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Like all his family, he esteemed and admired Mrs. van der Luyden;
跟家中所有的成员一样，他敬重并崇拜范德卢顿太太，
but he found her gentle bending sweetness less approachable than the grimness of some of his mother's old aunts,
不过他发现，她那略带压制的亲切态度还不如母亲几位老姑的严厉容易让人接近，
fierce spinsters who said "No" on principle before they knew what they were going to be asked.
那几位恶狠狠的老处女不等弄清别人的要求，就会照例说一声“不行”。
Mrs. van der Luyden's attitude said neither yes nor no, but always appeared to incline to clemency till her thin lips, wavering into the shadow of a smile,
范德卢顿太太的态度看不出是与否，不过总显示出仁慈宽厚的样子，直至她的薄嘴唇撇出一丝笑意，
made the almost invariable reply: "I shall first have to talk this over with my husband."
才几乎是千篇一律地回答说：“我得先和我丈夫商量一下。”
She and Mr. van der Luyden were so exactly alike that Archer often wondered how, after forty years of the closest conjugality,
她与范德卢顿先生是那样相似，阿切尔常常纳闷，经过40年亲密的夫妻生活，
two such merged identities ever separated themselves enough for anything as controversial as a talking-over.
两个如此融洽的人，怎么还能分出你我，还有什么争端需要商量。
But as neither had ever reached a decision without prefacing it by this mysterious conclave,
然而，由于这对夫妻谁也未曾不经双方秘密会谈就独自做出过决定，
Mrs. Archer and her son, having set forth their case, waited resignedly for the familiar phrase.
阿切尔太太和儿子阐明他们的问题之后，只好安心地等待熟悉的措辞。
Mrs. van der Luyden, however, who had seldom surprised any one,
然而很少让人意外的范德卢顿太太这时却令母子二人大吃一惊：
now surprised them by reaching her long hand toward the bell-rope.
她伸出长长的手去够铃绳。
"I think," she said, "I should like Henry to hear what you have told me."
“我想，”她说道，“我要让亨利听一听你对我讲的情况。”
A footman appeared, to whom she gravely added:
一名男仆出现了，她又严肃地对他说：
"If Mr. van der Luyden has finished reading the newspaper, please ask him to be kind enough to come."
“如果范德卢顿先生读完了报，请他劳神过来一趟。”
She said "reading the newspaper" in the tone in which a Minister's wife might have said: "Presiding at a Cabinet meeting"—
她讲“读报”的口气宛如一位大臣的妻子讲“主持内阁会议”，
not from any arrogance of mind, but because the habit of a lifetime, and the attitude of her friends and relations,
这并非由于她成心妄自尊大，而是因为终生的习惯及亲友们的态度致使她认为，
had led her to consider Mr. van der Luyden's least gesture as having an almost sacerdotal importance.
范德卢顿先生的一举一动犹如执掌大政般重要。
Her promptness of action showed that she considered the case as pressing as Mrs. Archer;
行动的迅速表明她跟阿切尔太太一样觉得情况紧迫；
but, lest she should be thought to have committed herself in advance, she added, with the sweetest look:
不过惟恐给人未与丈夫商量就率先表态的印象，她又极为亲切地补充说：
"Henry always enjoys seeing you, dear Adeline; and he will wish to congratulate Newland."
“亨利一直很乐意见你，亲爱的艾德琳；他还想祝贺纽兰。”
