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lavengro-第6部分

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headed sexton stood in the porch; who; perceiving that we were 

strangers; invited us to enter。  We were presently in the interior; 

wandering about the aisles; looking on the walls; and inspecting 

the monuments of the notable dead。  I can scarcely state what we 

saw; how should I?  I was a child not yet four years old; and yet I 

think I remember the evening sun streaming in through a stained 

window upon the dingy mahogany pulpit; and flinging a rich lustre 

upon the faded tints of an ancient banner。  And now once more we 

were outside the building; where; against the wall; stood a low…

eaved pent…house; into which we looked。  It was half filled with 

substances of some kind; which at first looked like large gray 

stones。  The greater part were lying in layers; some; however; were 

seen in confused and mouldering heaps; and two or three; which had 

perhaps rolled down from the rest; lay separately on the floor。  

'Skulls; madam;' said the sexton; 'skulls of the old Danes!  Long 

ago they came pirating into these parts; and then there chanced a 

mighty shipwreck; for God was angry with them; and He sunk them; 

and their skulls; as they came ashore; were placed here as a 

memorial。  There were many more when I was young; but now they are 

fast disappearing。  Some of them must have belonged to strange 

fellows; madam。  Only see that one; why; the two young gentry can 

scarcely lift it!'  And; indeed; my brother and myself had entered 

the Golgotha; and commenced handling these grim relics of 

mortality。  One enormous skull; lying in a corner; had fixed our 

attention; and we had drawn it forth。  Spirit of eld; what a skull 

was yon!



I still seem to see it; the huge grim thing; many of the others 

were large; strikingly so; and appeared fully to justify the old 

man's conclusion that their owners must have been strange fellows; 

but; compared with this mighty mass of bone; they looked small and 

diminutive like those of pigmies; it must have belonged to a giant; 

one of those red…haired warriors of whose strength and stature such 

wondrous tales are told in the ancient chronicles of the north; and 

whose grave…hills; when ransacked; occasionally reveal secrets 

which fill the minds of puny moderns with astonishment and awe。  

Reader; have you ever pored days and nights over the pages of 

Snorro? … probably not; for he wrote in a language which few of the 

present day understand; and few would be tempted to read him tamed 

down by Latin dragomans。  A brave old book is that of Snorro; 

containing the histories and adventures of old northern kings and 

champions; who seemed to have been quite different men; if we may 

judge from the feats which they performed; from those of these 

days; one of the best of his histories is that which describes the 

life of Harald Haardraade; who; after manifold adventures by land 

and sea; now a pirate; now a mercenary of the Greek emperor; became 

king of Norway; and eventually perished at the battle of Stamford 

Bridge; whilst engaged in a gallant onslaught upon England。  Now; I 

have often thought that the old Kemp; whose mouldering skull in the 

Golgotha of Hythe my brother and myself could scarcely lift; must 

have resembled in one respect at least this Harald; whom Snorro 

describes as a great and wise ruler and a determined leader; 

dangerous in battle; of fair presence and measuring in height just 

FIVE ELLS; neither more nor less。



I never forgot the Daneman's skull; like the apparition of the 

viper in the sandy lane; it dwelt in the mind of the boy; affording 

copious food for the exercise of imagination。  From that moment 

with the name of Dane were associated strange ideas of strength; 

daring; and superhuman stature; and an undefinable curiosity for 

all that is connected with the Danish race began to pervade me; and 

if; long after; when I became a student I devoted myself with 

peculiar zest to Danish lore and the acquirement of the old Norse 

tongue and its dialects; I can only explain the matter by the early 

impression received at Hythe from the tale of the old sexton; 

beneath the pent…house; and the sight of the Danish skull。



And thus we went on straying from place to place; at Hythe to…day; 

and perhaps within a week looking out from our hostel…window upon 

the streets of old Winchester; our motions ever in accordance with 

the 'route' of the regiment; so habituated to change of scene that 

it had become almost necessary to our existence。  Pleasant were 

these days of my early boyhood; and a melancholy pleasure steals 

over me as I recall them。  Those were stirring times of which I am 

speaking; and there was much passing around me calculated to 

captivate the imagination。  The dreadful struggle which so long 

convulsed Europe; and in which England bore so prominent a part; 

was then at its hottest; we were at war; and determination and 

enthusiasm shone in every face; man; woman; and child were eager to 

fight the Frank; the hereditary; but; thank God; never dreaded 

enemy of the Anglo…Saxon race。  'Love your country and beat the 

French; and then never mind what happens;' was the cry of entire 

England。  Oh; those were days of power; gallant days; bustling 

days; worth the bravest days of chivalry at least; tall battalions 

of native warriors were marching through the land; there was the 

glitter of the bayonet and the gleam of the sabre; the shrill 

squeak of the fife and loud rattling of the drum were heard in the 

streets of country towns; and the loyal shouts of the inhabitants 

greeted the soldiery on their arrival; or cheered them at their 

departure。  And now let us leave the upland; and descend to the 

sea…bord; there is a sight for you upon the billows!  A dozen men…

of…war are gliding majestically out of port; their long buntings 

streaming from the top…gallant masts; calling on the skulking 

Frenchman to come forth from his bights and bays; and what looms 

upon us yonder from the fog…bank in the east? a gallant frigate 

towing behind her the long low hull of a crippled privateer; which 

but three short days ago had left Dieppe to skim the sea; and whose 

crew of ferocious hearts are now cursing their imprudence in an 

English hold。  Stirring times those; which I love to recall; for 

they were days of gallantry and enthusiasm; and were moreover the 

days of my boyhood。







CHAPTER III







Pretty D… … The venerable church … The stricken heart … Dormant 

energies … The small packet … Nerves … The books … A picture … 

Mountain…like billows … The footprint … Spirit of De Foe … 

Reasoning powers … Terrors of God … Heads of the dragons … High…

Church clerk … A journey … The drowned country。



AND when I was between six and seven years of age we were once more 

at D…; the place of my birth; whither my father had been despatched 

on the recruiting service。  I have already said that it was a 

beautiful little town … at least it was 
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