ERNEST HEMINGWAY ERNEST HEMINGWAY

The End of Something Valami vget r

SELECTED STORIES VLOGATOTT ELBESZLSEK

EURPA KNYVKIAD EURPA KNYVKIAD

BUDAPEST, 1987 BUDAPEST, 1987
 FORDTOTTA
DRY TIBOR
LENGYEL PTER
OTTLIK GZA
RZ DM
RNA ILONA
SZSZ IMRE

ERNEST HEMINGWAY
IN OUR TIME
MEN WITHOUT WOMEN
WINNER TAKE NOTHING
THE FIRST FORTY-NINE STORIES
CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS, NEW YORK, 1930 ETC.
JONATHAN CAPE, LONDON, 1956
RENEWAL COPYRIGHT 1961 MARY HEMINGWAY

COPYRIGHT 1972 THE ERNEST HEMINGWAY

FOUNDATION

HU ISSN 0139-1062
 Indian Camp
At the lake shore there was another rowboat drawn
up. The two Indians stood waiting.
Nick and his father got in the stern of the boat and
the Indians shoved it off and one of them got in to
row. Uncle George sat in the stern of the camp
rowboat. The young Indian shoved the camp boat off
and got in to row Uncle George.
The two boats started off in the dark. Nick heard the
oarlocks of the other boat quite a way ahead of them
in the mist. The Indians rowed with quick choppy
strokes. Nick lay back with his father's arm around
him. It was cold on the water. The Indian who was
rowing them was working very hard, but the other
boat moved farther ahead in the mist all the time.
"Where are we going, Dad?" Nick asked.
"Over to the Indian camp. There is an Indian lady
very sick."
"Oh," said Nick.
Across the bay they found the other boat beached.
Uncle George was smoking a cigar in the dark. The
young Indian pulled the boat way up the beach.
Uncle George gave both the Indians cigars.
They walked up from the beach through a meadow
that was soaking wet with dew, following the young
Indian who carried a lantern. Then they went into
6 7
Indin tbor
A tparton mg egy kihzott csnak fekdt. A kt
indin vrakozva llt.
Nick s apja a farlsre kerlt, az indinok eltoltk
a csnakot, s az egyik beugrott evezni. George bcsi
a tbori csnak farba lt. A fiatal indin eltolta a
tbori csnakot, s beszllt, hogy George bcsit tvi-
gye.
A kt csnak sttben indult el. Nick jval maguk
eltt hallotta a kdben a msik csnak evezvillit.
Az indinok gyors, kurta csapsokkal eveztek. Nick
htradlt, apja tfogta a karjval. Hideg volt a vzen.
Az indin, aki velk evezett, nagyon kemnyen dol
gozott, de a msik csnak mindjobban megelzte
ket a kdben.
- Hova megynk, papa? - krdezte Nick.
- t az indin tborba. Egy indin n nagyon beteg.
- Aha - mondta Nick.
Az bl tlfeln partra futott a msik csnak, mire
odartek. George bcsi mr szivarozott a sttben.
A fiatal indin felhzta egy darabon a csnakot a
partra. George bcsi mindkt indinnak szivart
adott.
A fiatal indin lmpt vitt, felmentek mgtte a part
rl, s tvgtak egy csuromharmatos rten. Aztn er-
the woods and followed a trail that led to the logging
road that ran back into the hills. It was much lighter
on the logging road as the timber was cut away on
both sides. The young Indian stopped and blew out
his lantern and they all walked on along the road.
They came around a bend and a dog came out bark
ing. Ahead were the lights of the shanties where the
Indian barkpeelers lived. More dogs rushed out at
them. The two Indians sent them back to the shan
ties. In the shanty nearest the road there was a light
in the window. An old woman stood in the doorway
holding a lamp.
Inside on a wooden bunk lay a young Indian woman.
She had been trying to have her baby for two days.
All the old women in the camp had been helping her.
The men had moved off up the road to sit in the dark
and smoke out of range of the noise she made. She
screamed just as Nick and the two Indians followed
his father and Uncle George into the shanty. She lay
in the lower bunk, very big under a quilt. Her head
was turned to one side. In the upper bunk was her
husband. He had cut his foot very badly with an axe
three days before. He was smoking a pipe. The room
smelled very bad.
Nick's father ordered some water to be put on the
stove, and while it was heating he spoke to Nick.
"This lady is going to have a baby, Nick," he said.
"I know," said Nick.
"You don't know," said his father. "Listen to me.
What she is going through is called being in labor.
8 9
dbe rtek, s egy svnyen haladtak, azon eljutottak
a fahordthoz, amely felvezetett a hegyekbe. A fahordton sokkal vi
vgtk a szlfkat. A fiatal indin megllt, elfjta a
lmpjt, s mentek tovbb az ton.
Az tkanyarral fordultak, ekkor egy kutya jtt el
ugatva. Szemben fny vilgtott a kunyhkbl, itt
laktak az indin kreghntk. jabb kutyk rontot
tak nekik. A kt indin visszakldte ket a kunyhk
hoz. Az ton legkzelebb es kunyh ablaka vilgos
volt. Egy regasszony llt a kunyhbejratnl, kez
ben lmpa.
Benn fagyon fiatal indin asszony fekdt. Kt napja
prblta mr a gyerekt megszlni. A tbor vala
mennyi regasszonya segdkezett neki. A frfiak ki
vonultak az tra, ott ltek a sttben, s dohnyoztak,
tvol az asszony lrmjtl. ppen felsikoltott, mikor
Nick s a kt indin belpett a kunyhba, apja s
George bcsi utn. Az als gyon fekdt, nagy, da
gadt teste felnyomta a takart. Fejt oldalra fordtot
ta. A fels gyon hevert a frje. Hrom nappal ezeltt
igen csnyn megvgta baltval a lbt. Pipzott.
A szobban nagyon rossz szag volt.
Nick apja megparancsolta, hogy tegyenek vizet a
klyhra, s amg a vz melegedett, Nickkel beszl-
getett.
- Ennek az asszonynak gyereke lesz, Nick - mondta.
- Tudom - mondta Nick.
- Nem tudod - mondta az apja. - Ide figyelj. Most
van abban, amit vajdsnak hvnak. A kisbaba meg
The baby wants to be born and she wants it to be
born. All her muscles are trying to get the baby born.
That is what is happening when she screams."
"I see," Nick said.
Just then the woman cried out.
"Oh, Daddy, can't you give her something to make
her stop screaming?" asked Nick.
" N o , I haven't any anesthetic," his father said. "But
her screams are not important. I don't hear them
because they are not important."
The husband in the upper bunk rolled over against
the wall.
The woman in the kitchen motioned to the doctor
that the water was hot. Nick's father went into the
kitchen and poured about half of the water out of the
big kettle into a basin. Into the water left in the kettle
he put several things he unwrapped from a hand
kerchief.
"Those must boil," he said, and began to scrub his
hands in the basin of hot water with a cake of soap
he had brought from the camp. Nick watched his
father's hands scrubbing each other with the soap.
While his father washed his hands very carefully and
thoroughly, he talked.
"You see, Nick, babies are supposed to be born head
first but sometimes they're not. When they're not
they make a lot of trouble for everybody. Maybe I'll
have to operate on this lady. We'll know in a little
while."
When he was satisfied with his hands he went in and
went to work.
"Pull back that quilt, will you, George?" he said. " I ' d
rather not touch it."
Later when he started to operate Uncle George and
akar szletni, s az asszony is meg akarja szlni. Min
den izma azon igyekszik, hogy a baba megszlessen.
Ez trtnik olyankor, amikor sikoltozik.
- rtem - mondta Nick.
ppen akkor felkiltott az asszony.
- , papa, nem tudsz neki adni valamit, amitl abba
hagyja a sikoltozst? - krdezte Nick.
- Nem. Nincs semmi rzstelentm - mondta az
apja. - De a sikoltozs nem rdekes. n nem is hal
lom, mert nem rdekes.
A frj a fels gyon a fal fel fordult.
A konyhban dolgoz asszony intett az orvosnak,
hogy forr a vz. Nick apja kiment a konyhba, s gy
a fele vizet tnttte a nagy stbl a mosdtlba.
Zsebkendbl kibugyollt klnbz dolgokat, s be
letette ket a vzbe, amit az stben hagyott.
- Ennek forrni kell - mondta, s drzslni kezdte a
kezt a mosdtl forr vizben egy darab szappannal,
amelyet a tborbl hozott magval. Nick nzte az
apja kt kezt, amint egymst drzslik a szappannal.
Apja nagyon alaposan s gondosan megmosta a kezt,
s kzben beszlt.
- Tudod, Nick, a kisbabknak fejjel elre kellene
szletnik, de nha nem gy szletnek. Ha nem,
olyankor egy csom bajt csinlnak mindenkinek. L e
het, hogy ezt az asszonyt meg kell operlnom. Nem
sokra megtudjuk.
Mikor megfelelnek tallta mr a kezt, bement, s
munkhoz ltott.
- Hajtsd fl azt a takart, lgy szves, George -
mondta. - Nem akarok hozznylni.
Ksbb, mikor operlni kezdett, George bcsi s
11
three Indian men held the woman still. She bit Uncle
George on the arm and Uncle George said, "Damn
squaw bitch!" and the young Indian who had rowed
Uncle George over laughed at him. Nick held the
basin for his father. It all took a long time.
His father picked the baby up and slapped it to make
it breathe and handed it to the old woman.
"See, it's a boy, Nick," he said. "How do you like
being an intern?"
Nick said, "All right." He was looking away so as not
to see what his father was doing.
"There. That gets it," said his father and put some
thing into the basin.
Nick didn't look at it.
"Now," his father said, "there's some stitches to put
in. You can watch this or not, Nick, just as you like.
I'm going to sew up the incision I made."
Nick did not watch. His curiosity had been gone for
a long time.
His father finished and stood up. Uncle George and
the three Indian men stood up. Nick put the basin
out in the kitchen.
Uncle George looked at his arm. The young Indian
smiled reminiscently.
"I'll put some peroxide on that, George," the doctor
said.
He bent over the Indian woman. She was quiet now
and her eyes were closed. She looked very pale. She
did not know what had become of the baby or any
thing.
"I'll be back in the morning," the doctor said, stand
ing up. " T h e nurse should be here from St. Ignace
by noon and she'll bring everything we need."
hrom indin fogta le az asszonyt. Az megharapta
George bcsi kezt, s George bcsi azt mondta: -
tkozott indin szuka! -, s a fiatal indin, aki csna
kon thozta George bcsit, nevetett rajta. Nick tar
totta a mosdtlat apjnak. Hossz ideig tartott a
dolog.
Apja felemelte az jszlttet, s megtgette az ar
ct, hogy megindtsa a llegzst, aztn tadta az
regasszonynak.
- Fi, ltod, Nick - mondta. - Tetszik az asszisztens
mestersg?
- Tetszik - mondta Nick. Flrenzett, hogy ne lssa,
mit csinl az apja.
- Ez az. Most mr j lesz - mondta az apja, s valamit
a mosdtlba tett.
Nick nem nzett oda.
- Most mg nhny lts kell - mondta az apja. - Ha
akarod, megnzheted, Nick, ha nem, nem. sszevar
rom a vgst, amit csinltam.
Nick nem nzte. Kvncsisga hossz idre lelohadt.
Apja befejezte s felllt. George bcsi s a hrom
indin frfi is felllt. Nick kivitte a mosdtlat a
konyhba.
George bcsi a karjt nzegette. A fiatal indin visz-
szaemlkezen mosolygott.
- Teszek r egy kis hiperoxidot, George - mondta az
orvos.
Az indin asszony fl hajolt. Az mr nyugodt volt
s nagyon spadt. Szemt lecsukta. Nem tudott sem
arrl, mi lett az jszlttel, sem msrl.
- Reggel visszajvk - mondta az orvos, s felegye
nesedett. - Dlre itt kell lennie az polnnek St.
Ignace-bl, majd hoz mindent, amire szksgnk
van.
He was feeling exalted and talkative as football play
ers are in the dressing room after a game.
"That's one for the medical journal, George," he
said. "Doing a Caesarian with a jackknife and sewing
it up with nine-foot, tapered gut leaders."
Uncle George was standing against the wall, looking
at his arm.
"Oh, you're a great man, all right," he said.
"Ought to have a look at the proud father. They're
usually the worst sufferers in these little affairs," the
doctor said. "I must say he took it all pretty quietly."
He pulled back the blanket from the Indian's head.
His hand came away wet. He mounted on the edge
of the lower bunk with the lamp in one hand and
looked in. The Indian lay with his face toward the
wall. His throat had been cut from ear to ear. The
blood had flowed down into a pool where his body
sagged the bunk. His head rested on his left arm. The
open razor lay, edge up, in the blankets.
"Take Nick out of the shanty, George," the doctor
said.
There was no need of that. Nick, standing in the door
of the kitchen, had a good view of the upper bunk
when his father, the lamp in one hand, tipped the
Indian's head back.
It was just beginning to be daylight when they walk
ed along the logging road back toward the lake.
" I ' m terribly sorry I brought you along, Nickie,"
said his father, all his postoperative exhilaration
gone. "It was an awful mess to put you through."
"Do ladies always have such a hard time having
babies?" Nick asked.
" N o , that was very, very exceptional."
Izgatott s beszdes volt, mint a labdargk mrk
zs utn az ltzben.
- Ez az orvosi lapba val, George - mondta. - Cs
szrmetszs zsebkssel s a varrs viaszolt horgsz-
elkvel.
George bcsi a falnak tmaszkodott, karjt nzte.
- Ht te nagy ember vagy, az m - mondta.
- Kellett volna egy pillantst vetni a bszke apra.
Azok lljk legrosszabbul ezeket a kis gyeket -
mondta az orvos. - Meg kell mondanom, ez elg
csendesen viselkedett.
Leemelte a takart az indin fejrl. Kezt nedvesen
hzta vissza. Egyik kezben lmpval fellpett az als
gy peremre, s bevilgtott. Az indin arccal a fal
nak fordult. Torka egyik fltl a msikig t volt
vgva. Vre tcsban folyt ssze oda, ahol teste be-
sppesztette az gyat. Feje a bal karjn nyugodott.
A nyitott borotva, lvel felfel, a pokrcon fekdt.
- Vidd ki Nicket a kunyhbl, George - mondta az
orvos.
Nem volt r szksg. Nick a konyhaajtban llt, s jl
ltta a fels gyat, mikor apja egyik kezben a lmp
val visszabillentette az indin fejt.
ppen hajnalodni kezdett, mikor a fahordton visz-
szafel ballagtak a thoz.
- Nagyon sajnlom, hogy elhoztalak, Nickie - mond
ta az apa, akibl teljesen eltnt az operci utni
vidmsg -, kr volt ilyen szrny heccen keresztl
menned.
- Az asszonyoknak mindig ilyen nehz a szls? -
krdezte Nick.
- Nem, ez nagyon-nagyon kivteles eset volt.
15
"Why did he kill himself, Daddy?" - Mirt lte meg magt, papa?
"I don't know, Nick. He couldn't stand things, I - Nem tudom, Nick. Nem brta a dolgot, azt hiszem.
guess." - Sokan meglik magukat, papa?
"Do many men kill themselves, Daddy?" - Nem nagyon sokan, Nick.
"Not very many, Nick." - Sok asszony?
" D o many women?" - Asszonyok nem nagyon.
"Hardly ever." - Sohase?
"Don't they ever?" - De igen. Nha meglik magukat.
"Oh, yes. They do sometimes." - Papa.
"Daddy?" - Tessk.
"Yes." - Hova ment George bcsi?
"Where did Uncle George go?" - Hamarosan elkerl.
"He'll turn up all right." - Nehz meghalni, papa?
"Is dying hard, Daddy?" - Nem, azt hiszem, elg knny, Nick. Minden attl
" N o , I think it's pretty easy, Nick. It all depends." fgg.
They were seated in the boat, Nick in the stern, his A csnakban ltek, Nick a farban, apja evezett.
father rowing. The sun was coming up over the hills. A nap ppen jtt fel a hegyek mgl. Feketesgr
A bass jumped, making a circle in the water. Nick ugrott, krztt utna a vz. Nick hzta a vzben a
trailed his hand in the water. It felt warm in the sharp kezt. Melegnek rezte a reggel metsz hvssg
chill of the morning. ben.
In the early morning on the lake sitting in the stern Kora reggel a tavon, a csnak farban, mg apja
of the boat with his father rowing, he felt quite sure evezett, biztosan rezte, hogy sose fog meghalni.
that he would never die.
Szsz Imre fordtsa

16 17
 The Doctor and the Doctor's Wife
Dick Boulton came from the Indian camp to cut up
logs for Nick's father. He brought his son Eddy and
another Indian named Billy Tabeshaw with him.
They came in through the back gate out of the
woods, Eddy carrying the long crosscut saw. It flop
ped over his shoulder and made a musical sound as
he walked. Billy Tabeshaw carried two big cant
hooks. Dick had three axes under his arm.
He turned and shut the gate. The others went on
ahead of him down to the lake shore where the logs
were buried in the sand.
The logs had been lost from the big log booms that
were towed down the lake to the mill by the steamer
Magic. They had drifted up onto the beach and if
nothing were done about them sooner or later the
crew of the Magic would come along the shore in a
rowboat, spot the logs, drive an iron spike with a ring
on it into the end of each one and then tow them out
into the lake to make a new boom. But the lumber
men might never come for them because a few logs
were not worth the price of a crew to gather them.
If no one came for them they would be left to water
log and rot on the beach.
Nick's father always assumed that this was what
would happen and hired the Indians to come down
18
Az orvos s a felesge
Dick Boulton az indin tborbl jtt t, hogy ft
hasogasson Nick apjnak. Magval hozta a fit, Ed-
dyt s egy Billy Tabeshaw nev msik indint. A hts
kapun jttek be az erdbl, Eddy hozta a nagy ke
resztfrszt. Hullmzott a vlln, s dallamosan pen
gett minden lpsnl. Billy Tabeshaw kt nagy von
horgot hozott. Dicknek hrom fejsze volt a hna
alatt.
Megfordult, s becsukta a kaput. A tbbiek tovbb
mentek a tpart fel, ahol a homok betemette rnkk
fekdtek.
A rnkk azokrl a nagy tutajokrl maradtak le, ame
lyeket a Varzs gzs vontatott le a tavon a frszma
lomhoz. Kisodrdtak a partra, s ha nem trtnik
semmi, a Varzs legnysge elbb-utbb vgigjrja
ladikon a partot, megkeresni a rnkket, kariks vas
kapcsot ver mindegyik vgkbe, s azutn kivontatja
a tra, hogy j tutajt csinljon. De lehet, hogy a
favgk sose jnnek rtk, mert nhny rnkt sz-
szeszedni nem rdemes a legnysgnek. Ha senki sem
jn rtk, ott maradnak hordalkfnak, s csak kor
hadnak a parton.
Nick apja mindig gy tudta, hogy a rnkk ott kor
hadnak el vgl, s megalkudott az indinokkal, hogy
19
from the camp and cut the logs up with the crosscut
saw and split them with a wedge to make cord wood
and chunks for the open fireplace. Dick Boulton
walked around past the cottage down to the lake.
There were four big beech logs lying almost buried
in the sand. Eddy hung the saw up by one of its
handles in the crotch of a tree. Dick put the three
axes down on the little dock. Dick was a half-breed
and many of the farmers around the lake believed he
was really a white man. He was very lazy but a great
worker once he was started. He took a plug of tobac
co out of his pocket, bit off a chew and spoke in
Ojibway to Eddy and Billy Tabeshaw.
They sunk the ends of their cant hooks into one of
the logs and swung against it to loosen it in the sand.
They swung their weight against the shafts of the
cant hooks. The log moved in the sand. Dick Boulton
turned to Nick's father.
"Well, Doc," he said, "that's a nice lot of timber
you've stolen."
"Don't talk that way, Dick," the doctor said. "It's
driftwood."
Eddy and Billy Tabeshaw had rocked the log out of
the wet sand and rolled it toward the water.
"Put it right in," Dick Boulton shouted.
"What are you doing that for?" asked the doctor.
"Wash it off. Clean off the sand on account of the
saw. I want to see who it belongs to," Dick said.
The log was just awash in the lake. Eddy and Billy
Tabeshaw leaned on their cant hooks, sweating in the
sun. Dick kneeled down in the sand and looked at the
mark of the scaler's hammer in the wood at the end
of the log.
20
jjjenek t a tborbl, daraboljk fel a rnkket a
keresztfrsszel, s hastsk szt kkel a nyitott tz
helyhez val lfv s hasbfv. Dick Boulton lebal
lagott a hzik mellett a partra. Ngy nagy, partra
vetett rnk fekdt ott, csaknem teljesen homokba
temetve. Eddy egyik markolatnl fogva felakasztotta
a frszt egy fa gvilljba. Dick letette a hrom
fejszt a kis kiktpalincsra. Dick flvr volt, s a
tparti farmerek kzl sokan azt tartottk, hogy val
jban fehr ember. Nagyon lusta volt, de ha egyszer
nekilendlt, gett kezben a munka. Prselt dohnyt
vett ki a zsebbl, leharapott egy pofra valt, s
ozsibv nyelven odaszlt Eddynek s Billy Tabe-
shaw-nak.
Azok belevgtk vonhorguk vgt az egyik rnkbe,
s nekifeszltek, hogy kilaztsk a homokbl. A hor
gok nyelnek nekifesztettk egsz slyukat. A rnk
megmozdult a homokban. Dick Boulton Nick apj
hoz fordult.
- Na, doki - mondta -, j csom ft szajrzott ssze.
- Ne beszlj gy, Dick - mondta az orvos. - Horda-
lkfa.
Eddy s Billy Tabeshaw kibillegettk a rnkt a ned
ves homokbl, s a vz fel hengergettk.
- Csak lkjtek bele - kiltotta Dick Boulton.
- Mire val ez? - krdezte az orvos.
- Lemossuk. Letiszttjuk a homokot a frsz miatt.
Szeretnm tudni, ki - mondta Dick.
A rnk a vzen szott. Eddy s Billy Tabeshaw a
vonhorgra tmaszkodott, s izzadt a napstsben.
Dick letrdelt a homokba, s megnzte a jell kala
pcs jegyt a rnk vgben.
21
 "It belongs to White and McNally," he said, stand
ing up and brushing off his trousers' knees.
The doctor was very uncomfortable.
"You'd better not saw it up then, Dick," he said,
shortly.
"Don't get huffy, Doc," said Dick. "Don't get huffy.
I don't care who you steal from. It's none of my
business."
"If you think the logs are stolen, leave them alone
and take your tools back to the camp," the doctor
said. His face was red.
"Dont't go off at half cock, Doc," Dick said. He spat
tobacco juice on the log. It slid off, thinning in the
water. "You know they're stolen as well as I do. It
don't make any difference to me."
"All right. If you think the logs are stolen, take your
stuff and get out."
"Now, Doc"
"Take your stuff and get out."
"Listen, Doc."
"If you call me Doc once again, I'll knock your eye
teeth down your throat."
"Oh, no, you won't, Doc."
Dick Boulton looked at the doctor. Dick was a big
man. He knew how big a man he was. He liked to get
into fights. He was happy. Eddy and Billy Tabeshaw
leaned on their cant hooks and looked at the doctor.
The doctor chewed the beard on his lower lip and
looked at Dick Boulton. Then he turned away and
walked up the hill to the cottage. They could see
from his back how angry he was. They all watched
him walk up the hill and go inside the cottage.
22
-White s McNally - mondta, felllt, s leporolta
nadrgja trdt.
Az orvos knyelmetlenl rezte magt.
- Akkor ne frszeljtek el, Dick - mondta kurtn.
- Ne hzza fel az orrt, doki - mondta Dick. - Ne
hzza fel az orrt. Engem nem rdekel, hogy maga
kitl lop. Nem az n dolgom.
- Ha azt gondolod, hogy loptam a rnkket, akkor
hagyjtok bkben, vigytek vissza a szerszmokat a
tborba - mondta az orvos. Arca vrs volt.
- Nem kell mindjrt tzet fogni, doki - mondta Dick.
Baglt kptt a rnkre. A l lecsszott, s sztold
dott a vzben. - Maga ppoly jl tudja, hogy lopott
fa, mint n. De nekem desmindegy.
- Rendben van. Ha azt hiszed, hogy loptam a rnk
ket, szedd a cuccod, s indulj.
- Nzze, doki...
- Szedd a cuccod, s indulj!
- Ide figyeljen, doki...
- Ha mg egyszer dokinak szltasz, leverem a szem
fogadat a torkodon.
- Dehogy veri, doki.
Dick Boulton nzte az orvost. Dick hatalmas ember
volt. maga is tudta, milyen hatalmas. Szeretett
verekedni. Most boldog volt. Eddy s Billy Tabe
shaw a vonhorogra tmaszkodott, s az orvost nzte.
A doktor a szakllt harapdlta az als ajkn, s Dick
Boultonra nzett. Azutn megfordult, s felment a
dombon a hzikhoz. M g a htn is megltszott,
milyen dhs. Mindnyjan figyeltk, mg felment a
dombon, s belpett a hzikba.
23
Dick said something in Ojibway. Eddy laughed but
Billy Tabeshaw looked very serious. He did not un
derstand English but he had sweat all the time the
row was going on. He was fat, with only a few hairs
of mustache like a Chinaman. He picked up the two
cant hooks. Dick picked up the axes and Eddy took
the saw down from the tree. They started off and
walked up past the cottage and out the back gate into
the woods. Dick left the gate open. Billy Tabeshaw
went back and fastened it. They were gone through
the woods.
In the cottage the doctor, sitting on the bed in his
room, saw a pile of medical journals on the floor by
the bureau. They were still in their wrappers, un
opened. It irritated him.
"Aren't you going back to work, dear?" asked the
doctor's wife from the room where she was lying
with the blinds drawn.
"No!"
"Was anything the matter?"
"I had a row with Dick Boulton."
"Oh," said his wife. "I hope you didn't lose your
temper, Henry."
" N o , " said the doctor.
"Remember, that he who ruleth his spirit is greater
than he that taketh a city," said his wife. She was a
Christian Scientist. Her Bible, her copy of Science
and Health and her Quarterly were on a table beside
her bed in the darkened room.
Her husband did not answer. He was sitting on his
bed now, cleaning a shotgun. He pushed the mag
azine full of the heavy yellow shells and pumped
them out again. They were scattered on the bed.
Dick mondott valamit ozsibvl. Eddy elnevette ma
gt, de Billy Tabeshaw nagyon komolynak ltszott.
Nem rtett angolul, de a veszekeds alatt vgig iz
zadt. Kvr volt, ritka bajsz, mint egy knai. Felvet
te a kt vonhorgot. Dick felszedte a fejszket, Eddy
leemelte a frszt a frl. Elindultak, felmentek a
hzik mellett, s kiballagtak a hts kapun az erd
be. Dick nyitva hagyta a kaput. Billy Tabeshaw visz-
szament, s becsukta. Eltntek az erdben.
A hzikban az orvos a szobjban lt az gyon, s egy
halom orvosi lapot nzett az rasztal mellett a fldn.
Mg bortkjukban voltak, felbontatlanul. Ez bosz-
szantotta.
- Nem mgy vissza dolgozni, drgm? - krdezte a
felesge a msik szobbl, ahol lehzott zsaluk mel
lett fekdt.
- Nem!
- Valami baj trtnt?
- sszevesztem Dick Boultonnal.
- - mondta a felesge. - Remlem, nem jttl ki a
sodrodbl, Henry.
- Nem - mondta az orvos.
- Ne feledd el, hogy az, ki ura enlelknek, nagyobb,
mint aki beveszen egy vrost - mondta a felesge.
A Keresztyn Tudomny" hvei kz tartozott.
A biblia, a Tudomny s Egszsg s a Szemle ott
fekdt gya mellett az asztalon a lestttett szob
ban.
Frje nem felelt. Az gyn lt, vadszpuskt tiszt
tott. Telenyomta a trat nehz, srga tltnyekkel, s
jbl kidobatta ket. Sztszrdtak az gyon.
25
"Henry," his wife called. Then paused a moment.
"Henry!"
" Y e s , " the doctor said.
"You didn't say anything to Boulton to anger him,
did you?"
" N o , " said the doctor.
"What was the trouble about, dear?"
"Nothing much."
"Tell me, Henry. Please don't try and keep anything
from me. What was the trouble about?"
"Well, Dick owes me a lot of money for pulling his
squaw through pneumonia and I guess he wanted a
row so he wouldn't have to take it out in work."
His wife was silent. The doctor wiped his gun care
fully with a rag. He pushed the shells back in against
the spring of the magazine. He sat with the gun on
his knees. He was very fond of it. Then he heard his
wife's voice from the darkened room.
"Dear, I don't think, I really don't think that anyone
would really do a thing like that."
" N o ? " the doctor said.
" N o . I can't really believe that anyone would do a
thing of that sort intentionally."
The doctor stood up and put the shotgun in the
corner behind the dresser.
"Are you going out, dear?" his wife said.
"I think I'll go for a walk," the doctor said.
"If you see Nick, dear, will you tell him his mother
wants to see him?" his wife said.
26
- Henry! - mondta a felesge. Aztn vrt egy pillana
tig. - Henry.
- Tessk - mondta az orvos.
- Nem mondtl semmit Boultonnak, amivel feldh
tetted, ugye?
- Nem - mondta az orvos.
- Min vesztetek ssze, drgm?
- Valami aprsgon.
- Mondd meg, Henry. Krlek, ne prblj eltitkolni
elttem semmit. Min vesztetek ssze?
- Ht, Dick tartozik nekem egy csom pnzzel, ami
rt a felesgt kihztam a tdgyulladsbl, s azt
hiszem, ezrt akart veszekedni, hogy ne kelljen ledol
goznia.
Felesge hallgatott. Az orvos gondosan vgigtrlte
puskjt egy ronggyal. Megint lenyomta a tltnye
ket a tr rugjhoz. Puskval a trdn lt. Nagyon
szerette a puskjt. Azutn felesge hangjt hallotta
az elstttett szobbl.
- Drgm, n nem hiszem, igazn nem hiszem, hogy
brki is megtenne ilyesmit.
- Nem? - krdezte az orvos.
- Nem. Nem hiszem, hogy brki is szndkosan
ilyesmit csinlna.
Az orvos felllt, s a sarokba tmasztotta a puskjt,
az ltzasztalka mg.
- Kimgy, drgm? - krdezte a felesge.
- Azt hiszem, stlok egyet - mondta az orvos.
- Drgm, ha Nickkel tallkozol, mondd meg neki,
lgy szves, hogy az anyja ltni szeretn! - mondta az
asszony.
27
The doctor went out on the porch. The screen door
slammed behind him. He heard his wife catch her
breath when the door slammed.
"Sorry," he said, outside her window with the blinds
drawn.
"It's all right, dear," she said.
He walked in the heat out the gate and along the path
into the hemlock woods. It was cool in the woods
even on such a hot day. He found Nick sitting with
his back against a tree, reading.
"Your mother wants you to come and see her," the
doctor said.
"I want to go with you," Nick said.
His father looked down at him.
"All right. Come on, then," his father said. "Give me
the book; I'll put it in my pocket."
"I know where there's black squirrels, Daddy," Nick
said.
"All right," said his father. "Let's go there."
28
Az orvos kiment a torncra. A sznyoghls ajt
becsapdott mgtte. Hallotta, hogy felesge leveg
utn kap, mikor az ajt becsapdott.
- Bocsss meg - mondta kvl, a lehzott zsalus ab
laknl.
- Semmi baj, drgm - mondta az asszony.
Az orvos kiballagott a hsgben a kapun s vgig az
svnyen a lucfenyerdbe. Az erdben mg ilyen
forr napon is hvs volt. Nicket ott tallta lve,
htt egy fnak tmasztotta, s olvasott.
- Anyd szeretn, ha bemennl hozz - mondta az
orvos.
- Szeretnk veled menni - mondta Nick.
Apja lenzett r.
- Rendben van. Akkor gyere mondta. Add ide a
knyvet, beteszem a zsebembe.
- Tudok egy helyet, ahol fekete mkusok vannak,
papa - mondta Nick.
- Rendben van felelte az apja , menjnk oda.
Szsz Imre fordtsa
29
 Ten Indians
After one Fourth of July, Nick, driving home late
from town in the big wagon with Joe Garner and his
family, passed nine drunken Indians along the road.
He remembered there were nine because Joe Garner,
driving along in the dusk, pulled up the horses,
jumped down into the road and dragged an Indian
out of the wheel rut. The Indian had been asleep,
face down in the sand. Joe dragged him into the
bushes and got back up on the wagon box.
"That makes nine of them," Joe said, "just between
here and the edge of town."
"Them Indians," said Mrs. Garner.
Nick was on the back seat with the two Garner boys.
He was looking out from the back seat to see the
Indian where Joe had dragged him alongside of the
road.
"Was it Billy Tabeshaw?" Carl asked.
"No."
"His pants looked mighty like Billy."
"All Indians wear the same kind of pants."
"I didn't see him at all," Frank said. "Pa was down
into the road and back up again before I seen a thing.
I thought he was killing a snake."
30
Tz indin
Egy Jlius Negyedike utn, ks este, hazafel ko
cogva a vrosbl a nagy szekren Joe Garnerrel s
csaldjval, Nickk kilenc rszeg indint hagytak el
az t mentn. Nick megjegyezte, hogy kilencen vol
tak, mert Joe Garner, a szrkletben hajtva, egyszer
re visszafogta a lovakat, leugrott az tra, s flrevon
szolt egy indint a kerknyombl. Az indin aludt,
arccal fekdt a porban. Joe bevonszolta a bokrok
kz, s visszamszott az lsre.
- Ez a kilencedik - mondta Joe - a vros szltl
idig.
- Indinok - legyintett Mrs. Garner.
Nick htul lt a kt Garner fival. Figyelt a hts
lsen, hogy lssa az indint az t mellett, ahov Joe
flrevonszolta.
- Billy Tabeshaw volt? - krdezte Carl.
- Nem.
- ppen olyan a nadrgja, mint a Billy.
- Minden indinnak egyforma a nadrgja.
- n nem is lttam - mondta Frank. - Apa leugrott
az tra, s mr fenn is volt megint, mieltt brmit
lthattam volna. Azt hittem, kirgtak a hmbl a
lovak.
31
"Plenty of Indians'll kill snakes tonight, I guess," Joe
Garner said.
"Them Indians," said Mrs. Garner.
They drove along. The road turned off from the
main highway and went up into the hills. It was hard
pulling for the horses and the boys got down and
walked. The road was sandy. Nick looked back from
the top of the hill by the schoolhouse. He saw the
lights of Petoskey and, off across Little Traverse Bay,
the lights of Harbor Springs. They climbed back in
the wagon again.
"They ought to put some gravel on that stretch," Joe
Garner said. The wagon went along the road through
the woods. Joe and Mrs. Garner sat close together on
the front seat. Nick sat between the two boys. The
road came out into a clearing.
"Right here was where Pa ran over the skunk."
"It was further on."
"It don't make no difference where it was," Joe said
without turning his head. "One place is just as good
as another to run over a skunk."
"I saw two skunks last night," Nick said.
"Where?"
"Down by the lake. They were looking for dead fish
along the beach."
"They were coons probably," Carl said.
"They were skunks. I guess I know skunks."
"You ought to," Carl said. "You got an Indian girl."
"Stop talking that way, Carl," said Mrs. Garner.
"Well, they smell about the same."
Joe Garner laughed.
"You stop laughing, Joe," Mrs. Garner said. "I
won't have Carl talk that way."
"Have you got an Indian girl, Nickie?" Joe asked.
- Egy csom indin kirg a hmbl az jjel, azt hi
szem - mondta Joe Garner.
- Indinok - legyintett Mrs. Garner.
Hajtottak tovbb. Az t letrt a fvonalrl, s felfel
vezetett a hegyekbe. A szekr nehz volt, a lovak alig
vonszoltk. A fik leszlltak, s gyalog mentek mel
lette. Az t homokos volt. Nick az iskolnl htran
zett a hegy tetejrl. Ltta Petoskey fnyeit, s
odbb, Little Traverse Bayen tl, Harbor Springs
fnyeit. jra felszlltak a szekrre.
- Sztterthettek volna valami kavicsot erre a sza
kaszra - mondta Joe Garner. A szekr ment tovbb
az ton a fk kztt. Joe s Mrs. Garner szorosan
egyms mellett ltek az els lsen. Nick a kt fi
kztt lt. Az t egy tisztshoz rt.
- Itt gzolta el apa a grnyt.
- Odbb.
- Mindegy, hogy hol - mondta Joe htra se fordulva.
- Egy grnyt elgzolni egyik hely ppen olyan j,
mint a msik.
- Tegnap este lttam kt grnyt - szlt Nick.
- Hol?
- Lenn a tnl. Dgltt halat kerestek a part mentn.
- Biztos mosmedve volt - mondta Carl.
- Grny volt. Azt hiszem, tudom, milyen a grny.
- Tudhatod - mondta Carl. - Indin nd van.
- Hagyd abba ezt, Carl - mondta Mrs. Garner.
- Pedig krlbell egyforma a szaguk.
Joe Garner nevetett.
- Ne nevess, Joe - mondta Mrs. Garner -, nem
trm, hogy Carl gy beszljen.
- Indin lnyt fogtl, Nickie? - krdezte Joe.
33
 "No."
"He has too, Pa," Frank said. "Prudence Mitchell's
his girl."
"She's not."
"He goes to see her every day."
"I don't." Nick, sitting between the two boys in the
dark, felt hollow and happy inside himself to be
teased about Prudence Mitchell. "She ain't my girl,"
he said.
"Listen to him," said Carl. "I see them together
every day."
"Carl can't get a girl," his mother said, "not even a
squaw."
Carl was quiet.
"Carl ain't no good with girls," Frank said.
"You shut up."
"You're all right, Carl," Joe Garner said. "Girls
never got a man anywhere. Look at your pa."
"Yes, that's what you would say," Mrs. Garner
moved close to Joe as the wagon jolted. "Well, you
had plenty of girls in your time."
"I'll bet Pa wouldn't ever have had a squaw for a
girl."
"Dont't you think it," Joe said. "You better watch
out to keep Prudie, Nick."
His wife whispered to him and Joe laughed.
"What you laughing at?" asked Frank.
"Don't you say it, Garner," his wife warned. Joe
laughed again.
"Nickie can have Prudence," Joe Garner said. "I got
a good girl."
"That's the way to talk," Mrs. Garner said.
34
- Nem.
- De igenis, apa - mondta Frank. - Prudence Mit
chell a nje.
- Nem az.
- Minden ldott nap megltogatja.
- Nem igaz. - Nick, ahogy a kt fi kztt lt a
sttben, knnynek s boldognak rezte magt,
hogy Prudence Mitchell-lel ugratjk. - Nem a szere
tm - mondta.
- Halljtok? - szlt Carl. - Mindennap egytt ltom
ket.
- Carl nem tud magnak nt fogni - mondta az anyja
-, mg egy indin asszonyt sem.
Carl hallgatott.
- Carl nem tud a nkkel bnni - mondta Frank.
- Te tartsd a szd.
- Jl van, Carl - mondta Joe Garner. - Igazi frfit
nem akrhol tallnak a lnyok. Nzz az apdra.
- Ht igen, te csak ezt mondod. - Mrs. Garner kze
lebb simult Joe-hoz, ahogy a szekr zkkent. - Igen,
neked a magad idejben rengeteg szeretd volt.
- Lefogadom, hogy apnak sose volt indin szeret
je.
- Ne gondold - mondta Joe. - J lesz, ha vigyzol
Prudie-ra, hogy megtartsd magadnak, Nick.
A felesge a flbe sgott valamit, s Joe nevetett.
- Mit nevetsz? - krdezte Frank.
- Ne mondd el, Garner - krte a felesge. Joe megint
nevetett.
- Nickie megtarthatja Prudence-t magnak - mondta
Joe Garner. - Nekem is jutott egy j kislny.
- Ez mr beszd - mondta Mrs. Garner.
35
 The horses were pulling heavily in the sand. Joe
reached out in the dark with the whip.
"Come on, pull into it. You'll have to pull harder
than this tomorrow."
They trotted down the long hill, the wagon jolting.
At the farmhouse everybody got down. Mrs. Garner
unlocked the door, went inside, and came out with
a lamp in her hand. Carl and Nick unloaded the
things from the back of the wagon. Frank sat on the
front seat to drive to the barn and put up the horses.
Nick went up the steps and opened the kitchen door.
Mrs. Garner was building a fire in the stove. She
turned from pouring kerosene on the wood.
"Good-by, Mrs. Garner," Nick said. "Thanks for
taking me."
"Oh, shucks, Nickie."
"I had a wonderful time."
"We like to have you. Wont't you stay and eat some
supper?"
"I better go. I think Dad probably waited for me."
"Well, get along then. Send Carl up to the house, will
you?"
"All right."
"Good night, Nickie."
"Good night, Mrs. Garner."
Nick went out the farmyard and down to the barn.
Joe and Frank were milking.
"Good night," Nick said. "I had a swell time."
"Good night, Nick," Joe Garner called. "Aren't you
going to stay and eat?"
" N o , I can't. Will you tell Carl his mother wants
him?"
"All right. Good night, Nickie."
A lovak nehezen hztak a homokban. Joe kinylt a
sttbe az ostorral.
- Gyernk, hzz bele! Holnap mg ennl is jobban
meg kell izzadnotok.
Leszaladtak a hossz lejtn a rzs szekrrel.
A farmpletnl mindenki leszllt. Mrs. Garner ki
nyitotta az ajtt, bement, s lmpval a kezben jtt
ki. Carl s Nick lerakodott a szekrrl. Frank fellt
a bakra, hogy a sznhez hajtson, s ellssa a lovakat.
Nick felment a lpcsn, s benyitott a konyhaajtn.
Mrs. Garner pp tzet rakott. Petrleumot nttt a
fra, majd htrafordult.
- Viszontltsra, Mrs. Garner - mondta Nick -, k
sznm, hogy elvittek.
- Ugyan, Nickie.
- Nagyon jl reztem magam.
- rlnk, ha velnk vagy. Nem akarsz itt maradni?
Kapsz egy kis vacsort.
- Mennem kell. Azt hiszem, az regem vr.
- J , akkor menj. Nem kldend fel Carlt a hzba?
- Kldm.
- J jszakt, Nickie.
- J jszakt, Mrs. Garner.
Nick kilpett az udvarra, s lement a fszerhez. Joe
s Frank fejtek.
- J jszakt - mondta Nick. - Remekl reztem
magam.
- J jszakt, Nick - kiltotta Joe Garner. - Nem
maradsz itt vacsorra?
- Nem, nem lehet. Megmondan Carlnak, hogy az
anyja hvja?
- Szlok neki. J jszakt, Nickie.
37
 Nick walked barefoot along the path through the
meadow below the barn. The path was smooth and
the dew was cool on his bare feet. He climbed a fence
at the end of the meadow, went down through a
ravine, his feet wet in the swamp mud, and then
climbed up through the dry beech woods until he
saw the lights of the cottage. He climbed over the
fence and walked around to the front porch.
Through the window he saw his father sitting by the
table, reading in the light from the big lamp. Nick
opened the door and went in.
"Well, Nickie," his father said, "was it a good day?"
"I had a swell time, Dad. It was a swell Fourth of
July."
"Are you hungry?"
"You bet."
"What did you do with your shoes?"
"I left them in the wagon at Garner's."
"Come on out to the kitchen."
Nick's father went ahead with the lamp. He stopped
and lifted the lid of the icebox. Nick went on into the
kitchen. His father brought in a piece of cold chicken
on a plate and a pitcher of milk and put them on the
table before Nick. He put down the lamp.
"There's some pie, too," he said. "Will that hold
you?"
"It's grand."
His father sat down in a chair beside the oilcloth-
covered table. He made a big shadow on the kitchen
wall.
"Who won the ball game?"
"Petoskey. Five to three."
His father sat watching him eat and filled his glass
Nick, a fszer mgtti svnyen elindulva, meztlb
keresztlvgott a mezn. Az svny sima volt, s
rezte meztelen talpn a harmat hvssgt. A mez
aljn tmszott egy kertsen, leereszkedett egy sza
kadkon t, talpa sros lett a mocsr iszapjtl, aztn
felkapaszkodott, keresztl a szraz bkkerdn, vgl
megltta a kis hzbl rad vilgossgot. tvetette
magt a kertsen, s elrement a tornchoz. Benzett
az ablakon, ltta az apjt, ott lt az asztalnl, s a nagy
lmpa fnynl olvasott. Nick kinyitotta az ajtt s
bement.
- Nos, Nickie - krdezte az apja -, j napod volt?
- Nagyon jl reztem magam, apa. Szp Jlius Ne
gyedike volt.
- hes vagy?
- Eltalltad.
- Mit csinltl a cipddel?
- Garnerknl hagytam a szekren.
- Gyere ki a konyhba.
Nick apja elrement a lmpval. Megllt, s felemel
te a jgszekrny tetejt. Nick tovbbment a konyh
ba. Az apja behozott egy darab hideg csirkt tny
ron s egy kancs tejet. Letette Nick el az asztalra.
Letette a lmpt is.
- Van egy kis tszta is - mondta. - Elg lesz?
- Sok is.
Az apja lelt egy szkre a viaszos vszonnal letakart
asztal mell. Alakja hossz rnykot vetett a konyha
falra.
- Ki gyztt a meccsen?
- Petoskey. t-hrom.
Az apja lt, figyelte, hogy eszik, s megtlttte a
39
 from the milk pitcher. Nick drank and wiped his pohart a tejeskancsbl. Nick ivott, s megtrlte a
mouth on his napkin. His father reached over to the szjt az asztalkendben. Az apja levette a stemnyt
shelf for the pie. He cut Nick a big piece. It was a polcrl. Vgott belle Nicknek egy nagy darabot.
huckleberry pie. fonys tszta volt.
"What did you do, Dad?" - Mit csinltl, apa?
"I went out fishing in the morning." - Reggel kimentem halszni.
"What did you get?" - Mit fogtl?
"Only perch." - Csak sgrt.
His father sat watching Nick eat the pie. Az apja lt, s figyelte Nicket, amint eszi a ste
"What did you do this afternoon?" Nick asked. mnyt.
"I went for a walk up by the Indian camp." - Dlutn mit csinltl? - krdezte Nick.
"Did you see anybody?" - Kistltam az indin tborhoz.
"The Indians were all in town getting drunk." - Lttl valakit?
"Didn't you see anybody at all?" - Minden indin bement a vrosba, hogy leigya ma
"I saw your friend, Prudie." gt.
"Where was she?" - Nem lttl senkit?
"She was in the woods with Frank Washburn. I ran - Lttam Prudie-t, a pajtsodat.
into them. They were having quite a time." - Hol?
His father was not looking at him. - Az erdben, Frank Washburnnel. Beljk botlot
"What were they doing?" tam. Nagyszeren reztk magukat.
"I didnt't stay to find out." Az apja nem nzett r.
"Tell me what they were doing." - Mit csinltak?
"I don't know," his father said. "I just heard them - Nem lltam oda tallgatni.
threshing around." - Mondd meg, hogy mit csinltak.
"How did you know it was them?" - Nem tudom - mondta az apja. - Csak messzirl
"I saw them." hallottam ket zrgni.
"I thought you said you didn't see them." - Honnan tudtad, hogy k?
"Oh, yes, I saw them." - Lttam.
"Who was it with her?" Nick asked. - Azt hittem, azt mondod, nem lttad.
"Frank Washburn." - , igen, lttam.
- Ki volt az, vele? - krdezte Nick.
- Frank Washburn.

40 4I
"Were they--were t h e y - - "
"Were they what?"
"Were they happy?"
"I guess so."
His father got up from the table and went out the
kitchen screen door. When he came back Nick was
looking at his plate. He had been crying.
"Have some more?" His father picked up the knife
to cut the pie.
" N o , " said Nick.
"You better have another piece."
" N o , I dont't want any."
His father cleared off the table.
"Where were they in the woods?" Nick asked.
" U p back of the camp." Nick looked at his plate. His
father said, " Y o u better go to bed, Nick."
"All right."
Nick went into his room, undressed, and got into
bed. He heard his father moving around in the living
room. Nick lay in the bed with his face in the pillow.
" M y heart's broken," he thought. " I f I feel this way
my heart must be broken."
After a while he heard his father blow out the lamp
and go into his own room. He heard a wind come up
in the trees outside and felt it come in cool through
the screen. He lay for a long time with his face in the
pillow, and after a while he forgot to think about
Prudence and finally he went to sleep. When he
awoke in the night he heard the wind in the hemlock
trees outside the cottage and the waves of the lake
coming in on the shore, and he went back to sleep.
In the morning there was a big wind blowing and the
waves were running high up on the beach and he was
awake a long time before he remembered that his
heart was broken.
- s mondd... mondd...
- Mit mondjak?
- Boldogok voltak?
- Biztosan.
Az apja felkelt az asztaltl, s kiment a konyhaajtn.
Mikor visszajtt, Nick a tnyrjt nzte. Srt.
- Eszel mg? - Az apja felvette a kst, hogy vgjon
a stemnybl.
- Nem - mondta Nick.
- Egyl mg egy darabot.
- Nem, nem kell semmi.
Az apja leszedte az asztalt.
- Merrefel voltak az erdben? - krdezte Nick.
- Fenn, a tbor mgtt. - Nick a tnyrjt nzte. Az
apja odaszlt: - Jobb lesz, ha lefekszel, Nick.
- Jl van.
Nick bement a szobjba, levetkztt s lefekdt.
Hallotta, mint matat az apja a nappali szobban. Nick
az gyon fekdt, arct a prnba frta.
sszetrt a szvem - gondolta. - Ha gy rzem
magam, akkor biztosan sszetrt a szvem."
Kis id mlva hallotta, hogy apja elfjja a lmpt, s
a szobjba megy. Hallotta, hogy kinn a fk kztt
szl kerekedik, s rezte, ahogy hidegen berad a
fggnyn t. Sokig fekdt, arct belefrva a prn
ba, s egy id mlva mr nem gondolt Prudence-re,
vgl elaludt. Amikor jjel felbredt, megint zgott
a szl kint a fk kztt, csapkodtk a partot a t
hullmai, azutn ismt elaludt. Reggel ersen fjt a
szl, a hullmok magasan felfutottak a partra, s mr
hossz ideje bren volt, amikor eszbe jutott, hogy
sszetrt a szve.
Lengyel Pter fordtsa
 The Battler
Nick stood up. He was all right. He looked up the
track at the lights of the caboose going out of sight
around a curve. There was water on both sides of the
track, then tamarack swamp.
He felt of his knee. The pants were torn and the skin
was barked. His hands were scraped and there were
sand and cinders driven up under his nails. He went
over to the edge of the track, down the little slope to
the water and washed his hands. He washed them
carefully in the cold water, getting the dirt out from
the nails. He squatted down and bathed his knee.
That lousy crut of a brakeman. He would get him
some day. He would know him again. That was a fine
way to act.
"Come here, kid," he said. "I got something for
you."
He had fallen for it. What a lousy kid thing to have
done. They would never suck him in that way again.
"Come here, kid, I got something for you." Then
wham and he lit on his hands and knees beside the
track.
Nick rubbed his eye. There was a big bump coming
up. He would have a black eye, all right. It ached
already. That son of a crutting brakeman.
He touched the bump over his eye with his fingers.
Oh, well, it was only a black eye. That was all he had
gotten out of it. Cheap at the price. He wished he
could see it. Could not see it looking into the water,
though. It was dark and he was a long way off from
A bokszol
Nick felllt. Semmi baja nem trtnt; vgignzett a
vgnyon, a plyamunkskocsi fnyei most tnedez
tek el a kanyarban. A tlts mindkt oldaln vz volt,
azutn meg vrs fny mocsr.
Megtapogatta a trdt. Nadrgszra szthasadt, bre
lehorzsoldott. Kezt sszekarmolszta, krme al
homok ment s hamu. Lement a tlts oldaln, le
ereszkedett a kis lejtn a vzhez, s megmosta a kezt.
Gondosan megmosta a hideg vzben, kikaparta kr
me all a piszkot. Leguggolt, s a trdt ztatta.
Az a tetves csibsz fkez. Egyszer majd elkapja.
Mert megismeri. Finom eljrs volt.
- Gyere ide, gyerek - mondta. - Adok valamit.
Bevette. Micsoda hlye gyereksg volt. Tbbet nem
fogjk gy tejteni.
- Gyere ide, gyerek, kapsz valamit. - Aztn puff, s
a trdre s kezre zuhant a sn mell.
Nick megdrzslte a szemt. Nagy daganat kezdett
dudorodni felette. Bizony, monokli lesz a szemn.
Mr fjt is. Az a rohadk fkez.
Megtapogatta ujjval a daganatot. E j , csak fekete lesz
a szeme krl. Ennyivel megszta. Elg olcsn. Sze
rette volna ltni a daganatot. De hiba nzte magt
a vzben, nem ltta. Stt volt, s messze esett min-
45
 anywhere. He wiped his hands on his trousers and
stood up, then climbed the embankment to the rails.
He started up the track. It was well ballasted and
made easy walking, sand and gravel packed between
the ties, solid walking. The smooth roadbed like a
causeway went on ahead through the swamp. Nick
walked along. He must get to somewhere.
Nick had swung on to the freight train when it slow
ed down for the yards outside of Walton Junction.
The train, with Nick on it, had passed through Kal
kaska as it started to get dark. Now he must be nearly
to Mancelona. Three or four miles of swamp. He
stepped along the track, walking so he kept on the
ballast between the ties, the swamp ghostly in the
rising mist. His eye ached and he was hungry. He
kept on hiking, putting the miles of track back of
him. The swamp was all the same on both sides of
the track.
Ahead there was a bridge. Nick crossed it, his boots
ringing hollow on the iron. Down below the water
showed black between the slits of ties. Nick kicked
a loose spike and it dropped into the water. Beyond
the bridge were hills. It was high and dark on both
sides of the track. Up the track Nick saw a fire.
He came up the track toward the fire carefully. It was
off to one side of the track, below the railway em
bankment. He had only seen the light from it. The
track came out through a cut and where the fire was
burning the country opened out and fell away into
woods. Nick dropped carefully down the embank
ment and cut into the woods to come up to the fire
through the trees. It was a beechwood forest and the
fallen beechnut burrs were under his shoes as he
walked between the trees. The fire was bright now,
just at the edge of the trees. There was a man sitting
denfle hely. Nadrgjba trlte a kezt, felllt, s
felkapaszkodott a tltsen a snekhez.
Elindult a vgnyon. Jl fel volt tltve, knnyen
lehetett rajta jrni, a talpfk kztt homok s kavics:
szilrd stat. A sima plyatest gy ment keresztl a
mocsron, mint egy gyalogt. Nick ment elre. El
kell jutnia valahov.
Nick akkor lpett fel a tehervonatra, mikor az lass
tott Walton Junction rendez plyaudvara eltt.
A vonat s rajta Nick elhagyta Kalkaskt, mikor st
tedni kezdett. Most Mancelona kzelben jrhat.
Hrom-ngy mrfldnyire mocsr van eltte. Ment
a vgnyon, mindig a talpfk kztt, a plyatesten
lpegetett, a mocsr ksrteties volt a felszll kd
ben. Fjt a szeme, hes volt. Meglls nlkl gyalo
golt, snek mrfldjeit hagyta maga mgtt. A mo
csr egyforma volt a tlts mindkt oldaln.
Eltte hd llt. Nick keresztlment rajta, bakancsa
tompn kongott a vason. Lenn feketn csillogott a vz
a talpfk rsei kztt. Nick megrgott egy kilazult
szeget, s az beleesett a vzbe. A hdon tl dombok
emelkedtek, magasan s stten a tlts kt oldaln.
Elrbb a plyn Nick tzet ltott.
vatosan kzeledett a tz fel. Lenn gett, a vgny
msik oldaln, a tlts alatt. Nick csak a fnyt ltta.
A sn egy vgaton futott keresztl, s ott, ahol a tz
gett, kitrult a tj, s erdkbe veszett. Nick vatosan
lecsszott a tltsen, s bevgott az erdbe, hogy a
fk kzl lpjen ki a tzhz. Bkkfaerd volt, s a
lehullt bkkfagubacsok ropogtak cipje alatt, ahogy
a fk kztt ment. A tz most fnyesen vilgtott,
ppen az erd szln. Egy ember lt mellette. Nick
47
by it. Nick waited behind the tree and watched. The megllt a fk kztt, s figyelt. Az ember magnyos
man looked to be alone. He was sitting there with his nak ltszott. Kezre tmasztotta fejt, gy lt, s a
head in his hands, looking at the fire. Nick stepped tzbe nzett. Nick ellpett a tzfnybe.
out and walked into the firelight. Az ember lt, nzett a tzbe. Nick szorosan mellje
The man sat there looking into the fire. When Nick lpett, de nem mozdult.
stopped quite close to him he did not move. - Hell! - mondta Nick.
"Hello!" Nick said. Az ember felnzett.
The man looked up. - Hol szerezted a monoklit? - krdezte.
"Where did you get the shiner?" he said. - Egy fkez lerakott.
"A brakeman busted me." - A tvolsgi teherrl?
"Off the through freight?" - Igen.
"Yes." - Lttam a csibszt - mondta az ember. - gy msfl
"I saw the bastard," the man said. "He went through rja ment el itt. A kocsik tetejn mszklt, csapkodta
here 'bout an hour and a half ago. He was walking a karjt s nekelt.
along the top of the cars, slapping his arms and - A csibsz!
singing." - Biztosan j kedve lehetett, hogy tged lerakott -
"The bastard!" mondta az ember komolyan.
"It must have made him feel good to bust you," the - Majd lerakom n is.
man said seriously. - Kapd el kvel egyszer, mikor erre utazik - tan
"I'll bust him." csolta az ember.
"Get him with a rock sometime when he's going - Elkapom.
through," the man advised. - Nagy vagny vagy, ugye?
"I'll get him." - Nem - felelte Nick.
"You're a tough one, aren't you?" - Ti klykk mind vagnyok vagytok.
" N o , " Nick answered. - Az embernek vagnynak kell lennie - mondta Nick.
"All you kids are tough." - Ezt mondtam n is.
"You got to be tough," Nick said. Az ember Nickre nzett, s mosolygott. Nick ltta,
"That's what I said." hogy torz az arca. Az orra lapos, szeme keskeny
The man looked at Nick and smiled. In the firelight hastk, ajka furcsn formlt. Nick nem vette szre
Nick saw that his face was misshapen. His nose was mindezt azonnal, csak azt ltta, hogy az ember arca
sunken, his eyes were slits, he had queer-shaped lips. furcsa s sszezzott. A szne olyan, mint a gitt.
Nick did not perceive all this at once; he only saw the Halotthalvny a tz fnyben.
man's face was queerly formed and mutilated. It was
like putty in color. Dead-looking in the firelight. 49
 "Don't you like my pan?" the man asked.
Nick was embarrassed.
"Sure," he said.
"Look here!" the man took off his cap.
He had only one ear. It was thickened and tight
against the side of his head. Where the other ear
should have been there was a stump.
"Ever see one like that?"
" N o , " said Nick. It made him a little sick.
"I could take it," the man said. "Don't you think I
could take it, kid?"
"You bet!"
"They all bust their hands on me," the little man
said. "They couldn't hurt me."
He looked at Nick. "Sit down," he said. "Want to
eat?"
"Don't bother," Nick said. "I'm going on to the
town."
"Listen!" the man said. "Call me A d . "
"Sure!"
"Listen," the little man said. "I'm not quite right."
"What's the matter?"
" I ' m crazy."
He put on his cap. Nick felt like laughing.
"You're all right," he said.
" N o , I'm not. I'm crazy. Listen, you ever been
crazy?"
" N o , " Nick said. "How does it get you?"
"I don't know," Ad said. "When you got it you don't
know about it. You know me, don't you?"
"No."
" I ' m Ad Francis."
50
- Nem tetszik a pofm? - krdezte az ember.
Nick zavarba jtt.
- De igen - mondta.
Az ember levette a sapkjt.
- Ide nzz!
Csak fl fle volt. Vastag fle szorosan a koponyj-
hoz lapult. A msik fl helyn csonk volt.
- Lttl mr ilyet?
- Nem - mondta Nick. Kicsit melygett.
- Jl brtam - mondta az ember. - Jl brtam, igaz-e,
csks?
- Meghiszem azt.
- Mind sszevertk rajtam a kezket - mondta a kicsi
ember. - Nem tudtak rtani nekem.
Nickre nzett. - lj le - mondta. - Eszel?
- Ne zavartassa magt - mondta Nick. - Bemegyek
a vrosba.
- Ide figyelj! - mondta az ember. - Szlts Adnek.
- Helyes.
- Ide figyelj! - mondta a kicsi ember. - n nem
vagyok egszen rendben.
- Mi a baj?
- Bolond vagyok.
Feltette a sapkjt. Nicket nevets csiklandozta.
- Nincs magnak semmi baja - mondta.
- De van. Bolond vagyok. Ide figyelj, voltl mr
bolond?
- Nem - mondta Nick. - Hogy kapja azt az ember?
- Nem tudom - mondta Ad. - Mikor megkapod,
nem tudsz rla. Ismersz engem, ugye?
- Nem.
- Ad Francis vagyok.
51
 - Bizony isten?
"Honest to God?"
- Nem hiszed?
"Don't you believe it?"
- De igen.
"Yes."
Nick rezte, hogy igaz.
Nick knew it must be true.
- Tudod, hogy vertem meg ket?
"You know how I beat them?"
- Nem - mondta Nick.
" N o , " Nick said.
- Lass a szvem. Csak negyvenet ver percenknt.
" M y heart's slow. It only beats forty a minute. Feel
Tapintsd ki.
it."
Nick habozott.
Nick hesitated.
- Csak btran - az ember megfogta a kezt. - Fogd
"Come on," the man took hold of his hand. "Take
meg a csuklmat. Tedd ide az ujjadat.
hold of my wrist. Put your fingers there."
A kicsi ember csuklja vastag volt, izmai duzzadtak
The little man's wrist was thick and the muscles
a csont fltt. Nick rezte a lass lktetst ujjai alatt.
bulged above the bone. Nick felt the slow pumping
- Van rd?
under his fingers.
- Nincs.
"Got a watch?"
- Nekem sincs - mondta Ad. - Megette a fene, ha az
"No."
embernek nincsen rja.
"Neither have I , " Ad said. "It ain't any good if you
Nick elengedte a csukljt.
haven't got a watch."
- Ide figyelj - mondta Ad Francis. - Fogd meg jra,
Nick dropped his wrist.
s szmold, n meg szmolok hatvanig.
"Listen," Ad Francis said. "Take ahold again. You
Nick rezte az ujja alatt a lass, kemny lktetst, s
count and I'll count up to sixty."
szmolni kezdett. Hallotta, hogy a kicsi ember lassan
Feeling the slow hard throb under his fingers Nick
szmol, egy, kett, hrom, ngy, t - hangosan.
started to count. He heard the little man counting
- Hatvan - fejezte be Ad. - Az egy perc. Mennyit
slowly, one, two, three, four, five, and onaloud.
szmoltl?
"Sixty," Ad finished. "That's a minute. What did
- Negyvenet.
you make it?"
- Annyi az - mondta Ad boldogan. - Sose gyorsabb.
"Forty," Nick said.
Egy ember ereszkedett le a vasti tltsen, s keresz
"That's right," Ad said happily. "She never speeds
tljtt a tisztson a tzhz.
up."
- Hell, Bugs! - mondta Ad.
A man dropped down the railroad embankment and
- Hell! - felelte Bugs. Nger hangja volt. Nick meg
came across the clearing to the fire.
rezte a jrsrl, hogy nger. Httal feljk llt, a
"Hello, Bugs!" Ad said.
tz fl hajolt. Most felegyenesedett.
"Hello!" Bugs answered. It was a Negro's voice.
Nick knew from the way he walked that he was a
Negro. He stood with his back to them, bending over
the fire. He straightened up.
 "This is my pal Bugs," Ad said. "He's crazy, too."
"Glad to meet you," Bugs said. "Where you say
you're from?"
"Chicago," Nick said.
"That's a fine town," the Negro said. "I didn't catch
your name."
"Adams. Nick Adams."
"He says he's never been crazy, Bugs," Ad said.
"He's got a lot coming to him," the Negro said. He
was unwrapping a package by the fire.
"When are we going to eat, Bugs?" the prizefighter
asked.
"Right away."
"Are you hungry, Nick?"
"Hungry as hell."
"Hear that, Bugs?"
"I hear most of what goes on."
"That ain't what I asked you."
"Yes. I heard what the gentleman said."
Into a skillet he was laying slices of ham. As the
skillet grew hot the grease sputtered and Bugs,
crouching on long nigger legs over the fire, turned
the ham and broke eggs into the skillet, tipping it
from side to side to baste the eggs with the hot fat.
"Will you cut some bread out of that bag, Mister
Adams?" Bugs turned from the fire.
"Sure."
Nick reached in the bag and brought out a loaf of
bread. He cut six slices. Ad watched him and leaned
forward.
"Let me take your knife, Nick," he said.
" N o , you don't" the Negro said. "Hang onto your
knife, Mister Adams."
54
- Ez a haverom: Bugs - mondta Ad. - is bolond.
- rlk, hogy megismerhetem - mondta Bugs. -
Mit mondott, honnan jn?
- Chicagbl - mondta Nick.
- Remek vros - mondta a nger. - Nem rtettem a
nevt.
- Adams. Nick Adams.
- Azt mondja, Bugs, sose volt bolond - mondta Ad.
- Sok van mg htra neki - mondta a nger. Csoma
got bontogatott a tz fnynl.
- Mikor esznk, Bugs? - krdezte a profi bokszol.
- Tstnt.
- hes vagy, Nick?
- Mint a farkas.
- Hallod, Bugs?
- Nem vagyok sket.
- Nem azt krdeztem tled.
- Igen. Hallottam, amit az r mondott.
Sonkaszeleteket rakott egy serpenybe. A serpeny
megforrsodott, a zsr pattogott, Bugs ott guggolt
hossz, nger lbn a tz mellett, megforgatta a son
kt, s tojst vert a serpenybe, azutn jobbra-balra
forgatta az ednyt, hogy krlfolyassa a tojsokat a
forr zsrral.
- Nem szeletelne kenyeret, Adams r? Ott van a
csomagban - fordult htra Bugs a tztl.
- Dehogynem.
Nick belenylt a csomagba, s elhzott egy cipt.
Hat szeletet vgott. Ad nzte s elrehajolt.
- Add ide a ksedet - mondta.
- Nem, ne adja - mondta a nger. - Ne adja ki a
kezbl a kst, Adams r.
55
 The prizefighter sat back.
"Will you bring me the bread, Mister Adams?" Bugs
asked. Nick brought it over.
"Do you like to dip your bread in the ham fat?" the
Negro asked.
"You bet!"
"Perhaps we'd better wait until later. It's better at
the finish of the meal. Here."
The Negro picked up a slice of ham and laid it on one
of the pieces of bread, then slid an egg on top of it.
"Just close that sandwich, will you, please, and give
it to Mister Francis."
Ad took the sandwich and started eating.
"Watch out how that egg runs," the Negro warned.
"This is for you, Mister Adams. The remainder for
myself."
Nick bit into the sandwich. The Negro was sitting
opposite him beside Ad. The hot fried ham and eggs
tasted wonderful.
"Mister Adams is right hungry," the Negro said.
The little man whom Nick knew by name as a former
champion fighter was silent. He had said nothing
since the Negro had spoken about the knife.
"May I offer you a slice of bread dipped right in the
hot ham fat?" Bugs said.
"Thanks a lot."
The little white man looked at Nick.
"Will you have some, Mister Adolph Francis?" Bugs
offered from the skillet.
Ad did not answer. He was looking at Nick.
"Mister Francis?" came the nigger's soft voice.
Ad did not answer. He was looking at Nick.
"I spoke to you, Mister Francis," the nigger said
softly.
A profi bokszol htradlt.
- Nem adn ide a kenyeret, Adams r? - krdezte
Bugs. Nick odavitte.
- Szeret kenyrrel sonkazsrt mrtogatni? - krdezte
a nger.
- De mennyire!
- Taln vrjunk egy kicsit. Jobb lesz evs utn. Tes
sk.
A nger felemelt egy sonkaszeletet, egy szelet kenyr
re tette, azutn rcssztatott egy tojst.
- Csukja ssze, krem, ezt a szendvicset, s adja oda
Francis rnak.
Ad tvette a szendvicset, s enni kezdett.
- Vigyzzon, mert lefolyik a tojs - figyelmeztette a
nger. - Ez a mag, Adams r. A tbbi az enym.
Nick beleharapott a szendvicsbe. A nger szemben
lt vele, Ad mellett. A forr slt sonka s tojs retten
ten zlett.
- Adams r elg hes - mondta a nger. A kicsi
ember, akit Nick nvrl mint volt bokszbajnokot
ismert, hallgatott. Nem szlt azta, hogy a nger a
ksrl beszlt.
- Parancsol egy szelet forr sonkazsrba mrtott ke
nyeret? - krdezte Bugs.
- Nagyon ksznm.
A kicsi ember Nickre nzett.
- Magnak is adjak, Adolph Francis r? - knlta
Bugs a serpenybl.
Ad nem felelt. Nicket nzte.
- Francis r? - hallatszott a nger lgy hangja.
Ad nem felelt. Nicket nzte.
- Maghoz beszlek, Francis r - mondta a nger
lgyan.
 Ad kept on looking at Nick. He had his cap down
over his eyes. Nick felt nervous.
"How the hell do you get that way?" came out from
under the cap sharply at Nick. "Who the hell do you
think you are? You're a snotty bastard. You come in
here where nobody asks you and eat a man's food and
when he asks to borrow a knife you get snotty."
He glared at Nick, his face was white and his eyes
almost out of sight under the cap.
"You're a hot sketch. Who the hell asked you to butt
in here?"
"Nobody."
"You're damn right nobody did. Nobody asked you
to stay either. You come in here and act snotty about
my face and smoke my cigars and drink my liquor
and then talk snotty. Where the hell do you think you
get off?"
Nick said nothing. Ad stood up.
"I'll tell you, you yellow-livered Chicago bastard.
You're going to get your can knocked off. Do you get
that?"
Nick stepped back. The little man came toward him
slowly, stepping flat-footed forward, his left foot
stepping forward, his right dragging up to it.
"Hit me," he moved his head. " T r y and hit me."
"I don't want to hit you."
"You won't get out of it that way. You're going to
take a beating, see? Come on and lead at me."
"Cut it out," Nick said.
"All right, then, you bastard."
The little man looked down at Nick's feet. As he
looked down the Negro, who had followed behind
him as he moved away from the fire, set himself and
tapped him across the base of the skull. He fell for-
Ad egyre Nicket nzte. Sapkja a szemre csszott.
Nick ideges lett.
- Mi jtt rd? - hangzott a sapka all lesen Nick
fel. - Mi a fent gondolsz, ki vagy te? Piszkos csibsz
vagy. Idejssz, pedig senki sem hvott, megeszed az
ember ennivaljt, s amikor krem tled a ksedet,
piszkoskodsz.
Nickre meredt, arca fehr volt, s szeme csaknem
eltnt a sapka alatt.
- Francos szemtlda vagy. Ki a fene mondta, hogy
idedugd az orrodat?
- Senki.
- Senki, a fene egye meg. s azt sem mondta senki,
hogy maradj itt. Idejssz, piszkosan bmulod a pof
mat, szvod a szivarjaimat, iszod az italomat, s az
utn piszkosan beszlsz. Mit gondolsz, trm n ezt?
Nick nem szlt. Ad felllt.
- n mondom neked, te berezelt chicagi csibsz,
hogy beverem a fejedet. rted?
Nick htralpett. A kis ember lassan jtt felje, ld-
talpasan lpkedett, bal lbt rakta elre, s a jobbot
utna hzta.
- ss meg - mozgatta a fejt. - Prblj megtni.
- Nem akarom megtni.
- Ezzel nem szod meg. Verst fogsz kapni, rted?
Gyere, ss elszr te.
- Ne dumljon mr - mondta Nick.
- Ht jl van, te csibsz.
A kis ember Nick lbra nzett. Mikor lenzett, a
nger, aki mgtte llt, mita Ad ellpett a tztl,
elsznta magt, s a tarkjra vgott. Ad elreesett,
59
ward and Bugs dropped the clothwrapped blackjack
Bugs leejtette a ruhba csavart gumibotot a fbe.
on the grass. The little man lay there, his face in the
A kis ember ott fekdt, arccal a fben. A nger
grass. The Negro picked him up, his head hanging,
felvette, lgott a feje, gy vitte a tzhz. Csnya volt
and carried him to the fire. His face looked bad, the
az arca, szeme nyitva. Bugs gyengden lefektette.
eyes open. Bugs laid him down gently.
- Hozzon, legyen szves, vizet a vdrben, Adams r
"Will you bring me the water in the bucket, Mister
- mondta. - Attl flek, kicsit erset tttem.
Adams," he said. " I ' m afraid I hit him just a little
A nger vizet frcsklt kezvel a kis ember arcra, s
hard."
gyengden meghzta a flt. Ad szeme lecsukdott.
The Negro splashed water with his hand on the
Bugs felllt.
man's face and pulled his ears gently. The eyes
- Most rendben van - mondta. - Nem kell aggdni.
closed.
Sajnlom, Adams r.
Bugs stood up.
- Semmi baj. - Nick lenzett a kis emberre. Megltta
"He's all right," he said. "There's nothing to worry
a gumibotot a fben, s felvette. A botnak hajlthat
about. I'm sorry, Mister Adams."
fogja volt, s rugalmasan mozgott a kezben. A fog
"It's all right." Nick was looking down at the little
vsott fekete brbl kszlt, slyos vgre zsebken
man. He saw the blackjack on the grass and picked
dt csavartak.
it up. It had a flexible handle and was limber in his
- Blnacsont nyl - mosolygott a nger. - Ma mr
hand. Worn black leather with a handkerchief wrap
nem csinljk. Nem tudtam, mennyire tud vigyzni
ped around the heavy end.
magra, s klnben sem akartam, hogy Adolphot
"That's a whalebone handle," the Negro smiled. megssk, vagy mg jobban elcsftsk.
"They don't make them any more. I didn't know
jbl mosolygott.
how well you could take care yourself and, anyway,
- Hisz maga ttte meg.
I didn't want you to hurt him or mark him up no
- n tudom, hogyan kell csinlni. Semmire se fog
more than he is."
emlkezni. Meg kell tennem, hogy szre trtsem,
The Negro smiled again.
mikor rjn.
" Y o u hurt him yourself."
Nick mg mindig a kicsi embert nzte, aki ott fekdt
"I know how to do it. He won't remember nothing
csukott szemmel a tzfnyben. Bugs ft dobott a
of it. I have to do it to change him when he gets that
tzre.
way."
- Ne aggdjon miatta, Adams r. Eleget lttam mr
Nick was still looking down at the little man, lying,
gy.
his eyes closed, in the firelight. Bugs put some wood
- Mitl bolondult meg? - krdezte Nick.
on the fire.
"Don't you worry about him none, Mister Adams.
I seen him like this plenty of times before." 61
"What made him crazy?" Nick asked.
"Oh, a lot of things," the Negro answered from the
fire. "Would you like a cup of this coffee, Mister
Adams?"
He handed Nick the cup and smoothed the coat he
had placed under the unconscious man's head.
"He took too many beatings, for one thing," the
Negro sipped the coffee. "But that just made him
sort of simple. Then his sister was his manager and
they was always being written up in the papers all
about brothers and sisters and how she loved her
brother and how he loved his sister, and then they
got married in New York and that made a lot of
unpleasantness."
"I remember about it."
"Sure. Of course they wasn't brother and sister no
more than a rabbit, but there was a lot of people
didn't like it either way and they commenced to have
disagreements, and one day she just went off and
never come back."
He drank the coffee and wiped his lips with the pink
palm of his hand.
"He just went crazy. Will you have some more coffee,
Mister Adams?"
"Thanks."
"I seen her a couple of times," the Negro went on.
"She was an awful good-looking woman. Looked
enough like him to be twins. He wouldn't be bad-
looking without his face all busted."
He stopped. The story seemed to be over.
"Where did you meet him?" asked Nick.
"I met him in jail," the Negro said. "He was busting
people all the time after she went away and they put
him in jail. I was in for cuttin' a man."
- , egy csom mindentl - felelte a nger a tz
melll. - Iszik egy pohr kvt, Adams r?
tnyjtotta Nicknek a poharat, s eligaztotta a kab
tot, amelyet az eszmletlen ember feje al tett.
- Elszr is tl sok tst kapott. - A nger kvjt
szrcslgette. - De attl csak olyan egygy lett.
Aztn a nvre volt a menedzsere, s mindig kirtk
ket az jsgokban, hogy testvrek, s hogyan szereti
a lny a fivrt, meg a nvrt, aztn sszehzasod
tak New Yorkban, s abbl egy csom kellemetlensg
lett.
- Emlkszem r.
- Gondolom. Persze, nem voltak testvrek, akrcsak
maga meg n, de azrt egy csom embernek se gy,
se gy nem tetszett a dolog, k meg kezdtek vesze
kedni, s az asszony egyik nap fogta magt, elment, s
tbb nem jtt vissza.
Kiitta a kvt, s megtrlte ajkt rzsaszn tenyer
vel.
- Akkor egyszeren megbolondult. Iszik mg kvt,
Adams r?
- Ksznm.
- Lttam egyprszor az asszonyt - folytatta a nger.
- Irt csinos n volt. gy hasonltott r, akr ikrek
lehettek volna. sem volna csnya, csak sszevertk
az egsz arct.
Elhallgatott. A trtnet, gy ltszik, vget rt.
- Hol tallkozott vele? - krdezte Nick.
- Brtnben - mondta a nger. - Az utn, hogy az
asszony elment, folyvst verte az embereket, s br
tnbe dugtk. n meg kselsrt ltem.
63
He smiled, and went on soft-voiced: "Right away I
liked him and when I got out I looked him up. He
likes to think I'm crazy and I don't mind. I like to
be with him and I like seeing the country and I don't
have to commit no larceny to do it. I like living like
a gentleman."
"What do you all do?" Nick asked.
"Oh, nothing. Just move around. He's got money."
"He must have made a lot of money."
"Sure. He spent all his money, though. Or they took
it away from him. She sends him money."
He poked up the fire.
"She's a mighty fine woman," he said. "She looks
enough like him to be his own twin."
The Negro looked over at the little man, lying
breathing heavily. His blond hair was down over his
forehead. His mutilated face looked childish in re
pose.
"I can wake him up any time now, Mister Adams. If
you don't mind I wish you'd sort of pull out. I don't
like to not be hospitable, but it might disturb him
back again to see you. I hate to have to thump him
and it's the only thing to do when he gets started. I
have to sort of keep him away from people. You don't
mind, do you, Mister Adams? N o , don't thank me,
Mister Adams. I'd have warned you about him but
he seemed to have taken such a liking to you and I
thought things were going to be all right. You'll hit
a town about two miles up the track. Mancelona they
call it. Good-by. I wish we could ask you to stay the
night but it's just out of the question. Would you like
to take some of that ham and some bread with you?
64
Mosolygott, lgy hangon folytatta: - Tstnt meg
szerettem, s amikor kiszabadultam, megkerestem.
Azt hiszi rlam, hogy bolond vagyok, n meg nem
bnom. Szeretek vele lenni, szvesen nzeldk az
orszgban, s gy nem kell lopnom, hogy megtehes-
sem. gy lek, mint egy r.
- Mit csinlnak? - krdezte Nick.
- , semmit. Csak mszklunk. Neki van pnze.
- Nagy pnzeket kereshetett.
- De elklttte mind. Vagy elszedtk tle. Az asz-
szony kld neki pnzt.
Felpiszklta a tzet.
- Igen, nagyon finom n - mondta. - Hasonlt hozz.
Akr az ikertestvre lehetne.
A nger tpillantott a fekv kicsi emberre, aki nehe
zen llegzett. Szke haja a homlokba hullott. ssze
roncsolt arca gyerekesnek ltszott, ahogy a htn
fekdt.
- Most mr akrmikor felbreszthetem, Adams r.
Ha nem haragszik, j volna eltnnie. Nem szeretnk
udvariatlan lenni, de lehet, hogy megint megzavaro
dik, ha itt ltja. Borzasztan nem szeretem fejbe
verni, s nem lehet mst csinlni, ha rkezdi. Nekem
valahogy tvol kell tartanom az emberektl. Ugye,
nem haragszik, Adams r? Nem, ne ksznjn sem
mit, Adams r. Figyelmeztettem volna, de gy lt
tam, maga nagyon megtetszett neki, s azt hittem,
nem lesz semmi baj. gy kt mrfldnyire a sn
mentn a vrosba r. Mancelonba, gy hvjk. Isten
vele. rltem volna, ha meghvhatnnk jszakra, de
sz sem lehet rla. Nem akar elvinni egy kis sonkt
meg kenyeret? Nem? Jobb, ha magval visz egy
65
No? You better take a sandwich," all this in a low,
smooth, polite nigger voice.
"Good. Well, good-by, Mister Adams. Good-by and
good luck!"
Nick walked away from the fire across the clearing to
the railway tracks. Out of the range of the fire he
listened. The low soft voice of the Negro was talking.
Nick could not hear the words. Then he heard the
little man say, "I got an awful headache, Bugs."
"You'll feel better, Mister Francis," the Negro's
voice soothed. "Just you drink a cup of this hot
coffee."
Nick climbed the embankment and started up the
track. He found he had a ham sandwich in his hand
and put it in his pocket. Looking back from the
mounting grade before the track curved into the hills
he could see the firelight in the clearing.
66
szendvicset. - Mindezt halk, sima, udvarias nger
hangon.
- J. Ht Isten ldja, Adams r. Isten ldja, minden
jt.
Nick eltvolodott a tztl. Keresztlment a tisztson
a vasti snek fel. A tz fnykrn kvl hallgat
zott. A nger halk, lgy hangon beszlt. Nick nem
hallotta a szavakat. Aztn hallotta, mikor a kicsi em
ber azt mondta: - Irt fejfjsom van, Bugs.
- Hamarosan jobban lesz, Francis r - vigasztalta a
nger hangja. - Igyon egy pohr forr kvt.
Nick felmszott a tltsen, s elindult a snek men
tn. Rjtt, hogy egy sonks szendvics van a kezben,
belerakta a zsebbe. Az emelkedrl visszanzett,
mieltt a sn bekanyarodott volna a hegyek kz, s
ltta a tzfnyt a tisztson.
Szsz Imre fordtsa
67
 The End of Something
In the old days Hortons Bay was a lumbering town.
No one who lived in it was out of sound of the big
saws in the mill by the lake. Then one year there were
no more logs to make lumber. The lumber schooners
came into the bay and were loaded with the cut of the
mill that stood stacked in the yard. All the piles of
lumber were carried away. The big mill building had
all its machinery that was removable taken out and
hoisted on board one of the schooners by the men
who had worked in the mill. The schooner moved
out of the bay toward the open lake, carrying the two
great saws, the traveling carriage that hurled the logs
against the revolving, circular saws and all the roll
ers, wheels, belts and iron piled on a hull-deep load
of lumber. Its open hold covered with canvas and
lashed tight, the sails of the schooner filled and it
moved out into the open lake, carrying with it every
thing that had made the mill a mill and Hortons Bay
a town.
The one-story bunkhouses, the eating house, the
company store, the mill offices, and the big mill itself
stood deserted in the acres of sawdust that covered
the swampy meadow by the shore of the bay.
Ten years later there was nothing of the mill left
except the broken white limestone of its foundations
68
Valami vget r
A rgi idkben Hortons Bay affle faipari vroska
volt. Senki odaval nem bjhatott el a tparti frsz-
malmok nagy frszeinek hangja ell. Aztn egyik
vben nem jtt tbb rnk, hogy feldolgozzk. Az
pletft szllt vitorlsok befutottak az blbe, s
felraktk a frszelt ft, ami ott llt a telepen. Vala
mennyi pletfa-rakst elvittk. A nagy zemi p
letbl minden elmozdthat gpet kivittek, s a ma-
lomban dolgoz emberek az egyik vitorls fedlzetre
emeltk. A vitorls kifutott az blbl a nylt t fel,
vitte a kt nagy frszt, a futkocsit, amely neki
nyomta a rnkket a forg krfrszeknek, s vala
mennyi grgt, kereket, szjat s vasat, egy hajtrre
val pletfa-rakomny tetejn. A haj nyitott rakt
rt ponyvval fdtk le, s szorosan lektttk, vitor
li kiduzzadtak, s kifutott a nylt tra: vitt magval
mindent, ami malomm tette a malmot s vross
Hortons Bayt.
A fldszintes szllsok, az tkezde, a trsasg boltja,
a malomirodk s maga a nagy malom elhagyatottan
lltak a hektrokra men frszporban, amely bebo
rtotta a tparti mocsaras rteket.
Tz v mltn nem maradt semmi a malombl, csak
alapjainak tredezett fehr mszkvonala derengett
69
 showing through the swampy second growth as Nick
and Marjorie rowed along the shore. They were
trolling along the edge of the channel bank where the
bottom dropped off suddenly from sandy shallows to
twelve feet of dark water. They were trolling on their
way to the point to set night lines for rainbow trout.
"There's our old ruin, Nick," Marjorie said.
Nick, rowing, looked at the white stone in the green
trees.
"There it is," he said.
"Can you remember when it was a mill?" Marjorie
asked.
"I can just remember," Nick said.
"It seems more like a castle," Marjorie said.
Nick said nothing. They rowed on out of sight of the
mill, following the shore line. Then Nick cut across
the bay.
"They aren't striking," he said.
" N o , " Marjorie said. She was intent on the rod all
the time they trolled, even when she talked. She
loved to fish. She loved to fish with Nick.
Close beside the boat a big trout broke the surface of
the water. Nick pulled hard on one oar so the boat
would turn and the bait, spinning far behind, would
pass where the trout was feeding. As the trout's back
came up out of the water the minnows jumped wild
ly. They sprinkled the surface like a handful of shot
thrown into the water. Another trout broke water,
feeding on the other side of the boat.
70
el a mocsaras burjnzsbl, mikor Nick s Marjorie
vgigeveztek a part mentn. Vontatva pergettek a
meder szln, ahol a fenk sekly homokpadkja hir
telen hrommteres stt, mly vzbe szakadt. jsza
kra fenkhorgokat akartak lefektetni a foknl, szi
vrvnyos pisztrngra, s odamentkben vontattak.
- Ott a rgi romunk, Nick - mondta Marjorie.
Nick evezs kzben odapillantott a zld fk kzl
elfehrl kvekre.
- Ott van - mondta.
- Emlkszel, mikor mg frszmalom volt? - krdez
te Marjorie.
- Valamennyire emlkszem - mondta Nick.
- Inkbb valami vrromra hasonlt - mondta Marjo
rie.
Nick nem szlt. Tovbbeveztek a part vonalval pr
huzamosan. A frsztelep eltnt. Akkor Nick tv
gott az bln.
- Nem kapnak - mondta.
- Nem - mondta Marjorie. Vontats kzben egsz
id alatt feszlten figyelte a horgszbotot, mg akkor
is, mikor beszlt. Szeretett horgszni. Szeretett hor
gszni Nickkel.
Kzvetlenl a csnak mellett nagy pisztrng trt t
a vz felsznn. Nick kemnyen meghzta az egyik
evezt, hogy a csnak elforduljon, s a messze htul
perg csali ott menjen el, ahol a pisztrng rabol.
Mikor a pisztrng hta kiemelkedett a vzbl, a kis
halak vadul sztugrottak. gy freccsentek a felsz
nen, mint mikor valaki egy mark srtet dob a vzbe.
Mg egy pisztrng tnt fel, a csnak msik feln
rabolt.
"They're feeding," Marjorie said.
"But they won't strike," Nick said.
He rowed the boat around to troll past both the
feeding fish, then headed it for the point. Marjorie
did not reel in until the boat touched the shore.
They pulled the boat up the beach and Nick lifted
out a pail of live perch. The perch swam in the water
pail. Nick caught three of them with his hands and
cut their heads off and skinned them while Marjorie
chased with her hands in the bucket, finally caught
a perch, cut its head off and skinned it. Nick looked
at her fish.
"You don't want to take the ventral fin out," he said.
"It'll be all right for bait but it's better with the
ventral fin in."
He hooked each of the skinned perch through the
tail. There were two hooks attached to a leader on
each rod. Then Marjorie rowed the boat out over the
channel-bank, holding the line in her teeth, and look
ing toward Nick, who stood on the shore holding the
rod and letting the line run out from the reel.
"That's about right," he called.
"Should I let it drop?" Marjorie called back, holding
the line in her hand.
"Sure. Let it go." Marjorie dropped the line over
board and watched the baits go down through the
water.
She came in with the boat and ran the second line out
the same way. Each time Nick set a heavy slab of
driftwood across the butt of the rod to hold it solid
and propped it up at an angle with a small slab. He
reeled in the slack line so the line ran taut out to
where the bait rested on the sandy floor of the chan
nel and set the click on the reel. When a trout,
feeding on the bottom, took the bait it would run
- Rabolnak - mondta Marjorie.
- De nem kapnak - mondta Nick.
Elfordtotta a csnakot, hogy mindkt rablhal mel
lett elpergessen, aztn a fok fel tartott. Marjorie csak
akkor orszott be, mikor a csnak partot rt.
Felhztk a csnakot a parton, s Nick kiemelt egy
vdr l sgrt. A sgrek szkltak a vdr vzben,
Nick kzzel megfogott hrmat, levgta a fejket, s
megnyzta ket, Marjorie pedig a kannban kavarga
tott a kezvel, vgl elcspett egy sgrt, levgta a
fejt, s megnyzta. Nick nzte Marjorie halt.
- Ne vedd le a hasszjt - mondta. - J ugyan
csalinak gy is, de hasszval jobb.
A megnyzott sgreket horogra tzte a farkuknl.
Mindegyik boton kt, elkre kttt horog volt. Ak
kor Marjorie kievezett a mederszlre a csnakkal,
fogval tartotta a zsinrt, s Nicket figyelte, aki kez
ben a bottal a parton llt, s hagyta lefutni a zsinrt
az orsrl.
- Ott j lesz - kiltotta.
- Bedobjam? - kiltotta vissza Marjorie, kezben a
zsinrral.
- Persze. Dobd. - Marjorie kilkte a zsinrt, s figyel
te, hogy sllyed al a csali a vzben.
Visszajtt a csnakkal, s ugyangy kivitte a msodik
zsinrt. Nick mindktszer egy-egy nehz hordalk-
tuskt rakott a bot vgre, hogy megrgztse, s szg
ben felpeckelte egy kis klappal. Beorszta a laza
zsinrt, hogy a zsinr feszesen fusson ki oda, ahol a
csali a meder homokos fenekn fekdt, s bekapcsol
ta a kereplt. A fenken rabl pisztrng elkapja a
73
with it, taking line out of the reel in a rush and
making the reel sing with the click on.
Marjorie rowed up the point a little way so she would
not disturb the line. She pulled hard on the oars and
the boat went up the beach. Little waves came in
with it. Marjorie stepped out of the boat and Nick
pulled the boat high up the beach.
"What's the matter, Nick?" Marjorie asked.
"I don't know," Nick said, getting wood for a fire.
They made a fire with driftwood. Marjorie went to
the boat and brought a blanket. The evening breeze
blew the smoke toward the point, so Marjorie spread
the blanket out between the fire and the lake.
Marjorie sat on the blanket with her back to the fire
and waited for Nick. He came over and sat down
beside her on the blanket. In back of them was the
close second-growth timber of the point and in front
was the bay with the mouth of Hortons Creek. It was
not quite dark. The firelight went as far as the water.
They could both see the two steel rods at an angle
over the dark water. The fire glinted on the reels.
Marjorie unpacked the basket of supper.
"I don't feel like eating," said Nick.
"Come on and eat, Nick."
"All right."
They ate without talking and watched the two rods
and the firelight in the water.
"There's going to be a moon tonight," said Nick. He
looked across the bay to the hills that were beginning
to sharpen against the sky. Beyond the hills he knew
the moon was coming up.
"I know it," Marjorie said happily.
" Y o u know everything," Nick said.
csalit, fut vele, rohanva viszi le a zsinrt az orsrl,
s az orsn berreg a kerepl.
Marjorie egy kicsit felevezett a fok mellett, hogy ne
hborgassa a zsinrt, kemnyen meghzta az evez
ket, s a csnak jl felszaladt a partra, kicsi hullmok
ksrtk. Marjorie kilpett a csnakbl, s Nick kihz
ta a csnakot messze a partra.
- Mi a baj, Nick? - krdezte Marjorie.
- Nem tudom - felelte Nick. Tzre val ft szedett.
Tzet raktak hordalkfbl. Marjorie a csnakhoz
ment, s pokrcot hozott. Az esti szell a fok fel fjta
a fstt, ezrt Marjorie a tz s a t kztt tertette
le a pokrcot.
Lelt r, s httal a tznek vrta Nicket. Nick oda
jtt, s lelt szorosan mellje a pokrcra. Mgttk
a fok sr erdeje volt, ellttk az bl s a Hortons-
patak torkolata. Mg nem sttedett be egszen.
A tzfny elnylt a vzig. Mindketten lttk a kit
masztott aclbotokat a stt vz fltt. A tzfny
megcsillant az orskon.
Marjorie elszedte a kosrbl a vacsort.
- Nincs kedvem enni - mondta Nick.
- Egyl csak, Nick.
- Rendben van.
Sz nlkl ettek, s figyeltk a kt botot s a tzfnyt
a vzen.
- jszaka holdvilg lesz - mondta Nick. tpillantott
az bln a hegyekre, amelyek kezdtek lesen kirajzo
ldni az gboltra. Tudta, hogy a hegyek mgtt jn
fl a hold.
- Tudom - mondta Marjorie boldogan.
- Te mindent tudsz - mondta Nick.
75
"Oh, Nick, please cut it out! Please, please don't be
that way!"
"I can't help it," Nick said. " Y o u do. You know
everything. That's the trouble. You know you do."
Marjorie did not say anything.
"I've taught you everything. You know you do.
What don't you know, anyway?"
"Oh, shut up," Marjorie said. "There comes the
moon."
They sat on the blanket without touching each other
and watched the moon rise.
"You don't have to talk silly," Marjorie said.
"What's really the matter?"
"I don't know."
"Of course you know."
" N o I don't."
" G o on and say it."
Nick looked on at the moon, coming up over the
hills.
"It isn't fun any more."
He was afraid to look at Marjorie. Then he looked at
her. She sat there with her back toward him. He
looked at her back. "It isn't fun any more. Not any
of it."
She didn't say anything. He went on. "I feel as
though everything was gone to hell inside of me. I
don't know, Marge. I don't know what to say."
He looked on at her back.
"Isn't love any fun?" Marjorie said.
" N o , " Nick said. Marjorie stood up. Nick sat there,
his head in his hands.
" I ' m going to take the boat," Marjorie called to him.
"You can walk back around the point."
- , Nick, krlek, hagyd abba! Nagyon szpen kr
lek, ne lgy ilyen.
- Nem n tehetek rla, hanem te - mondta Nick. -
Te mindent tudsz. Ez itt a baj. Magad is tudod, hogy
gy van.
Marjorie nem szlt egy szt sem.
- Mindenre megtantottalak. Tudod, hogy mindent
tudsz. Mondd, mi az, amit nem tudsz?
- , hallgass mr - mondta Marjorie. - Ott jn fl
a hold.
A pokrcon ltek, nem is rintettk egymst, s fi
gyeltk a felszll holdat.
- Nem kell szamrsgokat beszlned - mondta Mar
jorie. - szintn, mi a baj?
- Nem tudom.
- Dehogyisnem tudod.
- Pedig nem tudom.
- Ki vele.
Nick a holdat nzte, amint jtt fel a hegyek fl.
- Unom a dolgot.
Nem mert Marjorie-ra nzni. Aztn mgis rnzett.
A lny ott lt, httal felje. A htt nzte. - Unom
a dolgot. Az egszet.
A lny nem szlt. Nick folytatta. - gy rzem, mint
ha mindent megevett volna bennem a fene. Nem
tudom, Marge. Nem tudom, mit mondjak.
Egyre a htt nzte.
- Unod a szerelmet? - krdezte Marjorie.
- Igen - mondta Nick. Marjorie felllt. Nick lve
maradt, fejt a tenyerbe sllyesztette.
- Elviszem a csnakot - szlt vissza Marjorie. - Te
majd megkerld a fokot, s gyalog mgy haza.
77
"All right," Nick said. "I'll push the boat off for
you."
"You don't need to," she said. She was afloat in the
boat on the water with the moonlight on it. Nick
went back and lay down with his face in the blanket
by the fire. He could hear Marjorie rowing on the
water.
He lay there for a long time. He lay there while he
heard Bill come into the clearing, walking around
through the woods. He felt Bill coming up to the fire.
Bill didn't touch him either.
"Did she go all right?" Bill said.
"Oh, yes." Nick said, lying, his face on the blanket.
"Have a scene?"
" N o , there wasn't any scene."
"How do you feel?"
"Oh, go away, Bill! Go away for a while." Bill select
ed a sandwich from the lunch basket and walked over
to have a look at the rods.
78
- Rendben van - mondta Nick. - Ellkm a csna
kot.
- Flsleges - mondta a lny. S csnakja mr szott
is a vzen a holdfnyben. Nick visszament, s arct a
takarba nyomva elfekdt a tz mellett. Hallotta,
hogy Marjorie evez a vzen.
Sokig fekdt. Hallotta, hogy Bill jn az erdn ke
resztl, a tisztsra r, mg akkor is fekdt. rezte,
hogy Bill odajn a tzhz. Bill nem rintette meg.
- Elment simn? - krdezte Bill.
- El - felelte Nick, arct a takarra nyomva.
- Nagy jelenet volt?
- Nem volt jelenet.
- Hogy rzed magad?
- , menj el, Bill. Menj el egy kis idre.
Bill kivlasztott egy szendvicset az elemzsis kosr
bl, s arrbb ment, hogy megnzze a botokat.
Szsz Imre fordtsa
79
 The Three-Day Blow
The rain stopped as Nick turned into the road that
went up through the orchard. The fruit had been
picked and the fall wind blew through the bare trees.
Nick stopped and picked up a Wagener apple from
beside the road, shiny in the brown grass from the
rain. He put the apple in the pocket of his Mackinaw
coat.
The road came out of the orchard on to the top of the
hill. There was the cottage, the porch bare, smoke
coming from the chimney. In back were the garage,
the chicken coop and the second-growth timber like
a hedge against the woods behind. The big trees
swayed far over in the wind as he watched. It was the
first of the autumn storms.
As Nick crossed the open field above the orchard the
door of the cottage opened and Bill came out. He
stood on the porch looking out.
"Well, Wemedge," he said.
"Hey, Bill," Nick said, coming up the steps.
They stood together looking out across the country,
down over the orchard, beyond the road, across the
lower fields and the woods of the point of the lake.
The wind was blowing straight down the lake. They
could see the surf along Ten Mile point.
"She's blowing," Nick said.
"She'll blow like that for three days," Bill said.
"Is your dad in?" Nick asked.
" N o . He's out with the gun. Come on in."
Hromnapos szlvsz
Az es elllt, amikor Nick befordult a gymlcssn
keresztl vezet tra. A gymlcst mr leszedtk,
az szi szl tfjt a csupasz fk kztt. Nick megllt
az t mentn, a barns fben egy wagneralma fny
lett az estl, felvette, s viharkabtja zsebbe rakta.
Az t a dombtetn rt ki a gymlcssbl. res
tornc hzik llt fenn, fst szllt fel a kmnybl.
Htul volt a garzs, a tykketrec, s a cserjs, mint
valami svny, az erdn innen hzdott meg. Nzte,
hogy a nagy fk nagyokat hajlanak a szlben. Ez volt
a beksznt szi vihar.
Mikor Nick tvgott a tisztson a gymlcss fltt,
a hzik ajtaja kinylt, s Bill lpett ki rajta. A torncon
megllt, nzett.
- Szevasz, Wemedge - mondta.
- Szevasz, Bill - mondta Nick, s felment a lpcsn.
Egyms mellett lltak, s nztk a tjat, szemk v
gigfutott a gymlcssn, t az ton, az als fldeken
s a kiszgell tpart fin. A szl egyenest a tra fjt.
Lttk a hullmverst a Tz Mrfld-fok mentn.
- Fj m - mondta Nick.
- Hrom napig gy fog fjni. - mondta Bill.
- Apd itthon van? - krdezte Nick.
- Nem. Elment a puskval. Gyere be.
81
Nick went inside the cottage. There was a big fire in
the fireplace. The wind made it roar. Bill shut the
door.
"Have a drink?" he said.
He went out to the kitchen and came back with two
glasses and a pitcher of water. Nick reached the
whiskey bottle from the shelf above the fireplace.
"All right?" he said.
"Good," said Bill.
They sat in front of the fire and drank the Irish
whiskey and water.
"It's got a swell, smoky taste," Nick said, and looked
at the fire through the glass.
"That's the peat," Bill said.
"You can't get peat into liquor," Nick said.
"That doesn't make any difference," Bill said.
" Y o u ever seen any peat?" Nick asked.
" N o , " said Bill.
"Neither have I , " Nick said.
His shoes, stretched out on the hearth, began to
steam in front of the fire.
"Better take your shoes off," Bill said.
"I haven't got any socks on."
"Take them off and dry them and I'll get you some,"
Bill said. He went upstairs into the loft and Nick
heard him walking about overhead. Upstairs was
open under the roof and was where Bill and his father
and he, Nick, sometimes slept. In back was a dress
ing room. They moved the cots back out of the rain
and covered them with rubber blankets.
Bill came down with a pair of heavy wool socks.
"It's getting too late to go around without socks," he
said.
"I hate to start them again," Nick said. He pulled the
Nick bement a hzikba. A kandallban nagy tz
gett. Zgott benne a szl. Bill becsukta az ajtt.
- Iszol valamit? - krdezte.
Kiment a konyhba, s kt pohrral meg egy kors
vzzel jtt vissza. Nick levette a whiskysveget a
kandall feletti polcrl.
- Ez az? - krdezte.
- Ez - mondta Bill.
A tz eltt ltek, s ittk az r whiskyt vzzel.
- Prma fsts ze van - mondta Nick, s poharn t
nzte a tzet.
- A tuft rzed - mondta Bill.
- Tufa nem val italba - mondta Nick.
- Mindegy, nem szmt - mondta Bill.
- Lttl mr tuft? - krdezte Nick.
- Nem - felelte Bill.
- n sem - mondta Nick.
Kinyjtotta lbt a kandall fel, s a cipje most
gzlni kezdett a tz mellett.
- Jobb, ha leveszed a cipdet - mondta Bill.
- Nincs rajtam harisnya.
- Vedd le, szrtsd meg, majd n hozok neked haris
nyt - mondta Bill. Felment a padlsszobba, Nick
hallotta, amint a feje fltt jrkl. Fenn nyitott hely
volt a tet alatt, Bill, az apja s , Nick, nha ott
aludtak. Htul volt egy ltzflke. Flrevittk a
fgggyakat az esbl, s gumilepedkkel letakartk
,ket.
Bill egy pr vastag gyapjharisnyval jtt le.
- Hvs van mr harisnya nlkl mszklni - mond
ta.
- gy utlom, hogy jra fel kell venni - mondta
83
socks on and slumped back in the chair, putting his
feet up on the screen in front of the fire.
"You'll dent in the screen," Bill said. Nick swung his
feet over to the side of the fireplace.
"Got anything to read?" he asked.
"Only the paper."
"What did the Cards do?"
"Dropped a double-header to the Giants."
"That ought to cinch it for them."
"It's a gift," Bill said. "As long as McGraw can buy
every good ballplayer in the league there's nothing
to it."
"He can't buy them all," Nick said.
"He buys all the ones he wants," Bill said. "Or he
makes them discontented so they have to trade them
to him."
"Like Heinie Zim," Nick agreed.
"That bonehead will do him a lot of good."
Bill stood up.
"He can hit," Nick offered. The heat from the fire
was baking his legs.
"He's a sweet fielder, too," Bill said. "But he loses
ball games."
"Maybe that's what McGraw wants him for," Nick
suggested.
"Maybe," Bill agreed.
"There's always more to it than we know about,"
Nick said.
"Of course. But we've got pretty good dope for being
so far away."
"Like how much better you can pick them if you
don't see the horses."
84
Nick. Felhzta a harisnyt, s visszahuppant a szk
be, lbt a tz eltt ll ellenzre tette.
- Behorpasztod az ellenzt - mondta Bill. Nick t
dobta lbt a kandall prknyra.
- Van valami olvasnivald? - krdezte.
- Csak az jsg.
- Hogy ll a Cards?
- Kt dugt befejeltek a Giantsnek.
- Szval a Giantsk kihztk a gyuft.
- Nagy vicc - mondta Bill. - Amg McGraw fl brja
vsrolni az sszes j focistkat az egyesletnek, ad
dig mindig okos lehet.
- Nem brja mindet flvsrolni - mondta Nick.
- Csak azt, akit akar, a tbbit nem - mondta Bill. -
Vagy fllztja ket az egyesletk ellen, gyhogy
azok kezdenek egyezkedni vele.
- Mint Heinie Zim - helyeselt Nick.
- Azzal a fafejjel aztn sokra megy.
Bill flllt.
- Lvse az van neki - mondta Nick bklkenyen.
A tz melege sttte a lbt.
- A stja is egsz j - mondta Bill. - Csak mindig
kicselezik.
- Lehet, hogy McGraw-nak pont azrt kell - vlte
Nick.
- Lehet - egyezett bele Bill.
- Olyanok vannak ott a kulisszk mgtt, amikrl mi
nem tudunk - mondta Nick.
- Persze hogy. Azzal egytt ilyen messzirl is egsz
szpen beleltunk.
- Lra is jobban lehet tippelni, ha az ember nem jr
ki a lovira.
85
 "That's it."
Bill reached down the whiskey bottle. His big hand
went all the way around it. He poured the whiskey
into the glass Nick held out.
"How much water?"
"Just the same."
He sat down on the floor beside Nick's chair.
"It's good when the fall storms come, isn't it?" Nick
said.
"It's swell."
"It's the best time of year," Nick said.
"Wouldn't it be hell to be in town?" Bill said.
" I ' d like to see the World Series," Nick said.
"Well, they're always in New York or Philadelphia
now," Bill said. "That doesn't do us any good."
"I wonder if the Cards will ever win a pennant?"
"Not in our lifetime," Bill said.
"Gee, they'd go crazy," Nick said.
" D o you remember when they got going that once
before they had the train wreck?"
"Boy!" Nick said, remembering.
Bill reached over to the table under the window for
the book that lay there, face down, where he had put
it when he went to the door. He held his glass in one
hand and the book in the other, leaning back against
Nick's chair.
"What are you reading?"
"Richard Feverel."
"I couldn't get into it."
"It's all right," Bill said. " I t ain't a bad book,
Wemedge."
"What else have you got I haven't read," Nick asked.
86
- Az.
Bill levette a whiskysveget. Nagy keze egszen t
fogta. Whiskyt nttt, Nick tartotta a poharat.
- Mennyi vizet?
- Ugyanannyit.
Lelt Nick szke mell a padlra.
- J , mikor megjnnek az szi viharok, mi? - krdez
te Nick.
- Klassz.
- Ez a legjobb vszak - mondta Nick.
- Pokoli volna a vrosban lenni - mondta Bill.
- Szeretnm ltni a profibajnoksgot - mondta Nick.
- Azt mindig New Yorkban vagy Philadelphiban
tartjk mostanban - mondta Bill. - Nem rnk vele
semmit.
- Kvncsi vagyok, nyer-e valaha a Cards zszlt.
- A mi letnkben ugyan nem - mondta Bill.
- Hha, tisztra megbolondulnnak tle - mondta
Nick.
- Emlkszel, mikor egyszer olyan j formban voltak
a vasti szerencstlensgk eltt?
- Az m! - mondta Nick visszaemlkezve.
Bill tnylt az ablak alatt ll asztalra a knyvrt,
amely cmlapjval lefel fekdt, akkor tette le, mikor
az ajthoz ment. Egyik kezben pohart fogta, msik
ban a knyvet, s httal Nick szknek tmaszkodott.
- Mit olvasol?
- A Richard Feverel-t.
- Nem tudom trgni magam rajta.
- Rendes munka - mondta Bill. - Nem rossz knyv
ez, Wemedge.
- Mid van, amit mg nem olvastam? - krdezte Nick.
87
"Did you read the Forest Lovers?"
" Y u p . That's the one where they go to bed every
night with the naked sword between them."
"That's a good book, Wemedge."
"It's a swell book. What I couldn't ever understand
was what good the sword would do. It would have
to stay edge up all the time because if it went over flat
you could roll right over it and it wouldn't make any
trouble."
"It's a symbol," Bill said.
"Sure," said Nick, "but it isn't practical."
"Did you ever read Fortitude?"
"It's fine," Nick said. "That's a real book. That's
where his old man is after him all the time. Have you
got any more by Walpole?"
"The Dark Forest," Bill said. "It's about Russia."
"What does he know about Russia?" Nick asked.
"I don't know. You can't ever tell about those guys.
Maybe he was there when he was a boy. He's got a
lot of dope on it."
" I ' d like to meet him," Nick said.
" I ' d like to meet Chesterton," Bill said.
"I wish he was here now," Nick said. "We'd take him
fishing to the 'Voix tomorrow."
"I wonder if he'd like to go fishing," Bill said.
"Sure," said Nick. "He must be about the best guy
there is. Do you remember the 'Flying Inn'?"
88
- Olvastad az Erdei szerelmesek-et?
- Ajaj. Az az, amiben minden este csupasz kardot
raknak maguk kz, gy fekszenek le.
- J knyv az, Wemedge.
- Klassz knyv, csak azt nem rtettem soha, mire j
a kard. Egsz id alatt livel felfel kell llnia, mert
ha eldl, nyugodtan tgurulhatsz rajta, s nem trt
nik semmi baj.
- Az jelkp - mondta Bill.
- Igaz - mondta Nick -, de nem praktikus.
- Olvastad a Btorsg-ot?
- Pazar - mondta Nick. - Az aztn a knyv. Az az,
mikor az regje egsz id alatt kergeti a fit. Van ms
Walpole-od?
- A stt erd - mondta Bill. - Oroszorszgrl szl.
- Mit tud Walpole Oroszorszgrl? - krdezte Nick.
- Fogalmam sincs rla. Az ember sose ismeri ki ma
gt ezeken a palikon. Lehet, hogy gyerekkorban ott
volt. Egy csom titkot tud rla.
- Szeretnk tallkozni vele - mondta Nick.
- n Chestertonnal szeretnk tallkozni - mondta
Bill.
- Br itt volna - mondta Nick -, kivinnnk horgszni
a Voix-hoz holnap.
- Nem biztos, hogy szvesen jnne horgszni -
mondta Bill.
- Szvesen ht - mondta Nick. - Azt hiszem, kz
tk a legklnb gyerek. Emlkszel A repl kocsm
ra?
89
 If an angel out of heaven
Gives you something else to drink,
Thank him for his kind intentions;
Go and pour them down the sink.
"That's right," said Nick. "I guess he's a better guy
than Walpole."
"Oh, he's a better guy, all right," Bill said. "But
Walpole's a better writer."
"I don't know," Nick said. "Chesterton's a classic."
"Walpole's a classic, too," Bill insisted.
"I wish we had them both here," Nick said. "We'd
take them both fishing to the 'Voix tomorrow."
"Let's get drunk" Bill said.
"All right," Nick agreed.
" M y old man won't care," Bill said.
"Are you sure?" said Nick.
"I know it," Bill said.
" I ' m a little drunk now," Nick said.
" Y o u aren't drunk," Bill said.
He got up from the floor and reached for the whiskey
bottle. Nick held out his glass. His eyes fixed on it
while Bill poured.
Bill poured the glass half full of whiskey.
"Put in your own water," he said. "There's just one
more shot."
"Got any more?" Nick asked.
"There's plenty more, but Dad only likes me to drink
what's open."
"Sure," said Nick.
"He says opening bottles is what makes drunkards,"
Bill explained.
90
Ha egy gi angyal-kldtt
brmilyen ms italt tlttt,
megksznd szvessgt,
s a mosdba mind kintd.
- Ez az - mondta Nick. - Azt hiszem, klnb gyerek,
mint Walpole.
- Persze hogy klnb gyerek - mondta Bill. - De
Walpole klnb r.
- Nem tudom - mondta Nick. - Chesterton klasszi
kus.
- Walpole is klasszikus - erskdtt Bill.
- Br itt volna mind a kett - mondta Nick. - Elvin
nnk ket holnap horgszni a Voix-hoz.
- Igyuk le magunkat - mondta Bill.
- Rendben van - egyezett bele Nick.
- Az regem nem trdik vele - mondta Bill.
- Biztos? - krdezte Nick.
- Tudom - mondta Bill.
- Mris be vagyok cspve - mondta Nick.
- Nem vagy becspve - mondta Bill.
Felllt a padlrl, s a whiskysvegrt nylt. Nick
tartotta a pohart. Szeme rszegezdtt, mg Bill
tlttt.
Bill flig nttte a poharat whiskyvel.
- Tlts magadnak vizet - mondta. - M r csak egy
pohrra val van.
- Nincs tbb? - krdezte Nick.
- Van bven, de apa nem szereti, ha j veget nyitok.
- Persze - mondta Nick.
- Azt mondja, az vegnyitogats teszi alkoholistv
az embert - magyarzta Bill.
91
"That's right," said Nick. He was impressed. He had
never thought of that before. He had always thought
it was solitary drinking that made drunkards.
"How is your dad?" he asked respectfully.
"He's all right," Bill said. "He gets a little wild
sometimes."
"He's a swell guy," Nick said. He poured water into
his glass out of the pitcher. It mixed slowly with the
whiskey. There was more whiskey than water.
" Y o u bet your life he is," Bill said.
" M y old man's all right," Nick said.
"You're damn right he is," said Bill.
"He claims he's never taken a drink in his life," Nick
said, as though announcing a scientific fact.
"Well, he's a doctor. My old man's a painter. That's
different."
"He's missed a lot," Nick said sadly.
" Y o u can't tell," Bill said. "Everything's got its com
pensations."
"He says he's missed a lot himself," Nick confessed.
"Well, Dad's had a tough time," Bill said.
" I t all evens up," Nick said.
They sat looking into the fire and thinking of this
profound truth.
"I'll get a chunk from the back porch," Nick said. He
had noticed while looking into the fire that the fire
was dying down. Also he wished to show he could
hold his liquor and be practical. Even if his father
had never touched a drop Bill was not going to get
him drunk before he himself was drunk.
92
- Igaza van - mondta Nick. Mly benyomst tett r
a dolog. Erre sose gondolt. Mindig azt hitte, hogy a
magnyos iszogats teszi alkoholistv az embert.
- Hogy van a papd? - krdezte tisztelettel.
- Jl - mondta Bill. - Nha kicsit megvadul.
- Klassz fi - mondta Nick. Vizet tlttt poharba a
korsbl. A vz lassan keveredett el a whiskyvel.
Tbb volt a whisky.
- Meghiszem azt - mondta Bill.
- Az n regem is rendes fi - mondta Nick.
- Csuda rendes - mondta Bill.
- Azt mondja, soha letben nem ivott - mondta
Nick, mintha valami tudomnyos tnyt kzlne.
- Ht hisz orvos. Az n regem fest. Az nagy k
lnbsg.
- Pedig sokat vesztett vele - mondta Nick bnatosan.
- Sose tudhatod - mondta Bill. - Mindenrt krp
tolhatja magt az ember.
- maga is azt mondja, hogy sokat vesztett vele -
vallotta be Nick.
- Apa viszont rossz napokat ltott - mondta Bill.
- Vgeredmnyben mindennek megvan a rossz olda
la - mondta Nick.
ltek, bmultak a tzbe, s ezen a mlysges igazs
gon tndtek.
- Hozok egy hasbot a hts torncrl - mondta
Nick.
Mg a tzbe bmult, szrevette, hogy az mr csak
pislkol. s azt is meg akarta mutatni, hogy llja az
italt, s attl azrt nem tunyul el. Mg ha apja soha
egy kortyot se kstolt, Bill akkor se fogja bergatni,
mieltt maga is be nem rgna.
93
 "Bring one of the big beech chunks," Bill said. He
was also being consciously practical.
Nick came in with the log through the kitchen and
in passing knocked a pan off the kitchen table. He
laid the log down and picked up the pan. It had
contained dried apricots, soaking in water. He care
fully picked up all the apricots off the floor, some of
them had gone under the stove, and put them back
in the pan. He dipped some more water onto them
from the pail by the table. He felt quite proud of
himself. He had been thoroughly practical.
He came in carrying the log and Bill got up from the
chair and helped him put it on the fire.
"That's a swell log," Nick said.
" I ' d been saving it for the bad weather," Bill said. "A
log like that will burn all night."
"There'll be coals left to start the fire in the morn
ing," Nick said.
"That's right," Bill agreed. They were conducting
the conversation on a high plane.
"Let's have another drink," Nick said.
"I think there's another bottle open in the locker,"
Bill said.
He kneeled down in the corner in front of the locker
and brought out a square-faced bottle.
"It's Scotch," he said.
"I'll get some more water," Nick said. He went out
into the kitchen again. He filled the pitcher with the
dipper, dipping cold spring water from the pail. On
his way back to the living room he passed a mirror
in the dining room and looked in it. His face looked
strange. He smiled at the face in the mirror and it
grinned back at him. He winked at it and went on.
It was not his face but it didn't make any difference.
- Hozz egy nagy bkkhasbot - mondta Bill. is
figyelt mindenre.
Nick a konyhn keresztl behozta a tuskt, s menet
kzben lelktt egy fazekat a konyhaasztalrl. Letet
te a tuskt, s felemelte a fazekat. Aszalt srgabarack
zott benne. Gondosan felszedte a padlrl az sszes
barackot - nmelyik a tzhely al gurult -, s vissza
rakta a fazkba. Vizet is mert r az asztal mellett ll
vdrbl. Igen bszke volt magra. Figyelme ber
maradt.
Bement kezben a tuskval, Bill felkelt a szkrl, s
segtett a tzre tenni.
- Klassz tusk - mondta Nick.
- Tartogattam a rossz idre - mondta Bill. - Ilyen
tusk egsz jszaka g.
- Mg parazsa is marad, reggel be lehet vele gyjtani
- mondta Nick.
- Igen, igen - helyeselt Bill. Magas sznvonalon tr
salogtak.
- Igyunk mg - mondta Nick.
- Azt hiszem, van mg egy nyitott veg a ldban -
mondta Bill.
Letrdelt a sarokban a lda eltt, s elkotort egy
ngyszgletes veget.
- Skt whisky - mondta.
- Hozok vizet - mondta Nick. Megint kiment a
konyhba. A mertvel hideg forrsvizet mert a v
drbl a korsba. Visszafel tkr eltt ment el az
ebdlben, s belenzett. Furcsa volt az arca. Rmo
solygott a tkrarcra, s az visszavigyorgott r. Ka
csintott egyet, s tovbbment. Nem az arca volt, de
ez semmit sem jelentett.
95
Bill poured out the drinks.
"That's an awfully big shot," Nick said.
"Not for us, Wemedge," Bill said.
"What'll we drink to?" Nick asked, holding up the
glass.
"Let's drink to fishing," Bill said.
"All right," Nick said. "Gentlemen, I give you fish-
ing.
"All fishing," Bill said. "Everywhere."
"Fishing," Nick said. "That's what we drink to."
"It's better than baseball," Bill said.
"There isn't any comparison," said Nick. "How did
we ever get talking about baseball?"
" I t was a mistake," Bill said. "Baseball is a game for
louts."
They drank all that was in their glasses.
"Now let's drink to Chesterton."
"And Walpole," Nick interposed.
Nick poured out the liquor. Bill poured in the water.
They looked at each other. They felt very fine.
"Gentlemen," Bill said, "I give you Chesterton and
Walpole."
"Exactly, gentlemen," Nick said.
They drank. Bill filled up the glasses. They sat down
in the big chairs in front of the fire.
" Y o u were very wise, Wemedge," Bill said.
"What do you mean?" asked Nick.
" T o bust off that Marge business," Bill said.
"I guess so," said Nick.
" I t was the only thing to do. If you hadn't, by now
you'd be back home working trying to get enough
money to get married."
96
Bill mr tlttt.
- Irt nagy adag - mondta Nick.
- De nem neknk, Wemedge - mondta Bill.
- Mire iszunk? - krdezte Nick felemelt pohrral.
- Igyunk a horgszatra - mondta Bill.
- Helyes - mondta Nick. - Uraim, emelem poharam
a horgszatra.
- Mindenfle horgszatra - mondta Bill. - Minde
ntt.
- A horgszatra - mondta Nick. - Arra iszunk.
- Jobb az, mint a futball - mondta Bill.
- Nem is lehet sszehasonltani - mondta Nick. -
Hogy a fenbe is beszlhettnk futballrl?
- Tveds volt - mondta Bill. - A futball tahknak
val jtk.
Fenkig rtettk poharukat.
- Most igyunk Chestertonra.
- s Walpole-ra - vetette kzbe Nick.
Nick nttte a szeszt, Bill a vizet. Egymsra nztek.
Nagyszeren reztk magukat.
- Uraim - mondta Nick -, emelem poharam Ches
tertonra s Walpole-ra.
- Ez az, uraim - mondta Bill.
Ittak. Bill teletlttte a poharakat. Leltek a tz eltt
ll nagy szkekre.
- Nagyon okos voltl, Wemedge - mondta Bill.
- Mirt? - krdezte Nick.
- Hogy felrgtad a Marge-dolgot - mondta Bill.
- Azt hiszem, igen - mondta Nick.
- Csak ezt lehetett csinlni. Ha nem, mr rg otthon
dolgoznl, igyekeznl pnzt sszekaparni a hzassg
hoz.
97
 Nick said nothing.
"Once a man's married he's absolutely bitched," Bill
went on. "He hasn't got anything more. Nothing.
Not a damn thing. He's done for. You've seen the
guys that get married."
Nick said nothing.
"You can tell them," Bill said. "They get this sort of
fat married look. They're done for."
" S u r e , " said Nick.
"It was probably bad busting it off," Bill said. "But
you always fall for somebody else and then it's all
right. Fall for them but don't let them ruin you."
" Y e s , " said Nick.
"If you'd have married her you would have had to
marry the whole family. Remember her mother and
that guy she married."
Nick nodded.
"Imagine having them around the house all the time
and going to Sunday dinners at their house and
having them over to dinner and her telling Marge all
the time what to do and how to act."
Nick sat quiet.
" Y o u came out of it damned well," Bill said. "Now
she can marry somebody of her own sort and settle
down and be happy. You can't mix oil and water and
you can't mix that sort of thing any more than if I'd
marry Ida that works for Strattons. She'd probably
like it, too."
Nick said nothing. The liquor had all died out of him
and left him alone. Bill wasn't there. He wasn't sit
ting in front of the fire or going fishing tomorrow
98
Nick nem szlt.
- Ha az ember megnsl, akkor mr gyis megette
a fene - folytatta Bill. - Nem marad semmije. Sem
mije az gvilgon. Vge. Megfigyelhetted azokat a
fikat, akik megnslnek.
Nick nem szlt.
- Leolvashatod rluk - mondta Bill. - Olyan hjas
frj-formjuk lesz. Egyszeriben vgk.
- gy van - mondta Nick.
- Tn rossz volt felrgni - mondta Bill. - De az ember
mindig beleesik valaki msba, s akkor minden rendbe
jn. Essen beljk az ember, de ne hagyja tnkreten
ni magt.
- Igen - mondta Nick.
- Ha elveszed, elvetted volna vele az egsz famlit.
Gondolj az anyjra, meg arra a pasira, akihez hozz
ment.
Nick blintott.
- Kpzeld el, hogy ott nyzsgnek mindig a hz
krl, vasrnap hozzjuk kell menni, s meghvni ket
ebdre, s az regasszony folyton diriglja Marge-ot,
mit tegyen, hogyan viselkedjen.
Nick csendben lt.
- tkozottul szerencssen keveredtl ki belle -
mondta Bill. - Most frjhez mehet a maga fajtjhoz,
megllapodhat, s boldog lehet. Olajat s vizet nem
tudsz sszekeverni, s ilyesmit se, ppgy, mintha n
elvennm Idt, aki Strattonsnak dolgozik. Pedig alig
hanem rlne neki.
Nick nem szlt. Az ital teljesen elprolgott belle s
magra hagyta. Bill mintha mr ott sem lett volna.
Most nem lt a tz eltt, nem kszlt holnap hor-
99
 with Bill and his dad or anything. He wasn't drunk.
It was all gone. All he knew was that he had once had
Marjorie and that he had lost her. She was gone and
he had sent her away. That was all that mattered. He
might never see her again. Probably he never would.
It was all gone, finished.
"Let's have another drink" Nick said.
Bill poured it out. Nick splashed in a little water.
"If you had gone on that way we wouldn't be here
now," Bill said.
That was true. His original plan had been to go down
home and get a job. Then he had planned to stay in
Charlevoix all winter so he could be near Marge.
Now he did not know what he was going to do.
"Probably we wouldn't even be going fishing tomor
row," Bill said. "You had the right dope, all right."
"I couldn't help it," Nick said.
"I know. That's the way it works out," Bill said.
"All of a sudden everything was over," Nick said. "I
don't know why it was I couldn't help it. Just like
when the three-day blows come now and rip all the
leaves off the trees."
"Well, it's over. That's the point," Bill said.
" I t was my fault," Nick said.
" I t doesn't make any difference whose fault it was,"
Bill said.
" N o , I suppose not," Nick said.
The big thing was that Marjorie was gone and that
probably he would never see her again. He had talked
to her about how they would go to Italy together and
the fun they would have. Places they would be
together. It was all gone now. Something gone out
of him.
" S o long as it's over that's all that matters," Bill said.
gszni Bill-lel meg Bill papjval, nem kszlt sem
mire. Nem volt rszeg. A rszegsg teljesen elprol
gott, csak annyit tudott, hogy valamikor az v volt
Marjorie, s elvesztette. Elment, kldte el. Most
csak ez szmtott. Taln soha tbb nem ltja. Val
sznleg soha. Minden elmlt, vget rt.
- Igyunk mg egyet - mondta.
Bill tlttt. Nick egy kis vizet lttyintett hozz.
- Ha tovbb folytatod, most nem lnnk itt - mondta
Bill.
Ez igaz volt. Eredetileg gy tervezte, hogy haza
megy, s munkt szerez. Aztn meg hogy Charle-
voix-ban marad egsz tlen, Marge kzelben. Most
nem tudta, mihez kezd majd.
- Valsznleg mg horgszni se mennnk holnap -
mondta Bill. - Volt benned elg spiritusz.
- Nem tehettem mst - mondta Nick.
- Tudom. Ez mindig gy van - mondta Bill.
- Hirtelen vget rt minden - mondta Nick. - Nem
tudom, mirt. Nem tehettem mst. Mint most a
hromnapos szlvsz, csak jn, s letp minden leve
let a fkrl.
- Nos, elmlt. Ez a fontos - mondta Bill.
- Az n hibm volt - mondta Nick.
- desmindegy, kinek a hibja volt - mondta Bill.
- Nem, azt hiszem, nem - mondta Nick.
A lnyeg az, hogy Marjorie elment, s valsznleg
soha tbb nem ltja. Beszlt neki arrl, hogyan
mennek kettesben Olaszorszgba, s micsoda jl fog
nak mulatni. A helyekrl, ahol egytt jrnak majd.
Most mindez eltnt.
- Csak az a fontos, hogy elmlt - mondta Bill. -
IOI
 "I tell you, Wemedge, I was worried while it was
going on. You played it right. I understand her
mother is sore as hell. She told a lot of people you
were engaged."
"We weren't engaged," Nick said.
" I t was all around that you were."
"I can't help it," Nick said. "We weren't."
"Weren't you going to get married?" Bill asked.
"Yes. But we weren't engaged," Nick said.
"What's the difference?" Bill asked judicially.
"I don't know. There's a difference."
"I don't see it," said Bill.
"All right," said Nick. "Let's get drunk."
"All right," Bill said. "Let's get really drunk."
"Let's get drunk and then go swimming," Nick said.
He drank off his glass.
" I ' m sorry as hell about her but what could I do?"
he said. "You know what her mother was like!"
"She was terrible," Bill said.
"All of a sudden it was over," Nick said. "I oughtn't
to talk about it."
" Y o u aren't," Bill said. "I talked about it and now
I'm through. We won't ever speak about it again.
You don't want to think about it. You might get back
into it again."
Nick had not thought about that. It had seemed so
absolute. That was a thought. That made him feel
better.
" S u r e , " he said. "There's always that danger."
He felt happy now. There was not anything that was
irrevocable. He might go into town Saturday night.
Today was Thursday.
"There's always a chance," he said.
Megmondom neked, Wemedge, aggdtam, amg tar
tott. Azzal egytt, a vgt jl megjtszottad. Hallom,
az anyja pokolian bosszankodik. Elhresztelte, hogy
el vagytok jegyezve.
- Nem voltunk eljegyezve - mondta Nick.
- Mindenfele gy tudtk, hogy igen.
- Nem tehetek rla - mondta Nick. - Nem voltunk.
- Nem akartatok sszehzasodni? - krdezte Bill.
- De igen. De mgsem voltunk eljegyezve.
- Mi a klnbsg? - krdezte Bill okosan.
- Nem tudom, de van klnbsg.
- Nem ltom - mondta Bill.
- Rendben van - mondta Nick. - Igyuk le magunkat.
- Rendben van - mondta Bill. - gy istenigazbl.
- Igyuk le magunkat, s menjnk szni - mondta
Nick.
Kiitta a pohart.
- Pokolian sajnlom Marge-ot, de mit tehetek? -
mondta. - Tudod, milyen az anyja.
- Szrny - mondta Bill.
- Egyszer csak vge lett - mondta Nick. - Nem is
kellene beszlnem rla.
- Nem is beszlsz - mondta Bill. - n beszltem rla,
s most mr befejeztem. Tbb nem beszlnk rla.
Nem akarsz rgondolni. Mg visszacsinlnd.
Nick erre mg nem gondolt. A dolog olyan vgleges
nek ltszott. Nem is rossz gondolat. Jobban rezte
magt.
- gy van - mondta. - Ez a veszly mindig fennll.
Most boldog volt. Semmi sem helyrehozhatatlan.
Szombat este bemehet a vrosba. Ma cstrtk van.
- Mindig megvan a lehetsge - mondta.
103
 "You'll have to watch yourself," Bill said.
"I'll watch myself," he said.
He felt happy. Nothing was finished. Nothing was
ever lost. He would go into town on Saturday. He felt
lighter, as he had felt before Bill started to talk about
it. There was always a way out.
"Let's take the guns and go down to the point and
look for your dad," Nick said.
"All right."
Bill took down the two shotguns from the rack on the
wall. He opened a box of shells. Nick put on his
Mackinaw coat and his shoes. His shoes were stiff
from the drying. He was still quite drunk but his
head was clear.
"How do you feel?" Nick asked.
"Swell. I've just got a good edge on." Bill was but
toning up his sweater.
"There's no use getting drunk."
" N o . We ought to get outdoors."
They stepped out the door. The wind was blowing
a gale.
" T h e birds will lie right down in the grass with this,"
Nick said.
They struck down toward the orchard.
"I saw a woodcock this morning," Bill said.
"Maybe we'll jump him," Nick said.
" Y o u can't shoot in this wind," Bill said.
Outside now the Marge business was no longer so
tragic. It was not even very important. The wind
blew everything like that away.
"It's coming right off the big lake," Nick said.
Against the wind they heard the thud of a shotgun.
"That's Dad," Bill said. "He's down in the swamp."
- Vigyznod kell magadra - mondta Bill.
- Vigyzok.
Boldog volt. Semmi sem fejezdtt be. Semmi sem
veszett el vgkpp. Szombaton bemehet a vrosba.
Knnyebbnek rezte magt, mint mikor Bill beszlni
kezdett a dologrl. Mindig van kit.
- Fogjuk a puskt, menjnk le a fokra, s keressk
meg a papdat - mondta Nick.
- Helyes.
Bill levette a kt vadszpuskt a falillvnyrl. Kinyi
tott egy tltnyes dobozt. Nick felvette viharkabtjt
s a cipjt. Cipje kemnyre szradt. Mg mindig
meglehetsen rszeg volt, de az agya tisztn mk
dtt.
- Hogy rzed magad? - krdezte.
- Klasszul. ppen csak j spicces lettem. - Bill be
gombolta a szvettert.
- Hiba rszegszik le az ember.
- Hiba. Ki kell mennnk a levegre.
Kilptek az ajtn. A szl viharosan fjt.
- A madarak most megbjnak a fben - mondta
Nick.
Lefel kanyarodtak a gymlcssnek.
- Ma reggel lttam egy szalonkt - mondta Bill.
- Lehet, hogy felrppentjk - mondta Nick.
- Ilyen szlben nem lehet lni - mondta Bill.
Kinn a Marge-gy mr nem ltszott olyan tragikus
nak. Mg csak nagyon jelents sem volt. A szl min
dent elfjt, ezt is.
- Egyenest a nagy trl jn - mondta Nick.
Szlirnyban vadszpuska drrenst hallottk.
- Apa - mondta Bill. - Lenn van a mocsrban.
105
"Let's cut down that way." Nick said.
"Let's cut across the lower meadow and see if we
jump anything," Bill said.
"All right," Nick said.
None of it was important now. The wind blew it out
of his head. Still he could always go into town Satur
day night. It was a good thing to have in reserve.
106
- Vgjunk le arrafel - mondta Nick.
- Vgjunk t az als rten, megltjuk, htha felrp
pentnk valamit - mondta Bill.
- Rendben van - mondta Nick.
Az egsz gy nem volt most fontos. A szl kifjta a
fejbl. Mg mindig bemehet a vrosba szombat
este. J dolog ez tartalknak.
Szsz Imre fordtsa
107
 Cross-Country Snow
The funicular car bucked once more and then stop
ped. It could not go farther, the snow drifted solidly
across the track. The gale scouring the exposed sur
face of the mountain had swept the snow surface into
a wind-board crust. Nick, waxing his skis in the
baggage car, pushed his boots into the toe irons and
shut the clamp tight. He jumped from the car side
ways onto the hard wind-board, made a jump turn
and crouching and trailing his sticks slipped in a rush
down the slope.
On the white below George dipped and rose and
dipped out of sight. The rush and the sudden swoop
as he dropped down a steep undulation in the moun
tainside plucked Nick's mind out and left him only
the wonderful flying, dropping sensation in his body.
He rose to a slight uprun and then the snow seemed
to drop out from under him as he went down, down,
faster and faster in a rush down the last, long steep
slope. Crouching so he was almost sitting back on his
skis, trying to keep the center of gravity low, the
snow driving like a sandstorm, he knew the pace was
too much. But he held it. He would not let go and
spill. Then a patch of soft snow, left in a hollow by
the wind, spilled him and he went over and over in
108
Stalpon
A fogaskerek mg egyet zkkent, aztn megllt.
Nem brt tovbbmenni, a h feltorldott a plyn,
tmren. A hegy vdtelen oldalt gyalul szlvsz
szilrd kregg srtette a havat. Nick, aki a pogy-
gyszkocsiban viaszolta a sjt, most bedugta bakan
cst az orrvasak kz, s szorosan rkattintotta a
kapcsot. Oldalvst kiugrott a kocsibl a szilrd kreg
re, ugrs kzben megfordult, s leguggolva, botjait
maga utn hzva, szguldani kezdett lefel a lejtn.
Odalent a fehrsgben George hol elmerlt, hol fel
bukkant, hol pedig ismt eltnt a szem ell. A sz-
gulds, majd a hirtelen zuhans, ahogy a hegyoldal
nak egy klnsen meredek, hullmos lejtjre ke
rlt, vgkpp kioltotta Nick gondolatait, s csak a
repls boldog szdlete maradt a testben. Egy r
vid szakaszon emelkedett, aztn a h mintha kics
szott volna alla, s ment lefel, lefel, egyre gyor
sabban, az utols hossz, meredek lejtn. gy legug
golt, hogy mr csaknem lt a lceken, igyekezett
minl alacsonyabban tartani a slypontjt, krltte
homokviharknt rvnylett a h, s tudta, hogy ez
az iram tl sebes. De azrt nem lasstott. Azrt se fog
felbukfencezni. Aztn egy puha hfoltra rt, amelyet
a szl meghagyott valami horpadsban, felborult, s
109
 a clashing of skis, feeling like a shot rabbit, then
stuck, his legs crossed, his skis sticking straight up
and his nose and ears jammed full of snow.
George stood a little farther down the slope, knock
ing the snow from his wind jacket with big slaps.
" Y o u took a beauty, Mike," he called to Nick.
"That's lousy soft snow. It bagged me the same
way."
"What's it like over the khud?" Nick kicked his skis
around as he lay on his back and stood up.
"You've got to keep to your left. It's a good fast drop
with a Christy at the bottom on account of a fence."
"Wait a sec and we'll take it together."
" N o , you come on and go first. I like to see you take
the khuds."
Nick Adams came up past George, big back and
blond head still faintly snowy, then his skis started
slipping at the edge and he swooped down, hissing
in the crystalline powder snow and seeming to float
up and drop down as he went up and down the
billowing khuds. He held to his left and at the end,
as he rushed toward the fence, keeping his knees
locked tight together and turning his body like tight
ening a screw, brought his skis sharply around to the
right in a smother of snow and slowed into a loss of
speed parallel to the hillside and the wire fence.
He looked up the hill. George was coming down in
Telemark position, kneeling; one leg forward and
bent, the other trailing; his sticks hanging like some
insect's thin legs, kicking up puffs of snow as they
cignykerekeket hnyt lcestl, mindenestl, gy
rezte magt, mint a goly tallta nyl, mg vgl
megakadt valahol, a kt lba keresztben, stalpai az
gnek meredve, s az orra s a fle telis-tele hval.
George ott llt nem sokkal lejjebb a hegyoldalban, s
nagyokat csapkodva rzta le viharkabtjrl a havat.
- Remek voltl, Mike - kiltotta Nicknek. - Iszony
puha ez a nyavalys h. Engem is ugyangy kiksz
tett.
- Mi a helyzet a buckkon tl? - Nick hton fekve,
rgkaplva kiszabadtotta lceit, s felllt.
- Irny bal kz fel. Egy j kis gyors lesikls, a vgn
krisztinia, mert valami kerts van odalent.
- Vrj egy pillanatig, mehetnk egytt.
- Nem, gyere csak, indulj elre. Ltni szeretnm,
hogy msz t a buckkon.
Nick Adams odart George mell, szles hta s
szke feje mg mindig havas volt egy kicsit, aztn a
lejt peremn siklani kezdtek a lcei, s megint szgul
dott al a sziszeg, kristlyos porhban, olyan volt,
mintha felvltva hullmhegyre emelkedne, s hul
lmvlgybe zuhanna, ahogy sorra vette a buckkat.
Bal kz fel tartott, s a vgn, amikor mr a kerts
fel rplt, kt trdt kemnyen sszeszortva s tr
zsvel hirtelen elfordulva, mintha egy csavart hzna
meg, les szgben jobbra fordtotta a lceit, nagy
hfelht vert fel, majd lassan siklott tovbb, prhuza
mosan a domboldallal s a drtkertssel.
Felnzett a lejtre. George telemark-tartsban kze
ledett, trdelve: az egyik lba ell, meghajltva, a
msikat csak hzta maga utn; botjai gy lgtak ut
na, mint vkony bogrlbak, s idnknt kis hpama-
 touched the surface and finally the whole kneeling,
trailing figure coming around in a beautiful right
curve, crouching, the legs shot forward and back, the
body leaning out against the swing, the sticks accent
ing the curve like points of light, all in a wild cloud
of snow.
"I was afraid to Christy," George said, "the snow
was too deep. You made a beauty."
"I can't Telemark with my leg," Nick said.
Nick held down the top strand of the wire fence with
his ski and George slid over. Nick followed him
down to the road. They thrust bent-kneed along the
road into a pine forest. The road became polished
ice, stained orange and a tobacco yellow from the
teams hauling logs. The skiers kept to the stretch of
snow along the side. The road dipped sharply to a
stream and then ran straight uphill. Through the
woods they could see a long, low-eaved, weather-
beaten building. Through the trees it was a faded
yellow. Closer the window frames were painted
green. The paint was peeling. Nick knocked his
clamps loose with one of his ski sticks and kicked off
the skis.
"We might as well carry them up here," he said.
He climbed the steep road with the skis on his
shoulder, kicking his heel nails into the icy footing.
He heard George breathing and kicking in his heels
just behind him. They stacked the skis against the
side of the inn and slapped the snow off each other's
trousers, stamped their boots clean, and went in.
Inside it was quite dark. A big porcelain stove shone
in the corner of the room. There was a low ceiling.
112
tokat vertek fel, ha sroltk a felsznt; vgl a trdel,
lbt hz alak gynyr flkrt rt le, guggolva, az
egyik lba ell, a msik htul, a teste kifel dlt a
kanyarodsban, hogy egyenslyt tartson, s a botok,
mint kt fnypont, mg jobban kirajzoltk a kr vt
a kavarg hfelhben.
- Nem mertem krisztinizni - mondta George -, tl
mly a h. Te nagyszeren csinltad.
- n meg telemarkozni nem tudok ezzel a lbammal
- mondta Nick.
Lenyomta sjvel a drtkerts legfels szlt, s
George tsiklott rajta. Nick kvette lefel az ton.
Rugz trddel haladtak elre, s egy fenyerdbe r
tek. Az t itt mr olyan volt, mint a csiszolt jg, a
rnkszllt munksok csapatai narancssznre s
dohnysrgra festettk. A szk az tszli hcskra
hzdtak. Meredek lejt kvetkezett egy patakig,
aztn ismt kaptat. Mr az erdbl meglttk a
hossz, alacsony eresz, viharvert pletet. A fk
kztt faksrgnak ltszott. Kzelebbrl kiderlt,
hogy az ablakkeretek zldre vannak festve. Mllado
zott rluk a festk. Nick az egyik botjval kikattintot-
ta a bakancs ktst, s lergta a lceket.
- Innen mr jobb lesz vinni - mondta.
Nekivgott a meredek tnak, vlln a svel, bakancs
szgeit jl belevgta a jgbe. Hallotta, hogy George
ott liheg kzvetlenl mgtte, s is nagyokat top
pant. A sket nekitmasztottk a fogad oldalnak,
levertk egyms nadrgjrl a havat, topogtak, hogy
a bakancsuk is tiszta legyen, aztn bementek.
Odabent egszen stt volt. A szoba sarkban
nagy porcelnklyha fnylett. Alacsony mennyezet.
113
 Smooth benches back of dark, wine-stained tables
were along each side of the room. T w o Swiss sat over
their pipes and two decies of cloudy new wine next
to the stove. The boys took off their jackets and sat
against the wall on the other side of the stove. A voice
in the next room stopped singing and a girl in a blue
apron came in through the door to see what they
wanted to drink.
"A bottle of Sion," Nick said. "Is that all right,
Gidge?"
" S u r e , " said George. " Y o u know more about wine
than I do. I like any of it."
The girl went out.
"There's nothing really can touch skiing, is there?"
Nick said. " T h e way it feels when you first drop off
on a long run."
" H u h , " said George. "It's too swell to talk about."
The girl brought the wine in and they had trouble
with the cork. Nick finally opened it. The girl went
out and they heard her singing in German in the next
room.
"Those specks of cork in it don't matter," said Nick.
"I wonder if she's got any cake."
"Let's find out."
The girl came in and Nick noticed that her apron
covered swellingly her pregnancy. I wonder why I
didn't see that when she first came in, he thought.
"What were you singing?" he asked her.
"Opera, German opera." She did not care to discuss
the subject. "We have some apple strudel if you want
it."
114
A szoba minden oldaln sima padok, stt, borfoltos
asztalok mgtt. A klyha mellett kt svjci pipzott,
s szopogatta kt deci zavaros jbort. A fik levettk
viharkabtjukat, s leltek a klyha msik oldaln, a
falnak tmaszkodva. A szomszd szobban nekelt
valaki, most elhallgatott, egy kk ktnyes lny bejtt
az ajtn, s megkrdezte, hogy mit akarnak inni.
- Egy veg Siont - mondta Nick. - J lesz, George?
- Persze - mondta George. - Te jobban rtesz a
borokhoz, mint n. Nekem mindegyik j.
A lny kiment.
- Nincs mg egy olyan dolog a vilgon, mint a szs,
igaz? - krdezte Nick. - Az az rzs, amikor az ember
nekivg egy hossz lesiklsnak!
- Hajaj - mondta George -, az olyan j, hogy nem is
lehet elmondani.
A lny behozta a bort, s k elkezdtek veszdni a
dugval. Vgl Nick kiszedte.
A lny kiment, hallottk, amint nmetl nekel a
szomszd szobban.
- Az a kis dugmorzsa nem szmt - mondta Nick.
- Vajon lehetne kapni valami tsztt is?
- Megkrdezzk.
A lny bejtt, s Nick szrevette, hogy a ktnye mr
a terhessg elrehaladott llapott takarja. Hogy
hogy nem lttam ezt, amikor elszr jtt be a szob
ba?" - krdezte magban Nick.
- Mit nekelt az elbb? - fordult a lnyhoz.
- Egy operbl, nmet operbl. - A lny nem haj
tott tovbb diskurlni errl a tmrl. - Van alms
rtesnk, ha tetszik.
115

"She isn't so cordial, is she?" said George.
"Oh, well. She doesn't know us and she thought we
were going to kid her about her singing, maybe.
She's from up where they speak German probably
and she's touchy about being here and then she's got
that baby coming without being married and she's
touchy."
"How do you know she isn't married?"
" N o ring. Hell, no girls get married around here till
they're knocked up."
The door came open and a gang of woodcutters from
up the road came in, stamping their boots and steam
ing in the room. The waitress brought in three litres
of new wine for the gang and they sat at the two
tables, smoking and quiet, with their hats off, leaning
back against the wall or forward on the table. Outside
the horses on the wood sledges made an occasional
sharp jangle of bells as they tossed their heads.
George and Nick were happy. They were fond of
each other. They knew they had the run back home
ahead of them.
"When have you got to go back to school?" Nick
asked.
"Tonight," George answered. "I've got to get the
ten-forty from Montreux."
"I wish you could stick over and we could do the
Dent du Lys tomorrow."
"I got to get educated," George said."Gee, Mike,
don't you wish we could just bum together? Take our
skis and go on the train to where there was good
running and then go on and put up at pubs and go
right across the Oberland and up the Valais and all
116
- Nem nagyon bartsgos n, mi? - jegyezte meg
George.
- Eh, hagyjad. Nem ismer bennnket, taln azt hitte,
hogy ugratni akarjuk, amirt nekelt. Valsznleg
olyan helyrl val, ahol nmetl beszlnek, itt ide
genben van s rzkeny, meg aztn gyereke lesz,
pedig mg nem ment frjhez, s ezrt is rzkeny.
- Honnan tudod, hogy nem ment frjhez?
- Nincs gyrje. regem, itt egy lny se megy frj
hez, amg fel nem csinltk.
Az ajt feltrult, s az trl bejtt egy favgcsapat,
levertk csizmjukat, s gzlgve tdultak be a szo
bba. A pincrlny hozott nekik hrom liter jbort,
s a favgk letelepedtek a kt asztal mell, csendesen
dohnyoztak, kalapjukat levve, ki htradlt a falnak,
ki meg elre az asztalra. Odakint a rnkszllt sz
nok lovai nha felkaptk a fejket, s olyankor les
csengettysz hallatszott.
George s Nick boldog volt. Szerettk egymst.
Tudtk, hogy egy j nagyot szhetnek hazig.
- Mikor kell visszamenned az iskolba? - krdezte
Nick.
- Ma este - felelte George. - El kell cspnem a tz
negyveneset, a montreux-it.
- J volna, ha itt maradhatnl, s holnap felmennnk
a Dent du Lysre.
- Muszj trnm, hogy neveljenek - mondta George.
- Te Mike, mit szlnl ahhoz, ha mi csak gy csava
roghatnnk kettesben? Hogy vesszk a snket, s el
megynk vonattal oda, ahol j a terep, aztn tovbb
megynk, s kocsmkban szllunk meg, s tvgunk
az Oberlandon, aztn fel Valais-ba, meg keresztl-
117
 through the Engadine and just take repair kit and kasul az egsz Engadinon, s csak a szksges felsze
extra sweaters and pajamas in our rucksacks and not relst visszk, meg tartalk szvettereket s pizsam
give a damn about school or anything." kat a htizskban, s ftylnk az iskolra meg min
" Y e s , and go through the Schwartzwald that way. denre.
Gee, the swell places." - Bizony, ha gy bejrhatnnk a Fekete Erdt. H,
"That's where you went fishing last summer, isn't micsoda helyek!
it?" - Te ott horgsztl a mlt nyron, nem?
"Yes." - De.
They ate the strudel and drank the rest of the wine. Megettk a rtest, megittk a maradk bort.
George leaned back against the wall and shut his George htradlt a falnak, s lehunyta a szemt.
eyes. - A bortl mindig gy rzem magam - mondta.
"Wine always makes me feel this way," he said. - Rosszul? - krdezte Nick.
"Feel bad?" Nick asked. - Nem. Jl rzem magam, csak furcsn.
" N o . I feel good, but funny." - Tudom - mondta Nick.
"I know," Nick said. - Ht igen - mondta George.
" S u r e , " said George. - Krjek mg egy veggel? - krdezte Nick.
"Should we have another bottle?" Nick asked. - Nekem ugyan ne - mondta George.
"Not for me," George said. ldgltek, Nick az asztalra knyklve, George
They sat there, Nick leaning his elbows on the table, htradlve a falnak.
George slumped back against the wall. - Helen gyereket vr? - krdezte George, s elreha
" I s Helen going to have a baby?" George said, jolt a faltl az asztalhoz.
coming down to the table from the wall. - Igen.
"Yes." - Mikorra?
"When?" - Nyr vgre.
"Late next summer." - rlsz neki?
"Are you glad?" - Igen. Most.
"Yes. Now." - Visszamentek Amerikba?
"Will you go back to the States?" - Azt hiszem.
"I guess so." - Akarsz?
" D o you want to?" - Nem.
"No." - s Helen?
"Does Helen?" - sem.
"No."
118 119
 George sat silent. He looked at the empty bottle and
the empty glasses.
"It's hell, isn't it?" he said.
" N o . Not exactly," Nick said.
"Why not?"
"I don't know," Nick said.
"Will you ever go skiing together in the States?"
George said.
"I don't know," said Nick.
" T h e mountains aren't much," George said.
" N o , " said Nick. "They're too rocky. There's too
much timber and they're too far away."
" Y e s , " said George, "that's the way it is in Califor-
ma.
" Y e s , " Nick said, "that's the way it is everywhere
I've ever been."
" Y e s , " said George, "that's the way it is."
The Swiss got up and paid and went out.
"I wish we were Swiss," George said.
"They've all got goiter," said Nick.
"I don't believe it," George said.
"Neither do I , " said Nick.
They laughed.
"Maybe we'll never go skiing again, Nick," George
said.
"We've got to," said Nick. "It isn't worth while if
you can't."
"We'll go, all right," George said.
"We've got to," Nick agreed.
"I wish we could make a promise about it," George
said.
Nick stood up. He buckled his wind jacket tight. He
leaned over George and picked up the two ski poles
from against the wall. He stuck one of the ski poles
into the floor.
George nem szlt semmit. Nzte az res veget s az
res poharakat.
- Megette a fene az egszet, mi? - krdezte.
- Nem. Nem egszen - mondta Nick.
- Mirt nem?
- Nem tudom - mondta Nick.
- Fogunk mi valaha egytt szni Amerikban? - kr
dezte George.
- Nem tudom - felelte Nick.
- A hegyek nem nagyon jk - mondta George.
- Nem - blintott Nick. - Tl sziklsak. Meg aztn
sok a kivgott fa. s nagyon messze vannak.
- Igen - mondta George -, Kaliforniban ez a hely
zet, amerre n jrtam.
- Igen, ez a helyzet - mondta George.
A svjciak fellltak, fizettek s kimentek.
- Brcsak svjciak volnnk - mondta George.
- Mind golyvsak - mondta Nick.
- Azt nem hiszem - mondta George.
- n sem - mondta Nick.
Nevettek.
- Nick, lehet, hogy mi mr soha tbb nem fogunk
szni - mondta George.
- Muszj - mondta Nick. - Ha ez nincs, akkor sem
minek sincs rtelme.
- Szval mgiscsak fogunk - mondta George.
- Muszj - hagyta r Nick.
- Brcsak meg is grhetnnk egymsnak - mondta
George.
Nick felllt. Szorosan bekapcsolta viharkabtjt.
George fl hajolt, s kiemelte a kt sbotot a fal
melll. Az egyiket leszrta a padlba.
121
"There isn't any good in promising," he said.
They opened the door and went out. It was very cold.
The snow had crusted hard. The road ran up the hill
into the pine trees.
They took down their skis from where they leaned
against the wall in the inn. Nick put on his gloves.
George was already started up the road, his skis on
his shoulder. Now they would have the run home
together.
122
- grgetsnek nincs semmi rtelme - mondta.
Kinyitottk az ajtt, kimentek. Nagyon hideg volt.
A hra kemny kreg fagyott. Az t hegynek fel vitt
a fenyfk kztt.
Elvettk a sjket onnt, ahol nekitmasztottk a
kocsma falnak. Nick felhzta a kesztyjt. George
mr elreindult, vlln a lcekkel. Most majd szhet
nek mg egy jt hazig.
Rz dm fordtsa
123
 Hills Like White Elephants
The hills across the valley of the Ebro were long and
white. On this side there was no shade and no trees
and the station was between two lines of rails in the
sun. Close against the side of the station there was
the warm shadow of the building and a curtain, made
of strings of bamboo beads, hung across the open
door into the bar, to keep out flies. The American
and the girl with him sat at a table in the shade,
outside the building. It was very hot and the express
from Barcelona would come in forty minutes. It
stopped at this junction for two minutes and went on
to Madrid.
"What should we drink?" the girl asked. She had
taken off her hat and put it on the table.
"It's pretty hot," the man said.
"Let's drink beer."
"Dos cervezas," the man said into the curtain.
"Big ones?" a woman asked from the doorway.
"Yes. T w o big ones."
The woman brought two glasses of beer and two felt
pads. She put the felt pads and the beer glasses on
the table and looked at the man and the girl. The girl
was looking off at the line of hills. They were white
in the sun and the country was brown and dry.
"They look like white elephants," she said.
124
A fehr elefnt formj hegyek
Az Ebro vlgynek tls oldaln hossz, fehr he
gyek emelkedtek. Ezen az oldalon nem volt se fa, se
rnyk, a vastlloms kt snpr kzt, a napon st
krezett. Szorosan az lloms tvben vetett egy kis
meleg rnykot, a snts nyitott ajtajban pedig bam
buszbl fztt gynygyfggny lgott, a legyek el
len. Az amerikai fiatalember s a lny, aki vele volt,
kint lt az rnykban egy asztalnl. Rekken hsg
volt, Barcelonbl vrtk az expresszt, negyven perc
mlva kell megrkeznie. Kt percre ll meg ezen az
llomson, aztn megy tovbb Madridba.
- Mit igyunk? - krdezte a lny. Levette a kalapjt,
s letette az asztalra.
- Kutya meleg van - mondta a frfi.
- Igyunk srt.
- Dos cervezas - szlt be a frfi a fggnyn.
- Kt nagy pohr? - krdezte az asszony az ajtbl.
- Igen. Kt nagy pohr.
Az asszony kihozott kt pohr srt s kt nemezlapot.
Letette az asztalra a nemezlapokat s a srket, s
megnzte a frfit s a lnyt. A lny a hegyeket nzte.
Fehren csillogtak a napfnyben, a vidk pedig barna
volt s poros.
- Olyanok, mint a fehr elefntok - mondta a lny.
125
 "I've never seen one." The man drank his beer. - n mg nem lttam fehr elefntot - mondta a frfi,
" N o , you wouldn't have." s kiitta a srt.
"I might have," the man said. "Just because you say - Persze, nem lthattl.
I wouldn't have doesn't prove anything." - Mirt ne lthattam volna? - mondta a frfi. - Az
The girl looked at the bead curtain. "The've painted mg nem bizonyt semmit, ha te kijelented, hogy nem
something on it," she said. "What does it say?" lthattam.
"Anis del Toro. It's a drink." A lny a bambuszfggnyt nzte.
"Could we try it?" - Valami felrst festettek r - mondta. - Mit jelent?
The man called "Listen" through the curtain. - Anis del Toro. Egy ital neve.
The woman came out from the bar. - Ne prbljuk meg?
"Four reales." A frfi beszlt a fggnyn:
"We want two Anis del Toros." - Hell.
"With water?" Az asszony kijtt az ivbl.
" D o you want it with water?" - Ngy rele - mondta.
"I don't know," the girl said. " I s it good with water?" - Kt Anis del Tort krnk.
"It's all right." - Szdval?
" Y o u want them with water?" asked the woman. - Szdval akarod?
"Yes, with water." - Nem tudom - mondta a lny. - Szdval jobb?
" I t tastes like liquorice," the girl said and put the - Egsz j.
glass down. - Szdval krik? - krdezte az asszony.
"That's the way with everything." - Igen, szdval.
" Y e s , " said the girl. "Everything tastes of liquorice. - desgykr ze van - mondta a lny, s letette a
Especially all the things you've waited so long for, pohart az asztalra.
like absinthe." - Mindennel gy jr az ember.
"Oh, cut it out." - Igen - mondta a lny. - Mindennek desgykr ze
" Y o u started it," the girl said. "I was being amused. van. Fknt az olyasminek, amire mr rgta vgyott
I was having a fine time." az ember, mint pldul az abszintnak.
"Well, let's try and have a fine time." - Ugyan, hagyd ezt abba.
"All right. I was trying. I said the mountains looked - Te kezdted el - mondta a lny. - n jkedv vol
tam. n remekl reztem magam.
- J , ht prbljuk meg remekl rezni magunkat.
- Krlek. n azon voltam. ppen azt mondtam, hogy

126 127
like white elephants. Wasn't that bright?"
"That was bright."
"I wanted to try this new drink. That's all we do,
isn't it look at things and try new drinks?"
"I guess so."
The girl looked across at the hills.
"The're lovely hills," she said. "They don't really
look like white elephants. I just meant the colouring
of their skin through the trees."
"Should we have another drink?"
"All right."
The warm wind blew the bead curtain against the
table.
"The beer's nice and cool," the man said.
"It's lovely," the girl said.
"It's really an awfully simple operation, Jig," the
man said. "It's not really an operation at all."
The girl looked at the ground the table legs rested on.
"I know you wouldn't mind it, Jig. It's really not
anything. It's just to let the air in."
The girl did not say anything.
"I'll go with you and I'll stay with you all the time.
They just let the air in and then it's all perfectly
natural."
"Then what will we do afterwards?"
"We'll be fine afterwards. Just like we were before."
"What makes you think so?"
"That's the only thing that bothers us. It's the one
thing that's made us unhappy."
The girl looked at the bead curtain, put her hand out
and took hold of two of the strings of beads.
128
ezek a hegyek fehr elefnthoz hasonltanak. Ez nem
volt vidm dolog?
- De az volt.
- s ki akartam prblni ezt az j italt is. Egyebet
nem is csinlunk soha, igaz? Megnznk mindenf
lt, s j italokat prblunk.
- Krlbell.
A lny a hegyvonulatok fel nzett.
- Szp hegyek - mondta. - Tulajdonkppen nem is
hasonltanak fehr elefnthoz. Csak gy rtettem,
hogy a fk kzt mintha olyan lenne a brk szne.
- Igyunk mg valamit?
- J.
A meleg szl a bambuszfggny szlait hozzverte az
asztalukhoz.
- A sr j hideg volt - mondta a frfi.
- Finom - mondta a lny.
- Igazn rlt egyszer kis mtt az egsz, Jig -
mondta a frfi. - Voltakppen nem is operci.
A lny a fldet nzte az asztal lbnl.
- Tudom elre, hogy fel sem veszed majd, Jig. Iga
zn semmisg az egsz. Csak ppen megnyitjk.
A lny nem szlt semmit.
- Veled megyek, s ott maradok veled vgig. Csak
megnyitjk, s aztn megy minden magtl.
- s aztn, utna mit csinlunk majd?
- Utna megint minden j lesz. Ahogy azeltt volt.
- Mirt gondolod?
- Mert semmi ms bajunk nincs. Csak ez az egy
dolog kesertette el az letnket.
A lny a bambuszfggny fel nzett, kinyjtotta
kezt, s megfogott kt szlat a gyngyfzrekbl.
129
"And you think then we'll be all right and be happy."
"I know we will. You don't have to be afraid. I've
known lots of people that have done it."
" S o have I , " said the girl. "And afterward they were
all so happy."
"Well," the man said, "if you don't want to you don't
have to. I wouldn't have you do it if you didn't want
to. But I know it's perfectly simple."
"And you really want to?"
"I think it's the best thing to do. But I don't want
you to do it if you don't really want to."
"And if I do it you'll be happy and things will be like
they were and you'll love me?"
"I love you now. You know I love you."
"I know. But if I do it, then it will be nice again if
I say things are like white elephants, and you'll like
it?"
"I'll love it. I love it now but I just can't think about
it. You know how I get when I worry."
" I f I do it you won't ever worry?"
"I won't worry about that because it's perfectly sim
ple."
"Then I'll do it. Because I don't care about me."
"What do you mean?"
"I don't care about me."
"Well, I care about you."
"Oh, yes. But I don't care about me. And I'll do it
and then everything will be fine."
130
- s azt hiszed, hogy minden rendbe jn, s boldo
gok lesznk?
- Biztosan tudom. Ne flj, Jig. Ismertem msokat is,
akik testek rajta.
- n is - mondta a lny. - s utna csuda boldogok
voltak mind.
- Ht ha nem akarod - mondta a frfi -, akkor ne
csinld. n nem beszllek r, ha nem akarod. De
tudom, hogy milyen semmisg az egsz.
- s te igazn ezt akarod?
- Ezt tartom a legokosabbnak. De semmikppen sem
akarlak rvenni, ha te nem ltod jnak.
- De ha megcsinlom, akkor jkedv leszel, s min
den gy lesz megint, mint azeltt, s szeretsz majd?
- Most is szeretlek. Tudod jl, hogy szeretlek.
- Tudom. De ha megcsinlom, akkor megint tetszik
majd neked, ha olyasmit mondok, hogy fehr elefnt
hoz hasonlt valami, s rlsz majd neki?
- Nagyon, nagyon. Most is nagyon rlk neki, csak
nem brok erre figyelni. Tudod, hogy milyen leszek,
ha bnt valami.
- Ha megcsinlom, akkor nem fogsz tbbet bnkd
ni?
- Emiatt nem fogok bnkdni, mert semmi az egsz.
- Akkor megcsinlom. Mert az nem rdekel, hogy
velem mi lesz.
- Hogy rted ezt?
- Magammal nem trdm.
- De n trdm veled.
- , persze. De n nem trdm magammal. Meg
csinlom, s aztn minden nagyszer lesz.
131
 "I don't want you to do it if you feel that way."
The girl stood up and walked to the end of the
station. Across, on the other side, were fields of grain
and trees along the banks of the Ebro. Far away,
beyond the river, were mountains. The shadow of a
cloud moved across the field of grain and she saw the
river through the trees.
"And we could have all this," she said. "And we
could have everything and every day we make it more
impossible."
"What did you say?"
"I said we could have everything."
"We can have everything."
" N o , we can't."
"We can have the whole world."
" N o , we can't."
"We can go everywhere."
" N o , we can't. It isn't ours any more."
"It's ours."
" N o , it isn't. And once they take it away, you never
get it back."
"But they haven't taken it away."
"We'll wait and see."
"Come on back in the shade," he said. "You mustn't
feel that way."
"I don't feel any way," the girl said. "I just know
things."
"I don't want you to do anything that you don't want
to do"
"Nor that isn't good for me," she said. "I know.
Could we have another beer?"
"All right. But you've got to realize"
132
- n nem kvnom tled, hogy megtedd, ha gy fo
god fel.
A lny felllt, s az lloms szlig stlt. A sneken
tl, a msik oldalon gabonafldek voltak, az Ebro
partjt pedig fk szeglyeztk. Messze, a folyn tl,
nagy hegyek ltszottak.
A szntfldeken egy felh rnyka vonult vgig, s
a lny ltta a fk kzt a foly vizt.
- Pedig a mink lehetett volna mindez - mondta. -
Minden a mink lehetett volna, s mi naprl napra
egyre jobban elrontjuk.
- Mit mondsz?
- Azt mondtam, hogy minden a mink lehetett volna.
- Ht a mink is lehet minden.
- Nem, nem lehet.
- Mink az egsz vilg.
- Nem, nem a mink.
- Brhov elmehetnk a vilgon.
- Nem, nem mehetnk. Mr nem a mink.
- De a mink.
- Nem a mink. Ha egyszer elvettk az embertl,
nem kapja vissza soha tbb.
- De nem vettk el tlnk.
- J , majd megltjuk.
- Gyere vissza az rnykba - mondta a fiatalember.
- Nem szabad gy gondolkoznod.
- Nem gondolkozom - mondta a lny. - Csak tudom.
- n nem knyszertlek, ha te nem akarod...
- ... s ha nem j nekem - mondta a lny. - Tudom.
Ne igyunk mg egy pohr srt?
- Ihatunk. De meg kell rtened, hogy...
133
 "I realize," the girl said. "Can't we maybe stop talk
ing?"
They sat down at the table and the girl looked across
at the hills on the dry side of the valley and the man
looked at her and at the table.
"You've got to realize," he said, "that I don't want
you to do it if you don't want to. I'm perfectly willing
to go through with it if it means anything to you."
"Doesn't it mean anything to you? We could get
along."
"Of course it does. But I don't want anybody but
you. I don't want anyone else. And I know it's per
fectly simple."
"Yes, you know it's perfectly simple."
"It's all right for you to say that, but I do know it."
"Would you do something for me now?"
" I ' d do anything for you."
"Would you please please please please please please
please stop talking?"
He did not say anything but looked at the bags
against the wall of the station. There were labels on
them from all the hotels where they had spent nights.
"But I don't want you to," he said, "I don't care
anything about it."
"I'll scream," the girl said.
The woman came out through the curtains with two
glasses of beer and put them down on the damp felt
pads.
" T h e train comes in five minutes," she said.
"What did she say?" asked the girl.
"That the train is coming in five minutes."
134
- Megrtem - mondta a lny. - Most mr ne beszl
jnk tbbet, j?
Visszaltek az asztalhoz. A lny a hegyeket nzte a
vlgy tls, kopr oldaln, a frfi pedig hol a lnyt
nzte, hol az asztalt.
- rtsd meg - mondta -, n nem kvnom tled, hogy
megtedd, ha nem akarod. Szvesen vllalom az eg
szet, legyen meg, ha neked olyan sokat szmt.
- S neked nem szmt semmit? Meg tudnnk lenni
valahogyan.
- Persze hogy szmt. De nekem senki nem kell raj
tad kvl. Nekem senki ms nem kell. s tudom,
hogy semmisg az egsz.
- igen, te tudod, hogy semmisg az egsz.
- Rendben van, de hiba beszlsz gy, n mgis tu
dom.
- Nem tennl meg valamit a kedvemrt?
- Mindent megteszek a kedvedrt.
- Nem hagynd abba a beszlgetst, ha krlek, kr
lek, krlek, nagyon szpen krlek?
A frfi nem felelt, csak a poggyszukat nzte. Az
lloms falnl llt a kt tska, s rjuk volt ragasztva
valamennyi szlloda cmkje, ahol csak meghltak.
- De ht n nem knyszertelek - mondta. - Bnom
is n az egszet.
- Mindjrt siktok - mondta a lny.
Az asszony kijtt a fggny mgl, s letett elbk
kt pohr srt a nedves nemezlapokra.
- t perc mlva itt a vonat - mondta.
- Mit mondott? - krdezte a lny.
- Azt mondja, t perc mlva itt a vonat.
135
The girl smiled brightly at the woman, to thank her.
" I ' d better take the bags over to the other side of the
station," the man said. She smiled at him.
"All right. Then come back and we'll finish the
beer."
He picked up the two heavy bags and carried them
around the station to the other tracks. He looked up
the tracks but could not see the train. Coming back,
he walked through the bar-room, where people wait
ing for the train were drinking. He drank an Anis at
the bar and looked at the people. They were all
waiting reasonably for the train. He went out
through the bead curtain. She was sitting at the table
and smiled at him.
" D o you feel better?" he asked.
"I feel fine," she said. "There's nothing wrong with
me. I feel fine."
136
A lny vidman rmosolygott az asszonyra ksznet
kppen.
- J lesz, ha tviszem a tskkat az lloms msik
oldalra - mondta a frfi. A lny rmosolygott.
- Vidd. Azutn gyere vissza, s kiisszuk a srt.
A frfi megfogta a kt nehz brndt, s tcipelte a
msik snprhoz, megkerlve az llomspletet. V
gignzett a sneken, de a vonat mg sehol sem lt
szott. A sntsen keresztl jtt vissza. Bent az utasok
iszogattak, akik a vonatot vrtk. Megivott egy nizst
a sntsasztalnl, s nzte az embereket. Felteheten
valamennyien a vonatot vrtk. A bambuszfgg
nyn t ment ki. A lny az asztalnl lt, s mosolygott
r.
- Jobban rzed magad? - krdezte a frfi.
- Remekl rzem magam - mondta a lny. - Nincs
semmi bajom. Remekl rzem magam.
Ottlik Gza fordtsa
137
 A Clean, Well-Lighted Place
It was late and every one had left the caf except an
old man who sat in the shadow the leaves of the tree
made against the electric light. In the day time the
street was dusty, but at night the dew settled the dust
and the old man liked to sit late because he was deaf
and now at night it was quiet and he felt the dif
ference. The two waiters inside the caf knew that
the old man was a little drunk, and while he was a
good client they knew that if he became too drunk he
would leave without paying, so they kept watch on
him.
"Last week he tried to commit suicide," one waiter
said.
"Why?"
"He was in despair."
"What about?"
"Nothing."
"How do you know it was nothing?"
"He has plenty of money."
They sat together at a table that was close against the
wall near the door of the caf and looked at the
terrace where the tables were all empty except where
the old man sat in the shadow of the leaves of the tree
that moved slightly in the wind. A girl and a soldier
went by in the street. The street light shone on the
138
Tiszta, vilgos kvhz
Ksre jrt, a kvhzbl mindenki hazament mr,
csak egy regember lt kint a fa alatt, melynek lomb
jn tszrdtt a villanyfny. Napkzben poros az
utca, de jszaka a harmat megkti a port, s az reg
szeretett sokig ldglni, mert sket volt, s az j
szakai csendben mgis rezte, hogy ilyenkor ms a
vros. A kvhzban a kt pincr tudta, hogy kicsit
rszeg mr az reg, s mivel trzsvendg, azt is tud
tk, elmegy fizets nlkl, ha mg jobban berg,
gyhogy szemmel tartottk.
- Mlt hten ngyilkos akart lenni - mondta az egyik
pincr.
- Mirt?
- Elkeseredsben.
- Mirt?
- Semmirt.
- Honnan tudja, hogy semmirt?
- Ht, pnze van bven.
A kt pincr lelt egy asztalhoz a fal mell, kzel a
bejrathoz. Kinztek a teraszra. res volt minden
asztal, csak az az egy nem, ahol az reg lt a fa
rnykban. A fa levelei meg-megrezdltek a szell
ben. A kvhz eltt egy lny meg egy katona haladt
el az utcn. Az utcai lmpa fnyben megcsillant a
139
 brass number on his collar. The girl wore no head
covering and hurried beside him.
"The guard will pick him up," one waiter said.
"What does it matter if he gets what he's after?"
"He had better get off the street now. The guard will
get him. They went by five minutes ago."
The old man sitting in the shadow rapped on his
saucer with his glass. The younger waiter went over
to him.
"What do you want?"
The old man looked at him. "Another brandy," he
said.
"You'll be drunk," the waiter said. The old man
looked at him. The waiter went away.
"He'll stay all night," he said to his colleague. " I ' m
sleepy now. I never get into bed before three o'clock.
He should have killed himself last week."
The waiter took the brandy bottle and another saucer
from the counter inside the caf and marched out to
the old man's table. He put down the saucer and
poured the glass full of brandy.
"You should have killed yourself last week," he said
to the deaf man. The old man motioned with his
finger. "A little more," he said. The waiter poured
on into the glass so that the brandy slopped over and
ran down the stem into the top saucer of the pile.
"Thank you," the old man said. The waiter took the
bottle back inside the caf. He sat down at the table
with his colleague again.
"He's drunk now," he said.
"He's drunk every night."
"What did he want to kill himself for?"
"How should I know."
"How did he do it?"
fm rangjelzs az egyenruha gallrjn. A lny haja
donftt volt, s szaporn lpegetett a katona mellett.
- A jrr majd elcspi - jegyezte meg az egyik pincr.
- Bnja is ez, ha mr megkapta, ami kell neki.
- Jl tenn, ha eltisztulna az utcrl. A jrr elcspi.
t perce mentek erre.
Az reg ott az rnykban megkocogtatta a tnyrjt
a poharval.
A fiatalabb pincr odament az asztalhoz.
- Mit parancsol?
Az reg felnzett r. - Mg egy brandyt - mondta.
- Be fogsz rgni - mondta a pincr. Az reg felnzett
r. A pincr elment.
- Itt fog ez lni egsz jszaka - zsrtldtt a trs
nak -, s n mr lmos vagyok. Hrom ra eltt
sohasem kerlk gyba. Vgezhetett volna magval
mlt hten.
A pincr levette odabent a pultrl a brandysveget
s mg egy kistnyrt, s megindult vele az reg
asztalhoz. Letette a tnyrt, s teletlttte a poharat.
- Kr, hogy nem vgeztl magaddal a mlt hten -
mondta a sket embernek. Az reg felemelte az ujjt.
- Mg egy kicsit - mondta. A pincr gy telitlttte
a poharat, hogy a brandy kicsordult a peremn, s
lecsurgott a talpn a legfels tnyrra. - Ksznm
- mondta az reg. A pincr visszament az veggel.
Aztn unottan visszalt az asztalhoz a trsa mell.
- Mr rszeg - mondta.
- Minden este berg.
- De mirt akart meghalni?
- Honnan tudjam?
- Mit csinlt magval?
141
 "He hung himself with a rope."
"Who cut him down?"
"His niece."
"Why did they do it?"
"Fear for his soul."
"How much money has he got?"
"He's got plenty."
"He must be eighty years old."
"Anyway I should say he was eighty."
"I wish he would go home. I never get to bed before
three o'clock. What kind of hour is that to go to bed?"
"He stays up because he likes it."
"He's lonely. I'm not lonely. I have a wife waiting in
bed for me."
"He had a wife once too."
"A wife would be no good to him now."
" Y o u can't tell. He might be better with a wife."
"His niece looks after him. You said she cut him
down."
" I know."
"I wouldn't want to be that old. An old man is a nasty
thing."
"Not always. This old man is clean. He drinks with
out spilling. Even now, drunk. Look at him."
"I don't want to look at him. I wish he would go
home. He has no regard for those who must work."
The old man looked from his glass across the square,
then over at the waiters.
"Another brandy," he said, pointing to his glass. The
waiter who was in a hurry came over.
142
- Felakasztotta magt. Ktllel.
- Ki vgta le?
- Az unokahga.
- Minek?
- A lelkt fltette.
- Mennyi pnze van?
- Van neki bven.
- Megvan mr nyolcvanves.
- Hogyne. Biztosan megvan nyolcvan.
- Mehetne mr haza. Soha nem kerlk gyba hrom
ra eltt. Ki hallott mg ilyet, hromkor fekdni?
- Fent marad. Szeret fent maradni.
- Magnyos. n nem vagyok magnyos. Felesgem
van, vr rm az gyban.
- Ennek is volt felesge valamikor.
- Most mr nem sokra menne vele.
- Azt nem lehet tudni. Taln jobb lenne neki, ha
volna.
- Az unokahga viseli gondjt. Maga mondta, hogy
az vgta le.
- Tudom.
- Nem szeretnk gy megregedni. Utlatos az reg
sg.
- Nem mindig. Ez az reg tiszta ember. Iszik, nem
pancsolja le magt. Mg most sem, pedig rszeg.
Nzze csak meg.
- Mr ltni sem akarom. Br mr hazamenne. Mit
trdik ez azokkal, akiknek dolgozni kell?
Az reg felnzett a poharbl, ki a trre, aztn jra
a kt pincrre.
- Mg egy brandyt krek - mondta, s a poharra
mutatott. A trelmetlen pincr ment oda hozz.
143
"Finished," he said, speaking with that omission of
syntax stupid people employ when talking to drun
ken people or foreigners. " N o more tonight. Close
now."
"Another," said the old man.
" N o . Finished." The waiter wiped the edge of the
table with a towel and shook his head.
The old man stood up, slowly counted the saucers,
took a leather coin purse from his pocket and paid for
the drinks, leaving half a peseta tip.
The waiter watched him go down the street, a very
old man walking unsteadily but with dignity.
"Why didn't you let him stay and drink?" the unhur
ried waiter asked. They were putting up the shutters.
"It is not half past two."
"I want to go home to bed."
"What is an hour?"
"More to me than to him."
"An hour is the same."
"You talk like an old man yourself. He can buy a
bottle and drink at home."
"It's not the same."
" N o , it is not," agreed the waiter with a wife. He did
not wish to be unjust. He was only in a hurry.
"And you? You have no fear of going home before
your usual hour?"
"Are you trying to insult me?"
" N o , hombre, only to make a joke."
" N o , " the waiter who was in a hurry said, rising from
pulling down the metal shutters. "I have confidence.
I am all confidence."
144
- Vge - mondta olyan rvid mondatokban, ahogy
ostoba emberek szoktak rszeggel vagy klfldivel
beszlni. - Nincs tbb ma mr. Zrunk.
- Csak mg egyet - krte az reg.
- Nincs. Vge. - A pincr letrlte az asztal szlt a
szalvtval, s a fejt rzta.
Az reg felllt, lassan megszmolta a tnyrokat, br
pnztrct hzott el, kifizette az italt, s egy fl peze-
tt hagyott az asztalon borravalnak.
A pincr utnanzett, amint ment vgig az utcn.
Nagyon reg ember, bizonytalanul jr, de mltsg
gal.
- Mirt nem hagyta, hogy maradjon mg s igyk? -
krdezte a nem siets pincr, mikzben lehztk a
rednyket. - Mg fl hrom sincs.
- Haza akarok menni lefekdni.
- Mit szmt egy ra?
- Nekem tbbet, mint neki.
- Egy ra, az egy ra.
- Maga is gy beszl, mint egy regember. Vehetett
volna egy veget, aztn hazaviszi s megissza.
- Az nem ugyanaz.
- Nem ht. Nem ugyanaz - hagyta r a felesges
pincr. Nem akart igazsgtalan lenni, csak sietett.
- s maga? Nem fl, hogy baj lesz, ha a megszokott
id eltt r haza?
- Srtegetni akar?
- Nem n, csak ppen trflok.
- Nem - felelt a siets pincr, s kiegyenesedett,
miutn lehzta a vasrednyt. - n bzok. Csupa biza
lom vagyok.
145
 "You have youth, confidence, and a job," the older
waiter said. " Y o u have everything."
"And what do you lack?"
"Everything but work."
"You have everything I have."
"No. I have never had confidence and I am not
young."
"Come on. Stop talking nonsense and lock up."
"I am of those who like to stay late at the caf," the
older waiter said. "With all those who do not want
to go to bed. With all those who need a light for the
night."
"I want to go home and into bed."
"We are of two different kinds," the older waiter
said. He was now dressed to go home. "It is not only
a question of youth and confidence although those
things are very beautiful. Each night I am reluctant
to close up because there may be some one who needs
the caf."
"Hombre, there are bodegas open all night long."
"You do not understand. This is a clean and pleasant
caf. It is well lighted. The light is very good and
also, now, there are shadows of the leaves."
"Good night," said the younger waiter.
"Good night," the other said. Turning off the elec
tric light he continued the conversation with himself.
It is the light of course but it is necessary that the
place be clean and pleasant. You do not want music.
Certainly you do not want music. Nor can you stand
before a bar with dignity although that is all that is
provided for these hours. What did he fear? It was
not fear or dread. It was a nothing that he knew too
146
- Fiatalsg, bizalom s lls - mondta az idsebb
pincr -, mindene megvan.
- s magnak mije nincs?
- Semmim sincs, csak a munkm.
- Magnak is megvan az, ami nekem.
- Nem. Bizalmam nem volt soha, s fiatal sem va
gyok.
- Gyernk. Elg az ostoba beszdbl. Zrjon be.
- n is szeretek sokig maradni a kvhzban
mondta az idsebb pincr -, mint annyi ms. Nem
szeretek lefekdni, mint annyi ms, nekem is kell a
fny jszaka.
- n meg haza akarok menni lefekdni.
- Msflk vagyunk - mondta az idsebb pincr.
Mr tltztt a hazamenshez. - Ez mr nemcsak
fiatalsg s bizalom krdse, br mind a kett nagyon
szp dolog. n minden este halogatom a zrst, htha
jn mg valaki, aki be akar lni a kvhzba.
- Van elg bodega nyitva egsz jszaka.
- Maga ezt nem rti. A mienk tiszta, kellemes kv
hz, rendesen kivilgtva. A vilgts is nagyon j,
aztn meg a lombok rnyka.
- J jszakt - ksznt el a fiatalabb pincr.
- J jszakt - felelt a msik. Lecsavarta a villanyvi
lgtst, s nmagval folytatta tovbb a trsalgst.
Hogyne, a vilgts nagyon fontos, de lnyeges az is,
hogy a hely tiszta s kellemes legyen. Zene nem kell.
Zene semmi esetre sem kell. De egy sntspultnl
nem csoroghat az ember mltsggal, pedig ilyen
kor zrs utn mr csak ezek a csapszkek vannak
nyitva. Flt taln? Nem volt az se flelem, se rettegs.
Semmi volt, jl ismert semmi. Minden semmi, s
147
 well. It was all a nothing and a man was nothing too.
It was only that and light was all it needed and a
certain cleanness and order. Some lived in it and
never felt it but he knew it all was nada y pues nada
y nada y pues nada. Our nada who art in nada, nada
be thy name thy kingdom nada thy will be nada in
nada as it is in nada. Give us this nada our daily nada
and nada us our nada as we nada their nadas and nada
us not into nada but deliver us from nada; pues nada.
Hail nothing full of nothing, nothing is with thee. He
smiled and stood before a bar with a shining steam
pressure coffee machine.
"What's yours?" asked the barman.
"Nada."
"Otro loco mas," said the barman and turned away.
"A little cup," said the waiter.
The barman poured it for him.
" T h e light is very bright and pleasant but the bar is
unpolished," the waiter said.
The barman looked at him but did not answer. It was
too late at night for conversation.
"You want another copita?" the barman asked.
" N o , thank you," said the waiter and went out. He
disliked bars and bodegas. A clean, well-lighted caf
was a very different thing. Now, without thinking
further, he would go home to his room. He would lie
in the bed and finally, with daylight, he would go to
sleep. After all, he said to himself, it is probably only
insomnia. Many must have it.
148
semmi az ember is. Annyi az egsz, hogy fny kell az
embernek s tisztasg, meg rend. Sokan gy lnek,
hogy ezt sohasem rzik, de nagyon jl tudja, hogy
minden nada y pues nada y nada y pues nada. Mi
nadnk, ki vagy a nadban, nada legyen a te neved,
nada a te orszgod, nada meg a te akaratod miknt a
nadban, gy itt a nadn is. Mindennapi nadnkat
add meg neknk nada, s nadzd meg a mi nadinkat,
mikppen mi is megnadzunk az ellennk nadzk-
nak. s ne nadzz minket a nadba, de szabadts meg
a nadtl; pues nada. dvzlgy, semmi, semmivel
teljes, semmi sincs teveled. Mosolygott, s megllt
egy brpult eltt, melyen ott ragyogott az eszpressz-
kv-fz gp.
- Mi tetszik? - krdezte a csapos.
- Nada.
- Otro loco mas - felelte a csapos, s elfordult.
- Adjon egy csszvel - mondta a pincr.
A csapos kitlttte.
- A vilgts kellemes, de a pult nem elg tiszta -
mondta a pincr.
A csapos rnzett, de nem felelt. Ilyen ks jszaka
nem kvn az ember beszlgetni.
- Mg egy copitt? - krdezte.
- Nem krek, ksznm - felelt a pincr, s elment.
Utlta a sntst meg a bodegt. Egy tiszta, vilgos
kvhz, az egszen ms. Most nem gondolkozik
tovbb, hazamegy. Fekszik majd hanyatt az gyban,
s vgl, mire kivilgosodik, elalszik. Persze - ma
gyarzta magnak -, valsznleg az egsz csak l
matlansg. Biztosan sokan vannak gy."
Rna Ilona fordtsa
149
 The Sea Change
"All right," said the man. "What about it?"
" N o , " said the girl, "I cant't."
"You mean you won't."
"I can't," said the girl. "That's all that I mean."
"You mean that you won't."
"All right," said the girl. "You have it your own
way."
"I don't have it my own way. I wish to God I did."
"You did for a long time," the girl said.
It was early, and there was no one in the caf except
the barman and these two who sat together at a table
in the corner. It was the end of the summer and they
were both tanned, so that they looked out of place in
Paris. The girl wore a tweed suit, her skin was a
smooth golden brown, her blonde hair was cut short
and grew beautifully away from her forehead. The
man looked at her.
"I'll kill her," he said.
"Please don't," the girl said. She had very fine hands
and the man looked at them. They were slim and
brown and very beautiful.
"I will. I swear to God I will."
"It won't make you happy."
"Couldn't you have gotten into something else?
Couldn't you have gotten into some other jam?"
150
Idvltozs
- Rendben van - mondta a frfi. - S most mi lesz?
- Nem tehetem meg - felelte a lny.
- gy rted, hogy nem akarod megtenni?
- Nem tudom megtenni - mondta a lny. - Ezt aka
rom mondani s semmi egyebet.
- Szval nem akarod megtenni.
- Rendben van - mondta a lny. - Ahogy akarod.
- Ahogy n akarom? Uramisten, ha az trtnnk,
amit n akarok.
- Sokig az trtnt - mondta a lny.
Mg korn volt, a kvhzban ketten ltek, egy sa
rokasztalnl, rajtuk kvl csak a mixer llt a pult
mgtt. A nyr vge fel jrt, mindketten le voltak
barnulva, tulajdonkpp nem is illettek Prizsba.
A lny tweedkosztmt viselt, bre finom aranybar
na szn volt, szke, rvidre vgott haja szp vben
hajolt ki homlokbl. A frfi nzte.
- Meglm azt a nt - mondta.
- Ne tedd! - mondta a lny. Nagyon szp keze volt,
a frfi azt is szemgyre vette. Karcs, barna, nagyon
szp keze volt.
- Pedig megteszem. Eskszm, hogy megteszem.
- Attl nem leszel boldogabb.
- Hogy pont ezt kell kiprblnod! Pont ezt a tsztt!
151
 "It seems not," the girl said. "What are you going to
do about it?"
"I told you."
"No; I mean really."
"I don't know," he said. She looked at him and put
our her hand. "Poor old Phil," she said. He looked
at her hands, but he did not touch her hand with his.
" N o , thanks," he said.
"It doesn't do any good to say I'm sorry?"
"No."
"Nor to tell you how it is?"
" I ' d rather not hear."
"I love you very much."
"Yes, this proves it."
"I'm sorry," she said, "if you don't understand."
"I understand. That's the trouble. I understand."
"You do," she said. "That makes it worse, of
course."
"Sure," he said, looking at her. "I'll understand all
the time. All day and all night. Especially all night.
I'll understand. You don't have to worry about that."
" I ' m sorry," she said.
"If it was a m a n - - "
"Don't say that. It wouldn't be a man. You know
that. Don't you trust me?"
"That's funny," he said. "Trust you. That's really
funny."
"I'm sorry," she said. "That's all I seem to say. But
when we do understand each other there's no use to
pretend we don't."
" N o , " he said. "I suppose not."
152
- gy ltszik - felelte a lny. - s te mit tehetsz
ilyenkor?
- Megmondtam.
- Nem, komolyan krdem.
- Ht nem tudom - mondta a frfi. A lny rnzett,
felje nyjtotta kezt. - Szegny j Philem! - mond
ta. A frfi a lny kezt nzegette, de nem nylt hozz.
- Ksznm, nem kell - mondta.
- Az sem segt, ha bocsnatot krek?
- Nem segt.
- Vagy ha kimagyarzkodnk?
- Nem akarnm hallani.
- Nagyon szeretlek.
- Ezzel bizonytod?
- Sajnlom, hogy nem rted meg - mondta a lny.
- Megrtem. pp az a baj. Megrtem.
- Szval megrted - felelte a lny. - Ht persze, ez
mg nehezebb teszi.
- Igen - mondta a frfi, s a lnyra nzett. - Egsz id
alatt vgig meg fogom rteni. Egsz nap s egsz jjel.
Fkpp jjel. Meg fogom rteni, amiatt ne aggdj.
- Nagyon sajnllak - mondta a lny.
- Ha frfi volna...
- Ezt ne mondd! Frfi nem lehetne. Azt tudod. Ht
semmi bizalmad bennem?
- Ezen csak nevetni lehet - mondta a frfi. - Hogy
megbzzam benned? Ezen csak nevetni lehet.
- Nagyon sajnllak - mondta a lny. - gy ltszik,
ennyi az egsz, amit mondani tudok neked. De mint
hogy rtjk egymst, mirt tennnk gy, mintha nem
rtennk.
- Ht igen - mondta a frfi. - Mirt is?
153
"I'll come back if you want me."
"No. I don't want you."
Then they did not say anything for a while.
"You don't believe I love you, do you?" the girl
asked.
"Let's not talk rot," the man said.
"Don't you really believe I love you?"
"Why don't you prove it?"
"You didn't use to be that way. You never asked me
to prove anything. That isn't polite."
"You're a funny girl."
"You're not. You're a fine man and it breaks my
heart to go off and leave y o u - - "
"You have to, of course."
" Y e s , " she said. "I have to and you know it."
He did not say anything and she looked at him and
put her hand out again. The barman was at the far
end of the bar. His face was white and so was his
jacket. He knew these two and thought them a hand
some young couple. He had seen many handsome
young couples break up and new couples form that
were never so handsome long. He was not thinking
about this, but about a horse. In half an hour he
could send across the street to find if the horse had
won.
"Couldn't you just be good to me and let me go?" the
girl asked.
"What do you think I'm going to do?"
Two people came in the door and went up to the bar.
"Yes, sir," the barman took the orders.
"You can't forgive me? When you know about it?"
the girl asked.
"No."
154
- Visszajvk, ha akarod.
- Nem akarom.
Aztn j ideig egyikk sem szlt.
- Ugye, nem hiszed el, hogy szeretlek? - krdezte a
lny.
- Hagyjuk ezeket a szlamokat - mondta a frfi.
- Tnyleg nem hiszed, hogy szeretlek?
- Mirt nem bizonytod be?
- Megvltoztl - mondta a lny. - Azeltt sose kvn
tad, hogy bizonytsak. Nem szp tled.
- Furcsa egy lny vagy.
- Te meg egy rendes fi vagy, s bizony isten, majd
megszakad a szvem, hogy el kell hagyjalak...
- De ht kell, ugye?
- Igen - mondta a lny. - Kell, s ezt te is tudod.
A frfi nem felelt, s a lny az arcba nzett, s jra
felje nyjtotta kezt. A csapos a pult msik vgn
llt. Az arca fehr volt, a kabtja is. Ismerte ezeket,
s gy ltta, csinos, fiatal pr. Sok csinos, fiatal prt
ltott mr, melyek sztvltak, s j prokat ltott ala
kulni, melyek sokkal kevsb jl festettek. De nem
erre gondolt most, hanem egy lra. Egy flra mlva
tkldhet az utca tloldalra, megtudni, hogy a l
nyert-e.
- Nem lehetnl olyan j hozzm, hogy egyszeren
elengedj? - krdezte a lny.
- Ht mit gondolsz, mi egyebet teszek?
Kt ember jtt be az ajtn, a pult el llt.
- Igenis, uraim. - A csapos felvette a rendelst.
- Nem tudsz megbocstani? Hisz most tudsz rla -
mondta a lny.
- Nem tudok megbocstani.
155
"You don't think things we've had and done should
make any difference in understanding?"
" 'Vice is a monster of such fearful mien,' " the young
man said bitterly, "that to be something or other
needs but to be seen. Then we something, some
thing, then embrace." He could not remember the
words. "I can't quote," he said.
"Let's not say vice," she said. "That's not very pol
ite."
"Perversion," he said.
"James," one of the clients addressed the barman,
"you're looking very well."
"You're looking very well yourself," the barman
said.
"Old James," the other client said. "You're fatter,
James."
"It's terrible," the barman said, "the way I put it
on.
"Don't neglect to insert the brandy, James," the first
client said.
" N o , sir," said the barman. "Trust me."
The two at the bar looked over at the two at the table,
then looked back at the barman again. Towards the
barman was the comfortable direction.
" I ' d like it better if you didn't use words like that,"
the girl said. "There's no necessity to use a word like
that."
"What do you want me to call it?"
"You don't have to call it. You don't have to put any
name to it."
"That's the name for it."
" N o , " she said. "We're made up of all sorts of things.
156
- Nem gondolod, hogy mindaz, amit egytt tltnk,
megknnyti a klcsns megrtst?
- A bn oly undok arc szrnyeteg" - mondta a
fiatalember keseren -, hogy... pam-pam szembe
nzni pam-pam nem lehet. Mg vgl pam-pam el
nem fogadod." - Nem emlkezett mr a szavakra. -
Nem tudok idzni - mondta.
- Ne nevezd bnnek! - mondta a lny. - Udvariatlan
vagy.
- Nevezzk perverzinak - mondta a frfi.
- James - mondta az egyik jonnan jtt vendg a
csaposnak -, milyen j sznben van.
- n is.
- De hzik, szrnyen hzik, regem - mondta a msik
vendg.
- Sajnos - mondta a csapos. - Szrnyen el vagyok
hzva.
- Ne felejtse el a konyakot hozznteni, James -
mondta az els vendg.
- Nem felejtem el, uram - felelte a csapos. - Megbz-
hatik bennem.
A pult eltt lldogl kt vendg a sarokasztal fel
nzett, majd jra vissza a csaposra. A szem szmra
ez volt a knyelmesebb irny.
- Jobb szeretnm, ha nem hasznlnl ilyen szavakat
- mondta a lny. - Semmi szksg az ilyen szavakra.
- Ht minek nevezzem?
- Egyltaln ne nevezd meg. Semmi szksg arra,
hogy nevet adj neki.
- Pedig ez a neve.
- Nem - mondta a lny. - Sokfle dologbl vagyunk
157
 You've known that. You've used it well enough."
"You don't have to say that again."
"Because that explains it to you."
"All right," he said. "All right."
"You mean all wrong. I know. It's all wrong. But I'll
come back. I told you I'd come back. I'll come back
right away."
" N o , you won't."
"I'll come back."
" N o , you won't. Not to me."
"You'll see."
" Y e s , " he said. "That's the hell of it. You probably
will."
"Of course I will."
" G o on, then."
"Really?" She could not believe him, but her voice
was happy.
" G o on," his voice sounded strange to him. He was
looking at her, at the way her mouth went and the
curve of her cheek bones, at her eyes and at the way
her hair grew on her forehead and at the edge of her
ear and at her neck.
"Not really. Oh, you're too sweet," she said. "You're
too good to me."
"And when you come back tell me all about it." His
voice sounded very strange. He did not recognize it.
She looked at him quickly. He was settled into some
thing.
"You want me to go?" she asked seriously.
" Y e s , " he said seriously. "Right away." His voice
158
mi sszetve. Ezt a blcsessget te is tudod, s ltl is
vele eleget.
- Ezt ne mondd mg egyszer!
- Pedig ebbl rthetsz.
- Rendben van - mondta a frfi. - Rendben van.
- Mr gy rted, hogy nincs rendben. Igazad van.
Igazad van, nem helyes. De visszajvk hozzd.
Megmondtam, hogy visszajvk. Azonnal visszaj
vk.
- Nem jssz vissza.
- Visszajvk.
- Nem jssz vissza. Hozzm nem.
- Majd megltod.
- Ht igen - mondta a frfi. - pp ez a fenesg.
Nyilvn visszajssz.
- Persze hogy vissza.
- Ht akkor eriggy most.
- Igazn? - A lny szinte nem hitt a flnek, de a
hangja boldogan csengett.
- Eriggy! - mondta a frfi, s maga sem ismert a
hangjra. Nzte a lnyt, ajkai vt, kiss kill jrom
csontjait, a szemt, s a hajt a homloka krl, a fle
mgtt s a nyak tvben.
- Igazn? - mondta a lny. - , hogy szeretlek! Tl
j vagy hozzm.
- S ha majd visszajssz, mindent el fogsz mondani.
- Hangja nagyon idegenl csengett, nem ismert r.
A lny egy percre az arcba nzett. Ltta, hogy a frfi
elhatrozsra jutott.
- Azt akarod, hogy elmenjek? - krdezte komolyan.
- Eriggy! - mondta a frfi is komolyan. - Azonnal! -
159
was not the same, and his mouth was very dry.
"Now," he said.
She stood up and went out quickly. She did not look
back at him. He watched her go. He was not the
same-looking man as he had been before he had told
her to go. He got up from the table, picked up the two
checks and went over to the bar with them.
" I ' m a different man, James," he said to the barman.
"You see in me quite a different man."
"Yes, sir?" said James.
"Vice," said the brown young man, "is a very strange
thing, James." He looked out the door. He saw her
going down the street. As he looked in the glass, he
saw he was really quite a different-looking man. The
other two at the bar moved down to make room for
him.
"You're right there, sir," James said.
The other two moved down a little more, so that he
would be quite comfortable. The young man saw
himself in the mirror behind the bar. "I said I was
a different man, James," he said. Looking into the
mirror he saw that this was quite true.
"You look very well, sir," James said. " Y o u must
have had a very good summer."
160
Hangja most megint mskpp csengett, a szja ki volt
szradva. - Azonnal! - mondta.
A lny felllt, s gyorsan kiment a kvhzbl. Nem
fordult htra. A frfi kvette szemvel. Klsleg is
mintha megvltozott volna azta, hogy elkldte a
lnyt. Felllt az asztal melll, felvette a kt szmol
cdult, s a pulthoz ment.
- Megvltoztam, James - mondta a csaposnak. -
Egszen ms embert lthat most bennem.
- Hogy, krem? - mondta James.
- Klns dolog a bn, James - mondta a napbarn
tott fiatalember. Kinzett az ajtn, nzte az utcn
siet lnyt. Amikor az ablakvegre tekintett, ltta,
hogy csakugyan teljesen megvltozott. A kt vendg
a pult eltt arrbb hzdott, hogy helyet engedjenek
neki.
- Ebben igaza van, uram - mondta James.
A kt msik vendg mg egy kicsit tovbb hzdott,
hogy knyelmesebben lljon. A fiatalember megltta
magt a pult mgtti tkrben. - Egyszval, James,
ms ember lett bellem. - A tkrbe nzett, s ltta,
hogy sznigazat mond.
- Igen j sznben van, uram - mondta James. - Bizo
nyra kellemesen tlttte a nyarat.
Dry Tibor fordtsa
161
 A Day's Wait
He came into the room to shut the windows while we
were still in bed and I saw he looked ill. He was
shivering, his face was white, and he walked slowly
as though it ached to move.
"What's the matter, Schatz?"
"I've got a headache."
"You better go back to bed."
" N o . I'm all right."
"You go to bed. I'll see you when I'm dressed."
But when I came downstairs he was dressed, sitting
by the fire, looking a very sick and miserable boy of
nine years. When I put my hand on his forehead I
knew he had a fever.
"You go up to bed," I said, "you're sick."
"I'm all right," he said.
When the doctor came he took the boy's tem
perature.
"What is it?" I asked him.
"One hundred and two."
Downstairs, the doctor left three different medicines
in different colored capsules with instructions for
giving them. One was to bring down the fever,
another a purgative, the third to overcome an acid
condition. The germs of influenza can only exist in
an acid condition, he explained. He seemed to know
162
Egynapi vrakozs
Bejtt a szobnkba, becsukta az ablakot. Mi mg
gyban voltunk. Rgtn lttam, hogy beteg. Borzon
gott, spadt volt, s lassan jrt, mint akinek fj mg
a mozgs is.
- Mi van veled, kincsem?
- Fj a fejem.
- Legokosabb, ha visszafekszel az gyba.
- Nem fekszem, nincs semmi bajom.
- Fekdj le. Felltzm, aztn bemegyek hozzd.
Csakhogy mire lementem, mr felltztt. lt a tz
mellett. Sznalmas ltvny volt. Nagyon beteg az n
kilencves fiam. A homlokra tettem a kezem. rez
tem, hogy lzas.
- Felmgy s lefekszel! - mondtam. - Beteg vagy.
- Nincs semmi bajom.
Jtt a doktor, megmrte a lzt.
- Mennyi a lz? - krdeztem.
- Szzkett.
Lent a nappaliban a doktor hromfajta orvossgot
hagyott klnbz szn kapszulkban, s elrta,
hogy kell beadni. Az egyik lzcsillapt volt, a msik
hashajt, a harmadik az acidosis lekzdsre val. -
Az influenza krokozi - magyarzta a doktor - csak
az acidosis llapotban tenysznek. - Lthatlag
163
 all about influenza and said there was nothing to
worry about if the fever did not go above one hun
dred and four degrees. This was a light epidemic of
flu and there was no danger if you avoided pneumo
nia.
Back in the room I wrote the boy's temperature
down and made a note of the time to give the various
capsules.
"Do you want me to read to you?"
"All right. If you want to," said the boy. His face was
very white and there were dark areas under his eyes.
He lay still in the bed and seemed very detached from
what was going on.
I read aloud from Howard Pyle's Book of Pirates; but
I could see he was not following what I was reading.
"How do you feel, Schatz?" I asked him.
"Just the same, so far," he said.
I sat at the foot of the bed and read to myself while
I waited for it to be time to give another capsule. It
would have been natural for him to go to sleep, but
when I looked up he was looking at the foot of the
bed, looking very strangely.
"Why don't you try to go to sleep? I'll wake you up
for the medicine."
" I ' d rather stay awake."
After a while he said to me, "You don't have to stay
in here with me, Papa, if it bothers you."
"It doesn't bother me."
" N o , I mean you don't have to stay if it's going to
bother you."
I thought perhaps he was a little lightheaded and
after giving him the prescribed capsules at eleven
o'clock I went out for a while.
mindent tudott az influenzrl, s azt mondotta,
nincs semmi aggodalomra ok, amg a lz a szzngy
fokot nem haladja meg. Knny influenzs fertzs,
nem veszlyes, ha elkerljk a tdgyulladst.
Visszamentem a gyerekhez, felrtam a hmrsklett,
s feljegyeztem, milyen idkznknt kell beadni a
klnbz kapszulkat.
- Akarod, hogy felolvassak valamit?
- J , ha akarsz - felelt. Nagyon spadt volt, s stt
karikk hzdtak a szeme alatt. Nyugodtan fekdt az
gyban, szemmel lthatan tvol mindentl, ami k
rltte trtnik.
Felolvastam neki Howard Pyle Kalzok knyv-bl,
de lttam, hogy nem kveti, amit olvasok.
- Hogy vagy, kincsem? - krdeztem.
- Egyformn - felelte.
Az gy lbnl ltem, s tovbb olvastam magamban,
s vrtam, hogy beadhassam a msodik kapszult. Az
lett volna termszetes, hogy aludjk a gyerek, de
valahnyszor felpillantottam, mindig csak az gy l
bt nzte meren, igen furcsa tekintettel.
- Mirt nem prblsz elaludni? Majd felkeltelek, ha
be kell venned az orvossgot.
- Inkbb bren szeretnk maradni.
Egy id mlva megszlalt.
- Nem kell velem maradnod, papa, ha terhedre van.
- De nincs terhemre.
- gy gondolom, nem kell itt maradnod, ha majd
terhedre lesz.
Gondoltam, ktyagos egy kicsit, s tizenegy rakor,
miutn elrs szerint beadtam a kapszulkat, kimen
tem egy kicsit a szabadba.
165
 It was a bright, cold day, the ground covered with a
sleet that had frozen so that it seemed as if all the bare
trees, the bushes, the cut brush and all the grass and
the bare ground had been varnished with ice. I took
the young Irish setter for a little walk up the road and
along a frozen creek, but it was difficult to stand or
walk on the glassy surface and the red dog slipped
and slithered and I fell twice, hard, once dropping
my gun and having it slide away over the ice.
We flushed a covey of quail under a high clay bank
with overhanging brush and I killed two as they went
out of sight over the top of the bank. Some of the
covey lit in trees, but most of them scattered into
brush piles and it was necessary to jump on the
ice-coated mounds of brush several times before they
would flush. Coming out while you were poised un
steadily on the icy, springy brush they made difficult
shooting and I killed two, missed five, and started
back pleased to have found a covey close to the house
and happy there were so many left to find on another
day.
At the house they said the boy had refused to let any
one come into the room.
"You can't come in," he said. "You mustn't get what
I have."
I went up to him and found him in exactly the
position I had left him, white-faced, but with the
tops of his cheeks flushed by the fever, staring still,
as he had stared, at the foot of the bed.
I took his temperature.
"What is it?"
"Something like a hundred," I said. It was one hun
dred and two and four tenths.
"It was a hundred and two," he said.
"Who said so?"
Ders, hideg nap volt, a talajt dr bortotta s annyira
megfagyott, hogy szinte jeges mzzal vonta be a ko
pr fkat, bokrokat, a lenyrt boztot, a fvet, mg a
csupasz fldet is. Fogtam klykkutymat, a vrs r
szettert, s egy kis stra indultam vele a befagyott
patak mentn vezet ton. De menni is, megllni is
nehz volt a jeges felleten, a kutya csszklt, botla
dozott, n pedig ktszer is elvgdtam, egyszer meg
elejtettem a puskmat, s j messzire siklott a jgen.
Flriasztottunk egy frjrajt a meredek boztos
agyagparton. Kettt lelttem, a tbbi meg eltnt
szem ell a tlts tloldaln. Nhny madr leszllt
a fkra, de a legtbb megbjt a boztban. Valahny
szor fel akartam rebbenteni ket, r kellett ugranom
a jgruhs harasztdombocskkra. Ha az ember bi
zonytalan, jeges talajon ll, elg nehz clpont a ma
dr. Kettt elejtettem, tt elhibztam, aztn elge
detten indultam hazafel. rltem, hogy frjet tall
tam ennyire kzel a hzhoz, meg annak, hogy maradt
belle elg mskorra is.
Otthon azzal fogadtak, hogy a gyerek nem enged be
maghoz senkit.
- Ne gyere be - mondta -, megkapod az n bajomat.
Felmentem a gyerekhez, s ugyanabban a helyzetben
talltam, ahogy hagytam. Arca spadt, de kt orcjt,
fell, ttzestette a lz, s mg mindig, mint az imnt,
mereven az gy lbt bmulta.
Megmrtem a lzt.
- Mennyi? - krdezte.
- Szz krl - feleltem. Szzkett s ngy tized volt.
- Szzkett volt - mondta a gyerek.
- Ki mondta?
167
 "The doctor."
"Your temperature is all right," I said. "It's nothing
to worry about."
"I don't worry," he said, "but I can't keep from
thinking."
"Don't think," I said. "Just take it easy."
"I'm taking it easy," he said and looked straight
ahead. He was evidently holding tight onto himself
about something.
"Take this with water."
"Do you think it will do any good?"
"Of course it will."
I sat down and opened the Pirate book and commen
ced to read, but I could see he was not following, so
I stopped.
"About what time do you think I'm going to die?"
he asked.
"What?"
"About how long will it be before I die?"
"You aren't going to die. What's the matter with
you?"
"Oh, yes, I am. I heard him say a hundred and two."
"People don't die with a fever of one hundred and
two. That's a silly way to talk."
"I know they do. At school in France the boys told
me you can't live with forty-four degrees. I've got a
hundred and two."
He had been waiting to die all day, ever since nine
o'clock in the morning.
"You poor Schatz," I said. "Poor old Schatz. It's like
miles and kilometers. You aren't going to die. That's
a different thermometer. On that thermometer
168
- A doktor.
- A hmrsklettel nincs baj - mondtam -, aggoda
lomra semmi ok.
- Nem is aggdom - felelt -, de gondolkoznom mg
iscsak kell.
- Ne gondolj r. Ne trdj vele.
- Nem trdm vele - felelt, s maga el nzett.
Szemmel lthatan nagyon ersen foglalkoztatta va
lami.
- Vedd ezt be, vzzel.
- Gondolod, hogy hasznl?
- Mr hogyne hasznlna.
Leltem az gy mell, felnyitottam a Kalz knyvet,
s olvasni kezdtem, de szrevettem, hogy nem kvet,
s abbahagytam.
- Mit gondolsz, meddig tart mg, mg meghalok? -
krdezte.
- Mit beszlsz?
- Hogy meddig tart mg, mg meghalok.
- De nem halsz meg. Mi van veled?
- De igen, meghalok. Jl hallottam, azt mondta,
szzkett.
- Az ember szzkt fokos lzba nem hal bele. Mifle
ostoba beszd ez!
- De n tudom, hogy belehalok. Franciaorszgban
azt mondtk a gyerekek az iskolban, hogy negyven
ngy fokot nem lehet tllni. s nekem szzkettt
mrt.
Egsz nap vrta a hallt, reggel kilenc ra ta.
- , szegny kis kincsem! Szegny kis regem. Ez
gy van, tudod, mint a mrfld meg a kilomter.
Nem fogsz meghalni. Az msfajta hmr. Azon a
169
 thirty-seven is normal. On this kind it's ninety-
eight."
"Are you sure?"
"Absolutely," I said. "It's like miles and kilometers.
You know, like how many kilometers we make when
we do seventy miles in the car?"
"Oh," he said.
But his gaze at the foot of the bed relaxed slowly. The
hold over himself relaxed too, finally, and the next
day it was very slack and he cried very easily at little
things that were of no importance.
170
hmrn harmincht fok a normlis hmrsklet, a
minken kilencvennyolc.
- Biztos?
- Ht persze - mondtam -, tkletesen olyan, mint
a mrfld meg a kilomter. rted mr? Tudod, hny
kilomtert tesznk meg, ha hetven mrfldet fut a
kocsink?
- ! - mondta.
De mr nem nzte olyan meredten az gy lbt.
Aztn vgl az nfegyelme is flengedett, s msnap
mr minduntalan srva fakadt jelentktelen aprs
gokon.
Rna Ilona fordtsa
171
 Old Man at the Bridge
An old man with steel rimmed spectacles and very
dusty clothes sat by the side of the road. There was
a pontoon bridge across the river and carts, trucks,
and men, women and children were crossing it. The
mule-drawn carts staggered up the steep bank from
the bridge with soldiers helping push against the
spokes of the wheels. The trucks ground up and away
heading out of it all and the peasants plodded along
in the ankle deep dust. But the old man sat there
without moving. He was too tired to go any farther.
It was my business to cross the bridge, explore the
bridgehead beyond and find out to what point the
enemy had advanced. I did this and returned over
the bridge. There were not so many carts now and
very few people on foot, but the old man was still
there.
"Where do you come from?" I asked him.
"From San Carlos," he said, and smiled.
That was his native town and so it gave him pleasure
to mention it and he smiled.
"I was taking care of animals," he explained.
"Oh," I said, not quite understanding.
" Y e s , " he said, "I stayed, you see, taking care of
animals. I was the last one to leave the town of San
Carlos."
172
regember a hdnl
Drtkeretes ppaszem regember lt az t szln,
a ruhja csupa por. A folyn pontonhd vezetett t,
szekerek, teherautk, frfiak, asszonyok, gyerekek
vonultak rajta. Az szvr vontatta szekerek flnyiko
rogtak a hdrl a meredek partra, katonk segtettk
tolni ket a kllknl fogva. A teherautk nekildul
tak s siettek el, s a parasztok bokig tappogtak a
porban. De az regember mozdulatlanul lt. Nagyon
fradt volt, nem brt tovbbmenni.
Nekem az volt a feladatom, hogy tkeljek a hdon,
vizsgljam meg a hdft, s kmleljem ki, meddig
jutott elre az ellensg. Megtettem, azutn visszatr
tem a hdon. Most mr nem ment rajta olyan sok
szekr, s nagyon kevs volt a gyalogos, de az regem
ber mg mindig ott lt.
- Honnan jn? - krdeztem.
- San Carlosbl - felelte s mosolygott.
Ez volt a szlvrosa, rme telt benne, ha megem
lthette, azrt mosolygott.
- llatokat gondoztam - magyarzta.
- - mondtam, mert nem rtettem egszen.
- Igen - felelte -, tudja, ott maradtam, s llatokat
gondoztam. n hagytam el utolsnak San Carlos
vrost.
173
 He did not look like a shepherd nor a herdsman and
I looked at his black dusty clothes and his grey dusty
face and his steel rimmed spectacles and said, "What
animals were they?"
"Various animals," he said, and shook his head. "I
had to leave them."
I was watching the bridge and the African looking
country of the Ebro Delta and wondering how long
now it would be before we would see the enemy, and
listening all the while for the first noises that would
signal that ever mysterious event called contact, and
the old man still sat there.
"What animals were they?" I asked.
"There were three animals altogether," he explained.
"There were two goats and a cat and then there were
four pairs of pigeons."
"And you had to leave them?" I asked.
"Yes. Because of the artillery. The captain told me
to go because of the artillery."
"And you have no family?" I asked, watching the far
end of the bridge where a few last carts were hurry
ing down the slope of the bank.
" N o , " he said, "only the animals I stated. The cat,
of course, will be all right. A cat can look out for
itself, but I cannot think what will become of the
others."
"What politics have you?" I asked.
"I am without politics," he said. "I am seventy-six
years old. I have come twelve kilometres now and I
think now I can go no farther."
"This is not a good place to stop," I said. " I f you can
make it, there are trucks up the road where it forks
for Tortosa."
174
Nem olyan volt, mint egy juhsz vagy psztor, s n
megnztem poros, fekete ruhjt, poros, szrke ar
ct, drtkeretes szemvegt, s megkrdeztem:
- Milyen llatokat?
- Klnflket - mondta s megrzta a fejt. - Ott
kellett hagynom ket.
Nztem a hidat s az Ebro-delta afrikai jelleg vid
kt, s azon tndtem, mennyi id mlva ltjuk meg
az ellensget, s egsz id alatt fleltem az els nesze
ket, amelyek az rintkezsnek nevezett, mindig titok
zatos esemnyt jelzik, s az regember mg mindig ott
lt.
- Milyen llatok voltak? - krdeztem.
- sszesen hromfle - magyarzta -, kt kecske, egy
macska, aztn meg ngy galambpr.
- s ott kellett hagynia ket? - krdeztem.
- Igen. A tzrsg miatt. A kapitny azt mondta,
jjjek el a tzrsg miatt.
- Csaldja nincs? - krdeztem, s a hd tls vgt
figyeltem, ahol az utols nhny szekr siklott le a
part lejtjn.
- Nincs - mondta. - Csak az llatok, amiket elsorol
tam. A macskval persze nem lesz hiba. A macska tud
gondoskodni magrl, de nem tudom elgondolni, mi
lesz majd a tbbivel.
- Mi a politikai meggyzdse? - krdeztem.
- Nem politizlok - mondta. - Hetvenhat ves va
gyok. Tizenkt kilomtert jttem, s azt hiszem, nem
brok tovbbmenni.
- Nem j helyen llt meg - mondtam. - Ha eljut
odig, ahol az t elgazik Tortosa fel, ott tallhat
teherautt.
175
 "I will wait a while," he said, "and then I will go.
Where do the trucks go?"
"Towards Barcelona," I told him.
"I know of no one in that direction," he said, "but
thank you very much. Thank you again very much."
He looked at me very blankly and tiredly, then said,
having to share his worry with someone, " T h e cat
will be all right, I am sure. There is no need to be
unquiet about the cat. But the others. Now what do
you think about the others?"
"Why, they'll probably come through it all right."
"You think so?"
"Why not?" I said, watching the far bank where now
there were no carts.
"But what will they do under the artillery when I was
told to leave because of the artillery?"
"Did you leave the dove cage unlocked?" I asked.
"Yes."
"Then they'll fly."
"Yes, certainly they'll fly. But the others. It's better
not to think about the others," he said.
"If you are rested I would go," I urged. "Get up and
try to walk now."
"Thank you," he said and got to his feet, swayed
from side to side and then sat down backwards in the
dust.
"I was taking care of animals," he said dully, but no
longer to me. "I was only taking care of animals."
There was nothing to do about him. It was Easter
Sunday and the Fascists were advancing toward the
176
- Vrok egy darabig - felelte -, aztn elindulok. Ho
v mennek a teherautk?
- Barcelona fel - mondtam neki.
- Arrafel senkit sem ismerek - mondta -, de nagyon
szpen ksznm. Mg egyszer nagyon szpen k
sznm.
Nagyon kifejezstelenl s fradtan nzett rm.
- A macskval nem lesz hiba, abban biztos vagyok -
mondta azutn, mert meg kellett valakivel osztania
aggodalmt. - A macska miatt nem kell nyugtalan
kodni. De a tbbiek. Mit gondol, mi lesz a tbbiek
kel?
- Valsznleg rendben tvszelik.
- Gondolja?
- Mirt ne - mondtam, s a tls partot figyeltem,
ahol most mr nem mozgott szekr.
- De mit csinlnak az gytzben, ha egyszer nekem
azt mondtk, hogy menjek el az gytz miatt?
- Nyitva hagyta a galambdcot? - krdeztem.
- Termszetesen.
- Akkor elreplnek.
- Igen, biztosan elreplnek. De a tbbiek. A tbbire
jobb nem gondolni.
- Ha kipihente magt, mehetnnk - srgettem. -
lljon fel, s prbljon elindulni.
- Ksznm - mondta, s talpra llt, jobbrl balra
imbolygott, azutn lelt a porba.
- llatokat gondoztam - mondta tompn, de mr
nem nekem. - Mindig csak llatokat gondoztam.
Semmit sem lehetett vele kezdeni. Hsvt vasrnapja
volt, s a fasisztk elrenyomultak az Ebro fel. Szr-
177
Ebro. It was a grey overcast day with a low ceiling ke, bors nap volt, alacsonyan sztak a felhk, gy a
so their planes were not up. That and the fact that replik nem szlltak fel. Ennyibl llt az regember
cats know how to look after themselves was all the szerencsje, meg abbl taln, hogy a macskk tudnak
good luck that old man would ever have. gondoskodni magukrl.

Szsz Imre fordtsa

178 179
 Up In Michigan
Jim Gilmore came to Hortons Bay from Canada. He
bought the blacksmith shop form old man Horton.
Jim was short and dark with big moustaches and big
hands. He was a good horseshoer and did not look
much like a blacksmith even with his leather apron
on. He lived upstairs above the blacksmith shop and
took his meals at D. J. Smith's.
Liz Coates worked for Smith's. Mrs. Smith, who was
a very large clean woman, said Liz Coates was the
neatest girl she'd ever seen. Liz had good legs and
always wore clean gingham aprons and Jim noticed
that her hair was always neat behind. He liked her
face because it was so jolly but he never thought
about her.
Liz liked Jim very much. She liked it the way he
walked over from the shop and often went to the
kitchen door to watch for him to start down the road.
She liked it about his moustache. She liked it about
how white his teeth were when he smiled. She liked
it very much that he didn't look like a blacksmith.
She liked it how much D. J. Smith and Mrs. Smith
liked Jim. One day she found that she liked it the way
the hair was black on his arms and how white they
were above the tanned line when he washed up in the
washbasin outside the house. Liking that made her
feel funny.
180
Fenn Michiganben
Jim Gilmore Kanadbl jtt Hortons Baybe. Meg
vette a kovcsmhelyt az reg Hortontl. Jim ala
csony s fekete volt, nagy bajsz, nagy kez. J pat
kol hrben llt, s nem nagyon volt kovcs formja
mg brktnyben sem. Fenn lakott a kovcsmhely
fltt, s D. J. Smithknl tkezett.
Liz Coates Smithknl dolgozott. Smithn, ez a ha
talmas termet, tiszta asszony azt mondta, hogy Liz
Coatesnl takarosabb lnyt mg nem ltott. Liznek
forms lba volt, mindig tiszta pamutktnyt hor
dott, s Jim szrevette, hogy a haja htul is mindig
rendes. Tetszett neki a lny csinos arca, de sose
gondolt Lizre.
Liznek igen tetszett Jim. Tetszett neki, ahogy Jim
tstlt a mhelybl, s gyakran lldoglt a konyhaaj
tban, hogy megfigyelje, mikor hazafel indul az
ton. Tetszett neki a bajsza. Tetszett neki nevetsnl
kivillan fehr foga. Nagyon tetszett neki, hogy nem
olyan, mint egy kovcs. Tetszett neki, hogy D. J.
Smithnek s Smithnnek annyira tetszik Jim. Egyik
nap rjtt, hogy tetszik neki a fekete szr a karjn, s
a karja fehrsge a cserzett vonal fltt, mikor oda
kinn a mosdtlban mosakszik. Ettl a felfedezstl
furcsn rezte magt.
181
 Hortons Bay, the town, was only five houses on the
main road between Boyne City and Charlevoix.
There was the general store and post office with a
high false front and maybe a wagon hitched out in
front, Smith's house, Stroud's house, Dillworth's
house, Horton's house, and Van Hoosen's house.
The houses were in a big groove of elm trees and the
road was very sandy. There was farming country and
timber each way up the road. Up the road a ways was
the Methodist church and down the road the other
direction was the township school. The blacksmith
shop was painted red and faced the school.
A steep sandy road ran down the hill to the bay
through the timber. From Smith's back door you
could look out across the woods that ran down to the
lake and across the bay. It was very beautiful in the
spring and summer, the bay blue and bright and
usually whitecaps on the lake out beyond the point
from the breeze blowing from Charlevoix and Lake
Michigan. From Smith's back door Liz could see ore
barges way out in the lake going toward Boyne City.
When she looked at them they didn't seem to be
moving at all but if she went in and dried some more
dishes and then came out again they would be out of
sight beyond the point.
All the time now Liz was thinking about Jim Gil-
more. He didn't seem to notice her much. He talked
about the shop to D. J. Smith and about the Republi
can Party and James G. Blaine. In the evenings he
read The Toledo Blade and the Grand Rapids paper
by the lamp in the front room or went out spearing
fish in the bay with a jacklight with D. J. Smith. In
the fall he and Smith and Charley Wyman took a
wagon and tent, grub, axes, their rifles and two dogs
and went on a trip to the pine plains beyond Vander-
Hortons Bay, a falu, mindssze t hzbl llt Boyne
City s Charlevoix kztt a fton. Volt egy vegyes
kereskedse s postahivatala magas lhomlokzattal,
olykor-olykor egy kocsi llt eltte, aztn kvetkezett
Smith hza, Stroud, Dillworth, Horton s Van Ho-
roen hza. A hzak nagy szilfaligetben lltak, s az t
nagyon homokos volt. Az t kt oldaln szntfldek
s erdk. Az ton felfel a metodista templom s
lefel, a msik irnyban az iskola. A kovcsmhely
vrsre volt festve, s az iskolra nzett.
Meredek, homokos t vezetett le a dombrl a szler
dn t az blhz. Smithk hts ajtajbl az ember
vgignzhetett az erdkn, amelyek lefutottak a t
hoz, s vgignzhetett az bln. Nagyon szp volt
tavasszal s nyron, az bl kk s fnyes, s a tavon,
a fokon tl rendszerint tajtkos hullmok hmp
lygtek a Charlevoix- s a Michigan-t fell fj
szlben. Smithk hts ajtajbl Liz ltta a tavon a
Boyne City fel kifut, termsrccel megrakott br
kkat. Mikor nzte ket, gy tetszett, mintha nem
mozdulnnak, de ha bement, s eltrlt nhny t
nyrt, s azutn jra visszajtt, mr eltntek szem ell
a fok mgtt.
Liz mostanban folyton Jim Gilmore-ra gondolt.
A frfi nemigen vette szre. A mhelyrl, a republi
knus prtrl s James G. Blaine-rl beszlgetett D.
J. Smithszel. Estnknt a Toledo Blade-ex. s a
Grand Rapids-i jsgot olvasta, lmpa mellett az els
szobban, vagy kiment halat szigonyozni az blbe
fklyafnynl D. J. Smithszel. sszel , Smith s
Charley Wyman storral, lelemmel, baltval s pus
kikkal kocsira ltek, s elmentek szarvasvadszatra a
183
 bilt deer hunting. Liz and Mrs. Smith were cooking
for four days for them before they started. Liz wan
ted to make something special for Jim to take but she
didn't finally because she was afraid to ask Mrs.
Smith for the eggs and flour and afraid if she bought
them Mrs. Smith would catch her cooking. It would
have been all right with Mrs. Smith but Liz was
afraid.
All the time Jim was gone on the deer hunting trip
Liz thought about him. It was awful while he was
gone. She couldn't sleep well from thinking about
him but she discovered it was fun to think about him
too. If she let herself go it was better. The night
before they were to come back she didn't sleep at all,
that is she didn't think she slept because it was all
mixed up in a dream about not sleeping and really
not sleeping. When she saw the wagon coming down
the road she felt weak and sick sort of inside. She
couldn't wait till she saw Jim and it seemed as though
everything would be all right when he came. The
wagon stopped outside under the big elm and Mrs.
Smith and Liz went out. All the men had beards and
there were three deer in the back of the wagon, their
thin legs sticking stiff over the edge of the wagon box.
Mrs. Smith kissed D. J. and he hugged her. Jim said
"Hello Liz", and grinned. Liz hadn't known just
what would happen when Jim got back but she was
sure it would be something. Nothing had happened.
The men were just home, that was all. Jim pulled the
burlap sacks off the deer and Liz looked at them. One
was a big buck. It was stiff and hard to lift out of the
wagon.
"Did you shoot it, Jim?" Liz asked.
Vanderbilten tl fekv fenyves sksgra. Liz s
Smithn ngy napig fztt nekik, mieltt elindultak.
Liz szeretett volna valami finomat kszteni Jimnek,
de vgl nem csinlt semmit, mert flt tojst s lisztet
krni Smithntl, s flt, hogyha maga venn meg,
Smithn rajtacspn a fzsen. Smithnvel pedig
rendjn lett volna a dolog, de Liz mgis flt.
Mg Jim odajrt a szarvasvadsz kirndulson, Liz
folyton rgondolt. Borzaszt volt az az id. Nem
tudott jl aludni, mert rgondolt, de felfedezte, hogy
ez mulatsgos is. Nem baj, hadd gondoljon csak r.
A visszarkezsk eltt val jjel egyltaln nem
aludt, illetleg azt hitte, hogy nem aludt, mert telje
sen sszekeveredett benne a valsgos brenlt az
lombeli nemalvssal. Mikor megltta az ton kze
led kocsit, hirtelen gyengesg s melygs fogta el.
Nem tudta kivrni, mg megpillantja Jimet, s gy
rezte, minden rendbe jn, ha egyszer megrkezik.
A kocsi megllt a nagy szilfa alatt, s Smithn meg
Liz kiment. Mindegyik frfinak szaklla volt, s h
rom szarvas hevert a kocsiban, vkony lbuk mere
ven kinylt a kocsiderk oldala felett. Smithn meg
cskolta D. J.-t, az meg tlelte az asszonyt. - Hell,
Liz - mondta Jim, s vigyorgott. Liz nem tudta, mi
trtnik, ha Jim visszajn, de hogy valami trtnik,
abban biztos volt. Semmi sem trtnt. A frfiak haza
trtek, ennyi az egsz. Jim lehzta a vszonzskokat
a szarvasokrl, s Liz megnzte ket. Az egyik nagy
bika volt. Megmerevedett, mr nehz volt leemelni
a kocsirl.
- Maga ltte, Jim? - krdezte Liz.
185
 "Yeah. Ain't it a beauty?" Jim go it on to his back to
carry to the smokehouse.
That night Charley Wyman stayed to supper at
Smith's. It was too late to get back to Charlevoix.
The men washed up and waited in the front room for
supper.
"Ain't there something left in that crock, Jimmy?"
D . J . Smith asked, and Jim went out to the wagon in
the barn and fetched in the jug of whisky the men had
taken hunting with them. It was a four-gallon jug
and there was quite a little slopped back and forth in
the bottom. Jim took a long pull on his way back to
the house. It was hard to lift such a big jug up to
drink out of it. Some of the whisky ran down on his
shirt front. The two men smiled when Jim came in
with the jug. D. J. Smith sent for glasses and Liz
brought them. D. J. poured out three big shots.
"Well, here's looking at you, D. J . , " said Charley
Wyman.
"That damn big buck, Jimmy," said D. J.
"Here's all the ones we missed, D. J . , " said Jim, and
downed his liquor.
"Tastes good to a man."
"Nothing like it this time of year for what ails you."
"How about another, boys?"
"Here's how, D. J . "
"Down the creek, boys."
"Here's to next year."
Jim began to feel great. He loved the taste and the
186
- Aha. Ugye csudaszp? - Jim vllra vette a zsk
mnyt, s vitte a fstlbe.
Aznap este Charley Wyman Smithknl maradt va
csorra. Ksre jrt, nem mehetett haza Charlevoix-
ba. A frfiak megmosdottak, s az els szobban
vrtak a vacsorra.
- Nem maradt semmi abban a butykosban, Jim? -
krdezte D. J. Smith, s Jim kiment a fszerben ll
kocsihoz, s behozta a kors whiskyt, amit a frfiak
magukkal vittek a vadszatra. Hszliteres kors volt,
s egsz helyesen kotyogott mg az aljn. Jim hzott
belle egy nagyot, mikor hozta be a hzba. Nehz az
ilyen nagy korst gy felemelni, hogy az ember ihas-
sk belle. A whisky vgigcsurgott az ingmelln.
A kt frfi mosolygott, mikor Jim bejtt a korsval.
D. J. Smith poharakat krt, s Liz hozott. D. J. kin
ttt hrom nagy adagot.
- No, egszsgedre, D. J. - mondta Charley Wyman.
- Arra a fene nagy bikra, Jimmy - mondta D. J.
- Azokra, amiket elhibztunk, D. J. - mondta Jim,
s felhajtotta az italt.
- J, frfinak val.
- gy sszel ez a legjobb gygyszere minden beteg
sgnek.
- Igyunk mg egyet, fik.
- Ez mr beszd, D. J.
- Kisujjig, fik.
- A jv vre.
Jim kezdte nagyszeren rezni magt. Szerette a
187
 feel of whisky. He was glad to be back to a comfort
able bed and warm food and the shop. He had anoth
er drink. The men came in to supper feeling hilarious
but acting very respectable. Liz sat at the table after
she put on the food and ate with the family. It was
a good dinner. The men ate seriously. After supper
they went into the front room again and Liz cleaned
off with Mrs. Smith. Then Mrs. Smith went upstairs
and pretty soon Smith came out and went upstairs
too. Jim and Charley were still in the front room. Liz
was sitting in the kitchen next to the stove pretending
to read a book and thinking about Jim. She didn't
want to go to bed yet because she knew Jim would
be coming out and she wanted to see him as he went
out so she could take the way he looked up to bed
with her.
She was thinking about him hard and then Jim came
out. His eyes were shining and his hair was a little
rumpled. Liz looked down at her book. Jim came
over back of her chair and stood there and she could
feel him breathing and then he put his arms around
her. Her breasts felt plump and firm and the nipples
were erect under his hands. Liz was terribly fright
ened, no one had ever touched her, but she thought,
"He's come to me finally. He's really come."
She held herself stiff because she was so frightened
and did not know anything else to do and then Jim
held her tight against the chair and kissed her. It was
such a sharp, aching, hurting feeling that she thought
she couldn't stand it. She felt Jim right through the
back of the chair and she couldn't stand it and then
something clicked inside of her and the feeling was
warmer and softer. Jim held her tight hard against
the chair and she wanted it now and Jim whispered,
"Come on for a walk."
whisky erejt, zt. rlt, hogy visszatrt a knyel
mes gyhoz, meleg telhez s a mhelyhez. Mg egy
pohrral ivott. A frfiak virgos kedvkben jttek
vacsorzni, de nagyon tisztessgesen viselkedtek. Liz
is asztalhoz lt, miutn behozta az telt, s egytt
evett a csalddal. J vacsora volt. A frfiak komolyan
ettek. Vacsora utn megint tmentek az els szobba,
Liz pedig Smithnvel leszedte az asztalt. Azutn
Smithn felment az emeletre, s Smith is elg hamar
kijtt, s is felment. Jim s Charley az els szob
ban maradt. Liz a konyhban lt a tzhely mellett,
gy tett, mintha olvasna, s Jimre gondolt. Nem
akart mg lefekdni, mert tudta, hogy Jim ki fog
jnni, s ltni akarta, mikor elmegy: magval akarta
vinni gyba a kpt.
Ersen rgondolt, s akkor Jim kijtt. Csillogott a
szeme, haja kicsit sszekuszldott. Liz lesttte sze
mt a knyvre. Jim a szke mg kerlt, ott megllt.
Liz rezte a llegzst, aztn Jim tlelte. A lny
melle duzzadtan s rugalmasan feszlt a frfi kez
ben, mellbimbi megmerevedtek. Rettenetesen meg
rmlt, soha senki nem nylt mg hozz, de azt
gondolta: Vgre idejtt hozzm. Valban idejtt."
Mereven tartotta magt a nagy ijedtsgtl, mert nem
tudott semmi mst tenni, s ekkor Jim szorosan oda
nyomta a szkhez s megcskolta. Olyan les, fj,
knz rzs volt, azt hitte, nem brja elviselni. rezte
Jimet a szk tmljn keresztl, s nem brta elviselni,
s ekkor valami megpattant benne, s az rzs mele
gebb s lgyabb lett. Jim szorosan odanyomta a szk
hez, most mr Liz is kvnta, s Jim ezt sgta:
- Gyere stlni egyet.
189
 Liz took her coat off the peg on the kitchen wall and
they went out the door. Jim had his arm around her
and every little way they stopped and pressed against
each other and Jim kissed her. There was no moon
and they walked ankle-deep in the sandy road
through the trees down to the dock and the ware
house on the bay. The water was lapping in the piles
and the point was dark across the bay. It was cold but
Liz was hot all over from being with Jim. They sat
down in the shelter of the warehouse and Jim pulled
Liz close to him. She was frightened. One of Jim's
hands went inside her dress and stroked over her
breast and the other hand was in her lap. She was
very frightened and didn't know how he was going
to go about things but she snuggled close to him.
Then the hand that felt so big in her lap went away
and was on her leg and started to move up it.
"Don't, Jim," Liz said. Jim slid the hand farther up.
"You mustn't, Jim. You mustn't." Neither Jim nor
Jim's big hand paid any attention to her.
The boards were hard. Jim had her dress up and was
trying to do something to her. She was frightened
but she wanted it. She had to have it but it frightened
her.
"You mustn't do it, Jim. You mustn't."
"I got to. I'm going to. You know we got to."
"No, we haven't, Jim. We ain't got to. Oh, it isn't
right. Oh, it's so big and it hurts so. You can't. Oh,
Jim. Jim. Oh."
The hemlock planks of the docks were hard and
splintery and cold and Jim was heavy on her and he
had hurt her. Liz pushed him, she was so uncomfort
able and cramped. Jim was asleep. He wouldn't
Liz levette kabtjt a konyhafalra szegezett fogasrl,
s kilptek az ajtn. Jim tfogta a karjval, pr lps
utn mindig meglltak, sszetapadtak, s Jim megcs
kolta. A hold nem sttt, bokig gzoltak az t ho
mokjban a fk kzt le a rakodig s az blben ll
raktrig. A vz csapdosta a clpket, s a fok feketn
emelkedett az bln tl. Hideg volt, de Liz egsz
testben izzott, hogy egytt van Jimmel. Leltek a
raktr vdelmben, s Jim szorosan maghoz hzta
Lizt. A lny flt. Jim egyik keze bebjt a ruhjba,
s a mellt simogatta, msik kezt az lbe tette.
A lny nagyon flt, s nem tudta, mit is fog Jim
csinlni, de azrt odatapadt hozz. Akkor a kz, ame
lyet oly nagynak rzett lben, eltvolodott, a lbra
siklott, s kezdett felfel csszni rajta.
- Ne, Jim - mondta Liz. Jim fljebb cssztatta a
kezt.
- Nem szabad, Jim. Nem szabad. - De Jim, a nagy
kezvel, nem trdtt vele.
A deszkk kemnyek voltak. Jim felhajtotta Liz ruh
jt, s valamit akart csinlni vele. A lny flt, de kvn
ta. Meg kell lennie, de flt tle.
- Azt nem szabad, Jim. Nem szabad.
- De igen. Meg kell tennem. Tudod, hogy meg kell
tennnk.
- Nem kell, Jim. Nem tesszk meg. Nem val. ,
olyan nagy, s gy fj. Nem teheted. Jim, Jim. !
A rakod lucfeny deszki kemnyek, szlksak s
hidegek voltak. Jim fjdalmat okozott neki, s most
nagyon rnehezedett a slya. Liz meglkte, olyan
knyelmetlenl sszenyomorgatottnak rezte magt.
Jim aludt. Meg se moccant. Liz kikszldott alla,
191
 move. She worked out from under him and sat up
and straightened her skirt and coat and tried to do
something with her hair. Jim was sleeping with his
mouth a little open. Liz leaned over and kissed him
on the cheek. He was still asleep. She lifted his head
a little and shook it. He rolled his head over and
swallowed. Liz started to cry. She walked over to the
edge of the dock and looked down to the water.
There was a mist coming up from the bay. She was
cold and miserable and everything felt gone. She
walked back to where Jim was lying and shook him
once more to make sure. She was crying.
" J i m , " she said. "Jim. Please, J i m . "
Jim stirred and curled a little tighter. Liz took off her
coat and leaned over and covered him with it. She
tucked it around him neatly and carefully. Then she
walked across the dock and up the steep sandy road
to go to bed. A cold mist was coming up through the
woods from the bay.
192
fellt, lesimtotta szoknyjt s kabtjt, s megpr
blta valahogy megigaztani a hajt. Jim kiss nyitott
szjjal aludt. Liz rhajolt, s megcskolta az arct.
Jim tovbb aludt. Felemelte egy kicsit a frfi fejt s
megrzta. Jim elfordtotta a fejt, s nyelt egyet. Liz
srva fakadt. Odament a rakod szlhez, s lenzett
a vzre. Az blbl kd szllt fl. Liz fzott, szeren
cstlen volt, s gy rezte, minden elveszett. Vissza
ment oda, ahol Jim fekdt, s a biztonsg okbl mg
egyszer megrzta.
- Jim - mondta srva. - Jim. Krlek, Jim.
Jim mocorgott, s kicsit sszbb hzdott. Liz levette
a kabtjt, a frfi fl hajolt s betakarta vele. Rende
sen s gondosan krje csavarta. Azutn keresztl
ment a rakodn, s fel a meredek homokos ton, lefe
kdni. Hideg kd szllongott az erdn t az bl
fell.
Szsz Imre fordtsa
 Tartalom

Indian Camp 6
Indin tbor (Szsz Imre) 7

The Doctor and the Doctor's Wife 18

Az orvos s a felesge (Szsz Imre) 19

Ten Indians 30
Tz indin (Lengyel Pter) 31

The battler 44
A bokszol (Szsz Imre) 45

The End of Something 68

Valami vget r (Szsz Imre) 69

The Three-Day Blow 80

Hromnapos szlvsz (Szsz Imre) 81

Cross-Country Snow 108

Stalpon (Rz dm) 109

Hills Like White Elephants 124

A fehr elefnt formj hegyek (Ottlik Gza). . 125

A Clean, Well-Lighted Place 138

Tiszta, vilgos kvhz (Rna Ilona) 139
The Sea Change 150
Idvltozs (Dry Tibor) 151

A Day's Wait 162

Egynapi vrakozs (Rna Ilona) 163

Old Man at the Bridge 172

regember a hdnl (Szsz Imre) 173

Up In Michigan 180
Fenn Michiganben (Szsz Imre) 181
 KIADTA AZ EURPA KNYVKIAD
A KIADSRT AZ EURPA KNYVKIAD IGAZGATJA
FELEL
SZEDTE A NYOMDAIPARI FNYSZED ZEM (87.8528/8)
NYOMTA A DABASI NYOMDA
A NYOMDAI RENDELS TRZSSZMA: 87-0154
KSZLT DABASON, 1987-BEN

FELELS SZERKESZT: BORBS MRIA

MSZAKI SZERKESZT: KLLAY JUDIT
MSZAKI VEZET: MIKLSI IMRE
KSZLT 14 000 PLDNYBAN, 10,12 (A/5) V
TERJEDELEMBEN
ISBN 963 07 4325 6
ISSN 0139-1062