di lui, cioè niente, e capivano che non dovevano azzardarsi a rivolgersi a lui come avrebbero fatto con qualsiasi altro cittadino.

Cooper's Hotel, a modest and not very inviting frame building, stood near the center of the village and as Mary Louise and her grandfather passed it the door opened and a man stepped out and only avoided bumping into them by coming to a full stop. Il Cooper's Hotel, un edificio modesto e poco invitante, si trovava vicino al centro del villaggio e, mentre Mary Louise e il nonno vi passavano davanti, la porta si aprì e ne uscì un uomo che evitò di urtarli solo fermandosi di colpo. They stopped also, of necessity, and Mary Louise was astonished to find the stranger staring into the Colonel's face with an expression of mingled amazement and incredulity on his own. Anche loro si fermarono, per forza di cose, e Mary Louise rimase stupita nel vedere lo straniero che fissava il colonnello con un'espressione mista di stupore e incredulità. "James Hathaway, by all the gods!" "James Hathaway, per tutti gli dei!". he exclaimed, adding in wondering tones: "And after all these years!" Mary Louise, clinging to her grandfather's arm, cast an upward glance at his face. Mary Louise, aggrappata al braccio del nonno, lanciò un'occhiata al suo viso. It was tensely drawn; the eyelids were half closed and through their slits the Colonel's eyes glinted fiercely. Era teso; le palpebre erano semichiuse e attraverso le loro fessure gli occhi del colonnello brillavano ferocemente. "You are mistaken, fellow. Out of my way!" Togliti di mezzo!". he said, and seizing the girl's arm, which she had withdrawn in affright, he marched straight ahead. disse, e afferrando il braccio della ragazza, che si era ritirata spaventata, marciò dritto davanti a sé. The man fell back, but stared after them with his former expression of bewildered surprise. L'uomo indietreggiò, ma li fissò con la sua precedente espressione di sorpresa sconcertata. Mary Louise noted this in a glance over her shoulder and something in the stranger's attitude—was it a half veiled threat?—caused her to shudder involuntarily. Mary Louise lo notò con un'occhiata alle sue spalle e qualcosa nell'atteggiamento dello sconosciuto - era forse una mezza minaccia velata - la fece rabbrividire involontariamente. The Colonel strode on, looking neither to right nor left, saying never a word. Il colonnello procedeva a passo di marcia, senza guardare né a destra né a sinistra, senza dire una parola. They reached their home grounds, passed up the path in silence and entered the house. Raggiunto il terreno di casa, risalirono il sentiero in silenzio ed entrarono in casa. The Colonel went straight to the stairs and cried in a loud voice:

"Beatrice!" The tone thrilled Mary Louise with a premonition of evil. A door was hastily opened and her mother appeared at the head of the stairs, looking down on them with the customary anxiety on her worn features doubly accentuated. Una porta si aprì frettolosamente e la madre apparve in cima alle scale, guardandoli con la consueta ansia sui suoi lineamenti consumati e doppiamente accentuati.

"Again, father?" she asked in a voice that slightly trembled.

"Yes. Come with me to the library, Beatrice."