狄更斯雙語小說:《董貝父子》第38章Part3
The rising Toodles set up a shrill murmur, expressive of their resolution to profit by the paternal advice.
'But what makes you say this along of Rob, father?' asked his wife, anxiously.
'Polly, old ooman,' said Mr Toodle, 'I don't know as I said it partickler along o' Rob, I'm sure. I starts light with Rob only; I comes to a branch; I takes on what I finds there; and a whole train of ideas gets coupled on to him, afore I knows where I am, or where they comes from. What a Junction a man's thoughts is,' said Mr Toodle, 'to-be-sure!'
This profound reflection Mr Toodle washed down with a pint mug of tea, and proceeded to solidify with a great weight of bread and butter; charging his young daughters meanwhile, to keep plenty of hot water in the pot, as he was uncommon dry, and should take the indefinite quantity of 'a sight of mugs,' before his thirst was appeased.
In satisfying himself, however, Mr Toodle was not regardless of the younger branches about him, who, although they had made their own evening repast, were on the look-out for irregular morsels, as possessing a relish. These he distributed now and then to the expectant circle, by holding out great wedges of bread and butter, to be bitten at by the family in lawful succession, and by serving out small doses of tea in like manner with a spoon; which snacks had such a relish in the mouths of these young Toodles, that, after partaking of the same, they performed private dances of ecstasy among themselves, and stood on one leg apiece, and hopped, and indulged in other saltatory tokens of gladness. These vents for their excitement found, they gradually closed about Mr Toodle again, and eyed him hard as he got through more bread and butter and tea; affecting, however, to have no further expectations of their own in reference to those viands, but to be conversing on foreign subjects, and whispering confidentially.
Mr Toodle, in the midst of this family group, and setting an awful example to his children in the way of appetite, was conveying the two young Toodles on his knees to Birmingham by special engine, and was contemplating the rest over a barrier of bread and butter, when Rob the Grinder, in his sou'wester hat and mourning slops, presented himself, and was received with a general rush of brothers and sisters.
正在成長的圖德爾們發出了尖銳的低低的喊聲，表示決心遵照父親的教導去做。
“可是你爲什麼談到羅布的時候說到這些話呢，爸爸？”他的妻子憂慮地問道。
“波利，我的老伴，”圖德爾先生說道，”說實在的，我不知道我談到這時是不是談到了羅布。我只是從羅布這個站出發；我開到一個讓車道里了；我在那裏找到什麼就拉走什麼；像整個列車般的一連串思想都向他擁集過來，而那時候我還不知道我在哪裏，也不知道這些思想是從哪裏來的呢。說實在的，”圖德爾先生說道，”一個人的思想是個多麼複雜的樞紐站啊！”
圖德爾先生喝了容量約一品脫的一杯茶，把這個意義深刻的見解衝了下去，然後用很大的一份奶油麪包使它凝固起來；同時他又吩咐他年輕的女兒們在水壺裏倒進大量的熱水，因爲他嘴巴非常幹，必須喝上”很多很多個小杯”才能解渴。
不過，圖德爾先生在滿足自己享受的時候，並沒有忘記聚集在他周圍的年輕的下一代；他們雖然已經吃過了晚飯，可是卻依然眼巴巴地期待着額外的小塊食物，就像那是山珍海味似的。他不時把這些小塊食物分配給周圍盼望着的小傢伙們，採取的方式是把切成楔形的一大塊奶油麪包舉出去，讓全家的孩子們依照合法的順序一個個咬去，並按照同樣的方式讓他們從一個匙子裏喝一小口茶水；這些小圖德爾們覺得這些平均分配的飲食味道好極了，他們吃完喝完之後，都欣喜若狂地跳起舞來，每個人都用一隻腳跳着，並用其他各種跳躍的姿態來表達心中的喜悅。他們找到了這些表達興奮的方式之後，又逐漸簇擁在圖德爾先生的身旁，緊緊地注視着他繼續吃着奶油麪包和喝着茶水，但卻裝出不再期望自己能再嚐到這些美味佳餚，而在交談一些不相干的問題，因而十分親密地低聲說着。
圖德爾先生坐在全家人的中間，在胃口方面給孩子們樹立了一個令人敬畏的榜樣，一邊正在用特別的機車把膝蓋上的兩個小圖德爾運往伯明翰，並越過奶油麪包圍成的柵欄；細心觀察着其他的小圖德爾們，這時磨工羅布戴着稱爲”西南人”的防水帽，穿着喪服，走了進來，他的弟弟妹妹們立即爭先恐後地向他衝去，迎接他。
