YEVGENY ALEXEYITCH PODZHAROV, the jeune premier, a graceful, elegant young man with an oval face and little bags under his eyes, had come for the season to one of the southern towns of Russia, and tried at once to make the acquaintance of a few of the leading families of the place. —-
叶甫根尼·亚列克谢维奇·波贾罗夫，一个有椭圆脸庞和眼袋的优雅风度的年轻男子，来到俄罗斯南部的一个城镇度假，立即试图结交几个当地的主要家族。 —-

“Yes, signor,” he would often say, gracefully swinging his foot and displaying his red socks, “an artist ought to act upon the masses, both directly and indirectly; —-
“是的，先生，”他经常优雅地摇摆着脚，并展示他的红色袜子，“一个艺术家应该直接和间接地影响群众； —-

the first aim is attained by his work on the stage, the second by an acquaintance with the local inhabitants. —-
第一个目标通过他在舞台上的工作实现，第二个目标通过与当地居民的交往实现。 —-

On my honour, parole d’honneur, I don’t understand why it is we actors avoid making acquaintance with local families. —-
上帝作证，我不明白为什么我们演员要避免与当地家庭交往。 —-

Why is it? To say nothing of dinners, name-day parties, feasts, soirées fixes, to say nothing of these entertainments, think of the moral influence we may have on society! —-
为什么呢？就不说宴会、名字派对、盛宴、固定晚会，就不说这些娱乐活动，想想我们对社会可能产生的道德影响！ —-

Is it not agreeable to feel one has dropped a spark in some thick skull? The types one meets! —-
难道不愉快地感到自己已经在一些愚蠢的脑袋里点燃了一道火花吗？你在这里遇到的那些类型的人！ —-

The women! Mon Dieu, what women! they turn one’s head! —-
那些女人！天哪，那些女人！她们让人神魂颠倒！ —-

One penetrates into some huge merchant’s house, into the sacred retreats, and picks out some fresh and rosy little peach—it’s heaven, parole d’honneur!”
你深入某个富商之家，进入神圣的庇护所，挑选出一个新鲜而红润的小桃，那简直是天堂，上帝作证！”

In the southern town, among other estimable families he made the acquaintance of that of a manufacturer called Zybaev. —-
在南方城镇，他结识了制造商齐马耶夫的家庭，其中包括其他可敬的家庭。 —-

Whenever he remembers that acquaintance now he frowns contemptuously, screws up his eyes, and nervously plays with his watch-chain.
现在每当他回忆起那段交往时，他蔑视地皱眉，眯起眼睛，紧张地玩弄着他的表链。

One day—it was at a name-day party at Zybaev’s—the actor was sitting in his new friends’ drawing-room and holding forth as usual. —-
某天——正是在齐马耶夫的名字派对上——演员坐在他新朋友们的客厅里，像往常一样发表讲演。 —-

Around him “types” were sitting in armchairs and on the sofa, listening affably; —-
在他周围，“类型人物”坐在扶手椅和沙发上，亲切地听着； —-

from the next room came feminine laughter and the sounds of evening tea. . . . —-
在隔壁房间里传来女性的笑声和晚茶的声音….. —-

Crossing his legs, after each phrase sipping tea with rum in it, and trying to assume an expression of careless boredom, he talked of his stage triumphs.
在解开腿的同时，每说完一句就啜饮装有朗姆酒的茶，试图装出漫不经心的无聊表情，他谈论着自己的舞台成功。

“I am a provincial actor principally,” he said, smiling condescendingly, “but I have played in Petersburg and Moscow too. —-
“我是一个省级演员，”他说着，得意地笑着，“但我也在彼得堡和莫斯科演过。” —-

. . . By the way, I will describe an incident which illustrates pretty well the state of mind of to-day. —-
顺便说一句，我要描述一个事情，这件事情很好地说明了当今的思维状态。 —-

At my benefit in Moscow the young people brought me such a mass of laurel wreaths that I swear by all I hold sacred I did not know where to put them! —-
在莫斯科的表演中，年轻人给我带来了一大堆的 lauri 追赠，我发誓以我一切神圣的东西，我真不知道该放在哪里！ —-

Parole d’honneur! Later on, at a moment when funds were short, I took the laurel wreaths to the shop, and . —-
兄弟，等到一时缺钱的时候，我把那些 lauri 转卖给了商店，然后… —-

. . guess what they weighed. Eighty pounds altogether. Ha, ha! —-
你猜猜它们一共有多重。称了八十磅。哈哈！ —-

you can’t think how useful the money was. Artists, indeed, are often hard up. —-
你想不到这些钱有多有用。艺术家们，确实经常穷困潦倒。 —-

To-day I have hundreds, thousands, tomorrow nothing. . . . —-
今天我有上百、上千，明天一文不名… —-

To-day I haven’t a crust of bread, to-morrow I have oysters and anchovies, hang it all!”
今天我没有一块面包，明天我却有蚝和anchovies，哎呀！

The local inhabitants sipped their glasses decorously and listened. —-
当地居民端庄地啜饮着酒，并倾听着。 —-

The well-pleased host, not knowing how to make enough of his cultured and interesting visitor, presented to him a distant relative who had just arrived, one Pavel Ignatyevitch Klimov, a bulky gentleman about forty, wearing a long frock-coat and very full trousers.
满心欢喜的主人不知道要如何尽够地招待这位有教养和有趣的客人，于是向他介绍了一个刚刚到达的远亲，彼得·伊格纳季耶维奇·克利莫夫，一个约四十岁、身材庞大的绅士，他穿着一件长外套和很宽大的裤子。

“You ought to know each other,” said Zybaev as he presented Klimov; —-
“你们应该认识一下，”齐拜夫说着介绍克利莫夫； “他喜欢剧院，曾经自己也演过戏。 —-

“he loves theatres, and at one time used to act himself. —-
他在图拉省有一座庄园。” —-

He has an estate in the Tula province.”
普兹哈罗夫和克利莫夫展开了对话。

Podzharov and Klimov got into conversation. —-
从对话中得知，让两人都非常满意的是，图拉的地主正好住在这位年轻演员连续两个赛季演出过的那个城镇里。 —-

It appeared, to the great satisfaction of both, that the Tula landowner lived in the very town in which the jeune premier had acted for two seasons in succession. —-
之后，他们询问了城镇情况，共同的熟人，以及剧院的情况… —-

Enquiries followed about the town, about common acquaintances, and about the theatre. . . .
乌扎诺夫和克利莫夫之后开始了一个对话，让双方都非常满意，而图拉的地主恰好住在这位年轻的主演连续两个赛季演出的那个城镇上。

“Do you know, I like that town awfully,” said the jeune premier, displaying his red socks. —-
“你知道吗，我非常喜欢那个小镇。”年轻男主角说道，露出了他的红袜子。 —-

“What streets, what a charming park, and what society! —-
“那些街道，多么迷人的公园，还有那样的社交圈！” —-

Delightful society!”
“太迷人的社交圈了！”

“Yes, delightful society,” the landowner assented.
“是的，太迷人的社交圈了。”地主点头称是。

“A commercial town, but extremely cultured. . . . For instance, er-er-er . . . —-
“一个商业城镇，但是非常有文化…… 例如-例如-例如……” —-

the head master of the high school, the public prosecutor . . . the officers. . . . —-
“中学校长，公诉人……还有军官们……” —-

The police captain, too, was not bad, a man, as the French say, enchanté, and the women, Allah, what women!”
“警察队长也不错，一个据法国人说那样迷人的人，还有那些女人，天哪，多美！”

“Yes, the women . . . certainly. . . .”
“是的，女人们……当然……”

“Perhaps I am partial; the fact is that in your town, I don’t know why, I was devilishly lucky with the fair sex! —-
“也许我有点偏袒；事实是在你们的城里，不知道为什么，我在异性方面真是运气好得不可思议！” —-

I could write a dozen novels. To take this episode, for instance. . . . —-
“我可以写十几本小说。就以这一段为例……” —-

I was staying in Yegoryevsky Street, in the very house where the Treasury is. . . .”
“我住在叶戈里耶夫斯基街上，就在财政厅的那栋楼里……”

“The red house without stucco?”
“没有涂料的红房子？”

“Yes, yes . . . without stucco. . . . Close by, as I remember now, lived a local beauty, Varenka. . . .”
“是的，是的……没有涂料……我现在想起来了，就住在附近的一个叫瓦伦卡的美女那里……”

“Not Varvara Nikolayevna?” asked Klimov, and he beamed with satisfaction. —-
“不是娜佳吗？”克里莫夫满意地笑着问道。 —-

“She really is a beauty . . . the most beautiful girl in the town.”
“她真的很漂亮……是这个城里最美的姑娘。”

“The most beautiful girl in the town! A classic profile, great black eyes . . . . —-
“这个城里最美的姑娘！经典的轮廓，漂亮的黑眼睛……” —-

and hair to her waist! She saw me in ‘Hamlet,’ she wrote me a letter à la Pushkin’s ‘Tatyana. —-
“还有漂亮的长发！她在看我演《哈姆雷特》时，给我写了一封像普希金的《塔蒂亚娜》那样的信…… —-

’ . . . I answered, as you may guess. . . .”
我回了信，你可以猜到……”

Podzharov looked round, and having satisfied himself that there were no ladies in the room, rolled his eyes, smiled mournfully, and heaved a sigh.
波兹哈洛夫环顾四周，确认房间里没有女士们后，翻着眼睛，哀愁地笑了笑，叹了口气。

“I came home one evening after a performance,” he whispered, “and there she was, sitting on my sofa. —-
“有一天晚上，我演完一场回到家，”他低声说，“就看到她坐在我的沙发上。 —-

There followed tears, protestations of love, kisses. . . . —-
“接着就有眼泪，爱的抗议，亲吻……” —-

Oh, that was a marvellous, that was a divine night! —-
“噢，那是多么美妙，多么神圣的夜晚啊！” —-

Our romance lasted two months, but that night was never repeated. —-
我们的恋情持续了两个月，但那个夜晚从未重现。 —-

It was a night, parole d’honneur!”
那是一个晚上，诺言！

“Excuse me, what’s that?” muttered Klimov, turning crimson and gazing open-eyed at the actor. —-
“对不起，请问那是什么？”克里莫夫嘀咕着，脸红地睁大眼睛看着演员。 —-

“I know Varvara Nikolayevna well: she’s my niece.”
“我很了解瓦尔瓦拉·尼古拉耶芙娜：她是我的侄女。”

Podzharov was embarrassed, and he, too, opened his eyes wide.
波兹哈罗夫感到尴尬，他也睁大眼睛。

“How’s this?” Klimov went on, throwing up his hands. —-
“怎么会这样？”克里莫夫继续说着，举起双手。 —-

“I know the girl, and . . . and . . . I am surprised. . . .”
“我认识那个女孩, . . . 而且 . . . 我感到很惊讶. . . .”

“I am very sorry this has come up,” muttered the actor, getting up and rubbing something out of his left eye with his little finger. —-
“很遗憾出现了这种情况，”演员喃喃自语着，站起身，用小指擦去左眼角的东西。 —-

“Though, of course . . . of course, you as her uncle . . .”
“尽管，当然, . . . 当然，您是她的叔叔 . . .”

The other guests, who had hitherto been listening to the actor with pleasure and rewarding him with smiles, were embarrassed and dropped their eyes.
其他客人原本一直愉快地听着演员说话，并报以微笑，但此时他们感到尴尬，低下了头。

“Please, do be so good . . . take your words back . . . —-
“拜托，请你撤回你的话. . .” —-

” said Klimov in extreme embarrassment. —-
克里莫夫非常尴尬地说道。 —-

“I beg you to do so!”
“我请求你这么做！”

“If . . . er-er-er . . . it offends you, certainly,” answered the actor, with an undefined movement of his hand.
“如果 . . . 嗯-嗯-嗯 . . . 你觉得冒犯了你，当然可以，”演员回答道，手做了一个含糊不清的动作。

“And confess you have told a falsehood.”
“并且承认你撒了谎。”

“I, no . . . er-er-er. . . . It was not a lie, but I greatly regret having spoken too freely. —-
“对不起，不是的……嗯，嗯……这不是谎言，但我非常后悔说得太直率。 —-

. . . And, in fact . . . I don’t understand your tone!”
实际上……我不明白你的口气！”

Klimov walked up and down the room in silence, as though in uncertainty and hesitation. —-
克利莫夫沉默着在房间里来回踱步，仿佛犹豫不决。 —-

His fleshy face grew more and more crimson, and the veins in his neck swelled up. —-
他那肥胖的脸越来越红，颈脉膨胀。 —-

After walking up and down for about two minutes he went up to the actor and said in a tearful voice:
在来回踱步了大约两分钟后，他走到演员面前，用含泪的声音说道：

“No, do be so good as to confess that you told a lie about Varenka! —-
“不，拜托你承认你在瓦伦卡身上撒了谎！ —-

Have the goodness to do so!”
请你好心地承认吧！”

“It’s queer,” said the actor, with a strained smile, shrugging his shoulders and swinging his leg. —-
“真奇怪，”演员说着，强笑了一下，耸耸肩膀，晃动着腿。 —-

“This is positively insulting!”
“这真是侮辱人！”

“So you will not confess it?”
“所以你不会承认吗？”

“I do-on’t understand!”
“我-不-明-白！”

“You will not? In that case, excuse me . . . I shall have to resort to unpleasant measures. —-
“那么，对不起……我将不得不采取不愉快的措施。 —-

Either, sir, I shall insult you at once on the spot, or . . . —-
先生，要么我立刻当场侮辱你，要么…… —-

if you are an honourable man, you will kindly accept my challenge to a duel. —-
如果你是个有荣誉感的人，你将友好地接受我的决斗挑战。 —-

. . . We will fight!”
我们将战斗！”

“Certainly!” rapped out the jeune premier, with a contemptuous gesture. “Certainly.”
“当然！”年轻的男主角怒气冲冲地说道，带着轻蔑的手势。“当然。”

Extremely perturbed, the guests and the host, not knowing what to do, drew Klimov aside and began begging him not to get up a scandal. —-
非常困扰的宾客和主人不知所措，把克里莫夫拉到一旁，恳求他不要搞出丑闻。 —-

Astonished feminine countenances appeared in the doorway. . . . —-
进门的时候，女性们震惊的表情出现了… —-

The jeune premier turned round, said a few words, and with an air of being unable to remain in a house where he was insulted, took his cap and made off without saying good-bye.
年轻的男主角转身说了几句话，装作无法待在一个侮辱他的房子里，带着帽子离开了，没有说再见。

On his way home the jeune premier smiled contemptuously and shrugged his shoulders, but when he reached his hotel room and stretched himself on his sofa he felt exceedingly uneasy.
在回家的路上，年轻的男主角轻蔑地笑了笑，耸了耸肩，但是当他到达酒店房间，伸展在沙发上的时候，他感到非常不安。

“The devil take him!” he thought. “A duel does not matter, he won’t kill me, but the trouble is the other fellows will hear of it, and they know perfectly well it was a yarn. —-
“讨厌的东西！”他想。“决斗无所谓，他杀不死我，但问题是其他人会得知，他们完全知道那只是个谎言。 —-

It’s abominable! I shall be disgraced all over Russia. . . .”
真是可恶！我会遭到整个俄罗斯的耻笑….”

Podzharov thought a little, smoked, and to calm himself went out into the street.
波季扎罗夫思考了一会，抽了根烟，走到街上平静自己。

“I ought to talk to this bully, ram into his stupid noddle that he is a blockhead and a fool, and that I am not in the least afraid of him. . . .”
“我应该和那个恶棍说几句话，将他整个愚蠢的脑袋打懵，告诉他我一点也不害怕他。”

The jeune premier stopped before Zybaev’s house and looked at the windows. —-
年轻的男主角停在齐拜耶夫的房子前，看着窗户。 —-

Lights were still burning behind the muslin curtains and figures were moving about.
隔着纱帘，灯光还亮着，人影在动。

“I’ll wait for him!” the actor decided.
“我等他！”演员决定说。

It was dark and cold. A hateful autumn rain was drizzling as though through a sieve. —-
天黑又冷，讨厌的秋雨像过滤器漏一样淅淅沥沥地下着。 —-

Podzharov leaned his elbow on a lamp-post and abandoned himself to a feeling of uneasiness.
波季扎罗夫将手肘架在路灯上，沉浸在一种不安的感觉中。

He was wet through and exhausted.
他湿透了，精疲力竭。

At two o’clock in the night the guests began coming out of Zybaev’s house. —-
在半夜两点钟，客人们从齐巴耶夫的房子里走出来。 —-

The landowner from Tula was the last to make his appearance. —-
来自图拉的地主是最后一个露面的人。 —-

He heaved a sigh that could be heard by the whole street and scraped the pavement with his heavy overboots.
他发出了整条街都能听到的一声叹息，用沉重的过膝靴子刮着人行道。

“Excuse me!” said the jeune premier, overtaking him. “One minute.”
“对不起！”年轻的主角追上他说。“稍等一分钟。”

Klimov stopped. The actor gave a smile, hesitated, and began, stammering: —-
克利莫夫停下脚步。演员微笑着，犹豫了一下，开始结巴地说： —-

“I . . . I confess . . . I told a lie.”
“我……我承认……我撒了谎。”

“No, sir, you will please confess that publicly,” said Klimov, and he turned crimson again. —-
“不，先生，你请公开承认这件事，”克利莫夫说，他的脸又红了。 —-

“I can’t leave it like that. . . .”
“我不能就这么算了……”

“But you see I am apologizing! I beg you . . . don’t you understand? —-
“但你看，我在道歉！求求你……难道你不明白吗？ —-

I beg you because you will admit a duel will make talk, and I am in a position. . . . —-
我求求你，因为你会承认决斗会引来议论，而我现在正处于一个……这是我的处境…… —-

My fellow-actors . . . goodness knows what they may think. . . .”
我的同行们……天晓得他们会怎么想……”

The jeune premier tried to appear unconcerned, to smile, to stand erect, but his body would not obey him, his voice trembled, his eyes blinked guiltily, and his head drooped. —-
年轻的主角试图装得无所谓，微笑着，挺直身子，但他的身体不听使唤，声音颤抖，眼神带有内疚的闪烁，头低垂下来。 —-

For a good while he went on muttering something. —-
他喃喃自语地说了好一阵子。 —-

Klimov listened to him, thought a little, and heaved a sigh.
克利莫夫听着他的话，思考了一会儿，叹了口气。

“Well, so be it,” he said. “May God forgive you. Only don’t lie in future, young man. —-
“好吧，就这样吧，”他说。“愿上帝原谅你。只是以后别再撒谎了，年轻人。” —-

Nothing degrades a man like lying . . . yes, indeed! —-
没有什么比说谎更能贬低一个人了……是的，确实如此！ —-

You are a young man, you have had a good education. . . .”
你是个年轻人，接受过良好的教育……

The landowner from Tula, in a benignant, fatherly way, gave him a lecture, while the jeune premier listened and smiled meekly. —-
图拉的地主和蔼可亲地给他作了一番讲话，而这位年轻演员则静静地听着，并谦和地微笑着。 —-

. . . When it was over he smirked, bowed, and with a guilty step and a crestfallen air set off for his hotel.
当一切结束时，他傻笑着，鞠躬一礼，带着内疚的脚步和沮丧的神情离开了酒店。

As he went to bed half an hour later he felt that he was out of danger and was already in excellent spirits. —-
半小时后，当他上床睡觉时，他感到自己已经脱离了危险，精神状况非常好。 —-

Serene and satisfied that the misunderstanding had ended so satisfactorily, he wrapped himself in the bedclothes, soon fell asleep, and slept soundly till ten o’clock next morning.
他心情宁静而满足，对这次误会圆满地解决感到满意，他裹紧被子，很快就入睡了，并一直睡到第二天上午十点。