“To the Abbe Louis d’Ennemare, at Soissons.
“给索瓦桑的阁教士路易·德·埃纳迈尔。

“My Dear Abbe.
“亲爱的阁教士。

“My marriage with your cousin is broken off in the most stupid way, all on account of an idiotic trick which I almost involuntarily played my intended.
“我和你的表妹的婚姻以最蠢的方式破裂了，全都因为我不由自主地玩了一个白痴的把戏给我的未婚妻。 —

In my perplexity I turn to you, my old school chum, for you may be able to help me out of the difficulty.
“在困惑中，我来找你，我的老校友，因为你可能能帮我摆脱困境。 —

If you can, I shall be grateful to you until I die.
“如果你能帮忙，我将感激你一辈子。

“You know Gilberte, or, rather, you think you know her, but do we ever understand women?
“你认识吉尔伯特，或者说，你以为你认识她，但我们真的能理解女人吗？ —

All their opinions, their ideas, their creeds, are a surprise to us.
“她们的所有观点、思想、信仰都让我们感到吃惊。 —

They are all full of twists and turns, cf the unforeseen, of unintelligible arguments, of defective logic and of obstinate ideas, which seem final, but which they alter because a little bird came and perched on the window ledge.
“她们充满了曲折、意想不到的、难以理解的论断、不完善的逻辑和坚持不变但又似乎最终会改变的观点，因为一个小鸟停在窗台上。

“I need not tell you that your cousin is very religious, as she was brought up by the White (or was it the Black?
“不用我告诉你，你的表妹很虔诚，因为她是在白（或者是黑的？ —

) Ladies at Nancy. You know that better than I do, but what you perhaps do not know is, that she is just as excitable about other matters as she is about religion.
妮神关于这一点你比我了解得更清楚，但也许你不知道的是，她对其他事情的兴奋程度与她对宗教的兴奋程度一样。 —

Her head flies away, just as a leaf is whirled away by the wind;
她的头飞走了，就像叶子被风卷走一样； —

and she is a true woman, or, rather, girl, for she is moved or made angry in a moment, starting off at a gallop in affection, just as she does in hatred, and returning in the same manner;
她是一个真正的女人，或者更准确地说是一个女孩，她一瞬间就被感动或者愤怒，像爱情一样疾驰而去，就像仇恨一样，然后以同样的方式回来； —

and she is pretty—as you know, and more charming than I can say—as you will never know.
她很漂亮——你知道的，比我说的更迷人——你永远也不会知道。

“Well, we became engaged, and I adored her, as I adore her still, and she appeared to love me.
“我们订婚了，我崇拜她，就像我现在一样，她似乎也爱我。

“One evening, I received a telegram summoning me to Cologne for a consultation, which might be followed by a serious and difficult operation, and as I had to start the next morning, I went to wish Gilberte good-by, and tell her why I could not dine with them on Wednesday, but would do so on Friday, the day of my return.
“有一天晚上，我收到一封电报，召我去科隆参加一次会诊，可能会有一次严重而困难的手术，由于我必须在第二天早上出发，我去向吉尔贝特告别，并告诉她为什么我不能在星期三跟他们吃晚饭，但会在星期五归来的时候去，那是我的回程日。 —

Ah! Beware of Fridays, for I assure you they are unlucky!
啊！小心星期五，因为我向你保证它们是不幸的！

“When I told her that I had to go to Germany, I saw that her eyes filled with tears, but when I said I should be back very soon, she clapped her hands, and said:
当我告诉她我要去德国时，我看到她的眼睛充满了泪水，但当我说我很快就会回来时，她拍手叫道：

“’I am very glad you are going, then!
“‘你能去很好呀！ —

You must bring me back something;
你一定要给我带点什么； —

a mere trifle, just a souvenir, but a souvenir that you have chosen for me.
“’只是一件小小的纪念品，一个你为我挑选的纪念品。 —

You must guess what I should like best, do you hear?
“‘你要猜猜我最喜欢什么，听到了吗？ —

And then I shall see whether you have any imagination.’
然后我看看你是否有想象力。’

“She thought for a few moments, and then added:
“她沉思了一会儿，接着补充道：

“’I forbid you to spend more than twenty francs on it.
“‘我禁止你花超过二十法郎。 —

I want it for the intention, and for a remembrance of your penetration, and not for its intrinsic value:
我要它是为了意义和对你的洞察力的纪念，而不是它的实际价值。

“And then, after another moment’s silence, she said, in a low voice, and with downcast eyes:
“然后，又过了一会儿，她低声说道，目光低垂：

“’If it costs you nothing in money, but is something very ingenious and pretty, I will—I will kiss you.’
“‘如果它对你来说不花一分钱但非常巧妙和漂亮，我—我会亲吻你的。’

“The next day I was in Cologne.
第二天我到了科隆。 —

It was a case of a terrible accident, which had plunged a whole family into despair, and a difficult amputation was necessary.
这是一个可怕事故的案例，整个家庭都陷入了绝望之中，所以需要进行一次困难的截肢手术。 —

They lodged me in the house; I might say, they almost locked me up, and I saw nobody but people in tears, who almost deafened me with their lamentations;
他们让我住在他们的家里；我可以说，他们几乎将我锁了起来，我只看到了满脸泪水的人们，他们的哀悼声几乎使我耳膜破裂。 —

I operated on a man who appeared to be in a moribund state, and who nearly died under my hands, and with whom I remained two nights;
我为一个看起来垂危的男人做了手术，他几乎在我手下死去，我陪伴着他度过了两个夜晚。 —

and then, when I saw that there was a chance of his recovery, I drove to the station.
然后，当我看到他有康复的机会时，我驱车前往车站。 —

I had, however, made a mistake in the trains, and I had an hour to wait, and so I wandered about the streets, still thinking of my poor patient, when a man accosted me.
然而，我在火车的时间上犯了个错误，我还需要等待一个小时，于是我在街上闲逛，心里还在想着我可怜的病人，这时一个男人向我搭讪。 —

I do not know German, and he was totally ignorant of French, but at last I made out that he was offering me some relics.
我不懂德语，他也完全不懂法语，但最后我弄明白他在给我提供一些遗物。 —

I thought of Gilberte, for I knew her fanatical devotion, and here was my present ready to hand, so I followed the man into a shop where religious objects were for sale, and I bought a small piece of a bone of one of the Eleven Thousand Virgins.
我想到了吉尔贝特，因为我知道她的狂热奉献精神，而我现在正好有件礼物可以送给她，于是我跟着那个人走进一家卖宗教物品的店铺，买了一小块“一万一千个圣女”中的一根骨头。

“The pretended relic was inclosed in a charming old silver box, and that determined my choice, and, putting my purchase into my pocket, I went to the railway station, and so on to Paris.
这个假冒的圣物被装在一个迷人的古老银盒子里，这决定了我的选择，我把购买的物品放进口袋里，然后去了火车站，返回巴黎。

“As soon as I got home, I wished to examine my purchase again, and on taking hold of it, I found that the box was open, and the relic missing!
一回到家，我想再次检查我的购买，可是在拿起来时发现盒子已经敞开了，圣物不见了！ —

I searched in vain in my pocket, and turned it inside out;
我在口袋里找了半天，翻了个底朝天， —

the small bit of bone, which was no bigger than half a pin, had disappeared.
那块骨头只有半根大，竟然消失了。

“You know, my dear little Abbe, that my faith is not very fervent, but, as my friend, you are magnanimous enough to put up with my lukewarmness, and to leave me alone, and to wait for the future, so you say.
“你知道的，我亲爱的小神父，我的信仰并不十分炽热，但是作为我的朋友，你宽宏大量，忍受着我的冷漠，并且你说会等待未来的时刻，所以你说的是对的。” —

But I absolutely disbelieve in the relics of secondhand dealers in piety, and you share my doubts in that respect.
但是我对于那些虔诚二手交易商的遗物完全不相信，而你在这方面与我持相同的怀疑态度。 —

Therefore, the loss of that bit of sheep’s carcass did not grieve me, and I easily procured a similar fragment, which I carefully fastened inside my jewel-box, and then I went to see my intended.
因此，那个小小的羊尸的缺失并没有使我感到痛心，我很容易找到了一个类似的碎片，并将其小心地固定在我的珠宝盒里，然后我去见我心仪的人。

“As soon as she saw me, she ran up to me, smiling and eager, and, said to me:
“她一看到我就跑过来，笑着迫切地对我说：

“’What have you brought me?’
“你给我带来了什么？”

“I pretended to have forgotten, but she did not believe me, and I made her beg, and even beseech me.
我假装忘记了，但她并不相信我，于是我让她请求，甚至恳求我。 —

But when I saw that she was devoured by curiosity, I gave her the sacred silver box.
但是当我看到她被好奇心折磨时，我给了她那个神圣的银盒。 —

She appeared overjoyed.
她看起来很高兴。

“’A relic! Oh! A relic!’
“一件遗物！哦！一件遗物！”

“And she kissed the box passionately, so that I was ashamed of my deception.
她充满激情地亲吻着那个盒子，以至于我为我的欺骗感到羞愧。 —

She was not quite satisfied, however, and her uneasiness soon turned to terrible fear, and looking straight into my eyes, she said:
然而，她还不太满意，她的不安很快变成了可怕的恐惧，她直直地看着我的眼睛，说道：

“’Are you sure-that it is genuine?’
“你确定它是真的吗？”

“’Absolutely certain.’
“绝对确定。”

“’How can you be so certain?’
“你怎么那么确定？”

“I was trapped; for to say that I had bought it of a man in the streets would be my destruction.
“我被困住了；因为说我从街上一个人那里买来这个东西将会导致我毁灭。 —

What was I to say? A wild idea struck me, and I said, in a low, mysterious voice:
我该说什么呢？我脑子里突然冒出一个疯狂的想法，我以低沉、神秘的声音说道：

“’I stole it for you.’
“‘我是为了你偷的。’

“She looked at me with astonishment and delight in her large eyes.
“她用她那双大眼睛惊讶而愉快地看着我。

“’Oh! You stole it? Where?’
“‘哦！你偷了吗？在哪里？’

“’In the cathedral; in the very shrine of the Eleven Thousand Virgins.’
“‘在大教堂里；在一万一千位圣女的神龛里。’

“Her heart beat with pleasure, and she murmured:
“她的心跳着快乐，喃喃自语：

“’Oh! Did you really do that-for me? Tell me-all about it!’
“‘哦！你真的为了我做了那个吗？给我讲——所有的细节！’

“That was the climax; I could not retract what I had said.
“那是高潮；我无法收回我所说的。 —

I made up a fanciful story;
我编了一个幻想故事； —

with precise details:
并提供了详实的细节： —

I had given the custodian of the building a hundred francs to be allowed to go about the building by myself;
我给了建筑物的管理员一百法郎，请求被允许自己在建筑物周围游览一番； —

the shrine was being repaired, but I happened to be there at the breakfast hour of the workmen and clergy;
那个神龛正在修复中，但碰巧我在工人和神职人员的早餐时间在那里； —

by removing a small panel, I had been enabled to seize a small piece of bone (oh!
通过移动一个小面板，我得以抓住一小块骨头（噢！ —

so small), among a quantity of others (I said a quantity, as I thought of the amount that the remains of the skeletons of eleven thousand virgins must produce).
和其他很多小骨骼中（我说很多，是因为我想到了一万一千个处女的骨骼遗骸所产生的数量）。 —

Then I went to a goldsmith’s and bought a casket worthy of the relic;
然后我去了一家金匠店，买了一个相称于这圣物的盒子； —

and I was not sorry to let her know that the silver box cost me five hundred francs.
我并不后悔让她知道这个银盒子花费我五百法郎。

“But she did not think of that; she listened to me, trembling, in an ecstasy, and whispering:
“但她没有想到那个，她战栗地倾听我，陶醉地低声说：『我多么爱你！ —

‘How I love you!’ she threw herself into my arms.
』然后她扑进了我的怀抱。

“Just note this: I had committed sacrilege for her sake.
“请注意：我为了她而犯了亵渎罪。 —

I had committed a theft;
我犯了一桩偷窃罪； —

I had violated a church;
我侵犯了教堂； —

I had violated a shrine;
我侵犯了神圣的圣器； —

violated and stolen holy relics, and for that she adored me, thought me perfect, tender, divine.
侵犯和偷走了神圣的遗物，而她因此崇拜着我，认为我是完美、温存、神圣的。 —

Such is woman, my dear Abbe, every woman.
这就是女人，亲爱的阿贝，每一个女人都是如此。

“For two months I was the most admirable of lovers.
“两个月来，我是最令人钦佩的恋人。 —

In her room, she had made a kind of magnificent chapel in which to keep this bit of mutton chop, which, as she thought, had made me commit that divine love-crime, and she worked up her religious enthusiasm in front of it every morning and evening.
她在自己的房间里建了一座壮丽的小教堂，专门用来保管这块小羊排，她认为是因为这块小羊排让我犯下了那神圣的爱情罪行，她每天早晚都在它面前表达她的宗教狂热。 —

I had asked her to keep the matter secret, for fear, as I said, that I might be arrested, condemned, and given over to Germany, and she kept her promise.
我曾要求她保守这个秘密，担心我可能会被逮捕、定罪并被交给德国，她信守了诺言。

“Well, at the beginning of the summer, she was seized with an irresistible desire to see the scene of my exploit, and she teased her father so persistently (without telling him her secret reason), that he took her to Cologne, but without telling me of their trip, according to his daughter’s wish.
“好吧，夏天开始时，她突然想要亲眼看看我的壮举现场，她不断地纠缠着她的父亲（没有告诉他她秘密的原因），他们去了科隆，但没有告诉我他们的行程，根据女儿的愿望。

“I need not tell you that I had not seen the interior of the cathedral.
“我不必告诉你，我没见过大教堂的内部。 —

I do not know where the tomb (if there be a tomb) of the Eleven Thousand Virgins is;
我不知道（如果有的话）那十一千圣女的坟墓在哪里； —

and then, it appears, it is unapproachable, alas!
而且，据说是无法接近的，唉！

“A week afterward, I received ten lines, breaking off our engagement, and then an explanatory letter from her father, whom she had, somewhat late, taken into her confidence.
“一周后，我收到了十行字，中断了我们的婚约，然后是她父亲的一封解释信，她有点晚才向他倾诉心事。

“At the sight of the shrine, she had suddenly seen through my trickery and my lie, and at the same time discovered my real innocence of any crime.
“她一看到圣地，突然看穿了我的诡计和谎言，同时发现了我实际上并没有犯罪的真正清白。 —

Having asked the keeper of the relics whether any robbery had been committed, the man began to laugh, and pointed out to them how impossible such a crime was.
“询问了圣物保管员是否发生了任何盗窃，那人开始笑了，还指出了这样的犯罪是多么不可能。 —

But, from the moment that I had not plunged my profane hand into venerable relics, I was no longer worthy of my fair-haired, sensitive betrothed.
“但是，从我没有把亵渎的手伸进尊贵的圣物的那一刻起，我就不再配得上我金发敏感的未婚妻了。

“I was forbidden the house; I begged and prayed in vain;
“我被禁止进入她家；我乞求和恳求都无济于事； —

nothing could move the fair devotee, and I became ill from grief.
什么都不能动摇那位美丽的虔诚信徒，我因此悲伤而生病。 —

Well, last week, her cousin, Madame d’Arville, who is your cousin also, sent me word that she should like to see me, and when I called, she told me on what conditions I might obtain my pardon, and here they are.
“好吧，上周，她的表姐，也是您的表姐Madame d’Arville，让我传信给我，告诉了我可以获得宽恕的条件，这就是它们。 —

I must bring her a relic, a real, authentic relic of some virgin and martyr, certified to be such by our Holy Father, the Pope, and I am going mad from embarrassment and anxiety.
我必须给她带来一件遗物，一件真正的、真实的童贞殉道者的遗物，要由我们的圣父教皇亲自认证，而我正因为尴尬和焦虑而发疯。

“I will go to Rome, if needful, but I cannot call on the Pope unexpectedly, to tell him my stupid misadventure;
如果需要的话，我会去罗马，但我不能死去意外拜访教皇，告诉他我的愚蠢的不幸；而且，此外，我怀疑他们是否允许私人拥有遗物。 —

and, besides, I doubt whether they allow private individuals to have relics.
你能不能给我介绍一下某位红衣主教，甚至一位拥有某位女圣徒遗物的法国教士？ —

Could not you give me an introduction to some cardinal, or even to some French prelate who possesses some remains of a female saint?
或者，也许你的珍贵收藏中有她想要的物品？ —

Or, perhaps, you may have the precious object she wants in your collection?
“帮我摆脱我的困境，我亲爱的神父，我保证，我会比原本早十年皈依！

“Help me out of my difficulty, my dear Abbe, and I promise you that I will be converted ten years sooner than I otherwise should be!
“把这件事当真的阿尔维尔夫人有一天对我说：

“Madame d’Arville, who takes the matter seriously, said to me the other day:
“可怜的吉尔贝特将永远不会结婚。”

“’Poor Gilberte will never marry.’
“我亲爱的老同学，你会让你的堂妹因为我的愚蠢手段而丧命吗？

“My dear old schoolmate, will you allow your cousin to die the victim of a stupid piece of subterfuge on my part?
我向你乞求，让我摆脱我的困境！ —

Pray prevent her from being virgin eleven thousand and one.
祈求不要让她成为第十一千零一位处女。

“Pardon me, I am unworthy, but I embrace you, and love you with all my heart.
“请原谅我，我是不配的，但我拥抱你，全心全意地爱你。

“Your old friend,
“你的老朋友，

“HENRI FONTAL.”
“亨利·丰塔尔。”