05-02-大卫·科波菲尔 [12]
the warehouse workers were coarse， rough people, who were used to working in dirty conditions for long hours. No words can describe the horror I felt， when I realized what my life was going to be like from now on. I was deeply ashamed at having such a job and I was also afraid that I would forget everything I had learnt from my mother and my teachers. I would never find friends like Traddles or Steerforth， or be able to get a better position in life. It was an extremely unhappy time for me. My stepfather had asked Mr Quinion， the manager, to find me somewhere to stay in London，so at the end of my first day I was called to Mr Quinion's office and introduced to an important-looking， rather fat, middle-aged man with a head as bald as an egg. His name was Mr Micawber，and he offered me a spare room in the house he was renting with his family. I agreed to take it， and Mr Micawber and I walked home together. The Micawbers were obviously very poor， but tried hard not to let this show. The house had several floors of rather dirty，empty rooms with very little furniture. Mrs Micawber was a thin，tired-looking woman with a baby in her arms. The baby was one of twins，and in all my experience of the family, I never saw Mrs Micawber without at least one of the twins. They also had a four-year-old son and a three-year-old daughter. Their only servant was a young orphan girl. ‘ I never thought， ’Mrs Micawber told me sadly as she showed me my room，‘ when I lived with Mother and Father, before I was married，that I would ever be as poor as this. But as Mr Micawber is for the moment in difficulties，I must of course accept the situation. I'm afraid he owes a lot of money，but his creditors will just have to wait！ You can't get blood out of a stone， nor can anyone get any money at all out of Mr Micawber at present！’ I soon realized that neither Mr nor Mrs Micawger had ever been able to manage money.The little that Mr Micawber earned was not enough， either to keep his creditors happy, or to pay for the needs of his growing family. So his creditors were constantly at the door， demanding payment, and meals were rather irregular in the Micawber house. Mr and Mrs Micawber's moods varied according to the situation. One moment Mr Micawber looked extremely miserable and depressed，the next he was brushing his shoes and singing a song before going out. Mrs Micawber's character was similar to her hus band's. Sometimes I came home to find her lying on the floor，with her hair undone， looking wild and desperate, but an hour later she was cheerfully eating a good supper. I lived with these kind people for several months， and became very fond of them. I bought my own food out of my wages，because I knew the Micawbers hardly ever had enough for themselves，and I lived mostly on bread and cheese. As they were so short of money， once or twice I offered to lend them a few shillings，which they refused to accept.But at last Mr Micawber's creditors became tired of waiting for their money，and went to the police, who arrested him for debt. He was taken to the King's Prison， and asked me to visit him there. When I arrived，I was shown to his room, where he was waiting for me. He seemed quite brokenhearted， and even cried a little.
‘This is a black day for me，Copperfield！’ he sobbed.‘I hope my mistakes will be a warning to young people like you！Remember，if a man earns twenty pounds a year, and spends nineteen pounds and nineteen shillings， the result is happiness. But if he spends twenty pounds and one shilling，the result is misery！ By the way， Copperfield，could you lend me a shilling for some beer？ Mrs Micawber will pay you back as soon as you arrive home. ’ And when the beer arrived， he appeared much more cheerful. We had a pleasant evening，telling stories and jokes. He stayed in prison for several weeks， and I visited him regularly．I was delighted to hear on one of my visits that he would soon be free， as his creditors had unwillingly accepted the fact
‘This is a black day for me，Copperfield！’ he sobbed.‘I hope my mistakes will be a warning to young people like you！Remember，if a man earns twenty pounds a year, and spends nineteen pounds and nineteen shillings， the result is happiness. But if he spends twenty pounds and one shilling，the result is misery！ By the way， Copperfield，could you lend me a shilling for some beer？ Mrs Micawber will pay you back as soon as you arrive home. ’ And when the beer arrived， he appeared much more cheerful. We had a pleasant evening，telling stories and jokes. He stayed in prison for several weeks， and I visited him regularly．I was delighted to hear on one of my visits that he would soon be free， as his creditors had unwillingly accepted the fact