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part 2-第4部分
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that winter was almost beyond enduring。 She always re…
membered it as the happiest and wildest and saddest of her
life。 Things came too fast for her; she had not had enough
preparation。 There were times when she came home from
her lesson and lay upon her bed hating Wunsch and her
family; hating a world that had let her grow up so ignorant;
when she wished that she could die then and there; and be
born over again to begin anew。 She said something of this
kind once to her teacher; in the midst of a bitter struggle。
Harsanyi turned the light of his wonderful eye upon her
poor fellow; he had but one; though that was set in such a
handsome headand said slowly: 〃Every artist makes
himself born。 It is very much harder than the other time;
and longer。 Your mother did not bring anything into the
world to play piano。 That you must bring into the world
yourself。〃
This comforted Thea temporarily; for it seemed to give
her a chance。 But a great deal of the time she was com…
fortless。 Her letters to Dr。 Archie were brief and business…
like。 She was not apt to chatter much; even in the stim…
ulating company of people she liked; and to chatter on
paper was simply impossible for her。 If she tried to write
him anything definite about her work; she immediately
scratched it out as being only partially true; or not true at
all。 Nothing that she could say about her studies seemed
unqualifiedly true; once she put it down on paper。
Late one afternoon; when she was thoroughly tired and
wanted to struggle on into the dusk; Harsanyi; tired too;
threw up his hands and laughed at her。 〃Not to…day; Miss
Kronborg。 That sonata will keep; it won't run away。
Even if you and I should not waken up to…morrow; it will
be there。〃
Thea turned to him fiercely。 〃No; it isn't here unless
I have itnot for me;〃 she cried passionately。 〃Only
what I hold in my two hands is there for me!〃
Harsanyi made no reply。 He took a deep breath and
sat down again。 〃The second movement now; quietly;
with the shoulders relaxed。〃
There were hours; too; of great exaltation; when she was
at her best and became a part of what she was doing and
ceased to exist in any other sense。 There were other times
when she was so shattered by ideas that she could do noth…
ing worth while; when they trampled over her like an army
and she felt as if she were bleeding to death under them。
She sometimes came home from a late lesson so exhausted
that she could eat no supper。 If she tried to eat; she was
ill afterward。 She used to throw herself upon the bed and
lie there in the dark; not thinking; not feeling; but evapo…
rating。 That same night; perhaps; she would waken up
rested and calm; and as she went over her work in her mind;
the passages seemed to become something of themselves;
to take a sort of pattern in the darkness。 She had never
learned to work away from the piano until she came to
Harsanyi; and it helped her more than anything had ever
helped her before。
She almost never worked now with the sunny; happy
contentment that had filled the hours when she worked
with Wunsch〃like a fat horse turning a sorgum mill;〃
she said bitterly to herself。 Then; by sticking to it; she
could always do what she set out to do。 Now; every…
thing that she really wanted was impossible; a CANTABILE
like Harsanyi's; for instance; instead of her own cloudy
tone。 No use telling her she might have it in ten years。
She wanted it now。 She wondered how she had ever found
other things interesting: books; 〃Anna Karenina〃all
that seemed so unreal and on the outside of things。 She
was not born a musician; she decided; there was no other
way of explaining it。
Sometimes she got so nervous at the piano that she left
it; and snatching up her hat and cape went out and walked;
hurrying through the streets like Christian fleeing from
the City of Destruction。 And while she walked she cried。
There was scarcely a street in the neighborhood that she
had not cried up and down before that winter was over。
The thing that used to lie under her cheek; that sat so
warmly over her heart when she glided away from the sand
hills that autumn morning; was far from her。 She had come
to Chicago to be with it; and it had deserted her; leaving
in its place a painful longing; an unresigned despair。
Harsanyi knew that his interesting pupil〃the sav…
age blonde;〃 one of his male students called herwas
sometimes very unhappy。 He saw in her discontent a
curious definition of character。 He would have said that
a girl with so much musical feeling; so intelligent; with good
training of eye and hand; would; when thus suddenly in…
troduced to the great literature of the piano; have found
boundless happiness。 But he soon learned that she was
not able to forget her own poverty in the richness of the
world he opened to her。 Often when he played to her;
her face was the picture of restless misery。 She would sit
crouching forward; her elbows on her knees; her brows
drawn together and her gray…green eyes smaller than ever;
reduced to mere pin…points of cold; piercing light。 Some…
times; while she listened; she would swallow hard; two or
three times; and look nervously from left to right; drawing
her shoulders together。 〃Exactly;〃 he thought; 〃as if she
were being watched; or as if she were naked and heard
some one coming。〃
On the other hand; when she came several times to see
Mrs。 Harsanyi and the two babies; she was like a little
girl; jolly and gay and eager to play with the children; who
loved her。 The little daughter; Tanya; liked to touch Miss
Kronborg's yellow hair and pat it; saying; 〃Dolly; dolly;〃
because it was of a color much oftener seen on dolls than on
people。 But if Harsanyi opened the piano and sat down to
play; Miss Kronborg gradually drew away from the chil…
dren; retreated to a corner and became sullen or troubled。
Mrs。 Harsanyi noticed this; also; and thought it very
strange behavior。
Another thing that puzzled Harsanyi was Thea's ap…
parent lack of curiosity。 Several times he offered to give
her tickets to concerts; but she said she was too tired or
that it 〃knocked her out to be up late。〃 Harsanyi did not
know that she was singing in a choir; and had often to sing
at funerals; neither did he realize how much her work with
him stirred her and exhausted her。 Once; just as she was
leaving his studio; he called her back and told her he could
give her some tickets that had been sent him for Emma
Juch that evening。 Thea fingered the black wool on the
edge of her plush cape and replied; 〃Oh; thank you; Mr。
Harsanyi; but I have to wash my hair to…night。〃
Mrs。 Harsanyi liked Miss Kronborg thoroughly。 She
saw in her the making of a pupil who would reflect credit
upon Harsanyi。 She felt that the girl could be made to look
strikingly handsome; and that she had the kind of per…
sonality which takes hold of audiences。 Moreover; Miss
Kronborg was not in the least sentimental about her hus…
band。 Sometimes from the show pupils one had to endure
a good deal。 〃I like that girl;〃 she used to say; when
Harsanyi told her of one of Thea's GAUCHERIES。 〃She doesn't
sigh every time the wind blows。 With her one swallow
doesn't make a summer。〃
Thea told them very little about herself。 She was not
naturally communicative; and she found it hard to feel
confidence in new people。 She did not know why; but she
could not talk to Harsanyi as she could to Dr。 Archie; or to
Johnny and Mrs。 Tellamantez。 With Mr。 Larsen she felt
more at home; and when she was walking she sometimes
stopped at his study to eat candy with him or to hear the
plot of the novel he happened to be reading。
One evening toward the middle of December Thea was
to dine with the Harsanyis。 She arrived early; to have
time to play with the children before they went to bed。
Mrs。 Harsanyi took her into her own room and helped her
take off her country 〃fascinator〃 and her clumsy plush
cape。 Thea had bought this cape at a big department store
and had paid 16。50 for it。 As she had never paid more
than ten dollars for a coat before; that seemed to her a
large price。 It was very heavy and not very warm; orna…
mented with a showy pattern in black disks; and trimmed
around the collar and the edges with some kind of black
wool that 〃crocked〃 badly in snow or rain。 It was lined
with a cotton stuff called 〃farmer's satin。〃 Mrs。 Harsanyi
was one woman in a thousand。 As she lifted this cape from
Thea's shoulders and laid it on her white bed; she wished
that her husband did not have to charge pupils like this
one for their lessons。 Thea wore her Moonstone party
dress; white organdie; made with a 〃V〃 neck and elbow
sleeves; and a blue sash。 She looked very pretty in it; and
around her throat she had a string of pink coral and tiny
white shells that Ray once brought her from Los Angeles。
Mrs。 Harsanyi noticed that she wore high heavy shoes
which nee
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