DURING all the years I have been living in this world I have only three times been terrified.
在我生活在这个世界上的所有年份里，我只有三次感到恐惧过。

The first real terror, which made my hair stand on end and made shivers run all over me, was caused by a trivial but strange phenomenon. —
第一次真正让我毛骨悚然，使我浑身颤栗的恐惧，是由一个微不足道但古怪的现象引起的。 —

It happened that, having nothing to do one July evening, I drove to the station for the newspapers. —
有一天七月的晚上，我无事可做，便开车去车站拿报纸。 —

It was a still, warm, almost sultry evening, like all those monotonous evenings in July which, when once they have set in, go on for a week, a fortnight, or sometimes longer, in regular unbroken succession, and are suddenly cut short by a violent thunderstorm and a lavish downpour of rain that refreshes everything for a long time.
那是一个无风无浪、温暖几乎闷热的夜晚，就像七月里所有那些单调的夜晚一样，一旦开始，就会连续一个星期、两个星期，有时候更长，然后被一场猛烈的雷雨和倾盆大雨突然打断，为一段时间让一切清新起来。

The sun had set some time before, and an unbroken gray dusk lay all over the land. —
太阳在一段时间之前已经落山了，整个大地笼罩着一片灰蒙蒙的黄昏。 —

The mawkishly sweet scents of the grass and flowers were heavy in the motionless, stagnant air.
草地和花朵那种令人作呕的甜腻气味，在静止、停滞的空气中扑鼻而来。

I was driving in a rough trolley. Behind my back the gardener’s son Pashka, a boy of eight years old, whom I had taken with me to look after the horse in case of necessity, was gently snoring, with his head on a sack of oats. —
我坐在一辆粗糙的手推车上。站在我背后的园丁的儿子Pashka，一个八岁的男孩，我带他一起来，让他照看马，以防万一，他静静地打着呼噜，脑袋枕在一袋燕麦上。 —

Our way lay along a narrow by-road, straight as a ruler, which lay hid like a great snake in the tall thick rye. —
我们的道路沿着一条窄窄的小路，笔直如一把尺，藏身在高高的浓密麦田中，就像一条大蛇一样。 —

There was a pale light from the afterglow of sunset; —
夕阳的余晖中有一抹淡淡的光芒； —

a streak of light cut its way through a narrow, uncouth-looking cloud, which seemed sometimes like a boat and sometimes like a man wrapped in a quilt….
一道光线划破了一块窄窄的、形状粗糙的云，有时看起来像一只船，有时又像一个裹在被子里的人……

I had driven a mile and a half, or two miles, when against the pale background of the evening glow there came into sight one after another some graceful tall poplars; —
我驾驶了一英里半，或两英里，对着黄昏余晖的浅色背景，一个接着一个，优雅的高大杨树出现在眼前； —

a river glimmered beyond them, and a gorgeous picture suddenly, as though by magic, lay stretched before me. —
一条河在它们的后面闪烁，一个华丽的画面就像魔术般出现在我面前展开。 —

I had to stop the horse, for our straight road broke off abruptly and ran down a steep incline overgrown with bushes. —
我不得不停下马，因为我们笔直的道路突然中断，沿着一条丛生着灌木的陡坡而下。 —

We were standing on the hillside and beneath us at the bottom lay a huge hole full of twilight, of fantastic shapes, and of space. —
我们停在了山坡上，在我们脚下是一个巨大的洞，充满了黄昏、奇异的形态和空间。 —

At the bottom of this hole, in a wide plain guarded by the poplars and caressed by the gleaming river, nestled a village. —
在这个洞的底部，在由杨树守护着、被闪光河水抚摸着的广阔平原上，躺着一个村庄。 —

It was now sleeping…. Its huts, its church with the belfry, its trees, stood out against the gray twilight and were reflected darkly in the smooth surface of the river.
它们睡着了……它的小屋，它的教堂和钟楼，它的树，在灰色的黄昏中显得格外鲜明，并在河面的平静表面上映出黑暗的倒影。

I waked Pashka for fear he should fall out and began cautiously going down.
我把帕什卡叫醒，担心他会掉下去，开始小心翼翼地下去。

“Have we got to Lukovo?” asked Pashka, lifting his head lazily.
“我们到卢科沃了吗？”帕什卡懒洋洋地抬起头问道。

“Yes. Hold the reins!…”
“是的。抓紧缰绳！…”

I led the horse down the hill and looked at the village. —
我牵着马走下山，看着村子。 —

At the first glance one strange circumstance caught my attention: —
一开始，一个奇怪的细节引起了我的注意： —

at the very top of the belfry, in the tiny window between the cupola and the bells, a light was twinkling. —
在钟楼的极顶，在圆顶和铃铛之间的小窗户里，有一点微弱的光在闪烁。 —

This light was like that of a smoldering lamp, at one moment dying down, at another flickering up. —
这光就像燃烧的灯，时而熄灭，时而闪烁。 —

What could it come from?
它是从哪里来的呢？

Its source was beyond my comprehension. It could not be burning at the window, for there were neither ikons nor lamps in the top turret of the belfry; —
它的来源让我无法理解。它不可能是在窗户上燃烧，因为钟楼的塔顶上既没有圣像也没有灯； —

there was nothing there, as I knew, but beams, dust, and spiders’ webs. —
在我所知道的情况下，那里什么都没有，只有梁、灰尘和蛛网。 —

It was hard to climb up into that turret, for the passage to it from the belfry was closely blocked up.
爬上那个塔顶是很困难的，因为从钟楼通往塔顶的通道是被严密封闭的。

It was more likely than anything else to be the reflection of some outside light, but though I strained my eyes to the utmost, I could not see one other speck of light in the vast expanse that lay before me. —
这很可能是来自外部光线的反射，但尽管我竭尽全力地凝视，我也看不到广阔的原野上有任何其他灯光。 —

There was no moon. The pale and, by now, quite dim streak of the afterglow could not have been reflected, for the window looked not to the west, but to the east. —
没有月亮。苍白而此刻已经晦暗的余辉不可能被反射出来，因为窗户不朝西，而是朝东。 —

These and other similar considerations were straying through my mind all the while that I was going down the slope with the horse. —
这些以及其他类似的考虑在我走下山坡时一直在我脑海中游荡。 —

At the bottom I sat down by the roadside and looked again at the light. —
在路边坐下来，再次看着那盏灯。 —

As before it was glimmering and flaring up.
就像以前一样，它在微弱地闪烁着。

“Strange,” I thought, lost in conjecture. “Very strange.”
“奇怪”，我想，陷入猜测。“非常奇怪。”

And little by little I was overcome by an unpleasant feeling. —
渐渐地，我被一种不愉快的感觉所克服。 —

At first I thought that this was vexation at not being able to explain a simple phenomenon; —
起初，我以为这是因为无法解释一个简单的现象而感到恼火； —

but afterwards, when I suddenly turned away from the light in horror and caught hold of Pashka with one hand, it became clear that I was overcome with terror….
但后来，当我突然恐惧地从光线那边转身，用一只手抓住帕什卡，就清楚地表明我被恐怖所克服….

I was seized with a feeling of loneliness, misery, and horror, as though I had been flung down against my will into this great hole full of shadows, where I was standing all alone with the belfry looking at me with its red eye.
我被一种孤独、悲伤和恐惧的感觉所抓住，就好像我被迫跌进这个充满阴影的大洞里，我站在那里看着钟楼红着眼神瞧着我。

“Pashka!” I cried, closing my eyes in horror.
“帕什卡！”我恐惧地闭上眼睛喊道。

“Well?”
“干嘛？”

“Pashka, what’s that gleaming on the belfry?”
“帕什卡，钟楼上那是什么在闪光？”

Pashka looked over my shoulder at the belfry and gave a yawn.
帕什卡从我肩上往钟楼看了一眼，打了一个哈欠。

“Who can tell?”
“谁知道呢？”

This brief conversation with the boy reassured me for a little, but not for long. —
这段与男孩的简短对话让我稍微 ger 了一些，但没有持续很长时间。 —

Pashka, seeing my uneasiness, fastened his big eyes upon the light, looked at me again, then again at the light….
帕什卡看到我不安的样子，将他的大眼睛盯着那光，再看了我一眼，又看了一眼那光….

“I am frightened,” he whispered.
“我害怕”，他 s 低声说道。

At this point, beside myself with terror, I clutched the boy with one hand, huddled up to him, and gave the horse a violent lash.
此刻，我被恐惧所震慑，用一只手紧紧抓住男孩，贴近他，猛烈地抽打着马匹。

“It’s stupid!” I said to myself. “That phenomenon is only terrible because I don’t understand it; —
“这太愚蠢了！”我心里暗自说道。“这种现象只有因为我不理解才显得可怕； —

everything we don’t understand is mysterious.”
所有我们不理解的都是神秘的。”

I tried to persuade myself, but at the same time I did not leave off lashing the horse. —
我试图说服自己，但同时也没有停止抽打马匹。 —

When we reached the posting station I purposely stayed for a full hour chatting with the overseer, and read through two or three newspapers, but the feeling of uneasiness did not leave me. —
当我们到达驿站时，我刻意和督办聊了整整一个小时，看了两三份报纸，但不安的感觉并没有离开我。 —

On the way back the light was not to be seen, but on the other hand the silhouettes of the huts, of the poplars, and of the hill up which I had to drive, seemed to me as though animated. —
在返回的途中，灯光没有再出现，但另一方面，小屋、白杨树和我驾驶上去的山丘的轮廓，似乎仿佛有了生命。 —

And why the light was there I don’t know to this day.
到如今为止，为什么那里会有光，我至今仍然不知道。

The second terror I experienced was excited by a circumstance no less trivial. —
我经历的第二次恐惧是因为一件同样微不足道的事情。 —

… I was returning from a romantic interview. —
…我正在从一次浪漫的约会中回来。 —

It was one o’clock at night, the time when nature is buried in the soundest, sweetest sleep before the dawn. —
那是凌晨一点，大自然正陷入最深沉、最甜美的睡眠前的时刻。 —

That time nature was not sleeping, and one could not call the night a still one. —
那个时候，大自然并没有入睡，夜晚也不能算安静。 —

Corncrakes, quails, nightingales, and woodcocks were calling, crickets and grasshoppers were chirruping. —
田鹤、鹌鹑、夜莺和木䴕在叫，蟋蟀和蚱蜢在唧唧呱呱。 —

There was a light mist over the grass, and clouds were scurrying straight ahead across the sky near the moon. —
草地上弥漫着轻薄的雾气，云朵在天空中的月亮旁快速穿行。 —

Nature was awake, as though afraid of missing the best moments of her life.
大自然醒着，仿佛害怕错过她生命中最美好的时刻。

I walked along a narrow path at the very edge of a railway embankment. —
我沿着铁路路堤边的一条狭窄小路走着。 —

The moonlight glided over the lines which were already covered with dew. —
月光轻轻滑过已被晨露覆盖的线条。 —

Great shadows from the clouds kept flitting over the embankment. —
云朵投下的巨大影子不断在堤岸上飘动。 —

Far ahead, a dim green light was glimmering peacefully.
远处，一抹昏黄的绿光平静地闪烁着。

“So everything is well,” I thought, looking at them.
“所以一切都好了，”我想着，看着它们。

I had a quiet, peaceful, comfortable feeling in my heart. —
我心中涌现出一种宁静、平和、舒适的感觉。 —

I was returning from a tryst, I had no need to hurry; —
我正在回家，我无需匆忙； —

I was not sleepy, and I was conscious of youth and health in every sigh, every step I took, rousing a dull echo in the monotonous hum of the night. —
我没有困倦的感觉，每一次叹息、每一步我走，在这夜晚单调的嗡嗡声中激起一种对青春和健康的意识。 —

I don’t know what I was feeling then, but I remember I was happy, very happy.
我不知道当时的感受，但我记得我当时很开心，非常开心。

I had gone not more than three-quarters of a mile when I suddenly heard behind me a monotonous sound, a rumbling, rather like the roar of a great stream. —
我走了不到三分之一英里，突然听到身后传来一个单调的声音，一阵隆隆声，有点像大河的咆哮声。 —

It grew louder and louder every second, and sounded nearer and nearer. I looked round; —
它变得越来越响，听起来越来越近。我回头看； —

a hundred paces from me was the dark copse from which I had only just come; —
离我有百步之遥的地方是我刚刚离开的黑暗树丛； —

there the embankment turned to the right in a graceful curve and vanished among the trees. —
那里的堤岸在一个优美的弧线处向右转弯，并消失在树木之中。 —

I stood still in perplexity and waited. A huge black body appeared at once at the turn, noisily darted towards me, and with the swiftness of a bird flew past me along the rails. —
我迷惑地站在原地等待。一个巨大的黑色身影立刻出现在转弯处，嘈杂地朝我飞奔过来，就像一只鸟一样飞过我沿着铁轨前进。 —

Less than half a minute passed and the blur had vanished, the rumble melted away into the noise of the night.
不到半分钟的时间就过去了，模糊的身影消失了，隆隆声融入了夜晚的噪音之中。

It was an ordinary goods truck. There was nothing peculiar about it in itself, but its appearance without an engine and in the night puzzled me. —
那是一个普通的货车。本身并没有什么特别之处，但它在没有火车头的情况下在夜晚出现，让我感到困惑。 —

Where could it have come from and what force sent it flying so rapidly along the rails? —
它可能是从哪里来的，又是什么力量把它快速地沿着轨道发送出去的？ —

Where did it come from and where was it flying to?
它是从哪里来，又飞往哪里？

If I had been superstitious I should have made up my mind it was a party of demons and witches journeying to a devils’ sabbath, and should have gone on my way; —
如果我是个迷信的人，我本该相信那是一群恶魔和女巫去参加魔鬼的萨满聚会，然后就继续走我的路； —

but as it was, the phenomenon was absolutely inexplicable to me. —
但事实上，这种现象对我来说是绝对无法解释的。 —

I did not believe my eyes, and was entangled in conjectures like a fly in a spider’s web….
我简直不敢相信自己的眼睛，陷入了像苍蝇被蜘蛛网缠住一样的推测中……

I suddenly realized that I was utterly alone on the whole vast plain; —
我突然意识到我在这片广阔的平原上是彻底孤独的； —

that the night, which by now seemed inhospitable, was peeping into my face and dogging my footsteps; all the sounds, the cries of the birds, the whisperings of the trees, seemed sinister, and existing simply to alarm my imagination. —
这个夜晚，现在看起来不友好，正从我的脸上窥视着我，尾随我的脚步；所有的声音，鸟的叫声，树的耳语，都显得不祥，似乎只是为了刺激我的想象。 —

I dashed on like a madman, and without realizing what I was doing I ran, trying to run faster and faster. —
我像疯子一样地冲刺，毫无定力地奔跑，试图跑得更快。 —

And at once I heard something to which I had paid no attention before: —
突然我听见了之前没注意到的声音： —

that is, the plaintive whining of the telegraph wires.
那就是电报线发出的哀伧声。

“This is beyond everything,” I said, trying to shame myself. “It’s cowardice! it’s silly!”
“这太过分了，”我试图羞辱自己说，“这是懦弱！太蠢了！”

But cowardice was stronger than common sense. —
但懦弱压倒了常识。 —

I only slackened my pace when I reached the green light, where I saw a dark signal-box, and near it on the embankment the figure of a man, probably the signalman.
直到看到一个绿灯，我才放慢了速度，那里有一个黑色的信号箱，还有一个人的身影，可能是信号员。

“Did you see it?” I asked breathlessly.
“你看到了吗？”我气喘吁吁地问道。

“See whom? What?”
“看到了，…” 农民勉强说道，“它脱离了货车列车。

“Why, a truck ran by.”
“为什么？” 我说，“有个货车跑了。”

“I saw it,…” the peasant said reluctantly. “It broke away from the goods train. —
“我看到了，” 农民勉强说道。“它从货车列车上脱开了。 —

There is an incline at the ninetieth mile…; the train is dragged uphill. —
“第九十英里处有个坡度…; 列车正在往上爬。 —

The coupling on the last truck gave way, so it broke off and ran back. —
“最后一个车厢的连杆断裂了，所以它脱离了列车往回跑。 —

… There is no catching it now!…”
“…现在追不上了！…”

The strange phenomenon was explained and its fantastic character vanished. —
这个奇怪的现象得到了解释，它的神秘性消失了。 —

My panic was over and I was able to go on my way.
我的恐慌消除了，可以继续我的旅程。

My third fright came upon me as I was going home from stand shooting in early spring. —
我第三次受惊是在初春的晚上从站立射击回家的路上。 —

It was in the dusk of evening. The forest road was covered with pools from a recent shower of rain, and the earth squelched under one’s feet. —
那是在黄昏时分。森林道路上积了雨后的积水，地面在脚下发出泥泞声响。 —

The crimson glow of sunset flooded the whole forest, coloring the white stems of the birches and the young leaves. —
晚霞泛红洒满整个森林，把白桦树的树干和嫩叶都染上了颜色。 —

I was exhausted and could hardly move.
我筋疲力尽，几乎走不动了。

Four or five miles from home, walking along the forest road, I suddenly met a big black dog of the water spaniel breed. —
离家还有四五英里，我沿着森林道路走着，突然遇到了一只大黑色的水猎犬。 —

As he ran by, the dog looked intently at me, straight in my face, and ran on.
当它跑过时，狗狗直直地盯着我，看着我的脸，然后就跑开了。

“A nice dog!” I thought. “Whose is it?”
“好漂亮的狗啊！” 我心想。 “这是谁家的？”

I looked round. The dog was standing ten paces off with his eyes fixed on me. —
我四下张望。狗狗离我十步远，眼睛盯着我。 —

For a minute we scanned each other in silence, then the dog, probably flattered by my attention, came slowly up to me and wagged his tail.
我们沉默地彼此打量了一分钟，然后狗狗可能被我关注的样子感到受宠，慢慢地走近我，摇着尾巴。

I walked on, the dog following me.
我继续走着，狗狗跟在我后面。

“Whose dog can it be?” I kept asking myself. “Where does he come from?”
“这是谁家的狗啊？” 我自问不已。 “它从哪儿来的？”

I knew all the country gentry for twenty or thirty miles round, and knew all their dogs. —
我认识周围二三十英里内所有的乡绅，也认识他们所有的狗。 —

Not one of them had a spaniel like that. —
没有人有一只水猎犬那样的狗。 —

How did he come to be in the depths of the forest, on a track used for nothing but carting timber? —
它怎么会出现在森林深处，一个只用于运输木材的路上? —

He could hardly have dropped behind someone passing through, for there was nowhere for the gentry to drive to along that road.
对于那样一个狗，他几乎不可能是跟随某人经过而掉队的，因为乡绅们沿着那条道路没有地方需要驾车去。

I sat down on a stump to rest, and began scrutinizing my companion. —
我坐在一根树桩上休息，开始仔细审视我的伴侣。 —

He, too, sat down, raised his head, and fastened upon me an intent stare. —
他也坐下来，抬起头，紧紧地盯着我。 —

He gazed at me without blinking. I don’t know whether it was the influence of the stillness, the shadows and sounds of the forest, or perhaps a result of exhaustion, but I suddenly felt uneasy under the steady gaze of his ordinary doggy eyes. —
他凝视着我，眼睛没有眨一下。我不知道是因为周围的寂静、森林里的阴影和声音的影响，还是因为疲惫，但我突然在他那双普通的狗眼下感到不安。 —

I thought of Faust and his bulldog, and of the fact that nervous people sometimes when exhausted have hallucinations. —
我想起浮士德和他的斗牛狗，想起紧张的人有时候会在疲惫时产生幻觉。 —

That was enough to make me get up hurriedly and hurriedly walk on. —
这足以让我匆忙站起来，匆匆快步继续走。 —

The dog followed me.
狗跟着我。

“Go away!” I shouted.
“走开！”我喊道。

The dog probably liked my voice, for he gave a gleeful jump and ran about in front of me.
狗可能喜欢我的声音，因为他高兴地跳了起来，围着我跑。

“Go away!” I shouted again.
“走开！”我再次喊道。

The dog looked round, stared at me intently, and wagged his tail good- humoredly. —
狗回头看着我，认真盯着我，尾巴高兴地摇着。 —

Evidently my threatening tone amused him. —
显然我威胁的口气让他觉得好笑。 —

I ought to have patted him, but I could not get Faust’s dog out of my head, and the feeling of panic grew more and more acute. —
我本该拍拍他，但我无法将浮士德的狗从脑海中赶走，恐慌感越来越强烈。 —

.. Darkness was coming on, which completed my confusion, and every time the dog ran up to me and hit me with his tail, like a coward I shut my eyes. —
.. 黑暗降临了，加剧了我的困惑，每次狗跑过来摆动尾巴碰到我，像个懦夫，我都会闭上眼睛。 —

The same thing happened as with the light in the belfry and the truck on the railway: —
与钟楼里的灯和铁路上的卡车一样的情况发生了： —

I could not stand it and rushed away.
我忍受不了这种感觉，便匆匆离开了。

At home I found a visitor, an old friend, who, after greeting me, began to complain that as he was driving to me he had lost his way in the forest, and a splendid valuable dog of his had dropped behind.
在家里，我发现了一位访客，一个老朋友，他向我问好后开始抱怨说，当他开车来找我时在森林里迷路了，他的一只非常珍贵的狗走丢了。