〈接續〉

　　他發脾氣吼叫，斯佳麗比誰都不在乎。斯佳麗是他的長女，三個兒子都已夭折，躺在了家庭墓地，他知道以後再也不會有兒子了，便漸漸習慣了對她坦誠相待，而她對此深感愉快。她比幾個妹妹更像父親。教名為卡羅琳·艾琳的卡麗恩天生柔弱，耽於幻想;教名為蘇姍·埃利諾的蘇埃倫老為自己優雅的淑女舉止自鳴得意。

　　另外，斯佳麗和父親還遵守著一種彼此間心照不宣的約定。要是傑拉爾德看到她不願意繞道半英裡而翻越圍欄，或者是和一個公子哥兒在門前台階上坐得太晚，他就會私底下嚴厲訓斥她一頓，但是絕不會向埃倫或黑媽媽提及。要是斯佳麗發現他向妻子莊嚴保證過之後，還是偷偷騎馬跨越圍欄，或者是玩牌輸掉一筆錢，因為這事她總能從縣裡人的閑話中了解到，她在飯桌上準會巧妙地顯出和蘇埃倫一樣若無其事的樣子。斯佳麗和父親彼此之間鄭重保證，決不讓這事傳到埃倫的耳朵裡，否則只會傷她的心，而父女倆無論如何也不願意讓溫柔慈悲的埃倫受到任何傷害。

　　在昏暗的暮色中，斯佳麗注視著父親，不知怎的，只要在父親身邊，她就會感到安寧。父親身上那種活力、那種樸實、那種粗豪，一直感染著她。不過她最不善於分析，因而也就沒有意識到自己在氣質上很像父親，盡管十六年來埃倫和黑媽媽始終在努力清除她身上這些特征。

　　“你現在看起來挺好的。”她說，“我看除非你自己吹牛，否則誰也不會懷疑你又玩你那老把戲了。不過我還是覺得，去年你就是跳那個圍欄摔破了膝蓋，現在——”

　　“行了，這可真是的，我怎麽能讓自己的女兒來教訓我，什麽時候該跳，什麽時候不該跳。”他高聲說著，一邊又擰了她臉蛋兒一下，“這脖子反正是我自己的，愛怎麽就怎麽吧。你倒是說說看，閨女，你連披肩也不戴，一個人在這兒幹什麽?”

　　見父親又用這種老辦法來擺脫不愉快的話題，她便把手伸進他的臂彎裡說:“我在等你呢。我不知道你這麽晚才回來。我想看看你是不是把迪爾西買下來了。”

　　“買倒是買下了，可那價錢把我給毀了。買了她和她那個小女兒普莉西。約翰·韋爾克斯倒是願意把她倆白送我，可我決不能讓人家說我傑拉爾德·奧哈拉利用朋友的交情做買賣。我硬讓他收下三千塊，把她倆賣給我。”

　　Scarlett was impressed less than anyone else by his tempers and his roarings. She was his oldest child and， now that Gerald knew there would be no more sons to follow the three who lay in the family burying ground， he had drifted into a habit of treating her in a man-to-man manner which she found most pleasant. She was more like her father than her younger sisters， for Carreen， who had been born Caroline Irene，

was delicate and dreamy， and Suellen， christened Susan Elinor， prided herself on her elegance and lady-like deportment.　　Moreover， Scarlett and her father were bound together by a mutual agreement. If Gerald caught her climbing a fence instead of walking half a mile to a gate， or sitting too late on the front steps with a beau， he castigated her personally and with vehemence， but he did not the fact to Ellen or to Mammy. And when Scarlett him jumping fences after his solemn promise to his wife， or learned the exact amount of his losses at poker， as she always did from County gossip， she refrained from the fact at the supper table in the artfully artless manner Suellen had. Scarlett and her father each assured the other solemnly that to bring such matters to the ears of Ellen would only hurt her， and nothing would induce them to wound her gentleness.

　　Scarlett looked at her father in the fading light， and， without knowing why， she found it comforting to be in his presence. There was something vital and earthy and coarse about him that appealed to her. Being the least analytic of people， she did not realize that this was because she possessed in some degree these same qualities， despite sixteen years of effort on the part of Ellen and Mammy to obliterate them.

　　“You look very presentable now，” she said，“and I don’t think anyone will suspect you’ve been up to your tricks unless you brag about them. But it does seem to me that after you broke your knee last year， jumping that same fence—”

　　“Well， may I be damned if I’ll have me own daughter telling me what I shall jump and not jump，” he shouted， giving her cheek another pinch.“It’s me own neck， so it is. And besides， Missy， what are you doing out here without your shawl?”

　　Seeing that he was employing familiar maneuvers to extricate himself from unpleasant ， she slipped her arm through his and said:“I was waiting for you. I didn’t know you would be so late. I just wondered if you had bought Dilcey.”

　　“Bought her I did， and the price has ruined me. Bought her and her little wench， Prissy. John Wilkes was for almost giving them away， but never will I have it said that Gerald O’Hara used friendship in a trade. I made him take three thousand for the two of them.”

　　以上摘自美國小說《飄》

　　Scarlett姊妹三個，性格各異。Scarlett象她父親，相對於其他兩個女兒，Scarlett的父親也更喜歡Scarlett。他們的共同點是敢於冒險、判逆精神。Scarlett以各種詭計蒙騙管教嚴格的母親。Scarlett的父親則以自己的方法蒙騙自己的妻子以放飛自我，比如瞞著妻子賭博、喝酒、作危險的馬跳障礙。一對志趣相投的父女，很真實。

　　〈待續〉