Chapter 2 (1) Kapitel 2 (1) Розділ 2 (1)

There was never a more amazed little boy than Cedric during the week that followed; there was never so strange or so unreal a week. Nella settimana che seguì non ci fu mai un bambino più stupito di Cedric; non ci fu mai una settimana così strana o così irreale. In the first place, the story his mamma told him was a very curious one. He was obliged to hear it two or three times before he could understand it. He could not imagine what Mr. Hobbs would think of it. It began with earls: his grandpapa, whom he had never seen, was an earl; and his eldest uncle, if he had not been killed by a fall from his horse, would have been an earl, too, in time; and after his death, his other uncle would have been an earl, if he had not died suddenly, in Rome, of a fever. Cominciò con i conti: il nonno, che non aveva mai visto, era un conte; e lo zio maggiore, se non fosse stato ucciso da una caduta da cavallo, sarebbe stato anch'egli un conte, col tempo; e dopo la sua morte, l'altro zio sarebbe stato un conte, se non fosse morto improvvisamente, a Roma, di febbre. After that, his own papa, if he had lived, would have been an earl, but, since they all had died and only Cedric was left, it appeared that he was to be an earl after his grandpapa's death--and for the present he was Lord Fauntleroy. He turned quite pale when he was first told of it.

"Oh! Dearest!" he said, "I should rather not be an earl. disse, "preferirei non essere un conte. None of the boys are earls. Can't I not be one?" But it seemed to be unavoidable. And when, that evening, they sat together by the open window looking out into the shabby street, he and his mother had a long talk about it. Cedric sat on his footstool, clasping one knee in his favorite attitude and wearing a bewildered little face rather red from the exertion of thinking. Cedric si sedette sullo sgabello, stringendo un ginocchio nel suo atteggiamento preferito e con un visetto sconcertato e piuttosto rosso per lo sforzo di pensare. His grandfather had sent for him to come to England, and his mamma thought he must go. Il nonno gli aveva chiesto di andare in Inghilterra e la mamma pensava che dovesse andarci.

"Because," she said, looking out of the window with sorrowful eyes, "I know your papa would wish it to be so, Ceddie. He loved his home very much; and there are many things to be thought of that a little boy can't quite understand. I should be a selfish little mother if I did not send you. Sarei una piccola madre egoista se non ti mandassi. When you are a man, you will see why." Ceddie shook his head mournfully. Ceddie scosse la testa con tristezza.

"I shall be very sorry to leave Mr. Hobbs," he said. "I'm afraid he'll miss me, and I shall miss him. "Temo che gli mancherò e che lui mancherà a me. And I shall miss them all." When Mr. Havisham--who was the family lawyer of the Earl of Dorincourt, and who had been sent by him to bring Lord Fauntleroy to England--came the next day, Cedric heard many things. But, somehow, it did not console him to hear that he was to be a very rich man when he grew up, and that he would have castles here and castles there, and great parks and deep mines and grand estates and tenantry. Ma, in qualche modo, non lo consolava sentire che da grande sarebbe stato un uomo molto ricco e che avrebbe avuto castelli qui e castelli là, e grandi parchi e miniere profonde e grandi proprietà e tenute. He was troubled about his friend, Mr. Hobbs, and he went to see him at the store soon after breakfast, in great anxiety of mind. Era preoccupato per il suo amico, Mr. Hobbs, e andò a trovarlo al negozio subito dopo colazione, in grande ansia.

He found him reading the morning paper, and he approached him with a grave demeanor. Lo trovò che leggeva il giornale del mattino e gli si avvicinò con un atteggiamento grave. He really felt it would be a great shock to Mr. Hobbs to hear what had befallen him, and on his way to the store he had been thinking how it would be best to break the news. Sentiva che sarebbe stato un grande shock per Mr. Hobbs sapere cosa gli era successo, e mentre andava al negozio aveva pensato a come sarebbe stato meglio dare la notizia.

"Hello!" said Mr. Hobbs. "Mornin'!" "Good-morning," said Cedric. He did not climb up on the high stool as usual, but sat down on a cracker-box and clasped his knee, and was so silent for a few moments that Mr. Hobbs finally looked up inquiringly over the top of his newspaper.

"Hello!" he said again.

Cedric gathered all his strength of mind together.

"Mr. Hobbs," he said, "do you remember what we were talking about yesterday morning?" "Well," replied Mr. Hobbs,--"seems to me it was England." "Yes," said Cedric; "but just when Mary came for me, you know?" "Sì", disse Cedric; "ma proprio quando Mary è venuta a prendermi, sai?". Mr. Hobbs rubbed the back of his head. Mr. Hobbs si sfregò la nuca.

"We was mentioning Queen Victoria and the aristocracy." "Yes," said Cedric, rather hesitatingly, "and--and earls; don't you know?" "Why, yes," returned Mr. Hobbs; "we did touch 'em up a little; that's so!" "Ma sì", rispose il signor Hobbs, "li abbiamo ritoccati un po'; è così!". Cedric flushed up to the curly bang on his forehead. Cedric arrossì fino alla botta di riccioli sulla fronte. Nothing so embarrassing as this had ever happened to him in his life. He was a little afraid that it might be a trifle embarrassing to Mr. Hobbs, too. Aveva un po' paura che potesse essere un po' imbarazzante anche per Mr. Hobbs.

"You said," he proceeded, "that you wouldn't have them sitting 'round on your cracker-barrels." "Hai detto", ha proseguito, "che non li avresti fatti sedere sulle tue botti di cracker". "So I did!" returned Mr. Hobbs, stoutly. "And I meant it. Let 'em try it--that's all!" "Mr. Hobbs," said Cedric, "one is sitting on this box now!" Mr. Hobbs almost jumped out of his chair.