Merry days were these at Thornfield Hall; and busy days too: —
索恩菲尔德庄园的欢乐日子来了，这里也变得繁忙起来了。 —

how different from the first three months of stillness, monotony, and solitude I had passed beneath its roof! —
与我过去在这里度过的三个月的寂静、单调和孤独完全不同。 —

All sad feelings seemed now driven from the house, all gloomy associations forgotten: —
所有悲伤的情绪似乎都从房子里消失了，所有阴沉的联想也被遗忘了。 —

there was life everywhere, movement all day long. —
到处都有生机，整日都有活动。 —

You could not now traverse the gallery, once so hushed, nor enter the front chambers, once so tenantless, without encountering a smart lady’s-maid or a dandy valet.
你现在无法再穿过曾经那么寂静的画廊，也无法再进入曾经那么空旷的前厅，而不遇到一个精明的女仆或一个时髦的男仆。

The kitchen, the butler’s pantry, the servants’ hall, the entrance hall, were equally alive; —
厨房、管家的食品储藏室、仆人厅、门厅同样生气勃勃； —

and the saloons were only left void and still when the blue sky and halcyon sunshine of the genial spring weather called their occupants out into the grounds. —
只有当天空湛蓝、阳光明媚的春天来临时，客厅才会空无一人、静谧无声。 —

Even when that weather was broken, and continuous rain set in for some days, no damp seemed cast over enjoyment: —
即使天气恶劣，连续几天下雨，也不会减弱人们的享受。 —

indoor amusements only became more lively and varied, in consequence of the stop put to outdoor gaiety.
由于户外的快乐活动停止，室内的娱乐活动变得更加丰富多样。

I wondered what they were going to do the first evening a change of entertainment was proposed: —
我想知道当第一个晚上提出改变娱乐方式时，他们会做什么。 —

they spoke of “playing charades,” but in my ignorance I did not understand the term. —
他们提到了“玩字谜游戏”，但出于无知，我不理解这个词的含义。 —

The servants were called in, the dining-room tables wheeled away, the lights otherwise disposed, the chairs placed in a semicircle opposite the arch. —
仆人们被叫来，餐厅的桌子被推走，灯光被重新布置，椅子排成半圆形，与拱门相对。 —

While Mr. Rochester and the other gentlemen directed these alterations, the ladies were running up and down stairs ringing for their maids. —
当罗切斯特先生和其他绅士们指挥着这些改变时，女士们正在楼上忙着叫自己的女仆。 —

Mrs. Fairfax was summoned to give information respecting the resources of the house in shawls, dresses, draperies of any kind; —
费尔法克斯夫人被传唤以提供关于屋内披肩、衣服和任何其他装饰品的信息。 —

and certain wardrobes of the third storey were ransacked, and their contents, in the shape of brocaded and hooped petticoats, satin sacques, black modes, lace lappets, &c. —
接着，三楼的某些衣橱被搜寻，其内容以织锦花边装饰的蓬裙、缎子外套、黑色连衣裙、蕾丝头巾等形式被抱成一捆带下来。 —

, were brought down in armfuls by the abigails; —
并且这些东西被仆人们抱着一把一把地拿到了客厅里的闺房。 —

then a selection was made, and such things as were chosen were carried to the boudoir within the drawing-room.
然后进行了挑选，选出的东西被拿到了客厅中的休息室里。

Meantime, Mr. Rochester had again summoned the ladies round him, and was selecting certain of their number to be of his party. —
与此同时，罗切斯特先生再次召集了女士们，从中挑选了一部分人作为他的伙伴。 —

“Miss Ingram is mine, of course,” said he: —
“英格拉姆小姐当然是我的了。”他说道： —

afterwards he named the two Misses Eshton, and Mrs. Dent. He looked at me: —
之后他提到了两位艾什顿小姐和邓特夫人。他看着我： —

I happened to be near him, as I had been fastening the clasp of Mrs. Dent’s bracelet, which had got loose.
我碰巧站在他旁边，因为我一直在给邓特夫人的手镯扣上扣子，扣子松了。

“Will you play?” he asked. I shook my head. —
“你会玩吗？”他问道。我摇了摇头。 —

He did not insist, which I rather feared he would have done; —
他没有坚持，这让我有点害怕，因为我担心他会坚持。 —

he allowed me to return quietly to my usual seat.
他让我平静地回到我的座位上。

He and his aids now withdrew behind the curtain: —
他和他的助手们现在走到了帷幕后面： —

the other party, which was headed by Colonel Dent, sat down on the crescent of chairs. —
另一方的首领是邓特上校，他们坐在椅子的弯曲处。 —

One of the gentlemen, Mr. Eshton, observing me, seemed to propose that I should be asked to join them; —
其中一位绅士，艾什顿先生，看着我，似乎提议让我加入他们； —

but Lady Ingram instantly negatived the notion.
但是英格拉姆夫人立刻否决了这个想法。

“No,” I heard her say: “she looks too stupid for any game of the sort.”
“不，”我听到她说：“她看起来太傻了，不适合这样的游戏。”

Ere long a bell tinkled, and the curtain drew up. —
不久，一个钟声响起，帷幕拉开了。 —

Within the arch, the bulky figure of Sir George Lynn, whom Mr. Rochester had likewise chosen, was seen enveloped in a white sheet: —
拱门之中，肥胖的吕伯爵外型可见，他也是罗切斯特先生选择的人，裹着一张白色的床单。 —

before him, on a table, lay open a large book; —
在他面前的桌子上摊开了一本大书。 —

and at his side stood Amy Eshton, draped in Mr. Rochester’s cloak, and holding a book in her hand. Somebody, unseen, rang the bell merrily; —
他的身边站着艾米·艾什顿，身穿罗切斯特先生的斗篷，手里拿着一本书。不知道是谁欢快地按响了铃声。 —

then Adèle (who had insisted on being one of her guardian’s party), bounded forward, scattering round her the contents of a basket of flowers she carried on her arm. —
接着，阿黛尔（坚持要成为她的监护人之一）一跃而前，手里扔出了她胳膊上的一篮子花朵。 —

Then appeared the magnificent figure of Miss Ingram, clad in white, a long veil on her head, and a wreath of roses round her brow; —
然后出现了华丽的英格拉姆小姐，身穿白色，头上戴着一条长长的面纱，额头上缠着一环玫瑰花环。 —

by her side walked Mr. Rochester, and together they drew near the table. They knelt; —
在她身边走着罗切斯特先生，他们一起走向桌子。他们跪下来。 —

while Mrs. Dent and Louisa Eshton, dressed also in white, took up their stations behind them. —
而丹特夫人和路易莎·艾什顿，也穿着白色，站在他们身后。 —

A ceremony followed, in dumb show, in which it was easy to recognise the pantomime of a marriage. —
随之而来的是一场无言的仪式，其中很容易辨认出一个婚礼的默剧。 —

At its termination, Colonel Dent and his party consulted in whispers for two minutes, then the Colonel called out—
在结束时，丹特上校和他的伙伴窃窃私语了两分钟，然后丹特上校大声喊道——

“Bride!” Mr. Rochester bowed, and the curtain fell.
“新娘！”罗切斯特先生鞠躬，帷幕落下。

A considerable interval elapsed before it again rose. —
过了相当一段时间，它才再次升起。 —

Its second rising displayed a more elaborately prepared scene than the last. —
第二次升起的场景比上次更加精心准备。 —

The drawing-room, as I have before observed, was raised two steps above the dining-room, and on the top of the upper step, placed a yard or two back within the room, appeared a large marble basin, which I recognised as an ornament of the conservatory—where it usually stood, surrounded by exotics, and tenanted by gold fish—and whence it must have been transported with some trouble, on account of its size and weight.
如我之前所说，客厅比餐厅高出两步，而在上面的一级台阶上，后退了一两码的地方，放着一个大理石盆，我认出它是温室的装饰品，通常被异国情调的植物环绕着，还有金鱼，显然因为尺寸和重量的原因，它必须经过一番麻烦才被运输到这里。

Seated on the carpet, by the side of this basin, was seen Mr. Rochester, costumed in shawls, with a turban on his head. —
坐在这个盆子旁边的地毯上，可以看到罗切斯特先生穿着披肩，头上戴着一个头巾。 —

His dark eyes and swarthy skin and Paynim features suited the costume exactly: —
他深邃的眼睛、黝黑的皮肤和异教徒的面容恰好与这个服饰相配。 —

he looked the very model of an Eastern emir, an agent or a victim of the bowstring. —
他看起来像是一个东方埃米尔的典型代表，一个刺客或是弓弦的受害者。 —

Presently advanced into view Miss Ingram. She, too, was attired in oriental fashion: —
不久后出现了英格拉姆小姐。她也身穿东方服饰： —

a crimson scarf tied sash-like round the waist: —
腰间系着一条深红色的围巾： —

an embroidered handkerchief knotted about her temples; —
头上系着一方刺绣的手帕； —

her beautifully-moulded arms bare, one of them upraised in the act of supporting a pitcher, poised gracefully on her head. —
她那优美造型的手臂裸露着，其中一只手臂高举着，托着一个盛着水的罐子，优雅地放在她的头上。 —

Both her cast of form and feature, her complexion and her general air, suggested the idea of some Israelitish princess of the patriarchal days; —
她的身形和面貌，她的肤色和整体气质，都让人联想到古代以色列的一位公主； —

and such was doubtless the character she intended to represent.
毫无疑问，这正是她想要扮演的角色。

She approached the basin, and bent over it as if to fill her pitcher; —
她走近水盆，弯下身子，仿佛要装满她的罐子； —

she again lifted it to her head. The personage on the well-brink now seemed to accost her; —
她再次将罐子举到头顶。现在井边的人似乎在与她交谈； —

to make some request:—“She hasted, let down her pitcher on her hand, and gave him to drink. —
他提出了一些请求：“她赶紧将罐子放在手上，给他喝。” —

” From the bosom of his robe he then produced a casket, opened it and showed magnificent bracelets and earrings; —
他从长袍的怀中取出一个盒子，打开它，展示出华丽的手镯和耳环； —

she acted astonishment and admiration; kneeling, he laid the treasure at her feet; —
她装作惊讶和赞叹的样子，跪下来，把珍宝放在她的脚前； —

incredulity and delight were expressed by her looks and gestures; —
她的神情和手势表达出了怀疑和喜悦； —

the stranger fastened the bracelets on her arms and the rings in her ears. —
陌生人把手镯戴在她的手臂上，戒指戴在她的耳朵上； —

It was Eliezer and Rebecca: the camels only were wanting.
那是以利以谢和丽贝卡：只缺了骆驼。

The divining party again laid their heads together: —
占卜队再次商议： —

apparently they could not agree about the word or syllable the scene illustrated. —
显然，他们无法就表演所描绘的词语或音节达成一致。 —

Colonel Dent, their spokesman, demanded “the tableau of the whole; —
他们的发言人登特上校要求“整体的画面”； —

” whereupon the curtain again descended.
于是帷幕再次落下。

On its third rising only a portion of the drawing-room was disclosed; —
第三次升起帷幕，只露出了客厅的一部分； —

the rest being concealed by a screen, hung with some sort of dark and coarse drapery. —
其余部分被一个带着某种黑暗粗糙织物的屏风所遮挡。 —

The marble basin was removed; in its place, stood a deal table and a kitchen chair: —
大理石盆被移走，取而代之的是一张木板桌和一把厨房椅子。 —

these objects were visible by a very dim light proceeding from a horn lantern, the wax candles being all extinguished.
这些物体能够通过一个焰火筒发出微弱的光线而显现，烛光已经全部熄灭了。

Amidst this sordid scene, sat a man with his clenched hands resting on his knees, and his eyes bent on the ground. —
在这个肮脏的场景中，一个人双手紧握着膝盖，眼睛低垂地望着地面。 —

I knew Mr. Rochester; though the begrimed face, the disordered dress (his coat hanging loose from one arm, as if it had been almost torn from his back in a scuffle), the desperate and scowling countenance, the rough, bristling hair might well have disguised him. —
我认识罗切斯特先生；尽管肮脏的面孔、蓬乱的衣着（他的外套从一只手臂上悬挂着，好像在一场争斗中几乎被撕下来），绝望而愁容满面的表情以及粗糙、蓬乱的头发，都可能对他进行伪装。 —

As he moved, a chain clanked; to his wrists were attached fetters.
当他移动时，铁链发出了叮当声；他的手腕上系着镣铐。

“Bridewell!” exclaimed Colonel Dent, and the charade was solved.
“劳教所！”登特上校叫道，猜谜就被解开了。

A sufficient interval having elapsed for the performers to resume their ordinary costume, they re-entered the dining-room. —
演员们恢复平常的装束，重新进入餐厅，过了足够的时间。 —

Mr. Rochester led in Miss Ingram; she was complimenting him on his acting.
罗切斯特先生引进了英格拉姆小姐；她正在夸奖他的表演。

“Do you know,” said she, “that, of the three characters, I liked you in the last best? —
“你知道吗，”她说，“在这三个角色中，我最喜欢你最后一个的表演。” —

Oh, had you but lived a few years earlier, what a gallant gentleman-highwayman you would have made!”
“啊，如果你早几年出生，你将成为一个英勇的绅士-公路劫匪！”

“Is all the soot washed from my face?” he asked, turning it towards her.
“我的脸上的煤灰都洗掉了吗？”他转向她问道。

“Alas! yes: the more’s the pity! Nothing could be more becoming to your complexion than that ruffian’s rouge.”
“唉！是的，真可惜！没有什么比那个歹徒的胭脂更适合你的肤色了。”

“You would like a hero of the road then?”
“你喜欢公路英雄吗？”

“An English hero of the road would be the next best thing to an Italian bandit; —
“一个英国公路英雄将是接近意大利强盗的最好选择； —

and that could only be surpassed by a Levantine pirate.”
只有一个地中海海盗能超过他。”

“Well, whatever I am, remember you are my wife; —
“好吧，不管我是谁，记住你是我的妻子； —

we were married an hour since, in the presence of all these witnesses. —
我们一个小时之前在所有这些见证人面前结婚了。” —

” She giggled, and her colour rose.
她咯咯地笑了起来，脸红了起来。

“Now, Dent,” continued Mr. Rochester, “it is your turn. —
“现在，登特，轮到你了。 —

” And as the other party withdrew, he and his band took the vacated seats. —
”当另一方退场时，他和他的团队坐到了空出的座位上。 —

Miss Ingram placed herself at her leader’s right hand; —
英格拉姆小姐坐在她领导的右手边； —

the other diviners filled the chairs on each side of him and her. I did not now watch the actors; —
其他算命者坐在他和她的两侧的椅子上。我没有再观察演员们； —

I no longer waited with interest for the curtain to rise; —
我不再急切地等待帷幕升起； —

my attention was absorbed by the spectators; —
我的注意力被观众吸引住了； —

my eyes, erewhile fixed on the arch, were now irresistibly attracted to the semicircle of chairs. —
我先前盯着拱门的目光现在不由自主地被摄制在了那排椅子上； —

What charade Colonel Dent and his party played, what word they chose, how they acquitted themselves, I no longer remember; —
Dent上校和他的朋友们演了什么字谜，他们选择了什么词，他们表演得如何，我已经记不清了； —

but I still see the consultation which followed each scene: —
但我仍然看到了每个场景之后的商议： —

I see Mr. Rochester turn to Miss Ingram, and Miss Ingram to him; —
我看到罗切斯特先生转向英格拉姆小姐，英格拉姆小姐转向他； —

I see her incline her head towards him, till the jetty curls almost touch his shoulder and wave against his cheek; —
我看到她把头垂向他，青黑的卷发几乎碰到了他的肩膀，轻拂他的面颊； —

I hear their mutual whisperings; I recall their interchanged glances; —
我听到他们低语交流；我想起他们交换的眼神； —

and something even of the feeling roused by the spectacle returns in memory at this moment.
甚至有一些当时观看景象时激发的情感在此时回忆起来；

I have told you, reader, that I had learnt to love Mr. Rochester: —
读者，我告诉过你，我已经学会了爱上罗切斯特先生。 —

I could not unlove him now, merely because I found that he had ceased to notice me—because I might pass hours in his presence, and he would never once turn his eyes in my direction—because I saw all his attentions appropriated by a great lady, who scorned to touch me with the hem of her robes as she passed; —
此刻我无法不爱他，仅仅因为我发现他已经不再注意我了-因为我可能在他身边度过数小时，他却从未将目光转向我-因为我看到他所有的关注都被一个高贵的女士独占，她鄙视着我，连碰都不愿意碰我一下； —

who, if ever her dark and imperious eye fell on me by chance, would withdraw it instantly as from an object too mean to merit observation. —
如果她那双黑暗而傲慢的眼睛偶然瞥到我，她会立刻将目光移开，好像我是一个不值得关注的低微存在。 —

I could not unlove him, because I felt sure he would soon marry this very lady—because I read daily in her a proud security in his intentions respecting her—because I witnessed hourly in him a style of courtship which, if careless and choosing rather to be sought than to seek, was yet, in its very carelessness, captivating, and in its very pride, irresistible.
我无法不爱他，因为我确信他很快会和这位女士结婚-因为我每天从她身上看到他对她的意图的自信-因为我每时每刻都目睹着他那种不求索而被追求的风格的求爱，虽然它们是漫不经心的，但却吸引人，而且出于他的骄傲而不可抗拒。

There was nothing to cool or banish love in these circumstances, though much to create despair. —
这些情况并没有冷却或消灭爱情，但却足以带来绝望。 —

Much too, you will think, reader, to engender jealousy: —
你会认为，这也足以产生嫉妒： —

if a woman, in my position, could presume to be jealous of a woman in Miss Ingram’s. —
如果一个处在我的位置的女人，能对英格拉姆小姐嫉妒，那就太奇怪了。 —

But I was not jealous: or very rarely;—the nature of the pain I suffered could not be explained by that word. —
但我并不嫉妒，或者说很少嫉妒——我所经历的痛苦无法用这个词来解释。 —

Miss Ingram was a mark beneath jealousy: she was too inferior to excite the feeling. —
英格拉姆小姐实在是不值得嫉妒：她太低劣，无法激起这种感情。 —

Pardon the seeming paradox; I mean what I say. She was very showy, but she was not genuine: —
请原谅这似是而非的说法；我是说真的。她很华丽，但不真诚： —

she had a fine person, many brilliant attainments; —
她有漂亮的外貌，很多出色的才华； —

but her mind was poor, her heart barren by nature: nothing bloomed spontaneously on that soil; —
但她的思想贫乏，内心贫瘠；在那块土地上没有一片自然的芬芳盛开； —

no unforced natural fruit delighted by its freshness. She was not good; she was not original: —
她不善良，也不独立：她常常重复书中响亮的词句，从不提出或拥有自己的观点。 —

she used to repeat sounding phrases from books: she never offered, nor had, an opinion of her own. —
她主张高尚的情操，但她并不懂得同情和怜悯的感觉； —

She advocated a high tone of sentiment; but she did not know the sensations of sympathy and pity; —
她推崇一种高超的情感，但她并不懂得真正的同情和怜悯。 —

tenderness and truth were not in her. Too often she betrayed this, by the undue vent she gave to a spiteful antipathy she had conceived against little Adèle: —
温柔和真实并不在她身上。她经常通过不公正的发泄来显示出这一点，对小Adèle她滋生了恶感和敌意： —

pushing her away with some contumelious epithet if she happened to approach her; —
如果她碰巧接近她，会用侮辱性的称呼把她推开； —

sometimes ordering her from the room, and always treating her with coldness and acrimony. —
有时候命令她离开房间，总是对她冷淡和尖刻。 —

Other eyes besides mine watched these manifestations of character—watched them closely, keenly, shrewdly. —
除了我之外，还有其他人观察到了这些性格表现-他们紧密、敏锐地观察着。 —

Yes; the future bridegroom, Mr. Rochester himself, exercised over his intended a ceaseless surveillance; —
是的，未来的新郎罗切斯特先生对他准备娶的人进行了持续的监视； —

and it was from this sagacity—this guardedness of his—this perfect, clear consciousness of his fair one’s defects—this obvious absence of passion in his sentiments towards her, that my ever-torturing pain arose.
正是因为他的聪明才智-他对她的发觉性-他对她的缺点的明显清醒的意识-他对她的情感中明显缺乏的激情，造成了我无休止的痛苦。

I saw he was going to marry her, for family, perhaps political reasons, because her rank and connections suited him; —
我看到他要娶她，可能是因为家庭，也可能是政治原因，因为她的地位和关系适合他。 —

I felt he had not given her his love, and that her qualifications were ill adapted to win from him that treasure. —
我感觉他没有给予她爱，而且她的条件也不适合赢得他的心。 —

This was the point—this was where the nerve was touched and teased—this was where the fever was sustained and fed: —
这就是关键所在——这是触动和刁难神经的地方——这是维持和滋养病态的地方。 —

she could not charm him.
她无法吸引他。

If she had managed the victory at once, and he had yielded and sincerely laid his heart at her feet, I should have covered my face, turned to the wall, and (figuratively) have died to them. —
如果她能一次性取得胜利，他真诚地将自己的心交给她，我会捂住脸，转身背对墙壁，并且（在提喻中）对他们死心踏地。 —

If Miss Ingram had been a good and noble woman, endowed with force, fervour, kindness, sense, I should have had one vital struggle with two tigers—jealousy and despair: —
如果英格拉姆小姐是一个善良高尚、有力量、热情、理智的女人，我会与两只老虎——嫉妒与绝望——进行一次生死搏斗： —

then, my heart torn out and devoured, I should have admired her—acknowledged her excellence, and been quiet for the rest of my days: —
随后，我的心将被扯出并吞噬，我会欣赏她——承认她的优点，并且余生将安宁无忧。 —

and the more absolute her superiority, the deeper would have been my admiration—the more truly tranquil my quiescence. —
而她的优越性越绝对，我对她的钦佩就会更加深切，我的平静也会更加真实安宁。 —

But as matters really stood, to watch Miss Ingram’s efforts at fascinating Mr. Rochester, to witness their repeated failure—herself unconscious that they did fail; —
然而事实如此，看着英格拉姆小姐想要迷住罗切斯特先生的努力，见证了他们一次次的失败-她自己却不自知她们的失败； —

vainly fancying that each shaft launched hit the mark, and infatuatedly pluming herself on success, when her pride and self-complacency repelled further and further what she wished to allure—to witness this, was to be at once under ceaseless excitation and ruthless restraint.
徒然地以为每一次射出的箭都命中了目标，盲目地自满成功，当她的骄傲和自满心理越来越排斥她所吸引的东西时——目睹这一切，就是同时经受持续的刺激和残酷的约束。

Because, when she failed, I saw how she might have succeeded. —
因为当她失败了，我看到了她如何成功。 —

Arrows that continually glanced off from Mr. Rochester’s breast and fell harmless at his feet, might, I knew, if shot by a surer hand, have quivered keen in his proud heart—have called love into his stern eye, and softness into his sardonic face; —
那些从罗切斯特先生的胸膛上不断滑落，无害地落在他脚下的箭矢，如果有一只更准确的手射出，我知道它们本可以在他骄傲的心中扎入一道痛楚的刺——它们可以让爱涌入他严厉的眼神，让温柔出现在他嘲讽的脸上； —

or, better still, without weapons a silent conquest might have been won.
或者，更好的是，没有武器的静默征服本可以获得胜利。

“Why can she not influence him more, when she is privileged to draw so near to him? —
“为什么她不能在有如此靠近他的特权的时候，影响他更多呢？ —

” I asked myself. “Surely she cannot truly like him, or not like him with true affection! —
“我问自己。‘她肯定不可能真的喜欢他，或者没有真正的感情不喜欢他！’ —

If she did, she need not coin her smiles so lavishly, flash her glances so unremittingly, manufacture airs so elaborate, graces so multitudinous. —
如果是这样的话，她不需要如此大手大脚地制造微笑，不断闪烁眼神，制造如此多的姿态和优雅。 —

It seems to me that she might, by merely sitting quietly at his side, saying little and looking less, get nigher his heart. —
在我看来，她只要静静地坐在他身旁，不多说话，不多看一眼，就可以走进他的心。 —

I have seen in his face a far different expression from that which hardens it now while she is so vivaciously accosting him; —
我曾经在他的脸上看到一种完全不同的表情，当她积极地向他搭话的时候，他的脸已经变得很僵硬了； —

but then it came of itself: it was not elicited by meretricious arts and calculated manoeuvres; —
但是那种表情是自然流露的，不是通过欺骗手段和计算的策略。 —

and one had but to accept it—to answer what he asked without pretension, to address him when needful without grimace—and it increased and grew kinder and more genial, and warmed one like a fostering sunbeam. —
人们只需要接受这种表情，不要虚伪地回答他的问题，需要的时候毫无做作地对他说话，这样这种表情会变得更友善、更亲切，像温暖的阳光一样温暖人的心灵。 —

How will she manage to please him when they are married? I do not think she will manage it; —
当他们结婚后，她将如何取悦他？我不认为她能做到； —

and yet it might be managed; and his wife might, I verily believe, be the very happiest woman the sun shines on.”
然而，这可能是可以解决的；我真心相信，他的妻子可能是太阳照耀下最幸福的女人。

I have not yet said anything condemnatory of Mr. Rochester’s project of marrying for interest and connections. —
我还没有对罗切斯特先生为了利益和关系而结婚的计划作出任何谴责的言论。 —

It surprised me when I first discovered that such was his intention: —
当我第一次发现他有这个打算时，我感到惊讶。 —

I had thought him a man unlikely to be influenced by motives so commonplace in his choice of a wife; but the longer I considered the position, education, &c. —
我本以为他不太可能在选择妻子时受到这种普通动机的影响；但我越是考虑到双方的地位、教育等问题，我就越觉得不应该对他或英格拉姆小姐的行为进行评判和指责，他们无疑是从童年时期就被灌输了这些思想和原则。 —

, of the parties, the less I felt justified in judging and blaming either him or Miss Ingram for acting in conformity to ideas and principles instilled into them, doubtless, from their childhood. —
他们阶层的所有人都坚持这些原则：我想，他们一定有我无法理解的坚持这些原则的理由。 —

All their class held these principles: I supposed, then, they had reasons for holding them such as I could not fathom. —
对我来说，如果我像他一样是个绅士，我只会拥抱一个我能够爱的妻子。 —

It seemed to me that, were I a gentleman like him, I would take to my bosom only such a wife as I could love; —
这使我觉得，如果我像他一样是个绅士，我会只娶一个我能够爱的妻子；即使这意味着在选择上放弃一些社会地位和利益。 —

but the very obviousness of the advantages to the husband’s own happiness offered by this plan convinced me that there must be arguments against its general adoption of which I was quite ignorant: —
但是这个计划明显对丈夫自己的幸福有好处，我意识到肯定存在我不了解的反对其普遍采用的论点。 —

otherwise I felt sure all the world would act as I wished to act.
否则我确信全世界都会按照我想要的方式行事。

But in other points, as well as this, I was growing very lenient to my master: —
但在其他方面，我对主人越来越宽容。 —

I was forgetting all his faults, for which I had once kept a sharp look-out. —
我已经忘记了他所有的缺点，曾经我一直对此保持着敏锐的观察。 —

It had formerly been my endeavour to study all sides of his character: —
以前我努力研究他性格的各个方面： —

to take the bad with the good; and from the just weighing of both, to form an equitable judgment. —
将好的与坏的都看在眼里，并从对两者的公正权衡中形成公平的判断。 —

Now I saw no bad. The sarcasm that had repelled, the harshness that had startled me once, were only like keen condiments in a choice dish: —
现在我看不到任何坏的一面了。曾经让我厌恶的讽刺和让我震惊的粗暴，只是像佳肴中的辛辣调料一样： —

their presence was pungent, but their absence would be felt as comparatively insipid. —
它们的存在是刺激的，但如果没有它们，会感觉相对平淡无味。 —

And as for the vague something—was it a sinister or a sorrowful, a designing or a desponding expression? —
至于这个模糊的东西——它是一种邪恶的还是忧伤的，是一种计谋的还是失望的表情？ —

—that opened upon a careful observer, now and then, in his eye, and closed again before one could fathom the strange depth partially disclosed; —
对于一个细心观察者而言，眼睛里会时不时地展现出一种奇怪的深度，然后又迅速关闭，令人无法完全探究； —

that something which used to make me fear and shrink, as if I had been wandering amongst volcanic-looking hills, and had suddenly felt the ground quiver and seen it gape: —
它让我感到恐惧和退缩，仿佛我正在火山般的山丘间徘徊，突然感觉地面在颤抖，看到大地裂开； —

that something, I, at intervals, beheld still; —
这种感觉在我被间断地感知到； —

and with throbbing heart, but not with palsied nerves. —
心跳加速，但神经却不麻痹； —

Instead of wishing to shun, I longed only to dare—to divine it; —
与其希望躲避，我渴望着去勇敢地揭开它的真相； —

and I thought Miss Ingram happy, because one day she might look into the abyss at her leisure, explore its secrets and analyse their nature.
我认为英格拉姆小姐是幸福的，因为她有一天可以安闲地凝视这个深渊，探索它的秘密并分析它们的本质；

Meantime, while I thought only of my master and his future bride—saw only them, heard only their discourse, and considered only their movements of importance—the rest of the party were occupied with their own separate interests and pleasures. —
与此同时，当我只关注我的主人和他未来的新娘时，只看到他们，只听到他们的对话，只认为他们的动作最重要，其他人则忙于他们自己的兴趣和娱乐。 —

The Ladies Lynn and Ingram continued to consort in solemn conferences, where they nodded their two turbans at each other, and held up their four hands in confronting gestures of surprise, or mystery, or horror, according to the theme on which their gossip ran, like a pair of magnified puppets. —
伊丽莎白和英格拉姆女士继续在庄重的会议中交谈，她们互相点头示意，双手做出对峙状，表达惊讶、神秘或恐惧的姿势，根据她们的闲谈话题，就像一对放大的木偶。 —

Mild Mrs. Dent talked with good-natured Mrs. Eshton; —
温和的邓小姐与友好的艾什顿夫人交谈； —

and the two sometimes bestowed a courteous word or smile on me. —
有时他们两人会对我赐予礼貌的言语或微笑。 —

Sir George Lynn, Colonel Dent, and Mr. Eshton discussed politics, or county affairs, or justice business. —
乔治·林恩爵士、邓特上校和艾什顿先生一起讨论政治、郡事或司法事务。 —

Lord Ingram flirted with Amy Eshton; Louisa played and sang to and with one of the Messrs. Lynn; —
英格拉姆勋爵与艾米·艾什顿调情；路易莎与林恩先生之一一起弹奏和唱歌； —

and Mary Ingram listened languidly to the gallant speeches of the other. —
而玛丽·英格拉姆则慵懒地倾听着另一位绅士的花言巧语。 —

Sometimes all, as with one consent, suspended their by-play to observe and listen to the principal actors: —
有时所有人都一致地中止他们的打闹，观察和聆听主要演员们的表演： —

for, after all, Mr. Rochester and—because closely connected with him—Miss Ingram were the life and soul of the party. —
因为最终来说，罗切斯特先生以及与他密切相关的英格拉姆小姐是这个聚会的灵魂和精髓所在。 —

If he was absent from the room an hour, a perceptible dulness seemed to steal over the spirits of his guests; —
如果他离开房间一个小时，他的客人们的情绪明显变得沉闷； —

and his re-entrance was sure to give a fresh impulse to the vivacity of conversation.
而他再次进入房间，肯定会给谈话带来新的活力。

The want of his animating influence appeared to be peculiarly felt one day that he had been summoned to Millcote on business, and was not likely to return till late. —
一天，他因为事务被召唤到了米尔科特，不太可能早些回来，缺乏他的激励影响似乎特别明显。 —

The afternoon was wet: a walk the party had proposed to take to see a gipsy camp, lately pitched on a common beyond Hay, was consequently deferred. —
当天下午下雨了，原本计划的一次去看一个近期在海边普通地区设立的吉普赛人营地的散步被推迟了。 —

Some of the gentlemen were gone to the stables: —
一些绅士去了马厩； —

the younger ones, together with the younger ladies, were playing billiards in the billiard-room. —
年轻人和年轻女士们一起在乒乓球房打乒乓球。 —

The dowagers Ingram and Lynn sought solace in a quiet game at cards. —
英格拉姆和林恩两位老太太在安静地打牌来消遣。 —

Blanche Ingram, after having repelled, by supercilious taciturnity, some efforts of Mrs. Dent and Mrs. Eshton to draw her into conversation, had first murmured over some sentimental tunes and airs on the piano, and then, having fetched a novel from the library, had flung herself in haughty listlessness on a sofa, and prepared to beguile, by the spell of fiction, the tedious hours of absence. —
布兰奇·英格拉姆，以傲慢的沉默驱散了Mrs. Dent和Mrs. 艾什顿引她参与对话的努力后，先在钢琴上轻声哼唱一些伤感的曲调，然后从图书馆拿了一本小说，高傲地懒散地躺在沙发上，准备用小说的魔力消磨漫长的离别时光。 —

The room and the house were silent: only now and then the merriment of the billiard-players was heard from above.
房间和整个房子都静悄悄的，只偶尔能听到楼上打台球的欢笑声。

It was verging on dusk, and the clock had already given warning of the hour to dress for dinner, when little Adèle, who knelt by me in the drawing-room window-seat, suddenly exclaimed—
天快黑了，时钟已经提醒该换装晚餐了，这时候窗边的客厅窗台上跪着的小Adèle突然大叫起来——

“Voilà Monsieur Rochester, qui revient!”
“Look, Monsieur Rochester is coming back!”

I turned, and Miss Ingram darted forwards from her sofa: —
我转过身，英格拉姆小姐从沙发上一下子扑过来。 —

the others, too, looked up from their several occupations; —
其他人也从各自的活动中抬起头来。 —

for at the same time a crunching of wheels and a splashing tramp of horse-hoofs became audible on the wet gravel. —
同时，轮子碾压和马蹄溅着水花的声音在湿漉漉的砂石上响起。 —

A post-chaise was approaching.
一辆快马车正在逼近。

“What can possess him to come home in that style?” said Miss Ingram. —
“他为什么要以这种方式回家？”英格拉姆小姐说。 —

“He rode Mesrour (the black horse), did he not, when he went out? —
“他出门时骑的是那匹黑马梅苏尔，对吗？还有飞猎犬跟着他：他把这些动物都搞到哪里去了？” —

and Pilot was with him:—what has he done with the animals?”
说着，她把她那高挑的身影和丰盈的衣裳凑得离窗户如此之近，我不得不几乎要弯腰到背骨都要断了才能避让开。

As she said this, she approached her tall person and ample garments so near the window, that I was obliged to bend back almost to the breaking of my spine: —
她太过于急切，一开始没有注意到我，但当她看见我时，她撇了撇嘴，转到了另一个窗户旁边。 —

in her eagerness she did not observe me at first, but when she did, she curled her lip and moved to another casement. —
快马车停下了，车夫按响了门铃，一个穿着旅行装的绅士下了车； —

The post-chaise stopped; the driver rang the door-bell, and a gentleman alighted attired in travelling garb; —
但那不是罗切斯特先生，而是一个高个子、时髦的陌生人。 —

but it was not Mr. Rochester; it was a tall, fashionable-looking man, a stranger.
“真烦人！” 英格拉姆小姐叫道：“你这讨厌的家伙！

“How provoking!” exclaimed Miss Ingram: “you tiresome monkey! —
“他该回来了，”我的主人说道，“准备一下，陪我去迎接他。” —

” (apostrophising Adèle), “who perched you up in the window to give false intelligence? —
“（对阿黛勒唤声）是谁让你站在窗口散布虚假谍报的？” —

” and she cast on me an angry glance, as if I were in fault.
“她向我投来一种愤怒的眼神，仿佛我是有过错的。”

Some parleying was audible in the hall, and soon the new-comer entered. —
走廊里传来一些交谈声，很快新来的人进来了。 —

He bowed to Lady Ingram, as deeming her the eldest lady present.
他对英格拉姆夫人鞠躬致意，视她为在场最年长的女士。

“It appears I come at an inopportune time, madam,” said he, “when my friend, Mr. Rochester, is from home; —
“看来我来的时机不太合适，夫人”，他说，“因为我的朋友罗切斯特先生不在家； —

but I arrive from a very long journey, and I think I may presume so far on old and intimate acquaintance as to instal myself here till he returns.”
但我刚从一次非常长的旅行中回来，我想我可以顺便在这里住下，直到他回来。”

His manner was polite; his accent, in speaking, struck me as being somewhat unusual,—not precisely foreign, but still not altogether English: —
他的举止很有礼貌；他说话的口音让我觉得有些不寻常，不完全是外国口音，但也不完全是英国口音： —

his age might be about Mr. Rochester’s,—between thirty and forty; —
他的年龄可能和罗切斯特先生差不多，在三十至四十岁之间； —

his complexion was singularly sallow: otherwise he was a fine-looking man, at first sight especially. —
他的肤色异常苍白：不过他乍看之下是个相貌俊美的男人。 —

On closer examination, you detected something in his face that displeased, or rather that failed to please. —
仔细观察，你发现他的脸上有些不悦的东西，或者说没有让人喜欢的东西。 —

His features were regular, but too relaxed: —
他的五官很端正，但太过松弛。 —

his eye was large and well cut, but the life looking out of it was a tame, vacant life—at least so I thought.
他的眼睛大而深邃，但透过它看出来的生命的气息是一种温顺而空洞的生命，至少我是这么认为的。

The sound of the dressing-bell dispersed the party. —
时装钟声打散了聚会。 —

It was not till after dinner that I saw him again: he then seemed quite at his ease. —
直到晚餐后我才再次见到他：他看起来相当轻松自在。 —

But I liked his physiognomy even less than before: —
但我不比之前喜欢他的相貌： —

it struck me as being at the same time unsettled and inanimate. —
我觉得他的相貌既不稳定又缺乏生气。 —

His eye wandered, and had no meaning in its wandering: —
他的眼神四处漫游，没有任何意义： —

this gave him an odd look, such as I never remembered to have seen. —
这给了他一种奇怪的面容，这是我记忆中从未见过的。 —

For a handsome and not an unamiable-looking man, he repelled me exceedingly: —
作为一个英俊而不是令人讨厌的男人，他让我感到非常反感： —

there was no power in that smooth-skinned face of a full oval shape: —
这张光滑的脸上没有任何力量，这是一个完全椭圆形的脸。 —

no firmness in that aquiline nose and small cherry mouth; —
这张凤眼鹰鼻和小巧的樱桃嘴没有任何坚定的气息； —

there was no thought on the low, even forehead; —
这低矮而平坦的额头上没有任何思考； —

no command in that blank, brown eye.
这张空洞的棕色眼睛没有任何指挥能力。

As I sat in my usual nook, and looked at him with the light of the girandoles on the mantelpiece beaming full over him—for he occupied an arm-chair drawn close to the fire, and kept shrinking still nearer, as if he were cold, I compared him with Mr. Rochester. —
当我坐在我通常的角落里，看着他身上的吊灯光亮照耀下，因为他坐在靠近火炉的扶手椅上，不断地靠近火炉，好像他感到冷，我把他与罗切斯特先生相比较。 —

I think (with deference be it spoken) the contrast could not be much greater between a sleek gander and a fierce falcon: —
我认为（虽然恭谦地说）一只光滑的雄鹅和一只凶猛的猎鹰之间的对比几乎没有什么更大的差异： —

between a meek sheep and the rough-coated keen-eyed dog, its guardian.
像一只温顺的羊和这只粗毛、敏锐的狗，它的守护人之间的对比。

He had spoken of Mr. Rochester as an old friend. A curious friendship theirs must have been: —
他把罗切斯特先生称为一个老朋友。 他们之间的友谊一定很奇特： —

a pointed illustration, indeed, of the old adage that “extremes meet.”
确实是一个明确的例证，即“极端相遇”的古老谚语。

Two or three of the gentlemen sat near him, and I caught at times scraps of their conversation across the room. —
几个绅士坐在他旁边，我偶尔能听到他们在房间另一边的对话碎片。 —

At first I could not make much sense of what I heard; —
开始我听到的一些话意义不大； —

for the discourse of Louisa Eshton and Mary Ingram, who sat nearer to me, confused the fragmentary sentences that reached me at intervals. —
因为路易莎·艾什顿和玛丽·英格拉姆的谈话使我时而听到的零散句子变得混乱了。 —

These last were discussing the stranger; they both called him “a beautiful man. —
最后这些人在讨论那个陌生人；他们都称他为“一个很美的男人”。 —

” Louisa said he was “a love of a creature,” and she “adored him; —
“路易莎说他是‘一个可爱的人’，她‘很崇拜他； —

” and Mary instanced his “pretty little mouth, and nice nose,” as her ideal of the charming.
“玛丽提到他‘漂亮的小嘴巴和好看的鼻子’，说他是她心目中迷人的理想。

“And what a sweet-tempered forehead he has! —
“他的额头多么温和呀！ —

” cried Louisa,—“so smooth—none of those frowning irregularities I dislike so much; —
“路易莎大叫，‘那么光滑—没有我那么讨厌的皱纹不规则； —

and such a placid eye and smile!”
“还有那么宁静的眼睛和微笑！’

And then, to my great relief, Mr. Henry Lynn summoned them to the other side of the room, to settle some point about the deferred excursion to Hay Common.
然后，让我松了一口气，亨利·林恩先生把他们召唤到房间的另一边，商量推迟短途旅行的事宜。

I was now able to concentrate my attention on the group by the fire, and I presently gathered that the new-comer was called Mr. Mason; —
现在我能够集中注意力看火炉边的这群人了，我很快就了解到这个新来的叫做梅森先生； —

then I learned that he was but just arrived in England, and that he came from some hot country: —
然后我得知他刚刚来到英国，而且他来自炎热的国家； —

which was the reason, doubtless, his face was so sallow, and that he sat so near the hearth, and wore a surtout in the house. —
这也许是他的脸色苍白的原因，也是他坐在火炉边并在室内穿着长外套的原因。 —

Presently the words Jamaica, Kingston, Spanish Town, indicated the West Indies as his residence; —
目前，他把牙买加、金斯敦和西班牙镇都作为他的住址； —

and it was with no little surprise I gathered, ere long, that he had there first seen and become acquainted with Mr. Rochester. —
不久后，我惊讶地得知他在那里第一次见到并结识了罗切斯特先生； —

He spoke of his friend’s dislike of the burning heats, the hurricanes, and rainy seasons of that region. —
他谈到了他朋友对那个地区炎热的天气、飓风和雨季的不喜欢； —

I knew Mr. Rochester had been a traveller: Mrs. Fairfax had said so; —
我知道罗切斯特先生曾经是个旅行者：费尔法克斯夫人这样说过； —

but I thought the continent of Europe had bounded his wanderings; —
但我以为他的旅行只限于欧洲大陆； —

till now I had never heard a hint given of visits to more distant shores.
直到现在，我从未听说他曾去过更远的海岸；

I was pondering these things, when an incident, and a somewhat unexpected one, broke the thread of my musings. —
我正在思考这些事情时，一件事情发生了，而且是个有些出乎意料的事情，打断了我的思绪； —

Mr. Mason, shivering as some one chanced to open the door, asked for more coal to be put on the fire, which had burnt out its flame, though its mass of cinder still shone hot and red. —
梅森先生打着颤问有没有更多的煤放在已经燃尽火焰但仍然发红的煤灰上。 —

The footman who brought the coal, in going out, stopped near Mr. Eshton’s chair, and said something to him in a low voice, of which I heard only the words, “old woman,”—“quite troublesome.”
送煤的侍从出去时停在艾什顿先生的椅子旁，低声对他说了几句话，我只听到了“老太婆”和“很烦人”这几个词。

“Tell her she shall be put in the stocks if she does not take herself off,” replied the magistrate.
“告诉她，如果她不离开，就要把她放进枷锁里，”官员回答说。

“No—stop!” interrupted Colonel Dent. “Don’t send her away, Eshton; —
“不，等等！”登特上校打断道。“艾什顿，不要打发她走； —

we might turn the thing to account; better consult the ladies. —
我们可以利用这件事，最好向女士们请教。 —

” And speaking aloud, he continued—“Ladies, you talked of going to Hay Common to visit the gipsy camp; —
”他大声说道，“女士们，你们说过要去海伊公共草地参观吉普赛营地； —

Sam here says that one of the old Mother Bunches is in the servants’ hall at this moment, and insists upon being brought in before ‘the quality,’ to tell them their fortunes. —
这儿的山姆说，有个老邦奇斯娘们正待在下人厅里，坚持要被带到‘上等人’面前，给他们占卜。 —

Would you like to see her?”
你们愿意见见她吗？”

“Surely, colonel,” cried Lady Ingram, “you would not encourage such a low impostor? —
“当然，上校，”英格拉姆夫人喊道，“你不会鼓励这种卑劣的冒充者吧？ —

Dismiss her, by all means, at once!”
立刻把她赶走！”

“But I cannot persuade her to go away, my lady,” said the footman; —
“但是我无法说服她离开，夫人，”侍从说。 —

“nor can any of the servants: Mrs. Fairfax is with her just now, entreating her to be gone; —
“就连仆人都不能: Mrs.费尔法克斯正在劝她走开; —

but she has taken a chair in the chimney-corner, and says nothing shall stir her from it till she gets leave to come in here.”
但她坐在壁炉角落里，说除非她获得进来的许可，否则没有任何事情能够让她离开那里。”

“What does she want?” asked Mrs. Eshton.
“她想干什么？” 艾什顿夫人问道。

“‘To tell the gentry their fortunes,’ she says, ma’am; —
“她说要告诉绅士们他们的命运，夫人; —

and she swears she must and will do it.”
而且她发誓她必须这样做。”

“What is she like?” inquired the Misses Eshton, in a breath.
“她长得什么样？” 艾什顿小姐们一口气问道。

“A shockingly ugly old creature, miss; almost as black as a crock.”
“她是一个非常丑陋的老妇人，小姐; 几乎黑得像一个陶罐。”

“Why, she’s a real sorceress!” cried Frederick Lynn. “Let us have her in, of course.”
“哎呀，她是个真正的巫婆！” 弗雷德里克 林恩喊道。“当然要让她进来。”

“To be sure,” rejoined his brother; “it would be a thousand pities to throw away such a chance of fun.”
“当然了，”他的兄弟接着说，“这样有趣的机会不可错过。”

“My dear boys, what are you thinking about?” exclaimed Mrs. Lynn.
“亲爱的孩子们，你们在想什么？” 莉恩夫人说道。

“I cannot possibly countenance any such inconsistent proceeding,” chimed in the Dowager Ingram.
“我绝对不能支持任何不一致的行为，”英格拉姆夫人加入进来。

“Indeed, mama, but you can—and will,” pronounced the haughty voice of Blanche, as she turned round on the piano-stool; —
“确实，妈妈，但是你可以 - 而且你会，”高傲的声音布兰奇宣布道，她转身坐在钢琴凳上; —

where till now she had sat silent, apparently examining sundry sheets of music. —
在那里她一直默默地坐着，显然在检查几张乐谱。 —

“I have a curiosity to hear my fortune told: —
“我对听到我的命运有点好奇： —

therefore, Sam, order the beldame forward.”
所以，山姆，让那个老太婆过来。”

“My darling Blanche! recollect—”
“我亲爱的布兰奇！记住 - ”

“I do—I recollect all you can suggest; and I must have my will—quick, Sam!”
“我记得 - 我记得你能提出的一切；我一定要按我的意愿来 - 快点，山姆！”

“Yes—yes—yes!” cried all the juveniles, both ladies and gentlemen. “Let her come—it will be excellent sport!”
“是的 - 是的 - 是的！”众多的青少年们，包括女士们和先生们，都喊道。“让她过来，这将是非常有趣的！”

The footman still lingered. “She looks such a rough one,” said he.
侍者仍然逗留着。“她看起来很粗鄙，”他说。

“Go!” ejaculated Miss Ingram, and the man went.
英格拉姆小姐叹息着说，“走吧！”那个人就走了。

Excitement instantly seized the whole party: —
兴奋立即席卷了整个聚会： —

a running fire of raillery and jests was proceeding when Sam returned.
在山姆返回之时，一连串的戏谑和笑话正进行着。

“She won’t come now,” said he. “She says it’s not her mission to appear before the ‘vulgar herd’ (them’s her words). —
“她现在不会来了，”他说。“她说她的使命不是出现在‘庸俗之众’面前（这是她的话）。” —

I must show her into a room by herself, and then those who wish to consult her must go to her one by one.”
我必须把她带到一个房间里独自待着，然后希望咨询她的人必须一个一个地去找她。”

“You see now, my queenly Blanche,” began Lady Ingram, “she encroaches. —
“你看到了，我的女王布兰奇，”英格拉姆女士开始说，“她侵犯了。 —

Be advised, my angel girl—and—”
我劝你，我的天使女孩——”

“Show her into the library, of course,” cut in the “angel girl. —
“当然要把她带到图书馆去，”这个“天使女孩”插嘴道。 —

” “It is not my mission to listen to her before the vulgar herd either: —
“我也没打算在俗人面前听她说话: —

I mean to have her all to myself. Is there a fire in the library?”
我打算独占她。图书馆里有火吗？”

“Yes, ma’am—but she looks such a tinkler.”
“有，女士，但她看起来有点滑稽。”

“Cease that chatter, blockhead! and do my bidding.”
“闭嘴，笨蛋！快去做我的命令。”

Again Sam vanished; and mystery, animation, expectation rose to full flow once more.
山姆再次消失了；神秘、活力和期待再次高涨。

“She’s ready now,” said the footman, as he reappeared. —
“她现在准备好了，”侍从回来时说道。 —

“She wishes to know who will be her first visitor.”
“她想知道谁会是她的第一个访客。”

“I think I had better just look in upon her before any of the ladies go,” said Colonel Dent.
“在任何女士们走近之前，我想我最好还是去看看她，”丹特上校说。

“Tell her, Sam, a gentleman is coming.”
“告诉她，山姆，有位先生要来了。”

Sam went and returned.
山姆走了出去又回来了。

“She says, sir, that she’ll have no gentlemen; —
“她说，先生，她不希望有绅士们来； —

they need not trouble themselves to come near her; —
他们不必靠近她； —

nor,” he added, with difficulty suppressing a titter, “any ladies either, except the young, and single.”
也不必靠近任何女士，除非是年轻的且单身的。

“By Jove, she has taste!” exclaimed Henry Lynn.
“哎呀，她很有品味！”亨利·林恩大叫道。

Miss Ingram rose solemnly: “I go first,” she said, in a tone which might have befitted the leader of a forlorn hope, mounting a breach in the van of his men.
英格拉姆小姐庄严地站起身来：”我第一个去，”她以一种和一个孤注一掷的冲击队队长踏上敌军阵地的声音说道。

“Oh, my best! oh, my dearest! pause—reflect!” was her mama’s cry; —
“哦，我最亲爱的！等一下——反思一下！”她妈妈喊道。 —

but she swept past her in stately silence, passed through the door which Colonel Dent held open, and we heard her enter the library.
但她以庄重的沉默悄然掠过她，通过Dent上校开着的门，我们听到她进入了图书馆。

A comparative silence ensued. Lady Ingram thought it “le cas” to wring her hands: —
随之而来的是一片相对安静。英格拉姆夫人觉得她应该抱着手臂表示惋惜： —

which she did accordingly. Miss Mary declared she felt, for her part, she never dared venture. —
于是她按照这样做了。玛丽小姐表示，她个人觉得从来不敢冒险。 —

Amy and Louisa Eshton tittered under their breath, and looked a little frightened.
艾米和路易莎.艾什顿偷偷地笑了笑，有些害怕。

The minutes passed very slowly: fifteen were counted before the library-door again opened. —
时间过得非常慢：计算了15分钟，图书馆的门再次打开。 —

Miss Ingram returned to us through the arch.
英格拉姆小姐通过拱门回到了我们这里。

Would she laugh? Would she take it as a joke? —
她会笑吗？她会把它当做一个笑话吗？ —

All eyes met her with a glance of eager curiosity, and she met all eyes with one of rebuff and coldness; —
所有的目光都充满了好奇，投射向她，而她用一种拒人于千里之外的冷漠目光来回应； —

she looked neither flurried nor merry: she walked stiffly to her seat, and took it in silence.
她既不慌张也不开心，板着脸走到座位上，默默坐下。

“Well, Blanche?” said Lord Ingram.
“怎么样，布兰奇？” 英格拉姆勋爵问道。

“What did she say, sister?” asked Mary.
“她说了什么，姐姐？” 玛丽问道。

“What did you think? How do you feel? Is she a real fortune-teller?” demanded the Misses Eshton.
“你觉得怎么样？你感觉如何？她是真正的占卜师吗？” 艾什顿小姐们追问道。

“Now, now, good people,” returned Miss Ingram, “don’t press upon me. —
“好了，好了，亲爱的人们，” 英格拉姆小姐回答道，“别逼我了。 —

Really your organs of wonder and credulity are easily excited: —
你们的好奇心和轻信心真是太容易被激发了： —

you seem, by the importance of you all—my good mama included—ascribe to this matter, absolutely to believe we have a genuine witch in the house, who is in close alliance with the old gentleman. —
你们似乎，从你们所有人——包括我亲爱的妈妈在内——给予这件事的重视来看，绝对相信我们家里有个真正的女巫，并且与那个老绅士有着密切的联系。 —

I have seen a gipsy vagabond; she has practised in hackneyed fashion the science of palmistry and told me what such people usually tell. —
我见过一个吉普赛流浪者；她按照老一套的方式念起了掌相，并告诉我一些这类人通常告诉人们的事情。 —

My whim is gratified; and now I think Mr. Eshton will do well to put the hag in the stocks to-morrow morning, as he threatened.”
我的心血被满足了；现在我想艾什顿先生最好明天早上把那个老巫婆放进柱头的刑具里，就像他威胁过的一样。

Miss Ingram took a book, leant back in her chair, and so declined further conversation. —
英格拉姆小姐拿了本书，往椅子上一靠，就不再进行进一步的对话。 —

I watched her for nearly half-an-hour: during all that time she never turned a page, and her face grew momently darker, more dissatisfied, and more sourly expressive of disappointment. —
我观察着她将近半个小时：在这段时间里，她从未翻过一页，她的脸色逐渐变得更加阴沉、不满，并且愈发酸溜溜地表达着失望。 —

She had obviously not heard anything to her advantage: —
显然她没有听到任何对她有利的消息： —

and it seemed to me, from her prolonged fit of gloom and taciturnity, that she herself, notwithstanding her professed indifference, attached undue importance to whatever revelations had been made her.
而根据她持续的阴郁和沉默不语，我觉得她自己，尽管声称漠不关心，对于已经向她透露的任何消息都过分重视。

During all that time she never turned a page
在这段时间里，她从未翻过一页。

Meantime, Mary Ingram, Amy and Louisa Eshton, declared they dared not go alone; —
此时，玛丽、艾米和路易莎·艾什顿都声称不敢单独去； —

and yet they all wished to go. A negotiation was opened through the medium of the ambassador, Sam; —
然而，他们又都希望去。通过大使山姆，开始了一次谈判。 —

and after much pacing to and fro, till, I think, the said Sam’s calves must have ached with the exercise, permission was at last, with great difficulty, extorted from the rigorous Sibyl, for the three to wait upon her in a body.
经过一番来回踱步后，我想，山姆的小腿一定因为活动而疼痛不已，最终我们费了很大的劲才从严格的西比尔那里得到了她们三人一起去拜访她的许可。

Their visit was not so still as Miss Ingram’s had been: —
他们的访问并不像英格拉姆小姐的那次那么安静： —

we heard hysterical giggling and little shrieks proceeding from the library; —
我们听到图书馆传来歇斯底里的笑声和尖叫声； —

and at the end of about twenty minutes they burst the door open, and came running across the hall, as if they were half-scared out of their wits.
大约二十分钟后，他们冲破了门，像是吓得半发疯一样跑过大厅。

“I am sure she is something not right!” they cried, one and all. “She told us such things! —
“我肯定她有问题！”他们一齐喊道，“她告诉我们这样的事情！ —

She knows all about us!” and they sank breathless into the various seats the gentlemen hastened to bring them.
她知道我们的一切！”他们喘着气坐在绅士们匆忙为他们带来的各种座位上。

Pressed for further explanation, they declared she had told them of things they had said and done when they were mere children; —
在进一步解释的要求下，他们宣称她告诉他们小时候的言行举止； —

described books and ornaments they had in their boudoirs at home: —
描述了她们家庭卧室中的书籍和装饰品； —

keepsakes that different relations had presented to them. —
以及亲戚们赠送给她们的纪念品。 —

They affirmed that she had even divined their thoughts, and had whispered in the ear of each the name of the person she liked best in the world, and informed them of what they most wished for.
他们肯定地说她甚至能够猜透他们的想法，并且已向每个人耳语了她最喜欢的人的名字，并告诉他们他们最渴望的是什么。

Here the gentlemen interposed with earnest petitions to be further enlightened on these two last-named points; —
在这时，绅士们急切地请求进一步了解这两个最后提到的问题； —

but they got only blushes, ejaculations, tremors, and titters, in return for their importunity. —
但是他们只得到脸红，惊叹，颤抖和窃笑作为他们的纠缠行为的回报。 —

The matrons, meantime, offered vinaigrettes and wielded fans; —
与此同时，贵妇人们递上香囊并挥动扇子； —

and again and again reiterated the expression of their concern that their warning had not been taken in time; —
反复对他们的担忧表示遗憾，说他们的警告没有被及时接受； —

and the elder gentlemen laughed, and the younger urged their services on the agitated fair ones.
年长的绅士们笑了，年轻的绅士们急切地为激动不安的女士们提供帮助。

In the midst of the tumult, and while my eyes and ears were fully engaged in the scene before me, I heard a hem close at my elbow: —
在混乱中，当我的眼睛和耳朵完全被面前的场景吸引时，我听到了我身边一个咳嗽声： —

I turned, and saw Sam.
我转过身，看到了山姆。

“If you please, miss, the gipsy declares that there is another young single lady in the room who has not been to her yet, and she swears she will not go till she has seen all. —
“小姐，如果你愿意，这位吉普赛人说还有一个年轻的单身女士没有找她，她发誓除非见过所有的人，否则她是不会离开的。 —

I thought it must be you: there is no one else for it. —
我想那一定是你了，除了你以外别无他人。 —

What shall I tell her?”
我该告诉她什么？”

“Oh, I will go by all means,” I answered: —
“哦，我一定要去，”我回答道： —

and I was glad of the unexpected opportunity to gratify my much-excited curiosity. —
我对这个出乎意料的机会感到高兴，我可以满足我旺盛的好奇心。 —

I slipped out of the room, unobserved by any eye—for the company were gathered in one mass about the trembling trio just returned—and I closed the door quietly behind me.
我悄悄地走出了房间，没有被任何人注意到——因为大家都聚集在刚刚回来的三个颤抖的人周围——我轻轻地关上了门。

“If you like, miss,” said Sam, “I’ll wait in the hall for you; —
“如果您愿意，小姐，”山姆说，“我可以在大厅等您； —

and if she frightens you, just call and I’ll come in.”
如果她吓到您了，随时叫我进来。”

“No, Sam, return to the kitchen: I am not in the least afraid. —
“不，山姆，你回厨房吧：我一点也不害怕。 —

” Nor was I; but I was a good deal interested and excited.
”我并不害怕；但我非常感兴趣和激动。