It was Sunday afternoon. St. Clare was stretched on a bamboo lounge in the verandah, solacing himself with a cigar. —
这是星期天下午。圣克莱尔舒服地躺在门廊上的竹躺椅上，抽着雪茄。 —

Marie lay reclined on a sofa, opposite the window opening on the verandah, closely secluded, under an awning of transparent gauze, from the outrages of the mosquitos, and languidly holding in her hand an elegantly bound prayer-book. —
玛丽斜躺在沙发上，离开通往门廊的窗户不远，被一块透明纱布的遮篷包裹着，免受蚊虫的侵扰，手里懒洋洋地握着一本装帧精美的祈祷书。 —

She was holding it because it was Sunday, and she imagined she had been reading it,–though, in fact, she had `een only taking a succession of short naps, with it open in her hand.
她握着书是因为今天是星期天，她以为自己一直在读，尽管事实上她只是把书拿在手里，一会儿打盹，一会儿又打盹。

Miss Ophelia, who, after some rummaging, had hunted up a small Methodist meeting within riding distance, had gone out, with Tom as driver, to attend it; —
在翻找了一番之后，奥菲利亚找到了一个距离可以骑马到达的小卫理公会的聚会，她和汤姆一起出去参加了； —

and Eva had accompanied them.
而伊娃也跟着他们一起去了。

“I say, Augustine,” said Marie after dozing a while, “I must send to the city after my old Doctor Posey; —
“我说，奥古斯丁，”玛丽打了个盹后说道，“我必须派人去城里请我的老医生波西医生； —

I’m sure I’ve got the complaint of the heart.”
我确信自己得了心脏病。”

“Well; why need you send for him? This doctor that attends Eva seems skilful.”
“那么，你为什么要叫他来呢？这位给伊娃看病的医生似乎很有技术。”

“I would not trust him in a critical case,” said Marie; “and I think I may say mine is becoming so! —
“在关键时刻，我不会信任他，” 玛丽说；“我觉得我的情况正变得危急！” —

I’ve been thinking of it, these two or three nights past; —
“我已经考虑过了，过去这两三个晚上； —

I have such distressing pains, and such strange feelings.”
我遭受着这样难以忍受的疼痛，还有一些奇怪的感觉。”

“O, Marie, you are blue; I don’t believe it’s heart complaint.”
“哦，玛丽，你这是忧郁；我不相信这是心脏病。”

“I dare say you don’t,” said Marie; “I was prepared to expect that. —
“我敢说 你 不相信，” 玛丽说；“我早就料到 这点。” —

You can be alarmed enough, if Eva coughs, or has the least thing the matter with her; —
“如果伊娃咳嗽或有一点小毛病，你就足够紧张了； —

but you never think of me.”
但你从不替我担心。”

“If it’s particularly agreeable to you to have heart disease, why, I’ll try and maintain you have it,” said St. Clare; —
“如果你特别愿意患上心脏病，那好吧，我会尽量让你相信你得了心脏病，” 圣克莱说； —

“I didn’t know it was.”
“我不知道我患了心脏病。”

“Well, I only hope you won’t be sorry for this, when it’s too late!” said Marie; —
“好吧，我只希望当一切为时已晚时，你不会后悔这件事！” 玛丽说； —

“but, believe it or not, my distress about Eva, and the exertions I have made with that dear child, have developed what I have long suspected.”
“但信不信由你，我为伊娃担忧，以及我为那个可爱孩子所做的努力，终于揭示了我长期以来怀疑的事实。”

What the exertions were which Marie referred to, it would have been difficult to state. —
玛丽所指的那些“努力”是什么，很难说清楚。 —

St. Clare quietly made this commentary to himself, and went on smoking, like a hard-hearted wretch of a man as he was, till a carriage drove up before the verandah, and Eva and Miss Ophelia alighted.
圣克莱静静地对自己做出这样的评价，继续抽烟，像他那个无情的男人一样，直到一辆马车停在门廊前，伊娃和奥菲莉亚小姐下车。

Miss Ophelia marched straight to her own chamber, to put away her bonnet and shawl, as was always her manner, before she spoke a word on any subject; —
奥菲莉亚小姐径直走向自己的房间，把帽子和披肩放好，这一向是她的习惯，在她谈论任何事情之前总是这样； —

while Eva came, at St: Clare’s call, and was sitting on his knee, giving him an account of the services they had heard.
当爱娃来到时，圣克莱尔叫她坐在膝盖上，向他描述了他们听到的礼拜。

They soon heard loud exclamations from Miss Ophelia’s room, which, like the one in which they were sitting, opened on to the verandah and violent reproof addressed to somebody.
他们很快听到奥菲莉亚小姐房间里传来的大声呼喊，像他们坐着的那个房间一样，也是通往阳台的，还有对某人的激烈斥责。

“What new witchcraft has Tops been brewing?” —
“Tops又在酿造什么新的巫术？” —

asked St. Clare. “That commotion is of her raising, I’ll be bound!”
圣克莱尔问道。“那场骚动一定是她搞的！”

And, in a moment after, Miss Ophelia, in high indignation, came dragging the culprit along.
接着，奥菲莉亚小姐气呼呼地把罪魁祸首拽了出来。

“Come out here, now!” she said. “I will tell your master!”
“现在出来！”她说。“我一定要告诉你的主人！”

“What’s the case now?” asked Augustine.
“现在是怎么回事？”奥古斯丁问道。

“The case is, that I cannot be plagued with this child, any longer! It’s past all bearing; —
“问题就在于，我再也无法忍受这个孩子了！忍无可忍； —

flesh and blood cannot endure it! Here, I locked her up, and gave her a hymn to study; —
肉体无法承受！我把她锁起来，让她学唱诗歌； —

and what does she do, but spy out where I put my key, and has gone to my bureau, and got a bonnet-trimming, and cut it all to pieces to make dolls’jackets! —
结果她做什么？偷偷找到我放钥匙的地方，跑去了我的抽屉，拿了一块帽子边饰，把它全部剪碎做娃娃的夹克！ —

I never saw anything like it, in my life!”
我从没见过这样的事情！”

“I told you, Cousin,” said Marie, “that you’d find out that these creatures can’t be brought up without severity. —
“我告诉过你，表妹，”玛丽说，“你会发现这些生物在没有严厉教育下是无法教养的。 —

If I had my way, now,” she said, looking reproachfully at St. Clare, “I’d send that child out, and have her thoroughly whipped; —
如果按照我的方式，”她责备地看着圣克莱尔说，“我就会让那个孩子出去，彻底打她一顿； —

I’d have her whipped till she couldn’t stand!”
直到她站不起来！”

“I don’t doubt it,” said St. Clare. “Tell me of the lovely rule of woman! —
“我不怀疑，”圣克莱尔说。“告诉我女人可爱的规则！” —

I never saw above a dozen women that wouldn’t half kill a horse, or a servant, either, if they had their own way with them!–let alone a man.”
我从来没见过超过十几个女人，她们如果能随心所欲的话，会使马或仆人半死不活，更别提男人了。

“There is no use in this shilly-shally way of yours, St. Clare!” —
“你这样犹豫不决没有用，圣克莱尔！” —

said Marie. “Cousin is a woman of sense, and she sees it now, as plain as I do.”
玛丽说道。”表姐是个明智的女人，现在像我一样清楚明白了。”

Miss Ophelia had just the capability of indignation that belongs to the thorough-paced housekeeper, and this had been pretty actively roused by the artifice and wastefulness of the child; —
奥菲丽亚小姐正是那种彻头彻尾的管家才具备的愤怒能力，孩子们的做作和浪费令她相当激动； —

in fact, many of my lady readers must own that they should have felt just so in her circumstances; —
事实上，许多贵夫人读者必须承认，在她的情况下，她们的感觉会和她一样； —

but Marie’s words went beyond her, and she felt less heat.
但玛丽的话超出了她的理解范畴，于是她感到不再那么愤怒。

“I wouldn’t have the child treated so, for the world,” she said; —
“我绝不想让孩子受这种对待，为了这个世界”，她说； —

“but, I am sure, Augustine, I don’t know what to do. I’ve taught and taught; —
“但是，我肯定，奥古斯丁，我不知道该怎么办。我教导了，又教导了； —

I’ve talked till I’m tired; I’ve whipped her; —
我谈话到了累的地步；我打了她； —

I’ve punished her in every way I can think of, and she’s just what she was at first.”
我尽我所能想到的方法惩罚了她，但她仍然和一开始一样。”

“Come here, Tops, you monkey!” said St. Clare, calling the child up to him.
“过来，Tops，你这只猴子！”圣克莱尔说，叫孩子走过来。

Topsy came up; her round, hard eyes glittering and blinking with a mixture of apprehensiveness and their usual odd drollery.
Topsy走了过来；她那圆圆的、硬邦邦的眼睛闪烁着，混合着忧虑和她通常怪模怪样的幽默。

“What makes you behave so?” said St. Clare, who could not help being amused with the child’s expression.
“你为什么这样行为？”圣克莱尔说，看着孩子表情中逗乐不住。

“Spects it’s my wicked heart,” said Topsy, demurely; “Miss Feely says so.”
“我想是因为我的邪恶心”，Topsy谨慎地说道；”菲丽小姐是这么说的”。

“Don’t you see how much Miss Ophelia has done for you? —
“你难道没看到奥菲丽亚小姐为你做了多少吗？” —

She says she has done everything she can think of.”
她说她已经尽力做了一切她想到的事情。

“Lor, yes, Mas’r! old Missis used to say so, too. —
“劳，是的，爷呀！老太太也常说这样的话。 —

She whipped me a heap harder, and used to pull my har, and knock my head agin the door; —
她打我更狠，还抓我的头发，拿我的头砰门； —

but it didn’t do me no good! I spects, if they ’s to pull every spire o’ har out o’ my head, it wouldn’t do no good, neither,–I ’s so wicked! —
但这一点好处都没有！我觉得，就算他们把我头上的每根头发都拔光，也没用，——我太邪恶了！ —

Laws! I ’s nothin but a nigger, no ways!”
天呐！我什么也不是，只是一个黑奴，无足轻重！”

“Well, I shall have to give her up,” said Miss Ophelia; “I can’t have that trouble any longer.”
“嗯，我只好放弃她了，”奥菲利亚小姐说，“我不能再忍受这种麻烦了。”

“Well, I’d just like to ask one question,” said St. Clare.
“嗯，我只想问一个问题，”圣克莱说。

“What is it?”
“什么问题？”

“Why, if your Gospel is not strong enough to save one heathen child, that you can have at home here, all to yourself, what’s the use of sending one or two poor missionaries off with it among thousands of just such? —
“为什么如果你们的福音连一个在家里就能拯救的异教徒孩子都拯救不了，那你们还要派一两个可怜的传教士去传教给成千上万个同类呢？ —

I suppose this child is about a fair sample of what thousands of your heathen are.”
我想这个孩子大概是你们众多异教徒的一个公正样本。”

Miss Ophelia did not make an immediate answer; —
奥菲利亚小姐没有立刻回答； —

and Eva, who had stood a silent spectator of the scene thus far, made a silent sign to Dopsy to follow her. —
那时已经静静地观看着这场景的伊娃看了一眼道普西，示意她跟着她。 —

There was a little glass-room at the corner of the verandah, which St. Clare used as a sort of reading-room; —
走廊尽头有一个小玻璃房间，圣克莱把它当作一种阅读室； —

and Eva and Topsy disappeared into this place.
伊娃和托普西消失在了这个地方。

“What’s Eva going about, now?” said St. Clare; “I mean to see.”
“伊娃现在要做什么？”圣克莱说，“我要去看看。”

And, advancing on tiptoe, he lifted up a curtain that covered the glass-door, and looked in. —
他踮起脚尖，悄悄把遮在玻璃门上的窗帘掀开，往里面看去。 —

In a moment, laying his finger on his lips, he made a silent gesture to Miss Ophelia to come and look. —
他立刻用手指拢住嘴唇，示意欧菲利亚小姐过来看。 —

There sat the two children on the floor, with their side faces towards them. —
那两个孩子坐在地板上，脸侧对着他们。 —

Topsy, with her usual air of careless drollery and unconcern; —
托普希一如往常的漫不经心的滑稽神态； —

but, opposite to her, Eva, her whole face fervent with feeling, and tears in her large eyes.
但相对的，伊娃的整张脸充满了感情，眼睛里满是泪水。

“What does make you so bad, Topsy? Why won’t you try and be good? Don’t you love anybody, Topsy?”
“托普希，为什么你会这么坏呢？为什么你不试着做一个好孩子？你难道不爱任何人, 托普希？”

“Donno nothing ‘bout love; I loves candy and sich, that’s all,” said Topsy.
“不知道爱是什么；我只爱糖果和这些，就这些”，托普希说。

“But you love your father and mother?”
“但你爱你的爸爸妈妈吗？”

“Never had none, ye know. I telled ye that, Miss Eva.”
“我从来就没有爸爸妈妈，你知道的。我告诉过你了，伊娃小姐”。

“O, I know,” said Eva, sadly; “but hadn’t you any brother, or sister, or aunt, or–”
“哦，我知道”，伊娃悲伤地说；”但难道你没有兄弟姐妹、姑姑或者–”

“No, none on ‘em,–never had nothing nor nobody.”
“没有，一个也没有，从来没有过任何人和任何东西”。

“But, Topsy, if you’d only try to be good, you might–”
“但是，托普希，如果你试着做个好孩子，也许你会–”

“Couldn’t never be nothin’ but a nigger, if I was ever so good,” said Topsy. “If I could be skinned, and come white, I’d try then.”
“就算再好，也不可能做出别的，我永远只能是一个黑人”，托普希说。”如果我可以剥皮变白，那时我就会尝试”

“But people can love you, if you are black, Topsy. Miss Ophelia would love you, if you were good.”
“但即使你是黑人，人们也会爱你的，托普希。如果你变好了，奥斐利亚小姐会爱你的”。

Topsy gave the short, blunt laugh that was her common mode of expressing incredulity.
托普希发出了她常用的简短刻薄的笑声，表示不相信。

“Don’t you think so?” said Eva.
“难道你不这么认为吗？”伊娃说。

“No; she can’t bar me, ‘cause I’m a nigger!–she’d ’s soon have a toad touch her! —
“不；她不能驱逐我，因为我是个黑鬼！她宁可让一只蟾蜍碰她！ —

There can’t nobody love niggers, and niggers can’t do nothin’! —
没有人会爱黑鬼，黑鬼什么都做不了！ —

I don’t care,” said Topsy, beginning to whistle.
“我才不在乎呢，”托普西说着开始吹口哨。

“O, Topsy, poor child, I love you!” said Eva, with a sudden burst of feeling, and laying her little thin, white hand on Topsy’s shoulder; —
“哦，托普西，可怜的孩子，我爱你！”伊娃突然爆发出强烈的情感，将她苗条的小白手放在托普西的肩膀上； —

“I love you, because you haven’t had any father, or mother, or friends; —
“我爱你，因为你没有父亲、母亲或朋友； —

–because you’ve been a poor, abused child! I love you, and I want you to be good. —
–因为你是个可怜、受虐待的孩子！我爱你，我希望你能善良。 —

I am very unwell, Topsy, and I think I shan’t live a great while; —
我病得很厉害，托普西，我想我不会活很久； —

and it really grieves me, to have you be so naughty. —
看到你这么调皮，真的让我伤心。 —

I wish you would try to be good, for my sake; —
为了我，请你试着变好； —

–it’s only a little while I shall be with you.”
–我只会和你在一起很短的时间。”

The round, keen eyes of the black child were overcast with tears; —
这位黑孩子的圆圆锐利的眼睛被泪水打湿； —

–large, bright drops rolled heavily down, one by one, and fell on the little white hand. —
–大而明亮的泪珠沉重地一颗颗滚下来，落在那只小小的白手上。 —

Yes, in that moment, a ray of real belief, a ray of heavenly love, had penetrated the darkness of her heathen soul! —
是的，在那一刻，真正的信仰之光，天堂般的爱的光芒，穿透了她异教的灵魂的黑暗！ —

She laid her head down between her knees, and wept and sobbed,–while the beautiful child, bending over her, looked like the picture of some bright angel stooping to reclaim a sinner.
她将头埋在双膝之间，哭泣起来，–而站在她身旁的美丽孩子，看起来仿佛是一尊光明的天使，俯身以拯救一个罪人。

“Poor Topsy!” said Eva, “don’t you know that Jesus loves all alike? —
“可怜的托普西!“伊娃说，”你不知道耶稣是一样地爱着所有人吗? —

He is just as willing to love you, as me. —
他愿意像爱我一样地爱你， —

He loves you just as I do,–only more, because he is better. He will help you to be good; —
他爱你就像我一样，只不过更多，因为他更好。他会帮助你变得更好； —

and you can go to Heaven at last, and be an angel forever, just as much as if you were white. —
你最后也可以去天堂，永远做天使，就像你是白人一样。 —

Only think of it, Topsy!–you can be one of those spirits bright, Uncle Tom sings about.”
想想看，托普西！——你可以成为汤姆叔叔唱的那些明亮的精灵之一。”

“O, dear Miss Eva, dear Miss Eva!” said the child; —
“哦，亲爱的伊娃小姐，亲爱的伊娃小姐！”孩子说； —

“I will try, I will try; I never did care nothin’ about it before.”
“我会努力的，我会努力的；以前我从来不在意这件事。”

St. Clare, at this instant, dropped the curtain. —
就在此时，圣克莱拉拉上了帘子。 —

“It puts me in mind of mother,” he said to Miss Ophelia. “It is true what she told me; —
“这让我想起了妈妈，”他对奥菲利亚小姐说。 “她告诉我是真的； —

if we want to give sight to the blind, we must be willing to do as Christ did,–call them to us, and put our hands on them.”
如果我们想要让瞎眼的人看见，我们必须愿意像基督一样去做，——召唤他们到我们这里，并伸出手来摸他们。”

“I’ve always had a prejudice against negroes,” said Miss Ophelia, “and it’s a fact, I never could bear to have that child touch me; —
“我一直有偏见对待黑人，”奥菲利亚小姐说，”事实上，我从来不忍心让那孩子碰我； —

but, I don’t think she knew it.”
但我不认为她知道这一点。”

“Trust any child to find that out,” said St. Clare; “there’s no keeping it from them. —
“相信孩子总会发现的，”圣克莱尔说；”根本瞒不住他们。 —

But I believe that all the trying in the world to benefit a child, and all the substantial favors you can do them, will never excite one emotion of gratitude, while that feeling of repugnance remains in the heart; —
但我相信，世界上无论做多少努力来造福一个孩子，无论你能为他们做出多少实质性的好事，只要心里存在着这种厌恶的感觉，都不会激起一丝感激之情； —

–it’s a queer kind of a fact,–but so it is.”
–这是一种奇怪的事实，–但就是这样。”

“I don’t know how I can help it,” said Miss Ophelia; —
“我不知道我怎么能帮上忙，”奥菲利亚小姐说； —

“they are disagreeable to me,–this child in particular,–how can I help feeling so?”
“他们对我来说确实令人不愉快，尤其是这个孩子，我怎么能不这样感觉呢？

“Eva does, it seems.”
“似乎伊娃不这样。”

“Well, she’s so loving! After all, though, she’s no more than Christ-like,” said Miss Ophelia; —
“嗯，她是如此仁爱！尽管如此，她毕竟只是像基督一样，”奥菲利亚小姐说； —

“I wish I were like her. She might teach me a lesson.”
“我多希望我像她一样。她可能能教会我一个道理。”

“It wouldn’t be the first time a little child had been used to instruct an old disciple, if it were so,” said St. Clare.
“如果是这样的话，那也不是第一次一个小孩被用来教导一个老门徒了，”圣克莱尔说。