狄更斯雙語小說:《董貝父子》第22章Part 3

He refolded the letter, and was sitting trifling with it, standing it long-wise and broad-wise on his table, and turning it over and over on all sides - doing pretty much the same thing, perhaps, by its contents - when Mr Perch the messenger knocked softly at the door, and coming in on tiptoe, bending his body at every step as if it were the delight of his life to bow, laid some papers on the table.
'Would you please to be engaged, Sir?' asked Mr Perch, rubbing his hands, and deferentially putting his head on one side, like a man who felt he had no business to hold it up in such a presence, and would keep it as much out of the way as possible.
'Who wants me?'
'Why, Sir,' said Mr Perch, in a soft voice, 'really nobody, Sir, to speak of at present. Mr Gills the Ship's Instrument-maker, Sir, has looked in, about a little matter of payment, he says: but I mentioned to him, Sir, that you was engaged several deep; several deep.'
Mr Perch coughed once behind his hand, and waited for further orders.
'Anybody else?'
'Well, Sir,' said Mr Perch, 'I wouldn't of my own self take the liberty of mentioning, Sir, that there was anybody else; but that same young lad that was here yesterday, Sir, and last week, has been hanging about the place; and it looks, Sir,' added Mr Perch, stopping to shut the door, 'dreadful unbusiness-like to see him whistling to the sparrows down the court, and making of 'em answer him.'
'You said he wanted something to do, didn't you, Perch?' asked Mr Carker, leaning back in his chair and looking at that officer.
'Why, Sir,' said Mr Perch, coughing behind his hand again, 'his expression certainly were that he was in wants of a sitiwation, and that he considered something might be done for him about the Docks, being used to fishing with a rod and line: but - ' Mr Perch shook his head very dubiously indeed.
'What does he say when he comes?' asked Mr Carker.
'Indeed, Sir,' said Mr Perch, coughing another cough behind his hand, which was always his resource as an expression of humility when nothing else occurred to him, 'his observation generally air that he would humbly wish to see one of the gentlemen, and that he wants to earn a living. But you see, Sir,' added Perch, dropping his voice to a whisper, and turning, in the inviolable nature of his confidence, to give the door a thrust with his hand and knee, as if that would shut it any more when it was shut already, 'it's hardly to be bore, Sir, that a common lad like that should come a prowling here, and saying that his mother nursed our House's young gentleman, and that he hopes our House will give him a chance on that account. I am sure, Sir,' observed Mr Perch, 'that although Mrs Perch was at that time nursing as thriving a little girl, Sir, as we've ever took the liberty of adding to our family, I wouldn't have made so free as drop a hint of her being capable of imparting nourishment, not if it was never so!

他把這封信重新摺疊好，坐在那裏玩弄着它，使它縱立和橫立在桌子上，又把它這樣那樣地轉來轉去，這時信差珀奇先生輕輕地敲了敲門，踮着腳走了進來，每走一步都要彎一下身子，彷彿鞠躬是他生活中最大的樂事似的；他把幾頁公文放在桌子上。
“您還在忙着，是不是，先生？”珀奇先生問道，一邊搓着手，畢恭畢敬地把頭歪向一側，彷彿他覺得，在這樣一位人物面前他是沒有權利豎着頭似的，他真願意把它往一側儘量歪過去。
“誰想見我？”
“唔，先生，”珀奇先生低聲說道，“現在，先生，實際上並沒有值得一提的人。船舶儀器製造商吉爾斯先生到這裏來談到付款方面的一點事情，可是我對他說，先生，您非常忙，非常忙。”
珀奇先生用手遮着嘴巴咳嗽了一次，等待着進一步的指示。
“還有別的人嗎？”
“唔，先生，”珀奇先生說道，“我不敢冒昧地向您報告，先生，還有什麼別的人；不過昨天和上星期曾經到這裏來的那個年輕小夥子，先生，還一直在附近閒蕩；先生，”珀奇先生停了一下去關上門，然後繼續說道，“看他在庭院裏向麻雀吹口哨，並叫它們回答他，這實在是十分不得體的。”
“你說他想找工作做，是不是，珀奇？”卡克先生仰靠在椅子上，望着這位辦事員，問道。
“唔，先生，”珀奇先生說道，一邊用手遮着嘴巴咳嗽，“他確實直率地說過他需要找一個工作，他認爲可以在碼頭上給他找個事做做，因爲他過去經常用釣竿釣魚，不過——”珀奇先生十分懷疑地搖着頭。
“他來的時候說了些什麼話？”卡克先生問道。
“確實，先生，”珀奇先生說道，一邊又用手遮着嘴巴咳嗽；當他想不出別的法子的時候，就經常用這來表示他的謙恭，“他的意見總的來說，就是他低聲下氣地請求見一見這裏的一位先生，而且還想掙點錢維持生活。可是，您瞧，先生，”珀奇先生把他的聲音壓低成私語，補充說道；爲了使他的祕密萬無一失起見，他又轉過身子，用手和膝蓋把門推了一推；雖然門早已關上了，但這樣推一下彷彿會使它關得更嚴實一些似的；“這實在難以令人容忍，先生，像他那樣普普通通的一個小夥子竟居然敢竄到這裏來，說他的母親曾經給我們公司的少爺當過奶媽，他希望我們公司因爲這個緣故能給他一個機會。說實在的，先生，”珀奇先生說，“雖然珀奇太太那時候曾經用奶把一個小女孩子喂得十分健壯，先生，我們曾經冒昧地把她也算作我們家裏的一個成員，可是那時我還不敢放肆地暗示，她能夠給我們公司的少爺餵奶，這樣的口氣我從來沒有透露過！”