第14部分(第2/7 页)

riends；　to　earn　respect　and　win　affection。　Already　I　had　made　visible　progress：　that　very　morning　I　had　reached　the　head　of　my　class；　Miss　Miller　had　praised　me　warmly；　Miss　Temple　had　smiled　approbation；　she　had　promised　to　teach　me　drawing；　and　to　let　me　learn　French；　if　I　continued　to　make　similar　improvement　two　months　longer：　and　then　I　was　well　received　by　my　fellow…pupils；　treated　as　an　equal　by　those　of　my　own　age；　and　not　molested　by　any；　now；　here　I　lay　again　crushed　and　trodden　on；　and　could　I　ever　rise　more？

“Never；”　I　thought；　and　ardently　I　wished　to　die。　While　sobbing　out　this　wish　in　broken　accents；　some　one　approached：　I　started　up—　again　Helen　Burns　was　near　me；　the　fading　fires　just　showed　her　ing　up　the　long；　vacant　room；　she　brought　my　coffee　and　bread。

“e；　eat　something；”　she　said；　but　I　put　both　away　from　me；　feeling　as　if　a　drop　or　a　crumb　would　have　choked　me　in　my　present　condition。　Helen　regarded　me；　probably　with　surprise：　I　could　not　now　abate　my　agitation；　though　I　tried　hard；　I　continued　to　weep　aloud。　She　sat　down　on　the　ground　near　me；　embraced　her　knees　with　her　arms；　and　rested　her　head　upon　them；　in　that　attitude　she　remained　silent　as　an　Indian。　I　was　the　first　who　spoke—

“Helen；　why　do　you　stay　with　a　girl　whom　everybody　believes　to　be　a　liar？”

“Everybody；　Jane？　Why；　there　are　only　eighty　people　who　have　heard　you　called　so；　and　the　world　contains　hundreds　of　millions。”

“But　what　have　I　to　do　with　millions？　The　eighty；　I　know；　despise　me。”

“Jane；　you　are　mistaken：　probably　not　one　in　the　school　either　despises　or　dislikes　you：　many；　I　am　sure；　pity　you　much。”

“How　can　they　pity　me　after　what　Mr。　Brocklehurst　has　said？”

“Mr。　Brocklehurst　is　not　a　god：　nor　is　he　even　a　great　and