"D. H. Lawrence - Sons And Lovers" - читать интересную книгу автора (Lawrence D. H)

when she descended to it from Bestwood. But it was the best she
could do. Moreover, she had an end house in one of the top blocks,
and thus had only one neighbour; on the other side an extra strip
of garden. And, having an end house, she enjoyed a kind of aristocracy
among the other women of the "between" houses, because her rent
was five shillings and sixpence instead of five shillings a week.
But this superiority in station was not much consolation to Mrs. Morel.

She was thirty-one years old, and had been married eight years.
A rather small woman, of delicate mould but resolute bearing,
she shrank a little from the first contact with the Bottoms women.
She came down in the July, and in the September expected her
third baby.

Her husband was a miner. They had only been in their new home
three weeks when the wakes, or fair, began. Morel, she knew, was sure
to make a holiday of it. He went off early on the Monday morning,
the day of the fair. The two children were highly excited.
William, a boy of seven, fled off immediately after breakfast,
to prowl round the wakes ground, leaving Annie, who was only five,
to whine all morning to go also. Mrs. Morel did her work.
She scarcely knew her neighbours yet, and knew no one with whom
to trust the little girl. So she promised to take her to the wakes
after dinner.

William appeared at half-past twelve. He was a very active lad,
fair-haired, freckled, with a touch of the Dane or Norwegian
about him.

"Can I have my dinner, mother?" he cried, rushing in with his
cap on. "'Cause it begins at half-past one, the man says so."

"You can have your dinner as soon as it's done," replied the mother.

"Isn't it done?" he cried, his blue eyes staring at her
in indignation. "Then I'm goin' be-out it."

"You'll do nothing of the sort. It will be done in five minutes.
It is only half-past twelve."

"They'll be beginnin'," the boy half cried, half shouted.

"You won't die if they do," said the mother. "Besides, it's
only half-past twelve, so you've a full hour."

The lad began hastily to lay the table, and directly the three
sat down. They were eating batter-pudding and jam, when the boy
jumped off his chair and stood perfectly stiff. Some distance
away could be heard the first small braying of a merry-go-round,
and the tooting of a horn. His face quivered as he looked at his mother.