【荆棘鸟】第六章 30

 she would continue. It seemed she had a lot to say, for her words were cramped 1, her lines very close together, and still she required a second sheet. At the end she read what she had put down, placed all the sheets together, folded them and slid them into an envelope, the back of which she sealed with red wax.

Only Paddy, Fee, Bob, Jack 2 and Meggie were going to the party; Hughie and Stuart were deputed to mind the little ones, much to their secret relief. For once in her life Mary Carson had opened her wallet wide enough for the moths 3 to fly out, for everyone had new clothes, the best Gilly could provide. Paddy, Bob and Jack were immobilized behind starched 4 shirt fronts, high collars and white bow ties, black tails, black trousers, white waistcoats. It was going to be a very formal affair, white tie and tails for the men, sweeping 5 gowns for the women.
Fee's dress was of crepe in a peculiarly rich shade of blue-grey, and suited her, falling to the floor in soft folds, low of neckline but tightly sleeved to the wrists, lavishly 6 beaded, much in the style of Queen Mary. Like that imperious lady, she had her hair done high in backsweeping puffs 7, and the Gilly store had produced an imitation pearl choker and earrings 8 which would fool all but a close inspection 9. A magnificent ostrich-feather fan dyed the same color as her gown completed the ensemble 10, not so ostentatious as it appeared at first glance; the weather was unusually hot, and at seven in the evening it was still well over a hundred degrees.
When Fee and Paddy emerged from their room, the boys gaped 11. In all their lives they had never seen their parents so regally handsome, so foreign. Paddy looked his sixty-one years, but in such a distinguished 12 way he might have been a statesman; whereas Fee seemed suddenly ten years younger than her forty-eight, beautiful, vital, magically smiling. Jims and Patsy burst into shrieking 13 tears, refusing to look at Mum and Daddy until they reverted 14 to normal, and in the flurry of consternation 15 dignity was forgotten; Mum and Daddy behaved as they always did, and soon the twins were beaming in admiration 16.
But it was at Meggie everyone stared the longest. Perhaps remembering her own girlhood, and angered that all the other young ladies invited had ordered their gowns from Sydney.
 

她好象有许多话要写，因为她写得很潦草，字都快成了一堆，可是，她依然需要第二张纸。最后，她把她写的东西看了一遍，把两张纸叠在一起，塞进信封，用火漆在背面封了口。
　　去赴宴会的只有帕迪、菲、鲍勃、杰克和梅吉；休吉和斯图尔特被认为是小家伙，比他们自认为的要小得多。玛丽·卡森一生中只有这一次是慷慨解囊。每个人都穿得一团簇新，这些衣服是基里边地方能拿得出来的最好的衣服。
　　帕迪、鲍勃和杰克被浆过的衬衫、硬衬胸、高筒袜、白蝴蝶领结、黑燕尾服、黑裤子和雪白的背心裹得动弹不得。这是一次正规的宴会，所以男人得戴白领结，穿燕尾服，女人得穿拖地的长裙。
　　菲穿着一身绉纱礼服，色泽富丽的深灰，别具一格，和她很相配；柔软的褶层拖在地上，领口开得很低，礼服紧紧地裹在腰身上，缀满了珠子，颇具玛丽女王时代的风格。她象傲慢的贵太太那样，把头发高高挽起，掠到脑后一梳成蓬松的一团；她戴着基里商店里出售的一种仿造的珍珠短项链和耳环，它们几乎可以乱真，只有近看才知道是赝品。她手中的驼鸟毛扇子染成了和她的长裙一样的颜色，取得了完全和谐的效果，头一眼看上去，不显得那样卖弄。天气依然十分炎热，晚上七点钟，气温还有华氏100多度。
　　
　　当菲和帕迪从他们的房子里一露面，那些男孩子们都目瞪口呆了。他们一生中从来没有见过他们的父母如此出众的漂亮，如此陌生。帕迪看上去还是61岁的样子；但是这种非同凡响的打扮使他俨然象个政治家；而菲则乍一看去，就像比她的48岁的年纪顿然年轻了10岁似的，楚楚动人，充满生气，一笑百媚。吉姆和帕西哭喊了起来，不肯望妈妈和爸爸，他们惊惶万状，大失体统。但妈妈和爸爸的举止一同往昔，不一会儿，这对孪生子也就赞羡地微笑起来了。
　　但是众所瞩目的地是梅吉。也许是因为基里的女裁缝依然对自己的少女时代萦怀难忘，并且对其他受到邀请的年轻女郎全都在悉尼定制自己的长袍恨恨不已。