The Moon And Sixpence 5.1

During thesummer I met Mrs. Strickland not infrequently. I went now and then to pleasantlittle luncheons at her flat, and to rather more formidable tea-parties. Wetook a fancy to one another. I was very young, and perhaps she liked the ideaof guiding my virgin steps on the hard road of letters; while for me it waspleasant to have someone I could go to with my small troubles, certain of anattentive ear and reasonable counsel. Mrs. Strickland had the gift of sympathy.It is a charming faculty, but one often abused by those who are conscious ofits possession: for there is something ghoulish in the avidity with which theywill pounce upon the misfortune of their friends so that they may exercisetheir dexterity. It gushes forth like an oil-well, and the sympathetic pour outtheir sympathy with an abandon that is sometimes embarrassing to their victims.There are bosoms on which so many tears have been shed that I cannot bedew themwith mine. Mrs. Strickland used her advantage with tact. You felt that youobliged her by accepting her sympathy. When, in the enthusiasm of my youth, Iremarked on this to Rose Waterford, she said:"Milk isvery nice, especially with a drop of brandy in it, but the domestic cow is onlytoo glad to be rid of it. A swollen udder is very uncomfortable. "夏天我同思特里克兰德太太见面的次数不算少。我时不时地到她家里去吃午饭，或是去参加茶会；午饭总是吃得很好，茶点更是非常丰盛。我同思特里克兰德太太很相投。我当时年纪很轻，或许她喜欢的是指引着我幼稚的脚步走上文坛的艰辛道路，而在我这一方面，遇到一些不如意的琐事也乐于找到一个人倾诉一番。我准知道她会专神倾听，也一定能给我一些合乎情理的劝告。思特里克兰德太太是很会同情人的。同情体贴本是一种很难得的本领，但是却常常被那些知道自己有这种本领的人滥用了。他们一看到自己的朋友有什么不幸就恶狠狠地扑到人们身上，把自己的全部才能施展出来，这就未免太可怕了。同情心应该象一口油井一样喷薄自出；惯爱表同情的人让它纵情奔放，反而使那些受难者非常困窘。有的人胸膛上已经沾了那么多泪水，我不忍再把我的洒上了。思特里克兰德太太对自己的长处运用很得体，她让你觉得你接受她的同情是对她作了一件好事。我年轻的时候在一阵热情冲动中，曾同柔斯·瓦特尔芙德谈论这件事，她说：“牛奶很好吃，特别是加上几滴白兰地。但是母牛却巴不得赶快让它淌出去。肿胀的乳头是很不舒服的。”