Mansfield Park - Chapter 4

Tom Bertram had of late spent so little of his time at home that he could be only nominally ¹ missed; and Lady Bertram was soon astonished to find how very well they did even without his father, how well Edmund could supply his place in carving ², talking to the steward ³, writing to the attorney, settling with the servants, and equally saving her from all possible fatigue ⁴ or exertion ⁵ in every particular but that of directing her letters., ,The earliest intelligence of the travellers' safe arrival at Antigua, after a favourable ⁶ voyage, was received; though not before Mrs. Norris had been indulging in very dreadful fears, and trying to make Edmund participate them whenever she could get him alone; and as she depended on being the first person made acquainted with any fatal catastrophe ⁷, she had already arranged the manner of breaking it to all the others, when Sir Thomas's assurances of their both being alive and well made it necessary to lay by her agitation ⁸ and affectionate preparatory speeches for a while., ,The winter came and passed without their being called for; the accounts continued perfectly ⁹ good; and Mrs. Norris, in promoting gaieties for her nieces, assisting their toilets, displaying their accomplishments ¹⁰, and looking about for their future husbands, had so much to do as, in addition to all her own household cares, some interference in those of her sister, and Mrs. Grant's wasteful ¹¹ doings to overlook, left her very little occasion to be occupied in fears for the absent., , ,Lady Bertram did not go into public with her daughters. She was too indolent even to accept a mother's gratification in witnessing their success and enjoyment ¹⁶ at the expense of any personal trouble, and the charge was made over to her sister, who desired nothing better than a post of such honourable ¹⁷ representation, and very thoroughly ¹⁸ relished ¹⁹ the means it afforded her of mixing in society without having horses to hire., ,Fanny had no share in the festivities of the season; but she enjoyed being avowedly ²⁰ useful as her aunt's companion when they called away the rest of the family; and, as Miss Lee had left Mansfield, she naturally became everything to Lady Bertram during the night of a ball or a party. She talked to her, listened to her, read to her; and the tranquillity ²¹ of such evenings, her perfect security in such a tete-a-tete from any sound of unkindness, was unspeakably welcome to a mind which had seldom known a pause in its alarms or embarrassments ²². As to her cousins' gaieties, she loved to hear an account of them, especially of the balls, and whom Edmund had danced with; but thought too lowly of her own situation to imagine she should ever be admitted to the same, and listened, therefore, without an idea of any nearer concern in them. Upon the whole, it was a comfortable winter to her; for though it brought no William to England, the never-failing hope of his arrival was worth much., ,The company could not indicate a person even nominally responsible for staff training. 该公司甚至不能指出一个名义上负责职员培训的人。,All the furniture in the room had much carving.房间里所有的家具上都有许多雕刻 。