Mrs. Tower drank a little champagne

"I wish I could describe the frock to you. It would have been quite impossible on anyone else; on her it was perfect. And the eyeglass! I’d known her for thirty-five years and I’d never seen her without spectacles."

"But you knew she had a good figure."

"How should I? I’d never seen her except in the clothes you first saw her in. Did you think she had a good figure? She seemed not to be unconscious of the sensation she made but to take it as a matter of course. I thought of my dinner and I heaved a sigh of relief. Even if she was a little heavy in hand, with that appearance it didn’t so very much matter. She was sitting at the other end of the table and I heard a good deal of laughter; I was glad to think that the other people were playing up well; but after dinner I was a good deal taken aback when no less than three men came up to me and told me that my sister-in-law was priceless, and did I think she would allow them to call on her. I didn’t quite know whether I was standing on my head or my heels. Twenty-four hours later our hostess of to-night rang me up and said she had heard my sister-in-law was in London and she was priceless and would I ask her to luncheon to meet her. She has an infallible instinct, that woman: in a month everyone was talking about Jane. I am here to-night, not because I’ve known our hostess for twenty years and have asked her to dinner a hundred times, but because I’m Jane’s sister-in-law."

Poor Mrs. Tower (бедная миссис Тауэр). The position was galling (такое положение уязвляло /ее/; to gall — ссадить, натереть/кожу/;уязвлять; gall — желчь), and though I could not help being amused (и хотя меня это забавляло: «я не мог не быть развлеченным»; could not help — немогне), for the tables were turned on her with a vengeance (так как теперь именно ей по-настоящему приходилось туго: «все скрижали были повернуты к ней/на нее»; to turn the tables on someone — полностьюизменитьситуацию, так, чтоневамотнынестроятпроблемы, авысоздаетепроблемыдлявашихпротивников;with a vengeance — здорово, вовсю; vengeance — месть), I felt that she deserved my sympathy (я чувствовал, что она заслуживает моего сочувствия).

"People never can resist those who make them laugh (люди не могут противиться = устоятьперед теми, кто заставляет их смеяться)," I said, trying to console her (пытаясь утешить ее).

"She never makes me laugh (она никогда не заставляла меня смеяться)."

Once more from the top of the table I heard a guffaw (и снова с края стола я услышал гогот; top— верхушка; край) and guessed that Jane had said another amusing thing (и догадался, что Джейн снова сказала /какую-то/ занимательную вещь).

"Do you mean to say that you are the only person who doesn’t think her funny (вы хотите сказать, что вы единственный человек, который не считает ее смешной)?" I asked, smiling (спросил: «сказал» я, улыбаясь).

"Had it struck you that she was a humorist (/а/ вам /разве/ раньше приходило в голову, что она юмористка; tostrike— ударять; поражать, поразить; приходить в голову)?"

"I’m bound to say it hadn’t (вынужден сказать, что нет; tobebound— быть вынужденным;tobind— связывать; обязывать)."

"She says just the same things as she’s said for the last thirty-five years (она просто говорит те же самые вещи = слова, которые она говорила последние тридцать пять лет). I laugh when I see everyone else does (я смеюсь, когда вижу, как смеются другие) because I don’t want to seem a perfect fool (потому что не хочу казаться круглой: «совершенной» дурой), but I am not amused (но мне не смешно; toamuse— развлекать; позабавить, развеселить)."

"Like Queen Victoria (как королеве Виктории /намек на известную фразу королевы Виктории: ‘Wearenotamused’/)," I said.

vengeance ['venGqns], sympathy ['sImpqTI], console [kqn'squl], guffaw [gA'fL]