Cold weather set in abruptly with a killing frost. —
寒冷的天气突然来临，伴随着一场致命的霜冻。 —

Chilling winds swept beneath the doorsills and rattled the loose windowpanes with a monotonous tinkling sound. —
寒风穿过门槛，使松动的窗玻璃发出单调的叮当声。 —

The last of the leaves fell from the bare trees and only the pines stood clothed, black and cold against pale skies. —
最后几片叶子从光秃秃的树上落下，只剩下黑色的松树寒冷地矗立在苍白的天空中。 —

The rutted red roads were frozen to flintiness and hunger rode the winds through Georgia.
坑坑洼洼的红土路冻成了坚硬的燧石，饥饿在乔治亚的风中狂奔。

Scarlett recalled bitterly her conversation with Grandma Fontaine. —
斯嘉丽痛苦地回想起与方丹祖母的谈话。 —

On that afternoon two months ago, which now seemed years in the past, she had told the old lady she had already known the worst which could possibly happen to her, and she had spoken from the bottom of her heart. —
就在两个月前的那个下午，现在仿佛过去了好几年，她告诉老太太她已经知道了可能发生在她身上的最糟糕的事情，而她是真心实意地说出了这番话。 —

Now that remark sounded like schoolgirl hyperbole. —
现在那句话听起来像是学生般的夸张之词。 —

Before Sherman’s men came through Tara the second time, she had her small riches of food and money, she had neighbors more fortunate than she and she had the cotton which would tide her over until spring. —
在谢尔曼的人第二次经过塔拉之前，她拥有食物和金钱的一些财富，她有比她更幸运的邻居，她还有可以让她度过春天的棉花。 —

Now the cotton was gone, the food was gone, the money was of no use to her, for there was no food to buy with it, and the neighbors were in worse plight than she. —
现在棉花已经没有了，食物也没有了，钱对她来说没有用处，因为没有食物可买，而且邻居们比她还糟糕。 —

At least, she had the cow and the calf, a few shoats and the horse, and the neighbors had nothing but the little they had been able to hide in the woods and bury in the ground.
至少，她有奶牛和小牛犊、几只小猪和一匹马，而邻居们只有他们能藏在树林里和埋在地下的一点东西。

Fairhill, the Tarleton home, was burned to the foundations, and Mrs. Tarleton and the four girls were existing in the overseer’s house. —
费尔希尔，塔尔顿家被烧毁到基础部分，塔尔顿夫人和四个女孩还在工头的房子里生活。 —

The Munroe house near Lovejoy was leveled too. —
洛夫乔伊附近的门罗家也被夷为平地。 —

The wooden wing of Mimosa had burned and only the thick resistant stucco of the main house and the frenzied work of the Fontaine women and their slaves with wet blankets and quilts had saved it. —
Mimosa的木质楼翼被烧毁，只剩下主楼坚固的石膏墙以及方丹女士和她们的奴隶用湿毯子和被子拼命救下的楼主。 —

The Calverts’ house had again been spared, due to the intercession of Hilton, the Yankee overseer, but there was not a head of livestock, not a fowl, not an ear of corn left on the place.
卡尔弗特家的房子再次得以幸免，这要归功于南北战争期间的工头希尔顿的干预，但是一头牲口、一只家禽、一颗玉米也没有留在那里。

At Tara and throughout the County, the problem was food. —
在塔拉庄园和整个县里，问题是食物。 —

Most of the families had nothing at all but the remains of their yam crops and their peanuts and such game as they could catch in the woods. —
大多数的家庭只剩下了他们的山药作物和花生，以及他们在树林里能捕到的一些野味。 —

What they had, each shared with less fortunate friends, as they had done in more prosperous days. —
他们把自己所拥有的一切，都与不那么幸运的朋友分享，就像在更富裕的日子里一样。 —

But the time soon came when there was nothing to share.
但是很快就到了没有什么可以分享的时候了。

At Tara, they ate rabbit and possum and catfish, if Pork was lucky. —
在塔拉，如果波克运气好的话，他们吃的是兔子、负鼠和鲶鱼。 —

On other days a small amount of milk, hickory nuts, roasted acorns and yams. —
在其他日子里，他们会喝一些牛奶，吃山核桃、烤橡子和山药。 —

They were always hungry. To Scarlett it seemed that at every turn she met outstretched hands, pleading eyes. —
他们总是饥饿的。在斯嘉丽看来，她几乎在每个转角都遇到了伸出的手，哀求的眼睛。 —

The sight of them drove her almost to madness, for she was as hungry as they.
这样的景象几乎把她逼疯了，因为她和他们一样饥饿。

She ordered the calf killed, because he drank so much of the precious milk, and that night everyone ate so much fresh veal all of them were ill. —
她命令杀死小牛，因为小牛喝了太多宝贵的牛奶，那天晚上大家吃了那么多的鲜牛肉，都生病了。 —

She knew that she should kill one of the shoats but she put it off from day to day, hoping to raise them to maturity. —
她知道她应该杀掉一头小猪，但她一天天拖延着，希望能把它们养到足够大。 —

They were so small. There would be so little of them to eat if they were killed now and so much more if they could be saved a little longer. —
它们太小了。如果现在杀掉它们，吃下的东西太少了，如果能再稍微保存一段时间，那就能吃到更多。 —

Nightly she debated with Melanie the advisability of sending Pork abroad on the horse with some greenbacks to try to buy food. —
她每天晚上都和梅兰妮辩论是否应该让波克带着一些钞票去外面买食物。 —

But the fear that the horse might be captured and the money taken from Pork deterred them. —
但是他们担心马可能会被抓走，钱也会被波克夺走，所以他们作罢了。 —

They did not know where the Yankees were. —
他们不知道北军在哪里。 —

They might be a thousand miles away or only across the river. —
他们可能有一千英里远，也可能就在河对岸。 —

Once, Scarlett, in desperation, started to ride out herself to search for food, but the hysterical outbursts of the whole family fearful of the Yankees made her abandon the plan.
有一次，斯嘉丽绝望地试图亲自出去找食物，但是整个家族对于北军的恐慌失去了控制，这让她放弃了这个计划。

Pork foraged far, at times not coming home all night, and Scarlett did not ask him where he went. —
波克四处觅食，有时候一整夜都不回家，斯嘉丽也没有问他去了哪里。 —

Sometimes he returned with game, sometimes with a few ears of corn, a bag of dried peas. —
有时他带回来一些野味，有时带回来几颗玉米，一袋干豌豆。 —

Once he brought home a rooster which he said he found in the woods. —
有一次他带回来一只公鸡，他说是在树林里找到的。 —

The family ate it with relish but a sense of guilt, knowing very well Pork had stolen it, as he had stolen the peas and corn. —
家人吃得津津有味，但也感到内疚，心知猪肉偷了这些食物，就像他偷了豌豆和玉米一样。 —

One night soon after this, he tapped on Scarlett’s door long after the house was asleep and sheepishly exhibited a leg peppered with small shot. —
不久之后的一个晚上，他在整个房子都已经入睡的时候敲了敲斯嘉丽的房门，羞怯地展示了一条布满小弹珠的腿。 —

As she bandaged it for him, he explained awkwardly that when attempting to get into a hen coop at Fayetteville, he had been discovered. —
当她给他包扎时，他笨拙地解释说，在费耶特维尔尝试闯入一个鸡舍时，他被发现了。 —

Scarlett did not ask whose hen coop but patted Pork’s shoulder gently, tears in her eyes. —
斯嘉丽没有问是谁的鸡舍，只是轻轻拍了拍猪肉的肩膀，眼里含着泪水。 —

Negroes were provoking sometimes and stupid and lazy, but there was loyalty in them that money couldn’t buy, a feeling of oneness with their white folks which made them risk their lives to keep food on the table.
黑奴有时候是煽动性的，愚蠢和懒惰，但其中却有着金钱所买不到的忠诚，一种与白人亲密的感觉，使他们冒着生命危险来保证餐桌上有食物。

In other days Pork’s pilferings would have been a serious matter, probably calling for a whipping. —
在其他日子里，猪肉的盗窃行为可能是个严重的问题，可能需要受到鞭打。 —

In other days she would have been forced at least to reprimand him severely. —
在过去的日子里，她至少会被迫严厉训斥他。 —

“Always remember, dear,” Ellen had said, “you are responsible for the moral as well as the physical welfare of the darkies God has intrusted to your care. —
“亲爱的，你要记住，”艾伦说道，“上帝委托你照顾黑奴们的身体和道德福祉，这是你的责任。 —

You must realize that they are like children and must be guarded from themselves like children, and you must always set them a good example.”
你必须意识到，他们就像孩子一样，必须像对待孩子一样保护他们免受伤害，你必须始终给他们树立良好的榜样。”

But now, Scarlett pushed that admonition into the back of her mind. —
但现在，斯嘉丽把这个告诫推到了脑后。 —

That she was encouraging theft, and perhaps theft from people worse off than she, was no longer a matter for conscience. —
现在，她鼓励偷窃，并且可能是从比她更差的人那里偷窃，这已经不再是一个需要问心的问题。 —

In fact the morals of the affair weighed lightly upon her. —
实际上，这件事的道德问题对她来说不是很重要。 —

Instead of punishment or reproof, she only regretted he had been shot.
她不是为了惩罚或责备，而是只为他被射击而感到遗憾。

“You must be more careful, Pork. We don’t want to lose you. What would we do without you? —
“你必须更加小心，波克。我们不想失去你。如果没有你，我们该怎么办？ —

You’ve been mighty good and faithful and when we get some money again, I’m going to buy you a big gold watch and engrave on it something out of the Bible. ‘Well done, good and faithful servant.’”
你一直非常好，忠诚，等我们再有钱，我就给你买一块大金表，并在上面镌刻圣经中的一段话。“善良忠诚的仆人，你做得好。””

Pork beamed under the praise and gingerly rubbed his bandaged leg.
波克在夸奖的表扬下微笑着，小心翼翼地揉着他那裹着绷带的腿。

“Dat soun’ mighty fine, Miss Scarlett. W’en you speckin’ ter git dat money?”
“嗯，这听起来非常好，斯嘉丽小姐。你打算什么时候得到那笔钱呢？”

“I don’t know, Pork, but I’m going to get it some time, somehow.” —
“我不知道，波克，但我总会想个办法，在某个时候得到它。” —

She bent on him an unseeing glance that was so passionately bitter he stirred uneasily, “Some day, when this war is over, I’m going to have lots of money, and when I do I’ll never be hungry or cold again. —
她投给他一眼没有感知的目光，那眼神充满了激烈的苦涩，“总有一天，在战争结束后，我会有很多钱，那时我再也不会饥寒交迫了。” —

None of us will ever be hungry or cold. We’ll all wear fine clothes and have fried chicken every day and—”
我们都不会再饥饿或寒冷。我们都会穿上漂亮的衣服，每天都有炸鸡吃，还有——”

Then she stopped. The strictest rule at Tara, one which she herself had made and which she rigidly enforced, was that no one should ever talk of the fine meals they had eaten in the past or what they would eat now, if they had the opportunity.
然后她停了下来。塔拉庄园的最严格规定之一，也是她自己制定并严格执行的规定，就是任何人都不能谈论过去吃过的美味佳肴或者如果有机会现在会吃什么。

Pork slipped from the room as she remained staring moodily into the distance. —
波克悄然离开房间，而她则陷入了沉思，茫然地凝视着远方。 —

In the old days, now dead and gone, life had been so complex, so full of intricate and complicated problems. —
在已经过去的那些充满复杂问题的旧日子里，生活曾经如此错综复杂，已经逝去了。 —

There had been the problem of trying to win Ashley’s love and trying to keep a dozen other beaux dangling and unhappy. —
一直存在着争取赢得艾什莉的爱的问题，同时还要试图让其他十几个追求者处于挂念和不快乐中。 —

There had been small breaches of conduct to be concealed from her elders, jealous girls to be flouted or placated, styles of dresses and materials to be chosen, different coiffures to be tried and, oh, so many, many other matters to be decided! —
必须要隐藏起来的不端行为，应该顺从或安抚的嫉妒女孩，应该选择的衣服款式和材料，应该尝试的不同发型，噢，还有如此多很多其他事情要决定！ —

Now life was so amazingly simple. Now all that mattered was food enough to keep off starvation, clothing enough to prevent freezing and a roof overhead which did not leak too much.
现在生活变得如此简单。现在唯一重要的是能有足够的食物来避免挨饿，足够的衣服来防止冻僵，以及能不太漏水的有顶的房子。

It was during these days that Scarlett dreamed and dreamed again the nightmare which was to haunt her for years. —
就是在这些日子里，斯嘉丽做了一连串的噩梦，这个梦魇将在她的生活中困扰她多年。 —

It was always the same dream, the details never varied, but the terror of it mounted each time it came to her and the fear of experiencing it again troubled even her waking hours. —
这个梦总是一样的，细节从未改变，但每次重新经历的恐怖感越来越强，甚至在她清醒的时候都感觉到再次经历这个梦的恐惧。 —

She remembered so well the incidents of the day when she had first dreamed it.
她还清楚地记得第一次做这个梦的那一天的事情。

Cold rain had fallen for days and the house was chill with drafts and dampness. —
连续几天下着寒冷的雨，房子里充满了阴冷的气流和湿气。 —

The logs in the fireplace were wet and smoky and gave little heat. —
壁炉里的木柴又湿又烟熏，几乎没有什么热量。 —

There had been nothing to eat except milk since breakfast, for the yams were exhausted and Pork’s snares and fishlines had yielded nothing. —
自早餐以来，除了牛奶之外，已经没有任何东西可吃了，山药已经吃光了，而波克放的陷阱和渔线一无所获。 —

One of the shoats would have to be killed the next day if they were to eat at all. —
如果要吃东西，第二天就必须宰杀一只小猪仔。 —

Strained and hungry faces, black and white, were staring at her, mutely asking her to provide food. —
黑人和白人，饥饿而疲惫的脸，凝视着她，默默地要求她提供食物。 —

She would have to risk losing the horse and send Pork out to buy something. —
为了冒险失去马并让波克出去买点东西。 —

And to make matters worse, Wade was ill with a sore throat and a raging fever and there was neither doctor nor medicine for him.
更糟糕的是，韦德嗓子炎症严重，发高烧，既没有医生也没有药物可以给他看。

Hungry, weary with watching her child, Scarlett left him to Melanie’s care for a while and lay down on her bed to nap. —
饥饿而疲倦，因为要照顾孩子，斯嘉丽把他交给梅拉妮照料了一会儿，然后躺在床上打盹。 —

Her feet icy, she twisted and turned, unable to sleep, weighed down with fear and despair. —
她的脚冰凉，她翻来覆去，无法入睡，被恐惧和绝望压得喘不过气来。 —

Again and again, she thought: “What shall I do? Where shall I turn? —
一次又一次地，她想着：“我该怎么办？我该往哪里走？” —

Isn’t there anybody in the world who can help me?” Where had all the security of the world gone? —
世界上难道就没有任何人能帮助我吗？世界的安全到底去了哪里？ —

Why wasn’t there someone, some strong wise person to take the burdens from her? —
为什么没有人，没有一个强而有智慧的人能够为她分担负担？ —

She wasn’t made to carry them. She did not know how to carry them. —
她不该承担这些。她不知道如何承担。 —

And then she fell into an uneasy doze.
然后她陷入了不安的瞌睡中。

She was in a wild strange country so thick with swirling mist she could not see her hand before her face. —
她身处一个野蛮而奇怪的国度，雾气缭绕得厚实，她甚至看不清自己面前的手。 —

The earth beneath her feet was uneasy. It was a haunted land, still with a terrible stillness, and she was lost in it, lost and terrified as a child in the night. —
她脚下的大地不稳定。这是一个鬼魅般的土地，寂静中充满了可怕的静谧，她在其中迷失了方向，像夜晚的孩子一样感到恐惧。 —

She was bitterly cold and hungry and so fearful of what lurked in the mists about her that she tried to scream and could not. —
她又冷又饿，对于潜藏在雾中的威胁感到害怕，她想尖叫却无法发出声音。 —

There were things in the fog reaching out fingers to pluck at her skirt, to drag her down into the uneasy quaking earth on which she stood, silent, relentless, spectral hands. —
雾中有东西伸出手指抓住她的裙子，拖她下陷入她脚下不稳定的大地中，那些无声、无情、幽灵般的手。 —

Then, she knew that somewhere in the opaque gloom about her there was shelter, help, a haven of refuge and warmth. —
然后，她知道在雾幽幽中的某处有庇护所、帮助和温暖。 —

But where was it? Could she reach it before the hands clutched her and dragged her down into the quicksands?
但它在哪里呢？她能在被人的手抓住并拽入深沙之前到达吗？

Suddenly she was running, running through the mist like a mad thing, crying and screaming, throwing out her arms to clutch only empty air and wet mist. —
突然间，她疯狂地奔跑，穿过雾气，尖叫着，伸出双臂，只能抓住空气和湿雾。 —

Where was the haven? It eluded her but it was there, hidden, somewhere. If she could only reach it! —
避难所在哪里？它躲避着她，但是它在那里，隐藏在某个地方。如果她能够到达它就好了！ —

If she could only reach it she would be safe! —
如果她能够到达它，她将会安全！ —

But terror was weakening her legs, hunger making her faint. —
但是恐惧使她的双腿虚弱，饥饿使她昏厥。 —

She gave one despairing cry and awoke to find Melanie’s worried face above her and Melanie’s hand shaking her to wakefulness.
她绝望地尖叫一声，醒来时，发现梅兰妮担心的脸在她的头顶，梅兰妮的手在摇晃她唤醒。

The dream returned again and again, whenever she went to sleep with an empty stomach. —
这个梦再次回来，每当她饿着肚子入睡时。 —

And that was frequently enough. It so frightened her that she feared to sleep, although she feverishly told herself there was nothing in such a dream to be afraid of. —
而那时候是足够频繁的。它吓得她不敢睡觉，尽管她在狂热地告诉自己这个梦没有什么可害怕的。 —

There was nothing in a dream about fog to scare her so. —
一个关于雾的梦里没有什么可让她害怕的。 —

Nothing at all—yet the thought of dropping off into that mist-filled country so terrified her she began sleeping with Melanie, who would wake her up when her moaning and twitching revealed that she was again in the clutch of the dream.
她什么也没说，只是想到要进入那个充满迷雾的地方，就害怕得要命。所以她开始和梅兰妮一起睡觉，梅兰妮会在她呻吟和抽搐的时候把她叫醒，告诉她她又被那个梦缠住了。

Under the strain she grew white and thin. —
在这种压力下，她变得苍白而瘦弱。 —

The pretty roundness left her face, throwing her cheek bones into prominence, emphasizing her slanting green eyes and giving her the look of a prowling, hungry cat.
她脸上的可爱圆润消失了，突出了她的颧骨，强调了她斜眼的绿色，给她带来了一种游动而饥饿的猫的样子。

“Daytime is enough like a nightmare without my dreaming things,” she thought desperately and began hoarding her daily ration to eat it just before she went to sleep.
“白天就像一场噩梦，我不想再做梦了。”她绝望地想着，并开始把她每天的食物存起来，在睡觉前吃掉它们。

At Christmas time Frank Kennedy and a small troop from the commissary department jogged up to Tara on a futile hunt for grain and animals for the army. —
圣诞节期间，弗兰克·肯尼迪和一小队人马从供应部来到塔拉，寻找军队的谷物和动物。 —

They were a ragged and ruffianly appearing crew, mounted on lame and heaving horses which obviously were in too bad condition to be used for more active service. —
他们是一个衣衫褴褛的混混样子的团队，骑着一些显然已无法继续使用的瘸腿和喘气的马匹。 —

Like their animals the men had been invalided out of the front-line forces and, except for Frank, all of them had an arm missing or an eye gone or stiffened joints. —
像他们的动物一样，这些男人都因伤被退役，除了弗兰克之外，他们所有人都有一只断臂、失明的眼睛或是僵硬的关节。 —

Most of them wore blue overcoats of captured Yankees and, for a brief instant of horror, those at Tara thought Sherman’s men had returned.
他们大多穿着捕获的北军的蓝色大衣，对塔拉庄园的人来说，这一瞬间让他们恐惧地以为是谢尔曼的人回来了。

They stayed the night on the plantation, sleeping on the floor in the parlor, luxuriating as they stretched themselves on the velvet rug, for it had been weeks since they had slept under a roof or on anything softer than pine needles and hard earth. —
他们在庄园留宿了一夜，在客厅的地板上睡觉，尽情舒展自己，躺在天鹅绒地毯上，因为已经有几个星期没有睡在屋顶下或软和地砖之上了，只有松针和坚硬的土地。 —

For all their dirty beards and tatters they were a well-bred crowd, full of pleasant small talk, jokes and compliments and very glad to be spending Christmas Eve in a big house, surrounded by pretty women as they had been accustomed to do in days long past. —
尽管他们脏兮兮的胡须和衣衫褴褛，但他们是一群有教养的人，充满着愉快的闲聊、笑话和赞美，非常高兴能度过圣诞前夜在一个大房子里，被漂亮的女人们围绕，就像他们过去的日子一样。 —

They refused to be serious about the war, told outrageous lies to make the girls laugh and brought to the bare and looted house the first lightness, the first hint of festivity it had known in many a day.
他们拒绝对战争持严肃态度，说出匪夷所思的谎言，让女孩们开心地笑了起来，第一缕轻快和欢乐降临到这个已经被洗劫一空的房子里，给予它们无尽的忧伤以很久以来从未有过的喜悦。

“It’s almost like the old days when we had house parties, isn’t it?” —
“这几乎就像是我们过去举办家庭聚会的时光，不是吗？”苏伦开心地对斯嘉丽耳语道。她因为居然又有了一个追求者而受到高度赞扬，几乎让她无法将目光从弗兰克·肯尼迪身上移开。 —

whispered Suellen happily to Scarlett. Suellen was raised to the skies by having a beau of her own in the house again and she could hardly take her eyes off Frank Kennedy. —
斯嘉丽惊讶地发现，苏伦尽管一直保持着自己生病后变得消瘦的状态，但几乎可以算得上是漂亮的。 —

Scarlett was surprised to see that Suellen could be almost pretty, despite the thinness which had persisted since her illness. —
她的脸颊泛着红晕，眼中有一种柔和而发光的神采。 —

Her cheeks were flushed and there was a soft luminous look in her eyes.
斯嘉丽蔑视地想道：“她肯定是真的在乎他。”

“She really must care about him,” thought Scarlett in contempt. —
“如果她有了自己的丈夫，即使丈夫是个古板的弗兰克，我猜她也会变得近乎人性化。” —

“And I guess she’d be almost human if she ever had a husband of her own, even if her husband was old fuss-budget Frank.”
凯琳也稍微振作起来，她眼中的无目的漫步表情在那天晚上消失了一些。

Carreen had brightened a little too, and some of the sleep-walking look left her eyes that night. —
这样看来，她对弗兰克的确是有所在乎的嘛，”斯嘉丽轻蔑地想道。 —

She had found that one of the men had known Brent Tarleton and had been with him the day he was killed, and she promised herself a long private talk with him after supper.
她发现其中一个男人认识布伦特·塔尔顿，并且在他被杀的那一天和他一起，她决定在晚饭后和他私下长谈。

At supper Melanie surprised them all by forcing herself out of her timidity and being almost vivacious. —
晚饭时，梅兰妮让所有人都感到意外，她逼着自己克服胆怯，变得几乎活泼起来。 —

She laughed and joked and almost but not quite coquetted with a one-eyed soldier who gladly repaid her efforts with extravagant gallantries. —
她笑着开玩笑，几乎与一个独眼士兵调情，他乐意以浮华的殷勤回报她的努力。 —

Scarlett knew the effort this involved both mentally and physically, for Melanie suffered torments of shyness in the presence of anything male. —
斯嘉丽知道这需要的心理和身体上的努力，因为梅兰妮在男性面前受折磨的害羞。 —

Moreover she was far from well. She insisted she was strong and did more work even than Dilcey but Scarlett knew she was sick. —
而且她并不太好。她坚称自己很强壮，做的工作甚至比迪尔西还多，但斯嘉丽知道她生病了。 —

When she lifted things her face went white and she had a way of sitting down suddenly after exertions, as if her legs would no longer support her. —
当她抬东西时，她的脸变白，做了一些努力后，她突然坐下来，好像她的腿再也支持不住她。 —

But tonight she, like Suellen and Carreen, was doing everything possible to make the soldiers enjoy their Christmas Eve. Scarlett alone took no pleasure in the guests.
但今晚，她像苏伦和卡琳一样，尽一切可能让士兵们享受他们的圣诞前夜。只有斯佳丽一个人并不喜欢客人。

The troop had added their ration of parched corn and side meat to the supper of dried peas, stewed dried apples and peanuts which Mammy set before them and they declared it was the best meal they had had in months. —
部队把他们的炒玉米和配肉加到了干豌豆、炖干苹果和花生的晚餐中，他们称这是他们几个月来吃到的最好的一顿饭。 —

Scarlett watched them eat and she was uneasy. —
斯佳丽看着他们吃，心里不安。 —

She not only begrudged them every mouthful they ate but she was on tenterhooks lest they discover somehow that Pork had slaughtered one of the shoats the day before. —
她不仅对他们吃的每一口东西都心生怨恨，而且真担心他们会以某种方式发现波克前一天杀了一头小猪。 —

It now hung in the pantry and she had grimly promised her household that she would scratch out the eyes of anyone who mentioned the shoat to their guests or the presence of the dead pig’s sisters and brothers, safe in their pen in the swamp. —
这头猪现在挂在储藏室里，她坚定地向家中的人承诺，如果有人提到小猪或者湿地里活着的猪的存在，她会掐瞎他们的眼睛。 —

These hungry men could devour the whole shoat at one meal and, if they knew of the live hogs, they could commandeer them for the army. —
这些饥饿的人能在一顿饭里把整头小猪吃光，如果他们知道活猪的存在，他们可能会强征给军队。 —

She was alarmed, too, for the cow and the horse and wished they were hidden in the swamp, instead of tied in the woods at the bottom of the pasture. —
她也感到担忧，担心那只奶牛和马是否能安全隐藏在沼泽中，而不是绑在牧场底部的树林里。 —

If the commissary took her stock, Tara could not possibly live through the winter. —
如果军需处拿走了她的家畜，塔拉在冬天将无法生存下去。 —

There would be no way of replacing them. As to what the army would eat, she did not care. —
没有办法替换它们。至于军队将吃什么，她没有在意。 —

Let the army feed the army—if it could. —
让军队自己养活自己——如果他们能。 —

It was hard enough for her to feed her own.
她已经养活自己够艰难了。

The men added as dessert some “ramrod rolls” from their knapsacks, and this was the first time Scarlett had ever seen this Confederate article of diet about which there were almost as many jokes as about lice. —
士兵们从背包里拿出一些”旋转棍”作为甜点，这是斯嘉丽第一次见到这种几乎有和虱子一样多笑话的南军食品。 —

They were charred spirals of what appeared to be wood. —
它们是烤焦的，呈螺旋状，看起来像木头。 —

The men dared her to take a bite and, when she did, she discovered that beneath the smoke-blackened surface was unsalted corn bread. —
士兵们让她咬一口，当她咬下去时，她发现在被烟熏黑的表面下是无盐的玉米面包。 —

The soldiers mixed their ration of corn meal with water, and salt too when they could get it, wrapped the thick paste about their ramrods and roasted the mess over camp fires. —
士兵们将他们的玉米面配以水，尽可能地加盐，将浓厚的糊状物包裹在他们的火绳上，在篝火上烤制。 —

It was as hard as rock candy and as tasteless as sawdust and after one bite Scarlett hastily handed it back amid roars of laughter. —
这东西像糖块一样硬，口感像锯末一样没有味道，一口咬下去后，斯佳丽连忙递了回去，引来阵阵笑声。 —

She met Melanie’s eyes and the same thought was plain in both faces. —
她与梅拉妮相视一笑，想法一目了然。 —

..“How can they go on fighting if they have only this stuff to eat?”
“他们要是只能吃这玩意，他们怎么能继续战斗呢？”

The meal was gay enough and even Gerald, presiding absently at the head of the table, managed to evoke from the back of his dim mind some of the manner of a host and an uncertain smile. —
这顿饭倒是热闹非凡，甚至乔拉德（杰拉尔德）也举止得像一个主人，虽然有些心不在焉，他脸上勉强露出一个不确定的笑容。 —

The men talked, the women smiled and flattered—but Scarlett turning suddenly to Frank Kennedy to ask him news of Miss Pittypat, caught an expression on his face which made her forget what she intended to say.
男人们谈论着，女人们微笑着拍马屁，但斯佳丽突然转向弗兰克·肯尼迪，想询问他关于皮蒂帕特小姐的消息，却看到了他脸上的表情，让她忘记了自己打算说什么。

His eyes had left Suellen’s and were wandering about the room, to Gerald’s childlike puzzled eyes, to the floor, bare of rugs, to the mantelpiece denuded of its ornaments, the sagging springs and torn upholstery into which Yankee bayonets had ripped, the cracked mirror above the sideboard, the unfaded squares on the wall where pictures had hung before the looters came, the scant table service, the decently mended but old dresses of the girls, the flour sack which had been made into a kilt for Wade.
他的目光离开了Suellen的眼睛，在房间里四处游荡，落到了Gerald那无辜困惑的眼睛上，裸露的地板上，被北方佬的枪刺破的下沉的弹簧和烂掉的织物，壁橱上裸露的摆设架，破裂的镜子，餐边柜上未褪色的方块墙壁，留下了贼人来之前悬挂着的画作的空白，简陋的餐具，得体修补但又旧了的女孩们的衣裙，用面粉袋做成的Wade的短裙。

Frank was remembering the Tara he had known before the war and on his face was a hurt look, a look of tired impotent anger. —
Frank回忆起战前他所熟悉的塔拉，他脸上带着一种受伤的表情，一种疲惫而无助的愤怒的表情。 —

He loved Suellen, liked her sisters, respected Gerald and had a genuine fondness for the plantation. Since Sherman had swept through Georgia, Frank had seen many appalling sights as he rode about the state trying to collect supplies, but nothing had gone to his heart as Tara did now. —
他爱Suellen，喜欢她的姐妹们，尊重Gerald，并对这座庄园怀有真挚的喜爱。自从谢尔曼掠过乔治亚以来，Frank骑马穿梭于整个州收集物资，他见过许多令人震惊的景象，但没有什么比现在的塔拉更触动他的心灵。 —

He wanted to do something for the O’Haras, especially Suellen, and there was nothing he could do. —
他想为奥哈拉一家做点事情，特别是苏艾伦，但却无能为力。 —

He was unconsciously wagging his whiskered head in pity and clicking his tongue against his teeth when Scarlett caught his eye. —
当斯嘉丽注意到他时，他无意识地用他那带胡须的头向上摇晃着表示同情，并用舌头咂咂牙齿。 —

He saw the flame of indignant pride in them and he dropped his gaze quickly to his plate in embarrassment.
他看到了她们眼中的愤怒和自豪之光，尴尬地低下了头，专注于盘子上。

The girls were hungry for news. There had been no mail service since Atlanta fell, now four months past, and they were in complete ignorance as to where the Yankees were, how the Confederate Army was faring, what had happened to Atlanta and to old friends. —
女孩们渴望听到新闻。自亚特兰大陷落以来已经过去了四个月，邮政服务已经中断，她们对联邦军队的动向、那里发生的一切以及旧朋友的消息一无所知。 —

Frank, whose work took him all over the section, was as good as a newspaper, better even, for he was kin to or knew almost everyone from Macon north to Atlanta, and he could supply bits of interesting personal gossip which the papers always omitted. —
弗兰克的工作让他走遍了这个地区，他几乎与梅肯到亚特兰大之间的每个人都有亲戚关系或者认识，他能提供一些有趣的个人八卦消息，而报纸上常常忽略的。 —

To cover his embarrassment at being caught by Scarlett, he plunged hastily into a recital of news. —
为了掩饰自己被斯嘉丽逮到的尴尬，他匆忙地开始叙述新闻。 —

The Confederates, he told them, had retaken Atlanta after Sherman marched out, but it was a valueless prize as Sherman had burned it completely.
他告诉他们，联盟军在谢尔曼出发后重新夺回了亚特兰大，但那是毫无价值的战利品，因为谢尔曼已经将它完全烧毁了。

“But I thought Atlanta burned the night I left,” cried Scarlett, bewildered. —
“但是我记得我离开的那天晚上亚特兰大已经烧了，”斯嘉丽惊呼道。 —

“I thought our boys burned it!”
“我以为是我们的人烧了它！”

“Oh, no, Miss Scarlett!” cried Frank, shocked. —
“哦，不，斯嘉丽小姐！”弗兰克惊呼道。 —

“We’d never burn one of our own towns with our own folks in it! —
“我们绝不会烧自己的城镇，而且还有我们的人在里面！” —

What you saw burning was the warehouses and the supplies we didn’t want the Yankees to capture and the foundries and the ammunition. —
“你看到燃烧的是仓库和我们不想被北军抢夺的供应品，以及铸造厂和弹药。” —

But that was all. When Sherman took the town the houses and stores were standing there as pretty as you please. —
“但仅限于此。当谢尔曼占领了城镇时，房屋和商店都还在那里，漂亮极了。” —

And he quartered his men in them.”
“他让他的士兵住在那些房子里。”

“But what happened to the people? Did he—did he kill them?”
“但是人们怎么样了？他…他杀了他们吗？”

“He killed some—but not with bullets,” said the one-eyed soldier grimly. —
“他杀了一些人，但不是用子弹。”那个独眼士兵冷酷地说。 —

“Soon’s he marched into Atlanta he told the mayor that all the people in town would have to move out, every living soul. —
“当他进入亚特兰大后，他告诉市长城里的每一个人都得搬出去，每一个生灵。” —

And there were plenty of old folks that couldn’t stand the trip and sick folks that ought not to have been moved and ladies who were— well, ladies who hadn’t ought to be moved either. —
还有许多老人无法忍受这次旅行，一些病人本不应该被搬动，还有一些女士，呃，她们本不该被搬动。 —

And he moved them out in the biggest rainstorm you ever saw, hundreds and hundreds of them, and dumped them in the woods near Rough and Ready and sent word to General Hood to come and get them. —
然后在你见过的最大的雨季，他将他们全部转移出去，几百个人，然后将他们倒在Rough and Ready附近的树林里，并传话给Hood将军前去接他们。 —

And a plenty of the folks died of pneumonia and not being able to stand that sort of treatment.”
由于肺炎和无法忍受那种待遇，很多人死了。

“Oh, but why did he do that? They couldn’t have done him any harm,” cried Melanie.
“哦，但他为什么要这样做呢？他们不可能对他造成任何伤害！”梅兰妮惊呼道。

“He said he wanted the town to rest his men and horses in,” said Frank. “And he rested them there till the middle of November and then he lit out. —
“他说他想让这个城镇为他的士兵和马匹休整，”弗兰克说。“他在那里休整了整整到十一月中旬然后就撤走了。” —

And he set fire to the whole town when he left and burned everything.”
“他离开的时候放火烧了整个城镇，把一切都烧了。”

“Oh, surely not everything!” cried the girls in dismay.
“哦，肯定不是全部都烧了吧！”女孩们惊愕地说道。

It was inconceivable that the bustling town they knew, so full of people, so crowded with soldiers, was gone. —
他们无法想象这个熙熙攘攘的城市，如此拥挤的人群，竟然消失了。 —

All the lovely homes beneath shady trees, all the big stores and the fine hotels—surely they couldn’t be gone! —
所有那些在树荫下的可爱房屋，所有那些大商店和豪华酒店，它们怎么可能消失呢！ —

Melanie seemed ready to burst into tears, for she had been born there and knew no other home. —
梅兰妮似乎忍不住要哭出来了，因为她就生在那里，没有别的家。 —

Scarlett’s heart sank because she had come to love the place second only to Tara.
斯嘉丽的心一下子沉了下去，因为她已经把那个地方爱到仅次于塔拉。

“Well, almost everything,” Frank amended hastily, disturbed by the expressions on their faces. —
“呃，差不多就是全部了，”弗兰克匆忙修正着，被他们脸上的表情所困扰。 —

He tried to look cheerful, for he did not believe in upsetting ladies. —
他试图看起来开心点，因为他不相信让女士们心烦意乱是对的。 —

Upset ladies always upset him and made him feel helpless. —
心烦意乱的女士总会让他心烦意乱，让他感到无助。 —

He could not bring himself to tell them the worst. —
他无法告诉他们最糟糕的消息。 —

Let them find out from some one else.
让他们从别人那里知道。

He could not tell them what the army saw when it marched back into Atlanta, the acres and acres of chimneys standing blackly above ashes, piles of half-burned rubbish and tumbled heaps of brick clogging the streets, old trees dying from fire, their charred limbs tumbling to the ground in the cold wind. —
他无法告诉他们当军队重新进入亚特兰大时所看到的景象，黑漆漆的烟囱覆盖的废墟上，半烧毁的垃圾堆和倒塌的砖块堵塞着街道，被火烧毁的古老树木在寒风中凋零，烧焦的树枝垂落在地。 —

He remembered how the sight had turned him sick, remembered the bitter curses of the Confederates when they saw the remains of the town. —
他记得当时的景象让他恶心，记得那些南军看到镇上的残骸时恶言诅咒。 —

He hoped the ladies would never hear of the horrors of the looted cemetery, for they’d never get over that. —
他希望女士们永远不会听说被掠夺的墓地的恐怖，因为她们将永远无法忘怀。 —

Charlie Hamilton and Melanie’s mother and father were buried there. —
查理·汉密尔顿和梅兰妮的父母就被埋葬在那里。 —

The sight of that cemetery still gave Frank nightmares. —
那个墓地的景象仍然给弗兰克带来噩梦。 —

Hoping to find jewelry buried with the dead, the Yankee soldiers had broken open vaults, dug up graves. —
为了寻找与死者一起埋葬的珠宝，北方士兵们打开了墓穴，挖掘了坟墓。 —

They had robbed the bodies, stripped from the coffins gold and silver name plates, silver trimmings and silver handles. —
他们抢劫了尸体，从棺材上剥下了金银铭牌，银饰和银把手。 —

The skeletons and corpses, flung helterskelter among their splintered caskets, lay exposed and so pitiful.
骨骼和尸体被随意扔在散乱的棺材中，显得如此可怜。

And Frank couldn’t tell them about the dogs and the cats. Ladies set such a store by pets. —
弗兰克不能告诉她们有关狗和猫的事情。女士们非常喜欢宠物。 —

But the thousands of starving animals, left homeless when their masters had been so rudely evacuated, had shocked him almost as much as the cemetery, for Frank loved cats and dogs. —
但那成千上万的饥饿动物，当它们的主人被粗暴地撤离时，无家可归的情景几乎和墓地一样让他震惊，因为弗兰克喜欢猫和狗。 —

The animals had been frightened, cold, ravenous, wild as forest creatures, the strong attacking the weak, the weak waiting for the weaker to die so they could eat them. —
动物们被吓得发狂、寒冷、饥饿，像森林里的野兽一样，强者攻击弱者，弱者等待着更弱者的死亡以便吃掉他们。 —

And, above the ruined town, the buzzards splotched the wintry sky with graceful, sinister bodies.
在残破的城镇上空，秃鹫在冬天的天空中留下了娴熟而邪恶的身影。

Frank cast about in his mind for some mitigating information that would make the ladies feel better.
弗兰克绞尽脑汁寻找一些能让这些女士们感到安心的缓和性的信息。

“There’s some houses still standing,” he said, “houses that set on big lots away from other houses and didn’t catch fire. —
“还有一些房子还站在，”他说，”这些房子离其他房子很远，没有被火烧毁。 —

And the churches and the Masonic hall are left. And a few stores too. —
教堂和共济会大厅都还在。还有一些商店。 —

But the business section and all along the railroad tracks and at Five Points—well, ladies, that part of town is flat on the ground.”
但是商业区沿着铁路和五路口——嗯，女士们，市区的那部分已经完全摧毁了。

“Then,” cried Scarlett bitterly, “that warehouse Charlie left me, down on the tracks, it’s gone too?”
“那么，”斯嘉丽痛苦地叫道，”查理留给我的那个仓库，就在铁路旁边，也被毁了吗？”

“If it was near the tracks, it’s gone, but—” Suddenly he smiled. —
“如果它靠近铁路，就被毁了，但是——”突然他笑了。 —

Why hadn’t he thought of it before? “Cheer up, ladies! —
为什么他以前没有想到呢？”振作起来，女士们！ —

Your Aunt Pitty’s house is still standing. —
你们的庙佳女伯母的房子还完好无损。 —

It’s kind of damaged but there it is.”
“它有些损坏，但还在那里。”

“Oh, how did it escape?”
“哦，它是怎么逃走的？”

“Well, it’s made of brick and it’s got about the only slate roof in Atlanta and that kept the sparks from setting it afire, I guess. —
“嗯，它是砖砌的，屋顶是唯一的石板屋顶在亚特兰大，这就阻止了火花引燃它，我想是这样。 —

And then it’s about the last house on the north end of town and the fire wasn’t so bad over that way. —
“而且它是镇上北端的最后一座房子，那边的火势并不严重。 —

Of course, the Yankees quartered there tore it up aplenty. —
“当然了，那些住在那里的北军士兵破坏得很厉害。 —

They even burned the baseboard and the mahogany stair rail for firewood, but shucks! —
“他们甚至把踢脚线和桃花心木楼梯扔进了火里，但是见鬼！ —

It’s in good shape. When I saw Miss Pitty last week in Macon—”
“它的状态还不错。上周我在梅肯见到了皮蒂小姐。”

“You saw her? How is she?”
“你见到她了？她怎么样？”

“Just fine. Just fine. When I told her her house was still standing, she made up her mind to come home right away. —
“非常好。非常好。当我告诉她她的房子还在，她立刻决定回家。 —

That is— if that old darky, Peter, will let her come. —
“就是——如果那个老黑皮特让她回来的话。 —

Lots of the Atlanta people have already come back, because they got nervous about Macon. Sherman didn’t take Macon but everybody is afraid Wilson’s raiders will get there soon and he’s worse than Sherman.”
“很多亚特兰大的人已经回来了，因为他们对梅肯不放心。谢尔曼没有占领梅肯，但每个人都担心威尔逊的袭击者很快就会到那里，而且他比谢尔曼更糟糕。”

“But how silly of them to come back if there aren’t any houses! Where do they live?”
“但他们如果没有房子的话，回来多么傻呀！他们住在哪里呢？”

“Miss Scarlett, they’re living in tents and shacks and log cabins and doubling up six and seven families in the few houses still standing. —
“斯嘉丽小姐，他们住在帐篷、棚屋和木屋里，还有几户人家挤在依然屹立的少数房屋中。” —

And they’re trying to rebuild. Now, Miss Scarlett, don’t say they are silly. —
“他们正在尝试重建。现在，斯嘉丽小姐，别说他们傻了。” —

You know Atlanta folks as well as I do. They are plumb set on that town, most as bad as Charlestonians are about Charleston, and it’ll take more than Yankees and a burning to keep them away. —
“你和我一样了解亚特兰大人。他们对那座城市执着，就像查尔斯顿人执着于查尔斯顿一样，无论是北方佬还是一场大火都没法把他们挡住。” —

Atlanta folks are—begging your pardon, Miss Melly—as stubborn as mules about Atlanta. —
“亚特兰大人——请原谅，梅莉小姐——对于亚特兰大都执着得像骡子一样。” —

I don’t know why, for I always thought that town a mighty pushy, impudent sort of place. —
“我也不知道为什么，因为我一直认为那个城市非常咄咄逼人、放肆。” —

But then, I’m a countryman born and I don’t like any town. —
“但是，我是个土生土长的农民，我不喜欢任何城市。” —

And let me tell you, the ones who are getting back first are the smart ones. —
“而且，让我告诉你，那些最早归来的人是最聪明的。” —

The ones who come back last won’t find a stick or stone or brick of their houses, because everybody’s out salvaging things all over town to rebuild their houses. —
“最后回来的人将一块砖瓦或房屋中的任何东西都找不到，因为全城的人都在四处寻觅东西来重建他们的房屋。” —

Just day before yesterday, I saw Mrs. Merriwether and Miss Maybelle and their old darky woman out collecting brick in a wheelbarrow. —
前天，我看到默里韦瑟夫人和梅贝尔小姐还有他们年迈的黑奴婦人推着独轮手推车收集砖块。 —

And Mrs. Meade told me she was thinking about building a log cabin when the doctor comes back to help her. —
而米德太太告诉我她正在考虑等医生回来后建一座原木小屋。 —

She said she lived in a log cabin when she first came to Atlanta, when it was Marthasville, and it wouldn’t bother her none to do it again. —
她说她初次来到亚特兰大时，那时候它还叫马撒斯维尔，住在一间原木小屋里，再次住进去也不会有什么问题。 —

‘Course, she was only joking but that shows you how they feel about it.”
“当然，她只是开玩笑，但这能说明他们对待这事的态度。”

“I think they’ve got a lot of spirit,” said Melanie proudly. “Don’t you, Scarlett?”
“我认为他们有很多精神，”梅兰妮骄傲地说，“你认为呢，斯嘉丽？”

Scarlett nodded, a grim pleasure and pride in her adopted town filling her. —
斯嘉丽点点头，她充满自豪与代购的城市填满了她。 —

As Frank said, it was a pushy, impudent place and that was why she liked it. —
正如弗兰克所说，这个城市是一个精力充沛、冒失的地方，正因为如此她喜欢它。 —

It wasn’t hide-bound and stick-in-the- muddish like the older towns and it had a brash exuberance that matched her own. —
它不像老城那样保守古板，它有一种奔放的热情与她相当。 —

“I’m like Atlanta,” she thought. “It takes more than Yankees or a burning to keep me down.”
“我像亚特兰大一样，”她想，“不是因为有那么多的北方人或者一场大火就能让我屈服。”

“If Aunt Pitty is going back to Atlanta, we’d better go back and stay with her, Scarlett,” said Melanie, interrupting her train of thought. —
“如果皮蒂姨要回亚特兰大，我们最好跟她回去住，斯嘉丽，”梅兰妮打断了她的思绪。 —

“She’ll die of fright alone.”
“她会被吓死的。”

“Now, how can I leave here, Melly?” Scarlett asked crossly. —
“现在，我怎么能离开这里，梅丽？”斯嘉丽生气地问道。 —

“If you are so anxious to go, go. I won’t stop you.”
“如果你这么急着走，去吧。我不会阻止你。”

“Oh, I didn’t mean it that way, darling,” cried Melanie, flushing with distress. —
“哦，亲爱的，我不是那个意思，”梅兰妮哭丧着脸说道。 —

“How thoughtless of me! Of course, you can’t leave Tara and—and I guess Uncle Peter and Cookie can take care of Auntie.”
“我真是太冒失了！当然，你不能离开塔拉，还有……我想彼得叔叔和库基可以照顾姨妈。”

“There’s nothing to keep you from going,” Scarlett pointed out, shortly.
“没有什么能阻止你去的，”斯嘉丽尖刻地指出。

“You know I wouldn’t leave you,” answered Melanie. —
“你知道我不会离开你的，”梅兰妮回答道。 —

“And I—I would be just frightened to death without you.”
“而且，没有你我会吓死的。”

“Suit yourself. Besides, you wouldn’t catch me going back to Atlanta. —
“随你的便。另外，你别指望我会回亚特兰大。” —

Just as soon as they get a few houses up, Sherman will come back and burn it again.”
“他们一上去几个房子，谢尔曼就会回来再烧一次。”

“He won’t be back,” said Frank and, despite his efforts, his face drooped. —
“他不会回来了，”弗兰克说道，尽管他努力保持镇定，脸色还是变得沮丧起来。 —

“He’s gone on through the state to the coast. —
“他已经走到州的尽头去了。” —

Savannah was captured this week and they say the Yankees are going on up into South Carolina.”
这周Savannah被攻占了，他们说南方联盟军队正越过南卡罗来纳向上进军。

“Savannah taken!”
“Savannah被夺了！”

“Yes. Why, ladies, Savannah couldn’t help but fall. —
“是的。喂，女士们，Savannah注定难以守住。 —

They didn’t have enough men to hold it, though they used every man they could get—every man who could drag one foot after another. —
他们没有足够的人手守住那地方，尽管他们动用了所有能动用的人，就连那些勉强能走路的人也动员上了。 —

Do you know that when the Yankees were marching on Milledgeville, they called out all the cadets from the military academies, no matter how young they were, and even opened the state penitentiary to get fresh troops? —
你们知道吗，当那些联邦军队向Milledgeville行进的时候，他们甚至召集了军事学院的所有学员，不管他们有多年轻，甚至还开了监狱门，从那里调动了新鲜兵员？ —

Yes, sir, they turned loose every convict who was willing to fight and promised him a pardon if he lived through the war. —
是的，他们释放了每一个愿意参战的囚犯，并承诺如果继战活下来的话就赦免他们。 —

It kind of gave me the creeps to see those little cadets in the ranks with thieves and cutthroats.”
看到那些小学员与贼和刺客并肩作战真令我毛骨悚然。

“They turned loose the convicts on us!”
他们释放了那些囚犯！他们对我们下手了！

“Now, Miss Scarlett, don’t you get upset. —
现在，斯嘉丽小姐，你可别担心。 —

They’re a long way off from here, and furthermore they’re making good soldiers. —
他们离我们还远着呢，并且他们表现得很勇敢。 —

I guess being a thief don’t keep a man from being a good soldier, does it?”
我想一个人是贼并不意味着他不能成为一名出色的士兵，对吧？

“I think it’s wonderful,” said Melanie softly.
“我觉得这太美妙了，”梅兰妮轻声说道。

“Well, I don’t,” said Scarlett flatly. “There’s thieves enough running around the country anyway, what with the Yankees and—” She caught herself in time but the men laughed.
“嗯，我不这么认为，”斯嘉丽平淡地说道。“现在整个国家到处都是偷东西的人，不管是南方联邦还是……”她及时地止住了话，但男人们笑了起来。

“What with Yankees and our commissary department,” they finished and she flushed.
“不管是南方联邦还是我们的军需部门，”他们接着说道，她脸红了。

“But where’s General Hood’s army?” interposed Melanie hastily. “Surely he could have held Savannah.”
“但是胡德将军的部队在哪儿？”梅兰妮急忙插话道。“他肯定本应该守住萨凡纳。”

“Why, Miss Melanie,” Frank was startled and reproachful, “General Hood hasn’t been down in that section at all. —
“噢，梅兰妮小姐，”弗兰克感到惊讶和责备，“胡德将军根本就没有在那个地区出现过。他一直在田纳西战斗，试图引开进入佐治亚州的联邦军。” —

He’s been fighting up in Tennessee, trying to draw the Yankees out of Georgia.”
“他的小手段真是起了好作用！”斯嘉丽讽刺地说道。

“And didn’t his little scheme work well!” cried Scarlett sarcastically. —
“他就把该死的联邦军丢给我们，我们只有些校园少年、囚犯和家庭防卫队来保护自己。” —

“He left the damn Yankees to go through us with nothing but schoolboys and convicts and Home Guards to protect us.”
“女儿，”杰拉尔德苏醒过来，“你真是咒骂了。你妈妈会伤心的。”

“Daughter,” said Gerald rousing himself, “you are profane. Your mother will be grieved.”
“他们就是该死的联邦军！”斯嘉丽激动地喊道。

“They are damn Yankees!” cried Scarlett passionately. —
“我觉得永远都只会这样称呼他们。” —

“And I never expect to call them anything else.”
将“它们就是该死的联邦军！”复述成“他们就是该死的联邦军！”是没有问题的。

At the mention of Ellen everyone felt queer and conversation suddenly ceased. —
一提到艾伦，每个人都感到奇怪，谈话突然停了下来。 —

Melanie again interposed.
梅兰妮再次插话。

“When you were in Macon did you see India and Honey Wilkes? —
“当你在梅肯的时候，你见到印第亚和哈尼·威尔克斯吗？ —

Did they—had they heard anything of Ashley?”
他们有没有听说过艾西的消息？”

“Now, Miss Melly, you know if I’d had news of Ashley, I’d have ridden up here from Macon right away to tell you,” said Frank reproachfully. —
“现在，梅·梅利，你知道如果我有艾什利的消息，我会立刻从梅肯骑过来告诉你的，”弗兰克责备地说。 —

“No, they didn’t have any news but—now, don’t you fret about Ashley, Miss Melly. I know it’s been a long time since you heard from him, but you can’t expect to hear from a fellow when he’s in prison, can you? —
“不，他们没有任何消息，但是，梅·梅利，你不要为艾什利担心。我知道你很久没有收到他的消息了，但是你不能指望在他被监禁的时候收到他的消息，对吗？ —

And things aren’t as bad in Yankee prisons as they are in ours. —
而且在北方的监狱里的情况没有我们这里糟糕。 —

After all, the Yankees have plenty to eat and enough medicines and blankets. —
毕竟，北方人有足够的吃的、足够的药品和毯子。 —

They aren’t like we are— not having enough to feed ourselves, much less our prisoners.”
他们不像我们一样，连自己都养不活，更别说我们的囚犯了。”

“Oh, the Yankees have got plenty,” cried Melanie, passionately bitter. —
“哦，北方人有很多东西，”梅兰妮痛苦地说。 —

“But they don’t give things to the prisoners. You know they don’t, Mr. Kennedy. —
“但是他们没有给囚犯。你知道他们没有，肯尼迪先生。 —

You are just saying that to make me feel better. —
你只是说这些话是为了让我感觉好些。 —

You know that our boys freeze to death up there and starve too and die without doctors and medicine, simply because the Yankees hate us so much! —
你明知道我们的孩子们在那里冻死、挨饿，因为没有医生和药物，只是因为南方人那么讨厌我们！ —

Oh, if we could just wipe every Yankee off the face of the earth! —
哦，如果我们能把所有的南方人从地球上抹去该多好！ —

Oh, I know that Ashley is—”
噢，我知道阿什利是——”

“Don’t say it!” cried Scarlett, her heart in her throat. —
“别说了！”斯嘉丽大声叫道，心口突突直跳。 —

As long as no one said Ashley was dead, there persisted in her heart a faint hope that he lived, but she felt that if she heard the words pronounced, in that moment he would die.
只要没人说阿什利已经死了，她心里还有一丝丝希望他还活着，但她感觉如果她听到这样的话，他就会死去。

“Now, Mrs. Wilkes, don’t you bother about your husband,” said the one-eyed man soothingly. —
“现在，威尔克斯夫人，别为你的丈夫担心，”那个独眼男人安慰地说道。 —

“I was captured after first Manassas and exchanged later and when I was in prison, they fed me off the fat of the land, fried chicken and hot biscuits—”
“我在第一次博议以后被俘，后来被交换，当我在囚禁中时，他们让我享用美食，炸鸡和热饼——”

“I think you are a liar,” said Melanie with a faint smile and the first sign of spirit Scarlett had ever seen her display with a man. —
“我觉得你是个骗子，”梅拉妮微笑着说道，这是斯嘉丽第一次见到梅拉妮对男人展示出的精神迹象。 —

“What do you think?”
“你觉得呢？”

“I think so too,” said the one-eyed man and slapped his leg with a laugh.
“我也这么觉得，”独眼人说着，笑着拍了拍自己的腿。

“If you’ll all come into the parlor, I’ll sing you some Christmas carols,” said Melanie, glad to change the subject. —
“如果你们都进客厅来，我会给你们唱几首圣诞颂歌，”梅兰妮说着，很高兴换个话题。 —

“The piano was one thing the Yankees couldn’t carry away. —
“钢琴是洋人拿不走的东西。 —

Is it terribly out of tune, Suellen?”
“苏艾伦，它是不是调得很糟糕？”

“Dreadfully,” answered Suellen, happily beckoning with a smile to Frank.
“实在是太糟糕了，”苏艾伦高兴地笑着示意弗兰克。

But as they all passed from the room, Frank hung back, tugging at Scarlett’s sleeve.
但当他们都走出房间时，弗兰克停下来，拽着斯嘉丽的袖子。

“May I speak to you alone?”
“我可以单独和你说话吗？”

For an awful moment she feared he was going to ask about her livestock and she braced herself for a good lie.
在恐怖的一刻，她害怕他要询问她的牲畜，她做好了撒谎的准备。

When the room was cleared and they stood by the fire, all the false cheerfulness which had colored Frank’s face in front of the others passed and she saw that he looked like an old man. —
当房间清空，他们站在火炉旁边时，弗兰克脸上所有虚假的欢快都退去了，她看到他显得像个老人。 —

His face was as dried and brown as the leaves that were blowing about the lawn of Tara and his ginger-colored whiskers were thin and scraggly and streaked with gray. —
他的脸干瘪而棕色，就像吹过塔拉草坪上的落叶一样，他的姜黄色胡须稀疏而凌乱，透着一丝灰色。 —

He clawed at them absently and cleared his throat in an annoying way before he spoke.
他毫不在乎地抓了一下，然后清了清嗓子，让人烦不胜烦地开口了。

“I’m sorry about your ma, Miss Scarlett.”
“对不起，关于你的亲妈，斯佳丽小姐。”

“Please don’t talk about it.”
“请不要提起。”

“And your pa— Has he been this way since—?”
“那你爸爸——他从那时起就一直这样吗？”

“Yes—he’s—he’s not himself, as you can see.”
“是的——他——你看到了，他已经不再是他自己了。”

“He sure set a store by her.”
“他曾经很看重她。”

“Oh, Mr. Kennedy, please don’t let’s talk—”
“哦，肯尼迪先生，请不要说——”

“I’m sorry, Miss Scarlett,” and he shuffled his feet nervously. —
“对不起，斯佳丽小姐。”他紧张地踮起脚尖。 —

“The truth is I wanted to take up something with your pa and now I see it won’t do any good.”
“事实上，我想跟你爸爸商量一些事情，但现在看来毫无用处。”

“Perhaps I can help you, Mr. Kennedy. You see—I’m the head of the house now.”
“也许我可以帮你，肯尼迪先生。你知道——现在我是这家的主人了。”

“Well, I,” began Frank and again clawed nervously at his beard. —
“嗯，我，”弗兰克开始了，又紧张地抓了抓胡子。 —

“The truth is— Well, Miss Scarlett, I was aiming to ask him for Miss Suellen.”
“事实上——嗯，斯佳丽小姐，我打算向他求婚苏伦小姐。”

“Do you mean to tell me,” cried Scarlett in amused amazement, “that you haven’t yet asked Pa for Suellen? —
“你的意思是，告诉我，”斯佳丽惊讶地嘲笑道，“你还没有向我爸爸提过苏伦的事吗？” —

And you’ve been courting her for years!”
“而你却追求了她几年！”

He flushed and grinned embarrassedly and in general looked like a shy and sheepish boy.
他脸红了，尴尬地咧着嘴笑，总的来说看起来像一个害羞而腼腆的男孩。

“Well, I—I didn’t know if she’d have me. —
“我——我不知道她是否会接受我。 —

I’m so much older than she is and—there were so many good-looking young bucks hanging around Tara—”
我比她年长那么多，塔拉周围有这么多英俊的年轻小伙子——”

“Hump!” thought Scarlett, “they were hanging around me, not her!”
“咕噜！”思念着，斯佳丽想，“他们是在追求我，不是她！”

“And I don’t know yet if she’ll have me. I’ve never asked her but she must know how I feel. —
“而且我还不知道她是否会接受我。我从来没有问过她，但她一定知道我的感受。 —

I—I thought I’d ask Mr. O’Hara’s permission and tell him the truth. —
我——我想我会去向奥哈拉先生征得许可并告诉他真相。 —

Miss Scarlett, I haven’t got a cent now. —
斯佳丽小姐，我现在一分钱都没有了。 —

I used to have a lot of money, if you’ll forgive me mentioning it, but right now all I own is my horse and the clothes I’ve got on. —
我以前有很多钱，如果你原谅我提起这个的话，但现在我所拥有的只有我的马和身上的衣服。 —

You see, when I enlisted I sold most of my land and I put all my money in Confederate bonds and you know what they’re worth now. —
你知道，当我参军的时候，我卖掉了大部分的土地，把所有的钱都投资在南方联盟债券上，你知道现在这些债券值多少。 —

Less than the paper they’re printed on. And anyway, I haven’t got them now, because they burned up when the Yankees burned my sister’s house. —
连他们印刷的纸都不值钱。而且无论如何，我现在也没有它们了，因为当南方的佬们烧毁我妹妹的房子的时候，它们也烧没了。 —

I know I’ve got gall asking for Miss Suellen now when I haven’t a cent but—well, it’s this way. —
我知道我现在一文不名还去求苏伦小姐，很不好意思，但是，这是这样的。” —

I got to thinking that we don’t know how things are going to turn out about this war. —
我突然想到，我们不知道这场战争会以什么样的结果收场。 —

It sure looks like the end of the world for me. —
对我来说，这似乎是世界末日。 —

There’s nothing we can be sure of and—and I thought it would be a heap of comfort to me and maybe to her if we were engaged. —
我们无法确定任何事情，而且我想，如果我们订婚了，对我和她来说可能会稍微有些安慰。 —

That would be something sure. I wouldn’t ask to marry her till I could take care of her, Miss Scarlett, and I don’t know when that will be. —
确实是这样。我不会要求她嫁给我，直到我能够照顾好她，斯嘉丽小姐，可我不知道那会是什么时候。 —

But if true love carries any weight with you, you can be certain Miss Suellen will be rich in that if nothing else.”
但如果真爱对你有任何影响的话，你可以确定苏伦至少在那方面是富有的。

He spoke the last words with a simple dignity that touched Scarlett, even in her amusement. —
他用一种简朴的尊严说出最后几句话，即使在她感到好笑的时候，也让斯嘉丽感到触动。 —

It was beyond her comprehension that anyone could love Suellen. —
她无法理解任何人会爱上苏伦。 —

Her sister seemed to her a monster of selfishness, of complaints and of what she could only describe as pure cussedness.
在她看来，她的妹妹是一个自私、抱怨的怪物，她只能用纯粹的刁钻来形容。

“Why, Mr. Kennedy,” she said kindly, “it’s quite all right. —
“嗯，肯尼迪先生，没关系。 —

I’m sure I can speak for Pa. He always set a store by you and he always expected Suellen to marry you.”
我确定我可以代表爸爸说话。他一直看重你，他一直期望苏伦嫁给你。”

“Did he now?” cried Frank, happiness in his face.
“他真的做了吗？”弗兰克喊道，脸上洋溢着幸福。

“Indeed yes,” answered Scarlett, concealing a grin as she remembered how frequently Gerald had rudely bellowed across the supper table to Suellen: —
“是的，确实如此，”斯嘉丽回答，掩饰着一丝笑意，她记得杰拉尔德经常在晚餐桌上冒失地大声对苏伦喊道： —

“How now, Missy! Hasn’t your ardent beau popped the question yet? —
“怎么了，小姐！你那位热情的求婚者还没开口吗？ —

Shall I be asking him his intentions?”
我要问问他有何打算？”

“I shall ask her tonight,” he said, his face quivering, and he clutched her hand and shook it. —
“我今晚会问她，”他说着，脸上颤抖着，握紧她的手并摇了摇。 —

“You’re so kind, Miss Scarlett.”
“你真好，斯嘉丽小姐。”

“I’ll send her to you,” smiled Scarlett, starting for the parlor. Melanie was beginning to play. —
“我会把她送到你这里来的，”斯嘉丽微笑着说道，向客厅走去。梅兰妮开始弹奏钢琴。 —

The piano was sadly out of tune but some of the chords were musical and Melanie was raising her voice to lead the others in “Hark, the Herald Angels Sing!”
钢琴的音调遗憾地走调了，但其中一些和弦仍是悦耳的，梅兰妮正在提高嗓音，带领其他人唱起了《听啊，万民成群歌》！

Scarlett paused. It did not seem possible that war had swept over them twice, that they were living in a ravaged country, close to the border of starvation, when this old sweet Christmas hymn was being sung. —
斯嘉丽停顿了一下。不敢相信战争曾两次席卷过他们，他们生活在一个荒芜的国家，几乎接近于饥饿的边缘，而此刻却在唱着这首古老而甜美的圣诞颂歌。 —

Abruptly she turned to Frank.
她突然转向弗兰克。

“What did you mean when you said it looked like the end of the world to you?”
“当你说这对你来说看起来像是世界末日时，你是什么意思？”

“I’ll talk frankly,” he said slowly, “but I wouldn’t want you to be alarming the other ladies with what I say. —
“我会坦率地说，”他慢慢地说道，“但我不希望你将我说的话传给其他女士们，以免他们惊慌。” —

The war can’t go on much longer. There aren’t any fresh men to fill the ranks and the desertions are running high—higher than the army likes to admit. —
这场战争再也不能持续太久了。已经没有新的人填补军队的行列了，而叛逃现象也越来越高——远比军队愿意承认的要高。 —

You see, the men can’t stand to be away from their families when they know they’re starving, so they go home to try to provide for them. —
你看，当他们知道家人正在挨饿的时候，他们无法忍受远离家人，所以他们回家试图养活他们。 —

I can’t blame them but it weakens the army. —
我不能责怪他们，但这削弱了军队的力量。 —

And the army can’t fight without food and there isn’t any food. —
而军队没有食物无法作战，而且根本就没有食物。 —

I know because, you see, getting food is my business. —
我知道这是因为，你瞧，弄食物是我的事情。 —

I’ve been all up and down this section since we retook Atlanta and there isn’t enough to feed a jaybird. —
自我们夺回亚特兰大以来，我游历过整个地区，简直没有足够的食物来喂养一只鸟儿。 —

It’s the same way for three hundred miles south to Savannah. —
南至萨凡纳三百英里内情况都是一样的。 —

The folks are starving and the railroads are torn up and there aren’t any new rifles and the ammunition is giving out and there’s no leather at all for shoes. —
人们正在挨饿，铁路被摧毁，没有新的步枪，弹药快用完了，连制作鞋子的皮革都没有了。 —

… So, you see, the end is almost here.”
所以，你看，末日就快要来了。

But the fading hopes of the Confederacy weighed less heavily on Scarlett than his remark about the scarcity of food. —
但对于斯佳丽来说，邦联的希望渐消却不如他关于食物短缺的话重要。 —

It had been her intention to send Pork out with the horse and wagon, the gold pieces and the United States money to scour the countryside for provisions and material for clothes. —
带上马和货车，金块和美元，她原本打算让波克到乡村搜寻粮食和衣料。 —

But if what Frank said was true—
但如果弗兰克说的是真的——

But Macon hadn’t fallen. There must be food in Macon. Just as soon as the commissary department was safely on its way, she’d start Pork for Macon and take the chance of having the precious horse picked up by the army. —
但梅肯还没有沦陷。梅肯一定还有食物。只要接送科米斯营地安全地出发，她就会立刻让波克去梅肯，冒着珍贵的马被军队发现的风险。 —

She’d have to risk it.
她必须冒险。

“Well, let’s don’t talk about unpleasant things tonight, Mr. Kennedy,” she said. —
“好吧，今晚我们别谈不愉快的事情，肯尼迪先生。”她说。 —

“You go and sit in Mother’s little office and I’ll send Suellen to you so you can—well, so you’ll have a little privacy.”
“你去坐在妈妈的小办公室里，我会派苏琳和你在一起，这样你就能有点私人空间。”

Blushing, smiling, Frank slipped out of the room and Scarlett watched him go.
羞红着笑，弗兰克走出了房间，斯佳丽看着他的离去。

“What a pity he can’t marry her now,” she thought. “That would be one less mouth to feed.”
“真可惜他现在不能娶她。”她想，“这样就少一个要养活的人口。”