05-04-远离尘嚣 [26]
d his mistress.
‘It's Gabriel Oak. Ah，he's a clever man！’replied Joseph. ‘That's right，he certainly is，’agreed the other two. ‘How dare you say his name to me！’she said angrily.
‘What about Farmer Boldwood？Perhaps he can do it？’
‘No，ma‘am，’answered Laban. ‘When his sheep ate some clover the other day，and were swollen just like these，he sent for Cabriel at once，and Gabriel saved their lives. ’
‘I don't care！Don't just stand there！Go and find someone！’cried Bathsheba. The men ran off，without any clear idea where they were going，and Bathsheba was left alone with her dying sheep. ‘Never will I send for him，never！’she promised herself.
One of the sheep jumped high in the air，fell heavily and did not move. It was dead. Bathsheba knew she must swallow her pride，and called to Laban，who was waiting at the gate.
‘Take a horse，and go and find Gabriel，’she ordered. ‘Give him a message from me，that he must return at once. ’
Bathsheba and her men waited miserably in the field. Several more sheep jumped wildly into the air，their stomachs horribly swollen and their muscles stiff，then died. At last a rider could be seen across the fields. But it was not Gabriel，it was Laban.
‘He says he won't come unless you ask him politely，’Laban reported to Bathsheba.
‘What！’said the young woman，opening her eyes wide. Joseph Poorgrass hid behind a tree in case she became violent. ‘How dare he answer me like that！’Another sheep fell dead. The men looked very serious，and did not offer their opinion. Bathsheba's eyes filled with tears，and she did not try to hide her anger and her injured pride.
‘Don't cry about it，miss，’suggested Billy sympathetically.
‘Why not ask Gabriel in a gentler way？I'm sure he'll come then. ’ ‘Oh，he's cruel to me！’said Bathsheba，drying her eyes. ‘But I'll beg him，yes，I'll have to！’She wrote a few words quickly on a piece of paper，and at the last moment added at the bottom：
Gabriel，do not desert me！
She blushed a little as she wrote this，and gave the letter to Laban，who rode off again to find Gabriel.
When Gabriel arrived，Bathsheba knew from his expression which words in her note had made him come. He went straight to work on the swollen sheep，and managed to save almost all of them When he had finished，Bathsheba came to speak to him.
‘Gabriel，will you stay on with me？’she asked，smiling.
‘I will，’said Gabriel. And she smiled at him again.
A few days later the sheep－shearing began. The sheep were shorn every year at the beginning of June，and their wool was sold. The shearing was always done in the great barn，which had stood on the farm for four centuries. Today the sunshine poured in on the shearers. Bathsheba was watching them care－ fully to make sure that the sheep were not injured，and that all the wool was cut off Gabriel was the most experienced shearer. He loved being watched by Bathsheba，and felt warm with pride when she congratulated him on his speed.
But he was not happy for long Farmer Boldwood arrived at the door of the barn，and spoke to Bathsheba. They stepped outside into the bright sunlight to carry on their conversation. Gabriel could not hear what they were saying，but noticed that Bathsheba was blushing. He continued shearing，feeling sud－ denly very sad. Bathsheba went back to the house，and returned a short while later in her new green riding dress. She and Boldwood were obviously going for a ride together. As Gabriel's concentration was broken for a moment，his shears cut the sheep's skin. Bathsheba，at the door of the barn，noticed the animal jump，and saw the blood.
‘Oh Gabriel！’she said. ‘Be more careful！’Gabriel knew she was aware that she herself had indirectly caused the poor sheep's wound. But he bravely hid his hurt feelings，and watched Boldwood and Bathsheba
‘It's Gabriel Oak. Ah，he's a clever man！’replied Joseph. ‘That's right，he certainly is，’agreed the other two. ‘How dare you say his name to me！’she said angrily.
‘What about Farmer Boldwood？Perhaps he can do it？’
‘No，ma‘am，’answered Laban. ‘When his sheep ate some clover the other day，and were swollen just like these，he sent for Cabriel at once，and Gabriel saved their lives. ’
‘I don't care！Don't just stand there！Go and find someone！’cried Bathsheba. The men ran off，without any clear idea where they were going，and Bathsheba was left alone with her dying sheep. ‘Never will I send for him，never！’she promised herself.
One of the sheep jumped high in the air，fell heavily and did not move. It was dead. Bathsheba knew she must swallow her pride，and called to Laban，who was waiting at the gate.
‘Take a horse，and go and find Gabriel，’she ordered. ‘Give him a message from me，that he must return at once. ’
Bathsheba and her men waited miserably in the field. Several more sheep jumped wildly into the air，their stomachs horribly swollen and their muscles stiff，then died. At last a rider could be seen across the fields. But it was not Gabriel，it was Laban.
‘He says he won't come unless you ask him politely，’Laban reported to Bathsheba.
‘What！’said the young woman，opening her eyes wide. Joseph Poorgrass hid behind a tree in case she became violent. ‘How dare he answer me like that！’Another sheep fell dead. The men looked very serious，and did not offer their opinion. Bathsheba's eyes filled with tears，and she did not try to hide her anger and her injured pride.
‘Don't cry about it，miss，’suggested Billy sympathetically.
‘Why not ask Gabriel in a gentler way？I'm sure he'll come then. ’ ‘Oh，he's cruel to me！’said Bathsheba，drying her eyes. ‘But I'll beg him，yes，I'll have to！’She wrote a few words quickly on a piece of paper，and at the last moment added at the bottom：
Gabriel，do not desert me！
She blushed a little as she wrote this，and gave the letter to Laban，who rode off again to find Gabriel.
When Gabriel arrived，Bathsheba knew from his expression which words in her note had made him come. He went straight to work on the swollen sheep，and managed to save almost all of them When he had finished，Bathsheba came to speak to him.
‘Gabriel，will you stay on with me？’she asked，smiling.
‘I will，’said Gabriel. And she smiled at him again.
A few days later the sheep－shearing began. The sheep were shorn every year at the beginning of June，and their wool was sold. The shearing was always done in the great barn，which had stood on the farm for four centuries. Today the sunshine poured in on the shearers. Bathsheba was watching them care－ fully to make sure that the sheep were not injured，and that all the wool was cut off Gabriel was the most experienced shearer. He loved being watched by Bathsheba，and felt warm with pride when she congratulated him on his speed.
But he was not happy for long Farmer Boldwood arrived at the door of the barn，and spoke to Bathsheba. They stepped outside into the bright sunlight to carry on their conversation. Gabriel could not hear what they were saying，but noticed that Bathsheba was blushing. He continued shearing，feeling sud－ denly very sad. Bathsheba went back to the house，and returned a short while later in her new green riding dress. She and Boldwood were obviously going for a ride together. As Gabriel's concentration was broken for a moment，his shears cut the sheep's skin. Bathsheba，at the door of the barn，noticed the animal jump，and saw the blood.
‘Oh Gabriel！’she said. ‘Be more careful！’Gabriel knew she was aware that she herself had indirectly caused the poor sheep's wound. But he bravely hid his hurt feelings，and watched Boldwood and Bathsheba